[spoilers]Commodore is Tokugawa of Zulu, or, playing for second place.

[Nicolae Carpathia]

As an outside observer, I support any endeavors that result in conflict and bloodshed between players.

[Commodore]

As an outside observer, I support any endeavors that result in conflict and bloodshed between players.

Come now, it's me! You really think bloodshed would stop just because I finished off Cyneheard?

[SadGit]

Ah yes. Which heavy burden can be carried by even the weakest of men. This game delivers.

[Gaspar]

Wait. Did you just catch scooter playing both sides of the fence? scooter? UNPOSSIBLE!

[Commodore]

From the memiors of Captain Sunfollow, remembering the Battle of the Icy Sea.

I tell you, I have never seen a mightier fleet than set sail that day. The damned Byzantines were expecting two or three squadrons, I'm sure, but the Mobilization had just finished and the fleet under Admiral Jimweh was the greatest in history. We were tired of just trading ships with those grey-flags.


We set out that day sure that the fleet would win, but equally certain that all of us aboard the Foggy Bottom would be dead. Sure, we knew a lot about manuever and flanking, but I personally gave us no more than one chance in ten to actually pull it out. The Scuppernong was to go in with us, we would weaken the Byzantines enough for the First Fleet to take them at a run.

Our boys were in stout Briling designs, although the bulk of the fleet were built in the Mimsy Province by our own Walrus Clan fishermen. Low and sleek, we're built to strike hard and damn the consequences, which is a merry hell indeed on a long voyage.


The dromons of the Byzantines tend to be big, ugly brawlers, tough as nails and about as seaworthy, if you ask me. Their own fleet had been keeping station along the north coast for years. Our attack was almost as much about putting those poor bastards out of their misery as it was to blockade those damn Egyptian iron smugglers.


The Scuppernong went in first, engaging one of the dromons slightly lagging in the Byzantine formation. They took a real pounding and half their company died, but we all were elated to see them disengage with success. Then it was our turn.

I steered us towards the biggest bastard I could find. He turned to us, and with the freshening wind he had the better speed. He tried to set up a ram, but that tub was still worthless at manuver. I slipped his direct ram and we grappled, his higher sides making it bleeding hard to assault him.

I told the lads to take it slow, though, and let the first wave come to us. We're all good Mimsy boys, and though we may not be impi every man knows how to sling and use a spear. Thrice they came, and three times more we tossed every one of 'em into the sea. Then Delgo, the whaler fellow we took along as a navigator, managed knock a hole in them below their waterline. It was a near thing, but we barely disengaged as they sunk.

Having a mere galley beat their biggest dromon took the fight right out of the Byzantines, the fleet took them like a randy crew takes an Eygptian brothel, but we left far fewer bastards in our wake.


We fought for years in those forsaken waters, running the blockades and fighting the Second, Third, and Fifth fleets while the Jubjub Birdies engaged the Fourth down south, but they never had much a chance after that day.


Captain Sunfellow retired at the ripe age of sixty-five and lived another thirty years on ale and hearty laughs. The battered Foggy Bottom can be seen on its own special dock in Jubjub Bird, bearing the scars of decades spent fighting. It was known as the fastest, best-crewed ship in the entire fleet and claimed more sunk dromon than any other ship in Zulu history.

[Commodore]

One of the very first uses of the printing press in Zululand, circulated in the River Cities circa Year 1440:

Come to the Beautiful and Warm Monlyth provinse, where all you desire is there for the plucking.


The Great City of Bandersnatch, home of the New and Dynamik Bandersnatch Clan, is a lovely and Cultured place upon the Westflow River. Cooling Breezes and Spectacular Sunrises are provided by the nearby mountains, making this green and Healthsome land comfortable to live and work in.


Bandersnatch, once Known to All as the Dutch metrapolis of Monlyth, was Liberated by the great Fourth Army in the Dutch Armagedeon a decade ago.

Although the harsh junta of the Dutch enslaved and drafted a great slave army of Longbows, the fearless men of Clans Jabberwock, Turtle, Jubjub, and Caterpillar risked Death and Loss of Limb to free the people Therein. The Remains of the Populace save much of the city's great infrastructure from the fires, and so were given a Name and clan crest, now they are Our Brothers, the Bandersnatch Clan.


South and east of Bandersnatch are warm Greene lands, once the very Soul of lush jungle, filled with Great Beasts.
But Pleasant farms and Plantations are now there, under the Good Christian hands of Our Brothers the Eithopians.


So come now to the Monlyth Province and settle therein, where Life is Comfortable and Sweet.

[Commodore]

The history of the western coast conflict is hard to pin down, exactly. Guerrilla bowmen from the northern Byzantine cities waged a centuries-long war against the Zulu city of Jubjub Bird. The beginning of the end, however, was clearly when a large force struck macemen and longbowmen of the Zulu city. They wiped out the Zulu army, but Hamilcar, known to his men as the Thunderbolt, lead the retreat with distinction at the young age of sixteen.


There was always an issue with a vast logistics pipeline from the core of the Jabberwock Clan holdings all along the Blood Road to Jubjub Bird, and the populous peninsula of Indianapolis continuously poured blood and treasure into the campaigns against the Zulu.


The charismatic Hamilcar, still nursing wounds, rode all the way down the Blood Road and up to the central regions over many months to petition for aid. A large division of knights were authorized to move south and deal with the longbows threatening the city.


Although Hamilcar never returned to his native province, after his Great Ride, the city of Jubjub Bird never knew a direct assault again.


For all that, the Thunderbolt always thought of his home, and it he who formulated the plan...


Operation Underbelly was thus born.

[Commodore]

[Commodore]

Okay, moving along from the silly season for a moment, I'm trying to finally make more progress against Cyneheard by pushing against the city of Indianapolis. It has the Moai stones (thanks to RB-mod whip nerfing, I haven't built mine yet), potential irrigable corn, and some seafood. And also, a catapultless garrison. I brought a rather advanced force to bear, with a couple maces and six cats joining my knights and muskets for what ought to be enough to take this spot.


Of course, Cyneheard also has a far larger force in his capital/Lafayette, but I'm trying to present a credible force to tie down reinforcements. These WE are going to be joined momentarily by a half dozen other killers and cats, enough to take out Lafayette with the pitiful four guards he had remaining. Cyneheard will chose which way to jump next turn, I am certain.


In general, I feel like I futzed around a bit too much on this one. Cyneheard's been in ridiculous unit-spam mode for the last thirty turns, but I have twice the build queues he does. The big trireme attack has been nice to choke his ports and force them all to waste precious, precious builds on triremes, which I've been killing off at 2-1 ratios. Weirdly enough, my blockade has not stopped him from getting Nakor iron...no clue what's wrong there.

[frozenmystsl]

Weirdly enough, my blockade has not stopped him from getting Nakor iron...no clue what's wrong there.

I think it's because you're at peace with Nakor, so his trades go through your territory. At least, that's the logic I saw in several other players' threads - they've been declaring war to cancel trades that go through their territories.