History VideoGame / Ravenmark

'''Ravenmark''' is a series of TurnBasedStrategy games for [[UsefulNotes/IOSGames iOS]] consisting of ''Ravenmark: Scourge of Estellion'' (2011) and ''Ravenmark: Mercenaries'' (2013). The games take place in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy‎ setting in the world of Eclisse. The titular [[TheEmpire Empire of Estellion]] (whose people are called Tellions) is the largest and most powerful nation in the world. It's notable that, according to the [[AllThereInTheManual in-game Codex]], the Empire was founded on the principles of meritocracy, where any commoner could, through many years of military (22 years) or administrative (36 years) service, attain temporary nobility (no more than 2 generations), and any family able to maintain their noble status for 10 uninterrupted generations would be granted the permanent status of a noble House. Another major power in Eclisse is the neighboring Commonwealth of Esotre, whose inhabitants (called Sotrans and composed of humans and [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]]) prefer a rational approach to things and promote science and {{Magitek}}. Both nations are constantly being raided by the wild [[TheHorde Lyri tribes]].

Battles are turn-based. The player is able to give no more than 6 pre-battle orders per turn, although behavior orders from previous turns (e.g. Advance Northwest) continue to take effect. However, computer players are [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard not limited to 6 orders per turn and are able to give orders during the battle phase]]. Most powers use small-units called Daggers that take up 1 square. Usually, Daggers can be joined with Daggers of identical unit type to form two-Dagger formations called Deuces and three-Dagger formations called Trines. There are usually bonuses for Deuces and Trines, but, unlike Daggers, they can be flanked and must be facing the enemy to attack. Commanders (usually key story characters) are attached to specific Daggers and usually have certain abilities. In the first game, units don't earn experience. In the sequel, squads earn experience for successfully completing contracts or winning battles.

The first game has a deep and rich storyline revealed through a series of campaigns. The focus of the campaigns is on a newly-discovered threat that has been lying in wait for centuries. The nation of Kaysan has been hiding in the impassable Cardani swamps amassing their human and [[OurElvesAreDifferent elven]] forces in order to strike at the unsuspecting Tellions. The Kaysani humans are descended from the exiled Carsis nobles who used to rule the lands that now make up the Empire and are burning for a chance to take them back. So, when the Kaysani, armed with [[KillItWithFire flamesoul]] magic, and their rat-like elven hordes form the Reconquista and suddenly invade the Empire, very few can do anything to stop them, especially since the Empire is currently undergoing a SuccessionCrisis following the death of Emperor Sergius Corvius and, in fact, there may be Kaysani allies in the Imperial court itself.

The sequel takes place six years later but doesn't feature much of a story beyond a basic setup, as the game is primarily focused on multiplayer. Basically, after the events of the first game, the Empire is no longer as powerful as it was, controlling only a fraction of its former lands. The alliance between Estellion and Esotre has evaporated, and both nations now view each other with hostility. The remaining Kaysani forces have retreated to East Isle and have joined with the rebellious tribes of the Faiths to form a new nation called the Varishah Federation opposed to both the Empire and the Commonwealth. This three-way conflict forms the setting of the second game. The player is put in command of a group of mercenaries out of the Twin Cities (a former Imperial city) and can take out various contracts or engage in small-scale battles for money.

''Ravenmark: SOE'' has since been ported to PC via Steam, while ''Ravenmark: Mercenaries'' is no longer available on the app store.

!!The game contains examples of the following tropes:

* AlternativeCalendar: The [[AllThereInTheManual in-game Codex]] describes the workings of the calendar that has, apparently, been adopted by all of the people of Eclisse. An Eclissian year is made up of 351 days. There are 13 months (Kayesin, Matresin, Eosin, Amoresin, Verrasin, Soressin, Primasin, Secunsin, Tersin, Menassin, Nox, Warchesin, Coresin), starting in Spring and ending in Winter. A month is made up of three nine-day weeks. Spring lasts two months; Autumn lasts three; and Summer and Winter last four.
** The main events of the first game begin on the 23rd of Primasin, 1274 AE.

* AnimalMotifs: The mythical raven Corvii is central to TheEmpire's culture. The path to nobility is called Ravenhood. Those who take the path are called Ravenborne. TheEmperor's throne is called the Obsidian Perch (it looks like a normal throne, though). The royal dynasty is called House Corvius ("ravens" in Latin). The Kaysani, though, see the darker side of the same bird and refer to the Tellions by the derogatory term "crows". The Tellions are also known to use "crows" as a swear. The Crowseers are members of the Court of Shadows, who dedicate themselves to rooting out the enemies of TheEmpire, i.e. crows.
** Additionally, Tellion generals and lords are known as "Rooks" (the bird, not the chess piece), while halflings are frequently called "Jackdaws". Both birds are members of the same family as the raven.

