What should have been one of the Empire's brightest days has become it's darkest. One week ago, in the city of Usken, our crown prince Yemid was wedded to Princess Viniria of the Kaval. However, shortly after the wedding vows were spoken, fire broke out, rappidly engulfing the city. The entire royal family, as well as many attendands to the wedding, died in the fire. You are the few remaining of the Empire's finest, either because you managed to escape or because you were not present. It is up to you to guide our Empire through these dark times. Therefore, by the will of the late Emperor Nichel, I have called a general assembly, to meet in the city of Nigre. You are invited and strongly adviced to participate.
The most important matters to discuss at this assembly are:
- Inheritance and leadership. The only remaining legal heir to the throne is the husband of the late princess Nissia, Kenrad the Cruel. He is the former king of the Assadian Kingdom, forced into exile after the people of the Assadian kingdom stood up against his exploitative reign. His current whereabouts are unknown but it is without question that he will attempt to claim the throne for himself.
- Safety of the Empire. Rumors of the Emperor's demise have spread far and wide. Several of our neighbours have begun ammassing armies. Of direct concern are the Milchikan Tribes, who have already begun raiding towns in the western part of our empire.
Signed: Mekhel the Rider, head of the late Emperor Nichel's court.
This is a free-form role playing game in which each of you plays a person of considerable renown and influence in the Empire. As such it will contain both elements of role playing and strategy, including economy and combat.
To sign up, please write a short description of your person as well as any relevant information regarding your position within the Empire's political structure, your personal posessions and your family ties.
A map of the Empire and it's direct neighborhood can be found here:
http://imgur.com/A9EoJdj (Red lines are borders, as we recognize them. Blue lines are rivers. The green, yellow and black marks represent woodlands, fields and mountains respectively. The town in the Northwest whose name is cut off is called Loghdar)
HistoryThe history of the Saeddid empire goes back 80 years, to when the kingdoms of Avon and the kingdom of the Talemids were united by Uvure the Conqueror. Since then, the history of the Empire has been characterized by infighting between Princes, Counts and dukes of varying levels of influence, as well as religious tensions between the Musharan north and the Ustavran south. However, under the 5 year reign of the now late Emperor Nichel the Just, the empire experienced a period of relative peace and prosperity.
ReligionThe Musharan and Ustavran religions both recently split off of the old Viviran religion, which is still influential in some small towns. Both religions believe that the world was given form when the Holy Wind spread the ashes of the Primal Fire throught the Eternal Night. However, they disagree strongly, and sometimes violently, about the role of fire on Earth. The Musharan belive that the remains of the Primal Fire resides in Nigre and followers are strongly encouraged to go on Pilgrimage to the Temple of Holy Fire to light a sacred candle and bring it back home. The Ustravan, staying closer to their Viviran roots, believe that a piece of the Eternal Fire resides in each person and that through dedication and introspection, everyone can call on this spark to light a Holy Flame which will give them guidance. Unsurprisingly, both religions think that believers in the other religion are pompous blasphemers.
Economy and TechnologyThe Saedid empire is first and foremost an agragian society. Trade is discouraged on religious grounds as profitting of your fellow citizen is against the will of the Primal Fire. Nevertheless, small trading caravans can often be seen traveling the protected roads. Technology wise, the Empire is known for it's skilled metalsmiths and woodworkers, who create excelent crafts and weapons (primarely crossbows, swords, spears and ringmail armor). Pottery and glasworking is a largely unknown art and what little is used in the Saedid empire is imported from the Kaval empire. Most buildings are created out of wood, with some buildings erected from limestone mined from the mountains.
Most of the game is free-form. As such I would like to keep the mechanics as light as possible and judge most interactions by common sense. However, for combat I will be using the following system:
Each army has a rating that I will assign based on the experience and equipment. When two armies clash, I will roll 4 random numbers from 0 to the armys' rating and count how many times one army gets a higher score than the other. The results are as following:
If one army wins over the other:
4x - Crushing victory
3x - Small victory
2x - Stalemate
Feel free to ask questions if something is unclear.
