"The Spartoi were not destroyed. They hid from the rebellions that fractured your empire. They laughed off the plague that swept Kakophonos off the face of the earth. They stood together when our clans quarreled for an imaginary power. They did not lose; they won, and ignored our existence. And when they return, no one shall be suffered."
-Ambassador Orichi to the Pragian council
One hundred years ago, a great war ravaged the world. The Empire of Astarta was beset again by the barbarians of Kakophonos, the seas ruled by the Kakophoni's ally Pragia. To Astarta's aid from the east came the Oni and Slavic Empires, ancient comrades to them. Together the five nations waged battle so gruesome that the proud warriors of Oni tired of endless combat; Kakophonos was racked by plagues of untold horror; Pragia's sheer technological edge with their steam weapons was lost to time; and the vast armies of Astarta, once the crown jewel of its people, were all but exhausted.
The world enterred a dark age, when the lands of Kakophonos and Astarta were swept by disease; when civil war tortured Oni and Slavia; when the worst of curses came down on Pragia. For years the peoples of the world fought man and beast and blight and hunger, no end to suffering in sight but with their deaths.
But that has passed; the plagues, the famine, the strife, all of it. The world returned to grace, and although the nations of old have fallen to the winds of time, new countries came forth to stake their claim upon the lands. Kingdoms shall rise. Empires shall fall. Monks shall love and soldiers shall war. The torch has been passed from the ancient empires to you, our humble children. Now go forth and multiply, or go forth and decimate; it matters not, as you are now the bearers of burden.
Theme song! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIjUtzWrCeA
So, I'm starting another obviously; if I wasn't then this wouldn't be here, would it? Credit to Ammar(Bastard) for making the original RP which was... Inadequate in terms of detail. We'll be picking up where we left off; at the end of the dark ages. I'll just give you a small rundown of what you'll need to know.
IC: http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=235371
-MAP-
https://www.dropbox.com/s/j0hrht6tqc272x2/The_Map.png
NOTE: map is still being fixed.
Araby: Araby is the continent in the northwest corner, with the lake in the middle. The continent was formerly split between Oni and Astarta before the great war.
Hellens: Hellens is the continent just southeast of Araby, with the river stretching across the whole thing. Homeland of Astarta.
Kakophonos: Kakophonos is the continent to the southwest of Hellens. It is the homeland of its namesake, the Kakophoni.
Bolshevsky: Bolshevsky is the northeast continent, and is homeland to the Slavic Empire, a rather insignificant nation.
Pragia: Pragia is the Continent south of Bolshevsky, and homeland to its namesake, Pragia.
EMPIRES OF OLD
In the old RP, there were several nations that reached mentionable status.
Astarta: a warlike people known for battle prowess. While their earlier history wasn't worth mention, their more recent stories are. After losing large tracts of land to Kakophonos, Astarta completely reworked its everything. The old council was executed along with priests, and the old religion was replaced with worship of dragon gods.
A notable aspect of Astartan culture was the Spartoi; soldier-citizens immune to pain and disease. All Spartoi joined the military at birth; everyone else was either second-class, enslaved, or a mercenary. The Spartoi became the finest warriors of the world by age 16; however, almost all of them were killed during the great war. With the lack of soldiers to control the populace, slave rebellions went rampant and Astarta was no more.
Kakophonos: a barbaric people known for brutality. The Kakophoni were a backwards people; their language involved literally screaming, the most popular sports were headball and slave hunt, and they considered gratuitous violence as an acceptable answer to everything. They were well-known for using three things in battle; fire, drugs, and diseased corpses. Eventually that last one became their undoing, as much of the Kakophoni fell to disease. Those territories not struck by the plague were in rebellion due to Kakophoni who were less inclined to violence.
Oni: people from Nippon, an island south of Bolshevsky. The Oni was, and still is, a militaristic empire, having a loose class system that was simple enough for someone to climb. Their armies were feared for their archers' accuracy, their siege retainers' destructive might, and their navy's near-suicidal confidence. The Oni sent an expedition to Hellens to aid their Astartan allies; however, plague struck their armies, and the Oni isolated themselves on Nippon, cutting off all ties with colonies in Araby and Hanguk. During the dark ages the Oni clans fought for the title of shogun, only for the Emperor to return to power and end the civil war; thus ending the dark ages.
Pragia: an advanced nation with steam power. Pragia has had a fairly peaceful existence until meeting Oni a few centuries ago. The two fought in Nippon, ending with the capture of several thousand Pragian soldiers and the compensation to Oni. Pragia had also joined inthe Great War on Kakophonos' side, providing much of the naval power. However, their participation in the war came to an end when civil war and plague threatened their entire empire. After a hundred years of strife the Pragians had lost their technological edge to time; although they still possess the most basic knowledge of steam power.
