A Night So Deep-(A Supernatural Alt-History Quest Set in the Balkans)

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The Glory of the Roman Empire shall be reignited! From these humble beginnings, the fire has been lit!
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A Choice.
  • Threadmarks
    • Dapperlad1

    Dapperlad1

    Location
    Albania
    Pronouns
    He/Him
    The year is 1480 after the death of our Lord, Christ. Nearly a decade ago, the Ottoman Turks were pushed out of Europe by the efforts of Vlad Tepes III, at the head of an army of ghastly demons and vile monsters, he faced the invaders, defeated them and impaled their soldiery in a colossal wall across the Bosphorus, hundreds of thousands of corpses as a grim warning to invaders-

    You shall go no further.

    With the success in the east, the eyes of Dracula turned into Europe itself, clashing through local armies and decimating cities in a murderous march throughout the lands, everything from Athens to Vienna sieged, only stopped by the Holy Roman Empire marshalling its might and shattering the dark army.
    But it was not quite as easy as hoped, with the dissolution of his army, rather than simply fade away, the monsters spread across the world, festering in woods, sewers and caverns, multiplying in fell ways. His generals fractured, holding their own Balkan territory with their army remnants.

    And finally, most terrifyingly of all, Dracula himself is missing, his body was never recovered, and the battle never saw his inhuman strength or impossible magic in the field.

    With blood-drinking monsters ruling openly, the monstrosity who started all this missing and creatures infesting the land, turning the countryside from a peaceful farm-filled land into a dangerous, monster-ridden hell, some think the end-times have come. It is the bravest amongst the living that see the truth of the matter, land ready to be picked, people in need of saving and monsters that need slaying.
    Four factions lie ready, survivors or invaders of the realm, ready to pick up the spoils, and perhaps rebuild what's left.

    [X] The Eastern Roman Empire, the remnants of the grandest empire known to the world, now contained to the city of Constantinople. The Theodosian Walls were impenetrable, born of true Roman craft and imbued with that strength, and protected the citizens inside even as the rest of the empire was ravaged, either by Turk or Vampire. Now, with the disappearance of Dracula and the dissolution of the sieging armies, there is a grand opportunity for the Emperor to try and retake what is his to have.

    -Center of the World-The Great City is the centre of all trade, spices from the east flow through here to the west, money is made, and great political influence is acquired simply by its existence. Vast monetary wealth is to be expected, capable of funding massive programmes for any goal.

    -Ancient Roman Crafts-Whilst the Theodosian Walls are beyond modern means, Scorpions, Greek Fire and a thousand other inventions provided that which was needed to beat back the monstrous armies. In addition, the engineers and alchemists were driven to recollect many secrets of the past to further defend the city, driving development ever further and lifting the malaise that seemed to afflict them before.
    Their sciences, both natural and occult, could be put to great use.

    -But a Shining Pearl-The city is rich, the city is grand, but the city only has so many people in it. Whilst money is of no object, manpower is. Without quick expansion to acquire more,     hard folks, you will encounter difficulty with finding men willing to fight monsters. Your manpower recovers slowly initially, take care to keep this in mind.
    [X] The Kingdom of Albania, formed by the great Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu, was nearly shattered by Venetian betrayal and Ottoman invasion following his death, however, the invasion of demons gave them blessed respite. The realm is a mountainous land with valleys on the interior, defended against foreign invasion. The land held well against invading demonic forces by the hardened geographical features, tough people and strange heroism, driving warriors to even greater heights of achievement. Now that the rampaging armies have dispersed, and people have returned from mountain forts and forest hideaways, local rulers once again convene to discuss the future, bonded in the council that Skënderbeu himself organized. The lands of the old Illyrian Empire lay bare, open to conquest by its long-forgotten sons.

    -Ancient Heroes-The history of this land is ancient, older than Rome and full of the people's tales. Heroic might and grand feats from warriors and leaders were common in the old tales. Whilst it seemed these things had mostly faded in the modern-day, the resurgence of the unnatural seems to have breathed power into the people, causing more and more     heroes to be unveiled in the field of battle. Units are of generally higher performance than equivalents.

