Tales From The (Still) Diplomatic Front II

[Grau Geist]

my icq doesn't seem to want to work, someone e-mail me the ip when we start

[Caesar the Great]

There seems to be a problem with ICQ I can't get mine to work either. PLEASE let me play at least a little in this game. Don't make a young man beg. I have watched this game from when before it was even an idea. And I have desperatly wanted to play. PLEASE

[Nappy]

Grau Geist......my ICQ is working but no one seems to be online now and I dont have your email. We can use this forum thread for communication. I can host at IP 24.5.138.235 so go ahead and join and tell the others. Caesar...feel free to join but dont select a civ until we see who all is playing

[cavebear]

I can fill in for someone, or take over a troublesome AI... I, too, was having ICQ problems this morning, but it seems OK now.

Having absorbed most of this thread (WOW!), and having read up on diplo play, I think it is just what I'm looking for (I *hate* warwongering). I'm generally available for Sat and/or Sundays for the next few months...

I would need ICQ numbers for you folks.

ICQ 37552809

[cavebear]

I became aware of the cries of my people when I awoke from my ancient slumber. The Sioux were in desperate need of guidance, and I recalled the days of their ancestors when they crossed to the new continent with their Clovis points and their hunger for safe havens. I had been asleep too long.

When I awoke to their terrible difficulties, I learned that they had been tormented by a series of leaders, some great and honorable, some less so. They had recently fallen upon hard times, swayed by the evils of AI, he whom we all contend against. Rousing myself from the old place of my dreamings, I found them bereft of happiness, currency, and an organized form of social order. Anarchy was all about, and I felt their pain.

Following their spirits, I found them in the worst place on Earth, the Middle East. Wonderful territory, and rich in history, but all who live there suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. As I once told their ancestors of 13,000 years (now the "Chinese"), "interesting" times are not good ones to live through. However, "interesting times" is what they had, and I applied myself to their assistance. These were the happiest days of my long life.

My first task was to stabilize their lives. Drawing on my experience of the ancient days, I led them to sources of happiness (temples and coliseums), and to negotiations with their neighbors.

Truer neighbors I never met in the olden days. These more modern leaders are of a kind never seen before since the Gods walked the very Earth in their days of learning. Some gave my people gold with which to construct temples and other things of value. Others granted whole cities for my people to occupy and, perchance, to thrive.

In these counsels of the mighty, I was still too weak and powerless to participate. A leader is still only what his People can bestow in trust and confidence, and I was yet newly awakened. Still, these great and mighty lords granted favors for which my People will remember until the mountains fall and the seas rise again…

So, my people built great and wonderful temples and other structures for their enlightenment. They recalled their honorable warriors back from far lands to defend their home and to relieve the concerns of the People for their well-being and to assure the others that we meant no harm to them. Old hurts die slowly, though, and we are mistrusted for the deeds of those generations before the current time..

Meanwhile, the great lords went about their business. Vast and rich territories were ceded and bartered in their strategies, military pacts were offered and refused or accepted, and technological advancements were exchanged. Alas, my poor people could not participate. While my People built their temples, others were building Marvelous things unknown to me. Electricity, railroads, and dams… But I carry on my duties. My People will soon have the great joy of Democracy, and will see their hard work repaid with interest and high debates about lofty mattters.

To little purpose, I fear. In my far-sensing, I have seen vessels launched into the void. How this is done, I do not know or comprehend. I have failed my People, but they do not know the bitter truth yet… I will shield it from them as long as I can, but the day comes when they will discover that we have been left behind on this Earth while others travel to the stars above our heads. It is a sad time for me…

There is some hope left. The vessels launched may yet fail. Tragedies befall all Peoples sometimes. It would be sad to think that other People would have to regress to our level, but such things happen.

I strove to collect the other Peoples of the Earth to abide each other and cooperate for the common good, but I failed at that, too. I would have liked the idea of many colonists venturing forth through the void together in harmony, but such was not to be… I will spend the remaining time nurturing my people… If we are approached by others with dreams, we will surely help…

[KenThur]

Hi Guys & fellow world aspirants!
We are in the middle of lining up for an excellent Sunday long session. We need at least 1, perhaps 2 (if U are into challenges).
1st come - 1st served. All our ICQ's are on our profiles.
Ceasar, U & i have already added each other.

