An Early American Setting - WIP Title

**Lucius Malfoy** · August 11, 2019, 12:35 PM

Setting Information
The year is 1789. America has won its independence and endured its first rebellion. The first President has been elected this year and the country rejoices, yet there is much to do. America is without a standing military and the Bill of Rights is undergoing debate and discussion among the various politicians. Britain is still lingering upon the continent with Spain and France also possible threats. France is enduring a period of instability, which has temporarily albeited, in the wake of the constitutional monarchy imposed upon the King by the people. America must look to its shores to build itself up or risk losing its independence to more powerful neighbors. It must look West to expand its boundaries, secure its vital trade routes, and seek to keep any possible enemies at bay.

1789 is to be a vital year for this young country.

Maps - credit to Pericles of Athens

Political Map

Economy Map

**Lucius Malfoy** · August 11, 2019, 12:35 PM

Dynamic Foreign System

Dynamic Foreign System (aka DFS)

Throwing a pebble into a pool creates a ripple effect. So, too, does changing history in one country, even if it’s in a seemingly inconsequential way at first. Or, as the old poem goes:

“For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the message was lost.
For want of a message the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.”

In past games, history outside of the country being played would flow on rails, following the same linear paths it did in our reality. No longer! The Dynamic Foreign System intends to provide at least a little variability in how history unfolds from the moment the game starts. Every year, mods will select a number of major historical events that year which plausibly could’ve gone another way, determine those other ways and their likely short to medium-term consequences, and roll a die with as many faces as there are outcomes to determine what happens.

For example, let us take the Flight to Varennes. There could be at least two other outcomes to King Louis and his family trying to flee the country in addition to the historical one, them getting caught: perhaps he succeeds, or perhaps he doesn’t try at all. Then we, the mods, will take a 1d6 and assign outcomes to each value:

1-2, historical outcome. 3-4, Louis escapes successfully. 5-6, Louis doesn’t try at all.

The historical outcome would produce historical consequences, ie. Louis and the royal family discredit themselves badly, get confined to the Tuileries Palace and are probably doomed in the long run (though he might be able to avoid getting condemned to death by vote at a later event subject to the DFS).

If he escapes, it could make him into a lightning rod for royalist resistance, or still discredit him and actually damage the royalist cause more by leaving them stuck with a hated figurehead instead of a royal martyr - subject to more rolls.

And if he doesn’t try to flee at all, thereby retaining popularity and credibility, perhaps the French Revolutionary Wars peter out more quickly and the Bourbon constitutional monarchy will survive. This is just one example out of many.

We encourage players to suggest major historical events to be subjected to DFS rolls, as well. It is not guaranteed that the mod team will tackle them all, obviously - too many rolls and too much time lost - but the most interesting (not necessarily the ‘biggest’ events, either) will certainly be taken under consideration for their own rolls, to further spice up and alter our timeline from reality’s.

Electoral Rules

Electoral Rules - Presidency

The United States of America are, presently at least, a constitutional representative democracy. The President of the Union is not directly elected by the voters, but rather by an Electoral College representing the Union's constituent states. Per Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the Constitution, each state's legislature appoints a number of electors (who then vote for the President in the stead of the people they represent) equal to the combined number of their Senators and Representatives in Congress; the former is fixed at two per state, but the latter changes to represent the state's population every ten years.

To win the election, a presidential candidate must secure a simple majority (50%) of the Electoral College; they do not have to win the highest popular vote, or even the most states. States must however have a minimum of one elector.

Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates must be nominated by a party no later than the end of Monday on an election week (in-game year). That means a party's players should convene and begin debating on nominations ideally a week in advance. When the debate is over or time runs out, player characters need only vote for who the presidential and vice-presidential nominees of their party; by default a simple majority will do, although the players are free to make their party election as complicated as they'd like.

Per Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the Constitution, all presidential candidates must be at least 35 years old and be a natural-born citizen of the United States - or a citizen of the United States when the Constitution was adopted, as a sort of grandfather clause for the Founding Fathers, who were technically born in the British Empire rather than in the United States - who has also resided for at least the past 14 years on American soil in order to qualify for the election at all. It is also, to put it mildly, exceedingly unlikely for any candidate who isn't a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant to prevail at this point in the young nation's history.

At present, these are the states' electoral votes:
Massachussets - 16
New Hampshire - 6
Connecticut - 9
Rhode Island - 4
New York - 12
Pennsylvania - 15
New Jersey - 7
Delaware - 3
Maryland - 8
Virginia - 21
North Carolina - 12
South Carolina - 8
Georgia - 4

The people of each state naturally have their own priorities, often quite different from those of other states. Presidential candidates will need to announce stances on an assortment of issues important to the states, which affects the likelihood that that state's people (and, by extension, the electors representing them) will vote for them. They must first choose whether they agree or disagree with the issue, then rate the strength of their agreement/disagreement from 1 to 5. The states too will rank their stance of agreement/disagreement from 1-5, demonstrating how major each state thinks each issue is.

On election day, the presidential candidate's points in an issue are multiplied by the state's points; if they disagree on an issue, then the state's points in that issue become negative in this equation. This must be done for every issue, and whichever candidate has the highest number of points after all issues have been calculated wins the state.