    -Hardy People-With its mighty mountains and harsh forests, the land births only the strongest and bravest, unfearing of danger and willing to do whatever it takes for their people. Manpower is recovered reasonably quickly, unlikely to encounter issues with it unless a long and bloody conflict takes place.

    -Bloody Bargains-Whilst the stories say that it was by the grace of God that Albania held when all others faltered, the truth of the matter is significantly darker. Wallachia is not the only land with ancient horrors, and ours are older than the stars themselves.

    [X] The Princedom of Blood- The remnants of Dracula's dark empire, contained by the borders of Wallachia and ruled over by Mihnea Tepes, known as the Evil for atrocities committed in his father's army. He was made an undead monster and now is the Prince of all Wallachia, as well as the heir of the broken Empire of Blood formed by his father's conquest, whatever that is worth.

    -A Cursed Land-There is no unspoilt life within these borders, all are turned into vile beasts via possession, the cursed blood or other, viler magicks. This means that Manpower does not recover naturally, requiring     conquest to recover, but individual units are much stronger than their equivalents in other factions.

    -Magick of Blood-The devilish sorceries available to children of blood are vast but only fueled by one single thing, the spilt blood of God's creatures. Currency is replaced by another resource, Blood, the vast reserves of blood flowing through the Poenari Citadel provide the power to drag fortifications from the earth itself, raise the dead or perform darker miracles of spellcraft.

    -Enemies on all Sides-You are alone in this world, all other powers seek your end due to the horrors your father committed, prepare for a fight as diplomacy is long since forgotten, especially since your father isn't there to terrify them anymore.

    [X] The Crusader Realm of Illyria, born of the invasion by good, God-fearing peoples, this is a realm of God, by God and for God. Its borders stretch only a bit beyond Austria, encompassing the northernmost realms of Croatia, but it is fueled by the incoming knights ready for plunder, waves of pilgrims following Mother Church's call for salvation. Ruled over by a council of Crusader-Kings, men who clawed this land out by force and faith, their goal is the salvation of the entire Balkans, whatever the cost.

    -Deus Vult-Fanatical faith has peculiar powers, and this day is a day of miracles. God's might is displayed in Creation like never before, priests can expel the demon and the most faithful can call down miracles with no equal, shattering unholy monsters like so much wheat before the scythe.

    -Constant Reinforcement-Europe feeds its young into this seemingly never-ending war, knights with armour and peasants with but the clothes on their back come into this land looking for glory, usually to find themselves quickly butchered by monsters. This means that your Manpower will quickly restore itself no matter the situation unless the situation is so hopelessly impossible that even the call for a Crusade cannot overcome it.

    -Fanaticism- The goal is the salvation of the Balkans, deviating from this goal without just excuse will incite unrest and completely ignoring it will incite revolt. Keep that in mind if this is selected.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Mechanics
  • Informational
    • Basic Mechanics!

    Roll Mechanics
    A d100 roll, affected by the resources dedicated to a roll. A natural 1 is a critical success, a natural 100 is a critical failure. The base DC of an action is decided by the amount of Currency given to it. 100 Stavraton means the action will certainly succeed, barring interference from other factors.

    Military actions have a subsystem that will be expanded upon in another threadmark, but are based on Manpower.

    Two Resources are usable in-game by most factions, the first is Currency, the second is Manpower.

    Currency: Currency represents the total monetary capability of the nation you hold, it is used in construction, hiring mercenaries, funding projects of research or development.

    Manpower: Manpower is used when armies are raised, land is taken or any other sort of endeavour which requires massed soldiery or labour forces.

    A third, special resource is available to the Empire. This resource does not modify the DC of a normal action, instead it "expands" the result, giving it a greater effect on success.

    Skilled Manpower: This represents the Imperial resource of skilled scholars, engineers and occultists. It is used in any endeavour from economic, construction or military.

    Breakdown of the mechanics below
    Stavratons assigned to action determines the DC. If you put 100 into an action, it cannot fail unless it either rolls a natural 100 or exterior modifiers add difficulty to it.

    Additional money past 100 is beneficial as every 10 Stavraton dedicated will increase the critical range by 1.

