Chronicles of the House Karvuna - A Bulgarian AAR [HIP]

State of the House Karvuna


Back in 913, the House Karvuna had taken a strong start under its founder, Voivode Petar I; however, the family itself was still comparatively small. Of Petar I's five sons, only two survived: the next Voivode Petar II, and his youngest brother Gavril Petarov. Their respective descendants would go on to found the two main lines of the Karvuna dynasty, but as of yet, Petar II was the undisputed head of the House.

Petar II's son, Dragoman, became heir apparent upon the accession of his father. His elder sister, Tereza, had died after giving her husband, a Balgarsko noble, a son - young Nikola. He also had a younger sister, Vasilka, who was still a child.

On the other hand, Gavril only had one son: Petar Gavrilov.


The British Isles


In 913, Norse and Christian kingdoms were still struggling over control of the British Isles. The centre of Britain was dominated by two Norse petty kingdoms, Jorvik and Jutaland. Jorvik was ruled by Halfdan's great-grandson, Guđfriđ II Hvitserk, while Jutaland was ruled from mainland Denmark by Jarl Frirek Jylland.

Two Christian powers resisted the invaders: King Feidlimid Mac Ailpin of Alba in the North, and Duke Aethelhelm of Wessex in the South. Wales and Ireland were still as divided as ever, with only two coastal areas in the East of Ireland still under Norse domination.


Iberia


In Iberia, two great powers were vying for total domination of the peninsula: the Umayyads under young Sultan Azam Al-Umawiyyun, and the Kingdom of Asturias under old Alfonso III de Cantabria, who had ruled uninterruptedly since 866.


Francia


In 913, it looked like France and Aquitaine would remain united for good. Louis the Stammerer had managed to reunite the kingdoms before his sons divided his lands between them. Louis III became king of Francia Occidentalis, Karloman king of Aquitaine, and Barthélémi king of Burgundy. But Karloman soon died of illness and his son, Guigues, was only king for a short while before dying tragically – and heirless – at war. The Kingdom of Aquitaine passed back to Louis the Stammerer's eldest son, Louis III of Francia Occidentalis.

Meanwhile, in Burgundy, the Karling line was in danger of dying out: Barthélémi, who was clearly not anticipating inheriting the kingdom from his father, married an Irish petty queen – matrilineally! Thus, the heir to the Kingdom of Burgundy is no other than one Congalach Mac Barthélémi Mac Finnachta!


Italy & Germany


In Italy and Germany, three Karling rulers have divided the old empire between themselves: Lothaire III of Lotharingia, Amadeus of Bayern and Lombardia, and Karlmann II of Francia Orientalis. Amadeus is surely the most powerful of the three, but can he unite the empire again?


Scandinavia


Scandinavia, in 913, remains a barbaric region ruled by rival clans and petty kingdoms. No power worth the name seems to have emerged, except perhaps for that of Bagge Sigurđing, who recently declared himself King of Denmark. He doesn't even have control of the whole Danish peninsula, though...


Russia and the Steppes


The North-East is a messy area. The two dominant powers seem to be Rurik Rurikovich (grandson of the Norse lord of the same name), King of Holmgarđr, and Khan Sol II of Krimea.


Asia Minor


Apart from the resurgent Roman Empire under Leon VI Makedon, it's interesting to note that the two Bagrationi Kingdoms of Armenia and Georgia seem to be doing quite well at halting the Muslims in the Caucasus.

August 913

The day has finally come! The old man is dead! Right, let's move on. Don't expect me to mourn someone so depressingly nice...

I, Petar Petarov Karvuna, shall now rule in Ohrid and beyond, with You, my Beloved – and for Him... with His help, they shall be no limit to our power, and the world shall see Him and bow before Him! For I know that He will not foresake me: he has proved His force to me once already, by saving me from the Patriarch's dungeons. Who knows how long we could have held strong against those fanatical priests...

Just a few days into my glorious reign, pesky underlings start pestering me in the name of their “ancient freedoms.” There are easy ways out of this, though...



October 913

A great day for You and me! My “dear cousin” the Tsar has summoned me to the capital to train his troops as a marshall. From there, I shall be able to advance His cause more efficiently than ever!



June 914

Ha! It seems someone isn't happy with my rule. I don't get it, is that man not honoured to serve His cause through me? Why would he want to replace me with that Balgarsko brat? He might be my grandchild, but I'm afraid he isn't on His side...


Rebellious scoundrels! The throne is ours, and it shall be defended... by all available means.



August 914

The Tsar has surrendered to the Romans. Is that weakling really fit to rule over someone like me? What do You think, my Beloved, should we do something about that inappropriate situation? Hm, maybe one day, if he should show a vulnerable spot... the time might come to break the old alliance of the Karvunas with the Tsars!



March 915

Assassins! Usurpers! Our enemies are everywhere. I'm sure Nikola Balgarsko's supporters are behind this. We must be careful, musn't we?



November 915

The arrogance of the followers of the False Church knows no limits! Today a priest came up to me and offered to “exorcise” me. I could feel Your hate as he was staring at us with his piercing eyes. Of course I sent him away! You and me shall be one forever...



May 917

Ouch! That stung!


Has He abandoned me, that I should be defenseless against such insignificant creatures? What have I done to anger Him? Am I too slow to advance His cause? We need to make plans and see how we can make Balgariya bow before Him! Come, my Beloved, there is some hard thinking to be done.


September 917

Men are such idiots! As if it weren't enough that hardly anyone is willing to help me deal with the “Nikola” threat, my one and only accomplice, Rasate Balgarsko, had to go on and reveal my plans to the public.


I can't rely on anybody! Who knows how long it will take to silence my bothersome grandson now...


July 918

A rebel among us?


Well, but that simply won't do. She won't even have time to regret her crime! Look, my Beloved, I have brought You another one... It's been too long, hasn't it?



December 918

It seems my beloved son has put a child into the world... My heart springs with joy as I speak. No, really.


Momchil, eh? Pretty ugly name, if you ask me. Keep that brat away from me!

On a side note, while casting a cursory glance upon the child's family tree, I can't help but grin at the name of his great-grandfather on the mother's side, one Marmais Makedonska. I remember good old Marmais, don't you, Beloved? How ironic that my father's greatest enemy should join his blood to ours in my grandson's veins...


July 919

Not again! I can't seem to go anywhere without being chased around by dozens of angry bees. This is beginning to be a serious problem: my whole body bears the mark of this constant harassment, and I feel the tiny drops of their poison travelling freely in my blood. No, I don't feel to well, really.


Why won't He protect me? And You, can't You do anything? Why are You so silent these days, my Beloved? I need your support if I am to achieve anything in His name...

A quick prayer might be in order:

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@scelestus: thanks! My pleasure

@GulMacet: hm... I see them fine even logged out of my account. Might just have been downtime on the host's side. Anyone else having problem with the pictures? If so please say and I'll look into it.

@DensleyBlair: yes, there will be overviews more or less systematically at the death of each ruler (except for those who reign only for a couple of years, of course). Half the fun in CK2 (for me at least) is seeing how the world evolves around you and I'm always a bit sad when reading AARs that just leave that out, so I'll definitely be trying to give a sense of that myself

December 920

At least, an opportunity to extend his dominion on this earth!


March forward, my soldiers, for you bear His arms today!



January 921

Boyar Radu, the son of that rebellious Lyudmila I offered You three years ago, apparently thinks he can use the confusion of this war to his advantage. I'll have him crushed!



February 921

Oh, thank Him, thank Him! He has not abandoned me after all!



June-August 921

The war is won, thanks to His help!


Shortly thereafter, Gavril Petarov, my chancellor and brother, reports that another opportunity has arisen to conquer more lands.


We shall make use of this immediately; people might despise me for breaking the truce, but He whom I serve knows no truce! Onwards!


September 921

The revolt has been put down! Here, my Beloved, You can have some more. Enjoy...



October-November 921

His soldiers are ruthless and needed for the war, but their material demands are a burden. I have no idea what the three Sisters do with all the gold I give them – and in the meantime I am running a debt...

Of course, my Mayors choose precisely this time to demand financial support.


