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zenphoenix

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The Hohenzollern Empire 2
-------------------------------
Über Alles


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The old order is dead. One family reigns über alles in all of Europe.
Eine Familie.
Eine Kirche.
Eine Volk.
Ein Reich.



The Hohenzollerns.
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Kaisers of Rome, protectors of a united Church.
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Tracking down heretics, reactionaries, and enemies of the state.
Protecting those who can't defend themselves.
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Boldly going into the unknown and bringing light to the darkness.
Arming Christendom against the future.
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The fifteenth century is when everything changes.
And you've got to be ready.
---

Hello, and welcome to "The Hohenzollern Empire 2," the second stage of my Hohenzollern Roman Empire megacampaign!
In the CKII portion of the story, the (custom) Hohenzollern dynasty, aided by their allies and loyal vassals the Habsburgs and the real Hohenzollerns (designated in this AAR as Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen) conquered, crusaded, and inherited their way to claim the imperial thrones of the Greeks and Germans, but battled for centuries against the barbarian hordes frp, the east and west for the very survival of Christianity and the new Roman Empire.
In the EUIV segment, the barbarian hordes have been defeated for good, but a new post-medieval age is dawning, presenting the Kaisers and Kaiserins of Rome with new challenges they must overcome to prevent a new Dark Age or a new barbarian invasion. And who knows what lies outside the borders of Europe? Some of the barbarian hordes managed to survive, just pushed out of Europe. Might they be lurking out there, waiting to strike? Or might the Reich find allies that could help it in its centuries-long struggle against the barbarians.
I will be updating with dev diaries, or modding journals, as we progress towards 1836, detailing the gameplay changes I have made to each part of the world. I will attempt to limit non-colonial blobbing, and console commands/save reloading/save editing will be used for balance, better immersion, AI advantages, glitches, crashes, and emergency situations.

I hope you'll enjoy the journey.

Saints Wilhelmina and Gunhilda, grant us victory in battle.
~Zen

---
Note: I am playing on patch 1.14 with all DLCs and expansions except Cossacks and a couple content/unit packs; I will try to update the mod to the current patch, 1.15, when I have time. I will be converting this over to Victoria II v3.03/3.04/3.05 once I reach 1836, which is what I set for the end date.
---
Table of Contents

Chapters are arranged in chronological order, not posting order. To avoid spoilers, I recommend starting with "Prologue." Please let me know if the links are incorrect.


Friedrich I "the Great" (1066-1105)
Chapter 10: Bicentennial (1066-1105)

Friedrich II "the Glorious" (1105-1126)
Chapter 13: Saint Gunhilda, the Maid of Kujawy (1118-1125)

Wilhelmina I "the Saint," or Saint Wilhelmina, Isapostolos (1126-1192)
Chapter 15: Saint Wilhelmina, the Mender of the Schism (1126)
Chapter 17: Saint Wilhelmina, the Hunter (1126-1133)
Chapter 19: Saint Wilhelmina, the Poet (1135-1151)
Chapter 21: Saint Wilhelmina, the Enlightened One (1126-1151)
Chapter 23: Saint Wilhelmina, the Warrior Empress (1151-1160)
Chapter 25: Greek Fire, Part 1 (1161)
Chapter 27: Greek Fire, Part 2 (1161)
Chapter 29: Greek Fire, Part 3 (1162)
Chapter 31: Saint Wilhelmina, Gunhilda's Daughter (1162-1174)
Chapter 33: Saint Wilhelmina, the Final Years (1174-1192)


Wilhelm I "the Lionheart" (1192-1199), Wilhelm II "the Magnificent" (1199-1237), and Wilhelm III "the Hammer" (1237-1243)
Chapter 35: The Three Wilhelms Period and the Beginning of the Thirteenth Century Crisis (1199-1243)


Siegfried I "the Hunter" (1243-1261)
Prologue: First Contact (1236-1246)
Chapter 1: Enemy at the Gates (1246-1251)
Chapter 2: Worcester and Gloucester (1251)
Chapter 3: War in the Near East (1251-1259)
Chapter 4: The Wrath of (Temur) Khan (1259-1261)


Sigismund I "the Holy" (1261-1308)
Chapter 5: Protection Through Victory (1261-1275)
Chapter 6: The Holy Kaiser (1275-1300)

Update 6: The Known World in 1300
Chapter 7: The Silk Road and the Great Plague (1300-1304)
Chapter 8: The Stag (1304)
Chapter 9: Sigismund the Holy and the Dragon of Marrakech (1301)
Chapter 11: Holy, Roman, and an Empire (1305-1308)


Friedrich Augustin I "the Just" (1308-1347)
Chapter 12: The August Kaiser (1308-1313)
Chapter 14: Rise of the Ottomans (1317-1327)
Chapter 16: The Just Kaiser (1327-1347)

Reinhard I ('the Mad Kaiser') (1347-1353)
Chapter 18: Reinhard, the Mad Kaiser (without a nickname) (1347-1353)

Friedrich Augustin II "the Hammer" (1353-1378)
Chapter 20: The Last Horde; Or, The Iron Khan (1353-1357)
Chapter 22: Fire-lances and Thunder-sticks (1357-1362)
Chapter 24: The End of the Augustiad (1362-1378)

Martin I "the Noble" (1378-1418)
Chapter 26: The Wrath of Timur (Khan) (1378-1395)
Chapter 28: Persepolis (1395-1400)

