A bit late, but good luck with your dissertation, and I will be patiently waiting on this to return! 
Consecrated blood waters my fields: a Hvitserk megacampaign
- Thread starter Avindian
- Start date
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Hello, my friends! I hope you have enjoyed your holiday season up to this point and that you continue to do so throughout the end of 2015.
I'm dropping a few lines here to say that I haven't forgotten about this AAR (and I hope you haven't either!), and you should see an update sometime in January. I can't be more specific than that at this point.
I'm dropping a few lines here to say that I haven't forgotten about this AAR (and I hope you haven't either!), and you should see an update sometime in January. I can't be more specific than that at this point.
- 2
Great! Happy holidays Avindian! Looking forward to read more Consecrated blood waters my fields.
Glad you haven't forgotten about this. I don't mind when it returns, as long as it does, as this AAR is 100% in my top 4 AAR's of all time (that I have read) on here.
Hope you too enjoy your holidays.
How's the dissertation going Avindian? I bet its every bit as well written as your AAR's! -Brown nose-
Looking forward to continuing epic of the Hvitserk family!
Looking forward to continuing epic of the Hvitserk family!
Thank you very much! I hope yours were relaxing and/or productive, as the case may be!
Bring on the Halfdans!
Soon, my friend, soon!
Thank you for the kind words!
I hope you find the conclusion satisfactory.
Thank you!
Wonderful.
I am not surprised that you are pleased.
This AAR, of course, wouldn't have existed without you!I'm glad you enjoy my AARs, although I rather suspect my dissertation committee would be annoyed with me if I made everything up.
I recently completed my first full draft of the dissertation. It took quite a while and I was slightly behind schedule, but thankfully, the longest and most time consuming portion is finished. Next comes copy editing and revisions, etc.
As far as the AAR is concerned, which is of course why you all are here, I am pleased to report that I'm almost ready to start writing again! I want to finish Legacy of the Void first, but once that's finished (maybe the end of this week?), I'll update on a regular schedule again. In the meantime, I'll have to peruse screenshots and probably read through the last two or three updates.
Let's see how your, shall we say 'ambitious', time-table works out. Of course, it might be that you're already almost done with LotV, but otherwise you're trying to achieve a lot in only four days.
Whenever it happens, I look forward to the updates.
Of course, it might be that you're already almost done with LotV, but otherwise you're trying to achieve a lot in only four days. Whenever it happens, I look forward to the updates.
Chapter 23, Part 1: The price of being faithless
Fylkir Suni II is widely regarded as one of the worst rulers that Britannia ever had. He was reviled by some for considering himself Norwegian instead of a true Norse. For others, it was his policies. One prominent historian said that Suni II "ruled with only two tools: the knife and the sword." Indeed, Suni murdered his domestic opponents, caring little for the consequences of discovery, and fought some of the most brutal wars in the history of the Empire. He was quick to anger, the first to run in any conflict, and so paranoid about assassination attempts that he was nearly agoraphobic. Despite these obvious character flaws, he considered himself the greatest ruler that ever lived.
When Suni II inherited the throne, he also inherited a war over the province of Skane. Controlling Skane, he argued, would help the Empire of Britannia control the Baltic. It was therefore worth any price to be paid. In short order, Suni II's army won the day, thanks in large part to the yeoman's work done by Suni the Great. However, Suni II insisted that he, and alone, had defeated the King of Sweden through his masterful strategy. His Council was decidedly unimpressed; his Chancellor, Marshal, and Steward actively hated him.
Fylkir Suni II on the day of his coronation
The Emperor's wife, Rikissa, had an attitude of ambivalence toward her husband, which was far better than the outright loathing his Chancellor had.
To his credit, Suni II did everything he could to win over his Council. All of them were competent advisors, particularly the Chancellor, Brynjolf, Thane of Bremen. The Fylkir invested in public works, gave awards to worthy champions, even outright bribed some of the more intractable politicians. In the beginning, at least, Suni II contained his bloodlust and his predilection towards violence as a solution to his problems. On 1 June 1219, however, all of those conciliatory measures evaporated. Within 30 days, a peaceful realm erupted into not one, but two civil wars. Thorsteinn of Briefne, a general in the British army, and the Lord Mayor of Ypres each rose substantial armies in revolt. Thorsteinn wished to install Ulf II, King of Sweden, as the Emperor of Britannia; meanwhile, the Lord Mayor wanted independence.
