<<

The following pages contain historical information about the divinities, cities, and provinces that play a role in Concordia. In addition, a variant is presented.

VARIANT FOR CONCORDIA: START WITHOUT GOODS In this variant the players do not own any goods at the start of the game. Their storehouse starts with only 4 colonists. Instead they start with more money: The start player has 25 sestertii, the 2nd player 26 sestertii etc. In their first turn players may buy goods as they like paying the prices as shown on the roof of the storehouses. This variant offers an even more flexible start of the game.

Development Notes For Concordia In more than 2 years of development, Concordia had many testers and helpers. Peter Dörsam as publisher and critical tester wholeheartedly supported the project from its very beginning. In private rounds basically Yvonne Lange, Stephan Borowski, and Jens Külpmann endured my manifold proposals and leaded them ad absurdum over and over, so that everytime new changes became inevitable. In addition, Lars Brügging, Claudia Barmbold, Frank Lamprecht, Kai Wilke, Rüdiger Kuntze, Benjamin Schönheiter, Bastian Völkel, Heike López, and Michael López tested the game as busy as a beaver. Gaming groups l i k e the gamers from Rieckhof, Gert Wahlstedt‘s Urania club, the gamers of Wedel, or „Game with Pete“ in Jork also were engaged. For a broader public Concordia was presented in ever changing versions on the event at Burg Stahleck, the Bremer Spieletage, the Hamburger Fest der Spiele, the Hamburger Spieletage, and the Herner Spielewahnsinn. I visited Paulo Soledade in to present the game at LeiriaCon, and visited Pietro Cremona in to present it at the Play in Modena and at his gaming club in Cesena, where it was played with great enthusiasm. Foreign test groups established themselves with Pietro Cremona in Italy, with Mark W. Bigney (USA), with Ralph H. Anderson (USA), and with Simmy Peerutin in South . Without the quick and great help of Mark and Ralph the translation of the English texts would not exist. Finally, Marina Fahrenbach added the wonderful graphic design. I want to thank all the named and un-named testers and helpers, without them Concordia would not have come to existence! Hamburg, October 2013 Mac Gerdts Roman Gods and their significance in the game

VESTA SATURNUS is the goddess of home and hearth. She is the divinity of sowing and agriculture. is the goddess of craft, wisdom, and arts. rewards the virtue of prosperity, which He rewards the virtue of agriculture She rewards the virtue of craftsmanship players demonstrate in their accumulated demonstrated by the number of provinces demonstrated by the number of houses cash and stored goods. in which players have built houses. devoted to selected crafts.

JUPITER MERCURIUS CONCORDIA is the mightiest Roman divinity and is the divinity of trade and thieves. is the goddess of harmony and patron guardian of the Roman state. He He rewards the virtue of diversity of unity for the citizens of . rewards the the virtue of demonstrated by the number of types of She rewards the virtue of harmony demonstrated by the number of non- goods the player produces. demonstrated by the player who finished brick cities built. the game by peaceful means. is the divinity of war and protector of growth. He rewards the virtue of colonization demonstrated by the number of colonists a player commands.

