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Yeah, it's always better to read the events in the actual update. ;) Sounds interesting though, especially since my turn is after yours.

Oh and don't worry about taking your time if the ruler refuses to die, I won't be able to play today or tomorrow anyway.

Guess I jinxed it, my boy died in 1504. Here's the savegame, I'll write it up tomorrow or the day after. Have fun with the rebel stacks. :)
 
Guess I jinxed it, my boy died in 1504. Here's the savegame, I'll write it up tomorrow or the day after. Have fun with the rebel stacks. :)

Haha, thanks. :)

Got it, like I said I'll probably play it on Tuesday and/or Wednesday.
 
The first installment…
(The sequence of some events was not depicted strictly in order so as to fit better into the narrative. Sorry about the big pictures, I ran into some problems when first converting the .bmps into .gifs and then for some reason into .jpgs, won’t happen again, hope I didn’t break any rules.)


When his father died, Uwais was a man grown, 27 years of age. He was the Third of the Jalayirid Dynasty and had been shaken twice this year and the realm had shaken with him. Uwais III and with him his fathers subjects had always believed that the Khalif father would eventually be succeeded by his brother Walad, his elder by 13 years, who had served as the primary council and the right hand to his father. Yet, by god’s infinite wisdom, both his esteemed father and his beloved brother had been taken from him within the span of but a single year. His new realm looked impressive on the map of the world, yet he was aware that large tracts of land were arid and but sparsely settled.

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Uwais III knew well that this was no time to lament. Provinces, remote from court, which had only ever answered to the authority of his late father, had risen in open rebellion. Equally disturbing was that a general and distant kin to him had made the convenient discovery that his ancestry could be traced directly from the prophet and lay claim to the throne, drawing malcontents to his side. Alas, the Khalif’s troops remained loyal and numerous and the rulers coffer well filled, thus Uwais III was confident that he would be able to weather the storm.

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Gloomily Uwais III reflected the prophesies the court astrologers had made at his and his brothers birth. If Walad would fall, they had said, a million men would fall with him. And Uwais’ III foretelling had been even more enigmatic. The old men had discussed the meaning of the constellation of his birth for days, only to declare that Uwais III was to go east if he wished to go west and that he was to restore the old if he wished to bring forth the new. Angered by their constant riddles, Uwais’ III father drove the foolish men away.
As he himself was inexperienced in the matters of administrating a state Uwais III was relieved to find his his council of advisors to be both competent and diverse.

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Not wishing to alienate his court with his plans any earlier than what would prove necessary; he devised a way to remove ‘Abbas Mohsin, the main representative of the influential clergy from court. He tasked him with the establishment of an Sheikh ul-Islam office.

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Absent from the seat of government the theologian’s influence at court was quickly surpassed by that of a young scientist that had attracted the Sultan’s attraction.
‘Abd al Karim Mirza, his late father’s valued advisor in all matters monetary reported that the they possessed a modest amount of wealth and that the lands, he reigned over, would sustain that. He was only troubled be the rise in prices over the last decades that hindered commerce and the state alike.
Uwais III bid the three commanders of the Khalifate’s troops to engage smaller rebel forces primarily and to only operate in provinces affected by major rebellions when having far superior numbers. While some rebels managed to seize control of limited areas of Uwais’ dominion, his commanders proved to be able and quelled the insurrection within 2 years of the coronation.

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In April 1475 the final forces of the pretender had been encircled and would soon meet the fate they deserved. This marked the end of the rebellion.

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Dismayed by this display of dominance several local leaders approached Uwais III to swear fealty to him and swore to rule their lands in his name.

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Appeased by his subjects’ subservience and eager to be able to mobilize resources that would otherwise remain bound, Uwais III made his first mistake. He trusted the false pretences of the envoy of the Qara Koyunlu nomads speaking of lasting peace and plentiful tribute if he were to disband his garrisons in their lands. In truth they only accepted the peace to gather their forces and would assault the realm again in time. Yet they grossly overestimated their strength and never proved to be more than a mere nuisance to the Jalayrids.

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When peace was restored Uwais III finally found the time to operate beyond the borders of his lands. He invited foreign dignitaries, which brought with them offers to share kin and troops. The Khalif embraced the former but rejected the later – wise beyond his years as future events would serve to show.

