Xilaw

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

House is up, same as before and I shall edit history with change of the counts.

@gowia

Excellent :) waiting for others to at least give me the family names so I can randomly pick the counts. In case I pick you again I'll assign you with Rastenburg so you don't have to change anything.

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

@thorgili@Murtox welcome aboard! Feel free to ask away any questions.

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

Im gunna use the von Hoffendolts again. I will edot my history and post it here when i am on my laptop and i know who the 4 counts are.

@gowia

Well, the four counts will be changed, of course, since we have no people joining in this time. I will randomly pick the out again.

By the way, I've added several more jobs for the nobility in the Info section.

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

I just ask cause its difficult to do that one my chromebook.

@Cold Hands

I see. Well you don't have to do it. It's not necessary. I only did it because it's easier to depict a family tree that way. You can just make a quick draft on paper for yourself and work out a Family History. I, or someone else who'd be willing, could make you a graphic representation later on.

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

I will get started on mine in time but I'm curious on one thing. How are you making the extensive family tree?

@Cold Hands

Do you mean the graphic representation? I used Paint

PS: I copy/pasted my family history (with minor alteration) meaning the family names I named as counts are from the previous RP. I will edit that once everyone gives me their family name so I can randomly pick 4 people to be the counts in their place.

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

VON RITTENBERG FAMILY

Family Crest:

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Von Rittenberg family history:

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Karl von Rittenberg (1172-1223):
The story goes that the founder of the family was a young man known by the name Karl Schultz. Little is known about him and the first mentions are after he received the title of Burgrave. According to old manuscripts he was a landless knight who was in service of Duke Frederick I of Austria who went to the Holy Land during the Crusade of 1197 AD and returned the next year a rich man. Not much is known about how he got wealthy, however, it is recorded that the Duke himself was very satisfied with his services and rewarded him a fief - a small town with a run down fortified manor called Rittenberg. According to later family Chronicles it is known he had three children: the elder son Otto born in 1199AD, a daughter named Liesa born in 1203AD who was later married off to an unknown noble, and the youngest child Konrad born in 1206AD. During Karl’s reign, Von Rittenberg family expanded it’s holdings through loyalty to the Count of Manburg and the family estates from then on included three more villages including Alfenau. He would venture out once again proving his worth against Al-Andalus Muslims in the Iberian peninsula while he was accompanying his sovereign, duke Leopold VI who was partaking in the Reconquista in the year of 1212AD. He retired his reign early in favor of his eldest son and became a monk some time later until his death in 1223AD. Family legend says that Karl was in fact an impoverished noble and that the family name reaches much further in past, claiming even direct ancestry from Charlamagne, although there are no sources to support this.

Otto von Rittenberg (1199-1267):
According to the family chronicles he rose to become head of the family around the year 1220AD, taking the throne of Rittenberg castle and giving two of the villages to his younger brother Konrad. Otto was a prominent military leader who joined the Holy call at the young age of 18, and went on the fifth Crusade with some 50 men in 1217AD and in the late summer of 1218AD he was recorded fighting at the successful siege of Damietta together with his monarch. After Austrian forces had arrived home in late spring of 1219AD he was awarded even more fiefs, now also including the fortress of Bunenburg and the surrounding villages. During the war between Austria and it’s neighbors, he sided with the Austrian duke Frederick II, but later switched sides. He continued to rule family heirloom - Rittenberg, which by the end of his rule became a strongly fortified castle. He died in 1267AD and lived long enough to see his family take the next step in the Austrian politics. Otto had two children, a son Otto born in 1227AD, and a daughter Hilda born in 1230AD.

Otto II von Rittenberg (1227-1292):
Otto II showed great oration skills from young age, being taught philosophy and the arts of diplomacy. He later utilized these gifts to further his ambitions that were basically continuation of his father’s goals. He was given a small village to manage by his father by the time he was 18 but he would usually neglect it and instead go on military expeditions during the confusing Austrian Interregnum that lasted for nearly thirty years. In 1260AD Count Olaf von Manburg died without an heir, leaving a lot of his estates, but most importantly the title of count, behind with no owner. Because of his great loyalty and ambitious attitude, Otto II rose the family name to prominence after receiving the title of Count from Frederick I of Baden. The fast paced rise of his family name fed his ambitions and ego even further when he took some land off from minor nobles and awarded them to his father and uncle Konrad in the same year. Otto became Count of Manburg and after his father’s death, he gave the Rittenberg castle to his uncle, who was then given the title of Burgrave. Konrad died as well only 12 years later and was succeeded by his only son, Oskar von Rittenberg. Otto II had two children: daughter Julia born in 1252AD and a son Karl born in 1253AD.

