Now it's just wait until next turn you get control of Nubia or Abyssinia and take over your former empire 
A Random Game - A Gameplay Mega-Campaign AAR
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@LordEnglish: I did consider the Ibadi thing, it would have been cool creating a strong Ibadi state in Arabia. Its just that since we have such a short period of time left here, I wouldn't be able to stabilize the region after the conversion. And it'd probably be ripped apart by the AI. Now, if I had had another 20 or 30 years left I would have seriously considered it
Egypt is very divided though, and big possibility for expansion. Probably won't be able to get much though due to truce timers and what not. I would do Persia, but that'd put Arabia straight into the Ilk's crosshairs and they're about to enter the world stage! So I think some consolidation and grabbing a few more de jure territories is probably the safest and smartest way to go with our remaining time here.
@mike the knight: Usurping the Caliphate would be quite the accomplishment! That sadly isn't even an option for us though.
@Stuyvesant: I don't think the Caliph ever did realize that our camel riders were causing issues in the south. He did routinely call up small stacks of 500 to 1000 periodically during that war. They'd always start heading north, I guess to rendezvous with the Caliphal armies to defend against Cilicia. But I had a roving band of Camel-riders that always slaughtered those little stacks so the Caliph is probably wondering why his men never make it north!
Haha as far as the Bohemian murder, I felt bad since it wasn't a child. But getting rid of a Karling and raising another dynasty to the throne of Bohemia was a chance I could not say no to!
And the war with the Cilician rebels would probably be an interesting one...I could DoW the Caliph again, but that'd probably be another boring siege war and would kill our prestige, I sadly don't think there are any viable targets that would make an interesting war in our neighborhood. Abyssinia may though, but they're fighting their brother in Nubia so eh, probably be a boring war there too.
@Hiryuu: Haha if I get control of Abyssinia or Nubia, my one and only goal would be to bring back the Miaphysites then attempt to go reconquering everything!
Egypt is very divided though, and big possibility for expansion. Probably won't be able to get much though due to truce timers and what not. I would do Persia, but that'd put Arabia straight into the Ilk's crosshairs and they're about to enter the world stage! So I think some consolidation and grabbing a few more de jure territories is probably the safest and smartest way to go with our remaining time here.
@mike the knight: Usurping the Caliphate would be quite the accomplishment! That sadly isn't even an option for us though.
@Stuyvesant: I don't think the Caliph ever did realize that our camel riders were causing issues in the south. He did routinely call up small stacks of 500 to 1000 periodically during that war. They'd always start heading north, I guess to rendezvous with the Caliphal armies to defend against Cilicia. But I had a roving band of Camel-riders that always slaughtered those little stacks so the Caliph is probably wondering why his men never make it north!
Haha as far as the Bohemian murder, I felt bad since it wasn't a child. But getting rid of a Karling and raising another dynasty to the throne of Bohemia was a chance I could not say no to!
And the war with the Cilician rebels would probably be an interesting one...I could DoW the Caliph again, but that'd probably be another boring siege war and would kill our prestige, I sadly don't think there are any viable targets that would make an interesting war in our neighborhood. Abyssinia may though, but they're fighting their brother in Nubia so eh, probably be a boring war there too.
@Hiryuu: Haha if I get control of Abyssinia or Nubia, my one and only goal would be to bring back the Miaphysites
then attempt to go reconquering everything!
Part 8.6 - Idrisid Sultanate (Arabia)
Again I must apologize for not updating in over a week. Memorial day weekend and all that jazz. So its time to once more return to the sands of Arabia, and see what it is Sultan Abdullah can do in his final years.
So we had just finished up a war taking the Sheikhdom of Tabuk, which was rebelling against the Egyptian Alamid Sultanate, which isn't located in Egypt but rather in Sinai and parts of the Levant. We need one more province in the de jure area of the Emirate of Arabia so that we can finally form/usurp that emirate. So that's what we will work towards right now. Might as well make sure we own all of the Sultanate of Arabia's Emirates before leaving.
But meanwhile we have to settle in for a time of boredom. Which means its time to host our first Furusiyya thingy.
By October of 1212 the Furusiyya ends, and some random camel-rider named Fadl is named champion. In second place is none other than the much loved baby killing Sultan Abdullah, and in third place is Abu Bakr Bakrid.
Shortly after all the fun and games Abdullah has a new daughter named Tanaz.
A year passes with nothing to report, when in October of 1213, Abdullah discovers his chosen heir Emir Mohammed of Oman torturing some poor little rats. A normal parent would probably be disgusted by this sickening episode. But not Abdullah, our baby-killing Sultan is very proud of his chosen heir's show of cruelty and evil guile. So we pat him on the head and say, "Good boy!"
Keep up the good work Mohammed!
In February of 1214, the Sultan of the Tulunids calls us into war against the ERE for some lands in Sicily. I accept the call to arms, but don't muster our camel-riders because we have no boats for our sweet camels.
In July, we have another daughter named Souzan.
November of 1214 rolls around and still stuck with wonderful boredom. So I discover that a brother or cousin or some relative, has a child that will eventually cause a spike in decadence. We can't allow this, and Abdullah has to do something to set the world right again after killing an adult in Bohemia. He lost his path. Its time to kill a baby again.
Its pretty sad that children can't fly.
January of 1215 comes, with the news we all knew was around the corner. The Hordes are coming and they have every intention on conquering this entire chaotic world we've helped create.
That spring, another of Abdullah's children comes of age, Alim, he has good martial and diplomacy stats, and we have a need for a new Marshal. So I appoint him as our new Marshal solely to curb any decadence he may gain.
We then get word that our Imam has decided to take the money I've given him to distribute amongst the poor of Medina as his own money. This enrages Abdullah naturally, and leads to the Imam's imprisonment.
It seems that the Idrisid Sultanate is having a rash of Imam problems as of late.
I take my boredom to go look around the world. I always enjoy finding something new to report when I do that. And this time the AI does not disappoint. I see a new color on the map, and that the Duchy of Nicaea has disappeared. Disappeared? Yes, it has been replaced.
By what?
None other than the Greek Kingdom of Taurica!
Oh and its also the first Orthodox Kingdom to be around since the Mihaljevics conquered Bulgaria and converted all the nobles and most of the lands to Catholocism.
King Theophilos "the Cruel" Kourtikes of Taurica; I wish them well, and hopefully the can survive and become a major power. They're already a semi-regional power as it is so the future does look bright for them.
The only obstacle I see for them is their current succession. Theophilos's kids have had some survival issues, which means a cousin or nephew or some such thing is set to inherit the upstart Kingdom. Should be entertaining to see where all that leads, but fingers are crossed for some Taurican awesomeness.
While looking at Taurica pleased to see another odd kingdom form, I get a notification that the Hashmaddin Caliph has raised CA.
The Hashmaddin Caliph? I thought it was the Adhids...
Apparently the Adhid Caliphs were just overthrown in a decadence revolt, which seems to be par for the course in the Caliphate lately. There actually hasn't been a successful dynastic succession in a few generations, as each "Conqueror" somehow manages to gain a crap-ton of Decadence before they fall over and die. I dare say the Hashmaddins will follow suit, especially with the Ilk knocking on the Middle East's door.
I zone out for about a year. Some little things happen but nothing really interesting. A wife tried to poison one of the many sons, but I pat her on the back instead of executing her, mostly because one less decadence baby in the world will only help the Idrisids in the future.
October of 1216 then begins with the birth and subsequent death of a son named Uways.
This is when I declare the Conquest of Al Aqabah, a small province in the emirate of Arabia, and it should be an easy one to take as its Sheikh is rebelling against the Egyptian Sultan.
We call forth the Camel-Riders that had been growing complacent as of late due to lack of sport. And ride off to war.
We engage some men at the Battle of Yotvata, and easily crush them.
We then set up to lay siege, hoping to end the war as quickly as possible. Which is when we get news that Sultan AQII of the Shaibans has finally died. And good riddance for that he was a terrible Sultan, who helped lose the homeland of Mauretania to the Rahhalids of Andalusia.
AQ II is succeeded by his kid Talib.
In May of 1217 we win the siege of Aqabah, followed by the successful assault on Reeshah, putting an end to the war, and therefore adding some more land to the Idrisid Sultanate.
