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Not too bad. You probably picked the right time to beg out of war with Bohemia, though they were pretty down. Still, no reason not to take your small spoils and answer Denmarks temerity. Rest a bit and then pounce on them hard.
 
1487MaySeperatePeaceOldenburg.jpg

Seperate peace with Oldenburg, May 1487.

Smart move. Divide and conquer. ;)

Joe
 
@ all: I was thinking of going the same road Storey and coz1 took and just continue the warfare against both alliances no matter how many loans I had to take or how much I had to mint but I decided to be reasonable. After all those two provinces I got from Bohemia were my initial objectives ever since I got cores on all of Bohemia. It could have been better if Bavaria hadn't had such a big stack and good morale when I attacked them.

Update in a few minutes.
 
I was thinking of going the same road Storey and coz1 took and just continue the warfare against both alliances no matter how many loans I had to take or how much I had to mint but I decided to be reasonable.

Hey, coz and Storey are reasonable guys most of the time, they just get a bit carried away by evil AIs ;) You did the right thing though.
 
We are now sieging Mecklenburg while Denmark has occupied Hannover and is sieging both my OPM-allies Friesland and Cleves. After about four months Mecklenburg is mine.

1487AugustSiegeSuccessfulMecklenbur.jpg

Siege successful in Mecklenburg, August 1487.​

In October Denmark conquers Münster and two months later Cleves accepts vassalage to Denmark.

1487DecemberClevesVassalsofDenmark.jpg

Cleves accepted to become vassals of Denmark, December 1487.​

A month earlier I arrived at Land Tech 6. Another 11 years and Brandenburg gets to Level 9 and the CRT bonus. I am about one level ahead of most major nations in Land Technology, lacking quite a bit in Naval, lacking slightly in Trade and equal in Infrastructure.

1487NovemberLTLevel6.jpg

Land Technology Level 6, November 1487.​

Legat has taken his army from Mecklenburg to Hannover to retake the province and after the winter that is what happens. In May 1488 all Brandenburgian provinces are back under my control. Meanwhile Friesland is still being sieged by the Danish.

1488AprilSituationWar.jpg

Situation in April 1488, days before the fall of the Danish garrison in Hannover.​

The rebels in Brandenburg are a direct effect from the 'Bierziese'-event I got, also in April, which gives a nice +1 base tax in the three original Brandenburgian provinces. I let them be until the war with Denmark is over.

1488AprilBierziese.jpg

Bierziese, April 1488.​

After Hannover has been retaken I order Legat back north to Holstein to try and put pressure on the Danish so we get either a white peace or maybe a settlement in ducats from either side of the war. The siege starts in August. The next month Friesland is occupied and they too become vassals of Denmark.

1488SeptemberFrieslandVassalsofDenm.jpg

Friesland becomes a vassal of Denmark, September 1488.​

I see the Danish troops returning from Friesland to Danish territory and decide to assault the fortress in Holstein before they get to me. It takes two assaults to take it and immediately Denmark offers me peace, which I accept.

1488NovemberSiegeSuccessfulHolstein.jpg
1488NovemberPeaceDenmark.jpg

The successful assaults in Holstein and subsequent peace.​

Another bunch of wars is over and Brandenburg is left without allies or vassals again. I need to find allies pronto before I can move on. Next up: The unexpectedly short quest for alliance and the things that come with it.
 
I agree taking Mecklemburg would be logically. At last you could realize it as a friendly vassal if you do not wish such a large early territorial expansion yet.:)

It was maybe a way to keep his BB score relatively low.
 
Another bunch of wars is over and Brandenburg is left without allies or vassals again. I need to find allies pronto before I can move on. Next up: The unexpectedly short quest for alliance and the things that come with it.

It's a big lonely world out their without allies. I know from experience.:D As for your next ally I'm guessing Poland. No reason why, just a guess.:D

Joe
 
While I do not recommend spending out the a$$ like I did to win the war against England, sometimes it does pay to go the extra harsh mile and deal with the consequences. That is until those results yield bad future results. Boldness and stupidity is but a thin hair. ;)

That said, it is wise to hold back with Brandenburg early on. Remember that your best leaders come ahead. Build vassals for now and then start taking them in when you have the leaders to take it to Austria and France, and Sweden, and Russia...and Poland...and the Dutch and...well, you know. ;)
 
Originally Posted by Duke of Wellington
Only money for peace? Surely you could have gone on to take Mecklenburg even with the Danish force returning? Either way I wonder who your ally shall be.
Originally Posted by Herr Doctor
I agree taking Mecklemburg would be logically. At last you could realize it as a friendly vassal if you do not wish such a large early territorial expansion yet.

Maybe I could have asked for it's release. I didn't want to take the risk of saying no to their offer and then asking them to release Mecklenburg and then they could refuse. By the time either of us could send a new peace request my army would have probably been soundly defeated by the much larger Danish one.