Karl II von Rittenberg (1251-1293):
Family chronicles do not mention him much while growing up. It is said that he fell off a horse at a young age and had a limp for the rest of his life, earning him the nickname “Lame”. He was not especially gifted at anything in particular, however his loyalty to the Habsburgs further advanced his position, especially marrying his sister to a powerful noble in Bavaria later during his reign. He ascended to the throne in Manburg in 1292AD. He was especially very close to his cousin Oskar II, son of Oskar I, who became Burgrave of Rittenberg, after his elder brother was killed by a band of outlaws in an ambush in 1284AD. The two would often go hunting for wildlife. Karl died in 1294AD from an illness, leaving his young son in control of the family estates. Karl II had two sons: Otto born in 1278AD and Rudolf born in 1282AD.

Otto III von Rittenberg (1282-1312):
Otto succeeded his father at a young age of fifteen, after his father’s untimely death. His mother was the daughter of an old noble family that had some possessions south of Manburg. After their line died out in 1300AD, Von Rittenbergs inherited the city of Bauerdorf and some smaller villages. Bauerdorf was placed under the rule of Otto’s younger brother Rudolf in the same year. Like his father, Otto also maintained good relations with the secondary branch of the family, confirming their holdings and giving them a share of the newly inherited ones after year 1300AD. Otto III, Rudolf, Oskar and his sons, Konrad and Oskar II, were great supporters of Duke Albert I. They raised a combined force of around 1000 men and joined his forces at the battle of Gollheim in 1298AD against Albert’s rival for the title of the Holy Roman Emperor, Adolf of Nassau. Adolf was slain in battle and Albert I became the new Emperor of the Germans. For their combined effort, Von Rittenberg family received a sizable land in the county of Rastenburg. The land would was then given in it’s entirety to Oskar II lineage and in return, Oskar gave some villages back to Otto III in County of Manburg, while keeping Rittenberg castle and it’s surrounding villages. By the year 1308AD, most of the counties of Manburg and Rastenburg were under Rittenberg family control. In 1312AD an accident shook the family as young Rudolf was shot by an arrow in a hunting accident. He died a few weeks later leaving two young boys behind, Otto and Ulrich. His fiefs were absorbed by his older brother Otto III, who gave back his brother’s lands to his nephews when they grew old enough. Otto III married twice, both times marrying into surrounding noble houses, however he did not have an heir. He died in 1353AD with no one to inherit him.

Otto IV von Rittenberg (1305-1374):
Otto was known as a cunning individual, exceptionally smart and well-read. He, lost his father very early on, after which he looked up to his uncle, Otto III, who saw his younger brother in the two boys, but treated them like his own sons he never had. And while the eldest was poised from early on, the younger Ulrich was a mischievous. Otto III realized the potentials of both boys early on and directed them on their own path in order to highlight their talents. Otto IV was then sent off to study at the university, while young Ulrich was taught combat and leadership. In 1323AD Otto IV returned from his studies and was given land of his father. By this time, his younger brother Ulrich was a squire at his uncle’s court in Manburg. Otto IV became the lord of Bauerdorf, showing his administrative skills very early when he turned the town into a trading haven in under five years, bringing a lot of fortune to his family. He would often travel to Rittenberg to see his cousins. He was very good with Ferdinand II, however he devloped rivalry with Konrad III, who had shown ambitions in taking over the primate in the family by overthrowing the main family line. Ferdinand II died in 1342AD as the lord of Bunenberg, leaving no heirs after dying in battle against the Bohemians. His older brother took his land. During late 1350s Austria came into a power struggle between several Habsuburgs who were fighting for supremacy after the death of Albert II, when three of his sons were fighting for the throne. During the Austrian Civil war, factions were established with most of north west Austria being in favor of Albert’s second son Frederick III, while Vienna, Styria and the lands to the south were loyal to Rudolf IV. Albert III gained some support in the far-west, in Tyrol and parts of Salzburg and Carinthia. Two cousins had to put aside their differences in order to combine their forces and fight along side Frederick III. In 1356AD Rudolf’s army of around 7 000 men marched west against his younger brother. Frederick and his supporters managed to put together an army of 8000 men, 2000 of which were under Rittenberg command. The battle took place on 18th of May 1356AD near Manningen and the outcome was a decisive victory of Frederick III. Rudolf managed to escape while his army endured heavy losses. However, the battle merely stalled the inevitable. Only two years later Rudolf launched another attack, this time through duchy of Greinburg, crushing his brother’s army and killing him in battle. His supporters were routed, including Otto and his cousin. Frederick III died without an heir and the fear of retaliation lead to a more ambitious idea of the Rittenbergs, who allied with the lords of Linz in the same year in order to separate entirely from Austria and form their own country.

