Where Eagles Fly - the 1796 IH
The year is 1796. George Washington's second term as President of the newborn United States of America is coming to an end, and he has made it clear that he will not run for a third. Meanwhile, in Europe the French Revolutionary Wars are still raging, with the French moving to bring freedom to the other peoples of Europe and establishing client states such as the Batavian Republic.
As a politician in the United States, you will have the opportunity to fight for political power - and hopefully become the President - lead armies if you so wish, and make history.
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National stats, 1805:
King: John Pappas
Prime Minister: William Hall
House of Lords: 34 seats (incl. Nestor Weatherby, John Chevalier, William Olson)
House of Representatives: 107 seats (56 National Republican, 51 Federalist)
Other:
-Governor of the Northwest Territory - Nestor Weatherby
Economy: 95.5%
American protectorates, 1805:
-Kingdom of Greece
Map of the USA, 1800:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Income:
Income tax: 0%
Tariffs: 6%
Trade agreements:
-Britain: +5%
-Austria: +5%
-Russia: +5%
-Prussia: +5%
-Spain: +5%
-Netherlands: +5%
National Bank: +20%
Upkeep: -25% per turn
Other:
-Tribute from Morocco: +5% per turn for 5 turns
-Tribute from Algiers: +7% per turn for 5 turns
-Tribute from Tunis: +8% per turn for 3 turns
-Autonomy for NWT: -5%
-Autonomy + slashed taxes for Tennessee & Kentucky: -5%
Total: +23% per turn
Military:
Available Manpower: 1,598,944
Standing armies:
Legion of the United States:
Commander: Nestor Weatherby
2,000 men
1st Sub-Legion - Line Infantry
2nd Sub-Legion - Line Infantry
Legion of the United States in the West:
Commander: Vincent Lazare
1,500 men
3rd Sub-Legion - Light Infantry
4th Sub-Legion - Light Cavalry
Artillery Sub-Legion - Artillery
First United States Fleet:
Commander: Alexander Styloski
USS Bunker Hill - Frigate
USS Constitution - Frigate
USS Yorktown - Frigate
USS Charleston - Brigantine
USS Lexington - Brigantine
USS Concord - Brigantine
USS Boston - Brigantine
USS Patriot - Brigantine
Meshuda - Brigantine (captured from Algeria Nov. 30th, 1798)
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This will not be a conventional IH. Instead of taking entire countries, players will be controlling United States politicians; naturally, this IH will be very heavily RP-based, and wars will more often be fought in Congress than on the battlefield. You will need to write up a character and form/join a party (unless you'd much rather remain an independent) before getting to work.
Format for Characters:
Pic: Self-explanatory, not mandatory though.
Name: Self-explanatory.
Party: If you belong to one.
Office: Are you a Senator or just a member of the House of Representatives?
Age: Be realistic - I don't want 8 year olds running for office
Date of Birth: Also self-explanatory.
Marital Status: Are you married? Single? Divorced, or unfortunately widowed?
Children: Don't forget name, age & gender.
Ethnicity: Keep in mind that this isn't the modern day, so we're...unlikely to see, say, a black guy from Georgia running for POTUS.
Home State: Keep in mind that this is 1796.
Occupation: Again, be realistic - no astronauts running for Senator here.
Religious Views: Self-explanatory. Nothing anachronistic (ex. atheists running for office in the ultra-conservative South) please.
Biography: Self-explanatory. Not asking for a novel here, but I don't want paperbacks either.
Here are some major issues your character will need to deal with:
Taxation - Self-explanatory.
Military - Is a national army the future? Or should we instead rely on state militias? Or maybe some compromise can be reached?...
The Economy & Trade - Should free-market principles be followed? Or is a protectionist approach in order? Should we throw our weight behind the Industrial Revolution and drive towards a better tomorrow, or look back to the past and work to set up a nation of autonomous yeoman farmers?
Foreign Policy - Should the USA align with the revolutionaries in France? Or should we wash our hands of the French extremists (remember, these guys ran out Lafayette) and instead align with the old British enemy? Or maybe it'd be better to just keep our noses out of foreign affairs?...
