The Devaraja of Ayutthaya

Yup, it’s my first AAR. So be gentle.

DETAILS:

Ayutthaya
GC, 1.05, VeryHard/Normal.

Goals: Not world conquest (I’m probably not good enough anyway)

Become the leading country in Southeast Asia

Resist the Europeans at all costs

Defend Buddhists against encroachment. If this requires Defensive Compassionate Invasions, so be it.

No military annexations of co-religionists. Now, diploannexing is a different story.

State culture: Thai. This hurts manpower.

Religion: Buddhist, with all its assorted prayerwheels and flapiflops. And its techspeed penalty and tax income penalty.

Starting DP sliders:

Aristocracy: 7
Decentralized: 3
Narrowminded: 4
Mercantilism: 9
Offensive: 5
Land: 5
Quantity: 3
Serfdom: 7

Here is our starting position in 1419:

Ayutthaya owns the provinces of Bangkok, Kwai, and Phuket. These are the only provinces in 1419 with thai culture, and they are our only CB provinces.




Below is a larger view of our starting geopolitical position.

We are bordered on the north by the Buddhist states of Pegu, Taungu, Vientiane, and Cambodia. To the south we are bordered by the muslim state of Malacca, while the Sultanate of Atjeh occupies the northern half of the island of Sumatra.

Further afield in the Spice Isles, lie the muslim states of Brunei and Makassar, and the Hindu state of Mataram.

Hmm, looks like we already know of lots of places to colonize.




Real update tomorrow. (or later tonight, depends on work)

EDIT - added mercantilism slider which I forgot. DanielA reminded me.

Ko9s - Thanks for the quick response; it's nice to know people are out there reading. And since this is on Very Hard, BB is of paramount importance. Especially since there is a very large China to the north. If they roll the wrong way I could easily get squished.

MrT/LD - Oops, forgot about the loonies. And never seen the twoonies. But I figure the ladies that LD was so eager to visit don't really care for you shoving a big coin in their g-string.

Besides, if you really want those ladies to do anything, you need to give them money that's worth something. Something green that says 'In God We Trust' on the back.

MrT - Malacca well...you'll see

LD - Since you're so hard up for cash, maybe the AAR Bar will buy you a round. Hell, Norgesvenn should give you some milk on the house!

Thanks for the responses, update immediately to follow.

Bangkok, Thailand, 1853.

“Come on, you follow, come on Mister,” said the young boy who was leading me through the crowded street.

Although the rain had just stopped, it was still stiflingly hot. George Winslow paused for a moment and removed his hat to wipe his brow with his handkerchief.

“Come on Mister.”

Winslow looked up at the eager boy ahead, and started to follow, trying in vain to dodge the large puddles in the street.

“How can it be so hot so soon after the rain,” Winslow mumbled to himself. “What am I doing here?”

Bangkok was certainly a far cry from Winslow’s comfortable office at Exeter College in Oxford. First there was the heat. Then the daily rainshowers. And don’t forget the bugs. Oh, the bugs were arguably the worst, carrying all manner of diseases in Winslow’s mind. Malaria, dengue; they made Winslow’s mind race at every ache and chill he felt. He almost reached for a quinine talbet right then and there.

But he was sent here, as the of the few men in the Empire who had any idea about the history of Thailand, especially its glorious past. The period when it was called the Kingdom of Ayutthaya, which Winslow specialized in. People in the government in England turned him to help explain the present. But despite all his studies of the region, Winslow really needed someone to help explain the past to him.
___________________________________________


“Hey Mister, we here.” The young boy had stopped in front of a small dingy house, sandwiched between a row of other houses that looked nearly identical. The boy ran into the house, and started speaking in Thai. Winslow waited outside, next to a chicken scratching around in the mud. He caught a few words of the conversation, but not many. He thought he knew Thai well. But reading the words of Buddhist priests written 300 years ago is quite different from understanding the present day speech of a partly educated child. An only slightly deeper voice spoke, and Winslow was fairly sure it said, “Please, send him in.”

