Life of a Roman: An AAR

[johnhughthom]

Life of a Roman: An AAR Chapter 9

Crete

There can be few men who are better travelled than a Roman Legionary. Gaul, Germany, Iberia and lots of stupid little islands. Like Crete. What we're actually doing here is anybodies guess. Well we conquered it obviously, but why? All the island is known for is it's archers who hire themselves out to the highest bidder or live the life of a pirate. Perhaps the Senate wanted to utilise them in our armies, they may actually have a use, more so than those Gallic idiots we use now.

The capital, Kydonia, is a nice little Hellenic town and it's actually quite a comfortable place to stay. The Triarii are allowed to live within the city and report to the army outside every morning. Yes, I am a Triarius now, have been for two years and bloody boring it is too. We don't actually do very much, we don't build the camp, we don't patrol or do guard duty, we don't even fight unless the battle is in the balance. I enjoyed my time as a Hastatus and a Princeps much more, the time flew as I was always busy. Now all I do is play dice and bang whores. Not a bad life, but dull at times. And these Greek whores are expensive, why just yesterday one tried to charge me one thousand sesterces just to do her up the .... Sorry, you don't want to hear the sordid details of my leisure time.

Anyway, I haven't killed a man in over three years. A long time when you get used to it happening regularly. There wasn't a hope of me getting a kill at Kydonia, the battle was won by the Hastati, Principes and the allies, we just sat outside the city gates listening to the rest of the Legion having all the fun. Every so often an arm or a head was thrown over the walls, some Hastatus thinking it was funny to tease us by showing how much they were enjoying themselves. These archers we heard so much about had no impact on the battle, I mean if they are that good surely they should have sat on the rooftops rainig hell down upon us.

I didn't set foot in the city until the civic leaders had surrendered unconditionally. Thank the God's my time is up, I don't think I could stand having to sit back like that again. There are rumours we may need to stay here a few years as there are tales of an Athenian army on the island. Athens are not our friends,but neither are they our enemies. The situation in Greece is complicated and alliances change constantly, our war with the Makedons should mean the Athenians would be sympathetic to our aims, but they are Greeks. So loyalty, honour and respect mean nothing to them.

I wouldn't mind spending a few years here, it has potential. I'm contemplating buying some land or property in the city, spreading my holdings across Romes territory seems like a good idea. My dream of making enough money in the Iberian conflict to buy my way into the Senate was quashed by the Makedones in Egypt, but perhaps I can make it myself. After all a true Roman makes his money through farming and property, what better way to buy my way to the Senate.

Speaking of the Egyptians, it seems they are at war with our mutual Punic friends now. Perhaps the Iberian Conflict was only a prelude to a real Second Punic War. I'm not quite forty, still a young man-fitter, stronger and healthier than any fresh faced Hastatus. Maybe my time in Iberia has not ended.

[HunGeneral]

Good update

The Senate seems to be showing signs of intellect - they might finally use creatans

[gamegeek2]

is intelligent life evolving?

[johnhughthom]

Life of a Roman: An AAR Chapter 10

Retirement

I'm finally back home in Mediolanium, my service to the Republic has been completed. I won't serve again, a broken leg sustained in stormy seas coming back from Crete didn't heal properly and now I have a limp when I walk. My final few months in Crete were uneventful, a minor war with Athens over Rhodes was ended in our favour. We are the undoubted masters of the western Mediterranean and now we have a foothold in the east.

The war with Makedonia goes well, a large enemy force was comprehensively defeated early last year, though the Senate seems unwilling to try to take any more territory in the region at present. The Gauls and the Germans are fighting each other as usual and the presence of Legio V nearby keeps them from contemplating an attack. Iberia seems to be the most likely area of conflict and war with Carthage seems an inevitability, it's a matter of when, not if. My old colleagues in Legio IV are on their way there now, one Legion is enough for peacekeeping, sending a second can only mean war is on the cards.

I am not as bored as I had imagined with civilian life, I have plenty to occupy myself with. The farm, the rented property in the city and in Crete, I have also bought my old home near Arpi and a small place in Rome. Those six hundred Nuraghi have really made my life comfortable. So a business man, farmer and family man is my life now. I have a son and a daughter with another child on the way, my son is thirteen and a talented horseman. Not very Roman I know, but he enjoys it. I have bought my way into the ranks of the equites, my son wants to be part of the cavalry when he does his service. I thought I had been excited about joining the Legions as a child but my boy is something else, all he ever talks about is killing Gauls, Germans, Carthaginians, Greeks anybody who isn't Roman. I'm almost as excited about his service as he is, I have no doubt he will make me proud.


Coming soon: Life of a Roman: An AAR Part Two

[gamegeek2]

[johnhughthom]

I'm trying to get a character to use for the next bit of the AAR through marriage, I want a plebeian aged 16-18 and I keep getting patricians in their 50s.
I just noticed I have 12 females of marriage age including 5 in their 30s. Is there an an age where they can't be married off anymore? I know it happens in Medieval, never noticed it in RTW though.

[desert]

I remember that someone once posted a screenshot of the message he got regarding the death of a female FM. It was a very special message though; he had never married her off...

[johnhughthom]

There must be a link between the age of your daughters and the age of suitors, I haven't had one under 50 in 6 game years-one was 64.
Obviously it's ok for women to marry much older men, but young men aren't allowed to marry older women.

[I of the Storm]

I suppose that your faction is already quite rich. It seems to me that the more money you have, the more useless suitors become.
Apart from that, it can happen that unmarried females retire. I've had messages about it in the later stages of a game (not EB though). I don't know at wich age this will happen. Probably 40+

[julius_caesar_the_first]

1. A female FM can be married to the age of 50.
2. The older the female, the older the suitor. Also the game will constantly try to get you to marry one female FM before going to the next. The only solution is marry the older ones to clear the way for the others.

Great AAR and I hope this helps.

[johnhughthom]

The only solution is marry the older ones to clear the way for the others.

I'm probably going to have to do this, cheers guys.

edit: Just got a 68 year old marry one of my daughters, anybody had an older suitor?
another edit: Not sure when I'll be able to update this, still got a few old dears to marry off.

[johnhughthom]

Life of a Roman: An AAR Part Two

Prologue

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I'm writing this in a small inn in Veii, I'm only a few miles from Rome and will probably be there tomorrow. It's just me, my sister and my spear carrier and a few locals. What's my sister doing with me? Well she never married and has always acted as my nanny, mother could never be bothered and father didn't trust the slaves. Of course I'm sixteen now and have no need of a nanny but I couldn't leave her behind, she's more than thirty and father couldn't find anybody to marry her apart from local Gauls. If you know my father you would know that wasn't going to happen. Father expects great things from me militarily so hired a spear carrier just before I left, apart from the obvious carrying my equipment he is also a fine warrior and we train together daily.

The plan is that I will spend four years in Rome, living with associates of my grandfather (the governor of Cisalpine Gaul). I will be expected to learn business skills, oratory skills, legal skills, leadership skills and of course martial skills. My first year will be spent in the home of one of Romes finest prosecutors, I will be helping gather evidence and clerking hopefully learning from the great man.

While in Rome I plan to look for my brother. He would be almost thirty now and disappeared when he was seventeen while doing something similar to what I am embarking on. The man he was staying with claims he must have been robbed and murdered and dumped in the Tiber but personally I'm not too sure. He was never one for learning and I know he just wanted to fight, I wouldn't be surprised if he ran off and joined the army under a false name.

Father recently took an interest in family history and discovered a direct line to a former Consul, we are Cornelii of course there's going to be a Consul somewhere back in the mists of time. He thinks it's great, of course now I have to live up to that and restore the family name. Bloody hell, he couldn't even make Senator and wants me to be Consul! Sometimes I wonder if it was his head or leg he hurt coming back from Crete.

Four years in Rome before I join the Legions. I am quite excited about the travel aspect, not necessarily the fighting and killing. I'm not the same man as my father or brother, the stories of father's, my grandfather's and even my great-grandfather's fighting for Rome never filled me with the pride it did them. Indeed sometimes I wonder why we never try to live alongside these foreigners, even when there is peace it's as if we are waiting for an excuse to attack. Of course I never voiced any of these opinions, to my father and brother the life of a non-Roman had as much value as a that of a sheep.

Well, got to go, sister says it's time for bed.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

This guy is actually the son of an Arverni FM I bribed over to my side not realising he would join my family tree, I'm just going to RP him as the son of my former protaganist and actually the grandson of his father(who is the governor of Cisalpine Gaul and I pretend has a Gallic nick-name after fighting them). Map at 196 BC.

[julius_caesar_the_first]

Just got a 68 year old marry one of my daughters, anybody had an older suitor?