    Example
    Develop Better Monster-Killing Weapons. 40 Stavraton dedicated.

    On this action, to succeed you must roll a 40 OR BELOW on a d100.

    If 140 Stavraton were to be dedicated, it would succeed on a 99 or below and would crit on a 1-5.

    Manpower is near-exclusively used for military purposes, and those are detailed in the Military Threadmark on Page 1.

    Skilled Manpower is a very, very special resource available to only Rome, it represents the genius available to you. They can be added to any action and will     magnify the result, Each single point of it assigned to a normal action adds a +10 to the action and raises the critical range by one.
    This cannot allow an action to succeed without a base minimum of     ONE Stavraton, but it will allow you to vastly stretch your money if needed.

    Example
    Develop Better Monster Killing Weapons. 40 Stavraton and 10 Skilled Manpower Dedicated.

    On this action, you will succeed on any roll that is not a 100. But you will critically succeed on a 1-11.

    In terms of military uses, the Military Threadmark details currently available technologies.
     
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  • Informational
    • Resources
  • Informational
    • Currency: 5395 Stavraton/Turn
    Sources:
    Constantinople-3500 Stavraton/Turn
    Anatolia-5800 Stavraton/Turn
    Greece-1300 Stavraton/Turn
    Armenia-200 Stavraton/Turn
    Gothia-600 Stavraton/Turn
    Current Pool-5165

    Manpower: 16600 Manpower/Turn
    Sources:
    Constantinople-4000 Manpower/Turn
    Anatolia-5500 Manpower/Turn
    Greece-2400 Manpower/Turn
    Armenia-2000 Manpower/Turn
    Gothia-900 Manpower/Turn
    Current Pool-25000/30000

    Skilled Manpower:140 Skilled Manpower/Turn
    Sources:
    Constantinople-95 Skilled Manpower/Turn
    Anatolia-20 Skilled Manpower/Turn
    Armenia-5 Skilled Manpower/Turn
    Greece-20 Skilled Manpower/Turn
    Gothia-10 Skilled Manpower/Turn
    Current Pool-90/500
     
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  • Informational
    • Military
  • Informational
    • Military Units take a certain amount of Currency and Manpower to raise, as is listed below, additionally, they take a certain amount of Currency to maintain and Manpower to replace losses when they take significant damage.

    These are the manpower based land units of the Empire.

    Skoutatoi-The standard infantry of the Empire, armoured in quality steel field plate, now made of incredible Damascene Steel, they see their arms and legs only covered in mail whilst the body and head are clad in thick steel plates, they wield a spatha as a weapon of last resort, a long, chopping blade and a kontarion as their primary implement of war, a long pike used to great effect in formations against monstrous and human opponents. Additionally, they come with brand new inventions, the pyroródi, a small, hand-thrown explosive as well as the ékrixikontarion, a kontarion with the spearhead removed and replaced with a gunpowder charge. They come in detachments of 500 men.
    Current known Bonuses: Roman Discipline (-10) Veteran (-15)
    500 Manpower, 50 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-15 Stavraton
    Statistics: These are the statistics for groups of 100 men.
    Hitpoints: 1, Armour: 11, Strength: 4 (1d10) True (2d6)
    Mobility: Foot Infantry. (3MPH-Walk, 7MPH-Charge/Run)
    Special Features: Pyroródi (Deals 2d6+6 damage at short range) Ekrixikontarion (2d6+6 damage on the charge defence or offence.) Damascus Steel Weapons (Increases Damage Die one category.)

