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Hi AHers,

Although I spend a lot of time on both the After 1900 and Before 1900 sections of the board, I generally contribute to the After 1900 section because that is where my expertise lies.

A major part of working on that has been the TL in my sig, 'Stars and Sickles' which is based on an alternate Cold War. I've been working on it for about a year (on-and-off, because real life) and I'm still nowhere near finishing it. Although I've got some great ideas for it, and definitely want to complete it, a lack of inspiration recently has led me to neglect it somewhat. Whilst I want to give it the attention it deserves, I've decided not to force it, instead I would rather let it grow naturally than let it become a chore.

As a means of letting off steam somewhat, I was thinking of creating a TL focusing (not exclusively, of course) on a surviving Gothic Steppe Empire. I figured it would be really cool to look at how such a culture would develop. I'm not an expert on the Goths, but I have a strongly budding interest and a foundational knowledge of them. Unfortunately, however, a lot of writings on the Goths focus on their later interactions with the Romans rather than on the Goths themselves.

Anyways here is a few things I wanted to throw out there and get any readers' comments on:

-Gothic warfare: I'm definitely not an expert on warfare in this period, and from what little I've read on it, I've been hearing that the Goths liked to fight in the style imitated from the Alans, namely utilising the shock power of armoured lancers. The Huns managed to effectively counteract this with horse archers. Why did the Goths not use horse archery to the same effect? Was there some good reason for it, or what?

-Gothic government/customary(?) law: how did the Goths operate? Am I right in that they had two kings, or was that only after the Ostrogoths and Visigoths became divided?

-Other peoples: Aside from the Alans, what other peoples did the Goths conquer/absorb? What was their relationship with neighbouring groups, such as the Balts or Slavs?

-Would the Goths still likely adopt Christianity if they remained a power on the steppe? Would their Christianity still be distinctly Gothic? I'm leaning towards yes, because of their unique values and because greater independence from Rome would mean less Roman influence would be accepted in their religion.

-Eastern Germanic: I'm thinking that the Goths would be the core of an 'East Germanic' cultural sphere (kinda like how the Russians have historically been the core of the 'East Slavic' cultures) that would be distinct from Western Germanics, who themselves would have their differences, but be less divergent than the Goths.

-Trade: Would the Goths be in a good position to benefit off of the amber route? would they trade more with the Eastern Roman Empire than the West? What would the affect of their presence to the East be on the development of Germania proper?

Ideas (not necessarily decided on):

-Could the Goths defeat the Huns? Or is it easier to divert them to China, Manchuria, Tocharia or Persia?

-How would the Romans meddle in Gothic affairs, if they would at all?

-How would the other Germanic tribes interact with the Goths? Tributaries? Alliance seekers? Wary? Would a strong Gothic Empire nearby lead more Germans to take their chances invading the provinces of the WRE?

-Would 'cut-scenes' set in the alt-universe's 2014 be a good idea?

-Any ideas about the other major civilisations would be appreciated (no Byzantine wank, plz).
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