* BritishEnglish/CockneyRhymingSlang: Jackdaw speech is clearly modeled on this trope, except their slang is unique. Few non-Jackdaws are able to understand them.
--> '''Arrun:''' Oy! I thought ol' Matre wuz finally ready to toss me brown bread.
--> '''Dwight Lawforde:''' Speak some sense, halfling! What's your deal?
--> ...
--> '''Calius Septim:''' What happened to the bridge?
--> '''Arrun:''' Why, me chinas blew it up. Quite a two and eight we left it in.
--> '''Portia Ventus:''' Love, what's a china?
--> '''Nessius Ventus:''' ...I haven't the foggiest.

* ElectiveMonarchy: The King of Esotre is elected every 5 years, along with the King's Hand, who does most of the work in running the Commonwealth. By tradition, the King is always human, while the Hand is always a dwarf.

* FantasyPantheon: The people of the Faiths worship a pantheon of eight gods: Deverra (the crone and wisdom), Matre (the mother and fertility), Eos (the young girl and innocence), Prisma (resilience), Serci (purity and beauty), Tersa (luck and chaos), Ayas (the gardener), and Nox (night). Interestingly, the Faithmen don't worship the gods equally. Each aspect (possibly, a clan) belongs to one of the eight temples. The Kaysani worship the sun god Kayes, so it was fairly easy to integrate them with the Faithmen by including them in the Ayas temple, since "Ayas" is likely derived from "Kayes" and shares the same position in the pantheon. Many other peoples of the world Eclisse have the same mythology, which is rooted in the world's heavenly bodies, but don't necessarily worship them as gods. The Kaysani are known for their "sunsoul" magic, allowing them to use deadly fire on the battlefield and even create eclipses on a whim. The Tellion people, for example, primarily revere Corvii, the sun god's prized pet raven, and instead use wind magic as a counter to sunsoul magic.

** All Tellion soldiers start in the Earthbound Corps (i.e. the enlisted), with the "Earthbound" being the rank of a common soldier. A Militum is in command of a Dagger. A Signum is a staff-level Earthbound and has the authority to operate without Ravenborne (officer) supervision. The Ravenhood is the officer corps composed of Ravenborne graduates on their track to nobility. A Decurion can command Dagger-level operations such as scouting or raiding. A Centurion is a mid-level officer in command of an infantry Trine or a cavalry Deuce. A Magister is a support rank given to caster-type officers, which sits lower on the hierarchy than a Centurion. A Legate commands a Mark (a medium-sized force). A Rook is in charge of 5 Marks (AKA a Bannermark), and is also a Fantastic Honorific equivalent to a Lord. The Altus Rook is in command of all the Bannermarks in the Empire answerable only to The Emperor. Given that Estellion is a meritocracy (specifically created by the first Emperor in order to avoid the pitfalls of the overthrown Carsis feudalism), any commoner has the option of attaining a noble rank through the practice of Ravenhood, which requires a term of service in the Mark of no less than 22 years (or 36 as an administrator). Once one has achieved Ravenhood, the title holds for 2 generations before it must be earned again. If a family has managed to hold the title for 10 unbroken generations (very rare), it becomes a noble House. The eleventh generation's firstborn inherits the title and becomes a Rook.

* FantasyCounterpartCulture: While there are no direct parallels, some of the nations have obvious origins in RealLife cultures. For example, most Imperial names have a Latin sound to them (e.g. Sergius Corvius, Calius Septim), and the Tellion capital city is called Atium (meaning "view" in Latin). Like the Romans, the Tellions revere a bird (although it's a raven in the game instead of an eagle). On the other hand, the Kaysani have a number of Spanish-sounding names (e.g. Alejo de Porres, Heliodore de Moreno) and their religious fervor is reminiscent of the conquistadors and the Spanish Inquisition (one of the Kaysani factions ''is'' called the Inquisitors). Then there's the fact that their campaign to retake their lost lands is called the Reconquista. Esotre is a little difficult to narrow down, although many human names sound French (e.g. Lorraine D'Artim, Cyril F'Ourier). Their scientific advancements, though, have a more Italian Renaissance feel, and the dwarves' names are typical English (e.g. Benjamin Allsworth, Dwight Lawforde).

