[LP CYOA] Epic

[Bloodshifter]

A C2 C1 B B

 

[Smashing Axe]

The masters are a long way away, we've destroyed the only device we know capable of bringing them here, if they are brought here we'll have had time to prepare and develop our powerbase and I'm very doubtful they'll order exterminatus, we won't be seen as a sufficent enough threat. All the gieloth on earth combined are far more dangerous to them, presumably, than us, and they haven't saw fit to order exterminatus yet. There will be trouble, but it's far more likely to come from the Master's proxies (Naram) rather than directly.

 

[Baltika9]

Oh, there are other artifacts. Our bull statue, for one. But, agree to disagree, seems like the Dex wants to play God. I just hope I don't get to say "I told you so." That would be a bummer.
Can we at least demand harems for the harem god and monocles for the monocle throne? I'd rather play one of Ean's kids than anyone else?

 

[Kattze]

C: We need every capable man that we had. Just as Storyfag said, most of the Sons of Marduk may just be paying lip-service to the Marduk's divinity just to gain access to the reins of government. We can device a system wherein the cult of Shulgi can serve as 'intendants' (see french monarchy) to coordinate and serve as check to the non-partisan/SoM affiliated bureacracy.

D: We should deify both Shulgi and Ean. The former as concession to the cultists while the latter because Ean deserved it (He was the real Marduk, damnit). So that we do not piss-off the ultra-hardcore fanatic Shulgi cultists, who might think of our deification as blasphemy to their god (since Ean is supposedly just a servant of Shulgi), we can say that we are an avatar or an incarnation of Shulgi. Just as Krishna and Rama are separate and different (personality-wise) incarnations of Vishnu, we could do the same vis-a-vis to Shulgi. This would have the net-effect of increasing the loyalty of cultists to our cause.
2: We could allow worship of Marduk as a demi-god but we should imply that he is merely a servant of the gods. While his original vision of restoring Sumeria to its former glory is sanctioned by and supported by the Mesopotamian pantheon, we could say that he transgress his limits by becoming arrogant and conspiring to to conquer the earth to fight the gods.

A: A loyal and motivated army is better than a bigger one. A net result of a rebellion by the remnants of former regime could lead not only to crippling of our military power but also undo our political and economic efforts to advance Sumeria.
1: We can use the Gutians as an elite police force (ie. like Shinsengumi to the Tokugawa Shogunate) to quash dissent within Sumeria because of their loyalty to Gudersu (and by extension to us, since Gudersu is our bro). We can also marry Ilhati to cement our alliance with Gudersu. However, we need to ask Sekhenun if our son/daughter would be mortal/immortal. If mortal, go ahead with the marriage and strive to guide our offspring but if immortal, do not marry Ilhati since the presence of an uncontrollable immortal (especially if our son/daughter) could complicate our plans for humanity (ie. can oppose us/foil our plans).

B: We should enthrone a scion of the noble families as the king. It would be preferable if this noble is a child, so that we can indocrinate him on 'Eannic virtues' of courage, strenght and tenacity. This would allow us to affect a change for the better for Babylonia even if it is not under our direct control. Also, we would have a pliant and supportive ally.

A: I want Ean to meet Zeus. Also, we can improve Greece as well if we took both of them out of the picture.

 

[CappenVarra]

C B3 A1 D B

 

[Baltika9]

Or, we could half-purge the army, take them to Greece with us, get Sekhenun to lure Ares into Babylon (I hear she's good at that) and get him "ambushed" by Gudersu and the Gutians. They'll make him a King themselves.

 

[oscar]

C
E1
B2
E
C

We definitely need to declare ourselves as a god and ruler of some kind, so that we can fall back to the empire and quickly gain a position of military strength. I also find ruling more interesting than wandering. I wouldn't mind a joint kingship with Gudersu or having the people be able to elect a tribune or something, but outright rule by either risks us losing control of the empire. Perhaps in time. Marry and knock-up Gudersu's daughter ASAP. Since I'm voting to make Ean king he should also stay here to ensure things are stable. And get to the business of producing an heir with a certain Gutian..

