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[Forum Game] Springtime of Nations III: The Late Republic

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Liberus nods along with the obviously demented member, when he stops Liberus' chin waggle with indignation.

"By the many moons of Minerva, speak Latin you addled cockatrice. You speak with less grace than a drunken Helot, and ramble along more than Grecian roads. When you have an actual point, please speak up."
 
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Liberus nods along with the obviously demented member, when he stops Liberus' chin waggle with indignation.

"By the many moons of Minerva, speak Latin you addled cockatrice. You speak with less grace than a drunken Helot, and ramble along more than Grecian roads. When you have an actual point, please speak up."
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Having misheard the retort, Fabius blurts out the old Latin proverb: Qui vitulum tollit, taurum subduxerit idem (Who steals a calf will steal an ox.)
 
Election Results - 74 BCE
(The Year of the Consulship of Carus and Florus)​

Senator Liberus takes the stage in the forum to declare an end to partisanship and corruption! He proclaims that the two factions have not solved the problems facing Rome and that only an honorable man embodying old Roman virtue can do so! He proclaims the formation of the Honorabile faction to end factionalism once and for all! [+1 Prestige, +1 Popularity to C. Promenadius Verres Liberus; Honorabile faction formed]

Servius Avitus Carus and Gnaeus Sentius Florus secure victory in the campaign for the consulship! Though Carus is strictly nonpartisan, Florus is an adherent of Senator Liberus' Honorabile movement and promises to purge corruption and restore Roman greatness!

Senator Aetius, having resumed his trek up the cursus honorum, wins his election as urban praetor! Many of the following generation are heard to breathe sighs of relief! [+2 Prestige, +2 Popularity to L. Aetius]

Senator Scaevola secures victory in his election as curule aedile! Though a relative newcomer, the senator enjoys widespread support and a top-notch graffiti-writing campaign! [+2 Popularity to A. Horatius Cocles Scaevola]

Senator Camillus is once again prevented from making an appearance in the public square due to persistent harassment by the mob! Many suspect him to be the source of the grain shortages and high prices! The mob grows larger!

Of the quaestorships, 12 go to Honorabile candidates, 6 go to Populare candidates, and 2 go to Optimate candidates. [+1 Prestige to all low-Prestige Honorabile characters]

Of the remaining aedileships, 2 go to Honorabile candidates and 1 goes to a Populare candidate. [+1 Popularity to all low-Popularity Honorabile characters]

Of the remaining praetorships, 6 go to Honorabile candidates and 3 go to Populare candidates. [+1 Prestige to all low-Prestige Honorabile characters; +1 Popularity to all low-Popularity Honorabile characters]
 
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Liberus blinked emptily at the assembled crowd. Yes, an actual crowd. Twelve Quaestors, a pair of aediles, six praetors, and an honest to Bacchus consul. Twenty one of the most powerful of Rome, and they all aligned with him. With prompting, he began to speak.

"Gathered men, we have done it. The Populares, the Optimates, their numbers have been utterly destroyed across the offices of this fair city. My movement, our movement, of an honourable and virtuous Rome once again can be achieved! Truly it is wonderful that all of you are here to join me. Together, we will make Rome great again! To Rome!"

Outwardly, Liberus was smiling. Inside, he was entirely confused as to what to do, as he had no dreams of being this successful.
 
The Unkindest Cut
Hispania Ulterior​

Shocking news from furthest Spain!

The young Scipio, General Tiberius Pinarius Claudius, has taken leave of his senses! Lost sight of his morals! Committed foulest blasphemy!

He has betrayed the Republic!

The wailing in the streets is profound!

His stalwart veteran legions have taken up Sidonius' banner!

All of southern Spain now raises high the rebel's bull where once the eagle flew!

All that remains of the Spanish provinces is the citadel of Tarraco and its defenders!

We're doomed!

GM: This event is now concluded. Tiberius Pinarius Claudius is retired from play; Sneakyflaps is to pick a new character. New Spain map below.

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Tiberius Cornelius Sulla Propertius Dalmaticus, the finest Roman general in a generation, spoke to his troops in the early morning hours of an otherwise quiet day at his legionary camp.

"Soldiers! Romans! Hear my words, and beg heavenly souls are listening! The hour of reckoning of the enemies of Rome is at hand!

We here have fought in Hispania for months on end. Many of you -- I see your faces among you, I remember you -- stood by my side in the Dalmatian campaigns. We shed blood together -- and bled together. We fought for Rome. When law and order evaporated and lawlessness and banditry gripped the land, we went, of our own volition, to restore Roman civilization and Roman law. The enemy was destroyed. We returned to Rome not as conquerors, but as true victors, heroes of the Republic.

And the Senate honored our toil and our victories with the opportunity of reaping the greatest reward of all: the death of Sidonius and his infantile rebellion. We marched, with fresh legions, sharpened swords, new friends at our shoulders, to liberate Hispania, and bring to the land here what we had so successfully brought to Illyricum. Even with the help of troops that have been fighting here for years, it was enormous work. Were it not for the traitors that defected to join the uncivilized brutes we face, our conquest would have been even easier than the victories of Illyricum! But alas, we were all of us deceived -- deceived, my friends, by our own allies!

General Claudius -- the sometime young Scipio, a title with which I shant dare to lay upon his vile brow, as he is the King of Traitors -- has betrayed Rome! He has betrayed me! He has betrayed every legionary to ever fight in the service of his country! The man who, for a time, was offered the title of greatest general alive in the Republic has fled that banner! He has forsaken his family, brought great shame to his name, and dishonored his country! He has been bought with gold -- or perhaps the barbarian women he now so surely keeps as company -- and the illusion of power and riches. He thought to beat Rome, the master of the known world! I say, damn what he wants! I say, damn his ambition! General Claudius, my brothers, is no Roman! As Ephialtes was to the Greeks at Thermopylae, he surely thought, he could be to us in Hispania. Would you not wish to prove him wrong? Let all Romans, from this day forward, equate the name of Tiberius Pinarius Claudius with the word traitor! -- and a failed one, at that!

Where Claudius and his bastard legions have failed this country, we shall take up the torch. We, as Cincinnatus, and Cunctator after him, and all of the other great generals and statesmen we so revere to this day -- and who will be remembered and honored for all eternity! -- voluntarily take the charge, to destroy the enemies of Rome, bring them to justice, and secure a new and lasting peace.

I know many of you long for your homes. Your fields lay unworked, at least by your hand; your wives wait by the door, unloved; your sons, without your guidance, are lost. But fall not into sorrow, my brave and honorable Romans. We have answered the call of Rome. We will see it through. By the most merciful gods, we have been given this task -- and we will win. Our victory shall be so grand, it shall outshine all of the terrible treacheries of Claudius and his ill-born men, so that when men look to the darkest days of this Republic, they will see not our defeats, but our absolute and total victory against Sidonius and his ilk -- of civilization conquering barbarity!

Men of Rome, honor your forefathers, and honor me, by securing that victory. Honor Rome, for she is the greatest of all things to die for! Long live the Republic!"

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Gaius Aelius Viator hears the commotion from the Senators, as the "New Scipio" Claudius has betrayed the Republic for the traitor Sidonius' cause, Gaius unleashes a deep-seeded anger which silences the room then speaks:

"Alas my fellow Romans, another coward has joined Sidonius to die in Hispania! He even brought his Legions with him, poor souls who have been duped! This MUST be avenged! The stain upon the honor of Rome made will be paid in kind by the blades of loyal citizens, who fight for this beloved Republic and not some bastard spawn Sidonius has created. I call for immediate action to combat our growing foes, or else Hispania will be overrun by the half-bred barbarians!"

Gaius, showing veins across his head, completes his statement and seats himself, clearly showing anger at the developments in Hispania.
 
The Agenda of 74 BCE
The City of Rome​
  • Outgoing consuls C. Sornatius Sigilis (NPC - Populares) and P. Fabius Curio (NPC - Populares) are to receive proconsular imperium over a province in the coming year. To which province shall they be assigned?
  • Outgoing praetors (8 Populares, 2 Undeclared) are to receive propraetorian imperium over a province in the coming year. To which province shall they be assigned?
  • Should the proconsular term of F. Terentius Varro (Arrowfiend - Populares) be prorogued for the duration of the war with Mithridates and his imperium extended to Anatolia?
  • Should the propraetorian imperium granted to G. Aurelius Faustus over the island of Crete be expanded to include the Aegean Sea?
  • Should Legio II (Gallia Cisalpina), Legio V (Sicily), and Legio XV (Africa) be transferred to Asia to assist in the war against Mithridates?
  • Should S. Valerius Triarius Cotta's proposed cyclical tax increase on the provinces be implemented?
  • Should a new legion be raised to assist in the war in Spain and should a mandatory levy be passed on the upper classes in order to fund its recruitment?
  • Should the war against the pirates be extended into Cilicia?
  • Should the annual deficit be made up by imposing a ten-percent tax on prostitution?
GM: Any Senatorial character in Rome may send me an Agenda Order regarding these issues and these issues alone. Any character wishing to add an item to the agenda after the fact may announce their agenda item in-thread, but must also pay a 4-point surcharge to do so. Any new agenda items must be announced by 1200 EST on Thursday, January 5. All agenda orders must be in by 1200 EST on Friday, January 6.
 
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Conscript Fathers, I say again that I propose to put on the agenda that the quaestors should take care that they should direct free prostitutes on the kalends of every month to yield one in ten of the earn they take from their assignations, or if they should hand over their take to a pimp or procuress, that it should be yielded from such pimps or procuresses, and that such monies be used for the purchase of grain.

Also, I further consider that Tiberius Pinarius must be destroyed.

-A. Horatius A.f.A.n. Cocles Scaevola
 
GM: Two new agenda items added. Get your agenda orders in.
 
"Honored Fathers, as no doubt you have already heard...grim news arrived from the West. Unfortunately, our progress in Hispania has been greatly disturbed and quite possibly reversed. Tiberius Pinarius Claudius has betrayed us. He is now in league with Sidonius, a vile turn of events indeed. It now falls to Tiberius Cornelius Sulla Propertius Dalmaticus and his men. Battle-hardened, bloodied and ready to strike. Claudius has betrayed himself, his family, his ancestors and this grand republic. I did not believe it to be true, for a while I thought it was hearsay and rumor. But alas, the reality is he is no longer a champion of Rome.

But take heart, for Mars blessed this Republic with strength, honor, virtue and prosperity. We will stand steadfast against the angry night, illuminating it with justice! This betrayal will not go unanswered! Perhaps they think we shall beg for mercy...beg for peace. No. Like all our enemies of the past and now present, we shall show them the error of their ways. Honored fathers, we must reinforce General Tiberius Cornelius Sulla Propertius Dalmaticus with what we can, transfer another legion if we must, raise another and shoulder the cost if we must. This man is a traitor, and he deserves a traitors death. It is always darkest before dawn."

~Praetor Laelius Aetius
 
Agenda Results - 74 BCE
(The Year of the Consulship of Carus and Florus)
​
With the seeming distraction and disarray caused by the surprise appearance of the Honorabiles and their victory in the elections, few senators are able to provide direction in the coming session. Instead, Consul Florus takes the lead in their deliberations.

The Senate approves the motion to transfer three legions from Cisalpine Gaul, Sicily, and Africa to assist in fighting what is now being called the Third Mithridatic War. These legions are put under the overall command of Proconsul Varro. [+2 Legions to F. Terentius Varro]

Proconsul Varro is granted proconsular imperium over the eastern provinces and his term is extended for the duration of the war against Mithridates. [+1 Popularity to F. Terentius Varro]

However, Admiral Faustus' propraetorian imperium is likewise extended into the Aegean Sea, both to continue his operations against the pirates and to assist in prosecuting the war against Mithridates. [+1 Prestige, +1 Popularity to G. Aurelius Faustus]

A mandatory levy on the upper classes is approved with utmost reluctance by the Senate, seeing as their membership is directly in line to take the brunt of the new tax. Its proceeds are directed towards the formation of a new legion, which will be deployed to Spain in the coming year. [-2 Prestige, +2 Popularity to S. Valerius Triarius Cotta; -2 temporary Wealth to all Senatorial characters; +1 Legion in 1 year]

Proposals to further tax the provinces and to tax the Roman prostitution trade are rejected in the face of consular opposition, as is the proposal to expand the war against Mithridates into Rhodesian and Armenian Cilicia. [-1 Prestige, -1 Popularity to A. Horatius Cocles Scaevola; -1 Prestige to F. Caecilius Venderan Nepos]

GM: Well, that was a low-turnout agenda. Time for everyone to shake off the holiday cobwebs and get their orders in. General orders are due at 1200 EST on Monday, January 9.
 
Further to his desire that Rome should know of the activities taken in her defence, Faustus continues producing materials to that effect, excerpts of which follow:

Having split his fleets that they might form a net over his area of operations, Faustus was left with some thirty ships under his direct command. It was with these numbers at his immediate disposal that he proceeded through the now secure straights of Messina. Some short time after this he was informed by Marcus Scaurus, whom he had charged with reconnaissance, of a pirate fleet of some 150 vessels, operating in the Tarentine Gulf. Undaunted by the numbers, for the vessels of the pirates were wholly inferior to their Roman counterparts, his commanders advised interception. Therefore after taking the auspices and seeing the situation to be in the Romans’ favour, Faustus agreed, and the enemy were encountered off the coast at Thurii.

(...)

Their leader, it was learnt from prisoners after the battle, was a man who styled himself King of Hierapytna. This king did possess amongst his fleet some ships that were equivalent in quality to their Roman counterparts, as could be expected of any city-state. This notwithstanding, the pirates, weighed down by their plunder, found themselves outmaneuvered by the Romans, who, on orders of the admiral, carried only the bare necessities. Thus the numerically inferior Roman fleet was able to pin their foe against the shore, forcing an engagement.

Faustus maintained the heavier quinqueremes and quadremes for the main line and placed under Scaurus’ command the lighter triremes. The more manoeuvrable ships of Scaurus’ flying column would then seek to turn the enemy left and pulverise the smaller ships without recourse to boarding. Faustus’ heavy ships meanwhile would do the reverse, dominating their opponents with superior martial valour.

(...)

Amongst the marines aboard his flagship the signifer, one Gaius Mergus, won great renown for his valour. Mergus was first to jump onto the deck of the enemy ship, barely avoiding a watery fall. Carrying as he did the emblem of their unit his fellow soldiers were forced to follow his example else live with the shame of losing their standard to enemy hands. In the ensuing melee he sustained multiple injuries fighting beside his commander, but withstood them all and landed a fatal blow upon the the pirate king, killing him and destroying the morale of his followers so thoroughly that the battle aboard his flagship ended on the spot.

(...)

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GM: It's been a crazy week and I may be going away for the weekend. As such, the deadline for general orders is extended until next Monday, January 16th, at 1200 EST. If you haven't already sent orders, do so.
 
Game over, kids. Stay tuned for SoN IV.
 
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