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 “But the princes, putting the words of their wise men to naught, thought each to himself: If I but strike quickly enough, and in secret, I shall destroy those others in their sleep, and there will be none to fight back; the earth shall be mine. Such was the folly of princes, and there followed the Flame Deluge.” -Walter M. Miller Jr., A Canticle for Leibowitz Alright so what is this? This is a Let's Play of the Paradox Interactive game Crusader Kings 2. Seen it. But this one's not in Europe Seen it. Or the Middle-east Seen it. Or Africa or even India. It is instead set in North America. Alright I'm intrigued. And also writing questions to myself which I then answer is getting weird and a little annoying, so let's just drop the FAQ pretense and explain what this all about without any further back-and-forth formatting. Yeah sounds good. So After the End is a total conversion mod for Crusader Kings 2 set in post-post apocalyptic North America. That wasn't a typo, I say post-post apocalyptic because generally post-apocalyptic settings are concerned with the direct aftermath of society utterly collapsing (think of Fallout or Alas, Babylon if you're old school). That is not the setting of After the End, it is several hundred years after the disaster that ended the modern world and folks have been rebuilding as best they can. A few of the more sturdy or lucky structures of ancient America still stand, here and there, but most people live in huts, houses, tents and castles built by themselves or their ancestors, not in rusted-out ruins or scrap-heap cities. The scenario is partly based on A Canticle for Leibowitz so if you've read that or Leibowitz and the Wild Horse Woman you're on the right track. Memory of the past is hazy at best. The ruins and what fragments there are of pre-disaster writing speak of marvels that boggle the mind, what is certain is that once there was a great empire called America, which stretched from one great sea to the other. It's people were rich and powerful, their works greater than anything accomplished since that time. But something went wrong. What it was is unclear to those now living, all that is certain is that it was quick and devastating.  After the End is a very fun mod to play and a great break from the traditional CK2 setting of Europe, Africa and the Middle-east. It's a Goon-made project that just updated with the west coast recently and like vanilla CK2 each game is different than the last. I will be aiming to update at least twice a week, if not more often. Table of Contents First Timeline +++++++++++++++++++++ House Shuguin Occultist Yankees of New England Elijah Shuguin I (2666 - 2709) 2666 --- 2681 2681 --- 2689 2689 --- 2709 ___________________ Cagin Shuguin I (2709 - 2715) 2709 --- 2715 ___________________ Nehem Shuguin I (2715 - 2760) 2715 --- 2727 2736 --- 2743 2727 --- 2736 2743 --- 2760 ___________________ House Penrose Americanists of the Chesapeake Philip Penrose I (2760 - 2794) 2760 --- 2772 2772 --- 2784 2782 --- 2792 2792 --- 2794 ___________________ Philip Penrose II (2794 - 2809) 2794 --- 2801 2801 --- 2809 ___________________ Lionel Penrose I (2809 - 2850) 2809 --- 2815 2815 --- 2828 2828 --- 2837 2837 --- 2845 2845 --- 2850 ___________________ Petra Penrose I (2850 - 2891) 2850 --- 2860 2860 --- 2872 2872 --- 2881 2881 --- 2891 ___________________ Andrew Penrose I (2891 - 2908) 2891 --- 2908 ___________________ House Milan Atomicist Arixans of the southwest Leonard Milan I (2909 - 2918) 2909 --- 2918 ___________________ Ariocarp Milan II (2918 - 29 ) 2931 --- 2945 2918 --- 2931 Note: At this point there were technical issues and the saves for this timeline were lost.  Second Timeline +++++++++++++++++++++ House Magarac Rust Cultists of the Rust Belt Theodor Magarac I (2666 - 2704) 2666 --- 2676 2676 --- 2687 2687 --- 2704 ___________________ Theodor Magarac II (2704 - 2739) 2704 --- 2714 2714 --- 2728 2728 --- 2739 ___________________ Christoph Magarac I (2739 - 27) 2739 --- 2750 Link to mod:https://github.com/Ofaloaf/postapoc Clayren fucked around with this message at 02:47 on Aug 7, 2015 |
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Jun 11, 2015 18:43
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Oh hell yes. A Canticle for Leibowitz is my favorite sci-fi novel.
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Jun 11, 2015 19:11
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I'll bite. The name's Garth B. Shuguin, a distinguished gentleman of the non-hispanic white pedigree, hailing from New England. If stranded far from civilisation, I believe I'd value some books, ignorance is the greatest threat.
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Jun 11, 2015 20:42
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TomViolence posted:I'll bite. The name's Garth B. Shuguin, a distinguished gentleman of the non-hispanic white pedigree, hailing from New England. If stranded far from civilisation, I believe I'd value some books, ignorance is the greatest threat. I was going to post something just like this, so I'll second this person. Name: Garth B. Shuguin Race: non-hispanic white Place of origin: New England Item to take: Books
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Jun 11, 2015 21:28
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Ah, right, for a person, we'll go with Arthur Morita, an Asian man from the Pacific Northwest who very much loves books. I can't refuse books. If God asks you to be his booklegger...
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Jun 11, 2015 21:34
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Stephanie Harper Non-Hispanic White Either Great Lakes Region (Ontario) or Northern Midwest (Alberta) A watch It's supposed to be her job to fix global warming since her great-great-great grandpa was such an rear end in a top hat.
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Jun 11, 2015 21:49
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David Corbett posted:I was going to post something just like this, so I'll second this person. Thirded, but the books better include a Vulgate Bible and Breviary or two, just to help out that Albertian Order of Leibowitz. Oh yeah, beware Texarkana. I got a bad feeling about that place. I just finished a re-read of A Canticle for Leibowitz, it's such a brilliant book.
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Jun 11, 2015 22:29
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Friar John posted:Thirded, but the books better include a Vulgate Bible and Breviary or two, just to help out that Albertian Order of Leibowitz. Oh yeah, beware Texarkana. I got a bad feeling about that place. While After the End is greatly inspired by Leibowitz it is not an exact copy. For one thing, it is never explicitly stated in the game what ended the modern world, there are hints but those are vague at best. America is also not solely Catholic, there are many religious groups in post-catastrophe America, although there IS a Pope in a New Rome like in the books (it's in St. Louis).
