New KOTR game:Faction Poll

[Zim]

Hello everyone. With SS 4.1 having a decisive lead in the mod poll I thought it might be appropriate to have a poll to narrow down the possible faction choices*. I've taken the liberty of combining a few especally similiar faction to prevent their bleeding votes from eachother.

My thought is to do this like EF's mod poll, and narrow it down to a few possible factions for another, final poll.

Anyway, here goes nothing. The poll is multiple choice. Thanks to anyone who votes

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Edit: Since Tincow kindly deleted my extra polls this can be spoiled. Ok, at this point even having staying up all night is no excuse. If I fail this time, I'll have to go into Org exile until I have a cup of coffee or get 8 hours of sleep, whichever occurs first. I apologize to all affected by my poll spam.

[TinCow]

I voted for England, France, Spain/Portugal/Aragon, Milan/Venice/Sicily, ERE, and Turkey. I see advantages and disadvantages to each one, which I will outline below.

England
Pro: Proper Feudal system that would mesh well with our rules. Internal dissent amongst nobles, including the occasional bloodshed, was common enough that it wouldn't be out of place. In SS 4.1, the British Isles have a lot of provinces, so we would be able to gain a good number without conquering half the world.
Con: England is always popular, and thus perhaps a bit boring. Isolation in a corner makes it unlikely for the AI to ever challenge us.

France
Pro: Feudal system which was historically extremely turbulent and thus would fit our rules almost precisely. In SS 4.1, starts with a large number of provinces and avatars and has easy access to many more without steamrolling half of Europe. Surrounded by many potentially strong enemies. Interesting unit roster.
Con: Possibly boring for people who want something other than another Western powerhouse faction.

Spain/Portugal/Aragon
Pro: A definite culture shift away from what we're used to, but still Catholic and thus fun with the Pope. Unit rosters (for Spain & Portugal) are a bit less conventional. Iberia has many provinces that can be used for rank purposes without conquering half of Europe.
Con: All start small, would require more time and conquest to get large number of provinces for rank purposes.

Milan/Venice/Sicily
Pro: Interesting unit rosters. Central spot on the map allows for expansion in many areas and many potential enemies. Increased power of nobility/merchants (for Milan and Venice) can mesh well with our rules.
Con: All start small, would require more time and conquest to get large number of provinces for rank purposes. Same spot we were playing in for most of KOTR. I'll be prancing around northern Italy for the rest of my life!

ERE
Pro: Different in almost every way from previous games, except for the fact that we'd be 'Roman' once again. Good starting spot with a decent number of starting provinces and access to many more. Orthodox religion and crossroads position will probably result in more challenging AI. More serious threat posed by Mongols & pals. Very different unit roster.
Con: Absolute monarchy isn't ideal for our dissenting nobility rule structure, though we could make it work. No Pope fun.

Turkey
Pro: Not Western, thus a big break from WOTS and KOTR. Easy access to a large number of provinces without conquering half the world. Crusades and Mongols & pals will add to the challenge.
Con: Not Western (yes, it's both a Pro and a Con), and not an ideal historical match for our rules, though again we could make it work. Horse archers out the wazoo. Outremer aficionados will find themselves stuck in the desert for another year.

I would be happy with any of the above, though my two highest votes would go to France if we wanted a western faction, and ERE if we wanted a non-western faction.

[Privateerkev]

I voted for everything but the HRE. We did it once, it was fun, now I'd like to do something else.

England and France seem to jive well with our rules. I'm not too worried about the AI being weak. With the way some of you fight, the AI will be weak no matter what we do. I rather pick a faction that will give us the best RP opportunities. The AI will be almost non-existent in my mind. If I wanted a challenging AI, I'd just load up an SP game. I'm so "green" at battles, that E/E still presents a challenge. ^_^

Italy and Iberia would be fun but start small. RBG's will allow us to recruit but titles would be scarce for awhile.

Outremer factions would be a blast but I admit I am biased. Being the Templars would be a lot of fun. Just watch "Kingdom of Heaven" and you'll see that there were a wide variety of personalities. :D

ERE would be interesting if only because we tried so hard to vilify them IC last game.

Eastern Europe factions have the advantage of lots of room to expand. (ah, the endless steppes... nothing bad could ever come out of there...)

Denmark and Scotland would be the hardest since they are so tiny and locked in. But I think we could make them work.

[GeneralHankerchief]

I voted for France. It seems to have the best combination of the things we're looking for, and plus there's the very good chance that we can do something yet to be completed in these PBMs: Invade Britain and Iberia.

[_Tristan_]

I voted Italy, Iberia and Templars.

I might have voted France also but people would have thought me biased...

(I'll start a French beginner's course if that faction is chosen... Or maybe I'll have a rule added asking that all IC posts be made in French... The revenge of the French )

[Cecil XIX]

Having given this some thought in the interim, I think France or the ERE are our best bets. Unfortunately, I didn't vote for France.

[Privateerkev]

Or maybe I'll have a rule added asking that all IC posts be made in French... The revenge of the French )

That could cause much humor in the game. I can see the Dread Duke turning to the Idealistic Crusader in the Parliament and saying, "excuse me, but I believe I soiled my knickers" when he really meant to say "I will cut your heart out with a spoon!"