Beyond the Sultan of Rum -- an Ottoman WC attempt

Hans Lemurson said:

Keep up the good work!

It's been a struggle, but you seem to have a good grip on how to bring about your glorious destiny.

Click to expand...

sprites said:

things are going smoothly!

Click to expand...

eugene171 said:

Just wanted to say keep up the good work. Fighting wars thru westernizing is no easy matter, so kudos to you!

Click to expand...

Thanks again for the encouragements. I have been really lucky to get such a smooth westernization; I only need to stop warring for less than 3 years. The only credit that I can claim on my part is the effort that I have put in converting provinces to the Sunni faith; this substantially reduced the amount of provinces that I need to worry about in the most difficult years.

I have completed another chapter, covering another decade of busy warfare. I will upload it in a moment.

Chapter 19: Marching Towards a Golden Age

Part I. Various Minors

With westernization complete, I no longer need to worry about the potentially destructive annual westernization events.
Which means I am free to expand in all directions.
My first target is Moldavia.
I have prepared for it by removing the Polish cores in the 2 provinces, as Poland has taken the aristocracy idea group.
With Livonian Order as their only ally, the war is really trivial. The template:

Ottoman Jihad against Moldavia
CB: Holy War on Moldavia
Enemies: Livonian Order, Moldavia
Allies: none
Time: July 1614 - April 1615 (Sitzkrieg with Livonian Order afterwards)
Notable events: none
Result: Moldavia is annexed by Ottomans. White peace with Livonian Order.

Conquering Moldavia brings me 2 major benefits: my Balkan and Crimean holdings are now connected, and the Bessarabia trade centre is no longer stealing trade from my Constantinople node.
But this conquest comes with a price: the 20 AE on France is the last straw that makes France enter the coalition against me. Now the coalition size has reached a dangerous level.
Poland and Lithuania are supposed to be mad about this, but I have improved relations with them beforehand, so they remain outside the coalition, albeit barely.

With Europe being a deadend for the moment, I run into a war frenzy in Asia. So, more templates:

Ottoman Change Government Form of Hedjaz
CB: Revolutionary War
Enemies: Hedjaz, Adal
Allies: none
Time: Late 1615 (no record for the exact month) - May 1617
Notable events: none
Result: Hedjaz cedes Tabouk to Ottomans, gives one core to Ethiopia and one core to Najd, and ends the vassalization of Adal. Total warscore cost is 68%.

Ottoman Conquest of Sind
CB: Conquest
Enemies: Sind, Delhi, etc.
Allies: none
Time: Early or Mid 1616 (no record for the exact month) - January 1617
Notable events: Sind offers the exact deal that I want. For the first time in the game, I accept a peace deal offered by my enemies.
Result: Sind cedes Upper Sind to Ottomans.

The first war marks the beginning of my conquests in Arabia. At this moment, I do not want to antagonize Hedjaz too much because the coalition is already too large.
But under the right circumstances, Hedjaz will be quickly consumed.

The second war removes the last obstacle to the Hindu states of India. I have assigned a 25k stack there for permanent duty; I will start the process of absorbing India to my realm.

At the same time, Kazan is being raped by Sibir and Nogai after losing a war to Russia.
I catch this chance and enforce peace for Kazan twice.
The first enforcement is on Sibir. They refuse, and we are at war:



Siberian Conquest of Kazan
CB: Defender
Enemies: Sibir
Allies: Kazan, Kazakh
Time: September 1616 - March 1618
Notable events: After I have wiped out the Siberian stack, Russia jumps onto Sibir. Luckily, I can get to the right positions first, and occupies all but two of the provinces.
Result: Sibir cedes Zhetyru to Ottomans, and gives 3 cores to Kazan and 1 core to Uzbek.

After this war, Sibir is reduced to 2 provinces, and is annexed by Russia soon afterwards.
The two halves of Uzbek are now connected.

On the other hand, Nogai chooses to cave in to our ultimatum, becoming the first state that does so to the Ottomans:



Not necessarily a bad choice for me, as I don't really need anything from Nogai at the moment.
My peace enforcement does have a consequence though. Together with the AE for taking the province from Sibir, the opinion penalty is enough to drive Nogai into the coalition.
But never mind this. I get something worth celebration in return.
By enforcing peace on Kazan's behalf, I have earned the trust of Kazan.
This allows me to vassalize them despite returning so many cores to them:



Besides connecting Ottoman Empire and Uzbek, Kazan is also well-positioned as a tool for dismantling Russia or annexing Perm.
But that means the usefulness of Uzbek has come to an end. I decide to start its annexation progress.

After proper vassal management, it is again time for more conquests.

2nd Ottoman Jihad against Lithuania
CB: Holy War
Enemies: Lithuania, Mazovia, Poland, Venice
Time: October 1618 - January 1621
Notable events:
1. Poland and Lithuania are a bit stronger than the usual minors, and put a relatively strong resistance. This slows down my progress a bit.
2. Venice needs to be removed from the war for decent warscore against Lithuania. This is achieved by sending my western armies to Venice for some "persuasion".
Result:
White peace with Venice.
Poland returns 3 cores to Ukraine, with total warscore cost of 58%.
Lithuania returns 4 cores to Ukraine, with total warscore cost of 100%.



Ottoman Conquest of Benin
CB: Colonial Conquest
Enemies: Benin
Time: December 1618 - September 1619
Notable events: none
Result: Benin is annexed by the Ottomans.



After the Lithuanian War, Poland has returned all Ukranian cores, while 3 Ukrainian cores remain in Lithuanian hands.
I just need one more war to unite Ukraine before annexing it. Making it stay for longer is not worth the extra diplomatic relation.
The conquest of Benin is a precautionary measure against the French colonial efforts. I cannot risk France taking over the region.
But the conquest has a side effect: Mali is angered by my aggression in west Africa and joins the coalition. Now the coalition is increasingly annoying.
It comprises of France, Aragon, England, Castile, Nogai and Mali. In particular, it makes further conquests in England and France very difficult.

But France is currently at war with Castile for some reason.
Together with England leaving the coalition in May 1621, the stage is now set for another war in western Europe.