* FriendlySniper: The Greyjackets (when they're on your side) are an elite Sotran unit, officially known as 1st Rifles. Their accurate weapons allow them to stun an entire enemy formation, and they are primarily employed as guerrilla troops.
** Also, Reiht Commander Cierra Montepulciano, who is deadly with her crossbow.
* FullBoarAction: Boar Chargers are Sotran units who go into battle atop enormous boars, who have been grown to 7 times the size of a horse using alchemy. One of the most famous Chargers is Allister Huntsworth, whose boar [[FluffyTheTerrible Daisy]] is, probably, the largest of them all. One of their abilities is Frenzy that does damage to all surrounding units.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Phoebe Corvius, the Queen of Hearts, is the head of the Court of Affinity. In TheEmpire, Queens are not sovereigns but, effectively, department heads, made up of worthy women of House Corvius. Out of the four Queens, Phoebe is the only one who sides with Gratian Corvius's (her uncle) grab for power. Phoebe is not only a smoking hot blonde whose dress shows a lot of cleavage but also extremely cunning and capable of any act (including incest) if it will increase her power. After Gratian's plot fails, Phoebe flees Atium with her loyal soldiers and forms a mercenary battalion called Her Devoted. Her mission becomes to get rid of the Scarlet Empress and take the throne.

* HundredPercentCompletion: Each mission in the first game is rated on completion with 1-3 circles/stars. On Easy difficulty level, only one circle can be earned. On Normal, two are earned upon completion of main objectives. On completion of secondary tasks (usually, something along the lines of "defeat the enemy within X turns") on Normal, three circles are earned. Earning all the circles in all the campaigns earns the player a unique brigade in the sequel.

* LaResistance: Centuries ago, the corrupt kingdom of Carsis ruled the lands now belonging to TheEmpire. The feudal Carsis nobles were corrupt and decadent, enforcing their superiority with their religion based on worshiping the Sun-Father Kayes. Eventually, one of their priests named Phaestus began preaching meritocracy drawing inspiration from Corvii (Kayes's pet raven, who always strives to fly closer to the Father). Feronia, a peasant girl with powerful wind magic, was a follower of Phaestus's teachings. Then a Carsis noble raped and murdered her sister. Feronia unleashed her power and killed the lord. During her trial, Phaestus (initially agreeing to testify against her) condemned the corrupt nobles of even worse crimes, triggering Feronia's magic once again. The peasants followed Phaestus, who proved himself a brilliant tactician, forming a rebel army against the Carsis, using wind magicians against the Carsis flamesoul magic. After exiling them, Phaestus created the Empire of Estellion, becoming the first Emperor Corvius with Feronia as his queen.

* OneHitKill: Armored Hallow Frogs, tamed by the Cardani, are ginormous man-eating frogs who are able to swallow a Dagger whole. Luckily, this ability has a 10-turn cooldown.
** Additionally, the Rookguard are an elite Imperial heavy cavalry unit. They have the Eradicate ability that completely wipes out an enemy element whose morale has been broken. While, normally, only heavily-damaged Daggers/Swarms lose morale, there are ways of doing that to Daggers/Swarms at full strength. In the first game, this ability requires two Rookguard Daggers in a Deuce formation. In the sequel, a single Dagger is enough.

* PraetorianGuard: The Reiht are a group of elite commanders (also a RagtagBunchOfMisfits) created by Emperor Sergius Corvius as his personal guard.

** Calius Septim is promoted to Centurion (at least 4 ranks) after only a year in the army. [[spoiler:Later on, he's promoted all the way to Legate (sort of like a one-star general), which is the highest rank one who wasn't born a nobleman can reach.]]
** Thaddeus L'Eclin get a more sensible field promotion to Captain (from Lieutenant), after helping to retake Silvergate from the Kaysani, and also because Iron Duchess V'Ortheu is in desperate need of officers.

* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Rook Vidius Harper and Rook Delvinius Cato. Both experienced generals and noblemen and personally lead their troops into battle. In fact, a good number of the royal House Corvius have served in the Imperial Mark at one point or another. The late Emperor Sergius Corvius is particularly known for leading his troops on a successful campaign to the northeast, which is what earned him the throne. In the final campaigns of the first game, the Queens of the Twin Cities (female members of House Corvius who act as department heads) also prove themselves to be tough warriors.

* SinsOfOurFathers: The reason why such a promising officer like Lieutenant Lorraine D'Artim is assigned to a dead-end post in the Deepwoods? One of her ancestors is believed to be guilty of attempting to assassinate an archduke, although Lorraine maintains that her ancestor is innocent. Nevertheless, the incident was striken from all records, and only a select few higher-ups know about it, constantly remining Lorraine that it will take a ''lot'' of effort to cleanse the D'Artim name.

