IOT: The Scramble for Mars

[Deaghaidh]

IOT: The Scramble for Mars​

In ad 1877, a miracle of modern science enables man to slip the bonds of Earth and travel through the Luminiferous Aether between worlds. In the ensuing years, Aetherships fly on bold voyages to the Moon, Venus and Mars.

The moon proves dissapointing and barren, and Venus turns out to be covered with impenetrable jungles teeming with disease. But on Mars explorers encounter a numerous race of tall, green-skinned humans with an ancient civilization centered on a magnificent network of canals.

The exploration of Mars sets off a new era of imperialism, as nations, private companies, and other interests strive to dominate the Red Frontier.

Now it's the year 1880, and the scramble for mars is on!

Current Map: Turn 5, 1884

Player roster:
Nymeria: Bthunder, Italian corporation
Nova Lusitania: Soulstrider, Portugese Royal Colony,
Shin Kyoto: King5000, Japanese Imperial Colony
Neo Theassalia: Ab Ovo, Greek Royal Colony
New Vermont: Bakerydog, British Imperial Colony
New Aquitaine:The Fish, French Republic Colony
Ukrainian Martian Resistance: Thandros, Ukrainian rebel base
Deutsche Marsreich: Hashoosh, German Imperial Colony
Yeni Baghdad: Tyriet, Ottoman Imperial Colony
Land of Red Snow: Yakman, Tibetan Bhuddist monestary-kingdom
Republic of Mars: EmperorGrimm. Independant Republic

 

[Deaghaidh]

The Rules
The game is (hopefully) fairly simple.

Resources

There are three basic resources, Wealth, Manpower, and Prestige.

Wealth is a measure of your economy, and it is used to buy military units, build factories, etc

Every player's first province creates 2 Wealth per turn, all others produce 1 per turn

Manpower] is the amount of people from your homeland that you have on hand to lead your armies and administer your colony. By default, each military unit requires 1 manpower, and it takes 1 manpower to administer 1 province. Manpower is gained through immigration from Earth. The amount of immigrants you can recieve is limited by your prestige.

Prestige is the fame and esteem of your colonial effort in the minds of the folks at home. Having more prestige encourages more immigration.

Everyone starts with 1 prestige. Less than 5 prestige gives a default of 2 manpower per turn. Every 5 prestige after that adds another immigrant per turn.

Prestige changes based on events in game.

Conquering a province gives +5 prestige, while losing one causes -5
Winnning a battle is +2 prestige, losing -2
Destroying an enemy unit in battle gives +1, losing a unit -1

Having the largest population, producing the most wealth, most provinces, and/or the most of any type of military unit is worth an additional +1

Combat is resolved via dice.
Armies function on the same essential rules as the classic board game Risk. One die is rolled for each army. Highest rolls are pitted against each other, loser is destroyed. Ties are broken in favor of the player against natives, between players ties go to the defender.
Armies can fortify in a province, costing 1 wealth. At least 1 army must be commited to defending that one specific province. Fortification gives the defender +1 to his rolls.

Having air superiority gives all your armies' rolls +1. If both sides have air fleets in the battle, they first fight each other until only one side remains, on the same basis as armies.

Navies can travel to any sea zone, so long as they are not blocked by a hostile navy. Having a navy in a sea zone allows you to move units into bordering provinces, but only if you are within two sea zones of freindly territory. Hostile navies that meet in battle fight in essentially the same manner as armies on land.

The only units that must be placed on the map are navies. Armies and Air Fleets can be used to attack any provinces bordering friendly territory. Any such units not used in attacks are considered part of the "defense pool" and will be used to defend against any and all attacks.

Great Wars: Great Wars are fought on Earth, and can involve a colony's mother country. Players can have an impact on the course of the war, but a limited one.

Special rules for Great Wars:
1. For the duration of the Great War, colonies whose home country are involved get HALF their usual allotment of manpower. This represents conscription, and the attendant wartime manpower shortages at home.
2. For the duration of the Great War, any conflict between the belligerents has DOUBLE THE PRESTIGE EFFECTS. You're not just squabbling over obscure territory now, you're a front in the worldwide war against tyrrany!
3. While the war is on, a colony of a warring power can request reinforcements from home. 5 prestige gets you up to 5 armies, determined by a single dice roll. You can do so once per turn, but every subsequent time you do so it costs 1 more prestige and you get -1 to your roll. The government at home doesn't want to be diverting troops all the time. You can run a prestige defecit. These troops are available the turn after the request is sent, as it takes time to organize an expedition.
4. Conversely, you can send armies to help at home if you wish. These armies are unavailable to fight on Mars. Every army you've sent gets you +2 prestige/turn, but they are unavailable until peace breaks out on Earth. Fleets and Air Forces are too bulky to send back. Beware, you will probably not recieve all your troops back once the war ends!
5. Colonies not affiliated with a warring power get double manpower growth due to refugees.


Bonuses:
Every player can select one of the following bonuses when creating his colony. This choice is permenant!

Native Sergeants: Can support 3 armies with 2 manpower
Native Clerks: Can support 3 provinces with 2 manpower
Yellow Journalism: Generates 1 bonus prestige for every two earned
Planet of Opportunity: Can import 3 manpower/turn (default is two)
Captains of Industry: For every 2 wealth produced, gets 1 bonus

Expanding your colony
There are two ways to expand your colony into unclaimed territory.
First, you can invade the province, and fight a force of native martians. This force will be determined by dice rolls each time an attack is made. In other words, just because there were 3 armies in a province last turn, and you killed two, it won't necessarily have only 1 army.