Part II. France

Between England and France, I have chosen France as my next target, mainly due to the colonial developments of France.
While England is doing the same thing, my strategy for England allows me to let England grow a bit in the New World.
And while England can be defeated at my will, fighting France is a trickier business.
As France is now slightly weakened by wars and Austria is now willing to help, I have to use this opportunity. So...



In the map, it means:



My original main objective of the war is to root out the French colonies in Africa.
But this needs to be changed almost from the start, because France has deployed 18k(!) troops to Africa, making the conquest of the colonies very difficult.
Not to mention their Malian ally, which is primitive but has a lot of troops.
So I have to focus on Europe instead.
In the west, a battle initiated by the Austrians becomes a decisive victory:



Losses are 19k vs 49k. It turns the war decisively to my favor.
In the follow-ups, I gradually wear down the remaining French army, and initiated multiple sieges in northern France.

In the east, things are not that favourable.
I have sent part of my eastern armies to assist in the western front, but the remaining armies are outnumbered by the troops of Hungary and Naples.
I can still hold my ground, but I am unable to lay extensive sieges to Hungary.

In the colonies, I do accomplish something: I managed to burn the newest French colony in Africa. But other than that, there is little that I can do.

After 2 years of war, my warscore is 49%. But it is mostly from the +40 from battles.
If Austria chooses to get a white peace like the last time, I will get even less from France.
Seeing that the coalition holds too much territory for the warscore to go up further in a satisfactory speed, I decide to call for peace:



Released 3PM Provence and returned one core to Brittany, with total warscore cost of 54%.
Still no direct benefit to me though, but I will try to make this change in the next war.
After this, I need to get some real benefits for myself.


Part III. England, Russia and India

England is a natural next target, as my primary project is to make it my vassal.

11th Ottoman Jihad against England
CB: Holy War on England
Enemies: England, Bavaria, Netherlands, Utrecht, etc.
Time: Late 1623 (no record for the exact month) - July 1625
Notable events: Burnt a few English colonies.
Result: England cedes Lancashire to Ottomans, annuls the alliance with Bavaria, and pays ducats. Total warscore cost is 41%.

England re-joins the coalition after the war. It may cause trouble in the future, but maybe I can persuade them to leave the coalition right after 5 years...
Russia is a high priority target too, and now it is a perfect moment to reduce Russian Siberia.

4th Ottoman Jihad against Russia
CB: Holy War on Russia
Enemies: Russia
Time: August 1624 - July 1627
Notable events: 99% warscore is reached by June 1626, but the desired Siberian provinces do not fall until the next year, prolonging the war for another year.
Result: Russia cedes 4 provinces to Ottomans, returns 5 cores to Kazan, and pays ducats. Total warscore cost is 75%.



At the same time, the Indian theatre is too quiet, and now it's the time to march into India.

Ottoman Jihad against Mewar
CB: Holy War on Mewar
Enemies: Mewar, Multan and Tibet
Time: September 1625 - October 1626
Notable events: none
Result: Mewar cedes Multan to Ottomans. Total warscore cost is 22%.

I almost immediately regret it. The reason is this:



Now I need to find an Indian client state to core this for me. More on this in the next chapter.


Part IV. The Ottoman Empire

While the Ottoman armies are busy adding new provinces to the realm, there are quite a few important developments in other aspects as well.

1. Mustafa I died in March 1622, after a reign of 32 years and 3 months.
He will be remembered as the Sultan who reformed the country and defeated the decadance shadowing the state.
He was succeeded by the almost equally competent Orhan II, with 6-2-4 skills.



The heir is a mediocre but steady 3-2-2 Mustafa, who lacks ingenuity but will look after the Empire well enough, should he succeed to the throne.


2. In March 1627, the admin tech is advanced to 17, unlocking the fifth idea group.
I decide to take the adminintrative idea group, for a package of balanced benefits, including -25% coring cost, +1 possible advisers and +20% production efficiency.
With a capable ruler, western tech group and Islamic Centre of Scholarly Learning, I can pour my monarch points to ideas without straining the tech levels too much.




3. In April 1627, Orhan II wed a beautiful and intelligent Greek slave girl:



Unlike the real-life husband of Kosem Sultana, Orhan II is a sultan of strong resolve.
With the assistance of his new wife, Orhan will lead the Ottoman Empire to an unprecedented golden age.


4. In November 1627, the annexation of Uzbek is complete:



A large chunk of Central Asia is now under direct Ottoman administration.
Now, I have gained a solid base for pushing further eastwards, and freed a precious diplomatic relation.
I can new seriously consider the possibility of an Indian vassal...


Bonus Information: A Special Report of the Far East



Ming has gone bankrupt in May 1627. The proximate cause is the war with Vijayanagar, which pushes Ming further into the downward spiral of debts and revolts.
The rebels are ravaging the Celestial Empire, and it is highly likely for the Central Empire to collapse in the next few years.
There will be more follow-ups to witness the decline and fall of the Ming dynasty.

Chapter 20: A Golden Age of the Ottoman Empire (Part 1)

Sultan Orhan II Osmanli and Kosem Sultana, the wise and capable Imperial couple, guide the state to develop at a rate never seen before.
A new national idea costs 340 monarch points, and a tech level 510 monarch points without time bonus.
And the 6-2-4 skills of Orhan makes sure that the cheap ideas and tech can be utilized effectively.
The administrative idea group is filled quickly, so does the expansion idea group, to a lesser extent.
Military tech is up-to-date, and military monarch points are so abundant that I am almost forced to research tech levels early.
By the end of their reign, the Ottomans will be equipped with a lot more important ideas and techs, ready to push forward in every direction.
While these developments are in progress, diplomacy and warfare, the external aspects of the Empire, will see accelerating developments.


The annoying coalition crumbles in 1627-1628. The less relevant ones leave first:



And Castile finally forgives me for stripping it of everything outside Castile proper:



This is quickly followed by France within the same month.



