The Sublime State - An Ottoman AAR

[asd21593]

Always nice for a Byzantophile like me to see the Otto's beat up a little.

[RGB]

I'd be a bit disappointed if it wasn't a titanic struggle, but the good Sultan, i truest, will defend his borders. Or most of them.

And hey, at least it was just Portugal and not, say, France.

[Stuyvesant]

A challenge worthy of the might of the Ottoman Empire. Losing command of the seas is definitely a pain, but I have all the confidence that you can find enough troops (and march them overland) to teach that upstart Tsar a lesson. I'm sure he's known to history as 'The Terrible' due to his terrible decision to cowardly strike the Ottoman Empire, right?

Even with the overall discrepancy in forces in favor of your enemies, you should be able to force them out of the war one by one. Assuming you can hold the line against the others while you're at it... But then again, maybe you didn't - Doktor Krieger states that the war lasted from 1550 to 1553 - and we're already in 1551. That seems like a short time to crush all your enemies. But it could be long enough to deal some sharp blows, throw some ducats at your enemies and get a reprieve from the war.

Guess we'll wait and see.

[feldmarshall]

Russia allied itself with Persia and Portugal? the AI is that smart?

[Milites]

Ouch. With such a long and vulnerable coastline, the allies will find it easy enough harassing your troop movement. But who knows? Maybe the AI will dumb out excessively and use the Portuguese ships to go angling off Macao.

[gabor]

Losing command of the seas is definitely a pain.

luckily it's only MMP1, no nasty blockade modifiers

Russia allied itself with Persia and Portugal? the AI is that smart?

seems like Ad Infinitum is at -excellent- work

it's weird but somehow i side with the invaders...

[daemonofdecay]

Wow. Ju-just wow. I have to say, if ever there was an event that could kick up the excitement of Ottoman history, it would be this. Though I have tremendous fate in your abilities... I wouldn't be surprised if the Ottoman Empire here ends up having to shell out of a few territories to one of these three rivals.

Best of luck to you.

Thanks!

Always nice for a Byzantophile like me to see the Otto's beat up a little.

I seem to get that alot. . .

I'd be a bit disappointed if it wasn't a titanic struggle, but the good Sultan, i truest, will defend his borders. Or most of them.

And hey, at least it was just Portugal and not, say, France.

Always look on the bright side of life, eh?

A challenge worthy of the might of the Ottoman Empire. Losing command of the seas is definitely a pain, but I have all the confidence that you can find enough troops (and march them overland) to teach that upstart Tsar a lesson. I'm sure he's known to history as 'The Terrible' due to his terrible decision to cowardly strike the Ottoman Empire, right?

Even with the overall discrepancy in forces in favor of your enemies, you should be able to force them out of the war one by one. Assuming you can hold the line against the others while you're at it... But then again, maybe you didn't - Doktor Krieger states that the war lasted from 1550 to 1553 - and we're already in 1551. That seems like a short time to crush all your enemies. But it could be long enough to deal some sharp blows, throw some ducats at your enemies and get a reprieve from the war.

Guess we'll wait and see.

Fingers crossed!

Russia allied itself with Persia and Portugal? the AI is that smart?

I was suprised when it happened: my two biggest enemies are united in a war against me, while Portugal steps in to harass me in ways neither of them could.

Ouch. With such a long and vulnerable coastline, the allies will find it easy enough harassing your troop movement. But who knows? Maybe the AI will dumb out excessively and use the Portuguese ships to go angling off Macao.

I don't think the Portuguese have used their entire fleet against me, but its still enough big ships to keep me from fighting back.

luckily it's only MMP1, no nasty blockade modifiers

seems like Ad Infinitum is at -excellent- work

it's weird but somehow i side with the invaders...

Actually, I upgraded to MMP2 a while back.

I hate being navally outmatched.

And thanks for the support, gabor!

[Enewald]

Now just send pirates to break the Portuguese homeland.
Raid for raid.

[aldriq]

Never mind the blockade, take Muscat from those pesky Portuguese! Hopefully you can keep the Persians busy besieging in the desert while the bulk of the Imperial army marches against the Russians...