We then promptly create the Emirate of Arabia and hand it off to one of our vassal Sheikhs who then becomes Emir Ashraf II of Arabia.
I take some time to go check in on the Holy Bretonian Empire, and find out that Bavaria is ruled over by Queen Berc'hed Karling, and she didn't marry matrilineally. This means that Bavaria is about to be ruled by a none Karling family as well. Which is huge news as Bavaria is currently the most powerful Kingdom in the HBE.
In June, I once again decide it is time to utilize the camel-riders, and declare a ducal claims war for Petra.
Time to kill some exiled Egyptians.
We wait quite a while before actually starting the war though. Our camel-riders had to march through a lot of desert to form into a solid stack, so the first battle takes place about 10 months later at Rafah in 1218.
We give chase to the retreating Egyptians and between May and June of 1218, we crush them in the battles of Eliot and Negev (+37).
In July, the Ilk officially arrives on the scene with their horse archers wreaking havoc upon the Mortezids.
I kind of feel bad for the Mortezids. They were a huge power when we started the game, they ended up disappearing due to decadence revolts, the Seljuk invasions and quite a few other sad and unfortunate events. But they clawed their way back to being a power once again, only to get the reward of being the first to be confronted by the Hordes.
They'll probably disappear again, but I do wonder if they'll accidentally reappear just in time to get thumped by the Timurids, it wouldn't surprise me if things went in that direction.
While mourning the sad fate of the Mortezids, our camel-riders occupy Tophel, and a month later Wadi Musa (+81). This makes the Alamids of Egypt see the light and surrender.
With another war complete things once again calm down and we go back into a holding pattern. We have 15 months left in this wonderful corner of the world and I doubt there is much we can do.
While pondering what the next step is I look over at Jerusalem and get a chuckle. Apparently there's an Irish Sunni Emir of Jerusalem by the name of Domnall Maddock that has found himself a new home in a dungeon in Tunis. The Maddocks at one time were the Kings of Wales for a short while. So seeing them in Jerusalem and Sunni makes me laugh.
I couldn't help myself and had to share that screenshot.
April of 1219 begins with a Zikri uprising in one of our provinces. I begin calling up the camel riders in an attempt to end this revolt before our time comes to an end.
Meanwhile Abdullah's son Khalil comes of age and he's definitely the weakest link as far as children are concerned, and therefore he is sent off to prison, and subsequently the oubliette.
While we're busy chasing the Zikris around the desert Khalil dies, like I said he was weak, so it isn't a surprise he died so quickly in our dungeons.
In December we finish killing the Zikris, which really is perfect timing.
A day later another son named Ubayd comes of age and we give him the honor of being the new Spymaster. As we prepare to leave Abdullah's council is almost completely full with his own children, save for the position of Imam.
Grand Vizier - Prince Is'mail
Marshal - Prince Alim
Steward - Wali Hussayn Idrisid (can't remember if he's our child or not, think he is though)
Spymaster - Prince Ubayd
Imam - Emir Yahya
So decadence shouldn't be a problem for a while, although I imagine the AI will screw that set-up all to hell, by marrying the children and replacing them with slightly better courtiers. I dare say in 50 years the Idrisids will be overthrown by a decadence invasion, but I hope I'm wrong. Would love to see them survive into the 1400s.
But with that our time is done, and it is time for a new adventure. I leave with a view of the powerful Sultanate of Arabia that we have built through a policy of poetry and baby-killing.
Part 8.6 - Idrisid Sultanate (Arabia)
Again I must apologize for not updating in over a week. Memorial day weekend and all that jazz. So its time to once more return to the sands of Arabia, and see what it is Sultan Abdullah can do in his final years.
So we had just finished up a war taking the Sheikhdom of Tabuk, which was rebelling against the Egyptian Alamid Sultanate, which isn't located in Egypt but rather in Sinai and parts of the Levant. We need one more province in the de jure area of the Emirate of Arabia so that we can finally form/usurp that emirate. So that's what we will work towards right now. Might as well make sure we own all of the Sultanate of Arabia's Emirates before leaving.
But meanwhile we have to settle in for a time of boredom. Which means its time to host our first Furusiyya thingy.
By October of 1212 the Furusiyya ends, and some random camel-rider named Fadl is named champion. In second place is none other than the much loved baby killing Sultan Abdullah, and in third place is Abu Bakr Bakrid.
Shortly after all the fun and games Abdullah has a new daughter named Tanaz.
A year passes with nothing to report, when in October of 1213, Abdullah discovers his chosen heir Emir Mohammed of Oman torturing some poor little rats. A normal parent would probably be disgusted by this sickening episode. But not Abdullah, our baby-killing Sultan is very proud of his chosen heir's show of cruelty and evil guile. So we pat him on the head and say, "Good boy!"
Keep up the good work Mohammed!
In February of 1214, the Sultan of the Tulunids calls us into war against the ERE for some lands in Sicily. I accept the call to arms, but don't muster our camel-riders because we have no boats for our sweet camels.
In July, we have another daughter named Souzan.
November of 1214 rolls around and still stuck with wonderful boredom. So I discover that a brother or cousin or some relative, has a child that will eventually cause a spike in decadence. We can't allow this, and Abdullah has to do something to set the world right again after killing an adult in Bohemia. He lost his path. Its time to kill a baby again.
Its pretty sad that children can't fly.
January of 1215 comes, with the news we all knew was around the corner. The Hordes are coming and they have every intention on conquering this entire chaotic world we've helped create.
That spring, another of Abdullah's children comes of age, Alim, he has good martial and diplomacy stats, and we have a need for a new Marshal. So I appoint him as our new Marshal solely to curb any decadence he may gain.
We then get word that our Imam has decided to take the money I've given him to distribute amongst the poor of Medina as his own money. This enrages Abdullah naturally, and leads to the Imam's imprisonment.
It seems that the Idrisid Sultanate is having a rash of Imam problems as of late.
I take my boredom to go look around the world. I always enjoy finding something new to report when I do that. And this time the AI does not disappoint. I see a new color on the map, and that the Duchy of Nicaea has disappeared. Disappeared? Yes, it has been replaced.
By what?
None other than the Greek Kingdom of Taurica!
Oh and its also the first Orthodox Kingdom to be around since the Mihaljevics conquered Bulgaria and converted all the nobles and most of the lands to Catholocism.
King Theophilos "the Cruel" Kourtikes of Taurica; I wish them well, and hopefully the can survive and become a major power. They're already a semi-regional power as it is so the future does look bright for them.
The only obstacle I see for them is their current succession. Theophilos's kids have had some survival issues, which means a cousin or nephew or some such thing is set to inherit the upstart Kingdom. Should be entertaining to see where all that leads, but fingers are crossed for some Taurican awesomeness.
While looking at Taurica pleased to see another odd kingdom form, I get a notification that the Hashmaddin Caliph has raised CA.
The Hashmaddin Caliph? I thought it was the Adhids...
Apparently the Adhid Caliphs were just overthrown in a decadence revolt, which seems to be par for the course in the Caliphate lately. There actually hasn't been a successful dynastic succession in a few generations, as each "Conqueror" somehow manages to gain a crap-ton of Decadence before they fall over and die. I dare say the Hashmaddins will follow suit, especially with the Ilk knocking on the Middle East's door.
I zone out for about a year. Some little things happen but nothing really interesting. A wife tried to poison one of the many sons, but I pat her on the back instead of executing her, mostly because one less decadence baby in the world will only help the Idrisids in the future.
October of 1216 then begins with the birth and subsequent death of a son named Uways.
This is when I declare the Conquest of Al Aqabah, a small province in the emirate of Arabia, and it should be an easy one to take as its Sheikh is rebelling against the Egyptian Sultan.
We call forth the Camel-Riders that had been growing complacent as of late due to lack of sport. And ride off to war.
We engage some men at the Battle of Yotvata, and easily crush them.
We then set up to lay siege, hoping to end the war as quickly as possible. Which is when we get news that Sultan AQII of the Shaibans has finally died. And good riddance for that he was a terrible Sultan, who helped lose the homeland of Mauretania to the Rahhalids of Andalusia.
AQ II is succeeded by his kid Talib.