    Kataphraktoi-    The heavy cavalry of the Empire, both man and horse heavily armoured with massively thickened steel plate, now made with Damascus steel, covering every inch of their body and moving via carefully constructed, pinprick precise joints, armed with composite bows, lances and carrying scimitars as well as maces for fallback weaponry. They are used to great effect against human opponents and are some of the few humans that can fight monsters without significant numerical superiority. They come in detachments of 100 cavalrymen.
    Current Known Bonuses Kataphraktoi(-40)
    100 Manpower, 225 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-50 Stavraton
    Statistics: These are statistics for groups of 25 riders.
    Hitpoints: 2, Armour: 12, Strength: 5 (2d6) True (3d6)
    Mobility: Super-Heavy Cavalry. (8MPH Trot, 30MPH Charge)
    Special Feature: Kataphraktoi Charge. Add whole damage dice as a flat bonus when "Charge" Manoeuvre is possible. IE, 1d10+10
    Greek Fire-Ignition. True Damage to resistant creatures, not halved by Monstrous Resilience. Scatterguns (Deal 2d6+3 at short range.) Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.)
    Upgrades Available
    Polemistés    - A treatment that uses the best in alchemical sciences to improve a warrior, driving them forth beyond normal physical means, it only functions on the already fit and extraordinarily well-trained, but in those individuals, it evens the odds against them massively, allowing them to fight against the monsters as they would against other men, and chew through other warriors in moments. Increases Physical Traits by one. 100 Stavraton

    Toxotai-Archers in previous eras, with the monstrous hordes of Hell arriving on Earth, it was made apparent that massed bow fire isn't optimal. Instead, their weapons have been replaced with crank-driven crossbows, capable of punching through a thick, monstrous hide or a steel breastplate like it isn't there. They also maintain light weaponry and a Damascene steel chest plate and helmet for close-range self-defence. They come in detachments of 500 men.
    Current known Bonuses: Roman Discipline (-10), Veteran (-15)
    500 Manpower, 40 Stavraton
    Maintenance- 15 Stavraton.
    Statistics: These are the statistics for groups of 100 men.
    Hitpoints: 1 Armour: 8 Strength: 3 (1d8) True (1d10)
    Mobility: Foot Infantry. (3MPH-Walk, 7MPH-Charge/Run)
    Special Feature: Arbalest (1d6+3) Ranged Attack, Indirect Fire, regiments in the path of fire do not interrupt the attack. Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.)

    Pyrovolo Toxotai    -A product of the newest in Roman sciences, they are equipped much like the Toxotai but have a firearm utilizing the quicker firing and easier to handle designs of the Empire. They load the gun via its breech and fire a single shot before needing to reload, but each shot has a devastating effect, shattering bone and pulverising organ where it strikes. They come in detachments of 500 men.
    Known Bonuses: Veteran (-15), Roman Discipline (-10),
    500 Manpower, 100 Stavraton
    Maintenance- 15 Stavraton.
    Statistics: These are the statistics for groups of 100 men.
    Hitpoints: 1 Armour: 8 Strength: 3 (1d8) True (1d10)
    Mobility: Foot Infantry. (3MPH-Walk, 7MPH-Charge/Run)
    Special Feature: Firearm (2d8+8) Ranged Attack. Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.) Rapid Fire (Two attacks per Turn.)

    Athanatopouloi    -The sons of those who fell in service to the Empire. They are trained to a great extent by normal means, and then the Polemistés treatment is applied to them. Greatly taller, wider and stronger than a normal man, they are outfitted in the finest equipment the Empire can provide, wielding colossal two-handed blades and plated in the newest articulated plate, quadruple thickened for their strength. They are the Emperor's finest, heroes to a man. And also tremendously expensive. They are recruited and trained in groups of 100.
    Known Bonuses: Roman Discipline (-10), Warrior-Born (-40)
    100 Manpower, 300 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-80 Stavraton
    Statistics: These are the statistics for groups of 25 men.
    Hitpoints: 4 Armour: 14 Strength: 7 (3d8) True (3d8+8)
    Mobility: Superhuman Infantry. (4MPH-Walk, 12MPH-Charge/Run)
    Special Feature: Greek Fire-Ignition Blades. True Damage to resistant creatures, not halved by Monstrous Resilience. Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.)

