You have not yet touched america.
How shall you then cleanse europe of castille, portugal and britain?
How shall you then cleanse europe of castille, portugal and britain?
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Enewald: America is next on the target list. It's coming. Soon.
Didaa: That's a first. The account resets on the 18th, if I remember, so I could just wait; or perhaps if I get motivated I'll rehost on another account. I must be off to work as of right now though; I'll let you know when the images are up.
Didaa: That's a first. The account resets on the 18th, if I remember, so I could just wait; or perhaps if I get motivated I'll rehost on another account. I must be off to work as of right now though; I'll let you know when the images are up.
I like imageshack personally. You don't have to have an account for it to host pictures, so you shouldn't have a problem with running out of bandwidth. Probably.
http://www.imageshack.us/
http://www.imageshack.us/
Alright, I've rehosted the images for Chapter 21. I may or may not for Chapter 20, since bandwidth gets reset in two days anyways.
Imageshack seems to work okay; I think I prefer Photobucket, but I'm slowly getting more used to Imageshack. It might just be that I'm more used to Photobucket.
Imageshack seems to work okay; I think I prefer Photobucket, but I'm slowly getting more used to Imageshack. It might just be that I'm more used to Photobucket.
Chapter 22: Asserting Power
War With Britain
"There's only 8,000 men in all of Britain? Invade them at once!"
Within days, King Philipp Magnus had the opportunity to entertain a noble.
"Why are you doing this? Why war? The nation is weary."
"In order to fulfill the prophecy, I must grant self-government to all peoples. Certain people in the Kingdom are refusing to take the mantle of self-government for themselves, so I must force them to through cruelty and oppression."
"You're insane."
"Also, Britain is weak right now. We must hit Britain while they're down."
"You do realize that there are other bad effects that come from oppressing the people, right?"
The King stared at the noble until the noble, muttering a few words under his breath, turned and left.
Meanwhile, Castile was suffering greatly from the effects of their most recent war with Brunswick, and teetered on collapse. Philipp Magnus laughed.
* * * * * * *
War Update #1
At the start of the war, Magnus placed two armies in North America; two armies in Britain; and one army on a fleet bound for Africa, where they would clean up the one British colony there.
After six months, here was how the war was progressing on all fronts.
The Western army easily cleaned up the undefended British colonies, which were so because Britain no longer had access to them.
The Eastern army had troubles cornering the British regiments in Quebec; but had no troubles fighting, destroying a few solitary 1,000-man regiments.
In Greenland, a few vassals took the initiative of winning Greenland, saving Magnus the trouble of doing so later on.
On Britain herself, the few armies that were there fled from the armies, which quickly took Scotland and southern England respectively. They would never mount a serious resistance; and from there, it was all sieging.
Calais and Gascoyne stood no chance, and quickly fell to the combined might of Brunswick and her vassals.
And Slesvig was taken by the allied vassal armies.
Lithuania mounted the stiffest challenge of them all. A 40-regiment army managed to repeatedly take Samogitia; but never performed well in battle, being bested by Brunswick regulars only half in number, sometimes less.
For example:
Hattendorf wrote his third edition of "The Wealth of Nations," and this edition was received just as warmly as the previous two, resulting in a prestige boost for the kingdom.
Philipp Magnus would have preferred one of his diplomats to be the creative one.
King Philipp noticed that Sweden was the only nation with any war capacity left; and after spotting 20,000 Swedish regulars in Lithuania, heading for the front, he offered peace in exchange for Slesvig, which they accepted.
* * * * * * *
War Update #2
A little over a year into the war, here is where the various fronts stand:
Britains few remaining homeland armies are slowly trapped as the English and Scottish invasions attempt to link up.
The Quebec army successfully fought off rebel and Englishman alike, narrowing the war front and headed off to Stadacona, where they would meet the last significant resistance they would face for the rest of the war.
The Western army, having successfully taken all the British provinces west of the Mississippi, including the seizure of one colony, marched across Shawnee, where their next mission was to take the Appalachian heartland.
A very ambitious Breton army took Guyana, saving Brunswick the trouble of getting a navy and army there herself--the planned army to do that was still in Africa.
The 40-regiment stack eventually forced Hattendorf to retreat into neutral territory (Riga) to heal; but not before Hattendorf had inflicted very disproportionate casualties with his 16-regiment army.
Meanwhile, with Lithuania's sole defense force occupied with Hattendorf, the remaining Brunswickian armies and vassals conquered most of the rest of the country.
The African army annihilated the one British regiment in Cameroon, and seized the colony for the glory of Brunswick.
Then, she saw a glorious opportunity to get revenge for Brunswick on all the African released nations that did not honour Brunswick's call to arms.
And so began the invasion of Ashanti.
And so ended the invasion of Ashanti. The African regiment then reboarded the ship and headed to Benin.
* * * * * * *
Everything According to Plan
Spain and the Castilian colonies were yet even closer to breaking than they had been before.
Meanwhile, the first of the unwilling rebels finally revolted--Connaught attempted to declare independence.
In the background, you'll notice a siege of Oyo; specifically, an assault.
This was the result. The surrender of Benin left only Kongo in the first war against the released natives.
The Lithuanian doom stack was reduced to a smaller size than a typical Brunswickian army. Hattendorf was still recovering, however, so the stack was ignored to attrition some more before meeting its final doom.
Could things be going any better?
King Magnus was in a good mood, and didn't let a little Salt Crisis dampen that mood--he, by accident, was King of the most powerful nation in Europe; and was completely destroying two of his greatest rivals; what did he have to be annoyed over?
* * * * * * *
War Update #3
By September 1604, the island of Britain was completely occupied.
So too was the Kingdom of Lithuania.
However, the Quebec invasion army had not yet reached Hudson's Bay;
The invasion of the American seaboard was only half complete;
And Britain had re-taken Guyana. The King was not content for an 100% peace--Philipp Magnus was not going to settle for anything less than every British colony on the planet. In order to get that, he needed to occupy every British colony on the planet; and he was going to get that, regardless of how long or how many men it would take.
War With Britain
"There's only 8,000 men in all of Britain? Invade them at once!"
Within days, King Philipp Magnus had the opportunity to entertain a noble.
"Why are you doing this? Why war? The nation is weary."
"In order to fulfill the prophecy, I must grant self-government to all peoples. Certain people in the Kingdom are refusing to take the mantle of self-government for themselves, so I must force them to through cruelty and oppression."
"You're insane."
"Also, Britain is weak right now. We must hit Britain while they're down."
"You do realize that there are other bad effects that come from oppressing the people, right?"
The King stared at the noble until the noble, muttering a few words under his breath, turned and left.
Meanwhile, Castile was suffering greatly from the effects of their most recent war with Brunswick, and teetered on collapse. Philipp Magnus laughed.
* * * * * * *
War Update #1
At the start of the war, Magnus placed two armies in North America; two armies in Britain; and one army on a fleet bound for Africa, where they would clean up the one British colony there.
After six months, here was how the war was progressing on all fronts.
The Western army easily cleaned up the undefended British colonies, which were so because Britain no longer had access to them.
The Eastern army had troubles cornering the British regiments in Quebec; but had no troubles fighting, destroying a few solitary 1,000-man regiments.
In Greenland, a few vassals took the initiative of winning Greenland, saving Magnus the trouble of doing so later on.
On Britain herself, the few armies that were there fled from the armies, which quickly took Scotland and southern England respectively. They would never mount a serious resistance; and from there, it was all sieging.
Calais and Gascoyne stood no chance, and quickly fell to the combined might of Brunswick and her vassals.
And Slesvig was taken by the allied vassal armies.
Lithuania mounted the stiffest challenge of them all. A 40-regiment army managed to repeatedly take Samogitia; but never performed well in battle, being bested by Brunswick regulars only half in number, sometimes less.
For example:
Hattendorf wrote his third edition of "The Wealth of Nations," and this edition was received just as warmly as the previous two, resulting in a prestige boost for the kingdom.
Philipp Magnus would have preferred one of his diplomats to be the creative one.
King Philipp noticed that Sweden was the only nation with any war capacity left; and after spotting 20,000 Swedish regulars in Lithuania, heading for the front, he offered peace in exchange for Slesvig, which they accepted.
* * * * * * *
War Update #2
A little over a year into the war, here is where the various fronts stand:
Britains few remaining homeland armies are slowly trapped as the English and Scottish invasions attempt to link up.
The Quebec army successfully fought off rebel and Englishman alike, narrowing the war front and headed off to Stadacona, where they would meet the last significant resistance they would face for the rest of the war.
The Western army, having successfully taken all the British provinces west of the Mississippi, including the seizure of one colony, marched across Shawnee, where their next mission was to take the Appalachian heartland.
A very ambitious Breton army took Guyana, saving Brunswick the trouble of getting a navy and army there herself--the planned army to do that was still in Africa.
The 40-regiment stack eventually forced Hattendorf to retreat into neutral territory (Riga) to heal; but not before Hattendorf had inflicted very disproportionate casualties with his 16-regiment army.
Meanwhile, with Lithuania's sole defense force occupied with Hattendorf, the remaining Brunswickian armies and vassals conquered most of the rest of the country.
The African army annihilated the one British regiment in Cameroon, and seized the colony for the glory of Brunswick.
Then, she saw a glorious opportunity to get revenge for Brunswick on all the African released nations that did not honour Brunswick's call to arms.
And so began the invasion of Ashanti.
And so ended the invasion of Ashanti. The African regiment then reboarded the ship and headed to Benin.
* * * * * * *
Everything According to Plan
Spain and the Castilian colonies were yet even closer to breaking than they had been before.
Meanwhile, the first of the unwilling rebels finally revolted--Connaught attempted to declare independence.
In the background, you'll notice a siege of Oyo; specifically, an assault.
This was the result. The surrender of Benin left only Kongo in the first war against the released natives.
The Lithuanian doom stack was reduced to a smaller size than a typical Brunswickian army. Hattendorf was still recovering, however, so the stack was ignored to attrition some more before meeting its final doom.
Could things be going any better?
King Magnus was in a good mood, and didn't let a little Salt Crisis dampen that mood--he, by accident, was King of the most powerful nation in Europe; and was completely destroying two of his greatest rivals; what did he have to be annoyed over?
* * * * * * *
War Update #3
By September 1604, the island of Britain was completely occupied.
So too was the Kingdom of Lithuania.
However, the Quebec invasion army had not yet reached Hudson's Bay;
The invasion of the American seaboard was only half complete;
And Britain had re-taken Guyana. The King was not content for an 100% peace--Philipp Magnus was not going to settle for anything less than every British colony on the planet. In order to get that, he needed to occupy every British colony on the planet; and he was going to get that, regardless of how long or how many men it would take.
Chapter 22: Asserting Power
Waiting
"Ireland!!! No!!!"
"How long until Lithuania goes down?"
"It doesn't matter when Lithuania goes down, your highness--they are the alliance leaders."
"Hmph."
"Jerks."
"Would the people have felt the need for the first Level 3 Fort in the Empire had I not been constantly at war? No. See? I know what I'm doing."
* * * * * * *
New Vassals
Finland came to peace in March 1605. They had been tricky to defeat, as Lithuanian fleets prevented the capture of Osel until there were no allied coastal provinces remaining (at which point, vassal fleets destroyed the Lithuanian navy piecemeal).
But Finland finally surrendered, and another COT vassal was added to the fold.
Kongo surrendered a month later. Philipp Magnus originally intended to strip them of both Loango and Mayombe, but upon learning that cost too much warscore--Kongo was Christian now--he settled for just the seaport, knowing that was enough to release Loango as a nation.
With the surrender of Kongo, the Brunswickian navy and African army was now free to head over to South America and the Caribbean, where they hoped to quickly put an end to this British resistance nonsense and end the war.
* * * * * * *
Rebels
Philipp Magnus' plan was working to perfection. The problem was, the war exhaustion did not just affect the targeted people--it affected all people. So when he moved the Kingdom one step closer to centralized, the people revolted, and a pretender to the throne rose up in Potsdam.
Shortly thereafter, Prussian Nationalists rose up in Memel. The King smiled.
An excellent minister secretly added 10 points of military and naval tradition in the following months. It was rumoured to have been the work of Hattendorf, who apparently had spare time.
Hattendorf brought his son Heinrich to the King's attention shortly thereafter. The general response of the court? "What, are all Hattendorfs geniuses or something?"
The long awaited Norman rebellion sprouted a few months later.
This was followed by a renewed Connaught rebellion. The only thing that would make this even more perfect than it already was would be a Parmese and Frankfurter revolt.
* * * * * * *
Peace
Alas, 100% warscore with Britain was reached, so war had to be ended.
Britain surrendered every single one of her colonies.
Meanwhile Lithuania surrendered three provinces that Philipp had plans to turn into dukedoms.
The people rejoiced at the arrival of peace.
* * * * * * *
Mene, Mene, Tekel...
As the court was celebrating the victory, a man, roughly dressed and unkempt, wielding a staff, entered the court. He marched right up the red carpeted aisle, and when he was 25 feet from the King, stopped, and pounded the end of the staff on the stone floor, silencing the crowd.
Glaring at the King, he yelled "You fool!!!"
Guards raced in to strike the man, but were held back by their own curiosity.
The King, a bit angry at this interruption of his worship by his courtiers, replied "Who dares to speak to the King in such a manner?"
"I am Nathan the Sixth, and you, O King, are a fool."
"I know of no Nathan; and if the man wielding a staff calls me a fool one more time, I'll have his head chopped off."
"You do not know me because you do not know God, nor do you know the mission he called you to do."
"The mission? Of course I know the mission! What do you think all this war has been about?"
"You only follow the mission because it is to your liking. If God had ordered you to stay at peace for 30 years, you would have made the state religion Atheism."
"True, true; but God gave me such a beautiful mission."
"If you hadn't seized the throne through such unlawful means, you would have had no mission."
"My cousin died through a tragic accident, and the nobles selected me quite democratically, I'd suggest."
"You were the one who invented that game. You were the one who ensured Beendet was hired as your young cousin's tutor. And you were the one who paid Beendet to throw your cousin out the window!"
"These are absurd allegations--what's a dead man supposed to do with money?"
"Beendet is not dead, O King, and you know it. When he survived the palace incident, to your shock and amazement, you betrayed him and didn't pay up; and he's been plotting revenge ever since."
"If you know where he is, he is murderer of my cousin, and I hold it treason to withhold that knowledge!"
"Shut up and don't sidetrack me! God has a message for you. You are a hypocrite! You spitefully abuse your people all in the name of God only because it is convenient. God will not have his name tarnished any longer."
"Oh, good, so he's going to strike me with lightning, now, is he? I DARE YOU!!!"
"God has no need to strike you with lightning. You have ruined your Kingdom of your own accord, and have made it much, much harder for your successors to complete the mission."
"Oh, is that so? My kingdom looks like it has never been higher. Have you seen such wealth?"
"Look at your reputation."
"Well, that's a bummer. I suppose I'll have to rest for a little while, then?"
"Because you have surpassed the badboy limit: your vassals will rebel and declare independence. The nations of the Holy Roman Empire will withdraw and tarnish your reputation. Now do you get it?"
"Oh... shoot."
"For your heinous deeds, God pronounces a curse upon you: Your trade will wither and die; your crops will be struck by hail; your cities will be plagued; your rivers and wells will suffer drought; your vassals will not obey your, nor ally with you; your gold will rust; pirates will attack your ships and sink them; your natives will attack your colonies. Repent, and maybe God will shorten your suffering."
Nathan walked to the nearest window, and struck it with his staff, sending a storm of glass shards raining down on all nearby. "That is the word of the LORD!" And in one quick movement he jumped out of the window.
