What makes you think that goods from europe, which have to be shipped across an ocean, are less expansive than our own trade goods? Heck, apart from their technology, what do they even have that we couldn't get ourselves? We want their money and give them our trade goods for more money. I see your point about internal trade, but I think that will lead to exploitation on these plantations that we are currently building. The thought process is simple after all.
Tobacco etc. goes for a lot of money --> Free trade makes it easier to sell --> no regulation on working --> less pay and harder working conditions in order to get more goods to sell.
I doubt that this is accurate, but early triangle trade plantations were brutal. Hell they were still brutal 350 years later. Who is even working on our plantations?
Personally, I think one of the bigger reasons for allowing free enterprise in shipping is that it'll be a serious boost to the demand for shipping and thus the amount of ships we construct. That's the kind of thing that lays the foundations for a shipbuilding tradition, which is the kind of thing that ought to be fostered well before we want/need to try and build up a navy.
The other reason, of course, is that it'll also mean there are more merchant ships we can charter to carry supplies to any new settlements we found on the coast - given that one of the main strategic goals bandied about has been to cover as much of the Atlantic coast as we can to prevent European competition having enough of a merchant marine to support far flung locales is no small matter.
We might make a little more money in the short term, or we might not. We might end up seeming to favor the Emperoi a little too much, we might not. Both of those factors could present short-term complications or opportunities, but in the long term subsidizing naval/marine activity is highly useful for our goals - and I think that right now we're in a good position to be thinking about long term goals and plans so that's the factor I consider to be the heaviest weighting.
Personally, I think one of the bigger reasons for allowing free enterprise in shipping is that it'll be a serious boost to the demand for shipping and thus the amount of ships we construct. That's the kind of thing that lays the foundations for a shipbuilding tradition, which is the kind of thing that ought to be fostered well before we want/need to try and build up a navy.
The other reason, of course, is that it'll also mean there are more merchant ships we can charter to carry supplies to any new settlements we found on the coast - given that one of the main strategic goals bandied about has been to cover as much of the Atlantic coast as we can to prevent European competition having enough of a merchant marine to support far flung locales is no small matter.
We might make a little more money in the short term, or we might not. We might end up seeming to favor the Emperoi a little too much, we might not. Both of those factors could present short-term complications or opportunities, but in the long term subsidizing naval/marine activity is highly useful for our goals - and I think that right now we're in a good position to be thinking about long term goals and plans so that's the factor I consider to be the heaviest weighting.
There are really only 2 downsides to allowing it honestly:
1: it could encourage people to cheat us and smuggle stuff more since everything will be less watched.
and 2: It removes a slight amount of power from the Dynatoi and further empowers the Emperoi. The Dynatoi may get a bit more cheesed at that than they would with us just giving the Emperoi jobs in the new office.
[X] Elysia will cultivate its diplomatic presence and influence in the area.
[X] Major movements of trade must be tightly regulated.
[X] Plan Consolidation
Fair enough, guess I'm convinced. I like to be overly cautious with decisions like these but the opportunity to make our own trade more independent of the europeans is enticing.
Edit: eh screw it, let's see what happens.
There are really only 2 downsides to allowing it honestly:
1: it could encourage people to cheat us and smuggle stuff more since everything will be less watched.
and 2: It removes a slight amount of power from the Dynatoi and further empowers the Emperoi. The Dynatoi may get a bit more cheesed at that than they would with us just giving the Emperoi jobs in the new office.
Quite apart from the fact that we seem to enjoy snubbing the Dynatoi at nearly every turn, I'm really not sure that allowing corruption and/or smuggling to flourish so early on is at all a sensible idea.
[X] Elysia will cultivate its diplomatic presence and influence in the area.
[X] Major movements of trade must be tightly regulated.
[X]Plan Infrastructure
-[X] The Urbanisation of Creta Minor: 132 Administrative Points (1->3)
-[X] Expand the Fields in Nea Konstantinopolis: 250 Diplomatic Points (5->10)
-[X] Missionaries in Sydes (60 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Pythagora (35 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Sydes (35 Silver)
-[X] The Roads of Ivos (85 Silver)
So are hospitals, medical clinic and secondary schools covered by urbanization?
