Osman's Dream, An Ottoman RPG

[m_1512]

Osman's Dream

Spoiler for Something to set the mood: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmjtZLbYnNE

Mod Team

Head Mod: m_1512
Mods: Lucius Malfoy, Gandalf. (confirmed so far)
If you are interested to mod, please send a PM to Lucius Malfoy.

Also, this time the game will be actually run democratically by the mod team. The role of the head mod will be to do minor stuff and help out the mod team. And step in whenever necessary.

Forum Structure

Takth-e-Rum
Where the nobles of the land converse and address His Serene Majesty

Osmanlı Topraklari
The realm of the House of Osman

Serhat-e-Osmanlı
Expansion and defence of the empire's borders

Arşiv
The Archives where all old stuff goes here

[m_1512]

Characters

Every player is allowed two characters. The characters can be related to each other too. This is beneficial as you can continue with the second one if the main character dies. - Characters may commit suicide. - A death roll will be rolled when the character turns 65. This is to highlight the life expectancy in the Ottoman realm. The initial odds will start at 20% and will increase at 5% per year. After the odds cross 75%, the odds will not increase. - Heirs may inherit all titles and estates, but a good part must be given off as per Islamic traditions. Failing to do so will result with a fall in prestige and popularity. - Prestige and Popularity are only partially transferrable, that is only a maximum of 50%. If the main character had the loyalty of any army, a roll would determine if they would remain loyal to the son. - Players can claim historical character or have a fictional character belonging to any house of that era. And as for shared house characters, the first person to claim first (house or character) becomes the head of the family/house. The next claims are considered as other members of family. - Player shared character houses are kind of hard to define in a single word. In this rule, players can have their character a relation to another player's character. This will require the permission of the player having the head of house character.

Point system

The point system is used here to track a character’s progress and position in the game. These points are earned by certain actions and decisions and can be used via roleplay. There are two kinds of points in the game: Prestige, Popularity. Prestige is the awe and respect commanded by your character in the sultanate. It is used to sway to primarily sway the loyalty of the armies of the realm, particularly of the Janissaries. It also determines if your character will be respected by the foreign rulers as they might not listen to a person with low prestige. Popularity is on the other hand is the renown your character has among the ordinary people. It can be used to either quell revolts or incite them against others. Popularity is another way by which your character can advance in the realm. Earning prestige is determined by the actions and decisions of your characters. Decisions and actions like answering a call to war, amassing wealth, having strong personal army or navy etc. will increase prestige. Prestige will be attributed by moderators upon completion of such actions. Popularity is similarly earned by improving the province or the entire realm by calling for reforms, distributing wealth among people, and lowering taxes.

