Britain Junior - A Brittany AAR with Magna Mundi

[axzhang]

Hello all,

This is my first AAR, so I'm aiming to keep it lighthearted.
Without further ado, these are my goals:

-Form France in reverse
-Reclaim England and Ireland, the Breton people's homeland
-Colonize North America
-Dismantle the HRE?
-Suffer through the countless sadistic events of MMP

I will be using the latest verson of MMP 1.404 with the 3.2b IN patch. Starting date will be in 1399, even though the mod's recommended starting date is 1453. I chose to start in 1399 mainly because Britanny has a better fighting chance then, since France and Burgundy are less consolidated and most of the minors are not yet vassals.

Update coming in a few.

[Winner]

As with most MM AARs, I am going to follow it Will you be playing with AdInfinitum AI installed to your MM?

Brittany is a tough choice. You'll need strong allies, a lot of scorching and loads of luck. On the other hand, Ireland has 5 same-culture-group provinces you can take, and Wales too is Breton until the Anglo-Saxon invader regime commonly known as England assimilates it. You'll need to kick France when it's down and force it to release vassals and countries - that should level the playing field.

Anyway, good luck

[axzhang]

The Duchy of Brittany


The Bretons originated from modern day Wales, the descendants of the Celtic people. Hardy Celts that we are, an economy based primarily on production of fish, wool, and wood fuels our basic needs.


Hardy Celts. Note the wooly hats and wooly (but manly) kilts.

However, hundreds of years of easy life on Frankish lands have softened the previously badass Celtic citizens of Brittany. French wine and cheese have replaced fish as the staple diet, while certain avant-garde warriors have taken to using French silk instead of wool in their kilts.


Somehow, the new fashion just doesn't quite strike as much fear into the enemy ranks as before

Though of questionable fashion taste and an increasingly high-calorie based diet, the Bretons have not forgotten the glories of their Celtic ancestors. Especially the part about throwing out the Romans.


Glorious Celtic ancestors

Therefore, a secure supply of French wine, cheese, and silk must be of the utmost priority.



The Catalan people to the South seem to be familiar with this new way of life. Perhaps they would be open to our glorious quest of self-indulgence?



Our national ethos is based on the concept of seafaring and trade. There were rumors of how Gwynyd, the great Breton founding father, built the first canoe that sailed from the British Isles to escape the ravaging Vikings. He then traded his wooly kilt and a barrel of week-old fish to the pagans at Armor for the license to establish the first colony there.

On the 24 of October, 1399, Duke Jean V decreed the "Fashionista Freedom Act," which gave his subjects greater reign in the choice of fabric in their favorite kilts (free subjects slider to the right).



On 10 January, 1400, England declares on France. English heralds say that it has something to do with inheritance and succession. We suspect that it actually also had something to do with French wine and fashion.

A trade agreement was signed with Venice. Apparently, fish is preserved best in Venetian glass jars.



12 October, 1405, Provence annexes the pretender Antipope. Here is an artist's rendering of the Antipope:


Note that even the Antichrist himself is dressed in finery

[axzhang]

Note: For this update, I lost some of my pictures in between the war with Provence and the war with France. I'm using the software "Materialiser" to take pictures and it seems like I had to reload it every time I start a new game



The English people, after a failed assault on French lands, offers us an alliance. Contemporary military analysts cite the English failure on the dress-code of their soldiers. Note the very non-aerodynamic top-hat, and the tight pants that clearly constrict freedom of movement in the field of battle.


Just not as effective or spiffy as plaid kilts

In January, 1409, Jean V declares on Provence, noting Anjou's notable lack of garrisoned soldiers and the country's lack of military access through France. On October, 1409, Anjou is ceded. After thoroughly examining the province, Jean V was disappointed to find out that the purported "silk" produced there was just counterfeit linen. He died shortly after in an apoplectic rage, never seeing his vision of a fashion-forward Britanny fulfilled.