[X] Plan Consolidation
-[X] The Urbanisation of Creta Minor: 132 Administrative Points (1->3)
-[X] Expand the Fields in Nea Konstantinopolis: 250 Diplomatic Points (5->10)
-[X] Expand the Militia (10 Silver/-2 Silver) [Repeatable] [0/4]
-[X] Form an Allagia from the Militia (-4 Silver) [Repeatable] [0/18] x2
-[X] Missionaries in Sydes (60 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Pythagora (35 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Sydes (35 Silver)
-[X] The Roads of Ivos (85 Silver)
[X]Plan Infrastructure
-[X] The Urbanisation of Creta Minor: 132 Administrative Points (1->3)
-[X] Expand the Fields in Nea Konstantinopolis: 250 Diplomatic Points (5->10)
-[X] Missionaries in Sydes (60 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Pythagora (35 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Sydes (35 Silver)
-[X] The Roads of Ivos (85 Silver)
[X] Plan maximum military buildup and rebuilding
-[X] The Urbanisation of Creta Minor: 132 Administrative Points (1->3)
-[X] Expand the Fields in Nea Konstantinopolis: 250 Diplomatic Points (5->10)
-[X] Form an Allagia from the Militia (-4 Silver) [Repeatable] [0/18] x4
-[X] Missionaries in Sydes (60 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Pythagora (35 Silver)
-[X] The Paths of Sydes (35 Silver)
-[X] The Roads of Ivos (85 Silver)
yep no reason to worry pauses that last even a week on something that normally updates daily are perfectly normal. Usually as a result of needing to step away to take a break or because IRL stuff happened.
Your patronage is an important asset to the many groups that orbit the throne, and with your assent and generous largess the Presbyteroi flood the conquered lands with preachers and sometimes heavy-handed zealotry. The local allagia have to put down a few small revolts that result from overenthusiasm on their part, but destroying the barbaroi totems and particularly heathen sites is part of a healthy cleansing process which the native peoples will no doubt thank you for in future. The crushing defeat of many of their young men and the subsequent occupation seems to have made the locals more receptive to the faith than simple missionary work, and the priests are able to make inroads into the local communities. Your patronage is a powerful force. The Emporoi similarly agree, with ecstatic merchants enjoying their newfound freedom to run their caravans and small trade cogs back and forth between settlements without having to pay for permits and seek permission to local magistrates. Is this a good thing? Hard to tell, and money is the most base concern of a monarch. Being lauded for services to the Faith is far more satisfying than the fawning of moneylenders.
With the Lenape at least partially Christianised (enough that internal faults are quicker to appear than rebellious ones), you turn your attention outwards. The Meskwaki are friendly after your intervention in the war and your common faith, but to the north of them is unknown. You put out feelers with your new barbaroi friends and dispatch some scouts, and the news that returns is chilling. Further north is a tribal confederation, a powerful group of unified groups called the Haudenosaunne. Not only have they managed to maintain internal unity and prosper as a result, but they have also conquered most of the neighbouring hostile tribes and united them under a hegemon. There is little doubt that their territory is at least the size of that claimed by Elysia, and their population is most definitely some eighty thousand - and that's before counting their pacified populations, which are most certainly double that. In the Old World this would have been concerning but not calamitous, but the simple reality is that the more spread out and subsistent cultures of even the refined natives allows them to muster much more of the population to fight than you can.
For the moment the New World remains the primary concern, and the concern of the day is the increasing population. The unfortunate reality is that although there is still space and there is still opportunity for expansion, those opportunities are remarkably diminished from what they were at the start of Maria's reign. There is significant pressure in the court and from influential factions to establish new settlements, but therein lies the rub: the most valuable areas are already occupied. The Tuscarora to the south have prime coastal territory, the Pequot to the north likewise, and the interior is much less attractive by comparison. Of course it is an option, but one that would be more challenging and less prosperous. The Pequot are no stronger than the Lenape were, while the Tuscarora have a growing influence over the area and are likely to be able to pull together at least ten thousand men, probably more. Either way, the increasingly ramshackle housing at the edges of the capital demands that Elysia expand.
