Keymonus

Nice build and wonderful continuation of your storyline! The underwater part is particularly well done, with a clever use of some parts (the red helmets...)

Citizens of the Brick Seas, stormy clouds are gathering over Terraversa! See besides the lies of the Corrish Empire! See besides the clean facade they built to hide their interest! A military Corrish expedition has landed on Terraversa to make contact with Admiral L'Olius, a local warlord in open contrast with the central government... they claim they want peace, but as soon as another nation peacefully pursuits a commercial enterprise, immediately they arrive, to "keep the peace" with their bayonets! They claim that Nola Mar is in open rebellion and that a foreign nation is funding the rebels, then they brazenly admit that their secret agents are on the island, and that their naval officers have taken contact with the tyrant of Westface, a man who has seized power and keeps it with the constant menace of a civil war! Actually, I see only one foreign interference in Terraversa... and its color is red! They say they want a free and independent Terraversa... Do they consider us all fools? Right now a fleet of Corrish frigates is blockading Terraversan ports, inspecting every ship arriving or leaving... with which authority? They already behave like the masters of the island, deciding who can arrive and who can leave, and they claim they want free trade! Do you remember their lies in Nova Malto? They occupied the settlement, blocking the arrival of Eslandolan supplies, and they claimed they were helping the population! They delayed reconstruction, they willingly prolonged the sufferings of the inhabitants, just to plan the annexation! Does Terraversa need the help of Corrington too, as Nova Malto did? Or are they creating a new crisis, just to feast on the ruins? L'Olius, the friend of the Corries, is imposing tremendous port taxes on the vessels of all the foreign nations. He destroyed the once-flourishing commerce of Westface, and now he allows smugglers to flourish on the island, buying Terraversan goods for a misery... one could guess why, and could imagine a turbid system of bribes. Now the local authorities of Nola Mar are trying to fight those criminals, and what happens? Corrington sends its ships, in a clear intimidatory act. Are they defending peace, or only the pockets of their henchman? Will you submit to Corrish arrogance? Will you swallow their outrageous lies any longer? They behave as masters of the world, sending their soldiers wherever other nations are establishing favorable commercial connections... When will they decide that the Rum Islands need "protection", or that Altonia deserves the same fate they reserved to Balondia, once a free nation, a friend of both Oleon and Eslandola? When will they decide to help the next Nova Malto? A Loyal Terraversan Citizen Credit to @Bodi for the build

Nice ship Bodi! Smaller than other ones you have built, but still very well done, with its complete riggings and a realistic positioning of the mortars. BTW, I'm more than happy that Oleon seems to have finally completed the secret project T.A.R.D.I.S. for time travel, those machine guns will be useful for La Royale!

Lovely build, the pond in particular is very well done! I'm sorry you won't be able to participate regularly to BoBS, your AMRCA was one of the best we have seen up to now

