An AAR that is really from the afterlife but starts in Novgorod, 1067
This AAR is based on the ubiquitous Rurikovich dynasty. It uses the DVIP, normal setting and a cowardly AI aggression level. I picked the Novgorod part of the dynasty as that seemed to offer the greatest scope for something other than endless wars in Russia (and has some land in between them and the Mongols).
However, this branch of the family has a secret ‘curse’ – probably based on their Pagan Norse roots. So they’ll (very Dante-esque) be packed off to a suitable corner of the after-world (Norse or Christian according to their performance and character) once they die, but since the after-life has a bureaucracy this means paperwork and a review of their life. The other consequence of their mixed Norse and Russian heritages is that they prove quite a challenge for the bureaucrats of the after-life. Its not just finding the right corner of heaven or hell, but also Valhalla, Hel etc need to be considered.
I’ll try and write each in the style of the relevant character, with commentary from the bureaucracy of eternity. In addition, the process of allocating the dead is subject to lobbying from the various dieties involved.
A consequence, of course, is that updates might be irregular especially if someone insists on living till they are 80. Of course others will have very short lives (when I was experimenting with set ups and getting to some sort of grip with the game, Mstislav died in his first battle – the fall out was very entertaining).
Table of contents
Mstislav of Novgorod, 1067-1097 - a man who deprived a village in Russia of its idiot but was actually quite successful (compared to familial expectations).
Part 1: Summary of the charges
Part 2: Mstislav tries to make friends
Part 3: Mstislav makes (unsuitable) friends with some Mongols
Part 4: Mstislav: the family years
Part 5: A chip off the old block?
Part 6: The Finnish Years
Part 7: Mstislav becomes a King?
Part 8: The final judgement
Boris of Novgorod 1097-1105 proof that being twice as a bright doesn't stop you losing half the kingdom
Part 1:Boris: Guilty or Very Guilty?
Part 2:Boris: Building his reputation 1097-1100
Part 3: Boris cements his reputation, 1100-1105
Vladimir 1105-1146 The nice polite one you sometimes find even in the most dysfunctional of families
Plot spoiler that may contain errors
Part 1: Vladimir, 1105 - 1107 - rebuilding the kingdom
Part 2: Vladimir 1107-1115 - almost too good to be true
Part 3: Vladimir 1115-1122 - still looking rather good
Part 4: Vladimir 1122-1125, only a few small wars
Part 5: Vladimir 1125-1133, he may be the big King, but he doesn't want to go home
Part 6: Vladimir 1133-1137, yep not going home too often is a good idea
Part 7: Vladimir 1137-1143, a one man war machine
Part 8: Vladimir 1144-1146, trying to dodge the domestic cutlery
Kettu 1146 - 1151 A king who put the serial into killer
Part 1: An open and shut case?
Part 2: Kettu 1146-1147, Murder, and, maybe, a few Mysteries
Part 3: Kettu 1148-1149, Heresy, Murder, War
Part 4: Kettu 1150-1151, Murder, War, Cowardly Scots, and still time for more heresy
Ukko 1151- 1154 The forgetten one who had to sort out the mess
Part 1: Attracting the sympathy vote?
Part 2: Ukko, 1151-54, Letting the family down rather badly
Toikka, 1154 - 1179 Redeeming the family reputation
Part 1: well maybe he actually worsens the family reputation?
Part 2: Clearly not, he was really a paragon of virtue
Part 3: In which a large fly stain appears and Harry, briefly, gets his man
Tuokki, 1179 - 1191 It was all going so well till ...
Part 1: Tuokki 1179-1182, it all starts rather well
Part 2: Tuokki 1183-1184, conquers Russia but has some dubious friends
Part 3: Tuokki 1184-1189, an obsession with colour, a family religious revival and repaying a century old debt
Part 4: Tuokki 1189-1191, in which the new King of Lithuania is skewered by a passing Mongol
Boris the Second, 1191 - 1215 A one man religious revival whose kingdom rather waxed, waned and waxed ...
