Domination of Barbarians [Diplo Game] [Story Thread 8 - November 2012]

[Netherlands (DoB)]

Christofoor of Fire Faction meets with a new wise man called Johannes Kepler, a Scientist with wisdom beyond any ever seen in the Fire faction village. He meets with this man and is amazed how clear his thoughts are. The two talk for hours and then for days. Christofoor is so impressed at his wisdom that he asks the man to help him show his people the way forward after all the darkness and dissapointments in the last years. This Great Scientist reveals to him that the only way to get past the failures in the past is to show one word, humility.



He dictates the words for Christofoor to write, and after discussing with all the Chiefs, the two men sends a letter to France

I speak on behalf of the rational thinkers in my tribe to the world, but most important I speak to the King of France.

The people of Three Factions have been abandoned by our oldest and dearest friends the Romans. Obvious to us is that we must have wronged our friends somehow. Our tribes motto is "Good Friends are worth more than shiny rocks" and this motto we live by so when we lose a friend, we must asks ourself why. It is now clear to us that we have wasted to much time and too many lives in these endless tensions with France. The capable diplomacies and warriors of France along with her industrious people have outwitted us and defeated our efforts at every turn. We wish to end this chapter for our people and move to greener pastures in our life, as the old path no longer has any point. We want to be friends again with the world instead of alone and isolated, all our friends taken from us.

We have heard in the past that France feels that Factions owes her reparations for past harms. We wish to know what these are and what France demands as compensation. In return, we ask that France agree to Open Borders with us. We say at last that if the whole world is friends with France and we are not, then we must be the ones who are in the wrong, for how could all the world be wrong and us right? We wish to join with our friends in friendship with France and waiting now to hear what France has to say to this.

[France (DoB)]

King Louis XXV sends a messenger to respond to the Three Factions,

While friendship and trust are difficult to achieve after so many years of tension between the Three Factions tribe and the Kingdom of France, it should be possible and France feels that your letter is a positive step in the right direction and will respond accordingly.

Here are the steps that France proposes for the Three Factions to start gaining the trust of France.

1) For the destruction of French infrastructure, Three Factions will provide to France, within 20 turns of agreeing to this proposal, 2 workboat fleets. The workboats are to be safely delivered to the city of Paris so that they are not destroyed by invading english triremes.

2) The espionage peace treaty between our people is to remain in effect with the added specification for clarity that the Three Factions are not to have any more than 243 spies in France while France shall not have more than 266 spies in the Three Factions.

3) The Three Factions are to agree to abide by international open border norms and not allow third parties to invade France from within their borders.

4) To prevent the secret arming of english invaders by the Three Factions, the Three Factions must end their open borders with england until a long term peace, that includes english reparations to France, is achieved between France and england. (DMW and 10-turn peace treaties do not constitute long term peace). This stipulation will be formally lifted as part of any peace treaty between england and France.

In return for these items, France will agree to open borders with Three Factions and will consider additional trade proposals for resources and units based upon their commercial merits.

We trust the rational thinkers of the Three Factions will prevail and accept this proposal.

King Louis XXV of France

[Netherlands (DoB)]

We welcome the offer of peace and trade. We are sending our diplomats to meet with France to conclude the dealmaking.

[England (DoB)]

Elizabeth laughed at the news. "And now the Nether capitulate like a beaten dog. So much for France's many claims of a mighty and feared Taoist alliance marching in lockstep. That there was never any truth to such claims must surely now be clear to all. And the terms they would accept, have the Nether lost their minds, or just slowly fallen under the constant influence of French black magic as so many have before them. What do they hope gain in such an arrangement, surely France will not cease its construction of mighty wonders? Maybe some pipe dream of using the open borders agreement to settle new lands in Africa... but they should know there is little land to be had with some ten cities at least already settled on on the continent and more Portuguese, Greek, and Spanish settlers heading south every year. In any case, we must seek to secure our rights are respected as the Nether negotiate and bargain themselves into folly."

Please see that the following message is relayed to the Nether factions:
"We are most saddened by your apparent intent to close your borders with our people. However we remind the Factions of an old treaty of non-aggression between our people that requires several years of notice be given before borders can be closed. Also, as the Nether are well aware, England has sent a contingent of troops to aid Russia in its fight against the barbarians. These troops, as with the warships Wu and Wei in Africa, were deployed by England to fight barbarians for the good of all tribes. We expect that the Nether will reopen borders when/if these troops seek to return. If borders are not reopened, we will be forced to declare war to gain passage. We also remind the Nether that should hostilities ever break out between our peoples--or should the Nether actively aid France during one of our conflicts--we will use out fleets to destroy your fishing fleets. It saddens us greatly to make such threat as we have long lived in peace and friendship, but it seems the Nether now respond more readily to threats, insults, and abuse."


And this to France:
"You premise portions of your treaty with the Nether on also securing a treaty with England. What terms did you have in mind? At the Spanish peace summit you demanded war reparations but gave no specificity as to the nature of your actual demands. What would you ask? And unlike the Romans and Nether, who seem to have either come under your thrall or view diplomacy as an exercise in rolling over and dying, England will require real concessions from France with respect to cultural expansion. We are otherwise well prepared to continue our bitter conflict."

