Saltborn: A Crovan AAR

[Werewhale]

Anyway, since I don't have this yet, and I'm trying to form an opinion on the game by reading the various AARs around here, is it just me or is the "raising levies-going to war-disbanding levies" thing a bit tedious to handle? I mean compared to other similar games, even other Paradox titles?

I never felt it to be tedious, though I suppose it can be so by the time you have a huge empire. But your goal in CK2 should not be creating a huge empire, anyway. The way I organize my armies is to raise them in the military window(if I'm fighting someone weak and my vassals are not secured, I limit this to just my personal levies, or those of my most loyal followers), then I draw boxes around certain areas and have them all assemble in a few counties. So my Welsh troops will group in Gwynedd, Irish levies in Dublin, Scottish levies in Gowrie, Innse Gaill and Carrick(because the Highlands are an unfriendly lady to cross) and the English levies in Winchester or Gloucester then, if necessary, use transports to group these sub-armies together close to the enemy. It's a bit of a chore at times, but it opens up all sorts of strategies.

Would it be too much to ask for a map depicting your exploits at the end of each update?

Each update may be difficult, since I don't have saves for every date, but I can certainly put something up once in a while, as well as overviews over the affairs and history of other regions.

I'm sure the Spanish will love the Crovans as much as the English, Scottish, Irish, and Welsh do.

Well if not, culture-conversion is pretty easy when the populace has another religion. Not that it would help.

[Ivir Baggins]

The King is dead, long die the Connaught rebels!

[naggy]

Chaaaaaaaaaaarge *gurgle*spasm*die*!!!

At the mega-empire stage, you'll actually prefer peace just so you don't have to raise armies.

[Kelly Hrdina]

The war should be a breeze, what with my army outnumbering theirs by a fair margin. I don't even call up my vassals. There's a small battle in Zamora.



Well naturally.

Sometimes this stuff just writes itself.

[Athalcor]

Read it in its entirety in one row! So great!

(aka: Subscribed)

[Chief Ragusa]

How very Crovan to have a vassal declare war on her dead overlord. King Andrew looks like he'll be fun to play. Suitable name for A Scots king, too! Can't leave Lothian in the hands of the Englsh mind. Gilla-whatever the Holy terror on poor defenceless Muslims of Al-Andalus did remember to marry Andrew off before popping his clogs, didn't he?

[Raaritsgozilla]

Huh, at least with a pro intrigue spymaster you should do rather well.

Just keep him alive

[naggy]

I like how for a Crovan, Cynical and Deceitful are positive traits.

[The_Archduke]

Wow Andrew is amazing. 30 intrigue? I look forward to this reign.

[Comm Cody]

Keep this up, and remember to follow the Crovan way of killing everyone!

[matt12th]

This AAR is great! Woot, subscribed!

[Legolas]

I'm so happy that I gift the County of Astorga to Grandmaster Guy of the Knights Templar. He then declines to become my vassal. Apparently you need to be their de jure liege(in this case, the King of Leon) and the same culture as them(Frankish for the KT). I hate it when I forget to read the fine print...

I'm sure Duke Konrad of Masovia thought the same after he had invited the Teutonic Knights to Prussia...

Also, a question: is this level of plotting by vassals typical for the game, peculiar to Crovans (or a particular culture), or a result of some of your actions?

[arosenberger14]

Wow going great! King Andrew looks awesome; 30 intrigue with all positive traits Looking forward to seeing him in action!

[richelieu1628]

If the spirits of past Crovans had anything to do with it, Andrew wouldn't last more than a year or two on the throne...

[SonofWinter]

God Bless, the Crovan King. Obviously God has cursed everyone else.

[Qorten]

Brilliant stuff, Werewhale! It's like God made the Crovans so that they could be used to make excellent humorous AARs about, like this one among others.

[Werewhale]

As always when there is a succession, I start my reign with a civil war:


Not pictured: An impression.

I promptly ignore it, turning my attention to other things. I grant the Duchy of Gloucester to Earl Leofwine of... Gloucester, and the Counties of Dorset and Somerset to one Leofric of Weymouth. Since he's Celibate, I should get the titles back later when I have a better idea of what to do with them. This still leaves me with my uncle Prince Sigered, Earl of Middlesex, at 79% revolt risk. Meh.

The fateful Battle of Benavente concludes:



Apparently grandpa was the only commander in the Scottish army, leaving the rest to mill about uncertainly. Nevermind, I outnumber the enemy anyway.

The civil war ends in December when Duchess Emma dies quietly. And very conveniently. I have no screenshots to prove that King Andrew is the culprit, so I must deduce that he is murdering people on his own initiative.



In January, Duke Neil I of Moray, my Chancellor, accuses the new Duke of Gloucester of being a traitor to the realm. Since Leofwine has 99 opinion towards me, I take the opportunity to throw Duke Neil into my dungeons instead.

He is quickly joined by the new 16-year-old Duchess of Connacht, who has just been excommunicated by some Norman count who shares her dynasty. I chop her head off just because I can get away with it, and leave the Duchy to her infant daughter.

