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Post by Nemt on Mar 18, 2007 17:10:37 GMT -5
I'm glad you think so. Men like you and me, and Krevimuk, are all that holds Zekran together as of late; and the troubles don't end in the capital - they extend to the south plains, and the overseas regions, and every province in between. Have you heard of the declarations of independence in the north? Or the barbarian hordes in the east? The Empire has many enemies who will not be cut down as easily as the starving rebels and deserters outside of Arinixervolt. Much of the imperial military has the power - but not the will, understand?
I still don't know what to make of these regionalists, but be prepared for anything.
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Post by Gamemaster on Mar 18, 2007 17:43:45 GMT -5
Upon arriving at the Ulor's palace in Osim, Nemt and Arno are shown to a large meeting room full of people. There are guards everywhere and also small knots of people talking quietly outside the meeting room.
Inside the meeting room, tables and chairs are arranged in a circle with various well dressed men sitting at the tables.
Ulor Argif is there sitting at a table that is arranged so that it seems to be the head table even though they are in a circle. Ulor Argif gets up quickly and hurries over to Ulor Nemt saying, "Greetings Ulor Nemt! I'm so glad you could attend. In his excitement, Argif turns to one of the men sitting at a table and says, "You see, Quelik? Now we do have a majority of the provinces in the region represented. There are fourteen provinces in the South Plains region. With Nemt here, we now have eight of them represented. So your point in moot now. Will you drop your objection to further proceedings?"
The man he is speaking to chuckles and says, "Alright Argif, you win. But I still think the other six provinces should be represented if we're going to do this. Also, don't you think introductions are in order?"
"Yes, of course," Argif says, turning back to Nemt, "My apologies. Allow me to introduce you to the others. Gentlemen, may I present Ulor Nemt of Salan Kopixer. Ulor Nemt, this is Ulor Quelik of Salan Sligifteria. Quelik, it may interest you to know that Nemt has invaded your province with a small army of his troops."
"Really?" Quelik asked in a joking manner. He is a balding man with white hair and a pudgy belly. He speaks with a Frayeth accent.
"Yes, it's true. But never fear, I'll have his soldiers brought across the river to my province."
"Alright, then," Quelik says with a smile.
Ulor Argif then proceeds to go around the room, introducing the others. Each table has an Ulor and a few assistants sitting at it. The Uloro stand up to great Nemt one at a time as they are introduced.
Argif says, "This is Ulor Altook of Salan Tlom Yerula, which is across the Snake River from Kopixer. Altook is a thin, severe looking elderly man. He also speaks with a Frayeth accent as he greets Nemt.
All of them are speaking Zekresh.
At the next table, Argif introduces Ulor Talan of Salan Frangees. Talan is a large man with a brown beard. He speaks with a Verronese accent and has a Verronese name.
The next Ulor to be introduced is Posenyva of Salan Upinthen. Posenyva looks and talks like he is actually Zekresh.
The second to last Ulor is also Zekresh and dresses and acts like a nobleman of the old days. His name is Olomuk Yakast. The name clinches it. He is from an old noble family. You can tell because he has a last name. His last name is derived from "ya Kast" meaning "of the Fortress". It probably refers to Salan Kast near Zekran which in ancient times was the warlorship of Kast Yvar.
The last Ulor to be introduced has a very strange sounding name. He is introduced as Kel-na-Terand. Nemt has never heard of such a name and the man has a dark complexion and dresses like the Kopixers. But Nemt is sure it is not a Kopixer name. Argif says that Kel-na-Terand is the Ulor of Salan Blib Showatan, the lake province.
There is one more table, directly adjacent to Argif's own table. No one is sitting there.
Ulor Argif says, "This table is for you and your delegation from Kopixer."
"Shall I sit with you at the table, your excellency?" asks Ekanor Arno.
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Post by Nemt on Mar 18, 2007 18:22:32 GMT -5
Arno: Yes, join me.
Argif: Are we expecting any other Uloro to arrive?
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Post by Gamemaster on Mar 18, 2007 20:57:31 GMT -5
Argif says, "I'm afraid not for this meeting. But now that Quelik's objections are satisfied, perhaps we can take the first step. This is a historic opportunity. We have in this room a majority of the Uloro in the Ovam Inuva (South Plains) region. This has probably never happened before. I urge all of you to endorse the proposal we have been talking about for two days. Let us convert the Roads Council into a Regional Council with purview to discuss any and all matters of mutual benefit, not just roads. Then let us continue this meeting as the Regional Council and address the urgent matters that confront us today such as the famine, the bandits the danger of further rebellions and mutinies such as Kopixer recently experienced, and above all, what to do about the factionalism that is threatening to tear the Empire apart. It is my hope that a strong regional government can at least protect our corner of the Empire from civil strife and contain the factionalism that already divides us."
