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As exquisite as ever! I loved the detailed explanaition of the dynastic relations, the tension between the sisters, Mary and her husband (what a contrast between the two portraits of Mary!) and their repercussion: Maximilian demise. :eek: And all those little twists, like changing names, first names and dynasty names alike, and CoA; altogether so ...plausible! (What happened to Saxe-Cobourg-Gotha after all!? ;)) Or the squabble about the titles. In my eyes it just proves this kind of games get a lot of flavour with dynasties implemented (even imperfectly as it seems to be in HttT). I doubt MMtheGame devs will hear me though. ;)

The title was a bit misleading for me (or I need to work on my English more) as at first I thought Augustus (shall we hear of his offspring in the future?) would claim the title of the King and try to rectify his sisters' policies. Although I could hardly see a power which would back his claims and lend him their support.

And what happened to the Mary's faithful hmm... hmmm... admirerer, Hugh de Camoys, 2nd Baron Camoys?
Will Catherine and Cecily feature in furthre updates?

The Emperor's forces have been bested by the Ottomans on several occasions and are now fleeing in disorder; the losses have created ripples felt in every level of society
I understand Mary needed to end this pointless war quickly and possibly painlessly. But what happened to the Emperor and his realms?

The Scottish aristocracy is offered the same "surrender and regrant" proposal that proved successful in Ireland: surrender their lands to the English crown and receive them back as freeholds, obligated only to pay a feudal levy. In return they will receive the protection of the English army and navy, be formally recognised in the peerage of the realm, and also gain a seat in a new unified Parliament. (...) On November 8th, 1478, the Estates of Scotland and the Parliaments of England and Ireland agree on the first of several statutes—known as the Acts of Union, 1478—bringing the three realms together under one crown and one legislature.
The Federation? What about the Welsh? The Norman French of Normandy? Anyway, with this course of things a lot of bad tension, ill memories and grudges between the nations might be forgiven and forgotten and future clashes avoided. A different, less bloody, less oppressive UK? A true Commonwealth!?

the tiny Kingdom of Navarre is once again beset by a more powerful enemy. In June neighbouring Aragon declares war, though this latest attempt at military subjugation will prove no more successful than its predecessors.
I'll keep my fingeres crossed. :)

Mary pleads for understanding and amicable toleration of Latin/Orthodox doctrinal differences, coining what will come to be known as the Marian doctrine—In necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas ("in necessary things unity; in uncertain things freedom; in everything compassion").
How interesting. I guess someone else will have to adopt the Marian doctrine. :)

But Mary's virtuoso performance is soon followed by a rapid decline in her cognitive abilities. During the winter of 1479-80, the Privy Council and Parliament are witness to signs of senility and increasingly erratic behaviour. The 63-year-old Queen's attention span is shrinking, and she often forgets words and the names of common objects. Most worryingly, she gets mixed up and confused carrying out simple tasks—forgetting how to sign documents, getting lost in the palace trying to find her private apartments.
I feel sorry for her. Dementia, wasn't it?
You got lucky with stability boosting events though. Especially the 'Synchronised Orchestra' thing. Minus stability can be precarious. This bodes well for your budding Common(!?)wealth.
And the cheekiness of Muscovites is unbearable. Constantinople has not fallen after all!

~ Lüneburg (Duke Friedrich III Lancaster)
Is he the next in line of succession?

William seems mediocre at best. His 5ADM allows for internal develompent at least. No wonder you think of reaching across the ocean now rather than advancing your rightful claims to Bordeaux wine and Armagnac cognac - such a sad loss! (I fear England without these provs might turn into a hotbed of some fun-abhoring.. what would be a good name for them ...puritans? ;)

The girls had much better MIL stats than almost all of their predecessors and successors (to date). They kind of lent themselves to ass-whooping. I don't know why my male monarchs can't get good MIL stats to save their lives.
Girl power? :)

As you'll see in the next update, most of the heavyweights of the early 15th century have experienced a significant reversal in the latter half, and other countries are coming to the fore.
Can't wait to see that! Will Denmark collapse? The Anti-Pope emerge?
 
As exquisite as ever! I loved the detailed explanaition of the dynastic relations, the tension between the sisters, Mary and her husband (what a contrast between the two portraits of Mary!) and their repercussion: Maximilian demise. :eek: And all those little twists, like changing names, first names and dynasty names alike, and CoA; altogether so ...plausible!

Thank you! I had fun writing it once I got the basic plot ironed out. The real reason I injected all of that into the first part of the update is that I kind of wrote myself into a hole. Way back in the Henry V update I had established that Henry VI, Jane and Mary were all siblings, and in one of the Jane updates I'd already written that Mary had a son, William. But then I realised that when Mary's son took the throne, he wouldn't be a Lancaster; he'd be a Habsburg. So I needed to figure out how to turn him back into a Lancaster so the dynastic name in the story would match the name displayed in-game. :p

The title was a bit misleading for me ...

I understand; reading it again I would probably pick something different. It was the best Shakespeare quote I could find that covered all the bases (i.e. there were two sisters, and the end of their reigns began a period of decline).

And what happened to the Mary's faithful hmm... hmmm... admirerer, Hugh de Camoys, 2nd Baron Camoys?
Will Catherine and Cecily feature in furthre updates?

I don't think we will hear more from Baron Camoys. I had originally written it so that Mary had her affair at a much younger age and even had children (and a possible alternate line of succession) with the baron. But then I realised that Maximilian and Mary were mentioned in a Jane update in 1460 or so, and as a result her husband could not have been killed off earlier. :( By 1460 Mary is well past childbearing years, so story-wise the Baron remains only a callback to the 1434 update when Mary had that nude portrait done. I like to think they got together after Max's demise.

I understand Mary needed to end this pointless war quickly and possibly painlessly. But what happened to the Emperor and his realms?

The Emperor fought on for another couple of years. And—well, you know what happens when you loiter at -2 stability. Nothing good ever comes of that.

... with this course of things a lot of bad tension, ill memories and grudges between the nations might be forgiven and forgotten and future clashes avoided. A different, less bloody, less oppressive UK? A true Commonwealth!?

Well, that was part of my beginning game goals—no military annexation within the UK (Orkney excepted). The intention was to make the integration of the UK a less acrimonious affair; much like the no-looting discipline of Henry V's forces in Normandy made the locals less likely to freak out and revolt. It's easy to conquer, but not so easy to govern.

I feel sorry for her. Dementia, wasn't it?
You got lucky with stability boosting events though. Especially the 'Synchronised Orchestra' thing. Minus stability can be precarious. This bodes well for your budding Common(!?)wealth.

Yup, an unpleasant end for anybody.

The stability boost was a godsend. One of the options was a +1 gain in base tax for both London and Lothian. I hemmed and hawed, and looked at it for a while, and eventually chose the +3 stab boost. As you know, in MM it's better to be stable than to have a couple extra bucks in your wallet.

And the cheekiness of Muscovites is unbearable. Constantinople has not fallen after all!

I'm surprised there isn't some kind of alternate Russia scenario for times when the Byzantines survive. Kind of frustrating to see the Third Rome thing—I'd be waving my arms saying YO! Second Rome is right over here. Doing just fine, thanks.

Is he the next in line of succession?

No. William has a son, so Friedrich isn't even a runner-up.

Can't wait to see that! Will Denmark collapse? The Anti-Pope emerge?

Think of bigger fish. Austria, the Ottomans, and so on. And England. In the next two updates it should be pretty clear that someone else is western Europe's new attack dog.
 
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Excellent update, and that little remark about the reversals of the late 15th Century has me in a froth. A froth I say!

PS. Oh dear lord! How in the name of His Majesty William III (King of England Scotland and France, True Emperor and Autocrat of the Romans) have I not knighted you yet!?

I hereby Knight you Sir Chris Taylor, OLIR, Knight of the Order of the Large and Intimidating Robert
(The order does not command you too, but appreciates if you put Sir [Insert name here], OLIR in your sig :p).
 
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Why thank you, Sir Robert. I will wear it with pride!

Is it within the bounds of the order to use a Latin translation?
 
Why thank you, Sir Robert. I will wear it with pride!

Is it within the bounds of the order to use a Latin translation?

OOH! It is indeed!
 
OOH! It is indeed!

Excellent! Now I just have to figure out what "Knight of the Order of the Large and Intimidating Robert" would be in Latin. Probably something like Eques Ordo Roberti Magni Intimidati. Someone with better Latin grammar (maybe gabor) will correct me... :D
 
How did I miss this for so long!
An in depth, MMU, history book AAR.

Incredibly well written, with a sense for both the grand historical sense and the more personal. Truly a masterpiece.
Thus I award you one of the earlier awards in AARland
a Lord Strange Cookie of British Awesomeness
 
How did I miss this for so long!
An in depth, MMU, history book AAR.

