Blood and Oil: The Fall of Djombar

The Republic of Djombar is a small country in Africa. It is bordered by The Republic of Tasambiya in the north and east, and the Democratic Republic of Kunafwa in the west. The remainder of the border is formed by the Sea of Halhour. Sunni Islam is by far the largest the religion in the country, practiced by about 83% of the population. Other large religions are Protestant Christianity practiced by about 4% of country, Catholicism, practiced by about 7%, and Shi’a Islam practiced by about 2%. Secularism and native religions make up most of the remainder.

Djombar has been inhabited since antiquity and along with its neighbors, was home to the legendary Kingdom of Faunt. The ancient Fautians had close relations with their neighbors in North Africa and the kingdom was able to prosper through its trade in luxury goods such as ivory, gold and ebony.

Islam first came to the region in the 9th century AD with the Omori Dynasty based out of Harouf being the first Islamic polity in the region. The Omori Dynasty’s rule came to an abrupt halt when country was conquered by the Sultanate of Tasambiya in the seventeenth century. In 1884, the Tasambiyan Sultanate, along with Djombar, became a protectorate of the French Empire. Djombar’s value as a naval base soon resulted in it being separated into its own administrative unit within the empire.

During the Second World War, the colonial government of Djombar sided with the pro-Axis Vichy regime and the port briefly served as a refueling station for German U-boats operating in the area. In response, British and Commonwealth forces soon invaded and occupied the country. Shortly later, a small airport was constructed as a base for reconnaissance aircraft tasked with patrolling the nearby waters.

Following the Second World War, Djombar was returned to French administration. In 1960, a referendum on whether to join the newly independent Republic of Tasambiya or remain with France was held. The referendum turned out heavily in favor of remaining in association with France, though the election was widely considered rigged by outside sources. In 1968 a second plebiscite was held with the options being for remaining with France, becoming part of Tasambiya, or becoming independent. Voting was mostly divided along ethnic lines with the Arab population mostly voting in favor of union with Tasambiya and the Djombis voting for independence. Unlike the previous referendum eight years earlier, almost no votes were cast for remaining as a part of France. In the end, the pro-independence movement won out and on June 27, 1968 Djombar became an independent country. Ismail Mohamed Sotali, a military officer of mixed Djombi-Arab ancestry, was elected the country’s first President in September of that year.

In 1971, Sotali declared Djombar a one party state, outlawing all other parties but his own congrès national démocratique (National Democratic Conference) . For the first five years of his rule, Sotali maintained close ties with Eastern Bloc and Libya, suppressing religious leaders as well as pro-democratic elements within the country. Despite this, Sotali continued to allow the presence of the French naval base on L’ile Rouge. After the discovery of oil in Djombar, Sotali switched to a much more pro-western stance, inviting European and American companies to invest in the numerous oil wells off the county’s coast.

In March 1978, Sotali was shot and killed by a member of the outlawed Islamic Revolution Party while walking between offices outside of the Palace of Government in the capital of Harouf. The country’s Vice President, a Djombi, Habib Oma Juma, quickly scrambled to maintain control of the government, but was soon overthrown and assassinated following a military coup by General Idris Salim, an Arabic military official. However, Salim only controls the center of Harouf, as the entire country has fallen into complete civil war. Now, with a nation in the middle of anarchy, a land of oppurtunity stands before. Will you rise to unify this broken nation? Or will your blood pour through the rivers of Djombar?


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Flag:
National Republic of Djombar/General Ismail Omar Guelleh
Ethnicity/Religion: Arab/Muslim
Class: General
Location: Fort Ghall
Loyalty: 60
Army: 1000 Regulars
Navy: None
Income: +0 (500)
Government Desired: Military Dictatorship
Holdings:
Fort Gall (Armory)
Garrison: None
Special Notes: None
Description: General Guelleh was an key adviser and supporter of Sotali during his early years of rule, and personally led a massacre of Pro-Democracy students in Notre Dame. However, when Sotali switched his support to the Western Bloc, a coup against Sotali was stopped by a rival general, who took Guelleh’s place as a top adviser, while Guelleh was sent to the frontier to fight against Tasambiya. Now, with Sotali dead, Guelleh feels himself the natural successor to Sotali’s regime, and intends to take what he feels is rightfully his.

The Goal: Your goal varies, depending on who you’re playing as! While a general may seek to unify the country once more under his rule, a corporation may only want to ensure they have control over the oil fields, and a pirate may simply just want to raid ships for their plunder. What you do is up to you

Turn Length: Each turn encompasses the events of two weeks in the Djombari Conflict. You start on March 1st, 1978

Flag: The flag of your organization

Name: What your organization and leader’s name is. It can be an organization name, company, a party name, or the name you hope to give the country when you rule it.

Ethnicity and Religion: The Ethnicity and religion of your leader. Choose wisely. You can be a foreigner if you so choose, though there will likely be penalties. The two largest ethnic groups are the Djombis (70%) and Arabs (25%)

Class: While this is a bit gamey, I do feel that this stat is probably the best way to help differentiate between the various groups that will be attempting to put their rule on Djombar. The various classes have different strengths and weaknesses, not all of them stat based.



Location: Where you and your group are located. You may NOT start at any fort, village, city, town, or refinery. A character with the General class may start at an armory in a city or village. Non general characters may start anywhere else, provided they are not in the vicinity of a village or city.

Loyalty: How Loyal your men are to you, from a scale of 0 to 100. If your soldiers have high loyalty, they will fight better, march longer, and will stick with you in the hard times. If your soldiers have low loyalty, then they may desert at the first opportunity, or even worse, betray you. Loyalty is increased by winning battles, holding towns, getting loot, and is lost by losing battles, going without pay, or allying with a power that is your complete ideological enemy. Other things such as the conditions your soldiers are living in, and if they have improvements and payment are all factors in keeping your troops loyal

Army and Navy: How you're going to win the war of course! Check out what you can buy!

Foot soldiers: Foot soldiers are the bread and butter of your military. The boots on the ground that, at the end of the day, will win you the war. While Recruits may not look like much at first, if you're a good commander and they live through their fights, one day they may proudly call themselves veterans.

100 Recruits: $100. The rawest and least armed of soldiers possible, recruits can be men or even children simply plucked off the street and given a rifle. Recruits are generally the least loyal, but they are cheap.

100 Regulars: $500. Trained in both tactics and soldiering, regulars are much better than recruits in a straight up fight, and on defense, can hold out against veterans. Though they can do basic tactics and have decent training, Regulars lack the true combat experience that distinguishes veterans.

100 Veterans: $1000. The best of the best, Veterans have lived through countless battles, and having that experience, become ready to survive another one. Veterans can perform any tactical command, are alert and ready for a fight. Excellent weapons, excellent training, they are soldiers that win wars.

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Vehicles (mobilizes foot soldiers, supporting force)

10 Horses: $100. Can transport one soldier per horse. While not as fast as cars, Horses are cheap, can help pull supplies, and are just as potent outside of roads as they are on roads

5 Trucks: $500, Can transport 5 soldiers per truck, light mounted machine gun

5 APCs: $2000, Can transport 15 soldiers per APC, heavy mounted machine gun

1 Light Tank: $3000, A powerful vehicle that will strike fear into the hearts of your enemies

1 Artillery: $5000, an incredibly powerful piece of equipment, nothing can stand a direct hit from Artillery

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Ships: All ships can move up rivers, must have access to a body of water to use.

1 Transport: $100. For transporting soldiers or goods, up to 30 soldiers can be on the transport. No weaponry whatsoever, and rather slow.