Immigration - Should we welcome all who pass through our borders in search of better fortunes? Or limit immigration to protect local business and the like?
National Bank - Is the Bank of the United States necessary for financial order and regulation? Or is it a tool for federal oppression that we must get rid of ASAP?
Slavery - A morally repugnant practice that must be ended, and the quicker the better? Or a necessary evil required to keep the economy functional? Or a perfectly justified practice that helps keep the uppity Negroes in their place? (keep in mind this is the 18th century here - racism was pretty much everywhere, these don't have to be your true views)
Political rules:
You may choose to run for the Senate (32 seats) or the House of Representatives (106 seats). As turns are one year long, every Senator and Congressman will have to face an election every two turns. The majority and minority parties in Congress are expected to elect a Majority Leader and a Minority Leader, respectively. Ditto for the Senate (Majority & Minority leaders as well as a President pro tempore). Speakers of the House are to be elected by the entire House of Representatives; a simple majority is all they will need.
The President can veto legislation, though a presidential veto can be overturned by a 2/3rds majority in both Houses. The President also controls the armed forces, and while the power to actually declare war rests with Congress, when war does break out it will be down to the President to set objectives and write up an overall strategy. Lastly, Presidents may appoint federal judges (though they require Senatorial approval) and grant pardons.
The House of Representatives has the power to pass bills, settle deadlocked elections, approve declarations of war and impeach officials.
The Senate has the power to consent to treaties, confirm appointments and trying impeached officials. Also, any bill passed in the House must also be passed by the Senate.
The President also has the authority to appoint Cabinet members, but each appointment must then be confirmed by simple majority by the Senate. The present Cabinet officials are:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Players may form their own parties, join existing parties and cut backroom deals (over PMs, MSN etc) to form coalitions or outright unite parties. Nothing stopping you from running as an Independent though.
Party format:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Do keep in mind that a party's ideology will affect its electoral prospects all over the country (ex. a protectionist party will be popular in New England, an abolitionist party will have practically zero support in the South, etc.)
The 12th Amendment hasn't been passed yet, so while the player to get the most votes will become President, the runner-up in every presidential election will land the seat of the Vice-President. However, each party is expected to form a ticket with both a presidential and vice-presidential candidate before an election begins.
I'll set up election threads when it's time - every 2 turns for the House of Representatives, 4 turns for the POTUS and 6 for the Senate. During an election, you will be expected to put up propaganda, debate with other candidates, talk about any issues you feel are important, and tour states to try and rally support. Choose your words and actions carefully - gaffes, unpopular issues, brawls in Congress, over-the-top insults towards favored politicians or entire states, etc. can cost you the election. Election campaigns will run for three RL days.
And before you ask, yes, you can start brawls in CongressJust don't godmod and kill off characters without their owner's permission. You may also challenge other characters to duels, which will be held in the Duels & RP subforum and be moderated by the host (yours truly) - naturally, the other player must agree to it as well, and just as obviously the loser will die.
The Senate can also form an investigative committee to, well, investigate things - specifically, Presidential executive orders and any bill that they suspect has been passed with the use of dirty tricks (namely bribery). Each prosecuting player character in the committee must invest a # of PPs into the committee; the higher the number, the higher the Committee's chances of success become. Meanwhile, the defending player characters (Presidents or Senators who were either personally involved in the investigated bills or just want to keep it in place) can invest their own PPs into screwing up the Committee's efforts; naturally, the more PPs they invest the lower the Committee's chances of success become.
Election rules:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Political Points rules:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
I'd rather the use of PPs be kept secret (and I'm sure anybody who does want to use them will also want to keep 'em a secret) so just shoot me a PM.
Military rules:
Players may send their characters off to war (when a war involves the US, obviously) as commanders of an army. Battles will be settled in the Wars & Battles subforum, the way most battles were settled in the DoM IH (with mods, plans & the like).
Winning battles will naturally make you more popular, losing will disgrace your name and weaken your reputation, and of course there's the ever-present threat of your character coming down with a nasty case of death on the battlefield.