Traits

For this game, the system of attributes like strength and intelligence has been substituted by traits. This is because the former system was mostly unmanageable for players and difficult to track for moderators. Also, there are no specific classes or paths in this game. A player can have a character, which is a military commander, of the sultan’s court, an intriguing person, and indulge in trade. Traits are in most cases assigned by moderators for effective and/or creative use of respective factors, but players may apply for traits in the moderator action thread if they feel they are eligible. Negative traits will be applied for disastrous use. Every five years, each character gets one additional point to assign however they like. Traits are as follows: Military traits Army Legendary Ghazi warrior: +5 to infantry rolls Renowned Janissary: +4 to infantry rolls Scarred Warrior: +3 to infantry rolls Expert Warrior: +2 to infantry rolls Competent Fighter: +1 to infantry rolls ------ Weak Fighter: -1 to infantry rolls Misguided Warrior: -2 to infantry rolls Flogged Officer: -3 to infantry rolls Coward: -4 to infantry rolls Abysmal Commander: -5 to infantry rolls Legendary Turcoman: +5 to cavalry rolls Renowned Sipahi: +4 to cavalry rolls Master of Horse: +3 to cavalry rolls Expert Horseman: +2 to cavalry rolls Competent Rider: +1 to cavalry rolls ------ Poor Rider: -1 to cavalry rolls Cannot control the Horse: -2 to cavalry rolls I fell off the Horse: -3 to cavalry rolls Afraid of Horses: -4 to cavalry rolls Hopeless Tactician: -5 to cavalry rolls Excellent Eyesight +3 to artillery rolls Powder Alchemist +2 to artillery rolls Gun proponent +1 to artillery rolls ------ Nervous around guns -1 to artillery rolls Scientific Philistine -2 to artillery rolls Cataracts -3 to artillery rolls Navy Amir al Sagar: +5 to naval rolls Master of the Seas: +4 to naval rolls Flawless Navigator: +3 to naval rolls Expert Seaman: +2 to naval rolls Competent Captain: +1 to naval rolls ------ Poor Sailor: -1 to naval rolls Seasick: -2 to naval rolls Clueless Navigator: -3 to naval rolls What is a Compass?: -4 to naval rolls Wooden floats, right?: -5 to naval rolls Intrigue traits Hide in Plain sight: +5 to escape rolls Escape Artist: +4 to escape rolls Sharp-minded: +3 to escape rolls Theatrical: +2 to escape rolls Agile: +1 to escape rolls Master of Mysteries: +5 to assassination rolls Expert Assassin: +4 to assassination rolls Serpentine: +3 to assassination rolls Fatale: +2 to assassination rolls Hit and Run: +1 to assassination rolls Economic traits Region Productivity traits Legendary Vizier: +5 to productivity rolls Efficient Administrator: +4 to productivity rolls Expert Governor: +3 to productivity rolls Renowned Scholar: +2 to productivity rolls Good Planner: +1 to productivity rolls ------ Bad Planner: -1 to productivity rolls Indecisive: -2 to productivity rolls Hopeless Governor: -3 to productivity rolls Story books, right?: -4 to productivity rolls Abysmal Administrator: -5 to productivity rolls Naval Trade traits Mercantile Mastermind: +5 to trade rolls Calculated Risk-taker: +4 to trade rolls Savvy Merchant: +3 to trade rolls Experienced Merchant: +2 to trade rolls Competent Merchant: +1 to trade rolls ------ Incompetent Merchant: -1 to trade rolls Pathetic Merchant: -2 to trade rolls Land-lubber: -3 to trade rolls Gambling Fool: -4 to trade rolls Which way up, this map?: -5 to trade rolls

Assassinations

Assassinations are a means of getting rid of other characters that comes in your character’s progress. However, assassinations should have a definite purpose, assassinating another character for the heck of it isn’t a valid motive. To accommodate the preferences of all players, assassinations shall be of two types; secret and open. Secret Assassinations This type of assassinations is carried out by hired blades. The price and efficiency depends on the assassin and his expertise. A D20 dice is used by moderators in this case. Intrigue traits do not apply here as the character is not directly involved. The following are the levels of hired blades available: Expert Blade: 12/20 Professional Blade: 7/20 Competent Blade: 5/20 Apprentice: 2/20 After the assassination roll is completed, another roll will be made for the outcome of that act. The following are the outcomes for the assassination: Assassination successful: 1-5/20 (assassin escapes and no names divulged) Assassination failed: 6-10/20 (assassin escapes and no names divulged) Assassination successful: 11-15/20 (assassin caught and divulges your name) Assassination failed: 16-20/20 (assassin caught and divulges your name) Assassination of higher characters This separate rule is considering the fact that characters such as the Sultan and Grand Vizier are always guarded by elite Sipahi guards. Hence, it is always a challenge for any assassin to reach them first before they can actually try assassinating them. So, there shall be an additional step in this process: Entry rolls, Assassination rolls, Outcome rolls. Entry Rolls: The odds used for the rolls shall be the same as assassination ones according to the level of the assassin. The outcomes shall be as follows: Plot successful: 1-5/20 (assassin gains entry and no names divulged) Plot failed: 6-10/20 (assassin escapes and no names divulged) Plot successful: 11-15/20 (assassin gains entry and no names divulged) Plot failed: 16-20/20 (assassin caught and divulges your name) The assassination and outcome rolls shall be the same. Once this process is complete, the outcome is posted by the moderator in the Herald thread as like news. Open Assassinations This assassination is where your character tries to kill another character via role-play. Details are essential here such as - is the target has left the scene (player leaving the thread) before you can act, or is the target accompanied by guards etc. Intrigue traits apply here. For Sultan and Grand Vizier, the same rule of access applies with the modification whether your character has physical access to those characters. Players can however bypass this rule by applying creativity.

