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Thread: [PREVIEW] Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS ***

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    Default [PREVIEW] Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS ***

    Ages of darkness 2
    ________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________


    Presents

    a new preview about

    the NIKA RIOTS
    Στάση του Νίκα

    ________________________________________________________________







    AoD2 is a mod "under construction" based on RTW/BI


    It starts in 527AD - the year when Justinian became Roman emperor. Once more a star was shining over the empire.


    We will offer a complete new map, dozens of new customized settlement plans, new "high quality" historical units, new 3D buildings, new music tracks, new coding, a new interface.
    ________________________________________________________________











    responsible for this preview

    responsible for this brand new preview

    empio
    our unit-maker (includes modelling and texturing as well as historical research of weapons, equipment, banners etc...)
    - simply the star of our team -

    and

    Pompeius Magnus
    team-leader, military unit development, coding, customized settlement plans and 2D work (includes our new interface which is shown in that preview)

    responsible for the 3D buildings:
    Wundai
    (makes our 3D building models and the textures for the Magnaura and the Forum of Theodosius (including column)
    Karlo'St
    (made the rest of the texturing work ; e.g. 19 Akkubita, Hagia Sophia etc.)

    - many thanx to both of you. We will make another preview in the next weeks (1 or 2 weeks?) concerning the 3D buildings -






    Chariot racings

    Chariot racings
    ...(Greek: armatodromia, Latin: ludi circenses) was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine sports. Chariot racing was often dangerous to both driver and horse as they frequently suffered serious injury and even death—but generated strong spectator enthusiasm. In the ancient Olympic Games, as well as the other Panhellenic Games, the sport was one of the most important equestrian events.

    In the Roman form of chariot racing, teams represented different groups of financial backers and sometimes competed for the services of particularly skilled drivers. These teams became the focus of intense support among spectators, and occasional disturbances broke out between followers of different factions. The conflicts sometimes became politicized, as the sport began to transcend the races themselves and started to affect society overall. This helps explain why Roman and later Byzantine emperors took control of the teams and appointed many officials to oversee them.

    The sport faded in importance after the fall of Rome in the West, surviving only for a time in the Byzantine Empire, where the traditional Roman factions continued to play a prominent role for some time, gaining influence in political matters. Their rivalry culminated in the Nika riots, which marked the gradual decline of the sport.







    Hippodrome of Constantinople


    Hippodrome of Constantinople

    Although the Hippodrome is usually associated with Constantinople's days of glory as an imperial capital, it actually predates that era. The first Hippodrome was built when the city was called Byzantium, and was a provincial town of moderate importance. In 203 the Emperor Septimius Severus rebuilt the city and expanded its walls, endowing it with a hippodrome, an arena for chariot races and other entertainment.

    In 324, the Emperor Constantine the Great decided to move the seat of the government from Rome to Byzantium, which he renamed Nova Roma (New Rome). This name failed to impress and the city soon became known as Constantinople, the City of Constantine. Constantine greatly enlarged the city, and one of his major undertakings was the renovation of the Hippodrome. It is estimated that the Hippodrome of Constantine was about 450 m (1,476 ft) long and 130 m (427 ft) wide. Its stands were capable of holding 100,000 spectators.

    The race-track at the Hippodrome was U-shaped, and the Kathisma (emperor's loge) was located at the eastern end of the track. The Kathisma could be accessed directly from the Great Palace through a passage which only the emperor or other members of the imperial family could use. The Hippodrome Boxes, which had four statues of horses in gilded copper on top, stood at the northern end; and the Sphendone (curved tribune of the U-shaped structure, the lower part of which still survives) stood at the southern end. These four gilded horses, now called the Horses of Saint Mark, whose exact Greek or Roman ancestry has never been determined, were looted during the Fourth Crusade in 1204 and installed on the façade of St Mark's Basilica in Venice. The track was lined with other bronze statues of famous horses and chariot drivers, none of which survive. The hippodrome was filled with statues of gods, emperors and heroes, among them some famous works, such as a Heracles by Lysippos, Romulus and Remus with their wolf and the Serpent Column of the Plataean tripod. In his book De Ceremoniis (book II,15, 589), the emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus described the decorations in the hippodrome at the occasion of the visit of Saracen or Arab visitors, mentioning the purple hangings and rare tapestries.

    Throughout the Byzantine period, the Hippodrome was the centre of the city's social life. Huge amounts were bet on chariot races, and initially four teams took part in these races, each one financially sponsored and supported by a different political party (Deme) within the Roman/Byzantine Senate: The Blues (Venetoi), the Greens (Prasinoi), the Reds (Rousioi) and the Whites (Leukoi). The Reds (Rousioi) and the Whites (Leukoi) gradually weakened and were absorbed by the other two major factions (the Blues and Greens).








    The background

    Background

    The ancient Roman and Byzantine Empires had well-developed associations which supported the different factions (or teams) under which competitors in certain sporting events competed; this was particularly true of chariot racing. There were four major factional teams of chariot racing, differentiated by the colour of the uniform in which they competed. These were the Blues, the Reds, the Greens, and the Whites, although by the Byzantine era the only teams with any influence were the Blues and Greens. The emperor Justinian I was a supporter of the Blues.

    The teams had aspects of street gangs and political parties, grouping people by social class and religion, and they frequently tried to affect the policy of the Emperors by shouting political demands between the races. The imperial forces and guards in the city could not keep order without the cooperation of the circus factions which were in turn backed by the powerful aristocratic families of the city: this included some families who believed they had a more rightful claim to the throne than Justinian.

    Setting the stage for the revolt, in 531 some members of the Blues and Greens had been arrested for murder in connection with deaths that occurred during rioting after a recent chariot race. Relatively limited riots were not unknown at chariot races, similar to the mayhem that erupts after a soccer or basketball championship in modern times. The murderers were to be hanged, and most of them were. But on January 10, 532, two of them, a Blue and a Green, escaped and were taking refuge in the sanctuary of a church surrounded by an angry mob.

    Justinian was nervous: he was in the midst of negotiating with the Persians over peace in the east, there was enormous resentment over high taxes, and now he faced a potential crisis in his city. Facing this, he declared that a chariot race would be held on January 13 and commuted the sentences to imprisonment. The Blues and Greens responded by demanding that the two men be pardoned entirely.









    The riots

    The riots

    On January 13 a tense and angry populace arrived at the Hippodrome for the races. The Hippodrome was next to the palace complex and thus Justinian could watch from the safety of his box in the palace and preside over the races. The crowd from the start had been hurling insults at Justinian. By the end of the day, at race 22, the partisan chants had changed from "Blue" or "Green" to a unified "Nika" (a Greek exhortation meaning to "win", "conquer", or "achieve victory"), and the crowds broke out and began to assault the palace. For the next five days the palace was under virtual siege.

    Some of the senators saw this as an opportunity to overthrow Justinian, as they were opposed to his new taxes and his lack of support for the nobility. The rioters, now armed and probably controlled by their allies in the Senate, also demanded that Justinian dismiss the prefect John the Cappadocian, who was responsible for tax collecting, and the quaestor Tribonian, who was responsible for rewriting the legal code. They then declared a new emperor, Hypatius, who was a nephew of Emperor Anastasius I.

    Justinian considered fleeing, but his wife Theodora convinced him to stay in the city. Justinian had his generals Belisarius and Mundus suppress the revolt on January 18, which they did with much bloodshed by trapping the rebels in the Hippodrome. About thirty thousand rioters were reportedly killed. Justinian also had Hypatius executed and exiled the senators who had supported the riot.


    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; August 14, 2010 at 01:08 AM.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    units




    The Venetoi - The Blues
    ...many rioter were equipped with heavy armour and coats of mail, and they could be fought only by professional troops.
    (EA330-1461 CPC p10)
    The soldiers of the circus parties had also the duty to guard the walls. That means they had access to some weapon arsenals of Konstantinoupolis. In our new preview they are opponents (rebels) - in the real campaign you can recruit them in all major cities with an Hippodrom (Capital, Antioch, Alexandria and probably 4-5 more).








    Custodes Corporis Regia
    a pure body guard unit of the emperor, basically used to guard the throne room.
    A ceremonial unit like the Spartharii - whithout any military purposes. They were - like the Spartharii - a body of Attendants, attached to the imperial holy cubiculum. But compared to the Spartharii or Armigeri they were used to defend the emperor with weapons. In this case we offer 1 small unit with 15 or 20 men. You can use them as representatives, or if the emperor moves out of the city.










    The Protectores Domestici
    - also mentioned in ancient sources as Domestici (short term) - were basically only a corps of special soldiers/officers.
    Robert Grosse p141
    If you want you can also say the Domestici were a school for military officers. After a soldier served in that "troop" he became quickly an officer of his own Cohors, Numeri or Vexiallation.
    Even if the Domestici are listed in the ND - they were not really a military unit for the open battle field in the 6th century. However, if necessary and if they are available you can "use" them.
    Today we know 2 different kind of services of the Domestici.
    Some Domestici (50 for each Scholae) were always "praesentales", that means available near or inside the capital. Ready to serve as regular elite soldier. The other group were not "presenti". That means they were on duty business out of the capital (today the reasons are still unknown).


    AoD2 offers 2 different troops
    1 light version to serve inside the city of Konstantinoupolis
    1 medium/heavy version IF the emperor moves out of the city - to guard and protect (a cavalry unit will also be available! But this isn't part of our preview)












    The Excubitores
    The most effective fighting body remained the Excubitores, whose equipment (cf. Lydus) was still strongly linked to old roman tradition.
    Sueton. Nero 8; Otho 4.6 Tacitus. ann XII 69
    Robert Grosse p270
    Created in 468 by Leo I. this body was composed in Justinians time of 300 men (mainly) recruited from the Isaurians. Descriptions in Corippus and Lydus speak of bronze helmets (cassides of old style) with red plumes, gold javelins (pila), axes (secures), round shields (clipei) and red boots (cothurni).
    Of course it is highly doubtful if they went to war with golden pila and red shoes. Modern sources suggest that all elite formations had a second set of equipment.
    By the way, the shield symbols are unknown. We have certain carving, mosaics and tales with the chi-rho sign. However, it is always unsure if we see on that mosaics some Candidati, members of the Custodes Regia, Primoscutarii or Excubitores.
    A little side-note
    The name derived from the old Praetorians of the early imperial time. 1 Cohors of the Praetorians always served inside the palace and guarded the Palatium. That Cohors was called "Excubitores"








    The Candidati
    the second guard corps beside the Scholae were the Candidati.
    Robert Grosse p96 and on
    In our time era they lost their ranking. They are still existent and will be deployed like in older times from the 6th and 7th Scholae cavalry unit. That means the Candidati were probably mounted! However, to serve and protect the emperor inside the palace and in the streets of the capital a horse is for sure NOT needed .
    The troop isn't listed in the ND.
    The reason is simple. A single troop - called Candidati - was NOT existing. The Candidati always were (and stayed) members of the Scholae. But not vice versa. A member of the Scholae wasn't automatically a Candidati.
    What kind of role they really played within the bodyguard-corps in the 6th century - compared to all other guard units - is still not evidenced.

    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; January 04, 2010 at 04:05 AM.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Battle impressions


















    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; January 01, 2010 at 10:39 AM.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Procopius, History of the Wars, I, xxiv

    Procopius: JUSTINIAN SUPPRESSES THE NIKA REVOLT, 532

    [From History of the Wars, I]


    At this time [January 1, 532] an insurrection broke out unexpectedly in Byzantium among the populace, and, contrary to expectation, it proved to be a very serious affair, and ended in great harm to the people and to the senate, as the following account will show.

    In every city the population has been divided for a long time past into the Blue and the Green factions; but within comparatively recent times it has come about that, for the sake of these names and the seats which the rival factions occupy in watching the games, they spend their money and abandon their bodies to the most cruel tortures, and even do not think it unworthy to die a most shameful death. And they fight against their opponents knowing not for what end they imperil themselves, but knowing well that, even if they overcome their enemy the fight, the conclusion of the matter for them will be to be carried off straight away to the prison, and finally, after suffering extreme torture, to be destroyed. So there grows up in them against their fellow men a hostility which has no cause, and at no time does it cease or disappear, for it gives place neither to the ties of marriage nor of relationship nor of friendship, and the case is the same even though those who differ with respect to these colours be brothers or any other kin. . . . I, for my part, am unable to call this anything except a disease of the soul. . . .

    At this time the officers of the city administration in Byzantium were leading away to death some of the rioters. But the members of the two factions conspiring together and declaring a truce with each other, seized the prisoners and then straightway entered the prison and released all those who were in confinement there. . . . Fire was applied to the city as if it had fallen under the hand of an enemy. . . . The emperor and his consort , with a few members of the senate shut themselves up in the palace and remained quietly there. Now the watch-word which the populace passed to one another was Nika [i.e., "Conquer"]. . . .

    ….On the fifth day of the insurrection in the late afternoon the Emperor Justinian gave orders to Hypatius and Pompeius, nephews of the late emperor, Anastasius, to go home as quickly as possible, either because he suspected that some plot was being matured by them against his own person, or, it may be, because destiny brought them to this. But they feared that the people would force them to the throne (as in fact fell out), and they said that they would be doing wrong if they should abandon their sovereign when he found himself in such danger. When the Emperor Justinian heard this, he inclined still more to his suspicion, and he bade them quit the palace instantly. . . .

    On the following day at sunrise it became known to the people that both men bad quit the palace where they had been staying. So the whole population ran to them, and they declared Hypatius emperor and prepared to lead him to the market place to assume the power. But the wife of Hypatius, Mary, a discreet woman, who had the greatest reputation for prudence, laid hold of her husband and would not let go, but cried out with loud lamentation and with entreaties to all her kinsmen that the people were leading him on the road to death. But since the throng overpowered her, she unwillingly released her husband, and he by no will of his own came to the Forum of Constantine, where they summoned him to the throne; . . .

    The emperor and his court were deliberating as to whether it would be better for them if they remained or if they took to flight in the ships. And many opinions were expressed favouring either course. And the Empress Theodora also spoke to the following effect: "My opinion then is that the present time, above all others, is inopportune for flight, even though it bring safety. . . . For one who has been an emperor it is unendurable to be a fugitive. May I never be separated from this purple, and may I not live that day on which those who meet me shall not address me as mistress. If, now, it is your wish to save yourself, O Emperor, there is no difficulty. For we have much money, and there is the sea, here the boats. However consider whether it will not come about after you have been saved that you would gladly exchange that safety for death. For as for myself, I approve a certain ancient saying that royalty is a good burial-shroud." When the queen had spoken thus, all were filled with boldness, and, turning their thoughts towards resistance, they began to consider how they might be able to defend themselves if any hostile force should come against them. . . .All the hopes of the emperor were centred upon Belisarius and Mundus, of whom the former, Belisarius, had recently returned from the Persian war bringing with him a following which was both powerful and imposing, and in particular he had a great number of spearmen and guards who bad received their training in battles and the perils of warfare. . . .

    When Hypatius reached the hippodrome, he went up immediately to where the emperor is accustomed to take his place and seated himself on the royal throne from which the emperor was always accustomed to view the equestrian and athletic contests. And from the palace Mundus went out through the gate which, from the circling descent, has been given the name of the Snail. . . . Belisarius, with difficulty and not without danger and great exertion, made his way over ground covered by ruins and half-burned buildings, and ascended to the stadium. . . . Concluding that he must go against the populace who had taken their stand in the hippodrome-a vast multitude crowding each other in great disorder-he drew his sword from its sheatb and, commanding the others to do likewise, with a shout be advanced upon them at a run. But the populace, who were standing in a mass and not in order, at the sight of armoured soldiers who had a great reputatation for bravery and experience in war, and seeing that they struck out with their swords unsparingly, beat a hasty retreat. . . . [Mundus] straightway made a sally into the hippodrome through the entrance which they call the Gate of Death. Then indeed from both sides the partisans of Hypatius were assailed with might and main and destroyed. . . . There perished among the populace on that day more than thirty thousand. . . . The soldiers killed both [Hypatius and Pompeius] on the following day and threw bodies into the sea. . . . This was the end of the insurrection in Byzantium.

    from Procopius, History of the Wars, I, xxiv, translated by H.B. Dewing (New York: Macmillan, 1914), pp. 219-230, slightly abbridged and reprinted in Leon Barnard and Theodore B. Hodges, Readings in European History, (New York: Macmillan, 1958), 52-55





    Aftermath

    aftermath

    The Hippodrome in Constantinople remained in use for races, games and public ceremonies up to the sack of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade in 1204. In the 12th century, Emperor Manuel I Komnenos even staged Western-style jousting matches in the Hippodrome. During the sack of 1204, the Crusaders looted the city and, among other things, removed the copper quadriga that stood above the carceres; it is now displayed at St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice. Thereafter, the Hippodrome was neglected, although still occasionally used for spectacles. A print of the Hippodrome from the fifteenth century shows a derelict site, a few walls still standing, and the spina, the central reservation, robbed of its splendor. Today only the obelisks and the Serpent Column stand where for centuries the spectators gathered. In the West, the games had ended much sooner; by the end of the fourth century public entertainments in Italy had come to an end in all but a few towns. The last recorded chariot race in Rome itself took place in the Circus Maximus in 549 AD.