We are close to making a world (or most of the world) peace accord... so jump in asap.

Hope to see U there!!

[Grau Geist]

THE FEDERATION WEEKLY

JAPAN CAUGHT WITH ITS KNICKERS AT ITS KNEES!

Once again, the JTF has been caught unaware. Tojogeist and his committee have admited that they were too busy concentrating on preparations for a race into space to notice that the race had actually begun. Upon realization of this classic blunder, ranking along with getting involved in a land war in Asia, Tojogeist promptly fired his Foreign Minister, presumedly because the hailed communist spy network, run by the Foreign Minister, failed to detect the race starting.

The sudden realization came, when the Aztecs launched their totally secret spaceship. Spies had uncovered spaceship development in Russia and China up to this point, but failed to detect such activity on the part of the Aztecs. When faced with this ultimate impending failure Tojogeist said "nuts".

We have unconfirmed reports that state that the expeditionary forces in transit to the war in Asia were either re routed to the British Isles or continued on their course to the Japanese Isles. A confidential source claims that the Defense Ministry had a warplan in effect and the capabilities positioned to simultaneously sieze the Capital cities of China and Aztecia should such a coup in the race to space occur in these foreign lands. The Defense Ministry denies any such plan ever existed and notes that had such plan existed it would not be viable alternative anymore. The Ministries' former statement probably derives from the UN resolution 215 prohibiting the siezure of any nation's capital upon that nations completion of a spaceship, passed into international law by a world majority and pending ratification by the JTF Committee.

WORLD RECORD RE-EMPHAZISES THE WORD "TRADE" IN THE JAPANESE TRADE FEDERATION (JTF)

A Federation merchant in Buenos Aires, hell bent on beating the previous trade record held by one of his fellow JTF cohorts in Bogota, completed a world record trade on 1813 gold. This merchant arrived in Hong Kong and sold introduced the finest Gems of South America to the Chinese citizens. They were only too eager to purchase such fine shimmering stones and boosted the Merchants profits to record levels.

In a side story, upon hearing of the richness of the new China, a merchant in Kyoto sought his own fortunes abroad a short time later. Apparently caught up with his anxiousness and following his boastful promises he neglected to setup shop in the planned city of Xian and instead sold his oil in the less demanding city of Hong Kong, where the citizens had already purchased fine gems as their christmas presents, and no longer had the money to buy gas nor had the need to travel to stores to shop for presents. Thus the merchants oil supply exceeded the cities' demand and he can home a poor defeated laughing stock of the Merchant community.

WAR TAKES A BACKSEAT

Oh yeah, besides all these other happenings, the world negotiated a treaty for peace. The JTF was given a cash settlement for the loss of Seoul and peace. Other nations also made further concessions to and recieved benefits from the Chinese in exchange for peace. The new Sioux government was grantedd clemency for its predecessor's warring past and was given the knowledge to help its civilization grow in peace and prosperity.

[Nappy]