Now only England is still in the coalition.
With the coalition crumbled, I get much more flexibility in picking my targets.
Since my hands are free, the natural thing to do is to blast the toughest enemy:



Almost every factor is working in my favour, except that our mil tech against France is 18 vs 19, which means that they have Gustavian infantry while we only have Maurician.
While I do want to have mil tech 19, getting it 5 years early is not something that I can afford or I want.
Their tech advantage is shown in the first surprise battle that I have taken on the French stack near Paris:



The tech disparity continues to play its part in the next battle:



But even victories like these are enough to let me control the theatre.
The initial French stack is slowly bled dry, and the new regiments are hunted down by my smaller armies.
In January 1630, it runs down to this:



And there is nothing to stop me from total victory now.
It is just finishing the siege race before I can make France accept my terms.
With so many failures in the past decades, the prestige of France is now in the negatives.
The French king dies in June 1631, and their personal union with Hungary dissolves.
I have thought of letting France integrating Hungary, but I have been dismantling France for so long that I have passed the point of no return.

At about the same time, I can get what I want from France:



I take Lombardia and 2 colonies, release Normandy and give 3 cores to Brittany, 2 of which were lost to France in the last war.
Milan is immediately released as an OPM. The other Milanese cores held by France will be the target for the next French war.

While the French war is still in progress, the 2 colonies that Aragon planted in South America is about to become full cities. So...

Ottoman Jihad against Aragon
CB: Holy War on Aragon
Enemies: Aragon, Serbia, Liege, Mainz
Time: May 1631 - July 1631
Notable events: Ottomans seize the 2 Aragonese colonies in South America. One of them is really close to becoming a full city.
Result: Ottomans concede defeat to Aragon. Total warscore cost is -10%.



I have managed to seal the colonial theatre for myself once again, but until all coast in the Atlantic are sealed, similar incidents will happen again.
There will still be a few decades of nasty surprises.

After selling some Siberian provinces, there is no reason to stay in peace. So I started two wars in late 1631.

3rd Ottoman Jihad against Lithuania
CB: Holy War on Lithuania
Enemies: Lithuania, Poland, Venice, Mazovia
Time: November 1631 - February 1633
Notable events: none
Result: White peace with Poland. Lithuania returns 3 cores to Ukraine, and pays ducats to Ottomans. Total warscore cost is 73%.

With this war, all the Ukrainian cores are returned to Ukraine. Annexation process starts after general peace is restored.

12th Ottoman Jihad against England
CB: Holy War on England
Enemies: England, Bavaria, Netherlands, Utrecht, Cologne
Time: December 1631 - July 1633
Notable events: Rounded up a couple of new English colonies.
Result: England cedes Gloucestershire and a colony to Ottomans, and pays ducats. Total warscore cost is 34%.

The total warscore for the remaining provinces is 98%.
Since England is still actively colonizing, there is still danger that England cannot be vassalized in the next war.
At this point, England leaves the coalition due to the lack of strength.

Immediately after the war, I successfully diplo-vassalized OPM Delhi.
Delhi has a lot of cores in northern India, including a lot of high base tax provinces:



This is a good start for the quest of India.
With this piece of apparatus in my hands, northern India will soon fall under my control.

The next thing to happen is of course more wars:

Ottoman Conquest of Medina
CB: Conquest on Hedjaz
Enemies: Hedjaz, Tripoli, Adal
Time: January 1634 - July 1635
Notable events: none
Result: Hedjaz cedes Medina to Ottomans. Total warscore cost is 15%.

Ottoman Purge of Khorasani Heresy
CB: Cleansing of Heresy on Khorasan
Enemies: Khorasan
Time: March 1634 - April 1635
Notable events: none
Result: Khorasan returns 4 cores to Delhi. Total warscore cost is 92%.

In November 1635, I finally get the adaptability idea:



Interesting fact: adaptability seems to reduce coring time by 25% as well. As a result, the coring time of Medina is only 24 months:



That is the combined effect of the claim and same culture group. The standard coring time is about 5 years.

I forgot to mention that the war against Hedjaz is actually used to impress Oman and make it accept my vassalage.
I finally get the +190 opinion needed:



And I vassalize Oman before the end of the year.

Then it's war again:

5th Ottoman Jihad against Russia
CB: Holy War on Russia
Enemies: Russia, Riga
Time: May 1636 - August 1637
Notable events: none
Result: Russia cedes Boloozero and 2 Siberian provinces to Ottomans, and releases 2PM Pskov. Total warscore cost is 72%.

After the Russian war, I take a few months of peace, mainly because I have no suitable target in Eastern Europe.
Troops are on the move in Western Europe and in India, to be ready for the next war.

Meanwhile, the annexation of Scotland is complete:



Since the rest of England will (hopefully) be my vassal, there is no point in keeping Scotland any more.
My next target is, of course, England. War is declared in July 1638. The objective is to vassalize England.
As a precaution, I choose the Colonialism CB, which will half the warscore cost for adjacent colonies.
Their major allies are Provence and Bavaria. They may keep me from getting a 100% warscore deal.
In order to knock Bavaria out of the war, I call Austria to arms:



This is an advantage for having an ally for so long. Even if they feel threatened by me, I can still get assistance from them under the right circumstances.
As a result, Austria single-handedly destroy Bavaria and put the country under a carpet siege.
In March 1639, Bavaria is already softened enough to accept my offer of white peace:



With Bavaria gone, the warscore from battles and wargoal will be enough to give enough warscore for a 100% deal.
But there is another problem. With 2 new colonies turned into new cities, the total warscore of England has become 101%.
Now the colonialism CB works its magic.
Since the warscore cost for taking an adjacent colonial province is 50%, I can reduce the total value of the whole vassalization peace deal by demanding colonial provinces.
Luckily for me, I only need to take 1 colony to make England accept the vassalization, even though I need to demand a specific one carrying the river estuary bonus.



So, after a century of effort, England is finally subjugated. It is another important milestone to this WC attempt.
It comes later than I have expected, but I eventually make it happen.
England can be a help in colonization, but the colonies would be Catholic, and England is stealing my trade in the Caribbean.
I will let England live for a while, but I will have to annex them when it is no longer colonizing the coast.

During the English war, I have picked up another war in India, fighting against Mewar, Multan and Assam. More on this in the next chapter.
I shall end the chapter by showcasing a special event:




In other news...

1. 2 new decisions have been passed in this period. Besides the Mining Act, I have also implemented the gold standard:



-0.04 per year is not enough to cover the inflation from gold mines, but definitely helps in slowing down the inflation.