* TeleporterAccident: The Sotrans have perfected the use of phylacteries for teleportation to a pre-determined point. Specifically, each phylactery contains earth from the desired location and a stone with Ardite runes inscribed on it. When a phylactery is snapped, the seal on the earth is broken, resulting in its contact with the runes. This creates a sphere that instantly shifts everything inside it to the place from where the earth came. Naturally, this is one-way only, and the phylactery is used up in the process, but more can always be made. A PortalNetwork of sorts has been established in the capital city of Silvergate with manned control towers rerouting incoming teleports to available sites. Since {{Tele Frag}}ging is a real possibility, all arrival sites much be kept clear of any objects.

* TeleportInterdiction: One mission of the Sotran campaign involves the Kaysani invading Silvergate and doing damage to key areas of the city, including the main portal hub. The player has to not only battle Kaysani forces but also destroy the rubble blocking the arrival sites (and, given the game mechanics, the rubble ''fights back'') in order to allow reinforcements to arrive.

* YourHeadAsplode: Heliodore de Moreno does this to an unfortunate Sotran soldier, after torturing him for information on how to use Sotran phylacteries to teleport.

* DropTheHammer: Rook Delvinius Cato's favorite weapon is a huge warhammer, which he uses with deadly efficiency.

* TeleportersAndTransporters: The Sotrans have perfected the use of phylacteries for teleportation to a pre-determined point. Specifically, each phylactery contains earth from the desired location and a stone with Ardite runes inscribed on it. When a phylactery is snapped, the seal on the earth is broken, resulting in its contact with the runes. This creates a sphere that instantly shifts everything inside it to the place from where the earth came. Naturally, this is one-way only, and the phylactery is used up in the process, but more can always be made. A PortalNetwork of sorts has been established in the capital city of Silvergate with manned control towers rerouting incoming teleports to available sites. Since {{Tele Frag}}ging is a real possibility, all arrival sites much be kept clear of any objects.
** The Kaysani Corpsejumpers use BloodMagic to teleport to any slain enemy soldier to perform a surprise attack at the rest of the unit.

* ForbiddenZone: The deepest parts of Deepwoods are forbidden to the Lyri. No one knows why, although the Sotrans are determined to find out, digging a tunnel under the forest to this area. While they could quickly reach it using explosives, the Lyri would know something is strange. Instead, the tunnel is dug the old-fashioned way.

'''Ravenmark''' is a series of TurnBasedStrategy games for [[IOSGames iOS]] consisting of ''Ravenmark: Scourge of Estellion'' (2011) and ''Ravenmark: Mercenaries'' (2013). The games take place in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy‎ setting in the world of Eclisse. The titular [[TheEmpire Empire of Estellion]] (whose people are called Tellions) is the largest and most powerful nation in the world. It's notable that, according to the [[AllThereInTheManual in-game Codex]], the Empire was founded on the principles of meritocracy, where any commoner could, through many years of military (22 years) or administrative (36 years) service, attain temporary nobility (no more than 2 generations), and any family able to maintain their noble status for 10 uninterrupted generations would be granted the permanent status of a noble House. Another major power in Eclisse is the neighboring Commonwealth of Esotre, whose inhabitants (called Sotrans and composed of humans and [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]]) prefer a rational approach to things and promote science and {{Magitek}}. Both nations are constantly being raided by the wild [[TheHorde Lyri tribes]].

* OurElvesAreDifferent: The Cardani elves are as far removed from [[LordOfTheRings Tolkien]]'s elves as one can get. They are short, rat-like beings who breed like rabbits and prefer WeHaveReserves tactics. Their lives are focused on greed and tend to be fairly short. One of the key characters, Taraka, is noted as being weird by Cardani standards because he actually has some restraint and has lived to be 40.

* FantasticRankSystem: All Tellion soldiers start in the Earthbound Corps (i.e. the enlisted), with the "Earthbound" being the rank of a common soldier. A Militum is in command of a Dagger. A Signum is a staff-level Earthbound and has the authority to operate without Ravenborne (officer) supervision. The Ravenhood is the officer corps composed of Ravenborne graduates on their track to nobility. A Decurion can command Dagger-level operations such as scouting or raiding. A Centurion is a mid-level officer in command of an infantry Trine or a cavalry Deuce. A Magister is a support rank given to caster-type officers, which sits lower on the hierarchy than a Centurion. A Legate commands a Mark (a medium-sized force). A Rook is in charge of 5 Marks (AKA a Bannermark), and is also a Fantastic Honorific equivalent to a Lord. The Altus Rook is in command of all the Bannermarks in the Empire answerable only to The Emperor. Given that Estellion is a meritocracy (specifically created by the first Emperor in order to avoid the pitfalls of the overthrown Carsis feudalism), any commoner has the option of attaining a noble rank through the practice of Ravenhood, which requires a term of service in the Mark of no less than 22 years (or 36 as an administrator). Once one has achieved Ravenhood, the title holds for 2 generations before it must be earned again. If a family has managed to hold the title for 10 unbroken generations (very rare), it becomes a noble House. The eleventh generation's firstborn inherits the title and becomes a Rook.