I think I did once in RTW, but I can't remember for sure. I did get a FM to reach the age of 91 without reloading a save game once in BI though.

I'm glad to see another update and I can barely wait for the next one.

[johnhughthom]

Chapter 1

In the big city

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I've lived in Rome for a year and I'm still in awe of the majesty of the place. Yes there's crap on every street corner, yes it smells worse than the stables on the farm in the summer, it's true that I am too frightened to leave the house at night but it's Rome. It's the centre of the world, the idea of Rome, what it represents is more important than the reality. I'll bet those other great cities, Carthage, Athens, Pergamon, Alexandreia and the like are just the same, made of wood and smelling of faeces.

My year with the prosecutor was an amazing experience, I spent all day every day looking through books, accounts, ledgers and other fascinating documents. More than one case was won due to my noticing a well hidden falsification or ommission, he told me I would have made a great lawyer if it weren't for the fact I have a worse personality than a particularly dour Spartan. I almost laughed at that one, humour never was my strong point. He did offer me a job, well paid with a cut of profits. I don't need a job though, even at the age of seventeen I am self sufficient. Father gave me enough money to last four years when I left home, rather than leave it in the safekeeping of one of my grandfather's associates I decided to invest in property and I live off the rent. I pack four families in flats intended for one and make four times the money, I have already bought another two buildings I intend to convert into tenements. I also employ a number of men to help me run my affairs as my studies take up a lot of my time. A few philosophers live in one of my apartments (by themselves, I wouldn't make them live with ordinary people) and I enjoy discussing philosophy with them in my rare free time.

I am now living with a current Quaestor who is responsible for the games in Rome. I am to learn how to raise funds, how to spend those funds efficiently and how to keep the masses happy through blood, death and spectacle. I'm not really that interested in the games to be honest but facts and figures, ledgers and accounts will keep me happy for a year. So long as I'm not expected to go around begging for money to fund the games, I'll probably just give some of my own money and say I raised that.

I've had no luck finding any information on my brother, the man he was living with, a money lender, told me exactly what he had told my father. His story was exactly as it had been years before so I think he believes it. Which is exactly as my brother would have wanted it. Still, I haven't given up, I know I will find out one way or another before I leave Rome.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Looks like this guy is going to be very different from his father and grandfather as I'm going to roleplay his traits and retinue. The last two protagonists were probably too similar though, so that may work well.

[gamegeek2]

Wow, that is some weird sister. Good thing he's not a Ptollie...

[johnhughthom]

Wow, that is some weird sister. Good thing he's not a Ptollie...

Well, he is "Welcoming To Foreigners" so perhaps he may want to try some of their strange habits out.

[johnhughthom]

Chapter 2

Embezzlement

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Rome sure votes some idiots into power. The Quaestor I worked under for the past year wouldn't have noticed had I walked into his home and walked out with one of his Persian busts under my arm. Which gives me an idea... Anyway, I doubt he will be entrusted with another office, he gave pretty mediocre games. They weren't awful by any means, he just showed little flair for spectacle and no innovation whatsoever. That he was able to put on even mediocre games considering I stole half of the money he raised shows I am maybe being a little harsh on him. You could even say I did Rome a favour, we hardly want someone who is blind to such theft under his own nose in a more important position.

I put all the money into more property, believe it or not the man I am living with now, a former Praetor who fought with my grandfather in Sicily, rents his home off me. He doesn't know this of course as I use agents, but he is paying me rent then letting me live there for a year rent free.

It's quite interesting here, I mainly help with his accounts and run his farms, I am certain by the end of the year I will have doubled his income. Unless I steal some of course, he isn't as stupid as the last guy though and it may be too risky. Dinner is great fun, there is always intelligent discourse, philosophy, politics, science, thankfully religion is rarely discussed as sometimes I find it difficult to feign an interest in such nonsense. There is always news from Hispania and Epiros which is much more reliable than you hear in the street. Apparently there is a big divide in the Senate, some believe we need another Legion in Epeiros, most Senators though feel one in Illyria and two in Epeiros should be more than sufficient-pointing to the fact two Legions are winning the war in Hispania.

Little else has changed, I still feel at home here, to be honest I am not looking forward to my military service at all. Not showing real enthusiasm would disappoint my father though, I have no doubt he would actually disinherit me if I tried to dodge it. No point worrying about it, it's two years away. Still no trace of my brother, I will have to give up soon, I see little else I can do.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

It's a pity there's no land bridge across the pillars of Hercules, taking Spain would be a challenge if those armies could get across.