Ancient cities nowadays (Cities on the board „“ in order of provinces from I Britannia to XII Aegyptus) Ancient city nowadays name Ancient city nowadays name Isca Dumnoniorum Exeter (GB, 118,000 inhabitants) Napoca Cluj-Napoca (RO, 325,000 inhabitants) London (GB, 8,300,000 inhabitants) Sirmium in ruins (Yugoslavia) (F, 12,000,000 inhabitants) Tomis Constanța (RO, 284,000 inhabitants) Burdigala Bordeaux (F, 1,100,000 inhabitants) Dyrrhachium Durrës (AL, 208,000 inhabitants) Massilia Marseille (F, 1,600,000 inhabitants) Athenae (GR, 4,000,000 inhabitants) Brigantium La Coruña (E, 246,000 inhabitants) in ruins (Lybia) (P, 2,800,000 inhabitants) Cyrene in ruins (Lybia) València (E, 1,700,000 inhabitants) Bycantium Istanbul (TR, 13,900,000 inhabitants) Agrippina Cologne (D, 1,010,000 inhabitants) Sinope Sinop (TR 39,000 inhabitants) (A, 2,400,000 inhabitants) Attalia Antalya (TR 1,042,000 inhabitants) Novaria Novara (I, 105,000 inhabitants) Antiochia Antakya (TR, 217,000 inhabitants) Aquileia (I, 3.500 inhabitants) Tyros Tyre (RL, 135,000 inhabitants) Syracusae Syracuse (I, 119,000 inhabitants) Alexandria (ET, 4,500,000 inhabitants) Rusadir (E, 73,000 inhabitants) Memphis in ruins () Carthago (TN, 21,000 inhabitants) Petra in ruins (Jordan)

Roman provinces The provinces as shown on the game board are not all really correct from the historians view, because the administrative composition of the was much more complex than depicted, and even more were an object of permanent changes. The historical information as compiled here follows a necessety from the game’s perspective to limit the number of provinces to 12. I have to thank Mark W. Bigney for editing the text, because my English was awful! In 55 and 54 BC Julius landed his troops Since 125 BC Rome began to conquer the After the Carthaginians had lost , , in Britannia in order to cut the Belgian tribes French Mediterranean coast as well as the and as a result of the , off from their fresh supplies from the British valley of the river Rhone. It was the Roman they expanded on the and Isles. After severe setbacks in the wars with commander Gaius who established a new power base until 218 BC. the Germans, Emperor ceased his undertook it from 58 to 51 BC to conquer the When attacked the Iberian city of plans to occupy Britannia for a while. But in whole of Gallia. The Gallic chief Saguntum that was allied to the Romans in 219 43 AC the Romans landed again and began to was finally smashed in the battle at Alesia. The BC, the began. In the Spring gradually conquer the province. They benefited new domain stretched up to the river of 218 BC Hannibal gathered approximately from internal conflicts between the British and thus incorporated some German tribes as 100,000 men and war elephants, and marched tribes and crushed one tribe after another. In well. In the course of pacification a Roman civil toeards Italy crossing Gallia and the . Only order to secure the conquests they erected forts government was installed and soon a Gallo- a small garrison of troops was left behind to and military bases throughout Britannia. In 59 Roman mixed culture emerged. At first, only protect . AC there was an upheaval that soon engulfed the local elites were awarded eligible Roman A year later the Romans disembarked 60 vessels main parts of the Southeast, which the Romans citizenship in order to incite them to cooperate. in Emporion to cut off Hannibal’s supplies. could finally defeat. It was as late as 84 AC that But after some time it became quite common to They finally expulsed the Carthaginians out of the northern boundary of the province was include Gallo-Romans to the Senate. In 212 AC the region in 206 BC and integrated it into their determined. Emperor Caracella granted empire. Hispania was a prosperous province After another upheaval of the Brigantes, to all inhabitants of the Empire and hence the and exported wood, vermilion, gold, iron, tin, Emperor decided in 118 AC to fortify Gallic people as well. lead, ceramics, marble, wine, and olive oil. the northern frontier with a wall that later was The first economic and cultural heyday In the course of the Migrations Period the named after him. This fortification reached stopped at the time of the Empire’s crisis in first big invasion of Germanic tribes of , about 130 km from current-day Newcastle in the 3rd century. The province was devastated , and occurred in 409 AC. The the east to Carlisle in the west and was equipped by Barbarian invaders and internal strife, and Romans reacted and asked their allies the with 17 castles. Antonius’ wall further north, was virtually independent from Rome after 260 West for help in 415, and they settled which was erected later in 142 AC, had to until Emperor Aurelian regained control. in in southern in 418 where be abandoned 40 years later, and again for a In the situation eased out again. they established their own kingdom. In 