The court sat stunned.
Finally, King Philipp Magnus I spoke. "There must be something we can do to minimize that badboy, right? Quick, release whatever vassals we can!"
"Sire, we have created the dukedoms of Loango, Polotsk, and Pskov."
"Good--what are we at now?"
"That's it? Sell some overseas provinces to our vassals."
"We've done as you ordered, O King, but that had no effect on your reputation. And, further...
"The curse of Nathan has begun."
"God! There is no God! Fight them with swords and rifles! Kill them all!"
* * * * * * *
World Map, 1608
Waiting
"Ireland!!! No!!!"
"How long until Lithuania goes down?"
"It doesn't matter when Lithuania goes down, your highness--they are the alliance leaders."
"Hmph."
"Jerks."
"Would the people have felt the need for the first Level 3 Fort in the Empire had I not been constantly at war? No. See? I know what I'm doing."
* * * * * * *
New Vassals
Finland came to peace in March 1605. They had been tricky to defeat, as Lithuanian fleets prevented the capture of Osel until there were no allied coastal provinces remaining (at which point, vassal fleets destroyed the Lithuanian navy piecemeal).
But Finland finally surrendered, and another COT vassal was added to the fold.
Kongo surrendered a month later. Philipp Magnus originally intended to strip them of both Loango and Mayombe, but upon learning that cost too much warscore--Kongo was Christian now--he settled for just the seaport, knowing that was enough to release Loango as a nation.
With the surrender of Kongo, the Brunswickian navy and African army was now free to head over to South America and the Caribbean, where they hoped to quickly put an end to this British resistance nonsense and end the war.
* * * * * * *
Rebels
Philipp Magnus' plan was working to perfection. The problem was, the war exhaustion did not just affect the targeted people--it affected all people. So when he moved the Kingdom one step closer to centralized, the people revolted, and a pretender to the throne rose up in Potsdam.
Shortly thereafter, Prussian Nationalists rose up in Memel. The King smiled.
An excellent minister secretly added 10 points of military and naval tradition in the following months. It was rumoured to have been the work of Hattendorf, who apparently had spare time.
Hattendorf brought his son Heinrich to the King's attention shortly thereafter. The general response of the court? "What, are all Hattendorfs geniuses or something?"
The long awaited Norman rebellion sprouted a few months later.
This was followed by a renewed Connaught rebellion. The only thing that would make this even more perfect than it already was would be a Parmese and Frankfurter revolt.
* * * * * * *
Peace
Alas, 100% warscore with Britain was reached, so war had to be ended.
Britain surrendered every single one of her colonies.
Meanwhile Lithuania surrendered three provinces that Philipp had plans to turn into dukedoms.
The people rejoiced at the arrival of peace.
* * * * * * *
Mene, Mene, Tekel...
As the court was celebrating the victory, a man, roughly dressed and unkempt, wielding a staff, entered the court. He marched right up the red carpeted aisle, and when he was 25 feet from the King, stopped, and pounded the end of the staff on the stone floor, silencing the crowd.
Glaring at the King, he yelled "You fool!!!"
Guards raced in to strike the man, but were held back by their own curiosity.
The King, a bit angry at this interruption of his worship by his courtiers, replied "Who dares to speak to the King in such a manner?"
"I am Nathan the Sixth, and you, O King, are a fool."
"I know of no Nathan; and if the man wielding a staff calls me a fool one more time, I'll have his head chopped off."
"You do not know me because you do not know God, nor do you know the mission he called you to do."
"The mission? Of course I know the mission! What do you think all this war has been about?"
"You only follow the mission because it is to your liking. If God had ordered you to stay at peace for 30 years, you would have made the state religion Atheism."
"True, true; but God gave me such a beautiful mission."
"If you hadn't seized the throne through such unlawful means, you would have had no mission."
"My cousin died through a tragic accident, and the nobles selected me quite democratically, I'd suggest."
"You were the one who invented that game. You were the one who ensured Beendet was hired as your young cousin's tutor. And you were the one who paid Beendet to throw your cousin out the window!"
"These are absurd allegations--what's a dead man supposed to do with money?"
"Beendet is not dead, O King, and you know it. When he survived the palace incident, to your shock and amazement, you betrayed him and didn't pay up; and he's been plotting revenge ever since."
"If you know where he is, he is murderer of my cousin, and I hold it treason to withhold that knowledge!"
"Shut up and don't sidetrack me! God has a message for you. You are a hypocrite! You spitefully abuse your people all in the name of God only because it is convenient. God will not have his name tarnished any longer."
"Oh, good, so he's going to strike me with lightning, now, is he? I DARE YOU!!!"
"God has no need to strike you with lightning. You have ruined your Kingdom of your own accord, and have made it much, much harder for your successors to complete the mission."
"Oh, is that so? My kingdom looks like it has never been higher. Have you seen such wealth?"
"Look at your reputation."
"Well, that's a bummer. I suppose I'll have to rest for a little while, then?"
"Because you have surpassed the badboy limit: your vassals will rebel and declare independence. The nations of the Holy Roman Empire will withdraw and tarnish your reputation. Now do you get it?"
"Oh... shoot."
"For your heinous deeds, God pronounces a curse upon you: Your trade will wither and die; your crops will be struck by hail; your cities will be plagued; your rivers and wells will suffer drought; your vassals will not obey your, nor ally with you; your gold will rust; pirates will attack your ships and sink them; your natives will attack your colonies. Repent, and maybe God will shorten your suffering."
Nathan walked to the nearest window, and struck it with his staff, sending a storm of glass shards raining down on all nearby. "That is the word of the LORD!" And in one quick movement he jumped out of the window.
The court sat stunned.
Finally, King Philipp Magnus I spoke. "There must be something we can do to minimize that badboy, right? Quick, release whatever vassals we can!"
"Sire, we have created the dukedoms of Loango, Polotsk, and Pskov."
"Good--what are we at now?"
"That's it? Sell some overseas provinces to our vassals."
"We've done as you ordered, O King, but that had no effect on your reputation. And, further...
"The curse of Nathan has begun."
"God! There is no God! Fight them with swords and rifles! Kill them all!"
* * * * * * *
World Map, 1608
Last edited:
Are you going for BB wars?
And I managed to discover another image hosting site, I've never used, but if interest you: http://www.pict.com/
And I managed to discover another image hosting site, I've never used, but if interest you: http://www.pict.com/
Enewald: Madness, indeed!
Didaa: I was not going for BB wars. You'll note in the intro that I was supposed to avoid BB wars, because I couldn't maintain either vassals or the HRE with a high BB. Completely unintentional, too--A stupid move on my part in the game. On the other hand, at least this makes the game interesting again--with the recent beatdowns placed on every major power in the game, victory was seeming rather inevitable and the game rather boring.
Thanks for the site. ImageShack seems to be working well, but when I run out of bandwidth/space with them, I'll look into it.
Didaa: I was not going for BB wars. You'll note in the intro that I was supposed to avoid BB wars, because I couldn't maintain either vassals or the HRE with a high BB. Completely unintentional, too--A stupid move on my part in the game. On the other hand, at least this makes the game interesting again--with the recent beatdowns placed on every major power in the game, victory was seeming rather inevitable and the game rather boring.
Thanks for the site. ImageShack seems to be working well, but when I run out of bandwidth/space with them, I'll look into it.
The old pictures are back up, for those who wanted to catch up on the previous chapters.
Chapter 23, "Shadows," is half-written and will hopefully be posted later today.
Chapter 23, "Shadows," is half-written and will hopefully be posted later today.
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Chapter 23: Shadows
Revolting Denizens
* * * * * * *
Little Wars
* * * * * * *
Ottomans
* * * * * * *
Curse The Irish
* * * * * * *
Riga
* * * * * * *
Inside the Palace
Magnus scowled from his throne.