Unit Name: Rimbaud's Raiders (officially 1ere compagnie chasseurs coloniaux de Astrapi) Unit type/specifications: Light Infantry/ Chasseurs Tristan Rimbaud, now Regiment General (left); a private, with the typical fighting equipment (right) Uniform Description: Blue jacket with white facings, white trousers, wide-brimmed hat; officers have white epaulets and sometimes a feather on the hat. However, the soldiers often replace parts of the uniform with hunting or native clothes. Indigenous scouts wear their traditional costumes and, sometimes, a blue jacket Equipment Description: Standard infantry flintlock musket and a saber or a tomahawk for melee combat. Several soldiers carry additional weapons, such as knives and pistols. A few marksmen use hunting rifles (accurate, but expensive and very slow to reload) instead of the standard musket. Recruitment center: Astrapi Unit history and description: As the nickname suggests, the Raiders are a semi-regular unit, equipped and trained on the personal initiative of their commander, Captain Tristan Rimbaud. The 1ere Compagnie was formed with brave and though men with extensive combat experience and, in most cases, nothing left to lose: veterans who couldn't find their place in society, inmates, little criminals, even some former pirates... all those men received a second chance. Moreover, in Rimbaud's Raiders, wages are higher, food is better and discipline is less severe than in regular army, but the price for this is a great danger. Since their recruitment in early 618, in fact, the Raiders were deployed in all the crisis scenarios of the New World: from their baptism of fire in Fatu Hiva campaign to the long civil war of Charlatan Bay, from the foundation of Fort Arltrees to the jungle skirmishes on El Oleonda, these soldiers always operated as an independent unit, usually far from the bases and the main body of the army. With their high mobility and irregular tactics, including guerrilla and cooperation with local, controversial allies, the Rimbaud's Raiders achieved results impossible to obtain for a conventional unit: their long-range raids in hostile territories and their unexpected assaults to enemy strongholds often proved determinant for the victory. Due to the lack of discipline and the dubious origin of the soldiers, several traditionalist officers despise the Raiders, considering them brigands and marauders rather than real soldiers... something not so far from the truth, but exactly the daring scoundrels that Oleon needs to hit his enemies hard! Campaigns: Garrison duties on Ile de Zeus, The Dark Happenings of Fatu Hiva, Charlatan Bay Civil War (both as a unit and with individual soldiers in the Volunteer Expeditionary Force), The Battle for El Oleonda, Second Terraversan War (Raid Against the Coastal Defenses, Siege of King’s Port), Seawatch campaign Unit motto: On the frontline and beyond! More about the unit: You can find more also in Challenge II and III of the Era II, and in Charlatan Bay storyline

Wonderful units and descriptions! @blackdeathgr, could you split them (with no hurry at all!) in three posts?

Unit Name: Ingènieurs du Roi, 2eme Compagnie (Royal Engineers, 2nd Company) Unit type/specifications: Military Engineers / Sappers Sapping attire (l), fatigue uniform (c), fighting uniform (r) Uniform Description: Blue jacket with white facings and black epaulets, blue-grey trousers, standard army shako with the unit’s badge. Fatigue uniform is simpler, without epaulets and with white side cap instead of the shako. For earthmoving duties, soldiers often wear a leather apron and a blue floppy fez. Equipment Description: Standard flintlock infantry musket. Different tools, such as hammers, pickaxes and hachets, sometimes used also in combat. Recruitment center: The 2eme Compagnie is stationed in Breshaun; soldiers come from the inland of Oleon, while the officers attend a specific military school in Granoleon. Unit history and description: Tactics win battles, but logistics and military engineering win wars! A simple fortification can stop the assault of one hundred soldiers, while a temporary bridge can spare your army several days of march looking for a ford. While some of the easiest tasks can be done by common soldiers, the most complex activities require specialized men, with the right tools and the right skills! While engineers, specialized craftsmen and similar figures are part of all the Halosian armies (and, actually of everything bigger and more organized than a war band) since the time of the Empire, organized units of pioneers, sappers and engineers are a far more recent concept: these units appeared for the first time a few decades ago, and even today they often operate side-by-side with civilian personnel. During the Juniper War, the Deuxieme Compagnie was always on the frontline, literally building the road towards victory. During the conflict, the advantages of a completely military engineer corps became clear, since the Ingènieurs du Roi had often to repel enemy attacks while building a bridge or a barricade. Moreover, these soldiers were sometimes tasked with the opposite mission, opening a safe path across passive defenses or even destroying fortifications under enemy fire. After the war, the Deuxieme Compagnie participated in the reconstruction of the Juniper Province; a few years later, it was sent in the colonies, where it contributed to the development of local infrastructures. In peace or in war, the engineers of the 2nd company always gave its contribution to the glory of the Empire, both with their muskets and with their tools! Campaigns: Juniper War, Colonization of Le Bellan, Second Terraversan War (Battle of the Beaches, Siege of King’s Port) Unit motto: Essayons! (Let us try!)