For example: Let us say there are three issues in contention this election - abolition, tariffs, and war with Britain. Candidates A and B must select whether they agree or disagree on these issues, then rank their agreement/disagreement from 1-5. Let's say these are their final stances:

Candidate A:
Abolition: Agree - 5 (this is an urgent priority for the candidate and something they believe in deeply)
Tariffs: Agree - 3 (this is a middling priority for the candidate)
War with Britain: Disagree - 2 (this is something the candidate doesn't like)

Candidate B:
Abolition: Disagree - 5
Tariffs: Disagree - 4 (this is something the candidate is firmly opposed to)
War with Britain: Agree - 4

Now, for this example, let us suppose this election takes place in Massachussetts, Pennsylvania and South Carolina, and their stances on the issues are thus:

Massachussetts:
Abolition: Agree - 5
Tariffs: Agree - 4
War with Britain: Disagree - 5

Pennsylvania:
Abolition: Agree - 2
Tariffs: Disagree - 3
War with Britain: Disagree - 1 (this is a very low priority for the state)

South Carolina:
Abolition: Disagree - 5
Tariffs: Disagree - 4
War with Britain: Agree - 5

On election day, the chips fall thusly:

Massachussetts:
Candidate A: 47 points (5X5 on abolition = 25, 3X4 on tariffs = 12, 2X5 on war = 10)
Candidate B: -61 points (5X-5 on abolition = -25, 4X-4 on tariffs = -16, 5X-4 on war = -20)

Result: Landslide win for Candidate A.

Pennsylvania:
Candidate A: 3 points (5X2 on abolition = 10, 3X-3 on tariffs = -9, 2X1 on war = 2)
Candidate B: -2 points (5X-2 on abolition = -10, 4X3 on tariffs = 12, 4X-1 on war = -4)

Result: Candidate A wins, but his margin of victory isn't nearly as overwhelming as it was in MA.

South Carolina:
Candidate A: -47 points (5X-5 on abolition = -25, 3X-4 on tariffs = -12, 2X-5 on war = -10)
Candidate B: 61 points (5X5 on abolition = 25, 4X4 on tariffs = 16, 5X4 on war = 20)

Result: Landslide win for Candidate B.

Having won Massachussets and Pennsylvania, Candidate A wins the election with 31 electoral votes or EVs (MA - 16 + PA - 15) to Candidate B's 8 from SC.

But wait! The gap between candidates wasn't as bad in Pennsylvania as it was in MA and SC. That means PA is what we call a 'swing state', which can plausibly be pulled either way with a bit more effort. Every $1,000 a candidate spends on campaigning within a state gives him +1 point for the election day count. That means that if Candidate B had spent $6,000 on Pennsylvania, he would have won the state by one point, unless of course Candidate A also spends on the state to maintain & widen the gap between them.

If there are more than two candidates running, whoever has the highest number of points still wins. In the event that both candidates' # of points is tied in a state, a moderator must roll a simple six-sided die: 1-3 one candidate wins, 4-6 the other wins instead. If there are more than two candidates and they have somehow all gained exactly the same number of points, feel free to use a bigger die.

Since the 12th Amendment doesn't exist yet, although parties must still nominate a vice-presidential candidate, Vice-Presidents are not voted for together with the top half of their ticket (the presidential candidate), but elected separately in a parallel electoral process. Essentially, this means that until the 12th Amendment (or something like it) is ratified, election years actually have two major elections running concurrently: one for POTUS, one for VPOTUS. The vice-presidential election follows the exact same rules as the presidential one. This means that theoretically, a President can end up having to serve alongside a Vice-President from another party.

Since the 22nd Amendment also doesn't exist yet, there are presently no term limits on the Presidency. A President can run for the highest office in the land as many times as he wants, the only thing keeping him from it is the will of the people and his party; in fact, even the customary precedent for two terms doesn't exist yet either.

Moderators may add bonuses or maluses to presidential candidates depending on that year's events. For example, a President who has lost a major war or is presiding over an economic depression can expect a steep uphill climb for re-election, as can whoever is chosen by his party to succeed him if he himself won't or can't run again.

Electoral Rules - Congress

Now, we have covered covers presidential and vice-presidential elections. But what about legislative elections? After all, in the United States separation of powers is a core tenet of the government. The legislature, Congress, is divided into two bodies, an upper house called the Senate and a lower house called the House of Representatives.

Given the complexity and frequency of these elections, to save time and moderator energy, it will be assumed that player legislators will automatically stay in office until the player wants to retire the character, they die in office, etc.

There exist only two Senators per state, no more, no less (until and unless altered by constitutional amendment). Senators serve for six-year terms and are not currently popularly elected, instead being appointed by state legislatures much like electors. Thus, each state will automatically select Senators based on how it and the existing parties compare on issues.

Both parties' issue-points are calculated (points invested into agreement/disagreement on an issue that's in sync with the state are added, and where the party and the state AREN'T in sync the former's points are subtracted) and compared to the state's own tally of issue-points; if the party with the closest number of points does not exceed the state's own total and the party with the fewest points is still within 5 points of the state's total, then that state's Senators are split, with one each being from both parties.

Otherwise, the party that comes closest to (or even exceeds) the state's total gets both of the state's Senators. In case of there being three or more parties, the 5-point rule only applies to the two parties closest to the state's issue-point total.

Example: Parties A and B are contesting the Senate seats in Connecticut, New Jersey, and Virginia.