The War of the Swedish League
The Independence of Ypres
These two wars continued simultaneously. Even a hero like Suni the Great or even Halfdan Whiteshirt might have paused at fighting two respectable contingents. Suni II, however, was no hero. If he could not rule through peace and mercy, he would rule through blood and butchery. Both causes proved popular, and dozens of adventurers and mercenaries rallied around the two figureheads in an attempt to break up the power of Britannia. By October 1219, it was already clear that the Fylkir would have a troublesome reign; his spymaster, Bjorn av Liskread, died of depression in that month. Spymasters under Suni II found their lives challenging, brutal, and often short. Thorbjorn of Dalby could barely tolerate even the sight of the Fylkir. Yet the early weeks of his reign were not entirely without moments of joy. The Battle of Boston was a noteworthy highlight in military history, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that the huscarl was superior to any other soldier on the battlefield.
The butcher's bill after the Battle of Boston; note the huge casualty rates among the lightly armed skirmishers.
Yet one victory does not win a war. By the end of 1219, Suni II had no choice but to call up the levies in an attempt to stave off further rebellions. This calculated risk was intended to buy him enough time to defeat one or another of his great foes. With the new levies pouring into the Armies of Britannia, there was a need for leadership. Thinking himself a brilliant military mind, Suni II led one of the columns against the rebellions; he promptly was shot with an arrow in the right leg. The projectile missed the artery by mere inches. Suni II considered this setback not a sign to leave war to the warriors, but as proof that the gods loved him and would protect him. By an amazing coincidence, the Holy Roman Empire arrested the Lord Mayor of Yperen for causes entirely unrelated to his rebellion. For the first time (but not the last time), Suni II used events to his advantage, ordering his spymaster to end the Lord Mayor's life. With no leader, the Independence League quickly disbanded, giving the Emperor hope that he might soon defeat the Swedish league.
Two art academies made copies of this painting, around the clock, for a year. Every single one was burned in effigy after Suni II's death.
The last known portrait of the Lord Mayor of Yperen. Suni II ordered it altered to include the thick bars of a prison.
Seemingly adding to the miraculous fortunes of Suni II was the rise of a second pretender, the King of Galicia, Sigbjorn. What began as a traditional civil war was now a deadly triangle of destruction. The two rebel armies killed as many men of each other's armies as they did the armies of Suni II. The Marshal of the Empire favored a strategy of strong defensive lines, allowing the two armies to cut each other to pieces. The Emperor, however, wanted an immediate victory. Landing an army in Skotland, he moved south to attack Sigbjorn's forces at Preston. The King of Galicia was a cunning strategist, luring in the Emperor's army, all the while ordering the rapid march of reinforcements from Wales. The Emperor's army was completely destroyed. The lightly armored skirmishers had little trouble arriving quickly, and the King had huscarls of his own. As 1222 opened, the Imperial armies were badly bloodied and the treasury was empty.
The declaration of war of Sigbjorn of Galicia
The battle of Preston launched the careers of a popular movement against the rule of Suni II -- the "Sons of Preston," sometimes called "the Prestonites."
The horrific slaughter of Preston convinced many Britons that the gods had abandoned Suni II. The "Sons of Preston," initially started by the survivors of the battle, started to question the motives of Suni II and his fitness to serve as Emperor. A few Prestonites, initially fervent believers in the Fylkir, started deserting from the army, or even switching sides. As England and Skotland descended into chaos, Irland was the only remaining bright spot. The Jarl Styrbjorn of Jylland was given the task of forging the remnants of Imperial regiments into an army capable of continuing the fight in Irland. By early 1223, Styrbjorn had an army of over 10,000 men and had pacified Irland entirely. Yet thousands of enemy troops remained in Skotland and England. Styrbjorn wanted to cross the Irish Sea and engage the enemy; instead, panicked over the appearance of a tiny handful of rebel troops near Castle Jorvik, Suni II did the unthinkable: he surrendered. Sigbjorn II became Fylkir of Britannia and Emperor; however, Suni II retained many of the kingly titles. The Sons of Preston vilified the Emperor for this "treason," as they termed it. However, Suni II's lands and titles had hardly diminished at all, and he did not intend to remain a loyal vassal for long.