Update 28: The Known World in 1400
Chapter 30: 300 (1400-1418)

Friedrich Augustin III "the Lion," or "the Reformer" (1418-1444)
Chapter 32: Friedrdich Augustin III and the Giant of Napoli (1418)
Chapter 34: The Lion Kaiser (1418-1421)
Chapter 36: Second Contact (1422)
Chapter 37: In the Beginning (c.950-c.1010)
Chapter 38: Wilhelm III's Revenge (1422-1430)
Chapter 39: The Mexica "Crusade" (1430-1435)
Chapter 40: The Pointless War and the Reforms of 1436 (1436-1440)
Chapter 41: The Last Malian Crusade and the Reforms of 1440 (1440-1442)
Chapter 42: The Reforms of 1442 (1442)
Chapter 43: Feudal Life (1443-1444)
Chapter 44: The End... (1 2 3 4 5 6) (1444)
Epilogue: ...Of the Beginning (November 10, 1444) [End of CKII installments]

Chapter 45: No Longer Necessary (1444)

Friedrich Augustin IV, "the Last Crusader" (1444-1466)
Chapter 46: Traianos's Rebellion (1444)
Chapter 47: Blood in the Water (1444-1448)
Chapter 48: The Timurid War (1448-1452)
Chapter 49: Rounding the Cape (1452-1464)
Chapter 50: The First Malaya Expedition (1464-1466)

Friedrich Augustin V, "the Explorer" (1466-1494)
Chapter 51: Heresy (1466-1467)
Chapter 52: Prospering Times (1467-1470)
Chapter 53: The Voyages of Kristoff Eimerich, Part 1 (1470)
Chapter 54: The First Lapland Krieg (1470-1472)
Chapter 55: The Voyages of Kristoff Eimerich, Part 2 (1472)
Chapter 56: Northern Chaos (1472-1476)
Chapter 57: The Spice Must Flow (Some More) (1476-1480)
Chapter 58: The Discovery of the Far East, Part 1 - The Voyages of Wolfram Ferdinand (1480-1483)
Chapter 59: The Discovery of the Far East, Part 2 - The Voyages of Heinrich Arndt (1483-1484)
Chapter 60: The Discovery of the Far East, Part 3 - The Voyages of Heinrich Arndt (1484-1489)
Chapter 61: The Kokkand War (1489-1494)

Wolfram I, "the Fair" (1494-1539)
Chapter 62: The Girl Who Heard Angels (1494)
Chapter 63: The Woman Who Killed Angels (1494)
Chapter 64: The Conquest of Malaya (1494-1498)
Chapter 65: The Known World in 1500 (1498-1500)
Chapter 66: Revolution in the Heavens and On Earth (1500-1504)
Chapter 67: The Second Lapland Krieg (1504-1507)
Chapter 68: Delenda Est Malacca (1507-1513)
Chapter 69: Disaster in Africa (1513-1518)
Chapter 70: Fairness for (almost) All (1518-1531)
Chapter 71: The Expeditions of La Malinche (1501-1525)
Chapter 72: Around the World...or Not (1531-1539)

Wilhelmina II, "Heaven-Sent" (1539-1569)
Chapter 73: Full Circle (1539-1542)
Chapter 74: The Fourth Lapland Krieg (1542-1548)
Chapter 75: Zunset (1548-1556)
Chapter 76: Out of Air (1556-1564)
Chapter 77: The Persian Menace (1564-1569)

Victoria I, "the Old," "Angel-Touched" (1569-1573)
Chapter 78: Attack of the Zoroastrians (1569-1573)

Martin II, "the Dutch-Man" (1573-1595)
Chapter 79: Revenge of the Sayyids (1573-1581)
Chapter 80: The Interwar Period (1581-1591)
Chapter 81: Vengeance (1591-1592)
Chapter 82: Ambition (1592-1595)
Chapter 83: Betrayal (1595)


Malcolm Bethune, "the Black," "the Usurper," "the Terrible," "the Tyrant," "the Cruel," "[REDACTED],"etc. (1595-1596)*
Chapter 84: Suspicion (1596)
Chapter 85: Madness (1596)
Chapter 86: Purge (1596)
Chapter 87: Chaos (1596)
Chapter 88: Anarchy (1596)
Chapter 89: Revolution (1596)
Chapter 90: Der Untergang (1596)

Sophia I, "the Restored," "the Righteous" (1596-1603)
Chapter 91: Restoration (1596-1599)
Chapter 92: The Known World in 1600 (1600)
Chapter 93: The New Century (1600-1603)

Friedrich Augustin von Arbon, "the (False) Regent" (1603)*
Chapter 94: Bloodless (March-May 1603)

Friedrich III, "the Merciful" (1603-1616)
Chapter 95: War and Peace (1603-1611)
Chapter 96: The Desert War (1611-1615)
Chapter 97: The Jungle War (1615-1616)

Otto von Habsburg, regent for Frederica Augusta I (1616-1618)*
Chapter 98: Purity (1616-1618)