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Jun 11, 2015 22:39
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Name : Mark A. Shog Race: Non-Hispanic White Place of Origin: Pacific Northwest Item: A Gun, so you can take all of the other items from the people who AREN'T packing. Could you link the mod please? I kinda want to play along.
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Jun 13, 2015 04:09
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I'm going to call the vote to a close, seems that we're going to be playing in New England! Edit: Link to mod added to first post.
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Jun 13, 2015 04:12
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I can't believe I missed the vote! It's a shame too, because New England is by far the least developed part of the mod, I mean, interesting concept with the occultists, but they get literally nothing at all. I don't even think they have any unique events or the like. Edit: And the only interesting thing to happen that I won't even say in spoilers takes a century or two to happen. NewMars fucked around with this message at 09:14 on Jun 13, 2015 |
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Jun 13, 2015 09:11
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i hope this New England setting isn't gonna devolve into some lovecraft thing. that's negative thinking though, i'm looking forward to getting walked through this mod and i know i'll love it
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Jun 13, 2015 17:44
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Oh god, I really hope my  inducing post hasn't killed this LP.  Feel free to discount my vote if you think it'll make for a moribund experience.
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Jun 13, 2015 18:16
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TomViolence posted:Oh god, I really hope my don't beat yourself up! if people want to see it, they want to see it, bandwagon or no edit: im the one who's whining here, let's not forget that edit2: honestly i should just shut up and bide my time until the next playthrough oystertoadfish fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Jun 13, 2015 |
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Jun 13, 2015 18:38
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 Long ago there existed a Great King who presided over a confederation of fifty great tribes. To him was given bountiful wealth, fertile lands and an army of warriors so mighty that no man on this earth dared to stand against him. This man was alike the gods in the eyes of his people and he must surely have believed the same. How foolish is man, that he makes the same mistake again and again! The gods are not like men, they care little for glory or wealth. The god-on-the-cross, the god-king of the Americans tribe, what could either of them do to save this mighty confederation from utter desolation?  Nothing. The Cataclysm proved that the gods did not care about us, did not seek to garner glory or our love. The gods, in truth, are unfathomable things of darkest intellect who can at best be persuaded to leave us to our short lives and grant us trifles for our service. This is why the many tribes of the Yankee people have long since abandoned the crucified corpse of the Catholics and Protestants and returned to serving the true masters of this world, those whom our eldest ancestors knew and revered. They go by many names: the Black Goat of the Woods, Bahstin , the Mighty Nor'Eester, but all are worthy of praise and respect. The lesser spirits, which slither and clamber beneath the warm loam, are often entreated up for minor issues or to prevent mischief.  None revered the true gods more than High Chief Oneisphorus of the clan Miskaton. Stretching from the tribe of Providence to the Merrimack river, the Miskaton had ruled the tribe of Nogad for eighty-nine long years when an upstart invoker sought to claim the leadership of the tribe from Oneisphorus while he and his warriors were away raiding the lands of the King of Ontario.  High chief Oneisphorus was a cruel, violent and zealous man, but charitable to those who were loyal to him. Knowing this, the wealthy land owner Markus Shuguin sold his lands and possessions to hire a band of mercenaries which he led in battle against the invoker of the holy city of Boston. He was triumphant and his grateful chief granted him dominion over the county which the priest had once ruled. But Markus did not live long after, succumbing to pains of the chest in 2665 and leaving the county in the hands of his eldest and only son, Elijah.  A shy and unprepared ruler, Elijah Shuguin prefers to spend time in his room studying his clan's prized pre-cataclysm book collection to leading raids on the lands of the cross-worshippers. At the same time, however, Elijah is a clever scholar on religious matters and envious of the glory garnered by stronger warriors. At 24, having neither wed nor taken his vision quest, Elijah is presented with the vibrantly dyed crimson red stockings that customarily denotes the chief of Boston Keep.  But Elijah knows that in the eyes of many he is still but a boy. His first task is garner the respect of his subjects and so he prepares to undertake the vision quest that all Yankee boys go through when they seek to become men and full members of their tribe. For six days he eats nothing and drinks only water. On the seventh day he is lowered into a dry well where he stays for two nights and a day, seeing nothing but darkness, hearing nothing but the whispers of the soil.  Suddenly the well is no longer dry. The stones around him begin to sweat with moisture, the sweat becomes a trickle, then a stream. Elijah's mouth opens to scream, but his lungs fill too fast with water and all is dark. When he awakens the well is gone and he is floating on a vast river, wider than any he has ever seen. On the far away banks he sees rows of dark green corn and emerald beans as far as the eye can see. A voice whispers to him that this is the artery of the world and he knows it to be true.  While he was on the river the sun sustained him, but when the river washes him ashore he finds himself unbearably hungry. He chases a lean fox through muddy undergrowth, never quite able to get close enough to grab it. When at last he collapses the creature looks back at Elijah and cackles. Too hungry to move, he blacks out.  When he awakens the sky is a bloody red and the air is filled with war-crys'. A rider upon a dark horse charges him and once more Elijah's throat is filled with liquid.  Once more Elijah dies, but this time the heavens and the earth die with him. Smoke suffocates the sun and snow entombs the land. He watches, disconnectedly, as a weary traveler finds and eats his corpse for sustenance. A voice whispers that this is his ancestor and Elijah knows it to be true.  Now he soars like an eagle and sees the earth as from above. His ancestor joins other men and women who walk backwards both in time and space. He sees the earth die backwards, the serpent of smoke return to its den in the ground. The people return to their origins, a vast city of metal and stone.  And then he awakens and Elijah is inside the well once more. Contemplating what he has seen and experienced, Elijah begins to understand the truth.  He understands that the universe and the eldest gods who rule over them are vaster than he could ever conceive and that he is but a speck, a small creature whose only true worth is found in service to the gods. When his clansmen retrieve him from the well the next morning Elijah declares a public oath to serve the gods and spirits until the end of his days.  