**Explanation**
A new power has risen to glory, threatening the old and great Greeks and the barbarians of the north. This power is called Rome. And Rome shall be destroyed. Or, will Rome destroy all?
Balance of Power is a persistent Play-By-Forum Wargame set in the years 200 BC- 62 A.D (I know it is a lot, but I want it to be very long) each turn representing 1 year. During this time, the Roman consuls were threatening every barbarian nation, and promising to get them to a state of annihilation. But the barbarians do not back off, and neither do the mighty Greeks. What will you do?
**Diplomacy & Economics**
Spoiler
1 Turn = 1 Year
Friend or foe? This question can lead to the rise of your empire or the end of your life. Pick your friends carefully, and be wary of when and where to pick sides.
Diplomacy primarily takes place in PMs on the forums or in Steam conversations. No conversation is official, and posting private messages without consent is against the rules. The only way to ensure that the conversation happened is to mention it in your Turn Report. Below the radar conversations can be disastrous, or extremely lucrative. Plan wisely.
Gold
Gold is the in-game currency. If you want to do anything, you need to have the Gold. Large nations earn more Gold, while small nations earn smaller amounts of Gold. However, Gold spending is relevant to size. If a large country wanted to spend money on feeding its population it would need to spend more Gold than a very small country. Almost everything you plan from a Military Campaign to an infiltration you need to put Gold towards it (usually 100 Gold is the bare minimum to perform any such operation successfully).
Be very wise on how you spend your Gold.
Trading
Trade agreements benefit both of the nations participating in it. It costs money to establish a trading your, but you'll get much more out of it then what you spend and you won't have to pay after the initial payment. All trade routes must start at level one and can work up each turn, and each time paying the new cost.
Level 1 trade route - Cost: 200 Gold - 5% income boost
Level 2 trade route - Cost: 400 Gold - 10% income boost
Level 3 trade route - Cost: 1000 Gold - 20% income boost
Level 4 trade route - Cost: 3000 Gold - 30% income boost
Alliances, Vassalization and Friendship Pacts
Friendship (or nonaggression, if you like) pacts are just official treaties stating that the two nations in question are on very friendly terms and will not attack each-other. Generally, one nation will help the other in an economic struggle but they won't necessarily enter a war alongside them (or against them).
Alliances are official pacts stating that each nation will help each other in both war and in economic struggle. Though an ally is not automatically at war if war breaks out, refusing to aid your ally in any way is frowned upon (unless your ally was attacked by another ally, which would suggest neutrality).
Vassalization typically happens when one nation conquers another. The nation that has been vassalized may keep there government however they will be forced to give troops to its mother nation in war and to provide support to the economy of the mother nation in desperate times. Should the conquering nation choose not to vassalize the other, they may allow them to keep there government fully or completely remove the government and the player from the game. The player may go into exile in a country friendly to the player however, and attempt to rally friends to retake his or her lands. For example if you are successful in a de jure (more on that later) war, than the losing player will become your vassal, such as a Duke. If you are fighting a war for control of a throne (like a kingdom) then the losing player (if not captured) can go to a friendly country and there attempt to rally supporters to his or her cause.
Resources and goods are required to make almost anything in the game. They are as follows:
Resources:
Animals
Metal
Leather
Wood
Harvest
Goods:
Small Ship - 3 Wood, 1 Metal
Medium Ship - 5 Wood, 2 Metal
Large Ship - 10 wood, 5 Metal
Arrows - 3 Wood, 1 Metal
Cheap Weapons - 2 Metal, 1 Leather
Weapons - 3 Metal, 1 Leather, 1 Wood
Special Weapons - 4 Metal, 1 Leather, 2 Wood
Bows - 1 Metal, 1 Leather, 5 Wood
Cheap Armour - 1 Leather, 1 Metal
Armour - 1 Leather, 4 Metal
Strong Armour - 1 Leather, 5 Metal
Message Bird - 1 Animal
Horses - 2 Animals
Strong Horses - 4 Animals
Food - 2 Harvest
Small Wagon - 2 Wood, 1 Metal
Medium Wagon - 4 Wood, 3 Metal
Large Wagon - 6 Wood, 5 Metal
**Warfare**
Spoiler
War is at the very center of a Balance of Power game. Military strength and clever strategy is paramount. Be careful of how and when you deploy your forces.
The Mechanics
Each unit has whats called a "Base Stat". The base stat represents the overall strength of the unit, taking into account troop quality, morale, terrain, defense bonus etc. After that comes whats called a "Chance Modifier". This is a random roll between 1 and 4 that changes the Base Stat accordingly. This provides the basis of combat. Occasionally random events may aid or hinder your fight as well.
During each battle, units are paired off with units of the opposing army with the nearest quality and role. Than the unit with the highest Base Stat in the end wins. If a unit loses by 1-2 the unit receives the status "Taken Casualties". If the unit loses by 2-4 the unit receives the status "Taken Heavy Casualties". Both have a negative effect lasting one turn. Should the unit lose by 5 or more, the unit is destroyed. Any surviving units in an army will retreat to the nearest friendly territory.
Land Units
Levy Infantry - Cost: 5 Gold, 1 Cheap Weapons, 1 Cheap Armour
Levies are able-bodied men that have been called-up by their Lord to fight for the realm. They make up the backbone of an army, but are generally ill trained and equipped, and often unable to stand against other non-levy infantry. They are however very cheap, and receive a morale boost when fighting on their native land. Levy Infantry is only recruitable during war.
(The larger your realm, the larger the amount of levies you can recruit per-turn during a war.)
Light Infantry - Cost: 150 Gold, 1 Weapons, 1 Armour
Light Infantry units are regular soldiers. They are generally supposed to hold the line until the main force arrives.
Heavy Infantry - Cost: 300 Gold, 2 Weapons, 2 Strong Armour
Heavy Infantry units are the backbone of the army, doing most of the fighting while in combat.
Archers - Cost: 150 Gold, 1 Bows, 4 Arrows
Archers are the long-range fighters of the army. Typically armed with bow, they are very good when fighting the enemy at a range, and can also hide in wooded patches and other covered terrains.
Levy Archers - Cost: 100 Gold, 1 Bows, 2 Arrows
Much like Levy Infantry, but they specialize in long-range tactics like proper Archers. Like levy infantry and levy cavalry, levy archers are only recruitable during war.
(The larger your realm, the larger the amount of levies you can recruit per-turn during a war.)
Levy Cavalry - Cost: 50 Gold, 1 Horses, 1 Cheap Weapon, 1 Cheap Armour
Levy Cavalry are the same as Levy Infantry and Levy Archers, except they perform the same duties as Light Cavalry. As with levy infantry and levy archers, levy cavalry is only recruitable in war-time.
(The larger your realm, the larger the amount of levies you can recruit per-turn during a war.)
Light Cavalry - Cost: 150 Gold, 1 Horses, 1 Weapon, 1 Armour
Light Cavalry are cheap cavalry units that are great for harassing the enemy and running. But if they're bogged down too long then they'll most likely be eliminated.
Heavy Cavalry - Cost: 400 Gold, 1 Strong Horses, 1 Weapon, 1 Strong Armour
Heavy Cavalry are very effective cavalry who are deadly in a charge and in an extended close-quarters fight.
Supply & Scouting
Supply
Keeping your soldiers supplied with food and ammunition is vital to a military campaign.
Measurement doubles for every 5 units
Starving = No Food
The men have nothing to eat and this has a severe impact on their morale.
Malnourished = 0.5 Tonnes of Food
This men are hungry, but they have just enough food to sustain themselves. It still has a negative morale impact however.
Fed = 1 Tonne of Food
The men are fed enough so that they're neither hungry nor overly full. This has no morale impact.
Well Fed = 1.5 Tonnes of Food
The men are full of good, fresh food. This has a positive morale impact.
Extremely Well Fed = 2 Tonnes of Food
The men are fill to the brim with nutritious supplements. This has a very positive morale impact.
Barely Armed = No Weapons
Most men are still just armed with what they took from the field. This has a very bad combat effectiveness effect.
Poorly Armed = 0.5 Tonnes of Weapons
The men are running very low on decent weapons. This reduces their combat effectiveness.
Armed = 1 Tonne of Weapons
The men have just enough decent weapons. This has no effect on their combat effectiveness.
Well Armed = 1.5 Tonnes of Weapons
The soldiers have plenty of good weapons. This has a positive effect on their combat effectiveness.
Extremely Well Armed = 2 Tonnes of Weapons
The soldiers have good weapons in abundance. This has a very positive effect on their combat effectiveness.
Scouting
Scouts give you information about the enemy movement in battle, and they're essential to any successful campaign.
The more scouts the better
Messenger - Cost: 10 Gold, 1 Messenger Bird, 1 Horse
Able to send messages by horse or bird. Use of a messenger can help gather additional levies. (1 time use. When used, it provides a random chance of adding an additional 1 levy when you recruit one.)
Inexperienced Scout - Cost: 50 Gold
These scouts have little experience and are much less reliable than their counterparts.
Scout - Cost: 100 Credits
A basic scout, not too advanced but experienced enough to relay accurate information.
Experienced Scout - Cost: 200 Gold
A very experienced scout, they almost always relay full and accurate information
Mounted Scout - Cost: 300 Gold, 1 Horse
The same as an Experienced Scout but mounted on a horse, allowing him to cover more ground quicker and bring back reports faster.
Transportation
If you want to move soldiers or resupply your armies, owning Ships and Supply Caravans are vital.
(Fighting with ships is possible, but is not advised and should be used only as a last-ditch effort.)
Ships
Levy Ship - Cost: 60 Gold, 1 Small Ship
Capable of carrying 2 Tonnes of supplies or 1 unit.