The beginning of the Irish campaign; note the patchwork of horrors that was Great Britain at the time.
The political situation in Irland shortly before the Fylkir's surrender.
The new Fylkir was immediately busy with fighting the Swedish League, and tried to make a peace as quickly as possible with the King of England. Suni II accepted the title of Cupbearer, a high honor indeed, but he was already scheming to regain the Emperor's throne. Suni II openly embraced the Norse culture, rejecting his Norwegian roots, which slowly started to improve relations with his vassals. He held his first blot in the winter of 1223. His mercy in sparing a royal cousin, Astrid, convinced even some of the Sons of Preston that he had changed. Instead, over the next few months, Suni II waged a war from the shadows, killing those vassals who were untrustworthy and installing his own, more loyal, claimants. As his armies recovered, Suni II made his play to become Emperor of Britannia once again.
Some scholars speculate that, if Sigbjorn had not called him "pitiful," Suni might have accepted his lot in life and not gone on to his blacker deeds.
"The Sparing of Astrid" was another of Suni II's questionable art decisions. Few other rulers would seek to be commemorated in paintings for the simple act of not ordering the death of their relatives.
Suni II was amazed that Sigbjorn didn't immediately surrender when the ultimatum was sent.
As befits a ruler who ruled by killing his opponents and leading armies in rebellion, 1225 marked a time of increasing stress for the former Fylkir. Some of his subjects used the opportunity to demand political concessions, and the Kingdoms of Frisia and Skotland were once again elected by moot. One of his finest generals, Styrbjorn of Jylland, died in battle, further increasing his level of stress. But steadily, Suni II won victory after victory. In 1227, Suni II ventured outside of the Castle Jorvik for the first time in years, accompanying the expedition to Galicia. The siege of the castles at Lugo nearly annihilated his army again, but with a bit of patience and some gold, he restored the army. He conducted a second round of purges, killing those unfaithful to him, as he searched for weaknesses. Suni II ultimately prevailed, imprisoning his adversary, and regaining the Imperial throne.
One artist asked the then-King of England, Suni II, why he wanted to be painted with a beard, when he never actually wore one. The artist received a personal invitation to the next season's blot.
The Expedition to Coruna was almost a miserable failure, but Suni II nonetheless was victorious.
This piece of witty political commentary -- showing that even winning a war sometimes meant that you lost -- was another instant ticket to a blot.
Suni II, newly Fylkir and Emperor, did not achieve the absolute victory he craved. Indeed, one of the reasons he had won so easily was that Sigbjorn II was even more inept than Suni II, and he had to fight four wars almost immediately. A victory at Bordeaux, where the attacker had a two to one advantage, all but depleted the victorious army of the Coruna campaign. Sensing weakness, yet another pretender to the Imperial throne, Sorkver Hvitserk, raised his claim. If he was to remain Emperor, Suni II needed to win or even just survive the other wars. He quickly conceded the independence of Gotland, then defeated the biggest threat: Sorvker. A white peace to the Thane of Oxford in the summer of 1231 reduced his opponents from five to two, but an attempt to arrest the Jarl of Sjaelland added a new enemy to the fray. Sveinn raised his claim to the throne, adding a fourth potential opponent. Completely battered and exhausted, Suni II simply decided to acknowledge Sveinn as Emperor and Fylkir. In May 1232, Suni II fell ill; he died 13 August 1232, having hardly known a single day of peace in his reign.
The surrender document to Ormr of Strangfjordr, the representative of Sveinn, was among the proudest possessions of the Sons of Preston, who never forgave the deceased Emperor for losing the Empire in the first place.
