Chapter 13: Wherein Russia discovers its greatest challenge: math
February 1650: My new mission from God (I honestly forget the old one :wacko
is to build a university in Bolgar. Construction starts immediately.
June 1650: Another free constable, this time in Vetluga.
September 1650: Those fat-cats in Parliament are arguing again. I ignore them and lose 8 prestige.
January 1651: Manchu wants to fight Korea and it all wants is military access? Sold!
Agricultural Revolution in Thrace -- +2 base tax in my highest tax province already.
Beketov is up to his old tricks, and we get another +10% National Tax modifier until April.
February 1651: Verkhe-Angarsky cores.
July 1651: Border Friction against Rajputana -- Rajputana is one of the countries I need provinces from to connect India to Russia, so this is welcome.
Imereti converts.
October 1651: Bavaria declares war on Ulm, who sadly has no vassals in this game.
May 1652: With troops now in position and a little more infamy burned off, war is declared on Rajputana, bringing in a whole host of allies.
Alliance leader is Manchu.
Sweden warns us. Sweden is a two province minor -- maybe they all do this because otherwise they'd have to reflect on their otherwise bleak and meaningless existence.
June 1652: Defensive is a lot less attractive now that you don't get free forts, just the 10 year boost to fortifications.
August 1652: Glinski's reign of terror is over. A new Posadnik is elected, who seriously can't possibly be any worse (5/3/3 is the worst a Republic can get). Nikodim Potemkin, the new leader, is 7/3/7. I will take that!
September 1652: Rajputana gives me my province I was tasked with, plus two more to inch ever closer to Russian territory proper.
I call in Khiva, which gives me an opportunity to share with you the full alliance against me: Manchu, Khorasan, Bihar, Malwa, Orissa, Qin, and Sind. Bihar has the other provinces I need, but it took a lot of infamy to get the provinces from Rajputana, so that'll have to wait until another war.
Marathi rebels in Dadra decide they want to revolt -- unfortunately, this would be a great time for them to do it, so I have to buy them off, at the cost of a few ducats and penalties to stability cost and national tax for six months.
October 1652: Sind leaves the war, annulling a couple of treaties as payment.
November 1652: Malwa gets white peace and to continue living; I honestly think my magnanimity should be rewarded with prestige.
I also find out that Nizhe-Kolymsk produces Iron.
I get a border friction CB against Maharasthra -- I'm not really interested in more Indian provinces at the moment, so I'll let this one expire.
January 1653: Exit Khorasan.
Manchu quickly realizes it has no allies left -- only Bihar and Qin at this point -- so it agrees to White Peace.
March 1653: My tons of infamy have nobles in Ruthenia mad, and revolt risk skyrockets for a while.
August 1653: I recover that point of stability I lost a while ago.
November 1653: Riga, who has Livland (the last Baltic province I really want), is Burgundy's vassal, further enraging me. Burgundy, thwarting me at every turn. Burgundy, curse of Western Europe. Your day of reckoning will come soon. Not now, maybe not tomorrow, but when you least expect it.
After burning off a bit of infamy, I decide to pick on Ak Konlyu. They've only got one province, but it's historically Russian (well, Armenian, which for the Russian Empire, and the purposes of this AAR, means Russian). To war! I hope their mighty ally doesn't intervene!
Switzerland makes Austria release a couple of minors. Oh Switzerland, why won't you be my friend again?
December 1653: A bunch of Lithuanian rabblerousers in Vilna start trouble and raise my revolt risk in the province. Nothing ever comes of it, because life in the Russian Republic is just too awesome. Remember, the surest bulwark against revolution is prosperity, and Russia's got that in spades.
Hungary warns me. Apparently, at some point, Bohemia released Hungary. Isn't that something?
February 1654: The Swiss do something in my SOI, so I get a CB. Never! The Russians remember their allies and never abandon them! (Annex them, yes, but never abandon them. Well, except for Denmark. All right, Russians remember their allies and rarely abandon them, then.)
Van becomes Russian and the war ends.
June 1654: The Byzantines decide to pick on Bulgaria. Those fools! Those foolish fools!
I want Edirne in this war, since it's part of the Bosphorus sound toll. We are quickly made leaders of the war.
November 1654: Krypshak converts.
December 1654: Wu collapses. Hey, that's Ming's line!
Switzerland smacks around Bavaria, takes some cash and makes them break some treaties. Three more German minors appear -- the more the merrier, I say.
Serbia takes a chunk out of Byzantium -- a slight distraction, but good for Serbia! I get MA from them the next day to continue the war.
January 1655: Land 31 and Fort 4. I begin constructing them on the Korean and Bohemian borders, as well as in Thrace.
