DGNT
November 9th, 2006, 07:35 PM
At the start of this RP (IE: 1.5 years ago now), this is the general shape of things, that is, the ones you cant tell from the map.
This is, of course, open to debate.
Russia is generally beleived to be the strongest nation in the world. This is true in terms of numbers, however, they are seriously weakened by internal corruption and several wide-ranging wars. The Imperial Russian Navy is far from the best in the world, especially since it is split between the Black and Baltic seas. The current war with the Ottomans has turned into a bloody stalemate in the Balkans, with the Turks establishing a long string of fortifications and digging in for a long stay. Polish and Finnish independance movements are not helping this either.
Russia is also engaged in two 'colonial wars'. One in Central Asia is proving very frustrating, due to the raiding tactics used by the local Kazakh banditry and the stubborn fighters of the Khans. The war in Hawaii has been going back and forth for nearly a decade now, as neither side is able to establish the naval superiority required to mount a serious invasion of the other sides islands.
As in history, the Russian armys arms are, for the most part, over a decade out of date. Many regiments are still equipped with Napoleonic muskets and Russian infantry are still trained to fire mass, unaimed volleys, with emphasis on a bayonette charge afterwards.
Russian artillery, however, is very up to date and modern. The Russian artillery corps is widely thought of as the best in the world.
The United Kingdom has been seriously weakened by its loss of naval power, although its fleet is still vastly larger than any other in the world, it is seriously weakened by the fact that almost %80 of its ships are seriously undermaintained, out of date, or otherwise in need of serious repairs and retrofitting. The loss of Canada was a serious blow to the British economy, and the gradual retreat from the Western Hemisphere did not help much either, but it did provide the much needed capitol to keep the navy floating.
Britain still rules over all of India, although now it is mostly via third parties, such as the BEIC and local puppet states.
The Dutch have, over the course of several years, made loans to the British, which were repayed in land.
Serious internal instability has further weakened the British Empire, and rumours of Indian independance movements are causing some unrest as well.
The French are, by most standards, more powerful than the Russians, they have the ability to project power and the power to make it worth projecting. Numerous colonies and a strong economy with good income have made France a serious power, even after its defeat and humiliation at the end of the Napoleonic Wars.
The main disadvantage of the French is a tendancy towards accepting new technology whether or not its very effecient, and staying with whatever comes along first, hence their armys weapons, while advanced, are not of high quality. The French navy currently possess the worlds only iron-plated steam powered battleship, although several nations have their own projects on this particular field of nautical engineering.
Europe in general is a slightly unstable place right now. With the breakup of Austria Prussia and Russia both began to jockey for position amoung the states of Eastern, Central, and Northern Europe. Austrian military power, such as it was, prevented any open war from breaking out.
However, Austro-Prussian rivalry culimated eventually with the Austro-Prussian 'War of German Unification' in which the King of Prussia claimed the title of Holy Roman Emperor, with the support of several of the Protestant German states. Austria took offence to this and gathered support from the Catholic states. The following war swallowed up the perrenial waverers who didnt join either side.
In the aftermath of the war, when the new borders were solidified, mass exoduses of Catholics to the South and Protestants to the North took place.
The current Russo-Turkish War in the Balkans has many European states worried over the consequences of Russia achieving its dream of reviving the Byzantine Empire. Initial Russian setbacks assuaged many of these fears, but with a steady advance many began to worry that the Ottomans might be on their last legs. Britain and France issued objections to the Russian action and began sending (covert) supplies to the Ottomans. Neither has directly intervened as of yet.
Both Spain has stabilized somewhat after a period of intense internal conflict, and many of its citizens are now yearning for Spain to retake its place amoung the Powers. There are many obstacles to this of course, but perhaps with a reinvigorated will to power and no Pax Brittanica to stop it, Spain can revive itself.
The Dutch have recently shown a propensity to gain more land, buying up chunks of British colonial land as partial payment for the debts of the United Kingdom. The Dutch trading fleet is by far the largest in the world, its services are employed by nearly every nation, including the British (The Dutch NAVY is not that large though, just to clarify).
