Golden Horde - Scourge From The East

[Duke of Wellington]

Kuchlug : Part 5
Imagine you suddenly found yourself in possession of copious amounts of money. What would you do with it? Quite possibly you would buy yourself a new car or go for as vacation to a foreign country? Well now imagine you're the Khan of the Golden Horde in 1766. That somewhat rules out the car as Tatar scientists will not invent that for over a century. Furthermore a vacation would be pointless since the Horde is the greatest nation and any money spent o a vacation would be an investment in disappointment. Therefore you would more or less be left with one option. Build a big army. That is exactly what Kuchlug proceeded to do.

The blacksmiths of the Horde hammer away as is their patriotic duty​

With the formality of training out of the way the armies proceeded to line up along the border with the Blue Horde. Somewhere in England a bookie who took bets on this kind of thing dropped the odds of war between the Golden and Blue Horde's to a 1:1 ratio.

Lining up? What could they be planning?​

Formalities were soon dispensed with the Horde cavalry charged once more. Of course the Horde's armies had always been victorious (and to suggest otherwise was a sure way to lose your head) but this time they were even more so than any other.

The Horde's armies shatter the Blue Horde's armies and forts repeatedly gaining dominance swiftly​

Some of the wins were against massive odds such as the victory of ten thousand Horde riders over a Blue Horde and Delhi army of sixty thousand.

A great win​

There would be even greater battles too including the Rout of Bukhara in which three thousand riders led by Kuchlug defeated nearly forty thousand from the Blue Horde with ease.

Soon there was only one option left open for the desperate Blue Horde.

Nice gains

Even the distant Delhi begs for peace

Malwa shows a lack of intelligence as they decide to get closer to the losing side. A death wish perhaps?​

 

[unmerged(24320)]

Duke of Wellington: ...Soon there was only one option left open for the desperate Blue Horde.

yup ! ! works for me ! !

awesome update ! !

 

[Gokufan]

Great

P.S: Maybe Unlimited Time Patch? ;P It would be nice to see Golden Horde in 2000 xP

 

[unmerged(58610)]

'A whaz riding through the Horde, feeling Blue.'

What else what the Horde spend a windfall on, except troops? I see one province in the Blue Horde that needs a name change - UZBEK - before it can become a proper part of the true horde.

There is time to re-unite the Horde. It must be time to diploannex the Russian Khanate.

 

[coz1]

Hmmm...never quite seen rats jumping ON a sinking ship before, but there is a first time for everything. Obviously they wish to be destroyed.

And that was some battle against 40,000 Blue Hordians. Sweet.

 

[Duke of Wellington]

GhostWriter - Most definitely works for me. Since they're cores they're all nice and BB free to take too.

Gokufan - Thanks. I have the Unlimited Time Patch installed already. I might go a bit beyond 1820 depending on the how the game is going but it tends to stagnate as the monarchs stay the same and there are no events left.

Chief Ragusa - Nice little rhyme there. Re-uniting the Horde is what its all about now. The Russian Khanate will be incorporated once again at some point.

coz1 - I didn't see the 40K coming at me and since my leader Kuchlug was in the army was quite worried about the outcome. So it was great to see the victory. Aye I'm not sure what was up with Malwa.

 

[Duke of Wellington]

Kuchlug : Part 6

The umpteenth war started by the Chagatai Khanate against Tibet is known to have begun rumours in the Horde that the ruler of Chagatai was a relative of Kuchlug suffering from the same obsessive compulsive disorder. Kuchlug however refused to answer any questions on the matter and went about a course of action that would see the issue soon forgotten.

In 1770 he declared the first war upon the rebels in Mesopotamia since their split with the Horde some thirty years previous.

The invasion forces on the eve of the war.​

The war began at a rapid pace. Soon the north of Mesopotamia was overrun. However the Mesopotamians showed their Mongol ancestry as they avoided key battles. Instead keeping their sizable armies in the south and fresh for later battles.

Sieges progress well, but little solid resistance is met​

So far throughout his reign Kuchlug had been spared much of the tedious revolts that were a common preoccupation of most Khans. However every Khan's time comes and the 1770's were to prove to be his decade. The troubles began when a proposed law of Kuchlug's that required all people to spin around four times upon leaving a house was leaked. The ridiculousness of the law, designed to force another of the khans quirks on all sparked a huge peasant uprising in 1772 that saw thousands revolt across the land. At this same time solid resistance was met in Mesopotamia and the army was stretched thinly. Thinly enough that in the Crimea the population lived under constant threat of raiding parties from Oman, the Mesopotamians ally.

Just a handful of the revolts that plagued Kuchlugs war efforts​

The situation only grew worse as the war dragged on. Stagnation meant a lack of results of any kind fed the discontent of a nation now at war almost constantly for close to a decade. It was taking its toll and revolts were frequent. Even the most battle hardened of troops grew weary with the same old day to day business of trample, slash and behead.

The only positive news came when the Russian Khanate at last allowed Horde troops to cross it's land and reach the Mesopotamian ally of Tataristan in the far north.

Tataristan is soon overrun

And forced to the peace table​

Finally in 1779 the Mesopotamian army was finished off and every last soldier finished off in brutality not seen for over a century in the Horde. Such was the frustration of so many in the army.

The last provinces are laid siege to​

Unfortunately peace would still take another three years to achieve as the fortresses of the Arabian cities proved difficult to take and then the Mesopotamians outright refused any peace deal before them. In the end the aging Kuchlug was forced to accept what he was offered in order to deal with the ever increasing war exhaustion of the nation.

Peace at last​

Despite the decent peace the decade took a huge toll upon Kuchlug. In early 1782 he became ill with pneumonia. It was to be his last illness as he gradually worsened until in may he slipped from life.

Kuchlug died happy as the fact that the Horde was now outstripping the Ottomans in military technology was brought to his attention near the end of his life​

Kuchlug had made huge gains for the Horde but the final years had tainted his reputation and perhaps deprived him of the chance to become only the second Khan of the Horde given the title great. As it was he was mourned, genuinely for once, by all. In accordance with his last wishes he was cremated and his ashes scattered in four corners of the Horde. Now it was time for his son Berke to carry on the family legacy.

 

[unmerged(58610)]

What happened to that war with Tibet? The rebels in Mesopotamia are well on their way to resuming their true allegiance.

Berke is not the best harbinger of good times ahead. Hope he does not live up to his name.

 

[unmerged(37350)]

The hat off to you DoW!

 

[unmerged(84806)]

This is some good read Duke! I like your screenshots, especially the gifs.

Now I have to take the time to read through the 120 other pages

 

[coz1]

Now how could any good member of the Horde grow tired of slashing, burning, raping and pillaging? I mean...it's their second nature...hell, it's their first too!

 

[unmerged(24320)]

Duke of Wellington: ...GhostWriter - Most definitely works for me. Since they're cores they're all nice and BB free to take too.

did not know that BB free bit ! ! awesome ! !

Duke of Wellington: ...In 1770 he declared the first war upon the rebels in Mesopotamia since their split with the Horde some thirty years previous.

not bad ! !

Duke of Wellington: ...Tataristan...forced to the peace table

splendid ! !

Duke of Wellington: ...In the end the aging Kuchlug was forced to accept what he was offered...

not a bad "offering"

magnificent update ! !

 

[unmerged(83854)]

pffuuuuu

2 weeks to read the whole AAR, taht is, only the updates. Impressive, delightful, in a word, grand.

Now I can suscribe to the thread !

 

[unmerged(84876)]

Another great update! I like the use of animated gifs to better illustrate your story. I'm hoping Berke's reign will start with more wars.

 

[Duke of Wellington]

Chief Ragusa - The war ended with a minor exchange of ducats, as usual. I hope you're wrong about Berke.

