OK, I've been watching this AAR for some time and the more I read the more I find myself compulsively checking for updates. It has reached a point where I finally admit that I gave up being a 'casual' reader long ago, so I will comment and say awesome job!
-
We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.
I don't play ahead a certain number of years, then write an update, then play some more. Generally I play out a monarch's entire reign, plus the succeeding monarch, before the writing gets underway. Then it's a long slog writing about things; the last few updates, for example, were played way back in mid-April of 2011.
The reason I play out the monarch's and heir's full reign before writing is so that I have some idea of the highs and lows of the dynasty, and can structure the story accordingly. I can't say whether it's preferable to the incremental play/post system, but it works for me.
I know Steam has its own screenshot manager, but I have no experience in accessing or exporting images from it. Assuming that Steam provides a ordinary web URL to access the images, if you can see the single images in your web browser, you can surely save them to disk and re-upload them to another image hosting site.
I use imageshack as my image server, though other folks have had luck with photobucket. There are lots of free image-hosting sites to choose from.
Regarding the update: I don't know—soon? I am having re-write blues with this update; it is eventful and also very important to the storyline, but I am always fighting text bloat. I will commit to having it up before the end of this coming weekend, though, as I want to put it behind me and get into the Reformation.
Thanks for the compliment!
The continental possessions are, to my mind (and as described in the initial post) "former English/British territories whose loss may have been reasonably avoided"; so I will try to retain them. But it's not an ironclad rule and I can easily see scenarios where I would change my mind.
Right now it's relatively easy because I don't have too many far-flung beaches to defend, and the lack of artillery means sieges take a year or so. In a hundred years, when France and Spain have far-flung colonies next door to mine, and their in-game armies have plenty of cannon, the calculus will be a lot different. If it comes down to losing Normandy vs. North America, I would rather retain the colonies—which will be more beneficial in the long run.
I would do that if I thought I could crank out an entire update in a single sitting. I tried it once and spent all night writing before flying to Florida; all it got me was disapproving looks from my wife and a good long nap on the plane.
Hah, thanks for the compliment. Truth be told I do the same for just about all my subscribed AARs. I am a little bit shy in the commenting department though, so I should make more of an effort to support those authors, as you've done here.
Huh, that's actually interesting. I try to play for a while, marking out points where an end of a chapter might be good/appropriate with saves. I usually scout out one or two decades at a time so that I can give some sort of foresight on the direction where the Kingdom is heading, similar to you, but I do rather like your style. Shows a whole hell of a lot of dedication on your part.
Anyway, just wanted to get a point on this because I find your process to be enviable and rather amazing. Good work!
Anyway, just wanted to get a point on this because I find your process to be enviable and rather amazing. Good work!
i don't mind reading alot, these updates are usually great and if it's important i read it then read it i shall
On a random and utterly unimportant note, I am voting that if you inherit the Byzantine empire, you keep the territory so as to make for more interesting historical diversions; this seems like a cool one, and the idea of a great english empire that additionally holds greece is cool.
I know the "british empire + lost opportunity" was your goal, but still, this seems like a worthwhile and interesting exception to the rule.
Thanks again for all the great work!
I know the "british empire + lost opportunity" was your goal, but still, this seems like a worthwhile and interesting exception to the rule.
Thanks again for all the great work!
To be honest, I haven't really been working on it for months, but your mention's got me inspired to look at it again. I had all but burnt myself out on V2, but wouldn't mind picking it up again.
You're not joking about it being a big effort - I've got to convert over 1,000 provinces and 100 countries from my save to a V2 mod folder. This might take some time
.
I won't say too much (to avoid spoilers), but you'll be happy to know that Byzantium figures prominently in the next two or three updates.
To be honest, I haven't really been working on it for months, but your mention's got me inspired to look at it again. I had all but burnt myself out on V2, but wouldn't mind picking it up again.
You're not joking about it being a big effort - I've got to convert over 1,000 provinces and 100 countries from my save to a V2 mod folder. This might take some time
I was thinking that if I were to undertake a similar project at the end of this AAR, I probably wouldn't bother trying to match up complex things like urban population modifiers vs. POPs, trade goods, and so on. For an entirely manual effort that's just waaaay too much work. I'd just change the province ownership and possibly the cultures, then let the socioeconomic chips fall where they may.
Last edited:
"I won't say to much (to avoid spoilers), but you'll be happy to know that Byzantium figures prominently in the next two or three updates."
Sweet!!
Sweet!!
I had a look about Svante Nilson and you are right he was the regent of Sweden at this time. The reason I didn't recognise him is that he is known as Svante Nilson Natt och Dag (Night and Day) the oldest noble family in Sweden. They have been around since 1280! They also used the name Sture for some branches too.
That's pretty much my thinking (for now). It makes sense that trade goods might change over time (and we do have a useful 15-year gap between EU3 ending and Vic2 starting, at least in vanilla HTTT).
I think I might try to match up some of the government types of the greater powers. I've already switched Japan to Prussian Constitutionalism, and should really switch France back to absolute monarchy. No revolution in my game as they're filthy rich.