There's no bribing them this time, so I'll have to relinquish some control. There'll be time to come back on this yet.

Bees are still a pain, though! I'll have to see what I can do to make this armour a little bit more... beeproof.


October 922

I need to serve Him better, this much is clear. I really have to get down to work. I am certainly paying the price in my own flesh, what with these accursed bees following me everywhere – but my worldly health isn't important compared to the duties bestowed upon me.



April 923

Another great day for His cause!


The entirety of the Voivodeship of Karvuna has fallen into His hands – although the greed of His servants means I am still in debt, and can't afford the ceremony to declare myself Voivode quite yet.

Summer is approaching, though, and with it bee season returns once more...


September 923

I'm not sure how long we'll still be together, my Beloved. I'm not sure I can serve Him for much longer. I've spent the whole of the summer hiding inside for fear of the damned insects, but they always find a way in. I go to sleep with an uneasy head, and I wake up to new pains every morning.

My body is at its limits, I might not make it through the next night... Wait, I think I can hear that buzzing sound again...

My Lord, my Lord, why have you forsaken me!?

September-October 923

He's dead! Dead!

I can't quite believe it. All my life I have felt his presence over me and around me, so stifling, so overpowering – and now he is no more. The nobles say he was punished by God for being a Devil-worshipper; some even whisper he was himself inhabited by a demon. I don't know what to think about that; I'm not too sure what it would make of me, as I am his only son...

One thing is for sure: I am now Voivode of Ohrid and Karvuna. That's right, the House has gained an additional title! It was my chancellor, Lady Jezebel – a friend of my father's, whom I know I can trust in all political matters – who advised me to claim it upon my accession.


As for being the Voivode, that also is a thorny issue. I had enough problems finding my place in life without also having to take on the burdens of a ruler. Sure, I'll do what I can, but I'm not entirely sure I'm the right man for this... Ah, questions, questions, and not a single answer in sight! Why is life so difficult?



March 924

A third son! Welcome to this hard world, my child.


It doesn't look like there will be much good in it for you – your brothers Momchil and Kulin shall be the ones to head the House one day, not you – but we'll try and make it do, shall we?


January 926

Vasilka, my only surviving sister, is old enough to be married. As I mention that a young Voivode, Kalojan of Muntenia and Oltenia, is yet unwed, she begs me to organize an encounter. She really seems impatient to get away from here – am I really that terrible at this job?



November 930

Man, that young lady sure looks good. I wonder if there could be a way to finally make this pompous titles of mine finally work for me, for once! I bet she's never been with someone with such huge tracts of land...



February 931

Lady Jezebel announces that she's found a way to gain some more land next to my fief of Csanad. Sure, why not? As long as it isn't too much hastle – I'm sure Lady Jezebel will take care of it. Now Stoyanka my dear, where were we just now?



May 931

What a pesky woman Raina is! Since I've been with Stoyanka, that delightful young lady, I can't really bear spending so much time with my wife anymore. She's just so... demanding! She doesn't know how to take care of me!



June 932

Lady Jezebel says that we can't wait anymore; we have to go to war with the Voivode of Csanad now. Alright, alright, if you insist... I'll lead my men from... from this bed here, perhaps.



July 932

The Abbasiyun Caliph, Husam, has called upon all Muslims to help retake parts of the Holy Land recently conquered by the Empire of the Romans.


To be honest, we in Balgariya could do with a slightly weaker southern neighbour, so if the Muslims want to do lend us a hand, I have no problem with that.


March 933

The war is over... well, that was boring. So much effort for a bit of land, really... I think I need a nap.



December 934

Oh, look who's a big boy now! Dear Momchil isn't really good at anything but talking, but I guess that's already something.


Now to find him a suitable bride... Why not across the Black Sea, among the noble Bagrationi family of Georgia and Armenia? King Tornik's reputation isn't too good, but perhaps that's precisely what we need: a fearsome name makes a good ally.



February 935

Alright, old Frujin – Tsar of Balgariya, Wallachia and Moldova! If you must.



January 936

I've been having some pretty good times with Stoyanka lately...


In fact, I've been having a damned good time all around! The other day I even found desire for my wife after all these years! She was as surprised as me, I daresay...


