Sound okay?

[AlexanderKira]

This idea is just in an eggshell right now, but let's see if it might hatch. What I am thinking is making a set of separate kingdoms, all on a different piece of land. One is in the middle, and the only way they can trade and communicate is by ship. So each Kingdom has something that they specialize in of course, and maybe one king decides he wishes to rule all of them, so a lot of intrigue and diplomacy come into play. Etc, Etc, something or someone cuts of trade. Blah blah, but does the kingdom on separate lands sound okay? Or should I just make them duchies? Thanks for taking the time!

 

[Ghost]

Different piece of land...communicate by ship? Do these kingdoms border each other? Are they in an archipelago or separated some other way?

You should do whichever one is more interesting for you. Having them all a part of the same kingdom would throw another wrench into diplomacy since they'd all have to obey (or make the appearance of obeying) the king. Even if they don't want obey and try to split, the king could still fight to hold the lands and try to find allies.

If they're all separate countries, they'd probably have larger armies than dukes would (unless the king ruling your duchies was really impotent). It also leaves room for some countries to play the "oh, we're neutral" card until someone tries to take them over. If one leader more military might, he could threaten a few kingdoms. That would give you the option of bloodless takeovers, like the Incas had.

I'm not sure how far a king/duke would get by taking over the kingdoms/duchies with intrigue and diplomacy since the others are bound to catch on at some point and possibly form alliances against him.

It all sounds okay. The only thing I'm iffy about is the specialization of each country/duchy. Countries with decent resources have many exports. Depending on how limited their roles are, they may read like caricatures. Just something to watch out for.

 

[AlexanderKira]

They are a couple miles apart, probably see the large castles from the shoreline. So not that far, of course some kingdoms are farther away than others. Yeah you're right about the duchy idea, I'll stick with the separate country. Cliche was the first thing that popped into my mind when I had that idea, they could easily become predictable. Of course I don't want one nation focusing entirely on trading, and one of armies, one on farming, etc. Then again sometimes cliche can work, I could take that idea and just write so well that people wouldn't mind. I mean dragons are the biggest cliche in fantasy, and George R.R. Martin uses them beautifully. You have given me something to think on, and I thank you for taking the time to read and respond.

 

[Seth son of Tom]

Then again sometimes cliche can work, I could take that idea and just write so well that people wouldn't mind.

very much agree. how many ppl before j.k. rowling used dark lords, but i think it's safe to say HP was fairly popular. other than that i think your world idea, if done well of course, could be really cool. keep at it.

 

[Liu Xaun]

I was going to do something similar, though joined by land. One of my kingdoms had the worlds only metal supply within their borders.

 

[Phoenix]

I think this sounds like a good idea. I would personally call it The Dead Sea Chronicles (since they would have to travel by sea). But is it all just about one Kings lust for power, or is it a certain reason he is declaring war? Also will magic be used?