Suni II's eldest son, Erling, was in many ways nothing like his father. He was kind, generous, humble, and extraordinarily creative. Despite being Swedish, Erling was among the most popular people in the entire Empire; he had spent his entire life learning foreign tongues and the gifts of rhetoric. When Ivar Hvitserk made a play for the Welsh throne, Erling let his Marshal and advisors handle the war, and Ivar was quickly defeated. His advisors universally loved him, and when the Holy Roman Empire declared war on England, he took his turn with a blade. Erling was severely wounded, but recovered, and devoted a portion of his next years in power to learning the art of military strategy.
The coronation portrait of Erling, King of England, before his marriage to Rikissa.
Sveinn, Fylkir and Emperor of Britannia, did everything he could to win the support of Erling of England.
The hardworking Council of Erling was not as competent as Suni's Council, but they actually liked their liege, which made for smoother meetings.
Erling wounded in battle. Given the suspicious resemblance to the "Wounding of Suni II," it is clear that some of those canvases were simply repurposed. A lot of them were made.
By early 1235, Erling was ready to engage in offensive warfare, reclaiming the province of Cumberland. Erling, despite his later reputation as a glorious peacemaker, found himself in his share of conflicts, just as his father had. He put down peasant revolts, rebellions, and helped defend the Empire against the Kaiser of the Holy Roman Empire. Although the Holy Roman Empire did win that war, regaining Holstein, in truth, Erling was not concerned about foreign affairs. He wanted to consolidate his rule in the British Isles. At the end of 1237, his position secure, he began to move, quietly, to make a claim on the Emperor's throne. Sveinn knew that Erling was no pushover. He tried to transfer lands and more awards to the King of England in an effort to get him to renounce his claim. Yet in January 1238, Erling was ready: he rose his banners and set off for war.
Erling sought support from like minded individuals, unlike his father, to overthrow Sveinn. It didn't work, but Erling still deserves credit for trying, right?
The documents that transferred vassalage were signed by Sveinn and Erling, a rare historical occasion.
Sveinn's diplomatic response was cleaned up considerably by scribes of the period. One contemporary account says that the declaration of war contained no fewer than 75 separate curses, including one so horrific that to even reprint it is still a criminal offense.
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It's good to be back!
Now, I don't know what kind of schedule I'll be able to keep, but I'm hoping to get you folks at least one update a week to this AAR. We'll have to see how my schedule works.- 1
Well that has to be one of the craziest periods of civil war I've seen. Renouncing the throne, reclaiming the throne, etc etc. Clearly stability can only truly be achieved with a Halfdan on the throne.
Oh an update, that was unexpected.
It's good to have you back !
The reign of Suni II was chaotic, to say the least.
It's good to have you back !
The reign of Suni II was chaotic, to say the least.
Well, there was worry about how much external challenge there was left in the game. I guess its internal challenge now!
Well that has to be one of the craziest periods of civil war I've seen. Renouncing the throne, reclaiming the throne, etc etc. Clearly stability can only truly be achieved with a Halfdan on the throne.
Fighting it was even crazier, let me assure you!
Oh an update, that was unexpected.
It's good to have you back !
The reign of Suni II was chaotic, to say the least.
Let this be a lesson to you: diplomacy is the most important stat in CKII (at least, as of the beta I was using for this AAR).
Oh, it's going to get a lot more challenging before it gets easier.
I've got a fairly full weekend coming up, but after I update the HOI AAR, I'll be back with part 2 of this chapter.
Even after all of those wars and conflicts the internal situation of the empire must be close to anarchy. Not even a Halfdan could clean up this mess!
With Way of Life, I always set a focus that add more points in diplomacy.
It makes the successions so much easier.
That was a totally mad time in history, here's hoping that Erling will surpass his father.
A guy with 20+ diplomacy will help...
With Way of Life, I always set a focus that add more points in diplomacy.
It makes the successions so much easier.
I only got that particular expansion after I finished the AAR, but I'll remember that for my own solo games.
That was a totally mad time in history, here's hoping that Erling will surpass his father.
Well, Suni II did set a pretty low bar...