Recruitment:
Militia Regiment - 1,500 - 1%, 1 day - poorly trained, ill-equipped and undisciplined (but cheap and quick to raise) irregulars useful for little more than human wave attacks, police actions or home defense while the real soldiers are off on campaign.
Line Infantry Regiment - 1,000 - 2%, 3 days - the bread and butter of any army, well-trained and well-equipped professionals/semi-professionals capable of fighting in disciplined formations, giving and receiving volleys of musket fire and fighting in close quarters with their bayonets.
Light Infantry Regiment - 600 - 2.5%, 3 days - elite rifle-armed sharpshooters and skirmishers best used for recon, guerrilla warfare, countering opposing light infantry units or knocking off enemy commanders.
Light Cavalry Regiment - 500 - 3%, 6 days - Hussars, lancers and carabiniers who can both function as a faster, mounted Light Inf. Rgt. and as shock cavalry, though they will not fare well in protracted melee engagements.
Heavy Cavalry Regiment - 500 - 4%, 6 days - Cuirassiers who, though not as agile or proficient in ranged combat as the Light Cavalry, are quite capable of smashing through enemy lines head-on and holding their own in drawn-out close-quarters combat.
Artillery Regiment - 400, 20 cannons - 5%, 1 week - Artillery crews capable of laying waste to fortresses and decimating massed formations of enemy troops with their cannons, but are highly vulnerable in close quarters.
Mercenaries - Size varies - Cost varies, instant recruitment - Various mercenaries from all over the world, often hardened veterans of colonial or continental conflicts, who have offered their services in exchange for a few bags of gold. They are only available upon request (that is, you have to actively seek them out) and will eventually leave. Note that they can revolt if not paid enough for their services. Mercenaries are also the only unit a General can recruit, and their recruitment will not require a Presidential signature, just Congressional approval.
Recruitable ships:
Cutter - 4%, 3 days - very small ships armed with only one or two cannons, useful for enforcing the law on the high seas but little else.
Brigantine - 6%, 6 days - lightly armed but at least battle-worthy and speedy ships, useful as cheap escorts and capable of dealing with most pirates.
Frigate - 10%, 1 week - Well-armed, maneuverable medium ships-of-the-line that form the bulk of most battlefleets.
Man o' War - 15%, 2 weeks - Mighty warships boasting impressive armaments that generally serve as flagships.
Privateers - Cost varies, instant recruitment - The seaborne equivalent of mercenaries. Like mercenaries, Privateers will only make their price and ability known upon request, and can be hired by Admirals. Also like mercenaries, Privateers can turn against you if they don't get their paychecks. However, unlike mercenaries, Privateers can be used to attack other countries' merchant ships with a good (75%) chance of you not getting caught. Like with mercenaries, you won't need the President to recruit them, just Congress's green light.
All units' upkeep is 1/2 of their price. Also, when recruiting units, please group them into named armies or fleets - makes them much easier to track, and much easier on the eyes (well, at least mine) too
Economic rules:
The following will strengthen the economy:
Trade: 5%/trade agreement.
Infrastructure: An investment of sorts - say you pour in 25% of the economy into infrastructure, the US will gain 5% econ/turn for the next 25 turns.
Industrial/Agrarian expansion: Both of these work like investments, just like infrastructure. Industrial expansion works exactly like infrastructure by bringing in 5% econ boosts every turn equivalent to the amount of econ invested, agrarian expansion brings in double the investment in two turns. (ex. invest 25% econ and gain 50% after 2 turns, but it's a one-time gain)
Taxes: Coming in 2 flavors for simplicity, income tax and tariffs. Income tax affects the happiness of the people, tariffs affect foreign relations and the likelihood of future trade agreements. Both work somewhat like infrastructure - for example, a 100% income tax and 100% tariff will give you 200% econ/turn. The Secretary of the Treasury also has the authority to introduce new taxes (ex. whiskey tax) with the consent of Congress and the President.
National Bank: If a National Bank exists, it will steadily add 20% to the economy every turn. If one is not in place, the economy will completely be left at the mercy of the market, which will bring in upturns of 5% to 50% or downturns of -5% to -50% every turn.
Originally Posted by Frederick II
Remember that only 3 parties may exist at a time.