The Administration

The government system of the Sultanate is a blend of three prevailing systems: Imperial Roman (of the Eastern Roman Empire) Pre-Islamic Turkish customs (of the Turcoman) Post-Islamic (of the current Sultanate) The Sultan enjoys supreme power in the entire realm, unless he decides to limit it. This is bestowed by the idea of divine right to rule the people. The Sultan is aided by various high officers and nobles for advice. Nobility The realm is basically divided into Beylerbeyliks. This is the rough equivalent of the European duchy. Beylerbeyliks are further divided into Beyliks, a rough equivalent of the European county. The hierarchy of the nobility is based on these divisions, and are as follows: Sultan The supreme ruler of the realm, the Sultan is the ruler of all lands, though only some lands directly. A sultan usually gives off lands to be governed to Beylerbeys (dukes) in exchange for fealty. A Sultan can also give lesser lands to Beys (counts) if he wishes. Although these bequeathed lands can be inherited by the descendents of the nobles, the Sultan holds the power to revoke the titles unless he limits the powers of the Sultan. Beylerbeys Beylerbeys are higher nobles who rule large lands. These lands are based on certain factors such as former principality, cultural identity etc. Beylerbeys can further give off lands to beys in exchange for fealty. Beys Beys are the basic level of nobility. They rule single provinces called Beyliks. Beys can either swear fealty to beylerbeys or be direct vassals to the sultan himself. Viziers Viziers are lords, mostly Beylerbeys or Beys but who holds higher prestige to their peers. This title is the rough equivalent of the European margrave. Viziers are also bestowed with greater autonomy and many grants in exchange of special service to the Sultanate. The service can be in the form of protection, or resources etc. Due to this special status, Viziers can break free from the liege’s rule and rise up against the Sultan. Divan The Divan is the administrative body of ministers appointed by the Grand Vizier to advise and aid the Sultan in the administration of the realm. The Divan is headed by the Grand Vizier. The Grand Vizier is appointed and can only be dismissed by the Sultan. The Grand Vizier appoints the Divan by discretion - how many to appoint and whom to appoint. The Grand Vizier can anytime dismiss any minister of the Divan. The Divan can also be dismissed on orders of the Sultan. [FIELDSET2=Title and Offices] There are certain special titles given to prominent people of the sultanate depending on their ranking in the nobility or any high office they hold. There are also certain offices that need to be occupied unless the titles are abolished by law. High Offices The High offices constitute the divan which further forms the royal court. The following are the officers of the sultanate and forms the divan. These offices can only be abolished by reforms or any more added into the divan. Grand Vizier: The grand vizier is the European equivalent of the chancellor and steward combined. The grand vizier is appointed by the sultan and can only be dismissed by him. The grand vizier appoints and dismisses other officers in the divan. He can also govern and lead on behalf of the sultan. The grand vizier acts as regent if the sultan is still a minor. Marshal: The marshal is the commander of the sultan’s army and navy. The marshal is tasked with providing advice to the court on military matters. And in times of war, marshal the entire armies of the realm, both sultan’s and vassals. Shaykh al-Islam: Another part of the Divan is the Shaykh al-Islam, who is appointed as an advisor on religious matters and as officer of justice in the realm. Titles The following are the titles given to the nobility and the officers. The titles are added as part of the name, either as prefix or suffix. Sultan: The title of the most supreme ruler of the sultanate. The title is only awarded to the ruling monarch. Pasha: A title of the high nobility, this title is awarded naturally only to grand vizier and beylerbeys. Nazir: The military title awarded to the marshal of the sultan’s armies. This title can also be extended by the sultan and be awarded to the bravest generals or admirals of the realm. Bey: This title is awarded to every ruler of a beylik by way of rights.