Part 1: A quick summary of his woes
Part 2: Dead marshalls, live wars
Part 3: A summary of the more succesful bits, and a reason why he should have taken more care over his food
Ivan, 1215 - 1227 his reign started with a bit of a bang, and carried on as a bit of a whingy whimpering sound
Part 1: inept, boring or the victim of a demonic plot ... you decide
Part 2: Ivan 1215-1224, the exciting years
Part 3: Ivan 1224-1227, not much else went in his favour either
Peresvet, 1227 - 1234 also a bit whingy but at least he's got Mongols to complain about
Part 1eresvet, the less successful bits
Part 2eresvet, at least this one has some Mongols in it
Ratmir, 1234 - 1261, mad, bad, dangerous especially if you are a Mongol, a Turk or in fact almost anyone who crosses him, at least that was his version
Part 1: Ratmir 1234-1237, pretty innocent really
Part 2: Ratmir 1237-1245, Harry shows an interest
Part 3: Ratmir 1245-1250, mostly domestic stuff, but with a lot of dead Mongols
Part 4: Ratmir 1251-1256, lots of dead Mongols and family problems
Part 5: Ratmir 1256-1260, a fair bit of his family dies, along with more Germans and Mongols
Part 6: Ratmir 1261, a surprisingly clear cut outcome
A summary of all the above
Vladimir II, 1261 - 1291, not the luckiest, or most careful of Kings
Part 1: Vladimir II 1261-1265, a bit of a false dawn?
Part 2: Vladimir II 1266-1270, things start to unravel
Part 3: Vladimir II 1271-1278, not really his best period
Part 4: Vladimir II 1279-1285, much better, as long as you're not in the army
Part 5: Vladimir II 1285-1289, post Polish blues
Part 6: Vladimir II, 1290-1291, the road to heaven is paved by assassination
Mitrofan, 1291 - 1295, A King with very big plans ... and one very big problem
Mitrofan, its all here in one easy read
Roman, 1295 - 1304, its not easy when you kill most of your relatives
Roman, 1295-1304, Living too long is so over-rated
Mikula 1304 - 1306, Has a lot to put right, and not much time
Mikula 1304-1306, a good start but his past catches up with him
Vseslav, 1306- 1317, a bright new hope, who is rather unwell
Vseslav, 1306-1310, dodgy bishops, obnoxious kids and disloyal vassals ... its all going so well
Vseslav, 1310-1312, a Great Patriotic War and lots of injured generals
Vseslav, 1312-1317, not the most dynamic of endings
Davyd, 1317-1332 , he starts without much of a reputation ... and ends with even less
Davyd 1317-1320, just settling down
Davyd 1320-1325, not a huge amount happens
Davyd 1325-1332, people start to die of boredom
Andrei, 1332 - 1356 , starts out as King of the Nursery, ends up stuck in a tree in Hell
Andrei 1332-1340, the nursery years
Andrei 1340-1345, the teenage years
Andrei 1345-1349, he just gets even more competent
Andrei 1349-1352, the Pope gets ratty, the plague gets out of hand and Andrei remains competent, if a bit stressed
Andrei 1353-1356, More Italian problems, more disease, and all the competence gets to be too much for Andrei
In which an alternative set of explanations for 3 centuries of Rurikovich rule is offered
Boris III, 1356-1365, Not the most organised of Kings
Boris III, 1356-1365, during which he is rather unlucky
Boris 1356-1361, many things happen, some make very little sense
Boris 1361-1365, still not much clarity to be honest
Bugra 1365-1426, who may live a long time but very few others manage to
Bugra 1365-1370, in which he starts as he means to go on
Bugra 1370-1374, in which he isn't that saintly
Bugra 1374-1378, in which he discovers the rouble is more powerful than the sword
Bugra 1378-1384, in which he may or may not kill 3 people, but he really does not like brown
Bugra 1384-1387, in which he resolves his purple problems, but some more people do die
Bugra 1387-1392, in which it is all calm and peaceful
Bugra 1392-1396, war, plague, military incompetence, a poor taste joke about a celibate leper, & PLOTS
Bugra 1396-1400, in which dynastic issues worry all the main characters
Bugra 1400-1404, wars, killings and the inheritence is still not sorted out
Bugra 1404-1408, in which the concept of the extended family is tested to destruction
Bugra 1408-1412, murder, rebellion, black magic, all pretty normal really
Bugra 1412-1415, too busy with the civil war to attend the aar birthday party
Bugra 1415-1418, in which his performance is appraised by his ancestors and he captures Byzantium
Bugra 1418-1421, in which most of Russia is revolting
Bugra 1421-1426, an end that is probably undeserved
Yakut, 1426-1436, a more cultivated king?
Yakut 1426-1430, in which too much sex sends him blind
Yakut 1430-1435, sex and boredom leads to a rather large war
Yakut 1435-1436, in which he stumbles blindly to his doom
Alp Yurek, 1436 - 1441, a new beginning? ... or just a speedy end
Alp Yurek, 1436-1440, he's in the nursery. the realm is in revolt
Alp Yurek, 1440-1441, this is what happens when you annoy nanny
Mured, 1441 - . the last of our noble line?