"And you haven't been able to find either Nathan or Beendet, despite the 100-ducat bounty I've placed on their heads?"
The mercenaries shook their heads.
"What if I raise the bounty to 500 ducats?"
"When a man can't be found, no price in the world will change that."
"But all men can be found, unless they're dead. And those two rotten scoundrels are most certainly not dead. I'm sitting here barely keeping up with the five revolts they start every month. Surely someone as well travelled as they could not be also invisible?"
"Wherever they are, no one is talking."
"Then make the reward 1000 ducats! They must be brought back here, dead or alive, or the Kingdom will know no peace."
"As you wish, your Majesty."
The mercs left. Shortly thereafter, an uncomfortable silence settled over the court.
"What, will none of you entertain me? Fine, all of you out! I'm retiring to my chambers for the night. You heard me! Get out!"
The king left for his chambers before waiting for the hall to clear. Upon rounding a corner, he gave commands to his chamber-servants. "Hans! I am retiring. Have my bed prepared and undress me, then I want no interruptions until the morning. Is that clear?"
Only echoes replied.
"Hans! Hans?"
As the King made his way to the other side of the bed, he saw the body of Hans, lying on the floor, with a dagger in his back. Immediately the King turned around and scanned the chambers, but there was no trace of anyone or anything.
* * * * * * *
The Ottoman War
The Ottomans provided surprisingly little resistance.
They provided even less once their allies realized there was no way for them to touch Brunswick, or vice versa, and peaced out.
Of course, things weren't going to just stay this way.
* * * * * * *
Black Forest
Beendet and Nathan hurried through the forest under a canopy of leaves and stars, followed by a young woman.
"Who is this woman again?" Beendet asked.
"She's the one young Wilhelm secretly married a few weeks before his untimely death at your hands," Nathan replied.
"Quit reminding me. If you thought I was so bad, why are you including me in all your plans?"
"Because I know the one thought that motivates you is revenge, and you won't let anything stop until you get it."
"Revenge... revenge..." Beendet's mouth watered.
"Would you quit creeping me out? I'm pregnant, hello?!" the lady interjected.
"If you weren't carrying the next King of Brunswick in your womb, I'd give you a beating for that."
"Beendet, look at you! I remember when you were one of the most respected tutors in the castle. Has hatred turned you into this beast of the field that knows no thought except vengeance?"
"Woman, you don't know injustice."
"You killed my husband!"
"Enough!" Nathan halted. "You two may not like each other, but you're just going to have to deal with it right now, because both of you need each other in order to get what you both really want. Now, our safehouse for the night is just over that hill. I don't want to hear another word, is that clear?"
* * * * * * *
Peace, Momentarily
With the Ottomans isolated from their allies, and essentially defeated, they conceded three provinces to Philipp Magnus I of Brunswick. Philipp could have demanded more, but he was wary of Nathan's warnings--and rebels were posing enough of a problem that he did not want to add to it.
Riga was revassalized not long after that.
Philipp fired his Master of the Mint when a diplomat became available--the badboy was really starting to trouble him.
Aragon accepted peace in exchange for Alicante. Philipp would have rather vassalized them, but that required just a little too much warscore; so he whittled them down by taking Alicante.
Kurland Nationalists!
Lithuania was now mostly occupied. Peace would not take too much longer.
As for Britain, the armies were commanded to take Wales, so that a quick peace could be reached with Wales released as a vassal.
Peace with Lithuania.
Peace with Britain.
Finally, Peace with Sweden.
Wales released.
Reputation, worse than ever before.
Revolting Denizens
* * * * * * *
Little Wars
* * * * * * *
Ottomans
* * * * * * *
Curse The Irish
* * * * * * *
Riga
* * * * * * *
Inside the Palace
Magnus scowled from his throne.
"And you haven't been able to find either Nathan or Beendet, despite the 100-ducat bounty I've placed on their heads?"
The mercenaries shook their heads.
"What if I raise the bounty to 500 ducats?"
"When a man can't be found, no price in the world will change that."
"But all men can be found, unless they're dead. And those two rotten scoundrels are most certainly not dead. I'm sitting here barely keeping up with the five revolts they start every month. Surely someone as well travelled as they could not be also invisible?"
"Wherever they are, no one is talking."
"Then make the reward 1000 ducats! They must be brought back here, dead or alive, or the Kingdom will know no peace."
"As you wish, your Majesty."
The mercs left. Shortly thereafter, an uncomfortable silence settled over the court.
"What, will none of you entertain me? Fine, all of you out! I'm retiring to my chambers for the night. You heard me! Get out!"
The king left for his chambers before waiting for the hall to clear. Upon rounding a corner, he gave commands to his chamber-servants. "Hans! I am retiring. Have my bed prepared and undress me, then I want no interruptions until the morning. Is that clear?"
Only echoes replied.
"Hans! Hans?"
As the King made his way to the other side of the bed, he saw the body of Hans, lying on the floor, with a dagger in his back. Immediately the King turned around and scanned the chambers, but there was no trace of anyone or anything.
* * * * * * *
The Ottoman War
The Ottomans provided surprisingly little resistance.
They provided even less once their allies realized there was no way for them to touch Brunswick, or vice versa, and peaced out.
Of course, things weren't going to just stay this way.
* * * * * * *
Black Forest
Beendet and Nathan hurried through the forest under a canopy of leaves and stars, followed by a young woman.
"Who is this woman again?" Beendet asked.
"She's the one young Wilhelm secretly married a few weeks before his untimely death at your hands," Nathan replied.
"Quit reminding me. If you thought I was so bad, why are you including me in all your plans?"
"Because I know the one thought that motivates you is revenge, and you won't let anything stop until you get it."
"Revenge... revenge..." Beendet's mouth watered.
"Would you quit creeping me out? I'm pregnant, hello?!" the lady interjected.
"If you weren't carrying the next King of Brunswick in your womb, I'd give you a beating for that."
"Beendet, look at you! I remember when you were one of the most respected tutors in the castle. Has hatred turned you into this beast of the field that knows no thought except vengeance?"
"Woman, you don't know injustice."
"You killed my husband!"
"Enough!" Nathan halted. "You two may not like each other, but you're just going to have to deal with it right now, because both of you need each other in order to get what you both really want. Now, our safehouse for the night is just over that hill. I don't want to hear another word, is that clear?"
* * * * * * *
Peace, Momentarily
With the Ottomans isolated from their allies, and essentially defeated, they conceded three provinces to Philipp Magnus I of Brunswick. Philipp could have demanded more, but he was wary of Nathan's warnings--and rebels were posing enough of a problem that he did not want to add to it.
Riga was revassalized not long after that.
Philipp fired his Master of the Mint when a diplomat became available--the badboy was really starting to trouble him.
Aragon accepted peace in exchange for Alicante. Philipp would have rather vassalized them, but that required just a little too much warscore; so he whittled them down by taking Alicante.
Kurland Nationalists!
Lithuania was now mostly occupied. Peace would not take too much longer.
As for Britain, the armies were commanded to take Wales, so that a quick peace could be reached with Wales released as a vassal.
Peace with Lithuania.
Peace with Britain.
Finally, Peace with Sweden.
Wales released.
Reputation, worse than ever before.
Chapter 23: Shadows
Broken Nations
While the King warred on, Nathan and company continued to work.
They spoke to a crowd in Languedoc, speaking on the evils of the King and encouraging a mass exodus to the colonies.
Lithuania, utterly crushed during the war, collapsed, and Kurland and the Qasim Khanate went free.
And when the King tried to add Wallachia to the Empire, he found that he could not add a Muslim province; so he held off releasing Wallachia and tried to first convert it.
Meanwhile, Britain was beset by Scottish Nationalists and Heretics, and soon watched itself break.
* * * * * * *
Inca War
* * * * * * *
Normandy Goes Free
* * * * * * *
Heir To The Throne
The woman bore a son, and named him Heinrich. If Nathan was successful in his revolts, Heinrich would be Heinrich V of Brunswick. If only.
