Hello all. With the realization that Decline and Fall may now be entering its downswing, (or that I have lost some of the prior enthusiasm to writing a Byzantine AAR because of my recent work on the Byzantine Empire in real life) and not having played EU4 in a while, I’ve decided to do another AAR on a game with Austria. Although Austrian history is not one of my fields of proper study (via the university: American Social and Islamic History were my two fields of historical study), like with my writings of the Byzantine Empire (semi)professionally, I have always had an interest in Austrian history, mostly because of my Austrian heritage. In part, this AAR is a reflection of my fondness to the Habsburgs, and a myriad of books and articles I have read over the years.
Andrew Wheatcroft’s respectable book The Habsburgs deserves listing of influence for the intention of this AAR (to depict the Habsburgs in a more positive light than most scholarship had showed them, which is generally begun to change over the last 20 years with renewed interest in the ideas of the Habsburgs and their political diplomats – namely Prince Klemens von Metternich. Many new writers are of the opinion that the modern European Union is rooted in the ideas and hegemonic dreams of the Habsburgs, who were among the first proponents of a European Confederation). This will be a history book AAR, as I am accustomed to writing since I write history professionally and really can’t do anything else after all these years. However, I hope to incorporate more screenshots and for this AAR to be written in much more accessible and “introductory” prose than what I am accustomed to writing in real life and in my AARs on these forums – like The Decline and Fall of Roman Civilization.
House Rule(s): In certain games, and especially when I write AARs, I like to handicap myself with the “semi-historical” gameplay strategy. I am not going to create Germany, nor do I want to be an unstoppable blob that will run amok over the AI. I will be playing in the style that I think would best reflect the ambitions of the historic Habsburgs, after Charles V – maintaining the balance of power in Europe. I will also remain Catholic and be the bulwark (hopefully) of the Counter Reformation. In addition, I will “play” as reflective of my rulers. For example, a ruler with high military skills will naturally favor military things (construct military buildings, be ready and eager for war, etc.) while a ruler with high diplomacy or administrative skills will favor that/those course(s) of action. Poor rulers, with poor stats, will also be reflected (i.e., by hoarding or squandering wealth, not immediately progressing to the next technology level or taking the beneficial idea that may be important, etc. I hope you all enjoy!
Respectfully yours,
~ volksmarschall
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