Lord Skane - Thanks.

Olav - Thanks Olav, nice to have you along.

coz1 - haha, true. Well perhaps that bit was really a bit too implausible.

GhostWriter - Since they are cores it's free to take them. Not a bad offering but I kept trying for Syria so that all my provinces were connected. Even though the total was around 80% and I had 100% they wouldn't accept. Nor even a deal whereby they kept Jordan or some other one in exchange for Syria.

Don Matito - Thats quite an effort. Thanks for doing so and i hope you stick around.

Hēphaistos - Making gifs is kind of fun. There's sure to be more wars as there is still land not yet belnoging to the Horde



All - I should have an update along here tonight or tomorrow. I'm looking forward to showing you the latest progress. In the meantime I can recommend you check out Lord Skane's uzbek AAR here to have a look at events from a different perspective.

 

[Duke of Wellington]

Berke II : Part 1

The latest Khan of the Golden Horde​

The new Khan, Kuchlug's son, was named after the original and first Khan of the Golden Horde who united the warring White and Blue Hordes. This led some to predict that this man would be the one to at last bring about the reunification of the various factions now separated for over forty years. His predominant military skills would also leave no doubt as to what his preferred method of achieving this would be.

So with the usual formalities of the coronation festival and beheading of political enemies completed Berke wasted no time in ordering his troops south to the border. The Blue Horde could not be given a chance to breath. Unlike his father, who had displayed throughout his life an obsession with certain numbers, Berke was free of such whims. All except the compulsion to crush his enemies swiftly that is.

The armies race south for fun, games and general mayhem such as one would usually associate with a Tatar invasion​

Keeping his force in three main armies. Berke dispatched one down the Caspian coast where they swiftly annihilated all opposition and captured the cities with as much ease as if the walls were manned with uzbeks. Meanwhile the mighty fortress of Bukhara was laid siege to and Berke himself oversaw the siege of Samarkand.

Bukhara and Samarkand are laid siege. Their mighty forts will be tough to crack.​

Constant attacks by the Blue Horde and her Indian allies would make no difference despite some heavy losses the side fuelled by good solid meals of Berker Khan (the food chain having once again risen to prominence helped by the free advertising of the current Khan's name) was victorious time and again. In Bukhara the army even managed to wipe out over thirty thousand of the Blue Horde's finest in a single battle. Such a momentous event prompted Berke to promote the general responsible. A wise move that built loyalty within the army.

Kurunda is rewarded for an excellent battle​

Soon after Bukhara fell dealing a severe blow as the wealthy city was second only to Samarkand within the Blue Horde. The capital though was proving exceptionally difficult to capture as its walls repelled all objects both hard (rocks, cannon balls) and soft (messengers reporting bad news)

Samarkand proves resistant to all attempts to break​

Berke even resorted to the ancient art of aerial spying in order to attempt to locate a weak spot in the walls.

Aerial spying is revived in the Horde​

The urgency of a peace settlement was growing by the day as all through the Horde the population grew weary with constant war.

War exhaustion saps all

Leading to some massive revolts

Only a minor peace can be achieved. Still the Blue Horde is defiant​

 

[coz1]

Ah, old favorites return under the new Khan. Feels like glory days once again - a rebirth of death and destruction. Now there's an oxymoron.

 

[Emperor_krk]

Berker Khan you say?
It seems that the Blue Horde are filthy rich, with all those manifactories (even one in a province named uzbek...). Great update as usual, Duke!

 

[unmerged(58610)]

Berke is going to need more men, more guns, more horses and the days of the Blue Horde are numbered. Damn franchise thieves!

 

[Duke of Wellington]

coz1 - Oxymoron? You obviously fallen out of the Horde mindset. Slip back in and you'll find its perfectly sensible.

Emperor_krk - Berker Khan, has been a staple of the Horde since way back. Thanks.

Chief Ragusa - Their days are numbered indeed. And its getting to be a low number.