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Empire of the Lion: An Ethiopian Civ Quest

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Nerdorama said:
Hell no I want that mountain fort.
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The mountain fort conquest option is the Semien campaign, not the Harari campaign. But for what problem in particular would you want conquering additional mountain forts to address? We already have quite a lot of mountain forts in the highland core of our country.

Trying to overcome high walls and challenging mountains with zealous defenders for mountainous slopes seems like a waste of our year and a day with the captive court when we could launch a lightning campaign on simple, flat terrain against to protect our trade and merchants at a time where our income has already been hobbled.
 
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I'm on the edge because I acknowledge that the Wej will be easier and faster and better in the short term, I think the Harari is a much more immediate issue. They are actively launching devastating raids across our territory. It is my opinion that it requires the immediate attention of the main Imperial army and the emperor. If absolutely need be, we can send a subordinate to deal with the mercenaries as they are a smaller problem and will require less forces. Also, I would like to note that at least currently, we're not going to war with a sultan, we're going to war with an emir of a city. It's not a battle of equals yet, and if we act fast enough we might be able to deal with the emir before the sultan chooses to intervene, which will hopefully give us time before we actually have to confront the sultan. I think the longer we let the emirs run free, the more likely it is that the sultan will join in on the fun.
 
Revan Skirata said:
I'm on the edge because I acknowledge that the Wej will be easier and faster and better in the short term, I think the Harari is a much more immediate issue. They are actively launching devastating raids across our territory. It is my opinion that it requires the immediate attention of the main Imperial army and the emperor. If absolutely need be, we can send a subordinate to deal with the mercenaries as they are a smaller problem and will require less forces. Also, I would like to note that at least currently, we're not going to war with a sultan, we're going to war with an emir of a city. It's not a battle of equals yet, and if we act fast enough we might be able to deal with the emir before the sultan chooses to intervene, which will hopefully give us time before we actually have to confront the sultan. I think the longer we let the emirs run free, the more likely it is that the sultan will join in on the fun.
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They're not raiding across our territory, the emir is raiding at the borderlands. It may be confusing because it says imperial lowlands earlier in the text but the lowlands are actually the peripheral edge of the empire while the highlands are more of our core area. Maya raiding is also threatening trade, discouraging it and depriving us of money at a time when we're cash strapped. That seems of stronger national importance than some peripheral monastaries to me.

If we subjugate the Maya, we have taken care of a threat in one direction, supplemented our border/armed forces with mercenaries and helped our income problem, all while the imperial scribe has been given some time to improve our sorry admin while situated still within our domain. That should leave us in a stronger state to then turn our attentions to the east if the situation has degraded there, and we should have bought the respect of outlying lowlander tribals in the area by humbling the clever Gojan which also shores up the position out there.

The reverse is not so true; if we conquer this city, we have to see to its defense from the rest of Adal while we integrate it if they decide that they don't like the serious incursion of one of their biggest cities being ruled by an infidel, which as a peer power would make it hard to split our army much to deal with other burning fires and maintain equivalent strength. A giant empire conquering prominent lords and cities of your faith is a big threat and a strong call to rally against, we don't want to have emirs who hold no close borders with us and no capacity to get rich off of raiding us to nevertheless throw in their lot to defend their people and faith against foreign encroachment. In succes with Harar we'll still have wrecked the local trade with conquest while the caravan raiding at home goes unanswered impacting our income, and our court will all be in a foreign land with us which surely won't make it easier to administer our own empire.
 
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We can postpone Harar till the next turn, the nobles will be captive for one more turn after this as i understand. The Wej campaign will leave us stronger quickly, while Harar will leave us weakened for a while. The Wej Campaign is lower hanging fruit, we should do it first.
We can probably keep the same troops raised for both conflicts.
 
[X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
 
Kipeci said:
The mountain fort conquest option is the Semien campaign, not the Harari campaign. But for what problem in particular would you want conquering additional mountain forts to address? We already have quite a lot of mountain forts in the highland core of our country.

Trying to overcome high walls and challenging mountains with zealous defenders for mountainous slopes seems like a waste of our year and a day with the captive court when we could launch a lightning campaign on simple, flat terrain against to protect our trade and merchants at a time where our income has already been hobbled.
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That was a joke about Europa Universalis 4. Mainly I want to address Adal because they're the biggest actual threat and they need to be persuaded to stop burning our shit immediately.
 
