Ksim3000 - Hey again! Well, I'm not quite sure what hand each emperor would use! I haven't thought about that at all... I might do the county map of England later on either in the 14th century or the start of EU3...
Leviathan07 - Hahaha! Well, the next update won't be done for a bit, so hopefully your work productivity can go up.....:rofl: It'd require a charismatic king matched with a an uncharismatic or weak French counterpart... or a long series of campaigns.
Or France getting broken by someone else.
Tommy4ever - Latin Europe has a great deal of power. The problem is getting it mobilized and organized. Drogo Capet tried and failed, as did Pope Innocent II, to an extent. Can Pope Julius do any better?
Kirsch27 - I think that's what Andronikos was thinking--Albrecht is in his late 60s, his years are clearly creeping up on him, he's been discredited and his allies have abandoned him. He's counting that in Istria he can't rebuild his presence enough to be a threat. Some part of Andie I think can't bring himself to kill his stepfather--if only because Albrecht did teach him most of what he knows... however, we'll have to see if that's the smart decision, because...
Frozenwall - Gottfried is still there, and evidently, Gottfried has some skills of his own (he has survived being dangled in front of the Arpads with a "Come get me" sign symbolically above his head). Even if Albrecht passes peacefully, Gottfried could be a threat. And if Gottfried and Albrecht unite, and Albrecht has enough years left, things could get ugly.
Qorten - The empire is certainly more shaky and perilous than it looks. Gabriel has been pushed back (for now), but in an empire this large, rebellion and discontent is always smoldering somewhere. Years of war (Since Basil's death in 1189, the empire has been at war from 1191-1192, 1193-1197, 1201-1220, 1229-1240, 1242-1247, and 1258-present... that's roughly 25 years of peace without at least one, if not multiple campaigns, in the past 74 years..) have made a huge dent in imperial finances, and we'll shortly see the lengths Andronikos will have to go to even have a chance to raise the funds he wants for his grand projects...
Nikolai - Albrecht is old, but nothing I've described so far mentions ill health... he could reasonably be seen again, even if the hourglass is against him...
asd21593 - The West has been pacified for now, but as we've seen, Spain and Italy both have so far been cesspools of dissent and revolt against the Komnenids. Its safe to say that even if Andronikos can keep them down, it'll take a great deal of effort, and as was said, someone along the line will fail to keep them in line...
vadermath - Considering all Albrecht gave to the Empire, it is an unjust end. Andronikos wants the spotlight for himself, and no one else--he has grand designs, but he's young, and all sorts of things can and probably will go wrong. If the two of them had worked together, the Komnenid Empire likely would have survived till the end of the story, it's safe to say. The Empire's at a crossroads, where it needs another Nikolaios, prepared to sacrifice themselves to create a legacy. Andronikos is decidedly NOT a Nikolaios...
Enewald - Not much mapwise has changed since the last dynatoi map... though start of next chapter a new one will be forthcoming...
RGB - Gottfried doesn't know everything, but his prediction about things eventually falling apart isn't that sage a prediction. Neither is the prediction that a slew of stresses could strike at once. It's called being a pessimist... about like saying "someday, it's going to rain..."
Nehekara -A sense of bitterness? Yes. Perspective? Perhaps--he at least realizes he can't seize everything at once, and that something as grand as gaining at throne takes time and patience...
Zzzzz... - Not yet, and this would be the major roadblock to them taking the throne, even if they had more lands. As it stands, Antemios has gained several parcels of lands, but by land he's still not the greatest of Scottish lords...
Enewald - Yup... there's a myriad of foes at the gates, and sooner or later the gatekeeper will sleep...
4th Dimension - Not a Roman ruler, just a Regent until the majority of the young Dunkeld heir...Duncan likely picked Antemios simply because his Orthodoxy meant he was ineligible to try to steal the throne from under his grandson's nose...
FlyingDutchie - Something definitely stayed Andie's hand. We'll have to see whether it comes back to haunt him or those that follow him on the throne...
Vesimir - Gabriel is down, but definitely not out. The majority of his army escaped, and even if he goes back to Persia, he'll be able to raise a new force, barring a Mongol invasion...
The next update is coming slowly... couple pages done only. Still looks like a probably Friday posting date!