Argif pauses and looks around the room, then says dramatically, "Who is with me!?"
"I am," Altook says boldly.
"You have my support as well," Talan says.
"Ovam Vyex is with you," says Olomuk Yakast.
Quelik says, "I will concede, but I have already stated my concerns. If we do not bring in the other provinces, then we can hardly call ourselves a regional government."
There is silence for a moment. Then Kel-na-Terand says, "I do not support this proposal. Cooperation we do need, but each Ulor must retain full autonomy. We need more autonomy, not less."
Argif says, "That is only one dissenting voice. Unless Posenyva or Nemt object."
"Posenyva says, I would prefer to wait until matters in the capital are more settled."
All eyes turn to Nemt.
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Post by Nemt on Mar 18, 2007 21:25:15 GMT -5
I too would prefer to wait until the trouble in Zekran passes before any major restructuring of regional power takes place. Fear not, however, as my men and I are currently on a mission to help calm it.
(OOC: Isn't Argif a playtester?)
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Argif
New Member
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Post by Argif on Mar 19, 2007 6:07:49 GMT -5
(OOC: No. Argif is not a playtester. We do endeavor to make all the characters come alive and one way to do that is to make it difficult for players to tell who is a player character and who is a non-player character. As you can see, the fact that a character has a separate login does not guarantee that they are a player.
The fact that a character never, ever posts on the forums and you only ever hear them speak through game master postings does not really guarantee that the character is a non-player character. We still have players who insist on playing only by direct e-mail to the gamemasters so that all you ever hear of them on the forums is postings by gamemasters, just as if they were non-player characters.
We also plan to allow players to take over prominent non-player characters. So as of right now, Argif is not and never has been a playtester, but that could change at any time. We'd really like to find players to take over Levorek, Krulmuk and Rubanya, but they'd have to be very, very good and very familiar with the game and not already playing another important character. Currently there is no such player, much less three of them.
It is always wise in this game to treat all characters as if they were real people because you never know which ones are.)
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Argif
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Post by Argif on Mar 19, 2007 6:18:21 GMT -5
I, for one, am very glad to hear that you and your men may be able to help clam the situation in Zekran, Ulor Nemt, and we shall eagerly await your return to Kopixer. You did a lot of good there, I think.
Nonetheless, I think the situation here cannot wait on events in the capital. Most of us here, nearly all of us, are in agreement that something should be done now.
Therefore, with all due respect to the dissenting voices among us, I hereby declare jointly with those of you who support me on this, that the Roads Council of the South Plains Region is hereby renamed the Regional Council with responsibility for coordinating actions of all provincial and Imperial officials in the South Plains Region.
As acting chairman of this meeting, I hereby declare the first meeting of the Regional Council of the South Plains Region to now be in session.
Our first task should be to elect a chairman. I nominate myself.
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Post by Nemt on Mar 19, 2007 15:56:30 GMT -5
I must abstain from any voting on this matter, as I will be outside of the region for some time. Any regional actions the council takes in my absence affecting Salan Kopixer should be taken up with Krevimuk, the acting Ulor.
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Post by Gamemaster on Mar 21, 2007 3:36:03 GMT -5
"I will support you as chairman," Altook says.
"I will if it's just for this meeting," Quelik says.
Argif says, "It will be until the Regional Council elects a new chairman. If they council chooses, it can hold an election every meeting."
"Alright," Quelik says, "I support you for chairman."
Olomuk Yakast says, "At this time, I will nominate myself."
Talan says, "I support Argif."
Posenyva says, "I support Olomuk."
Kel-na-Terand says, "I would rather Quelik be chairman."
"I'm not in the running," Quelik says.
"Then I shall support Olomuk," Kel-na-Terand says.
Argif smiles and says, "By four votes to three with one abstention, the Regional Council elects me as chairman to serve until the next election."
"Congratulations," Quelik calls out.
"Hurrah!" says Talan.
"Next," Argif says, referring to a scroll on the table in front of him, "I would like to propose that we change the name of our region. We are presently referred to as the Ovam Inuva (South Plains) Region. I suggest that we revise that to make it sound more like a homeland and less like a direction on a map. I propose that we call ourselves Inovamia."
"Inovamia Region?" Quelik asks.
"No," Argif corrects, "just Inovamia."
"It is not grammatically correct," says Olomuk Yakast, "I realize Zekresh is not native language. In Zekresh, the adjective comes after the noun. It is Ovam Inuva, not Inuva Ovam. So if you want to combine the words, it would be Ovaminuvia. I don't see how that's an improvement over Ovam Inuva, though."
Argif says, "I am not in favor of calling it Ovaminuvia. You see, by calling it Inovamia, we are taking advantage of the fact that the last part of inuva is almost the same as the first part of ovam. It shortens the word. Since hardly anyone in our area speaks Zekresh anyway, I think we should not be too concerned about the finer points of Zekresh grammar. Who supports me on this?"
