Destiny of Empires [Diplo Game] [Story Thread]

[England (DoE)]

4000 BC

The land was dark, rainy and wild, but it was home. For generations this land had supported his family and his tribe. Following the herds of cattle, his people wandered the countryside. His father, father's father, and so on wandered as a way of life, but he, Uther Pendragon, wandered in search of something. The journey has been long, his life has been long, but it seemed, after many years, that at last the journey would end.

Scouts sent word of a lush valley near a mighty river, the mighty river emptied into an even mightier ocean. Pendragon was a wise man. His people were primitive, but he knew their destiny lay with the sea. Their island home seemed limitless for their tiny tribe, but he was a man of mighty dreams. He knew that one day his people would fill this land, and their wealth - and food - would come from the angry waters around them. Taming those waters would be the key to limitless possibilities.

The next day, Pendragon himself traveled ahead to see the river for himself. This mighty river would nourish his people, he would look forward to resting his weary bones. He gathered his son and his advisors and traveled to see the rushing waters. The water was clean, the fish were plentiful, this would be a great place to make a home. Uther stooped to take a drink from the river, when he was suddenly pounced on from above. A hairy Celt, hiding in the trees dropped on Uther and began screaming violently.

His guards and his son, Arthur, rushed to his side and threw off the man before he could kill their chief. The Celt was strong and sinewy. Legend would describe him as a fawn, a demon, a forest spirit, or a dragon, and while he fought like a super natural monster, he was just a man. He killed two guards before escaping to the trees once more. From there he shouted, "Who is the man who would dare drink from my river?"

"It is I, Uther Pendragon. What gives you the right to claim this river?"

"It is mine and no other. You trespass and befoul the holy river and for that you shall pay with your life."

"This river is ours now. All the fish in it and the crops on its banks belong to the Angles."

The wildman let out another terrifying scream and again pounced upon the men below. The Angle warriors once again saved the life of their chief, but not without losing another of their number to the ferocious creature. He once again took to the trees overhead. They didn’t dare walk away or he would strike them from behind. All they could do was stay and talk him down…

"What is this river and why is it so sacred to you?"

"This river is mine. That is all you need to know. This river has always been mine, this river will always be mine. This river has always been Tim's, this river will always be Tim's. You shall not take this river from Tim. You shall die instead!"

Again he dropped, and again he fought. He showed no signs of tiring and again warriors were killed. Their number was beginning to dwindle. Less warriors meant less protection for Uther. This time the feral man struck Uther hard in the back of his head before being chased off by the guards. The blow was severe and brutal. Dazed, Uther stumbled to the ground, bleeding from his scalp, before recovering his balance.

"You fight bravely Sir Tim, you may kill all our warriors. You may kill me. You may kill my advisors. But you cannot kill the Angles. We are a vast and strong tribe. They will realize we are missing and come looking. You may be strong against 10, but what of 100? What of 1,000? What of 10,000? You cannot win. But.. let’s say you do. Let’s say you fight us off and scare us off and our tribe leaves this place alone forever. What then? If we don’t kill you, then you will die of old age. Forgotten and alone you will die. Your river will continue to bubble and flow long after you are gone. Others, be they Angles or Saxons or Celts will live beside this river and drink its water. You will disappear into nothingness. But I, and my people, will live on. You may strike me down but I will live on through my sons and through my people. We are immortal.”

Tim stood there on his perch and seemed to be listening with interest. For once it seems Uther’s words were having an impact.

Uther continued, “Share this river with us and we will share our immortality with you. Add your strength to our own and for generations and generations, for thousands and thousands of years we will ensure that all who live know that this is Tim’s River. Lend your arm to the cause of our people and we will sing songs and pass down tales and legends of your ferocity. Your name will need only be whispered to scare our enemies hundreds of years from now. All will know the mighty Tim and Tim’s river. All will fear you and respect your power.”

