I think it's us and Cali, actually. Miami as a polity is one of the bonuses they picked, since otherwise they would have had a significantly larger polity that had coalesced out of the wreckage of the New American Confederacy.
The city-state of Miami might, or might not, be part of the New New American Confederacy.
If the Simonized negaverse Victoria had picked no diplomatic bonuses or maluses, then they would have faced on the North American continent:
1) A Free City of New York that was
not disarmed and fearful, and that was actively in the process of using its wealth to procure weaponry with which to make an offensive into Victorian territory viable.
2) An American South that was
in the process of recoalescing, possibly including Miami. At game start, nigh-immediate diplomatic or military attention would be required to stop it from becoming a serious threat.
3) A New California Republic that was independent, nuclear-armed, and dominant throughout most of the American West. Very likely to start arming enemies of Victoria east of the Mississippi once they got around to it after completing their own defense buildup, and there would be virtually nothing to stop them doing so.
4) A Chicagoland united under one of two leader/governments almost calculated to exploit Victorian expectations:
4a) Audrey Jameson's Commonwealth of Free Cities. Preoccupied with resolving "Hostile Neighborhood" as a more serious obstacle than in our quest, but also very effective at espionage and infiltration, and at coalition-building with people who aren't scared of her. Easily underestimated at game start, but likely to get exponentially stronger over time. Best strategy, stop her now while you still can- but that's the same strategy you'd need to pursue with (1) and (2), so resources are an issue.
4b) Richard Daley's mercantile city-state. This would set Chicago up to be Yet Another Pushover Enemy with an easily parodied government, only Daley proves to be
disturbingly cunning. Slipperier than a snake covered in grease, viciously effective at making fighting retreats and urban warfare, resourceful at setting up complications in the Victorians' rear areas, and very very good at exploiting how strung-out the Victorian supply lines would have become trying to run their equipment all the way around Michigan. Less growth potential in the short to medium term, and
looks vulnerable, but makes you regret trying to attack him for a long time. Best strategy,
leave him the fuck alone even though he looks vulnerable.
All these threats would have been ticking bombs, and Victoria's early game would have involved a frantic race to disarm them.
As it stands, they've largely neutralized threats (1) and (2), at least for 10-15 turns after game start... in exchange for making (3) try to actively screw them over in their attempt to deal with a
considerably roided-up (4) under Burns and Johnson. Which is appropriate, given that they traded 8 CP of maluses for 9 CP of bonuses.
The Victorian Civil War, as it has played out, is basically the negaverse players' own fault. First, they took so many CMC options that the continued stability of their government was permanently contingent on keeping the double-plus super fanatics appeased.
Then they declared war on Detroit as a kneejerk reaction, laying only minimal groundwork in the form of securing Toledo's cooperation as a forward base.
And
then they managed to plan an invasion of Detroit that:
1)
Did not gather intelligence on the military capabilities of Chicago beyond "they has coal-fired gunboats and some planes" and "they can field about three divisions plus militias," and thus underestimated what Chicago could do to help defend Detroit.
2)
Did not allow for the risk that Chicago would use its gunboat fleet (which the Victorians knew about) offensively.
3)
Did not promptly address the gunboats' unexpected ability to survive airstrikes, revealed after the Buffalo Raid.
4)
Did not make a serious effort to find alternate approaches into our territory, to cut off Detroit, or to subvert effectively before attacking, relying almost entirely on pure military mass to crush our defenses in a single region through attacks against an enemy who knew they were coming and had time to dig in.
Did not, in short, use any of the things their Fourth Generation Warfare doctrine is actually goodish at.
5)
Did divide their forces in the face of the enemy, in a manner that would make them vulnerable to being cut off by the gunboats.
6)
Did throw away 'good money after bad' by pressing inland after the Leamington Landings.
7)
Did do the same again, by even bothering to launch the southern prong of the offensive, after the eastern prong had already been effectively neutralized as a credible diversionary attack due to the casualties and depletion of supplies they suffered at Essex.
The ensuing military disaster then completely destabilized the Victorian government, because the CMC freaked the fuck out in multiple opposite directions at the same time. And because having taken
FIVE CMC options, the players had given the CMC overwhelming power within the state. So much power that it was entirely possible for Victoria to fight a civil war that involved, in effect, one half of the CMC trying to destroy the other half while using the civilian government as a proxy.
On the good side, folks, I have an interview tomorrow! Looking promising!
GOOD LUCK POPTART!