"Not me," Olomuk Yakast says.
"What does it matter what we call it," Quelik says to Olomuk.
"You're right, this is not an important matter," Olomuk agrees, but it sounds... wrong.
"You'll get used to it," Argif says, "now who else supports Inovamia?"
Talan says, "I do."
Posenyva says, "Sure, why not."
Altook says, "Only because you want this. Quelik is right that this is trivial. I have famine, bandits and rebels to deal with. Let's waste no more time on names and words."
Argif says, "the majority of the council supports the proposal. Our regional government is now called Inovamia."
"Can we discuss the famine now?" Altook asks.
Argif says, "Certainly. You have a proposal?"
"Yes," Altook says, "I propose that every province contribute 10,000 baylo immediately to famine relief."
Argif says, "I support that. Who else is with us?"
Kel-na-Terand says, "my province is also hit by famine, but should I contribute money to the aid of other provinces? I need all the money I can get to feed my own people."
Argif says, "I think it would be reasonable if provinces which are struck by famine spend the funds in their own province. But that's only for provinces that are badly hit, I mean Tlom Yerula, Blib Showatan, Zamarula, Sligifteria and Kopixer."
"What about Vibika Ashak?" Altook says, "They may be hit worst of all.
Argif says, "Yes, I'd say they can spend their 10,000 in their own province, but we shouldn't send them any regional funds until they agree to participate in the Regional Council. Ulor Worfen did not see fit to attend this meeting despite repeated invitations."
Ulor Talan says, "We have a famine problem in Frangees as well."
"Not like here, you don't," Argif says.
"I thought the problem here was mostly solved already," Talan says, "If you're going to receive money, then so should Frangees."
Argif says, "Alright, you have a point. Will you agree to support the proposal and have support go only to Tlom Yerula, Kopixer, Blib Showatan and Sligifteria? I'll leave our Zamarula if you'll leave out Frangees. Otherwise, virtually everyone will be asking for help and no one will be left to do the helping."
Talan says, "I've already strained my budget dealing with the famine in Frangees."
"But have you borrowed all you can borrow? This is a temporary problem."
"Then why not make it a loan instead of a donation?" Talan says.
Altook says, "And why not make it 20,000 baylo?"
Argif says, "Gentlemen, gentlemen, let's work together here. How about if we make it a 5,000 baylo donation and a 10,000 baylo loan? Everyone who can support that, say yes."
Everyone except Nemt and Kel-na-Terand express support. Then Kel-na-Terand also agrees.
Argif says, "Good. That's a lot of money for famine relief. Next, and really this is my last item for today, military coordination. Altook, would you like to make a proposal on this?"
Altook says, "Yes, I would. I have bandits, rebels and mutineers in my province. Some who came over from Kopixer and some who originated in my province. I only have four kantoro and they're all understrength and suffering from the famine. My men can't be everywhere they need to be. I would like to ask that each province loan me a kantora of troops until the crisis is resolved."
Olomuk Yakast objects, "That's thirteen other provinces in the region plus four kantoro of your own. Do you really need seventeen kantoro to quell a rebellion and chase bandits?"
"No, but not all the provinces are represented here," Altook says, "If each of you lent me one, that would be seven kantoro plus my four which would be eleven. I think that might be a little more than we need, but it would allow the problem to be solved that much faster."
Argif says, "That's the proposal, are you sure you want to ask Kopixer for troops, Altook? I think they have all they can handle and Ulor Nemt is taking one kantora out of Kopixer on a special mission."
"Alright," Altook says, "My proposal is for every province represented here except Kopixer to send a kantora to Tlom Yerula to suppress the rebels, mutineers and bandits."
Argif nods, "Very good. Who else supports that? I do."
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Post by Nemt on Mar 21, 2007 8:46:52 GMT -5
By the time kantoro from all over the region reach you, the military situation may have changed significantly. You should consider a more local resolution, such as large scale conscription of forces. The soldiers in our region lack proper training and equipment, and have little or no experience in battle - these are the same problems encountered with compulsive soldiers, though the locals in your province may feel a stronger calling to defend it.
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Post by Gamemaster on Mar 21, 2007 13:34:07 GMT -5
Altook says, "Do I have the power to conscript troops? I suppose I do. I don't know if I could feed them, though. Thank you for the advice Nemt. I'll try that. But I would still like troops from other provinces just to be sure."
Argif says, "Who is in favor of this?"
Talan, Quelik and Posenyva indicate support, plus Altook and Argif.
Argif says, "We have a majority on council in favor of it. I declare it to be the decision of the Regional Council of Inovamia that your proposal is accepted."
There are mutters around the room. Altook looks relieved.
"And that's all I had for today. Really, that's more than I expected we would achieve in this entire conference. It seems we really made a breakthrough today once we finally had a majority in favor of moving forward... Once Quelik stopped objecting," Argif says, with a wink towards Quelik who smiles amicably.
Argif goes on, "I think that this is a fine example of how we can work together within the framework of the new regional council. Unless there is anything else, I say we stand adjourned. I know that Altook has a crisis in his province he needs to get back to and Nemt needs to be on his way to Zekran. Is there anything else? Any other proposals for the regional council? I see none, we stand adjourned."
As various Uloro and their entourages are milling about talking, Argif speaks to some of them, them comes over to Nemt and says, "I want to thank you very much for coming. It made a world of difference just by getting Quelik to stop complaining that only half the provinces in the region were here. Now, about your men... we have ships here that I can hire to take your men across the sea. Unfortunately, there are not enough civilian ships in port at the moment to carry all your men. So here's what we can do. I can hold all the ships and wait for more and you can embark as soon as there are enough. Or, you can get started with as many men as the ships will carry and I'll make sure the others are sent along as soon as ships for them become available which should only be a few days. A third option is that I can call in a favor from the Navy. I know they have a lot of ships at their base here and it's their job to transport troops. It's up to you. I'm in your debt for your help in this conference. I'll do whatever I need to for you and your men to get where you're going."
(OOC: I realize this council doesn't use proper parliamentary procedure. I have to resist the urge for them to do it correctly, but the problem is that nobody has a parliament on this world so it is unrealistic for them to have any well developed set of rules for this. Virtually nothing in the Zekresh Empire is done by voting. Even the Imperial Council doesn't make decisions by majority vote. The only institution I can think of which does if the Roads Councils. And that was set up that way because road maintenance was known to be needed and the imperial decree which established them foresaw that provinces would not all agree on how much to spend or which roads to work on so a system of majority votes on the councils was established. Argif is taking the quite radical step of applying this same principle to a wide range of issues affecting the region, not just roads.)
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Post by Nemt on Mar 21, 2007 15:36:20 GMT -5
I'd prefer to use civilian merchant transport, I know not to whom the loyalties of various elements along the coast and perhaps the navy itself lie, and I'd prefer to keep this voyage relatively low profile, unless Ekanor Falan Otunuk is around. For the time being, I will return to my camp across the river and inform my men they will be ferried to Osim shortly - I trust that can be arranged even with the few ships available now? I'd also appreciate if you would send a detachment of men with Arno to begin preparations for another temporary camp outside of the city until adequate transport can be arranged to Zekran. Thanks again for your cooperation.
(OOC: Yeah, I gathered as much, it seems to be working well though - and true to the "reality" of nae.)
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Post by Gamemaster on Mar 21, 2007 17:09:03 GMT -5
Ulor Argif says, "Yes, of course, we'll have your men brought across the river right away. They can camp just upriver from the city if you'd like. That officer you mentioned, Ekanor Falan Otunuk, I think I might have met him once or twice. He's not here in Osim now I don't believe. He's not one of our regular navy high officers (admirals) who are stationed here. I will order every ship that comes into port held until we have enough ships to send your men to Zekran. Never mind the expense. Zamarula province will pay for it all. We may ask the Imperial Army for reimbursement, but again, don't worry about anything. Your time here will be short, but enjoy your visit to Osim, the Jewel of the West."
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Post by Nemt on Mar 21, 2007 18:38:51 GMT -5
Thank you Argif, your hospitality will not be forgotten when I return from the capital. If I might have another moment of your time before I speak with my men, do you happen to know the Ulor of Vibika Ashak, and why he did not attend the meeting?
(OOC: could you also provide a description of Osim, possibly with comparisons to real historic cities, like the one for Arinixervolt?)
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Post by Gamemaster on Mar 24, 2007 12:38:53 GMT -5
(OOC: the city of Osim consists mostly of buildings made of stone with some made partly of wood. It is not a large city by modern standards, but more like a small town. The population is probably around 1,000 people. I'm trying to think of a parallel and the ancient port city of Tyre in Lebanon comes to mind. This would be similar, perhaps, to Tyre in the fifth century under Roman rule. Osim is a regional trade center and has been for centuries. The port is frequently busy with trade ships loading and offloading, arriving and departing. The marketplace in the old city attracts people from all over. Also, the market has a few unusual types of merchants such as fortunetellers and merchants who sell magic charms and love potions. Also, there is a dwarf who does street performances juggling daggers. The old city is protected by a stone wall, but more than half the city is outside the wall now, even the Ulor's palace is outside the wall. The city wall predates Zekresh rule of Osim. One other thing Osim is known for is towers. There are three prominent stone towers in different parts of the city, all of them inside the city wall, but not part of it. Two of the towers are three stories tall. One is five stories tall. They seem old and in disrepair.)
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