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These endeavors soon bore fruit and the people in the streets rejoiced. A son had been born to Uwais III.

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In the meanwhile Uwais III cautiousness proved to be justified, as the Mamluks were embroiled in a long lasting conflict with the Ottomans.

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Uwais III remember his late father’s yearnings well to subjugate the lands of the Mamluks to the West. Yet they still yielded substantial forces and the Khalif was hesitant to fare war against a Dynasty that had only recently been joined with his by blood, knowing of the uproar that this would cause among the nobility. Yet he was still determined to use the situation to his advantage and so his gaze wandered to the lands to the east, for where the astrologers had prophesized his destiny.
To the east there lay Persia, the remnant of a once glorious civilization. The Mamluks had sworn to eternally protect them but Uwais III knew only too well the value of oaths in dire times. He bid his commanders to march and destroy the Persian armies, seize their garrisons and pacify their lands. As he had expected, the Mamluks never honored their obligations, preferring to not open their flanks up to the Jalalyrid forces.
The Persians on the other hand were no match to Uwais’ III armies.

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After their armies had been scattered, the Khalif knew that it was only a matter of time, until he could incorporate these lands into his realm.

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It was an easy victory to say the least yet it was an important one for Uwais III. Until now he had proven to his people that he could restore and keep order within the realm but now he had shown to them his ability to reach beyond and successfully lead an army into foreign lands. (Even though unlike some of his predecessors, especially Walad the Furious, he never rode into battle himself.) His people trusted him now and he would need their trust to its fullest extend for what was to come.

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For his ambition reached further and he knew that while his army had proven its mettle for the time being, it simply would not suffice for that which lay ahead of them. So he began a great reform program that would have shaken the foundations of society, had it not be for the voice ‘Abbas Mohsin, who published a widely received tome on the importance of the monetary system to Muslim society. (Within the same year ‘Abbas Mohsin was banished from the realm for charges of heresy, but that is another story.) This allowed Uwais III to rechannel funds, which had hitherto been used to maintain the conscript system to institute a bank, which would finance the state if needed. For Uwais III was preparing for war and he knew, that wars may be fought with swords, but they were won with money.

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Yet, the Khalif didn’t foolishly believe that wars could be won by money alone, so he undertook further measures to reform the army. He increased and standardized the size of his 3 armies to 12.000 men each, commanding that no less than a third of them were to be provisioned with horses, because he knew the cavalry to be their greatest strength. Whenever he was confronted with a choice, Uwais III upheld his vision of a disciplined army of trained soldiers. To this end he introduced a system of Military Drill, that would replace the rag-tag levies of older times.

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When he inspected his newly recruited and drilled soldiers, Uwais III knew that they were as ready as they were ever going to be for what he hoped to accomplish. Only time would show if it had been enough. For Uwais III did not wish to stop at the conquest of Persia. He yearned for more. It had hurt him more than he had shown to destroy what had remained from Persia, yet he had only done so because he realized, that they on their own could not hope to restore themselves to their former glory. No, they had been lost but not their cause. Uwais III was intent to revigorate the Persian Empire of old for he knew that he alone lacked the legitimacy to put an end to the constant strife within the tribes he ruled. If his dynasty could only recreate itself in the image of the Persia that once was, he knew that his people would follow him and his sons and their sons alone, abandoning their tribal bonds for good.
Yet he could not lay claim to a glorious past if he had not the lands and the people under his control, that were to give power to his vision. These lands had been conquered by infidels, Dravidian Hindus that traced their descent from the city of Vijayanagar, the city of victory. He could only hope that that did not bode ill omen.
His initial plan was simple. He needed no pretense for his aggression, for nobody would question his outrage at the conquest of the Persian heartlands by infidels.

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Two armies would attack the Hindus simultaneously in the north and in the south while the third army were to remain in the capital as a reserve and in order to maintain the peace of the land. Scouts reported little resistance as Uwais III expected, since Vijayanagar and their allies were embroiled in conflict with the powerful remains of the horde of Timur. Thus the Khalif envisioned an easy capture of the main cities in the area, after which the growing discontent of the enemy’s people would soon force the rulers of Vijayanagar to give up these lands, that by right belonged to the Khalif as the supreme leader of the Muslims.

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It turned out that he was gravely mistaken about the lack of resistance.
 
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Great, you're going East! Hmm, a Jalayrid Persian Empire... "Persia under the Jalayrids" I like the sound of that :)
 
Interesting. Going east.

Hopefully the Ottomans and Mamluks exhaust each other, right?
 
Seems like you're getting dangerously close to the Timurids again, then again, this war seems to be taking a turn for the worse...

And uh... if you still have space I would love to take a turn :unsure: ...
 
2nd installment... writing an AAR is both harder and more time-consuming than I had expected. Sheesh, I'm glad it won't be my turn for a while. :)

As could only be expected, the other Hindu states supported the heathen occupier of the Persian lands.

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Their combined armies outnumbered Uwais’ III troops by far – effectively the entirety of India was at war with the Dynasty of the Jalayirids. Yet instilled with the confidence of youth the Khalif never expected to face the majority of their forces an assumption he did not communicate to his nobility. Instead he portrayed the very survival of the state at risk and tasked his tax assessors to intensify their efforts. The nobility was angered by this burden and dissatisfaction rose, but Uwais III never expected to seriously exert his realms capabilities in this war so he paid little heed to such seemingly minor matters.

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Not expecting any resistance Uwais III had only tasked minor armies with about 2000 men each to capture the enemy’s Persian provinces, since he wished to hold the remaining troops of his invasion force in reserve, so as to avoid having to provision his men in foreign lands. This lack of caution could not remain unpunished and the majority of the Khalif’s troops retreated in panic, when scouts send reports of an approaching Hindu army with a strength of 15.000 men. Uwais’ III light troops met this superior forces in Kerman, hoping to be able to use the terrain to their advantage. A relief force was dispatched from the garrisons in Dash-I Lut, but to no avail: The Khalif’s forces were beaten by the Vijayanagarese troops and forced to retreat to Fars. But they managed to use their retreat to their advantage - they systematically destroyed all potential sources for provisioning for the pursuing enemy. Months later, the united troops of the Khalif routed and subsequentially destroyed the exhausted Vijayanagarese in Fars.

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The battle had been won, yet Uwais III was ashamed to have been surprised by the enemy's bold advance. Further precautions were taken to ensure that sizable Jalayirid forces were always stationed within operational range of the light regiments that attempted to quell the unrest in the Vijayanagarese provinces. No further incidents occurred and within the span of 8 months the enemy’s remaining holds had been fully occupied.
For the moment the Hindus had to dedicate the mainstay of their armies to the war against the Timurid Hordes. Yet, the descendants of Timur the Lame showed signs of weakening. Large tracts of land had been occupied by their common enemy and some provinces were entirely held by rebels, seeing an opportunity to throw off the yoke of their preoccupied foreign rulers. Uwais III dreaded the moment, when the Timurid’s armies would collapse under the pressure of the heathen invaders.

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Unrelated to these events, an exiled member of the Khivanese ruling family arrived at Uwais III court, pledging his allegiance in return for an army sufficient enough to usurp his brother’s throne.

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Uwais III was happy to oblige and the pretender stayed true to his word - he pledged fealty to the Jalayrid’s dynasty. At the same time the rebels in the South-Western Timurid provinces had driven off the last garrisons left behind by the Horde, effectively achieving independence for Durrani.

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The main war had proceeded in the meanwhile, but no major events had taken place. Occasionally Vijayanagarese armies would attempt to reclaim their lands or confront Jalayrid armies but to no avail, they were always thrown back with relative ease, though at the cost of many lifes.
Disheartened by their ally’s lack of progress and driven by a heathen’s treacherous nature both Bihar and Assam sent envoys to the Jalayrid court to offer a cessation of hostilities. While they had in fact never threatened his realm, Uwais III was nonetheless happy to oblige, since it would deprive Vijayanagar of their support and thus place him in a superior position in future negotiations.

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Much confusion ensued, when an envoy from distant Francia arrived at the Jalayrid court who had set out for this voyage 2 years ago. He carried with him documents that Uwais’ III advisors declared to be authentic. The Lord of Burgundy had declared war upon the Jalayrids, yet the reasons for this remained incomprehensible even to the wisest sages at court. Uwais III ordered the messenger to be staked and returned his attention to more vital matters.

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His scouts had sent reports about interesting developments on the eastern front. Despite being embroiled in two wars, Vijayanagar had seen it fit to dispatch their subjects to Timurid lands and to claim them for themselves. Uwais III was undecided whether to respect such audacity or laugh at this folly. When he heard of a series of confrontations between armies from Rajputana and the Timurids in this contested province he immediately dispatched his 2nd army to destroy what remained of the Rajput forces and to claim the lands for himself. The weakened Rajput forces were routed, pursuited and eventually wiped out over the course of several engagements.

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After the annihilation of half their standing army, a Rajput messenger conveyed an offer to put an end to this bloody struggle, but insisted this his ruler must keep face, lest he fall prey to riotous factions within his realm who might not honor the truce in his stead. Thus Uwais III thought it wise to acknowledge that he had been defeated by Rajputan knowing that words had no value and that he would only have to face Vijayanagar alone now.

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A little later yet another envoy arrived, announcing that the great king of France and Ruler of Eastern Hispania had in his glory decided to fill the void, that the Rajput departure had left. After the Khalif’s wise men declared the messenger to be sound of body and head, he was provided with funds for his exerting return to his homelands. Uwais III shook his head, he did not envy those in the service of the Kings of Francia, yet their dedication was marvelous.

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For now he had other concerns. When consulting his advisers he came to the conclusion, that Vijayanagar would never willingly part with Hormuz, the jewel of Persia. But the Durrani rebellion against their Timurid overlords had inspired him. So he secretly instigated the populace of Hormuz to take up arms and instructed his armies to not interfere with any events within the province.

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Only when the people of Hormuz sought control of neighboring lands he sent his armies to contain them. But Hormuz itself remained in the rebels’ hands who were eager to uproot the remaining traces of Vijayanagarese influence.

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Uwais III kept trying to encourage reform in his realm, but his efforts came at a cost. Tribal leaders, who were already dismayed by the authority his court wielded were further alienated by their ruler's innovativeness and mistook his bold moves for weakness.

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Meanwhile the recently erected colonies from Vijayanagar had fallen into Jalayirid hands. Not all developments were as positive though as the Timurid Horde showed serious signs of weakness and many of their lands had been occupied by their foes. Correspondingly the Vijayanagarese incursions had increased in both intensity and frequency – it took all the efforts the Jalayirid armies could muster to keep the enemy at bay. This came at a great cost. Many young men perished at the front and the populace grew weary of the war. The Khalif’s advisors estimated that about 25.000 men had either been killed, wounded - or worse – deserted his armies by now. Uwais III knew that the enemy had had to bear a far greater toll, but it also worried him as recruits were harder to find and unrest within his population was increasing.

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So VJ won't peace out for just those provinces? Would they peace for just Hormuz and Makran? It'd make it easier to take the other ones later. And do you expect anything from the francophone powers or will they just eventually white peace out?

Nice movement east, I like the idea of Jalayirid Persia! Afterwards, into India!
 
The Vija's are tougher than expected... do they have military access through Rajputana? 'Cause otherwise I don't understand how they manage to send armies over.
 
Duke of Burgundy: Servant! I am in a bored mood, bring me a map!

Servant: Uh, why, sir?

DoB: I want to start a war!

Servant: But sir, aren't we already in a compromising position between France and the coalition of the Holy Roman Empire?

DoB: You fool! I want a war so that we can have a war, not a war we're supposed to fight, now put that map on the wall there... good, now soldier, give me your crossbow and see where we hit... ah, Jalyarids! Sounds great, send... uh... that stable boy... you know, the one with the beautiful wife, with the declaration of war.


I presume the King of France then heard from the Duke what he was doing and jumped on the bandwagon because he found it hilarious.
 
And the third installment... one more to go... ugh.

Since the Burgundian expeditionary force had recently returned from Siberia and reported that the location of the mysterious Jalayirids remained unknown, the Lord of Burgundy finally offered to cease hostilities.