THE END OF THE GREAT CRUSADE( or Make the World Safe for Milo and the Vikings)............The Great Crusade by the world to rid SE Asia of Chinese invaders and restore their ownership to the Vikings came to an abrupt end just prior to our last session. The continuation of the war by the Aztecs against the Chinese AI govt though expensive was not terribly threatening to our existence. In fact, we were able to buy both guns and butter and in a succession of WLTPDs the Aztecs were able to grow their population from 11.5 million to 16.5 million in 3-4 turns. However, the prospect of facing a human Chinese leader with 100+ units was not an appealing situation as the Aztec civ had the least to gain and also the most to lose of all the combatants. Also, the Chinese had recently built Apollo and 10-12 Aztec cities had been taken out of war production and retooled for spaceship construction. If the world was to embark on a space race and China launched an all-out assault on Aztecia, we would be lucky to keep the Aztec civ intact let alone dream of launchind a spaceship to AC. So I felt it in the best interests of the Aztecs to initiate some peace feelers with the new Chinese leader.....William Wallace. I felt that at best we could broker a peace treaty and then all the world could race to space....or at worst, I would appear the least threatening of all Chinas enemies and would avoid the bulk of their military wrath. The Great Crusade was launched to recover the 4 captured Viking cities from the Chinese and 1 of those had been destroyed inthe fighting so at a minimum China would have to return the other 3 cities. The Aztecs had more cities and population thanany other civ and actually more cities than my end game strategy required(only 24 cities were needed to build the spaceship all at once) so I opened negotiations with the Chinese by offering 2 of my cities to replace 3 that they would need to return to Vikings. They agreed in principal to this and then the other countries showed up to enter the negotiations. The JTF wanted Seoul. The English wanted 2 of the Chinese cities and 1 of the Aztec cities returned to the Sioux(Admirably Cap always stands up for the underdog). The Russians wanted to continue the war since they had spent so much time and resources mobilizing and the Vikings at 1st wanted to go to war to recover their possessions but after careful consideration realize that all their demands could be met more expeditiously if they accepted the peace. What was originally proposed by to the Chinese by me as a 2 for 3 city deal was in danger of becoming a 1 for 5 city deal which Mr. Wallace would not accept. After much negotiation, we reached a 2 for 4 city deal with the the Aztecs giving the former Sioux city of Samarkand and the former Chinese city of Lanzhou back to China, JTF forfeited their claim to Seoul, and China returned the 3 cities in SE Asia plus 2 settlers to Vikings and Raging Brook back to the Sioux. Everyone had to give up something and not 1 player seemed to be happy with the treaty, so in retrospect it must have been a pretty fair settlement. The Aztecs review their costs in this relatively short and limited war(3000+ gold, 12-15 destroyed units minus reparations of gold and techs and a couple of dismantled city improvements) to capture 2 cities and then return them to reach a peace agreement and come to a startling conclusion.....modern wars dont make economic sense. And then the 1st multiplayer space race that I have ever been in began..........

[CapTVK]

The New English Times: issue 17 special edition

A new geopolitical worldmap as of 1814AD:



Main Changes
WW2 ended quite abruptly in 1808AD, the Aztecs and JTF had already reached a settlement with the Chinese. Therefore the English and Vikings quickly followed suit . We chose to be lenient towards the Sioux as some of their recent actions where due more to the AI than to human error and promised to return some of their conquered cities. Nevertheless the English did take some precautions, the Indian peninsula now serves as an English naval outpost which will give us better access to SE-Asia proper. We also believe that the Sioux caught the short end of the stick and the Chinese the long end, in the end they came out with a much better position than they started with.
Only a few cities have been returned to the Vikings and the Sioux almost lost everything. The Sioux have only lost in this endeavour, English proprosals to grant the city of Cw (J.S Bach) in return for Samarkand where ignored by the large nations. Giving the impression that this wasn't a treaty as such but more of a 'sweet deal' between the Aztecs, JTF and Russia with the smaller nations waiting at the sidelines.
Meanwhile China is in complete control of the mainland. Most of their cities haven't been touched by the ravages of war so their industrial capacity remains intact while other nations in Asia have seen large parts of their production capacity destroyed. China comes out will in this treaty, in fact...one could say the Chinese have achieved their goals: a firm control of Asia.

Space Race is on!
Too much surprise the Aztecs managed to beat the Chinese and JTF at their own game by launching their spaceship in 1812. The English finance minister expected such a move "financial reports have shown that the Aztec government had build up very large gold reserves, it doesn't take a genius too figure out where that gold was going...". A scientist working in Copernicus Observatory made an important remark: "True, the Aztec spaceship may have launched their spaceship first but it's underpowered. With only 3 fusion engines it will have a flightime of roughly 16 (15.7) years. There's a distinct possibility that one of the other nations will build a faster ship and overtake the Aztecs". Well you've read it here, this race ain't over yet.


Special Offer!
The English Historical Society celebrates it's 500th anniversary this year and dived into it's archives and is planning a special 'History of the World'-series. In cooperation with the NET we can make a special offer to all our regular readers, the first part of the bookseries called "tales from the diplomatic front II-1" is absolutely free!.

You can order it by simply filling in the form below and sending it to the NET:

Name :
Adress :
City :
Zip Code :
Country :

Please include 24,95$ for postage and packaging


Or you can simply download it at: http://home.worldonline.nl/~thomas/pdf/tftdf23d-1.pdf

Note:
This file is a PDF document, you need Acrobat Reader or a PDF-viewer to view this. Also note that this file is quite big, 40 pages! (1,62Mb)
And that's only the first part...


