[center][h1]Kingdoms of Seyan[/h1] [IMG]http://i58.tinypic.com/sl5s86.jpg[/IMG] [h2]Welcome to the Interest Check![/h2][/center] Seyan is an island lying off the north-western coast of a continent known as Morroinn. The island is roughly the size of Sweden and Norway combined and has a climate similar to those countries. A number of kingdoms inhabit the island. Some of these are allies, others are enemies. They are all however rivals, competing for land, resources and glory. A few of these kingdoms are native to the island, whilst others are the results of foreign invasions. Some could even be puppet states for a nation on the continent. But this is really just speculation. All of this is, of course, up to you. You will take the role of one of these kingdoms, playing as its current ruling dynasty. Your goal is survival through any means necessary, be it intrigue, diplomacy, intimidation, assassination or outright warfare. When your dynasty dies, so do you. The game will be played in seasons; spring, summer, autumn and winter. Each season will have certain events that occur regardless of what the players are doing, but they must react and adapt to these events or face the consequences. The technological development of Seyan equals that of 1000-1200 Europe, depending on the kingdoms. There is magic in the world, but it can't be practiced. It is a natural force that surrounds everything and sometimes warps reality in surprising ways. When you create a kingdom, you will choose from a set of Traits and Flaws to define what it's all about. You have 10 points to spend on Traits and must initially take 2 Flaws, however you can buy more points for Traits by taking additional Flaws (at 1 point per extra Flaw). If you want to, you can create new Traits or Flaws; I must however review and accept them before you use them. [hider=Traits and Flaws] [h3]KINGDOM TRAITS[/h3] [b]A web of whispers[/b] - Your master of spies is a genius. His contacts are numerous and you have many insiders in different courts. Your spies are good at seeking out and buying information, at spying, extorting, falsifying, and sabotaging. Although such a reputation doesn't make you popular. [b]A breaker of webs[/b] - Your agents are many, and as such they combat the spy network with great efficiency. [b]Honorable folk (Cannot take with A web of whispers)[/b] - In all of history you were known for being most honorable. Your diplomats are one of the most trusted, although that makes all the more.. Sneakier affairs, more difficult. [b]Beloved by the people[/b] - Your royal family is widely popular among the peasantry. To sow dissent and seeds of doubt into your populace would be met with fierce resistance, for sometimes even a bad jest about your cousin's lazy eye could get you into trouble. [b]Friends with the nobles[/b] - Your dynasty sometimes gave landed titles to those they deemed worthy, or they sometimes helped during disasters or married some nobles, making quite some blue-blooded people happy. [b]Wondrous beauty[/b] - Your cities are adorned with fountains, gargoyles, churches, cathedrals, chapels, statues. Not to mention the world's wonder in your capital. [b]Developed infrastructure[/b] - Your roads are well-built, your villages have wells, watchtowers, and even walls sometimes. Armies and caravans pass rather quickly through your lands. [b]Clean streets[/b] - Your streets are regularly patrolled by the city guard. [b]Fair law[/b] - Your justice court is renowned for its' fairness. No one can complain about unfair treatment at your unbuyable judges' hand. [b]Schools[/b] - Your people are taught in schools. Some folks are literate. [hr] [h3]MILITARY TRAITS[/h3] [b]Knowledge of war[/b] - All high-ranked officers and commanders learn from veterans in military institutes. Your strategists are brilliant and can plan elaborate attacks and maneuvers. Many interesting cavalry and infantry formations are known. [b]Messengers with wings[/b] - Your communication is rather fast with the use of trained birds. It helps relay urgent and sometimes vital orders to different places. [b]Show of war[/b] - Songs are sung, crests and sigils are adorning the shields, tabards, flags, and even painted on faces. The morale in such moments is extremely strong. [b]War taxes[/b] - You tax your populace in time of conflict. It helps greatly with paying for the upkeep and cost of armies. However, if war goes on for too long, the peasants will revolt. [b]Foraging[/b] - Your armies can live off the lands indefinitely; hunting game, gathering fruits and growing vegetables. It helps sustain your army in alien lands. [b]Big armies[/b] - You don't miss up on an opportunity to recruit more people, even if they lack in a finger, eye, or limb. You recruit the old people, the younglings barely out of their