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Uwais III shrugged and returned his attention to the war with Vijayanagar. It had lasted for a solid 8 years now and neither side had managed to procure a decisive advantage. The scales had tilted ever so slightly into the direction of the Jalayrids as the constant battles had seriously depleted the Hindu armies. Yet it had also taken its toll from the Khalif’s realm, inciting the peasants to revolt. Uwais III did not dare to invade the Hindu mainland since his troops lacked the recruits to replace losses. Thus the war of attrition continued with large battles and small skirmishes, never drawing closer to a conclusion.

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Whenever Uwais III thought he could no longer be surprised by his foes, they pulled another trick. Uwais III was not yet convinced, whether it should be regarded as a stroke of genius or the work of a madman. Together with the mainstay of Vijayanagar’s armies, settlers arrived in the province of Gharchistan and drove off the indigenous population. Uwais III quickly dispatched armies to take control of the situation.

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Unrelated to these events, advisers at court were able to procure sufficient evidence to claim two provinces as part of the Jalayirid Empire, backing up Uwais’ III claim as the rightful ruler of Persia.

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The years passed by as the war continued and with it the loss of lives. It was the tenth year of battle and both the Jalayrids and Vijayanagar had been heavily taxed, yet neither wished to give in. The Vijayanagar ruler in their despair had even sponsored pirates in the Jalayrid waters which led Uwais III to order the expansion of the Khalifat’s navy. In the meanwhile revolts were erupting throughout the country and the Jalayrid troops were hard pressed to maintain the peace. To make matters worse the Khalif’s armies were now constantly understaffed and Uwais III himself was troubled, whether they would be able to continue the war under these conditions. When his master of the mint approached him and informed him, that they would not be able to pay the troops for this year, Uwais III ordered him to significantly decrease the gold content of the currency. He was determined to hold out, because he felt that a change had occurred, that could end this stalemate.

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The people of Vijayanagar had finally grown weary of the war, so Uwais III decided to gain their sympathies by offering their rulers an easy way out of this senseless slaughter. Yet as Uwais III had expected, they were too proud to accept his offers and he hoped that their pride would be their downfall.

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Before long the people of Vijayanagar rose in open rebellion against their masters and Uwais III knew that they would not be able to hold out for much longer. And neither could the Jalayrids as the economical situation worsened and the unrest of the populace intensified.

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On the positive side, the people of Hormuz had finally been able to eradicate the last resistance from Vijayanagar and had proclaimed their independence. Uwais III quickly sent an expeditionary force to offer his protection and to convey his plans about a Greater Persia.

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Despite this the general situation grew grimmer every day. The Vijayanagarese rules remained deaf to the plight of their people and stubbornly refused to part with their Persian provinces. Young men had all but completely disappeared from the streets of Uwais’ III realm and he dreaded the sight of the many widows beyond his palace’s walls, clad in black. When a steward conveyed a disrespectful comparison the Khalif had made about the similarity in sound between the wailing women and the palace cats, an uproar occurred. The steward was quickly silenced but that harm had been done.

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News reached the court, that the Mamluks had sworn to avenge their previous defeat at the hands of the Ottomans and it seemed as if God would grant it.

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Uwais III knew that he had to act or else his Empire would fall apart. Thus when he received reports of a greater Hindu army operating in Gharchistan and Herat he decided to attempt to wipe them out in a decisive strike, hoping to cripple Vijayanagar in the process.

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While some of the Vijayanagarese regiments managed to flee, the attack dealt the final blow to the aspirations of the Hindu rulers. They accepted that they had lost the war for good and bowed to the demands of the Jalayrid ruler.

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The war had lasted from 1477 to 1491 and had taken a terrible blood toll from both the Jalayrids and their enemies. More than 230,000 men had given their lives in 38 recorded battles, 52,000 of them from the Khalifat’s army. Future generations would have to judge whether this sea of blood had been justified, but for now the Jalayrid Empire stood greater than ever.

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Uwais’ III people danced in the streets when they heard the news that there would be peace. He would have to be careful now to appease his subjects while withholding them major concessions at the same time. Thus he ordered a Veteran’s Home to be built to ease the life of those injured in the war. At the same time he sought to bring order into the ranks of his army, where during the trying times of war many peasants had forgotten their origins.

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Alas, Uwais III rejoiced – against all odds he had defeated the Empire of Vijayanagar. It had cost them dearly, yet in the end they had stood victorious. The lands of old Persia were now his own.
 
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