Interesting news out of Portugal is that they have been forced to disclose the existence of their colony on the Arcadian continent. It is still the belief of other European colonies that goods such as tobacco are being grown there, but the secrecy has been extensive - the trade ships which conduct commerce within your borders only ever make the trips between Elysia and the colony of Brazil, while otherwise unsuspecting captains take it onwards believing it originates from the colony. That said there are rumours beginning to circulate that the Byzantines have survived, and it is only a matter of time before the truth comes out in full. At that point you will have decisions to make about your role in the New World - and the Old. It has the feel of an era coming to an end, unfortunately in more ways than one. The Empress grows weak of an indeterminate illness and retires from many of her duties. Within the month she is dead.
With so much having happened to Elysia's benefit in the last years it is with a sense of deep mourning that the people adjust to the loss of their Empress. Maria's accession to the throne was a turbulent time, but she rose above the criticism and concern that her womanhood made her unsuited to rule. Yes, she was not the match of her father and grandfather, but it is easier to love the gentle hand of a mother. Yet while the nation has thrived under her care, growing to become far greater than it had began, the same could not be said of her son. Phocas has ascended to the throne, but the now middle-aged Emperor has spent his entire life at court resisting taking up extra duties. Though he can make a fine speech when the occasion calls for it and soothe ruffled feathers, he lacks any real ability to steer the ship of state. So it is with some cynicism that the power-brokers at court regard his declaration that Elysia is now once again an Empire instead of a mere refugee on the shores of Elysium. Whether he can live up to those lofty aspirations is an open question.
Stability decreases by 1.
Ruler is no longer a Free-Thinker.
Ruler is no longer Industrious.
Maria I Palaiologos
By the grace of Christ Pantokrator, Basilissa of the Hellenes.
1480 - 1510
Administrative Skill: 2
Diplomatic Skill: 3
Phocas II Palaiologos
By the grace of Christ Almighty, Emperor of the Elysians.
1510 -
Administrative Skill: 0
Diplomatic Skill: 3
Development Projects
[ ] The Urbanisation of Pythagora: 100 Administrative Points (3->5)
[ ] The Urbanisation of Sydes: 100 Administrative Points (3->5)
[ ] Increase Urbanisation in Alouion: 260 Administrative Points (5->10)
[ ] Control the Treasury: 360 Administrative Points
For expansion, I'm inclined to pivot south - if we push our luck much more in the North our tentative allies will be alarmed, and the interior is a fools game just when the Europeans are about to start coming in earnest.
I say take on the Tuscarora before they can get any stronger, the Pequot are small and surrounded by Christians(ish) they shouldn't be a problem. I also want to get our embassies up ASAP, the Haudenosaunee are pretty scary atm and if we can co-exist that would be very helpful. Long-term I expect we'll be able to outgrow and maybe absorb them, but even if we don't having a northern native ally as a buffer against the Vinlanders and any Euros who want to try and take New England will be nice.
Also yeah we should secure as much coastline as we can before the Euros who don't agree it's our continent start showing up, and going south is the best route for that.
I feel like trying to administer conquered populations with a 0 Admin ruler would be a poor idea. IMO that's just asking for poorly managed responses to internal revolts.
Well, the fact that our rulers are all worse then the one before them is incredibly suspicious from the viewpoint of having played a god awful amount of EUIV, being that good rulers generally beget mildly worse to equal rulers on average, but sure I'll ignore it for now.
We really want to lock down the coastline if we can before the Colonial Wave of Greed erupts from Europe and starts trying to settle accessible areas, if we have the coast locked down we can atleast make a go of preventing mass diaspora by the European Crowns that could threaten us wholesale.
Any Europeans trying to colonize north of us will have colonists squished between Elysia, Vinland and Haudenosaudee. Unless they go north of Vinland and it's freezing up there. So pushing north is probably a bad idea. Interior or south, mmm...
