This is the first of four related threads on SuperNova: Getting Started, Your First Three Turns, How to Organize It All, and Expanding Your Empire.

SuperNova is a game of galactic colonization. For more info, see the SuperNova summary and links posted by Raven. This thread is about the first step of play, designing the creatures at the heart of your empire.

When joining SuperNova, it helps to keep in mind three things. First, to complete your Setup Sheet, you don't need to read most of the pdf of SuperNova Rules. The name 'SuperNova Rules' is misleading, since that document mostly offers flavor for the setting. If you'd like to read about different classes of stars and terrain types, you can do so in Chapter 2, or about economic balance in Chapter 4, or army life in Chapter 6. If you prefer to skip them, fine. In fact, you can skip ALL of the 'Rules' book, save for Chapter 11 and a brief bit of Chapter 10.

Chapter 11 has what you need to design your fledgling empire. Your Setup Sheet (available at the same link as the 'Rules' above) essentially asks what kind of lifeform you'd like for your empire. You allocate points to traits you'd like, and you add a short description of the physical and behavioral characteristics of your new race.

The second thing to keep in mind is that all your race choices are mostly for flavor, with three exceptions:

1. Traits increasing your reproductive rate or ability to thrive in harsh environments will make it easier to colonize new worlds.
   
2. Traits increasing your research ability will speed your access to new technology, but only slightly (from 5% up to a max of around 25%)
   
3. Traits increasing your strength and size, etc, can give a boost in ground combat, though you may find you settle your conflicts through space battles anyway.
   

So how soon will we players be able to become City Leaders?  I know your working on getting all the Clan turn parts running, but I thought I would ask.

I would think honestly in the beginning a clan should have to earn/win the right to run a city. Since there are no seniors and with Independent cities it is even harder to get  city leadership....that position should be earned in game.  I like to roleplay this out and use special actions to do it. Usually I build city buildings for the city like: Eng Bldg, Cul Bldg, Hosp Bldg, Armories, and Guild Halls are rather easy to do. Also other city improvements too like defenses and etc.  Basically you are making the place your home, an investing a lot of time and effort into upgrading the city.  I enjoy that part of the game as well too.

The real question we all want to know is what factions do you want to see in play from the beginning of this relaunch of Midgard?

Well speaking for myself I would like to play (3) clans and I have three groups that I would like to choose from:

Group A: Naval based clan-
Buccaneers (Pirate), or Naval based SOA

Group B:
Bandit, or SOA

Group C:
Cymru, Seekers, or Cult of the Dark One

I would choose one from each one of the above groups to get my three clans, but I would also see how these factions are first designed for this game to see if they  fit the character of what all of these factions once were. I hold my options open, but I have to wait and see what the GM decides to do.

Magic in the Midgard game:


There are certain elements of magic in Midgard, the Ring Divination ability
being a prime example.  However, these arcane secrets are hidden deep within
the game, and if no-one searches for them they will never be found.  Anyone
who chooses to seek out this knowledge is in for a long and difficult quest. 
Don’t be expecting to be able to shoot Fireballs, summon Dragons and control
Demons with the magic you discover, it simply doesn’t work that way.  Like the
Ring Divination ability, the magic system is very subtle in nature.

The Skelts #21 - Religious Land base Barbarian:



I have find the official write up for this faction, as of yet I am still looking.



Now I played a single clan that started life as a Independent clan on Barbarian Home continent (defined my 10 Skill levels of Skills) and then declared for the Skelts #21 faction.



The Skelts are based on Barbarian Home Land and then travel from their as raiders from there. They are sudo-Religious Land based Barbarian clan, they are strong believers of the Old Gods where Moorlock is one of those Old Gods. The old Gods are of Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Nature and so on. They all have names, like Moorlock is the God of Knowledge/Secrets. They are  Warriors but very religious in nature.

Now the Skelt's starting skill set I am not sure exactly as I was not a Skelt senior but started my clan's existance as a Independent clan and then declared for Skelt #21. I believe their  skills of:

PRE- Preach
STR - Strategy
TAC - Tactics  

Now I started as a Indepenent clan with the following skill set defined:

Skelt clan <Uruk-hai>
       Leader:     Mumm-Ra the Evil (m): PRE-2, CMD-2, STR-1
Follower F1:MuMutt the Destroyer (m): TAC-2
Follower F2:        Gore the Vulture (m): SGW-1
Follower F3:  Sly the Ghost Hunter (m): SCT-1, TRK-1

Next I used a Special action and located a Skelt Shaman at the local Skelt Shines and hired him to train the LDR,F1,F2,F3 in (+1 CMD), then that same Shaman next trained the LDR,F1,F2,F3 in (+1PRE), and lastly this same Skelt Shaman would train the LDR in (+1STR) and the (+1TAC) for F1,F2,F3...I needed to build some city buildings and Skelt temples as well as look into a "Monster" in the lake. So after 18 turns my skill were:

LDR: PRE-3, CMD-3, STR-2
 F1: TAC-3, CMD-1, PRE-1
 F2: SGW-1,CMD-1, PRE-1, TAC-1
 F3:  SCT-1, TRK-1, CMD-1, PRE-1, TAC-1

I did a PREACH and Recruitment every turn as well too, and did get a increase in the PRE skill for doing that. I also ran the two orders aswell as a Special Action each time to help increase the effectiveness and self train in both skills. This also had a effect of increasing my clan's renown as well too.

LDR: PRE-3.90, CMD-3, STR-2, REC-0.90
 F1: TAC-3, CMD-1, PRE-1
 F2: SGW-1,CMD-1, PRE-1, TAC-1
 F3:  SCT-1, TRK-1, CMD-1, PRE-1, TAC-1

The Skelts are basically a kind of Shaman religious warriors that seem to guide the people of Barbarian Homeland in the Old Gods and treating them with reverence.

The SeaKings (Barbarians) #12:


Barbarians represent the original inhabitants of the "Known World."  It is known
that the Barbarians did not originate in the Known World, but arrived in three
great waves thousands of years ago.

Barbarian clans actually originate on another continent in the world of Midgard. 
They are sea-borne raiders and prey on coastal villages and towns.  Barbarian
forces can perform all types of military operations but excel in the use of
Light Infantry and Light Missile weapons.  Barbarian clans can make their own
armor and weapons (Light Infantry and Light Missile) and spend most of their
lives aboard ships.  Their Longships are much feared and it is known that they
take prisoners to refill their ranks.  The Longship is unique to the Barbarians. 
It has only been produced by Barbarian Clans in the past.  Barbarians will sink
their own ship to prevent it from falling into enemy hands.

Every two years, all Barbarian clans must return to their homeland.  All of the
goods that they have gained by raiding is then tallied and the new hierarchy
is established.  Each clan is then allocated new ships and men based on their
ranking. Then the next Barbarian wave begins.

The Barbarians prefer the name "Brothers" when they refer to each other. 
Their organization is not very formal, but it is effective.  Barbarians can
count on strong support from their "Brothers" against a common foe, but
are likely to fight among themselves over the division of the loot.  Many
Barbarians keep alive the old tales about past glories; when the known
world was under their control.

SeaKings Bonuses:

1 The SeaKings (Barbarians) are, in comparison to Midgard Organizations, undisciplined and unruly.  Their lack of perceived discipline is their greatest asset in combat and other types of operations.

SeaKings Hierarchy:

0 The Lord of Death (umpire/computer)
1 Great Destroyer
2 First Member of the Convocation
3 Second Member of the Convocation
4 Third of the Convocation
5 Death's Scythe
6 Leader of the Horde
7 Master of Ships
8 Taker of Life
9 Leader of the Hunt
10 Rampager
11 Reaper
12 Master of the Raid
13 Raider
14 Master of the Hunt
15 Hunter
16 Tracker
17 Explorer
18 Leader
19 Follower
20 Brother

SeaKing Goals:

1 Control of the Oceans.
2 Elimination of any Religious Force.
3 Raid all coastal Cities.
4 Elimination of all Heliograph Stations.
5 Complete destruction of one coastal city per year.

Seaking Factional Office:

The Seaking factional office is called the SeaKing Mead Hall...

SeaKing Skills:

NST - Naval Strategy
NAV - Navagation
SEA - Seamenship
NTA - Naval Tactics

SeaKing Special Ship types:

- Here are the new ships added to the game under Midgard USA by Zan E.

THE IMPERIALS #1


The Imperial position has a rigidity that the Families lack.  They have as their major
priority the preservation of Imperial holdings.  Thus, an attack on the smallest outpost
is as serious as an attack on the main Imperial Preserve.  The Imperials feel that they
must respond in this way because they are spread so thin that they could fall victim to
numerous attacks if the "locals" did not know that massive force would be used to
respond to the least provocation.  After a few lessons, Imperial Forces have been left
alone.  While a portion of the Imperial Army has been withdrawn, the locals are not
willing to capitalize on the rumor that the Emperor has told the Governor of Midgard
that he can expect no additional forces from the Imperial Homeland.  The Governor
must rely on the remaining crack troops and must augment them with native auxiliaries
(players) to maintain order.

The Imperial Forces are led by the Emperor, who after returning to power after an
unsuccessful plot by the Imperial Senate, disbanded the Grand High Council.  The Emperor
has a detailed court which aids him in the execution of his duties.  In addition, there
is a rather detailed organization under the control of the Governor of Midgard who
is directly responsible for maintaining order through much of Midgard.  Every province
has at least one garrison city in a key location.  Every region has at least one Imperial
Magistrate who observes the behavior of the natives and settles disputes.

Imperial Hierarchy:

0 Emperor (umpire/computer)
1 Governor of Midgard
2 Military Commander of Midgard
3 Proconsul
4 Minister
5 Consul
6 Tribune / Senior Commander
7 Provincial Governor
8 Senior City Leader
9 Senator
10 General/Admiral
11 City Leader
12 Force Commander
13 Deputy City Leader
14 Centurion
15 Magistrate
16 Deputy Magistrate
17 Militia Commander
18 Deputy Militia Commander
19 Auxiliary
20 Citizen

Imperial Bonuses:

1 Masters at the Art of Siege Warfare
2 The best Infantry forces in the Known World

Imperial Goals:

1 Prevent the loss of any Imperial holding.
2 The maintenance of law and order in Midgard as defined by The Treaty Of Frostmarch.
3 Prevent any family or religion from controlling all the non-Imperial cities in the following provinces:
Frostmarch, Havn Wyr, Southkeep, and Seabreeze.
4 Add one city per year to Imperial Control.
5 Connect the Imperial Preserves with roads.
6 Remain outside of alliances or agreements with the Families or the Religions.
7 Prevent any Barbarian force from obtaining a hold on any Imperial Holding or any portion of Midgard.

Merry Christmas!

For all the long-suffering players out there I thought I'd present you with a little Christmas present today...

We've re-worked the sample Midgard report formats to contain more intelligible data and I thought that you die-hards might be interested in looking them over to see what you think.  We can discuss the formatting here if you like and see if we can come up with a presentation that you like better.  Some of the information in these reports may be unfamiliar to you and may also produce questions about the new system.  Remember that all your reports will be available to you on-line throughout the game (as well as being printable from your browser) so you can refer back to them at any time.

Please feel free to visit Midgard sample reports and check them out at your leisure.

Roder #4 - The Roder Family
 

THE RODER FAMILY:

The Roder Family is in the last stages of a transition which began soon after the
Imperial Armies swept out of the north.  Previously organized with a complex
structure of royalty and based upon hereditary succession rules, the Roder family
suffered a grievous blow early in the war.  Most of the royalty was killed. 
The remaining Roder leaders took this disaster as an opportunity to create a
more modern organization.  The resulting Hierarchy reflects both the traditional
and the modern influences.  The influence of the Imperial organization can be seen
in the more nationalistic view of the Roder organization in Midgard.

The Roder family traditionally bases its fortune on agriculture and herding. 
They measure wealth by the amount of land held and the size of a man's herd. 
The Roder are constantly seeking to increase their lands (often at the expense
of their neighbors), through conquest and by clearing and settling land that is unused.
Roder leaders receive a percentage of the profits from the villages and farms under
their control.  They, in turn, supply these same villages and farms in lean times and
protect them against outside threats.

The principal land holdings of the Roder in Midgard are in the southern part of
the Province of Southkeep and in the Provinces of Korlant and Battlemarch. 
These lands form the "breadbasket" for the Roder.

The Roder family forces were swept aside as were the forces of all who first
opposed the Imperial Armies.  Damage to the forces controlled by the family
was slowly overcome until the Great Harvest Uprising.  Attacked by the legendary
Imperial General Lavan Kae in the Battle of the Great Plains, the Roder forces
fled the field in panic.  This disaster led to the final phase of re-organization
which was to bring about the centralized form of control over the army now
headed by the newly created Minister of War.

The Roder Family Upper Chamber has outlined its goals below.  Overall, the Roder
seek to avoid combat unless it is to protect their holdings or to expand into regions
with rich lands.  One exception is the Roder relationship with the religion of the Banner. 
After the defeat of Roder forces in the Battle of the Great Plains, Banner Ecclesiastical
Armies attacked Roder holdings in the southern provinces.  While the Banner forces
won only a few victories, they vary in significance in terms of impact on Roder projects
in the South of Midgard.  Worse, after each victory the survivors were killed. 
The Roder family and the Banner Religion are mortal enemies.  The Roder Member of
the Upper Chamber has instructed his underlings to recover Roder holdings lost to the
Banner using all and every means at their disposal.

Roder Bonuses:

1 Roder Clans buy Grains, Fruit, Fish, Livestock, and horses at a 20% discount
from any city market.
2 Roder Clans can use the Obtain Command, if they are in a Cultivated, Orchard,
Village, or Ranch sector.  The amount obtained will be based on the Influence Level of the
Clan, as well as its renown and several other factors.
3 Roder Clans act as a Roder Agricultural Station when Constructing any Land Project.

Roder Hierarchy:

0 The Grand High Board of Advisors (umpire/computer)
1 Member of the Upper Chamber
2 Member of the Lower Chamber
3 Minister of Economics
4 Minister of War
5 Minister of Diplomacy
6 Minister of the Lands
7 Ministers without Portfolio
8 Secretary-General
9 Secretary of the North-east
10 Secretary of the North-west
11 Secretary of the Center-west
12 Secretary of the Center-east
13 Secretary of the South-west
14 Secretary of the South-east
15 Provincial Governor
16 Field General
17 Guardian-General
18 Regional Guardian
19 Principal
20 Sentinal

Roder Goals:

1 Control every city in Korlant, Battlemearh, and Hilant.
2 Control any city with 5 or more sectors of agriculture.
3 Act in any manner to the detriment of the Banner Religion.
4 Establish increased holdings in the South of Midgard.
5 Act to keep prices stable in Southkeep, Korlant, Battlemarch, and Hilant.
6 Eliminate Barbarians and Bandits in Roder lands.

Factional Roder Office:

The Roder AG Station office increases the amount of food stuff on the cities market by  +2% per office, and adds War Horses to the cities market.  Now with 30 offices, there was talks of adding something else to the cities markets as well...Zan E. of Midgard USA had talked about a Exotic product of "Spice" and "Herbs". Both items would aid a cities in happiness. Spice would aid in making a clan Happiness and Loyalty increase while taking it, and Herbs was for Medical benefits.

Roleplaying Notes on Roder:
The Roder could be a awesome faction to play, being Knights in shinning Armor MHI (Mounted HI on War Horses), with MMI and MMM troops. I think of the Roder like the Rohirrim of the Lord of the Rings, or the Horse-Lords Warriors. Their speed and ability mounted is 2nd to none, and they Roder in time of trouble could call on their people to stand up Mounted LI and Mounted LM in the defense of their cities. Their cities could call upon these citizens for a cities defense core, it is something like 100 Citizen per Roder Ag Station reserve warriors core. Usually 1/2 MLI and 12 MLM to form up in two regiments for use in defense of a city. These were some of the items that were talking about and some were future possible changes if the Boda were to drop the Horse part and the Roder were to take it up.  I believe it would be a awesome change that would make the Roder a very fun faction to play within.

THE BODA FAMILY #2

This leads to severe competition among the most able of the generals of the Boda to see
who will become the Supreme Leader.  Boda warriors tend to have a very high personal
loyalty to their commander, so the opportunities for a coup are sometimes great. 
The leader carries a title roughly equivalent to Caesar.  The Boda tend to keep close tabs
on the events of the traditional Boda homeland, looking for signs of weakness in the
leadership.  Despite frequent internal struggles, Boda armies face outward, more than
inward, and are a serious menace to whoever stands in their way.

