Hello and welcome to my first DW AAR! This AAR is played with Miscmods v0.71 (credit to Brainmeats), Colony Name Change Mod. patch 5.1 (an older version) and minor graphical mods to improve performance.
There are a few house rules I play with to keep the game from getting boring as a result of getting too powerful:
-No 'excessive' conquests. The definition of excessive is up to me of course, but generally it means only taking what I have an in-character reason to take.
-No force-releasing of same-culture group minors from enemies.
-No deliberate slaughter of natives.
-Use appropriate CB for reason for war.
The Pharaohs Return: An Alexandrian AAR
Prologue: The Peace of God
The Holy Land, 1399
Pope Gregory VII made a surprising decree in his ascension to the Papacy in the 11th Century, demanding the total removal of Muslims from the Holy Land and shaping the aim of Rome entirely in that direction. From that moment onwards, religious fervour began to engulf Europe as Catholics rose to the banner of the Crusade. Later Popes, selected by an increasingly aggressive college of cardinals, continued the policy whole-heartedly. Hundreds of thousands of Christian warriors descended upon Jerusalem over the centuries and through blood and sweat forged a lasting kingdom to forever hold the holiest of cities. With the Muslims defeated, calm fell over the lands of the eastern Mediterranean and the Pope declared that a true Peace of God had been won. Deus Vult!
The Cathar Heresy
Not all was at peace however. With all the eyes of European clergy and nobility aimed eastwards, the Cathars of southern France were able to rise in the undercurrent of resentment towards the cost in money and lives that the Crusades had taken. And once the Peace had been declared the kings of Europe once again began to squabble amongst themselves as if the undertaking had never occurred. The Pope’s brief glory was being overshadowed by the usual manner of politics and there was nothing he could do about it as Papal resources were still focused on the conquered Muslim lands.
The Kingdom of Alexandria
The Catholics were not the only ones to take part the Crusades. Seeing the successes and wanting his own piece of the victory, the Byzantine Emperor ordered General Komnenos to Egypt to claim the land of the Pharaohs for Constantinople. The General did far more than that however, as the moment he seized the city of Alexandria he declared himself the successor of Ptolemy and founded the Kingdom of Alexandria. He even went so far as to name himself after the ancient ruler. From the city Alexandrian armies marched out and seized the lands of the Muslim tribes still reeling from their losses to the other Crusaders and soon all of northern Egypt was under their control.
The Emperor could do little to prevent the breakaway and eventually accepted it and the kingdom, as new conflicts were already beginning to erupt with Crusaders lacking direction following the success of the Crusades. Enormous armies travelling through the land on the way back to Europe were devastating the economy and an alliance of Knights had seized control of many Greek cities on the Anatolian coast to ‘protect pilgrims and trade’.
Alexandria enters the 15th Century with an uncertain future ahead of it. The upstart kingdom remains in the graces of the Emperor for the moment, but if that alliance should ever fail then the Alexandrians could find themselves isolated and under attack by forces eager to rule the valuable city. On top of that, the Greek nobility rules over a large population of Arabs who, mostly converted by force following the conquest, may yet seek their own self rule. What will come next is unclear, but Ptolemy is determined to see the land of Pharaohs rise to prominence once more
To be continued…
There are a few house rules I play with to keep the game from getting boring as a result of getting too powerful:
-No 'excessive' conquests. The definition of excessive is up to me of course, but generally it means only taking what I have an in-character reason to take.
-No force-releasing of same-culture group minors from enemies.
-No deliberate slaughter of natives.
-Use appropriate CB for reason for war.
The Pharaohs Return: An Alexandrian AAR
Prologue: The Peace of God
The Holy Land, 1399
Pope Gregory VII made a surprising decree in his ascension to the Papacy in the 11th Century, demanding the total removal of Muslims from the Holy Land and shaping the aim of Rome entirely in that direction. From that moment onwards, religious fervour began to engulf Europe as Catholics rose to the banner of the Crusade. Later Popes, selected by an increasingly aggressive college of cardinals, continued the policy whole-heartedly. Hundreds of thousands of Christian warriors descended upon Jerusalem over the centuries and through blood and sweat forged a lasting kingdom to forever hold the holiest of cities. With the Muslims defeated, calm fell over the lands of the eastern Mediterranean and the Pope declared that a true Peace of God had been won. Deus Vult!
The Cathar Heresy
Not all was at peace however. With all the eyes of European clergy and nobility aimed eastwards, the Cathars of southern France were able to rise in the undercurrent of resentment towards the cost in money and lives that the Crusades had taken. And once the Peace had been declared the kings of Europe once again began to squabble amongst themselves as if the undertaking had never occurred. The Pope’s brief glory was being overshadowed by the usual manner of politics and there was nothing he could do about it as Papal resources were still focused on the conquered Muslim lands.
The Kingdom of Alexandria
The Catholics were not the only ones to take part the Crusades. Seeing the successes and wanting his own piece of the victory, the Byzantine Emperor ordered General Komnenos to Egypt to claim the land of the Pharaohs for Constantinople. The General did far more than that however, as the moment he seized the city of Alexandria he declared himself the successor of Ptolemy and founded the Kingdom of Alexandria. He even went so far as to name himself after the ancient ruler. From the city Alexandrian armies marched out and seized the lands of the Muslim tribes still reeling from their losses to the other Crusaders and soon all of northern Egypt was under their control.
The Emperor could do little to prevent the breakaway and eventually accepted it and the kingdom, as new conflicts were already beginning to erupt with Crusaders lacking direction following the success of the Crusades. Enormous armies travelling through the land on the way back to Europe were devastating the economy and an alliance of Knights had seized control of many Greek cities on the Anatolian coast to ‘protect pilgrims and trade’.
Alexandria enters the 15th Century with an uncertain future ahead of it. The upstart kingdom remains in the graces of the Emperor for the moment, but if that alliance should ever fail then the Alexandrians could find themselves isolated and under attack by forces eager to rule the valuable city. On top of that, the Greek nobility rules over a large population of Arabs who, mostly converted by force following the conquest, may yet seek their own self rule. What will come next is unclear, but Ptolemy is determined to see the land of Pharaohs rise to prominence once more
To be continued…
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