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In , the political landscape changed dramatically when the White Ship sank en route from Barfleur in Normandy to England; around three hundred passengers died, including Adelin. Rules of succession in western Europe at the time were uncertain; in some parts of France, male primogeniture , in which the eldest son would inherit a title, was becoming more popular. With William Adelin dead, Henry had only one other legitimate child, Matilda , but female rights of inheritance were unclear during this period.

Her husband died in and she was remarried in to Geoffrey V of Anjou , whose county bordered the Duchy of Normandy. Henry attempted to build up a base of political support for Matilda in both England and Normandy, demanding that his court take oaths first in , and then again in and , to recognise Matilda as his immediate successor and recognise her descendants as the rightful ruler after her. Matilda and Geoffrey suspected that they lacked genuine support in England, and proposed to Henry in that the king should hand over the royal castles in Normandy to Matilda whilst he was still alive and insist on the Norman nobility swearing immediate allegiance to her, thereby giving the couple a much more powerful position after Henry's death.

After Henry's death, the English throne was taken not by his daughter Matilda, but by Stephen of Blois , ultimately resulting in civil war. Stephen was the son of Stephen-Henry of Blois , one of the powerful counts of northern France, and Adela of Normandy , daughter of William the Conqueror. Stephen and Matilda were thus first cousins. His parents allied themselves with Henry, and Stephen, as a younger son without lands of his own, became Henry's client, travelling as part of his court and serving in his campaigns. When news began to spread of Henry I's death, many of the potential claimants to the throne were not well placed to respond.

Geoffrey and Matilda were in Anjou, rather awkwardly supporting the rebels in their campaign against the royal army, which included a number of Matilda's supporters such as Robert of Gloucester. Stephen, however, was conveniently placed in Boulogne, and when news reached him of Henry's death he left for England, accompanied by his military household. Robert of Gloucester had garrisoned the ports of Dover and Canterbury and some accounts suggest that they refused Stephen access when he first arrived. The crowds in London traditionally claimed a right to elect the king of England, [ clarification needed ] and they proclaimed Stephen the new monarch, believing that he would grant the city new rights and privileges in return.

Stephen was able to advance to Winchester , where Roger , who was both the Bishop of Salisbury and the Lord Chancellor , instructed the royal treasury to be handed over to Stephen. Meanwhile, the Norman nobility gathered at Le Neubourg to discuss declaring Theobald king, probably following the news that Stephen was gathering support in England.

Stephen had to intervene in the north of England immediately after his coronation. Returning south, Stephen held his first royal court at Easter Troubles continued across Stephen's new kingdom. After the Welsh victory at the Battle of Llwchwr in January and the successful ambush of Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare in April, south Wales rose in rebellion, starting in east Glamorgan and rapidly spreading across the rest of south Wales during Neither mission was particularly successful and by the end of the king appears to have abandoned attempts to put down the rebellion.

Historian David Crouch suggests that Stephen effectively "bowed out of Wales" around this time to concentrate on his other problems. Geoffrey of Anjou attacked Normandy in early and, after a temporary truce, invaded later the same year, raiding and burning estates rather than trying to hold the territory.

Stephen's first years as king can be interpreted in different ways. Seen positively, Stephen stabilised the northern border with Scotland, contained Geoffrey's attacks on Normandy, was at peace with Louis VI, enjoyed good relations with the church and had the broad support of his barons.

The north of England was now controlled by David and Prince Henry, Stephen had abandoned Wales, the fighting in Normandy had considerably destabilised the duchy, and an increasing number of barons felt that Stephen had given them neither the lands nor the titles they felt they deserved or were owed. Henry's considerable treasury had been emptied by due to the costs of running Stephen's more lavish court, and the need to raise and maintain his mercenary armies fighting in England and Normandy.

Fighting broke out on several fronts during Firstly, Robert of Gloucester rebelled against the king, starting the descent into civil war in England. David of Scotland also invaded the north of England once again, announcing that he was supporting the claim of his niece the Empress Matilda to the throne, pushing south into Yorkshire. Stephen rapidly responded to the revolts and invasions, focusing primarily on England rather than Normandy. His wife Matilda was sent to Kent with ships and resources from Boulogne, with the task of retaking the key port of Dover , under Robert's control.

Stephen's military campaign in England had progressed well, and historian David Crouch describes it as "a military achievement of the first rank". By , an invasion of England by Robert and Matilda appeared imminent. Geoffrey and Matilda had secured much of Normandy and, together with Robert, spent the beginning of the year mobilising forces ready for a cross-Channel expedition. Meanwhile, Stephen prepared for the coming conflict by creating a number of additional earldoms. Stephen created many more, filling them with men he considered to be loyal, capable military commanders, and in the more vulnerable parts of the country assigning them new lands and additional executive powers.

Stephen was heavily influenced by his principal advisor, Waleran de Beaumont , the twin brother of Robert of Leicester. The Beaumont twins and their younger brother and cousins received the majority of these new earldoms.

Stephen took steps to remove a group of bishops he regarded as a threat to his rule. Roger and his family were also enemies of Waleran, who disliked their control of the royal administration. This threat was backed up by the arrest of the bishops, with the exception of Nigel who had taken refuge in Devizes Castle ; the bishop only surrendered after Stephen besieged the castle and threatened to execute Roger le Poer. Anglo-Norman warfare during the civil war was characterised by attritional military campaigns, in which commanders tried to raid enemy lands and seize castles in order to allow them to take control of their adversaries' territory, ultimately winning slow, strategic victories.