 

[treave]

C B3 A1 B A
B B2 C2 D A
C D1 C1 C C
B A2 A1 E B
B D2 B1 A A
C D2 A1 A B
B D2 A1 B A
C D2 B1 B C
B B3 A2 E B
C D3 B1 C B
C B3 C1 C C
A C2 C1 B B
C D2 A1 B A
C B3 A1 D B
C E1 B2 E C

Wowwee. Tigranes is undecided so I haven't counted his in yet. However, it would make a difference only in the last choice, where voting A would then tie it with the current leader, B.

Now, to summarize...

C. You open up recruitment for all qualified personnel regardless of their history. What you need are skilled administrators to allow Babylon to thrive, and you cannot afford to be picky about the men you choose as long as they can do the job. - 9 votes

D2. You introduce yourself as a new god to the pantheon and put Shulgi up there as a new addition equal to, not greater or lesser than, the old gods. You only allow worship of Marduk as an equal or lesser god to the pantheon, not as supreme god. - 5 votes

A1. Run a psychic check together with Sekhenun and keep only the ones that would loyally follow your cause. This should reduce the number to about 1000. The rest will be discharged and allowed to return home. Get the Gutians to come as 'mercenaries' to bolster your troops. - 6 votes

B. You ask Sekhenun to select a suitably easy puppet from any surviving nobles to put on the crown. - 5 votes

B. You travel to Egypt to aid in their defense. Showing up at a desperate time and rescuing the Egyptians will take away credit from Marduk. Let Zeus and Marduk battle it out in Greece. - 6 votes

This is how the plan would look like. Is this unholy mixture acceptable?

 

[Smashing Axe]

I guess it is, B is probably the best choice if we're going away, and I suppose we can replace the puppet later if we've a mind to, if we assert our own divinity. That said, we won't be there long enough to really make that assertion so I don't think it'd have much impact. May in future if we save the Egyptians...

That must have been a pain to count, treave. I know I wouldn't have the patience.

It's funny that not a single person voted for this combination.

Let's roll the die and see where this mix takes us!

 

[treave]

Well, not that tough as you think seeing as there's only about 14 votes. Just need to find the top two highest vote getters for each category and usually that'll do. I'm seeking confirmation because I remember what happened the last time a "not a single person voted for this combination" event happened in the Barbarian's 4x LP.

The Set-Up

The player witnesses an extraordinary and horrific supernatural event that thrusts them into a unique and difficult circumstance. Burdened with the consequences of this event, the player has to investigate what has happened in order to free themselves from the restless forces that follow and haunt them wherever they go.

Obsidian dun' ripped treave off. I hope they pay you premiums, bro.

No, you don't have to be evil to access any abilities. They aren't categorised like that. Instead, in this world, your soul is connected to your power. Simply put, people who have whole, unbroken souls are more powerful than those people who just have fragments of souls. The nature of these souls, and how they might break, is something we will explore in the game.

Nooooo Obsidian got the jump on me.

In all seriousness, it's a theme that has been explored in plenty of stories before, and if I had started this LP after its release you can bet I'll be taking a lot of cues from their work. The concept of Project Eternity definitely leaves my inner storyfag twitching in anticipation.

 

[Esquilax]

Esquilax: Why do you say it won't work, exactly? Marduk isn't Shulgi, we've seen no evidence of him being capable of altering the minds of his followers to inspire devout fervor and an undying tenacity. Marduk asserts his divinity through brute strength, dominance and intimidation, which should be enough to allow us to stamp out his following.

Wow, I never even thought of it like that. We know that Marduk's cult was popular almost exclusively among priests and soldiers, too. These are the elites, they aren't accustomed to hiding within the cracks of society for their religion. The only people that would really give a fuck would be soldiers still loyal to Marduk (something that we'll root out via telepathy) and priests, who we kill regardless. We also know that Dapimsin has left the city, so I'm sure he's plotting some sort of resistance. A show of force would also greatly satisfy the cultists and is a meaningless concession that we can offer them. Great thinking, bro.

However, the big problem here is 1C. You'd be hiring members of the Sons of Marduk, so you need to at least look the other way (B3/D3) on that regard.

treave: That plan is workable. The only thing I don't like about it is that it allows Marduk worship as part of the old pantheon. Otherwise, it will work fine.