Meanwhile, Nathan and Beendet were out attempting their most daring raid yet.
"What's the King good for?"
"Nothing!"
"What will we do to him?"
"Egg him! Egg him! Egg him!"
And so the frenzied mob marched on the palace itself and began throwing eggs at the walls. One egg shattered a window and hit the King on the temple, forcing him to retreat to higher levels; and curse his forefathers for not building a moat around this building.
The army soon came and dispersed the mob. Nathan escaped unnoticed. But Beendet...
The King, once inside his safe room in the tower, stood looking out the window, when a voice broke the silence.
"Miss me?"
The King looked around, but couldn't see anyone.
"Who's there?"
"Your worst nightmare."
"Nathan?"
"Guess again."
"Beendet?"
"I can pop your head off at any moment."
At the word 'moment,' the body of a dead guard fell from the ceiling. The King looked up to the ceiling but saw nothing.
Soon the lamp at the far side of the room lit; then the other side; then the hay in the middle of the room caught fire; then after a few seconds of crackling all the lights went out at once, and all the windows shut.
The King felt warm breath on the back of his neck. He spun around, now entirely out of his mind; but there was nothing. Gradually light returned to the room and he was once again alone.
* * * * * * *
Connaught
Connaught Nationalists rose up again for the umpteenth time, and seized control of Meath. The King pondered releasing them, but after learning it would cost two centralization points and 50 prestige, he backed off the idea, hoping that peace would last long enough for Ireland to stay out of Meath and let Connaught declare independence.
Thus, at first, when Shawnee declared war, Magnus almost regretted that decision; until he learned that none of his allies would get involved in the war, as it was with a Pagan country.
Luck would not strike a second time.
"Arrrrgh! Those cursed Irish! If they retake Meath one more time, I swear I will dissolve my alliance with them."
* * * * * * *
Ottoman War
Now that Serbia and Bosnia were no longer vassals to the Sultan, they were free to be vassalized by Brunswick.
Serbia fell first.
Bosnia fell mere days later, but as Philipp was out of diplomats, had to wait a month.
The Ottoman Empire was once again isolated of its allies, who were too distant or unable to provide assistance; and thus, their defeat was inevitable.
Magnus waited a few extra months, in order for the siege of Sardinia to complete so that he could take the island for himself and release it as a vassal.
* * * * * * *
Experienced Corps
Philipp Magnus finally had the opportunity to finish allying with all of Brunswick's vassals. With this in addition to all the wars that had been going on, the diplomatic corps had been quite busy; therefore...
when this event showed up, the King was rather thrilled.
Badboy was now down to merely 9 above the limit, and soon he could imagine things being back to normal again.
In the meantime...
Broken Nations
While the King warred on, Nathan and company continued to work.
They spoke to a crowd in Languedoc, speaking on the evils of the King and encouraging a mass exodus to the colonies.
Lithuania, utterly crushed during the war, collapsed, and Kurland and the Qasim Khanate went free.
And when the King tried to add Wallachia to the Empire, he found that he could not add a Muslim province; so he held off releasing Wallachia and tried to first convert it.
Meanwhile, Britain was beset by Scottish Nationalists and Heretics, and soon watched itself break.
* * * * * * *
Inca War
* * * * * * *
Normandy Goes Free
* * * * * * *
Heir To The Throne
The woman bore a son, and named him Heinrich. If Nathan was successful in his revolts, Heinrich would be Heinrich V of Brunswick. If only.
Meanwhile, Nathan and Beendet were out attempting their most daring raid yet.
"What's the King good for?"
"Nothing!"
"What will we do to him?"
"Egg him! Egg him! Egg him!"
And so the frenzied mob marched on the palace itself and began throwing eggs at the walls. One egg shattered a window and hit the King on the temple, forcing him to retreat to higher levels; and curse his forefathers for not building a moat around this building.
The army soon came and dispersed the mob. Nathan escaped unnoticed. But Beendet...
The King, once inside his safe room in the tower, stood looking out the window, when a voice broke the silence.
"Miss me?"
The King looked around, but couldn't see anyone.
"Who's there?"
"Your worst nightmare."
"Nathan?"
"Guess again."
"Beendet?"
"I can pop your head off at any moment."
At the word 'moment,' the body of a dead guard fell from the ceiling. The King looked up to the ceiling but saw nothing.
Soon the lamp at the far side of the room lit; then the other side; then the hay in the middle of the room caught fire; then after a few seconds of crackling all the lights went out at once, and all the windows shut.
The King felt warm breath on the back of his neck. He spun around, now entirely out of his mind; but there was nothing. Gradually light returned to the room and he was once again alone.
* * * * * * *
Connaught
Connaught Nationalists rose up again for the umpteenth time, and seized control of Meath. The King pondered releasing them, but after learning it would cost two centralization points and 50 prestige, he backed off the idea, hoping that peace would last long enough for Ireland to stay out of Meath and let Connaught declare independence.
Thus, at first, when Shawnee declared war, Magnus almost regretted that decision; until he learned that none of his allies would get involved in the war, as it was with a Pagan country.
Luck would not strike a second time.
"Arrrrgh! Those cursed Irish! If they retake Meath one more time, I swear I will dissolve my alliance with them."
* * * * * * *
Ottoman War
Now that Serbia and Bosnia were no longer vassals to the Sultan, they were free to be vassalized by Brunswick.
Serbia fell first.
Bosnia fell mere days later, but as Philipp was out of diplomats, had to wait a month.
The Ottoman Empire was once again isolated of its allies, who were too distant or unable to provide assistance; and thus, their defeat was inevitable.
Magnus waited a few extra months, in order for the siege of Sardinia to complete so that he could take the island for himself and release it as a vassal.
* * * * * * *
Experienced Corps
Philipp Magnus finally had the opportunity to finish allying with all of Brunswick's vassals. With this in addition to all the wars that had been going on, the diplomatic corps had been quite busy; therefore...
when this event showed up, the King was rather thrilled.
Badboy was now down to merely 9 above the limit, and soon he could imagine things being back to normal again.
In the meantime...
Chapter 23: Shadows
Qasim Khanate War
In Qasim Khanate's short existence, they had managed to score quite interesting allies.
Norway was untouchable; Portugal had a vast colonial empire; and the Khanate had a rather sizable portion of old Lithuania.
But with the recent building up of Brunswick military might, no combination of allies could be too much for Brunswick; only rebels and war exhaustion were foes at this point. And both were playing their part--the American forces were prevented from invading colonial Portugal because of rebel-crushing duties.
This allowed Portugal the freedom to invade unprotected colonies, such as Mosquito, which they seized for themselves.
When did Britain annex Ashanti? I thought they were my vassal; and I was never notified?
After a brief delay, which allowed Brunswick to retake Mosquito, and Kongo to take some Portuguese colonies, a simple peace with Qasim was finalized. Brunswick had no appetite for war anymore.
Even those minor conquests had bumped BB back up to 11 points over the limit.
Meanwhile, while the war had been going on, another long-awaited event had occurred.
For reasons unknown to King Philipp, he had been unable to release Novgorod despite, presumably, holding the Novgordian capital. The only scenario that played out in his mind was that it could have been moved in conflict; but Philipp had no shot of finding the capital now if that were the case.
So he was rather relieved when nationalists seized the old capital herself. Soon there would be yet another entrant into the Holy Roman Empire.
The African provinces were sold to the allies that helped acquire them; as Brunswick had no need for them.
* * * * * * *
Political Crisis
The Brunswickian Diet met to discuss current affairs.
"O King, we are concerned about the state of the Kingdom. Rebels are ransacking the countryside everywhere; the nation is exhausted by war. In our eyes, you have done a poor opinion of managing the country's affairs."
King Philipp took notes regarding who needed a lesson in power after the session ended.
"We are also disturbed about rumours coming from the south; of a prince of the line of Wilhelm the Second."