In Midgard, most Boda holdings are in the North, but they have enclaves and villages
spread throughout Midgard.  Much of the current Imperial holdings in the Frostmarch
Province of Midgard are carved from ancestral Boda homelands.  Despite the proximity
of the Imperial Preserves, Boda strength in Midgard is centered in the provinces of
Havn Wyr, Southkeep, and Korlant.  Boda warriors were the "shock troops" of the
combined family armies and suffered the most losses.  Only now are they able to rival
the other family and religious Factions less damaged by the war with the Imperials.
The immediate goals of the Boda leadership are to consolidate their hold on the cities
of the North while keeping lines of communication open to their enclaves throughout
Midgard.  The Boda have scant respect for commerce or farming and do no more of
these than is required to feed themselves.  Manual labor is generally considered to
be demeaning and undignified.

Boda Bonuses:

1 The Art o/f Siege Weapon Use.
2 Cavalry Masters.

Boda Hierarchy:

0 Caesar of the Boda (umpire/computer)
1 Strategos 1st Class
2 Strategos 2nd Class
3 Strategos 3rd Class
4 Strategos 4th Class
5  Strategos 5th Class
6 Merarch
7 Turmarch
8 Dhoungar
9 Moirarch
10 Moirarch
11 Komes
12 Illarch
13 Hekatontarch
14 Dekarch
15 Pentarch
16 Teetrarch
17 Ouragh
18 Strator
19 Mandator
20 Kandidat

Boda Goals:

1 Prevent the loss of any Boda city in the northern nine provinces.  Gain control
of regions bordering on Frostmarch.
2 Add one city per year to Boda control in any one of these provinces:
Frostmarch, Southkeep, Seabreeze, Havn Wyr.
3 Gain control of the coastal cities of Hawkholm, Fairehold, and Islant.
4 Ambush or interrupt Imperial forces.
5 Gain control of any coastal city.
6 Eliminate Barbarian activity in the northern nine provinces.
7 Keep the strength of the Getham Family down without starting an all-out war.
8 Support the activities of the Ring Religion.


Note on Redesign of the Boda: having starting play within Midgard USA (under Zan E.) and having also being a Boda #2 senior I talked long and often to Zan - GM about the Boda and its rather strange design within the game. According to him the Boda went through redesign and were NOT always Horse Warriors. Before the redesign they were much like the Byzantine Empire and were Foot Soldiers with the ability to Siege and excelled with Siege Weapons.

Having talked to Zan a lot we had worked out some key redesigns for the Boda that would make them a lot more balanced, there were changes to also Strengthen the Imperials, The Roder, and Getham too.

The Boda redesign would have made them Foot Soldiers with the following skills:

CMD - Command
SGE - Siege
TAC - Tactics
SGW - Siege Weapons

Boda <clan Name>
LDR: CMD-2, SGE-1
  F1: TAC-1
  F2: TAC-1
  F3: SGE-1, SGW-1

NOTE: Start with the standard Boda startup and then select (3) extra skills points like this example:
Boda <clan Name>
LDR: CMD-2, SGE-1, STR-1
  F1: TAC-1, SGE-1
  F2: TAC-1, SGE-1
  F3: SGE-1, SGW-1


Now the redesign has the Boda focus on MI or MM or HM weapon types as there main focus for forces. They are a warrior force that is willing to fight with the desire to fight and one day reclaim what was once theirs. They will fight for this cause. The Boda should be the Archers of the game and thus have and make HM

BODA Factional Office: Adds Light Siege Weapons (Ballista) and Medium Siege Weapons (Catapult) to the cities markets, and increases +2% to all weapons on the market per each Boda Office within the city. When the number of Boda Offices reach (30) in number, a Great Armory is set up. With that number of offices, Heavy Siege Weapons (Trebuchet)  will appear on sale within the cities market.  Heavy Siege Weapons can be disassembled and transported via wagons to other locations of use if need be.

Now the 2nd Benefit for the Boda would be changed form "2 Cavalry Masters" to "2 Adding Heavy Siege Weapons, and skill and knowledge in building and use".

The Boda Family are warriors in their own right and are as skilled as the Imperials, Merc Verk, and SOA factions. There not Mercenaries, but fight for a justified cause and goal. The Imperials fight because they are told to fight, but the Boda fight, because they want to reclaim what was once theirs.