Frederica Augusta I "the Absolute," "the Enlightened Despot" (1618-1668)
Chapter 99: Aristocracy (1618-1626)
Chapter 100: Inquisition (1626)
Chapter 101: The Inquisition Strikes Back (1626)
Chapter 102: The Synod, Part 1 (1626)
Chapter 103: The Synod, Part 2 (1626)
Chapter 104: The Synod, Part 3 (1626)
Chapter 105: Honor and Truth (1626-1627)
Chapter 106: Crackdown (1627-1629)
Chapter 107: The Eighth Lapland Krieg (1629-1631)
Chapter 108: War (1631)
Chapter 109: Conversion (1631-1636)
Chapter 110: Retaliation (1636-1641)
Chapter 111: Revelation (1641/1666)
Chapter 112: Civil War (1641-1643)
Chapter 113: The Devil You Don't Know (1643)
Chapter 114: More and More Rebels (1643-1646)
Chapter 115: Lublin (1646-1648)
Chapter 116: War and More War (1648-1651)
Chapter 117: Nightfall (1651-1652)
Chapter 118: Midnight, Part 1 (1652)
Chapter 119: Midnight, Part 2 (1652)
Chapter 120: Midnight, Part 3 (1652-1656)
Chapter 121: A Desert Skirmish (1656-1663)
Chapter 122: The First Commonwealth War (1663-1666)
Chapter 123: Pruthenian Hussars (1666-1668)
Chapter 124: Defeating the Undefeated (1668)

Sophia II "the Liberator" (1668-1684)
Chapter 125: Limes (1668-1675)
Chapter 126: The Eimerican Wars of Independence (1675-1677)
Chapter 127: Freedom and Apologies (1677-1680)
Chapter 128: Devastating Peace (1680-1684)

Victoria II "the Emancipator" (1684-1714)
Chapter 129: The Third Commonwealth War (1684-1689)
Chapter 130: Eastern Chaos (1689-1694)
Chapter 131: Hegemony (1694-1699)
Chapter 132: The World in 1700 (1700)
Chapter 133: Intervention in the Eimericas (1700-1706)
Chapter 134: The Glorious War (1706-1711)
Chapter 135: Absolutism (1711-1714)

Wilhelmina III "the Victorious" (1714-1740)
Chapter 136: Yet Another Persian War (1714-1726)
Chapter 137: The Fifth Commonwealth War (1726-1731)
Chapter 138: Suez and Kiel (1731-1740)

Frederica Augusta II "the Enlightened" (1740-1760)
Chapter 139: The Sixth Commonwealth War (1740-1749)
Chapter 140: The Height of the Enlightenment (1749-1760)

Victoria III, "Nahua-Slayer" (1760-1791)
Chapter 141: The Seventh Commonwealth War (1760-1769)
Chapter 142: Sunrise Invasion, Part 1 - Blitzkrieg (1769-1772)
Chapter 143: Sunrise Invasion, Part 2 - Containment (1772-1778)
Chapter 144: Recovery (1778-1787)
Chapter 145: The Eighth Commonwealth War (1787-1791)

Frederica Augusta III "the Winter Soldier" (1791-1803)
Chapter 146: Pragmatic Sanction (1791-1793)
Chapter 147: Clash of Giants (1793-1797)
Chapter 148: East Against West (1797-1800)
Chapter 149: The World on the Verge of Modernity (1800)
Chapter 150: Musicians and Diplomats (1800-1804)

Klemens von Metternich*, Reichskanzler, and Nikephoros von Hohenzollern, Megas Domestikos of the Imperial Legions, Regents for Siegfried II (1803-1807)
Chapter 151: Revolution (1803-1807)

Siegfried II "the son of Nikephoros" (1807-1825)
Chapter 152: The War of 1814 (1807-1816)
Chapter 153: Tipping the Balance (1816-1825)

Sigismund II "the Modernizer" (1825- )
Chapter 154: Protection Through Defeat (1825-1835)
Chapter 155: The New Augustinian Code (1835)
Chapter 156: An Imperial Century, Part 1 (1835)
Chapter 157: An Imperial Century, Part 2 (1835)
Chapter 158: An Imperial Century, Part 3 (1835)
Chapter 159: An Imperial Century, Part 4 (1835)
Chapter 160: An Imperial Century, Part 5 (1835)
Chapter 161: The Sun Never Sets (1835)

Victoria II installments here (coming soon)


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*non-Hohenzollern ruler/regent
---

Modding Logs / Dev Diaries / Preliminary Modifications
Mod Log 1: Rome
Mod Log 2: Scandinavia
Mod Log 3: Eastern Europe and the Western Steppes
Mod Log 4: Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and India
Mod Log 5: Asia, Oceania, and the West Pacific
Mod Log 6: Cemanahuac/Fusang/The Eimericas

The Origins of Modernity

Origins of Modernity 1 - The Old World
Origins of Modernity 2 - The New World
Origins of Modernity 3 - The Imperial Provinces 1
Origins of Modernity 4 - The Imperial Provinces 2
Origins of Modernity 5 - The Imperial Provinces 3
Origins of Modernity 6 - The Global 17th Century Crisis and the Emergence of the Roman State System
Origins of Modernity 7 - A (long-ish) History of China
Origins of Modernity 8 - Nikephoros von Hohenzollern and the Nikephoriad (Nikephoran Era)
Origins of Modernity 9 - The Industrial Revolution, its Consequences, and the Beginnings of the Imperial Century
 
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How did I ever miss this before? Guess I've got another AAR to archive binge on.
 
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I'm interested to see what you do with the Aztecs. I hope you gave them a massive buff. I'm not sure what the converter would do with them if you used the Sunset Invasion in CK2.
 