I eventually need war with Bihar again, to get two more connecting provinces, so I guarantee Sind, since Bihar has a mission to wipe them off the map. It never comes to fruition, but hey, it was a good idea.
February 1655: I take my prize. It's good thing too, I'm awfully close to the infamy limit. Fortunately, 20.9+3.00 only equals 23.00 (my infamy limit), so I'm in the clear.
Oh wait... I may have added wrong... I'm dishonorable scum now. Sweden DOWs.
A week later, Hungary joins the party, and Tibet a few days after that.
Meanwhile, God wants another naval race with Burgundy. My whole sitting still and doing nothing about it tactic worked last time, I'm sure it will again.
March 1655: Tibet calls in Korea. This would be great if not for the whole over the infamy limit thing.
April 1655: Maharasthra DOWs.
July 1655: Karshi defects, ending the Timurid Empire's reign of terror. Khorasan released them in the earlier war -- it's an infamy province, so I'll take it.
People leave Grodno for sunny Nizhe-Kolymsk. Not sure I'd make the same choice, but hey, snow cones year round!
September 1655: Border Friction CB on Persia. No thanks, four wars is enough for now.
November 1655: Having no army and only one province that borders me, Sweden white peaces. I drop below the infamy limit, so no more dishonorable scum.
Maharasthra peaces out a few days later.
December 1655: Transylvania warns me.
I make Tibet tear up a couple of treaties (primarily with Korea) in exchange for continued freedom.
Hungary, as the only country I can exert my will on, suffers the greatest price -- converting to Orthodoxy!!!!!
If these wars sounded anti-climactic, to a certain extent they were. It was mostly zipping from one corner of the map to the other, managing multiple sieges and battles. A logistical nightmare, to be sure. It reminds me of HOI 3, and there's a reason I don't play it. Too hard (for me anyway, an admitted n00b of HOI) to keep track of bunches of troops.
January 1656: A move towards Mercantilism nets me a 1* Collector. Pass.
July 1656: Ilimsk cores.
I construct a Tax Assessor in Kiev -- in DW, it's a unique building (one per country) for a permanent +.04 inflation reduction every year. I must have gotten the appropriate government tech that year.
August 1656: Qarabagh and Shirvan core.
I take a chance -- I'd love a better admin ruler, so I choose a new candidate (bureaucratic). It was a bad idea (6/3/9). I need to stop being so greedy
November 1656: Three provinces core, Armenia, Imereti, and Kartli.
January 1657: Border Friction against Ottomans. This one I'll take. It's even for the last two provinces I need for the Bosphorus Sound Toll!
Every single one of the Ottoman allies dishonors.
March 1657: Production 27 and the Stock Exchange, the level 6 production building. My highest tax provinces get their very own Stock Exchanges as fast as I can build them.
Manchu collapses, reviving the Oirat Horde. Ring the dinner bell, because it's time for an infamy free meal!
Boundary dispute gives me a core on Livland. Your time draws nigh, Burgundy.
Speaking of Burgundy, the Russian fleet accomplishes her mission, once again by doing nothing.
God now wants us to vassalize Iraq.
April 1657: My diplomat dies, but I hire a slightly better one.
May 1657: Serbia warns me. After everything I've done for you!
I achieve my goals and get a little cash besides.
In celebration, we pass the advancement of true religion act (-4% to missionary cost, +4% to missionary chance, +1 RR) to make converting our new territory a little easier.
I rapidly proceed with God's mission and DOW Iraq.
June 1657: Our dreams become reality and we completely control the Turkish (now Russian) straits. Huzzah!
I get MA through Syria to get the last Iraqi province.
October 1657: Boundary Dispute on Wusuli, a Korean province. I know where we're going next
I also subjugate Iraq. I didn't take a screenshot, for some reason, so that should tell you how thrilling the war wasn't.
Next, God wants me to convert Tara. A missionary is dispatched promptly.
January 1658: Khorasan warns me.
March 1658: Argyn converts.
June 1658: Colonial Ventures fires -- I still don't care about the navy. Give me more army tech!
September 1658: Tara converts, so now it's time to build a university in Armenia, says God. Construction begins.
Also, Russia now has zero inflation! For most of the rest of the game, I either don't mint at all or mint in a way that's inflation neutral, if for some reason I need the cash.
October 1658: Barguzinsky cores.
November 1658: Fur is produced in Anadyrsk.
February 1659: Malwa warns me.
May 1659: Surgut converts.
September 1659: Uchurskoye and the Lithuania provinces (Vilna, Grodno, Wenden) all core.
November 1659: Hey Persia, quit picking on my little buddy! Sorry, Korea, you'll have to wait!
Also, dear readers, you'll have to wait for the next installment of the Republic of Russia to see how it turns out
Next update will either be tonight or tomorrow.