His liege, a zealous man himself, is delighted to hear this and tells Elijah so at his wedding several months later. The young adept of Saint-Jacques is a perfect match for the priestly Elijah, having a knowledge of rites and ceremonies greater than anyone else in the whole of Yankeedom.  But Elijah's friendship with his liege is short-lived. That same year the high chief of the Migonid tribe declares his intention to unify of all New England under his rule and invades Nogad with an army of 2,500 men. The forces of Oneisphorus are no match and the war ends in less than a year. The High Chief of the Nogad and his heir are flayed and hung from the roof of their keep.  While followers of the eldest gods waste their time feuding, the followers of the christ-god busy themselves with taking advantage of the infighting to steal lands that should rightly be defended by the faithful.  In quiet corner the soldiers of the Duke of Connecticut burn a sacred grove down and desecrate standing stones dedicated to Nor'Eester. When Elijah is told of this by refugees who stream into his land he is appalled. What sort of man can the High Chief of Migonid be to war with his brothers in the faith when such blasphemers roam the land? The faithful need a better lord than this, the gods demand a better servant!  And Elijah has an idea of who that better servant might be. God's care little for borders, but men know there is power to be had in land. South of Boston lies the Plymouth peninsula, an independent tribe ruled by the warrior-chief Cotton. If Elijah is to rule he will need land and Plymouth makes a tempting target.  However, Cotton is a far better commander than him and can call on 800 loyal tribesmen, while Elijah has only 500 Bostonians, most of them lightly armored infantry more used to border raiders than war. Taking a page from his father's book, Elijah takes out a loan and, combined with the money he has accumulated through raiding, hires a company of mercenaries to bolster his forces.  Cotton is a wily leader and it takes a month of maneuvering before Elijah and his larger force is able to corner the chief in Providence. Half of the Plymothian force falls under a hail of arrows and spears and the remainder break when charged by the Manhattan cavalry.  After a short siege the peninsula is Elijah's and the war is over. Cotton is generously allowed to leave and go into exile.  With a great victory under his belt, few now doubt the strength of the shy bibliophile.  Few in New England pay much attention to rumors from the south about the Americanists and their god-king. If is Elijah is concerned when news of attacks by Americanist zealots in the lands of the Anabaptists' he shows no outward sign.  His focus is instead on the north. His conquest over, Elijah had hoped to rest for a time and enjoy the company of his wife, concubine and daughters. But a more pressing concern appears in the form of the Duke of Estrie, who has begun a holy war against Penobscot.  Always up for a fight against the followers of christ, Elijah rides to High Chief Heneage King's keep in Bangor and offers his help. The Duke gratefully accepts and Elijah rides back to Boston to raise his armies once more. However he is too late, the war is over by the time he returns to Bangor to find that yet more land has been ceded to the forces of christianity.  Chief Elijah is seething with anger over this defeat when the Duke of South Jersey appears before him demanding that he be allowed to enter the city of Boston. The Americanist's, like the followers of the eldest gods, view the city as a holy place. The fool rambles about some ritual where he is to strip naked with a bag of tea leaves around his neck and bathe in the Boston harbor, but Elijah is in no mood and orders the man thrown into the dungeon. The Duke's personal guard hold Elijah's men at bay long enough for the Americanist to escape and the chief's foul mood is made worse.  His mood brightens in July, however, when his first son and heir is born by his wife.  Elijah Shuguin settles in for a quiet spell. His liege does not start any new wars for a time and people of Plymouth become accustomed to their new lord. The biggest excitement is when travelers come through, such as when a minor Americanist count comes through asking to be allowed to Bathe in the Boston harbor. A zealous man, Elijah cannot allow such a thing, but he is grateful for the gift the count brings and sends him away unharmed.  When the count attempts to secretly slip into the city the chief is enraged and orders the man cut down on the spot.  In 2675 more news comes from the south, of a growing cult among the deluded.  Elijah ignores the outside world for the most part, focusing his time on raising his children. Cagin is the spitting image of his father.   After fifteen years of rule Elijah Shuguin is one of the most powerful vassals of the largest realm in the region. The Migonids have expanded from the top of the Hudson river to the Plymouth peninsula. The only other Eldest power in the region of note is Penobscot, which has been weakened by repeated wars with the christians of Montreal and Estrie. But the Migonids are weak too, the endless wars of conquest have left the Migonid king with large numbers of vassals. 
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Jun 13, 2015 22:59
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forget my whining, occultism is cool and if this is a boring corner of the map like somebody said maybe it's better to be taking in the major events through messages on the first play-through. assuming that's the OP's plan. not sure why i'm assuming that edit: so DC becomes the home of a god-emperor worshiping pre-fall America? and there are religious terrorists in northern virginia? i'm sure everybody wants to know what this game thinks of their home area but given you didn't list the mid-atlantic as a choice in your OP maybe it's not an ideal playthrough for this thread oystertoadfish fucked around with this message at 23:20 on Jun 13, 2015 |
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Jun 13, 2015 23:12
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oystertoadfish posted:forget my whining, occultism is cool Don't worry, I wouldn't have listed New England as an option if I didn't think I couldn't make it interesting. We're actually at a pretty busy part of the map, there are Ursilines and High Churchers to our north, Anabaptists to our west and Americanists to our south. There's also always the chance that some random part of the east coast will be selected for a British Invasion.
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Jun 13, 2015 23:28
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Clayren posted:Don't worry, I wouldn't have listed New England as an option if I didn't think I couldn't make it interesting. We're actually at a pretty busy part of the map, there are Ursilines and High Churchers to our north, Anabaptists to our west and Americanists to our south. There's also always the chance that some random part of the east coast will be selected for a British Invasion. Please tell me they call themselves Beatles.
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Jun 14, 2015 03:38
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Started playing this today and having a fun time. I'm in florida leading the tribe of the mouse. I've decided to lean into it and name all my children after disney characters except the firstborn son, who gets called Walt. Although the dynasty name is Waltney so I might change it to calling every first son Mickey.