Ah, I'm very happy to see the EU4 thread up and running. Can't wait for the modding journals, as I'm very curious what you've changed.
 
Chapter 45: No Longer Necessary
“Do you ever think sometimes that our army is simply too large?”
-Friedrich Augustin III


“Allah save us from al-Rumania”
-The people of numerous small North Afrikan sultanates that were instantly obliterated by the Roman legions
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Not pictured: the Reestablishment of the Theme System

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Berlin, 29 November 1444


The doors to the war room swung open, and Friedrich Augustin III von Hohenzollern, King of Kings, Protector of the Holy Church, Defender of the Faith, Kaiser of Rome stepped inside.

“Hail Kaiser!” shouted Godfrey de Bachaumont, Governor-King of Provincia Britannia.

“Hail Kaiser!” repeated the other commanders.

Friedrich Augustin nodded. “Status report,” he said.
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“Sir, the invasion of the Djerid Sultanate is going according to plan,” Godfrey said, “The 23rd Legion is marching on the Djerid capital as we speak, although enemy forces have sieged small parts of Provincia Afrika.”

“Good,” said Friedrich Augustin, “They should be defeated very soon.”

“Oh, about that, they will,” said somebody next to him.

Friedrich Augustin turned to face an officer he didn’t recognize.

“And you are…” he said.

“Commander Friedrich Augustin Traianos of Provincia Illyricum, sir,” said the soldier.

For a second, the man’s eyes glowed and radiated pure white light.

Friedrich Augustin realized that Traianos was a vessel of an angel, an incredibly powerful being he had met before.

“Would you mind speaking in private?” said the soldier. “I have something I need to tell you.”

The Kaiser thought for a moment. Then he turned to his other commanders.

“Please give us a moment,” he said.

The commanders shuffled out of the war room silently.

Traianos turned to Friedrich Augustin. “It’s me, Wilhelm,” he said, “You know, the angel who took your ancestor Friedrich the Great as his vessel?”

“Why are you here, Wilhelm?” said Friedrich Augustin. “And why did you take this…I’m sorry, are you a German Serb?”

“Yes, Traianos is a German Serb,” said Traianos, “And I have some important news.”

“Yeah, I figured. You know, it would probably be better if you take it easy and didn’t act like you were…”

“…possessed by an angel? Traianos does feel better, when I found him he was a wreck, but I am slowly healing him.”

“Great, but what news were you going to tell me?”

“I’ve picked up chatter among the angels that some of those I killed four hundred years ago may still be alive.”

“So you failed at assassinating the guys who want to start the Apocalypse.”

“Some got away, some I didn’t think were radicalized enough to do such a thing, some I simply spared because they weren’t a threat yet.”

“Oh come on!”

“There’s a faction among them that’s rapidly organizing and taking human vessels to contain them so that they can interact with the world more.”

“So what do you want me to do?”

“I can’t delay it any longer. Civil war in heaven is inevitable. The only thing we can do is to limit its impact.”

“How?”


Socotra

There was the sound of wings flapping, and the men and women praying looked up.

A man in Sunday clothes appeared in the middle of the room.

“Okay, I heard the prayer, now what—oh,” said Wilhelm, noticing the ring of holy oil that surrounded his vessel.

One woman dropped a torch onto the holy oil, and a ring of flames sprung up around the angel, trapping him in the mortal world and inside the circle.

“NO!” Wilhelm screamed. “Why do you do this?! I am an angel! Release me!”

“We are angels too, my friend Wilhelm,” said one of his captors, his eyes glowing white.

Wilhelm recognized the man through his vessel. “Zachariah,” he said, “I should’ve known. You should have died with the other traitors in 1066!”

Zachariah, a bald man in noble clothing, laughed as if with authority. “Wilhelm, silly Wilhelm, you know me. We’ve known each other for millennia. You are loyal to God, of course, but when it comes time to carry out His plan, you side with the humans.”

“God does not care about anything!” Wilhelm shouted. “Where do you think He has gone these last couple thousand years? None of us have even spoken with Him in a long time!”

“He has commanded that the Apocalypse must begin, and His will must be carried out by his servants in Heaven, us,” said a woman, “Why do you even side with the humans anyway? They are pitiful creatures, not worthy of God’s love. They kill each other for petty reasons, they’re selfish and cruel to each other, and they aren’t as loyal to God.”

“But they have potential, Naomi,” said Wilhelm, “They have hope for the future, and they want to make things better for themselves and their descendants. Why did God create them in the first place and demand that we all bow before them as His chosen species? Why not the dinosaurs? Why not the other humanoid species around in the early days of mankind?”

“Well, the dinosaurs were destroyed when Lucifer was cast out of heaven—” said Naomi.

“Still, these humans that you’ve possessed, they have great promise. They can and will improve on themselves. Look at the Reich my vessel created, and its tolerant policies. Does that not show how far they have come from killing each other over small theological differences?”

“You don’t understand why we’ve trapped you here,” said Zachariah, “Enough with trying to derail our nice little family discussion.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you really think we would trap you here just because we can?”

Wilhelm’s face paled as he realized what they were doing. “No, you can’t possibly…”

Naomi smiled. “Oh yes we did.”


Berlin

“How?” said Friedrich Augustin.

“You’ve done your reforms, centralized the Reich, so you could say you’ve…outlived your purpose on Earth,” said Traianos.