The boy reappeared, gestured to the door and looked at Winslow expectantly. Winslow gave him a few coins, at which point the urchin ran off down an alley.

“I hope I can find my way out,” muttered Winslow.

___________________________________________

Winslow entered the small house, which appeared to consist of a single room. In one corner was a low bed, at the other end a small table with some books and scrolls on top. A small cooking fire in the rear filled the room with a thin bluish haze. A small figure had its back to Winslow as it knelt at the fire, arranging a copper pot.

“Welcome sir, perhaps you would care to sit and share a cup of tea with an old man?”

Winslow was floored. The old man spoke in Thai, but Winslow knew what he said perfectly. It didn’t seem possible. How did this man speak in a way that Winslow understood? Even during his interviews with educated government officials he could barely comprehend anything.

The man turned around, a small smile on his lips. He had a long silver moustache, with thin hair of the same color surrounding his bald pate. His eyes almost seemed to twinkle.

“Are you surprised at how I speak? But I presume you came exactly for that reason. Because of why I know the old speech.”

“Uh, well, yes,” I stammered in old Thai. My heart was racing. I couldn’t believe my good fortune. Could I actually be talking to a former eunuch who served the court of the Devaraja of Ayutthaya? But who else would know the old speech? I had read about the training of the eunuchs, their intense studies of the history of the kingdom, its laws, its literature. This was a historian’s dream come true. Winslow’s mind raced.

The Thai gave Winslow a slightly puzzled look. He then proceeded to open his robe, baring his privates to Winslow.

“Christ Jesus, what are you doing man!” Winslow nearly shouted. At this the man only gave Winslow and even more puzzled look, but still did not cover himself.

Winslow quickly glanced down, and it became obvious that the man was indeed a eunuch. Winslow quickly looked up and nodded, whereupon the man closed his robe. There was no sign of shame or embarrassment on his face.

“So, that story must be true,” Winslow thought to himself.

“I am Sirimongkol,” the man said. “And yes, I served the court of the Devaraja as a eunuch.”

“Would you like to sit down and have some tea?” he asked.

Ko9s - I say, play on whatever difficulty level lets you enjoy the game. Who cares what other people play on? And you can always work your way up. I started on easy, and did exactly that. After I got the hang of things, I normally started playing a new level with a major, then tried a minor. Move up a level, and repeat.

As for China and Malacca, you'll just have to keep following this AAR to find out

Peter - you'll be happy to know that though I'm nearing the end of the gameplay, your Beloved Boing remains independent, and serene.

Update to follow

Bangkok, Thailand, 1853.

Sirimongkal handed me a small cup of tea and motioned for me to sit down near the table. Propping myself upon the cushions, I listened as he began to speak.

“I entered the service of the royal court as a young boy. This was quite a great honor for a family at the time. I left my village and traveled to Bangkok. I never again saw my family.

“My studies began in earnest. Reading, writing, proper etiquette when serving the God-King. Assisting the priests and the advisors to the king, running messages within the palace. I must say that I found it much more exciting than tending to the rice at home.”

Sirimongkal paused. The old man almost seemed to feel guilty for his last remark, thought Winslow.

“What are the origins of the Thai people, Sirimongkal” Winslow asked, hoping to stir him from his reverie.

“Ah, you are eager to talk history are you Winslow?” He smiled. “Well then, where should I begin? With our migration south from the area of Yunnan, fleeing the warlike Chinese and Mongols? Perhaps with the beginning of our golden age, that of Sukothai?”

“Yes, tell me more of Sukothai,” Winslow asked. “I know some things, but the few sources I’ve found are unclear or contradictory.”

“Sukothai was the first of the Thai cities to throw off the yoke of the Khmer, who ruled from Angkor Wat, the ruins of which still lie to the east of Bangkok. From all accounts it was a remarkable period. Sukothai was powerful, and collected tribute from many cities in the area. It was then that the great King Ramkhamhaeng invited monks from the island of Ceylon, bringing the teachings of the Buddha. Monasteries were built throughout the land. The kings of Sukothai loved their subjects and their rule was just.

