Heh... I see someone posted a Russian AAR shortly before this one, oh well mine's a bit different than his. This is my third or fourth game, I feel like I've got the gameplay down at this point(at least for Russia, I haven't tried naval powers yet). It is being played on Hard difficulty with Normal aggressiveness. Comments and suggestions welcome, especially historical corrections - I'm not that familiar with the details of most history before WWI. Predictions welcome too, the game is actually much further along than my writeup but 'you're going to die' or 'you're going to get 3 provinces' are fun.
Jumping back up here, that's enough for tonight - let me know what you think of it, I will probably experiment with changing the style.
The Cub Has a Growth Spurt: 1492-1501
Part 1 1492 - 1495 (I didn't realize how long this takes)
Ivan the third, Grand Duke of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, known to history as Ivan the terrible, had a dream. He saw not a small Duchy on the fringes of Europe, scraping out an existance by paying bribes to the remnants of the Mongol hordes, but a grand kingdom as magnificent as Spain or France, secure in its borders, and determining its own destiny. Many rulers sitting in Moscow had such dreams, but he felt he had the means to turn them into reality. And woe to those who would try to wake him from his dream.
So, as the 16th century drew near, he looked at the situation after bringing Novogrod into the Duchy. While the Sweedes, the Teutonic Knights, and The Poles all threatened to the North and West, they all had their eyes turned away from Moscow; the Sweedes looked to Denmark, the Poles looked to their countless western neighbors, and the Knights looked to the Poles. The Kazan Khanate to the East, closest of the 'empires' left over from the great Mongol conquest had eyes only for Moscow, but only a pathetic remnant of the martial abilities the Mongols were known for. It was time to break the back of the once-mighty Horde.
In January of 1492 the armies of Moscow were reorganized and turned east. An army of 35,000 cavalry and 5,000 infantry under the able general Striga Obolenski moved to Vladimir. 60,000 infantry sat in 2 armies in Moscow, and 15,000 cavalry waited in Tver. 10,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry remained in Novgorad in case of incidents in the west. Tax collectors were also installed in Moscow and Novgorod, ensuring continued revenue, and 10,000 infantry were raised to bolster novgorod.
On the first of April, Ivan issued a formal declaration of war against the Kazan Khanate. Europe was hardly preturbed that some Christians were putting heathens to the sword, Denmark and Moldovia going so far as to offer Royal Marriages to show their support (which were gladly accepted). The 60,000 soldiers in Moscow set out to the two neighboring provinces, while Striga-Obolenski held his cavalry in reserve in Vladimir. The main body of the Kazanate army charged directly into the teeth of Striga's army, and were shattered as they crossed the river. At Lipetsk the second army (30,000 inf) was broken by a suprise Kazanate cavalry charge, but the reserve of 15,000 cavalry at Tver was pulled in to deal with the cavalry, as well as any future annoyances. The first of two assaults on Ryazan by the first army commenced, while 5,000 infantry from the Imperial Guard army went to besiege Kazan itself, while the main body of cavalry retired to Moscow. 10,000 were taken from Novgorod as reinforcements for the 2nd Army, and it again marched on Lipetsk.
Late summer and fall was a time of fierce assaults, as the first and second armies threw themselves onto the fortresses of the Kazanite realm. While such assaults cost in blood, it was better to die storming a fortress than to freeze solid in the dead of winter. The cavalry reserve dealt with newly raised defenders, and held the forts for the infantry, then retired before snowfall. By January, the Grand Duchy's infantry armies were depleted, but in firm command of 3 of the 5 Khanate provinces. 16,000 more infantrymen were raised in Moscow, and by Febuary only Kazan itself remained. As the 3 infantry armies (1st and 2nd armies, as well as the 16,000 fresh recruits) converged on Kazan, they offered Ryazan and Lipetsk for peace. Their envoy's horse returned with a headless rider, and on May 15th 1493, Kazan itself fell to a massive assault. The Khanate ceased to exist on that day, though this failed to impress Austria and Hungary (who refused entreaties to royal marriages).
At the end of the campaign, a mere 30,000 infantry remained (roughly 60,000 casualties total), while a staggering 45,000 cavalry were still in good condition. Fortunately, Ivan could raise new infantry armies much more easily than new cavalry. The army demobilized and returned home to rest, spending time with the merchants who there was no money to send to centers of trade. Though the army was badly damaged, the Grand Duchy was much improved. The provinces of Kazan gave it room to move in, more population for taxes and recruitment, and one less power close to Moscow itself.
The rest of the year passed uneventfully for Moscow, with no money in the treasury and little tax money coming in. The Turks together with the Mameluks and Hanseatic League went to war with France, Poland-Lithuania, the Papal States, and some other countries not recorded here. Ivan was quite glad to see his western neighbors both assaulting the heathens and moving armies far away from his borders. the next year, 1494, was also fairly quiet - a baliff was raised in Kazan (the richest part of the Khanate) in January, and in October a royal Marriage with Pskov started a trend towards mutual cooperation. By November the Hanseatic League gave its treasury and Pomerania to Poland, which did not make Ivan at all happy.
Ivan knew, however, that Russia (as he thought of the Grand Duchy) was still much weaker than her neighbors to the west. There just wasn't much wealth in the country, despite the fierce trade in Novgorod, and the gold mines of Saratow looked like the ideal way to rectify that problem. It would also mean one fewer Khanate fist holding Russian lands, which was even better. In January of 1495, he began constructing new armies all along the border with the Golden Horde.
In June, Moscow and Denmark signed an alliance, entirely nullifying Sweeden as a threat. Leaving a mere 5,000 infantry and 4,000 cavalry (along with 9,000 new recruits) at Novgorod, the armies of Moscow again turned against their former oppressors. On each side of the Volga, 30,000 infantry and 21,000 cavalry converge on the territory of the horde. In less than a single month, Kujbyschew and Suratow are stormed by Russian infantry, sealing the fate of the Horde. Striga-Obolenski again engaged the main enemy army, and managed to utterly annihilate it while losing only 5,000 of his horsemen. Leaving 5,000 cavalry to destroy the last Golden Horde army (which was being raised), he retires to Moscow to preserve the cavalry. Samara falls on July 28, and by August the Horde's gold flows to Moscow as their last desperate fortress is stormed.
At the end of their second great Khanate war, Russia still fields 65,000 infantry in total (including some raised during the fighting) and 40,000 cavalry. 30,000 men (5,000 cavalry, the remainder infantry) garrison Saratow, while the rest of the army is stationed at Moscow and Novgorod. While Ivan dreamed of crusading directly to the Caspian sea, Astrakahn had a 30,000 man army and 6 provinces, which is far more than his depleted armies could handle, unless he wished to rely on the good intentions of his neighbors. So he sat back and bided his time, reading reports from the great war between France and Spain (with Savoy, the Papal States, Poland, Navarra, and Helvetica joining France and Milan, Naples, Lorraine, and the Palitat assisting Spain).
To be continued - this is fun, but time consuming!
Jumping back up here, that's enough for tonight - let me know what you think of it, I will probably experiment with changing the style.
The Cub Has a Growth Spurt: 1492-1501
Part 1 1492 - 1495 (I didn't realize how long this takes)
Ivan the third, Grand Duke of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, known to history as Ivan the terrible, had a dream. He saw not a small Duchy on the fringes of Europe, scraping out an existance by paying bribes to the remnants of the Mongol hordes, but a grand kingdom as magnificent as Spain or France, secure in its borders, and determining its own destiny. Many rulers sitting in Moscow had such dreams, but he felt he had the means to turn them into reality. And woe to those who would try to wake him from his dream.
So, as the 16th century drew near, he looked at the situation after bringing Novogrod into the Duchy. While the Sweedes, the Teutonic Knights, and The Poles all threatened to the North and West, they all had their eyes turned away from Moscow; the Sweedes looked to Denmark, the Poles looked to their countless western neighbors, and the Knights looked to the Poles. The Kazan Khanate to the East, closest of the 'empires' left over from the great Mongol conquest had eyes only for Moscow, but only a pathetic remnant of the martial abilities the Mongols were known for. It was time to break the back of the once-mighty Horde.
In January of 1492 the armies of Moscow were reorganized and turned east. An army of 35,000 cavalry and 5,000 infantry under the able general Striga Obolenski moved to Vladimir. 60,000 infantry sat in 2 armies in Moscow, and 15,000 cavalry waited in Tver. 10,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry remained in Novgorad in case of incidents in the west. Tax collectors were also installed in Moscow and Novgorod, ensuring continued revenue, and 10,000 infantry were raised to bolster novgorod.