"What?!"
"He dresses up in a green hood and cape, and steals money from the wealthy to give to the poor."
"It is merely a myth invented by the peasants to help them pass the time more easily."
"Would the peasants have needed such a myth if you hadn't mismanaged the country's affairs?"
"No matter what, he is an imposter."
"Actually, we've been in discussions with Nathan the Sixth, and it turns out that the Prince is completely credible."
"You have been in discussions with a treasonous traitor and great enemy of the Brunswickian people?"
"In our eyes, O King, it is you who have been treasonous, for all but destroying our nation's reputation in the eyes of the world, causing massive instability, and the like. We ought to depose you..."
"That's it! Everyone out! This session is hereby adjourned. Terminated. Until I call it again."
"You can't do that!"
Philipp Magnus turned to his guards. "You have my permission to fire on this assembly if this hall is not vacated within two minutes."
The legislators departed.
"I want Nathan dead before Christmas. Whatever must be done, do it. I will pay any price. He, and his fake prince must die. I will not stand for treason!"
Just as the King finished giving commands to his royal guards, a messenger burst in.
"Bad news, O King!"
"What could it be this time? Did the sun fall to the Earth and burn my crops? Did all my vassals at once unite in war against me? Is the sky falling?"
"Well, on that note, there is a slave uprising in Dominica; but that was not the bad news I brought."
"Because a slave uprising no longer counts as bad news; just average news. Well--get to it!"
"Your chief diplomat Gaspar Van Rechteren is dead."
The King shook. "That's worse than I could have imagined. He was young: how could he die?"
"He was attacked by thieves and died of his wounds while travelling in the Black Forest."
"Curse you, Nathan!"
The messenger crossed himself.
"So tell me they immediately hired the best available diplomat."
"They did; but he's only a one-star."
"Has fate herself become mine enemy?"
A second messenger rushed in.
"Bad news, your Majesty!"
"What could be worse?"
"Aragon has declared war! And she has brought in h..."
An arrow whizzed through the room, striking the messenger through the heart; and he slumped to the ground.
"Guards!"
The guards swept the area, but once again found nothing.
Meanwhile, the King muttered to himself. "Aragon's allies? Surely he didn't mean..."
* * * * * * *
Gaspar Van Rechteren
"My Lord, we've done the best we could; but his wounds are too great."
"That's quite alright, young lad. I can see now that royal blood indeed fills your veins. Thank you for rescuing me from those vandals. The roads are so dangerous these days; I ought to have had a better guard around me."
Nathan spoke up. "Gaspar, you have spent many years in service to this Kingdom; as a five-star diplomat, you've been one of the best diplomats in the history of our great nation. We will miss your service."
"Nathan, just keep doing what you're doing, and God will provide strength for tomorrow. Better to fight with a God who makes all your paths straight, than to fight against one who makes difficult your every footstep."
Young Heinrich stood with respect, saluting the fallen minister.
Gaspar acknowledged his token, saying "Long Live the King!" and then passed.
Heinrich turned to his master. "How much longer must we wait? My uncle must be punished. The Kingdom suffers; the people suffer; we cannot allow this to go on any longer."
"Just a little while longer, Prince, and we will depart for Hannover. I sent Beendet to Hannover a few days ago, finally granting him permission to do what he has asked of me every single day for the past two decades."
"You don't mean..."
"I could only hold him back so long."
"But surely he knows that murder, any murder, is punishable with death?"
"He has no intention of surviving. Just a few more days, and you will see."
"Shall I get mother?"
"Yes. Her strength will be useful in the coming days. Go out to the villages and get supplies and support; and then we will depart."
* * * * * * *
War With Aragon
War with Castile was going to be a huge problem. Why?
As soon as those Zapotec troops make it to Guaconchil, the Castilian troops in Zacatecas will be able to invade Tarasco. And as Maya, Aztec, and Zapotec are all pagan, they will be able to seize their provinces without going to the negotiating table.
This means that there is only a limited amount of time; maybe two months, max, for Brunswickian troops to force either Aragon (alliance leader) or Castile to the negotiating table.
Fortunately, we border both their capitals; and both are under siege.
But now we've taken them, and what? Still no peace? Not even a white one?
Curses, Castile!
Castile only came to the negotiating table after Andalucia, Toledo, and all the provinces in between were sieged. Fortunately, a provision existed in the peace to return all provinces to their original owners at the start of the war; and so Castile bowed out, and we could focus more on Aragon, whom we also invaded and assaulted; but did not plan on having to take Malta too, as we forgot that they owned Malta.
Well, sort of to their original owners. The Aztecs got lucky.
That's it! Ireland is going down!
* * * * * * *
Author's Notes
You would think that the British troops are doomed to some sort of overrun rule here, especially given that both Kongo and Loango are Christian.
Instead, they survive to fight another day. (And on that day, they died.)
This is the fourth time Philipp Magnus Hattendorf has given me this event. I really, really wish that one of the five-star advisors had gotten this event instead during their 35+ years of service.
The main reason for this screenshot is shock and awe that one of my vassals can field a 5/2/2 army. Granted, Savoy managed to expand to three provinces and built themselves a COT in Savoie; but I still wasn't expecting them to be able to take out Aragon's main army by themselves.
* * * * * * *
Peace
Once Britain's African colonies (so recently seized via annexing my vassal Ashanti) were retaken, Brunswick negotiated peace for them, as Brunswick had no desire to invade Britain again; not with this reputation and nothing left to release, save maybe the Kingdom of England herself--and that would require at least two wars.
So peace was settled with Britain. And not long after...
Portugal too gave up some African colonies, with Brunswick having the intent to sell them to African vassals.
To end the war, Aragon herself becomes the newest vassal of Brunswick.
This returns reputation to 11 points above the limit.
Qasim Khanate War
In Qasim Khanate's short existence, they had managed to score quite interesting allies.
Norway was untouchable; Portugal had a vast colonial empire; and the Khanate had a rather sizable portion of old Lithuania.
But with the recent building up of Brunswick military might, no combination of allies could be too much for Brunswick; only rebels and war exhaustion were foes at this point. And both were playing their part--the American forces were prevented from invading colonial Portugal because of rebel-crushing duties.
This allowed Portugal the freedom to invade unprotected colonies, such as Mosquito, which they seized for themselves.
When did Britain annex Ashanti? I thought they were my vassal; and I was never notified?
After a brief delay, which allowed Brunswick to retake Mosquito, and Kongo to take some Portuguese colonies, a simple peace with Qasim was finalized. Brunswick had no appetite for war anymore.
Even those minor conquests had bumped BB back up to 11 points over the limit.
Meanwhile, while the war had been going on, another long-awaited event had occurred.
For reasons unknown to King Philipp, he had been unable to release Novgorod despite, presumably, holding the Novgordian capital. The only scenario that played out in his mind was that it could have been moved in conflict; but Philipp had no shot of finding the capital now if that were the case.
So he was rather relieved when nationalists seized the old capital herself. Soon there would be yet another entrant into the Holy Roman Empire.
The African provinces were sold to the allies that helped acquire them; as Brunswick had no need for them.
* * * * * * *
Political Crisis
The Brunswickian Diet met to discuss current affairs.
"O King, we are concerned about the state of the Kingdom. Rebels are ransacking the countryside everywhere; the nation is exhausted by war. In our eyes, you have done a poor opinion of managing the country's affairs."
King Philipp took notes regarding who needed a lesson in power after the session ended.
"We are also disturbed about rumours coming from the south; of a prince of the line of Wilhelm the Second."
"What?!"
"He dresses up in a green hood and cape, and steals money from the wealthy to give to the poor."
"It is merely a myth invented by the peasants to help them pass the time more easily."
"Would the peasants have needed such a myth if you hadn't mismanaged the country's affairs?"
"No matter what, he is an imposter."
"Actually, we've been in discussions with Nathan the Sixth, and it turns out that the Prince is completely credible."
