The conquest of the native tribes was rather straightforward, with only the Caddo needing a larger military garrison due to the lack of shared faith and custom. The changes to the lives of the Passamaquoddy and Hitchiti are fairly minimal with Elysian occupation, and aside from the usual unrest and occasional minor revolt you expect that things will be quiet on that front. The institution of the Theme Development Office has resulted in a bombardment of reports from a more local level than was previously possible, with reports of new offices and sponsorship of local business, the expansion of roads to new areas, and vigorous exploitation of the local resources. While the initial cost seems to be quite high, being slightly above those estimated by the imperial administration, you are assured this is the result of inefficiencies introduced at the local level rather than corruption. The disadvantages will, you are told, be rapidly outweighed by the more rapid institution of what constitutes civilization to those areas.
Fantastic news, this should speed up a lock of background processes needed to get "civilization" going in a lot of places that are rather sparse right now. Shame it gutted our treasury though.
Certainly you are already seeing the benefits of the coastal expansion of facilities and supply, with your new shipbuilding finding plenty of new recruits in the Neo Londinion area and your shipwrights provided with plentiful timber by the new lumbermills that have expanded under imperial patronage. It has coincided with further interest from state-controlled monopolies in the trade flow abroad, with Elysia having an official presence in nearly every major port to be found in the New World. For the moment their role is mostly keeping an eye on affairs. With the Iberian powers driven from the area and France's influence being minor at most, foreign traders have no choice but to come to New Constantinople to acquire New World goods - and pay the associated tolls and costs. Of course, Mexico could one day be an issue if they are allowed to grow and they accumulate Catholic immigrants. But recent affairs render that unlikely.
This will substantially strengthen our naval shipbuilding abilities, which will mean we can possibly range farther afield and consolidate the Caribbean into our sphere of influence even more than before. The Mexico bit is ominous though...
Mexico has imploded. After skirmishing with the natives and suffering a crushing defeat, the general of the defeated army successful argued that it was the incompetent orders of a fractured and disunited council that was the cause. He then gained the support of several settlements and overthrew the council by force, declaring himself King Fernando the Fifth. This particular brand of megalomania did not escape the notice of most of the rest of Mexico, who promptly decided that if they were going to have the King it certainly wasn't going to be him, and declared their intention to invite King John to rule over them again. The resultant splintering means that the new Kingdom of Mexico is territorially smaller than the re-declared Castilian West Indies. It all strikes you as a touch farcical. France has yet to formally dissolve their alliance with Mexico, but you can't imagine it will survive much longer as a coherent state. Time and internal divisions seem to be taking care of the problem quite nicely.
...and for good reason, the power of bad dice rolls presumably strikes again. I know we're nowhere near close enough to take advantage of it, but it does make a tempting target for somebody.
News from further south is concerning - apparently in response to their seizure of Castilian colonies, the victorious Cocomes confederation has integrated distinctly European armaments and tactics into their armies. This came just in time for a major conflict with the K'ichi confederation, where their new innovations resulted in a crushing victory over their rival. In the past five years they have expanded their conquests to practically every Mayan civilization in the area, and declared themselves the divinely appointed rulers of all the Maya. Elysian traders are not especially welcome there, but there are blood-chilling accounts of human sacrifice from a few Castilian settlers who managed to sail down to Panama and escape. They account how their priests were lashed to posts and...your stomach turns at the description of the ritual. This is not the misguided worship of false and invisible things practices by the yet unconverted barbaroi. It is nothing less than glorification of the devil himself.
This is terrible news, consolidating control over Central America will make it that much harder for us to conquer it later on, and if they expand south they could threaten Panama. We'll have to station a larger naval and land force there to dissuade them and protect trade.
Yet there is little you can do. Distance plays much in these matters, and there is no punitive measure you can employ without force of arms. It is the matter of minutes to dispatch a message to the Patriarch on the matter with your thoughts of forbidding contact with the Maya, as well as an instruction that the man should meet with the witnesses of the atrocities and pray for the immortal souls of the martyred priests. Servants of the Latin Rite, yes, but martyrs nonetheless. It is not the only such note you dispatch, for the entire sordid affair has turned your mind to military matters. You write a speculative missive to General Basileous of the Elysian Tagma regarding your thoughts on implementing a commission to oversee military standards and equipment, as well as a reminder to the overseer of the colonial bureau to reach out the senate for patronage of new settlements - part of an idea to further encourage the growth of new areas.
Standardized military equipment? Yes please! That will hopefully reduce the cost of upgrading armaments in the future as our tech gets better.
France's settlement bordering the trade post of Neo Karchedon initially prompted some concern from the locals, but relations have been entirely cordial. The land is unclaimed and so you can hardly complain about it, and controlling the major natural harbours in the area means that Elysia has such influence that even the rest of the area being entirely French-controlled would not substantially alter your own control of the local trade - what little there is, in any case. For the moment your attention can be turned to internal matters, the power dynamics of Europe still fragile thanks to the Protestant Reformation and the struggles of the colonial powers at home.
Yes we have the best places for harbors, but that also means, if France's overseas power grows, that they might come knocking to take it from us...good thing our naval building capacity just got a substantial shot in the arm.
Monarch Points
Administrative: 195
Diplomatic: 130
Military: 200
Okay, this is what we got to work with. Great.
Projects
Technology
[ ] [160 Administrative] It has been acknowledged and known for over a thousand years that iron is a superior metal to bronze and copper, yet utilising it to full potential has always been challenging. But hotter furnaces and new innovations in technique are beginning to make it easier and quicker to melt the ore and produce higher-quality metal. This is the first step to an age of steel, one long overdue.