Meanwhile, a regency council rules in his absence. Here's where things get sketchy. Due to a discrepancy in record-keeping, the regency council were puzzled with why they found the additional province of Connaught in far-off Ireland several years later. Apparently, Jean V had slyly warned them a few years before he died. He knew that should his conquest of French lands for wine and cheese fail, at least he had could secure a better supply of fish.


An update to the records 20 years after the war shows an additional supply of fish in the national economy

Apparently, Britanny was not the only country to suffer through a regency council - France did too. Their nobles, however, were nowhere near as the amenable carefree types like the Bretons. They suffered a "Massive Noble Opposition." Suffice to say, while France's regular regiments are reduced to 7000 men by the rebellions, Britanny declares war. Maine, Blois, and Poitou were ceded.

Noticing that France was guaranteeing Orleans, the Bretons declare war on them again:

The Second War with France


------------
Again, apologies for the lost images in between the wars. They weren't that interesting to be honest, the French army was non-existent during the rebellions, and the only difficulty was avoiding the doomstacks of French revolutionaries while sieging.
------------

The Normans have declared Independence from their French masters, embarking on their own quest for unification of France. Cute, but you had your field day in 1066. It's now our turn.


Noting that foreign emissaries may not be as same-minded as our noble quest, we decide to vassalize instead of annex Orleans.



Breton's peasants are known for their piety due to their staple diet. It is not a coincidence that Jesus multiplied fish to feed the masses



Britanny's advisors are focused on efficiency and faster turnover of trade-goods. Fish doesn't keep well, you know




We make every concessions to the Church whenever possible. Given the high price of grain from Alexandria these days, the Church might one day depend on us to supply fish-based communion wafers. One could hope, right?




We also become regional traders. Breton fish and wool now travel far and wide, from the Northern Hansa to the Southern Italian boot. The fish connoisseur can distinguish the distinctive stench of Breton Fish from the generic products at Lubeck, Venezia, and Alexandria.




Peace is finally signed with France, while they cede the provinces of Othe, Vermandois, and Champagne. The best part of the peace deal? Champagne supplies wine! And it's bubbly too.






And now, while Guyenne has declared independence from France in the background, England goes to war again, while Burgundy ignores our warning to not go to war...

[Teep]

You had me at the illustrious gallic ancestors.

[Mohatma]

I liked it very much, your style is really funny!

[gabor]

that was quick! will be following.

[rapidem]

I love your dismissive attitude towards the Normans

[axzhang]

Originally Posted by Winner

As with most MM AARs, I am going to follow it Will you be playing with AdInfinitum AI installed to your MM?

Brittany is a tough choice. You'll need strong allies, a lot of scorching and loads of luck. On the other hand, Ireland has 5 same-culture-group provinces you can take, and Wales too is Breton until the Anglo-Saxon invader regime commonly known as England assimilates it. You'll need to kick France when it's down and force it to release vassals and countries - that should level the playing field.

Anyway, good luck

Seems like I ended up with quite a bit of luck, as France suffered absolutely massive revolts during their regency council. MMP events hit the AI just as hard as it hits the player.

And yes, I do have Ad Infinitum installed with MMP. The wars happening around me do seem more frequent, and colonization by AI should prove to be much better than usual.

---
Thanks for the support guys, another update should be coming soon.

[axzhang]

Brittany decides to honor its warning against Burgundy, since Burgundy holds key provinces with the Cosmopolitaine accepted culture.


We fully embrace the Cosmopolitain way of life



Meanwhile, Duke Artur IV ascends the throne.


Stretching our legs: AKA The Burgundian War



Burgundy is at war with both the Holy Roman Empire and Britanny herself. While we deeply distrust any entity with the word "Roman" in it, it seems like a temporary alliance with the Bavarian Emperor would serve our interests.