In May of 1217 we win the siege of Aqabah, followed by the successful assault on Reeshah, putting an end to the war, and therefore adding some more land to the Idrisid Sultanate.
We then promptly create the Emirate of Arabia and hand it off to one of our vassal Sheikhs who then becomes Emir Ashraf II of Arabia.
I take some time to go check in on the Holy Bretonian Empire, and find out that Bavaria is ruled over by Queen Berc'hed Karling, and she didn't marry matrilineally. This means that Bavaria is about to be ruled by a none Karling family as well. Which is huge news as Bavaria is currently the most powerful Kingdom in the HBE.
In June, I once again decide it is time to utilize the camel-riders, and declare a ducal claims war for Petra.
Time to kill some exiled Egyptians.
We wait quite a while before actually starting the war though. Our camel-riders had to march through a lot of desert to form into a solid stack, so the first battle takes place about 10 months later at Rafah in 1218.
We give chase to the retreating Egyptians and between May and June of 1218, we crush them in the battles of Eliot and Negev (+37).
In July, the Ilk officially arrives on the scene with their horse archers wreaking havoc upon the Mortezids.
I kind of feel bad for the Mortezids. They were a huge power when we started the game, they ended up disappearing due to decadence revolts, the Seljuk invasions and quite a few other sad and unfortunate events. But they clawed their way back to being a power once again, only to get the reward of being the first to be confronted by the Hordes.
They'll probably disappear again, but I do wonder if they'll accidentally reappear just in time to get thumped by the Timurids, it wouldn't surprise me if things went in that direction.
While mourning the sad fate of the Mortezids, our camel-riders occupy Tophel, and a month later Wadi Musa (+81). This makes the Alamids of Egypt see the light and surrender.
With another war complete things once again calm down and we go back into a holding pattern. We have 15 months left in this wonderful corner of the world and I doubt there is much we can do.
While pondering what the next step is I look over at Jerusalem and get a chuckle. Apparently there's an Irish Sunni Emir of Jerusalem by the name of Domnall Maddock that has found himself a new home in a dungeon in Tunis. The Maddocks at one time were the Kings of Wales for a short while. So seeing them in Jerusalem and Sunni makes me laugh.
I couldn't help myself and had to share that screenshot.
April of 1219 begins with a Zikri uprising in one of our provinces. I begin calling up the camel riders in an attempt to end this revolt before our time comes to an end.
Meanwhile Abdullah's son Khalil comes of age and he's definitely the weakest link as far as children are concerned, and therefore he is sent off to prison, and subsequently the oubliette.
While we're busy chasing the Zikris around the desert Khalil dies, like I said he was weak, so it isn't a surprise he died so quickly in our dungeons.
In December we finish killing the Zikris, which really is perfect timing.
A day later another son named Ubayd comes of age and we give him the honor of being the new Spymaster. As we prepare to leave Abdullah's council is almost completely full with his own children, save for the position of Imam.
Grand Vizier - Prince Is'mail
Marshal - Prince Alim
Steward - Wali Hussayn Idrisid (can't remember if he's our child or not, think he is though)
Spymaster - Prince Ubayd
Imam - Emir Yahya
So decadence shouldn't be a problem for a while, although I imagine the AI will screw that set-up all to hell, by marrying the children and replacing them with slightly better courtiers. I dare say in 50 years the Idrisids will be overthrown by a decadence invasion, but I hope I'm wrong. Would love to see them survive into the 1400s.
But with that our time is done, and it is time for a new adventure. I leave with a view of the powerful Sultanate of Arabia that we have built through a policy of poetry and baby-killing.
I wonder if the judges had young children, and therefore prudently made sure to include the esteemed Sultan in the roll of honor...
Couple of smart wars, some sound parenting skills on display (encourage the cruel, imprison/kill the weak), and you leave the Idrisid Sultanate in a nice place. Well, if only the Hordes didn't decide on coming to visit right as you left. Certainly a well-timed exit, though it remains to be seen where you will be deposited next.
Weird to see the pre-RoI map again... but anyway good job with the Idrisids! It would be awesome if you became the Ilkhanate next.
World Update
@mike the knight: Yes indeed another great power, should be interesting to see where the Idrisid Sultanate goes with the AI in control.
@Hiryuu: It'd be rather fun playing as either and trying to form the Empire of Abyssinia.
@Stuyvesant: Haha they very well may have decided to vote for him just to save their own little ones. It is a well timed exit, however, and where we are going is about to be revealed!
@LordEnglish: I haven't actually played a game with the RoI map yet so it feels weird seeing AARs with it! lol...that would be fun playing as the Ilk, we'd have to call ourselves the clean border police (or some such) and rampage around the world in an effort to make borders look pretty.
So I unfortunately ran out of screenshot room when we finished our run as the Idrisids, so was unable to post our usual 50 year check-up on the world. So that is what we will be doing right now, not to mention revealing our next great adventure.
To start our update, we will look at the area we're now leaving behind.
The Hashmaddin Caliphate is still looking powerful, but its definitely a shell of its former self. When we first arrived in Sana'a, the Sunni Caliphate, held a lot of land in North Africa, and holdings scattered all the way to the Shaiban Sultanate in Mauretania. But that was two or three decadence revolts ago and the Sunni Caliphate is slowly but surely falling.
If the Ilkhanate decides to take Persia, and move into the Middle East they would be able to take control fairly easily. In fact, if I roll the Ilkhanate I'd take the independent Persian princes, then go after the heart of the Sunni Caliphate. Then ponder a move into Greece...
But anyway moving on, Abyssinia and Nubia are still trying to claw each other's eye out in one of those classic older v younger brother death matches. Hell it may have been passed to a new generation. But regardless they've split and hate one another!
Not much else to say, so its time to move to western Africa.
This is the map that makes me sad as I remember those good times as the Shaiban Sultanate. Building an empire that should have been so easy for the AI to use to steamroll the world with. Well instead its been ripped apart. The Rahhalids rule Mauretania, in Mali the Samirids are trying to claim the Malian Throne, leaving the Shaiban stuck in Iberia still secure with the crown of Leon and Portugal.
With that said time to move into Iberia.
Iberia has devolved once again into a mess of power-hungry Catholic nobles. Only thing that still surprises me is that Galicia is still limping along somehow. Why no one has taken their little two-province kingdom is beyond me. I guess it could only be explained due to the fact that they are Stawells and therefore England keeps them protected.
There is a dynastic inheritance that could potentially be a huge game changer for Iberia and honestly the rest of Western Europe. The current Karling King of Aragon is the heir to the Kingdom of France as well. This means if that succession should hold, that we will see the emergence of a very very powerful BBB.
Other than that, Aquitaine is still holding pat, and independent Brittany is still doing okay, they've lost some of their German possessions since breaking away from the Empire.
This part of world hasn't changed all that much. The Stawells still hold England, which I'm starting to think is kind of cool, just because they've held the Kingdom of England since our first turn when they became the Petty Kings of Wessex and formed it. They've ruled for nearly 300 years now, which is an achievement that only the Karlings of the HRE and France can match.
The Wexfords are still hanging onto Alba, which is nice to see, but I dare say that will come to an end as well. Wales is still independent which is quite nice to see, even though they've experienced several dynasty changes.
Central Europe is slowly trying its best to devolve into a patchwork of colors. The HRE has been able to hold things together thus far though, so it'll be interesting to see if it begins to collapse now that Bavaria is about to change from Karling rule to de Crevacoure on the throne. The future ruling dynasty of Bavaria also holds the throne of Italy as well. This dynamic could lead to a well organized rebellion that could potentially cut the HRE in half. But, I doubt it'll happen.
Other than that, Hungary is still barely hanging on. Not sure what dynasty is in control there, but the Mihaljevics no longer control it. Serbia has also broken free from the ERE, which has turned the Byzantines into a very small power with probably only six or seven counties, all of which are very scattered. As you can see there are two counties in Italy that still pledge their fealty to the Emperor.
Now moving north into Scandinavia, Sjaelland, that land we ruled as the Ice Queen has been ripped apart. That turn will definitely go down in the books as one of our worst.
Sweden however is on the ropes, as they split their lands due to a gavelkind inheritance between Denmark and Sweden. The resulting Succession crisis, where brothers once again tried to claw each other's eyes out, has resulted in Suomi trying to gain the upper hand by invading Sweden.
Norway is having issues as well. Their Catholic King is trying to get their Norse vassals to toe the line, but things aren't working out too well in that regard.
This is one of the first world updates, where we've gotten to see Rus, not ripped apart by rebellions. So its nice to see what that Kingdom looks like when its stable. The once large Kingdom of Perm has lost a lot of territory to Catholic Volga Bulgaria. In fact Volga Bulgaria seems to have designs on forming an Empire, would it be Tartaria? Anyway, Volga Bulgaria has the unfortunate luck of being right in the crosshairs of the hordes so I dare say the growing and formidable steppe Kingdom will see its end sometime next turn.
That pretty much wraps that update up. As I think about it, I haven't looked at the culture maps yet, so let us take a look at that.
As expected Breton is the dominant culture in central Europe. In England its a battle between Irish and Anglo-Saxon. Frankish is holding strong, and Russia is doing rather well in Eastern Europe.
Scandinavia is dominated by Swedish, which could see its hegemony brought into question by the Finns.
In Iberia its a death match between Castillian and Bedouin.
In the Middle East and Africa, we see the Bedouins (courtesy of the Idrisids) making a comeback against the Levantines. The Egyptians are in exile living in other parts of Africa not called Egypt.
Turkish could be destroyed by the coming Mongol train of death. Persian is still kicking, and well so is Ethiopian surprisingly.
So, with all that out of the way where to next?
Well there's a story behind this...
When I hit the magical Random Nation button, it gave us the wonderful Golden Horde to play. I thought that was rather hilarious since they're not on the map yet, and their leader is in a unknown location. So curious about what would happen if I stuck with what the RNG gave, I started the game up as the GH, hoping I'd get to control their hordes soon and embark on a mission of cleaning the map up a little. You know giving a bit of order to the chaos.
Well by the time 1250 rolled around and no hordes to control I said screw it and reloaded and decided to hit the button of random gifts once again. I suppose for our next turn we can discuss whether or not I should play the GH, should they come.
Once again, where are we going?
First, you can see what this corner of the world looks like. Look at that Taurica!
Anyway, our next nation is the Count of Achaia, a vassal of the King of Cyprus. I said a while back it'd be awesome to play as Cyprus, so getting this was a very pleasant surprise. So who is the Count of Achaia?
Count Arzhur de St. David...
I like his traits.
Perhaps our goal should become King of Cyprus, stomp the independent Greek princes, perhaps even change from Breton culture to Greek? Hmmm....should be an interesting turn, with a lot of things to do.
@mike the knight: Yes indeed another great power, should be interesting to see where the Idrisid Sultanate goes with the AI in control.
@Hiryuu: It'd be rather fun playing as either and trying to form the Empire of Abyssinia.
@Stuyvesant: Haha they very well may have decided to vote for him just to save their own little ones. It is a well timed exit, however, and where we are going is about to be revealed!
@LordEnglish: I haven't actually played a game with the RoI map yet so it feels weird seeing AARs with it! lol...that would be fun playing as the Ilk, we'd have to call ourselves the clean border police (or some such) and rampage around the world in an effort to make borders look pretty.
~~~~~
World Update
World Update
So I unfortunately ran out of screenshot room when we finished our run as the Idrisids, so was unable to post our usual 50 year check-up on the world. So that is what we will be doing right now, not to mention revealing our next great adventure.
To start our update, we will look at the area we're now leaving behind.
The Hashmaddin Caliphate is still looking powerful, but its definitely a shell of its former self. When we first arrived in Sana'a, the Sunni Caliphate, held a lot of land in North Africa, and holdings scattered all the way to the Shaiban Sultanate in Mauretania. But that was two or three decadence revolts ago and the Sunni Caliphate is slowly but surely falling.
If the Ilkhanate decides to take Persia, and move into the Middle East they would be able to take control fairly easily. In fact, if I roll the Ilkhanate I'd take the independent Persian princes, then go after the heart of the Sunni Caliphate. Then ponder a move into Greece...
But anyway moving on, Abyssinia and Nubia are still trying to claw each other's eye out in one of those classic older v younger brother death matches. Hell it may have been passed to a new generation. But regardless they've split and hate one another!
Not much else to say, so its time to move to western Africa.
This is the map that makes me sad as I remember those good times as the Shaiban Sultanate. Building an empire that should have been so easy for the AI to use to steamroll the world with. Well instead its been ripped apart. The Rahhalids rule Mauretania, in Mali the Samirids are trying to claim the Malian Throne, leaving the Shaiban stuck in Iberia still secure with the crown of Leon and Portugal.
With that said time to move into Iberia.
Iberia has devolved once again into a mess of power-hungry Catholic nobles. Only thing that still surprises me is that Galicia is still limping along somehow. Why no one has taken their little two-province kingdom is beyond me. I guess it could only be explained due to the fact that they are Stawells and therefore England keeps them protected.
There is a dynastic inheritance that could potentially be a huge game changer for Iberia and honestly the rest of Western Europe. The current Karling King of Aragon is the heir to the Kingdom of France as well. This means if that succession should hold, that we will see the emergence of a very very powerful BBB.
Other than that, Aquitaine is still holding pat, and independent Brittany is still doing okay, they've lost some of their German possessions since breaking away from the Empire.
This part of world hasn't changed all that much. The Stawells still hold England, which I'm starting to think is kind of cool, just because they've held the Kingdom of England since our first turn when they became the Petty Kings of Wessex and formed it. They've ruled for nearly 300 years now, which is an achievement that only the Karlings of the HRE and France can match.
The Wexfords are still hanging onto Alba, which is nice to see, but I dare say that will come to an end as well. Wales is still independent which is quite nice to see, even though they've experienced several dynasty changes.
Central Europe is slowly trying its best to devolve into a patchwork of colors. The HRE has been able to hold things together thus far though, so it'll be interesting to see if it begins to collapse now that Bavaria is about to change from Karling rule to de Crevacoure on the throne. The future ruling dynasty of Bavaria also holds the throne of Italy as well. This dynamic could lead to a well organized rebellion that could potentially cut the HRE in half. But, I doubt it'll happen.
Other than that, Hungary is still barely hanging on. Not sure what dynasty is in control there, but the Mihaljevics no longer control it. Serbia has also broken free from the ERE, which has turned the Byzantines into a very small power with probably only six or seven counties, all of which are very scattered. As you can see there are two counties in Italy that still pledge their fealty to the Emperor.
Now moving north into Scandinavia, Sjaelland, that land we ruled as the Ice Queen has been ripped apart. That turn will definitely go down in the books as one of our worst.
Sweden however is on the ropes, as they split their lands due to a gavelkind inheritance between Denmark and Sweden. The resulting Succession crisis, where brothers once again tried to claw each other's eyes out, has resulted in Suomi trying to gain the upper hand by invading Sweden.
Norway is having issues as well. Their Catholic King is trying to get their Norse vassals to toe the line, but things aren't working out too well in that regard.
This is one of the first world updates, where we've gotten to see Rus, not ripped apart by rebellions. So its nice to see what that Kingdom looks like when its stable. The once large Kingdom of Perm has lost a lot of territory to Catholic Volga Bulgaria. In fact Volga Bulgaria seems to have designs on forming an Empire, would it be Tartaria? Anyway, Volga Bulgaria has the unfortunate luck of being right in the crosshairs of the hordes so I dare say the growing and formidable steppe Kingdom will see its end sometime next turn.
That pretty much wraps that update up. As I think about it, I haven't looked at the culture maps yet, so let us take a look at that.
As expected Breton is the dominant culture in central Europe. In England its a battle between Irish and Anglo-Saxon. Frankish is holding strong, and Russia is doing rather well in Eastern Europe.
Scandinavia is dominated by Swedish, which could see its hegemony brought into question by the Finns.
In Iberia its a death match between Castillian and Bedouin.
In the Middle East and Africa, we see the Bedouins (courtesy of the Idrisids) making a comeback against the Levantines. The Egyptians are in exile living in other parts of Africa not called Egypt.
Turkish could be destroyed by the coming Mongol train of death. Persian is still kicking, and well so is Ethiopian surprisingly.
So, with all that out of the way where to next?
Well there's a story behind this...
When I hit the magical Random Nation button, it gave us the wonderful Golden Horde to play. I thought that was rather hilarious since they're not on the map yet, and their leader is in a unknown location. So curious about what would happen if I stuck with what the RNG gave, I started the game up as the GH, hoping I'd get to control their hordes soon and embark on a mission of cleaning the map up a little. You know giving a bit of order to the chaos.
Well by the time 1250 rolled around and no hordes to control I said screw it and reloaded and decided to hit the button of random gifts once again. I suppose for our next turn we can discuss whether or not I should play the GH, should they come.
Once again, where are we going?
First, you can see what this corner of the world looks like. Look at that Taurica!
Anyway, our next nation is the Count of Achaia, a vassal of the King of Cyprus. I said a while back it'd be awesome to play as Cyprus, so getting this was a very pleasant surprise. So who is the Count of Achaia?
Count Arzhur de St. David...
I like his traits.
Perhaps our goal should become King of Cyprus, stomp the independent Greek princes, perhaps even change from Breton culture to Greek? Hmmm....should be an interesting turn, with a lot of things to do.
Bretons in Greece? They've spread far in this game!
So it appears the king is a close family member... perhaps some well timed murders could elevate you to the position.
So it appears the king is a close family member... perhaps some well timed murders could elevate you to the position.
I'm a bit sad to see our time with the Idrisids come to an end without ever finding that darn snake.
However, it just makes me happy to look at your Greece. Its just a thing of beauty. Good luck with gaining the throne of Cyprus. I would love to see a strong Cypriot nation forming a bulwark against the Hordes as they move West through.
However, it just makes me happy to look at your Greece. Its just a thing of beauty. Good luck with gaining the throne of Cyprus. I would love to see a strong Cypriot nation forming a bulwark against the Hordes as they move West through.
Part 9.0 - Achaia
@mike the knight: It is turning into quite the interesting world...and Arzhur does seem to have a lot of promise.
@LordEnglish: The Bretons have spread far and wide. I am pretty tempted to convert them over to Greek culture though...still pondering that idea. And the King is definitely a very very close relative...
@Hiryuu: Hopefully it will be!
@ScribleScrable: Yeah never did find that darn snake, maybe he'll visit us in Greece. I love my Greece too, especially now that Taurica is in control of Constantinople! Does seem like the Greeks are slowly conglomerating into larger states, so hopefully I can find a way to make Cyprus beat them all to regional power status. I don't know how good of a bulwark we'll make against the Hordes, may actually do something funny and make Cyprus take over all the Meditteranean Islands lol...we shall see though.
I meant to do an update last night, but unfortunately as I was looking through my screenshots I came to the realization I had only played as Achaia for two years! So I had to load up old CKII and knock out a few years. And so let the story of Count Arzhur of Achaia commence...
So we are the Count Arzhur de St. David of Achaia, as previously mentioned. A Breton lord in Greece. Not really sure how the St. David dynasty came to rule Cyprus, but regardless I've been quite happy seeing this titular Kingdom appearing in game and even happier to have a chance to visit them and attempt to turn them into a large powerful realm.
Back when we were playing as the Ice Queen, Cyprus was founded by Herri the witch King, not sure if you all remember that...but Arzhur is actually the Witch-King's great grandson!
Who is the King right now though?
King Felix "the Cruel" de St. David, he's also Arzhur's uncle. All of Felix's sons have died without children of their own, which means that Arzhur being his eldest nephew is the current heir to the Kingdom of Cyprus. So we won't need to go on a killing spree to gain the throne. All we need to do is sit back, relax, and wait for the old man to kick the bucket.
While I sit and think about what to actually do at the moment, I notice we have a claim on Hellas, which is part of the Duchy of Athens, and way too powerful for me to take on at the moment.
I also notice that we are married to a lowborn wench named Dionysia. She's old too, meaning the possibility of her having a child is slim to none, and since we don't have any kids we need a new wife, because at this current point in time, our heir is our brother Riok. I call up the Pope, and request a divorce. I figure he'd understand...and surprisingly he does, and grants the divorce.
I then discover that the Duchess of Athens, has a bunch of daughters, and only one small son. She's also nearing the end of her child-bearing years. So I ask to become betrothed to one of her younger daughters named Parthena which she happily allows.
The plan here will be to kill off her son and heir, which will hopefully end up giving Parthena a weak claim, that we will be able to press whenever we are strong enough as it looks like Athens will be ruled by women for the foreseeable future. This will also let us inherit one of the more powerful Greek states in a generation. So a bit of a long game going on in that regard.
December rolls into January, and I immediately notice that the Count Eustratios of Hellas, who just so happens to be a cousin is rebelling against the Duchess of Athens. Seeing as this is our best chance to lay our claim on that County, I immediately declare war and call up a group of mercenaries.
Eustratios responds by calling in all his friends. Things look a bit scary but hopefully we can slap him quickly enough that he rolls over and begs for forgiveness before those other powers can kill us.
Our Armies, numbering around 5200 men, then engage Eustratios at Chalkis. I watch the battle get started, it appears to go back and forth when all of a sudden his lines break and turn tail and run. I also get some wonderful news that I wasn't expecting.
We captured Eustratios!
Very quick war! We immediately enforce our demands and in by April of 1221, we've already gone from OPM vassal count, to 2PM vassal Count.
Enjoying the quick victory I disband the troops and kick up my feet, and begin waiting for more claims to be fabricated.
In June the Hashshashin have returned to grace the world stage.
I imagine this is all due to the great Sultan Abdullah's amazing penchant for killing children. Surely he's the one that helped re-found the Assassins, or perhaps it was the lost snake that did it. Who knows...but let the murder and mayhem begin!
Truth be told their arrival comes at a time when assassins would be a highly desirable option against the Hordes.
Time slips by, and in May of 1222, a poor old priest comes to Achaia and gives us a Holy Relic to protect.
A few months later King Samzun de Seckau, the King of Bohemia by way of one of Sultan Abdullah's wonderful assassinations, marries our sister Youenna.
Upon her arrival to Bohemia, Samzun talks her into a plot to kill my brother and heir-apparent Riok, which if successful would make Youenna our heir. This is something we cannot allow, so I try to ask her nicely to end the plot. But to no avail. I try to fire a plot to have her killed and that doesn't work either. So I'm just going to have to suck it up and hope she doesn't exactly succeed and being the evil sister.
Another year and a half passes and decide to fire a plot to kill the Duchess of Athen's only son, David Makedon. It takes a while to get the necessary child killers aboard. And the plot ends up firing in May of 1224.
So now things are set up to get Parthena a claim on the duchy eventually, all the while building our own strength so I have the power to press said claim when it comes in.
A month later we have a holy man inciting heresy or some other nonsense.
That fall I decide to go on a Grand Hunt. I usually tend to do these little things like hunts and feasts and such a lot more when I'm a weak count. Mostly because I have so little to do its nice to spend the time choosing the sillier options that sometimes pop-up.
But anyways after the hunt I get a few extra buffs that last about 6 months.
We're now for the time being ruthless and hungry for blood. After killing a child I think those things are suiting for Count Arzhur. Although I think I may refrain from killing too many more children in the future...
In 1225 I decide to take Arzhur off on a Pilgrimage to Rome.
On the way we make a new German friend named Meinhard von Nemetlipcse, seeing how he has way better stats then my current Chancellor I immediately invite him to come live with me in Achaia. He agrees and we go off to Rome together, laying our plans for world domination, with him acting as the Chancellor of Achaia and should we actually inherit Cyprus he will be our Chancellor then as well. Maybe we'll even make him a Duke some day.
After our pilgrimage we're beset by another period of boring time.
In the late summer of 1226, we pay some random dude for a painting.
In November, Parthena comes of age and we finally get married. Hopefully this means she'll get fat with a child and we'll finally have ourselves a back up plan in case Samzun and Youenna kill Riok.
Apparently having a new young wife breaths the fire of passion into our Count, as he becomes a hedonist. Something we were hoping for, as this means a higher chance of babies!
In November of 1227, we successfully fabricate a claim on Cephalonia, which is currently held by the OPM Duke of Epirus. He also just got out of a war with the Byzzies, and therefore his levies are significantly reduced. Meaning another easy target for conquest!