 

[Smashing Axe]

However, the big problem here is 1C. You'd be hiring members of the Sons of Marduk, so you need to at least look the other way (B3/D3) on that regard.

You could probably get them to renounce their faith as a requirement for membership in the new elite. Recanting heresy, that sort of thing. Make clear to them the consequence for continued practice, and you won't have too much issue. A non-issue now that the vote' set though!

 

[treave]

Oh, it's not set yet. I'll give it another day to make sure people are happy. Tigranes, for example, could tie up the last choice if he confirmed his vote as A.

***

"Hey, hey, Big Sis Sekhenun, I have an idea about how to deal with Marduk's cult!"

"You have an idea? How quaint, little Ean. Enlighten me."

"I mean, now they're worshipping Marduk as the god above all other gods, right? Right? And we said he wasn't a god, right?"

"Yes, and?"

"Well, I thought that if we just, y'know, secretly promoted a small group of his worshippers to say that Marduk is one among many and not one above all, and then we start stomping on the heads of those who keep thinking Marduk is the bestest, but say nothing about that new group that broke off from them, it might work?"

"Hm..."

"Aren't I smart, Big Sis?"

"You want us to create a splinter group as a rival to the old cult, and then use the government's instruments of force to ensure that the old cult is unable to fight off the new offshoot cannibalizing its worshippers?"

"Um... there's too many big words in there... but yes? We just have to have the new group be more quiet and maybe have spies to encourage the old group to be more noisy and maybe it'll work!"

"Aren't you overthinking this? Babylonians may be more civilized than the usual louts you hang around with, but they're still primitive thinkers as far as I'm concerned."

"Awh... (´･ω･`)"

***

 

[oscar]

I want to be king. Or if not, put the BRO on the throne. And produce some heirs.

Empire management and battle strategy and being a BRO king beats being some boring, behind-the-scenes manipulator or spending time as a bum wandering again. Let's use Babylon as the springboard to become the benevolent God-Emperor of BROkind. And fuck having those other asshole, non-BROs on the pantheon.

 

[Smashing Axe]

Er, aren't you voting for democracy at the moment?

 

[oscar]

Ah forgot to edit my post (did edit the description though). Consider mine a flop to A, not that it changes anything.

I think the whole point of choosing the noble puppet would be for stability if we were to leave off for some adventure in Egypt. If were to stay to stabilise things we definitely ought to take the crown or put Gudersu on the throne.

 

[Esquilax]

We're definitely encountering a problem of design-by-committee here. We are many people, and it's almost impossible to get around 15 people to agree on anything, but we really do need some sort of cohesive overall vision that isn't just a mish-mash of crazy shit.

I'm going to tentatively propose three plans, based in part on my own ideas, the location the plan takes place in, and the popularity of the choices. I feel that dividing plans up in this way allows a more cohesive vision, while at the same time still giving people some options:

Greece Plan: C D3 A3 B A

1) C

2) D3: We raise Shulgi up among the old pantheon as a concession to the cultists. We would also have a strong claim to our own personal divinity based on our extremely public desecration of Marduk's temple. However, we would do nothing about the cult here because we simply don't have the manpower to root it out. Better to have the remaining soldiers focus on maintaining stability and protecting it from rival city-states than on rooting out remnants of the Marduk cult.

3) A3 (Not a choice on the list): We need a loyal army, even if it's only a 1,000. Allowing a large portion of the soldiers to return home with their lives would quell a lot of rebellious sentiment. A policy of decimation sounds like a bad idea if we aren't there to personally manage the situation afterwards. At the same time, we can't bring in every single soldier in the army because that's a coup waiting to happen. So we will dedicate 1,000 soldiers to entirely towards holding the walls and internal stability.

However, the Gutians come with us to Greece. Coming in solo with two huge armies clashing against one another is insane, and the only people that we can spare that are loyal and tough enough to join us would be Gudersu's barbarians. As I mentioned before, we would strike at Marduk while he's busy with Zeus. We would use our men to punch a hole through his flanks, destroying his amplifiers, and slaughter our way to the big man himself. With a surprise attack (Marduk would never expect us), Ean's status as a psychic blank, and Marduk already being weakened by Zeus, killing Marduk is very likely.