Before Friedrich Augustin could react, Traianos touched his hand to the Kaiser’s forehead.

Friedrich Augustin screamed and writhed as flames burst from his eye sockets and angelic energy surged through his brain, incinerating and scorching his cells with impunity. He struggled to get away from Traianos’s grip, but the angel’s superhuman powers refused to let him break the deadly connection.

“Remember this,” said Traianos, “My name is not Wilhelm. It is Raphael.”

And everything went black.


Crown Prince Friedrich Augustin heard his father’s screams and rushed to the war room, his sword drawn and ready. He burst into the room just as Traianos—no, Raphael now—let the Kaiser’s body drop to the floor, its head burned almost beyond recognition.

“No! No! No! No! Father?!” he shouted.

He charged towards Traianos, but Raphael simply extended an arm, and an invisible force slammed into the crown prince, pinning him to the wall behind him. Raphael flicked his wrist, and pain flared in Friedrich Augustin’s arm, forcing him to drop his sword. Friedrich Augustin saw several guardsmen and the commanders rushing towards the room, but Raphael extended his other arm, and the doors swung shut in their face. The men beat on the door as if it were an enemy gateway, but it was now like a wall and refused to budge at all.

“Wilhelm?!” shouted Friedrich Augustin.

“There is no more Wilhelm,” said Traianos, “Only Raphael.”

Raphael made a fist, and Friedrich Augustin gasped for air.

“But I played him convincingly, at least,” said the angel, smiling.

“Why?!” gasped Friedrich Augustin. “Why—do—you—have—to—kill—him?!”

“I did what I had to do,” said Raphael, “Deus vult—God wills it.”

A piece of paper materialized in his hand. He placed it on the charred body, and Friedrich Augustin noticed it read “Friedrich Augustin von Hohenzollern.”

“Civil war is inevitable,” said Raphael, “We can only make sure it goes the way we want it to go. And that means Apocalypse.”

“No! You can’t—do this!” said Friedrich Augustin.

“God’s plan cannot be denied,” said Raphael.

He pointed at the sword, and it flew into his hand. Raphael pointed the sword at Friedrich Augustin’s forehead.

“Oh, I’m not going to kill you now, for the plan requires you to be alive,” said Raphael, “Goodbye, Kaiser, and may you mourn greatly before the end of days, during which you will have to mourn. Oh, and did I mention that Traianos has a claim on the Throne and that there’s an influenza epidemic going on?”

There was the sound of flapping wings, and Raphael was gone.

The force pinning Friedrich Augustin to the wall evaporated, and he collapsed onto the floor just as Godfrey and the other commanders rushed into the room

“My Prince!” said Godfrey. “Are you okay?”

“My father is dead,” said Friedrich Augustin, “Killed by enemy Muslim assassins.”

He couldn’t tell them about the existence of angels, not now at least. That would destabilize the entire Church and Reich.


Donji Kraji, Provincia Illyricum

Traianos materialized in front of his army, a band of six thousand peasants and rogue nobles.

“Today, we depose the false Kaisers, and I, Friedrich V Traianos, shall lead you to victory!” he proclaimed to his followers.

All of them cheered.

Raphael smiled. He was doing God's work now. The Apocalypse would happen soon.
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Damn angels always causing trouble. Also I had a good chuckle that Lucifer's fall was what killed the dinosaurs. :p
 
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A civil war right at the start sounds bad, but the new ruler is still rather skilled and the Reich is extremely powerful. You should be able to handle this without too much effort.
 
Chapter 46: Traianos's Rebellion
"You can't fight fate."
-Zachariah

"No, this cannot be happening!"
-Friedrich Augustin IV

800px-Johann_Heinrich_Sch%C3%B6nfeld_008.jpg

The Battle of Persepolis (painting c. 1600). The combined armies of the Reich and Persia had temporarily set aside their differences to battle their common enemy, the Timurid Empire under Khagan Shah Rukh, son of Timur the Conqueror. Shah Rukh had just crushed the Persians and subjugated their homeland, forcing the court to relocate to Baluchistan, where the Shahanshah received reinforcements from nearby India. When the Timurids invaded Provincia Mesopotamia, Kaiser Martin I led a Reich legion into battle alongside the Persian army against the personal army of Shah Rukh. The three armies met on the ruins of Persepolis, where the Roman-Persian forces claimed a decisive victory over the Timurids, ending Timurid expansion into the Middle East for good.



Socotra


"Your precious Kaiser is dead," said Naomi, "Our brother Raphael is prepared to lead armies against the Reich in Serbia."

"You don't know what you're doing," said Wilhelm, still trapped in the ring of holy oil fire.

"Wilhelm, it is you who doesn't know what you are doing," said Zachariah, "Do you not understand? The Apocalypse must happen. God has commanded that it occur at the end of days, and we are determined to carry out His orders."

"How do you know it is the end of days?" said Wilhelm.

"We should have begun in 1236, with first contact between the Reich and Mexica, or maybe in 1000, with first contact between the Norse and the Skraelings," said Naomi, "However, you had to go and mess around with the timeline and prevent the Apocalypse then!"

"We won't fail this time," said Zachariah.

"Then kill me now," said Wilhelm, "I'm only a hindrance to your plans."

Zachariah was silent for a second, his vessel lost in thought. "Maybe, maybe not. Actually, we'll just keep you right here in Socotra. You'll have plenty of time to think...and think some more. And only think. You like that, don't you?"