1 Trawler: $500. Lightning quick and light firepower, these are primarily used to quickly board other bigger ships. Can carry 20 soldiers

1 Frigate: $3000. Quick and versatile, the Frigate combines speed with firepower, with heavy machine guns lining the sides. Will not transport troops

1 Destroyer: $8000 Heavy firepower combined with cannons makes the Destroyer a force to be reckoned with, and is likely the heaviest class of ship that will be seen in the Djombar conflict. While it is slow, it is a truly powerful ship. Will not transport troops.

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Aircraft: Requires an Airfield. Destroy your enemies from above, with fire and bombs!

1 Transport Helicopter: $5000 credits (low firepower, mostly for transport and medical evacuation)

1 Combat Helicopter: $8000 credits (medium firepower - machine guns, rockets)

1 Jet: $10,000 (heavy firepower - machine guns, rockets, anti-tank bombs)

1 Bomber: $15,000 (low anti fighter capabilities, but firepower enough to destroy most anything from the sky)

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Structures (for if you don't have an entire city under your control or living out in the jungle.

1 Outpost: $50. A small amount of cover for up to 10 soldiers to be stationed to guard a key chokepoint. These are best used in cities and important areas such as bridges. While good for defending choke points, Outposts need the support of a nearby fort.

1 Armory: $1000. Housing for up to 500 soldiers, a compound is best used in cities. It's a well fortified structure that can help you keep control over a city. It's incredibly difficult to assault a compound, and the attackers will ALWAYS have casualties.

1 Fort: $3000. Housing for up to 1000 soldiers, a fort is essentially where your soldiers are when not fighting or patrolling, and where your supplies are held.

Heavy Wall (Fort or Armory): $250 for Armory, $500 for Fort. This keeps all the riffraff out of your fort or armory. No longer will soldiers in here fear stray gunfire or grenades, for this keeps it out. Even a truck could crash into here and the wall would still stand firm! Only a direct hit from a bomber, a tank, or an artillery piece could bring the wall down.

Barracks (Fort or Armory): $500 for Armory, $1000 for Fort. With these barracks, your soldiers will be more than comfortable. The barracks double the number ammount of soldiers you can station at the fort or armory

1 Airfield: $5000 (Fort only). Airfields are essential for having aircraft, and can be used to get supplies out to buyers.

5 Anti Aircraft Guns (Fort or Armory): $750 for Armory, $1500 for Fort. Ensure that you are safe from above! These anti aircraft guns will do what they can to shoot down any enemy aircraft, and if a tank is approaching, these guns can even be turned against them, though with less effectiveness.

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Income: Your income and your treasury (which is in parenthesis) is the financial might of your organization. Unlike most neses, you have no income at the start, instead relying on your starting funds. The way you get income is through the exploitation and sale of resources, or through robbing others of their income. While income isn't the only thing you need to control the country, cutting off a pipeline that leads to an enemy controlled refinery or bombing a crucial bridge or destroying a roadway can be just as devastating as an attack on one of their bases. You can gain income from taking wealth from others in the form of robbery or taxation, but keep in mind, in Djombar, EVERYONE has a weapon.

Government: The type of government you intend to establish in Djombar. Communist dictatorship, Capitalist Republic, Constitutional Monarchy, Theocracy, anything and everything is possible. In Djombar, any voice can be heard potentially.

Holdings: A list of your holdings, be they cities, towns, refineries, or armories.

Description: Your leader's and organizations background. While they won't have any direct stat effects (yet!), your characters background will have an effect as you campaign for rule over Djombar.

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Missions: Missions are objectives given to you by various interests in the Djombari conflict. The givers of missions can range from village chieftains and city mayors to the CIA or the KGB. Achieving this missions is optional, but if done, the rewards from doing these missions can be HUGE.

Creativity/Stories: While this is not a story nes, I do love seeing creativity and stories. As such, I will reward it, though not with stats. If you'd like, describe your compound and its defenses. Describe rituals for your soldiers, talk about what you tell villages when you get there. Show me your propaganda! Add to the experience and the setting of the nes, and I will make sure it does not go unrewarded.