As I make preparations to declare war, Samzun sends us a letter asking me to back his and Youenna's plan to have Riok killed. I say, "I know the shenanigan you are trying to pull!" And say no.
The death of Riok would put me into Samzun and Youenna's crosshairs. Besides, apparently Riok has a child anyway so the Bohemian King's plot to move his wifey up in the line of succession is having some issues already.
Towards the end of November I declare war for Cephalonia.
I don't hire any mercs this time, as I think our 2100 men is plenty to accomplish the task. Especially since the Doux has only 83 men.
The first battle of the war takes place at Corfu and as expected our 2100 men crush the tiny band of peasants led by the Doux of Epirus.
We then settle in for a siege.
Which in November of 1228, we win.
Thinking we're going to have to siege the rest of the holdings I prepare to relax. Which is when the Doux says enough is enough and surrenders.
That is where we will end things for this update.
In eight years we concluded two quick wars, slowly developing an inheritance plan for Athens, and still waiting for old man Felix to fall over dead. He is 65 now so that should happen sometime soon right?....
@mike the knight: It is turning into quite the interesting world...and Arzhur does seem to have a lot of promise.
@LordEnglish: The Bretons have spread far and wide. I am pretty tempted to convert them over to Greek culture though...still pondering that idea. And the King is definitely a very very close relative...
@Hiryuu: Hopefully it will be!
@ScribleScrable: Yeah never did find that darn snake, maybe he'll visit us in Greece. I love my Greece too, especially now that Taurica is in control of Constantinople! Does seem like the Greeks are slowly conglomerating into larger states, so hopefully I can find a way to make Cyprus beat them all to regional power status. I don't know how good of a bulwark we'll make against the Hordes, may actually do something funny and make Cyprus take over all the Meditteranean Islands lol...we shall see though.
~~~~~
Part 9.0 - Achaia
Part 9.0 - Achaia
I meant to do an update last night, but unfortunately as I was looking through my screenshots I came to the realization I had only played as Achaia for two years! So I had to load up old CKII and knock out a few years. And so let the story of Count Arzhur of Achaia commence...
So we are the Count Arzhur de St. David of Achaia, as previously mentioned. A Breton lord in Greece. Not really sure how the St. David dynasty came to rule Cyprus, but regardless I've been quite happy seeing this titular Kingdom appearing in game and even happier to have a chance to visit them and attempt to turn them into a large powerful realm.
Back when we were playing as the Ice Queen, Cyprus was founded by Herri the witch King, not sure if you all remember that...but Arzhur is actually the Witch-King's great grandson!
Who is the King right now though?
King Felix "the Cruel" de St. David, he's also Arzhur's uncle. All of Felix's sons have died without children of their own, which means that Arzhur being his eldest nephew is the current heir to the Kingdom of Cyprus. So we won't need to go on a killing spree to gain the throne. All we need to do is sit back, relax, and wait for the old man to kick the bucket.
While I sit and think about what to actually do at the moment, I notice we have a claim on Hellas, which is part of the Duchy of Athens, and way too powerful for me to take on at the moment.
I also notice that we are married to a lowborn wench named Dionysia. She's old too, meaning the possibility of her having a child is slim to none, and since we don't have any kids we need a new wife, because at this current point in time, our heir is our brother Riok. I call up the Pope, and request a divorce. I figure he'd understand...and surprisingly he does, and grants the divorce.
I then discover that the Duchess of Athens, has a bunch of daughters, and only one small son. She's also nearing the end of her child-bearing years. So I ask to become betrothed to one of her younger daughters named Parthena which she happily allows.
The plan here will be to kill off her son and heir, which will hopefully end up giving Parthena a weak claim, that we will be able to press whenever we are strong enough as it looks like Athens will be ruled by women for the foreseeable future. This will also let us inherit one of the more powerful Greek states in a generation. So a bit of a long game going on in that regard.
December rolls into January, and I immediately notice that the Count Eustratios of Hellas, who just so happens to be a cousin is rebelling against the Duchess of Athens. Seeing as this is our best chance to lay our claim on that County, I immediately declare war and call up a group of mercenaries.
Eustratios responds by calling in all his friends. Things look a bit scary but hopefully we can slap him quickly enough that he rolls over and begs for forgiveness before those other powers can kill us.
Our Armies, numbering around 5200 men, then engage Eustratios at Chalkis. I watch the battle get started, it appears to go back and forth when all of a sudden his lines break and turn tail and run. I also get some wonderful news that I wasn't expecting.
We captured Eustratios!
Very quick war! We immediately enforce our demands and in by April of 1221, we've already gone from OPM vassal count, to 2PM vassal Count.
Enjoying the quick victory I disband the troops and kick up my feet, and begin waiting for more claims to be fabricated.
In June the Hashshashin have returned to grace the world stage.
I imagine this is all due to the great Sultan Abdullah's amazing penchant for killing children. Surely he's the one that helped re-found the Assassins, or perhaps it was the lost snake that did it. Who knows...but let the murder and mayhem begin!
Truth be told their arrival comes at a time when assassins would be a highly desirable option against the Hordes.
Time slips by, and in May of 1222, a poor old priest comes to Achaia and gives us a Holy Relic to protect.
A few months later King Samzun de Seckau, the King of Bohemia by way of one of Sultan Abdullah's wonderful assassinations, marries our sister Youenna.
Upon her arrival to Bohemia, Samzun talks her into a plot to kill my brother and heir-apparent Riok, which if successful would make Youenna our heir. This is something we cannot allow, so I try to ask her nicely to end the plot. But to no avail. I try to fire a plot to have her killed and that doesn't work either. So I'm just going to have to suck it up and hope she doesn't exactly succeed and being the evil sister.
Another year and a half passes and decide to fire a plot to kill the Duchess of Athen's only son, David Makedon. It takes a while to get the necessary child killers aboard. And the plot ends up firing in May of 1224.
So now things are set up to get Parthena a claim on the duchy eventually, all the while building our own strength so I have the power to press said claim when it comes in.
A month later we have a holy man inciting heresy or some other nonsense.
That fall I decide to go on a Grand Hunt. I usually tend to do these little things like hunts and feasts and such a lot more when I'm a weak count. Mostly because I have so little to do its nice to spend the time choosing the sillier options that sometimes pop-up.
But anyways after the hunt I get a few extra buffs that last about 6 months.
We're now for the time being ruthless and hungry for blood. After killing a child I think those things are suiting for Count Arzhur. Although I think I may refrain from killing too many more children in the future...
In 1225 I decide to take Arzhur off on a Pilgrimage to Rome.
On the way we make a new German friend named Meinhard von Nemetlipcse, seeing how he has way better stats then my current Chancellor I immediately invite him to come live with me in Achaia. He agrees and we go off to Rome together, laying our plans for world domination, with him acting as the Chancellor of Achaia and should we actually inherit Cyprus he will be our Chancellor then as well. Maybe we'll even make him a Duke some day.
After our pilgrimage we're beset by another period of boring time.
In the late summer of 1226, we pay some random dude for a painting.
In November, Parthena comes of age and we finally get married. Hopefully this means she'll get fat with a child and we'll finally have ourselves a back up plan in case Samzun and Youenna kill Riok.
Apparently having a new young wife breaths the fire of passion into our Count, as he becomes a hedonist. Something we were hoping for, as this means a higher chance of babies!
In November of 1227, we successfully fabricate a claim on Cephalonia, which is currently held by the OPM Duke of Epirus. He also just got out of a war with the Byzzies, and therefore his levies are significantly reduced. Meaning another easy target for conquest!
As I make preparations to declare war, Samzun sends us a letter asking me to back his and Youenna's plan to have Riok killed. I say, "I know the shenanigan you are trying to pull!" And say no.
The death of Riok would put me into Samzun and Youenna's crosshairs. Besides, apparently Riok has a child anyway so the Bohemian King's plot to move his wifey up in the line of succession is having some issues already.
Towards the end of November I declare war for Cephalonia.
I don't hire any mercs this time, as I think our 2100 men is plenty to accomplish the task. Especially since the Doux has only 83 men.
The first battle of the war takes place at Corfu and as expected our 2100 men crush the tiny band of peasants led by the Doux of Epirus.
We then settle in for a siege.
Which in November of 1228, we win.
Thinking we're going to have to siege the rest of the holdings I prepare to relax. Which is when the Doux says enough is enough and surrenders.
That is where we will end things for this update.
In eight years we concluded two quick wars, slowly developing an inheritance plan for Athens, and still waiting for old man Felix to fall over dead. He is 65 now so that should happen sometime soon right?....
You'd think so, but often times the old guys outlive their wives, get remarried, live another ten years, and have a couple more sons.
I'm really looking forward to you growing your new Mediterranean empire, and it looks like your off to a good start.
I'm really looking forward to you growing your new Mediterranean empire, and it looks like your off to a good start.
The ones you give a chance to die from old age are usually the ones who live for decades to come...
Good progress, certainly, but I agree with what the others are saying about your old man: the RNG is bound to turn him into a lustful 90-year-old, if you let him. Perhaps it's time to 'convince' dad it's time for a quick succession? You know, get him to 'step down', much like little David Makedon?
Part 9.1 - Achaia
@LordEnglish: He very well might...
@ScribleScrable: If he has any sons I will have to call up our old buddy Sultan Abdullah for inspiration on baby-killing!
@mike the knight: He may outlive us! And thank you, hopefully the success continues.
@Hiryuu: Haha my luck then he'll be our first centenarian!
@Stuyvesant: We will see I may help give him the boot...but then again I guess if things take too long, I will create a faction to install our lil count as King.
Things are looking great in Achaia, but over on the other side of the Adriatic, a certain guy called the Pope isn't having a very good time. In fact December of 1228 sees three different Popes. Pius III falls over dead 19 years on St. Peter's Throne. He is followed by the first Russian Pope in history who took the regnal name of Calixtus III, he rules Christendom for a whopping and we must add record setting 12 or 13 days. Following the Russian's quick death the College of Cardinals gets smart again and elects an Italian named Battista di Licinardo, who becomes the first Pope Hormisdas.
I got to admit the whole fast papal turnover rate really is one of my favorite things from SoA, I probably mentioned that but seeing a Pope live for 13 days was just perfect.
But moving on...
I was perusing the Ilk's progress which has been quite great thus far, when I notice an odd shield on the map. I go investigate, and find out that the Seljuk Sultanate has been reduced to one lone Mosque surrounded in the lands ruled by the Mongols.
Now we will really move on.
We organize a miracle play at the request of one of our Bishops, because Piety may come in handy one of these days.
Which is when in July of 1229, we get this news.
Now we the Golden Horde is arriving on scene.
King Samzun of Bohemia once again invites us to kill our brother Riok, to which we say no thank you. And then our uncle old man King Felix invites us to a feast to which we say sure.
During our visit to the capital of Cyprus a poor clergymen tells us his church needs more alms. And I say sure here is more money for your church (-4 gold).
February 1230, sees a claim on Naxos fabricated, we then send our bestest best German friend we met on our way to Rome off to fabricate some more claims.
In March our wifey gets prego. Two months later our sister Youenna asks us to kill Riok, to which we say No yet again. I'm getting really really fed up with this whole kill Riok nonsense so I start a plot to kill Youenna. Unfortunately the Bohemians are quite smitten with Youenna and they all tell me to take a hike.
In October, our wife Parthena gives birth to a daughter we name Gladez.
I start getting ready to spend some more years globetrotting searching for anymore odd little happenings that may be entertaining to share. As I prepare to wander off I notice Old Man Felix has called forth his levies. I then look down and notice we're at war, with the Shia Caliphate of the Hussayns.
The Hussayn Caliphate is having a rough go of things lately. The Ilk has stolen most of there scattered lands throughout Persia, and the lands not eaten for breakfast by the Ilk has mostly been swallowed by the Sunnis. They hold different parcels of land here and there, but they're now looking west. And west means Cyprus, which means we must focus on this threat before enlarging our own fortunes.
I respond by raising my troops and going a step further to hire a Holy Order that has 70 ships, because one they're free ships and two our ships though we have lots, are very expensive.
As we begin ferrying our men over to the battlefield Riok informs me that the peasants tried to kill him. I daresay they were incited by Youenna and the King of Bohemia.
In February our men are helping Felix attack the Hussayns on their own turf, all the while the Hussayns are laying siege to the main island of Cyprus.
By this point we have apparently had a few more Popes kick the bucket, as Hormisdas has been dead for a little while as some Pope named Pelagius III just died and is succeeded by Pope Marcellus II. To fill the new Pope's place in the College of Cardinals Prince Eon of Italy is named to the College.
Seeing how King Felix seems to have things handled in Hussayn territory we ferry our fearless soldiers to the main island to confront the Shia. Our forces meet at the battle of Famagusta (our capital).
A big battle, lots of dead people, luckily we win. Then comes the chase around the island of Cyprus, we'll call it the Grand Prix of Cyprus. We fight them again at Limmasol, again at Famagusta, and wrap it up with killing the remaining 700 at Timmasol yet again.
In October of 1231 the Shia land another 1900 which we slaughter at Cithium. We then liberate Limmasol in January of 1232.
A month later our besty fabricates claims on the County of Euboia, I would be pressing these claims right now if I wasn't trying to save our inheritance from being overrun by the Shia. But alas, service to the realm comes first.
In March, Youenna once again asks that I kill Riok. I wonder why her hubby hasn't pestered us in a while. So I look and discover he's been dead for half a year almost.
This means our nephew is now the King of Bohemia. Not that it matters any.
We then have another fun battle at Famagusta, another 4600 Shia killed. The body count is growing outside the walls of Old Man Felix's capital.
In April we occupy Tripoli.
In May we here that during our adventures defending the realm, Riok has brought a sense of justice to the people of Achaia. Perhaps its a good thing I haven't killed him, maybe he would be a good heir should we never have a boy.
We then win another battle at Khirokitia, another 2000 Shia dead.
In September 1232, we occupy Gibelet (+46 war-score). Some more minor battles and a few sieges come through, pushing the war-score up to 69. This apparently mixed in with the Pope calling a Crusade is enough to force the Hussayn Shia Caliphate to surrender.
Yep, Marcellus II has decided its time for the time honored tradition of taking Jerusalem for the Teutons just so the Teutons can get smashed yet again a year later. Its all good though, I have zero intention of joining in this nonsense. We have some empire building to do now that we successfully saved Felix and our inheritance. Its just sad that Old Man Felix didn't die during those hostilities.
Thinking I served the realm well, I ask Felix for a promotion to Duke. I thought he would be cool with it.
Apparently the Old Man is either senile, ungrateful, or has his own plans. Perhaps plans that revolve around that old man libido of his. I don't know, but I got a feeling things are about to take a turn that I won't enjoy.
As I sit here and ponder whether or not I should go to war pressing those two county claims, brother Riok asks for some land of his own. I tell no, not yet dear brother, first we must wait for that old guy to kick the bucket then you can have some lands, some titles, and maybe finally Youenna's knife in your back...
While I think and watch the Crusade start up, I go on that globetrotting adventure I mentioned before the Shia interrupted. First stop England...
King Eadraed the Chaste, has inherited the final de Wexford stronghold of Alba. With some of the Irish lands that came with, this makes it seem that the Stawells may perhaps accidentally stumble upon the Empire of Brittania.
We go a little further south and discover that the Shaiban Sultanate has more or less disappeared. But one last remnant is now the independent Kingdom of Portugal, which for some bizarre reason now has Agnatic Appointment succession...
How does that happen??? And who is appointing the King???
I return back to our homelands and look over at the Holy Land. While thinking about declaring war for Naxos and Euboia, we get a pop up regarding wolves encroaching on our village. I don't know why but the pop up just seems way too suiting when coupled with the march of the Ilk.
The RNG must be sending me some sort of warning.
In December, Parthena gives birth to a boy, named Riwall, meaning our brother Riok is no longer our heir.
As I continue to think about what it is I should do next, I leave you with this.
Goodbye BBB, and hello the other BBB as in the Big Brown Blob.
@LordEnglish: He very well might...
@ScribleScrable: If he has any sons I will have to call up our old buddy Sultan Abdullah for inspiration on baby-killing!
@mike the knight: He may outlive us! And thank you, hopefully the success continues.