Second, you can try to annex a province diplomatically. Trying will cost you 5 prestige. At 5 prestige you have a 1/6 chance, at 10 you are gaurenteed success.
More than 1 diploannexation in a turn decreases your odds of success by 1, meaning to have a 100% chance your second attempt will cost 11, your third 12, etc.
You can diploannex any province that you could attack.

Remember that adding a new province gets you 5 prestige, so if you spend 5 prestige and get lucky, your new province is effectively free.

Exploration
Mars is full of interesting, possibly usefull things, as well as dangerous and harmfull things. You can send out explorers and archeologists to poke through ancient ruins in search of secrets and treasures.
Exploration costs 1 manpower/turn or 1 wealth/turn. A die is rolled to determine the outcome:
1-2: A Bad Thing
3-4: Nothing
5: A Good Thing
6: A Very Good Thing

When appropriate, a second die is rolled to determine which thing happens, based on a secret list. Very Good Things can be shared between players.
Collecting all the Very Good Things will unlock an Epic Thing

Factories
Factories cost 2 wealth to build, and require 1 manpower per turn. They produce 1 wealth per turn. The Captain of Industry and Native Clerks bonus applies to Factory production.
When provinces change hands, some factories may be destroyed or captured.

 

[Deaghaidh]

Reserved for history, lore, and other information

Basic Geography of Mars

http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum...e-for-Mars&p=14830992&viewfull=1#post14830992

The Castes of Mars
Part 1: Nobility
Part 2: The Middle Castes
Part 3: The Mechanicals

 

[Deaghaidh]

I declare the race for Mars begun!

Previously approved colonies should post their vital stats to confirm them. If you haven't done so, be sure to pick a starting location and bonus trait. Everyone starts with 4 manpower and either 3 armies or 1 army and 1 navy, and your first province produces 2 wealth (or 3 with Captains of Industry bonus)

On turn one you recieve 2 manpower from immigrants (3 with Planet of Opportunity bonus) that you can put to use at once.

Tentative time for the first turn end is Friday.

 

[bakerydog]

New Vermont
Starting location:Specified on map
Manpower: 4
Military: 3 armies
Bonus:Captains of Industry
Flag:

 

[Deaghaidh]

I mean for every 2 you get an extra 1, so if you would be getting 4 you get 6 instead.

 

[bakerydog]

By the way to colonize a nearby province you move an army into it if your province or navy borders it right?

 

[Deaghaidh]

By the way to colonize a nearby province you move an army into it if your province or navy borders it right?

oops, left that out. But yes, to take a neighboring province you invade it with your armies and fight a randomly determined native force.

 

[The Fish]

Name: Mandat Français pour Nouvelle-Aquitaine (The French Mandate of New Aquitaine)
Starting location: Specified on map
Leader: Governer Pierre Louis Geismar
Manpower: 4
Military: 3 Armies
Bonus: Yellow Journalism
Colour: Blue
Flag:

 

[Soulstrider]

Colony Name: Nova Lusitania
Leader: Viceroy Henrique de Albuquerque
Starting location: Any coastal ragion near the ocean, near a canal too if possible.
Manpower: 4
Military: 1 Army, 1 Navy
Bonus: Native Clerks
Crest:

 

[Thandros]

Colony name: The Ukrainian Martian Resistance
Colony type: Resistance cell of the Ukrainian People
Leader: Mykhailo Hrushevskyi
Bonus: Planet of Opportunity
Color: Yellow
Manpower: 4
Military: 3 Armies

Flag:

 

[Bthunder]

Small question: one can pass from the westernmost province to the easternmost?

 

[Dyranum]

Colony name: New Styria
Colony type: Official Austro-Hungarian colony
Leader: Duke Karl von Habsburg
Bonus: Planet of Opportunity
Color: Habsburg purple
Manpower: 4
Armies: 3
Navies: 0

OOC: Why am I pink?

 

[King50000]

Colony name: 新京都 *Shin Kyōto* (New Kyoto)
Colony type: Imperial Colony of the Empire of Japan
Leader: Kiroda Kiyotaka, Director of Colonial Affairs and Lieutenant General of the 火星エリア陸軍 *Kasei eria rikugun* (Mars Area Army)
Manpower: 4
Military: 1 Army, 1 Navy
Bonus: Native Clerks
Color: Red

Colonial Flag:

 

[Hashoosh]

Colony Name: Poyais
Colony Type: Private Scottish Enterprise
Leader: Gregor MacGregor II
Manpower: 4
Military: 3 Armies
Bonus: Captains of Industry
Color: Garish non-Scottish Yello
Starting Locale: South-Eastern shore of the Great Lake

 

[tyriet]

Colony Name: Yeni Baghdad
Colony Type: Ottoman National Colony
Leader: Mehmet Pasha
Manpower: 4
Military: 3 Armies
Bonus: Native Sergeants
Color: Dark Red
Starting Locale: South-Eastern shore of the Smaller Lake
Flag:
OOC: ottos didn't have moniz for a better flag for now Always dem corrupt officials.

 

[Stuckenschmidt]

Back on Earth the creators of these flags would get immediately shot.

Will follow this.

 

[Deaghaidh]

Glad to see space turks.

You can indeed pass over the edges of the map.

Edit:I Ottomans might need a different color, Japan is already red.

Hashoosh, is there a different shade of yellow you would like that would still be distinct? Because it turns out Goldenrod isn't an easy color to find in GIMP

 

[Deaghaidh]

Current Map:

 

[Deaghaidh]

Afaslizo has bowed out, so if anyone wants to be a colony of the German Empire that's available now.