In the abstract I would prefer to push south, but ow, that trash Admin. 19 points per year, 95 per turn. Taking Control the Treasury will mean too few points to even urbanize one town next turn - worse if some administration is required to, well, administrate conquered lands. And I think Control the Treasury would be really nice to help with the costs of militia and standing army if we do push south. So the economic concerns incline me to go interior for now, build up the army, Tuscarora next turn. Maybe a write-in to fabricate pretexts against the Tuscarora?
Here's my take on this. Trying to settle the interior with a 0 Administration Stat Ruler is just asking for trouble as he's just going to mismanage the whole affair, with the interior noted as not having much value or growth potential in the first place.
When it comes to who we can potentially invade, at first I was leaning towards the Pequot as that would allow us to link up our land borders with the Christianized tribes of the North. However, upon second thought that seems like a bad idea. Sure the Pequot may not be as numerous as say the Tuscarora, and we likely could conquer them more easily than our southern neighbors the thing we have to worry about is the knock-on effects of what our conquest might entail. If we invade the Pequot it might scare the Christianized tribes into viewing us as a threat as they could think that we're too expansionist and will likely gobble them up next, which they're not about. Furthermore if we invade the Pequot we will likely arouse the ire of the Haudenosaunne, and that is a problem. As we will likely appear to them as if we are a large threat, and considering that they're a likely peer power to us, that is something we can ill afford as with the Emperor we have currently I doubt he will be able to well-integrate the Pequot lands, meaning we will have trouble in the North if we pursue that direction.
When it comes to the Tuscarora, initially I was hesitant about invading them as they're the stronger of the two tribes at the moment. However after further consideration I think the Tuscarora are the better options for conquest. Not only are their lands more vast and rich in territory, especially that juicy coastal territory, but if we successfully conquer them we can essentially deny future European settlers the chance to land and expand within. There are obvious issues with invading the Tuscarora, namely the fact that they have vast amounts of land and can call upon tens of thousands of warriors, meaning we will need to enact a military build-up in preparation for an invasion of them. However, if we simply leave them be this problem will only grow, so even if we can't knock them out of the war in a single turn or so, at the very least we use our invasion as a spoiling attack of sorts and put them on the defensive, slowly whittling them down while keeping buffers in between our heartlands and theirs.
The Europeans are going to get curious eventually, so if we're going to expand we may as well expand southwards as that is where the juiciest coastal territory is, one which prevents them from expanding even further without going deeper into the continent.
That being said, if we're going to expand we really, really need to increase the number of Allagia have available to us as our enemies will likely be fielding thousands to tens of thousands of warriors, and there's no guarantee we will be able to draw fully upon all of our Allagia or the Dynatoi to help us succeed in any invasion. We also cannot afford to rely on the militia either by their very nature so we really need to enact a military build up this turn.
With that being the case I would prefer if we at the very least took x4 on this so that we could increase our Allagia number to 5000, possibly x6 so that we can get them to 6000, hopefully where our technology will help apply force modifiers.
However, if we're going to increase our upkeep and raise larger armies we are going to need more ways to make money, thus any combination of the two of the above should likely be taken so that we have more income available to maintain our military buildup.
Well, the fact that our rulers are all worse then the one before them is incredibly suspicious from the viewpoint of having played a god awful amount of EUIV, being that good rulers generally beget mildly worse to equal rulers on average, but sure I'll ignore it for now.
We really want to lock down the coastline if we can before the Colonial Wave of Greed erupts from Europe and starts trying to settle accessible areas, if we have the coast locked down we can atleast make a go of preventing mass diaspora by the European Crowns that could threaten us wholesale.
I've had multiple shit rulers in a row, before I realized that I could disinherit them. Even then, they were around 7-10 pips, concentrated around a single high state.
Edit: That and having our glorious leader lead from the front. A stab hit now would actually save us immense amount of adm later on. Dudes a zero in the most crucial pip in the game.
