The League of Extraordinary Kriegspielers presents……..
Референдум! (Referendum!)
being a game of self determination for the free peoples of the Ferghana Valley in 192?.......................
Background
The Ferghana Valley, in modern day eastern Uzbekistan, is a fertile, resource rich and fiercely independent region deep in the heart of Central Asia. Originally part of the Achaemenid Persian empire it was eventually, after much effort, conquered by Alexander the Great in around 329 BC. And Greek it was to remain, as part of the Bactrian empire, for much longer than most of the Alexandrian Successor states. Eventually assimilated by the great nomadic migrations of the region, but still Hellenistic in culture, legend and myth, it became an obsessive focus for the great Imperial dynasties of China. The object of this obsession were the legendary ‘Heavenly Horses’, only found in the furthest reaches of the valley, who were stronger, faster and more powerful than any horse before or since. They were said to sweat blood, and were believed to be not of this earth in origin. The valley then saw successive waves of Chinese and Arab invaders, but fiercely defended its freedom and the secret of the Heavenly Horses. Great conquerors were born and rose to fame from the valley, most famously Babur, the founder of the Mughal dynasty in the 15th century. The Russians eventually conquered the region in the late 19th century, but their hold was always tenuous, and when the Bolshevik revolution took hold the free peoples of the Ferghana valley rose in revolt, spawning the so-called Basmachi uprising. Successive Bolshevik armies tried, without success, to crush the Basmachis, until in the autumn of 192? the Bolsheviks, now obsessed with the threat of a growing Bukharan hegemony to the west (Greater Bukhara) and south (Bukharan occupied Gerkush) of the region decided to try and settle things once and for all with a universal plebiscite. International opinion remained sceptical about this new-found enthusiasm for democracy, but when French and Italian League of Nation observers were invited in to oversee the referendum, it looked that maybe, just maybe, the Bolsheviks were genuine in their intent. All the Great Powers in the region are however taking a very keen interest in the results of this Referendum
The Referendum
There are three candidates standing:
1. The Bolshevik Candidate: Sergei Knoberov
The illiterate son of an armed lavatory attendant, Sergie hails from Tashkent. Infact he has never left the city, and obviously has therefore never actually visited the Ferghana Valley. Nevertheless the Bolsheviks seem confident that this self proclaimed ‘peoples poet’ will capture the imagination of the indigenous Basmachis and be swept to power on the promise of democratic reform and cheap vodka. His hobbies are listed as Marxian/Hegalian debate, cycling, chess, cribbage and onanism.
The bookies favourite, Sergei is currently considered the 2/7 odds on favourite, and no more bets are being taken on his candidature.
2. The Pan-Turkic Candidate: Colonel Ismael Pasha
A highly decorated officer in the Bukharan army, Ismael Pasha hails from Andijan, the capital of the Ferghana Valley, where he grew up as a boy before joining the Beast of Bukhara’s revolutionary movement in early 192?. A qualified engineer and artillery specialist, he is widely credited with modernising the technical arms of the Bukharan army.
Despite all this he claims that the Ferghana Valley would be a free and independent nation under his leadership, and would seek immediate membership of the League of Nations.
His campaign, which is by far the best funded of all the candidates, makes great appeal to the ancient and timeless pan-Turkic culture of the region, which is thought to play out well with the ordinary Basmachi voter.
Second favourite, at 166-1.
3. The White candidate: Colonel Roman Sepailov
The youngest son of Baron von Ungern Sternberg’s second-in-command, known affectionately as ‘Little Teapot’, Colonel Sepailov is standing on the ‘White Terror’ ticket and vows to add the Ferghana Valley to the Ungern Sternberg’s vestigial power base of Kashgar, which abuts the eastern border of the Region.
A controversial candidate, with little local support, it is believed the Bolsheviks allowed his candidature mainly for its comedy value.
Little is known of Sepailov himself, other than he is believed to share his fathers love of extreme violence, torture and random executions.
Considered the rank outsider at (a generous) 500/1.
The Game (Friday 21st -Sunday 23rd November 2014)
This is basically a mini-campaign with a single big game at the end of it. The outcome of the referendum will be decided before the weekend, and the ‘Big Game’ will play out its (undoubtedly) violent outcome.
The sides are:
Bolsheviks: Blackers, Ted and Dave
Bukharans: The Beast himself and Gibby
Der Baron: Der Baron himself and Cameron
League of Nation Observer teams: Rodge (French) and Paul Eaglestone (Italians)
Restless natives: Jamie and Charlie.
The British: Brigadier Linn, Lord Grey.
The Tibetans: The Dalai Soapy.
.....more soon......
February 17, 2009, 11:10:55 PM