Tim stood there on his branch for what seemed to be an eternity. He considered the offer. Mulling it over in his small mind. Uther, weak and bleeding profusely, mustered up all his might to continue standing, motionless, a show of strength to win over his agile opponent. At long last the feral creature descended from the tree. He approached Uther slowly, looking him in the eye, looking for any sense of deception or betrayal. After another seeming eternity standing nose to nose with the old, bleeding chief, Tim embraced him and let out a loud “whoop”.

“My river for eternal life. Tim likes! I shall stand by the Angles and shall defend the Angles, and all will know my name. We shall be brothers! I pledge this with my life!”

And with that, Uther collapsed to the ground.

[Ottoman Empire (DoE)]

Suleiman woke.

His head realing, full of nightmares of the angry gods fighting over Europe.

He remembered the treasure he had found in teh woods. Those mushrooms.



And then the Shamaan cooking them.



And then ... nothing just horrible dreams as if the world stood still and now a terrible pain.

But a leader must continue ...

[England (DoE)]

Uther led his people to this lush valley and gave his life to secure it, but would not live to see it settled. Instead, the duty of leading his people fell to his oldest son, Arthur. Arthur who was present that one fateful day when the Angles encountered Tim the River Demon (as he was known in some corners). His father’s courage and cunning had a profound impact on young Arthur. The idea that through guile and diplomacy one can accomplish what cannot be accomplished through force of arms struck him greatly. The ability of his father to calmly and rationally negotiate with a man who fatally injured him and killed several of his kinsmen was a powerful example for him.

Arthur was intent to rule his people justly and to make good on his father’s vision of populating their little island. He organized his people to live along the Tim’s river and create a bustling center of trade, industry and culture there. The city was named London, Uther’s middle name. It seemed they could expect many years of peaceful growth, but a rival emerged from across the sea. Calling themselves the French, this funny speaking tribe built a city of their own just across the Channel. The running joke was that the cities were so close that London men could count the hairs on French women’s legs.

This aggressive move by the French alarmed many in London, but especially the fisherman. French fisherman began to crowd out all the best waters and soon even waters adjacent to London were no longer welcome for Anglers (fishing, being so important to the way of life for the Angle tribe that “fisherman” and “angler” soon became synonymous). Uther’s dream of the Angles reaping the riches of the sea seemed to be dashed by the dastardly French.

Arthur vowed to find some solution to this problem. One way or another.

[Germany (DoE)]

grunzen stops grunting! just for a moment

Excerpt from GERMAN FAIRY STORIES:

Grunzen stood up in amazement. For the first time in neandor history a glimmer of understanding permeated his consciousness. He sensed a certain quality that he would never fully understand but his grandchildren, descendants of his Veneti concubine, would understand.

He faced the Gallic messenger of Delacroix and reached out his hand. They embraced a deal that would alter the course of history!

He looked out over the vast Alpine mountain range, back towards his home in the Neandor Valley, South to Veneti and West to Parisii. The air was good. No bad smells today.

He knew he would always be a smelly, dirty old man but he glimpsed these changes eons into the future. A super race would be moulded. He saw smoke and fire, death and destruction, the creation of great dwellings and places of worship. It was a vague premonition and far off in time...

For now, Veneti would be peacefully handed over to the Neandor, including a warrior tribe whom he would teach more advanced forms of warfare.

Some or even many Veneti citizens were keen to stay in Veneti and fraternise with the Neandor. Others were too afraid and found the odours foul. They planned to emigrate and awaited orders from Delacroix. With Grunzen he had negotiated a settler band of Neandor women, a little less foul smelling, and they were to meet these immigrants, build a new city and dare I say it, breed! French perfume may assist.

[Israel (DoE)]

Ramesses, son of Ramesses, leads the Egyptians.


Ramesses, son of Ramesses

Ramesses was one of the least cowardice Egyptian men of his age.
When he played hide and seek with his friends at a young age, he was the only one who dared to be the seeker, while his friends were all hiding.
It was not uncommon that Ramesses was not able to find his friends, who were hiding at the best places.
Ramesses was perhaps the least cowardice Egyptian, he still was a coward though, like all Egyptians
He did not dare to look in those dark places to find his friends. So most of the time he went home alone.
Many of his friends starved in their hiding places, not being brave enough to leave the save spots.
That's why Ramesses had little friends left over by the age of 10. He was quite isolated.

During the high days of fear after Pharaoh Tiu had deceased, nobody dared to lead Egypt.
Arabian archers approached the borders. Egyptian slaves were paving roads to the Ottomans and the Arabians.
Would these slaves live?

The Arabians were begged to leave the slaves alone.
No answer.

Ramesses took lead and called for the Egyptian young man to volunteer for an Egyptian army.
Axes were prepared to attack the Arabians if these Arabians would indeed attack Egypt.
It is unknown if any Egyptian dared to volunteer for such a dangerous job.
Perhaps Ramesses was able to let braveness surface in the hearts of the scared Egyptians.

The slaves in the meanwhile became more and more angry at their oppressors.
Many of these slaves considered to raise up against the Egyptian Cowards.
"Thy will not even fight us, the cowards!" one of the slave leaders said.
But this slave leader was cast away from the slave community and fled into the deserts.
The slaves weren't ready to rise up against their oppressors. Not in the last place because
they liked their kind oppressors who never dared to use violence against them.


slave leader that was cast away from the slave community

[Mali (DoE)]

Hi, I'm new to the game and want to represent the state in which I play. Mali was once part of three famed West African empires which controlled trans-Saharan trade in gold, salt, slaves, and other precious commodities. These Sahelian kingdoms had neither rigid geopolitical boundaries nor rigid ethnic identities. The earliest of these empires was the Ghana Empire, which was dominated by the Soninke, a Mande-speaking people. The nation expanded throughout West Africa from the 8th century until 1078, when it was conquered by the Almoravids. The Mali Empire later formed on the upper Niger River, and reached the height of power in the 14th century. Under the Mali Empire, the ancient cities of Djenné and Timbuktu were centers of both trade and Islamic learning. The empire later declined as a result of internal intrigue, ultimately being supplanted by the Songhai Empire. The Songhai people originated in current northwestern Nigeria. The Songhai had long been a major power in West Africa subject to the Mali Empire's rule.

In the late 14th century, the Songhai gradually gained independence from the Mali Empire and expanded, ultimately subsuming the entire eastern portion of the Mali Empire. The Songhai Empire's eventual collapse was largely the result of a Moroccan invasion in 1591, under the command of Judar Pasha. The fall of the Songhai Empire marked the end of the region's role as a trading crossroads.Following the establishment of sea routes by the European powers, the trans-Saharan trade routes lost significance. The worst recorded famine occurred between 1738 and 1756, killing about half of the population of Timbuktu. Well this is my country, although I am very ****ing place in the game at least my story is imperial. Regards for everyone.

[Israel (DoE)]

Ramesses II sends a messenger to the Mali People, which says:

"People of Mali,

We are your neighbours.
We hope we can live in peace. We fear war a lot.
Please don't come to kill our wifes or our children.
Please don't kill us!

Ramesses II of Egypt"

[Israel (DoE)]

Egyptian Scouts pass through Turkish territory

The Egyptian scouts wanted to return to Egypt.
Suddenly a new Turkish city was in their path.
A new city, it wasn't there when they passed through these hills before.

The scouts were scared but continued their path.
A Turkish man approached them with a small army. "This is an act of war!" the Turk said.
Suddenly Turkish war chariots appeared everywhere.



The Egyptians scout feared more for their lives then every before!
"Ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuun" the chief yelled.
And all Egyptians ran for their lives.

Nothing can run as fast as a Scared-to-Death Egyptian!
The Egyptians are the best runners in the world.
Trained every day they practiced this profession, scared as they were for new supposed enemies.

The Egyptian scouts ran like the wind.
They were able to get ahead of the war chariots and found a place in the deserts to hide. There they rested, exhausted.
Hoping that the Chariots would return to their newly found city.

[Mali (DoE)]

The great Malian empire to our Egyptian neighbors. We have received your desire for good neighborly relations and discuss it at the moment. Disturbs us that your letter came without any gifts, but maybe have lost their way. (Not in Africa Postal cost) maybe next time there will be a joy to watch us. regards

[Israel (DoE)]

Slave Leader Moses Returns from desert



The charismatic Moses returned from his exile in the desert.
He confronted Ramesses II to let the slaves go!
Ramesses refused, after which the mysterious god of these slaves killed all the first born sons of Egypt!
The people of Egypt were horrified and in terror!

The slaves were feared and their mysterious god even more!
Ramesses called Moses and told him to leave with his people immediately.
The slaves left Egypt at once.



When Ramesses one day later realized what he had done, he gathered his army of axemen,
and started to hunt the slaves who had left to the desert in the north east.

[America (DoE)]

Aztec peeping tomahawk

"Chief!"

"Yes."

"We see a man with green headdress and a tomahawk in mountains"

"Is he from those Injuns?"

"No, he is from South. He has dark skin and dresses in feathers."

"Does he think he is bird?"

"Yes, we think he think he is bird."

"Har har har har har"

"Har har har har har"

"Anyway, he is peeping at us from behind bushes for four moons now, but not saying anything. What do we do?"

"A peeping tomahawk. Well, approach him, and invite him. Then we can laugh at his feathers and feed him, and send him back. If he then returns to peeping, we will have to kill him."

"Har har har har"

"Har har har har"

[Israel (DoE)]

The Holy city of Jerusalem on the Sacret Mountain of Moriah

Moses leads the slaves to the Promised Land

The former slaves of Egypt arrived at the Red Sea.
With the army of the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II behind them and the sea in front of them, there was no escape.
The chariots of Egypt approached but Moses spoke to his people.
The slaves, who named themselves the Hebrews, found courage.

A battle between the Egyptians and the Hebrews was inevitable.
The Hebrews placed themselves in strategical positions.
Then the Egyptian army arrived.

The Hebrews screamed and yelled, and their voices terrorized the Egyptians.
These Egyptians fled in fear. The Hebrews hunted all of them and killed them all.
The bodies of the Egyptians were dumped into the Red Sea. Soon the tale would arise
that the gods would have buried the Egyptian people themselves in the seas while they
let the Hebrew people pass through it unharmed.

The Hebrews walked through the desert till they arrived at the most holy place for the Hebrews,
Mount Moriah, the most sacret place, where in the past their descendants had met unknown gods.

The Hebrews settled and found Jerusalem, despite the warnings they received from the Arabs and the Ottomans.
Moses sent them a letter:

Arabians and Ottomans,

We are the Hebrews, we have settled ourselves on our most sacred place, Moriah.
There we founded the city of Jerusalem, the most holy city on earth.

We do not see expansion nor do we seek to live in terror with our neighbors.
Please leave us alone and we will let you alone. We will not expand into any
direction to the north, the northeast, the south or the south east.
We only seek to live in the place that is most holy to us.

Moses of the Hebrews

[England (DoE)]

The fishermen became restless. Who were these French, these Gauls, to tell us where we can and cannot fish? Where we can and cannot go? Why do they own the seas? The anglers soon began calling for open warfare against the French and marched on Arthur's home and demanded Arthur to destroy the French capitol. They are weak! Look at how the Germans and Ottomans pushed them around! Surely the cowardly French would cower in fear were we to invade!

Arthur, however, was more practical. And, like his father, a shrewd negotiator. He looked at the crowd and picked out a young man who, by reputation, was the most sensible of the bunch. Arthur raised his arms up and silenced the crowd.

"I have heard your complaints, and something will be done! I must discuss our plans in more detail and negotiate a solution to our problem, but I cannot address an entire mob. You there, young man, come into my home and speak on behalf of your interests."