The Ottoman war machine

The Ottoman war machine consisted of two branches, the army and the navy. Their organisation is as follows: The Armies The armies of the sultanate were of further two branches – sultan’s royal armies and the vassal armies. The basic fighting unit of the army was the Orta. The orta was a regimental system like the European equivalent system of companies. An orta was comprised of around 1,000 – 3,000 troops. The strength varied in troop levels like regular and irregular, and branches like cavalry and infantry etc. An orta was paid with regular payment like salaries with the only exception of Timariots. Upon the death of a character, the next character has to pay for their upkeep. An orta was considered destroyed in war when more than 60% of its numbers was cut down. For elite troops, this number was 75%. The timariots is an exception to this rule. The timariots are a feudal cavalry who are paid in form of lands when recruited and need no upkeep. Upon disbanding, the lands revert back to the lord. Timariots also disband when their recruiting lord no longer governs their province. Timariots can only be recruited by the lord directly ruling the province. The last and higher unit to the orta is an army. An army is formed by the grouping of 3 or more ortas. An orta is numbered, contrary to the European custom of naming it by its commander. An army however, can be either numbered or named according to the lord’s discretion. The Navies Like the armies, the navies were also of two branches – the sultan’s royal navies and the vassal navies. The basic fighting unit of the navy is the warship. Like an orta, a warship is commissioned and the upkeep paid by the lord. By default tradition, all ships of all subjects of the sultanate have the right to dock at any port in the sultanate. A player cannot be charged for tax for docking at another player’s port. A warship was commissioned and upkeep paid by the lord. Ships also would have damage due to war, and upgrades, both which has to be paid by the player owning the ship. In event when a player captures enemy ships, the player has to pay for the repairs unless he shifts the cost by gifting the ship to another player as tribute if he does not wish to acquire those ships. Ships do not have any minimum cap to be made into a fleet. A fleet is formed by having 1 bigger and powerful flagship among the group of ships. Organising ships into a fleet saves the player the trouble of issuing orders directly to the fleet instead of individual ships. Arming the Troops This is a unique concept where a player has to arm his troops while recruiting ortas. This will bring balance and variety in the game. A player will have to choose between various armaments and their merits and demerits, along with the costs. For example, consider the recruitment of an orta. Consider that the player has the option to either arm them with traditional weapons (sword + shield + bow) or with the new weapon (muskets). Naturally, the latter will have the advantage of superior firepower but have the risks of easy targets for cavalry and costs. The former however has cost and defence advantage, but not the firepower as the musket. Military Advantage Every realm in history had its own set of strengths or their exclusive tactic. So did the Ottomans. This tactic is the massed cavalry charge. This will be a tactic where you can break enemy defensive positions by a massive charge from your cavalry. The charge will have to be made by a cavalry force of considerable size to be even effective. The following points highlight the finer points of this tactic: The charge is made by a large body of cavalry, which is at least 2 ortas in strength. The charge destroys or weakens any defensive infantry formation, the damages depending on the formation and the type of charging cavalry. Since the charge is based on momentum, it is not easy to recall it back. However, the player can try to recall the charge it back, and a roll will be made (considers cavalry stats of the player) to determine if the recall was successful or not. But if the charge reaches near the target, it is impossible to call it off. This tactic can be made against enemy cavalry too. However, the impact will be greater than the charge against infantry. A player can even risk decimating the entire body with a single charge here.

Economy

The basic currency of the sultanate is Akçe. Players can utilise three ways to substitute their income: Taxes Trade War Taxes Every region has a productivity tier which determines the wealth generated by the provinces in that year. The moderator will roll a dice to determine the production. Players directly ruling the province can charge the region for tax. However, collecting more than 75% of the tax generates a roll by a moderator to determine whether the region revolts. Also, 1/4 of all earnings by tax have to be paid to the overlord in form of tribute. For beys, this is paid to the beylerbeys. Similarly, the beylerbeys must pay this to the sultan. Trade Players can engage in sea trade by proxy. That is, merchants will commandeer trade ships to trade for the player. Trade will work in the simple method of sending trade ships to various trade theatres where they will trade in a good for an entire year. A moderator will do a roll for any bonuses or otherwise. Any player’s character can indulge in trade. However, the in-game conditions will affect trade either negatively or positively. For example, a lengthy war can result in trade ships being confiscated to be used for warfare. Also, the foreign relations also affect trade. Your enemy can block entry of your ships to the ports they control. To start trading, post in the trading thread about which ships to be sent to which port to trade in a particular good. War One of the most ancient ways to generate income is war. It was the method of the Roman empire of antiquity. Players can utilise this method if they are completely bankrupt and/or have no other means to earn money they desperately need. This does not necessarily mean declaring wars when some are ongoing. This applies to current wars too. However, this might affect your prestige and/or popularity points, depending on the situation. Income through war includes the following scenarios: Plundering and pillaging the lands. But the plundered province will also be more likely to rise in arms. Looting the treasury. This happens when a huge blow is struck to the enemy, in most instances capture of his capital. The entire coffers of the enemy can be seized by the players and accordingly divided. Demanding of annual tribute. This can happen only after or during completion of war. A player can demand an annual tribute from the enemy in exchange for non-hostility and/or protection.

Ottoman Politics

Contrary to popular belief, the Ottoman state was actually a much political place. Below the façade of stability, there was the undeniable fact that it all depended upon the ability of the sultan to enforce his will. Strong sultans would be able to maintain stability and enforce their will, while weaker sultans would have to be content being controlled by much stronger nobles. Also, fratricide (slaying of kin to rid all pretenders) and succession wars were a common feature in the era. All this can be used to make playing much interesting. The sultan was the most powerful ruling sovereign in the realm, true. But all this depended upon the ability of one man to control it. As the supreme ruler, the player could do almost anything merely upon whim itself. But that whim would have consequences. The powers of the sultan can be restricted by nobles as role-play goes on, and vice-versa. The Kapikulu The Kapikulu were the household troops of the sultan. They were the elites which included the sipahis and janissaries. They protected the sultan and his family and fought for him in battle. But they have a drawback. While sipahis remain steadfast to the ruling sultan and their heirs, janissaries however, can be swayed by prestigious nobles. This is where the prestige point’s concept comes in, but will be explained in another part. Now, I am sure you’d be thinking that all a sultan has to do is getting rid of janissaries. Well, hardly that. Disbanding a janissary or sipahi orta without proper reason would only provoke the rest into revolt. And since the sipahis guard the sultan and janissaries the capital city, it would only be a dangerous situation. Successions Basically, Ottoman successions were a big affair. The main shows were fratricide (kin slaying) and succession wars, should that kin survive. But in the game, it would be highlighted differently, as every player has a right to claim the big title. Upon the death of the sultan character, interregnum will be declared for one whole game year. That time would be of anarchy and a perfect opportunity for players to seize power. How you do it is up to you, as long as it is creative and within role-play limits. It is also during this time that you can make use of the prestige and popularity points. Players will have the option to use either force, or guile to get their way. And also, no war can be declared or peace brokered during this time, as the sultanate is without a leader. So, foreign invasions would be a possibility if the realm is still at war when the sultan dies. Players can also use foreign backing to get the throne. Using the Points As the game progresses, you’ll naturally gather a lot of points. So, now we come to how we use the points. As mentioned above, there are two points – prestige and popularity. Prestige points can be used to sway the janissary regiments to your character. How is this useful? Simple, you can use the ortas to fight anyone you want, when you rebel. The regiments will even take up arms against the sultan or his heirs. Use them well… Popularity is a bit more complex. You can incite people to rebel. But peasants do not make strong armies for direct conflicts. Hence, you must use this point guilefully. By inciting revolts, you can tie down the enemy armies while you do your thing. Also, successful rebellions have a good chance of defecting to your side too.

[m_1512]

Please feel free to suggest and discuss...

[Nesimî]

Typo alert, Should be Osmanli Topraklari, not Toprakrali.

[Heavy Weapons Guy]

The video isn't working for me. Just showing up completely black.

[Gandalfus]

What are the base values of piety and prestige? Also, what are the starting amounts of money and how much money do landless men own?

[m_1512]

Typo alert, Should be Osmanli Topraklari, not Toprakrali.

Done, thanks.

The video isn't working for me. Just showing up completely black.

Changed to link.

What are the base values of piety and prestige? Also, what are the starting amounts of money and how much money do landless men own?

It will be there in the character thread.

[Gandalfus]

Ok

[Jokern]

Clarification please: do you spend the prestige and popularity points, or do you only gain points?

[m_1512]

Your prestige points influence rolls on stuff. As of now, I haven't considered the concept of spending as contrary actions does deduct the points.

[m_1512]

A surprise starting package to players registering now. Register before the forums are set up, and claim 3 ships free per player, no charge and no build time. There are two types of ships - warship or merchant ships.

Chamber of Claims (Osman's Dream)

Main Characters Registration (Osman's Dream: Will be moved once forums set up)

[Jokern]

Does one trait cost one point?

[m_1512]

I don't get you? Could you elaborate?

[Jokern]

In the registration it says allocated traits and a number of trait points you get. Here's an example:

Legendary Ghazi warrior: +5 to infantry rolls
Renowned Janissary: +4 to infantry rolls
Scarred Warrior: +3 to infantry rolls
Expert Warrior: +2 to infantry rolls
Competent Fighter: +1 to infantry rolls

Does the trait at the top cost more than the one at the bottom?

[Gandalfus]

+3 is worth three points, +5 is worth five points, etc etc.

[m_1512]

Unfortunately, due to some reasons that have come up, the devs have voted on scraping the project. I am sorry about this and I hope you all understand that nothing grieves me more than this.

But I really appreciate and thank you all for your support. Perhaps, we might try and come up with a new game idea.

[Captain Jupiter]

We are here for began game here?

[Gandalfus]

Wat.

[Captain Jupiter]

Nevermind.

[Shankbot de Bodemloze]

Damn that is a shame...

Have they given a reason?