Formation of the duchy:
In the contemporary Annals of St. Bernardine monk Eckbert it says that until 1360AD much of Frederick’s old lands were conquered by Rudolf except for castles owned by Rittenbergs and Glauenburgs of Linz. The castles were fortified well and Rudolf didn’t have the manpower to siege them. In addition, he was still fighting his other brother Albert III, who gained support from Bavaria and managed to hold off his brother’s raids. After a crushing defeat of Rudolf’s men against his younger brother and the Bavarians, the Rittenbergs and Glauenburgs managed to take back lost lands, including villages and some towns. Glauenburgs gained support in the west who joined them by 1362AD forming a Duchy of Linz. Rittenbergs, however, had less luck being relatively close to Vienna. However, as separatism grew stronger in other areas including Carniola, Carinthania, Salzburg and Styria, Rittenbergs finally managed to retake most of remaining Frederick’s lands, which included five counties. In 1367AD, Otto IV was given the title of a duke by the pope, while many more monarchs recognized the duchy sending support in attempt to diminish Habsburg’s strength and disrupt their quick rise to power. Rittenbergs, in particular, received a lot of aid from the Bohemians, who were rivals of the Habsburgs for some time.With Vienna being reduced to only one eighth of it’s original size and facing a much stronger adversary they were forced to concede defeat and recognize independence of the new states. Otto IV gave the county of Rastenburg to his cousin Konrad III for his support and gave him the title of a count. In the following years, with pope’s permission a bishopric was established in the duchy with the seat in Ardagger. Villages were being rebuilt and new castles were constructed along the Duchy’s borders in order to prevent future attempts of raids. Family chronicles also state that Otto then awarded his supporters from his lands, with the most prominent houses being elevated to the title of count. James III of Beldon was given the county of Lichtenau, Jean de Fleurs was given the county of Dobersberg and Ebert von Graffe was given the county of Greinburg.

After formation:
After duchies were formed there was a fear among them of an outside power taking Austria’s place and conquering them so the duchies of Manburg, Linz and the Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg allied each other. Otto married his daughter Margaretha to Hartwig von Glauenburg, heir to the duchy of Linz in order to bring the two duchies together. This marked a short period of peace and prosperity. Duchy of Carniola in the south fell under Venetian influence relatively soon after it’s creation while the other states were safe for a while. In 1372AD Rudolf’s son and Austrian duke Albert III attacked the duchy of Manburg in attempt to retake the lands his father lost. The Austrians plundered and razed villages along the border for a few months before besieging the castle of Glauberg with a 10 000 strong army. Otto IV quickly assembled an army of some 5000 men and was joined by 2000 more from duchy of Linz lead by Otto’s son-in-law Hartwig. Despite being outnumbered, the allied force managed to beat back the Austrians thanks to brilliance of Otto’s brother Urlich. The invasion was prevented, however it was not long until Austrians tried again and in 1373AD they came back with 8000 men and besieged Rittenberg. Having a great sentimental and tactical importance of the castle, Otto IV assembled his army again with the help of Linz and marched on to meet the Austrians with some 8000 men. The battle occurred in the outskirts of the castle with an evenly sized armies, however, Ulrich’s talent came in to play once again and the Manburgians with the allies managed to rout the enemies. After some minor clashes later in the same year, Austria facing annihilation and great losses in manpower had no other choice but to sign truce for 10 years. As the allies were cheering the victory things back home were far from peachy. While Otto and his brother were in Austria fighting the enemy, Otto’s cousin Konrad III was gaining support to lead a rebellion and overthrow him. The old rivalry resurfaced in the most daring of times and the battle occurred in 1374AD in the forest near the village of Grafenschlag between some 2000 men of Otto IV against 1500 men of Konrad III. Both leaders were slain in battle, ending the old rivalry and the short-lived civil war. Otto IV had two children: Rudolf and Margaretha.