On the first of April, Ivan issued a formal declaration of war against the Kazan Khanate. Europe was hardly preturbed that some Christians were putting heathens to the sword, Denmark and Moldovia going so far as to offer Royal Marriages to show their support (which were gladly accepted). The 60,000 soldiers in Moscow set out to the two neighboring provinces, while Striga-Obolenski held his cavalry in reserve in Vladimir. The main body of the Kazanate army charged directly into the teeth of Striga's army, and were shattered as they crossed the river. At Lipetsk the second army (30,000 inf) was broken by a suprise Kazanate cavalry charge, but the reserve of 15,000 cavalry at Tver was pulled in to deal with the cavalry, as well as any future annoyances. The first of two assaults on Ryazan by the first army commenced, while 5,000 infantry from the Imperial Guard army went to besiege Kazan itself, while the main body of cavalry retired to Moscow. 10,000 were taken from Novgorod as reinforcements for the 2nd Army, and it again marched on Lipetsk.
Late summer and fall was a time of fierce assaults, as the first and second armies threw themselves onto the fortresses of the Kazanite realm. While such assaults cost in blood, it was better to die storming a fortress than to freeze solid in the dead of winter. The cavalry reserve dealt with newly raised defenders, and held the forts for the infantry, then retired before snowfall. By January, the Grand Duchy's infantry armies were depleted, but in firm command of 3 of the 5 Khanate provinces. 16,000 more infantrymen were raised in Moscow, and by Febuary only Kazan itself remained. As the 3 infantry armies (1st and 2nd armies, as well as the 16,000 fresh recruits) converged on Kazan, they offered Ryazan and Lipetsk for peace. Their envoy's horse returned with a headless rider, and on May 15th 1493, Kazan itself fell to a massive assault. The Khanate ceased to exist on that day, though this failed to impress Austria and Hungary (who refused entreaties to royal marriages).
At the end of the campaign, a mere 30,000 infantry remained (roughly 60,000 casualties total), while a staggering 45,000 cavalry were still in good condition. Fortunately, Ivan could raise new infantry armies much more easily than new cavalry. The army demobilized and returned home to rest, spending time with the merchants who there was no money to send to centers of trade. Though the army was badly damaged, the Grand Duchy was much improved. The provinces of Kazan gave it room to move in, more population for taxes and recruitment, and one less power close to Moscow itself.
The rest of the year passed uneventfully for Moscow, with no money in the treasury and little tax money coming in. The Turks together with the Mameluks and Hanseatic League went to war with France, Poland-Lithuania, the Papal States, and some other countries not recorded here. Ivan was quite glad to see his western neighbors both assaulting the heathens and moving armies far away from his borders. the next year, 1494, was also fairly quiet - a baliff was raised in Kazan (the richest part of the Khanate) in January, and in October a royal Marriage with Pskov started a trend towards mutual cooperation. By November the Hanseatic League gave its treasury and Pomerania to Poland, which did not make Ivan at all happy.
Ivan knew, however, that Russia (as he thought of the Grand Duchy) was still much weaker than her neighbors to the west. There just wasn't much wealth in the country, despite the fierce trade in Novgorod, and the gold mines of Saratow looked like the ideal way to rectify that problem. It would also mean one fewer Khanate fist holding Russian lands, which was even better. In January of 1495, he began constructing new armies all along the border with the Golden Horde.
In June, Moscow and Denmark signed an alliance, entirely nullifying Sweeden as a threat. Leaving a mere 5,000 infantry and 4,000 cavalry (along with 9,000 new recruits) at Novgorod, the armies of Moscow again turned against their former oppressors. On each side of the Volga, 30,000 infantry and 21,000 cavalry converge on the territory of the horde. In less than a single month, Kujbyschew and Suratow are stormed by Russian infantry, sealing the fate of the Horde. Striga-Obolenski again engaged the main enemy army, and managed to utterly annihilate it while losing only 5,000 of his horsemen. Leaving 5,000 cavalry to destroy the last Golden Horde army (which was being raised), he retires to Moscow to preserve the cavalry. Samara falls on July 28, and by August the Horde's gold flows to Moscow as their last desperate fortress is stormed.
At the end of their second great Khanate war, Russia still fields 65,000 infantry in total (including some raised during the fighting) and 40,000 cavalry. 30,000 men (5,000 cavalry, the remainder infantry) garrison Saratow, while the rest of the army is stationed at Moscow and Novgorod. While Ivan dreamed of crusading directly to the Caspian sea, Astrakahn had a 30,000 man army and 6 provinces, which is far more than his depleted armies could handle, unless he wished to rely on the good intentions of his neighbors. So he sat back and bided his time, reading reports from the great war between France and Spain (with Savoy, the Papal States, Poland, Navarra, and Helvetica joining France and Milan, Naples, Lorraine, and the Palitat assisting Spain).
To be continued - this is fun, but time consuming!