[daemonofdecay]

Now just send pirates to break the Portuguese homeland.
Raid for raid.

Yeah, that could work, although I don't imagine it would do much good against their massive naval strength.

Never mind the blockade, take Muscat from those pesky Portuguese! Hopefully you can keep the Persians busy besieging in the desert while the bulk of the Imperial army marches against the Russians...

It is tough. I was a little over extended: without naval transport it takes months to get from one side of the empire to another. Just before the war I started a mini-reorganization of the army which might inspire another Sultan to begin his own full-blown reform.

And we all now how easy military reforms are to the Ottoman Empire!

- - - - -

Ok, time for a situation/status update.

My X-mas was spent getting jaw surgery, which sucked. I was stuck far from my computer with a lot of pain and very weak pain killers. But now that I am back in school (and I can open my mouth again) I'm starting to feel the urge to resume my AAR.

Not to mention that I have planned on making a Vicky2 mini-mod for my AAR once I get through EU3's timeframe, so I need to get moving!

[EnragedKiwi]

Not to mention that I have planned on making a Vicky2 mini-mod for my AAR once I get through EU3's timeframe, so I need to get moving!

I was overcome by ecstasy when I read this.

[gabor]

the bad is behind you (pain, suffering and boredom), the good is ahead of you (and us!): aar writing!

[aldriq]

I hope your jaw is pain free from now on.

Not to mention that I have planned on making a Vicky2 mini-mod for my AAR once I get through EU3's timeframe, so I need to get moving!

Don't get ahead of yourself, you still have to get to 1820 first

[Qorten]

Don't go too fast, Paradox might need a few months to get the worst bugs out of the product, as usual.

Meanwhile, I will happily follow the endeavours of the Ottoman sultans.

[daemonofdecay]

I was overcome by ecstasy when I read this.

Thanks! It's not going to be a comprehensive mod, but I will be including some changes and custom events/decisions.

the bad is behind you (pain, suffering and boredom), the good is ahead of you (and us!): aar writing!

Yeah, but I still can't chew. . .

I hope your jaw is pain free from now on.

Don't get ahead of yourself, you still have to get to 1820 first

Thanks, and yes I do.

Don't go too fast, Paradox might need a few months to get the worst bugs out of the product, as usual.

Meanwhile, I will happily follow the endeavours of the Ottoman sultans.

Ah, thanks! Hope I don't disappoint.

[daemonofdecay]

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Part Thirty-six
A Rising Star

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By the summer of 1551 the Ottoman Empire was finally beginning to bring its considerable strength to bear on its enemies. The Imperial Army, the largest body of the Turkish military and possessing its greatest concentration of professional janissaries, had finally reached the threatened Crimean region. However, their long trek up the Black Sea coast had left them is a state of disarray. Arriving in long, stretched out columns the Turkish soldiers were in no state to fight the Russians. One of the Padishah’s ministers wrote that it was “[a] terrible sight, such disorder from amongst the guardsmen of the Sultan’s own house” and how upset it left Ali.

Padishah Ali was not the military commander that his forbearers had been; unlike earlier Sultans he had no experience campaigning and lacked a more subtle grasp of military strategy. Unwilling to take to the field without his entire compliment of soldiers he demurred from action for weeks, letting the Tsar’s forces raid and pillage throughout northern Crimea. By the time the Padishah finally gave the orders to march it was fall and the infamous “rasputitsa” had turned the Crimea into a muddy quagmire that slowed the Turks to a crawl.

In Russia Tsar Ivan IV waited patiently for his opponent to come to him, leaving his light cavalry to raid and harass the Ottomans while he concentrated his forces. Instead of allowing his soldiers to get worn out besieging the larger Turkish fortresses further inside the Crimea he kept them rested and fresh, knowing the real danger was not in knocking down walls but instead it was the Padishah’s armies. The Tsar’s attack was finally launched late in the fall, his armies falling upon the tired and disorganized Ottoman’s in a masterful campaign that saw thousands of Turks slain as they struggled in the deep mud.