North America is currently even more unstable than Europe. The current Mexican-Texas war has been going on for a decade, with Mexico insisting that Texas is still part of its Empire. The United States has yet to directly intervene, but Texan representatives to the United States have been making pleas to the United States for assistance, and they are being listened to. Several nations have recognized Texas as independant of Mexico.
Everybody is concerned over the increased Spanish presence as well, after the brief attempt by Spain to regain control of Mexico (which resulted in a draw, and Spain gaining Panama), Mexico and Spain signed a non-aggression pact, which expired in 1853, but Spain has, as of late, been displaying a fondness for Mexico in diplomacy and trade. Spanish claims on California were heavily reinforced in 1849 when thosands of Mexicans migrated North in search of fame and fortune, displacing many White settlers in the area, an action officially protested by the United States which resulted in a minor war between White and Mexican settlers.
South America has been embroiled in a near constant war since the 1830's. Originally the result of relativly minor territorial disputes, it eventually grew into an ever-shifting system of alliances and pacts. Constant guerilla attacks by all sides against all sides have seriously weakened all the states, resulting in the death of as much as %20 of the male population in some areas. Brazil has suffered the most due to its mainly Portugese speaking population.
Africa is currently host to the race for cosmetic colonies. Many of the current colonies are essentially for show, only British and Dutch South Africa have serious strategic value, although Spanish Morrocco does have a little economic value to Spain.
The Sultanate of Oman and Zanzibar has recently been flexing its trading muscles, competing locally with the Dutch. It is also attempting to establish itself on Madagascar, and meeting with very annoyed French and Spanish diplomats.
Asia has had its own share of turmoil recently. Thailand and the BEIC are currently engaged in an unofficial struggle over Burma. The Chinese Ming Revolution has taken the lives of over 20,000,000 Chinese, and the British/Dutch Economic War is in full swing as both sides attempt to squeeze as much trade as they can out of the area.
Unless I think of something else, thats all for now. Suggestions are welcome, as is debate.
This is, of course, open to debate.
Russia is generally beleived to be the strongest nation in the world. This is true in terms of numbers, however, they are seriously weakened by internal corruption and several wide-ranging wars. The Imperial Russian Navy is far from the best in the world, especially since it is split between the Black and Baltic seas. The current war with the Ottomans has turned into a bloody stalemate in the Balkans, with the Turks establishing a long string of fortifications and digging in for a long stay. Polish and Finnish independance movements are not helping this either.
Russia is also engaged in two 'colonial wars'. One in Central Asia is proving very frustrating, due to the raiding tactics used by the local Kazakh banditry and the stubborn fighters of the Khans. The war in Hawaii has been going back and forth for nearly a decade now, as neither side is able to establish the naval superiority required to mount a serious invasion of the other sides islands.
As in history, the Russian armys arms are, for the most part, over a decade out of date. Many regiments are still equipped with Napoleonic muskets and Russian infantry are still trained to fire mass, unaimed volleys, with emphasis on a bayonette charge afterwards.
Russian artillery, however, is very up to date and modern. The Russian artillery corps is widely thought of as the best in the world.
The United Kingdom has been seriously weakened by its loss of naval power, although its fleet is still vastly larger than any other in the world, it is seriously weakened by the fact that almost %80 of its ships are seriously undermaintained, out of date, or otherwise in need of serious repairs and retrofitting. The loss of Canada was a serious blow to the British economy, and the gradual retreat from the Western Hemisphere did not help much either, but it did provide the much needed capitol to keep the navy floating.
Britain still rules over all of India, although now it is mostly via third parties, such as the BEIC and local puppet states.
The Dutch have, over the course of several years, made loans to the British, which were repayed in land.
Serious internal instability has further weakened the British Empire, and rumours of Indian independance movements are causing some unrest as well.
The French are, by most standards, more powerful than the Russians, they have the ability to project power and the power to make it worth projecting. Numerous colonies and a strong economy with good income have made France a serious power, even after its defeat and humiliation at the end of the Napoleonic Wars.
The main disadvantage of the French is a tendancy towards accepting new technology whether or not its very effecient, and staying with whatever comes along first, hence their armys weapons, while advanced, are not of high quality. The French navy currently possess the worlds only iron-plated steam powered battleship, although several nations have their own projects on this particular field of nautical engineering.
Europe in general is a slightly unstable place right now. With the breakup of Austria Prussia and Russia both began to jockey for position amoung the states of Eastern, Central, and Northern Europe. Austrian military power, such as it was, prevented any open war from breaking out.
However, Austro-Prussian rivalry culimated eventually with the Austro-Prussian 'War of German Unification' in which the King of Prussia claimed the title of Holy Roman Emperor, with the support of several of the Protestant German states. Austria took offence to this and gathered support from the Catholic states. The following war swallowed up the perrenial waverers who didnt join either side.
In the aftermath of the war, when the new borders were solidified, mass exoduses of Catholics to the South and Protestants to the North took place.
The current Russo-Turkish War in the Balkans has many European states worried over the consequences of Russia achieving its dream of reviving the Byzantine Empire. Initial Russian setbacks assuaged many of these fears, but with a steady advance many began to worry that the Ottomans might be on their last legs. Britain and France issued objections to the Russian action and began sending (covert) supplies to the Ottomans. Neither has directly intervened as of yet.
Both Spain has stabilized somewhat after a period of intense internal conflict, and many of its citizens are now yearning for Spain to retake its place amoung the Powers. There are many obstacles to this of course, but perhaps with a reinvigorated will to power and no Pax Brittanica to stop it, Spain can revive itself.
The Dutch have recently shown a propensity to gain more land, buying up chunks of British colonial land as partial payment for the debts of the United Kingdom. The Dutch trading fleet is by far the largest in the world, its services are employed by nearly every nation, including the British (The Dutch NAVY is not that large though, just to clarify).
North America is currently even more unstable than Europe. The current Mexican-Texas war has been going on for a decade, with Mexico insisting that Texas is still part of its Empire. The United States has yet to directly intervene, but Texan representatives to the United States have been making pleas to the United States for assistance, and they are being listened to. Several nations have recognized Texas as independant of Mexico.
Everybody is concerned over the increased Spanish presence as well, after the brief attempt by Spain to regain control of Mexico (which resulted in a draw, and Spain gaining Panama), Mexico and Spain signed a non-aggression pact, which expired in 1853, but Spain has, as of late, been displaying a fondness for Mexico in diplomacy and trade. Spanish claims on California were heavily reinforced in 1849 when thosands of Mexicans migrated North in search of fame and fortune, displacing many White settlers in the area, an action officially protested by the United States which resulted in a minor war between White and Mexican settlers.
South America has been embroiled in a near constant war since the 1830's. Originally the result of relativly minor territorial disputes, it eventually grew into an ever-shifting system of alliances and pacts. Constant guerilla attacks by all sides against all sides have seriously weakened all the states, resulting in the death of as much as %20 of the male population in some areas. Brazil has suffered the most due to its mainly Portugese speaking population.
Africa is currently host to the race for cosmetic colonies. Many of the current colonies are essentially for show, only British and Dutch South Africa have serious strategic value, although Spanish Morrocco does have a little economic value to Spain.
The Sultanate of Oman and Zanzibar has recently been flexing its trading muscles, competing locally with the Dutch. It is also attempting to establish itself on Madagascar, and meeting with very annoyed French and Spanish diplomats.
Asia has had its own share of turmoil recently. Thailand and the BEIC are currently engaged in an unofficial struggle over Burma. The Chinese Ming Revolution has taken the lives of over 20,000,000 Chinese, and the British/Dutch Economic War is in full swing as both sides attempt to squeeze as much trade as they can out of the area.
Unless I think of something else, thats all for now. Suggestions are welcome, as is debate.