One truly learns by experience it seems...
As I've made a new set of PDF files that are not only better looking, have better readable fonts, better layout and are up to 75% smaller too!

Here are the first 50 original posts http://home.worldonline.nl/~thomas/p...fromtdf2-1.pdf
And the 2nd 50 posts http://home.worldonline.nl/~thomas/p...fromtdf2-2.pdf

The final posts from the first part are not really relevant but for the sake of perfection I'll include those on a later date.
<font size=1 face=Arial color=444444>[This message has been edited by CapTVK (edited November 06, 1999).]</font>

[KenThur]

Viking Sentinel 1808 Late, Bit-of-a-Rush Edition

HEADLINES:
Peace is made! (Hawks are fuming!!)

The Treaty of Raging Brook was hammered out!
So named after the original Sioux city that changed hands several times. Due to it's centralized location in heart of Asia, at the border of Aztec, Chinese, Sioux, & English(after war-gains) empires. Plus, after all of this… its name was so appropriate!
Much to the credit of William Wallace, the new enlightened(scared?) Chinese leadership, after MUCH debate & negotiations @ our UN Security Council "ICQ chat", made an 11th hour deal to avert an all out invasion of their ill-gotten lands.
================================================== ==========
DETAILS:
Once again, the true nature of this world class competition has shone thru!!
With new leadership at the helm of both the Chinese & Sioux civ's this world's "old guard" once again chose the path of negotiation & compromise rather than succumbing to their animal instinct (tho fun) side. Hear-here!! &#61514;

Tho as 1 of the great leaders said during the heat of the give-&-take debate, "Our problem is that we all have or think we have a military that can win a war."
The final results have been previously reported: in essence, we Vikings were handed back essentially 2/3 of what was taken from us during the "Genghis Khan Blitzkrieg". Of course, even those cities are a shadow of their once well-developed state due to the ravages of war & 1 of our newer cities that was part of the beginning Trans-Gobi RR network was totally destroyed. However, at least we were given 2 settlers (after several requests to honor their commitment) to reestablish that desert city & help rebuild the areas around the war zone.

Tho our great-leader-called-out-of-exile, Milo the Magnificent & our steadfast, testosterone-filled ally, Super Russian, were setting up for & anxious to "get-it-on" with the Chin's & their puny little "allies" the Sioux. Our Viking military Joint Chiefs of Staff had already concurred with the great Field Marshal CapTVK & the economic powerhouse JTF's leader, GG san, on how to carve up the Sioux as our 1st priority.
We Vikings had already started coastal bombardment of the East Indian seaports with our powerful veteran BB & it's accompanying escorts. Destroying a # of units in those cities in preparation for the JFT's wounded units to roll up again from their south tip of India city or as it turned out, for the English to finish their drive across India to cut the Sioux in half. Our Viking homeland units were to be diverted to invade Sitting Duck, the border city in Bangladesh. This has been the base of operations for centuries from which the Sioux, as reported here, have constantly attacked our southeast Asian flank.
On the southern Chinese front, we had moved an amazing # of units up thru our series of SE Asian island ports & then landed them in Saigon after the Russians returned it to our control… along with operational control of their 2nd wave Asian expeditionary force(!). Combining these with the wave of fighters that had island-hopped their way to the most-clever JFT-built airstrip @ the tip of the Malay peninsula (their way to utilize the Russians' aircraft carrier laying off the coast of China ) with the 3rd wave of Russian troops on their way across the Pacific at breakneck speed to exploit their beachhead on the bulge of China. The ALLIES for GOODNESS & RIGHT were nearly ready to strike!! Oh, what a bloody good fight it would have been!

This entire peace-making exercise was very, very stressful to us both. &#61516; Since we believe that: "Stress is brought on by, the overcoming & stifling of the natural urges to strangle the sh_t & kick the a_s of someone or thing that richly deserves it!!"