2. The Ming Empire is collapsing. The southern provinces defect to Zhou en masse by 1632, in addition to the second bankruptcy:



It is likely that the Centre empire will be fragmented for the next few decades.
With new fragments, comes new opportunities. I may be able to snatch something from the chaos in the far east when I have the free hand.

Chapter 21: A Golden Age of the Ottoman Empire (Part 2)

NOTE: From this chapter on, I will change the structure of a typical chapter.
After a summary for the period, the chapter continues with a timeline, then the war log, finally interesting events.
This can relieve myself from the duty of giving increasingly repetitive narrative for wars, and put the focus back to important developments.


Summary for the Period 1640-1653

Orhan II (skills 6-2-4) remained on the throne throughout the period.
I regularly got military techs early, which was a waste of points, but I had to give up military idea groups for the more valuable -25% coring cost and the coming overseas expansion CB.
The administrative idea group was filled up completely in this period, thanks to the 6 admin skill of Orhan and the -15% idea cost from the skills of Orhan and Kosem.
The expansion idea group was being filled up as well, but diplomatic points have been scarce due to the need to take new provinces.

New provinces from Scotland and Ukraine are mostly Catholic and Orthodox respectively, which means I have to convert them.
I can convert a typical province with ease, but London and Kiev are more resistant, and I need to wait for an Inquisitor to make it happen.

The major directions of expansion were France, Russia, Kongo and India. Wars were conducted regularly.
France remained on the track of slow but steady decline. One day France would step into the shoes of England.
Russia was to be removed from the Earth, and the plan was steadily progressing as well.
With Delhi as vassal, I had an important leverage tool for the conquest of northern India.
Kongo was the newest pagan conquest. This was done to prevent others from taking it first. It was a side line, which did not affect the overall progress much.

By 1653, Ukraine and Kazan were integrated to the Ottoman realm. This integration of the northern theatre can give me a free hand in other theatres, such as India and Africa.

I have been rapidly progressing in all directions and aspect, but it may still be not fast enough.


The Timeline

September 1638 - April 1640: 2nd Ottoman Jihad against Mewar. Gained Punjab for Delhi.

December 1639 - April 1640: Joined Lithuanian Succession War, for alliance duty. Conceded defeat for separate peace.

May 1640 - December 1640: Sold Punjab to Delhi, and 2 English cores to England. Part of the vassal management.

August 1640: England became a republic, due to the Civil War DHE. Oliver Cromwell became the ruler of England.

December 1640 - April 1643: 6th Ottoman Jihad against France. Major enemies were France and Hungary. Enforced harsh treaties on both.

May 1642 - June 1644: 2nd Ottoman Jihad against Aragon. Took the Aragonese colony in Africa. Intended to take Ancona as well, but dropped to appease France.

February 1643 - December 1644: 6th Ottoman Jihad against Russia. Gained Yaroslavl, Polotsk and Mogilev.

October 1643: Ukraine was fully integrated to the Ottoman realm.

December 1643 - January 1644: 2 events gave me 2 free stability, from +1 to +3.

June 1644: Mali was angered by my brutal means in west Africa, and joined the coalition.

December 1644: Riga, Pskov and Tver joined the anti-Ottoman coalition.

January 1646: Russia joined the anti-Ottoman coalition.

February 1646: Advanced to 20 military tech 2 years early. Even with war taxes and an army base building programme, military monarch points was still over-flowing.

November 1646 - February 1648: Ottoman Conquest of Kongo. Annexed Kongo. It was a measure against French colonial ambitions.

June 1647 - October 1647: Acquired the national ideas "Administrative Efficiency" and "Additional Diplomats", giving +1 adviser and +2 diplomatic relations respectively.

March 1648 - June 1650: Ottoman Jihad against Oirat Horde. Main objective was to make Tibet return the cores of Delhi, which succeeded. Took 1 province from Oirat Horde as well.

August 1648 - March 1650: Ottoman Jihad against Hungary. It was intended to make Hungary give up their cores lost in the last war. The war turned sour, and I cut my loss.

March 1650: Passed militia act, giving +6% army discipline in exchange for +5% stab cost. One of the benefits of the administrative idea group.

May 1650 - April 1653: Ottoman-French Colonial War. Seized 1 developing colony, took a full colonial province, got a foothold in northern France and gave 1 core to England.

September 1650 - April 1653: Ottoman Jihad against Vijayanagar. Took Lower Sind, which Vijayanagar took in a previous war.

May 1652: Kazan was fully integrated into the Ottoman realm.

August 1652: Got a Grain Export License Event as a western nation. Chose to get the much needed 20 legitimacy.

April 1653: Pskov, Tver and Mali left the anti-Ottoman coalition. For a moment, only Russia and a couple of minors remained in the coalition.


The War Log

Lithuanian Succession War
CB: Call to Arms by Austria, against Poland
Enemies: Poland
Time: December 1639 - April 1640
Details:
The war was joined only for fulfilling the alliance obligation.
The Ottomans defeated a Polish stack, and laid siege to a few cities, in order to get the desired terms.
Result: Ottomans conceded defeat to Poland. The total warscore cost is -10%.


2nd Ottoman Jihad against Mewar
CB: Holy War on Mewar
Enemies: Mewar, Multan, Assam
Time: September 1638 - April 1640
Details:
The real intention was to take 11 base tax Punjab from Multan for connecting the two halves of Delhi.
The original plan was to ask for Punjab from war leader Mewar, which became impossible afterwards, due to Multan refusing war-leader to negotiate for it.
Result:
Multan was annexed by the Ottomans.
Mewar transferred 50% of trade power to the Ottomans for 5 years. Total warscore cost is 30%.




6th Ottoman Jihad against France
CB: Holy War on France
Enemies: France, Hungary, Northumberland, Trier, Wurzburg
Allies: Austria
Time: December 1640 - April 1643
Details:
This war is a repetition of the previous French war, with the exception that Hungary is longer a junior PU partner, and can sign separate peace.
The war is decided from the beginning, but the slow siege progress in Hungary delayed the war for a few months.
There is a strange shattered retreat though. More on this later.
Result:
Hungary released Croatia and Montenegro. Total warscore cost is 94%.
France returned 5 cores to Milan, ceded a colony to Ottomans, and released Wales. Total warscore cost is 98%.