EXTRA INFO
Witches: in Hellens there are individuals who are immune to pain and disease and allegedly worship devils. Such individuals share characteristics with the Spartoi of Astarta.
Mercenaries: because the Spartoi of Astarta served as heavy infantry, they had mercenaries serve out other roles. Noteworthy mercenary groups include the Moagogan dreadnought riders, the Gizartean vikings, the Romani riders, and the Burakumin ronin. Nations pressed for troops could try to recruit them in a pinch.
Animals: most animals are like they are IRL. However, a few notes: dreadnought is another name for elephant, a tengu is a large marine eagle, and there are sabertooth tigers in Pragia. You may also pull your own out of your ass if they obey physics to an extent.
The Grey Fortresses: Hellens is dotted by fortresses of concrete built by Astarta years ago. Noteworthy locations include the two at the mouth of the Hellenic river and the so-called "Dragon's Maw" on the northeast coast.
The Grey City: in northern Hellens, on the fork of the river, there is a vast abandoned city of wood and concrete. Originally it was to be the new capital of Astarta, but the great war led to the empire's destruction, leaving the city to be empty and abandoned. Strangely, anyone who enters the city is never heard from again, leading people to believe the place to be cursed.
Orichi Clan: I won't kick you if you godmod or number-spam. Instead I'll sick an entire shadow nation on you. The Orichi will kill your entire army if you so much as jesusmod.
ORGANIZATIONS
Orichi Clan: The Orichi was a secretive clan of Oni that ensured the emperor's authority until their betrayal at the hands of the Arikawa. After the betrayal they disappeared, becoming legend until they assassinated the entire Arikawa family. Their base's whereabouts are unknown, but it's said that they have eyes in every kingdom.
Legions of the Damned: during the Great War Astarta paid mercenaries in gold found in the Arab ranges to fill roles the Spartoi heavy infantry did not. While Astarta has long passed, the "legions of the damned" live on in mercenary communities in Hellens. They've been rumored to travel freely through the Grey City, and so are thought to be witches as well.
Dreadnaughts of the North: skilled dreadnought(elephant) riders, and of the legions.
Burakumin: ronin trapped in Hellens, also of the legions.
Riders of Honchar: some Kakophonos were more loyal to gold than to their home, and so entered the service of Astarta as cavalry.
Vikings of Gizartea: while the Astartans maintained a navy, its oars was manned by unskilled slaves incapable of self-defense; so the Astartans bolstered their maritime power with these mercenaries.
FOREWORD
We'll be starting in the year 600, A.T.L.R.P.S.(After The Last RP Started). Time will pass freely as needed, although I'll occasionally give a timeskip when things slow down.
Regarding mutations, you may have them. Just nothing gamebreaking like the S- no, it's a secret. Hush hush. So if you want, you can have elves, but only with the ears. You may have spartoi if so desired, but in small numbers, and they must be persecuted for the sake of balance(Force service counts).
You MAY have gunpowder weapons at my discretion. Ask nicely and you shall receive. You may have steam at the Co-OP's discretion, and he may discrete at my discretion. Galleons, catapults, trebuchets, crossbows, folding bows, longbows, halberds, river mills, windmills, and incendiary weapons are free game. Gorillas may be trained to be perfect warriors IF it takes five hundred years. Incendiary weapons are available to all nations at the start.
Regarding the history of your nation in the app, there are literally dozens of canonical ways to start. Splitting from the violent Kakophoni, rebelling against the cruel Astartans, descending from mercenaries in Astarta, being a former colony of the disinterested Oni, or fighting the aristocratic Pragians for freedom and liberty and whatnot.
Regarding population, we just had serious plagues. No more than 25,000,000 per nation please.
APP
- Code: Select all
[b]Your name: [/b]
[b]Nation name: [/b]
[b]demonym: [/b]e.g. china=chinese
[b]Flag: [/b]link or description
[b]location: [/b] location on the map, obviously.
[b]Population: [/b]
[b]History: [/b]history since the Great War. From which of the main four empires did you split? What happened over the dark ages?
[b]Specialty: [/b]anything, from improved farming to whaling to having guns. All at OP's discretion, of course.
[b]Culture: [/b]a small summary(1-2 paragraphs) on your nation
[b]Military: [/b]what your military does, notable aspects, and numbers. Hopefully you go into detail.
[b]RP examples: [/b]
RULES
1.) OP is God.
2.) Obey OP.
3.) Co-OP is Jesus. Co-OP is Tom.
4.) Listen to Co-OP.
5.) Godmodding is... technically allowed, but in the same way murder is possible. You can do it, but I will rape you in a prison if you do. Same with number-spamming.
ACCEPTED
Me-Oni
Alleniana
Pragia
Ralnis
Legital
Schnerc
Photana
Maury
Bone Fort
Landenburg
Arbarlorn















