Tarbu Confederacy

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Faction Name: Tarbu Confederacy
Race: Human
Demonym: 'Tarbus' or just Confederate
Leader(s) Warmaster Hanthorn
Hanthorn is a resolute and decisive man who manipulated the various warring clans and city-states of the Tarbu Archipelago through clever political maneuver. A true Machiavellian, Hanthorn is a cunning diplomat. Other states can be categorized in Hanthorn's mind as either client states, potential client states, or competitors with their own clients. While diplomacy and politics are more his cup of tea, he is an above-average commander, especially when fighting an unconventional sort of war. To this end, he has earned the title of 'Warmaster'. More on that later.

Capital New Numeran
Description: Numeran was once the largest and wealthiest of the city-states in the Tarbu Archipelago, and indeed perhaps the very center of civilization in that region. The great city boasted of a harbor with a shielded port, and a majestically-built customs house. It had banks and marketplaces full of goods from distant places brought by merchants who passed through various trade consulates. It possessed a drydock with an assembly line production system which allowed Numeran to mass-produce fleets of oar-powered galleys that allowed it to maintain a strong grip on regional trade.

Unfortunately, the Sundering destroyed all the achievements of the city and its people, and to honor the fallen, the survivors who have followed Hanthorn and Avbek into the new world have christened the city in nostalgic memory.

But today, the city is a shadow of its predecessor. Built in an obsessively grid-like pattern, trying to mimic the old Numeran, its households are not so impressive anymore, its markets not so exotic, its harbor little more than a few wooden piers for fishermen. But its citizens are determined to restore this new city to its spiritual predecessor's glory.

Other Cities (if owned): N/A

Hero General Avbek
Description: While Hanthorn was the central figure behind the unision of the sixteen kingdoms into a single loosely-united entity, Avbek was his partner in crime. Hanthorn, though far from totally incompetent on the field of battle, preferred to fight with small units of less than a hundred men, and carry out operations in a secretive manner. However, he acknowledged the need for a conventional army, in particular to help in dealings with client states and to help compete with competitors. Avbek was the man who raised and lead the conventional army, fulfilling promises Hanthorn had made. Throughout his many adventures during the formation of the confederation, Avbek has grown into an exceptional commander. The army he leads is a professional and disciplined one, and is very loyal to Avbek, himself very loyal to Hanthorn.

General level I

Deity Arthulin
Source: Festivity
Powers: Ferrous Touch, Medusa's Touch, Divine Forgery, Bountiful/Poor Harvest
Description: Arthulin is the patron god of Numeran, for which a great monument shaped out of gold and polished granite was erected in the city center to honor him. He is the father of all skilled crafts, the teacher of fire and agriculture, and is said to help sailors find their way at sea. Priests and priestesses of Arthulin must take it upon themselves to learn a trade or skill, and must at some point in their lifetimes produce a 'masterpiece' of their respective trade in order to be accepted into Arthulin's domain of the afterlife.

Culture: Because of their divided history, Tarbus' culture is hardly homogeneous. Nonetheless, some common traits can be seen. The Tarbus are wanderers, explorers, and traders at heart. They have a loving passion for setting sail at sea, setting off for distant, uncharted lands and bringing home a story to tell or a curious artifact to trade for. A life at sea is truly 'living the dream' for the Tarbu people, and its made all the better if that life turns a profit. But sometimes, the Tarbu just want to explore for exploration's sake.

To seek a benefit, without paying some sort of exchange, is a universally vulgar concept in Tarbu culture. Receiving gifts is viewed as the ultimate insult, especially if its a prestigious and expensive gift. Similarly, to go back on a deal or go against ones' word is extremely, unthinkably obscene, and to bring it up in public is social suicide.

The perception of warfare varies from city-state to city-state. For many cities, the military was almost non-existent and played a role only in emergencies. These cities had few enemies, for various reasons. On the other hand, some cities valued the military and maintained large and dedicated forces. Since the days of the Confederation, this has precipitated the formation of a distinct warrior class of people, who are considered above the lowly workers. However, the Confederate Army, headed by Avbek, is a strictly professional organization of disciplined soldiers, not warriors.

The navy, for obvious reasons, always held a higher status in Tarbu society than the army, and indeed, in most cases, the navy is actually older than the army. A great deal of military professionalism exists in the navy, whereas the army, while it certainly has its brilliant tactical minds, is often thrown together almost as an afterthought. In old Numeran, the navy was in charge of all military industry, meaning that the army had to beg for armor and weapons and often got the scraps. These days, that's may not always be the case.

Unfortunately, the Tarbu people practice slavery, particularly as oarsmen for the galleys, as housekeepers, and as servants and symbols of status. However, slaves in Tarbu society are strictly foreigners, either prisoners of war or simply already-enslaved people who were bought from others.

History: Since time immemorial, the peoples of the Tarbu Archipelago were divided into numerous city-states, now referred to as 'The Sixteen Kingdoms'. The city-states all worshiped their own gods, had their own customs and languages, and so forth.
That was the case for centuries until the appearance of an enemy - so fierce, and so powerful, that it sucked up most of the distant Tarbu colonies and trade posts before the city-states ever realized what had happened. Each city-state responded one-at-a-time, dispatching mighty fleets and armies to deal with this new threat, and each expedition failed.
Soon, Hanthorn stepped into the picture. He had returned in the back of a damaged galleass from yet another doomed expeditionary force, and had seen the power of this fearsome enemy for himself. He traveled to each of the islands and appealed to their senses - that the rival states must set aside their differences and unite their militaries to defeat so great an enemy.
Over a period of many years, as the enemy enclosed even Numeran itself, Hanthorn's clever bargaining with each of the states had paid off, and at last the Sixteen Kingdoms united to form the Tarbu Confederacy and fight for their very survival.
This purely military association would only last as long as there was a threat, however, and Hanthorn knew this. He and Avbek deliberately kept the enemy alive - and even brought it to this new world - in order to keep their power. The only thing that keeps the confederacy of rival states and cultures together may now not be so big and powerful as it once had been, but nonetheless it is extant.

Starting Resources: Fishing Village

Point Expenditure:
+4 Enemy NPC Faction
-3 Trade Port
-7 Additional District
-5 Additional Village
-2 4 extra gold.
-2 Extra unit template.

Starting Location:
The cyan area.

Unit Templates:

Confederate Regular

Spoiler:

The rank-and-file foot soldiers of Avbek's army. Given a coat of scale mail, and equipped with iron-tipped ash spears, along with iron-rimmed wooden round-shields. They are trained to a good standard at a city's 'Drill Square' and are typically career soldiers.
Armor: Medium Armour
Weapon: Spear and Shield
Movement: Infantry
Training: Professional
Total Cost: 7 gold, 1 gold/turn, 1 iron

Confederate Crossbowmen
The Tarbus lack the archery tradition generally required to field significant forces of ranged troops equipped with normal bows, possibly in part because so little food comes from hunting in comparison to fishing and farming. The shortage of suitable archers has lead to the establishment of a crossbow arm. Standard equipment includes a coat of padded leather, along with a crossbow and pavise. They are trained to a good standard at a city's 'Drill Square' and are typically career soldiers.
Armor: Light Armor
Weapon: Crossbow and Pavise
Movement: Infantry
Training: Professional
Total Cost: 7 gold, 1 gold/turn, 1 wood

Confederate Round-Shield Cavalry
As a primarily maritime people who developed a civilization in an archipelago, the Tarbus, though they recognized the need for a cavalry arm, lacked vast grazing fields with which to breed warhorses. As such, the cavalry force that did develop focused more on speed, harassment, and scouting roles, rather than as the hard-hitting shock forces of other armies. To this end, round-shield cavalry are equipped accordingly. Their namesake is a small wooden round-shield which, other than their speed, is their only defense. Due to the lack of a horse-based tradition, they are not trained as well as foreign cavalry might be.
Armor: None
Weapon: Spear and Shield
Movement: Light Cavalry
Training: Militia
Miscellaneous: Throwing Weapons
Total Cost: 7 gold, requires Stables

Confederate Shield-bearers

Spoiler:

The shock infantry of the confederate army, equipped for a different sort of combat than the regulars. They are given iron maces, warhammers, axes, and sometimes broadswords, along with an iron-rimmed long-shield, and wear scale armor. They are trained to a good standard at a city's 'Drill Square' and are typically career soldiers.
Armor: Medium Armor
Weapon: Handweapon and Shield
Movement: Infantry
Training: Professional
Total Cost: 5 gold, 1 gold/turn, 2 iron

Dromon
Modelled after the ship design that was mass-produced from the drydocks of old Numeran, the Dromon is a fearsome slave-powered galley that forms the backbone of any proper fleet. Often seen serving as escorts for trade expeditions or for heavier ships. Their primary weapon is the ram, making full use of Tarbus' experienced rowers.
Hull: Galley
Units: 2 Archers, 2 Boarders, 1 Bombthrower
Total Cost: 6 gold, 1 gold/turn, 1 wood

Fire Dromon
A variant, and perhaps upgrade, of the tried-and-true design, the fire dromon packs some heavier weapons.
Hull: Galley
Units: 1 Archer, 1 Boarder, 1 Firespout
Total Cost: 8 gold, 1 gold/turn, 1 wood, Siege Works

Juggernaught
A scaled-up version of the Dromon design. When an expedition absolutely, positively, wants to sink every ship in the sea.
Hull: Great Galley
Units: 2 Archers, 1 Boarder, 1 Bombthrower, 1 Mounted Crossbows, 1 Firespout
Total Cost: 10 gold, 2 gold/turn, 3 wood, Siege Works

Catapult Juggernaught
A juggernaught equipped for different circumstances.
Hull: Great Galley
Units: 1 Catapult, 2 Mounted Crossbows, 5 Archers
Total Cost: 10 gold, 2 gold/turn, 4 wood, 1 iron, Siege Works

[Admin]

Accepted.

Resources:
Capital: Difficult Ground
Village 1: Fishing Waters
Village 2: Coral Reef (Luxury: Coral, dangerous to large ships)
Village 3: Difficult Ground
Village 4: Gold Ore (forest on the coast)

Hero Trait:
Distant Traveler: Reduced attrition for fleets and armies under this character's command.

Enemy Faction:
Azator's Horde