Enewald: And I expect to be back there many times before this AAR is over. I hope the inhabitants have insurance.
Boris ze Spider: They aren’t the only ones in the war who can provide troops.
morningSIDEr: Well, Trebizond was my only real goal for that war so I don’t mind the outcome. This time its all for Portugal so don’t worry if we don’t get many tangible gains again.
Cross: Thanks! I’m glad I’ve helped others learn how to play the game.
And thanks for all the other replies as well!
The Pharaohs Return: An Alexandrian AAR
Chapter Thirteen: Highs and Lows
As soon as word came General Argyros crossed the border into Byzantine Anatolia on a raiding mission and to try and divert any incoming Byzantine forces while the rest of the armies were assembling.
That could take longer than expected however, as Ethiopia joined the war on their own. Mostly likely they just wanted to take advantage, but nine thousand troops remained on their border watching out just in case of an incident like this.
Meanwhile, the war against Syria’s allies had dragged on with the distant Empire of Mali taking command of the war. The Army of Alexandria was trapped in Tripolitania after dealing with a minor invasion. With Tripoli reappearing and allying with the Malians after gaining independence from Castille there was an odd set of correspondence as a reply to military access requests and declaration of war arrived almost simultaneously. They were annexed again for their trouble.
The result was that almost every army was either engaged in battle or moving towards one across almost every corner of the Empire.
Surprisingly, Ethiopia gave up almost immediately. They still lacked proper fortifications along the Red Sea coast, which allowed Alexandrian armies to run rampant across their lands.
General Argryos and his Byzantine counterpart passed right by each other on their way to the war. However, the Byzantine general made a mistake that had doomed many others attacking Alexandria. Overextending, he advanced into Syria in a blitzkrieg 400 years before its time. It might have worked, but reinforcements were already approaching and Argyros was turning around to link up with them.
The combined Alexandrian armies obliterated the invaders and their foolhardy general.
The rest of the main Byzantine army was in Iberia trying desperately to hold onto its holdings against Portugal and their powerful Aragonese allies. Another large Aragonese force had also landed in Greece for a short-lived raid. In light of this, Ptolemy took command once again and gleefully marched forward. This time he wouldn’t be forced to retreat.
Meanwhile the country’s nobility continued to consolidate their power despite resistance from the middle classes.
The advance through Anatolia continued, although the Byzantines were able to assemble another large army to begin retaking their territory. Ptolemy ordered a repeat of the manoeuvre that crushed the previous one.
The Emperor insisted on micromanaging despite General Argyros’ complaints and so the battle was filled with bloody mistakes. Superior numbers were all that allowed the victory.
With their Iberian army crushed by Aragon and their hastily assembled set of Anatolian defenders suffering a similar fate the Byzantines gave up. They lost all of the territory previously taken from Portugal and also were forced to give reparations for lost tax income and independence to some minor nations.
This was conclusive. Alexandria was now undoubtedly the most powerful of the three Empires. With riches flowing into the capital city, political influence now spreading deeper into Muslim lands and onto Constantinople’s doorstep, and a military that had yet to be truly defeated there it seemed like anything was possible.
Ptolemy ordered money to be poured into construction of workshops and trade depots across the Empire as well as promoting the Komnenos line with great monuments and promoting legends. The man who unified Alexandria and Jerusalem, Kallinikos, was given some of the highest honours. He also dabbled in espionage, sending out spies simply because the Empire’s treasury had more money than he could reasonably hand out to local magistrates.
Naturally, that had to eventually backfire.
(This is literally the first time in all of EU3 the AI has retaliated to my spying. Very impressive if this is something new with DW.)
Alexandrian spies had been meddling in Castille with the intention of assisting their friends. Portugal apparently recognised the sentiment and sided with Alexandria, even when their ally Aragon was not nearly so impressed. That might have not been so wise, as massive Catalan armies were soon marching into their lands.
That was not all that was unwise. The Army of Alexandria marched into Aragonese Africa without caution and was in the middle of assaulting the city of Constantine when they were obliterated by an overwhelming force coming in from the sea. Shortly afterwards, another army landed in Tripoli and began marching unimpeded along the coast conquering everything in its path.
Portugal got off lightly, merely being forced to pay in money and political concessions.
And amazingly, so did Alexandria. Even as Ptolemy lined up the remaining forces to defend the capital from the advancing Aragonese, they offered up a simple deal that the Emperor gladly accepted. It was clear now that the purpose of the war was exactly what had been stated, instead of that being a pretext for other concessions. Aragon had, with this victory and its assistance against Byzantium, asserted itself as the dominant force in the Mediterranean. It certainly took the wind from Ptolemy’s sails.
It did not dissuade him entirely however, as there were other seas bordering the Empire. The Indian Ocean for example. In the Persian Gulf a large construction project was going on to assemble a fleet capable of sailing out into the unknown. No one had yet to step up to the plate and command it, but that would be coming soon.
The year is now 1523.
To be continued…