Phoenix
Caesar in the New World  - Assignment 8 of 10
AD 900

You governors think that it is you who make the Empire prosper, but in fact is is our ingenious engineers who deserve the credit.  They have recently converted a province in the inhospitable southwestern desert into a site worthy of Romans by damming the streams that flow out of the mountains to the north.  The resulting small lakes will provide the clean drinking water and pottery clay that our citizens require, though it will require skill to plan a system of aqueducts to distribute the water.

You are to establish a large city on this barren-looking site.  There is ample frmland in the valleys of the now-dammed streams, and trees grow in the high mountains to the north.  Iron ore is plentiful.  Two of our other colonies will be happy to trade for your products.

The local savages who used to practice subsistence farming beside the local watercourses are not at all pleased with our improvements to the land.  Then have moved upstream and frequently attack our dams, and their raids in the southwest of the province make it a risky place to build.  The general who headed the campaign against them speculated that they may be related to the tribes from Central Asia that threatened Rome hundreds of years ago.  Certainly we have not faced their equals on horseback for some time.

Because of the strength of the enemy, the Emperor is not imposing especially high requirements for Peace and Prosperity.  You are likely to be too busy rebuilding your city after attacks to have any time for palaces.  My unofficial advice to you is to build quickly and get yourself promoted to a more congenial province before your enemies can organize all the local tribes for a large, coordinated attack.

