Scotland cooperative game thread

[Velociryx]

Additional holdings

[Velociryx]

Troop Strengh Analysis

[Velociryx]

So....as you can see....victory is sweet indeed, Scotland has at long last awakened from her slumber, and we are back on the path to greatness....but compared to some (France), we are but a mosquito....a bug waiting to be flattened....so there are problems that yet remain for us....daunting problems indeed if we are to rise to even greater heights, but the door is now open....if we can but survive without being mauled by the mighty French, we will grow stronger, and one day, be able to challenge them....

-=Vel=-

[Velociryx]

The Dawning of Scotland's Colonial Era - 1526

The first order of business is to promote bailiffs in our three new cities that can recieve them (Yorkshire, Lincoln, and Anticosti), and then take stock of our military....sadly, the army took quite a pounding from our English adversaries, and the sum-total of our forces is reduced to 9328 Infantry and 18,253 Cavalry (27,491 total). Maximum sustainable army size for us has grown to 41,000 and we promptly recruit 13,000 new infantry in the Scottish Isles to bring our army up to strength, lest any nation percieve a weakness in us.

Thus, the year of our Lord 1526 finds its closure, and a new era begins for Scotland.....

1527
National stability is +3, Treasury is 1029d (mostly in reparations from England), and our economy surges ahead to 42.7 --> 24.0 from taxation, 16.8 from the production of goods, and 1.9 in monthly trade surplusses. We are growing by leaps, and suddenly Scotland is crackling and alive with energy once more! The war with England has shaken off the last of our doldrums and we are ready to forge a new destiny!

In January, we send all our available colonists to the new world, building up the colonies of Isle Royale and Standacone, and sending traders to Ungava and Eskimalt. We also commission 10 new warships and 8 transports, suddenly filling our ports to capacity and giving them much to do!

In March, in the new world, the newly Christened St. Laurent Cavalry command (3714 strong) rides into Penobscot to deal with a hostile native threat there. A colonist is sent to that land once the natives have been tamed.

May sees more good news....with our strength surging once more, and our nation suddenly flowering, the City Fathers of newly conquered Gaspiesie pledge their allegiance to our cause and gift the King five (5) warships for greater security of our new world posessions!

A truly, remarkably wonderful year, after so long a time in slumber.

1528

Stability remaining at +2, treasury plunges to 272d, econ rising to 45.2 as our newly appointed bailiffs begin increasing our tax base and revenues in our new posessions.

Our 10 Warships and 8 new transports are dubbed The Fleet of Wales and assemble in the Channel for sea trials before making for the Port of Wessex!

And in this year, it is time once more for a full and detailed accounting of the Armies of Scotland....a very important thing, as we now have MUCH more to defend!

Our forces may be divided two ways: The European Theater and the New World Theater.

In Europe, our forces are these:

The Army of Lincoln: 11,323 Infantry and 4503 Cavalry

The army of Yorkshire: 10,695 Infantry and 4504 Cavalry

The Wales Fleet (ported in Wessex): 10 Warships and 8 Transports (trans-cap = 26)

In the New World, our forces are these:

The Armor Fleet (ported in Anticosti): 12 Warships (trans-cap = 12)

Anticosti Cav Command (3758)

St. Laurent Cav Command (3714)

Barbados Cav Command (1563)

Last year, amidst the chaos of our victory, we successfully established a colony on Isle Royale and Standacone, and Trading Posts in Eskimalt. Harsh conditions killed the trappers in Ungava, but we are determined to tame this new world.

February sees the formation of another Monopoly Company, and a Royal Marriage to Spain. We try to invite Portugal into our alliance, but they refuse, and so, we opt for a bold new tactic, and ban Ireland from our alliance, and then promptly flee into the arms of Spain (alliance with Spain, and Spanish vassal, the Knights of Rhodes). Royal marriage arranged with Portugal in April to show that there are no hard feelings between us.

June - Colonist to Penobscot (the previous attempt having failed as our colonists were lost at sea), and July sees further improvements in fleet technology (Naval 6).

August - the New World city of Anticosti gets a fortification, and October a 5k revolt in Lincoln is put down handily, leaving the Army of Lincoln 11,303/4499 after that battle.

By December, we have successfully planted a colony in Penobscot, and our territory grows....

1529
Stability is +3, Treasury has increased to 309d

Trader sent to Massachusettes

In early January, representatives from several of our larger cities approach the King with a demand for some of their former rights back (would make centralization -1)....the King refuses their request, which creates an uproar in greater Scotland (stability plunges to 0), worsening to -1 as our King opts to shift our focus away from being a land-based power to a more navally based one (stab to -1), land -1

And in march.....

