CHAPTER THIRTY ONE
Looking around the post war environment I spot something very worrying…
Novgorod has taken Quest for the New World! With no route free eastward into Siberia they’ll set sail and start discovering things - like North America - which will be a problem. Fortunately thirty are at war with Milan already and I have a core on one of their five provinces. This isn’t ideal but 4BB for two provinces to cripple Novgorod’s economy won’t be all bad.
I don’t want a war right now but…
The Swiss are war leaders but every one of their provinces has either fallen or is besieged!
January 1589 brings a Boundary Dispute with Milan while Novgorod is in enough trouble for an acceptable peace.
Peace with Novgorod
I don’t like the 4BB but Novgorod is a lot weaker and with the Milanese still laying siege to the country things are going OK. The Swiss accept a white peace offer soon after to just leave me fighting the nomads; Timurids and Oirats.
November 1589 and peace with the Timurids
Let’s hope Khorasan is wiped out this time!
By March 1590 I’m looking at reclaiming my core Polotsk from Bohemia.
Bohemia is caught up in a long war against Burgundy and allies. While the Emperor is close to winning the strains are telling so it’s a good time to strike! Of course some people just don’t seem to learn…
Storming Alicante a few weeks later does the trick!
Peace with Bohemia comes quickly and easily in June - I didn’t even get to lay siege to Prague!
The next year is very quiet although Macedonia does culturally assimilate to English in September 1591. Milan is taking an age to besiege Novgorod’s three remaining provinces, by the start of 1592 only two have fallen. I’ve been watching Novgorod’s fleet very closely. It’s normally parked in the White Sea but it did venture forth in mid 1591. I tracked it all the way through the North Sea until a pirate spawn in the White Sea caused it to turn around. I don’t think Novgorod has gone exploring… yet. There’s the outline of a plan here to use spies to ‘commission privateer’ to keep Novgorod’s fleet close to home in the future.
June 1592 - Claim on Bohemian Ruthenia
That looks easy to defend once taken.
September 1592 sees isolated Guangxi defect to Wu to give Wu two provinces - but still the same BB cost as when it was an OPM! The Timurids also annexed Khorasan at this time.
March 1593 and another Boundary dispute, barely two months before the next round of wars…
And then Ming force Chagatai to release an OPM Khorasan…
Deep joy.
By May 1593 BB is 6.56 / 24.00 falling at 2.00 a year. Richard Anson has been re-elected for his fifth term. The diplo 9 stat is priceless.
Ming is DOWed using the Holy War CB.
Murom is DOWed using Reconquest for the core on Yaroslavl. They have no allies.
Tibet is DOWed using Reconquest to annex; Punjab, Korea and Manchu all join in.
June and wars successfully concluded with Murom and Tibet although te Tibetan war leader is Manchu so the wider war continues.
The Oirat province is settled in October as I start to make headway pushing into the high value coastal provinces of Ming.
Peace with Ming - September 1594
Post war Far East
BB is 14.74 / 24.00 falling at 2.00 a year.
November 1594 and Milan finally annexes Novgorod.
Alt-history Scandinavia; better dressed with better beer, the mobile phones and self assembly furniture aren’t all that.