There was a small gust of wind, and the angels were gone.

Berlin

Everybody at the coronation of Friedrich Augustin IV was in a somber mood, having just finished the funeral of Friedrich Augustin III. Extreme efforts were made to conceal the quite obvious burn marks on the dead Kaiser's head. Absolutely nobody was allowed to spread rumors that divine wrath had struck down the Kaiser.

The memorial was brief. They spoke about Friedrich Augustin's twenty-six year reign and the few achievements that they could talk about. The end of the Reconquista against the Mexica, where the Romans and Norse formed a temporary alliance against their common enemy and liberated Iceland from the barbarian yoke. The Augustinian Reforms, which began in 1436 and took eight years to complete. The centralization of power and the establishment and formalization of the Diet. That "incident" at Napoli, though none of them dared mention it. The White Stag, which hadn't been seen since Friedrich Augustin III spoke to the Diet on November 11.

They interred Friedrich Augustin III's remains in the family crypt at Potsdam and then turned to the coronation. Gloomily, the patriarchs and kings knelt before the new Kaiser, and Friedrich Augustin IV picked up the crown sadly and placed it on his own head. Nobody expected him to die so suddenly and violently, especially at this time.

With the coronation over, Friedrich Augustin IV turned to Serbia, where Friedrich Augustin Traianos had proclaimed himself Kaiser Friedrich V and raised an army. He was told a local militia was on its way to crush the rebellion.

Socotra

As soon as the other angels were gone, Wilhelm pointed at a nearby window. The glass shattered into several pieces, some of which he could control. They may have trapped him and his vessel in this ring of holy oil flames, but they didn't take away his powers.

He summoned a gust of wind from outside the broken window, and the air blew away the flames. He stepped out and concentrated deeply, monitoring angelic communications.

Raphael was in the Balkans, trying to start a war. Who wouldn't go to the Balkans to do so?

He had to stop him.

There was a gust of wind, and Wilhelm was gone.

Donji Kraji, Serbia, Provincia Illyricum

Traianos sat on his horse, looking out across the valley towards the loyalist forces approaching him. They had only infantry and cavalry, while he had managed to get an entire artillery regiment to defect to him. The cannons would make all of the difference in future battles, he was told.

No, that's not what I said
, said Raphael, I said that the old way of knights and close combat warfare was ending due to the invention of cannons.

"But that's basically the same thing as what I was thinking," said Traianos.

Bah, little human, you have no idea what I am talking about.


"Your choice for insisting on that."

He looked at the Reich militia ahead of him and then turned to his men.

"Today, we fight for freedom against tyranny! It's time to remove kebab the Hohenzollerns!" he shouted.

Sorry, couldn't resist mentioning that here, said Raphael.

"Your sense of humor is weird," said Traianos.

Well, it won't be around in the Balkans for another five hundred years.

The rebel soldiers cheered and brandished their swords.

"Charge!" Traianos shouted.

His rebels ran at the loyalist forces.

The Reich armies braced for the incoming offensive, but that was what Traianos had been expecting. They had just given away their mobility for defense.

"Cannons!" he shouted.

The cannons boomed, and the Reich lines shattered as cannonballs slammed into the soldiers, blasting some to pieces and causing severe injuries to many more. The Germans struggled to maintain their defensive formation, but at that moment the rebels struck, falling onto the government forces and hacking away with impunity.

Trumpets blared, and Traianos's head swung around. His face paled.

"No!" he shouted.

The Reich cavalry was charging the rebel formation...from behind. Three thousand imperial knighs slammed into the rebel army from behind at the same time the infantry launched a counteroffensive. The rebels fell back.

"No, you cowards, fight on!" shouted Raphael, taking control for a moment, "Do you want freedom?!"

But none of them could hear him shout by then.

Morale and organization collapsed at that moment, and the retreat became a rout.
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They fled to Hum on the coast, pursued by the loyalist army.

Traianos barely had time to prepare his defenses before the Germans were attacking again. His men were cut down by the hundreds under the cavalry assault. There was only so much he could do.

"Yes, Raphael, there is only so much a mere man can do," said a voice behind him.

Raphael spun around and saw Wilhelm standing there, a blue crystal in his hand.

"How did you escape?" he demanded.

"Your accomplices are idiots," said Wilhelm, "I used the standard wind tricks. But enough of that. Raphael, you are going back to heaven."

Raphael laughed. "As if you could expel me from my vessel!"

"I'm not going to expel you from the vessel," said Wilhelm, raising the crystal.

Raphael's laughter died down. "Wait, where did you get that?"

"Oh, it was lying around in Heaven's arsenal."

"How did you get into the freaking arsenal?!"

"I have my ways."

Raphael stretched out his hand. "No, you can't do this!"

"Oh yes I can," said Wilhelm, the crystal glowing, "Just as you used this on Lot's wife when you dropped a nuclear weapon on Sodom and Gomorrah. Do you know how much work I had to do to cover that up?!"

"Please, I can--" But at that moment Traianos's body dissolved into salt, the clothes and armor clanging to the ground.

"And nuclear weapons haven't even been invented yet..." said Wilhelm.
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Like I predicted, that got dealt with fairly easily. An excellent victory for the Reich, the first in EU4. It will not be the final.
 