February 936

Even Stoyanka isn't enough for me now, I need something more! Oh my, and look at that one... isn't she just gorgeous? Yes, she's... something quite special. I must have her, whatever the cost!

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@Specialist290 & DensleyBlair: I know, I had greater plans for Petar II, but that right moment never came - instead he sort of just died on me. I try to make do with whatever the game throws at me, though, so I went with it As for poor Dragoman, as you can see, he won't be the one to take the Karvunas to greatness quite yet. He wasn't the man for that (depressed, envious, slothful) and besides, his interests clearly lay elsewhere

State of the House Karvuna

Back in 936, the family's division in two branches was very much set in stone. The elder branch, that of Petar II's descendants – now headed by his grandson Momchil, who was married to an Armenian princess – had a firm grip on the Voivodeship of Ohrid and Karvuna. Both Tereza and Vasilka, Momchil's aunts, had married Balgarsko nobles – although Tereza's line was already extinct.


The cadet branch, on the other hand, still had its original leader in the person of Gavril Petarov, Boyar of Skopje and Zagore, who was already four times a father and once a grandfather. It was often said that his descendants represented the more sane and normal side of the House of Karvuna, whose main line had been plagued by catastrophes since the death of its founder Petar I.



The British Isles


The balance of power in the Isles was still much the same, except for the fact that the Midlands, once Jutaland dominion, had passed to the crown of Denmark. The other Pagan throne, that of Jorvik, had had a more troubled history: the current King, Ofeig the Fat, had deposed one liege (his young relative Rikulfr II), and offered another (Rikulfr's aunt þyra) in sacrifice to the gods.

Old King Feidlimid still reigned in Alba, whereas the only other Christian crown in the Isles, that of Westseaxe, rested on the head of Osweald of Wessex.



Iberia


The Christian kingdom of Asturias under Alfonso IV de Cantabria and his father Gil had been losing ground steadily to the Ummayad Sultan, Najib the Accursed (who had deposed his brother Azam back in 919): Portucale and parts of Leon were gone. The Muslims had also made short work of the small Kingdom of Nafarroa, by the Pyrenees, which disappeared in 918.


Francia


Once again the lands of Francia Occidentalis and Aquitaine were divided between two Karling brothers, Gauthier in the North and Bouchard in the South. Further East, the balance of power remained fundamentally the same, with one important change: although Rudger Ironside of Baiern and Lombardia and Widukind the Cruel of Francia Orientalis remained strong, the Karling had been ousted from power in Lotharingia by the Taillefer family. Léon Taillefer, nicknamed the Lion, was now Duc de Haute et Basse Lotharingie. Lothaire IV Karling only ruled over a rump realm at the French border.


Scandinavia


The early 10th century saw the consolidation of Scandinavia around three kingdoms: Denmark, Sweden (founded in 934 by Eirikr af Munsö) and Gautariki (founded in 917 and now ruled by Baldr Njudunge). Most of Norway remained fractured and divided. Of the three Norse kingdoms, Denmark under Skuli Sigurđing was probably the most powerful, thanks in large part to its British possessions.


Russia & the Steppes


The dominant power in the North remained Holmgarđr, led by King Helgi II Rurikovich. Despite the recent emergence of two new kindgoms, Halych-Volyn (founded 931) and Vladimir (founded 928), the Rus was still an unruly area where steppe nomads, Slav natives and Norse invaders fought bitterly for measly local fiefs.


Asia Minor


Apart from the expansionist drive of the Georgians into the steppes of Krimea, nothing much seemed to change in this area, whose uncontested dominant power remained the Empire of the Romans. Its child-emperor, Andronikos Makedon – the child had Arab blood and looked decidedly more like a Muslim prince than like a Greek imperator – was not yet able to do much with his ten years of age, though.

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@DensleyBlair: yes, Momchil is pretty poor as a name . I didn't get to choose it, sadly, Dragoman did it for me as I was still playing Petar II. As for that event chain: I think it's from the VIET submod of HIP, but it could well be from somewhere else, what with the mod being so huge and all that. In any case, it fits well with the pretty sombre fate of the Karvunas so far...