[johnhughthom]

I'm giving up this AAR as I'm getting seriously ****ed off at the number of forest battles(especially when the campaign map shows otherwise), the same reason I took a break before. It's something I've always hated but been able to tolerate, this campaign seems to be worse than any other and I'm not enjoying it at all. I may come back to it in the future but I seriously doubt it.

[desert]

It's called "artificially induced deforestation".

Anyway, you could always just make things up as you go.

[gamegeek2]

plz don't give up. Use auto_win to save you from fighting battles you'll obviously win. With infantry battles, it gives fairly accurate results for a human victory.

[julius_caesar_the_first]

I agree. Please don't give up. It's such an interesting AAR.

[I of the Storm]

plz don't give up. Use auto_win to save you from fighting battles you'll obviously win. With infantry battles, it gives fairly accurate results for a human victory.

He's right. Look at the army compositions and decide whether you'd be able to win easily or not. If yes, then auto_win. I choose to do that often in order to save time and avoid repetitive battles - leaving more time to savour the really epic ones.

[Olaf Blackeyes]

NUUUUU!!!!!!!!! PLZ DONT QUIT THIS!!!!! ILL GIVE U 1000 balloons if u dont!!!!!!1

[johnhughthom]

Well I took a week off EB and was ready to start this up again and guess what? The save won't load. I've uninstalled and reinstalled three times now.
I'm not sure what to do now. Start a new Romani campaign and play up to this date then use a different Cornelius Scipio, roleplayed as the older brother, or start a new Pahlav AAR. Or not bother, I've already started three AARs in three months....

[gamegeek2]

that sux. have a

[julius_caesar_the_first]

[Olaf Blackeyes]

Please let EBII be more stable then EBI Master Foot PLEASE!!!!

[HunGeneral]

Now thats sad news...

Why does the "devil of technik" always strike such good AAR's

[johnhughthom]

Life of a Roman: An AAR Part Three

The Real History of Rome

We are in the columned garden area of a large villa in Rome. A middle aged man sits by a statue of the legendary Lucius Cornelius Scipio as a Punic freedman enters the garden.

Sir, the boy has been killed. Don't worry the body will never be found.
I hope not, his grandfather could make life awkward for me you know.
Yes sir, I know. He sniggers. Trust me even if they find the body they will not be able to identify him.
OK, you have never let me down before, I will trust you on this. Did you find anything interesting in his room?
Ehm...
If I find out you have taken any money I will make sure you face a fate even worse than the boy's.
Of course, thats not why I hesitated sir. He had a journal, a diary he had been keeping, it seems you are not the only influential man in Rome he has stolen from. He also has a journal kept by his father, and another manuscript which seems to be his grandfather's. It is an interesting story, your father is mentioned many times.
In what fashion?
Only in the most complimentary of course.
Give them here Hanno. I will read them. And Hanno...
Yes sir?
Don't forget what I said about the money.
Of course sir, I will fetch it for you right away.


Later we come across Scipio in his office reading the documents with a broad grin on his face.

Ha ha, this guy is full of crap! What kind of an idiot would actually believe these rags to riches tales! Killing a Samnite nobleman with a little dagger, selling six hundred of your peers as slaves to make your fortune! And the way he tells the history of Rome, like anybody would believe it really happened like that. The Gallic Disaster is all he actually got right! I was still a young man when it happened, but I remember it like it was yesterday. I took part in many of the events he describes, but they certainly didn't happen like he tells it. Tell me Hanno, you like to read about the life of that Phoenician who explored in his little boat don't you?
Yes, sir. I have read it many times, it makes me proud of my heritage.
What was he called again?
Hanno sir.
Of course. Hanno. How many different names do you people actually have? It must get very confusing, I bet if you shout "Hanno!" in a market in Carthage a thousand people turn their heads.
Most probably sir.
Well then there is a market for such as this then. Hmm, perhaps I should tell my story, how as a young man after The Gallic Disaster I helped turn Roman fortunes around. Yes, yes. I may even become more famous than my father, Consul may still be possible. And think of the women...
You always do sir.
That's settled then, I hope you have a strong wrist Hanno. I'm certainly not going to be writing this myself.

Scipio starts to narrate

Our tale begins with me, a vigorous young man of 21...

[Vasiliyi]

Im glad your continuing this. I love this aar.