2nd Ottoman Jihad against Aragon
CB: Holy War on Aragon
Enemies: Aragon, Serbia, Liege, Mainz
Time: May 1642 - June 1644
Details:
The reason for starting this war was to take the Aragonese colony in Africa.
My original plan was to take Ancona as well, so that I could have a direct possession in Italy.
But seeing France being on the border line of joining the anti-Ottoman coalition, I decided to restrain myself for once.
This decision was made in the middle of the war, so the war was unnecessarily prolonged.
Result:
Aragon ceded Gold Coast, and transferred 50% of its trade power to Ottomans. Total warscore cost is 34%.


6th Ottoman Jihad against Russia
CB: Holy War on Russia
Enemies: Russia
Time: February 1643 - December 1644
Details:
With England vassalized, I can choose to disregard the AE of another major. I decided to choose Russia, because of its relative isolation.
I expected Russia to be permanently stuck in the coalition after this war, which became the reality after the war.
Result:
Russia ceded Yaroslavl, Polotsk and Mogilev to Ottomans. Total warscore cost is 84%.




Ottoman Conquest of Kongo
CB: Colonial Conquest on Kongo
Enemies: Kongo
Time: November 1646 - February 1648
Details:
The reason for this war is the French colonization of a nearby province.
With the possibility of France absorbing the native state or convert it, I waged this war to finish Kongo first, as the cost of integrating it was low anyway.
Result: Full annexation of Kongo.


Ottoman Jihad against Oirat Horde
CB: Holy War on Oirat Horde
Enemies: Oirat Horde, Tibet, Zhou, Ayutthaya, Dai Viet
Time: March 1648 - June 1650
Details:
The real target of this war was Tibet. The aim of this war was to make Tibet return the 2 cores to Delhi.
A large portion of East Asia joined Oirat Horde. But with my tech superiority, I can win battles in 1:3 army ratio.
The long travelling distances in Central Asia is the only significant deterrent of the war.
Result:
Tibet returned Katamundu and Baisi Rajya to Delhi. Total warscore cost is 30%.
Oirat Horde ceded Argyn to Ottomans, and gave up a core. Total warscore cost is 15%.




Ottoman Jihad against Hungary
CB: Holy War on Hungary
Enemies: Hungary, Bavaria, Hesse, Livonian Order, Riga
Time: August 1648 - March 1650
Details:
This war was fought to make Hungary give up their cores in Croatia.
The war did not went well and I almost lost an entire stack to Hungary.
Knowing the turning the tide takes too much effort, I chose to give up this time.
Result: Ottomans conceded defeat to Hungary. Total warscore cost is -10%.


Ottoman-French Colonial War
CB: Take Colony Arguin from France
Enemies: France, Naples, Northumberland, Trier, Wurzburg
Time: May 1650 - April 1653
Details:
The French almost finished another colony in Africa. I needed to take it before it will incur an extra cost in diplomatic points.
I also wanted to use this chance to uproot the French presence in Africa.
This time, I fought without Austrian assistance, but France was weak enough for me to beat with the help of Milan.
The final holdup for this war was a new French colony in Africa, which I needed to burn to cage France in Europe.
In this war, my vassal England occupied Northumberland after a siege collaborating with one of my armies. I was very pleased with this.
Because the AE and the diplomatic point cost will be counted towards England, not me.
For some reason, Brittany thinks that giving Caux to France is a good idea, so it becomes a province that I have to take sooner or later.
I decide to make it my forward base to France.
Result:
France ceded Arguin and Caux to Ottomans, renounced its cores in Normandie and Gwynedd, and released Muster.
Northumberland ceded Northumberland to England. Total warscore cost is 97%.


The battle lasted for 9 days, and was fought against a full-strength French army. This unexpected victory accelerated my progress in France proper.


Ottoman Jihad against Vijayanagar
CB: Holy War on Vijayanagar
Enemies: Vijayanagar, Kachar
Time: September 1650 - April 1653
Details:
Vijayanagar's ambition for western India made it conquer Lower Sind from Sind, which happens to be my next target in India.
Together with my new Indian fleet, I brought the war to Vijayanagar proper and forced Vijayanagar to surrender the one province that I want.
Result:
Vijayanagar ceded Lower Sind to Ottomans. Total warscore cost is 18%.


A battle with average luck on my side. Looks like a 20k men stack is sufficient to sweep across Asia in foreseeable future.


Remarks

1. With the latest French war, France's attitude towards me becomes "enraged".
But Provence declared war on France before our war ended, postponing their joining of the coalition by a few years.
I need to catch this rare chance to smash Russia once more.

2. In the general peace of 1653, Mali, Tver and Pskov left the anti-Ottoman coalition.
The coalition only contains Russia and a couple of irrelevant minors after this.
It further prompts me to attack Russia as soon as possible.

3. Norway has been a Swedish vassal for some time, and is going to be annexed.
Norway has many cores in Scandinavia, so I will attempt to take over the vassalage of Norway before they are annexed.
I still have 2-3 years to accomplish this goal.

4. With my involvements in west Africa, I am on the borderline for getting the ivory trade bonus.
I expect that the bonus can be secured in the next 2-3 decades.

5. Tech has become really cheap in these decades. For example:



The monarch point influx and the cheap cost of tech and ideas makes progress fast in the past few decades.
This will continue to be true as long as Orhan and Kosem lives...

It's another 50 years since the last country report. It is a good time to summarize the developments of the Empire once again in the next chapter.
For now, please enjoy this map of the Ottoman Empire in 1653.

MiniaAr said:

Wow this is going well. WC seems not completely out of hand even if this seems really hard to get.

Click to expand...

While conquering everything outside Europe should be possible, I still have no solution for Europe. The present analysis is that I can conquer everything outside Europe, but there will still be a bunch of provinces I cannot possibly conquer in Central Europe, especially within the borders of HRE. Assisting the unification of HRE is not possible because of the electors refusing to acknowledge the supremacy of Austria and electing Austria as the emperor. So far, only 2 imperial reforms have been passed, and the third is not getting enough support even with 100 IA because the emperor is a 3PM Palatinate.

Lin24 said:

Nice AAR. Can you tell me how much basetax do you currently have?