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Jun 14, 2015 18:02
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UrbicaMortis posted:Started playing this today and having a fun time. I'm in florida leading the tribe of the mouse. I've decided to lean into it and name all my children after disney characters except the firstborn son, who gets called Walt. Although the dynasty name is Waltney so I might change it to calling every first son Mickey.
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Jun 14, 2015 22:50
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UrbicaMortis posted:Started playing this today and having a fun time. I'm in florida leading the tribe of the mouse. I've decided to lean into it and name all my children after disney characters except the firstborn son, who gets called Walt. Although the dynasty name is Waltney so I might change it to calling every first son Mickey. There are a lot of little touches like that. As I've already noted, Bangor Maine is ruled by the King family, a reference to Stephen King who sets drat near every book of his in that state. Philadelphia is ruled by Dennis Reynolds, an alcoholic Duke whose court also contains Frank and the rest of the gang from Always Sunny.Also, the Nogad tribe that we started as a vassal of is Dagon spelled backwards. I may do a special update at some point covering some of these.
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Jun 15, 2015 01:47
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Aw yeah, an LP of my favourite CKII mod and of an area I've never played in! Can't wait for more.
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Jun 15, 2015 08:55
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 The Migonid domain in 2681 is made of numerous single province counts, the two provinces of Boston and the holdings of High Chief Wentworth: Providence, Merrimack, The Berkshires and the capital of Bennington.  If Elijah is going to escape the yoke of his lord it will take more soldiers than Boston and Plymouth can yield. His mind, until now more concerned with the esoteric and religious, turns towards intrigue. The High Chief has expanded his domain greatly in a short amount of time, but this growth has come with a great increase in vassals. If these chieftains could be turned against him Elijah's thousand-some men would be more than enough to win his independence.  Spies are sent to search every corner of Bennington for information that might sully the name of Wentworth before his other vassals.  At the same time Elijah begins putting together a coalition of men who want to leave the services of the High Chief.  It does not take long for Elijah's spying to bear fruit. A young warrior contacts Elijah through one of his spies and informs him that for a modest payment of gold he would be willing to betray his lord and kill Wentworth in his sleep. Elijah gladly sees that the man is paid, praying that he can stay sober enough to finish the job.  The Eldest see fit to answer his prayers, for the next time he sees the warrior the High Chief of the Migonids is no more.  His replacement is a boy of only 5 years.  Chief Elijah was unable to gather any allies to his cause for independence, but with the High Chief dead and his forces engaged to the north in yet another war of conquest, he feels confident enough to send his demands to the High Chief's regent.  Unsurprisingly the demand is refused and Elijah calls his forces together.  While the chiefs of the Migonid realm are too cowardly to fight against the tyranny of their lord, the brave Yankee warriors of the realm are more forthcoming.  Elijah's chances for victory look good at first. He ambushes a small army heading north to reinforce the main Migonid army and wipes it out completely.  But the Bostonian lord becomes too confident and wanders too close to the main Migonid force. Three quarters of his force are wiped out at Concord and he is forced to flee back to Boston.  Elijah once more calls on mercenaries from the south to aid him. There is perhaps some irony in that much of the gold used to hire these men came from southern lords trying to bribe their way into Boston.  The Philadelphian Eagles mercenary company arrives in Boston a few days before the main Migonid army does. Together with the remnants of Elijah's army, they score a crushing blow against the forces of High Chief Nathaniel.  Perhaps more importantly, the young chief's regent is captured in the battle. A very talented priest and diplomat, Degory of Neck has been essential in keeping his charge's realm together after his father's death.  More battles follow, but it is clear that the back of the Migonid army has been broken.   In 2683 Elijah's forces, after a long and expensive siege, take control of Nathaniel's holdings in Merrimack.  It is the final nail in the coffin for Nathaniel. He surrenders to Elijah shortly afterwards, releasing him from his realm.  Elijah spends the last of his gold not yet spent on mercenaries to throw a great ceremony where he declares himself High Chief of Boston.  At the feast afterwards his heir is the center of attention, the young lad asking questions and telling stories to all of the gathered nobles. It is clear that shyness of his father has not carried on to him.  With the war over and the mercenaries sent home with bulging sacks of Bostonian coin, Elijah turns his attention back to his finances. It will take time for the Migonids to recover from the blow he dealt them, but if he is to have any hope of maintaining his independence, Elijah will need a large surplus of coin.  The New Yorker trade post in Boston helps with this issue, although the ever-pious Elijah is often frustrated with the Anabaptist New Yorkers and their customs. But the coin they bring in is essential if he is to fulfill the will of the Eldest and as long as they do not proselytize in his lands he feels no need to burn their ships and flay their merchants.  As he retires from war to focus on money, Elijah takes the time to enjoy time with his family. Despite only ever having one wife and one concubine he is the father of two sons and a seemingly endless supply of daughters.  Of course there's no such thing as too many daughters, especially for a newly independent realm in need of friends.  After three years of peace the High Chief feels the Eldest calling to him once more. It is time to bring the fight to the followers of christ. The Duke of Connecticut can call on around 3,500 men, far more than Elijah has at his disposal.  But the Yankees respect strength and glory. Elijah's military victories and deep piety are known throughout the land and when he declares his intentions to go to war with the Anabaptists he finds many who are willing to join his cause.  The Connecticut army, already engaged in an invasion of a neighbor, is quickly crushed.   Larger, more organized forces arrive from neighboring Anabaptist's. But they arrive in trickles, without coordination with other forces. The Anabaptist faith calls on men to avoid violence whenever possible, causing the would-be saviors of Connecticut to hesitate too long to be useful. The Eldest, on the hand, care little for peace. The allies that come to Connecticut's defense are destroyed one by one and the siege of the young Duke's holdings continue.  Meanwhile the Migonids, humiliated by their defeat but not broken, declare Nathaniel to be king of New England. It is a worrying development, but Elijah focuses on the task at hand.  So busy is he that he misses his eldest son's sixteenth birthday. An avid scholar like his father, Cagin is a true zealot. At the same time, however, he lacks his father's shyness and excels at diplomacy. He is quickly betrothed to a genius of finance a year his junior in a nearby court.  In August of 2068 the Connecticut capital of Hartford is taken by Elijah's forces. Small armies continue to trickle in, but none are large enough to be a threat.  A last desperate attempt is made by the remnants of several armies to retake Hartford in June of the following year. Elijah's forces intercept the besiegers and destroy any remaining hope of the Duke retaining his title and lands.  After three years of war, the lord of Connecticut surrenders to Elijah Shuguin.  The lands of Connecticut are parceled out to loyal courtiers, with his son receiving Hartford. Elijah keeps Quinnipiac for himself due to it's large harbor and connection to the lucrative Long Island Sound trade.  With a steady supply of gold Elijah now feels far more confident about his ability to wage war against larger opponents.  He'll need it too, because his peace agreement with the self-proclaimed "King" of New England is going to run out in a few years. 
