[LP CYOA] Epic

[treave]

– they see your duel with Ean, and cheer loudly

Not sure if anyone else picked up on that slight mix up with the names, so I thought I'd mention it

EDIT: Post made during treave's update, that was to do with the one before, so I've just removed that part of it.

Fixed, thanks for the heads-up.

 

[Quetzacoatl]

Hopefully the CYOA will let us be a bit like great figures in history such as Caligula, Pope Benedict IX, and Kim Jong 2.

 

[Esquilax]

This was a very bad idea. Told you bros that Ean wasn't cut out for this shit. Shulgi was, but not us. Now things have gotten very interesting and we've bitten off more than we can chew:

1) C

2) B. If we're making our city-states more autonomous, we have to be self-sufficient ourselves.

3) A (G). This cult is a problem and it must be dealt with immediately. There's no diplomacy with these motherfuckers - either they renounce their faith, or we kill them. That's the only way to handle this shit. We also reinstitute the old Sumerian pantheon - Ean doesn't have the charisma and personality to build a cult around himself. If he couldn't convince an army that adored him that killing a King was justified, how the fuck is he going to convince complete strangers that he's a god? Secularism is equally dumb as well, that'll just play into Shulgi's hands and probably lead to more cultists, so we shouldn't do that. Go with the Sumerian religion that people already know, then stomp Shulgi's ass with extreme prejudice.

4) C sounds like the right antidote for a draft.

5) B. We can't fuck around here. We have to let everybody in the neighbourhood know that we're just as strong as Sargon ever was and that we won't tolerate people not doing their part to help the Empire thrive again.

6) B. Cassidy is right - we've destroyed their entire army on their home soil, these people are scared of us. If we play our cards right, we might turn Egypt into a vassal.

7) C. Ean is a Warrior-King now, not just a warrior. That means that his perspective must become broader and more refined than that of a warrior. It's high-time that he decided to become more . Cultural enrichment will give our people an identity, draw our neighbours closer to us and make our people revere us. It will also make Ean more well-rounded, charismatic, and more suited to his role as King.

Ean is a great warrior already, so I have no doubts of his ability to command an army and lead them to victory. We know he can do that. But now that he's King, he has to be able to do other things too. Investing more into military power, especially with Ean's skills and a draft of 1500 men, is simply overkill.

EDIT: Flopped to most of what Cassidy said, except for 7).

CBA(G)CBBC

 

[newcomer]

ABA(G)BABC



treave
Can we imprison some cultists & experiment with their minds? I want Ean to catch up with Shulgi on this department

 

[m4davis]

1.A
2.C
3.A(G)
4.B
5.A
6.C
7.B

 

[treave]

4) treave, is this a typo? Why would "ruling with an iron fist" involve taking less food and coin? Would B involve continuing the status quo that Sargon had? In this case, we must take B. The farms will still be flooded and we will be reliant upon the various city-states for support for the time being. Give them too much autonomy, and we'll get no respect and they'll want to secede. Fortunately, we didn't require a tribute of manpower so this won't be leaning on them.

System of government: you can break it down like this.

A. Dictator, tyrant, Sargon-style. Follows his old policies, including his old tribute requirements.
B. Increased tribute to fund your rebuilding, to offset the sting you cede a slight amount of power by allowing them to have their voices heard in council.
C. You let them do as they wish as long as they send you something. The city-states will be very, very happy with this.

 

[Cassidy]

1.

C - The draft sounds right to bolster the army and keep those who lost everything they had on the flood fed, while demanding tribute in soldiers may entice those willing to betray the immortal and unaware of his abilities to show their true colors.

2.

B - In the ancient times lacking self-sufficiency was very bad... as in, very, very bad. A city without farms to fed its population and keep its stockpiles full will never survive any siege, even if ultimately their local forces can defeat their enemies, they will starve long before it.

3.

A(G) - They were at war, the fact they lost does not make them less of enemies specially for their fanaticism, and Shulgi will return eventually. Better if he has no allies alive once he does. And better to not poke into the hornet's nest of trying to radically change the religious beliefs of an entire civilization, for now.

4.

C - If they bite the hand... no mercy, but it is better to demand a tribute in soldiers instead of pressing them too hard. Ean never got any education for this. Besides, he never asked for this(couldn't resist), it was just a stream of bad circumstances that brought him where he is now. He can't really centralize government over his hands and hope to not fuck up things. Build a "proto-feudal" empire, with little to no centralization and no care about how the conquered run things internally provided they pay their tribute. It's the most likely thing to succeed for someone who isn't really fit to the burden of managing an entire kingdom.