Stephen and Matilda's households centred on small bodies of knights called the familia regis ; this inner circle formed the basis for a headquarters in any military campaign. The Normans had first developed castles in the 10th and 11th centuries, and their occupation of England after had made extensive use of them. Most castles took the form of earthwork and timber motte-and-bailey or ringwork constructs; easily built with local labour and resources, these were resilient and easy to defend.

The Anglo-Norman elite became adept at strategically placing these castles along rivers and valleys to control populations, trade and regions. Unlike the more traditional designs, these required expensive skilled labourers and could only be built slowly over many seasons. Although these square keeps would later prove to have vulnerabilities, the ballistae and mangonels used in the s were significantly less powerful than the later trebuchet designs, giving defenders a substantial advantage over attackers.

Both sides responded by building new castles, sometimes creating systems of strategic fortifications.

Ryan Danks is raising funds for Age of Anarchy RPG on Kickstarter! A patron- based roleplaying game set in Norman England during a time of. Ryan Danks is raising funds for Age of Anarchy RPG on Kickstarter! A patron- based roleplaying game set in Norman England during a time of civil war.

In the south-west Matilda's supporters built a range of castles to protect the territory, usually motte-and-bailey designs such as those at Winchcombe , Upper Slaughter , or Bampton. Another feature of the war was the creation of many " counter-castles ". King Stephen was extremely wealthy, well-mannered, modest and liked by his peers; he was also considered a man capable of firm action. The Empress's faction lacked an equivalent war leader to Stephen. Matilda had a firm grounding in government from her time as empress, where she had presided in court cases and acted as regent in Italy with the Imperial army on campaign.

Geoffrey and Matilda's marriage was not an easy one; it had almost collapsed altogether in For most of the war, therefore, the Angevin armies were led into battle by a handful of senior nobles. The most important of these was Robert of Gloucester, the half-brother of the Empress. He was known for his qualities as a statesman, his military experience and leadership ability.

Fitz Count was apparently motivated by a strong moral duty to uphold his oath to Matilda and proved critical in defending the Thames corridor.

The Angevin invasion finally arrived in August. Baldwin de Redvers crossed over from Normandy to Wareham in an initial attempt to capture a port to receive the Empress Matilda's invading army, but Stephen's forces forced him to retreat into the south-west. Stephen responded by promptly moving south, besieging Arundel and trapping Matilda inside the castle. Contemporary chroniclers suggested that Henry argued that it would be in Stephen's own best interests to release the Empress and concentrate instead on attacking Robert, and Stephen may have seen Robert, not the Empress, as his main opponent at this point in the conflict.

Although there had been few new defections to the Empress, Matilda now controlled a compact block of territory stretching out from Gloucester and Bristol south-west into Devon and Cornwall, west into the Welsh Marches and east as far as Oxford and Wallingford, threatening London. At the start of , Nigel , the Bishop of Ely, whose castles Stephen had confiscated the previous year, rebelled against Stephen as well.

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While Stephen and his army besieged Lincoln Castle at the start of , Robert of Gloucester and Ranulf of Chester advanced on the king's position with a somewhat larger force. If the game funds, we will announce stretch goals , expanding the setting beyond England, and giving further options for game play. Every tier gets access to the full-color PDF of the core book, featuring all of the rules and setting information that you need to play a game of Age of Anarchy.

Backers of the "Serf" tier or higher will get to claim which side they support in the civil war: Their loyalties will be expressed, along with their title Serf, Noble, etc. All tiers will receive a voucher to print the book at the printer's cost.

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Age of Anarchy RPG by Ryan Danks » Community — Kickstarter!
Worlds Worst Wedgie #3 (George Brown, Class Clown).

All tiers can print the book in softcover standard color , while "Noble" and "Baron" tiers also have access to a Kickstarter Exclusive version of the book, with an exclusive cover, in hardcover premium color. The Baron tier will receive a Kickstarter Exclusive Patron path: This path is attached to the Patron and grants benefits for the entire party to explore.

We used it to fulfill the Shadowcraft Kickstarter with great success. The rewards you purchase during this Kickstarter are the digital products the PDFs , as well as the option to print those products at the publisher's cost. This project has already been written and playtested. After funding, it will go through editing, art, and layout.

Unless something catastrophic happens to the design crew, there is no reason to suspect that the project will not fulfill as expected. Questions about this project? Check out the FAQ. As "Noble" PDF with exclusive cover and the Assets and Paths deck, with the option to print both in hardcover premium color and premium stock. You will also have a Kickstarter exclusive path for Patrons: As "Baron" PDF with exclusive cover and the Assets and Paths deck, with the option to print both in hardcover premium color and premium stock, Kickstarter exclusive Patron path.

Also, Age of Anarchy author Paul Mitchener will run an Age of Anarchy game session for you and your friends, either at a convention you and Paul are attending, or over the internet at a mutually convenient time. Jan 16, - Feb 13, 27 days. The band's origins came from a friendship between Bumblefoot and the Votta brothers that dates back many years. Jon Votta and Bumblefoot spoke about putting a band together.

It was finally completed when John Moyer joined the band. The band name was created by Vince Votta. The band started in , with Bumblefoot recording parts for the debut album in between touring with Guns N' Roses.

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Weiland also took place in promotional photo shoots and music videos in October Their debut album, which is self-titled , was tentatively scheduled for Spring and was released in June. It was something I did when I wasn't doing anything. I was asked to write some lyrics and sing some melodies on this project, but it's not a band I'm in. Scott is currently the singer of the band. It's in writing; There's no confusion".

Despite the comments made by Thal, Weiland did not tour with the band in support of their new album. Weiland also refused to take part in music videos after he agreed to write and perform the lyrics for the ten songs for the album. Vince said the final straw for him was when Weiland called the band a scam.

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