    Koursores    -Recruited primarily from the old Sipahi houses, these are excellent light cavalry forces, wielding maces and lances, holding a composite bow for distance work, with light plate and mail made of the vaunted Damascus Steel. They are fast, manoeuvrable and lethal. However, their lack of the more extreme training that Kataphraktoi face disallows the incredible discipline that they have. Their lances have been replaced with new, explosive equivalents to give them the punch of their heavier brethren. These come in groups of five hundred cavalrymen.
    500 Manpower, 120 Stavraton
    Maintenance-35 Stavraton
    Statistics: These are the statistics for groups of 100 riders.
    Hitpoints: 2 Armour: 11 Strength: 5 (2d6) True (3d6)
    Mobility: Fast Cavalry. (12MPH-Trot, 55MPH-Charge/Run)
    Special Feature: Cavalry Charge, upon initiating the "Charge" manoeuvre, Koursores may add half their damage dice in additional damage. IE, 1d8+4. Ekrixikontarion (2d6+6 damage on the charge.) Scatterguns (Deal 2d8+6 at short range.) Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.)


    Foniás    -Creations of Imperial Alchemy, these men are enhanced with mutagens of thought and mind, allowing their reflexes and speed of thought to skyrocket, even allowing these warriors to predict their foes, a valuable tool for their purpose of slaying the most monstrous. Equipped in a fairly light style, plate cuirasses with little to impede their senses, their weaponry is vast, firearms, silvered swords, scatterguns and explosives galore as well as beginning battles mounted. They are however, expensive to upkeep due to the need for constant, neverending entertainment for their quickened minds. They come in groups of one hundred riders.
    Known Bonuses: -50 (Faster than Thought) -25 (Has Planned For Every Ocassion.)
    100 Manpower, 350 Stavraton
    Maintenance-120 Stavraton
    Statistics: These are statistics for groups of 25.
    Hitpoints: 3 Armour: 9 Strength: 5 (2d6) True (3d6)
    Mobility: Fast Cavalry (12MPH-Trot, 55MPH-Charge/Run), Foot Infantry. (3MPH-Walk, 7MPH-Charge/Run)
    Special Features: Scatterguns and Pyroródi combines (Deal 3d8+8 at short range.), Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.), Firearm (2d8+8) Ranged Attack. Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.) Rapid Fire (Two attacks per Turn.) Silvered Blades (Deals True Damage),

    Iroïkós-    Perfected from base Polemistés, these titans are gods of the battlefield. Clad in thick plate, enhanced with clockwork, that can resist canons and borne of enough strength to move with speed as if it wasn't on their backs even unpowered. They are armed with blades made as strong as possible, but with the realization that no mortal craft can keep its integrity when they go to war, are also trained in the brutal art of hand to hand battle.
    One man typically survives the treatment in all cases.
    Known Bonuses: -80 (Gods of War), -50 (Perfected Men),
    500 Manpower, 1000 Stavraton
    Maintenance-50 Stavraton
    Statistics: These are the statistics for a single warrior.
    Hitpoints: 32 Armour: 32 Strength: 13 (4d10) True(4d10+10)
    Mobility: Inhuman Stride (20 MPH-March, 65 MPH-Charge)
    Special Features-Greek Fire-Ignition Blades. True Damage to resistant creatures, not halved by Monstrous Resilience. Damascus Steel (Increases Damage Die one category.) Regenerators-Heal 20 HP a round.

    These are the naval vessels available for construction.

    War Dromon-A large oar and sail-driven vessel, capable of mounting a plethora of weapons from Scorpions to catapults and even greek-fire projectors. It forms the spine of any naval engagements, tough, quick and with enough crew to reliably win a boarding action.
    300 Manpower, 150 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-15 Stavraton.
    Modifications Available:
    Greek Fire Mines,     Developed as a way of defending against Sea Monsters, it is an ever so fine device, relying entirely on perfect calculations by the Engineers manning it to correctly calculate the force that will be put upon it and then deploy the mine. +10 Stavraton +5 Skilled Manpower
    Gives Bonus: Can Hit Underwater.