(Only recruitable during war)
Small Ship - Cost: 100 Gold, 1 Small Ship, 1 Arrow
Capable of carrying 4 Tonnes of supplies or 2 units.
Medium Ship - Cost: 300 Gold, 1 Medium Ship, 1 Arrow
Capable of carrying 6 Tonnes of supplies or 3 units
Large Ship - Cost: 500 Gold, 1 Large Ship, 2 Arrows
Capable of carrying 10 tonnes of supplies or 5 units.
Land Transports
Small Supply Caravan - Cost: 100 Gold, 1 Small Wagon
Carries 1 tonne of supplies.
Medium Supply Caravan - Cost: 300 Gold, 1 Medium Wagon
Carries 3 tonnes of supplies.
Large Supply Caravan - Cost: 500 Gold, 1 Large Wagon
Carries 5 tonnes of supplies.
You can hire Caravan Guards to protect your convoys.
Caravan Guards - Cost: 30 - Gold, 1 Weapons, 1 Cheap Armour
Equivalent to Levy Infantry.
Veteran Caravan Guards - Cost: 80 Gold, 1 Weapons, 1 Armour
Equivalent to Retinue Infantry.
Mounted Caravan Guards - Cost: 110 Gold, 1 Weapons, 1 Armour, 1 Horses
Equivalent to Levy Cavalry.
Veteran Mounted Caravan Guards - Cost: 150 Gold, 1 Weapons, 1 Armour, 1 Horses
Equivalent to Light Cavalry.
**Note**
Each faction will have its own troop tree, this is the base form.
**Espionage**
Spoiler
Espionage plays a key role in maintaining national security. Remember, low quality spies have a higher risk of being caught and revealing your identity. Be sure you measure the risk you're taking for the information.
Reporter - Cost: 200 Gold
Spy - Cost: 400 Gold
Expert Spy - Cost: 600 Gold
Infiltrator - Cost: 1000 Gold
Cutthroat - Cost: 1200 Gold
The cutthroat, in particular, specializes in assassinations. Though he is also an expert spy.
Another note; spies do not count as a unit and thus do not need to be transported to their task.
**Technology**
Spoiler
Technology affects the stability of your military and economy. You may increase it by devoting credits towards it. Each technology tree goes from level 1 to 10.
Land Technology - The technological level of your Land Forces.
Economic Technology - The technological level of your Economy.
**Country Cards**
Spoiler
A Country Card is essentially a status report on your country. Your Orders Card is the Card you send to the Gamemaster telling him what you want your country to do for that turn. The more specific you are in any general orders, the more specific the outcome. The reverse is also true.
You may also receive an event "card" with your turn report and/or country card. This present you with something good or bad (or neutral) that you must choose an answer for (a few different (and varied) options with be given to you for an answer, and you must choose one). Send your answer with your turn report. There is (usually) no right or wrong answer. Your answer will have some effect on you or your nation.
Country Cards
Country Name - The name of your country.
Government Type - The type of government your country uses.
Ideology - The ideas of your country.
Stability - The political stability of your country.
Religion - The religion of your country.
Economic Status - A basic report on your economy.
Income - The amount of Gold you earned this turned.
Gold Banked - The amount of Gold left over from last turn.
Total Income - The total amount of Gold at your disposal.
Raw Resources - Any Resources that are at your disposal.
Completed Goods - Any finished goods at your disposal.
Land Technology Level - The Level of your Land Technology.
Economic Technology Level - The Level of your Economic Technology.
Significant Nobles - When at war, you may call forth these nobles and any troops they have.
Available Levies - The maximum amount of levies you can raise this turn.
Military Units - The locations and strengths of your armed forces.
Current National Issues - Any major issues that are affecting your nation.
Current Diplomatic Agreements & Conflicts - Any major diplomatic agreements or disagreements that you've made with other nations.
Current Defenses - Any significant castles that you control.
Orders Format
(Please put this in the subject of the Private Message) [Country Name] Orders [Revision # (if you are sending in a revision)]
General Actions
#Credits Spent - Action
etc.
Divisions & Locations
Army # - Location
Diplomatic Actions
Type of Action - With whom you made the agreement etc.
Military Actions
If you plan on executing a military campaign please put very specific orders here. A map pointing to where your troops will be also helps a lot.
Gold Remaining
The amount of Gold you have left after all actions are completed this turn.
**Nations, Players & General Rules**
Spoiler
General Rules:
- Please do not insult other players. Even when you're "roleplaying". Keep it civilized.
- You are free to contact the Gamemaster about anything. However, I like suggestions. Not bitching, or any kind of personal insults.
- Please have fun. If you really don't enjoy the game, you're under no obligation to stay.
- Do not edit your posts, ever. This prevents people from changing what they said, and any public mistakes they've made.
Player & Faction list will be added soon, thanks to Konig for letting me use his rules!
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