"You have been in discussions with a treasonous traitor and great enemy of the Brunswickian people?"
"In our eyes, O King, it is you who have been treasonous, for all but destroying our nation's reputation in the eyes of the world, causing massive instability, and the like. We ought to depose you..."
"That's it! Everyone out! This session is hereby adjourned. Terminated. Until I call it again."
"You can't do that!"
Philipp Magnus turned to his guards. "You have my permission to fire on this assembly if this hall is not vacated within two minutes."
The legislators departed.
"I want Nathan dead before Christmas. Whatever must be done, do it. I will pay any price. He, and his fake prince must die. I will not stand for treason!"
Just as the King finished giving commands to his royal guards, a messenger burst in.
"Bad news, O King!"
"What could it be this time? Did the sun fall to the Earth and burn my crops? Did all my vassals at once unite in war against me? Is the sky falling?"
"Well, on that note, there is a slave uprising in Dominica; but that was not the bad news I brought."
"Because a slave uprising no longer counts as bad news; just average news. Well--get to it!"
"Your chief diplomat Gaspar Van Rechteren is dead."
The King shook. "That's worse than I could have imagined. He was young: how could he die?"
"He was attacked by thieves and died of his wounds while travelling in the Black Forest."
"Curse you, Nathan!"
The messenger crossed himself.
"So tell me they immediately hired the best available diplomat."
"They did; but he's only a one-star."
"Has fate herself become mine enemy?"
A second messenger rushed in.
"Bad news, your Majesty!"
"What could be worse?"
"Aragon has declared war! And she has brought in h..."
An arrow whizzed through the room, striking the messenger through the heart; and he slumped to the ground.
"Guards!"
The guards swept the area, but once again found nothing.
Meanwhile, the King muttered to himself. "Aragon's allies? Surely he didn't mean..."
* * * * * * *
Gaspar Van Rechteren
"My Lord, we've done the best we could; but his wounds are too great."
"That's quite alright, young lad. I can see now that royal blood indeed fills your veins. Thank you for rescuing me from those vandals. The roads are so dangerous these days; I ought to have had a better guard around me."
Nathan spoke up. "Gaspar, you have spent many years in service to this Kingdom; as a five-star diplomat, you've been one of the best diplomats in the history of our great nation. We will miss your service."
"Nathan, just keep doing what you're doing, and God will provide strength for tomorrow. Better to fight with a God who makes all your paths straight, than to fight against one who makes difficult your every footstep."
Young Heinrich stood with respect, saluting the fallen minister.
Gaspar acknowledged his token, saying "Long Live the King!" and then passed.
Heinrich turned to his master. "How much longer must we wait? My uncle must be punished. The Kingdom suffers; the people suffer; we cannot allow this to go on any longer."
"Just a little while longer, Prince, and we will depart for Hannover. I sent Beendet to Hannover a few days ago, finally granting him permission to do what he has asked of me every single day for the past two decades."
"You don't mean..."
"I could only hold him back so long."
"But surely he knows that murder, any murder, is punishable with death?"
"He has no intention of surviving. Just a few more days, and you will see."
"Shall I get mother?"
"Yes. Her strength will be useful in the coming days. Go out to the villages and get supplies and support; and then we will depart."
* * * * * * *
War With Aragon
War with Castile was going to be a huge problem. Why?
As soon as those Zapotec troops make it to Guaconchil, the Castilian troops in Zacatecas will be able to invade Tarasco. And as Maya, Aztec, and Zapotec are all pagan, they will be able to seize their provinces without going to the negotiating table.
This means that there is only a limited amount of time; maybe two months, max, for Brunswickian troops to force either Aragon (alliance leader) or Castile to the negotiating table.
Fortunately, we border both their capitals; and both are under siege.
But now we've taken them, and what? Still no peace? Not even a white one?
Curses, Castile!
Castile only came to the negotiating table after Andalucia, Toledo, and all the provinces in between were sieged. Fortunately, a provision existed in the peace to return all provinces to their original owners at the start of the war; and so Castile bowed out, and we could focus more on Aragon, whom we also invaded and assaulted; but did not plan on having to take Malta too, as we forgot that they owned Malta.
Well, sort of to their original owners. The Aztecs got lucky.
That's it! Ireland is going down!
* * * * * * *
Author's Notes
You would think that the British troops are doomed to some sort of overrun rule here, especially given that both Kongo and Loango are Christian.
Instead, they survive to fight another day. (And on that day, they died.)
This is the fourth time Philipp Magnus Hattendorf has given me this event. I really, really wish that one of the five-star advisors had gotten this event instead during their 35+ years of service.
The main reason for this screenshot is shock and awe that one of my vassals can field a 5/2/2 army. Granted, Savoy managed to expand to three provinces and built themselves a COT in Savoie; but I still wasn't expecting them to be able to take out Aragon's main army by themselves.
* * * * * * *
Peace
Once Britain's African colonies (so recently seized via annexing my vassal Ashanti) were retaken, Brunswick negotiated peace for them, as Brunswick had no desire to invade Britain again; not with this reputation and nothing left to release, save maybe the Kingdom of England herself--and that would require at least two wars.
So peace was settled with Britain. And not long after...
Portugal too gave up some African colonies, with Brunswick having the intent to sell them to African vassals.
To end the war, Aragon herself becomes the newest vassal of Brunswick.
This returns reputation to 11 points above the limit.
Chapter 23: Shadows
Cleaning Up
Peace was settled on just in time, for look who just showed up in Meath, for who knows what time this is, but it's been a lot:
The Novgorodian Nationalists somehow survived my being at war with Qasim Khanate (who they're surrounded by), and are now the newest vassal and Empire state to boot.
And Ashanti repays Brunswick's kindness for releasing them by... annexing Bonny, who Brunswick had guaranteed, and whose guarantee must either have expired or been ignored.
Brunswick funds Nationalists in Bonny, which defeat the Ashanti armies. Hope they enjoyed that.
King Philipp Magnus I's recent moves in dissolving the Diet qualify as centralization; and this Large Revolt recognizes that.
Wallachia finally converts to Christianity; and quickly becomes part of the HRE and a vassal.
* * * * * * *
Shadows
The King, sleeping in the tower (for he no longer thought it safe to sleep lower in the castle) was awakened by the lighting of a candle at the far side of the room. For reasons unknown to him, he felt this presence to be particularly sinister.
"Who is it?"
"Your worst nightmare."
"Beendet?"
"Verily."
"You and that stupid prophet have been a thorn in my side for nearly my entire reign, starting revolts all over the place and influencing away my advisors and killing all my good servants. I would have given half my Kingdom to any nation of choosing if it meant I could see you two dead. But alas, it appears you will get the last word. Do it. Kill me. Just know that if you do so, you will never leave this palace alive."
"I have no intention of leaving the palace alive, Philipp."
"My servants are scheduled to check on me any moment now; they check every fifteen minutes while I rest. This room could be already full of guards they summoned."
"I don't suspect that will be happening, your Majesty. Your watchmen are lying dead outside the door, as are half your Royal Guards. When the other half discover the mess, they will run up to this room and open the door, only to be blocked by a wall. You see, you've been sleeping peacefully a long, long time; and I've taken this opportunity to build a stone wall three feet thick in front of the door. There is a similar wall in front of all the windows, when the guards should think of attempting that. You have seen morning for the last time."
"Great. So why aren't you killing me?"
"A quick death would be too good for you."
"So you're just going to starve me?"
"Oh, yes; but so much more than that. I've brought a barrel of corn meal up here, with me. You're going to watch me eat three times a day, whilst you starve. After two weeks of starvation; perhaps four, depending on how corpulent you've become on the corpses of your people. Then, I will force-feed you, and burn the remaining food.
"Once that has been done, do you see this?"
"A blanket?"
"Not just any blanket, Philipp. It's a smallpox-infected blanked. It is wrapped around the arm of a man who died from Bubonic Plague."