    Transport Dromon-A large oar and sail-driven vessel, with most of its hull dedicated to feeding, transporting and managing troops and horses carried by it. It's unarmed though can still win a boarding action if it is carrying troops. Each Dromon can carry five-hundred souls.
    100 Manpower, 100 Stavraton
    Maintenance-10 Stavraton

    Katergon-    A huge vessel, clad in damascene steel and built from alchemical hardwood, it has dozens of Cannons, dozens of mines and munitions for hours of combat. It's speed is beyond any primitive oar or sail driven vessel, cutting through the water with a cutting edge Archimedean screw that is powered from the clockwork belly of this beast. A belly that can be powered by the crew, but for maximal performance requires a port and large scale equipment.
    750 Manpower, 400 Stavraton
    Maintenance-110 Stavraton
    Statistics:
    HP:45, Armour-25
    Speed-16 Knots
    Weaponry-Cannon Broadside (8d6+12 damage on naval vessels, 16d8+32 on land-borne targets)
    Greek Fire Mines (10d8+10).
    Damascene Ram (16d10+20, half to self.)

    Grand Katergon-    The largest vessel ever built, it is a colossus the length of two grand galleys and wide as one is long, built with multiple decks. It's hull is thick as a castle wall, it's damascene plating similarly durable. It's broadside could bring ruin to any force in the known world, and it's speed is unmatched. It is a power without reckoning in the sea, sure to give us the dominance of the Mare Nostrum that is our birthright.
    1500 Manpower, 1500 Stavraton
    Maintenance-400 Stavraton
    HP-125, Armour-60
    Speed-19 Knots
    Weaponry- Cannon Grand Broadside (10d8+24 on naval targets, 20d8+42 on ground targets)
    Greek Fire Mines, (10d8+10)
    Grand Damascene Ram (24d10+40, quarter to self)

    These are the "special" units available to the Empire, consuming Skilled Manpower rather than Manpower.

    Most Siege Units bypass Monstrous Resilience by default. Greek Fire simply adds bonuses to hit instead. Scorpions are an exception to this rule.

    All Siege Units now benefit from this Mobility.
    Mechanical Legs-(4MPH over soft terrain, 2MPH over hard terrain.)

    Scorpions    -A weapon of war that saw much use during the Sieges Of Constantinople, its concept is relatively simple, a mobile, extremely large arbalest that can be loaded and fired extraordinarily quickly, it provides a frankly astonishing amount of firepower for its price and can greatly hurt even the most armoured knights, or most vicious monsters. It comes in units of 5 Scorpions, each manned by five trained men to match the speed of the previous engineers.
    25 Manpower, 30 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-10 Stavraton.
    Special Feature: Scorpion Bolt, (1d10+5), Rapid Fire, when enemy is within "Close" range category, fire two volleys instead of one. IE, 2d10+10.
    Modifications Available:
    Greek Fire Bolts,     mounting a glass tip filled with the fell substance rather than a steel bolt-head, it provides bursts of hot-burning flame where it strikes as well as tremendous impact. +10 Stavraton cost. +5 Stavraton Maintenance. Also, True Damage.
    Gives Bonus: Greek Fire (-10)

    Catapult-A relatively simple weapon with ancient origins, it saw much use with the Siege of Constantinople seeing black powder supplies run dry, capable of being loaded with anything from simple stones to jars of Greek Fire, it is a multi-purpose weapon that can launch projectiles in an indirect arc, avoiding walls or punching deep into formations. With the recent invention of fuses, their effectiveness has vastly increased, at least in tests. Each unit contains 2 of these, each manned by 15 trained men.
    Current known Bonuses: Greek Fire (-10)
    Special Feature: Catapult Stone, (2d6+6), Indirect Fire, cannot be stopped from firing because of intervening troops.
    30 Manpower, 30 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-10 Stavraton.

    Cannons-    The newest invention to grace the armouries of the Empire, originally bronze or thick stone, the geniuses of Constantinople refined the design to be easily castable with steel as well, it utilizes the newest guncotton to propel an iron ball at tremendous speeds, capable of killing almost anything with a direct hit. It is not accurate enough to see much use against single man-sized opponents but excels at shredding through lined infantry, fortifications and great monsters. Even a giant falls to a cannonball or two to the chest. Each unit contains 5 of these, manned by 10 engineers in total each using teams of apprentices brought along.
    Known Bonuses: -20 (Improved Designs)
    Special Feature: Cannonball, (4d6+8), Fortification-Killer, Fortifications do not add Durability to damage resistance, Monster-Killer, colossal Monsters do not halve the damage. Rapid Fire (Two attacks per Turn.)
    10 Skilled Manpower, 60 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-20 Stavraton

