Keymonus

…and apparently it could even work, as mercury is (slightly) more toxic to unicellular parasites than to us (trust me, I’m a biologist ). Minor side effects of mercury treatments included ulcerations that did not heal, pains all over the body due to peripheral nerve damage, weakness, memory loss and madness… but at least (possibly) not syphilis anymore!

Those immoral scurvy dogs… definitely a historically accurate reason! Don’t worry at all, my ship will now lift the anchor and set sails from Fatu Hiva! BTW, thank you again for keeping the wheels of the MRCA running!

Thank you guys! I hope to follow up soon with another silver-related build in Jiangkai

The main attack of the Royal Army of Oleon, as previously presented by our commanders, takes place on the Fort Arltrees-Seawatch axis. Here I’m just putting together the plan, the troop numbers, etc.

Operation Hephaestus Hammer  Commander: General Hercule François  Forces involved: 6 battalions (2 line infantry, 1 light infantry, 1 artillery, 1 cavalry, 1 engineers). 540 EGS soldiers.  Aims: engage and destroy the Lotii army south of Seawatch. Plan summary: 1) Advance Our forces continue their advance, with extensive scouting by cavalry and light infantry. Increased patrols from Seawatch, in the meantime, localise the Lotii forces and fix them in position. 2) Contact  As the other armies of the coalition advance and engage the Lotii front, our forces engage the left flank of the enemy. Our forces advance in oblique order, attacking the enemy and closing the gap between our left flank and the right side of the coalition forces. 3) Press the assault Our forces advance along the whole front, pressing the enemy forces. We organise our attack in three waves: -after heavy, concentrated shelling of few selected locations, columns of elite soldiers (chasseurs and grenadiers, with a few light mortars) attempt to crack the enemy lines. If successful, they will march on, attacking supply deposits, command centres, second line mortar and rocket batteries, etc. (in modern military terms, we attempt a thunder run). -immediately after, our forces attack along the whole line. The chaos and the panic generated by the thunder runs, by the contemporary attack on two fronts (from Fort Arltrees and from Seawatch) and by the guerrilla operations on the supply lines (Operation Pandora) is expected to make the enemy line to collapse in several points, with the resisting units encircled or forced to an orderly retreat. -final blow: if necessary, we commit all our reserves against the enemy, turning the retreat into a route. 4) Exploit Our forces (cavalry and light infantry) chase the enemy to kill and capture the enemy forces. This, together with the forces from Jiangkai, should also force our enemy to abandon artillery, ammunitions and supplies, and to retreat in disorder to Luyang. ———————— Note: I’m just reposting our battle plan (with @CapOnBOBS’ great vignettes) as a separate thread, as required by the combat rules. I’ve just expanded a little bit the text, but the general plan is the very same we presented in the coordination thread. ———————— @CapOnBOBS @Ross Fisher @Capt Wolf @Ayrlego @LM71Blackbird @Bregir @Garmadon @Professor Thaum

Thank you! I didn’t really think about that detail, but I like the idea! Thanks! Currently I need a steady income more than cash, so I prefer to keep it on my personal account.

Ten million silver livres - silver mine

Jiangkai, El Oleonda, March 623 After some silver nuggets were found by chance in a field outside the town, an exploitable vein of the mineral was discovered on the nearby hills. In the next weeks, a mine was set up, and a steady flow of silver started reaching Jiangkai. Soon, the valuable metal will leave the settlement in the form of ingots and silver livres, the Oleander equivalent of pesos, shillings or pieces of eight. Before this can happen, however, the valuable lore must be reduced into small pieces with hammers and pickaxes… …transported to the surface (currently in bags and canisters, but soon rails and carts will be implemented)… …and washed in a stream of water, to separate the heavy pieces of metal from the lighter bits of stone. The mine is expected to be a valuable asset for the nation, with an expected yield of at least ten million silver livres. Therefore, even if a pile of unrefined silver minerals somewhere on a hill is very unlikely to be stolen, the mine is constantly guarded by a small detachment of soldiers. In this moment the men on duty are zouaves from New Oleon… a dull task, but definitely less risky than fighting the Lotii in the jungle! Overall view: ———————— Licensed as silver mine in Jiangkai

Thanks! These days I can write more than I actually build, I planned something a little bigger to launch “my” part of the attack, but I’m glad you liked it! I’m happy you noticed! This is based on @Ross Fisher’s “Polynesian” culture of El Oleonda natives… I imagined that some of our chasseurs could appreciate a sturdy native weapon!

As the main forces of the coalition prepare for the battle on the fields of Seawatch, a company leaves Jiangkai to interfere with Lotii supply, communications, reinforcements and, possibly, retreat.

Jiangkai, El Oleonda, March 623 If the enemy know not where he will be attacked, he must prepare in every quarter, and so be everywhere weak. Everyone knew that the plan was dangerous, but still the problem was turning down volunteers, not finding enough of them. The citizens of Jiangkai had seen their city invaded, sacked and destroyed, and they would have never allowed that again, at the cost of their lives. For sure, they would have never forgiven their former compatriots, responsible of both the forced evacuation of 620 and the raid of summer 622. They were the enemy, and now it was time for them to pay and to bleed! As the main forces of the Royal Armies marched from Fort Arltrees to crush the Lotii forces outside Seawatch, a young officer of the Jiangkai Tirailleurs was authorised to harass the enemy supply lines and delay enemy reinforcements in any possible way. The forces available were not large, but they would have been sufficient to make the life of the Lotii army much more difficult! Operation Pandora Commander: Captain Guillaume Tiger Dupont. Born in the Eranos province, he spent several years on merchant ships, mostly in the Southern Seas. He later joined the infanterie de marine, serving in the Second Terraversan War. He speaks fluently in Lotii and Monomonto, plus some words of the other Southern languages. He knows very well the Lotii culture, and often even quotes the texts of the Wu Cru. Respected by his men, he will soon be feared by the enemies! Forces involved: a company of light infantry (1 platoon of colonial chasseurs, 2 platoons of Jiangkai tirailleurs), plus native guides. 30 soldiers in EGS terms. Aims: harass enemy forces, block or delay supplies and reinforcements headed to Seawatch frontline, divert enemy troops to irrelevant areas. Plan summary: the company will leave Jiangkai and head north-northeast, across the roads from Oryant and Luyang to Seawatch. Once there, the soldiers will start guerrilla operations against Lotii supply lines. The soldiers will avoid direct engagement enemy troops, and will instead ambush supply convoys, small units, messengers, etc. Moreover, they will interfere as much as possible with the enemy movements by placing obstacles on the roads, damaging bridges, and creating false trails and signals. The unit will move continuously, waging attacks in distant locations and occasionally sparing a vulnerable target, to create confusion about the area of operations. Significant increase of Lotii patrols would keep our soldiers out of some areas, but also divert forces from the garrisons and/or Seawatch front. ————————————- OOC, a note for the GMs: this operation starts from Jiangkai (30 EGS soldiers involved) and is independent from the main attack, but it’s coordinated with the attacks in the Seawatch area. Please manage it as you think it’s better for the game dynamics. @CapOnBOBS @Ross Fisher @Capt Wolf @Ayrlego @LM71Blackbird @Bregir @Garmadon @Professor Thaum

Hi guys! Sorry to bother you again! Can I assume that the Scamandre (that should have sailed last turn to Fort Arltrees, but didn’t- quite possibly for a mistake on my side) is safely in Fatu Hiva port?

Astrapi Wolves - 2eme compagnie chasseurs coloniaux de Astrapi At the border between the Terraversa Sea and the Sea of Thieves, Ile the Zeus is one of the Jewels of Oleon Empire. Before the imperial adventure on Terraversa and the colonisation of Blueton, Astrapi was the first Oleander settlement beyond the Line, and the only one a ship could reach with a direct journey from Breshaun. Thanks to its geographic position and to the presence of strategic resources (wood, silver and gunpowder industry), the settlement of Astrapi has become a rich and important settlement. To defend Astrapi from the enemies of the Empire, and to protect the silver extracted in the inland, a new company of chasseurs was raised in the settlement. The Astrapi Wolves, formally the 2eme compagnie chasseurs coloniaux de Astrapi, are trained and equipped for the thick woods of Ile de Zeus. These soldiers wear a simple beret instead of the elegant but bulky shako hat, and are equipped with tomahawk and machetes: for sure they don’t look like the King’s Guards back in Granoleon, but they are what the Empire needs in this far corner of the map. Due to a weird combination of warm winds and cold currents, Ile the Zeus is often shrouded by a thick fog. Therefore, the chasseurs are often accompanied in their patrols by large hounds, particularly useful to track brigands or runaway criminals.

Jiangkai, February 623 As new colonies are established more and more eastward, and the frontier of the Empire gets farther and farther from the motherland, the local recruitment of high-quality troops has become a paramount. Officers born in the colonies and trained in Breshaun military schools lead to the victory men who have never been in the motherland, for a king they’ll only see on coins and medals. In Jiangkai, this resulted in the recruitment of both line infantry and auxiliary light infantry: units equipped and trained according to Oleander military doctrines, but mostly made up of citizens of Lotii descent. On the same line, a unit of chasseurs was raised in the settlement. Despite the inclusion of some Lotii elements in the uniform, these skilled marksmen are equipped and trained as the other metropolitan or colonial light infantry units. Differently from the tirailleurs, the chasseurs know how to fight in a battle line, but they are far more effective in open formations: their role on the battlefield is not to face the enemy in a tight formation, but to aggressively pursue and flank him, shooting without fail with the lethal Charleville rifled carabines! This build will be used to raise a platoon of soldiers in Jiangkai.

Hello! The land fighting dynamics are quite new also for us all, this is only the second proper “war” of our little World! You should probably discuss with your faction leaders about the best moves, but any build counts to define the final outcome! You can post support builds like the ones shown in this thread: scouting, minor fightings, troops entrenching or moving… These builds will contribute to define how prepared are your troops for what comes next (a lot of scouting->decreased risk of ambush; good roads->your artillery doesn’t remain stuck in the mud…). Victory or defeat depend on: 1) number of troops 2) the skills of the commanders 3) a random 1-5 number 4) a “tactical score”. This is based on the strategy itself, the ability to incorporate previous elements (island rumors, terrain, previous storylines…) in the plan, and all the supporting build posted. The more and the better the supporting builds are, the higher will be the tactical score. High tactical scores will make victory more likely.

Wow, a lot of action this round! Thank you as usual for the great writing up and all the boring administrative stuff behind it! A quick question… was the Scamandre (that should have left Fatu Hiva for Fort Arltrees) lost for some reason in the sheets (and hopefully not also at sea) or did I make a mess with the form (something absolutely possible)?

Thank you, guys! I wanted to show some connection between the different storylines on El Oleonda, so I started with a meeting with our commander! Btw, I don’t own the parts for @Ross Fisher’s original character, so I took some licenses. Moreover, the way in which I presented General François (arrogant, gluttonous, focused on useless rivalries) is intentionally seen through my character’s eyes: Tristan rose from the little nobility, despised by the higher classes… as such, he doesn’t like much the noblemen! I didn’t think about something so drastic, but these clips are hilarious! We need more characters like these ones in BoBS!

Lovely idea! The chained books and the printing press are great details. The interior is clearly the main aspect of this build, but the facade is very well-done too.

Wow! This build is absolutely majestic and full of amazing details! The bell tower clearly steals the scene, but each of the buildings would deserve a separate thread... There is no doubt that the level of detail is sufficient for a Royal build! The minifig choice and posing are amazing, as well as the different angles you showed. This is something rarely seen in LDD, but you definitely nailed it. Moreover, being Italian (in real life), I can only appreciate a little bit of my country surfacing now and then in BoBS!

General Tristan Rimbaud, commander of the vanguard, reports to the commander of the Oleander contingent, General Hercule François. Despite some personal antipathy between the two, the recognition operations of the light infantry are better coordinated with the main advance, and the main column receives updated intelligence.

Somewhere between Fort Arltrees and Seawatch, El Oleonda, January 623 Tristan stopped his horse and dismounted, immediately followed by most of his guards. Others, instead, remained on the saddle, carabine in hand. Even at the border of the main camp, the chasseurs were alert… a healthy habit, since any bush of El Oleonda seemed to hide a Lotii soldier or an angry native warrior. After weeks spent chasing the Lotii patrols, and so close to the territory of the fierce Daca tribe, a soldier could either be careful or dead. Curiously, Tristan had never met General Hercule François before. When the newly-appointed commander arrived on the island with most of the troops, Tristan was already scouting the hills with the light infantry. He had received new orders and fresh troops, he was appointed commander of the vanguard, but he had never been to the headquarters. Tristan, however, knew General Hercule François by fame. In the high society of Granoleon or Breshaun, he might have been known for his alcoholism, and several hastily covered scandals… but he was also a skilled commander, a cunning soldier, and a hero of the Juniper War. Despite the over elegant uniform, the ruff and the anachronistic porcelain cup, he was still the man who had broken through three lines of Corrish grenadiers during the Willow Ridge Battle… but, for Poseidon’s sake, a field chef was a little too much! As Tristan started to present his report, General François seemed almost more interested to his incoming lunch. It was an arrogant and frustrating move, especially considering that Tristan was just below him in the command chain… but probably it was just a calculated assertion of superiority. Screw that, they were not in a court or in a damned ballroom! He was sure that General François had carefully listened to all he had said- positions, numbers and quality of the enemy troops, location and inclination of El Oleonda tribes, important obstacles and landmarks- and that was the only important thing! Once more, Tristan didn’t regret at all leaving the motherland for the colonies… he could better serve the King far from the halls of Granoleon and their intrigues, and here the risk of smashing a nobleman nose was far lower! ———————— Just a little vignette, with a little bluecoat figbarf and some terrain. For the campaign purposes: this build links the vanguard operations with the advance of the main column, and provides our headquarters with the most recent intelligence. The rivalry between the commanders (@Ross Fisher, I hope everything was in line with your character) is just for story reasons, and will have no impact on our military operations!

Hello! Actually all the yields (and maintenance costs) are calculated on the MRCA turn (the M is because originally we intended it to occur monthly, but then the game grew too much to actually manage everything in a month). In some of the threads, therefore, the “monthly” term remains. I think that the only things that are still month-based are the number of properties you can license per month (not the ones you build or publish, just when you register them), the prize for your free builds (10 dbs each for the first three, declining sums after) and some time limits (prospecting and mine licensing should happen in different months). About the ROI… a small residence is probably the best regular property, but you should really build them in batches to get a reasonable profit. Coal and saltpetre mines are also the best (the only ones with a ROI >1, if you don’t consider the prospecting cost), but in general all the mines repay themselves very quickly. In EGS terms, they are likely the best investment.

Thank you @Ayrlego for keeping the mechanisms of our little world running!

Sorry, my fault. The faction reward for the minichallenge Flower of the Lotus was a +1 command bonus against the Lotii on El Oleonda. We would like to assign it to General Hercule François.