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Excellent update! I love this LP for many reasons, but one of them is that it's built up a large enough volume of internal history and context that Nora can deploy sentences like quote:Juno and Ioulia fresh in my memory, had to remind myself that Koca chose Naples for her last stand because it's where the revolutionary armies expelled from Greece were able to regroup, not because of any particular tie to the old Kingdom of Sicily Also, wow the Papadopoulou family is accomplished. My headcanon now is that Theodora just casually had a bunch of children in between military campaigns and every single one of them is an Olympic athlete in a different sport.
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Apr 3, 2020 22:00
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Okay, so people who actually know and understand this game already, are our generals good at their roles? Also, how hosed are we if things kick off.
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Apr 3, 2020 22:15
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The generals are decent to good. Hard to say how we might do if things kick off, we've had playtests where a million Frenchmen die in the Alps in the first month and playtests where Byz collapses immediately.
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Apr 3, 2020 22:45
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Josef bugman posted:Okay, so people who actually know and understand this game already, are our generals good at their roles? Also, how hosed are we if things kick off.  The generals' stats range from pretty good to very good. The four numbers next to their portraits refer to their attack, defense, logistics, and planning skills. The higher the number, the better. Attack and defense are self-explanatory, a good logistics skill reduces supply consumption, and a planning skill means plans are prepared faster. Battle plans are directions you can give to entire armies at once. I think the field marshals Papadopoulou and Andrejić alone are better than almost all of the vanilla generals, and the regular generals have many useful traits such as "mountaineer", "landship leader", or "engineer", which you can see from their medal icons. Although we haven't seen any of the fash generals, for comparison.   This appears to be a civil war in Germany and it could potentially but not certainly develop into a broader European war. The long frontline between the Byzantines and their neighbors is a serious problem, but the Byzantines do have a large and modernized navy - assuming it isn't bottled up in the Mediterranean. We could see figures on the army and air force size soon. We also have only the estimates of force strengths on the German sides - between 53-87 divisions for the North German Federation, and between 52-89 for the Holy Romans. Their navies seem evenly matched, and the NGF may have a slightly larger air force and greater manpower reserves Kangxi fucked around with this message at 01:08 on Apr 4, 2020 |
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Apr 3, 2020 22:47
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Josef bugman posted:Okay, so people who actually know and understand this game already, are our generals good at their roles? Also, how hosed are we if things kick off. Let's put it this way: Skill 4 generals at game start for vanilla Germany are guys like Rommel, Guderian and von Manstein. German field marshals start at like skill 3 and are a lot worse than both of our active field marshals. On the Soviet side, the only general that's definitely better than our skill 4 generals is their only skill 5 general, Zhukov. Their only good field marshal, Tukhachevsky, is skill 4 and still worse than our field marshals. And with the Americans, their only better generals than our skill 4 generals are Patton and Bradley. Both Eisenhower and MacArthur are worse field marshals than our main two. So we're pretty good as far as quality is concerned. The main problem I see is that our main European front is long as hell and hard to cover. If our front ends up stretched, we might end up in some real poo poo. If I were going against the Commune, I'd probably try going in somewhere around Slovenia and attempt to separate Italy from the rest. Supply situations can always get ugly with "overseas" areas in my experience. I'm not sure if the two main borders to the Imperium are at least somewhat fortified. They should probably be. Actually, fortifications all the way to Hungary probably wouldn't go amiss. Or, well, to put it in different terms: I see a lot of ways this could go wrong. Not saying it will. But I see a lot of ways it could.
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Apr 3, 2020 22:49
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Josef bugman posted:Okay, so people who actually know and understand this game already, are our generals good at their roles? Also, how hosed are we if things kick off. Generals are pretty decent, what happens in The Big One is "lol who the gently caress knows?" We've certainly got a nice little army here and a modern industrial base to back it up with, but so do the fascists and we've got a lot of front to try and cover. We're still in the pre-war era so nobody's on a total war footing (yet), the race to mobilize and some last-minute diplomacy are probably going to be important, neither side has an obvious overwhelming advantage right now. But we've got very long borders with the bad guys, and a whole web of international commitments on top of that. Said international commitments make it so we've got the fascists kinda surrounded and can hopefully leverage that into multiple fronts/a blockade, but it also means France is a relatively compact and united bloc with all its resources, industry, and troops concentrated instead of spread out like ours. It's gonna be an interesting war. Crazycryodude fucked around with this message at 22:55 on Apr 3, 2020 |
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Apr 3, 2020 22:52
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The only thing I'll spoil is it would be a terrible idea to fight the WRE and WPO at the same time. The Byzantine AI loves to do that.
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Apr 3, 2020 23:03
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I can't wait to see what kind of international brigades take shape in this timeline.