Click to expand...

I don't have the figure at hand, but I will definitely include the figure in the next update, which will be completed soon. Check it for more information about the empire I have created.

Chapter 22: The Ottoman Empire in 1653

Another 50 years have passed since the 1602 report. These 50 years are very fruitful in every aspect of the game.
Let me begin with a list of important figures:

Army size: 265,136 soldiers in 278 regiments
Navy size: 193 ships
Monthly income: 294.63 ducats
Number of provinces: 297 + ~70 in minions
Tax base: 1404


Compared with 1602, I have gained about 100 more provinces, and my vassals are holding more land as well.
These are the maps for the Ottoman Empire in 1653:






The major directions of expansion are:

1. England. Persistent grinding in the British Isles finally led to the vassalization of England in the 1630s. By 1653, all English culture provinces are under Ottoman control.
2. Russia. Another target of persistent grinding. The project is not complete yet, but Russia is much weaker in 1653 than in 1602. More grinding will lead to to total conquest of the region.
3. The Steppes. Kazan was a diplomatic victory for the Ottomans. The subsequent annexation of Kazan connects the Ottoman mainland to the eastern outposts in Siberia.
4. India. Using Delhi as a pretext, Ottoman influence has been expanded to the richest part of India: the Ganges valley. In another generation, a third of India will be under Ottoman control.
5. Ukraine. Starting with the conquest of Kiev from Lithuania, the tag is used to make a major push into Eastern Europe. Now Poland and Lithuania are no longer majors.
6. The Atlantic coasts outside Europe. Consistent colonization effort has been made in the region.
Despite occasional incursions of France, Aragon and Norway, they are contained on every effort they made.
The only real threat, England, was dealt with by force vassalization.

There are a lot of opportunities presenting themselves, and a lot of obligations for further involvement in central Europe.
These are the ones that I consider the most important:

1. France. My plan is to treat it in a similar manner to England. Reducing the vassalization cost to below 100% and making France my vassal.
This is a tough project, as France have many rich provinces, and I may need the rest of the game to have this project finished.

2. Scandinavia. Norway is about to be annexed by Sweden. If I can snatch the vassal before Sweden can annex it, then I will have a key to Scandinavia.

3. India. The usefulness of Delhi declines after most cores are collected. Mewar is recently blasted by Malwa, so it can be a very useful vassal for my Indian ambitions.

4. China. The Shun cores will expire in 1694, so I need to get there before I lose this chance. Manipulating Shun and Ming will result in the conquest of China.

5. Eastern Europe. Russia is still the primary target to be wiped from the Earth, but I also need to look into Poland and Livonian Order.
The mess of Central Europe will become the most painful problem in the last decades of the game.

6. Arabia. There are 2 reasons for doing it: Indian trade, and the Unify Islam decision. Hedjaz, the surviving major Arabic state, is a tribal democracy.
I can use the Revolutionary War CB to keep snatching provinces from Hedjaz, hopefully eliminating the state in the next few decades.



The tabs and ledger pages



A 6-2-4 monarch can make a lot of difference. But good advisers are also very important for satisfying the need for monarch points.
Many important decisions have been passed in the last 50 years. Militia act for 6% discipline and gold standard for -0.04 inflation are the two most important ones.



The Austrian alliance is critical for my continued dominance over France. This importance will fade as France gets weaker, but it is still helpful for dealing with the HRE.



+3 stability and lots of colonies are a magical combination. Taxes are rushing into the coffers of the Imperial treasury, compensating the relatively weak trade sector.



The trade pattern is similar to 50 years ago. Forwarding the trade from Alexandria, and collecting in Caribbean.
The extra merchant from expansion group is used to forward the trade from Ivory Coast to the Caribbean.
This also gives me the ivory diplomatic reputation bonus.



Military tech is up to date.
Admin tech is slightly behind due to the need to fill up the admin idea group.
Diplomatic tech is still low, due to the need to complete the expansion idea group.



I have completed the administrative idea group.
Notable bonuses are -25% coring cost (and probably -25% coring time as well), +1 possible adviser, +20% production efficiency, and +6% army discipline from militia act.
The expansion idea group is still being filled, but the last two will be acquired in near future.
As I have said, every idea in the expansion idea group is pure gold, and the lack of diplomatic points is the only reason for me to hesitate.

The next ones will be aristocracy (for the 5th diplomat), quality (for competing with western armies) and espionage (for the 6th diplomat).
In the final rush, diplomats will be the most precious resource, so I need to arrange it like this.



A collection of combat statistics. The bonuses from piety keeps army morale and defensiveness at competitive levels, while discipline is a reasonable 116%.
With the exception of Sweden and Brandenburg, the quality of my army is as good as the western majors, or even better.



Country list sorted by income. Austria and Sweden are the strongest of the surviving majors in terms of economy.



The strongest state is of course the Ottomans, and the second strongest is my ally Austria.
Sweden has the third largest army, which will be potentially troublesome.
The coming war for Norway will be a perfect moment to test the capability of Swedish soldiers.



My navy size is the largest, but much of it are 3 transport fleet operating in Europe, America and Indian Ocean respectively.
I cannot guarantee my naval superiority, but I can at least keep the seas non-hostile to me.
With more sections of the European coast sealed, the navy quality will eventually cease to become a problem to me.
Before that day comes, I will have to stay alert to the possible naval defeats.



The pies. The only anomaly is the significant Catholic presence, which is due to the annexation of Scotland.


So, that's how my empire fare in 1653. I shall end this chapter by giving a religious map, showing how Islam has surpassed Christianity as the dominant religious group:

Ravashak said:

Nice progress, yet again.

What provinces do you still need for Unify Islam, and how high is your Missionary Strength?

Click to expand...

In 1653, the missing provinces are: Infi (Morocco), Palermo and Messina (Naples), Dagestan (Qara Qoyunlu), Mecca and Aden (Hedjaz), and Samarkand (Timurids). All of them are not too far from reach, but I don't want to slow down my progress too much to get these provinces. But with the exception of the Sicilian provinces, the other provinces are already within my areas of interest, so it is definitely possible to get the decision done in a century or so.