I find it amusing Raphael thought he could start a successful rebellion with only 6k men. :p
>Implying he could actually win with only six thousand peasants and one angel against over eight hundred thousand Romans
 
Chapter 46: End of one Era, Beginning of Another

"Nothing can possibly go wrong with setting up a trade company in Russia in the winter, right?"
-Hermann Chancellor, Reich ambassador to Russia and former CEO of Hansa Gesselschaft

"I'm going to miss these jousting tournaments..."
-Donatello, court painter

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Arkhangelsk, Russia

Temple bells were ringing in Arkhangelsk, a small fishing village in northern Russia. It was time for the Velja Noc celebrations, for it was New Year's Day in the Slavic lunar calendar. Not many people noticed the large caravels that were sailing into port, flying the Reich imperial eagle insignia from their masts.

Ropes were thrown over the sides of the ships, and crew on the docks worked to moor the ships. These Romans didn't appear to be here for an invasion, for if they were they would have brough all two hundred ships of the line with them instead of just three ships.

The Romans asked to see the local authorities so that they could negotiate a trade deal with the Russians. Hermann Chancellor, the commander of this expedition and the elected leader of the Hanseatic League, wanted to increase the Hansa's and Rome's economic influence in Europe, as because all trade south of Denmark and west of Lithuania was completely dominated by Roman merchants there was little competition.

The Roman trade delegation traveled from Arkhangelsk to the Russian capital, Kiev, in horse-drawn sleighs. There Hermann Chancellor met with the Tsar himself, who agreed to a trade deal. Eventually, the Hanseatic League created a satellite company, the Russland Handel Gesselschaft, to manage trade in Eastern Europe.

Herman Chancellor returned to Berlin successfully, and in gratitude Friedrich Augustin IV made him the official Reich ambassador to Russia.

Tripoli, occupied by Djerid Sultanate forces

Shadi Banu was scared. He truly was. The sultan had ordered him to invade Provincia Afrika and inflict as much damage on the infidels as possible before the legions arrived. However, he didn't want to do that.

His faith was collapsing. He was zealous, yes, but Islam was basically dead now. He questioned if staying true to his interpretation of God was the correct way, but he had orders.

He walked through the streets of Tripoli, which were quiet and empty. The citizens, German settlers from Bavaria who had been here since the 12th century, were treated with respect, mostly because Shadi Banu feared the retribution he would face should he touch a single Roman.

He made it to the local mosque, which was abandoned and dusty. Nobody had worshipped here in centuries. This place of worship had been abandoned for a long time. It was a relic from an older time, from the golden age of Islam, when his people were among the most influential in the world. But that was all over now.

He pushed aside the creaking door, the wood breaking apart at his touch.

From beyond the city walls came the sound of cannons booming and the sound of the walls coming down. There came the cry of over ten thousand Romans charging through the breach in the wall.

He simply unrolled his prayer mat and knelt on it, placing his belongings next to him. He said some words from the Qur'an and began praying.

"God is great," he said, "God is almighty. There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his Prophet."

He knew that there were caliphs out there, but they were puppets of Rome now, no longer the leaders of the Islamic world.

He knelt in prayer, facing Mecca and Medina, the former holy sites of Islam, which were now populated by Jews and Romans. Infidels, all of them.

The sounds of battle grew closer. His men were falling now, giving their lives for their god. They would all go down as martyrs.

He continued praying. The Romans came closer.

Martyrdom...that was a strange concept. To die and expect to go to heaven when you didn't know what was on the other side. Yet it was expected of the soldiers of Islam, to die in battle against the infidels. Maybe that was why the Norse managed to hold off the Romans for so long? They had restructured their pagan beliefs along Muslim lines, especially the military parts.

Shadi Banu did not want to die. He was just a man. He did not want to die.

But he was going to die today, because he was on the wrong side. And he would die a glorious death.

The Romans burst through the door, swords raised.

Shadi Banu was on his feet now, the fuses lit. "ALLAHU AKBAR!" he shouted.

The mosque exploded.
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Berlin

Friedrich Augustin watched as the knights charged at each other from across the field, lances raised and ready to strike. The two mounted soldiers passed each other, and one of them fell off his horse. The crowd of nobles went wild.

The Kaiser congratulated the winner of this joust. "Good job," he said, putting some coins into his hand.

The times were changing. Once upon a time, these tournaments were held every time a Kaiser ascended to the throne. But that had changed now. Nobody wished to risk their lives in these potentially deadly tournaments. After all, wasn't it during the Three Wilhelms Period that the phrase "tournament of doom" was coined?

The age of knights was ending too. Knights were becoming obsolete with the introduction and mass production of cannons. Reich legions which had artillery were much more effective at battle than those with knights. The former knights, once the best soldiers of the Reich, were loosing their jobs. Some were angry, but they could not reverse the trend.

This was likely to be the last jousting tournament ever hosted. Friedrich Augustin shed a tear for the dead tradition, as it now joined chariot racing in death.
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Frisia

Arumer Zwarte Hoop stood before his men, numbering nineteen thousand.

"Today, we fight for freedom!" he shouted.

The men cheered.

His rebellion had had some success already. Shipping lines had been raided and mercenaries had defected to his cause. The peasants were sick of being ruled by Germans, and the few Dutch left longed for the old days of an independent Dutch nation.

Indeed,
said Raphael, All is going according to plan.

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Heaven

Heaven looked like an office building, at least that's how Wilhelm imagined it. One can't really describe Heaven, as it is beyond human experience.