“But this Golden Age was not to last forever. The Sukothai kings were slowly supplanted by the kings of Ayutthaya, which lay to the south. Initially founded by King Ramathibodi I in 1350, Ayutthaya was one of many small Thai kingdoms. It became more and more powerful, and by the year 1378 in the calendar you use, Ayutthaya had forced Sukothai to pay tribute. Much of the cultural achievements of Sukothai were adopted by the Ayutthayan kings though.

“By the year 1419, Ayutthaya had consolidated its dominance over the various Thai states, controlling the provinces of Bangkok, Kwai, and Phuket. Bangkok was especially rich, one of the underpinnings of Ayutthayan strength [OOC: Bangkok has a tax value of 15!]. Fine ceramics, sangkhalok, were produced in great quantities and traded throughout the east, from India to Nippon.

“At this point Ayutthaya was ruled by King Int’araja I (8/7/8). One of his first actions was to alter the corvee system, whereby men of a certain height (approx. 4 ft.) were required to provide labor once yearly, else pay a tax. King Int’araja reduced the length of service required to fulfill a man’s obligation. [DP adjustment: serfdom –1 to 6]”

“Really, it seems unlike Int’araja to do such a thing. From everything I’ve read he seemed to have wanted to increase the amount of labor the state could demand of the commoners,” Winslow said.

“Well..that is true. Some say that Int’araja regretted his decision,” said Sirimongkal. [OOC: This was arguably not the best choice. I wanted the morale increase and thought the production increase would be nice. Doing it again I’d likely choose to go a step towards naval, for the increased colonists and the trade increase]

Sirimongkal continued, “Int’araja knew that Ayutthaya could not stand alone. With an enormous China to the north, and the hostile Muslims to the south, Ayutthaya needed allies. Int’araja formalized the kinship with the other followers of Buddha, sending his female cousin Charunee to the Laotians in the Kingdom of Vientiane, and his nephew Othong to the Cambodians. An alliance between the three was formed by 1421, though the Cambodians demurred until Int'araja sent a beautiful black lacquered chest inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

“Int’araja’s other accomplishment was his promotion of trade. Traders from Ayutthaya were sent south to Malacca, where they sold the sangkhalok and spices produced in the kingdom. In return, they sent back many exotic goods brought to Malacca by all manner of traders, some from as far away as Arabia. The taxes and duties collected on these items helped fill the royal treasury.

“In 1424, King Int’araja I died peacefully in his sleep. He was succeeded by his son, Boromoraja I. While Int’araja was content to send traders to Malacca, when King Boromoraja looked south, he had other ideas…

MrT - Thanks again! Like everyone, I struggled with a set up to explain how a narrator could be so well informed about 400 yrs history.

But they won't be totally passive characters. We still haven't learned why Winslow was sent to Bangkok, and there's more to learn about Sirimongkal.

Ko9s - Boromoraja may see blue to the south at the start of his reign, but it soon gets a decidely red shade. As in blood red

DanielA - Thanks for addressing me properly
And thanks for noticing that I missed a slider. As with just about every other country in1419, it starts as 9 mercantile.

Overall the DP settings are okay. I'm not too terribly worried about going max serfdom for stability costs, since I don't plan on taking many non-Buddhist provinces. Also I plan on going narrowmided to get colonists. Like I said, increasing naval would hav been better, giving more colonists, more trade, and later on a better chance of explorers. I need random ones, as I won't get any scripted ones.

LD - thanks for continuing to read, every 'atta boy' definitely helps.

Update tomorrow. You'll all finally find out what happens to Malacca.

EF1 - nice to know you're reading! BTW, I loved your O Bohemia AAR. Hilarious!

And nice to know you've played Ayutthaya; for some reason I really like this country. And the flag is one of the best there is!
Release the 'Pissed Off Pachyderms'. They'd take those Granadan badgers, any day, any time!

Lastly, I'll agree with you that SE Asia is one of the most violent areas in the game. It makes things interesting.

Ko9s - the sharks will be approaching en masse with all the blood to be spilt.

To all - sorry about the lack of update yesterday; I left my files on my home comp.

Update immediately following: