Set towards the end of the 18th Century, the British East India Company has risen from a collection of ramshackle traders and seekers of fortune into a financial giant looming large over the Indian subcontinent. Through skillful diplomacy, overzealous military expeditions, and the backing of the British government, the EIC has carved out a substantial domain in the lands of the former Mughal Empire, massing nigh-unheard-of riches. Despite their differences, the various Indian leaders know the EIC may dominate all of Asia unless they act, and soon. The crisis begins as the Indian leaders look to seize their last chance to expel the British once and for all before the Company becomes impossible to dislodge, and will feature a combination of military, economic, and diplomatic elements. 

 

The military element is derived from the military campaigns waged in the latter half of the 18th century between the British East India Company and the various Indian leaders and military commanders across the subcontinent. Military technology, strategy, and organisation in the colonial era will be familiar to many, but the geography of India and the cost of war will offer unique challenges for delegates.   

 

However, the East India Company, although controlling vast swathes of territory, is not a sovereign nation - it is a corporation, whose foremost responsibility is to its shareholders, and foremost objective is profit. Many characters in the British committee will own EIC stock and will be financially ruined if the Company is defeated. In addition, Indian leaders will need to raise money to compete with the financial juggernaut that is the EIC, and must manage their territory carefully. Economic considerations will be very important within the crisis, and the Company's share price will fluctuate depending on the course of events. 

 

Diplomacy will also be a crucial aspect of the crisis, as despite originating from two different worlds, there is much cooperation between certain figures on both sides and alliances and allegiances are a murky business in late 18th-century Anglo-Indian politics. Indian leaders, although brought together in their desire to expel the British, are themselves rivals for control of the land they seek to liberate, and internal politicking threatens to destabilise their combined efforts. For the British, the goal for most is to amass as great a fortune as possible and return home without getting killed, at the expense of the native population and even their own countrymen. Delegates should not assume nationality will constrain alliances or treaties, and navigating the political landscape will be as important as military or economic considerations.