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1410 : Rio de Oro is discovered

I retreat my troops from Byzantium. I notice that the loan has to be paid in May and I start minting to be able to pay it.
Meanwhile I notice Austria may actually be the next emperor. That would change the game for me.

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12 February 1410 : The Admiral Carlo Zeno dies. That is very bad news.

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Another revolt in Ifni - don't they understand they are conquered !

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An event pushes me towards Offensive -why should I want to lose 10 prestige ?

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And, I can repay one of my loans. Still one to go !

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I try and improve relations with Switzerland (mil access), which sees Milan as a natural enemy. I replace a lost merchant in Alexandria
I manage to get Wine Trade Rights with Savoy, Cloth rights with Bar.
Then I try to improve relations with England.

I get 10 prestige discovering Rio de Oro - taking Ifni was actually a good idea ! Maybe I can discover the Azores as well.

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Tripol declares war on the Mamluks. Meanwhile I realize, actually Aragon is a goner because it is fighting Castille and Portugal.

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I want to colonize Rio de Oro, but first I need money, and second I have to kill the natives....
It is tropical, but who cares, it is an even better place to reach America.

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Morea is annexed by Epirus. Castille blobs while I am fighting natives.


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The year 1410 ends and I notice the Moroccans have an evil stack in Sus and they are allied to Tripol and the Ottomans. Bad omen. The truce expires in June 1412.

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1411 : Advance in Trade Technology

At first, natives are defeated in Rio de Oro, but not without losses.

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But I find out I cannot colonize Rio de Oro anyway. Maybe it's for the best, the Moroccans could have burnt the colony.

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The Ottomans are at war with Timurids and Qara Koyunlu and I don't know where their troops are.

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No other investments this year, I try to mint as little as possible, but cannot mint less than 0.2.
But on February 1411, some good news. Albanians convert !

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The Ottomans don't seem to have troops in Europe while I sight an evil Qara Konyunly stack. I smell an opportunity....
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I make a very good deal with England which gives me prestige and possibly much, much dinero....

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I am worried Morocco will DOW me right after the truce ends, having very strong allies (Tripoli, Ottoman) and I am trying to prepare for the worst.
Annecting Aquilea will have to wait. I seek to improve relations with Naples.
In May, I advance in Trade Technology.

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Which is even better than it sounds, now I have access to almost all COTs in Europe.

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Taking care of infamy is all the more important. We discover the Mauretanian Coast.
On August 1411 the heretics of Zeta are converted !

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I consider moving my national focus to Albania as soon my infamy is near 0, to colonize it with Lombards...
Tripol and Mamluks make peace. Michele Lomellini is reelected into office.
Ottomans make peace with Qara Konyunlu. I check statistics and see Ottomans have actually fewer troops than Venice, while Morocco has just 9k troops.

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The year 1411 ends. My merchants make progress, but Andalucia and Lisboa are pretty poor COTs - maybe not even worth the effort.

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Really nice stuff. There's always room for no-nonsense gameplay AARs. ;) And you're in a pretty interesting situation currently. However...

Please keep in mind that the screenshot limit is 20 per AAR post, with any posts made within one hour of each other counting as one.
 
Thank you, I'll remember that. So far, it hasn't hit me
 
1412 : War with Burgundy

It is true that a war against the Ottomans and allies would be costly and risky, even with my powerful allies. The crusade benefits would not be enough to cover the costs.
What makes me decide against a strike against the Ottomans is finding out that the combined navies of Ottomans and Algiers are bigger than Venice's navy.

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But I proceed to consolidate my fleets and make sure they have high morale. If you want peace, prepare for war. Sardinia is chosen as a central base for our navy.
Meanwhile it looks like Austria is going to be the next emperor.

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Bar gets excommunicated, which is unsurprising, considering Burgundy is the papal controller. Austria declares on war on Bar, and I have to answer the call to arms - which regrettably means I'll have to
wait to annect aquileia.

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I reckon they don't need help and I just use the opportunity to raise war taxes. But.... oops !


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Well at least it is not going to be one sided, Burgundy is pretty tough.

We are more than them. I am not sure whether I should let the Burgunds cut the Austrians down to size.

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Diplomatic map in April 1412.

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I decide to watch from the sidelines. Meanwhile, an horrible event happens. Of course, I don't want to get the inflation and have to lose stability.

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Burgundy has a very wicked stack.


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I notice with pleasure that our nation has the biggest prestige. Meanwhile two huge stacks are about to meet in Sundgau.

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Morocco breaks our Trade League compact.
I notice Milan is allied with Burgundy. That means I should take some troops to Treviso , just in case.
Austria's stack pushes Burgundy's stack back.
I take a loan, since I am not be able to pay the one which is coming next year.
The stability increases, but I lose my army organizer ! Which means I am over my support limit ! And i have an empty advisory slot. !
Hiring that advisor was a bad choice, I should have kept the one who helped my government technology research.

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I replace it with an advisor which reduces infamy. I disband some troops, but I am still a little over the force limit.
I notice a naval engagement in the straits of Dover and there I decide to get involved, I might get some ships.