Party A:
Abolition: Agree - 4
Tariffs: Agree - 2
War with Britain: Disagree - 3

Party B:
Abolition: Disagree - 5
Tariffs: Disagree - 3
War with Britain: Agree - 1

And the states hold the following stances:

Connecticut:
Abolition: Agree - 5
Tariffs: Agree - 4
War with Britain: Disagree - 4

New Jersey:
Abolition: Disagree - 3
Tariffs: Agree - 3
War with Britain: Disagree - 2

Virginia:
Abolition: Disagree - 4
Tariffs: Disagree - 5
War with Britain: Agree - 3

In Connecticut, Party A easily attains both Senate seats (CT has a total of 13 points; Party A has a total of 9 points; and Party B has a total of -7). In New Jersey, each party gets a Senator (NJ has a total of 8 points; Party A has 1; Party B also has 1). In Virginia, Party B takes both Senators (VA has 12 points; Party A has -9; Party B has 9).

Player Senators count toward a state's Senate limit, so if there are already two player Senators present from any state, that state would never need its elections calculated unless one of the players drops their Senator.

===============

Members of the House are popularly elected every two years and apportioned by population at every decennial census to match its share of the national population, though each state is guaranteed at least one Representative. If you need an easy way to calculate the number of House seats a state has, just take the number of EVs they have and subtract two (representing the two Senators).

Mechanically, party seats in the House are to be calculated thus: for every issue on which they agree with the state's own stance, multiply the party's issue-points by the state's, then add each result and convert the total to a percentage. The number you are left with corresponds to their percentage of that given state's Representatives; in case you end up with a decimal, round up (if it is .5 or higher) or down (if it is .4 or lower).

Once all parties have been subjected to this process, if the total of each party's percentage isn't 100%, the holders of any remaining seats are to be decided by a moderator's dice rolls.

Taking the above parties and states into account, and assigning 14 seats to Massachussetts (16 - 2), 5 to New Jersey (7 - 2), and 19 to Virginia (21 - 2):

In Connecticut, Party A is guaranteed a minimum of 40% of the seats (4X5 + 2X4 + 3X4 = 40 X 0.01 = 0.4, 40%), or 6 seats (0.4 X 14 = 5.6, round up to 6). Party B gets 0 by default, since they don't agree with the people of Connecticut on any issue. This leaves 8 seats for a mod to roll for, which is also the only way Party B can get seats here.

In New Jersey, Party A is guaranteed a minimum of 12% of the seats (Tariffs: 2X3 + War: 3X2 = 12 X 0.01 = 0.12, 12%) or 1 seat (0.12 X 5 = 0.6, round up to 1). Party B gets a guaranteed minimum of 15% (Abolition: 5X3 = 15 X 0.01 = 0.15, 15%) or 1 seat (0.15 X 5 = 0.75, round up to 1). This leaves 3 seats for a mod to roll for.

In Virginia, Party A is guaranteed no seats due to disagreeing with the state's people on all issues. Party B is guaranteed a minimum of 38% of the seats (Abolition: 5X4 + Tariffs: 3X5 + War: 1X3 = 38 X 0.01 = 0.38, 38%) or 7 seats (0.38 X 19 = 7.2, round down to 7). That leaves 12 seats for a mod to roll for, which is also the only way Party A can get seats here.

Player-controlled members of the House also contribute to their state's limited number of Representatives, much like player Senators.

Electoral Rules - Governors

In this period of American history, the federal government was still weak, and state governors wielded vastly more power and influence than they do today (which is still not inconsiderable, but a great deal less than they did at the nation's dawn). Besides being their state's chief executive and thus being the one who gets to make appointments throughout the state and to sign or withhold a signature from laws passed by his state's legislature, state Governors enjoy the exclusive right to call up (or not call) their state's militia for any reason: the federal government can call on them to mobilize the militia, but the Governor can simply say 'no' even if there's a major war on.

Governors are elected for 4-year terms outside of New Hampshire, which elects them for 2-year terms instead. No state presently has term limits for Governors. If a player Governor is not challenged by another player, then to cut down on moderator work and yet another election, it will be assumed that they automatically win re-election unless something so grave that it requires the mods to rule otherwise has occurred (ex. a major scandal has been unveiled, or the Governor's party just lost a war and crashed the economy disastrously).

The process of a gubernatorial election is identical to that of the presidential election, just downsized to one state. States and candidates must have selected a stance (represented on a 1-5 point scale) on various issues that are relevant in that election year. On election day, the gubernatorial candidate's points in an issue are multiplied by the state's points; if they disagree on an issue, then the state's points in that issue become negative in this equation. This must be done for every issue, and whichever candidate has the highest number of points after all issues have been calculated wins the state.

For example: Let us say there are three issues in contention this election - abolition, tariffs, and war with Britain. Candidates A and B must select whether they agree or disagree on these issues, then rank their agreement/disagreement from 1-5. Let's say these are their final stances:

Candidate A:
Abolition: Agree - 5
Tariffs: Agree - 3
War with Britain: Disagree - 2

Candidate B:
Abolition: Disagree - 5
Tariffs: Disagree - 4
War with Britain: Agree - 4

Now, for this example, let us suppose this election takes place in Pennsylvania, and their stances on the issues are thus:

Pennsylvania:
Abolition: Agree - 2
Tariffs: Disagree - 3
War with Britain: Disagree - 1 (this is a very low priority for the state)

On election day, the chips fall thusly:

Pennsylvania:
Candidate A: 3 points (5X2 on abolition = 10, 3X-3 on tariffs = -9, 2X1 on war = 2)
Candidate B: -2 points (5X-2 on abolition = -10, 4X3 on tariffs = 12, 4X-1 on war = -4)

Result: Candidate A wins, but his margin of victory isn't overwhelming. If Candidate B invests enough money into his gubernatorial campaign, he could defeat Candidate A.

Economy Rules

Federal Economy

Instead of using province-by-province income calculations, the United States economy will be represented in two ways: taxation, and trade. Taxation is straightforward: Congress can set taxes (ideally just on products like whiskey, an income tax at this stage in history would be unpopular to the point of being impractical), and moderators will determine the amount of money the tax brings in - if we can’t directly find a source in history for the revenue the tax generates, then we’ll calculate it as best we can using our discretion. For example, if Congress votes to impose a house-tax in 1798 as it did historically, the tax will provide $2 million in annual revenue (as it did in history).

Of course, imposing stiff taxation, and sometimes any tax at all if it’s on the people in general or on critical goods, can spark unrest or even open rebellion. Conversely, an administration or party that doesn’t tax the American people heavily, or at all, or which reinvests its tax funds in infrastructure (for example, building a National Road to better connect East and West, which was historically done between 1811 and 1837) will enjoy greater odds of retaining power in the next elections.

Trade is slightly different, and provides a more predictable income. America can sign trade agreements with other nations that generate a fixed amount of money every turn, subject to annual fluctuations from events such as wars or stock-market crashes. The amount of money made from trading with another country can then be tariffed, with the tariff % translating to the amount of $ the US government is collecting off the trade. For example, if trade with Britain generates $500 million in revenue, then a tariff of 10% generates $50 million in income for the US government.

Naturally, foreign governments will not take kindly to being tariffed heavily and may retaliate in several ways. They may impose their own tariffs on American trade, reducing the value of the trade connection and thus the amount of money the US gov’t gets out of its own tariffs, or break the trade agreement off altogether; they may opt to frustrate American interests abroad by aiding America’s enemies, or meddle in American internal affairs by supporting opponents of the incumbent administration; or they might even attack America if the trade connection is sufficiently valuable and the American military isn’t strong enough to deter them.

State Economy

Personal Economy

The United States is not a medieval European feudal society (not even in the South), so one cannot simply sit around collecting estates represented as provinces on a map to make money, as had been done in the WOTR games. Instead, characters make money via an Economic Profession.

Each family will choose an economic path that will grant money and boons via upgrading it. The paths are Mercantile, Plantation, and Yeoman Farming, representing the main means of generating income in the North, South and West respectively. Each branch will have a few steps before the next stage is unlocked, bringing forth a bonus for achievement.

Upgrades can be purchased once per year.

Mercantile
Tier 1: 0
Unlocks Income of $2,500/year

Tier 2: $4,000
Unlocks Income of $5,000/year

Tier 3: $8,000
Unlocks Income of $9,000/year

Tier 4: $15,000
Unlocks Income of $20,000/year and +1 Wealth

Tier 5: $25,000
Unlocks Income of $30,000/year and a yearly roll for additional merchant income (roll as high as 5,000 and as low as 1,000. Rounded to the nearest hundredth.)

Plantation
Tier 1: 0
Unlocks Income of $4,000/year

Tier 2: $5,000
Unlocks Income of $7,500/year

Tier 3: $10,000
Unlocks Income of $10,000/year

Tier 4: $15,000
Unlocks Income of $12,000 and +1 Charisma

Tier 5: $20,000
Unlocks Income of $25,000/year and a yearly roll for additional income (roll as high as 15,000 and as low as 1,000. Rounded to the nearest hundredth.)

Yeoman Farming
Tier 1: 0
Unlocks Income of $1,500/year

Tier 2: $3,000
Unlocks Income of $4,000/year

Tier 3: $6,000
Unlocks Income of $8,000/year

Tier 4: $12,000
Unlocks Income of $15,000 and +1 Wealth

Tier 5: $15,000
Unlocks Income of $20,000, +1 Charisma and a yearly roll for additional income (roll as high as 10,000 and as low as 1,000. Rounded to the nearest hundredth.)

Note: To reduce moderator workload and streamline the RP, we encourage players who have reached Tier 5 to roll their own annual bonuses on Orokos. All it requires is that you register an account, which is completely free: this done, you can get straight to rolling a die with the number equivalent to the high end of your income tree’s bonus range (1d5 for Merchants, 1d15 for planters, 1d10 for yeomen). Multiply the result by 1,000 and you will have that year’s extra income, all without having to wait for a moderator to do this for you.

Since the history of your rolls will be publicly viewable, cheating is not possible under this system. Orokos can be found here: https://orokos.com/

Player characters can also further boost their income by joining the US Armed Forces and receiving an officer’s commission. On land Captains, who command individual companies, make a default of $240/year; Colonels, commanding regiments, make $312; and Generals, commanding entire armies, make $600. PC officers’ income comes out of the US treasury, and can be adjusted by Congress. At sea, PCs can only be commissioned as Naval Captains with command over a single ship, who make $312 like a Colonel, and Admirals with fleet command who make $600, like a General.

More to come!