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Apr 3, 2020 23:16
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Poor Germany  ...but I'm glad Ireland seems to be doing well. 
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Apr 4, 2020 02:23
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I'm glad to see that the British have finally moved ahead with a meaningful degree of decolonization in Africa. Still not perfect, but definitely reduces one of the great blemishes in the Red Rose Pact by a substantial amount. I'm mad that the evil HRE chick looks cool and hot. I also really hope the fash don't win in that civil war, because it's going to be a real bastard if basically all of Germany is Fascist. Fortunately the two sides seem pretty evenly matched, but it's the liberals with their backs to France, and if there's a Paris-Berlin compact of any sort or Valeria just decides to go for it, the NGF is done for.
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Apr 4, 2020 03:18
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The make or break of this war will be whether Italy is cut off by land. That's what I would be planning to do if I were playing the fash - it's easy to come down from those mountains, and hard to go up them. Putting an armored spearhead through those plains and then walking an army down the Italian peninsula when it can only be supplied by naval routes is the logical way to fight this war for the bad guys, especially if they can fill the Med with subs to catch withdrawing troops in the water.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:06
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H
Flesnolk fucked around with this message at 04:23 on Apr 4, 2020 |
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Apr 4, 2020 04:21
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 EKKLESIA SESSION 1 The sudden outbreak of civil war in the North German Federation has thrown the Near West into chaos, as governments and militaries across the European subcontinent scramble responses to the rapidly changing strategic balance. The General Staff of the Byzantine Commune is divided on the issue of whether to send Byzantine volunteers to support the Meier's liberal government against the fascist rebels, but, in the end, it's not their call-- a decision of such import can only be decided by the civilian Ekklesia. Anything else is vulgar Müllerism. Various members of the Byzantine General Staff are testifying in the Magnaura-- are you swayed by their arguments?  General Zenobia Stanotas The outbreak of a Great War between the Red Rose Pact and the so-called "Western Roman Empire" is inevitable-- we don't know when, but the hour is assuredly fast-approaching. Arming, equipping, and training a military powerful enough to defend the Byzantine peoples is a Herculanean task, and although we've seen definite progress in the last twelve months, we are still lagging behind where we ought to be, as factories that could be used to manufacture guns or landships or airplanes are instead stamping out toasters, radios, and automobiles by the thousands. At this critical juncture, should we really be wasting vital war materiel on North German adventurism? Should Byzantines shed their blood for capitalist stooges? Behind Chancellor Meier's honeyed words and smiling face, the corporations which once supported Goethe still churn, assembly-lines slick with proletarian blood. ##Support the Hardened Veteran to let the civil war run its course.  General Eudokia Akinyi We have a moral imperative to oppose fascism. But even if we didn't, sending a force of international volunteers to the NGF is actually the more pragmatic choice, here. A comparatively small expenditure of resources now could be enough to tip the scales against von Starschedel's forces-- far smaller than the forces we would need to bring to bear should Valeria have all of the manpower, industries, and resources of Germany to throw at us when the tinderbox finally lights. ##Support the Democratic Crusader to send Byzantine volunteers to help the NGF.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:26
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Support the Democratic Crusader "Volunteers" will be hardened by the fighting. It is good practice.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:30
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Support the Democratic Crusader. We are all Comrades in the fight against fascist insanity.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:30
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##Support the Democratic Crusader If the game has the mechanics, do everything we can to make it deniable and avoid giving the fascists an excuse to declare a general war over it. But we do need to oppose them consolidating Europe.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:31
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##Support the Democratic Crusader Smash. The. Fash.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:33
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 Sylvester Mars, the inexplicably still-extant Patriarch of Rome. Do I even need to explain myself here? We're just going to stand back while these medieval throw-backs try to murder people for a shiny hat? If I can't wear the big shiny pope hat, then a maniac like her doesn't deserve a fascinator! Support the Democratic Crusader!
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Apr 4, 2020 04:38
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I like the cut of your jib, inexplicably-still-extant patriarch. Hats should always factor in.