Realizing that to continue the campaign would be a disaster, Padishah Ali ordered his armies to return to their camps at Kefe. Tsar Ivan was left in complete control of northern Crimea, but the thick mud that had aided him in besting the Ottoman’s ended up costing him true victory when unable to properly pursue the retreating Turks. Thus the forces of the Padishah were able to escape and regroup in the relative safety of the Crimean Peninsula, bloody but intact.

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Further disaster struck the Ottoman Empire to the south when Persian armies overran the depleted Turkish forces garrisoned in Iraq, their commander having severely underestimated the size of the Persian force opposing him. Yet again, the Ottoman Empire was saved from complete disaster by a failure to pursue when the undisciplined Persians took to pillaging the newly conquered towns, giving the Turks the time to escape up the Euphrates and into Syria.

The Persians then settled down into camps in Iraq, using the two mighty rivers of the Euphrates and Tigris to guard their flanks from any Turkish attacks. Deciding to consolidate their hold the Persians began serious siege efforts on the last few Ottoman fortresses still intact, confident they would be able to hold onto the region and force the Padishah to come to terms. This would be a grand error on the part of the Persians, who were not aware that Ali had dispatched a large contingent of his armies across Anatolia before leaving for the Crimea. Meeting up with the survivors from Iraq these two bodies of soldiers would be free to invade Persian lands while the Persians were busy with their sieges.

__________________________________________________ ________________________________________

While disaster seemed to be looming from every corner of the Empire, in the southern reaches of the Arabian Peninsula there would be a bright ray of hope. Marching from Muscat the Portuguese had invaded neighboring Mahra and took the lightly defended region swiftly. Flush with success they continued their advance along the coast until they reached the massive fortress protecting the important trading port of Al Mukalla. Initially the fortress had been a small portion of the cities walls, but the Ottoman’s had greatly expanded the edifice during the previous years to turn it into their major garrison south of Mecca. Its walls mounted a score of cannon and sheltered a few hundred soldiers and twice their number in militia.

Opposing the Portuguese commander was the governor Cihangir Pargali, a Turk who had been given the position after the Ottoman conquest and the subsequent removal of the Yemen monarchy. Pargali had reacted swiftly to the news of the advancing Europeans; conscripting hundreds of citizens to fill out the ranks of his force while others took to stockpiling food and water for the coming siege before filling in all the wells outside the walls and burning all farms within riding distance. By the time the Portuguese reached Al Mukalla, Pargali had turned the city into a formidable obstacle in the center of a ring of desolation.

Al Mukalla was a critical objective for the Portuguese commander, its port needed to allow Portuguese ships to resupply the army. Already low on supplies after their earlier sieges the Portuguese were desperate to take the city fast, but were repulsed time and time again by the large quantity of cannon the Turk’s had at their disposal, outranging the smaller pieces the Portuguese had brought with them. While the Portuguese were reduced to eating their horses, the guns of the fortress kept Portuguese ships from enforcing a complete blockade that allowed small vessels to sneak into the city with supplies and armaments.

The siege would last all summer before the Portuguese, most of their army lost to thirst and hunger, were eventually forced to pull back and seek an easier target. But by then it was already too late. The delay of the siege had given a large contingent of cavalry from Egypt time to reach the city and they fell upon the retreating Portuguese with abandon. Those that could waded out into the ocean to try and swim to the distant ships anchored out of cannon range or fled on horseback, but the bulk of the Portuguese force was destroyed in a short, bloody battle.

- Johannes Krieger, The Sublime State: A History of The Ottoman Empire; vol. 1

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[CatKnight]

I'm just now seeing this AAR and have a lot of catching up to do.

I read your latest post, and it seems you have quite the challenge on your hands. Good luck!

[Enewald]

Punish the foes and take their lands!

[Avatar018]

Onward Ottoman Empire! Show those European that no one messes with the Sultan.

[RGB]

Looks like a tough war - as expected.

The Portuguese seem to be the first to really blunder though, so that frees up some effort for the Ottomans.