The thing is, in all of the military campaigns, what we need is both incredible strategic tactics and a ton of luck. The latter might be a bit harder to get, but that is just my opinion.
 
Nerdorama said:
That was a joke about Europa Universalis 4. Mainly I want to address Adal because they're the biggest actual threat and they need to be persuaded to stop burning our shit immediately.
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Our stuff is being burned by both the Maya and the emir of Harar, but the former is damaging "the beating heart of Ethiopian trade" at a time where we've cratered our tax receipts while the latter is plundering some monasteries at the edge of the empire. The Maya trading is thus causing us more actual harm, as much as the diminished church faction is trying to convince us otherwise.

We are also more likely to draw in the rest of Adal by trying to conquer Harar. As it stands now, we have one neighboring emir trying to make a quick buck with one weird trick (doctors hate him) of pillaging peripheral monasteries during Lent when local defenses are at a minimum. The emirs of Adal are stronger than their actual sultan and jockeying for position with each other, so it seems unlikely that a leading emir would encourage the others walk through his territory to pillage us and cut into his share of the loot. Whereas, IF we invade, we will then start neighboring and scaring other Adal emirs who will not want to be on the chopping block for their cities to be invaded and will want to start arranging for their defense. Turbulence in the balance of power following the historical death of Mahfuz following Ethiopian interventions historically led to the very competent but common born Ahman being able to rise to rule, unite Adal, declare jihad on Ethiopia and absolutely wreck it.

I'd want to get all of our affairs in order before provoking Adal. Subjugating the Maya beforehand ought to consolidate our authority over the powerful tribes and enhance our power at the border with their support even as it helps mitigate our income issue and removes another potential front.

Qudrim8054 said:
The thing is, in all of the military campaigns, what we need is both incredible strategic tactics and a ton of luck. The latter might be a bit harder to get, but that is just my opinion.
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I think we have reason to assume that we won't need quite as much luck in the Wej campaign versus the Harari one that currently holds your vote. The lowlands don't have as complicated terrain, the Maya aren't living in fortified settlements with high walls as they're a pastoral people, and our leader specifically cut his teeth on tribal warfare versus that against organized states. We have pretty good military and tribal support alike, as well.
 
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[X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.

Color me convinced Adal can wait
 
[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
 
I really think that letting a foreign power continue raiding our borderlands with no reprisal is going to result in way worse consequences than letting a few tribes turn to banditry until we have time to deal with them.
 
[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
 
[X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
 
Nerdorama said:
I really think that letting a foreign power continue raiding our borderlands with no reprisal is going to result in way worse consequences than letting a few tribes turn to banditry until we have time to deal with them.
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When are we going to get the time to deal with an attack on "the beating heart of Ethiopian trade" (!!!) if we're stuck in the east sieging fortified towns to try to conquer an emir in a peer power? We should put domestic affairs in order before going putting on the expansionist hat or we'll spread ourselves thin, and the economy has been identified as one of our current weaknesses. The merchant faction is also stronger than the church so it will be more destabilizing to ignore their concerns (especially with the current hurt for income) rather than the church which is in the political doghouse.

Whereas the Wej campaign should be pretty quick as it'll be more out in open terrain and without significant walls/as much risk for ballooning scope, so we ought to be able to pivot from there if the situation degrades out east and with some mercenaries/border guards to boot.
 
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Kipeci said:
When are we going to get the time to deal with an attack on "the beating heart of Ethiopian trade" (!!!) if we're stuck in the east sieging fortified towns to try to conquer an emir in a peer power? We should put domestic affairs in order before going putting on the expansionist hat or we'll spread ourselves thin, and the economy has been identified as one of our current weaknesses. The merchant faction is also stronger than the church so it will be more destabilizing to ignore their concerns (especially with the current hurt for income) rather than the church which is in the political doghouse.
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Your last argument works in reverse too, as it's advantageous to balance our factions and play them against each other rather than empowering one at th cost of another (with the understanding that Susenyos's presented choices will always favor the miltiary).

As for the rest, not opposing the Harari could embolden the Sultan to mount an offensive against us, as we're not protecting our borders. The Maya, meanwhile, might cost us some taxes, but they're not going to escalate to a point we can't handle.
 
Nerdorama said:
As for the rest, not opposing the Harari could embolden the Sultan to mount an offensive against us, as we're not protecting our borders. The Maya, meanwhile, might cost us some taxes, but they're not going to escalate to a point we can't handle.
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If the sultan is able to rally his subjects, we'll be in a better spot economically and defending against a much more disunited set of princes than if we attack now, It would be the best possible course of events. Let's shore up our finances just a bit and then take Harar.
 
[X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
 
Nerdorama said:
Your last argument works in reverse too, as it's advantageous to balance our factions and play them against each other rather than empowering one at th cost of another (with the understanding that Susenyos's presented choices will always favor the miltiary).

As for the rest, not opposing the Harari could embolden the Sultan to mount an offensive against us, as we're not protecting our borders. The Maya, meanwhile, might cost us some taxes, but they're not going to escalate to a point we can't handle.
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The Wej campaign is achieving that by reaching out an olive branch to the merchants even as it simultaneously helps to satisfy the army and earn the respect of the powerful tribes. Recall that, although we were not the worst candidate in their eyes, the merchants were nevertheless not keen on our accession as they're not liking military adventures that risk blowing up trade routes nor our inclinations towards our heterodox practices. This path finds a way to satisfy and gain the respect of our key stakeholders in the army and ensuring tribal peace while also soothing the outraged demands of our merchants for justice from these raids, all while we're going to be supporting the bureaucrats with our choice of Lemuel for Bitwoded. I find that to strike an admirable balance in terms of bringing in new factions even while giving a gift to sate the ones responsible for gaining us our throne to ensure their continued backing, and those particular newcomers have much to give us with our currently sagging administration and income. On the other hand, the church hated us. We were their single least favorite candidate, the one that they tried to avoid at all costs by backing literally every other candidate and injecting themselves into those politics. Why should we rush to shower them with favor and a quick response before we've even rewarded our actual supporters? There's not anything special that we're looking from the church at the moment, not like the income we really need to have coming in which is worth coming to terms with the merchants for.

The Sultan by himself is weaker than his emirs, as Telamon states on page 5 here. Actually, looking up the history of the Sultanate of Adal on Wikipedia, it seems that in this time period it's to the extent that the Sultan is pretty much a puppet of his emirs by the current year of 1478.
Emir Laday Usman subsequently marched to Dakkar and seized power in 1471. However, Usman did not dismiss the Sultan from office, but instead gave him a ceremonial position while retaining the real power for himself. Adal now came under the leadership of a powerful Emir who governed from the palace of a nominal Sultan.[41]​ Mohammad Hassan states Adal Sultans began losing control of the state to Harar's aristocracy, the Harari and Harla people.[42]​
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As such he seems most unlikely to undertake independent action outside of what will benefit his Emirs... and why would the rest of the emirs controlling the Sultan want to empower Harar's position by expanding it against us? However, that calculation changes if we start going on a conquering spree next door; none of them want to be conquered and lorded over by an infidel emperor, and neither will they take kindly to us blowing up their local trade.

And again, matters can get quite bad if tribes (who again are one of the largest powerholders right now) sense weakness from us not bothering to respond to these tribes not only standing down from their duty but in fact turning their arms against us while our income is really hurting. We are not far off from the age of the Oromo migrations, where pastoralists from the south started with raids, found weakness as they encountered Adal and Ethiopia distracted by warring with each other, and swept up to settle and conquer wherever they could, picking up power and momentum as they won more and more and gained horses and serfs from the north. These migrations caused massive chaos and realignment in the region, and the collapse of many states. It's a bad idea to just ignore tribal raiding and say oh no big deal, one tribe might not be but if they are making off like bandits then there's a great many others who could start getting ideas and it can get quite a lot to handle while simultaneously engaged at another front.
 
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The thing is, tribes can be negotiated with, and respect Susenyos more than the average imperial candidate. Foreign Emirs, however, are vultures that aren't going to respond to anything but being forced into submission.
 
Changing my vote

[X] The Bitwoded: Bitwoded Amda Mikael, builder of a dozen churches, father of a dozen sons, and lord of a dozen lands, was the most powerful man in the reign of the emperor Baeda Maryam. Widely supported and widely liked, many expect the honor of being the emperor's right hand to be near-automatically granted to him once more. Beloved by the clergy for his charitable donations, Mikael has deep connections among the Islamic merchants of the Horn, which he has used to build his outrageous fortunes. A close ally of the Bahr Negus, his gold-coated fingers can be felt in nearly every corner of the empire.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
 
Nerdorama said:
The thing is, tribes can be negotiated with, and respect Susenyos more than the average imperial candidate. Foreign Emirs, however, are vultures that aren't going to respond to anything but being forced into submission.
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I strongly disagree with this statement. It is treacherous vassals should be the ones forced into submission, while foreign powers are the ones that merit discussion and treaties. We cannot allow our rule to be contested from the inside; certainly, while tribes overall may hold respect for our piety and wars of subjugation in the north, this particular one is not. Otherwise this Gojan wouldn't be shirking his duties and turning his arms against his masters caravans at a time of a budget crunch.

The emir is attacking fasting monks at a mostly unguarded border, not exactly the toughest group. Get the border guard back by subjugating the Maya properly and see if he maintains his bravery. If problems continue, then we can come to some other arrangement if needed- by force, if necessary. But by then we should be in a much firmer position to dedicate our efforts against Adal without worrying about all the fires at home.
 
[X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.

@Kipeci convinced me that domestic stabilization is a higher priority campaign wise. Ethopian trade has to be stabilized. We are young and will have the opportunity to lead serious foreign campaigns. Making sure our treasury is going to be full and asserting domestic dominance are higher priority.
 
[X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.

[X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.

I feel convinced by @Kipeci.
 
Seems that the flip is successful thus far, a big thanks to everyone who was willing to re-examine no matter what they settled on. I hope this can start us off on a strong foundation, we'll likely need it for the choppy geopolitical seas and introduction of gunpowder weapons ahead.