Rudolf II of Rittenberg (1332- ):
Rudolf was born in 1332AD as the oldest of the two children of Otto IV. He was born in the time of great wars and his family’s struggle for power, in which he actively participated in along with his father and uncle. He is a decent military leader but his talent lies in administration, a talent necessary especially for a duchy that he inherited, which was destroyed by a succession war, a war of independence, a defensive war and a civil war. During his father’s reign, he was given the village of Gerungen when he was 18 and the town of Bauerdorf by the time he was 25. In 1374AD he inherited his father’s title and land. Fearing a similar faith of his father, his first move was to take away land from his cousins and diminish their power in the duchy. Therefore, title of count was taken away from Konrad III’s successors. Konrad’s son Ferdinand III inherited Rittenberg and the title of Burgrave while the younger son, Oskar II inherited the title Burgrave and the castle of Bunenberg. Oskar II died in 1388AD leaving his land to his son Oskar III. After the county of Rastenburg was left without a count, Rudolf gave it to a man that helped his father win the battle against Konrad, Hubert Von Hoffendolt. In 1396AD a crusader force of Hungarians, Germans, French and other Christians marched against the Ottomans in an attempt to push them out of Europe. Among the Crusaders were Heinrich von Rittenberg, son of Ferdinand III and Oskar III, son of Oskar II, both grandsons of Konrad III. The Crusader army met with the Turks at Nicopolis and after a bloody battle, the Christians were completely crushed. The two Rittenbergs both died in battle with some 200 of their men. Their estates were absorbed by other noble families. Rudolf II has two children, son Rudolf III born in 1367AD, current lord of Bauendorf, and a daughter Manuela born in 1371AD, wife of Kaspar von Steurberg, son of the Carinthian duke. Rudolf III has a son Otto born in 1392.

Family tree:

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House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN:

In a world where blue blood is power, where one man is a seed that grows into a powerful dynasty, there is a land desperately grasping for greatness. A land small in size but grand in ambition. A land of grandeur, culture and progress but also of death, destruction and greed. Where knowledge is power and money is method.

Welcome to Duchy of Manburg and House of the Rising Sun Roleplay!

Setting:

You are in control of a noble family in the Duchy of Manburg located in the lands of what was once known as Duchy of Austria. The Austrian Duchy fractured into several smaller states after a long civil war that started off as a power struggle between sons of a deceased duke and ended with separatist movements of the strong noble families, one of which were the von Rittenbergs, your monarchs.
You are in control of up to 15 family members (both male and female) of your royal house that were awarded lands in the duchy. The duchy is divided into four counties and land directly under the Duke. With your family finally on the radar of medieval politics, you are soon to find that nobility is not all milk and honey. You find yourself in a society where the conniving and power hungry thrive and where true friends are as rare as medieval hygiene.

Your goal is to further your family in the social hierarchy possibly even aiming at the throne itself. May it be through honor and justice or belligerence and manipulation, it is completely up to you. Fighting other noble houses for power in the realm is nothing foreign to the lands of Manburg. But you better be careful when you do it. The rulers do not appreciate their manpower being wasted on internal disputes.

Information:

These are mostly technicalities to serve you as basic information on the game and the medieval way of life to keep things realistic.

Information

*Total number of families in this RP will not exceed 10, not including own (may change later).

*There are a total of four count titles. They are picked at random from the people that have applied. These titles can be achieved by any noble family that goes far enough to earn them.

*The noble ranks are as follows:
1)Herzog (Duke)- title of the head of the ruling family. Can own towns, castles, villages and mines.
2)Graf (Count)- four titles awarded to the heads of four different families. Can own towns, castles, villages and mines.
3)Burgraf (Burgrave)- a title given to a castle owner. Can own castles, villages and mines.
4)Herr (Lord)- a title given to any noble. Can own towns, castles, villages and mines.
5)Ritter (Knight)- a title given to good soldiers or those that trained to become knights. Can own villages.
6)Edler- small noble. Most likely an impoverished noble or one that bought his title with money. Can own mines and small businesses in towns as a source of income.