teens, and so on. This does however add more mouths to feed sometimes and more people to pay, but can be worth it when needed cannon fodder. [b]Masters of ambush[/b] - Your armies have mastered the art of ambushing an enemy - taking them by surprise and slaughtering them. Indeed, a small squad can destroy an entire entourage of soldiers if they have prepared all the traps and tricks needed for the excellent ambush. [b]Good equipment[/b] - Many of your soldiers have access to good equipment, which means that they'll fight with better armor and arms. However if you take this trait along with the trait 'Big armies' you get a modifier making less soldiers have the same good armor and weapons. [b]Heavy armor (Cannot take with Light armor.)[/b] - Your forces are heavily armored, prone to enduring many blows in battle in exchange for mobility. [b]Light armor (Cannot take with Heavy armor.)[/b] - Your soldiers are lightly armored, leading to them being more faster and mobile. [i]Note that the Heavy and Light armor are simply preferences. You will still have heavy cavalry or heavy infantry if you take the Light armor. Just that they'd be less heavy than the ones with the 'Heavy armor' trait chosen.[/i] [b]Good archers[/b] - Your archers are extremely good, either at discipline and teamwork or at being good shots. [b]Jousting lords[/b] - Your knights have practiced jousting at tournaments for hundreds of years. This means that your lancers are amongst the finest. [b]Trained troops[/b] - The troops that you command are highly skilled and disciplined, taught the art of war and all of its' great and important details. The men are hardened warriors with training and are ready for combat. However, if you take this trait along with the trait 'Big army' you'll get a modifier with less soldiers being experienced and somewhere along the recruits unless after several battles. [b]Sieging genius[/b] - Your engineers know well the craft of building siege towers, siege ladders and digging under the walls. All in all, you are feared as a besieger. [b]Awe-inspiring fortifications[/b] - Your castles and keeps are known for its' beauty, but most of all its' security as they stands tall and imposing, as a big challenge for the world. The kingdom's forts are highly valued strategic positions which reinforce certain regions and protect it from the foe. [b]Ships[/b] - Your navy is formidable with many a ship, crewed by bonny sailors and admirals. [b]Riding the waves (Can't take with 'Massive ships' trait)[/b] - Your ships are among the fastest. You ride atop the waves as if on a chariot, and can cross seas and oceans with ease. [b]Seaworthy[/b] - Don't worry about your entire fleet sinking to meet the god of water himself! Because with the vessels you possess, it's near impossible. [b]Massive ships (Can't take with 'Riding the waves' trait)[/b] - The ships in your fleet are massive, and can take in more than several hundred men, as well as hundreds of crates. But they're rather slow. [hr] [h3]TRADE TRAITS[/h3] [b]Agriculture[/b] - Your fields and soil are rich. Your people can feed off it and make bread aplenty. All in all, it is a big bonus to feeding your civilians and your big hosts. [b]Filthy rich (COSTS 2 POINTS, REQUIRES IMPORTANT TRADE ROUTES TRAIT)[/b] - You live in mythical extravagance, for you are very rich and your coffers are full. [b]Rich with ores[/b] - After successful expeditions into your mountains, you've discovered numerous veins of rich ores and still to this day you're making profit from them. [b]Important trade routes (COSTS 2 POINTS)[/b] - Many roads vital to international trade go through your country. Merchant guildmasters bow and pay tariffs to you, coin circulates through your demesne like blood. [b]Ports[/b] - Trading ships set anchor upon your shores as they trade many different, important and luxurious resources from overseas. [b]Industry[/b] - Your craftsmen and artisans create many important and quality goods. [b]Black market[/b] - There is some very interesting wares that can be purchased in your domain, if you find the right person and have good coin. And even for Your Majesty's unspoken approval, they can give a share. [b]Ancient merchant families[/b] - Your merchant families are old, all having haggled with kings and queens of old. Through them you can get access to many other markets and places. The Merchant families and guilds are extremely powerful, almost as powerful as your vassals, or even more. [b]Caravans[/b] - Not just caravans. Very well guarded ones, extraordinarily quick and big. Your merchants won't get robbed by some filthy brigands, and sometimes an army won't stop them, though that's unlikely. [hr] [h3]FLAWS[/h3] [i]Do not take Flaws which are completely opposite of the traits you took. For an example, it's better not to take a flaw about bad ships when you chose many traits for good ships.