Adhoc vote count started by Kipeci on Sep 18, 2021 at 3:54 PM, finished with 107 posts and 55 votes.
  • [X] The Tsehafi Taezaz: Already one of the most powerful men in the imperial court, the Tsehafi Taezaz, or Imperial Scribe, is perhaps the most powerful appointed noble in the empire, responsible for recording all the emperor's orders and commands, issuing laws and proclamations, and keeping track of the titles and lands handed out by the emperor. The current Taezaz, Lemuel, is hailed by the Mekwanint as a capable and efficient organizer who has already proven himself capable of running an imperial court. Yet, he is a Jew, and many in the court bare teeth at the thought of letting him rise any higher. His long years in the bureaucracy and at the side of the last emperor may prove a boon.
    [X] The Wej Campaign: In the Wej region to the southeast of the Ethiopian highlands dwell the Maya tribe, skilled archers and warriors who have long served as mercenaries for the emperors. On learning of the emperor Baeda Maryam's death, however, the Maya have begun shirking their duties, abandoning the borders, and sending no tribute. It is said they even dare to raid the valuable salt caravans which pass through their lands, threatening the beating heart of Ethiopian trade. Outraged, the merchants have demanded the emperor do something about this injustice. The Maya king, Gojan, is known to be an opportunistic and clever warrior, who has fought in many battles. Many of the Dejazmaches advocate a quick and brutal war to put the Maya back in their place — a triumph over a warrior such as Gojan will win respect and fear from all the tribes surrounding the empire.
    [X] The Harari Campaign: With the death of the emperor Baeda Maryam, the Sultans of Adal whom he struggled so hard to force into tribute have declared their oaths null and void. While the Sultan has kept his insolence to sending no tribute, his emirs have begun their old patterns of raiding into the imperial lowlands and terrorizing Christian subjects. One in particular, an Imam named Mahfuz, lord of the city of Harar, is more daring than all the others. Leading a force of elite Malassay warriors, he has led a devastating raid into the imperial borderlands during the season of Lent, just as the ritual fasts and holy observances have left the borders near defenseless. He has crowned this blasphemy by looting churches and monasteries, the stolen wealth of which he has taken back to Harar. This crime must be avenged. The clergy and the army alike urge the emperor to march east and make his name by conquering Harar and seeing this Mahfuz to deserved end.
    [X] The Empress Regent: Briefly regent of an empire and mother to a king, the former empress Romna now has little to her name beyond her pride and the clothes on her back. Deserted by most in the court after her ambitious gambit failed, she awaits her fate in Axum with her most loyal retainers and allies. Many expect her to be packed off to a monastery to wait out her days in solitude, but some few voices, the preacher Kabede among them, remind the emperor that mere days ago this woman nearly bent an empire to her whim with little more than words.
    [X] The Bitwoded: Bitwoded Amda Mikael, builder of a dozen churches, father of a dozen sons, and lord of a dozen lands, was the most powerful man in the reign of the emperor Baeda Maryam. Widely supported and widely liked, many expect the honor of being the emperor's right hand to be near-automatically granted to him once more. Beloved by the clergy for his charitable donations, Mikael has deep connections among the Islamic merchants of the Horn, which he has used to build his outrageous fortunes. A close ally of the Bahr Negus, his gold-coated fingers can be felt in nearly every corner of the empire.
    [X] The Imperial Expedition: War has always been among the emperor's first resorts with the powers to her east. The Sultans of Adal and Ajuraan are powerful and haughty, and too often it has been necessary to shatter their walls and their pretensions at royalty...and yet, there may be another way. A merchant by the name of Nasr, hailing from Yemen, has suggested another course: an imperial expedition, a show of might and wealth that would cow the high lords of the Horn of Africa without a drop of blood spilt. March the splendor of Ethiopia through Adal and Ajuraan, visit the cities that have so long defied imperial power, and imprint indelibly on all their minds who is lord and master. Who could see the host of the King of Kings, and not know fear for all their days?
    [X] The Harari Campaign
    [X] The Empress Regent
    [X] The Imperial Expedition: War has always been among the emperor's first resorts with the powers to her east. The Sultans of Adal and Ajuraan are powerful and haughty, and too often it has been necessary to shatter their walls and their pretensions at royalty...and yet, there may be another way. A merchant by the name of Nasr, hailing from Yemen, has suggested another course: an imperial expedition, a show of might and wealth that would cow the high lords of the Horn of Africa without a drop of blood spilt. March the splendor of Ethiopia through Adal and Ajuraan, visit the cities
    [X] The Imperial Expedition
    [X] The Tsehafi Taezaz
    [X] The Bitwoded
    [X] The Wej Campaign
    [X] The Queen Mother: Traditionally, the Emperor's mother plays a dominant position in the state. With the early death of his own mother before his ascension, the late emperor instead elevated the last of his father's wives, the Queen Eleni — his mother in spirit if not in fact. Intelligent, well-educated, and shrewd, the dowager empress served her stepson with an iron fist and a silver tongue, eclipsing the actual empress Romna. In her youth she was a princess of the Hadiya tribe to the far east of the empire, a fact which has won her much love from the outskirts in the years since, and she has emerged in her time in the court as an outspoken defender of the emperor — a strategy she has achieved by appeasing the nobility and granting them autonomy to avoid civil war, working instead to centralize power on the imperial person. The Queen Mother is, some suggest, far too powerful to be ignored outright.
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[X] The Harari Campaign: With the death of the emperor Baeda Maryam, the Sultans of Adal whom he struggled so hard to force into tribute have declared their oaths null and void. While the Sultan has kept his insolence to sending no tribute, his emirs have begun their old patterns of raiding into the imperial lowlands and terrorizing Christian subjects. One in particular, an Imam named Mahfuz, lord of the city of Harar, is more daring than all the others. Leading a force of elite Malassay warriors, he has led a devastating raid into the imperial borderlands during the season of Lent, just as the ritual fasts and holy observances have left the borders near defenseless. He has crowned this blasphemy by looting churches and monasteries, the stolen wealth of which he has taken back to Harar. This crime must be avenged. The clergy and the army alike urge the emperor to march east and make his name by conquering Harar and seeing this Mahfuz to deserved end.

[X] The Empress Regent: Briefly regent of an empire and mother to a king, the former empress Romna now has little to her name beyond her pride and the clothes on her back. Deserted by most in the court after her ambitious gambit failed, she awaits her fate in Axum with her most loyal retainers and allies. Many expect her to be packed off to a monastery to wait out her days in solitude, but some few voices, the preacher Kabede among them, remind the emperor that mere days ago this woman nearly bent an empire to her whim with little more than words.
 
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