Kingdoms Crusades HS: The Levantine Struggle (completed, winner: Thanatos Eclipse)

[phonicsmonkey]

The Levantine Struggle



This is a hotseat campaign in Kingdoms: Crusades with the 1.5 patch, for 5 human players as follows:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

1. Principality of Antioch: Thanatos Eclipse (formerly Tristan de Castelreng)
2. Kingdom of Jerusalem: Myth (formerly GeneralHankerchief) RIP turn 55
3. Byzantine Empire: Cecil XIX
4. Turks: phonicsmonkey (formerly Ezilkannan, Quirl, Tosa Inu)
5. Egypt: Nightbringer RIP turn 23

The rules are as follows:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

- Players shall post a link to the save game in the main game thread and also send a private message to the next player in line to alert them that it is their turn. The save game file should follow the naming convention LS-turn number-faction (eg. LS-1-Antioch)

- Players have 48 hours to play each turn, with extensions granted at request. The GM will skip a players' turn if the deadline is missed with no communication and a sub allied to the player cannot be found.

- All battles between human-controlled factions are to be auto-resolved

- No spies may be used to open the gates of settlements or forts.

- Siege equipment may only be used to open gates as follows: Ballista can open nothing, Catapults can open wooden walls, Trebuchets can open stone walls.

- No crusades or jihads can be called or joined by a human player.

- No destroying buildings for cash under any circumstances.

- No fighting losing defensive battles on purpose in a besieged city, just to deny the invader the sacking option.

- If an army is beaten in battle by a faction that is after them in the turn order that army may not move on the following turn.

- An army which is beaten in battle may not be attacked on the following turn (because it is immobilized either by the game mechanic or by the rule above) by any faction unless it has retreated to a fort or settlement.

- No exploits, including (but not limited to): no merchant forts, no surround-and-destroy, no tribute deals that deliberately put you into debt greater than 10k, no deliberate diplomatic exchange of territories just to get a free garrison, no tribute deals with or monetary gifts to the Pope, no attacking ships in ports.

If a player is in doubt about whether an in-game action is permissible he shall consult the GM who will make a ruling. Players are requested to compete in a good spirit and use their judgment and sense of fairness at all times.

If a player is suspected of cheating, please make a private report to the GM and avoid making a public accusation or resorting to flaming in the game thread or elsewhere.

The first save game file is here and Antioch is up.

Have fun!

[_Tristan_]

Will play this tonite (my time)...

[GeneralHankerchief]

Out of curiosity, how does this rule:

no tribute deals that deliberately put you into debt greater than 10k

...help the player? I think I have an idea but confirmation from somebody who is actually smart about these things would be helpful.

[Cecil XIX]

Off hand, I believe being in debt can help give your generals good traits. Although I'm assuming there's something else that makes it big enough to ban, of course.

[Nightbringer]

I would assume it is to prevent a player from boosting an allies economy too much before dying. As in, you have one province left, and are going to die very soon, so you make a deal to give your ally 100,000,000 florins each turn. They actually get that much and you go into that much dept.

[phonicsmonkey]

I would assume it is to prevent a player from boosting an allies economy too much before dying. As in, you have one province left, and are going to die very soon, so you make a deal to give your ally 100,000,000 florins each turn. They actually get that much and you go into that much dept.

Exactly.

[_Tristan_]

The defense of the Levant has begun !! Dieu le veut !!

[phonicsmonkey]

hey guys, should I start an in-character diplomacy thread for this game? I'm thinking it could be set at Jerusalem, Constantinople, Cairo or Baghdad - let me know what you think.

[GeneralHankerchief]

hey guys, should I start an in-character diplomacy thread for this game? I'm thinking it could be set at Jerusalem, Constantinople, Cairo or Baghdad - let me know what you think.

As for the location, that's up to you. I'd obviously prefer Jerusalem, but this isn't coming from the most unbiased source.

[Nightbringer]

I would vote for Constantinople, I like it the best and it is a city known for political intrigue.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Byzzies are up:

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local...id=205&id=8718

At this time the Kingdom of Jerusalem is publicly claiming Damascus and that other rebel settlement just to the south of it (whose name is escaping me at the moment, curse being awake at 4am).

[Cecil XIX]

Hmm, looks like I was a little late. My apologies.

[Lachin]

Egypt is up: https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local...205#linkid8726

[Nightbringer]

Antioch up!
http://www.sendspace.com/file/3j2h31

[_Tristan_]

Jerusalem

[GeneralHankerchief]

I'll get to this tomorrow, Edmund Burke isn't exactly the most readable guy around.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Byzantium now:

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local...id=205&id=8732

[Cecil XIX]

The Turks are next.

[Lachin]

Egypt is up

[Nightbringer]

Antioch up!
https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local...205#linkid8736

[_Tristan_]

I will do this sometimes today... sorry for the delay I'm away from home

EDIT : ... If I can download the save... Which I can't at the moment because the link points to the uploader and not the file...

[Nightbringer]

it should be in the pbm 2011 files, LS Antioch t3

[_Tristan_]

Crusaders !!

[GeneralHankerchief]

Byzantium!

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local...id=205&id=8745

[Cecil XIX]

Here're the Turks!

[phonicsmonkey]

hey guys I had an idea I want to run by you.

What if I used my admin rights to access your save games and produce a kind of composite AAR of the game, including campaign maps, screenshots, in-game stats etc?

I would of course lag this by an appropriate number of turns in order to avoid compromising the competitive nature of the game (would 5 turns be enough?) and if you like I could check with the players on individual pieces of content / information to make sure everything is ok before posting.

The idea would be to produce a record of the game that could be enjoyed by the players and also by any spectators.

[GeneralHankerchief]

I'd like this idea very much. As a matter of fact, the only reason why I haven't done any writeups for this is precisely the reason you mentioned.

[phonicsmonkey]

I'd like this idea very much. As a matter of fact, the only reason why I haven't done any writeups for this is precisely the reason you mentioned.

Yeah I find the story threads in hotseats only tend to get going once the initial turns are out of the way. Of course we can still have a story thread where you guys can do your own writeups.

I could then link to them in my 'turn-by-turn' which would be more of a commentary-free account of the state of the world at each end turn... posted in the first post of this thread.

[Cecil XIX]

I too think this is a good idea.

[Nightbringer]

I support this 100%