There is no single Heaven, as every soul who goes to "Heaven" ultimately generates his or her own Heaven which is centered around his or her memories. Wilhelm preferred residing in the "Eternal Tuesday Afternoon, 1953 AD - Universe 42" one, generated by a man who accidentally drowned in his bathtub.

Most angels worked in the "Office Building" heaven, saying it was conducive to work. But one really couldn't describe angels as "working" in the human sense, as they were just energy and had no true form in Heaven.

"Hello again," said Raphael.

"Raphael," said Wilhelm, "You're back."

"And you destroyed yet another of my vessels," said Raphael, "Do you know what you are doing?"

"Yes," said Wilhelm, "You know you can't destroy the Reich with small rebel armies, right?"

"Who said I was destroying the Reich with just rebel armies?" said Raphael. "You have no idea what I am trying to do on Earth..."

And he was gone again.
 
Mod Log 1: Preliminary Modifications - Rome

Upon conversion, all of the CKII nations had the Absolute Monarchy government type, which I then made available at game start. As Rome is a different nation from the rest, I gave it Enlightened Despotism because of its accepted culture threshold reduction.
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Here are the accepted cultures for Rome. These cultures comprise of the majority of the Reich's provinces.

The Reich converted over with insane manpower, armies, navies, cash, prestige, and legitimacy. The army at my capital had about one hundred and fifty thousand men total (I had to split it up). In order to balance this out, I gave Rome a triggered modifier which works like the Mandate of Heaven, granting all of these bonuses.
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If you think that is overpowered, then wait until you see the corresponding Mandate of Heaven Lost analogue and its trigger:
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There are a whole lot of bad events that go along with losing Pax Hohenzollern. If I somehow manage to lose the Pax Hohenzollern, let's just say that...bad things will happen. Very, very bad things. Mingsplosion-level bad.

Religious unity is so that I am not forced to convert all of my pagan provinces. It also ties in with the tolerant policies of the Reich. However, I do have seven missionaries from the other religious triggered modifiers.
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I will not reveal the national ideas yet and will discuss them as they are unlocked.
 
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Reactions:
Silly rebels thinking they can win with such small forces. :p

Well it wouldn't be much of a Hohenzollern Empire without the Hohenzollerns, so of course you'd be punished for that. :D
 
Wonderful annexations lead to nicer borders. Also, the Heaven described here reminds me of Supernatural.

That's some bad consequences if the royal family changes. Fair, considering how powerful you are.
 
A few questions,

Where is your capital, I forgot?

When will you hire advisers or show the list of advisers that you chose from?

Since you keep complaining on not knowing what to spend your money on during CKII, can you start building buildings and take a screenshot of it? (I just love the bonuses of the buildings)

Will the Roman Empire still have the same name and status or will it transform into a bigger German Reich?

When will you use those missionaries to effect?

Can you conquer all of Russia and China and culture convert it to German? From what I heard, if you combine the infinite manpower China and Japan has with increased force limits and you have a unstoppable regenerating army of death.

Beside that, so far, Since the aar of CKII, this is the best AAR I ever stumbled upon by accident ever since the United Kingdom of Germania AAr showed up!

Can you do a Let's Play world conquest as Germany?
 
A few questions,

Where is your capital, I forgot?

When will you hire advisers or show the list of advisers that you chose from?

Since you keep complaining on not knowing what to spend your money on during CKII, can you start building buildings and take a screenshot of it? (I just love the bonuses of the buildings)

Will the Roman Empire still have the same name and status or will it transform into a bigger German Reich?

When will you use those missionaries to effect?

Can you conquer all of Russia and China and culture convert it to German? From what I heard, if you combine the infinite manpower China and Japan has with increased force limits and you have a unstoppable regenerating army of death.

Beside that, so far, Since the aar of CKII, this is the best AAR I ever stumbled upon by accident ever since the United Kingdom of Germania AAr showed up!

Can you do a Let's Play world conquest as Germany?
1. Berlin.

2. I have already hired three advisors. All of them are level 3 (one is Donatello and the other is Henry the Navigator, both historical figures). The advisor list isn't that impressive, though I have increased the chance of female advisors appearing.

3. I can spam basically every building possible without money worries, but I really don't need to build anything (aside from the special ones and the ship build time reduction ones) because I already have such high income.

4. It will stay as Rome. I have disabled the German Empire formation decision specifically for Rome, though German culture revolters can still form it.

5. I will use them on non-Orthodox Christian provinces and Muslim provinces that are not in my Mesopotamian territories (ie convert the sultanates I am about to steamroll and Indonesians but not Baghdad).

6. It would be rather easy to conquer Russia is it's already very small and I kind of already have an unstoppable regenerating army of death, but I want to ally with it. Culture conversion would screw up my accepted cultures and possibly the Victoria 2 conversion process, not to mention being very costly with diplo points and almost impossible due to high Chinese development levels. And I'll explain the rest of the situation in China when I discover it...

7. In this AAR or another one? This AAR, no because I want to leave something for Victoria 2. Another AAR, I've never attempted a Germany WC, but maybe I'll try it at some point if I have time, though I prefer doing historically plausible runs.

Glad you enjoyed my AARs!
 
Another question:

How big is your population? I could never find it in your screenshots in CKII.
I don't know, but my manpower pool is over five hundred thousand and rapidly climbing. CKII and EUIV really don't have a method of tracking population levels.