4) B: We need somebody who is both politically competent to ensure stability and who we can be reasonably sure will do our bidding. Furthermore, a politically savvy noble is the right guy to be able to deal with any plots by Marduk loyalists that we might hire with 1C. He would also have a loyal army to help him there. It's a very good synergy that would give the most stability to the region while at the same time offering Ean more control over things.

5) A, but with a few hundred Gutian bros by our side.

Egypt Plan: C D1 A1 B B

1) C

2) D1: We raise Shulgi up among the old pantheon as a concession to the cultists. We would also have a strong claim to our own personal divinity based on our extremely public desecration of Marduk's temple.

Unlike with Greece, having a loyal army bolstered by Gutians would be enough to start rooting out the remnants of Marduk's cult. All of our men would be firmly against Marduk, and there would be enough of them to take action against the cult. It would also earn us a ton of points with the cult without offering any concessions.

3) A1: Unlike the Greece plan where we would need to bring the Gutians for backup (flying solo is a terrible idea), a trip to Egypt would involve saving them from Ares and either (a) getting the Babylonians there to join the rebel cause or (b) taking up the mantle of Runi and getting the Egyptians to switch sides. In this case, the Gutians wouldn't be necessary.

Either way, the Gutians would be best used bolstering forces at home. Since we aren't decimating any of our own troops or installing a barbarian King, they wouldn't feel any resentment toward the mercenaries we hired and they'd be much more likely to see them as brothers-in-arms.

4) B: see above

5) B

Babylon Plan: C D1 C1 A C

1) C

2) D1: We can be there to suppress the remnants of the Marduk cult personally, which would be the only way to make things work. A bit of bloodlust will satisfy the cultists, and the cult remnants won't be as difficult to root out as Shulgi's people were due to the fact that they were exclusively among the priesthood or the military. A claim of divinity will strengthen Ean's claim to rule, as well.

3) C1: Since we aren't getting an army from Egypt or attempting to take on Marduk, we have to take every body that we can get so we can prepare. Ean can seek out and punish any disloyalty in the process of rooting out the remnants of Marduk's cult. Disloyalty isn't a problem if Ean is there to deal with it - it's only a problem if he leaves for Egypt or Greece.

4) A: If we remain in Babylon, of course we would take the throne to ensure stability. Gudersu doesn't have the skills for the position and he doesn't even want the crown to begin with. The cultists would be pleased with Ean as King and it would give us firm control over the region.

5) C

edit: changed the Egypt plan from 3) D3 to 3) D1

 

[Zero Credibility]

That's the problem when you have multiple depended choices. But even with the design by committee, the vote (so far) is almost exactly your proposed plan for Egypt.

 

[Esquilax]

That's the problem when you have multiple depended choices. But even with the design by committee, the vote (so far) is almost exactly your proposed plan for Egypt.

True, but if either Greece or Babylon are chosen, we need something that's cohesive - the location votes are still pretty close. Even though I would prefer Greece, the "where" of the situation isn't as important as having a good strategy to deal with the aftermath of our revolution, wherever we happen to be.

I also changed the vote on how to deal with Marduk's cult for the Shulgi cult based on Smashing Axe's arguments.

 

[ScubaV]

I'm happy enough with the plan treave tallied up except for this: You only allow worship of Marduk as an equal or lesser god to the pantheon, not as supreme god.

No. No. No.

This is easily the worst choice of the three and it's not even close. Either stamp out worship or let it die on its own, don't encourage this crap, especially after we publicly rejected his godhood. I will go flop my choices to reflect treave's post except for 2) I vote 1 or 3 whichever will defeat 2.

Baltika9, Zero Credibilty, Arpad, Quetzacoatl, Stygian Lurker, Storyfag, Bloodshifter, Kattze I strongly encourage you all to change that particular vote to either 1 or 3. Treave even mocked it.

 

[Tigranes]

I'm here! Don't do this yet! I'll vote! Let me catch up...

 

[treave]

I mocked nothing. All choices are

edit: Well, not all combinations are good, but each choice has its own merits.