**Lucius Malfoy** · August 11, 2019, 12:35 PM

Battle Rules

Land Battle Rules

Fighting a Battle

Armies will be divided into Regiments, commanded by a Colonel. This Colonel must be player-controlled to confer any bonuses on the men they lead. Colonels with Traits that give them bonuses commanding certain troop types only gain their bonuses if their Regiment is all or mostly (90%+) of that unit type. PC Captains, commanding individual companies within a Regiment, will also contribute their skill points onto their regiment’s overall rolls if that condition is met.

To start any battle, the PC general must send their orders to not only the moderator rolling the battle, but also the PC colonels or captains commanding their regiments/ships. It is up to players whose orders, if any, they follow. While the PC colonels/captains can choose not to follow their superior’s orders, they must be able to come up with orders of their own (sent to the moderator, not the commanding general/admiral who they’re about to defy) within a reasonable timeframe of 6 hours: if no orders come within that timeframe, then to move the battle along, the moderator may assume that PC and their units is following their superior’s orders by default. Extensions may be granted at moderator discretion if the colonel/captain-player’s absence is explained ahead of time and other players do not feel they’d be inconvenienced by the holdup.

A Battle will last for a maximum of 5 Battle Phases. How many Battle Phases are used will be decided by the controlling Moderator, depending on how important the battle is, how large the armies fighting are, how many players are participating, and whether the wider game is lagging behind real time or not.

In each Battle Phase, the players controlling Regiments will decide their next move and tell the moderator, who will take each Regiment's moves and decide what the outcome will be (eg if an infantry Regiment is trying to charge into the enemy’s artillery battery, but enemy light cavalry has been told to attack the infantry, it is most likely that the cavalry will intercept the infantry). After each Battle Phase, the moderator will decide whether troops engaged in combat will break and run, or continue to fight. Casualties suffered, the weight of numbers pressing against them, the quality of the troops, and the skills of their commander will all be considered. Militiamen are far more likely to break and run if the odds are stacked against them, while a general’s bodyguard of grenadiers will almost always fight to the death to preserve their liege's life.

Casualties per Battle Phase are limited to 10%. In small battles where there are only one or two phases, the standard cap of 25% will be used.

Assigning more than 1 Regiment to the same task may result in penalties as coordinating multiple independent units in the chaos of an early modern battlefield can be a struggle. This will depend on the task, the units being used, and how they might interact in attempting to complete the task. For example, assigning Artillery to shoot at enemy Line Infantry while your own Line Infantry charges them with bayonets may result in some of your own soldiers being blown up in the crossfire, but assigning several Regiments of Line Infantry to attack the same enemy unit at a distance is unlikely to cause detrimental clashes. Cavalry, if charging into the rear of already-engaged enemy units, may run through them and into your own forces, causing casualties. So on.

Rolling a Battle:

The Moderator will roll with the following formula for each of the different combats between Regiments (sometimes more than one combat for each Regiment) for each phase.

* * *

[Score of Soldiers] * [d10 Roll] = Score. Repeat for both sides. Winner with the highest score.

Winner dead: ( [Lower Score] / [Higher Score] ) * [Number of Soldiers]. Dead capped at 10% of [Lesser Force]
Loser dead: ( [Higher Score] / [Lower Score] ) * [Number of Soldiers]. Dead capped at 10% of [Lesser Force]

In small battles where there are only one or two phases, a casualty cap of 25% should be be used.

* * *

Major Notes:
= Almost NEVER should any cavalry be rolled in a melee against a whole corps of infantry, but only a portion of that infantry that would be either equivalent in number or men or smaller (preferably). Having them fight a whole Regiment of men at once defeats their purpose. Their advantage goes away if they cannot attack stragglers and isolated targets.
= Archer rolls are done with casualties only falling on the target. Contests between two different groups of archers should be done as two different combat formulas.

Concluding a Battle

At the end of the battle, when the last Battle Phase is concluded, a winner will be declared if both armies are still on the field fighting. It may be declared an inconclusive draw if both armies control significant parts of the battlefield and are not being threatened with a rout or with becoming surrounded and cut off from retreat. In this case, the end of the battle comes with nightfall and both forces break off and retreat to their camps, and may either electively withdraw in good order or resume with a new battle the following day. Night raids may be considered, depending on whether there are any troops fresh enough to mount one.

If the battle reaches a point where one army is clearly overwhelmed or broken apart, the Moderator will halt the battle and declare one army the winner. The losing army will then retreat, either in a rout (causing casualties) or in good order, depending on whether the victor is able and willing to pursue and whether there’s any reserve left to prevent a pursuit. As such a hard-fought battle may not result in the defeated force being routed, as the victorious enemy may have fully committed to the battle itself and his Cavalry may be exhausted and disorganized.

Whether a rout occurs will depend on the victor's Cavalry: Cuirassiers and Lancers with the -5 malus for exhaustion will not chase down routing troops. Hussars and Dragoons bogged down in any type of non-Open Terrain will not chase down routing troops. d20*[Pursuing Cavalry] casualties will be inflicted in a rout, capped at 30% of the routing troops.

Naval Battle Rules

Posting your Fleets1. Navies will be divided into at least three squadrons, the mandatory three being Left, Center and Right. These three mandatory squadrons conduct the main battle, with Player 1's Left fighting Player 2's right, and vice versa, and each Player's Center fighting the opposite Center.

2. An unlimited number of optional squadrons can be created to do any additional task you please. Bear in mind this is the Age of Sail, ships are not very maneuverable and cannot easily do things like flanking, disengaging, feinting, etc. Complex orders will be subject to any success rolls or negative modifiers that the rolling Moderator decides are appropriate.