Mured, 1441-1452, the usual rebellions, wars and family strife
This AAR is based on the ubiquitous Rurikovich dynasty. It uses the DVIP, normal setting and a cowardly AI aggression level. I picked the Novgorod part of the dynasty as that seemed to offer the greatest scope for something other than endless wars in Russia (and has some land in between them and the Mongols).
However, this branch of the family has a secret ‘curse’ – probably based on their Pagan Norse roots. So they’ll (very Dante-esque) be packed off to a suitable corner of the after-world (Norse or Christian according to their performance and character) once they die, but since the after-life has a bureaucracy this means paperwork and a review of their life. The other consequence of their mixed Norse and Russian heritages is that they prove quite a challenge for the bureaucrats of the after-life. Its not just finding the right corner of heaven or hell, but also Valhalla, Hel etc need to be considered.
I’ll try and write each in the style of the relevant character, with commentary from the bureaucracy of eternity. In addition, the process of allocating the dead is subject to lobbying from the various dieties involved.
A consequence, of course, is that updates might be irregular especially if someone insists on living till they are 80. Of course others will have very short lives (when I was experimenting with set ups and getting to some sort of grip with the game, Mstislav died in his first battle – the fall out was very entertaining).
Table of contents
Mstislav of Novgorod, 1067-1097 - a man who deprived a village in Russia of its idiot but was actually quite successful (compared to familial expectations).
Part 1: Summary of the charges
Part 2: Mstislav tries to make friends
Part 3: Mstislav makes (unsuitable) friends with some Mongols
Part 4: Mstislav: the family years
Part 5: A chip off the old block?
Part 6: The Finnish Years
Part 7: Mstislav becomes a King?
Part 8: The final judgement
Boris of Novgorod 1097-1105 proof that being twice as a bright doesn't stop you losing half the kingdom
Part 1:Boris: Guilty or Very Guilty?
Part 2:Boris: Building his reputation 1097-1100
Part 3: Boris cements his reputation, 1100-1105
Vladimir 1105-1146 The nice polite one you sometimes find even in the most dysfunctional of families
Plot spoiler that may contain errors
Part 1: Vladimir, 1105 - 1107 - rebuilding the kingdom
Part 2: Vladimir 1107-1115 - almost too good to be true
Part 3: Vladimir 1115-1122 - still looking rather good
Part 4: Vladimir 1122-1125, only a few small wars
Part 5: Vladimir 1125-1133, he may be the big King, but he doesn't want to go home
Part 6: Vladimir 1133-1137, yep not going home too often is a good idea
Part 7: Vladimir 1137-1143, a one man war machine
Part 8: Vladimir 1144-1146, trying to dodge the domestic cutlery
Kettu 1146 - 1151 A king who put the serial into killer
Part 1: An open and shut case?
Part 2: Kettu 1146-1147, Murder, and, maybe, a few Mysteries
Part 3: Kettu 1148-1149, Heresy, Murder, War
Part 4: Kettu 1150-1151, Murder, War, Cowardly Scots, and still time for more heresy
Ukko 1151- 1154 The forgetten one who had to sort out the mess
Part 1: Attracting the sympathy vote?
Part 2: Ukko, 1151-54, Letting the family down rather badly
Toikka, 1154 - 1179 Redeeming the family reputation
Part 1: well maybe he actually worsens the family reputation?
Part 2: Clearly not, he was really a paragon of virtue
Part 3: In which a large fly stain appears and Harry, briefly, gets his man
Tuokki, 1179 - 1191 It was all going so well till ...
Part 1: Tuokki 1179-1182, it all starts rather well
Part 2: Tuokki 1183-1184, conquers Russia but has some dubious friends
Part 3: Tuokki 1184-1189, an obsession with colour, a family religious revival and repaying a century old debt
Part 4: Tuokki 1189-1191, in which the new King of Lithuania is skewered by a passing Mongol
Boris the Second, 1191 - 1215 A one man religious revival whose kingdom rather waxed, waned and waxed ...
Part 1: A quick summary of his woes
Part 2: Dead marshalls, live wars
Part 3: A summary of the more succesful bits, and a reason why he should have taken more care over his food
Ivan, 1215 - 1227 his reign started with a bit of a bang, and carried on as a bit of a whingy whimpering sound
Part 1: inept, boring or the victim of a demonic plot ... you decide
Part 2: Ivan 1215-1224, the exciting years
Part 3: Ivan 1224-1227, not much else went in his favour either
Peresvet, 1227 - 1234 also a bit whingy but at least he's got Mongols to complain about
Part 1eresvet, the less successful bits
Part 2eresvet, at least this one has some Mongols in it
Ratmir, 1234 - 1261, mad, bad, dangerous especially if you are a Mongol, a Turk or in fact almost anyone who crosses him, at least that was his version
Part 1: Ratmir 1234-1237, pretty innocent really
Part 2: Ratmir 1237-1245, Harry shows an interest
Part 3: Ratmir 1245-1250, mostly domestic stuff, but with a lot of dead Mongols
Part 4: Ratmir 1251-1256, lots of dead Mongols and family problems
Part 5: Ratmir 1256-1260, a fair bit of his family dies, along with more Germans and Mongols
Part 6: Ratmir 1261, a surprisingly clear cut outcome
A summary of all the above
Vladimir II, 1261 - 1291, not the luckiest, or most careful of Kings
Part 1: Vladimir II 1261-1265, a bit of a false dawn?
Part 2: Vladimir II 1266-1270, things start to unravel
Part 3: Vladimir II 1271-1278, not really his best period
Part 4: Vladimir II 1279-1285, much better, as long as you're not in the army
Part 5: Vladimir II 1285-1289, post Polish blues
Part 6: Vladimir II, 1290-1291, the road to heaven is paved by assassination
Mitrofan, 1291 - 1295, A King with very big plans ... and one very big problem
Mitrofan, its all here in one easy read
Roman, 1295 - 1304, its not easy when you kill most of your relatives
Roman, 1295-1304, Living too long is so over-rated
Mikula 1304 - 1306, Has a lot to put right, and not much time
Mikula 1304-1306, a good start but his past catches up with him
Vseslav, 1306- 1317, a bright new hope, who is rather unwell
Vseslav, 1306-1310, dodgy bishops, obnoxious kids and disloyal vassals ... its all going so well
Vseslav, 1310-1312, a Great Patriotic War and lots of injured generals
Vseslav, 1312-1317, not the most dynamic of endings
Davyd, 1317-1332 , he starts without much of a reputation ... and ends with even less
Davyd 1317-1320, just settling down
Davyd 1320-1325, not a huge amount happens
Davyd 1325-1332, people start to die of boredom
Andrei, 1332 - 1356 , starts out as King of the Nursery, ends up stuck in a tree in Hell
Andrei 1332-1340, the nursery years
Andrei 1340-1345, the teenage years
Andrei 1345-1349, he just gets even more competent
Andrei 1349-1352, the Pope gets ratty, the plague gets out of hand and Andrei remains competent, if a bit stressed
Andrei 1353-1356, More Italian problems, more disease, and all the competence gets to be too much for Andrei
In which an alternative set of explanations for 3 centuries of Rurikovich rule is offered
Boris III, 1356-1365, Not the most organised of Kings
Boris III, 1356-1365, during which he is rather unlucky
Boris 1356-1361, many things happen, some make very little sense
Boris 1361-1365, still not much clarity to be honest
Bugra 1365-1426, who may live a long time but very few others manage to
Bugra 1365-1370, in which he starts as he means to go on
Bugra 1370-1374, in which he isn't that saintly
Bugra 1374-1378, in which he discovers the rouble is more powerful than the sword
Bugra 1378-1384, in which he may or may not kill 3 people, but he really does not like brown
Bugra 1384-1387, in which he resolves his purple problems, but some more people do die
Bugra 1387-1392, in which it is all calm and peaceful
Bugra 1392-1396, war, plague, military incompetence, a poor taste joke about a celibate leper, & PLOTS
Bugra 1396-1400, in which dynastic issues worry all the main characters
Bugra 1400-1404, wars, killings and the inheritence is still not sorted out
Bugra 1404-1408, in which the concept of the extended family is tested to destruction
Bugra 1408-1412, murder, rebellion, black magic, all pretty normal really
Bugra 1412-1415, too busy with the civil war to attend the aar birthday party
Bugra 1415-1418, in which his performance is appraised by his ancestors and he captures Byzantium
Bugra 1418-1421, in which most of Russia is revolting
Bugra 1421-1426, an end that is probably undeserved
Yakut, 1426-1436, a more cultivated king?
Yakut 1426-1430, in which too much sex sends him blind
Yakut 1430-1435, sex and boredom leads to a rather large war
Yakut 1435-1436, in which he stumbles blindly to his doom
Alp Yurek, 1436 - 1441, a new beginning? ... or just a speedy end
Alp Yurek, 1436-1440, he's in the nursery. the realm is in revolt
Alp Yurek, 1440-1441, this is what happens when you annoy nanny
Mured, 1441 - . the last of our noble line?
Mured, 1441-1452, the usual rebellions, wars and family strife
Last edited: