The Amsterdammer Way - A Mildly Interactive AAR

[delpiero1234]

Assembly of the Raad of Amsterdam, 2 July, 1512 (Part II)

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After the votes are count, the Raadpensionaris announces the results.

Dear delegates,
I just returned from the small council meeting. The votes have been counted and it is time to announce them.
The Raad has decided that Amsterdam shall strengthen her efforts to conquer the Duchy of Normandy, currently controlled by the English. Furthermore, Scotland's territory shall be enlarged by a few additional English provinces. This vote on this issue is unanimous.
The decision which idea group we shall embrace next turned out to be a close race between Expansion Ideas and Influence Ideas. At the end, Expansion Ideas come out on top. We will take those at the next opportunity.
Amsterdam will convert religion as soon as possible given that all votes were in favor of converting to Protestantism. If we convert early, then we will get a center of reformation that shall speed up the conversion of our provinces.
That is all for today. Have a safe journey home. ​

​

 

[londoner247]

If the Reformation strikes be ready to peace out early so that you can convert. If you have to compromise in the war to get the Center of Reformation then I think it is worth it.

 

[delpiero1234]

If the Reformation strikes be ready to peace out early so that you can convert. If you have to compromise in the war to get the Center of Reformation then I think it is worth it.

Agreed. Having a center of reformation would definitely speed up our conversion process. I think it is vital. Let's hope the RNG God is nice and won't let the reformation fire until we are back at peace

 

[delpiero1234]

Letter to the delegates of the Raad of Amsterdam; 21 May, 1514

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Dear Delegates,
I have some terrible news for you. About one week ago, England signed a peace treaty with her enemy Burgundy. The English had intended to conquer Picardie. Burgundy managed, thanks to our declaration of war on England, to take the fight to the English. They occupied Caux and Normandie before our forces were able to reach the provinces.This happened at the begining of the war. Burgundy also defended the war goal from the English.
Our spies and general had assured us that the Burgundians had no interest in those provinces and that we shall not worry.
Well they were wrong!
Burgundy annexed Caux and gave Normandie to her ally Provence. The Duchy of Normandy is no more! This means we will not be able to release Normandy as our vassal. A gutting moment.
As you all have already heard, we have occupied London not too long ago. All in all the war is going splendid but losing Normandy to Burgundy/Provence should not have happened.
I deeply apologize to all of you that have voted to conquer Normandy in the Raad's last assembly. All we can do now is continue fighting to force the English to accept unconditional surrender.

Our cartographers have painted a new map which shows the new political order in the former Duchy of Normandy. You can find that map in the chambers of the Raad of Amsterdam.

Signed by Gerben de Friesland, Raadpensionaris of Amsterdam​

 

[crazyself00]

I always use the trade mapmode when planning my peace deals because it displays icons on those provinces and saves you needing to remember names!

The trade mapmode of Ivory Coast cover Gold Coast with the trade window making very very easy to miss that Gold Coast has a trade power bonus.

 

[crazyself00]

With whom Burgundy is allied? and Provence?

 

[delpiero1234]

With whom Burgundy is allied? and Provence?

Well Burgundy is allied with Provence. That's why Burgundy gave Provnece the province Normandie in the peace deal.
Burgundy is also allied with Lorraine and has OPM Neves as her vassal. I think we could easily take them on but first the war against England needs to be won and then we should wait for the Protestant Reformation to fire so we may convert religion.

Provence is also allied to Lorraine, just like Burgundy, and also to Milan.

This information is from the current in-game date. Could be that things were slightly different in 1514 but I doubt that much has changed.

 

[Baron Tanks]

It's a tricky situation. I agree it's best to postpone the Normandy annexation till after the protestant reformation breaks out. If Burgundy is weakened too severely by our hand, it'll leave it in such a state that France may pounce. So if we go for a war over Normandy, it should be surgical and short. A true power balance is developing and we should carefully navigate it. Luckily we also have our colonial endeavours we can focus on and wait for an opening. You have shown to be adept at opportunistic warfare and that would be my advise for now.

Never a dull moment for Amsterdam!

 

[ThePatriotOfDreumel]

Are we going to conquer Indonesië?

 

[delpiero1234]

Are we going to conquer Indonesië?

Eventually, yes India, China, Indonesia. Amsterdam shall expand into Asia.

It's a tricky situation. I agree it's best to postpone the Normandy annexation till after the protestant reformation breaks out. If Burgundy is weakened too severely by our hand, it'll leave it in such a state that France may pounce. So if we go for a war over Normandy, it should be surgical and short. A true power balance is developing and we should carefully navigate it. Luckily we also have our colonial endeavours we can focus on and wait for an opening. You have shown to be adept at opportunistic warfare and that would be my advise for now.

Never a dull moment for Amsterdam!

Agreed, this campaign is full of surprises
For now we shall focus on England the colonial game but eventually we will take out Burgundy before they grow into a regional power that we cannot control.

 

[ThePatriotOfDreumel]

Eventually, yes India, China, Indonesia. Amsterdam shall expand into Asia.



Agreed, this campaign is full of surprises
For now we shall focus on England the colonial game but eventually we will take out Burgundy before they grow into a regional power that we cannot control.

As a Dutchman, I say that this is a splendid idea. Just don't forget to kill of Japan, just in case.

 

[delpiero1234]

Chapter X - A New Faith​

The 7.000 mercenaries stationed in Paris are joined by an army of Frenchmen. Together. They march on Gascogne.
France is being very helpful in this early stage of the war.
At the Battle of Gascogne, forces of Brittany and England are defeated. This forces them to retreat to Portugal.

An Amsterdammer army marches from Beafada to the Ivory Coast, a Portuguese colony. There they lay siege and slowly advance from province to province.

The siege of England's capital, London, is won after 257 long days. The garrison succumbed to hunger and disease.
At the Battle of Oxfordshire, the English suffer a major defeat. The retreating troops the get annihilated by Amaterdam.

Sweden manages to occupy Hamburg. Amsterdammer mercenaries are called back to Germany to deal with the invading Sweds.
Joos von Hessen is hired as conquistador and given the task to hunt for the seven cities. So far, Amsterdam has failed to find any of them.

Diplomatic technology advances to level 9 on 31 July, 1513.
Shortly after, Floris von Arnstein is sent on a mission to circumnavigate the globe.

The last of the seven Administrative Ideas is unlocked in August, 1513. The Grand Republic can now focus on reaching administrative technology 10 which is required to unlock the next idea group.

In February Amsterdam decides to seize Portugal's colony Cape Coast.
Joos von Hessen has no luck in finding the Seven Cities. He dies less than two years after being hired.
His replacement is Roland von Innsbruck who continues the hunt.

After Maguana becomes self-sustaining, Amsterdam seizes Portugal's colony Ivory Coast. Amsterdam has no five simultaneous colonies which is too much for the treasury. The monthly balance is -17 ducats per month. However, it is better to lose money then to let Portugal have those colonies!

von Arnstein's mission to circumnavigate the globe fails. He dies while trying to complete it. All three barques are lost.

Unfortunate news arrive in the capital from the Duchy of Normandy: England has lost her war against Burgundy. Caux is now a Burgundian province; Normandie was ceded to Provence. A bad day for Amsterdam; the Duchy of The Duchy of Normandy can no longer be taken from the English!

Reginar von Eschenbach leads the Amsterdammer Pride, a group of elite soldiers, to Lisboa. There they win against the combined forces of Portugal and England. Shortly after the siege begins.

The rule of Hesse over the Holy Roman Empire ends on 28 March, 1516 when Ferdinand I Wenzel von Habsburg becomes Emperor. Wilhelm I died a natural death. It's good to be allied to the Emperor.
The siege of Lisboa lasts for 329 days and results in the local garrison surrendering.

A separate peace treaty is signed with Portugal on 1 November, 1516. Portugal cedes many of her colonial possessions to Amsterdam including islands like St. Helena and the Azores.

Four years after the declaration of war, England is defeated and accepts unconditional surrender. The In Antwerp, Raadpensionaris Gerben de Friesland and King James Lancaster meet for the signing of the peace treaty. Five of England's provinces in the British Isles are ceded to Amsterdam's vassal, Scotland. Those provinces are the former English capital London, Kent, Oxfordshire, Yorkshire and Derbyshire.
The Duchy of Normandy could not be annexed given that the English had lost it in their previous war against Burgundy. Overall, a successful campaign though. de Friesland is very happy with the result.

The treasury is empty. All those colonies cost a heck lot of money to support. The council of the Raadpensionaris pointed out that some natives had large gold reserves. Time for war!

The Raadpensionaris spares no expenses or additional improvements in naval technology.
Caddo’s only province, Karankawa, falls after a 148 day long siege. Their province is annexed and they pay 235 ducats as war reparations.
The mercenaries then move from Karankawa towards the Pueblo tribe which is even richer than Caddo was.

On 8 September, 1518, Pueblo is attacked by Amsterdam. The Apache, another Native tribe, sides with Pueblo.

In late October, administrative technology advances and Amsterdam finally unclogs her third idea group slot. The Raad had decided that Amsterdam shall focus on Administrative Ideas.
Military technology advances the following month. The Pedero becomes the preferred artillery unit and the Schwarzer Reiter replaces the Cheavauchée.

The Raadpensionaris ordered eight caravels in November to strengthen the Handelsgilde’s merchant marine.
In April, 1591, diplomatic technology also reaches level 10. This unlocks advanced ship models and increases colonial growth.
Peace is made with the Apache in August. They ceded their entire gold reserve of 170 ducats to Amsterdam.

The Puebelo are far richer and on 28 October, 1519, they agree to give Amsterdam 499 ducats in exchange for peace. It is rumored that some Natives were also abducted and taken as slaves to the colonies.

In the Winter of 1519, that plundered money is spent in parts on upgrading the trade fleet that is patrolling the English Channel. It was composed of outdated barques. The new caravel is stronger and faster. Almost 280 ducats are spent on this modernization project.
Another 350 ducats is spent on upgrading the six early carracks to carracks.

Austria is continuing the Imperial Reconquest of Italy. In 1517, the Emperor declared war on Milan to conquer Brescia. Aragon, the Pope, Mantua, among others had sided with Milan.
Mantua is annexed by the Habsburgs. and half of Milan is under Imperial occupation. The war goal of Austria is to conquer Brescia.

Florence is also at war with Aragon. They are trying to conquer Corsica on which they have a claim on. Amsterdam's ally Castile sided with Florence; the French with Aragon.
Poor Castile is under Aragonese occupation. This war is not looking good for them. Maybe it is finally time to cancel this alliance? Castile is of no use if they get weaker and weaker!

On April 2, 1520, the Protest Reformation happens! It starts in Magdeburg where the disapproval agains the Roman Catholic Church is large. The principles of the Roman Catholic church are being questioned. What shall Amsterdam do?

An emergency meeting of the Raad decides to convert immediately to this new faith.
A number of acts are being passed including the Superintendents Act which decreases national revolt risk.
A center of reformation is established in Osnarbugge. Amsterdam is now surrounded by heretics!
(for whatever reason, the tooltip said that Utrecht will become a Center of Reformation but that's not the case)

Amsterdam receives two additional colonists to settle the New World in mid April, 1502. This will speed up the creation of a colonial empire, believes Raadpensionaris de Friesland and furthermore spread Protestantism throughout the New World. A total of four colonists are now available to de Friesland.

de Friesland wants to force the Duke of Scotland to convert to Protestantism, too, but converting has given Amsterdam negative prestige which makes that impossible. Therefore, wars against Native tribes are declared. Positive prestige is needed now more than ever!
On 8 October, 1520, prestige is no longer negative and Scotland converts to Protestantism. Unfortunately, force-converting them did not give them a center of reformation. Oh well.

Brandenburg is the first country after Amsterdam that converts peacefully to Protestantism. All three centers of reformation are closely together. This is not ideal.

In 1521, Aragon has to cede Syracuse and Sarrari to Naples. The Neapolitans managed to defeat Aragon again! What an incredible accomplishment.
Most likely this only happened because Aragon was busy in Iberia given that Aragon is also being attacked by Florence and her ally Castile.
Castile was completely occupied by Aragon at the time the treaty with Naples was signed.

On 28 August, 1521, the Bible is translated into Dutch for the first time in history. These are great news felt de Friesland. Scouts are given copies of those Bibles to spread them far and wide. The Pope does not approve of this but does Amsterdam really care about what the Pope thinks? Nope.

Norway and Bohemia also convert to Protestantism but Catholicism remains the dominating faith in the Holy Roman Empire - for now.

The Protestantism Faith; 1522

 

[londoner247]

The circumnavigate mission is the only one in which the ships suffer attrition so do not do it until you have colonies established in Asia, Africa and the Pacific so that the fleet has a chance of being in supply range for most of the route.

Apart from that, I think things are going well here. I agree with you to cancel th Castile alliance although I would wait until 1530 just in case the Iberian Wedding fires. If not then cancel the alliance and turn on the weakened Castile. They will be too big to vassalise but maybe you can reduce them in size in three or four wars and then vassalise the small rump so that you can feed Aragon to them.

I've also seen your bug report about the colonisation. With Castile being beaten up so badly and so regularly they probably can't afford to colonise. Portugal often focuses on Africa first so I don't think it is that unusual. Whether it is WAD or not is a different question.

 

[delpiero1234]

The circumnavigate mission is the only one in which the ships suffer attrition so do not do it until you have colonies established in Asia, Africa and the Pacific so that the fleet has a chance of being in supply range for most of the route.

Ah that explains it.. Well I wish there was a tooltip warning me about that. But it's not too bad. We were able to afford a new explorer without problem thanks to our awesome ruler.

I've also seen your bug report about the colonisation. With Castile being beaten up so badly and so regularly they probably can't afford to colonise. Portugal often focuses on Africa first so I don't think it is that unusual. Whether it is WAD or not is a different question.

