Book discussion (or stuff you like to read when you should be doing other stuff)

[jungletoy]

Orcs by Stan Nichols

If you ever wanted to see what it's really like on the other side this book is your reference. I was laughing through most of the book as it's told completely from an Orcs point of view. I have the single book but I think it was released as three books. You won't want to put it down.
 

[gull2112]

Thanks for the referral Jungletoy, I just downloaded it onto my kindle and it is next in line.

Right now I'm reading a book called 1491 (Second Edition): New Revelations of the Americas Before Colombus. It is very interesting and I just finished a chapter on the Incas. Basically, according to new scholarship and research, the Incas weren't defeated by the Spaniards armor and gunpowder as much as by disease and faction. By the time Pizzaro had gotten around the continent the small pox had already got their ahead of him and decimated most of the Incan population, including the ruling elite. This led to a horribly divided kingdome that was in the middle of a bloody civil war, the Spaniards did overawe initially, a man on a horse was horrifying to a culture that had never seen horses, but they did eventually figure out how to defeat them, just that by then it was too late. Interesting bits about the warfare:

a) The Incas had a cloth armor that was woven so tightly that it was almost as hard as the Spanish breast plates and, in fact, as soon as they could get some the conquistador were all wearing the cloth armor since it was much lighter and cooler.

b) The Incas had the bolas, which were three rocks attached to one line of Llama gut and they discovered that they could quite easily throw them at a horses legs and then when the horse and rider went down they could easily be killed with slings. The problem for the Incas was that, never having had a need for them (having never faced mounted troops) they didn't employ them in any kind of numbers, just a few individuals here and there.

c) Their slings were of far greater range and accuracy than the matchlocks of the spanish and they had a really nasty trick of heating rocks in a fire and then quickly wrapping them in fabric and slinging them so that the cloth would ignite in the air and set fire to whatever they hit. This caused the spanish a lot of casualties as they fought to subjugate all the Inca's empire which was larger than Rome had ever achieved.

d) The Incan roads were awesome for foot and Llama traffic, but they were terrible for horses and oxen. whenever there was a grade at all they used steps rather than an inclined plane. A mountainous road had many steps, easy for humans and really easy for Llamas, but horses would have to be led up by their dismounted riders and they fought the effort every step.

So the Incas were felled by disease and dissension. They were an extremely centralized socialist society that Moa and Stalin could only dream of, but once disease had wiped out their rulership they were like a hive with no queen bee. Their armies had the same achilles heel, if the generals were injured or killed the whole army fell apart, there were no subordinates.

[Torrg]

Right now I'm reading a book called 1491 (Second Edition): New Revelations of the Americas Before Colombus.

Very interesting Gull. Sounds like a book for Christmas. If you have read about the Aztec's let me know if they mention how the Emperor was found of young boys thigh meat? (they had to do something with all the sacrifices, they weren't just left to rot in the sun!) See if the revised history still follows what was taught us older generation...

Orcs by Stan Nichols sound like another Santa Claus list item

[gull2112]

It is kind of a revised revisionist version, as new stuff keeps appearing and discrediting old theories, but yes, most of what we were taught in school was inaccurate, but it was the best they had.
The Aztec emperor may have had such proclivities, but they were no more horrifying than the ritual consumption of Our Savior's blood and flesh every Sunday.

[Karasu]

Um.  Do we really want to get into the transubstantiation debate?  That seems a bit theologically weighty for a gaming board.

[gull2112]

Sorry Karasu, didn't want to debate, you're right, this isn't the proper forum.

Finished the book today and it was very interesting. In one of the appendices he discusses the Council of Five Nations constitution that supposedly influenced our constitution, I had always heard that, but never in as detailed or its proper context. The book is worth reading if only for that.

Also points out the simularities between the bison and the carrier pigeon.

The very earliest explorers describe a crowded continent with a very developed interior, and then a few years later after small pox gets done cleaning house there is nothing but the isolated primitive tribes we read about and see in the movies.

All this backed up with heavy intext citatations and extensive bibliography.

[gull2112]

Am now reading "The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz Del Castillo" in anticipation of the Spanish and Aztecs faction. I am only 21% of the way through it, but I can already see what got Chad so excited. I will be very interested to see what the armies and battles fight like.

Okay, I'm adding to the original post. I have now read through the first volume of the book (there are two) and it is very riveting and now I'm itching to play the Spanish vs. Aztecs. Those darn conquistadors had to be on the move all the time, they spent years just fighting one battle after another. I wish I had inspected the demo games that were being played at council last year. I can see why these guys became the next faction. I am wondering about the troop choice for both factions. I can think of a handfull of unit types for each side, but that's it.

I know a few folks were wondering if the Aztecs were going to get any "magic" in the form of divine help from their bloodthirsty gods. So far there have been no  god sightings, but the conquistadors swore they saw a number of saints and the blessed virgin herself.

[RushAss]

I'm currently reading The Player of Games by Iain M. Banks.  Can any of you guess why this book is interesting?

[GeorgeVantin]

Hi, just joined. My favorite all time author is Tolkien. I have read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings too many times to count. I never tire of them.

GeorgeVantin

[gull2112]

Welcome George! Tolkien is one of my favs and definitely my most favorite fantasy author.

[RushAss]

Tolkien is also my all time favorite.  Give me some Silmarillion baby!

I'm just finishing up Pride of Carthage by David Anthony Durham and I gotta say it's one heckuva read.  It is historical fiction based on not only Hannibal, but his family.  I'm no Second Punic War pro, so I don't know how historically accurate it is.  But I can assure you that it's certainly entertaining and even moving at times.  Highly recommended for this crew here.



http://www.amazon.com/Pride-Carthage-David-Anthony-Durham/dp/0385722494/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1329406588&sr=1-7

[gull2112]

Hey gang, here is the link for my new e-book:
 http://www.amazon.com/Expanded-Consciousness-Meditations-Injury-ebook/dp/B007NMO9QE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332529591&sr=8-1