Here, we see half of Burgundy's existing army laying siege to Othe. Observing that the Burgundian army is commanded by their Blessed King (6 shock) and the Breton army's superstition about crossing rivers to attack (honestly, wet kilts do not make a happy soldier), we decided to bide our time.



Alas, Othe has fallen. While the Burgundian army moves to Champagne and Brabant lays siege to Vermandois, a 11,000 infantry stack moves to storm Othe while our cavalry regiment moves to engage the smaller Brabant force.



We beat off the Brabant forces. Perhaps dazed by the abundance of Champagne in Champagne, the Burgundians decide to return to Othe, while we sneakily circumnavigate the Burgundian army and bide our time in the border provinces.



The Breton cavalry are a restless bunch. Observing the lack of progress on the siege at Othe, they decide to ravage the Burgundian country side. Nominally, its purpose is to destroy the newly created Burgundian regiments. Honestly though, Artur IV wanted to reconnaissance the country side for "teaser" samples of fine Dutch linen.

Finally, we return to Othe and engage the Burgundian army using shock tactics with our cavalry. Since the Burgundian national ethos is heavily land-based, we retreat every 5 days to inflict the maximum damage:


Cowardly? Perhaps. But once again, the Celtic superstition of crossing rivers means low morale during the "fire phase" of battle



An Imperial map of provinces in the region. Everything in white is fair game. Everything green belongs to the jurisdiction of the (Holy) Roman Empire. The map is conveniently color-coded so our infantry regiments know which provinces to lay siege to.



Finally, peace is signed, while Burgundy cedes their Cosmopolitaine posessions and Vlaanderen, a province with which Artur IV was particularly taken to due to its high-quality Dutch linen.


The borders of our new possessions
---------------------------------------------

Of Duchies and Kingdoms


It seems as if Breton's current form of government, the Feudal Duchy, is not properly accommodated for its vast possessions of newly conquered provinces. As the old wife's tale goes, the classification of government types are as follows:

Duchy: A shoe's throw from one end of its borders to the other
Kingdom: Shoes are actually needed for walking from one end of its borders to the other
Empire: Consider more than one pair of shoes to traverse its borders



Despite becoming a "major power," Artur IV has yet to be crowned King, mainly due to the lack of prestige required (50 to be crowned king).




A look at the income page shows alarming rates of inflation at 4.9%. The Breton people never had to deal with this newfangled economic concept before. Apparently, a barrel of fish priced at 100 ducats in the market this year will cost 105 ducats the next year. Unless you decide to catch it yourself, of course.
In fact, given compound rates for inflation, in 50 years, a 100 ducat barrel of fish would be worth 100 * (1.05)^50 = 1146 ducats. Investors and market-speculators flock to fish markets, hedging on the bet that the barrel they buy today would yield dividends in 50 years time. Unfortunately for them (and their neighbors, who have to live with the smell), canned tuna wouldn't arrive in Breton until the 20th century.

[naggy]

Wow. Great job taking advantage of France falling flat on its face.

How close are you to the BB limit?

[Fronzel]

Wow, worst France ever.

Good luck for Brittany, though.

[gabor]

impressive and fun!
isn't your bb a tad high?!
i wish i could get you framed

[ubik]

In the hands of an experienced player, I feel it is easy with Britanny to take on France if starting on 1453. And here we are not seeing in action the best weapon that can be used against France in MMP: Espionage.


Hope it will not be this milk run in MMP2.

[axzhang]

My rep is respectable (2/21), I only gained a total of 10 provinces in the last 40 years, of which 2 are cores (Maine and Anjou). Had a few nice diplo kings as well.

Ubik: Yes, incite social chaos and other fun spy missions are great for tearing asunder countries like France and the Ottoman empire. However, the cost of sending those spies are too expensive in the beginning, especially since I didn't need to when France simply disintegrated from noble opposition :P

[gabor]

knock knock, are you going to continue?

[Middelkerke]

Time to take out Normandy or Orleans