The Mongol Invasion Hotseat

[Askthepizzaguy]

This thread is the planning phase for a new hotseat.

The game: Medieval 2 Total War
The mod: Askthepizzaguy_Mod (under construction)

Players: Variable

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Premise:

What happens when you make all computer-controlled factions, even the rebels, super-aggressive, and then allow the Mongol hordes to arrive at the beginning of the campaign?

In singleplayer mode, it allows Askthepizzaguy to face a daunting computer-controlled opponent, and get out all his daily frustrations in a non-destructive manner.

But in Hotseat mode, it means that the horde has arrived and is controlled by a guest player. The other players control the normal factions from Vanilla M2TW, and are surrounded by aggressive rebels and strong AI opponents.

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On one side, you have the Mongol Horde, whose victory conditions include taking 50 provinces and holding Constantinople, or eliminating all human players.

On the other side, you have a loose confederation of human players forced to ally with one another to defeat the horde. Simple enough... but there is a problem. The players in this game only win if they accomplish two victory conditions.

1. Defeat the Mongol Horde, or remain allied to the faction which defeats the Mongol Horde

2. Be the sole human player left standing afterwards.

This means that you cannot trust your partners if you send off all your forces to destroy the Horde, because they could betray you, steal your lands, and become the most powerful human player, leaving them in a strong position in the endgame.

It also means that alliances may choose to drop human players who fail to send troops on the anti-mongol crusade, declare war on them, and absorb them into their own empires.

A delicate balance must be maintained... in order to win, the Horde must be eliminated... which means troops must be sent on crusade. But in order to win, your faction cannot be eliminated early by betrayals executed by greedy players. Which means troops must be left at home to defend against the untrustworthy neighbors one finds in Europe.

The Mongol horde is impressive but cannot withstand the combined might of all Christendom, can it? Should the Catholic Kings fall upon one another like vicious, greedy dogs, the Horde will annihilate them. Should the Catholic Kings trust one another too much, and one of them is sure to let personal ambition get in the way of a united Europe.

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Your input and discussion is welcome.