My missionary strength is from base (2%), Divine Supremacy idea (3%), positive stability (0.5-1.5%) and piety (usually 3% for 100% piety). Occasionally, I also get the Theologian bonus (1%) and/or the Inquisitor bonus (2%). In the extended period of +3 stability around the 1650s, the base missionary strength is 9.5% without adviser effects.
But 2% for non-accepted culture have to be subtracted from the base most of the times. This means I can convert Catholic provinces with 14 base tax, Orthodox provinces with 12 base tax, and Shiite provinces with 10 base tax without the help from advisers. It is just enough for London (14 base tax Catholic) but not enough for Kiev (15 base tax Orthodox). I will eventually need an inquisitor to get Kiev converted.

When I reached 1600, I asked for advice for some secondary goals, and received some decent replies. I have reached 1700 in my game, and I believe that world conquest is beyond my reach. I think it is the time to formulate the goals for the remaining 120 years (170 years for the AAR).


Primary objective: To minimize the number of provinces held by others. The target is tentatively set at 150.

Secondary objectives, with ascending order of difficulty:

1. The "Definitely the Sultan of Rum" achievement.
2. Dissolution of HRE.
3. The "Unify Islam" decision.
4. Ownership of every Muslim province.
5. Conquest of everything outside Europe.
6. Ownership of 1000 provinces.
7. Conquest of everything non-German.

I feel that 1-4 are almost certainly achievable. 5-7 are more difficult, but are still possible if I play my cards right.
I will post this in the OP.

MiniaAr said:

For a WC, the primary objective should have a target of 0 righ?

Click to expand...

Sure. It would be next to impossible that I can get to that point though, so I have to make a concession here. :unsure:

Hans Lemurson said:

I forget what the big stickup is with conquering the german provinces. Is it HRE issues, or just too many rich provinces, or big alliances or what?

Click to expand...

The problem is not the German provinces themselves. It is just that the German provinces are in the centre of a whole mess of provinces in Europe that I need to conquer.
Despite the 7th secondary objective, I will not treat German states differently, and the process will probably start in the northern ports when I have a free hand (i.e. I am done with France).

Chapter 23: The Last Years of the Golden Age, and a Succession Crisis

Strategy for the next few decades

After the vassalization of England, most of the British Isles is under my control.

The next big project is to conquer the French region. With almost every releasable countries released, the rest will be tough work.
The bulk of the AE quota will be used by this project. Even with this, the process will still probably take more than a century before it can be finished.

In eastern Europe, the primary project is still the annexation of Russia.
Russia is no longer to raise enough armies to pose a threat to me, and my vassal Novgorod alone is almost enough for that.
And Novgorod will happily accept any Russian provinces that I have taken from Russia.
So the problem is the AE generated to the rest of Europe when I annex those provinces. It will require another major chuck of the AE quota.

The rest of Europe are not my high priority targets, but I will definitely seize the big opportunities.
For instance, I can force Sweden to transfer the vassalage of Norway to me before Norway is annexed.
These will make a difference over time, but I need to restrain myself enough to prevent them from slowing down the progress of the big projects too much.

Then the policy for the rest of the world.
India will continue to be a focal point, and I will make sure that I can get another slice of India in the next few decades.
After getting the Overseas Expansion CB, I will also find a way to start the East Asian theatre (China and Japan).
I will also look into the possibility of diplo-vassalization of Muslim majors.
For the others, I will generally continue the present trends of development, expanding steadily whenever appropriate.


Summary for the period 1653-1665

Every glorious reign comes to an end eventually. There is no exception to Orhan II.
He is becoming older, and so does his heir, who is only 7 years younger than him.
There are still so many things to achieve, yet the AE in Europe starts to accumulate.
Despite this, I still need to keep expanding. So the years are filled with another dense pack of wars.

France and Russia are high in my priority list, and are beaten again as usual.
Russia is 3-4 wars from being fully annexed, and France becomes weak enough to be beaten by the countries I released.
I have no interest in directly expanding in Hungary, but I do take some preliminary measures by remove some Hungarian cores.
Sweden is my new enemy, because Norway is about to be annexed, and it is too good a chance to miss.
I also take Ancona from Aragon, as a foreplay for taking Rome.
Outside Europe, I expand a bit in North America, Arabia, India and Central Asia. The current theatres are enough to keep me occupied.

The diplomatic front is also seeing progress. Oman and Milan are diplo-annexed, and Algiers is diplo-vassalized.
The large and isolated Muslim states are good future targets for diplo-vassalization.

The succession eventually becomes a problem for the Empire. The heir dies in 1661, and there is no new heir.
An event gives a choice for a 3-0-3 heir with low claim, which is rejected as such an heir is the biggest disaster there can be.
Another blow is the death of Kosem Sultana in 1663, which removes the bonuses for tech and ideas.
In March 1665, an infant 3-1-5 Ahmed becomes the new heir to the Empire, ensuring the survival of the Osmanli dynasty.
Orhan II dies 3 months later, opening a 15-year period of regency under a 3-2-0 regent.