"Are you a fool? You'll kill us both!"
"Clearly, you forgot the first part of my plan."
"So why is my death worth your own?"
"Eventually, after years of enforced misery, vengeance can become sweeter than life itself. Do you recall Machiavelli?"
"A little."
"Obviously not enough. A good prince ought to be feared and loved; but feared rather than loved if only one may be chosen; but above all, should not be hated. As long as you touch life but not property, you will not be hated. You, Philipp, have touched both life and property, of everyone in this Kingdom, through your stupid endless wars, and of myself, through your double-cross; and for that, you are hated, by myself and by all. Your death will spark Kingdom-wide celebrations. Granted, your death is still a few weeks away. You will beg for death, and not get it. I hope you're comfortable."
Cleaning Up
Peace was settled on just in time, for look who just showed up in Meath, for who knows what time this is, but it's been a lot:
The Novgorodian Nationalists somehow survived my being at war with Qasim Khanate (who they're surrounded by), and are now the newest vassal and Empire state to boot.
And Ashanti repays Brunswick's kindness for releasing them by... annexing Bonny, who Brunswick had guaranteed, and whose guarantee must either have expired or been ignored.
Brunswick funds Nationalists in Bonny, which defeat the Ashanti armies. Hope they enjoyed that.
King Philipp Magnus I's recent moves in dissolving the Diet qualify as centralization; and this Large Revolt recognizes that.
Wallachia finally converts to Christianity; and quickly becomes part of the HRE and a vassal.
* * * * * * *
Shadows
The King, sleeping in the tower (for he no longer thought it safe to sleep lower in the castle) was awakened by the lighting of a candle at the far side of the room. For reasons unknown to him, he felt this presence to be particularly sinister.
"Who is it?"
"Your worst nightmare."
"Beendet?"
"Verily."
"You and that stupid prophet have been a thorn in my side for nearly my entire reign, starting revolts all over the place and influencing away my advisors and killing all my good servants. I would have given half my Kingdom to any nation of choosing if it meant I could see you two dead. But alas, it appears you will get the last word. Do it. Kill me. Just know that if you do so, you will never leave this palace alive."
"I have no intention of leaving the palace alive, Philipp."
"My servants are scheduled to check on me any moment now; they check every fifteen minutes while I rest. This room could be already full of guards they summoned."
"I don't suspect that will be happening, your Majesty. Your watchmen are lying dead outside the door, as are half your Royal Guards. When the other half discover the mess, they will run up to this room and open the door, only to be blocked by a wall. You see, you've been sleeping peacefully a long, long time; and I've taken this opportunity to build a stone wall three feet thick in front of the door. There is a similar wall in front of all the windows, when the guards should think of attempting that. You have seen morning for the last time."
"Great. So why aren't you killing me?"
"A quick death would be too good for you."
"So you're just going to starve me?"
"Oh, yes; but so much more than that. I've brought a barrel of corn meal up here, with me. You're going to watch me eat three times a day, whilst you starve. After two weeks of starvation; perhaps four, depending on how corpulent you've become on the corpses of your people. Then, I will force-feed you, and burn the remaining food.
"Once that has been done, do you see this?"
"A blanket?"
"Not just any blanket, Philipp. It's a smallpox-infected blanked. It is wrapped around the arm of a man who died from Bubonic Plague."
"Are you a fool? You'll kill us both!"
"Clearly, you forgot the first part of my plan."
"So why is my death worth your own?"
"Eventually, after years of enforced misery, vengeance can become sweeter than life itself. Do you recall Machiavelli?"
"A little."
"Obviously not enough. A good prince ought to be feared and loved; but feared rather than loved if only one may be chosen; but above all, should not be hated. As long as you touch life but not property, you will not be hated. You, Philipp, have touched both life and property, of everyone in this Kingdom, through your stupid endless wars, and of myself, through your double-cross; and for that, you are hated, by myself and by all. Your death will spark Kingdom-wide celebrations. Granted, your death is still a few weeks away. You will beg for death, and not get it. I hope you're comfortable."
State of the Kingdom
Oops. Forgot about the minting thing again. My bad.
A corrected budget, which restores what had been before stability dropped--full beeline towards Cabinet, despite it being at this point 14 years ahead of its time, and earlier much more than that.
Reputation.
European nations are suffering greatly at this point. Probably has something to do with me.
Only one non-vassal is on the list at this point; and will likely be off the list in the near future.
At this point, Brunswick is almost at the point where it's pretty much unstoppable, if it hasn't passed that point already.
Also, the largest navy in the world. Virtually all of the big ships are caravels, since Brunswick didn't have a coastal core until the mid-16th century.
This graph amuses me to no end. Magnus' folly is clearly visible.
The core province pie chart should make quite obvious that expansion was happening a tad too quickly. Granted, at this point, were I not constrained by the rules of this AAR, I could ignore BB altogether and just do a WC. Desire to keep BB down is the only thing keeping Britain, Lithuania, and Castile alive at this point.
Vassals are down to fifth. Kind of sad actually.
It never occurred to me until I wrote this very sentence that nothing is stopping me from pursuing a full monopoly of Ostpreussen.
As you can see, recent turmoils have affected Brunswick's beautiful curve. Also, Castile clearly needs another beatdown. Sadly, I doubt it will be possible given the weakness of the Maya, Aztecs, and Zapotec, to Spanish annexation.
Other than the relative peace, the only thing that confuses me is why Champa thought it would be a good idea to declare war on Ming.
The Holy Roman Empire is approaching too large to fit on a screenshot.
This chapter it surpassed too big to fit on the standard HRE screen.
Brunswick, with vassals in dark green. Only real holes in the Empire now are Poland and France.
Oops. Forgot about the minting thing again. My bad.
A corrected budget, which restores what had been before stability dropped--full beeline towards Cabinet, despite it being at this point 14 years ahead of its time, and earlier much more than that.
Reputation.
European nations are suffering greatly at this point. Probably has something to do with me.
Only one non-vassal is on the list at this point; and will likely be off the list in the near future.
At this point, Brunswick is almost at the point where it's pretty much unstoppable, if it hasn't passed that point already.
Also, the largest navy in the world. Virtually all of the big ships are caravels, since Brunswick didn't have a coastal core until the mid-16th century.
This graph amuses me to no end. Magnus' folly is clearly visible.
The core province pie chart should make quite obvious that expansion was happening a tad too quickly. Granted, at this point, were I not constrained by the rules of this AAR, I could ignore BB altogether and just do a WC. Desire to keep BB down is the only thing keeping Britain, Lithuania, and Castile alive at this point.
Vassals are down to fifth. Kind of sad actually.
It never occurred to me until I wrote this very sentence that nothing is stopping me from pursuing a full monopoly of Ostpreussen.
As you can see, recent turmoils have affected Brunswick's beautiful curve. Also, Castile clearly needs another beatdown. Sadly, I doubt it will be possible given the weakness of the Maya, Aztecs, and Zapotec, to Spanish annexation.
Other than the relative peace, the only thing that confuses me is why Champa thought it would be a good idea to declare war on Ming.
The Holy Roman Empire is approaching too large to fit on a screenshot.
This chapter it surpassed too big to fit on the standard HRE screen.
Brunswick, with vassals in dark green. Only real holes in the Empire now are Poland and France.
Riga, Aztecs, Shawnee, Maya, are their rulers gone insane declaring war on you??
And quite a death for Phillip, he deserverd
And quite a death for Phillip, he deserverd
Hmm, a dramatic end for a king.
Not fair.
A bad Emperor needs good advisors, and everything runs smooftly.
It is the fault of the advisors.
Have you thought of going berserk with conquering the world and then releasing everyone as a vassal?
Not fair.
A bad Emperor needs good advisors, and everything runs smooftly.
It is the fault of the advisors.
Have you thought of going berserk with conquering the world and then releasing everyone as a vassal?