Prince of Vidin - A Roman AAR

[el_zilcho321]

This is my first AAR, so I am probaly going to be quite bad at writing the stuff but hopefully I will get into the flow of things. So with out further ado: Vidin

EDIT: Welcome to the AAR, if this is your first time reading this let me tell you, the pictures DO get better, so don't stop reading because of these crappy pictures.

I woke up in my villa a few days after the Catholic Christmas celebration, unsure whether the Orthodox Church celebrated such events so I decided to head to the atrium to see if anyone bought me a gift. It was then that I realised that even if I did celebrate Christmas no one would have bought me a gift. Look at me, at thought to myself. I'm just a small Duke in the shadow of The Roman Empire, I need to expand my influence.



So I began in my conquest for greatness. First I needed to secure my inheritence, and that needed a wife, or advance cloning technolegy but as I was currently researching how to herd cows, I decided making my wive bare a child was the best option. Unfortunately, I was a batchelor at that time (a very, very attractive one may I say) so I needed to arrange a marriage. I turned to my always faithful vassal, the count of Naissus, and asked if I could marry his spymaster, Radicca. Because he is a good boy, he accepted.



My leige, Konstantitos Emperor of Byzantium, asked if I would kindly muster my forces to continue his foolish war with the Seljuk Turks. Whatever happened to standing armies? I relunctently agreed, pitying his foolishness to wage such a war (but don't tell him I said that). If I were Emperor, well, someone go and warn the Papacy, actually don't inform the Papacy and get ready for a suprise attack on Roma. But I'm not the Emperor and probaly will never be, a pity.

Comments and constructive critism appreciated.

[Rollofthedice]

I don't mean to be rude at all, but those pictures look... strange. What program do you use to take and edit the pictures? I'd use Fraps to get screenshots - if you want to edit them as well, make sure not to resize it weird or anything like that.

Other than that though, it seems pretty good so far. Note, however, that you may want to find a good free program or website that does spellchecking. Don't get me wrong, you seem to write well, and there aren't too many mistakes - I'm just a pedant, that's all.

Keep up the good writing, and I hope my post doesn't come off as arrogant or anything.

[Cornelius Rex]

The pics are just scaled up so much that they jag, I think. Either that or the JPEG compression is set to very low quality. Or both.

Nice place to start. I just began a game right to the south...

[el_zilcho321]

Sorry, it's my first time editing pictures so I just used 'print screen' and paint. I don't know much about computers and therefore I was (and still am) afraid of new software. So what kind of stuff do you reccomend?
As for the spelling, after re-reading it, I have noticed a few words in the wrong places and I am unsure of the correct spelling for some words. I think most of these errors were due to the fact I rushed the first post. I will try to be more precise in future posts.

EDIT: Paint - That's the default software on Windows, just incase you didn't know/realise.

[Rollofthedice]

Sorry, it's my first time editing pictures so I just used 'print screen' and paint. I don't know much about computers and therefore I was (and still am) afraid of new software. So what kind of stuff do you reccomend?
As for the spelling, after re-reading it, I have noticed a few words in the wrong places and I am unsure of the correct spelling for some words. I think most of these errors were due to the fact I rushed the first post. I will try to be more precise in future posts.

EDIT: Paint - That's the default software on Windows, just incase you didn't know/realise.

To take photos, I'd go Fraps all the way. It's supposed to be a video recorder, but the free version fully supports taking pictures.

As for editing, GIMP is a great free program, but it takes a bit to get used to if you don't have experience with PhotoShop. Though, if you do know how to use Photoshop, it's basically the same, and it's well worth the learning curve.

EDIT, KINDA: After checking out some stuff after a bit of Googling, PhotoFiltre is a nice, simple and easy to edit photos. What you want to do, though, is ignore all those pesky saturation and contrast options and go straight to the text input. It'll make more sense once you start to use it, trust me.

[el_zilcho321]

Thanks, I'll try them out and hopefully my next post will be better.

[Iain Wilson]

Aside from slightly wierd piccies, this AAR could have potential. It's a lot of fun starting as a county and seeing what happens, rather than playing as a mega power from day one.

[Cornelius Rex]

Don't know about counties, but the duchies in that area are fun indeed . And with Vidin, he can always look forward to the Empire someday. Or, alternatively, to creating the kingdom of Serbia. He already has 3 out of 8 provinces.

[el_zilcho321]

After marrying my lovely wife Radicca, it was only a matter of time, fertility and many other factors before an heir was born. So I waited, and sure enough...



But after that I again played the waiting game. Not much happened for a few months until april when tragic news came from Turkey. Emperor Konstantinos had been killed in battle, or he died of old age no one reallly told me, but I do not really care (If anyones going to heaven (Do I believe in heaven, I am pretty sure I do, Orthodox is a form of christianity right? So, yeah, I am safe) don't tell him I said that). And so I was asked to pay homeage to my new leige, Michael, which I galdly agreed mainly because his name is easier to spell.



Now, I draw you back to my ambitions. I am beggining to expand my influence over the surrounding Catholic provinces. In the not to distant I can see an Orthodox world. But anyway, I'm trailing from the point. I made one of my most skillful... claim-forging men, to forge a claim on the neighbouring province of Rashka, owned by... The Duchy of Rashka. This duchy recently declared independance from their leige, Duke of Dioclea. Sed Duke (Of Dioclea, not Rashka) is now my ally.



Heres an image just to show you how much effect my troops were going to.



Because of this I have started to turn down requests from The Emperor for my men to be slaughtered at the hands of the Seljuks.

On a more pleasent note, late that year, my wife gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. We made the decision to name him Leo, because it's a cool name.



And unfortunately a balck whole formed in the Black Sea and is sucking in Georgia

The next year I didn't realise that I was commanding an army and subsequently became captured by the enemy. Without an heir who could properly rule the dukedom, my courtiers and regents decided it would be best to pay the ransom the infidels proposed.



This was incredulosly annoying, seeing as I was only 6 moneys away from building a forestry to provide timber for the whole province, now I have been set back for years.

My efforts to make it big time seem to be taking time, but I assure you, eventually I will control more land, more money and most improtant of all more land!

EDIT: Are the pictures too big?

[Rollofthedice]

The pictures are the perfect size, actually.

[el_zilcho321]

That's good, I was just a bit weary because when I first loaded them, they looked big but then became small.

[Cornelius Rex]

Hit those Rashka renegades . Abandoning Dioclea should be punished by death, confiscation and wifely nagging, in that order. Or, at least, annexation by Vidin.

[Iain Wilson]

Although being captured and having to pay the ransom has put your plans back a few years, think how much worse it would have been if you'd had a child-regency ruling your domain...

[Cornelius Rex]

Just asking, but...

... why do you wait? Getting county-level claims on Rashka should be within your means, and beating them too (if they invested in the Duchy, they probably don't have any garrison improvements). You would get into debt, but so what? And if you wait they may get allies, or join Croatia or the Empire, or...

My experience at Duchy level is rather limited (and I'm still finding out things about the Orthodox, like you can't vassalize Emirs ) so it's a practical question. I really don't know.

[el_zilcho321]

Although being captured and having to pay the ransom has put your plans back a few years, think how much worse it would have been if you'd had a child-regency ruling your domain...

I literally threw up all over the floor, but yes, you are right.

Just asking, but...

... why do you wait? Getting county-level claims on Rashka should be within your means

After the Emperor raised my host twice I now only have 100 troops in my demesne, my vassal has about 500, Raska has 1600(ish). I can't strike now, otherwise I'll be destroyed, unless Byzantines join in, but thats unlikely as:



If you can't see, there are 4 regiments from shiraz, which is why I drew a wizard.

EDIT: Does a Duke/Prince become a Count if vassalisation is part of a peace deal between him and anothe Duke/Prince?

[Cornelius Rex]

OK, now I understand . I didn't remember your regiments had been drafted.

And no, you can only turn him into a vassal Count if you take his Duke title when you vassalize him. A duke can't vassalize another duke...

[Alfredian]

Good luck with your Kingdom building. The advance of the Seljuks tends to make life in this part of the world a bit scary. You never know where they will stop.

[el_zilcho321]

Sorry that I haven't posted recently and for the fact I will be rarely posting in the coming week, but I will use what little time I do have spare to play and report

It was in March and after raising enough funds I built a Forestry to provide building materials and timber for trade, this extra money would help me to expand.

My Emperor finally concluded peace with the Turks and Asia Minor became a complete mess:



After these events, nothing happened for a couple of years and then in 1073 an awesome, incredibly lucky strock of luck which was quite lucky occoured, the countess of Rashka declared independence from her leige, rival and hubby, The Duke of Raska. He subsequently declared war upon her and I decided to stroll in.



And finally after a few months of seiging, the settlement fell to definitely my forces But unfortunatly the duke of Rashka inherited my allie's dukedom and became the duke of Dioclea which annoyed me considerably at the time, as it would have been much easier to pick off single provinces.




And after that little event things went quiet for several years...

[Saithis]

Vidin's influence grows, but the Empire is weakening in the east. Seljuk forces threaten to crush them wholeheartedly. I hope that the Greek Empire can resist this Turkish onslaught!

[el_zilcho321]

Vidin's influence grows, but the Empire is weakening in the east. Seljuk forces threaten to crush them wholeheartedly. I hope that the Greek Empire can resist this Turkish onslaught!

How dare you insult us! We are men of true Roman descent, we are the conquerors of Greece! But I do agree with what you said, if The Empire falls, I shall have no safe haven from the infidels, because I am isolated from any other Orthodox states except Byzantion, and if the Seljuks crush it, I shall have to flee in exile to Russia.