Gazetteer: Mawar Viceroyalty

The third and final nation ruled by an overseas kingdom, but unlike Dhrataka and Dravancore, Mawar is a direct vassal of the King of Joa, and its wealth is his wealth. The factors and managers running the corporate side of the Viceroyalty work for the King, answering locally to the Viceroy, who in turn answers to the King’s vizier.

The Viceroyalty itself, however, is relatively small, basically consisting of a toehold on the southwest corner of Mahindya, and some offshore islands. More wealth comes from the Joavanese merchant fleet’s shipping enterprises in the region, and from inter-Viceroyalty trading that goes on between Mawar and Joavanese colonies on the Dark Continent (Africa clone)and the East Continent (Chinese/Japanese clone).

The Mawarian military is semi-professional, with some sepoys and regular cavalry supplemented by native militias. All the units generally have European officers, who find the Viceroy’s pay much better than what’s available at home; however, these aren’t necessarily the best officers money can buy, just the most mercenary. Mercenary units tend to be Durani and Rohilla tribesmen, with some Arabhi cavalry, and assorted foot soldiers.

Quick Facts on Mawar:

Structure: Governor – Generals – Raja – Princes
Governor and Military Leader: Viceroy Henrique Sola, the Emerald Duke
Native Leader: Raja Patalghriha
Capitol: Mawar

Notes on Personalities:

Viceroy Henrique Sola is in his senior years, and it shows. Never very bright to begin with, he now has little energy to devote to ruling his domain, and his vicious attitude towards the “heathen” natives and his miserliness with the public purse are leading Mawar into revolt while he remains content in his palace. Given he is also in charge of the Viceroyalty’s army, it is unclear if he will even be able to suppress whatever revolt does happen.

Raja Patalghriha, the native puppet ruler, is only a boy of 15. His controlled childhood shows in his stunted worldview and intelligence, and his early preference to happily drown away his treatment at the hands of the Joavanese. However, he is popular and has the sympathy of his subjects, particularly for the disfigurement he suffers after a bout with the pox as a child. While not bright, he does have energy, and his loyalty to his lands, rather than to his puppet masters, may put him at the forefront of any eventual revolution.

Gazetteer: Department of Dravancore

As with Dhrataka, Dravancore is the quasi-conquered territory of a trading corporation, in this instance the Blue Crown Mercantile Marine Company of Francia. Initially just small outposts and a couple of factories near the independent city-state of Dravancore, the company has expanded its holdings through agreements and conquest. One of the Department’s strengths is it has also acted in not only its own name, but that of the Raja of Dravancore, giving their local partner power, prestige, and wealth at the same time as they’ve helped themselves.

The Department is broken down into smaller Territories, each focused around one trading outpost. Small units of natives or Continentals guard each, with the larger units being held centrally. The Department and the BCMM feel they are in the ascendant, with some talented individuals now in Mahindya and a large body of well-trained troops at their disposal. Expect to see some aggressive attitudes and operations from them in the near future.

The Department’s military, like Dhrataka, contains regular units from the home country, locally-raised Continentals, BCMM native troops, and native allies. Their specialist units include hussars, dragoons, and marines, although these aren’t quite up to continental standards. Their mercenaries are similar to those used by the RLTC – Rajputs and Sartisians (=Sikhs).

Quick Facts on Dravancore:

Power Structure: Governor – Generals – Raja – Princes
Governor: Florentin Signoret
Military Leader: General Joseph-Louis Frassin
Native Leader: Raja Janga
Capitol City: Dravancore

Notes on Personalities:

Governor Signoret is a handsome, middle-aged businessman who finds himself in charge of a Department far removed from anything he experienced in Francia. He is bright, but since arriving in Mahindya he’s been tempted by some of its excesses and opportunities for personal gain, but not to any crippling effect. It has, however, slowed down his plans for the Department, and only the arrival of General Frassin has started to get him back on track. He plays the natives against each other well, and is the most politically canny ruler on the continent.

General Frassin complements Governor Signoret well. Both are similar in age, and Frassin brings military skills to Dravancore that match Signoret’s political savvy. Frassin is also highly moral, popular with the troops, and has a keen and active intelligence. Unlike Signoret, he can’t be distracted, and he’s honed the troops of his command to a razor’s edge.

Gazetteer: Presidency of Dhrataka

being the first in a Series of Posts concerning

the Countries of the Glorious continent of Mahindya

The Presidency of Dhrataka is a territory controlled by the Red Lion Trading Company, a massive trading concern based in the Kingdom of Devon, back on the Continent (aka Imagi-Europe). The owners and investors in the RLTC are safely ensconced back home, but their governors, factors, and company troops are busy making fortunes for them here in this wealthy new land. The Presidency resides primarily on the former Dhrataka Raj, a kingdom in western Mahindya, and parts of the Sultanate of Khanjavur, although several smaller fiefdoms have also fallen under the dominion of the RLTC. Both the Raj and Sultanate were acquired through trade agreements, and in the case of the Raja, the RLTC is also responsible for his safety and comfort in perpetuity.

The first trading posts were established by the RLTC, along with other Devon merchant companies (since absorbed), in the 1630’s, and the company has been waging peaceful conquest ever since, with periods of less than peaceful conquest breaking out frequently. In part this is because of the trading concerns of other countries from the Continent, including Francia, Joa (both still here – see future installments of this gazetteer), and Zeeland (now gone, except for mercenary remnants). The enormous Zarist Empire, which stretches from the eastern edge of the Continent to the Great Eastern Ocean, also borders on the northern edges of Mahindya, and its agents and traders can be found competing with the RLTC as well.

At other times, trade and real wars have broken out with native princelings both large and small, although in the last 30 years or so there has been an amalgamation of many of the continent’s smaller states into larger nations. Sometimes this has been willingly, sometimes less so. But it does mean the RLTC now has some potentially formidable opposition on the continent and conflict seems inevitable, despite the merchant princes back in Devon preferring quiet conquest…as it is better for the bottom line.

The Presidency is broken into both districts overseen by RLTC Commissioners, and small princely states still run under native rule, but overseen the RLTC’s Governor. The districts are primarily in the former Dhrataka Raj and Sultanate, but some include abolished princely states. The RLTC has complete legal authority over the Presidency, although this was not originally intended by the native princes, and they are supported as necessary by Devon. However, the home country tries to be disinterested in affairs here but RLTC principals do have a great deal of political clout, and some Devon troops are now in Dhrataka to back up RLTC units.

The RLTC’s military is primarily to ensure agreements are followed and revenues are collected, but some company governors and generals have used them to forcibly expand the company’s holdings. RLTC’s military includes infantry regiments of Continental expatriates, sepoys both good and bad, and some odds and sods collected from the continent’s dispossessed. Their cavalry mainly consists of native mercenaries or allies, but a pair of small troops of Continental hussars and mounted infantry are also available. The company’s preferred mercenaries are Sartisian (think Sikh) and Rajput cavalry.

Quick Facts on Dhrataka:
Power Structure: RLTC Governor –> Commissioners –> Raja (sometimes a Regent) –> Princes
Governor: Duke of Redonda (Archibald Lewiston Hurst)
Military Leader: Lord Blackstone (Algernon Lyttleon-Wrey)
Native Leader: Raja Vijaysata
Capitol City: Sanagar
Other Cities: Champadan, Umcherry, Murza

Notes on Personalities:
The Duke of Redonda is a gloomy middle-aged man of mediocre talents. While his popularity remains middling at the moment, his treatment of the native population is harsh and his more astute staff are trying to warn of rebellion in the air. Some are even trying to work around his policies to mitigate their effects, while those in the military are trying to brace themselves for internal troubles that may soon bring on external troubles as the vultures start to circle.

Unfortunately for those in the RLTC military, their leader, Lord Blackstone, makes Duke Redonda look like an over-achieving genius. While young (33), supremely good-looking, generous, cheerful, and popular, he is also a womanizer who has been selling out the company’s concerns for any native bribes he can find. Even if he wasn’t a self-indulgent lout, he has neither political nor military skills of note. Given some of the talent now found elsewhere on the continent, particularly in the Department of Dravancore, Redonda and Blackstone are a bad, bad combination.

[NOTE: The personalities are based on Tony Bath’s wargames campaign book, and include disposition, morality, generosity, loyalty, appearance, popularity (derived in part from other traits), intelligence, energy, political skill, military skill]

The Continent of Mahindya

It's been a long gap in posts here after my first, so here's a simple map of the continent with nice big place names:
(as always, clicking on the map will bring up a bigger version)

My versions have smaller names for the countries and names for the cities as well. However, while this is about version 4 of the map (freehand, hex paper, 1st draft w/o roads or names), now I'll be creating a point-to-point map from this, as that's the way my campaign rules have gone. Most of the towns will disappear, but critical ones will remain as locations. Ports, river crossings, entrances to passes or the last town before the desert will all stay.

Also, the only roads on this are really trails (fuzzy brown lines) through deserts or mountain passes, I sketched out a road (trail) system for the continent, but as per the above comments, that's changed.

The First Post

Dateline: Sanagar, Presidency of Dhrataka
November 14, 1749

Lately, I've been working lately on a few aspects of 18th century gaming in India, including the campaign rules for my Imagi-nations to battle over the fictional continent of Mahindya with. For those unfamiliar with Imagi-nations, they're a relatively common variant of wargaming, used to generate scenarios or histories that reflect a period in general, without worrying about changing history. They're also useful in allowing one to telescope history into a manageable scale - the real 18th century India had a huge number of states, I've absorbed that into less than a dozen.

I'll still be re-fighting historical battles, and the miniatures will be historical but also have a fictional side.

Rules are:

Battles - King of the Battlefield
Campaign - Home-brewed variant of the Perfect Captain's free Spanish Fury campaign rules (with healthy doses of rules from Tony Bath, Don Featherstone, and Battlegames magazine - and other stuff)
Skirmish - Songs of Drums and Shakos, Sharp Practice

So it will take a while for pretty pictures to show up, but hopefully you'll follow along as princely states and colonizing powers battle for control of Mahindya - Mahayana, Panajapas, Sharsha, Rashdurai, Venachuri, Yalukistan, the Sultanate of Khanjavur, Presidency of Dhrataka (run by the Red Lion Trading Company), Department of Dravancore (run by the Blue Crown Mercantile Marine Company), Mawar Viceroyalty (run by the Kingdom of Joa), and the Zarist Empire.