456 long time Hadrian’s wall secured peace for the Around 300 castles were modernized, and the West Goths invaded Hispania, where the British provinces. Emperor Septimus Severus, several Roman Emperors resided partly in Romans had asked them to smash the Suebi. who died in Eburacum (current-day York) in Lutetia (Paris), Augusta Treverorum () But in 469 the west Goths rebelled against 211, strengthened this wall even more. Already and Vienne. Christian belief became common Roman rule and plundered the last regions in the first century, the residence of the Roman quite quickly, although pagan cults survived still under Roman control in 472. That was governor was moved from Camulodunum in rural areas until as late as the 5th century. the end of Roman history in Hispania for the (Colchester) to Londinium (London). Especially in the 4th century, when several time being. Britannia was important for the Romans Emperors stayed for longer times in Gallia, In 551/52 the Byzantine Emperor Justinian sent because of its wheat, cattle, gold, silver, pelts, ancient culture experienced another golden an expeditionary corps to the south of . slaves, and excellent hunting dogs. The gold age. Benefiting from internal conflicts between mines were located in Wales, Scotland, and The following Migrations Period stopped the Goths, he succeeded in conquering a Cornwall. In addition there was considerable prosperity and peace in Gallia for a long time. considerable area, which was organized as a mining of copper and tin, which was used to After crossing the Rhine in winter 406, mixed province named “” with Cartagena as produce bronze. bands of Vandals, Alans, Goths and Suebi its capital. When the west Goths conquered Beginning in 343, Britannia was increasingly began to ravage Gaul. In the 5th century, Cartagena in 625, this time the Roman presence becoming an object of Saxon, Pict, and Scot the , Burgundians and West Goths on the Iberian peninsula was definitively over. aggression. More and more regular troops were established their reign in Gallia, and acted as retreated from the island to protect the empire independent kingdoms after the collapse of the elsewhere, and the people had to defend Roman Empire. In 470 the Roman commander themselves with own forces. The Hadrian Wall Paulus fell in a battle against Saxon raiders. was abandoned around 400, and instead the Up until 486/487 Sygarius, son of a Roman remaining settlements were fortified. The last military leader, held position in the north, regular troops left Britannia in 410. Afterwards but his domain was incorporated with force the Roman civil government decayed step by into the Frankonian kingdom of Chlodwig I., step as the Picts, Scots, and Saxons invaded. which was eventually destined to gain control Formally, the Roman Empire never resigned on over the whole of Gaul. Britannia, as even as late as 540 the Byzantine Emperor . claimed it to be part of his Empire

The first contact between Roman troops Beginning in the 4th century BC, Rome created After Carthage was defeated in 146 BC, and Germanic tribes inside the area later to a widespread system of alliances during several Rome established a minor colony in be named “” took place around 50 wars in Mid-Italy. New colonies were founded Northern Africa. Under the reign of BC during the of Julius Caesar. at locations that were strategically important. Emperor Augustus, Roman culture and The campaigns of Drusus beginning in 12 From these times Rome emerged as a strong administration quickly spread from East BC led the Romans over the Rhine heading state with a powerful army and thus was to West following the Atlas mountain East, and eventually under the command of prepared for its further rise to become a world ranges, and a period of heavy Germanicus they went as far as the river Elbe. power. urbanization began. Augustus But in the Varian disaster 9 AC, the Romans Perilous opponents were at first the Etruscan as well founded a new Carthage where smashed and lost 3 legions. Because civilization up north, and lather the Celtics in on the ruins of the erased city of the strong resistance of the Germans the the Po valley as well as the Greek colonies in that consistently prospered and expeditions past the Rhine were abandoned the south. The Greek city states were conquered reached a population of even after 16 AC. around 275 BC after their commander 250,000 inhabitants. Between The Roman historian lauded the Pyrrhus, although he won his battles, had the 1st and 4th century the Germans for their puritanical family life, their suffered devastating losses of troops against survival of Rome as an ancient true and candid character, their courage when the Romans. This led Rome into conflict mega-city depended on the waging wars, and their sense of freedom. But with Carthage, which was resolved in three delivery of grain and olives he criticised their dullness, their