5.

B - You have no friends outside. Let them grow and they will try to fuck you up later in "revenge" for the conquest of the previous kings. I voted for the biggest possible army, and Ean is more experienced in war than management anyway so better to put his skills to use. On the other hand, with the high autonomy given by the C option at question 4 they won't baaw much about it.

6.

B - Let them go after all the hassle to conquer them, and leave them out to grow much stronger when they can be stricken now, that they barely regained their independence and are thus weak?
7.

A - It is what a warrior king would do.

 

[oscar]

1A
2A
3B (N)
4B
5C
6C
7A

I'm going for an internal rebuilding and strengthening plan coupled with some minor expansionism.

- Better to have the men in uniform and being fed than turning to begging, banditry and crime. This option is also nice as it doesn't piss off our city-states.

- I'm uncertain about 2, as while we definitely need to get the economy going again but the walls are a good long-term investment that mean we require soldiers in garrison and can have more on campaign or more at work. I think we'll have to bite the bullet here and focus our efforts on maintaining the walls.

- As for religion, secularism should be interesting. I believe we will be de facto worshipped anyway, as it is kind of hard to ignore a king who never grows old.

- More tribute in exchange for representation seems a fair deal.

- I was originally going to keep us out of any external diplomacy, but since I'm picking 7A might as well put that military tech to use and subdue our nearby Semitic neighbours. Egypt is probably too far away to substantially govern to our net profit.

- Another tricky one with the technological advancements. Economic development is quite tempting. Plus I feel Ean by his very nature will keep the army in good state. But what the hell, composite bows and better chariots!

 

[Baltika9]

BAAAACA

 

[Esquilax]

I really disagree with wasting our R & D option on military might, it seems like ridiculous overkill. Ean is a great battle commander, we're drafting either 1,000/1,500 people anyways, so why put even more resources towards something we're already great at? Cultural or economic development seems much more important because it can either provide economic cohesion with a shared currency, or it might unite our empire through great contributions to art and culture and make Ean a much-loved King. A doesn't provide any benefits to internal stability, which is something we really need right now.

Ean is no longer just a battle commander. He's a King now, which means his focus has to be a lot broader and he has to adapt to a much different set of circumstances.

 

[anus_pounder]

1.A
2.B
3.A(G)
4.B
5.A
6.C
7.C or B

We're in no position to start stamping out rebellions. Better stabilize the internal situation, but we need some control as well can't let them go autonomous. As for Egypt, I'm pretty sure they know that Sumer had internal strife and now both the real king as well as the pretender have been supplanted by a 2nd Pretender. My point here is that they know we're a bit shaky at the moment. Send them gifts and they'll know for sure we're in bad shape. Send them the ass and we're not only making them angrier we're pretty much dooming any chance of Egyptian Diplomacy in the future.

EDIT : Treave, this may be more work for you, but if 7B and A tie, can you count my vote as one for B ?

 

[Baltika9]

Flippin' my last flop to C.
By the way, if we can introduce composite bows and spoke wheels ahead of time, why not monocles? And make them mandatory for every soldier in the army? O know it's way ahead of time, but apparently the Egyptians did start experiments with some magnifying "stones" as they called them around 500 B.C. I know it's a longshot, but I'm just wondering.

 

[Omicron]

1B
2B
3B(G)
4B
5C
6C
7B

 

[eklektyk]

1.C less bandits and weaker oposition plus we will train them with our veterans so it should be good
2.B really no choice = lets hope our army is strong enough for time being becouse we need food for city rable to like us
3.A(G) ther can be only one ruler and support for old religion gives us old priesthood/population support for our dominion
4.B we need them more than they need us so for some time we give them voice. and who knows maybe some of their ideas will be beneficial to us??[this gives treve chance to present us with more options in future]
5.A for now we must train our green army and rebuild infrastructure before we can subdue them[ some interesting spy/espionage options???]
6.C nothing too do =we're strethed too thin as is
7.B i really wanted to go for military option but we need one currency to bind all cities to us more - without this our kingdom will fracture and fall

CBAgBACB

can't wait for next update to se if we live as king fo long....

 

[treave]

Reading my post again, I think it makes more sense to have the autonomous city states pay higher tribute in exchange for their freedom. Representation should be the compromise option. Uh unless any of you want to really oppress the shit out of them... Anyone?

A bit loath to change it after you guys have made such great arguments though.