In terms of how close you stick to your original goals of recreating the British Empire, I'd say it was equally useful to pick plausible goals given your current situation and just let matters evolve from there. There's no reason not to try to maintain your French possessions if you can, and if you're trying to play in the mindset of a ruling dynasty then you probably should do everything you can to regain lost territory, regardless of whether the return is as great as picking on someone else or going colonising.
However, if you are intending to convert to Vic2, then it's probably worth leaving some hefty states around to give you a bit of a challenge. That or start the game by releasing the US and fighting out a century-long revolutionary conflict.
I appreciate the research, and I have updated the post so that the first mention of him is "Svante Nilsson Natt och Dag". Seems a little cumbersome to refer to him thereafter as "Natt och Dag", so I've left the remainder as "Nilsson". Hopefully it will make sense to subsequent Swedish readers.
Oh, of course. Matching government types for the majors is a good step!
If I were to do this too, I would have some nagging doubts about the HRE. Since it is unlikely for Revolutionary France to form (in vanilla let alone MM games), by 1820 the HRE is usually in a fairly intact state. Has anybody modded a sort of HRE mechanic for V2? Or does it just get kludged together as Prussia with a million puppets?
I haven't played nearly long enough to find out, but my wild-assed guess is that by 1600 or 1650 at latest, the French army will be able to take the continental enclaves with a couple of days' siege, and my army + manpower + allies will not be able to dislodge them. From there it will be easy for France to long-wait the provinces out of my grasp. So while I have no plans to give them up without a fight, I am fairly pessimistic about the long-term picture.
I have a back-of-the-bar-napkin plan for V2. Because Britain is super-powered in that game, I would try to mitigate that by 1) focusing as much effort as possible on developing the dominions, rather than the home country and 2) releasing the dominions (Canada, Australia, India, New Zealand) on or before their historic independence days. I include India amongst them too—even though it was not independent within the timeframe of V2—because nationalist sentiment was certainly extant at the time. And who knows, if the right statesman had come along, maybe it might have happened more or less at the same time as the others.
Britain divested of the economic power of its dominions (retaining maybe the military alliances) ought to make V2 less of a "Big Red Blob Dominates the World" sort of game.
Getting back to EU3, I am also pessimistic about the ability to hang on to the USA. While it is technically possible, it's not exactly unusual to see the US in MM games, so I would be surprised if they were not around for an eventual transition to V2.
I'd have to check out more of the V2 mods, play test my bar-napkin-plan with them, and see whether it's enough GBR-nerfing to not make it a cakewalk.
Thanks for that. I hope you didn't see this as a critic of your own research, which is pretty impressive. It was more my own curiosity that led me to check this.
I didn't perceive any criticism in it.
But that said, I'm only human, and my knowledge of history is not encyclopaedic. There are plenty of storyline bits that I would write differently now, as each update I learn a few more things about the Late Medieval Era.
Any story is going to have moments where someone truly knowledgeable in the subject is going to *facepalm* or shake their head is dismay. Hopefully I haven't larded my AAR with them, but not every chapter can win the Pulitzer.
Byzantium figures prominently...
As the Greeks try to figure out how to get more land and the English try to figure how to keep the French off their own backs
As the Greeks try to figure out how to get more land and the English try to figure how to keep the French off their own backs
The thing about V2 is it arrives at a very neo-mercantilist economic position, albeit from a different direction. Land is what makes a state powerful, and the more you have, the more powerful you become. Hence the UK, which starts with a huge empire at the beginning of a normal V2 game is in a great position from the start.
Belgium, which starts off as one of the more industrialised nations, is basically destined to dwindle as there's nowhere else it can go (unless played by a human, in which case you can beat up the Dutch and colonise swathes of Africa).
Releasing the dominions and India will leave you with a sprinkling of strategic naval bases, a good industrial footing and a solid European state to build from. It should indeed make for an interesting game.
In a (hopefully tolerable) plug for my game, I've made a fair bit of progress on converting the 1821 save from my Yamato game. After a weekend of messing about in Excel, I've got the full list of provinces that need to be moved and I've already done the work on the two largest empires (Russia and Castile respectively). Unfortunately, I still keep coming across things that need doing: for example, because colonisation has run a different course, the European element in Mexico should be English rather than Spanish.
Great AAR dude. Just read through all of it, and it was an very good read. When can we expect the next update?
The war has run for eight years; easily my longest conflict to date.
Okay, good to know the basic concept is sound.
I'm looking forward to your Japan's new adventures in V2, when all the textfile-fiddling is said and done!
Sorry, fellas. This one is taking ages as I went through a bit of a plot rewrite, and then had to adjust the graphics accordingly. Had to get rid of some elements that were making me cringe inwardly no matter how many edits it went through.
o Will probably be a few days yet.I will share one spoiler, though:
Let me see here... Castille blockading a French port, English soldiers laying siege to Armagnac territory, the Portuguese and English Royal Navy blockading the pretender Duke of Gascony's ports? Heh, looks like while you were away, the French tried to play with the Castillians.