    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; January 01, 2010 at 01:38 PM.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    note

    AoD2 will prepare a new preview concerning our new 3D buildings for the tactical view (the battle map).
    The buildings you have seen in the pictures above are not completely finished and also the locations of those buildings are not fixed.




    the team

    new music tracks
    apple

    our unit maker and the star of the AoD2-team with the by far best units I ever saw concerning love for details and textures
    empio

    preparing of AoD part 3, research of Muslim faction, research of kindom of Hira
    jermagon

    our building-model maker with extremly amazing results. Due to that guy Konstantinople become real in AOD2 - and of course other cities get also their "specials"
    Wundai

    the texture specialist for our new 3D buildings
    Karlo'St

    research and helping hands
    Naughteous Maximus(our 1st team member) & Lord Willy & William the Silent

    banners for the tactical view (battle mode)
    pacco (free member)

    guest of honour and advisor
    Thor the Bassist

    our new member - responsible for portraits
    Joar

    ...and myself...
    General concept, teamleading, co-ordination, historical research, interface, faction symbols, coding in general (including new settlement plans/anys/traits as well as EDU+DMB) , loading screens, mapping+map concept, ... and other stuff
    Pompeius Magnus

    many thanx to our free members and supporters like
    Halie Satanus
    Ramashan





    AoD2 offers jobs

    You want work for AoD2 and join the great team?
    No, problem!
    Just write a private message to me (or post here and I will contact you)

    What we need
    texture-specialists (with experiences in UV-mapping) for our new buildings. A lot of 3D building-models are finished, however, somebody has to paint them.

    You will find a lot of screenshots and example in our AoD2 forum. For detailed questions contact me.

    ...and of course you can contact us if you have skills in other parts of modding.

    Best regards
    Pompeius Magnus & Team




    new year

    The AoD2 team wish you a happy new year






    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; May 05, 2010 at 02:28 PM.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    thread opened

  7. #7
    AnthoniusII's Avatar Μέγαc Δομέστικοc
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    I want to playyyyyyyyyy....Now if posible!
    May i sugest a shiled change?
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Give Excubitoi the shield you made for the Candidates.
    The reason is simple.
    In all military manuals it has been said that the colours of each unit determind the colours of the shields also...
    I am not saying that your choice is wrong because nothing is certain...I am saying that following that "rule" would make things look more natural!

    I am waiting the "german" mercenaries to slauter those rebels!!!
    This mod will be the 1st that will teach history with almost 100% accuracy!
    Congratulations to the entire team!
    TGC in order to continue its development seak one or more desicated scripters to put our campaign scripts mess to an order plus to create new events and create the finall missing factions recruitment system. In return TGC will give permision to those that will help to use its material stepe by step. The result will be a fully released TGC plus many mods that will benefit TGC's material.
    Despite the mod is dead does not mean that anyone can use its material
    read this to avoid misunderstandings.

    IWTE tool master and world txt one like this, needed inorder to release TGC 1.0 official to help TWC to survive.
    Adding MARKA HORSES in your mod and create new varietions of them. Tutorial RESTORED.


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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Quote Originally Posted by AnthoniusII View Post
    May i sugest a shiled change?
    Oh my friend
    I think I said everything about that issue before. Meanwhile I feel also a little bit bored about that discussion.
    I wouldn't say "nothing is certain". We have several things which are certain concerning the equipment of some bodyguard units. We have written tales - underlined by findings.
    But we haven't a manual or a written description which explicit say that shield symbol A belongs to unit B.
    (there are some exceptions like the Domestici - because they are listed in the ND!)

    Anyway, if empio has the feeling that your suggestion is a good one concerning the aesthetics then he can change it. But this is his own decision.
    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; January 01, 2010 at 05:17 PM.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    The best preview I have ever seen !!! I am stunned, can't wait to see cavalry units. If eastern roman empire rebels are so amazing, then empire will be really supreme

  10. #10
    jermagon's Avatar Domesticus
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Great preview, all the units are simply piece of art.
    aside from the units that's my favorite pic it's like a panorama of Constantinople,the column of Justinian rocks !!!
    http://img197.imageshack.us/i/0060j.jpg/

    I wonder what's the building in the back ground... is it the Hippodrome?
    http://img193.imageshack.us/i/0064gi.jpg/


    George Galloway ''You don't give a damn !!!!!!!!''







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    Pompeius Magnus's Avatar primus inter pares
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    @Jermagon
    it's the original (vanilla) Circus Maximus. It is only a placeholder.
    A new preview will come soon about our new 3D buildings (including the new Hippodrom).

