The savage wars of peace
First up - the promised screenshot of Europe:
Short summary - France is big, Poland is huge (Lithuania isn't doing badly either, and Sweden has all Scandinavia not in the picture). The Ottos are stuck, Austria is growing, Switzerland has gained a province(!) and Venice has almost all Italy (they keep DOW-ing the Pope and making peace for ducats).
In the aftermath of the war, I reorganise my armies, put down sundry revolts and build yet more ships (even with Grand Fleet, I'm getting close to my naval force limit again). Also right after the war (natch) comes Land 23 and <drumroll> Indian War Elephants. OK, their stats aren't so hot, but they look cool, and that's the main thing. <The elephant vigorously agrees>
The war took five years; thanks to Narsingh Rai II's diplomatic skill and a Diplomat I managed to hire (named Cottawamego Pateho – I wonder where he came from?), my BB is actually under 5, so another war beckons in the near future. <The elephant pricks up its ears.>
We have been warned by those military titans of Mali, Swahili and Kanem Bornu <the elephant looks puzzled> and insulted by Kashmir(!), so there's no shortage of candidates. There's still some BB to burn off from last time so I sit around a bit and watch my merchants fail right and left for no very obvious reason.
You know you've got an big empire when you get a message about a provincial revolt and your first response is “Where's that?” <The elephant resignedly holds up the “Elephants remember” sign.> For the record, Moxos is in Bolivia.
Ming is at war with the Mamelukes again. Could get interesting. And GB and France are still stalemated.
By mid-1630, war exhaustion has worn off and I grit my teeth and declare our support for the Advaita movement. I don't like doing it, since the +1 global RR is going to hurt, but our supply of heathen provinces is running far ahead of the supply of missionaries – and there are a bunch of pagans to annex before 1650.
Weirdness update – a quick check of the situation in China reveals one province is currently controlled by ... <dramatic tension> ... the Sultanate of Yaroslavl. Who not only have no border with Ming or Mamelukes, but have no coastline either. I file it under D for “Don't know and don't want to know.”
Yaroslavl later makes peace, forcing Ming to release Arakan and Pegu. Which ends the war for the Mamelukes as well. On checking, I see Yaroslavl is leading a Personal Union with the Mamelukes. File D, please.
Our viceroys are corrupt, Japan is beating up Ming again, Castille is crusading against Tunisia, there are pirates in the Barrier Reef(!) But I don't care. I DOW Mali, bringing in Kanem Bornu, Swahili and irrelevantly Algiers and Tunisia for good measure, and Kongo as well.
The war is quick and painless (on our side, anyway). I take Jenne from Mali, three provinces and 300d from Kanem Bornu, 500d from Swahili and strip them to their capital. Kongo has no money left so I annex and send the missionary. All this and BB is still only just over 6.
West Africa now looks a bit neater.
As does East Africa - I may yet connect up all my African provinces.
In the aftermath, Songhai conquers Kanem Bornu (they DOWed right after I killed the Kanem Bornu army – smart AI) and we sight a meteor, which hurts much more than the war. And my navy is now over 150 ships and still only just keeping pace with the tariff requirements.
Kongo converts at once and then revolts immediately after. I'm too quick on the draw with the missionary in Zazzau and he gets killed in a revolt. There are pirates in St Helena. <The elephant is playing pirates in the bath.>
I take another Boundary Dispute with GB for a core in South America. And, after umpty-ump <elephant for “too many”> years, France and GB make white peace. GB retains its seized colonies, including Tierra del Fuego, the Falklands and Panama.
The missionaries do their stuff – conversions in Sierra Leone, Damagaram, Zazzau. We strike gold in Chichas. Poland is at war with Austria and most of the surviving HRE minors, and not doing too well. Trade 22 reached, go for Naval 23 and Early Frigate. I'm sliding behind in tech – I'm 22 in everything but Land (23); France is 27 across the board.
Another boundary dispute with GB in South America. Sooner or later I'm going to have to do something about GB, but for the moment I'll leave it there.
.png){kind=avatar}