The young man, John Cabot, somewhat nervously stepped forward. Some of the other fishermen were annoyed that he was the one who was chosen, but electing leaders was a foreign concept to them, so they didn't see anything inherently wrong with this process. They made one last appeal to Cabot before he walked off to speak to Arthur in private.

"So, young man, what are the concerns of the anglers?"

"Well... the French, they block our waterways, steal our fish, and crowd out our prospects. They even won't even let us sail out to explore the lands to our south or east."

"Ah yes, very true. That is a problem indeed. You mentioned exploring... I myself have wondered what lay beyond our shores. Surely the Earth must not end suddenly?"

"Indeed my lord! Mother Angle-land has been mapped and charted, but what lays beyond? I have heard tales of strange beasts, strange colored men, exotic plants, and mighty mountain ranges that dwarf anything seen here. Even higher than the mighty hills of the north! What a glorious adventure would it be to see all this in person!"

Sensing that this was a personal desire of the young Cabot, Arthur pressed on, "A war with the French would be imprudent, we have no desire to attack their capitol or kill their people. Yet they also cannot expect to bottle us up in our little island for eternity. I wish, somehow, there were some way to open our borders and allow ships and people to pass freely between our two kingdoms. Strangely this seems to be impossible... but, to borrow a French expression, in lieu of some kind of open border agreement, we shall simply refuse to recognize their authority over the seas. I personally charge you, John Cabot, with a royal and solemn duty. You shall set out, in the best boat you have available, to travel south through French waters. Do your best to avoid contact with the French, but simply sail south and explore. Chart the land you see, record any unusual flora and fauna you observe, and make contact with any strangely colored peoples you encounter. This is your charge and your quest. Fulfill your duties honorably and capably and I shall make you Sir John Cabot!"

"Oh wow! What an honor! I am so excited!"

Success! Cabot was so excited about the prospect of traveling south that he would now be fully pliable regarding Arthur's conditions, "Tell the other fishermen that because of their refusal to recognize our right to travel the seas, that we will formally declare war on France. Tell them to travel where they wish to our south and to our east, but they are to avoid contact with the French at all costs. They are not to harm any French person or stick of French property. Nor are they to set foot on French soil."

"Oh yes, majesty, I shall tell them. Thank you, thank you much!"

[France (DoE)]

Historians tell a story..

About how the old leadership, the high priest, foolishly angered the neandors, recklessly ordered the people to settle a worthless land of Veneti and would had let them die in a bloody war..all for greed..
But fortunatley the men were brave enough to refuse the high priest's orders. Led by the captain of the Venetii guards, Delacroix, they managed to keep the peace with the neandors so no Gaul had to die..that day..
In the deal the grunzen gave enough time to the Gauls to leave their home, yet many decided to stay, most of the peolpe never understood why would they..
Also in the deal the Grunzen agreed to teach some of the Gaul warriors in advanced warfare. These warriors then led by Delacroix went to Paris, where the high priest feeling the warth of the peaople fled, no one knows where. Delacroix became the new chief and led his nation untill the...

This is the most commonly known version at least. There is a single poem however about Delacroix the betrayer, who sold the country to the german tribes and with the aid of german mercenaries took over the palace, killig the high priest and all those who were loyal to him..which is the truth? hardly matters in the upcoming events..

[France (DoE)]

"So when will they come?" Delacroix asked

"We can't tell"-answered the the old advisor-"we believe these ships are just here to scout or defenses, searching for a place to land their troops"

"Hmm... we did not get any message from them.. and we did not send any..what could we tell them anyway? These waters were always ours and they will be..our people's lives depend on it. Our deal with the grunzen should secure the east borders, our warriors can concentrate our defense on the shores when we have to..Yet a war would weaken us too much.. who knows what barbaric horde would come after the grunzen to take more of our land. Send for a messenger..it's time to ask the English what do they want.."