As for mind powers, it's something you unlock on your own. Each immortal has a natural bent for certain powers. Next update will include a brief character sheet describing current ability. You will find the passage of time has opened up several other branches of powers to Ean.

 

[Tigranes]

1B - Good choice but only if we combine with a more moderate policy on 4.
2B - Food has to be the priority.
3A(G) - I think it's a nobrainer to suppress Shulgi's cult, but at the same time, I think the most effective way to do this is to restore the Sumerian pantheon. This will get everyone who is disgruntled by newfangled cults on our side; and Ean, as an immortal ruler, will be revered anyway if we rule wisely and for a long time. So we will kill off Shulgi's cult and become plenty worshipped ourselves without making enemies, and we will co-opt the old pagan believers and their resources onto our side.
4B - The pussy's choice.
5C - We can't spread ourselves too thin, and Egypt is a lucrative prize that we've defeated once before. It makes sense to focus on them after their recent loss.
6B - See above.
7B - We need food and we need money, that much should be very clear in the long run.

 

[anus_pounder]

You know, I'm starting to think that Shepard may be the greatest enemy all along. Not Shulgi, who was too fast, too little.

 

[treave]

Shulgi is a plotter, but he is too confident in his ability to predict what Ean does, Ean being just a dumb soldier in his mind. His plan to defeat Sargon relied on Ean not being at certain places at certain times, which the Codex thankfully avoided at one of the most critical junctures.

 

[newcomer]

Well, most likely the shepherd choose the fuck it option & end up somewhere... perhaps Canaan (he became Abram of this world)?

 

[TOME]

1A - How big armies do our neighbours have? Might flip flop this.
2B - We have no need for walls or pretty trinkets if everyone died of hunger.
3A(G) - Tigranes said it.
4A - I want to go with B, but giving them some rope now only sends a message that we are weak. Let's go with A for a decade and then change to B if possible.
5A - Friendly relationships combined with supreme culture will lead to peace and prosperity.
6A - Peace missive carrying Sargon's head should buy some goodwill.
7C - Going for C now but I will change my vote if it will help beating A.

 

[Stygian Lurker]

1C
2B
3A(G)
4A
5C
6B
7A

 

[treave]

Ean, King of the Akkadian Empire
circa 2300 B.C.

Physical capabilities:

Has reached peak human levels. Can lift up to 300 kg and run at speeds of more than 40 km/h. Exhaustion is still a factor for now, both physical and mental.

Esoteric powers:

Telepathy – can read emotions from a distance, depending on the intensity and mental strength of the subject. Intentions can be vaguely understood in close proximity. Touching someone allows direct reading of the mind; at this time, it can only show the exact intention of a person at the time of physical contact.

Telekinesis – able to rattle and knock light objects around. The concentration required to use this power means that precludes the use of any other mental abilities at the same time.

Body manipulation – has developed the ability to control slight changes, such as little wrinkles, slightly differently shaped eyes, hair colour, and other minute modifications to the body.

Elemental manipulation – can perform very minor manipulation of earth, water, wind and fire; making little pits in the ground, moving droplets of water, summoning a gentle breeze, and creating little sparks. The concentration required to use this power precludes the use of any other mental abilities at the same time.

Regeneration ability:

Average. Small cuts can fully heal in minutes, while more serious wounds may take days. Missing parts can take months to recover, depending on the complexity and size of the part.

Personality:
Takes care of his followers, and loyal to his friends. Undertakes his responsibilities seriously. Amenable to bending the truth a little for his own benefit at times.

 

[Azira]

If we intend him to rule, then building up his mind-bending ways might be prudent.

 

[treave]

Well that was a bitch to count. Hope I haven't made any mistakes. Current vote stands as:

1. A 5, B 3, C 8, D 0.
2. A 2, B 14, C 0.
3. A 12, B 3, C 1. (E 1, G 13, N 1)
4. A 3, B 10, C 3.
5. A 8, B 3, C 5.
6. A 2, B 8, C 6.
7. A 8, B 1, C 7.

7A and 7B aren't tied so I've put in anus_pounder's vote for C, as it is the closest to A.
Category 1 and 6 are in a deadlock.

 

[CappenVarra]

I have to say that I'm still following the LP, but have 0 interest in kingdom management - so don't expect many votes from me in this period... Hopefully we'll offload the crown to a dynasty of mortals in exchange for certain favors (soldiers, resources, some land for a fortress etc.) as needed...
Obligatory