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Nikolai

Basileus Romaion
78 Badges
Jun 17, 2001
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This is it folks! My first try (I think) at an EU4 AAR, with very little experience with the game and not having played it for something like 2 years!

And it's not a normal game either, as I was persuaded by my loyal readAARs to try a megacampaign with my existing CK3 save from my just finished AAR Chronicles of Poland. So, we have one very successful CK3 game going over to a very uncertain EU4 existence! :D I have, however, played into the mid to late 1500s, so I know I have some content to bring. ;)

The CK3 AAR followed the rulers of the kingdom of Poland from a small kingdom into a huge empire called the Wendish Empire. As such, this AAR is the Chronicles of the Wendish Empire. :)

With that, the stage is set!
 
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Emperor Wojciech III (1449-1459)
Emperor Wojciech III

(1449-1459)


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Emperor Wojciech III would serve as a short reigned, infamous connection between the medieval and renaissance Wendish Empire. He would end up being important for the future of the Empire in more ways than one.



Late medieval reign

Wojciech III reigned over a vast and powerful Empire. Stretching from the artic north to the Carpathian basin, from the Russian steppes to the far reaches where Europe met the Atlantic Ocean, he was feared and obeyed.

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Not the least because of his eating habits. When his cousin the king of Denmark and one of his vassals decided to plot to take over the throne, the Emperor instantly imprisoned the man. And devoured him. Yes, the Emperor was a cannibal. And he was too powerful to be stopped. Too cruel and watchful.

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He was also a Greek, a result of his predecessors’ many marriages into the Byzantine Empire over the last few centuries. In fact, while most nobles still retained a Polish or local culture, Greek culture, language and customs had long seeped into the governing bodies of the Empire. This meant that as the Wendish Empire moved into the renaissance, the culture of the elite would be Greek and the court language Greek as well. They remained staunchly Catholic, though. But in the Wendish Empire, the core culture was Greek, with local cultures, even Polish which dominated the Empire, a mere second in importance.

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Renaissance and reformation of the Empire


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There were limits to the Emperor’s powers, though. As a necessity, he had to reluctantly decentralize the Empire a few years into his reign, letting the outer parts of the Empire get a little more independence. He could not be everywhere.

There were four Empires under his control. Each was his to rule, but local elites were allowed a say in day to day matters, led by a relative of the Emperor.

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Thus the Wendish Empire itself were under direct control by Emperor Wojciech III, with Scandinavia, Carpathia and Britannia in personal union under him. Most, but not all, would stay loyal.

Carpathia was close by the Imperial capital and was a stalwart supporter of the Empire in all and everything.

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The same could be said of Scandinavia, now that the many rebellions in Sweden were a thing of the past.

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But Britannia was another matter entirely. A hotbed full of rebellions and sedition, the central authority soon collapsed, albeit for now they remained within the Empire in this reduced state.

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Things were not easy economically either. The country suffered under a massive deficit in the later years of Emperor Wojciech III’s reign, and he had to take out several loans, cut down on the size of the military by almost a third from an estimated 150k troops – possibly more – to less than 110k.

All this led to him focusing on the economy for the remainder of his reign, although he did manage to squeeze in a successful war with Carinthia to placate his unruly nobles.

Three years before his death, disaster struck as his already sickly son and heir died tragically and the new heir thus was his 4-year-old grandson Wit. Facing a long regency, the last three years of the Emperor’s life was spent fixing the economy and stabilizing the realm to prepare for the ascension of Wit II. The situation on the British Isles were deteriorating by the month, with the powerful English nobles more and more dissatisfied with the Imperial administration located in Scotland.

Still, an Emperor does not live forever, and on December 2nd, 1459 Emperor Wojciech III breathed his last, peacefully in bed. His 7-year-old grandson Wit II was now Emperor. Emperor in a new and uncertain world.
 
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Subbed! Can't wait to see what happens to Finland the Wendish Empire from here.
 
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Subbed
 
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Been looking forward to this!

At least the Empire is, mostly, unified and stable. And you have a direct foothold in Scotland to help you quell the British's rebellion.

I've not ever dealt with subjects of subjects before. If England becomes independent of Britain, will England still be under you?
 
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Been looking forward to this!

At least the Empire is, mostly, unified and stable. And you have a direct foothold in Scotland to help you quell the British's rebellion.

I've not ever dealt with subjects of subjects before. If England becomes independent of Britain, will England still be under you?
England will, if she becomes independent from Britannia, become independent from me too. And that is frightening, as she fields something like 50-70k troops by herself and I would be very vulnerable if I shipped half my available army over there. :eek: Then again, I have already foreshadowed that they will declare independence. But there is more to the story, just wait. ;)
Welcome!
 
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Is Wit II, twice as witty or a half-wit?
Good question, I will try to find out. ;)
Wit II could be litteral parallel to you @Nikolai cause he will be learning how to govern country similar to you learning how to play EU IV ;)

P.S.: What dlc, if any, you have?
Haha, yes. Don't expect a world conquest. ;)

Of the expansions, I have Conquest of Paradise and Common Sense. :)
 
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It's interesting that EUIV got your realm decentralized when CK could not. It looks like a very good start, and I'll be curious to see where it goes from here!
 
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The Wends are doing well.

Still, England looks to be a problem. They are an important colonization stepping stone.
 
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This pleases me greatly.
 
