This is the out of character thread for the MTW2 English PBM, “Magna Carta”, the brother of “King of the Romans PBM”. This first post will outline current players and rules.
We’ll have a brief period to receive more sign-ups and finalise what mods we will use. Since the 1.2 patch is out, no major mods are necessary, however, if there are any that people are particularly interested in we can work something out. Please post any comments or rule changes before 6pm Friday AEST(Australian Eastern Standard Time).
I’m assigning initial avatars based on previous PBM experience, and those who haven’t had as much of a go in King of the Romans.
Other players can still participate fully as unnamed barons. They will be assigned avatars in due course by me based on their level of activity in the King of the Romans thread; the time they sign up for this PBM (post in this thread) and especially how active they are in voting and speaking as a (nameless) baron in the Parliament Deliberations. Eventually, every player will get an avatar, although there will be a wait at the beginning.
*****************************FAQ ****************************************
Players and avatars
See:
Other players please sign up and declare which family - Rufus, Curthose, (Name of Cecilia's husband) or Beauclerc - you want to be a baron of. Note Henry has not yet come of age. You will be named Baron of X etc in the order in which you sign up in this thread. The three families will be equally privileged to start with, so please do not all sign up for the same family. If the computer spawns many more avatars in a particular family, I may reassign players to family to avoid them waiting too long (subject to their consent).
Where to post:
All out of character discussion in this thread.
When the game starts, I will create more threads, so that:
All in character discussion in the Parliament deliberations thread.
All in character stories in the stories thread.
Kingdom records in the Kingdom reports thread.
All battle reports in the Battle reports thread.
RULES
How to play – in brief
All players are “barons”. Unlike KotR, they are not affiliated with any particular House, unless they especially choose to associate with a Count or Duke. Eventually all players will be represented by an in-game character or avatar who will represent them.(This may take a while, as experienced in KotR)
The King(The actual in-game faction leader) will play the game(like the Chancellor in KotR). However, the King and the Prince will not get the lion's share of the fun.
Collectively, the barons form the Parliament. This has two functions - to set tax rates in cities and to declare war. The King will be the “reigning player” and play the game. He will move all loyal generals, authorise any buildings and train any units/agents in crown lands.
The King can grant crown lands to a baron, thus promoting him to a Count. Counts will be alloted a set ammount of florins to spend from the treasury each turn. Counts can decide what to build and what soldiers to recruit from their settlements from their available funds.
The King can promote a Count to a Duke by granting him more than one crown province. Dukes, along with Bishops(Priests that have the "Bishop" trait) collectively form the House of Lords. They vote on all business passed by the Commons(The barons). Dukes have the added privilege of attending the King's Privvy Council, and advising the King.
If a Count or Duke feels disloyal to the King(whether due to disagreement to his management, fear of tyranny, discontentment, or ambition), he can raise his standard and revolt against the Crown. He then leads his settlement(s) into rebellion with him, as well as his retainers and garrisons.
Battles between disloyal and loyal generals will be fought out via multiplayer. The armies will be as close as possible to the armies on the campaign map, and the battlemap will be as close to the terrain of the location of the battle.
Once the battle is fought, the losses will be disbanded as close as possible from the corresponding armies on the campaign map, and the loser shall retreat a short distance if possible. If a general dies in the battle, his avatar shall be killed by the console command.
Disloyal generals can throw themselves at the King's mercy, and shall deicide whether the Parliament or himself will decide their fate.
Game settings
*MTWII, Version 1.3
*Hard campaigns, very hard battles.
*Large unit size.
*Battle timer on. Show CPU Moves, Manage all Settlements
Standard victory conditions (45 provinces, including Jerusalem).
Hard restrictions on play: * only two land units (including a general) may travel on each ship.
How to play - detailed rules
1. The role of players.
*1.1 Each player will roleplay a “baron” of the England. There are no defined “Houses” as such, but “houses” may form out of collections of barons Players are born into a noble family. It is in their blood and cannot be changed. It is determined by which of the four lines on the family tree their avatar falls under (except for the three starter Generals, for whom it is determined by their initial geography). [Note - if avatars spawn disproportionately in certain Houses, barons of one House may be offered an avatar of another, but then they effectively role-play a new character.]
*1.2 Over time, all players will be assigned an avatar (typically a general) by Ignoramus to represent them. They should roleplay their traits.
*1.3 Players whose avatars lead in a battle will be expected to fight that battle. This will involve downloading the savegame of the battle, playing it and then uploading the resulting savegame. Uploading the post-battle save must be done within 24 hours of the pre-battle savegame being uploaded. If the deadline expires, the battle is autoresolved. If due to special circumstances, the player is unable to fight the battle within the time limit, the deadline will be extended for a reasonable amount of time.
1.4 Players whose avatars are counts receive 600 florins per turn, while dukes receive 1000 florins per turn for unit recruitment and building construction in their lands.
*1.5 Players whose avatars are counts or dukes are entitled to set the unit and build queues of their settlement(s).
*1.6 Each baron will periodically vote in Parliaments the taxes granted to the King. They will also vote on declarations of war.
1.7 Players are encouraged to write in-character stories in the stories thread; to discuss matters of state in the Parliament deliberations thread; to write-up battle reports; to PM each other in character for role-playing etc. [Note: when posting screenshots, we could keep them full size but put them under spoiler tags.]
2. The role of the King.
*2.1 The King will be the “reigning player” and play the game. He will move all loyal generals, authorise any buildings and train any units/agents in crown lands.
2.2 However, he delegates battles to the player whose general leads the English force. And he follows the build queues and unit queues of counts and dukes.
2.3 He also must obey Parliament and the constitution (these rules) or face political consequences.
*2.4 The player whose avatar is the “in-game king” is the King. He rules until his death.
*2.5 The King may grant crown lands to generals creating them Counts or Dukes.
*2.6 At the start of each turn, the King must open the save up for a period of at least 24 hours. During that time, any player may move their avatar, armies, fleets, and recruit any units or construct any buildings within their settlements that they can afford.
2.7 All diplomacy(except declarations of war) is conducted by the King.
3. The role of the Parliament
3.1. The Parliament will meet at the will of the King. Out of session, there can be open debate and deliberations. Each session lasts 3 days of real time.
3.2. The Parliament is divided into two houses – the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
3.3. The House of Commons consists of all barons and counts of England.
3.4. The House of Lords consists of all Dukes and Bishops.
3.5. At each session, nobles can present petitions. These require two seconders to be put to the vote. Petitions are requests made to the King to what he should do. Failing to follow these petitions could result in resentment by the barons.
3.6. Petitions are proposed in the House of Commons by Barons and Counts. Successful petitions then go to the House of Lords to be voted on. If they pass the House of Lords, they are presented to the King.
3.7. Any declaration of war must be authorised by vote of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The King or any Duke is empowered to declare war on a non-allied army entering its lands.
*3.8. The rules of the game can be changed by a Noble Charter Amendments (2/3 majority required) except those marked with a *. They only come into force with the approval of the King.
3.9. Tied petitions fail. If contradictory petitions are passed, the one with the most votes takes priority.
3.10. Petitions can last until the next Parliament.
*3.11. The Parliament tries those guilty of treason who have appealed to its judgement.
3.12. The Parliament is presided over by the character controlling the King. His rulings are final. The Prince can preside in the absence of the King. The King can call a session of the Parliament - freeze the game - at will.
*3.13 Influential players get bonus votes. (maximum +5 bonus).
civil influence
+1 if player is a Count of a settlement
+2 if player is a Duke of a settlement
+3 if player is the Prince
military influence - cumulative
+1 if player has over 5 command
+1 if player has won more than 3 heroic victories.
titular influence – cumulative
+1 for each office held.
The player who is King gets bonus votes differently, being equal to his in-game authority.
4. The role of the four families - Dukes and Counts
4.1 There will be four families representing the four main branches of the family tree: Rufus, Curthose, Beauclerc, or (Cecilia’s husband’s).
4.2 All lands at the start of the game are crown lands. Lands conquered by Royal Armies and Counts belong to the crown; lands conquered by Dukes are added to their ducal demesne.
4.3 Dukes can then grant a settlement to a player, making him Count of that settlement. The settlements remain nominally within the relevant Duchy. There are no Counts at the start of the game.
4.4 Counts who are not the natural sons of a Duke (e.g. adoptees and sons in law) may be lose their titles at the whim of the Duke. They are referred to as bonded Counts and are expected to act according to the wishes of their Duke. Natural sons of a Duke may not lose their settlements - they are referred to as freehold Counts. Counts stripped of their title by Dukes may appeal to the King.
4.5 Dukes and Counts should name a successor, who will take over their titles and settlements when they die. If no successor is named, the oldest natural son inherits, (if none, oldest adopted son; if none again, then the oldest son-in-law).
5 The role of the King and Prince
5.1 The King presides over the Parliament as in 3.9. He is the sovereign of England. He will keep order in Parliament and try to make things run smoothly.
5.2 The King moves all agents, royal armies, royal fleets, and decides what to construct in crown lands.
5.3 The King can allocate crown lands to barons, counts or Dukes..
5.4 The King adjudicates on rules disputes.
5.5 The Prince succeeds the King and can deputise in his absence.
5.6 Kings do belong to families - if crowned, their lands are added to the Royal demesne. They are expected to act for the good of England and be impartial, above petty regional politics.
5.7 The King decides which player-controlled avatar, if any, a Princess should marry.
5.8 The King decides who the Prince shall marry.
5.9 The King decides the fate of traitors who throw themselves at his mercy.
6. The role of posts - military commanders and governors
*6.1 The King may grant one of these titles to loyal barons of the crown: Lord Great Chamberlain, Lord Privy Seal, Lord High Constable, Lord High Admiral, Lord High Steward, Lord High Chancellor, Lord High Treasurer, and Lord President of the Council.
*6.2 Armies may only be led by the King, Prince, Dukes, or Counts.
7. Crusades and missions.
7.1 The King must endeavour to follow missions from the Pope and Council of Nobles, unless exempted by the Parliament. Missions from guilds and foreign powers are optional.
7.2 Crusades must be authorised by the King, unless announced by another faction.
7.3 When a crusade is called, if the King desires to go on Crusade, he can ask all generals if they wish to join. He must include at least one volunteer who replies within 48 hours. If there are more than one, he may pick at his discretion. The noble will take as many of his retainers as wishes on Crusade. If the King does not desire to go on Crusade, other nobles may take the Cross, with or without the King’s blessing.
8. Events
8.1 During the game, Ignoramus will use the console to implement various historical and historically based events. He will do so in an impartial manner and implement them in the best interests of the game.
9. Historical armies
The following rules apply for field armies of 15+ or more units.
Generals - max 2 units
Knights - cavalry or foot, max 7 units inc. generals
[The class of knights is therefore: Dismtd Feudal knights; Dismtd English knights; Demi Lancers; Mailed knights; Feudal knights; English knights; Hospitallers; General’s bodyguard; Templars; plus any mercenary knights included those great dismounted knights you get in the Holy Land.)
Total cavalry - maximum 7 units, inc mounted knights and generals
[Non-knightly cavalry includes: Mounted crossbowmen ; Reiters; Merchant cavalry; Hobilars]
Artillery - maximum 2 units (5 in a siege - if caught in a field battle immediately withdraw excess of over two)
Foot missiles - maximum 7 units including artillery
[Foot missiles include: Peasant archers; Archer militia; Longbowmen; Yeomen Archers; Retinue Longbowmen; Arquebusiers; Handgunners ]
Total elite heavy infantry - max 6
[Elite infantry comprises Dismounted English Knights; dismounted knights and equivalent mercs - e.g. Galllowglass?]
Other spears & feudal foot - unlimited
[This includes: Peasants; Town militia; Bill militia; Spear militia; Sergeant spearmen; Armoured spearmen; Crusader sergeants; Billmen; Heavy Bill militia]
For armies of size 7-14, the above limits are halved.
No more than half an army can be mercenary. Crusader mercenaries (crusader sergeants, crusader knights, pilgrims, fanatics) can count as natives.