Originally Posted by Karaiskandar
It was maybe a way to keep his BB score relatively low.

No, not really. I have to look what my BB is atm but it's quite low.

Originally Posted by Enewald
Gotta take 'em all!

Provinces, you mean?

Originally Posted by Storey
It's a big lonely world out their without allies. I know from experience. As for your next ally I'm guessing Poland. No reason why, just a guess.

Joe

Yup, exactly. And your guess is very near.

Originally Posted by Herr Doctor
I would rather try to secure Teutonic Order from the Polish aggression.

I'll get it either way. Still a lot of time to gain it.

Originally Posted by aldriq
Denmark is building a nice collection of vassals... Sweden as ally would make sense.

It could have been them, they weren't allied to denmark at the time, but I decided otherwise.

Originally Posted by coz1
While I do not recommend spending out the a$$ like I did to win the war against England, sometimes it does pay to go the extra harsh mile and deal with the consequences. That is until those results yield bad future results. Boldness and stupidity is but a thin hair.

That said, it is wise to hold back with Brandenburg early on. Remember that your best leaders come ahead. Build vassals for now and then start taking them in when you have the leaders to take it to Austria and France, and Sweden, and Russia...and Poland...and the Dutch and...well, you know.

I read "Boldness and stupidity is but a thin hair" as Baldness and...:rofl:
You are right of course. I should prepare myself for all the reilgious trouble that is going to erupt and take some opportunities, if possible, while that is going on, not in a one on one against Denmark now.

UPDATE possibly later tonight.
 
Brandenburg found itself without allies after the wars with Bohemia and Denmark, so I looked around the map to look at the existing alliances and maybe find a reasonbly powerful country near me that could help out against Denmark or possibly Austria or Poland, three major powers on my doorstep. I didn't have to search for long because in December 1488, a month after the peace with Denmark is isigned, we get an offer from Lithuania to join their alliance with Poland, Theodoros, Genoa and the Teutonic Order. I agree and end up in in their war against the Ottoman Sultanate and and the Crimean Khanate.

1488DecemberAllianceLithuania.jpg

Brandenburg joins the Lithuanian Alliance, December 1488.​

The war seems to be a stalemate with attrition making a lot of casualties during the winter so the besieging forces are often defeated before they can occupy. Several border provinces in Lithuania and Crimea change hands repeatedly. I decide to watch the theatre for a while. My 24k army without a decent leader isn't going to change the course of the war at this point.

In the following spring I get this small nice 'Internal Trade Ordinance'-event that ups the base tax of hannover with 1 point.

1489AprilInternalTradeOrdinance.jpg

Internal Trade Ordinance, April 1489.​

After three and a half years of watching I decide it's time to do a little helping out as both Poland and especially Lithuania seem to be low on troops, though Poland is recruiting new ones en masse. This is the first time the Ottomans make a move against Poland. Most aggression has been targetted at the Lithuanian provinces. Legat is sent southeast to attack the Ottoman army in Podolia.

1492JuneHelpingOutPolish.jpg

Legat marching to war, June 1492.​

In August the battle in Podolia is won, but close. Legat lost 5k of 24k men, while the Ottomans only lost 1k of their 13k men. Afterwards Legat goes on defeating small armies in the Crimea, but he withdraws when he meats a 33k Crimean army that came from the south. That one later also falls to attrition and the Lithuanians. The war fades out in 1493 during the late winter.

Maximilian I of Austria becomes Holy Roman Emperor in August 1493 and I move my slider one step towards Centralization. Another year later the Treaty of Tordesillas hits and in 1495 I hit Land tech level 7 and can finally build artillery, should I want to.

At this moment Poland decides to declare war on Russia. They have two provinces that historically belong to Russia and wish to expand there a little further. I wait to see what the other alliance members do and Lithuania and the Teutonic Order dishonor. I follow them and immediately make a new alliance with the Teutonic Order and Lithuania, with me as alaince leader.

1495MayDishonorAlliance.jpg

1495MayAllianceLithuania.jpg

The Polish war with Russia led to this new alliance in Central Europe in May 1495.​

In December 1495 some knights-robbers who terrorized Silesia are finally defeated, giving me a nice +2 base tax and -3 revolt risk there. Over the next three years nothing much happens, except that brandenburg finally reaches Land tech level 9 and the CRT bonus!

1495MayLTLevel7.jpg
1498JuneLTLevel9.jpg

Military breakthroughs in Brandenburg, 1495-1498.​

Johann Cicero deosn't get to see the new century, Joachim I Nestor is the new monarch in January 1499. Excellent in diplomacy, good in administration, mediocre in military affairs.

1499JanuaryNewMonarch.jpg

A new monarch, January 1499.​

To end: A map of Europe in 1500.
1500FebruaryEurope.jpg