[France (DoB)]

The bellicose attitude of england indicates that they are not truly interested in peace yet. England is a rogue actor on the world stage using repeated threats, terrorism and war to attempt to achieve their demands. France will continue to use diplomatic action to build a global coalition to increasingly isolate england until such time as the english realize that their actions are counter-productive. France believes only this course of action will eventually lead to the peace we desire.

King Louis XXV

[England (DoB)]

Your message reveals your true intent. If you will not offer specific terms for peace how can you claim to desire it and at the same time lament your people's suffering? You speak of seeking a "peace we desire" - yet given your cultural imperialism I can not help but surmise this is the destruction of London and the English nation. Do you deny this genocide is your intent? And if so, then name your intentions as England has done many times in the past. Or will you continue to hide behind empty words

-Elizabeth I

[Rome (DoB)]

The Barbarian Queen Elizabeth is continuing to prove her bloodlust to the world. She is now threatening to kill even more innocent women and children, just as she ordered the butchering of Hope and her family. She believes she can hide her bloodlust and intents of committing these atrocities behind her carefully worded messages, claiming that she is saddened by "having to" make these threats.

Surely everyone who understands simple human nature knows that if something makes you sad, you will do everything in your power to avoid doing it. As the Barbarian Queen readily threatens the people of the Nether, and publicly proclaims that she is more than willing to continue her war against France if France does not bow to her will, it is obvious that employing threats and ordering the butchering of women and children does not make her sad at all. On the contrary, she now employs threats against the people of the Nether, and she twists the words of the French as is her way, in the hope that she can bully them into submission.

While the Barbarian Queen sits on her throne of skulls, she longs for more blood and desires the death of even more innocent men, women and children. She threatens to slaughter even more while claiming to be "sad about it", and she is so full of herself that she believes she can put the blame for her barbarism on anyone who disagrees with her, as she is attempting to do to the Nether and the French. If the English people of London desire to join the French people, I say the Barbarian Queen is blind to the fact that her very own people yearn for freedom from her atrocious acts!

I will continue to pray that the people of England may be liberated from the clutches of this tyrannical woman, who cares nothing for her people. Whether that happens because her people rebels and joins the French, or if her people overthrows her to replace her with a more benevolent ruler, I wish nothing more than to see the almighty grant my prayer soon, to spare the English people further suffering.

[Netherlands (DoB)]

As requested by France as part of our new accord, we sends the following to England

We search our archives to find that you are correct. Ancient agreement between the old Nation of Fire Nation of Water and England says that there must be 10 turns notice to close borders. We wish always to honor our agreements, even ancient ones such as these. So hereby is 10 turns notice that we will be closing borders with you as required by our new friendship agreement with France.

[France (DoB)]

France will never surrender its sovereignty to build whatever it wishes within its own borders, and england still demands such a surrender as part of any peace negotiations, therefore it is not yet time to put forth specific peace proposals.

[Japan (DoB)]

The people rejoice as news come from runners far to the north: The Ottomans are friendly! Traders are already on the way, following safe routes through the barbarian infested desert. Through the streets the talk is ripe about what to expect from this new trade route.

Then the horn is sounded, and men grab their axes and bows. Running to help in the defence of the city as barbarians close on the city walls. A new day, a new fight. Many give praise to the spirits and pray that peace will come to Stone Hill once more.

[England (DoB)]

How quickly do the Romans become the obedient lap dogs of France. Submissively parroting Paris's every word, even as Roman lands are stolen by the French. Pitiful.

So France again chooses the path of war. As was outlined in the proposal submitted by El Pacificado at the Olónico Peace Summit, real and enduring peace can only be had when both sides make meaningful concessions that address the root concerns driving a conflict. Without assurances that France will curtail its cultural aggression it is laughable to think peace is possible.

[France (DoB)]

Rome like most of France's other neighbors have had stable borders with France for many centuries. Rome is not fearful of French culture and has indicated that they are capable of maintaining their cultural borders, unlike the incompetently ruled english. By it's inherent nature culture is non-aggressive, unlike the english wars which are the very definition of aggression.

It is unfortunate that england prefers to laugh at possible peace by continuing to demand control of France's production however england's aggressive response was not unexpected.

[Greece (DoB)]

To our Byzantium friends, reports have come from local greek fishermen that a large Byzantium army is gathering on local shores. These fishermen talk of seeing arabian and persian forces joining the gathering. Greece ask its Byzantine friends to explain these events. For centuries these lands have only seen Byzantine farmers and Greek fisherman living side by side.

[Arabia (DoB)]

Greetings to mighty Greece!

Peace be unto you and to all the neighbours of Arabia and her Islamic allies.

The troop movements that you see are simply joint military training exercises between Arabia and her allies. Do not be alarmed by them, I can personally assure you that they are not an act of aggression to any one. And that in fact, the military training exercises were to be kept well within our borders and out of site. We apologise if this has alarmed you or your civilian fisherman.

A thousand apologies.

Salam Aleikum,
Mohammed V.

To our Byzantium friends, reports have come from local Greek fishermen that a large Byzantium army is gathering on local shores. These fishermen talk of seeing arabian and persian forces joining the gathering. Greece ask its Byzantine friends to explain these events. For centuries these lands have only seen Byzantine farmers and Greek fisherman living side by side.

[England (DoB)]

If it was continued war France wants it is war they shall have - England again declares war on France year 300BC (turn 320).