    Flame Cannons    - A short, stubby device that is barely six feet long and lighter than a cannon, it sits on wheels and is loaded with proper shells, filled to the brim with Greek Fire. Its usage is projected to be against the massed monsters of your enemies, sending spitting fields of charring, burning hell towards them at a relatively close range to blunt any charge and provide harassment, additionally the tremendously lighter weight of the cannonballs allows a much, much quicker rate of fire. Additionally, new advancements have allowed this piece to aim upwards easily, striking incoming flying monsters. Each unit contains 5 of these, manned by two engineers each using teams of apprentices brought along.
    Known Bonuses: -20 (Improved Designs)
    Special Feature: Flaming Burst, (3d6+3), Cone-Fire, when firing on enemy regiments, also strike adjacent regiments. Rapid Fire (Two attacks per Turn.)
    10 Skilled Manpower, 70 Stavraton
    Maintenance-25 Stavraton

    Mortars-     Another short and stubby device, but this one is much, much wider than the Flame cannons. It sits similarly to them, on wheels for maximal mobility, but is loaded with large shells, loaded with impact fuses. This lets the mortar do vile anti-infantry work and, with the sheer force available to the shrapnel, even fell heavily armoured units. This one has 5 mortars, manned by ten engineers total, each using teams of apprentices brought along.
    Known Bonuses: -20 (Improved Designs)
    Special Feature: Indirect Fire, Shell (4d6+6). Rapid Fire (Two attacks per Turn.)
    10 Skilled Manpower, 70 Stavraton.
    Maintenance-25 Stavraton


    Current Standing Armies

    The First Army
    15000 Skoutatoi
    12500 Pyrovolo Toxotai
    2000 Koursores
    200 Polemistés Kataphraktoi
    600 Athanatopouloi
    100 Foniás
    45 Scorpions
    18 Catapults
    13 Cannons
    15 Flame Cannons
    13 Mortars
    1 Iroikos
    1575 Stavraton/Turn

    The Second Army
    15000 Skoutatoi
    7500 Pyrovolo Toxotai
    2000 Koursores
    200 Polemistés Kataphraktoi
    600 Athanatopouloi
    100 Foniás
    30 Scorpions
    12 Catapults
    8 Cannons
    6 Flame Cannons
    8 Mortars
    2475 Stavraton/Turn

    The Army of the East
    5000 Skoutatoi
    2500 Pyrovolo Toxotai
    1000 Koursores
    600 Athanatopouloi
    100 Foniás
    100 Polemistés Kataphraktoi
    15 Scorpions
    6 Catapults
    15 Cannons
    15 Flame Cannons
    15 Mortars

    1225 Stavraton/Turn

    Current Standing Navy

    First Fleet
    3 War Dromon
    3 War Dromon/Greek Fire Mines
    10 Transport Dromon
    -160 Stavraton per turn

    Second Fleet
    5 War Dromon
    5 War Dromon/Greek Fire Mines
    -120 Stavraton per turn
     
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  • Informational
    • Special Things
  • Informational
    • Mercenary Complement.
    The Empire hires and utilizes vast stocks of mercenaries to make up for its lacking manpower, all currently hired bands will be listed here.

    The Varangian Guard
    Not truly a mercenary company, more so personal guards to the Emperor himself, these warriors are of tough, northern stock. A bloodline that seems resurgent now that magick flows into the land freely. To a man they are greatly larger than six foot, and weigh as much as two lesser men. Armoured with the new full articulated plate and wielding large, cleaving axes, these men were instrumental in holding breaches against the monstrous hordes and have proven themselves again against monsters in open battle. They number 1000 men, having fully restored themselves.

    They restore 100 a year.
    Free Upkeep
    Special Traits-
    Einherjar-Through some twist of fate, these warriors are capable of feats beyond normal human limits. Do not suffer penalties for engaging monstrous foes.
    Greatest Warriors On Earth-Force a reroll once per battle.
     