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But on second thought, I am not the one who started the battle. So I would not get anything. I think again.
It turns out the anti Burgundian coalition didn't need Venice's help after all, Austria and Provence are sieging southern Burgundia.
But Burgundy's stack is lurking somewhere.

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The year 1412 ends.
 
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1413 : A defeat for Austria....

I don't think it is gamey for me to raise war taxes even without taking part in the war. This war is actually damaging me: Burgundy embargoed me, I cannot pursue my goals,
I have no stake in this war, I am losing culture...
And if Austria must attack a country in Burgundy's sphere of influence, this is not my problem. Of course, it feels weird the AI doesn't recognize I am not actually fighting.
I cannot even sue Burgundy for peace because we are both minor partners, the enemy leader is LORRAINE ! Which makes me an offer, ahaha

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While the battle rages in Burgundy I notice with pleasure that both Austria and Burgundy have high war exhaustion.

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The war is actually going not very good so I start gathering my troops in Treviso, leaving some in Africa. Meanwhile, I can repay one of my loans

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And I can build constable now!

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Austria and Provence are slowly being outnumbered in Southern Burgundia....

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... while Venice and Aquileia are chilling.

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Castilla declares war on Algiers. Holy war! That is a war I can relate to !
Castilla ends up being at war with most Muslims in the Mediterennean sea.

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For reasons I don't understand, Antwerpen, the Hansa and Novgorod embargo me.
Meanwhile, Austria is being totally wiped out

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It doesn't concern me, because Burgundy has no way to reach me - or has it ?
Austria makes a last stand while Savoy and Provence also march into self-destruction.

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And like that, Austria had no army !

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Hungary, also nominally at war with Burgundy, is chilling at home too. Are we all thinking the same thing ?

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In north Burgundy, somehow my allies managed not to destroy Burgundy's fleet, it is still there for the taking.

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And... LOL. Austria sues for peace and releases Tirol. Their prestige sinks to -3, lower than Bohemia's. Maybe I should dump them, Austria seems pretty lame....

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Peace ! At least I can try and annect Aquileia....

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Oh crap, it is "unlikely". Both Venice and Aquileia have leaders with poor diplomatic skill. Oh well....
The year 1413 ends.
 
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Nah, "Unlikely" is a decent enough chance for annexation. Of course you don't seem to have too much spare cash for bribing relations back up after a failure...

A bit of a self destructive war for Austria. :p
 
Thank you, I'll consider that.
 
1414 - first half : Alliance with Castille and war with the Ottomans and allies

I decide not to try to annect Aquileia immediately and use my low infamy and high prestige to make some diplomatic moves. The first thing I do is dissolve the Alliance with Austria, who is not even rebuilding an army.
And I try to improve my relations with Bohemia, exchanging troops access. I invite Tirol to my trade league and then I receive alliance offers, from Aragon and the Papal State. I can do better than that!.
What about Castille ?

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Likely ? Maybe I'll send them a gift first.
That wasn't cheap, but an alliance with Castille may be worth it. Also, they are fighting the Turks so it will be money well spent, I guess.
Burgundy reopens its COTs for us and I send merchants to Antwerpen. In February, I try and offer an Alliance to Castille. And they accept !


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The fog of war is lifted and I see they are having an easy time in Algeria and Tunisia... Should I join in and try grabbing something from the Ottomans ?

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As expected, though, Castille calls me to arms. A request I cannot refuse.

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And which means I have to take a loan.
I spy on the Ottomans and they don't seem to have an army. But I check in the ledger and they are actually not to be trifled with. The Mamluks are also pretty strong.

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The combined fleet of Ottomans and Mameluks are pretty scary too. I spy on the Mameluks too.
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I decide to keep my fleet next to the Castillean one. Also, I'll need Hungary's help in the balkans. But, on 21 February, I sight Ottomans' fleet in the Aegean sea,
heading for the Sea of Marmara. I might engage it far away from the Mameluk's mainland and beat them before they can join forces. I miss Carlo Zeno.
It's a gamble, I don't know how the AI will react. I have to answer to the call around middle march.

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I catch Ottomans fleet in the Aegean sea on 11 March and I accept the call to arms. Immediately the fleets engage. Meanwhile I discover... Laristan ?

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Corfu, Aquileia and Naxos join the war. What about Hungary ? As usual, I have run out of diplomats, that will happen in April.
But the stupid Mameluk AI isn't going to send any help to the Ottomans and is keeping his navy in the ports...
Ottomans and Mamluks weren't helping the Algerians either so this is what I would have expected. Or maybe the Mamluks would like to see the Ottomans cut down to size and they are smarter than I think...

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But the Castillian AI is actually smart and coming to join the fun...Castille and Venice united can rule the world !
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.
The Castillian bring an admiral into the fray. Which means they are going to keep the loot. Oh well, I have too many ships already.

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Hungary sends war subsidies - but what about joining the war ? Meanwhile the sea battle is won, but not decisively. But that means we can move freely in the Mediterannean - almost.