It was a D entry, if I’m not mistaken

The road from Breshaun to Eltina, June 620, Le Bellan Le Bellan, the most prestigious colony of the Empire of Light, represents the beating heart of Oleander commercial routes. In spite of this, however, the infrastructures of the island are quite old, absolutely insufficient for the huge traffic of people and goods moving every day from Breshaun to Eltina and vice versa. The ancient trail of compacted earth, with small wooden bridges and even a couple of river crossings, was built decades ago, in a completely different time: a road for a couple of reckless riders, some wondering merchants and a few hunters... definitely not enough for the continuous flow of heavy carriages transporting wood and sugar from the inland, silver and wine from Breshaun outskirts, but also all kinds of goods crafted or imported in those bustling cities. And, obviously, it's not enough for the movement of naval artillery from Breshaun foundries to Eltina shipyards, where the largest and most beautiful ships of all the Brick Seas are built. As often happens in the colonies, the difficult task of building a road, a bridge or even one of the few tunnels cutting the mountains is done by the army, rather than by civilians. While it may seem a dull manual job, building a road that will last more than the first hurricane requires knowledge and expertise. Mile after mile, the red flags will be replaced by the milestones, sand and crushed stones will give way to a regular, tidy pavement. While most of the men are simple diggers and bricklayers, the officers are expert engineers, who attended Breshaun military school: the use of measuring tools and the difficult calculations needed, in fact, require several years of studies and remarkable skills. The Ingènieurs du roi are often employed in similar civilian tasks, but also in the construction and repairing of military structures or fortifications. This, however, shouldn't deceive you: if the situation requires, military engineers must operate under enemy fire, opening a safe passage across obstacles or even assaulting fortifications. If destroying a barricade or building a bridge requires the... well... dislodgement of enemy soldiers, the Oleander military engineers are ready for that! A quick build to show my version of Oleander sappers. Soon you'll find more about them in the Grand Military Encyclopedia.

Thanks @Ayrlego! Posting here was in my to-do list until I completely forgot!

Thank you for your suggestions! My ship (Le Phénix) will reach Weelond in this AMRCA turn, so I finally have a ship to start with! The time of finishing a colonial office and some writings, and I'll start exploring the Northern Ocean!

Beautiful ship, full of lovely details, and with some original touches (such as the position of the helm wheel, as other mentioned). The rigging is simply great, as well as the front curves. Hope to see it chasing our enemies soon!

Nice fighting scene! The overall build is a little too square, but the close-ups and the good details in rockwork and bamboo mainly solve the problem. Very good entry for Oleon, even if it seems that your characters and mine are on different sides of the barricade!

Nice entry, the initial text really gives the feel of a desperate military situation and both minifig posing and terrain support your story! Especially the close-up of the warrior with two swords is excellent, probably the best of your entry. The edited text, in my opinion, is better than the original version, it makes your soldiers appear as seasoned veterans without exaggerating... I know the problem, since I use an irregular unit of chasseurs too in my storylines

Nice ship interior, your angle makes me really imagine a complete gundeck. May your Long Beard IV have a little more luck than its forerunners; if not, don't worry: there are several more Roman numbers!

Thank you, guys! Taking close-up picks in a crowded battlefield was quite a pain (I slaughtered more Lotii with my camera than with swords and bullets ), but I'm very satisfied by the result! Well, killing eleven to save four may be a little morally debatable but... well, who really cares about numbers?

Well, a strange but interesting turn of events! When will we see ships burning whale oil or a whale oil spill-over environmental crisis? Nice interior, is nice to see the Seawolves sailing again!

Nice sloop Corweena! The custom sails really stand out, but also minifig choice is very nice. Your ship has a nice classic feel and a lot of details... it will be a real pity sending it to Davy Jones' Locker! Pun apart, as soon as a Sea Rat remains peaceful towards Oleon, he can consider himself safe from La Royale, the Oleander Navy!