But we have peace, at a cost, & we began preparing our civ's for the space race rather than the military race.
================================================== =========
POLICTICAL SECTION:
In addition to the UN negotiations, led by our State Dept., our fine Dept.of the Interior worked with the most pragmatic English leader to utilize there great Statue of Rapid Governmental Change. With an appropriate "tithe" to the Treasury, we were able to get out of our less-than-optimal, AI-implemented republic into a government that befits our citizens & this world's current mood… Fundamentalism!! Tho we will miss the joys of democracy, it was clear to our leader that the Viking citizens are SO FIRED UP to get revenge on the Chinese & then help our Russian friends get to the stars (not to mention SO FAR BEHIND in research anyway) that this was the only form of government that could harness their energies.
Thus, for the 1st time in Viking history we have… His Holy Righteousness, Milo the Mystic, at the helm of Viking power. May the rays of his Sun-Ra godliness shine in the eyes of the Aztec spaceship pilots' eyes & send them off course long enough for our later-but-faster SS to overtake them!! Hear-here!! Praise be to Milo!!
================================================== =====
BUSINESS SECTION:
Our homeland factories have all been upgraded to manufacturing plants or supplemented with nuclear power plants. We have completed several superhiway improvements to boost trade & we were then able to rapidly build some mass transit systems to do our part in stemming pollution & global warming. We only wish we had the technology to build these "solar plants" that our scientists have heard of. Perhaps an advanced, enlightened civ could share this knowledge with us?

As for trades, we of course have been totally geared for war production. However, we were able to help our diplomatic supporters, the Aztecs & their great clever leader, Nappy with some 1000+ freight routes to our prosperous home cities. Our less-than-world-class science leaders have been grateful for the Aztecs' sharing of (2nd tier) advances over the past several decades & therefore encouraged our great business leaders to help make the Aztec traders most welcome & prosperous.
Now if can only convince our military leaders to not take out the Aztec spaceport…
================================================== =======
EDITORIAL SECTION:

Our commendations to William Wallace once again for taking over a civ in the heat of war & negotiations, & work out a civ-saving strategy / treaty with multiple adversaries. A remarkable leader to say the least. We wonder if he can switch gears to the space race as well… or will he be tempted(perhaps encouraged?) to use that military might on a certain neighbor that slyly sand-banged the world, including him, while preparing to jump-start the space race?

Congratulations, so far, to President Nappyzuma & his Aztec space pioneers for rush-building & launching the 1st ever SS!! Slow tho it may be. Wonder what he will send the next decade+ doing as he waits for their arrival?

Nice work again, Field Marshal Sir CapTVK!! Once again, you have demonstrated the negotiating strength of having a civ nearly "by the balls" & then be willing to back off… for a price. Well done on both counts, ol' chap!!

Amazing display of patience & knowing when to hush-up by our newest leader, CaveBear of the Sioux. Here is an individual that saved a nation… just by his very presence! What a guy! Cheers to thee. PS: and he knows how to write a great post too!! We could have used his skills centuries ago. The English finally have some competition for the Pulitzer Prize of Posting!!

And we could never leave out the great, tho late, creator of the #1 economic power of this world, Grau Geistisan. This great leader has been in the background & had less-than-stellar military success during this world war in the making. But his negotiating skills & never-flagging adherence to the purpose & goal of this world's competition have once again helped defuse a potentially catastrophic situation. Now, all eyes are on him & his Japanese technicians to see if they can produce a faster space ship & launch it in time to catch "Montezuma's Revenge"!!?? :0

And of Superski, I love ya bud!! But you won't be there when we most need U to lead us to the stars… I hope she's worth it! &#61516;
So if we have any REALLY GOOD leaders-waiting that want to be in on the grand finale of the phenomenal story & help write the last chapter win, lose, tie, or DIE!? Contact us ASAP!!

[cavebear]

The local leaders of the proud Sioux nation have gathered together to discuss the state of the People. One by one, they tell of construction efforts, sacrifices, and defensive efforts.

One reports on temples and cathedrals, both modest and lofty; another tells of the newly-developed mines and railroads in his area; yet another boasts (deservedly) of crafts of his tribe and the valuable trade goods to be sent abroad. All their efforts are honored.

The Great and Caring Chief Cavebear addresses his stalwarts:

"My friends, you have done well. The People honor you and the members of your tribes. I bring you word now of our discoveries of the world beyond our borders... Hear my words with strength of heart and steady hands, for the times are perilous indeed and none must falter.

"My advisors and I have met with visiting merchants, we have learned from those of our own who have returned from far-off lands, and we have plied unwary travellers with comfort and drink to loosen their tongues. Our spies are abroad in the world.

"Vehicles bearing settlers have been sent into the outer realms, to the stars, by 2 other civilizations! Others are surely preparing to do the same! (A great cry of dismay rises up) Yes, it is a hard blow to our dreams... But, we must perservere. Is it not written that the brave and true heart may overcome all obstacles?

"The enterprise the others have undertaken is perilous, and we all know that not every journey in life is completed. Still, we must ready ourselves for any opportunity and be prepared for Nature's fortune.

"My People! Let your eyes be as the Eagle, your alertness as the Turkey, and your hearing as the deer. Note every movement, hear every broken twig, detect every stranger...

"I salute you all! Send runners forth to proclaim the news to every tribe and village. Let the People rejoice and re-dedicate their efforts. Their sacrifices honor us all..."

[CapTVK]

The New English Times: issue 18 special edition

A new geopolitical worldmap as of 1818AD:



Main Changes
Once again the Chinese AI declared war on everybody. The AI took over after the Chinese player (Ceasar) was dropped due to technical problems and couldn't log in for the rest of the evening and by then the session had already ended. First the Chinese cancelled the alliance with their former allies the Sioux. A turn later they declared war on them! As the English where still allied with the Sioux at the time that meant we where also drawn into the conflict. Meanwhile, the Russians were still at war with the Chinese and launched a naval invasion from the Pacific as a diversion.
When it became known that the Chinese had been secretely building the Manhattan project a joint Russian/Anglo sabotage team was set up which was quite succesful (more on this in a later issue). Furtherwhile a revolt in the city of Cw by English infiltrators was a stunning success. With the loss of Cw the Chinese have not only lost a city but also a WoW (J.S Bach) which will cost them dearly in the long run...


Other news to follow, Main news: pollution levels keep rising, call for drastic actions!...

[KenThur]

Viking Sentinel 1818 Short Edition

HEADLINES:
War Again! Our age old enemy, the Chin's, have once again attacked our northern border guard units!

TEXT:
As has happened so many times over the centuries the Chinese leadership regressed to that mindless radical group, the AI.

Upon doing so last decade, these warmongers set their sights on developing the most destructive weapons system ever devised. Which if allowed to come to fruition, would not only loosen all this world's civ's to build these horrific weapons but if used, will surely push us all over the edge of global warming!
Being an aggressive, vendicitive society from their very core + being a land-based civ, these peoples have little concern & would be little affected by either of these horrific consequences of their actions.
This malefic genie CANNOT be let out of the bottle!!
It seemed briefly that the Chin's would be ruled by an intelligent, enlightened human named Caesar. Thus we all hoped he could once again bring these highly skilled peoples to their senses & continue to work within the community of civ's. In fact, it was the Chinese advancements that had put them 1st in a far less destructive competition... the "space race"!
However with the fall of Caesar, all hope of a halt in this monsterous project was gone. Therefore Mystic Milo our great fundamentalist leader, fortold the grim future & knew we Vikings were the only civ with a chance to recon in force to the center of China, to their capital Xinjing, where reports indicated this monster was being created. Therefore, tho being a peaceful meek race of peoples(?), made a unilateral decision to confirm these reports.

Not wanting to upset our Chinese "hosts", Defense Minister Sten Stevesen directed General Olie Olstrom to land ONLY several of our elite, island-built paratroop divisions into JUST A FEW unoccupied fortresses in Manchuria, NE of their capital. Then, again wanting to be gentle, Gen.OO only inserted a SMALL contingent of our veteran alpine & armor units alongside the Chin's southernmost city, which lies directly in the path to their capital.
This was accomplished without causing a confrontation with Chin units slumbering in the city fortresses; by leap-frogging(with the aid of our air cover fighters stationed on our Russian-built carrier off the coast).
These units' flanks HAD to be guarded; so additional alpine divisions along with marine, & rifle units were dispatched to key fortresses outside the Chin's southern tier of cities. But ONLY for DEFENSIVE purposes.
Of course, these army units needed to be sure their sea routes were clear for their return to Viking ports; so Admiral Bjorn Bergmen dispatched JUST A FEW units of his fleet to wait off the coast of Korea.