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Jun 15, 2015 18:02
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Well Clayren, you inspired me to get After the End, and I'm loving it. Runs much faster on my old computer than vanilla CK2. I've been playing mostly in the Southwest, specifically Deseret, since I'm a Mormon from Utah. It's really fun, though I wish Mormonism and the heresies had more events and unique things. Even with the addition of California, it's boring in that corner of the map. And do all the Yankee culture lords have Tanistry inheritance laws? That seems to be a big advantage. Either way, the LP is great, and I'm really amused by the Bostonian chiefdom.
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Jun 15, 2015 18:41
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Gygaxian posted:Well Clayren, you inspired me to get After the End, and I'm loving it. Runs much faster on my old computer than vanilla CK2. I've been playing mostly in the Southwest, specifically Deseret, since I'm a Mormon from Utah. It's really fun, though I wish Mormonism and the heresies had more events and unique things. Even with the addition of California, it's boring in that corner of the map. Not all Yankees have Tanistry. For instance, Boston actually started out with (and still has) Open Succession, which means the most powerful son inherits but any other landed sons are likely to start a war to claim the throne. Luckily I only have two sons at the moment.
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Jun 15, 2015 21:50
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 After his conquest of Connecticut, Elijah is in need of coin and prestige if he is to be able to match the newly crowned king of New England. Luckily, his new lands have something that Boston and Plymouth lacked: boats.  There were, of course, boats in Boston. But they were small, meant to transport two men and a fishing net, not an army. With 14 ships now at his command, Elijah hits upon an idea. The heretics of the Chesapeake Bay keep bothering him about wanting to enter Boston. Given his need of money, Elijah is willing to change his policy towards the rich lords of the Chesapeake. However he will need to first collect a fee for such access.  He decides to collect it personally.   One trip is enough to more than double his war-chest and the glory he receives as a victorious raider is a nice bonus as well.  But Elijah's constant warring has taken it's tole on his family. When he finds evidence that his wife has been cheating on him with an old man his heart breaks. But Elijah allows the man to leave with the promise that he shall never come near Boston again. Needless to say, Elijah's relationship with his wife is never the same.  The High Chief distracts himself with more raiding. The bay region is rich from trade and ripe for plundering.  While he is away Elijah's second son completes his vision quest and is recognized as an adult. Hawthorne is a patient and chaste young man with a talent for finance and not much else. As the son of a concubine and the younger son, Hawthorne's prospects to inherit the chiefdom appear small.  Meanwhile, to the north, the Abbess-General of the Ursuline church declares her intent to see the power of the church expanded at the edge of a sword. In the minds of most rulers, Elijah included, this is seen as just more pointless posturing by the Christians.  The Catholic Pope responds with his own announcement of a Crusade for the lands of the Rio Grande.  There are more pressing concerns for Elijah to attend to. In September of 2693 the peace agreement with the King of New England runs out. Wishing to score the first blow in an inevitable war, Elijah declares that he will not rest until the tribe of Merrimack is his. Known far and wide for his lucrative raids on the lands of the Chesapeake, Elijah has little trouble finding young warriors willing to rally to the white-hand banner in search of glory.  The betrothals he has been making between his many daughters and the Rust Cultists begin to bear fruit as well. Minor dukes for the most part, but every warrior is a welcome gift.  Elijah's decision to strike the first blow is revealed to have been a wise one. His army is able to pick off smaller New English armies before they can join up with King Nathaniel's main force in the north.  This means that while Nathaniel has more troops than Elijah on paper, he is unable to gather a sizable enough force to match the main Bostonian army. When the two lords meet in the White Mountains Elijah's numerical superiority is such that even the terrain is unable to turn the tide in Nathaniel's favor.  The King's forces are crushed and pursued for months until nothing is left of it.  While the war is ongoing a number of Americanist nobles come to Elijah's court to ask for permission to make the pilgrimage to Boston. His steward allows them through, as Elijah views his continuous raiding of the Chesapeake Bay as a fee for this privilege.  The war ends in 2696 after a few sieges. Merrimack is handed over to Elijah and the title of "King of New England" appears more and more hollow. High Chief Elijah revels in his victory, his old enemy humbled and his lands ransacked.  But only a few months later his victory turns to ash in his mouth. The Abbess-General of the Ursuline Church is well aware of the events on the other side of the Saint Lawrence and knows an easy target when she sees one. In July she declares a crusade to claim New England for the church. Shiploads of knights, mercenaries and feudal lords begin making their way through the great lakes to Quebec to pledge themselves to the cause.  Elijah is torn. He has held the ruling dynasty of New England in contempt ever since the Migonid conquest of Nogad. However, to allow the lands of King Nathaniel to fall into the hands of heathens would be a grave sin. After the disastrous war with Boston the King's military is in tatters. The Ursuline church is not alone in smelling blood in the water either, many of Nathaniel's neighbors have declared their own wars on Nathaniel.   High Chief Elijah magnanimously declares his intention to defend his neighbor. To start with, he declares war on the High Chief of Aroostook who is currently attempting to conquer New England. This should take some of the pressure off Nathaniel's remaining forces and give Elijah a chance to take advantage of the chaos and grab some extra land for himself.  It goes without saying that many flock to his banner once more.  The war lasts only slightly more than a year.  With Aroostook no longer a threat, Elijah turns his attention to the main threat: the Christians of Northern Canada.  With the falsest of smiles the King of New England accepts the High Chief of Boston's aid. No love is lost between the two, but necessity makes for strange bedfellows.  Known widely for his piety, Elijah's action inspires many of a religious sentiment to volunteer for his army.  Elsewhere, the forces of Christianity continue to become more belligerence, with the Pope in New Rome supporting the creation of a new order of holy knights.  Back east, a Nun named Marcelline makes some extremely poor choices when choosing where to preach.  The Crusade quickly turns into a long, slow slog. The Ursuline lords are over-confident and hungry for glory and rush into New England in inferior numbers. Together these forces might be enough to win the war, but individually they are easily crushed by Elijah's superior forces.    In 2702 Elijah, hoping to bring a quick end to the war, lays siege to the seat of the church itself. Abbess-General Ada is forced to flee aboard a ship waiting for her in the harbor of Quebec City.  The besieging of the Abbess-General's holdings takes awhile. During this time news trickles in from the west about the failure of the Pope's Crusade for Rio Grande. This does little to improve the mood of the Ursulina's starving inside the walls of Quebec City.  With the siege going slowly Elijah takes time to return to his court for a time. While there a strange event happens. A number of very large ships limp their way into the harbor at Merrimack. The flags on these ships are strange, unlike anything seen in the Atlantic coast. Intrigued, the High Chief grants them an audience.  To his surprise the leader of the sailors speaks the ancient Anglish tongue used by the ancients. The man claims to be from across the ocean, where there is a real demand for trade goods from the American lands. Elijah, perhaps softening in his old age, allows the strangers to trade in his lands in exchange for extra tariffs and a solemn promise that they will not preach any foreign heathen religion to his subjects.  After Abbess-General Ada dies what little support there is for the Crusade evaporates. Her replacement, Abbess-General Madeline, calls the war to an end. The Bostonian forces leave the pillaged wreck of Quebec, allowing Madeline to return.  As a final insult, the nun who had been sent to Elijah's court is executed and her head dumped on the Abbesses throne before the warriors of the Eldest leave.  The heathens are defeated and the Kingdom of New England saved, but the war has done nothing to heal the divide between it's King and the High Chief of Boston. In 2705 Nathaniel declares war on Boston, hoping that Elijah's forces are still weak from the Crusade.  He is wrong.   The war ends after a year. Elijah extracts a hefty fee from Nathaniel and the young king returns to his capital in disgust.  Elijah does not, however, retire his forces from the field. The young warriors who volunteered for his army are still eager for battle and gladly follow him to the lands of a minor chieftain. A short war follows and her lands are added to Elijah's growing domain.  With the war over and the volunteers returned home, Elijah begins planning his next move. The peace agreement with New England will pass in time and when it does he will strike the killing blow. But first he will need more coin, High Chief Elijah orders boats prepared for another tour of the Chesapeake. This time he plans to pillage the ancient capital of the Americans, long rumored to house a vast store of gold. With gold, glory and land under his control Elijah will ascend to the throne as the TRUE King of New England, fulfilling the destiny laid out for him by the Eldest.  In August 2709 the 43 year rule of High Chief Elijah Shuguin ends quietly in his sleep. Born the only child a Nogadian land owner, Elijah rose to become the most powerful man in the region of New England, driven by his faith in the gods. After his death, as is custom, every scrap of flesh was stripped from his body and burnt in offering to the gods. His bones were then interred in his family mausoleum in Boston. The Reign of High Chief Elijah I Shuguin has Ended! Long Live High Chief Cagin I Shuguin !
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Jun 17, 2015 04:12
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Elijah was a good servant of the Old Gods. We can only hope Cagin is so pious.
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Jun 17, 2015 08:26
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Two pretenders that are only -22 and -3? And both are kids? Yeah, you shouldn't have much of a problem with them. Also, nice job staving off the crusade and breaking New England.
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Jun 18, 2015 19:51
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So are we still at the stage where our guys are wearing football padding for armor and hitting each other with traffic signs, or is this more neo-feudal? Because I've been imagining all our battles as the former and it's hilarious.
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Jun 18, 2015 19:57
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Night10194 posted:So are we still at the stage where our guys are wearing football padding for armor and hitting each other with traffic signs, or is this more neo-feudal?
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Jun 18, 2015 20:05
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JT Jag posted:This is post-post apocalypse, hundreds of years after the passing of the ancient age, and most of the relics of the ancients are long gone. I imagine there are still some here and there. Family relic bullet-proof vests, family "crown jewels" that are actually a long dead iWatch and Occulus Rift. Someone, somewhere might have an ancient rifle, kept in perfect condition, it's maintainable practically a religious ritual. Alas, there is no memory of there ever being ammunition for it. Of course, this kind of stuff is also extremely my jam, too. The vague idea that tractor was once used to guarantee incredible harvests leading the locals to turn it into an agricultural shrine, etc. Man, there is so much you can do with post apocalyptic stuff if you go beyond the basic everything is blood and misery stuff.
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Jun 18, 2015 20:08
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Night10194 posted:So are we still at the stage where our guys are wearing football padding for armor and hitting each other with traffic signs, or is this more neo-feudal? Football helmets are a type of hat that can appear on your character in his portrait, like so:  Americanists often wear powdered wigs:  In the southwest cowboy hats are popular:  And, of course, there's Canada:  As for guns and the like, you have a random chance of finding a pre-cataclysm relic in your lands (it's a very small chance) that lends certain bonuses. You can get a gun and ammo, a set of books, an adding machine or a telescope. At the start Elijah had a set of books that give a bonus to learning, but now that he's dead his heir has a 70-90% chance, depending on his stats, to find the family heirloom. Otherwise it will be lost forever. Clayren fucked around with this message at 21:35 on Jun 18, 2015 |
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Jun 18, 2015 21:12
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UrbicaMortis posted:Started playing this today and having a fun time. I'm in florida leading the tribe of the mouse. I've decided to lean into it and name all my children after disney characters except the firstborn son, who gets called Walt. Although the dynasty name is Waltney so I might change it to calling every first son Mickey.  We need to find and kill these people immediately. Also  at the idea of Florida supporting enough people to form a feudal kingdom without modern technology.