*Other professions for nobility:
1) Cleric (bishops are highest in a county. Have the power to elect a archbishop)
2) Advisor
3) Constable (local jurisdiction within a town/castle)
4) Bailiff (local sheriff of a county. Appointed by a count)
5) Magistrate (local judge within a county. Appointed by a count)

*Noble professions that have time terms:
1) Chancellor (appointed by the duke. Takes care of legal issues like passing laws, diplomacy and such. 4 year term)
2) Military marshal (appointed by the duke. Equivalent of minister of defense. 2 year term)
3) State treasurer (appointed by the duke. Deals with country's financial issues. 2 year term)
4) Archbishop (appointed by county bishops and the bishop of Manburg - 5 in total. 10 year term)

*A child becomes a knight through following process:
1) At the age of 7 they become a page at the court of a noble (errand boy).
2) At the age of 14 they become a squire (shield/armor bearer). Knight's personal assistant.
3) At the age of 21 they are knighted by either a duke or a count, depending where he is from.

*Recruitment of troops comes in three ways: recruitment of professional army (average cost, good fighters), mercenaries (high cost, excellent fighters) levies (low cost, bad fighters, large number).

*Available mercenaries are: (Genoese crossbowmen, Welsh longbowmen, Castillan heavy cavalry, Rascian light cavalry, Swiss pikemen, Gaelic gallowglass, mixed mercenary bands).

*Currency used in game will be ducats.

*One RL day equals to 3 in-game months. Starting date of the RP is 1st of January, 1400AD.

*This is a model of the feudal system we will use:

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*There is currently over 60 different events that will occur throughout the Roleplay. Some are historical and some are purely fictional.

*There will be PvP and PvE warfare. PvE battle is written entirely by the player engaged in the battle. Be realistic and don't go overboard with numbers. As for PvP, this should be discussed between players in PM (size of armies, outcome, location, strategy, etc). PvP can be written by both players from each point of view (but the outcome must be the same), or just by the winner.

Troop Tree:

These are just rough guidelines of troops you could find in a medieval army, though if you believe something is left out you are free to implement it. Knowing these various troops will come in handy when describing battles, etc. More troops will be implemented later (cannons and such).

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Regulars:
~Archers: Bowmen => Skirmishers => Archers => Crossbowmen
~Infantry: Militants => Footmen => Sergeants => Landed knights
~Cavalry: Horsemen => Men-At-Arms => Mounted squires => Mounted knights

Mercenaries:
*A mixed mercenary band
*Welsh longbowmen
*Genoese crossbowmen
*Rascian light cavalry
*Castillan heavy cavalry
*Gaelic Gallowglass
*Swiss pikemen
*elite mercenary band

Maps:

Maps will be updated accordingly as the game progresses.

Maps

Political map of Europe:


Administrative map of Duchy of Manburg:


Geographic map of Duchy of Manburg:

Application form:

The application form should contain Family name (preferably German with prefix 'von' or 'zu', but also Italian, Hungarian, Czech or maybe even French is acceptable), family history and family tree. Coat of arms is most welcome but not necessary. I will post mine in the OC section for everyone to see what it should look like.

SUGGESTION: I personally found it a lot easier to make a family tree first and then develop a family history using the family tree as guidance.

People who have shown interest:

• @Gowia - House von Hoffendolt (German)
• @UltikanaRe - House von Drosendorf (German)
• @LordZell - House von Bavaria (German)
• @Cold Hands - House von Klavadio (German)
• @thorgili - House von Graffe (German)
• @mrambo90 - House Beldon (English)
• @Inkdrop

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

The OP is up:

http://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/84894-house-of-the-rising-sun-reloaded/ooc

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

I'm interested but I do have a question. Is it required that we all be from the same realm?

@Cold Hands

Yes. That is the kicker. We are families in the same state fighting under the same banner when threatened by outside powers (not necessarily). But we also fight between each others for power within our own state.
Think of Duchy of Manburg as any other nation Roleplay. Everyone has their own territory, economy, military, etc. We struggle for power within that realm. Now, unlike other Nation RPs, this one involves the outside world, as well. It's like adding a whole other dimension which now includes significant PvE interaction.

I'm glad this many people have shown interest. For those of you who have applied for the previous RP and have made your families, you are free to re-use them if you want to, of course.

House of the Rising Sun [reloaded]

Interested. Not going to say anything too binding, but I have some NS ideas.

@UltikanaRe

Excellent. Thank you for taking interest.