Damned if those reactionary Chinese leaders didn't just up & attack our gentle "Mystic warriors"!!?? What EVER got them so mad as to do THAT??!! At the hastily-called press conference, fearless-leader Milo responded to these questions of "Why did they attack us?" by drawing on great & deep wisdom known to every MAN... "They're just like women, no matter how easy & gentle you insert your unit, they still get upset when discover you're in!"

Well, in the Chinese's case, the attacks started against our peaceful but strong carrier & battleship task force. Waves of cruise missles stuck the fleet, & tho without the protection of an Aegis, the veteran BB, MMS WeLuvU, took the hits & tho badly damaged survived to protect the fleet!!
Next, several leaderless army units made pathetic suicide attacks against our dug in units. They however succeeded, after several waves of attacks, in taking out 2 brave units defending the RR without any fortress. Reports also seemed to indicate
their use of bombers on our northernmost port city, which of course were anniliated in the air by our brave fighters of the 2nd Kisses2U squadron.

So there stands the war & our frontline units. These brave veterans are being backed up by reserve units on their way to the front... should they be needed. As it is our hope that we do NOT have to pursue this war to it's final conclusion.

Our MMM(Mystic Mind Meld) agency has recently read reports that the Monster Wonder has been dealt a major setback by their counterparts in the English M9 agency(nice work! if it is so). If this is true, then our Viking military will adapt a (somewhat) defensive stance & await furthur developements. We have better things to do with are small, but well-developed civ's gold & production capacity(see following article).
==========================================
SCIENCE SECTION:

As many are now aware... there has been a 2nd space ship launched!
To our former benefactor & great leader thru out history, GGmoto of the JFT (& their accomplice, CapTVKthe English rogue) we send our CONGRATULATIONS on your accomplishment!!
Reports at the time of liftoff indicated that the Japanese SS, due to it's superior construction & propulsion units(?), will pass the Aztec's enroute to Alpha-Centuari & arrive there 1st. We do NOT wish them well.

Gustof Gustophsen, head of the Viking MASA(Mystic Astrological Society of Ascention)has announced we have been & will redouble of support of our Greatest Friend & Ally President SuperPastie of the Russians!
During these last several years thank goodness his bro, the ORIGINAL Chief Pastie, was able to step in & bridge the gap at this crucial period in history. Together we were able to make rather good strides toward building a space craft that will be THE OPTIMUM balance of structure, propulsion, & modules. With such a craft, the Russians could fly pass BOTH the Aztec & JTF's slower machines to arrive "out there" 1st!!

No further details are available, as we defer to questions regarding how & what to the lead constructor on the project.
===========================================
BUSINESS SECTION:

Our major cities spent several years producing Mass Transit, Superhiway, & some Nuclear Power plants in order to do our part in preventing pollution. Our SE Asian cities built Hydro Plants & have really swung into production in last several years!

Our engineers have been working on:
> pollution spots in the Austrailian homeland,
> rebuilding the war-ravaged areas of central Asia,
> building a road out of Tibet from where several were thrown to when the Chin's broke their allaince with us,
> last, not least, we have started westward from Burma to finally link our Viking civ to our finally-friendly Sioux neighbors & their enlightened (& quite eloquent!) leader CaveBear, the Silver Tongue.

A few freight units were built & dispatched to far trading cities before the outbreak of hostilities by the Chin's. They should arrive to rich rewards soon.

And finally, due to the huge buildup of our military as a response to THE LAST ATTACK by the Chin; we have & will not need to divert much of our economy to any war effort that ensues. The only cost of any consequence so far was that we had to rush-finish a few units + some necessary improvements in our frontline cities. This prevented us from giving our Russian cohorts 1 year of our funding for their (our?) space effort.
=============================================

EDITORIAL SECTION:

We are nearing the end of an era. What an era it has been... WHEW! Our great leader gets tired just thinking about it all.
But we Vikings WILL NOT give up hope until the last shot is fired or better yet, the fastest ship gets to A-C!!
It seems that several of the great leaders of this world will not be with us to actively manage their civ's while their spaceships race to...? We, the Viking people & our leader Mystic Milo, want to assure them & others that we will not & to the extent possible, will not allow their civ's to run-amok during the waning years of this world.

