Part 4: 1822-1825 : The First Council
Spring 1822
In 1822 we see a major advancement in construction. It will allow us to lay rails in many parts of our land that were hitherto unreachable.
Not only can we route rail lines through marshland, we'll also be able to deliver timber more effectively, if we develop the bridges.
As 1823 begins, Yakakkie recognizes the great power and wealth of our nation and begs to form an alliance with us. After consideration, we accept the offer.
It's also possible to monitor the markets we're selling in. Right now furniture is our chief export, but we're rapidly developing our cotton and textile industry.
The Imperial Navy is founded with our first Ship of the Line!
It will be sent off on a world tour to impress the other Great Powers.
This is the zoomed-out view, which can be accessed at any time, but is especially useful for directing naval vessels. [Unless the game crashes, I guess.]
World prices seem for resources seem a bit lower lately, but our goods are selling well.
As they sail past the coast of Evace, our captain takes time to gather information on their military.
Science brings us yet another innovation, this time in cargo ships. These new 'clippers' are faster and cheaper to build than the Indiaman, for the same cargo capacity.
This is one I've been really waiting for, as it's a bit 'late'. Technological advances have a roughly 5-year window in which they'll appear, but that varies every game.
We spot the Mone navy, and attempt to get a closer look. We're most likely stronger than both those ships put together.
Relations continue to improve with our nearby trade partners.
Money is coming in with regularity now.
After departing Mone, our mighty navy sails up toward Wan.
Wood is still Visisik's best product, and the province of Aypranan is now processing its own timber too.
Our new faster ships let us buy up whatever our trading partners can offer us.
In the Spring of 1825, the Council of Governors meets for the very first time!
The Council of Governors is how it's actually decided who the supreme ruler of the world should be. Every province gets one vote in the Council. Any nation that can gain the support of more than two-thirds of the governors is declared the winner of the election. Only two nations can be nominated, and at this point in time, most of the governors in the minor nations will abstain.
This is how we win the game.
It what is nearly a surprise result, almost all of the other Great Powers fail to recognize the superiority of Visisik. Happily our neighbor Niridna does support us.
Since the nominations are based on the rankings, let's delve into those in more detail.
Overall, there is the 'council projection', which is an estimate of who is likely to be nominated. Clearly Visisik is actually better than shown here, because we were the ones actually nominated. This ranking is a combination of three factors: Internal Strength, Diplomatic Strength, and Military Strength.
Internal Strength is the measure of a country's industrial development and infrastructure.
Diplomacy is mostly based on relations with and actions toward other countries, including Minor Nations. It doesn't tend to change much outside of significant political shifts, alliances, or war.
Military Strength, the last contributing factor to the council vote, is a combination of men under arms and naval power. The most interesting part of this score is that the governors generally don't care all that much about the quality of an army, or even military success. It's mostly based on the size of the nation's military, which, it seems, we could probably stand to improve.
There are also several other rankings that don't contribute directly to the council nomination score.
The cargo capacity of our Merchant Marine is second to none.
The sum total of our World Exports is recorded here. It seems some countries don't mind purchasing the low-quality furniture of Mone, giving them the edge.
Industry is a contributor to our Internal Strength score, but that also includes other factors. This ranking seems to be based more on actual output.
Factories are nothing without people to work in them; our labor pool exceeds that of Kova.
The size of our internal transport network can be compared to the other powers too. This isn't just for an economic comparison, as it is also a measure of the ability to transport military units.
There is additionally a ranking listed on the information map. These values are relative to the other countries, and so give a measure of who's in the lead.
Unlike the charts, the industry value here seems to measure industrial capacity rather than output.
Here's Mone's situation. They're growing quite close to Ash Mukkun, and Porgindris has already thrown its vote behind them. Their sights are also set on Asfah too.
This is why we hope to grow closer to Yakakkie. They are strongly courting Kangjung, but might be competing with Mone for Asfah as well.
It seems it will not be long before the scramble for colonies begins. Once the strongest partners are solidified, the more neglected countries will then become the new