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Jun 18, 2015 21:52
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Klaus88 posted:
To be fair, every county in Florida bar Miami is terrible.
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Jun 18, 2015 22:12
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Lord Cyrahzax posted:To be fair, every county in Florida bar Miami is terrible.
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Jun 18, 2015 22:40
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OH yea, have they finally managed to put this on the workshop? They have managed to put some of the larger ones on by doing them in parts, because I still haven't bothered to move my P-Dox thang to the new one I've been missing all the funny sperging as well as updates. 
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Jun 18, 2015 23:00
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 Cagin is not his father. Although as a young child he followed very much in his father's footsteps, the years away at war or on raids saw the boy develop without much contact with Elijah. Cagin filled the loneliness with friendships. A modest, kind man, Cagin found that he got along well with almost everyone in his father's court. Especially the female couriers. His 21 years as ruler of western Massachusetts has seen Cagin become an infamous hedonist, with over a dozen children, most of whom not by his wife or concubines.  His wife, though she has little love for her lecher of a husband, keeps his realm together while he throws lavish parties.Amanda is a brilliant financial administrator with a talent for keeping an eye on the shadier aspects of the realm.  The passing of the High Chief sees Cagin receive his father's titles, lands, money and a number of rare artifacts. Included in this is his father's collection of rare and ancient books, passed down from Shuguin to Shuguin since before the Cataclysm.  Cagin holds a great feast in Boston to celebrate his departed father. For weeks on end the city hosts lords and ladies, couriers and prostitutes and an endless stream of hangers-on and minor persons. The drunken celebrations at last become too much and the innkeepers of the city refuse to serve even one morsel more until all debts are settled. Cagin settles the majority of the due payments and his vassals slink back to their homes with bleary eyes.  Amanda tires of the party after a few days and when her husband at last returns from the festivities she complains about him being away from the children so long. He responds by purchasing her a cameo of himself.  The year 2710 brings sickness to the Atlantic Coast. Slow Fever runs rampant in the villages and cities, taking many with it. Cagin responds by narrowing the guest list for his raucous parties.  Amanda busies herself with marrying off her sons (and the other dozen or so of her husband's children) to promising young ladies.  But the chiefs of Boston are not used to long peaces after the leadership of the ambitious High Chief Elijah. After a few years of rule Cagin is pushed to prove himself with a war. The High Churcher lord of New Brunswick makes for a likely target and Cagin calls together his forces, believing it will be an easy victory.  The war appears to be off to a good start when Cagin's main army surprises 3,000 Brunswicker troops near Woodstock. The smaller force is defeated and Cagin pursues.  But the King of The Maritimes intercedes. Although the Maritiman force is slightly smaller than Cagin';s force, the commander proves far better and his heavily armored footmen massacre the light infantry of the Bostonian army. Cagin is forced to retreat back to Boston and hire a force of mercenaries to replace the 3,000 New Englander troops he's lost.  At Saint John Cagin's force once more meets that of the Maritiman King. This time Cagin commands as many heavy infantry as the opposing commander.  The battle goes in his favor and the main Maritiman army is pursued and crushed.  But the Bostonians have brought a visitor along with them. Typhoid spreads throughout the region, helped by long sieges and unburied corpses. This makes for slow progress as Cagin sieges the holdings of the Duke of New Brunswick.  To make matters worse, there is news of a distant marshal who is gathering sellswords and rogues to his banner in a bid to claim Boston for the Ursuline church.  Amanda sends spies to see about silencing this threat before it can grow any further.  Meanwhile, Cagin begins to feel a renewed vigor. For years he had lived in his father's shadow, now he has at last begun to prove himself. The lords of the realm have long talked about ELijah, the conqueror, Elijah, the terror of the Chesapeake. But now they will talk of Cagin, the great, Cagin, the conqueror. In a happy mood he takes a stroll though the siege camp at Saint John one morning, whistling a tune to himself. He buys a bowl of soup from a vendor, not knowing that water used for it was drawn from a contaminated well. Before the war the well had served the small hamlet well, but the appearance of a thousands strong siege force overtaxed the pit where the peasants dumped their feces and the sewage found it's way into the water. Typhoid Fever takes his life sometime afterwards.  In December the High Chief of Boston Cagin the First died at age 43, having ruled only 6 years. Born the son of a self-made High Chief, Cagin grew into a hedonist with high ambitions, but not the will to chase after them. His first and only war turned out to be a disaster, killing thousands of his men in an over-eager pursuit where a wiser man would have been cautious. In the end the war killed him, not by glorious battle but by a series of strokes in his traveling bed. Disease, like the Eldest, care little about a man's station. The Reign of High Chief Cagin I Shuguin has Ended! Long Live High Chief Nehem I Shuguin !
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Jun 19, 2015 04:15
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Cagin was full of passion, a righteous thing in the eyes of the Old Gods. His death at such a young age is a sad thing. Fortune for the new king.
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Jun 19, 2015 04:32
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 Nehem grew up seeing his father very little. Cagin was always too busy with court intrigues and poorly hidden midnight dalliances with scullery maids to devote much time to his handful of legitimate and dozen or so illegitimate children. Nehem himself was his father's third son and at first it looked as though he would be just another minor branch of the family, destined to be handed some backwater barony or county to run while his eldest brother took the reins. But Nehem was tutored by the Marshall of Boston, a tough old soldier who, while no military genius, knew how to position himself in advantageous positions that required only that he fight to achieve victory. By age 16 Nehem was an underhanded, overweight and skeptical soldier with ambitions for the the throne. When the old marshal who trained him died, he was the obvious choice to succeed the man. Impressed by his young son's ability, Cagin, during his short rule as High Chief, granted Plymouth to Nehem. This placed Nehem in a stronger position than his elder brothers, one a baron and the other a priest. When Cagin died suddenly Nehem was with the army and quickly obtained the loyalty of a great number of counts invading New Brunswick. Seeing that Nehem had grabbed power before they could act, his two brothers made no demands for the crown.  Although famous for his lavish parties, Cagin had not emptied the whole treasury on booze and mercenaries. His wife Amanda, ever the pragmatist, had ensured that the coffers continued to grow fat. Along with this fortune, Nehem inherited his family's ancient collection of books. Not much of a reader like his father and grandfather, he nonetheless found use for some of the volumes on military strategy.  While the war started by his father continues to drag on, Nehem found time to visit his wife on occasion. In 2717 his first child is a born, a son he names after his grandfather.  Wars are expensive, especially when one is forced to depend on mercenaries. As ever the Americanists are happy to throw their money at the High Chief of Boston. Nehem, not much of a religious man himself, sees no harm in letting them bathe themselves in the Boston harbor.  In 2718 the war that killed High Chief Cagin ends with Nehem's victory. This sends shock waves throughout the Kingdom of the Maritimes, as now the buffer of minor High Churcher powers has been stripped away, leaving the only land route into the peninsula open for marauding Occultists.  Nehem, however, does not create another chiefdom. The city of Saint John has been a minor trade hub in the region for a long time and Nehem decides that it might be just the key to break the back of the New York Republic's monopoly over trade in the Atlantic coast. His younger brother is made lord of the newly created New Brunswick Merchant Republic.  Nehem takes time to relax after the long and costly invasion of New Brunswick. He spends time with his wife and infant son and in time his wife conceives another son. He names this one after his father.  It is while he is relaxing in Boston that he is brought evidence that his oldest brother was planning to have him killed. The priest is dragged before Nehem and forced to swear on a holy relic of the god Nor'Eester that he will never attempt such a thing again. Annanias does so and ritualistically cuts the pinky from his right hand, placing it on the altar of the god to seal his vow.  With intrigues at home settled and his heirs born, Nehem leaves Boston to raid the lands of the south, like his grandfather and father before him. The money and glory gained by such pillaging will be of great use to the High Chief, as he has plans for the future.  Americanists continue to flock to Boston, hearing that the new chief is far less likely to attempt to have them killed than the last few.  In 2722 an opportunity presents itself to Nehem. The King of New England is soundly beaten by the Maritimans in an invasion of the peninsula and with the New Englander army still in tatters, a major Maritiman duke declares a holy war on New England.  Nehem does not know what the gods will or do not will (and secretly he suspects they will very little), but he knows what he wants and how to get it. On the first day of May a messenger arrives at the court of Nathaniel I, First King of New England. The High Chief of Boston declares him a bumbling failure of a warchief and proclaims that he, Nehem, will rule New England.  Warriors, hungry for glory, flock to Nehem's banner like they did in the days of Elijah. The pale hand banners of house Shuguin number in the hundreds, there has never before been such a large army of Yankee warriors in New England. However this size proves a hindrance, as the larger force is unable to catch up to the swifter New England army. For over a month Nehem chases the New Englander force.  Looking for an easy target, the New Englander army sieges and loots the New Brunswick trade post in Merrimack. But this is a fatal mistake, for it gives Nehem time to catch up with the smaller force. The army attempts to flee south, through Boston county, but is caught.  A withering barrage of missiles is followed up by a charge of over 4,000 light Yankee raiders. The New Englanders hold for a time, but lacking much in the way of cavalry the force is soon hit in the flank and the battle line breaks. More than half of the defending force is cut down as it routs. It is a disaster for King Nathaniel, who only survives at the sacrifice of half of his bodyguard cavalry.  After running down and wiping out the remnants of the New England army, Nehem marches on the holdings of Nathaniel. In a bloody assault his army takes the hill-fort of Bennington.  Not all forts are so lightly defended, however, and Nehem is forced to undertake many long sieges. Although tedious, these give him time to read through his family's book collection. He finds the ones on military tactics especially interesting.  When he can, Nehem travels back to Boston to visit his family.  But duty calls and Nehem must return to his army to keep up morale and lead his forces. When winter sets in King Nathaniel hopes that the weather will force Nehem to relent some. One November, with the ground blanketed in snow, a camp of some 500 New Englander soldiers is awoken in the dead of night by warcries as Bostonian light infantry, equipped with snow shoes, surround the camp. For Nathaniel, there is no rest.  By 2725 all of Nathaniel's holdings have been seized. He refuses to surrender, but by this point it is a forgone conclusion.  During one of his visits back home Nehem discovers evidence that his steward may be stealing from him. What makes this even more alarming is that his steward is his wife.  When he confronts her she admits to it, telling him that she needed coin to redecorate the keep in Boston in a manner more befitting a future king. He does not fall for the flattery and insists she return the money.  The long period of sieges in New England is interrupted in December when a mob of Ursuline peasants rise up against their new Eldest-worshipping overlords.  The god on the cross does not seem to favor them.  Eventually King Nathaniel cannot ignore reality any longer. In 2727 he meets with Nehem and gives him his crown. Nathaniel is allowed to retain his independence as High Chief of Massachusetts, but it is obvious to all at the ceremony that he is a broken man. A child ruler forced onto the throne after his father was assassinated, raised to kinghood by ambitious courtiers and endlessly assaulted by the lords of Boston, Nathaniel is perhaps better off without the crown.  In June 2727 Nehem declares himself King of All Yankees and ruler of New England. Having ruled for only 12 years, the young Chief of Boston has more than doubled the size of his realm. 
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Jun 20, 2015 03:31
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The Gods favor Nehem, even if he does not favor the Gods. Truly, the Eldest act in mysterious ways.
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Jun 20, 2015 06:46
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