Not far from Fort Arltrees, May 620, El Oleonda Tlaloc, the native scout, was right as usual. A few broken branches, a bush cut by with a machete, some light footprints in the mud... that was enough for him: he understood that a band of Lotii was following a small Carnite patrol, and that they both were dangerously near to Fort Arltrees. After several hours of march, almost following a straight line towards the coast, the Oleander soldiers finally reached their target. Quite unsurprisingly, Tlaloc sighted them first. Tristan, by gestures, ordered his men to crouch in the tight undergrowth, and slowly crawled towards the small clearing. He already knew what he would have found... The Carnites weren't used at all to the brutal, disloyal fightings in the jungle, that was clear. Exactly as all the Madrician Nations during the first wave of colonization, they arrived in the archipelago with flamboyant uniforms and shiny armors... they expected pitched battles and glorious victories, but they found themselves trapped in a green, suffocating hell. Exactly as the other Madricians during their first battles in the New World, they were completely unprepared. They marched slowly in the undergrowth, plodding in the mud and stumbling on roots, but they couldn't find a single track of the enemies... until the enemies were all around, fast and lethal. How the Lotii had learned to fight so well in the jungle was a mystery... maybe they had found themselves in a similar situation against one of their neighbors, or simply they followed more flexible tactics, but for sure they had the upper hand in the war. Only half of their soldiers had firearms, mainly antiquate matchlocks, but they almost always prevailed in the jungle skirmishes. That day, things had gone in the usual way. The Madricians had made their camp in a dry river bed, an exposed position surrounded by thick vegetation... not a great choice, since they were taken by complete surprise during the lunch and forced to surrender. Only the officer, who was on guard, had a chance to grab his sword, but he was wounded and captured with his men. Unfortunately for them, however, the Lotii had no intention of dragging prisoners with them in their operations, and had chosen a radical solution. One of the soldiers started begging for mercy: "Wait, wait... Please don't kill me! We have found them, we have found the shipwrecks! I'll tell you everything, but don't kill me!". The Lotii laughed. Probably they didn't even understand a word, or they didn't believe him. "Shut up and die like a man!" Yelled the Carnite officer. The Lotii soldiers laughed again. Meanwhile, completely ignoring the brutal spectacle, the Lotii commander was pointing something on a map. Probably, he was planning the itinerary, looking for the next prey. Tristan had definitely seen enough. At first he wasn't so sure about attacking the Lotii band, but he couldn't just sit there and watch unharmed prisoners being slaughtered in front of his eyes. Moreover, those Lotii were dangerously near to Fort Arltrees, and he probably wouldn't have had a second chance before they noticed the settlement. With only five soldiers and a native scout, his forces were largely inferior in numbers, but Tristan had learned an important lesson during his previous campaigns, from the woods of the Varcosian border to the alleys of Charlatan Bay: if you appear out of nowhere, screaming as madmen and shooting on sight, the enemy will hardly have a chance to react, regardless the real force balance. Not exactly what instructors teach in the Royal Military Academy, but simple and quite effective. Or, at least, this was the plan... if things went wrong, Tristan wouldn't have had time to regret his mistake! Well, there was no more time to think now... Tristan gave the signal, a low whistle, and jumped forward, followed by his men. Soon, the Lotii would have learnt that some Madricians knew irregular warfare too! As they had already done in similar circumstances, the Raiders attacked the musketeers first, before they could become a real treat... ...while other soldiers ran towards the guards, blocking the execution and setting the prisoners free. The Carnites were taken by surprise too: most of the prisoners simmply ran for their lives... ...while others remained motionless, paralyzed by terror. The officer alone, probably the only veteran, attempted a reaction, trying to disarm one of the enemies. A Lotii warrior... ...and the last thing he sees! The battle was fierce but short. The Lotii fought well, but were surrounded and disorganized, and soon everything was over. Tristan Rimbaud would have had something quite interesting to write in his relation, including the exact position of the Lotii settlement and of some mysterious shipwrecks, probably the remains of the lost Lotii fleet. Moreover, he had just saved a Carnite patrol from annihilation, probably gaining some useful allies... not bad, for a tiny skirmish in the jungle! Overall view

Well, the largest organization part is now complete! If you think I missed an important specialty or misplaced something (I was quite dubious about the camel corps, probably they could be considered mounted infantry too), please let me know it. From now, since the units can be easily traced from the first post, the thread is also open for comments

Wonderful units @merc! I would however remove the “Sahariennes” from the name!