[ ] [80 Diplomatic] While much of Elysia's wealth comes from cotton and the tobacco leaf, the value of furs should not be underestimated. At present this industry has lagged behind the others due to lack of interest in their expansion compared to the more lucrative and straightforward plantations, but we must be prepared to grasp all advantages in our ascent to dominance over trade in the New World.
[ ] [110 Military] The square formation first pioneered by the Iberians and adopted as standard for pike and shot has proved its effectiveness on the battlefield, but the difficulty in manoeuvring the formation has become more and more of liability as opponents adapt to the weaknesses of the tactic. Splitting it into smaller and more mobile formations of the same type will reduce their protective quality, but is needed to preserve their strategic effectiveness.
Ideas
[ ] [60 Administrative] While the colonial bureau has been of great assistance to our expansion efforts, there is always room for improvement. They have been slow adopt new practices in response to the actions of the other colonizers, even if there are techniques or advantages in their methods. It's time to shake up the bureau and revitalise it with new blood. [Expansion Ideas]
Development
[ ] [100 Administrative] There is always room for tax reform, especially when it comes to poll taxes. Equally there are always projects that cost only time and effort that will improve conditions for the citizens and thus their health - public baths and aqueducts the most obvious among them. It can take a great deal of work on the part of the bureaucracy to put such plans into action, but the returns are worth it. (Increases development and tax income.) [Repeatable]
[ ] [100 Diplomatic] Incentivising the further production of valuable goods can be accomplished through tax cuts, sponsored initiatives, and investment. The trick is making sure you get out more than you put in. (Increases development and trade/production income.) [Repeatable]
[ ] [100 Military] Improving the pool of military recruits isn't as simple as telling the people to be fruitful and multiply, though it certainly helps. What is key is fostering a military culture that values skills that a soldier needs - archery, horseriding, discipline. We should always strive to ensure our raw recruits start a step up from the rest of the world. (Increases development and manpower.) [Repeatable]
Out of all of these, I'm tempted to do:
[ ] [160 Administrative] It has been acknowledged and known for over a thousand years that iron is a superior metal to bronze and copper, yet utilising it to full potential has always been challenging. But hotter furnaces and new innovations in technique are beginning to make it easier and quicker to melt the ore and produce higher-quality metal. This is the first step to an age of steel, one long overdue.
[ ] [100 Diplomatic] Incentivising the further production of valuable goods can be accomplished through tax cuts, sponsored initiatives, and investment. The trick is making sure you get out more than you put in. (Increases development and trade/production income.) [Repeatable]
[ ] [110 Military] The square formation first pioneered by the Iberians and adopted as standard for pike and shot has proved its effectiveness on the battlefield, but the difficulty in manoeuvring the formation has become more and more of liability as opponents adapt to the weaknesses of the tactic. Splitting it into smaller and more mobile formations of the same type will reduce their protective quality, but is needed to preserve their strategic effectiveness.
Admin bc we need to get another military edge over our enemies, primarily Cahokia, and steel is the best bet for that, even if we're ahead of time on it and it'll be more expensive as a result
Diple bc we need more development and trade/production income, so boosting that as much as possible prior to war with Cahokia makes sense.
Military bc we can only pick one choice, and this one will establish reforms to have our forces be more flexibile and possibly mobile, which we'll need against Cahokia.
And yes, all of my choices are for aiming for war with Cahokia, we can't wait any longer for them to get stronger. Even if we only take a large bit out of them it'll hurt them, which will give us some breathing room. More territory is always nice of course.
Other
[ ] [40 Administrative] Increase Stability. With a series of community initiatives and celebratory festivals you can improve the happiness of your citizens and their faith in the good-will and capabilities of their ruler. The citizen who thinks they live in a time of prosperity is a happy citizen. (Stability +1)
[ ] Prepare plans for a war of conquest against the X
[ ] Send a diplomatic mission to X (Goal)
I'd prepare for war against Cahokia, our latest reforms in artillery last turn and more mobile formations this turn should help a lot. We can't wait any longer, I feel.
Imperial Treasury
Balance: 1290
Hyperpyra: 1351
Treasury Projects
Buildings
[ ] [8500 Hyperpyra] The great fields of cotton and tobacco are the source of much of Elysia's wealth, but imperial investement has been primarily focused on more urbanised factors. Enticing people to move outside of the settlements and into the wilderness is an important factor in ensuring these novel industries thrive and remain competitive with the rest of the world.
[ ] [8000 Hyperpyra] Control of the Kykladian Sea and her many islands means that investment can finally be poured into the great sugar and coffee plantations that sporadically dot the area. Transforming these into colossal fields will be a major undertaking, and one not for the faint-hearted.
Naval
[ ] [55 Hyperpyra/-40 Expenses] [X Vessels] The capability of a nation to defend its borders is often the most important factor in whether it will have to defend them at all. The same applies on the sea as it does on land. The commissioning and maintenance of heavy warships will show that Elysia is willing to fight to preserve her interests and provide her the means to do so.
[ ] [22 Hyperpyra/-4 Expenses] [X Vessels] Trade made the merchant republics some of the richest in Europe, capable of toppling small nations if it meant more gold flowing into their coffers. Their large navies were in no small part responsible for this dominance, the sheer quantity of trade ships carrying goods giving them the money to finance their dominance of the sea. We would be wise to follow their example.
[ ] [120 Hyperpyra/-40 Expenses] [X Flotillas] The transport of troops is not simply a matter of cramming them onto a ship and setting sail. Supplies are needed, organisation talent, and ships designed for the purpose. To provide these necessary services, the cost of the ships required to transport one tagma of ten thousand troops has been determined.
Maybe a couple of heavy warships and trade vessels, but we should seriously save money for the larger projects in future turns.