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Welcome!
It's interesting that EUIV got your realm decentralized when CK could not. It looks like a very good start, and I'll be curious to see where it goes from here!
Yeah, I played around with it and while kingdoms could be consolidated, empires could not. Tbh I’d liked the empire to be one when I was so centralized ingame. Feature/choice for next version of the converter @Idhrendur ?
The Wends are doing well.

Still, England looks to be a problem. They are an important colonization stepping stone.
Oh yeah. England will be interesting.
This pleases me greatly.
Glad to hear!
 
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Emperor Wit II (1459-1483)
Emperor Wit II

(1459-1483)


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Emperor Wit II brought economic success for his country, but would be remembered as the man who lost an imperial crown.



Early reign

Emperor Wit II started his reign with an economic headache. His father had been forced to greatly lowering the size of the army and had done many cutbacks, but Wit II still inherited a shaky economic situation. The state was barely making even and had taken out several loans that burdened it greatly.

The first thing Wit II did was thus to save up money. No expenses not needed was made, several forts were dismantled, the army even slightly reduced again. And he would initiate the policy his successors would mostly keep to for generations to come, namely a severe hesitancy to wage war of any kind.

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He would not be without war in his time though, as his first year of rule would be occupied with fighting a pretender that rose the moment his father died. Citing the many excesses of Emperor Wojciech III, would-be Emperor Theodotos Kappadox Kalampakes marched on Krakow, only to be beaten in three major battles before dying in combat, the threat to the throne dying with him.

Following the rebellion, Emperor Wit II strengthened his rule by punishing the nobles who had supported the pretender, either by active rebellion or being openly or secretly sympathetic. Thus, noble privileges were, for a time, curtailed as a whole. The nobility would continue to be strong throughout his reign, though.

The majority of his reign after these early years, where he managed to pay down the loans, would be a massive infrastructure buildup, which would soon bear fruits, increasing the royal income greatly.



Loss of Britannia

The major setback in Emperor Wit II’s reign happened a few years in. The fourth of the imperial crowns, that of Britannia, was on shaky ground and had been so since the Szeliga dynasty secured it. England was a major power within the realm, albeit constantly in internal civil war. The imperial seat in eastern Scotland was weak and had little say in the rule of the British Isles, which was by far the most decentralized part of the Wendish Empire.

Wit II tried to improve the situation by giving the imperial bureaucracy in Scotland more land and power, but in the end, it would be for nothing. In 1467, there was a coup placing a new dynasty on the Britannian throne, the Warwicks.

Powerless, the Emperor saw his empire in the west crumble. He had almost three times the troops of what Britannia could muster, but lacked the naval capacity to ferry sizeable amounts at once. England, which although being ruled by a Szeliga duke sided with the new Warwick Emperor, could muster almost 60k troops against the Wendish 117k.

But in the east, Ruthenia was making claims on Wendish lands, and in the west, France was getting stronger by the day. Wit II could not risk a war. As such, without much incident Britannia was lost.

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The Warwicks would not enjoy their power long, though. Merely a year after their independence, the English Szeligas struck. Reorganizing their realm into three, with England directly controlling England, Wales, and parts of Scotland, they granted Ireland and Scotland partly independence as vassals and together marched on Britannia. The civil war was short, as the Warwicks were powerless to withstand England and her vassals, who together controlled almost the entirety of the Isles already.

Wit II did something ingenious at this point, though. By careful diplomacy, he managed to secure Britannia’s independence, with England and her vassals breaking free. But he also married into both the Britannian and the English realm and secured alliances with both, thus securing at least some Wendish influence on the Isles.

This influence would last even throughout the damaging War of the Roses which ravaged throughout England mere years later, with the York family for a few years ruling the duchy. A few years after his death, a Szeliga monarch would once again be at the helm.



Later years

In the last years of his reign, the massive infrastructure buildup of his early years, which had never really stopped, but continued with lesser or larger strength throughout his rule, had resulted in a much better economic base for the country. The surplus when the country was at peace and the army and navy didn’t need a full funding, was getting comfortable, and the state coffers got big enough for the country to be able to endure a long war with full military funding, with the deficit that would entail.

In these latter years, Wit II even dared enlarge the army again, something that was much needed. He had namely a major problem in that the military technology in the Wendish Empire was now severely lagging behind his neighbors. Both Ruthenia and the Byzantines, who were increasingly hostile and allied with each other were a decade or more ahead and if there were to be war, chances were Wit II would lose badly. The same situation was present in the west, where France was advancing technologically at a breakneck speed.

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Wit II would do his best to change the situation, but he needed peace for the moment. A peace he thankfully got. One of his last acts were to increase the power of the Emperor by instituting a program of more centralized bureaucracy, placed more firmly under his control.

He would not be able to enjoy this for long though, as his increasing alcohol consummation would be the better of him. He would drink himself to death in what can best be described as a drunken stupor that not only embarrassed the court, but also made his fourteen-year-old son Pelka II a monarch all too young.
 
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The Wendish Empire looks so cursed not going to lie.
 
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The islands were probably more trouble than they were worth. At least you "own" Scandinavia, and by extension, Iceland if you want to go the colonizing route.

I'd also love some brief overviews of the economy, estates, the development of the realm etc. if you still have the screenshots. I know you said you've already played into the 1500's, so fi you don't have them anymore that's fine. But they would be helpful for context.
 
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