3. Players will post each squadron clearly, along with clear and unambiguous orders. Like with land battles, these orders should also be forwarded to players whose characters are serving as Commodores (squadron commander) or Captains (individual ship commanders) under the player-admiral’s command, and they can then privately decide whether to follow orders or not. Any interpretation the rolling Moderator is forced to do will be their interpretation alone. Each squadron posted will list the following:
- Commander(s)
- Ships(s), this includes posting the ship type, number, points value and any troops they are transporting
- Order(s)

Rolling the Battle

The moderator will roll for each side with the following formula:

d20 * [Total Points] = Score. The winning side is the side with the higher score.

Then, working out ships lost,

Winner Ships Lost %: [Lower Score] / [Higher Score]
Loser Ships Lost %: [Higher Score] / [Lower Score]

Total ships lost is capped at 50% of the [Lesser Force] for both sides.

The winter can then capture enemy ships by the following process:

d[Number of Loser Ships Lost]*0.25 (eg, if the losing side lost 100 ships, roll d100*0.25)

This enables up to 25% of the enemy ships 'killed' to be captured. Split up evenly among types (e.g. fair split by ratio).

Aftermath

- Player characters undergo standard wounded/captured rolls.
- The enemy fleet retreats to the nearest friendly port, or to any other port specified by the losing player provided it is not closer than the nearest friendly port to which the ships would otherwise flee to. The port the ships flee to must, however, be friendly: you cannot 'retreat' to an enemy or neutral port.

Military and Experience

Unit composition and upkeep will be based on a Company, Regiment, and Army Level. 100 men per company, 1000 men per regiment (or 10 companies), and 10,000 men per army (or 10 regiments). The exception is artillery: artillery crews and their cannons are recruited in Sections of 2 guns apiece, which can be merged into either ordinary Regiments or an all-artillery Battery of up to 10 guns (5 Sections).

Depleted units can be rebuilt to their full strength at ½ the cost of their recruitment.

Companies will be one type of unit (ex: Light Infantry), Regiments will be mixed (ex: a heavy regiment has heavy artillery, cavalry and infantry).

Types of companies (light vs heavy):
= Rifleman/skirmishers, line infantry, and grenadiers for infantry
= Dragoons, hussars, and lancers for cavalry
= Light and heavy artillery
= Militia infantry and cavalry

Ships will be broken into three categories: Sloops (light), Frigates (medium), and Ships-of-the-Line (heavy). Their upkeep, unlike land forces, will be a ship by ship basis (sloops cost less to build and upkeep vs SotL will cost more to build and upkeep).

Levying state militias

Each county is able to raise a maximum of seven companies of militia infantry and three of militia cavalry (1000 men total) by default, though this can be increased by certain Public Works. A 1d10 roll will determine how many companies of the county’s militia answers the state governor’s call to arms, with modifiers being applied by buildings & moderator discretion. For example, in a state where ‘War with X’ is an unpopular issue, militia turnout to fight a war against X should logically not be great.

In case there are more than 10 companies that can be mobilized in a county due to the construction of Militia Armories, just use a larger die. Ex. 1d11 for a county with one Militia Armory, 1d12 for a county with two, and so on.

It takes 6 hours for a state militia to fully muster. Militias will stay raised for two years, after which they must be disbanded. Disbandment triggers a cooldown that lasts for one year.

Land Units

State militias:

Militia Company: 1 point
$300 to raise and maintain per turn
= +5 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance

Militia Horse Company: 1 point
$500
= Can move across 2 Flanks, or move across 1 and fight in it, per Battle Round
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= -5 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain
= +4 to raid rolls

Militia Artillery Section: 2 points
$700
= +2 to siege assault rolls
= +10 if firing at massed formation from medium, or at enemies upon lower ground.
= -15 if firing at wooded terrain or enemies upon higher ground.
= If a rout ensues, the guns will be captured by the enemy, with a 50% chance of being destroyed in the process.

Regular units:

Line Infantry Company: 2 points
$600
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation
= -2 when attacking in Rough and Wooded Terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

Rifleman Company: 2 points
$900
= +15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Can’t form defensive squares
= +5 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

Grenadier Company: 3 points
$1200
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation
= +2 to siege assault rolls
= -2 when attacking in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

Hussar Company: 2 points
$900
= Can move across 2 Flanks, or move across 1 and fight in it, per Battle Round.
= Halve all casualties caused on these men in a rout or retreat
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +5 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Hussars to not have been engaged in melee in the previous Battle Round).
= -5 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= +2 to raid rolls

Dragoon Company: 2 points
$1400
= Can mount & dismount.
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Mounted: +10 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Dragoons to not have been engaged in melee in the previous Battle Round). -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= Mounted: Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.
= Dismounted: +10 against Cavalry if in square formation.
= Dismounted: -2 when attacking in Rough and Wooded Terrain

Lancer Company: 3 points
$2000
= Lancers don’t come equipped with firearms, so they can only engage opponents in melee.
= +15 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Lancers to have been unengaged in the previous Battle Round). -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= +5 when engaging other Cavalry.
= Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.

Light Artillery Section: 4 points
$1500
= +2 to siege assault rolls
= +10 if firing at massed formation from medium, or at enemies upon lower ground.
= -15 if firing at wooded terrain or enemies upon higher ground.
= Can move across 1 flank and fight in it per turn.

Heavy Artillery Section: 4 points
$2500
= +5 to siege assault rolls= +15 if firing at massed formation from medium, or at enemies upon lower ground.
= -15 if firing at wooded terrain or enemies upon higher ground.
= If a rout ensues, the guns will be captured by the enemy, with a 50% chance of being destroyed in the process.

Naval Units

Foreign Units (Unplayable)

Unusable Foreign Units

Per the name, these units are exclusive to NPC factions, be they friend or foe, and thus cannot be recruited normally by players. Some might be lent to the US as volunteers or fight as allied troops under American command, but in that case, they can’t be retrained if lost. They can (and in the case of the European Great Powers, probably will be) organized into regiments and armies like American units.

Native Warrior Company: 1 point
= +8 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea
= +15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance

Native Rifle Company: 2 points
= +8 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea
= +20 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance

Native Mounted Rifle Company: 2 points
= Can mount & dismount.
= +10 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Mounted: +10 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Dragoons to not have been engaged in melee in the previous Battle Round). -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= Mounted: Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.
= Dismounted: +8 in rough, marshy and hilly terrain
= Dismounted: +10 against Cavalry if in square formation.

Rebel Slave Company: 1 point
= +8 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea
= -10 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance

European Infantry Company: 3 points
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation
= -2 when attacking in Rough and Wooded Terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

European Rifle Company: 3 points
= +15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Can’t form defensive squares
= +5 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

European Grenadier Company: 4 points
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation
= +2 to siege assault rolls
= -2 when attacking in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

European Marine Company: 3 points
= Not a ship, obviously, but rather an infantry unit that’s best suited to boarding actions and amphibious operations.
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= No penalty when attempting a boarding action
= +5 when engaged in an amphibious invasion or crossing a river
=+10 against Cavalry if in square formation

European Hussar Company: 3 points
= Can move across 2 Flanks, or move across 1 and fight in it, per Battle Round.
= Halve all casualties caused on these men in a rout or retreat
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= - 15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +5 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Hussars to not have been engaged in melee in the previous Battle Round). No bonus to charging incoherently.
= -5 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= +2 to raid rolls

European Dragoon Company: 3 points
= Can mount & dismount. Unlike North American dragoons, they can do this and also perform another action (moving/fighting) in the same phase.
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= - 15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Mounted: +10 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Dragoons to not have been engaged in melee in the previous Battle Round). +5 if charging incoherently. -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= Mounted: Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.
= Dismounted: +10 against Cavalry if in square formation.
= Dismounted: -2 when attacking in Rough and Wooded Terrain

European Lancer Company: 4 points
= Lancers don’t come equipped with firearms, so they can only engage opponents in melee.
= +15 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Lancers to have been unengaged in the previous Battle Round). +5 if charging incoherently. -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= +5 when engaging other Cavalry.
= Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.

European Cuirassier Company: 5 points
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= - 15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +15 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Cuirassiers to have been unengaged in the previous Battle Round). +5 if charging incoherently. -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.

European Horse Artillery Section: 5 points
= +2 to siege assault rolls
= +10 if firing at massed formation from medium, or at enemies upon lower ground.
= -15 if firing at wooded terrain or enemies upon higher ground.
= Can move across 1 flank and fight in it per turn.

European Heavy Artillery Section: 5 points
= +5 to siege assault rolls
= +15 if firing at massed formation from medium, or at enemies upon lower ground.
= -15 if firing at wooded terrain or enemies upon higher ground.
= If a rout ensues, the guns will be captured by the enemy, with a 50% chance of being destroyed in the process.

British Congreve Rocket Section: 6 points, always spawn at Elite rank
= +3 to siege assault rolls
= +20 if firing at massed formation from medium, or at enemies upon lower ground.
= -10 if firing at wooded terrain or enemies upon higher ground.
= Can move across 1 flank and fight in it per turn.

French Cuirassier Company: 6 points, always spawn at Elite rank
= +20 if coherently charging across open ground (a coherent charge requires the Cuirassiers to have been unengaged in the previous Battle Round). +10 if charging incoherently. -10 in Rough, Marshy, Hilly, and Wooded Terrain.
= +5 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= - 15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Cannot charge in Rough or Marshy Terrain, can only charge out of Wooded Terrain.

Spanish Granadero Company: 6 points, always spawn at Elite rank
= +15 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= - 15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation
= +3 to siege assault rolls
= -2 when attacking in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

Barbary Corsair Company: 6 points, always spawn at Elite rank
= Not a ship, obviously, but rather an infantry unit that’s best suited to boarding actions and amphibious operations.
= +10 if firing into massed target formation from close range
= -15 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= +5 when attempting a boarding action
= +5 when engaged in an amphibious invasion or crossing a river
= +10 against Cavalry if in square formation

Austrian Grenzer Company: 6 points, always spawn at Elite rank
= +20 if firing into wooded terrain or over a long distance
= Can’t form defensive squares
= +10 in rough, marshy, hilly and wooded terrain
= -5 if attempting a boarding action at sea

Elite unique units for other nations will be added by the moderators if & when America comes to blows (or, alternatively, allies) with them.

Experience Rules

Fortresses

Fortresses are purpose-built military structures that provide the country which owns them with a strongpoint, dominating and projecting power into the surrounding region. Star and polygonal fortresses are the most common types as of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

There exist three tiers of fortresses that can be built:
= Blockhouse: A small, singular building (sometimes further protected by a palisade and trench) comprised of two or three floors of rooms with loopholes, which allow the defenders to fire in various directions. Costs $6,000 to build.
= Star fort: A pentagon or hexagon-shaped fortress with bastions, ravelins, sloped walls and trenches that funnel attacking enemy troops into overlapping fields-of-fire. The dominant type of fortification in European-style warfare until the early 19th century. Costs $12,000 to build.
= Polygonal fort: A fortress without protruding bastions which have proven vulnerable to recent advances in warfare, designed to be integrated into a greater network of forts arranged in a ring pattern around the city or strategic point they’re supposed to protect. Costs $25,000 to build.

The basic Blockhouse fortress has the following basic attributes:
= Will last 3 days in a siege
= Have a +5 roll to any siege assault undertaken against them.
= Can hold their entire garrison plus 200 extra men.

Blockhouses have a basic garrison of 50 men and one artillery battery. These cannot be moved out from the fort:
= 20 line infantry
= 20 riflemen
= 10 grenadiers
= 1 light artillery battery (10 guns)

Star forts triple the number of defenders (60 line infantry, 60 riflemen, 30 grenadiers) and get an additional light artillery battery, and can house an entire regiment (1,000 men). It will last a week in a siege and its defenders get a +7 defensive bonus if the attackers opt for an assault.

Polygonal forts double the number of defenders even further (120 line infantry, 120 riflemen, 60 grenadiers) and add a full heavy artillery battery, in addition to being large enough to house up to five full regiments (5,000 men). It will last a week in a siege and its defenders get a +10 defensive bonus if the attackers opt for an assault.

Upgrading an existing fort is cheaper than building an entirely new one. The cost to upgrade a fortress is equivalent to the difference in the forts’ normal costs: that is to say, it costs $6,000 to turn a blockhouse into a star fort, and $13,000 to upgrade a star fort into a polygonal fort.

War Exhaustion

Gone are the days where feudal lords can fight one another with impunity and carry bloody feuds on for generations without having to worry about the opinions of their peasant subjects. As popular political consciousness begins to bloom across the world, the emergent nation-states and decaying empires of old alike will have to start seriously considering popular opinion regarding any war they jump into. The public will want to know why they’re sending their sons, brothers, fathers and husbands off to fight and possibly die on the field of battle, and will also grow increasingly war-weary and inclined to accept a peace (even an unfavorable one) as time drags on and casualties mount.

Thus, the United States and every nation engaged in a military conflict involving it will be subject to a War Exhaustion Meter. Events like defeats and the fall of important cities or fortresses will increase it as public morale is worn down, while the reverse will increase it as the public feels victory is coming into reach and experiences a surge of jingoistic pride at the triumphs of their soldiers. Also, the American people - and any other people in general - will be more inclined to fight to the bitter end if their soil is being invaded by a foreign enemy than the other way around.

For the purposes of the war exhaustion mechanic, a ‘decisive’ victory or defeat is defined as follows:
= The losing army is fully routed AND two of three further conditions have been met:
= Either their overall commander is captured;
= Two flank commanders are captured;
= Or the 50% maximum casualty limit for routs is met

Modifiers
= Average victory: -5% war exhaustion if an aggressive war, -10% if a defensive war
= Decisive victory: -10% if aggressive war, -15% if defensive war
= Capture a fortress: -10% if aggressive war, -15% if defensive war
= Capture a major city: -20% if aggressive war, -25% if defensive war
= Glorious stand (army defeated but inflicts at least twice as many casualties on the victor): -5%
= Commission privateers: +1% for the opposing side for each privateer fleet every 3 days, as long as the privateers are being employed
= Average defeat: +5% war exhaustion if a defensive war, +10% if an aggressive war
= Decisive defeat: +10% if defensive war, +15% if aggressive war
= Fortress captured: +10% if defensive war, +15% if aggressive war
= Major city lost: +20% if defensive war, +25% if aggressive war
= Pyrrhic victory (victory achieved at cost of at least 2x as many casualties as the loser): +5%
= Nation’s leader captured: +30% for whichever nation lost their leader

Effects
= 25% war exhaustion: -1 to all battle rolls. +1 to the Campaign Issue of ‘Peace with [country we’re at war with]’ in all states where it is present.
= 33% war exhaustion: Another universal -1 battle malus and +1 to ‘Peace with [country we’re at war with]’.
= 50% war exhaustion:-1 universal battle roll malus, again. +1 to ‘Peace with [country we’re at war with’], which also becomes a Campaign Issue in all states where it isn’t one already with a minimum +2 points in it.
= 75% war exhaustion: Yet another -1 universal battle roll malus and +1 to ‘Peace with [country we’re at war with]’, bi-weekly desertion rolls to begin hitting all forces. Roll for anti-war rioting in all states modified by Governor charisma for every year the war goes on, with damage from the rioting to be subtracted from the state’s income that year.
= 100% war exhaustion: All forces will actively refuse to engage in offensive operations, take an additional -1 universal malus when fighting in defense and are hit with weekly desertion rolls. Danger of revolution or civil war if a pro-peace candidate is not elected and immediately reaches a ceasefire, no matter how unfavorable, within a year of things getting to this point.

More to come!