[Velociryx]

Expect another update soon for those following this thread! I've played all but the last hundred years out, btw, and....without giving much away, may I just say that:

ITSUNFRIGGINBELIEVABLEHOWPOWERFULCOLONIZATIONISAND WHATITCANDOFORYOURECONOMY!!!!!!



There....I feel much better now....really....

-=Vel=-

[ravagon]

Originally posted by Velociryx

En route, we lose 5 ships (forgot to separate our galleys....oops)

I would like to point out sire that I was only 1st Lord of the Admiralty for the non-existent Lorrainian fleets. Not of Scottish naval forces.

ITSUNFRIGGINBELIEVABLEHOWPOWERFULCOLONIZATIONISAND WHATITCANDOFORYOURECONOMY!!!!!!

I guess you got a few of those fur/sugar provinces then, eh?

One failing I've found wrt the AI is that they seem to want to wipe out all of the natives, whereas a human player can sacrifice a few failed colonization attempts and a couple of native attacks for a starting population of several thousand and hence a century or more of growth.
It often doubles the starting income of a newly-colonised province and really does provide an incredible amount of cash in the medium-long term ...

[Velociryx]

Yeah...got caught up in the chase and totally forgot about the presence of our galleys...ah well, we needed to modernize the fleet anyways, isn't that true, My Lord Admiral?

And yes! Who the heck needs constant warfare if you have the money and patience to keep shipping those colonists out!? And ohhhhh the wonders it does for an economy!!! (wait till you see some of the most recent screenies!)....note to self, post an update and he will!

-=Vel=-

[Nikolai]

Originally posted by Velociryx
note to self, post an update and he will!

A most excellent idea...

[Velociryx]

Scotland’s Colonial Plan

Scotland has come of age, but compared to the true world powers strutting about on the stage, we are weak, and so, we must be cautious. Always cautious.

That said, the following principles will be used when building our Colonial Empire:

• Fate and circumstance have handed us a partial map of the North American continent, and so we shall begin there, first by expanding our holdings to claim as much of the land for ourselves as we can, and then, by focusing on those provinces we have claimed and building them up fully….a phased expansion into the New World.

• “Building them up fully” means that each province we occupy will eventually get a sufficient number of colonists to create a city (pop 700, minimum), and the first order of business will be to fortify the place, so that ALL of our colonial posessions receive the benefits of having at least a token fortress. It also means making Tax Collector and Justicar appointments a priority before the province is considered “up and running.” (and Mayoral appointments when that becomes applicable).

• Our goal is to claim as much of this new continent for ourselves as we can….although our maps are incomplete, there is every indication that this is a vast, untapped resource, and if we put those resources to work for Scotland, and diligently apply ourselves to building up a fortified, city-level presence everywhere we go, we will not only increase and expand our resource base steadily, but will increase national security.

• Only when we have fully secured and found the limits of the North American continent, will we give serious attention to any other areas of potential colonization, and it is hoped that this relatively tight focus will make defense of what holdings we gain or create on our own, easier.

And so it was that with this plan, Scotland began embarking on a new adventure....a new era.

-=Vel=-

[Velociryx]

1530
The chief reasion that this year rings important to Scotland's future is the fact that a new Center of Trade opened in London, early in the year. The Scottish Nobility rejoiced at this news, because they were already formulating plans to fully absorb the broken Kingdom of England into the folds of Greater Scotland...the new Center of Trade only strengthened our national resolve to do that very thing!

Other than that, however, 1530 was a remarkably quiet year that saw mostly steady work on expanding our colonial presence in the New World.

1531
While we Scottish are busy sending colonists to the new world (had to try three times to get a colony established in far-off Chesapeake), in mid-year, the Knights of Rhodes, allied to Spain, and therefore, us, by extension, declared a war against the Ottoman "Empire" (little more than a backwater refuse dump, having been beaten and battered to almost nothing by all its neighbors). We accept the "honor" of this fight, and promptly ignore it, focusing instead on fulfilling our colonial ambitions.

1532
National Stability is +2, Treasury stands at 239d, Economy brings us 44.0 per month, with 24.3 from taxation, 17.0 from the production of goods, and 2.7 in monthly trade balances.

All efforts are plied into improving national infrastructure at this point, as our stability is hale and healthy.

Our max army size is figured at 42,000, and we are currently fielding 21,998 Infantry, and 18.014 Horse (40,012 total).

Compared to France (which in our eyes, is the only comparison that matters), and adjusting for Inflation, we find France's economy at: 47.6 to our 41.2...closing the gap, but they are still our betters....sadly.

Nonetheless, 1532 is a year of reflection and review....our colonial efforts are making slow, steady progress, and our economly is robust....and climbing.

[Velociryx]

Analysis of our situation and standing....

[Velociryx]

further looks at our current standing....

[Velociryx]

Economic Standing - World's biggest economies

[Velociryx]

By 1533, we are feeling quite secure in our position in the north eastern section of North America (where the bulk of our New World holdings are centered), and so, the St. Laurent Cavalry Command is ordered by ship to the Carolinas to help oversee the safety and security of our colonial efforts there as we seek further expansion in the New World, and this....pretty well summarizes how we're spending the bulk of our time, and where most of our money is going each year.

[Velociryx]

The next ten years for us are....pretty much more of the same. We are a nation trying hard to grow up. Trying to become more than we are and plying all our skills and efforts into carving out a place for ourselves in this new world we never even knew the existence of until our victory over England. Oh, certainly there were stories of the exploits and explorations of other nations, but without maps and a means to get to those far-off places, they remained just that to us.

Stories.

Now though, they were real....real and all too likely to fall into the hands of our chief rival, France, if we did not act swiftly and with skill to secure them for ourselves, and we had no illusions....armed with the vast power that these unclaimed lands represented, our future would be snuffed out in short order by a simply unstoppable France. So yes, we were colonizing for the sheer love of adventure and discovery, but that was only part of the story....we were also colonizing for our very lives....in an attemptt to become the equals of France, so that on the cold, terrifying day when they tried to end us, we would be strong enough to stand against them.

And during this time, we DID see our labors in the New World bear fruit, as our brave and hardy soldiers in our new world garrisons fought savages and cleared the way for our peaceful settlers in such places as Santee and the Carolinas, the Islands of the Bahamas, and Guadeloupe, while the English trading posts in some other areas (Barbados), are upgraded to colonies in their own right.

We sent traders to Caniapiscau and Ungava in the Canadas as well, in an effort to fill up and lay claim to as much of the New World as we knew about, with the goal then of digging in and developing those holdings to the best of our abililties.

Our Colonial ambitions take a minor, hopeful pause when a new leader assumes the Scottish throne in December, 1542....Scotland BLEEDS for lack of a leader with diplomatic finesse, and we are hopeful that Mary, the Queen of the Scots, will at last restore some semblence of diplomatic fortitude to our nation....alas....no.

[Velociryx]

Nonetheless, although Mary is not the diplomat we had hoped for, she IS committed to following in the footsteps of her predecessors, and fully committed to improving Scotland's national infrastructure. She boldly continues to blaze that trail for us, and only three short years after her reign begins, we see a truly massive breakthrough....one that will change everything.

June, 1545 - In the midst of our colonial expansion, we achieve Infrastructure 5, and the ability to promote Mayors, which will help us fight the evils of inflation, and Mary's lifelong goal is exactly that. To reduce inflation to zero, so that we need never suffer under its effects again.

So....1545 MUST be listed as one of the banner years in our nation's history, for it truly marked the beginning of a different era for us, and here's a national snapshot of Scotland as that era dawned. Note that, despite our best efforts, we had sadly slipped and fallen behind the mighty French....

[Velociryx]

Troop Review

[Velociryx]

1545, Naval Review

[Velociryx]

Territory Size Comparison, 1545

[Velociryx]

So...in summary, up until 1545, the raw materials were certainly there, but we weren't getting it done...at least, not as quickly as France and Spain, who were growing significantly faster than we, and in fact, were verging on having economies twice the size of ours. We were growing yes, but it was at a snail's pace.

What happened over the span of the next several years, however, was nothing short of....wonderous.

-=Vel=-

[Velociryx]

1545
Just achieved Infra 5 BUT, relations with France are at a wickedly low -92. We are ranked as the #5 economy in the world and poised for dramatic growth....the world has never been filled with more promise...or with more danger.

It is a time when our future seemed balanced on the edge of a knife. One misstep, one single miscalculation....if we gave mighty France even ONE excuse to declare a war against us, all our hard work could come undone.

This, however, was a thing that we simply refused to consider. Scotland WOULD succeed. She *would* thrive! We acknowledged the French threat, but did not let it dictate our actions. Rather, we let the promise of growth in both size and strength, until the day came when we would be secure against ANY would-be rival....THAT was the flame and the prize we kept our eyes firmly focused on.

And so, only days after we achieved this remarkable breakthrough in Infrastructural development, Mary, Queen of the Scots, arranged a loan to be taken, and ordered the National Mint to work night and day...true, short-term, this ran completely against her policy of reducing inflation, but there was a long-range purpose behind her actions, and so it began, with reports of our progress flying in on a near-constant basis:

August - Mayoral Promotion in Lothian

September - Our colonies in Bell Isle and Manicouagan grow

October - Mayoral Promotion in Strathclyde

December - Mayoral Promotion in the Highlands

1546
National Stability at +2, 246d in the Treasury

New Leader - Hamilton of Arran rises through the ranks of the Army of Lincoln, giving us some muchly needed leadership for our forces, and bolstering our confidence!

Mayoral Promotions in Yorkshire and Lancashire

March - Colonist to Manicouagan

April Colonist to Belle Isle

Jean Calvin makes his presence known on the world stage

July - Mayoral promotion in Lincoln and we secure a badly needed Royal Marriage with France (relations to -79, buying us precious time to complete the daunting task ahead of us)

August - Belle Isle and Manicouagan colonies continue to expand and thrive, but there are problems, as our nation is faced with a period of religious strife....nonetheless, we will NOT be deterred.

[Velociryx]

Hamilton dispatched to deal with the rebels....

[Velociryx]

With coins flying out of the nation mint as quickly as we can produce them, inflation is spiriling up almost out of control, but we are seeing rapid gains in the building and strengthening of our national infrastructure.

By mid 1547, our entire island home has mayors either in place, or promotions in progress, and by January of 1548, our holdings in Brittany likewise see Mayoral promotions (with Holland getting similar treatment in April of that year). Meanwhile, our steady attention to growing our colonies in the new world (current focus on Belle Isle and Manicouagan) bears fruit, as Manicouagan becomes a full-fledged colonial city in December of 1548.

Yes, there are happenings and goings on in other areas of the world, but we don't care. We aren't even watching world events at this point....EVERY BIT of our attention and effort is going into improving our nation's infrastructure and standing in the world.

By May 1549, all of our Irish posessions have joined the Mayoral promotion parade, and by October, Belle Isle has joined Manicouagan in becomming a full-fledged city! We're making this happen!

More good news in January, 1550....

[Velociryx]

By 1550, our main objectives have been achieved, and we have Mayoral Promotions either completed or occurring in all Scottish provinces, so the decision is reached to continue with full minting of coin until the end of the year, and then, get back to other concerns.

However, with Inflation nearing 11%, the commoners of the realm are decidedly unhappy, and in April 1550, some 6,000 peasants in Kent rise up in rebellion. Malcolm is dispatched to deal them a blow, but is humiliated on the field of battle and forced to withdraw, not to return until December of that year when his army has recovered itself and the rebels are handily defeated.

In 1551 (August), that same dissatisfied group rebels again, but Malcolm is already on scene when they rise up, and he easily defeats them before they can fully organize themselves.

And by 1552...the first tangible signs of the progress our single-minded focus has given us...up two spots, economically...and ready for even greater things....

[Velociryx]

Raw numbers:

France's economy produces 20.4d per month than ours.

In looking at the numbers and adjusting for inflation, that value shrinks to 13.9d per month....not as bad, but still a significant value....the better part of 200d per year...YUK! We MUST strive to do better! The problem is....with our relations with the French so soured, we do not dare grow further by ending either Eire or Anglia, for this will SURELY bring French wrath down on our heads....so....a quandry.

-=Vel=-

[Velociryx]

1552 and 1553 pass in relative calm and quiet, for which we are grateful....only one rebellion (11k - Strathclyde), which Malcolm handles nicely for us. Our max army size has grown to 50,000, and we currently count 23,357 Infantry and 23,419 Horse under our banner (46,776 total). We watch our inflation fall from 11.3% in 1552, to 10.9% as 1554 dawns, and then....something remarkable happens.

Suddenly the whole equation changes for us.

Spain invites France into our alliance, and THEY ACCEPT!

Gone are our fears of a French surprise attack against us. Gone are our fears about reprisals for uniting the whole of our Island.

We feel confident in our ability to meet any nation on the field of battle and win, save for Spain and France, and both of these are now nominally our allies. So long as this grand alliance holds (France-Spain-Scotland)....so long as the three largest economies in the world stand united, we are free to grow....

Our goals now are to simply steadfastly honor any and all of our alliance obligations, to stay IN this dream alliance!

And many plans are made for our future....

-=Vel=-

[Velociryx]

Next installment....Unfinished Business - Uniting our Island home

coming soon!

[Nikolai]

Good, good... Things are going our way...

[Velociryx]

1554

A stormy year, filled with surprises, shocks, and upsets, both good and bad.

For the good part (especially for us!), was the news that mighty France had joined the Spanish alliance. As we were powerless, with our own feeble diplomatic ability, to stem the tide of French anger, Spain's move of wooing France into her alliance bed was JUST the catalyst we had been waiting for!

However, in April of 1554, the Knights of Rhodes, long time Spanish allies and vassals declare against the Dutchy of Athens....this proves to be the last straw for the allies of Athens, who fear the unchecked power of the strongest alliance family in Europe, and suddenly we (Spain, France, Scotland, Knights of Rhodes, and new members the Papal States and Venice) find ourselves at war with the alliance of Athens, Poland, Lithuania, Pommern, Austria, and Holstein....thus, the greater bulk of Europe is thrown into chaos and war by the machinations of two very small--and truly insignificant--powers in Europe.

We support this war, to remain in the dream alliance, but have it in our minds to keep our heads low and stay out of the fighting as much as possible. Rhodes and Athens are far, far from home, and are of scant concern to Scottish interests. Let the other members fight and bleed for this cause. We shall support it nominally, but offer nothing in the way of material assistance. It is simply not our fight.

And, while world attention is firmly focused on the shocking events in Europe, we turn our attention to some unfinished business. In June, our loan is repaid, and our military goes on full alert. Although no one IN the rank and file of the military is told precisely why we are suddenly on full alert, no one believes, even for a moment, that it has anything to do with the machinations on the continent. And indeed, they are correct.

October 1st, 1554
War is Declared against England! (Stability drops to -1) - All efforts to Stab, and the Army of Malcolm (11,797/3524) marches on London.

October 20
Malcolm crushes the Army of England, destroying them utterly (there were only 3k of them), and lays siege to the city of London itself (11,637/3492 left in his force), losses amounting to 160 Infantry and 32 Horse....scant indeed.

With the defeat of the only English army, our military maintenance slider is reduced back to 50% and we settle in for the final siege of London. We will accept nothing less than their complete surrender this time. The time of uniting the Scottish Isles is at hand!

In the years leading up to these events, we had slowly developed a 6k cavalry garrison for Holland, and two months after our siege begins, more than twelve thousand rowdy Dutchmen rise up and slaughter the cavalry garrison....Hamilton is dispatched via our fleet to put the rebels down, and once the rebels are crushed, he remains there until February 1556, when a 6k rebellion in Midlands requires his attention. He is promptly called home to deal with this latest threat to our security. A month later, after seeing our siege stall completely for what feels like forever, we see real improvement in the siege of London (walls at -2). This WILL happen!

[Velociryx]

Let our national history show the dramatic import of this date....May 23rd, in the year of our Lord 1556. The day that England vanished forever into the pages of history.

London falls, and our victorious Scottish armies demand their complete and unconditional surrender. England dies, and her blood is added to the veins of our nation! 6 Merchants are promptly sent to OUR Center of Trade in London!

And with this grand acquisition, we also recieve the latest English maps and intelligences, revealing yet more wonders of the new world! A passage to India by rounding the Horn of Africa....vast new territories to explore! These are exciting times indeed! However....there is one more matter of unfinished business to attend to before we can once more turn our attention back to the wonders of the New World, and the men of Eire waste no time in bringing that fact to our attention!

In response to our devouring of England, the Irish declare a war against us on July 1st. The Army of Ulster is mighty indeed, having been fully rebuilt by our own gold gifted to them in earlier days, when hopes were high that we might be able to bring them into the fold peacefully. It has long been clear, however, that our lot will NOT be one of peaceful co-existence with the Irish, and that they will not willingly be added to our growing fold, and so...the die is cast, and our proud nation once more turns its full attention to unfinished business....

By December, we have landed what forces we have available in Munster, with General Hamilton commanding (21,727/3467). These march on Connaught, which has been captured by the Army of Ulster in a cunning and efficient assault on our fortifications there. Outnumbered, yes, but this is a fight we have made before, and we are confident in the abilities of our military leaders. We will prevail!