 

[Tigranes]

C: Skilled administrators
D3: D has already won by far, but I can't believe people are doing 2. treave we need more time - we seriously need to bandwagon for 3 here (which at the moment is significantly ahead of 1); if we get 2 or 3 people to change we are there. 2 is just catastrophic, why the hell are we giving recognition to a Marduk cult??
A3: This may not win, but I like Esquilax's idea of bringing the Gutians with us.
B: Noble, if we're going to Greece we're giving up the direct rulership thing anyway. If we come back soon though, we'll be praised enough. treave, I assume we will do a telepathic reading and ensure that the noble will be amenable to our deal - he gets the actual power, but he keeps up the worship (which benefits him too, as the Chosen of Ean) and we come back and get cushy treatment and info every now and then.
A: Go to Greece, then. That makes it a tie between Greece and Egypt. I rather like Babylon, but Egypt is pointless for the reason I pointed out:

Leaving as soon as we are made God we are pretty much guaranteeing that we give up any sort of lasting power base or a powerful, united Sumerian Empire for the time being - if we don't end up being usurped by Shulgi / Marduk loyalist / whoever immediately, that is. All for what? Going to Egypt doesn't directly help us kill Marduk, we won't be able to take over the country there, and the Runi legend is pretty flimsy by itself. Seriously, we go to all this trouble, we have to go for the jugular with Esquilax(?)'s plan and kill Marduk, or stay here and make sure we get a kingdom out of it.

 

[ScubaV]

As an aside, I suspect Marduk is going to be in for a nasty surprise whenever Zeus decides to come out of hiding and enter the fray. If we do go to Greece we may end up having to help out Marduk temporarily rather than go straight for the kill.

 

[Esquilax]

As an aside, I suspect Marduk is going to be in for a nasty surprise whenever Zeus decides to come out of hiding and enter the fray. If we do go to Greece we may end up having to help out Marduk temporarily rather than go straight for the kill.

Absolutely, Zeus hasn't revealed himself because he's baiting Marduk; when his forces enter Athens, we're going to see thunder raining from the sky and a few Greek Immortals at Zeus' side. I think that news of our conquest of Babylon has made Marduk overly eager to seek a quick victory. To make matters worse, he doesn't even know that Edem intends to betray him. Because of that, my money's on Zeus in the upcoming battle.

What worries me most is that if Zeus wins and gets a power boost, then there's no fucking way we can take him on. He and Marduk are equals already, we wouldn't stand a chance against a further empowered Zeus. That's actually why I'm so eager to go to Greece.

Where Ean and the Gutians would come in would be to launch surprise attacks and raids at either Zeus' forces or Marduk's forces, depending on what's required at the time. We want the battle to be as even as possible so that both sides keep wearing each other down. When both sides have been sufficiently weakened and Marduk/Zeus are wounded from fighting each other, that's when we strike at them. If we play this smart, we can kill both of them.

The Gutians are crucial for this: they are all elite warriors who are specialized in hit-and-run attacks and they are deathly loyal to Ean. Better yet, they all have experience in fighting Marduk's super-soldiers, so they know what to expect there as well. Another wild card that might work in our favour is Edem.

"The Egyptians have been pushed back from their coastline, losing Pikuat. The Greek armies, led by Ares, are slowly gaining on Memphis. Two of Marduk's human lieutenants are helping to defend Egypt with a force of 5000. In Greece itself, however, the tide is turning. Marduk is a fearsome opponent on the battlefield, and there are reports that he has been using mobile amplifiers to bolster his troops' strength. I'm not sure how he managed to build that many, but the Greeks apparently have no counter to those at the moment. It looks like his forces will reach Athens soon, and the Egyptians are just holding out in hopes that he will do so quickly and force Ares to return to defend Greece."

Zero Credibility mentioned some concerns about Egypt being laid to waste. However, if we resolve this issue in Greece, then Ares will be forced to return home anyways. I know it's risky, but if we play this right, we can save both Egypt and Greece. In the meantime, we can trust the 5,000 Babylonians to hold the line until we settle things in Athens.

Edit: Would decimation be a good idea if we go to Greece with the Gutians? I feel bad about leaving only 1,000 men in Babylon, even with the city completely intact. However, I'm also unsure whether cutting the garrison down to 1,800 men wouldn't cause a potential mutiny down the line.