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  • Informational
    • [X] The Eastern Roman Empire

    This is the setting that interests me the most. We have a safe city, but we also have the need of exploring and getting into the dark forests of the Balkans, Wallachia itself and Anatolia to the south. We may be in a stronghold, but our position is fragile. Also, Constantinople is just a hellhole of conspiracy and backstabbing like no other ever has existed. We depend on outsiders and mercenaries if we ever want to recover what we lost, all while worrying about our generalship being revoked by the emperor. We also have a lot of smart men, philosophers, libraries, alchemists and hermetics prolly fascinated at the prospects that "immortal army of the night" can bring to the table, like elixirs of immortality, true philosopher stones and blood magick!

    Furthermore, Rome.
     
    [X] The Eastern Roman Empire

    YES! While all the options look cool, I have a fondness for ANCIENT KNAWLEDE that makes contemporary medieval tech operate that much better. Furthermore I want to settle a grudge with V E N I C E.
     
    [X] The Kingdom of Albania, formed by the great Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu, was nearly shattered by Venetian betrayal and Ottoman invasion following his death, however, the invasion of demons gave them blessed respite. The realm is a mountainous land with valleys on the interior, defended against foreign invasion. The land held well against invading demonic forces by the hardened geographical features, tough people and strange heroism, driving warriors to even greater heights of achievement. Now that the rampaging armies have dispersed, and people have returned from mountain forts and forest hideaways, local rulers once again convene to discuss the future, bonded in the council that Skënderbeu himself organized. The lands of the old Illyrian Empire lay bare, open to conquest by its long-forgotten sons.

    FOR THE MEME! Dapper's homeland, his people... it's statistically guaranteed to go right. :rofl:

    edit- also they have some sick supernaturals and crazy legends. Some of which is on our side.
     
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    [X] The Princedom Of Blood. Why ain't more people voting for this? It's a goddamn VAMPIRE KINGDOM! Sign me right up!
     
    [X] The Eastern Roman Empire

    THE PURPLE PHOENIX ARISES! From the dark comes the light of Rome!

    Hype aside, its 1480 and the Romans are still kicking. Why not?
     
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    All of these options sound amazing, but I'm going to have to go with Albania. Skanderbeg is an awesome historical figure, and following in his footsteps sounds fascinating. Resurgent Rome and Crusades into the Balkans are all well and good, but who ever has heard of an Albanian hegemony in the Balkans?

    [X] The Kingdom of Albania, formed by the great Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu, was nearly shattered by Venetian betrayal and Ottoman invasion following his death, however, the invasion of demons gave them blessed respite. The realm is a mountainous land with valleys on the interior, defended against foreign invasion. The land held well against invading demonic forces by the hardened geographical features, tough people and strange heroism, driving warriors to even greater heights of achievement. Now that the rampaging armies have dispersed, and people have returned from mountain forts and forest hideaways, local rulers once again convene to discuss the future, bonded in the council that Skënderbeu himself organized. The lands of the old Illyrian Empire lay bare, open to conquest by its long-forgotten sons.
     
    Adhoc vote count started by Dapperlad1 on Oct 24, 2021 at 11:23 PM, finished with 22 posts and 14 votes.
    • [X] The Eastern Roman Empire
      [X] The Princedom of Blood
      [X] The Crusader Realm of Illyria
      [X] The Kingdom of Albania, formed by the great Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu, was nearly shattered by Venetian betrayal and Ottoman invasion following his death, however, the invasion of demons gave them blessed respite. The realm is a mountainous land with valleys on the interior, defended against foreign invasion. The land held well against invading demonic forces by the hardened geographical features, tough people and strange heroism, driving warriors to even greater heights of achievement. Now that the rampaging armies have dispersed, and people have returned from mountain forts and forest hideaways, local rulers once again convene to discuss the future, bonded in the council that Skënderbeu himself organized. The lands of the old Illyrian Empire lay bare, open to conquest by its long-forgotten sons.
      [X] The Princedom Of Blood. Why ain't more people voting for this? It's a goddamn VAMPIRE KINGDOM! Sign me right up!
      [X] The Kingdom of Albania
    Click to expand...


    Worry not, the vote is still open, but the empire seems to have acquired a significant lead. Keep coming in folks, give your votes and let's see where we get!
     
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