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Dear
Friend,
It
is with heavy heart that I send this letter to you.
Your family has served Pharaoh for a long time and served
him well. Now in this time of great difficulty, Pharaoh
asks again that you might rise to the occasion. This
may be the most serious and difficult task of your life.
We
must build up a strong army and to do that, we must
have copper for weapons. Alas, our copper mines are
exhausted and we must supplement our meager imports
from foreign lands no matter how hard and difficult
the efforts.
Fortunately
for us, a new deposit of copper has been recently
been discovered in a hidden rock labyrinth where some
long forgotten ancient civilization was trying to extract
the ore. Although it is barely possible to get there
by land, the trails are too steep and treacherous for
caravans to bring the goods out. This makes the task
difficult, but there is a way. Pharaoh has recruited
a group of workers, willing to live and struggle in
this isolated and distant land. He has sent them ahead
and will send more as you work toward completing this
task. They are there now, trying to bring the rich copper
to the surface.
Your
connection with the world of traders will be by river...
a river that is too shallow for ship traffic most of
the year. Only for 4 months of the year will the water
be high enough to allow the ships to pass through safely.
You will have to speed up the loading and unloading
of ships if you want to succeed. The dock and shipyard
have been built with great effort by the miners and
must be protected; it can not be rebuilt.
And
the Kushites are a threat everywhere in
the Kingdom and you must be prepared to protect our
precious mines for the Egyptian nation. They may have
heard we found this new source, one never knows what
stories are told in the bazaars and by the sailors.
But,
my friend, this is not the only problem to solve.
Ah, strange ideas have appeared among the miners, a
superstitious lot at best. They ask now not only for
food and wages, but they must have better housing, and
.. entertainment and education. Don' laugh, I know how
ridiculous this idea seems, but we need the copper so
badly we must not ignore their requests. You will have
to comply with the demands of the TUNEL, the Trade Union
of Native Egyptian Laborers, and ensure that the workers
live in nice houses and have some amenities.
They
do understand that this can't be done all at once,
but will want to see some progress. They will not wait
too long. You have only about 15 years to build the
city and don't forget that Pharaoh's requests for copper,
weapons and troops are of utmost importance. Your
contribution may help to save all of Egypt. Pharaoh
is counting on you.
Good
Luck to you!
Hint:
Message announcing "plain stone" increase
by 1 Db" is reminder for required December save
and is not part of game play.
IMPORTANT
NOTE: Submittal date extended to July 21, 2000.
Kingdom Rating requirement lowered from 80 to 60 on
July 6, 2000 per Competition Board. Please see FAQ:
Week 2 TUNEL for further questions.
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