We will do our best to be part of a team that wins by COOPERATION, NOT DESTRUCTION!!

On to the (Super)Stars!!

[Grau Geist]

THE FEDERATION WEEKLY

THE JTF LAUNCHES!!!!

In what is being called the single most important achievment of the JTF as well as the defining moment of the African Alliance, the Federation launch complex at Satsuma launched a spaceship to the stars. This achievement came as a great surprise to many in the world and including most JTF citizens. It was recently released that the Space Committee and the Foreign Ministry were caught completely offguard and ill prepared for the Space race. The Aztec launch caused a great stir; Production was redirected, the treasury was emptied and the military was canibilized for scrap metal.

In just three years, thanks to the efforts of every citizen in every JTF city, the Federation launched a ship that will arrive three years before the Aztecs. Chairman Tojogeist also proclaimed great thanks to our English Allies for their crucial knowledge of Fusion power, which allowed the Federation Ship to be much faster. In exchange, English citizens were invited to help carry on our alliance into the next world on the USS Tojogeist.

The 21 individual structures, 10 separate components and 3 modules were all rush produced throughout the JTF and assembled for the first time in space. It is a tribute to the superior technology of the Federation that these parts from across the globe fit to perfection, assuring 100% success for the African Consortium ship after just 10 years of flight.

END OF OVER 500 YEARS OF COMMUNISM!

Space Minister Graugeist, reveling in the success of the ministries' efforts to send Federation citizens to the stars, staged a bloodless coup to oust the communist party in a democratic election. While Minister Graugeist was obtaining the secrets of Fusion power from the English he discussed with and gained their help in forcing democratic elections throughout the Federation. Though the communist party retained the majority in the newly formed Zaibatzu Congress, the newly formed and space inspired consortium party gained an important footing in creating a two party system.

The Democratic system was finally adopted after centuries of resistance in hopes of curing the population stagnation that has occured under the stricter communist regime. Though the Federation remains under communist rule, capitalism now rules the market system. Following the launch it is hard to imagine any further worthwhile front page headlines, but merchants are excited at the possibility of beating the single trade record set by a Buenos Aires merchant.

WORLD THRUST INTO WAR WITH CHINA, ONCE AGAIN

The newly formed Federation Democracy is facing its first potential crisis. The Federation has always been known as a strong military power under the communist regime, however, in an effort to rush build the Federation spaceship two thirds of the military equiptment was melted down for scrap metal. Wisely, modern defensive units were spared being turned into plowshears but most attack units were sacrificed to the space production.

The Chinese position remains Hostile towards the Federation, but we remain at peace. However, the rest of the world is presently at war with the Chinese. It is anticipated that a strike from the Chinese will come soon. It is suspected that the timely arrival of the federation aircraft and transports to the Japanese Isles was key in preventing an earlier sneak attack by the Chinese. The transports, launched during the first Asian World War, were directed to continue to their Japanese Island destination despite the peace treaty. This force was initially part of a recently discovered strategy to prevent the Chinese from reaching the depths of space years before the rest of the world, which seemed inevitable at the time. The troops aboard the transports, now docked in Hokkaido and Osaka, appear to be acting as a deterent against possible chinese aggression. The new democratic congress now needs to consider whether Federation involvment is inevitable or even possible.

[CapTVK]

The New English Times: issue 19 Early Edition

Russian spaceship reaches AC, game ends!
All good things come to an end, even diplogames. It's true dear reader, the longest running diplogame ever has just come to an end. With a special twist in the finale the Russians managed to sneak by JTF with the narrowest of margins. They arrived in the same year just in front of the JTF!

Here's the screen shot to prove it:


Here's a link to the final powergraph



I don't have the time to write a full post, it's late and I'm tired. I can only say that seeing the end screen was an amazing experience for me. I've never seen it before and as a veteran civ player I don't think I'll see something like it for quite some time.

That's the news for today, you can expect more posts in the coming week...

[This message has been edited by CapTVK (edited November 14, 1999).]

<font size=1 face=Arial color=444444>[This message has been edited by CapTVK (edited December 05, 1999).]</font>