I guess it could be that Castile is simply too poor to colonize but then I wonder why they build colonies in Africa.
Portugal has not been beaten up though. They have a base in the Cape of Good Hope. Will they colonize South-east Asia before thinking about Brazil?
Maybe Amsterdam colonizes South America - it's ugly seeing it so empty. However, for us the priority should probably remain Colonial Canada, Colonial Eastern American and the Caribbean.
I'm also worried that the French will colonize South America before anybody else does. That would unnecessarily strengthen them.

 

[londoner247]

Ah that explains it.. Well I wish there was a tooltip warning me about that. But it's not too bad. We were able to afford a new explorer without problem thanks to our awesome ruler.


I guess it could be that Castile is simply too poor to colonize but then I wonder why they build colonies in Africa.
Portugal has not been beaten up though. They have a base in the Cape of Good Hope. Will they colonize South-east Asia before thinking about Brazil?
Maybe Amsterdam colonizes South America - it's ugly seeing it so empty. However, for us the priority should probably remain Colonial Canada, Colonial Eastern American and the Caribbean.
I'm also worried that the French will colonize South America before anybody else does. That would unnecessarily strengthen them.

What ideas have France taken so far? Have they even unlocked Exploration?

As for Castile and Portugal, Castile may have started some colonies when they had money but now can't afford to keep going. Would that be consistent with what you have seen? How many colonies do they have? On Portugal, their behaviour is a little odd but I suspect they will turn to Brazil sooner or later, especially if they run out of non-tropical provinces to colonise elsewhere. Of course, this assumes that you haven't killed them before then!

 

[delpiero1234]

What ideas have France taken so far? Have they even unlocked Exploration?

As for Castile and Portugal, Castile may have started some colonies when they had money but now can't afford to keep going. Would that be consistent with what you have seen? How many colonies do they have? On Portugal, their behaviour is a little odd but I suspect they will turn to Brazil sooner or later, especially if they run out of non-tropical provinces to colonise elsewhere. Of course, this assumes that you haven't killed them before then!

France is far away from colonizing. Oddly, they are only at ADM tech 7. They completed Economic Ideas and unlocked 2 idea groups of offensive ideas.
Given that they have an excellent monarch and are a lucky nation, I am wondering what they are doing with the monarch power.

Castile is currently colonizing Bermuda. They also have two colonies in Africa. That's about it. Castile has no other colonies that I am aware of.

 

[ThePatriotOfDreumel]

I would suggest that the first aspct of faith shall become +15 global settler increase.

 

[Baron Tanks]

Looks to me like Castile wasn't necessarily prioritizing wrong and did try to go to the Carribean/South America by first establishing a jumping spot in Africa and now in Bermuda. They have just been very slow, possibly due to being the butt of Aragon's jokes and having their treasury raided, unrest to deal with, war reparations to pay, having no decent income basically. By the way, in the chapter you mention you unlocked Administrative ideas as the next idea group. Normally I don't bother pointing out mistakes cause you write a lot and they're naturally made, but this one had me a bit confused at first, until you unlocked an actual idea.

What France is doing with their admin points is a bit more of a mystery though. Unless they had a whole string of stability to buy, I don't see why they're not swimming in point, ruler is excellent and they didn't conquer much. Did they develop unusually much perhaps?

Now that you have a whole bunch of extra colonists, I suggest using one in your collection to start hopping around Africa, while you double down with the other one to get some CNs started, it's a good time. Also, when your budget is in order, I always find that you can quite easily built more colonies than you can support, in the beginning at least Colonists+1, later maybe two.

Edit: replace England with Portugal in the next section, I somehow thought you said England is on the African cape, but it was Portugal. Portugal will be a lot harder to contain, hyper colonizers as they are. You'll always miss some little island they have taken somewhere to give them range.

The next time you duke it out with England, you should steal the African cape back. Especially if they haven't colonized beyond, it'll be a good double dip where you take valuable territory and push them out of Asia for the time being. Might be interesting to circumvent a truce with England by getting them into a war with an ally of theirs you can easily handle. Right now they're so weak they're you're punching bag and if you don't, they'll live on in various spots around the globe and be a nuisance. If you can annihilate them completely, or take everything they own overseas right now, they won't bother you in any colonial theater anymore.

 

[GulMacet]

Are you going to form the Netherlands?

 

[crazyself00]

Maybe

Now that you have a whole bunch of extra colonists, I suggest using one in your collection to start hopping around Africa, while you double down with the other one to get some CNs started, it's a good time. Also, when your budget is in order, I always find that you can quite easily built more colonies than you can support, in the beginning at least Colonists+1, later maybe two.

I agree, 1 colony more than you have colonists is very affordable, 2 is more expensive but possible if you have a good cash flow.