User:Litev

This is formal list, but implementing more books in this mod surely reckons shorter time to be spent reading them... I suggest that two main libraries should be spread throughout Europe - The Forbidden Books (Apocrypha) and the Orthodox Books (Codex Vaticanus). Apocrypha Corpus Aristotelicum - any of them requires high Inteligence to speak Greek language to be read. May be some companion as a teacher in greek language... Should bear in mind that the clergy was reluctant to anybody reading them, so the books should be obtained in more difficult fassion - stolen, bought as blackmarket stock, found in chests in villages or remote castles. So the Corpus Aristotelicum colud be some kind of apocrypha, unlike the mass monastery production of the age, sold by book sellers...

Organon is the name given by Aristotle's followers, the Peripatetics, to the standard collection of his six works on LOGIC. - obtaining and reading all six of them may grant some considerable bonus to Right to Rule and relations with Vassals. Actually a lot latin translations (through Arab) were present by the day so this could be made easier to achieve.
- Categoriae
- De Interpretatione
- Analytica Priora
- Analytica Posteriora
- Topica
- Sophistical Refutations (De Sophisticis Elenchis)

It may be a quest in six steps, Obtaining the Organon, as any step should give a clue for the next one.

Aristotle's book Ars Rhetorica, in Greek (ΤΕΧΝΗΣ ΡΗΤΟΡΙΚΗΣ) may grant some considerable bonus to Persuation skill.

Aristotle's Metaphysics (τὰ μετὰ τὰ φυσικά) is considered to be overlapped by Logica Organon so it could not be included in this mod compendium.

Aristotle's Politika (Πολιτικά) - The title of the Politics literally means "the things concerning the polis", so it could add to the Right to Rule.

Aristotle's Peri Poetika (Περὶ ποιητικῆς) - A basic humanitarian skill of Creation. May suit the poems learned and the womanizing affairs...
Aristotle's Physics (the study of nature) - No idea how this could be useful to the gameplay. Anyway, all of us here have read it some way or another so we are more interested in what comes after the physics, right...

Rituel Cathare de Lyon - If you yearn for Cathar heresy to be implemented and an Albighensian crusade scheduled. The book is to be found only in Lyion
Liber de duobus principiis - If you yearn for Cathar heresy to be implemented and an Albighensian crusade scheduled. The book is to be found only in Albi.

BOOKS written up to 12th / 13th century (sold by legitimate merchant, Codex Vaticanus)

Liber Abaci is a historic book on arithmetic by Leonardo of Pisa. My add to Trade skill, but actually was written later - in 1202.
Carmina Burana is the name given to a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts from the 11th or 12th century. The pieces were written almost entirely in Medieval Latin; a few in Middle High German, and some with traces of Old French or Provençal. Could add to Party morale, especially if you decide that a penalty on multicultural parties should be executed.
Daretis Phrygii Ilias De bello Troiano ("The Iliad of Dares the Phrygian: On the Trojan War") is an epic poem in Latin, written around 1183 by Joseph of Exeter. - may be considered as matter of ideology to "the fled western troians" to undertake the Holy Journey of Fourth crusade... The same with Historia destructionis Troiae. How exactly will effect the game - still no idea...
Chronicon Roskildense a small Danish historical work from the time of the introduction of Christianity in Denmark. Written in Latin. reading it may improve relations with kingdom of Denmark. Sold only in Roskilde, ok?
De Gesta Francorum et aliorum Hierosolimitanorum ("The deeds of the Franks and the other pilgrims to Jerusalem") is a Latin chronicle of the First Crusade written in circa 1100-1101 by an anonymous author connected with Bohemund I of Antioch. May bias some relations with Sicily, Toulouse, Lothringen and France or add to the Crusade zeal if such is planned to be implemented...
Historia Caroli Magni or Historia Karoli Magni et Rotholandi (History of the life of Charlemagne and Roland), sometimes known as the Pseudo-Turpin Chronicle, is a 12th century Latin forged chronicle of legendary material about Charlemagne's alleged conquest of Spain. The chronicle states it was written by Turpin, Archbishop of Reims, the work was extremely popular throughout Medieval Europe. Suggests higher realtions with France, lower with all iberian kingdoms including Navarre, should add to the Right to Rule. To be bought anywhere, but received free of charge in Reims.
The Historia Regum Britanniae (English: The History of the Kings of Britain) is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written c. 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation and continuing until the Anglo-Saxons kings. effects : Improved relations with English and King Lackland personally...
The Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (in English: Ecclesiastical History of the English People) is a work in Latin by Bede Venerabilis on the history of the Christian Churches in England and the conflict between Roman and Celtic Christianity. Written year 731. Orthodox, tolerated by clergy. Effects : improved relations with Pope (or any Archbishop till Conclave of Moddders elects one).
Sic et Non, an early scholastic text whose title translates from Medieval Latin as "Yes and No," was written by Pierre Abélard (1079 – April 21, 1142). In the work, Abélard juxtaposes apparently contradictory quotations from the Church Fathers on many of the traditional topics of Christian theology. May be considered heretic, though part of the Codex Vaticanus. Effects : Decreases relations with pope / Archbishops and bishops, improves realtion with lords and especially LADIES.
Nicetae Choniatae Historia - actually in twenty-one volumes, of the period from 1118 to 1207. Niketas was chancellor of the Byzantine empire. The book could add to the international relations, especially Rhomania, as you called it. May be considered to be an anti-crusade reading...
Alexiada by Anna Komnena, the history of her father's Alexios life and reign (1081–1118). Effects : Right to Rule.

Organon of Logic. Scholastic quest - general idea and storyline This adventure implies the evolution of the medieval mind as an early rennaissance of greek thought througth arab translations. It turned to be quite popular way of combining academic way of thinking/research and the official ecclesiastical dogma of the clergy. Scholasticism is widely based on the intellectual tradition of ancient works of Aristotle and Plato. Organon is the name given by Aristotle's followers, the Peripatetics, to the standard collection of his six works on LOGIC. Retrieving these manuscripts would not tolerated by church as it reveals that Mastermind was present even before the Savior came to birth. But completing this quest could be prerequisite for the writing of Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica - the fundamental work that saved the Papism and clergy till Luther published some questionnaires...

I think that any of the six step-books should grant some bonus and cause some penalty, as this will not make any of them look to valuable. But the player should be motivated by the dialogues that retrieving all six of them will summon "a powerfull artifact", The Organon collection. The number 6 (SIX) is diabolique, Aristotle was considered to be too... But the player should be enlightened with a considerable and eternal reward, as knowledge is.

My idea of the quest is to present the Aristotle's gnosticism - every step shall present a book and its level of ideas. So to enlighten the player too. Mystique! The quest will lead the player to a couple of preeminent thinkers and scholars which will add a lot to the immersion of the game mod. These were incredible scholars and polymaths, one of the spiritual fathers of Europe, whose throne the game is about.

The player should have at least 6 free Inventory slots! (nice if we can block and reserve them for books till quest is over). The player should have at least 6 points which should mean fair basic knowledge of Latin!

My idea with Apocrypha implies high intelligence of Character or greek interpreting Companion (Basileos Akritas). With Organon quest it may be omitted as it turns to be a longer quest. But it is not unwise - these books were already translated by arab almohad scholars and were circulating in Europe, especially as the Library of Toledo had been taken by Castillians without burning it to the ground on May 25, 1085.

Plot#1 Roman scholastics Step 1. So the quest could be ordered by any Dominican priest (known as Order of Preachers till 1216, when renamed to Dominicanis). He may be a companion, tavern visitor, monk and is to become the Thomas Aquinas' mentor years later. Such a guy was Robert Grosseteste (1175 – 1253), English statesman, scholastic philosopher, theologian and after 1225 - a Bishop of Lincoln. His name means Big headed and one should be as he is of peasant origin. By 1200 Master Grosseteste was judge-delegate in Hereford, Kingdom of England. Visiting this place may trigger the quest. As any magistrate Master Grosseteste should be easilly approachable - from the castle menu, as the guildmaster of any city is. If not - he was Master of the School of Oxford after 1208, so you can look for him there too, waiting to be appointed. The Dominican will ask you for an "unofficial favour" - to retrieve for him five books "...as this one, which you can take to use for comparison." Accepting the quest adds the first book of the Organon to your inventory - The Categoriae. This is decreasing by 1 the realtion with Hereford/Oxford, but reading the book (which should be faster than in Native) should make a small bonus. Or even better - just keeping it in inventory could improve Party morale by 1... The idea of Aristotle's Categoriae is about description of what actually happens in the game levels - classification of all that exists. These categories consist of substance, quantity, quality, relation, place, time, situation, condition, action, and passion.

Step 2. It could be a very easy one. If you had already recruited Basileos Akritas he could recognize the scribings and show grant you the second part - Perihermenias, part of his heirloom that he had previously saved runing from Seljuks. (His ancestors visited the Lycaeum - Aristotelian schola in Athens, and were called the Peripatetics). But the book should be read a.k.a translated as Basileos is under arms. If he begs his leave for good and the book is <100% read the quest fails. As long as the book is translated you can change its name to On Interpretation (Latin:De Interpretatione). It contains Aristotle's principal contribution to philosophy of language. Exactly what the book is about and what the player actually did with it! A bonus for this could be either more party morale or a significant clue where book 3 is.

Step 3. The last verses of book 2 suggest that you should thorouhgly look for book 3 in a certain castle. If you are permitted an entry to lord's hall you should try to find it. Neither the lord, nor the lady or any visiting knight could offer it to you. But the book is going to be there - in the lord's chest, so you shall steal it. If it is not possible for a visitor to open such a chest I suggest that only entering the prison (bribing or killing the guard) could grant you the item. Book 3 is called Prior Analytics (Latin: Analytica Priora). It is about inductive thinking and syllogism as "a discourse in which, certain things having been supposed, something different from the things supposed results of necessity because these things are so." This idea implies that having read and understood this book the player should SUPPOSE where the next one is, but will find it nevertheless... Book Bonus: party morale as you need time to read the whole book to really get the clue for the next one. So: step1 perception, step2 cognition, step3 induction step4 deduction

Step 4. Induction, deduction... and pure combat. Bandits are waiting outside the resting area (camp, village, castle or city in which you have finished reading the third book 100%). Defeat these bandits, get the usual renown and free their prisoner - Gerald of Wales (c. 1146 – c. 1223), also known as Gerallt Gymro in Welsh or Giraldus Cambrensis. He is a Royal servant to King Lackland – travels in Wales and Ireland. Gerald will give you book four, The Posterior Analytics (Latin: Analytica Posteriora), which he had previously received from Jacobus Veneticus Grecus, who had translated it in Consatantinople in 1150. Moreover, you will receive Gerald's personal piece Expugnatio Hibernica ("Conquest of Ireland", 1189) which will actually be the step bonus: improved relation with King John, decreased relation with Irish kingdoms and Connacht. Reading Expugnatio Hibernica could give further bonus, but it should not be considerable, which must be suggested by a lower intelligence requirements. The player should rather focus on Analytica Posteriora, which is about scientific methods and knowledge we gain. Actually book 4 is the most commented by scholars part of the Organon in the Medieval times. Robert Grossetest wrote the first western commentary on it ever. So I suggest that as the book enters your Inventory mAster Grossetest should appear right away and ask to join your party "to read the book together with you" and actually write his commentaries on it. This means that he will be a temporary companion under arms and then he will leave the party as "100% read" are reached. Upon his leave he may grant you with a copy of his Commentaries or just add to your Renown as you had helped the first Western commentary to be forged. Actually this is the step bonus, but it is acting as a factor of popularizing the scholasticism nevertheless - as 4 books are already read nobody can stop the tide of knowledge and you gain Renown for that.

Step 5. The canonical authority This step should be more difficult as the quest is almost over. There are going to be two phases - seek and deploy. When leaving the party or later you will get a message from Grosseteste, saying that you should look for a person called Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, Maimonides, Abū ʿImrān Mūsā bin Maimūn bin ʿUbaidallāh al-Qurṭubī al-Israeli and also known as Rambam. This step is going to be about finding his tracks, but should be complied till December 12, 1204 when this man actually died after working in Al Andalus, Morocco and Egypt. The message of Master Grossetest : "Master X, in my endeavouring quest for sense and knowledge I have met various people. I heard about an extraordinary man, a preeminent Sephardi rabi-philosopher and the greatest Torah scholar and physician. I yearn to see this sage and pose myself under his tuition. Please, look for him and ask him if I may become a student of his eminence..." The clue is "Sephardi" as these are Jews of Iberian penninsula. Maimonides may be found as a tavern visitor or as the guildmaster is from the city menu in Cordoba, where he actually was born and visited in year 1200. The player should actively look for him and this requires some idea that sephardi lived in Al-Andalus where they experienced good "convivencia" with the Almohads. This may be made easier by any traveller in tavern, that can tell the player that Maimonides is in Cordoba (it may be Fez or Egypt, if the map gets larger...). Phase one is over then, starts phase two. When Maimonides is found the dialogue will ask the player to improve his relations (Convivencia) with Cordoba (at least 10) and then to come back to the Rabi Moses. As this has been achieved the elderly sage will give the player a narrative as how we must live together, decline any more students as these were his last words of advice and grant you Book 5 - Topica. It treats issues in constructing valid arguments in any dispute. As any reference to a eminent scholar is a valid argument I think the advice of rabi Moses could be implied easily as pinpoint of this step by the player.

I think it is wise for Rabi Moshe to be approachable anytime through city menu of Cordoba as any giuldmaster is. This may let the player to meet him earlier in game and to know exactly to look for him when he is needed.

Step 6. Averroes Maimonides may send you directly to another tutor-polymath: ʾAbū l-Walīd Muḥammad bin ʾAḥmad bin Rušd, better known just as Ibn Rushd, in European literature as Averroes, but this top scholar actually died in 1198 in Marrakech. So we need his inheritence to look for as this Almoravid Qadi is still considered by some "the spiritual father of Europe". According to Averroes, there is no conflict between religion and philosophy, rather that they are different ways of reaching the same truth. The player will be looking for Averroes laments: "If someone took on these books and summarize them and clarify their aims after first thoroughly understanding them himself, people would have an easier time comprehending them. “If you have the energy,” Ibn Tufayl told me, “you do it. I'm confident you can, because I know what a good mind and devoted character you have, and how dedicated you are to the art." This is real quotation that player will get on finding the last of the Organons. Actually the whole quest is turning the player into a considerable medieval aristotelian scholar. As such he may be the one who will finish this scholastical job - to persuade Europe on using this scientific method of enlightenment. So step 6 may be preforming in real the Imaginary debate between Averroes and Porphyry, illustrated by Monfredo de Monte Imperiali in Liber de herbis. Effects: Averroes had been sacked of his political posts with the rise of Almohads so this step may deteriorate your relations with them, but improve with catholics as they are in war in between. Bonuses: Book 6 The Sophistical Refutations (Latin: De Sophisticis Elenchis) gives a treatment of logical fallacies, and provides a key link to Aristotle's work on rhetoric, a prize in your debate with Porphyry.

Reward - Upon collecting 6 books master Grosseteste should appear once more and in solemnly fashion will offer you the spoils of victory. I suggest that experience and money are granted to the player, but the best acquisition is a little bit different. I suggest obtaining Organon should unlock a player's ability to establish a new city improvement - an university in his fief-city. The money the player gets from the quest may be used exactly for this. This center of knowledge is going to be named after the player himself ("Jagiellon's University of Krakow, Cruger's University of Augsburg, De Quart University of Zaragoza") and when built will add to city taxes and to player's Right to Rule. The idea for University came as lords were chalenged by the upcoming bourgeosy - so kings established administrative centers to steer this new middle class. Not what really happened later, but actually right historical time to present this establishment - Oxford 1214, Paris 1215 were already operational Universities. So master Grosseteste is going to be the First chancellor to x's University (actually he was the first chancellor of oxford in 1227) and may give you further quests and taks as any Guildmaster does... but will adress you as "my liege" as university building is a job for Kings... This gets you closer to the Imperator Throne of Europe. The university may require that you lose this 6 books from inventory. Moreover - you can upgrade it if you donate any books to its library... Just an idea. Almost the same as the one I have about chapels, churches and cathedrals in europe1200mod...

Plot#2 Almohad scholars This could be an alternative trigger for the quest - if the player never enters Hereford/Oxford. The first almohad lord the player meets can send you to this setllement, ibn Batuta may do this too. Or even act as master Grosetest and give you the same dialoge and the first book.

PS: As these are only propositions I really hope that they are actually executable in game code...

Litev