--> '''Dwight Lawforde:''' Speak some sense, halfling@ What's your deal?

--> '''Arrun:''' Oy! I thoguht ol' Matre wuz finally ready to toss me brown bread.

'''Ravenmark''' is a series of TurnBasedStrategy games for [[IOSGames iOS]] consisting of ''Ravenmark: Scourge of Estellion'' (2011) and ''Ravenmark: Mercenaries'' (2013). The games take place in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy‎ setting in the world of Eclisse. The titular [[TheEmpire Empire of Estellion]] (whose people are called Tellions) is the largest and most powerful nation in the world. It's notable that, according to the [[AllThereInTheManual in-game Codex]], the Empire was founded on the principles of meritocracy, where any commoner could, through many years of military (22 years) or administrative (36 years) service, attain temporary nobility (no more than 2 generations), and any family able to maintain their noble status for 10 uninterrupted generations would be granted the permanent status of a noble House. Another major power in Eclisse is the neighboring [[TheKingdom Commonwealth of Esotre]], whose inhabitants (called Sotrans and composed of humans and [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]]) prefer a rational approach to things and promote science and {{Magitek}}. Both nations are constantly being raided by the wild [[TheHorde Lyri tribes]].

* TheKingdom: Technically, the Commonwealth of Esotre is ruled by a King, with the King's Hand overseeing the day-to-day activities. However, the King is not hereditary and is actually elected by a group of ministers every 5-6 years, along with the Hand. Being the head of state, the King is usually human, while the Hand is usually a dwarf due to their natural attention to detail.

'''Ravenmark''' is a series of TurnBasedStrategy games for [[IOSGames iOS]] consisting of ''Ravenmark: Scourge of Estellion'' (2011) and ''Ravenmark: Mercenaries'' (2013). The games take place in a MedievalEuropeanFantasy‎ setting in the world of Eclisse. The titular [[TheEmpire Empire of Estellion]] (whose people are called Tellions) is the largest and most powerful nation in the world. It's notable that, according to the [[AllInTheManual in-game Codex]], the Empire was founded on the principles of meritocracy, where any commoner could, through many years of military (22 years) or administrative (36 years) service, attain temporary nobility (no more than 2 generations), and any family able to maintain their noble status for 10 uninterrupted generations would be granted the permanent status of a noble House. Another major power in Eclisse is the neighboring [[TheKingdom Commonwealth of Esotre]], whose inhabitants (called Sotrans and composed of humans and [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame dwarves]]) prefer a rational approach to things and promote science and {{Magitek}}. Both nations are constantly being raided by the wild [[TheHorde Lyri tribes]].

* AlternativeCalendar: The [[AllInTheManual in-game Codex]] describes the workings of the calendar that has, apparently, been adopted by all of the people of Eclisse. An Eclissian year is made up of 351 days. There are 13 months (Kayesin, Matresin, Eosin, Amoresin, Verrasin, Soressin, Primasin, Secunsin, Tersin, Menassin, Nox, Warchesin, Coresin), starting in Spring and ending in Winter. A month is made up of three nine-day weeks. Spring lasts two months; Autumn lasts three; and Summer and Winter last four.

* FrogsAndToads: The Cardani elves have managed to tame the giant Hallow Frogs living in the swamps, even making armor for them to use against Tellion forces. One of those frogs is able to [[OneHitKill swallow a Dagger whole]]. The Cardani worship the giant frogs as living gods. One frog in particular, named Croaker, is several thousand years old and has attained a level of sentience. Seeing that the Kaysani campaign in Estellion was failing, he crushed his handlers and left for the hearest swamp with scores of Cardani following his "godlike" presence. By the second game, Croaker has formed a mercenary brigade called Tabula Rasa and works for the highest bidder.

* EvilCounterpart: Usun Motare can be seen as this to Calius Septim. Both are fairly young and intelligent commanders, but Calius wants to Protect the Empire, while Usun wants to see it fall.

* WeHaveReserves: The Cardani fight this way. While everyone else uses small units called Daggers that can be put into larger formations called Deuces and Trines for bonuses, the Cardani use large Swarms that rush enemies with little regard for tactics.