@Hiryuu: Haha my luck then he'll be our first centenarian!
@Stuyvesant: We will see I may help give him the boot...but then again I guess if things take too long, I will create a faction to install our lil count as King.
~~~~~
Part 9.1 - Achaia
Part 9.1 - Achaia
Things are looking great in Achaia, but over on the other side of the Adriatic, a certain guy called the Pope isn't having a very good time. In fact December of 1228 sees three different Popes. Pius III falls over dead 19 years on St. Peter's Throne. He is followed by the first Russian Pope in history who took the regnal name of Calixtus III, he rules Christendom for a whopping and we must add record setting 12 or 13 days. Following the Russian's quick death the College of Cardinals gets smart again and elects an Italian named Battista di Licinardo, who becomes the first Pope Hormisdas.
I got to admit the whole fast papal turnover rate really is one of my favorite things from SoA, I probably mentioned that but seeing a Pope live for 13 days was just perfect.
But moving on...
I was perusing the Ilk's progress which has been quite great thus far, when I notice an odd shield on the map. I go investigate, and find out that the Seljuk Sultanate has been reduced to one lone Mosque surrounded in the lands ruled by the Mongols.
Now we will really move on.
We organize a miracle play at the request of one of our Bishops, because Piety may come in handy one of these days.
Which is when in July of 1229, we get this news.
Now we the Golden Horde is arriving on scene.
King Samzun of Bohemia once again invites us to kill our brother Riok, to which we say no thank you. And then our uncle old man King Felix invites us to a feast to which we say sure.
During our visit to the capital of Cyprus a poor clergymen tells us his church needs more alms. And I say sure here is more money for your church (-4 gold).
February 1230, sees a claim on Naxos fabricated, we then send our bestest best German friend we met on our way to Rome off to fabricate some more claims.
In March our wifey gets prego. Two months later our sister Youenna asks us to kill Riok, to which we say No yet again. I'm getting really really fed up with this whole kill Riok nonsense so I start a plot to kill Youenna. Unfortunately the Bohemians are quite smitten with Youenna and they all tell me to take a hike.
In October, our wife Parthena gives birth to a daughter we name Gladez.
I start getting ready to spend some more years globetrotting searching for anymore odd little happenings that may be entertaining to share. As I prepare to wander off I notice Old Man Felix has called forth his levies. I then look down and notice we're at war, with the Shia Caliphate of the Hussayns.
The Hussayn Caliphate is having a rough go of things lately. The Ilk has stolen most of there scattered lands throughout Persia, and the lands not eaten for breakfast by the Ilk has mostly been swallowed by the Sunnis. They hold different parcels of land here and there, but they're now looking west. And west means Cyprus, which means we must focus on this threat before enlarging our own fortunes.
I respond by raising my troops and going a step further to hire a Holy Order that has 70 ships, because one they're free ships and two our ships though we have lots, are very expensive.
As we begin ferrying our men over to the battlefield Riok informs me that the peasants tried to kill him. I daresay they were incited by Youenna and the King of Bohemia.
In February our men are helping Felix attack the Hussayns on their own turf, all the while the Hussayns are laying siege to the main island of Cyprus.
By this point we have apparently had a few more Popes kick the bucket, as Hormisdas has been dead for a little while as some Pope named Pelagius III just died and is succeeded by Pope Marcellus II. To fill the new Pope's place in the College of Cardinals Prince Eon of Italy is named to the College.
Seeing how King Felix seems to have things handled in Hussayn territory we ferry our fearless soldiers to the main island to confront the Shia. Our forces meet at the battle of Famagusta (our capital).
A big battle, lots of dead people, luckily we win. Then comes the chase around the island of Cyprus, we'll call it the Grand Prix of Cyprus. We fight them again at Limmasol, again at Famagusta, and wrap it up with killing the remaining 700 at Timmasol yet again.
In October of 1231 the Shia land another 1900 which we slaughter at Cithium. We then liberate Limmasol in January of 1232.
A month later our besty fabricates claims on the County of Euboia, I would be pressing these claims right now if I wasn't trying to save our inheritance from being overrun by the Shia. But alas, service to the realm comes first.
In March, Youenna once again asks that I kill Riok. I wonder why her hubby hasn't pestered us in a while. So I look and discover he's been dead for half a year almost.
This means our nephew is now the King of Bohemia. Not that it matters any.
We then have another fun battle at Famagusta, another 4600 Shia killed. The body count is growing outside the walls of Old Man Felix's capital.
In April we occupy Tripoli.
In May we here that during our adventures defending the realm, Riok has brought a sense of justice to the people of Achaia. Perhaps its a good thing I haven't killed him, maybe he would be a good heir should we never have a boy.
We then win another battle at Khirokitia, another 2000 Shia dead.
In September 1232, we occupy Gibelet (+46 war-score). Some more minor battles and a few sieges come through, pushing the war-score up to 69. This apparently mixed in with the Pope calling a Crusade is enough to force the Hussayn Shia Caliphate to surrender.
Yep, Marcellus II has decided its time for the time honored tradition of taking Jerusalem for the Teutons just so the Teutons can get smashed yet again a year later. Its all good though, I have zero intention of joining in this nonsense. We have some empire building to do now that we successfully saved Felix and our inheritance. Its just sad that Old Man Felix didn't die during those hostilities.
Thinking I served the realm well, I ask Felix for a promotion to Duke. I thought he would be cool with it.
Apparently the Old Man is either senile, ungrateful, or has his own plans. Perhaps plans that revolve around that old man libido of his. I don't know, but I got a feeling things are about to take a turn that I won't enjoy.
As I sit here and ponder whether or not I should go to war pressing those two county claims, brother Riok asks for some land of his own. I tell no, not yet dear brother, first we must wait for that old guy to kick the bucket then you can have some lands, some titles, and maybe finally Youenna's knife in your back...
While I think and watch the Crusade start up, I go on that globetrotting adventure I mentioned before the Shia interrupted. First stop England...
King Eadraed the Chaste, has inherited the final de Wexford stronghold of Alba. With some of the Irish lands that came with, this makes it seem that the Stawells may perhaps accidentally stumble upon the Empire of Brittania.
We go a little further south and discover that the Shaiban Sultanate has more or less disappeared. But one last remnant is now the independent Kingdom of Portugal, which for some bizarre reason now has Agnatic Appointment succession...
How does that happen??? And who is appointing the King???
I return back to our homelands and look over at the Holy Land. While thinking about declaring war for Naxos and Euboia, we get a pop up regarding wolves encroaching on our village. I don't know why but the pop up just seems way too suiting when coupled with the march of the Ilk.
The RNG must be sending me some sort of warning.
In December, Parthena gives birth to a boy, named Riwall, meaning our brother Riok is no longer our heir.
As I continue to think about what it is I should do next, I leave you with this.
Goodbye BBB, and hello the other BBB as in the Big Brown Blob.
Y'know, I've become accustomed to your sister's (or was she your daughter? I get confused with these odd Breton names and have a hard time keeping track)insistent pleas that you murder your brother, but when even the peasants try to kill him, you have to wonder: perhaps Riok (speaking of odd names) is just not a very likeable person?
Looking at Wikipedia, that Pope either tied or took first place with a single day for shortest reign: Wiki has a list showing 9 Popes who reigned for less than a month (and two more who clocked in an astounding 33 days). Popery - it's not for everyone.
Felix' response to you was crafty. I mean, you can't really argue with the Bible (unless you want to have an uncomfortable talk with whatever forerunner of the Inquisition happens to be around). A bit of a bastard-man, considering all the housecleaning you did on Cyprus while he was faffing about elsewhere. I say it's time tounionize factionalize and boot his wrinkly posterior off his throne. Or boot him off the nearest parapet.
Looking at Wikipedia, that Pope either tied or took first place with a single day for shortest reign: Wiki has a list showing 9 Popes who reigned for less than a month (and two more who clocked in an astounding 33 days). Popery - it's not for everyone.
Felix' response to you was crafty. I mean, you can't really argue with the Bible (unless you want to have an uncomfortable talk with whatever forerunner of the Inquisition happens to be around). A bit of a bastard-man, considering all the housecleaning you did on Cyprus while he was faffing about elsewhere. I say it's time to