    That's the reason why I don't want speak too much about the buidlings now. Also the customized settlemet plan of Constantinople isn't finish yet. And karlo makes some new 3D buidlings right now (e.g. Hippodrom + church of holy apostles)
    So you see; a lot of new stuff arrives in the next few days.

    @Ostrogoth
    Quote Originally Posted by Ostrogoth View Post
    ... If eastern roman empire rebels are so amazing, then empire will be really supreme
    I'm not sure what you mean. The soldiers shown in this preview are normal "Eastern Romans".
    They fight against the Blues. But also the Blues are part of the regular unit pool of the Romans.
    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; January 01, 2010 at 12:27 PM.

  12. #12

    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    What about Rome? Will it be custom settlement too?

  13. #13
    Pompeius Magnus's Avatar primus inter pares
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    short answer: yes, of course.
    Rome was still the spiritual center of the known world and christianity (beside Constantinople).
    We will also make several new 3D models for that city like the Basilika of Constantine (ancient St.Peter) and others.

  14. #14

    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    I see unit cards are not done, are you going to do unit cards after you finish doing all units? Are new building icons and unit descriptions in same state?

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    Athenogoras's Avatar Campidoctor
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    I see unit cards are not done, are you going to do unit cards after you finish doing all units? Are new building icons and unit descriptions in same state?
    I would be very surprised if AOD2-team spent many years making this mod and then release it in an unfinished state. Don´t you think? There are priorities in making a mod. I´m 110% sure there will be unitcards eventually.

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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Exactly, Athenogoras.

    @Ostrogoth
    the Building_UIs are finished, just for info.

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    Athenogoras's Avatar Campidoctor
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Great preview and info. Fantastic units.
    These circusfactions really have some similarities to the more modern "huliganism" of modern football.(although in this case there is a political and military dimension as well)

    I have also read that outright abuse of an emperor in the circus was not unknown(perhaps the only place for the populace to went their anger at this time)
    John the Lydian gives an example.
    A lampoon(satire) in four elegiac couplets, posted up at the hippodrome at Constatinople in early 6 centry(510-515), attacking the Emperor Anastasius at a time when his financial policy was being carried out through Marinus The Syrian, who was pretorian prefect of the East. Anastasius is named: he is addressed as "basileu kosmophtore"(world-destroying emperor) and he is accused of "money-grubbing"(philochremosyne) and Marinus is named only as Scylla to his Charybdis.

    There were also milder demonstrations, for example at Alexandria mentioned by Philo, who says he saw an audinece rising to its feet and shouting with enthusiasm at the mention of "the name of freedom" in the "Auge" a play of Euripides now lost to us.

  18. #18
    Pompeius Magnus's Avatar primus inter pares
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Quote Originally Posted by Athenogoras View Post
    (although in this case there is a political and military dimension as well)
    your tales and examples are 100% correct. I have nothing to add.

    The so called factiones became an extremly influencial part of the empire.
    I have some tales that even families were divided because the son was member of the Whites and the farther of the Blues. The sister married a men - member of the Greens.And everybody made his own political business.

    The Hippodrom was indeed used to give a voice to the people. And this was also wished by the emperors. It is important to understand that the palace area was huge like a small independant city - and the emperors (many/ not all!) never moved out of the gates.
    So, they had no idea about the real feelings of the streets.
    The informations which passed the gates to the palace were filtered by an army of eunuchs, officers, officials and servants. The informations given in the Hippodrom weren't filtered, it was the reality.

    In Wikipedia you can read that after the riots were finished the political parties nealry disapperared and had no power anymore.
    And this isn't true.
    Some years after the riots the Blues were powerful again (in the capital as well as in other cities) and they were used again to protect the walls of several cities. They never gained the same power like before the riots, however, they still were an important element of the empire.
    Last edited by Pompeius Magnus; January 01, 2010 at 02:10 PM.

  19. #19
    Athenogoras's Avatar Campidoctor
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    In Wikipedia you can read that after the riots were finished the political parties nealry disapperared and had no power anymore.
    And this isn't true.
    Yes, in fact their importance seems to have grown from the late 6th century onwards and especially from the reign of Heraclius in the first half of the seventh century, where they(the circus-factions) were given a more important role in imperial ceremonial.

    I wonder will the cult of the virgin, the "Theotokos", at Constantinople be featured. Or is this a later development out of the mods timeframe?

  20. #20
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    Default Re: Ages of Darkness *** THE NIKA RIOTS *** PREVIEW

    Mater Dei is of course matching our time. You can introduce that cult since 431AD.
    What do you have in your mind? Any idea?

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