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I try and call Hungary to Arms, but I find out I can't ! Is it because there is a regency council ? Or maybe because I was called to arms myself ? Oh the horror.

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Meanwhile we reengage Ottoman's fleet in the Sea of Marmara. The Ottomans' fleet is sunk. Obviously, I proceed to block the Sea of Marmara

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In Europe the Ottomans are outnumbered and we can beat them even with our small army which is already in Bosnia taking some attrition. Speaking of which, I start raising war taxes.

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Castille peaces Tunisy. I lose 10 prestige because of an event. Meanwhile Aquitania's fleet lured Algeria's feet into the open and Castille is coming to finish them.

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The Mamluk's fleet popped up - along with some Algeria's. But it is too little, too late. Ottomans' main army is stranded in Bursa and cannot cross the straits. Looking at the war score, I find out the Castillian lost an army somewhere in Libya...

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By the end of june 1414, a Venetian army is about to catch a smaller Ottoman one in Kozani while Serbia, Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia are being sieged.
 
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the main Mamluk navy is always on the Red Sea so that's no threat to you - they cannot circle around Africa to the Mediterranean.

as for me it's a real chill-out to read an AAR like this, consider me interested!
 
You could have declared war on the OE directly to ensure that you'll get some spoils from the war - as it stands you're probably just going to spend cash helping to make Castille stronger.
 
You aren't the war leader, that's why you can't call others in. Only Castille can in this war.

Like vasziljevics says, the Mamluks are funny as far as naval warfare goes - decent numbers but they're unable to use them. :p

Probably not much to be gained in this war, but still the alliance is good for your safety, especially in your Moroccan holdings.
 
Oh, thank you.

I would have declared war myself on the Ottomans, but regrettably, when I got the call to arms, I had no diplomats. I got the call to arms in the middle of February and I had 0 diplomats till April. I must learn to save them. Sucks being a Plutocracy.
 
Like vasziljevics says, the Mamluks are funny as far as naval warfare goes - decent numbers but they're unable to use them. :p

I humbly apologize as I don't want to hijack the thread from the author :))) but that's indeed very odd - they tend to have 30+ ships but the major part of their fleet is always on the Red Sea while the others are spread out throughout the Mediterranean: one by one for each sea province...

now to say something on topic too: I don't share the opinion of the others about being a minor participant in the war against the Turks is a very bad position - once you occupied some of their provinces they would probably offer you pretty good peace terms just get you out of the war.
 
I don't share the opinion of the others about being a minor participant in the war against the Turks is a very bad position - once you occupied some of their provinces they would probably offer you pretty good peace terms just get you out of the war.

Hi vasziljevics, I hope so. Of course getting a province is almost out of the question, I would be hit with +4.0 infamy, which I would not get if I had had a chance to attack with the Holy war casus belli. But both weakening the Ottomans and getting Castille as an ally are worth the costs IMHO.
 
1414 - second half : Owning the Mediterrean and the Balkans

My land tech is lower than Ottomans and at this stage they can build wicked troops, I hope that won't pose too much of a problem . Meanwhile another naval battle is won.

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I split my navy to retrieve the troops which are stranded in the African provinces. Meanwhile a small Ottoman army is routed in Kozani, where the siege can begin as well.

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The Mameluks offer me a white peace, but I refuse, I don't want to dump Castilla - yet. I exchange military access with Bohemia.
Land technology 4 is discovered. Another engagement on the Barbary Coast.

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On September Venice is sieging several provinces in the Balkans

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Almost out of money, I spot a good advisor (Force Limit Modifier) I take another loan - three at the moment. We are reaching a critical level.

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I move the slider towards "Free trade". In November the siege of Kosovo is won. Castillan troops have come into the the Balkans too.

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I cancel military access to Aragon. My "African" troops join the Castillian ones in Algeria.

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Meanwhile, Budjak has fallen to the Golden Horde. Which means Hungary and Turkey are at war with Golden Horde

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Serbia falls on 12 December 1414

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The year 1414 ends.
 
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The Ottomans could be in some trouble. Dominated at sea, in trouble in Europe, and now the Golden Horde is approaching... I agree with staying in the war for now regardless of whether or not you can gain anything directly as leaving the Turks reeling could give you opportunities in the future.

I don't share the opinion of the others about being a minor participant in the war against the Turks is a very bad position - once you occupied some of their provinces they would probably offer you pretty good peace terms just get you out of the war.

The problem is that Castille and the Mamluks are the war leaders - Venice can only negotiate with the Mamluks and doesn't appear to have done them much damage.
 
The problem is that Castille and the Mamluks are the war leaders - Venice can only negotiate with the Mamluks and doesn't appear to have done them much damage.

ahh... I did not notice (and certainly did not expect :eek:) that the Turks are actually NOT war leaders - my bad.
 
The problem is that Castille and the Mamluks are the war leaders - Venice can only negotiate with the Mamluks and doesn't appear to have done them much damage.

I thought only lessor partners in PUs couldn't sue for peace? So why can't Venice negotiate with the Ottomans coz there's no way the Mamluks and the Ottomans would be in a PU?