[jason taylor]

Arabian Nights: Political Adventure

The City of Some-Persian-Sounding-Name in the days of the Mongol Empire is a wealthy city. Goods of all kinds pass through and it is a haven of culture and civilization. However a crises is in the works. The old Emir Abdul the Lecher is dying. As one might suspect from his name there are a large number of potential candidates in the running. All the good people of Some-Persian-Sounding-Name are worried that there will be bloodshed soon.

The players:

Abdul: He is basically a bottom-feeding Captain Renault. He is kept in power by fear of the Mongols who despise him as much as the people do but are happy with the tribute he provides. To give the devil his due, he is a capable enough diplomat to keep the city from being sacked and though probably more from cowardice then patriotism he has avoided vainly rising against the conquerors. His main fault is his private life which is likely to make for trouble. So far Abdul has even managed to avoid getting a Mongol garrison, and keeps the peace (or the lighter shade of tyranny to look at it from another point of view) with a combination of his tribe's retainers, a few mercenaries. and some ghulems bought along the way.

The Pretenders: And the race is on!

The nobility: This has two classes, the Imperial and the local. Imperial nobles are more interested in the affairs of the empire and locals are in the town. Also the later have often been in town for centuries.

The minor families and tribes: These are not quite noble but are formidable to have influence in town.

The Guilds: The various and sundry occupational sodalities.

The Neighborhood Chiefs: Exactly what it says on the tin.

The Intellectuals: Poets, philosophers, clergy, etc.

The Mobs: Basically the go to guys if you want someone to swing a stick at someone else. They are just like any street gang in any city, nothing exiting here.

Foreigners: They have a quarter of their own and are often in a precarious position having either no prince to avenge them (like the Jews) or having one to far away (like the Italians). They usually are untouched simply because they are profitable. And no one picks on visiting Mongols for obvious reasons.

Secret Agent Men: These are the guys that hire out to get things done. This town has numbers of people who are willing to work as a spy or political criminal whether for money, fun, or the interest of the faction they support.

This is meant to be a "Godfather" or "Dune" like game in an Arabian Nights setting. Magical elements may or may not appear depending on taste.

PS: The inspiration for this is actually from "Shiraz in the Age of Hafez" by John W. Limbert. I made a couple of modifications. Abdul the Lecher was my own creation though he was hardly without precedent. The book also does not mention non-Islamic foreigners which is an interesting wrinkle to put in. Other factions are borrowed from the actual factions in Shiraz at the time. The basic plot purpose of Abdul is to give a definite point where the power struggle begins instead of reality in which it just goes on forever aimlessly.