Thanks!

The first post, currently WIP, will soon contain a structured index of the units, organized in corps and specialities. This will allow both an easier navigation in this growing thread and comments about the great units we have seen so far! @TomSkippy don’t worry, this thread was open mainly to Oleanders for a obvious reasons, but it’s not closed to other factions (provided that “genocydal bloodthirsty headhunters” and in general enemy propaganda remains out). Great use of the Roman helmet and wonderful knights! If you want, I can do the writing for you, but the choice of the unit name is yours in any case!

Unit name: Volunteer Expeditionary Force Type: Light Infantry/ Franc Tireurs Officer (l.) and private (r.) Uniform description: Dark blue, single-breasted coat (with black epaulets for the officers); black trousers; black tricorne (shako for the officers). Equipment description: Standard infantry flintlock musket (ordnance); actually also a variety of different firearms (such as Mardierian and Corrish muskets, hunting rifles, flintlock pistols) and melee weapons (sabers, cutlasses, tomahawks and knives). Recruitment center: Unknown. According to rumors, a secret training camp in the jungles of Ile de Zeus, not far from Astrapi mines. Unit history and description: Oleander forces played an important role in Charlatan Bay civil war, but any involvement of the Empire was officially denied. For this reason, the soldiers were organized in a semi-clandestine "volunteer corps", with no official unit designation, badges or ensigns. The mission was a real nightmare, with the soldiers sent directly in the middle of a civil war, supporting one of the factions in the difficult task of restoring order on a devastated pirate island. Despite their formal role of military instructors and advisors, the "regulars" participated in several fightings, alone or side-to-side with the local militia: due to their discipline and good equipment, in fact, they were often used as a crack force or for particularly complex maneuvres, such as flanking attacks. The campaign was long and difficult, especially due to the presence of civilians: one of the main successes of the volunteers was the capture of a coastal battery, that allowed the reopening of the port and, as a consequence, the arrival of food supplies for the starving population. More than a year of harsh fightings, including a few pitched battles and countless street fightings, ambushes and raids in enemy strongholds turned these soldiers into veterans, respected by the population and feared by the local gangs. After the victory of Fort Saint Millar and the pacification of Charlatan Bay, Oleander volunteers were largely repatriated; only a little garrison remained in the fort itself, to support the local government and allow a safe return for a contingent, should the situation degenerate. Campaigns: Charlatan Bay Civil War, Support of Charlatan Bay government (training of local forces, garrison duties, law-enforcing) Motto: To Hell and Back! More about the unit: This is the last post of the storyline. You can find more also in the Charlatan Bay thread

Breshaun, May 620, Le Bellan Renè Duchamp walked towards the Colonial Admiralty in Breshaun. Only one wing of the large building was already operative; soon, however, it would have become one of the most important administrative buildings of the New World, coordinating the activity of La Royale with merchant fleets, collecting the newly chartered islands in cartographic atlases, gathering and providing updated information about safe harbors and pirate raids... Renè, however, was there for a different reason: even the most enterprising and daring Oleanders must submit themselves to a certain ballast of bureaucracy. During the last years, the Rimbaud family had launched several ships, and some "administrative procedures" were required... in other words, piles of papers, taxes to pay and boring discussions with a row of officials! The correct term in bureaucratic language was "Request of authorization for setting up a commercial or military fleet above the limit accepted for private citizens", but the meaning of that was actually quite simple: an authorization was required for owning more ships, more sailors and more cannons. A little price to pay, but also a great success for the Rimbaud Family, that a few months ago only owned a little fishing boat! Well, this time paying taxes seemed almost a success... definitely something strange! I used a work in progress build that, likely will require a lot of time and a lot of bricklinking for completion, for my ship limit increase build. With Le Phénix, the Scamander and the Tartarus, in fact, I crossed my default ship limit of 10.