[/i] [b]Not a flawless family[/b] - Your family members all have flaws. Maybe one is crippled, the other proud and slothful, third a feebleminded abomination. That doesn't help with alliances, which are almost all made through betrothal. Nor does it help with popularity. [b]Not a flawless family 2[/b] - Something horrible had been once discovered about your family, and it's a sweet juice for rumors to be made by your foes. [b]Corruption[/b] - There is clientelism, bribery, and other disgusting things in your government. Your closest advisors take a slice of the tax money for themselves and possess too much power, fighting over the kingdom like petty children. [b]Arguable claims[/b] - Several of your vassals have been married to your ancestors, and all have some considerable claims on the throne, putting your dynasty at risk. [b]Horrible vassals[/b] - Your vassal lords are not very nice to you, nor to each other. They often fight and burn each others' estates, sowing chaos in the country with their disputes and skirmishes. They also often do not help out with troops nor financial contributions to the good of the realm. [b]Debt[/b] - Your parents left you in a bad debt to several rich merchant families. This hurts your prestige and they can take action to take back the money you owe them, by force. Better pay up. [b]Beggars by day, brigands by night[/b] - The poor turn to banditry as a way to eat some more bread at the expense of others. They kill and rob, getting bolder day by day. [b]Sellswords[/b] - Often mercenary companies form the backbone of your army, which is not a very good thing considering that they are only loyal to their purse. [b]Depleted resources[/b] - Your fields cannot sustain your populace, your mines are abandoned and ruined as there is nothing else left to milk out of it. [b]Hated by the people[/b] - Your dynasty better get some equivalent of a Varangian Guard to supress revolts, because there's going to be plenty. Your ruler is loathed and despised by many, (for a reason you can make up yourself.) [b]Overly powerful merchant guilds[/b] - These ones can become an annoyance if you get on their bad side. They can even try and assassinate you if they consider you dangerous or a liability. [b]Terrible boats[/b] - Your hulls are broken, there are holes in it and the sail is nearly ripped apart. Your fleet is a pitiful view. [b]Even your horses look weak[/b] - Yes, your cavalry deserves its' obscurity in the world. Many horses are lame, swaybacked, stubborn, and bad-tempered. Not to speak of your 'knights'. [b]Your arrows fly like dung[/b] - The archers of your kingdom are bad at their jobs. They're an undisciplined raggle-taggle host of weak, cowardly rangers. [b]Serf Armies[/b] - Your infantry is rather undisciplined, and at times poorly armed. [/hider] When you have selected the Traits and Flaws you want you move on to the next stage, which is the Nation Sheet. Here you use the information from your Traits and Flaws and start spinning the details around them. You also get to claim a chunk of the map as your own, pick a flag, describe your culture and so on. You can use the Sheet below, or make a variation of it if it doesn't suit you. [hider=Nation Sheet] [b]Location:[/b] [i](a picture is required)[/i] [b]Name:[/b] [b]Flag:[/b] [i](a picture is required)[/i] [b]Capital and Major Settlements:[/b] [b]Ruler and Royal Family:[/b] [b]People/s:[/b] [i](may be humans, elves, dwarves, orcs or whatever. All peoples are equal to humans in intelligence and physical performance)[/i] [b]Kingdom Traits:[/b] [b]Military Traits:[/b] [b]Trade Traits:[/b] [b]Flaws:[/b] [b]Culture:[/b] [i](describe the habits and traditions of your kingdom)[/i] [b]Military:[/b] [i](describe the armed forces of your kingdom)[/i] [b]Economy:[/b] [i](describe the industry and trade relations of your kingdom)[/i] [b]Reputation:[/b] [i](what your nation is known for abroad, almost like a rumor)[/i] [b]History:[/b] [i](describe the roots and important historical events of your kingdom)[/i] [b]Misc:[/b] [i](add anything that isn't covered by the rest of the NS)[/i] [/hider] And with that, all you have to do is wait for feedback and/or acceptance! Finally, when your NS has been accepted, you will be gifted with two vassals. These are NPCs with power and is bound by oath or force to serve you. You may call upon your vassals to help you in a number of matters, but beware! Powerful people thirst for more power, and your vassals may turn on you if you treat them badly, or if they smell weakness. In short: your vassals are useful tools, but can become dangerous if you neglect them. Disclaimer: I have made the map myself, but the traits and certain other aspects of the game are borrowed from other RPs.