Results 811 to 840 of 1436
-
2014-01-28, 10:53 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2014
- Location
- On the Internet
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
OK, assuming that Haldir doesn't suddenly whip up everything needed for his/her region (region 3), I'm getting 3! Yay! Just to be prepared, I have drawn up a
chartshort description of Nyroth and it's recently-of-age ruler. Sorry that it is not as elaborate as anyone else's description, but this will have to do...
TERRAIN
SpoilerThe majority of Nyroth is covered in forest, but the most prominent (tallest) feature is the Barli Mountain Range, which blocks off the majority of the Eastern Border. However, the most curious is Blackrock Crater, and it's pretty obvious what this is. Rumors have it that all who enter to mine it's rich minerals are never seen again. Survivors report a large monster (think Hydralisk) in the mist, but these people are quite insane and not trustworthy. Do not talk to them.
PEOPLE
SpoilerThe residents of Nyroth feature silvery-white skinned humans with pink hair. They are extremely active at night, as they do not sleep and have developed night-vision. There are also tribes of lizardfolk in the forests and at the base of the mountains. These lizardfolk are loyal to the humans in every way, shape, and form. The lizardfolk serve as warriors while the humans take part in other affairs.
RESOURCES
SpoilerAll tradable resources in the region come from the forests, so, obviously, lumber is a primary export. But near the town of Lint (I'm not good with names), many forms of spices grow in the outskirts of the woods. These have a subtle scent that draw in moths from miles around. These moths' larvae produce a silky substance when cocooned, which, when woven, produces silk. Many other goods, such as metals and grains, are produced locally in low abundance. The Nyrothians are short on building materials and currently desire stone.
RELIGION
SpoilerThe majority of the population worships the Lord of Fire. The lizardfolk worship pagans of various purposes. The aristocracy worships a secret dualistic religion known as Lords of Knowledge and Night. However, the new queen, Cavindra Lilin, has plans to raise LoKaN (hey, that's a good name...) to the majority religion using unknown means.
EDIT: as of round 3, LoKaN is the majority religion among humans. The Lizardfolk still maintain their beliefs.
POPULATION
SpoilerThe population is a tangled mix of humans and lizardfolk, numbering about 37,000.
TECHNOLOGY
SpoilerI bet we all know what this is. "No extra techs."
MAP
Spoiler
Sorry that it is small.
The helical lines are mountains.
The pink splotches are forts.
The green areas are forests.
(red=spices)
(yellow=silk)
(brown=lumber)
Lime is Nyroth's lands.
Purple is other lands.
Dark brown lines are roads.
Light blue stands for human population centers (cities).
LEADER
SpoilerCavindra Lilin is 16 years old. She has a 'disease' that prevents hormones from spreading after she turns 18. basically, she's a teenager forever. Her mother died ten years previously and, because Cavindra was not of age, the chamberlain, Antoln, took charge and started an era of diplomatic silence where nobody was allowed to enter or exit Nyroth (this explains the diplomatic unavailability due to not being present the first two rounds). As mentioned previously, Cavindra's main goal is to convert her subjects to LoKaN and get rid of the Lord of Fire's pressense in her lands.
Personality Test Scores(Attributes)
Diplomacy: 2
Military: 2
Curiosity: 4
Faith: 5
Luck: 3
Remaining Family consists of many older brothers. Succession goes to the oldest daughter, and that's how Cavindra, and not her brothers, are in charge.
If I forgot anything or made errors, please tell me. Thanks to TheWombatOfDoom for telling me how to upload the map!
EDIT: Coat of Arms
Spoiler
EDIT: Army Formations
Spoiler'Cause why not?
1) Standard Infantry: 600 lizardfolk swordsmen, 400 lizardfolk archers
2) Coming soon...Last edited by moossabi; 2014-02-06 at 12:09 AM.
-
2014-01-28, 10:55 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-28, 10:56 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2014
- Location
- On the Internet
-
2014-01-28, 11:35 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
For the Grand Ball, I was pressed for time when creating a cultural tradition for marriage. So sue me.
-
2014-01-29, 12:04 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2011
- Location
- You lost the game.
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
-
2014-01-29, 03:59 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2012
- Location
- In Orbit
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Aww, C'Nor is awesome. I hope C'Nor comes back.
I may also have kinda hoped vampirism became a big thing in Tekorva (the name will evolve by then, but let's just call it that for now) around the 1600s...
That's what makes it interesting though. One time, my players broke my campaign and ended up in a weird pixie place due to a magical phenomenon that occurs only once every few hundred years.
I've collected a lot of backup stuff and improvisation practice since then though.
I go by they/them/their or he/him/his pronouns
-
2014-01-29, 04:28 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2012
- Location
- England. The northish bit
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Hi all, I'm not feeling very well at present, so whilst I'm certainly not dropping out (this is far too fun ) I might not be posting a lot in the next few days. Just a heads up.
And if C'nor unfortunately does go missing, well, the Heartwaste is right on my border. It'd be a shame to waste it...I'm also on the Bay12 Games forums under the same username.
The awesome Ceika made both my avatars! All hail!
Spoiler: Former avatar
Currently playing the parched and honourable Rabhid Dynasty in Empire2!
-
2014-01-29, 06:10 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2011
- Location
- Place of Utter Chaos
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
A swordmaster never backs off, I'll cut you to ribbons with my almighty sabre! CHAOS DANCE!!
Nyllana OotS Avatar by Lord FullBladder, Master of Goblins!
My Extended Homebrew Sig!SpoilerNothing to see here
Currently writing a fantasy novel: The Dawn of Life!People willing to provide feedback are appreciated
-
2014-01-29, 07:16 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2008
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Both Akali and Alara are looking for partners, Alara a little more urgently. She wants to get away from home.
Edit: and apologies for lateness posting. I blame the elephant.Last edited by avr; 2014-01-29 at 07:18 AM.
-
2014-01-29, 07:45 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-29, 07:49 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2008
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Sure, grab Akali when he comes back to get a drink.
-
2014-01-29, 07:58 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2012
- Location
- In Orbit
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
I'll check again to see if I've missed anything, but are pregnancies/childbirths handled by the player or the GM?
(If we get to decide our ruling family's pregnant well, there's potential for abuse but I would roll a d20 to determine it anyway. Otherwise it would be a bit silly.)I go by they/them/their or he/him/his pronouns
-
2014-01-29, 08:37 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-29, 09:05 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Speaking of marriages, Celero has two 18 year old male heir presumptives that are unhitched.
Also, I thought it might be kinda cool to do a rumors and gossip section for my country after every round.
Spoiler: Celero Rumors and GossipKing Andust has dismissed his Chief Bureaucrat, Esquire Qualton Stopes. Rumored reasons:
- Stopes is a Lord of Fire worshiper.
- The King only recently learned to read, and dismissed his letter writer.
- Stopes was caught in a compromised position with the Queen-Consort, Bethea.
- Stopes challenged the King's brother-in-law to a duel and lost.
Heinrich, brother to the king suspiciously has never married, and is 40. Rumored reasons:
- He lost his only love and refuses to marry.
- He isn't right in the head.
- He puts duty before family.
- He has been forced to remain unwed to allow for a political alliance.
- He isn't interested in women.
-
2014-01-29, 10:08 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2012
- Location
- In Orbit
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Ah thank you. Now to think of the best roll for Jaten to become pregnant. It wouldn't make sense if she were suddenly pregnant right now I guess.
I also think it would be cool and was going to implement it into fluff as well when I had more things to foreshadow (though with the short length of my posts it's going to be really obvious). A nice neat list is a really cool idea as well. Now... To figure out what is relevant...I go by they/them/their or he/him/his pronouns
-
2014-01-29, 10:51 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Dear me, that was a long post...
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-29, 10:57 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
-
2014-01-29, 10:58 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-29, 02:49 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Now that I have responded to the scolding, I am awaiting a response before I can get back to the King having zero luck on the dance floor, and sulking in the corner with the intention of getting thoroughly smashed. It's gonna take an army (or perhaps one beautiful lady) to stop him now!
-
2014-01-30, 11:56 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2008
- Location
- Freljord
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
I'll put you on the waiting list. Currently, region 11 has become open, and region 26 may open up by Sunday. Region 11 borders the mountains and could conceivably have some, and also has access to the sea.
Quoting for the link.
I'll make note of that. Don't worry, you won't have to take a new action to make it clear.
I can always lend you my jester's turban. (A turban, yes, I don't own a jester's hat.)
And what, you thought I'd joke?! HA.
Quoting for the link.
Hm. I'll have to think about it. The point from the start was actually more that you're playing a ruling family rather than a country's government. I'd actually rather not put it up to par with the benefits you might get with a fixed ruling family, because the downside of having one ruling family is that they could all die out, whereas with an elective system someone else would just take over. ImperatorV has something that sort of combines your current system with that of a monarchic dynasty. Perhaps that would work for you? Alternatively, you could have it that the new Doge must marry into the old Doge's family, like by taking one of his daughter's or her son's as a spouse, who'd then be an advisor (spouses so often are). A 5 year tutoring period wouldn't do at least, closer to 10 or up.
Both are fine. Either/or, pick one. Silver might actually be more OP, considering who you're living underneath.
Furs is good by itself. Nice to have the clarification. Besides, what else would you get from those creatures anyway? Their meat is very bad to eat, because they're predators.
Sounds good. I mean, you may not get more than venom out of a basilisk, but with basilisks themselves as a resource, you could technically end up training them for stuff.
Actually, making all "special" kinds of creatures require cultivating per species or group of species (such as Kasumor's giant insects) sounds like a good idea. I may even make it so that if you have a related creature already trained, you only require Curiosity 8 to develop a taming/training program.
He already is. I made him a badge.
I never quite got how people end up in that many games and expect them all to run smoothly enough. I figure at that point it starts to feel more like work, and you really have to time manage it all, or everything just runs poorly.
Should you return once school quiets down and half those games have gone the way of the dodo, know that you're always welcome in the Halls of Bark.
Quoting for everyone who may have missed it (and will likely miss it in this post).
Yes.
Declaration of Eternal Bromance.
QuintonBeck made a graphic for the first round on that, though it may be a little harder now. Maps like those are handy to get a visual idea beyond just the text, like how Chief did with his resource/religion map.
Quoting for the link.
If a player goes absent, I'll PM them three rounds later, and if they haven't posted by the fourth round afterwards, the region can be re-claimed by a new player for one week. If nobody claims it (feel free to invite someone to), then it becomes an NPC nation. If a new player claims it they may decide to simply take over the region as it is the way the old player left it, unless the old player gave note that they want their region to go away if they leave. However, if the old player had any marriages with other player's families, they can lay claim to it, and I won't make the old region go away. Instead, it becomes a free-for-all for all those who have a claim to it, plus whatever rebel forces there may be.
I like how some people fluff out their armies. Should I make the military mechanics more defined? Like how a lot of games have melee>archers>cavalry>melee, or such. (Even if I were to do that, that won't be implemented anytime soon due to requiring a lot of little tinkering.)
Also, I've noticed that some people have armies, but do not have access to iron or bronze/copper. I hope they have at least access to wood, otherwise they're prettymuch a nation of martial artists (or mages, once magic is unlocked). Which is cool, but probably should impose a -1 on Military checks. However, I am thinking of giving organized religions a special bonus, the choice of the player who created it. The bonus for Lord of Fire could be that they do not have a -1 penalty to Military checks if they lack weapons, considering their temples are likely filled with warrior monks or such.
Hakuna Matata.
That is now the motto of your religion.Just kidding.
Now that statement is about as premature as my twin sisters' birth was. (It's true though.)
Lizardmen? Cool. Like that you made a map as well. That makes you the second one to map out his country.
On the dualistic religion amongst nobles... I'll get back to you on that.
You're free to contact C'nor about it. S/he had good ideas though. I like it that a lot of players have something unique to their country, some even a big thing or two.
And why the 1600s? That's like... 252 rounds away!
(Or wait, did you have a calendar of your own?)
As further up this post, if C'nor does not post during Round 3, I'll PM him/her. If I receive no word back, the Heartwaste will be opened by Round 5 for a new player, and a free-for-all by Round 6 if no new player claims it.
To all those who'd wish to invade countries that are "slumbering" in this manner, or who wish to convert their peoples, please hold off until their players return or until the country opens up.
Feel the Sun's glory.
That's quite cool. Extra's are always cool. They're kind of like bowties in that.
This was a long post.Last edited by Morph Bark; 2014-01-30 at 11:57 AM.
Homebrewer's Signature | Avatar by Strawberries
-
2014-01-30, 12:01 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2008
- Location
- Fever dreams
- Gender
-
2014-01-30, 12:07 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
-
2014-01-30, 12:12 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2013
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Yay morph is back. And he brought a text wall.
I'll edit my info post with the basilisk update later.
-
2014-01-30, 12:26 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2013
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
If only you'd said "I'll be back" in your last post.
That would be pretty cool. But it would probably be more complicated that just melee>archers>cavalry>melee. I mean we have flying cavalry in this game. I'm sure there is a way to embellish the combat without making it too complicated. It'll take a bit of work to figure out though.
Considering half the names in my royal family are African this is closer to being true than anyone intended.
EDIT: I have an idea for the military =D
Perhaps when each unit is created the creator chooses a Unit Type(melee, archer, cavalry, *magic type here*) and a unit type it is strong against.
Facing that particular unit type it gets a bonus, maybe just plus one.
That way someone could say make some lancers and describe them as anti-cavalry cavalry, or a shocktrooper unit of melee specialized against archers.Last edited by zabbarot; 2014-01-30 at 12:30 PM.
-
2014-01-30, 12:36 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-30, 12:46 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2013
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Continuing this. The bonuses are ablative. You don't get them if that unit is countered, but each unit can only counter one other unit. So basically just start crossing units off each side until all bonuses are applied to another unit. Any countered units left over apply their bonus to the total combat roll.
Example:
Two nations have a battle. Each commits two armies. On one side we have 1 unit of Anti-Cavalry Melee and 1 of Anti-Melee Archers. On the other we have 1 unit of Anti-Melee Cavalry and 1 of Anti-Archer Magi.
Side One's Melee and Archers are both countered, but Side Two's Magi are left unchecked.
Therefore Side Two gets a bonus to this combat.
This makes it a bit more involved, but still allows the out come to be resolved with a single die roll. Perhaps as a Military 5 special a commander could train a unit that can counter an additional unit, or instead have a more general counter such as "+1 on attack" or "+1 on defense".Last edited by zabbarot; 2014-01-30 at 12:48 PM.
-
2014-01-30, 01:03 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Differing unit types should have a difference between units and attacking/defending.
For example, melee infantry (spearmen) should get a bonus to mounted land units when defending. But no bonus when attacking. Similarily, lancer cavalry should only get their bonus to other mounted units when attacking, but not defending.
Just my two cents.
-
2014-01-30, 01:26 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2013
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Having run a somewhat similar game to this (albeit a lot more complicated where resources were involved) each resource you had that could be applied to military could be burned for the round and would apply for the entire round giving a +X bonus to military rolls depending on what the resource was.
So while navigating different types of military units and the like might be more in depth an such my suggestion is simply have any militarily applied resource constitute a +X bonus to Military rolls. The base line military roll is folks with bone/wood/stone weapons and if you add Bronze you get +1, iron confers +2, Steel +3, Mystical Magical fantasy metal +4 and maybe that's if you use the resource to make weapons and only grants those bonuses on offense but you can burn a resource to make armor out of them and confer it to defense, or burn two resources and apply to both attack and defense.
As for types of units I think generally what they're fighting with (IE Lance vs Battleaxe) shouldn't matter for simplicity's sake. However if they have mounts (like horses) maybe a +1 if they have flying/burrowing/crazy-movement mounts (like Kasumor's insects) maybe a +2
Of course this really only balances out if we get a firmer grip on resources I think but that requires more bookkeeping. I know it was posted what the different grades of resources mean but as of now that seems pretty nebulous. Maybe we ought to make it clearer and more implemented. IE, you have 3 [Good] Resource points and so they wouldn't count as actions but if you had started trade with a country you'd note that one of your resource points was spent shipping it to them, then you could spend another one on making weapons for yourself or whatever. For simplicity of book keeping might be best to say you get no rollover resource points. The game I ran did that and a few weeks down the line keeping track of stockpiled materials was a bit of a nightmare.
Spoiler
-
2014-01-30, 02:00 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- May 2012
- Location
- Aldain
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
Scientific Name: Wombous apocolypticus | Diet: Apocolypse Pie | Cuddly: Yes
World Building Projects:
Magic: The Stuff of Sentience | Fate: The Fabric of Physics | Luck: The Basis of Biology
Order of the Stick Projects:
Annotation of the Comic | Magic Compendium of the Comic | Transcription of the Comic
Dad-a-chum? Dum-a-chum? Ded-a-chek? Did-a-chick?
Extended Signature | My DeviantArt | Majora's Mask Point Race
(you can't take the sky from me)
-
2014-01-30, 04:47 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2011
- Location
- You lost the game.
- Gender
Re: EMPIRE! A Community World-Building Tale of People & Discovery
I'd like to point out that Bronze is roughly the same hardness as iron, and actually far more durable. It's just that it needs sharpening after a few uses: however, that'd happen between battle. The reason the Iron Age came after the Bronze Age was simply the rarity of Tin, not any inferiority in Bronze.
So basically a Pokemon or Rock/Paper/Scissors arrangement? I rather like it, though the more complex, the worse.
As for types of units I think generally what they're fighting with (IE Lance vs Battleaxe) shouldn't matter for simplicity's sake. However if they have mounts (like horses) maybe a +1 if they have flying/burrowing/crazy-movement mounts (like Kasumor's insects) maybe a +2
Of course this really only balances out if we get a firmer grip on resources I think but that requires more bookkeeping. I know it was posted what the different grades of resources mean but as of now that seems pretty nebulous. Maybe we ought to make it clearer and more implemented. IE, you have 3 [Good] Resource points and so they wouldn't count as actions but if you had started trade with a country you'd note that one of your resource points was spent shipping it to them, then you could spend another one on making weapons for yourself or whatever. For simplicity of book keeping might be best to say you get no rollover resource points. The game I ran did that and a few weeks down the line keeping track of stockpiled materials was a bit of a nightmare.
Hm... This adds a lot to the complexity, though, doesn't it? I mean, I love strategy, but... that'd make war by far the heaviest part of the game. Which I suppose could be deemed an edge of realism, because nations tried to avoid it. Still, I'd hate for the most interesting type of conflict in games to simply be over-complicated out of the way.
All in all, I think a three-part system should be the basis: cavalry, melee (Infantry), and ranged, or something of the sort. Maybe with some sort of similar differential between sea units like Attack/Defense/Ranged. Make the core rules of the system VERY simple, very intuitive. Cavalry>Melee>Ranged>etc. If you place a cavalry against a melee unit, you get a +1 bonus. Add up all bonuses, roll the dice, and you're done. (This might require a board of some sort, as noted in the response above).
THEN, on top of that very simple ruleset, add in the extra things. Mantids may be able to fly, so that means, say, they can choose one type of unit when deployed to get a +1 against. Then better weapons give various units natural +1/2/3, etc, or perhaps they deal greater damage, etc. That's where the rules get interesting, in the add-ons, not in the core.
Anyway, that's just my 2 Cents. I think we do need to get this worked out at least a few turns before war begins, that way people can get used to the ruleset and get ready for it.