Incredibly well written, with a sense for both the grand historical sense and the more personal. Truly a masterpiece.
Thus I award you one of the earlier awards in AARland
a Lord Strange Cookie of British Awesomeness

Thank you, Lord Strange. I appreciate the compliments and the cookie!
 
Someone with better Latin grammar (maybe gabor) will correct me... :D

Ordo needs to be in the genitive. Also, eques needs to be in the genitive, because it is apposition to Christophorus Sartorius. Which also needs to be in the genitive. YOU GONNA HAVE SOME GENITIVES RIGHT THURR!

But really though, fabulous AAR. Only a couple I can think of in the same league.
 
Ordo needs to be in the genitive. Also, eques needs to be in the genitive, because it is apposition to Christophorus Sartorius. Which also needs to be in the genitive. YOU GONNA HAVE SOME GENITIVES RIGHT THURR!

But really though, fabulous AAR. Only a couple I can think of in the same league.

Thanks for the compliment and the advice. Why am I not surprised that Latin grammar can be addressed in the AAR forum? :D

All of it needs to be in the genitive? Okay, this is making my head hurt a little. So it ought to be "ex libris Christophori Sartoris, Equitis Ordinis Roberti Magni et Intimidati" ...?
 
Brilliant writing. I love how everything connects together and has context. I don't care if it's redundant, that's how much I like this AAR.
 
This is WONDERFUL. A great read, and one of the best history/gameplay mergers I have ever seen. :eek:


Regarding the National Trade Policy vs Something Else.

1. You do NOT need NTP for the Colonial Trade policy.

Every time your ruler dies (or when you first get a colony or two), you will get an event asking what colonial policy your ruler will implement. Switching colonial policies gives mauluses based on what you had before, but if you go with Extractive at first (National: 10% Colony Chance, +0.5 Colonists. Provinces: Productions bonus, small hit to military matters, revolt risk increase), and then once you get a good solid colonial empire built up, switch to the Trade Colonial on next ruler death, it should only give a RR and (production or National Trade Income hit I think), no stab hits. Switching FROM Trade Superiority gives a stab hit I believe.

When I play Spain, I usually go for Extractive Prerogative at first, to try and beat everyone else out of the New World, by using my Conquistadors to explore the coast of N.A, and try and lock England out. She usually gets a couple of provinces, but I use my +1.25 colonists a year (Colonial Ventures + Extractive + First Colonist Boost), to plop down colonies on either side, then cut her off deeper in. Once I eat the Aztecs, I'll usually switch to Trade Superiority due to being able to get a 100% monopoly on Mexico, and just rake in the cash.


What are your plans for England? If they involve a LOT of colonizing early on to try and lock France/Spain out of N.A., you'll want to go for Colonial Ventures, as while the +0.5 colonists is important, that -15% colonist cost when combined with other cheapeners becomes quite powerful, and can allow for some early colony spam.


Also, I recommend when going for a colonial CoT, to try and get it at LEAST one province deep. Preferably a couple of provinces deep, in recently uncovered terra incognita, to maximize it's lasting power. Once it starts getting late in the game, "friends" with explorers will uncover your coastal provinces, or enemies who have your coasts from the 75 year wait might invade with troops and reveal it. Then you actually have to start competing!



And all this isn't to say NTP isn't a nice NI. It's just AE/Colony spam might be more important. What NTP *IS* required for:
  • "National Bank" - *drool*
  • "Pass Navigation Act" - NTP + Collector are required to pass this, it gives +2.5% TE, -5% foreign compete, -10% manpower, +10% Naval forcelimits, +0.5 navy traditon, +0.02 infamy, +2.5 Nat. Trade Income.

(Not to be confused with "Navigation Acts" which gives +20% TE, +20% PE, -50% manpower, and a few other bonus/maulus. That more powerful one requires other things, and no NIs in particular.)