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Apr 4, 2020 04:40
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I would hope that the extreme nationalist nature of German fascism puts them at odds with France, however even if it would, the fash must be bashed. ##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 04:46
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##Support the Democratic Crusader We are now facing a continental crisis. If a fascist-aligned government takes over northern Germany, then the French will have an unbroken string of allies or friendly states between Gibraltar and the Vistula. Austria and the Russian monarchy would soon fall in line. If that were the case, nearly everything from Gibraltar to the Urals would be controlled by states unfriendly to us. Historically, the Byzantine state and its predecessors have acted as a counter to French expansionism. This arrangement has faltered after the Commune's defeat in the First Great War, and our military recovery after the second was not enough to contain their aggressive foreign policy. The continued instability and indeed the threat of dissolution of the north German state presents the greatest opportunity for French forces in centuries. The French navy could finally obtain unfettered access to the North Sea, and could thus pressure Scandinavia, or further isolate Great Britain. Lithuania, already in a tenuous position, might be as good as lost. While the Germans are different from the Byzantines ideologically, and they would be inordinately suspicious of any authoritarian tendencies of the extreme left after their experiences with Mullerism, I am sure they would be extremely grateful for any material support we could offer and we could present our case much better if we came to their aid. Kangxi fucked around with this message at 04:57 on Apr 4, 2020 |
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Apr 4, 2020 04:53
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##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 04:55
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Night10194 posted:Support the Democratic Crusader. ##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 04:57
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##Support the Democratic Crusader But make sure if the war starts going bad we don't stick around to get all our volunteers encircled and wiped out. I'm not interested in doing any more dying for the capitalists than absolutely necessary, this is a purely pragmatic alliance and an opportunity to get some practical experience for the real fight at minimal cost.
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Apr 4, 2020 05:05
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The capitalists who run phony elections for which boot steps on the necks of the people are fighting the capitalists who don't even bother with the pretense of an election. ##Support the Hardened Veteran
Tulip fucked around with this message at 05:19 on Apr 4, 2020 |
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Apr 4, 2020 05:06
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##Support the Democratic Crusader Not because I think it right that we fight for capitalists, not because I think it right that we prepare for war... but because we are specifically speaking of volunteers. If Byzantine workers choose, of their own free will, to oppose Valeria in all her guises, who are we to tell them they should refrain? How can we demand that these brave men and women stay home? Shall we imprison them? Arrest them? Of course not. Let them volunteer, let them fight.
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Apr 4, 2020 05:17
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##Support the Democratic Crusader We have a moral obligation to halt the spread of international fascism, regardless of the focus of their aggression. That, coupled with the compromised strategic situation for us and especially for our allies in Lithuania should the false empress win, is more than enough reason to lend our support.
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Apr 4, 2020 05:24
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##Support the Democratic Crusader They're not socialists, that's painfully obvious, but the last thing we want is for our enemies to be all in one house. If Germany joins with France, then they can turn their attentions on the Red Rose Pact in unison.
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Apr 4, 2020 05:59
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##Support the Democratic Crusader It is absurd to condemn the exploitation of the workers under German capitalism, only to stand by and ignore the far worse atrocities that they would suffer under reactionary neo-feudalism.
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Apr 4, 2020 06:00
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##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 06:33
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##Support the Democratic Crusader The flames of war have returned to mere embers with this new conflict. What's say we pour a little petrol on this?
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Apr 4, 2020 07:00
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##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 07:12
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##Support the Democratic Crusader If nothing else, perhaps Byzantine soldiers in real armed conflict against fascism will help convince the civilian population of the importance of ramping up military production at the cost of consumer luxuries.
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Apr 4, 2020 07:27
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##Support the Democratic Crusader. The fascists are trying to steal our history, our heritage, and set themselves up as a lesser Rome. For the Ekklesia and for the People of Byzantion, we must snatch the birthright from their grasp. Only we can truly claim to be Rome, and we have made it a crime to do so anyway.
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Apr 4, 2020 08:01
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## Support the Democratic Crusader We have an opportunity here. Speaking pragmatically the Capitalists in charge of the German Federation will be awful for the proletariat, but the fascists would be worse. Allowing the volunteer brigades lets us do some other things as well though. It let's us train people, it allows us to send people to see the horrors of the fascist up close and give them the opportunity to pass on what they have learned to others. We have not got the luxury of time on this and I would bet my left arm that Valeria will become very invested in this conflict.
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Apr 4, 2020 08:49
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##Support the Diplomatic Crusader If we do nothing, we will look like cowards. And who knows, perhaps we might inspire the NGF to change their colors to match ours should we aid them...
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Apr 4, 2020 09:32
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AJ_Impy posted:The fascists are trying to steal our history, our heritage, and set themselves up as a lesser Rome. For the Ekklesia and for the People of Byzantion, we must snatch the birthright from their grasp. Only we can truly claim to be Rome, and we have made it a crime to do so anyway. Much to the dismay of my Old Roman ancestors. But they're dead, so to heck with 'em
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Apr 4, 2020 09:35
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If the people seek to throw themselves into Germany, let the people throw themselves into Germany. No citizen of Byzantium should be prevented from throwing their hat into the ring as they themselves see fit, and if we can also prevent the spread of Fascism in Europe by assisting them with doing so then it is nothing but a win in my book. Support the #Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 10:03
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The world must see what the Commune stands against, and rally behind the cause. ##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 12:44
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##Support the Democratic Crusader
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Apr 4, 2020 12:51
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