Timeline

May - June 1653: The annexation of Oman and Milan begins.
July 1653 - January 1658: 7th Ottoman Jihad against Russia. Russia cedes Vladimir, Kostroma and Suzdal to Ottomans.
August 1653 - June 1655: Ottoman Jihad against Norway. Norway has been a vassal of Sweden. Sweden transfers the vassalage of Norway to Ottomans.
February 1654: +1 diplomatic relation for 5 years from event.
October 1654 - June 1655: Ottoman Conquest of Rajkot, fighting against Mewar. Mewar becomes a vassal of Ottomans.
January 1655 - November 1655: Ottoman Conquest of Creek. Creek is fully annexed by Ottomans.
October 1655 - April 1658: Ottoman Jihad against Malwa. Malwa gives 2 cores to Delhi, and 2 cores to Mewar.
January 1658: As a result of the peace with Russia, Sweden, France and Brandenburg joins the anti-Ottoman coalition.
January 1659: Milan is integrated into the Ottoman realm. Algiers is diplo-vassalized by Ottomans.
March 1659 - May 1661: 2nd Ottoman Jihad against Hungary. France cedes Toulouse to Austria.
Tripoli cedes Djerba to Ottomans, and gives 2 cores to Algiers. Hungary gives Muntenia to Wallachia, and renounces 4 cores in Croatia.
September 1659 - July 1660: 2nd Ottoman Jihad against Oirat Horde. Oirat Horde cedes Altai to Ottomans, and renounces a core.
August 1660: Oman is integrated into the Ottoman realm.
February 1661: Mustafa, heir to the Ottoman throne, dies. No new heir takes his place.
Early 1660 - November 1661: 2nd Ottoman Purge of Baluchistani Heresy. Baluchistan cedes Kandahar to Ottomans.
June 1662 - January 1664: 2nd Ottoman Revolutionary War against Hedjaz. Hedjaz cedes Massawa and Najd to Ottomans.
August 1662 - November 1663: 3rd Ottoman Jihad against Aragon. Aragon cedes Ancona and Falklands to Ottomans.
October 1663 - August 1664: Ottoman Jihad against Wallachia. Wallachia cedes Muntenia to Ottomans.
December 1663: Kosem Sultana is murdered.
February 1664: +5 diplomatic reputation for 5 years from event.
March 1665 - : 2nd Ottoman Purge of Khorasani Heresy.
March 1665: A 3-1-5 Ahmed becomes to heir to the Ottoman throne.
June 1665: Orhan II dies. A regency council with a 3-2-0 takes charge of the Empire for the next 15 years.


Events of interest

1. Ottoman Jihad against Norway

Before this war, I have no need to mess with Sweden. Scandinavia is reachable, but I have been too pre-occupied with Russia and France.
With Russia decimated, I can take my time to take care of the further north.
The best entry point is through Norway, which is a Swedish vassal for decades, and is about to be annexed.
So war is declared in August 1653:



Although Sweden has a comparable fleet to me, that fleet does not operate in the North Sea.
So I can easily lay siege to the Norwegian capital in Iceland.
After a year or so, I occupy the capital, and the annexation process is halted at about 90%.
But I cannot vassalize Norway without the consent of Sweden. So I have to blast Sweden in their homeland.

We indirectly share a land border in Finland. So the early actions take place there.
I know that the quality of the Swedish army is superior, so I enlist enough troops to have a 2:1 numerical superiority in the theatre.
The first battles see me taking 50% more casualties than the Swedish army, but after a few battles, the Swedish armies are reduced to 50-60% strength.
Which makes the armies more manageable to me. This is the battle that confirms the victory for me in the theatre:



After that, it is all about chasing down the residual Swedish armies.
The warscore from battles and occupied Norwegian provinces, combined with the decimate Swedish military strength, allows me to get what I want without occupying every Swedish province.



I have acquired Norway at the expense of generating 52.5 AE for Sweden.
I need to stay quiet for a while, before I force Sweden to return cores to Norway.


2. The developments in France

I have been working hard to reduce the power of France for almost a century.
I snatched Milan from France, and terminated their personal union with Hungary.
I have made Burgundy and a few French minors break free from France.
But France is still powerful and is able to bring me a lot of trouble. Until the 1650s.
Utilizing the weakness of France after I have blasted it once again in the early 1650s, Provence jumped on France, calling in Burgundy.
France has faced a few similar wars before, and they were able to beat the minor and even take back some land, to my dismay.
But this time is different. The combined strength of Provence and Burgundy is enough to prevent France from forming a new army, and the whole France is occupied.
Provence made major gains from this war, and these are the maps before and after the peace treaty:






3. Vassalization of Mewar

After a series of lost wars, most of the lands of Mewar have been annexed by Malwa.
This means Mewar has become a valuable vassal.
The problem is that Mewar does not share a border with me any more.
So I have to fabricate a claim on one of its provinces to get a CB.
It is discovered, but an AE hit in India is not that big a deal.
After the completion of the claim, I proceed to have my target country vassalized. It is done in June 1655.
The combined AE hit enrages Malwa.



It does not matter too much, as the only other member of the coalition is Russia, which is at war with me.
In fact, I can immediately respond by bringing a war to Malwa in October 1655.



And the result is 4 cores for my vassals.



It's the beginning of another wave of AE free expansion in India.


4. Vassalization of Algiers

With Milan and Oman being integrated, I have cleared free slots for more vassals.
The North African states are good targets.
Morocco is too large, so my choice is between Algiers and Tripoli.
I eventually pick Algiers, because it has cores on the other two countries.
So it is diplo-vassalized right after the integration of Milan.




5. The Succession Crisis

Having an heir with similar age to the Sultan is a timed bomb.
In the reign of Ibrahim I, the bomb exploded 20 years before the Sultan dies, so the new heir can have to grow up and take the responsibilities.
This time, however, it explodes in a very untimely moment:



A few months later, I am offered a potential heir.



I reject it, because of the 0 diplomatic skill and the low legitimacy. The worst combination I can ever have.
I need a good reason to tolerate a ruler of low legitimacy, and this ruler has nothing nearly good enough for me.

Instead, I get a royal marriage with Kazakh, which I take the stab hit to break as it serves no purpose to me.

A few more years has passed with the Empire having no successors. Until March 1665.



A newborn, the hope of the dynasty. The skills are not well distributed, but at least he will not hinder my progress too much.
It also saves the legitimacy of the Empire for the next few decades.
Unfortunately, the legitimacy comes with a heavy price:



15 years of regency council is a game-killer in the eyes of many. For me, it is a serious blow, but at least it does not come at the worst time possible.
I have accumulated much AE across Europe, and 15 years is barely enough to dissipate the anger of my enemies.
With the circumstances changed, I will need to adjust my plans, and make sure that I get the best out of this regency...


Final remarks

The 43-year reign of Orhan II has come to an end.
The half century of brilliant leadership and political stability allowed me to fully focus on the territorial expansion and the advance in ideas and technology.
The 6 admin skills makes filling the administrative idea group a breeze. The 4 military skill makes sure that I can have equal tech with other Europeans.
The 2 diplomatic skill is a mixed blessing.
It is too low to satisfy my need of expansion (taking provinces require diplomatic points), but it is just low enough to allow the Kosem Sultana event to fire.
I am really, really lucky to have the right Sultan at the right time once again, after Mustafa I makes westernization a smooth process.

Although regency council is bad, there are still a lot that I can do.
I will reveal the details in the next chapter.