In Spain, the war eventually draws to a close:



I turn the Duchy into an Archbishopric under Bishop Ælaf, a lowborn, and use the newgained Piety to form the Kingdom of Leon, my fourth king-title.

Seeing as Prince Sigered is still at risk of revolt, I make use of my ludicrously high Intrigue and send assassins at him. Of course, they fail. I courageously desist from trying again for the while.

Two months later he dies of natural causes. At least according to my screenshots. This is starting to unsettle me. At least I have already chosen to Plot to have Eadgifu, Sigered's heir and now the Countess of Middlesex, murdered. Regrettably, no-one shares my murderous desire, and I can't put the plot into motion unless I have at least one backer, even though Plot Power is at 151.4%. Bah.

I'll have to do this in a roundabout way, I guess:



There we go. Now it's just a matter of sieging down her only province.

However, the difficulty rulership is starting to erode my virtues, and I lose the 'Just' trait.

January brings an end to Eadgifu's rebellion. She lasted for a whopping three months.

Naturally, I revoke the county of Middlesex from her, then I release her for the +10 opinion boost with my vassals. 'Sides, she can't do any harm without titles.

With the war over, I resume my earlier plans of holding a Grand Tournament:



Yup. I'm a genius and a master combatant. Is there anything I can't do?



Yes, I just can't keep my damn vassals in line.

I face Duke Cynyr III on the field in Glamorgan and pick up yet another positive trait:



Admittedly, Brave Crovans have not fared well in the past...

In November 1342, Duke Leofwine of Gloucester is again accused of being a traitor to the realm, this time by Duke Richard of Galloway. Richard is given the opportunity to discuss his conspiracy theories with Duke Neil of Moray. If he's alive. I haven't checked in a while, really.

April brings an end to Cynyr's foolish rebellion:



I was at first reluctant to grant Gwynedd to the Earl of Glamorgan because he is de jure a part of the Duchy of Deheubarth, but I finally decided that I had more to gain by taking the Dinefwrs off my hands and creating a Duke that has to deal with a wrong-culture Earl three times his size. And with Wales having High Crown Authority, I don't think he can even make war on Duke Máel-Íosa to take the Duke-title back. I am a genius.

In October 1343, Earl Leofric of Dorset and Somerset passes away without issue and his titles default to me. Now 5 counties above my demesne limit, I am forced to cut down. I generate three random Saxon courtiers and divide the Duchy of Somerset and constituent counties among them.

I am offered a chance to sponsor some entertainment in the court to increase fertility, which is much needed since I somehow married the sister of Duke Richard of Galloway, Mary, back before I became King.


Not pictured: Offspring.

That's right. Even my own extremely impressive intellect is no match for the power of true love!

I fail to produce a child by her.

Angry, I send an assassin at the Caliph, because that is a completely relevant and proportionate response. I bend every ounce of my considerable clandestine skill towards this matter.

The mission is a failure, though my involvement is not discovered.

Soon, familiar matters at home demand my attention:



Oh yeah, me and Máel-Sechnaill have this in-joke where we eloquently insult one another with every letter. No biggie.

With my stupendous Intrigue, I have an 83% success chance to imprison Duke Donald.

Naturally, I fail and he raises his flag in rebellion:



Naturally, fighting against my brother is considered very prudent as a Crovan.



Half a year later, I drop the 'Diligent' trait. Baaah.

In June 1345, Donald has the gall to offer a white peace. By this time he is coming under attack from the Emir of Algarve, who apparently has several claims on him. I ignore the offer. Donald will die in a cell.

The one-sided war concludes in October and Donald is imprisoned. However, I can't revoke his Duke-title because he falls under the Crown Authority of the Kingdom of Leon, which is Minimal.

I successfully raise it, though I have to send Prince Maldred a gift for him to accept. The Duchy of Galicia is revoked from Donald and granted instead to my cousin Earl Oswald of Santiago, son of Waltheof.

With the stability of the kingdom re-established, I turn again to the delicate matter of my lack of children:



Huh. It worked. I'll be a nekkid monkey's uncle.

Now I can turn my mind to foreign affairs. The Knights Templar, apparently, are facing serious problems:



The Moors have almost four times as many fighting men as I do, but on the other hand, I can't just allow them to poach the Knights like this. I want to keep them as a powerful ally against the massive Sultanate. Also, they don't have a fantastic genius on their side.



Oh, and God, I guess. They don't have God on their side.

[Leviathan07]

The civil war ends in December when Duchess Emma dies quietly. And very conveniently. I have no screenshots to prove that King Andrew is the culprit, so I must deduce that he is murdering people on his own initiative.

The Ninja-King!! All hail Andrew the Wise!

[0Emmanuel]

God helping a childless woman named Mary conceive? Where have I heard that story before...

[Franconian]

God helping a childless woman named Mary conceive? Where have I heard that story before...

Guess his father, the "Holy", helped out...