2. Going off that last bit - Yes, there is a GREAT decision economy wise to do. Unfortunately, it gives a hit to infamy (+0.10), and just takes a BITE out of your manpower. Remember, manpower modifiers are ADDITIVE not multiplicative. So if you stick with Quality, Naval, and have a good sized army (remember the bigger your army, the heavier the standing army/horse shortages/Arty Manu maluses get. I'm currently playing a Spain game where I have completely unified Iberia (Aragon + Portugal + Castille), and have Quality 1 (-1 really, but you get my point), Naval 1, Trade Superority (-10% manpower), and 52 Infantry, 14 Cavalry, 10 Cannons (-24% manpower total). Add in -50% from Navigation acts.. yeah. Base Manpower of 21,000, maximum manpower of.... 9000. The only BONUSES I have to manpower are 5%x2 (Grain Depots <- make sure you plop one of these down in London/Oxfordshire, and one in Ulster. (One per culture)) and Great Power (+10%).

As soon as I open up my next NI at Gov 28, I am currently stuck between Going for Nat. Conscripts, Grand Army... or an AE NI. I think by the time I get to Gov 28 I will NEED an AE NI, as I currently have almost a 100% lockout on the Americas, sooo many provinces...




Some small things to look at: Try grabbing a "Slave" province when you can. As long as you have five provinces of the plantation goods (Sugar, Cotton, Tobacco,Coffee), and one province of slaves, you'll get +5% PE. Other nice bonuses to look for... eerr well. This would take up way too much typing, just open up "triggered_modifiers.txt" in MMU/common, and find "Synergy", which is the start of a list of a whole bunch of nice bonuses from having certain goods. Then search for "Trade Goods" which is the header for all those wonderful monopolies you can get. <3 Ivory True Monopoly. Pretty hard to get though. Cotton Monopoly is one of the North American monopolies you can usually get though.


And whew, I've typed a lot now. I'll stop for now, and wait eagerly for your next post to see where things are going.
 
So it ought to be "ex libris Christophori Sartoris, Equitis Ordinis Roberti Magni et Intimidati" ...?

Yeah. Well, technically, the genitive of Sartorius (i.e., the latinized form of the name "taylor") is Sartorii, whereas Sartoris is the genitive of sartor, which is just the Latin word for "tailor." But that's more of an authorial choice than a grammatical problem.
 
Brilliant writing. I love how everything connects together and has context. I don't care if it's redundant, that's how much I like this AAR.

Thanks, BootOnFace. Orwell would love your nick, BTW. :D

Iamwinterborn: That is a lot of data to process and think about! Kind of wish I had read it before I had chosen the NI and played out the next 20 years. :(

The advice about provincial and national decisions is well-received though, and I will be sure to implement them when the time comes. As is the colonial decision regarding Extractive vs Trade. Someone else—gabor I think—made the same recommendation earlier, and it seems rational.

I am not going to actively try to lock France or Spain out of North America; I would rather take their colonial turf the old-fashioned way via a series of wars. The general long-term strategy will be to take key lynchpins that (once cored) allow expansion into new areas (i.e. Bermuda for NA, St. Helena for southern Africa, Cape Town for Indian Ocean, Falklands to stage into the eastern Pacific, etc).

The short-term strategy will be to prepare for the Reformation and devote whatever energies/resources are left into colonisation. Though there are some continental complications before all of that.
 
This AAR is simply amazing! I can merely dream of writing something half as awesome as this.
 
I hope this AAR hasn't died. It is definitely one of my favorites and I'd love to see an update

It's not dead! I got sucked into a couple of books (one on Thomas Cromwell, the other on the Spanish conquest of Mexico) and spent all my free time reading rather than writing. I blame my wife for that; the Cromwell book was one she took out from the library but then decided she didn't want to read it. Then she dangled it in front of me and said "Look! Thomas Cromwell!" Naturally I had to read it.

Then I inherited a giant wad of the Osprey military history books. They aren't graduate-level complexity, but they do a good job of summarising and introducing you to key periods/battles/personalities and you could literally spend the next couple years reading them all.

The good news is, the graphics for the next update and a half are done, I just have to finish the writing/editing.

I'm aiming to get an update posted on the weekend sometime. Probably later rather than sooner as my wife is planning on seeing the royal wedding tomorrow, and there's no way she can wake up at 0400 and not wake me up too. :p

I know everyone's probably frothing with anticipation already, but let me just say that the next 30 years were a sheer joy to play. Not that they were necessarily easy, but I saw things I've never seen in Magna Mundi before, and things happened that made me say "Ooooo this is grrrreat for the AAR."
 
I know everyone's probably frothing with anticipation already, but let me just say that the next 30 years were a sheer joy to play. Not that they were necessarily easy, but I saw things I've never seen in Magna Mundi before, and things happened that made me say "Ooooo this is grrrreat for the AAR."

Can't wait to see these things! :)