addiction to bloody . During the first Punic from Africa. The climate in games of dice, and their excessive drinking War (264-241 BC) the Carthaginians were ancient times was much more habits. expelled out of Sicily, . humid than today and promoted flourishing settlements in areas In the 2nd century the province was enlarged During the second Punic War (218-201 BC) which currently are deserts. The considerably east of the Rhine by advancing their general Hannibal, who had invaded the street network in the fortified frontier (Limes). The importance Italian peninsula crossing the Alps, almost was the best developed in the of Germania did not derive from its size or succeeded in subduing Rome. But the Roman whole empire. Apart from economic basis, but rather more from their commander Scipio sailed to Africa in 204 BC the important agricultural location at the threatened borders of the and beat Hannibal, who had returned home products, the province delivered empire. Therefore Germania was dominated to protect his country, at the battle of in crimson and precious timber by the military. The commander of the Roman 202 BC. Carthage lost all its domains outside as well. troops in the province of upper Germania Africa and its fleet. During the third Punic War had important military influence, because he Carthage was finally destroyed and erased in Military presence of Romans could move his legions to Italy in quite a short 146 BC. in the province was generally time. It can be assumed that Traian became However, in spite of the Roman successes low. Although there occurred in 97 AC easily because he overseas, the internal order of Italia was at occasional conflicts with nomads commanded legions in Germania at that time. stake. Because of the victorious military in the hinterlands, the cities were hardly affected. Only 15,000 Between 260 and 280 the Romans had to give campaigns more and more coinage and slaves auxiliary forces were stationed up their territory east of the Rhine and to entered the country. Rich citizens acquired that were recruited mainly withdraw from the fortifications of the limes. great land estates and the middle class could from locals. On the whole, the The military frontier was withdrawn to the not compete economically any more. What defence of the North African rivers Rhine and . followed was widespread poverty, rural exodus, and grave dissatisfaction among the provinces was far easier to In the winter of 406 German attackers crossed people. There were attempts for political and organize than the defence for the Rhine as part of the Migrations Period economic reforms, but they all failed due to the provinces in the North of the and sacked several Roman cities. In the early the landowners and the conservative senate empire. Britannia alone, which was 5th century (411-435) Burgundian troops who showed no willingness to alter things. smaller by far, needed three legions controlled the area together with regular Tension remained for many years and resulted to maintain up peace. Roman forces until they finally revolted in 436 in a period of bloody civil wars. After Caesar During the Migrations Period and were brutally defeated. After 455, first the was murdered in 44 BC, the Roman the Vandals entered and later the Merovingian Franks came to an end and was replaced by monarchy. via the Iberian peninsula in May followed the Roman reign at the Rhine. When 429. They were granted land, Clovis I. succeeded his father as king in 482 In the following Imperial Age Italia remained but later broke the treaties and he was formally assigned as administrator of peaceful and reached a high level of prosperity. conquered Carthage in 439, where the province Germania Prima, which after In late ancient times, Rome had far more than they also captured considerable that time eventually became crown land of the 1 million inhabitants who were distracted naval forces. With the help Franks. Even Charles the Great was crowned with bread and games. But the Migrations of this fleet they started to by Leo III in 800 at Rome as Emperor of Period struck Italy hard. In 410 Rome, which conquer Sicily, Sardinia, and the the “Holy Roman Empire of German Nation” had not been attacked for many hundreds of Balearic . In 455 their king and thus wanted to continue the tradition of a years before, was plundered by the West Goths Genseric even plundered Rome, Roman Empire. and 455 again by the Vandals. Permanent depredation, intestine wars among invaders, which was the origin of the and pestilence destroyed the ancient culture expression “vandalism”. During and economy of Italy. In Medieval times, the Arab expansion in the 7th Rome was diminished to no more than 20,000 century the whole province inhabitants. came under Islamic rule. During the winter of 85/86 AC Dacian “” was the Greek word for their country, in the West and in hordes of warriors crossed the river while the Romans themselves called the the East were conquered by the Romans in Danube and attacked the Romans province . The region was captured by the first century BC. Only the Garamantes completely unexpected. Their pillage the Romans in 146 BC and was initially part in the South of Lybia, who had their own and plunder could hardly be stopped. of the province of . Under the reign Berber kingdom, remained independent. The As a result, the Roman Emperor of Emperor Augustus Achaea was constituted Roman rule enhanced trade, especially since Domitian decided not only to throw as an independent and was effectively suppressed. The cities them out of Roman domains again, but covered the Greek including the took advantage of a prosperous agriculture also to conduct a punitive expedition. largest portion of the Greek islands. Some that gained new markets throughout the The fighting against the obstinate cities, such as Athenae and , could lands around the , and of enemy persisted for the whole year preserve a formal status as a free city. the caravan trade with the Sahel zone, from 86 AC. Finally it was Emperor Traian The Greek people suffered under the Roman where ivory, gold, and African slaves were who could fully conquer the Dacians tax and leasehold system. The development imported. The province itself exported wine, as late as 106 after a long and bloody of great land estates changed the character of olive oil, wheat, and horses. Emperor Septimius war. The bounty of war brought to the Greek agricultural structure considerably. Severus (190–211) equipped his birth town Rome consisted of 331 tons of silver The province exported mainly wine from the Leptis Magna and other cities with gorgeous and 165 tons of gold. This was highly northern Peloponnes, honey and olive oil from buildings. This enhanced the building industry welcomed and helped among other , and marble from Thessalia and several and gave long lasting stimulus to the local things to build the Traian in islands. Products of craftsmanship and art were economy. . During a period of Barbarian manufactured mainly in Athens. At the end of the 2nd century Rome decided attacks in 117 and 118, the Romans A very important export was education. to protect the southern border with a chain considered giving up the province, but Ancient is often described as the of desert castles against the constant threat of they decided against it because Dacia cradle of Europe especially because of their warlike Berber tribes. The was of great strategic importance contributions to civilization in the fields of was built between 197 and 201 and since then and was a source of plentiful mineral philosophy, natural sciences, historiography, was constantly enlarged and fortified further. resources. Countless mines provided and literature. Many Romans visited the After the partition of the Roman Empire the Romans with gold, silver, lead, classical sites of Hellas and regarded the in 395, Lybia was a province of the Eastern copper, iron, marble, and salt. The province as kind of an open air museum. Empire. At the turn of the 5th century desert flourishing forestry and agriculture was Furthermore, Athens was the base of an tribes invaded. Justinian tried to recover also of high importance, and delivered academy and lecturing place of philosophers, and strengthen the lines of defense, but that wood, wool, cattle, pelts etc. where Romans like visited lectures on measure was only successful in the short term. The province of Dacia consisted mainly philosophy, rhetoric, and philology. Greek With the conquest of Cyrenaica by the Islamic of what is currently Romania, but slaves were highly respected in Rome where expansion in 643, the province ceased to exist. after a re-organization also included they worked on a high educational level in areas south of the Danube river. With professions like teachers and physicians. The the exception of the South it was attraction of the Olympic Games was still mainly surrounded at all frontiers by alive, where even Emperor was among Barbarians. After a long period of peace, the participants. strong Barbarian hordes gathered to At the partition of the Roman Empire in 395 attack the province in 235. From then on, AC, Achaea became part of the Eastern half, Dacia was a place of permanent unrest later to be known as the . The and battles, where the number of Byzantine “Thema Hellas” was largely identical stationed Roman troops is estimated with the former of Achaea. to have amounted to around 30,000 The cultural influence of Greece remained men. Finally Emperor Aurelian felt strong and Greek became the uncontested impelled in 271 to retreat his forces and official language in the Eastern Roman Empire. administration to south of the Danube The philosophical academy in Athens was river. His intention was to create a buffer closed as late as 531 by an edict of Justinian I, zone and indeed the Goths and other which accelerated the decline of the city. German tribes needed several decades to seize and control the region. Thus some protection for the empire against further Barbarians was secured for a while. Even today the Roman heritage has survived in the Romanian language that is part of the Roman family of languages, and the name of the Province Dacia is also present as an internationally well-known brand of motorcars. became a Roman province thanks to The Roman province of Syria was established The friendly relationship between Rome and a testamentary contract in 133 BC. The same in 63 AC after general Pompeius demolished Egypt was of an early origin. During the second statute was given to the remains of the Seleucid the Seleucid Empire. The territory of Syria as Punic War, when a famine had developed in Empire, which finally collapsed in 63 BC and it exists today is a little smaller than the former Italy, King Ptolemaios IV of Egypt sent a lot of was divided between the Roman Empire and Roman province. corn as famine relief in 210 BC. It was then that the Parthian Empire in the East. The Roman The mighty governor of Syria resided in the Romans finally realized the importance of expansion to the East was stopped by the Antiochia, as the capital of the province that the kingdom at the river Nile. Parthians, who for centuries were a mighty was one of the biggest and most important At the times of Caesar the Roman Empire tried empire on a par with the Romans. cities of the empire. In addition strong military to take a stronger political influence in Egypt. was a rich and prominent province, forces were stationed in the region to protect Rome intervened during a conflict about especially thanks to the many cities within it. the Eastern border against the dangerous the successor to the throne and reinstalled Ephesos struggled mainly with Pergamon and Parthian threat. Syria produced amongst Ptolemaios XII who before had been expelled. for the predominant status inside the other things olive oil, wine, cedar wood, purple From then on Roman military forces were province. The cities were populated mainly by cloth, glassware, and small pieces of furniture stationed at the Nile, and the romance between Greeks, whereas the countryside contained adorned with ivory. In addition Syria was the Caesar and Cleopatra was certainly politically a pre-Greek population. The “ Romana” endpoint for the silk road from and motivated as well. After the murder of Caesar under Emperor Augustus heralded a Golden traded with silk from China and spices from in 44 BC it was Marcus Antonius who won Age that continued until the 2nd century. The India. Cleopatra’s heart, and with her help he fought emperors Traian and Hadrian visited Asia. Herodes Archelaos, who controlled , against his rival Octavius who later became As soon as 50 AC Christian belief began to Samaria, and Edom, was banned by Emperor Emperor Augustius. In 31 BC Cleopatra and flourish and some seats of bishopric were Augustus in 6 AC. His kingdom now became Antonius fled from Rome back to Egypt, but established. The first Christian councils were part of the empire. After the Great Jewish because every military resistance against their held in Asia as well. Revolt this area was reorganized and under pursuers proved to be in vain, both took their In the 4th century (formerly the reign of Hadrian incorporated into Syria, life. In 30 BC Egypt was finally incorporated Byzantium) became the capital of the East then called Syria-Palaestina. as a province of the Roman Empire. Roman Empire. Thus Asia Minor was more Although invaded now and then by the Sasanian In comparison to other provinces, Egypt politically central. After the conquest of Egypt, Empire of Persia, the region flourished until played a special role as a granary of the Roman Palestine, and Syria by the in the 7th the middle of the 6th century and was - apart Empire. Egypt alone shipped 150,000 tons of century, Asia was the main domain of the from Egypt - of greatest importance to the grain to the city of Roma each year. Apart from Byzantine Empire. In the middle of the 14th empire. In the 7th century the Syrian provinces the cults, where the Roman Emperor used to century most Byzantine cities were lost to the were overtaken by the Arab expansion. represent a role of a Pharaoh, the traditions of Turks. Finally in 1453 even Constantinople was the Ptolemaic monarchy were not perpetuated. conquered by them. At the beginning of the 2nd century Egypt experienced a big upheaval of the Jewish people that ended with the erasure of Jewish life in Egypt in 117 AC. After the partition of ore strategy games from ames the Roman Empire in 395 the province was M PD-G : part of the East Roman Empire. From 640 Egypt was an object of Arab expansion, and with the fall of Alexandria in 642 the whole region fell under Islamic influence.

further Informations: www.pd-games.com