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DavidMK

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Feb 17, 2012
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As some of you know, I've done an AAR by this title before. I took a break to focus on an EU4 AAR (Kurdish Rising) however subsequent patches have killed both. I had a lot of fun with this ARR's last iteration and so I've decided to reboot it. There may be some minor changes to Aeneas as new traits have been added however he's largely the same person with the same start. Indeed save some changes to his entourage and a slightly different date, this ARR will have an identical start.

So without further ado, I present Roman Restoration 2.0 - A WTWSMS AAR!
 
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Roman Restoration


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The Western Empire at the ascension of Emperor Aeneas.

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Emperor Aeneas at his accession.

Aeneas was only 14 when the war started, the Ostrogothic hoard overrunning the Roman garrisons of northern Italy. Taken under the wing of a legionary officer as an orphan (he'd been found in an alley over a dead body after defending some rotten bread he'd found in the trash) and given his name, he was a natural solder already despite his age. With the outbreak of war he'd tried to join the Imperial Army but had been refused by his foster father due to his age. He'd reluctantly accepted this after being promised a fight if Dalmatia itself was invaded. When Romulus Augustus was deposed and Caspian Gaul surrendered he was more outraged than most at being cheated out of a fight in addition to the Roman defeat.​

It was during his 15th year that he was finally allowed to join the Imperial Army and began his training. Quickly proving himself worthy of his name, he completed his training at the top of his class, was commissioned an officer and named 2nd to the City's garrison commander all before his 16th birthday. As unusual as this was, the sorry state of the Imperial Army and his skill saw his position go unchallenged.

It was on his 16th birthday that things changed. As he feasted with his fellow officers in celebration of his birth, word came that a pro-Ostrogothic coup had resulted in the deposition of Emperor Julius Nepos and that he was on his way to Dalmatia to establish a new seat of power after being granted safe passage out of Italy. Thrown into a fit of rage by the news, he descended into a raving but persuasive rant about the state of the 'Empire' and the Emperor's unfitness to rule. When the Emperor finally arrived at port, he found the Captain of the Guard, Decius, his 2nd, Aeneas, the City Guard, a large contingent of the local garrison and a mob of civilians clearly in favor of the military forces waiting for him at the docks. Unsure of what was happening, he sent his Captain of the Guard, Domitian, to investigate. For the following 20 minutes he and Aeneas engaged in a heated debate until finally Domitian, unswayed but unable to ignore the mob becoming unruly or the forces arrayed against him conceded the issue and returned to the Emperor. His advice was to surrender or sail to Constantinople forfeiting the crown in either case. Unwilling to abandon his homeland, he agreed to surrender provided he was allowed to retire in peace which Aeneas agreed to.

After marching to the Imperial Palace and setting his affairs in order, he summoned the Imperial Court and laid out a series of reforms he planned to implement. Mostly martial in nature, these proposed reforms sought to increase conscription, improve pay for soldiers and overhaul training. Where his reforms deviated from this theme was on the matter of faith. After giving a speech decrying the state of the Empire and blaming Christian authorities in Italy for conspiring with the Ostrogoths, he revealed himself to be a Hellenist and proclaimed it the state religion expressing hopes the Olympians would show the Empire favor after blaspheming for so long. While the murmurs were loud and widespread, none of the courtiers proved willing to challenge Aeneas openly and so the proclamation was settled and Aeneas concluded his reform announcements by taking the genus Martinus in honor of his patron god, Mars.

With his position as Emperor accepted by the Imperial Court and his reforms proposed, he set about finalizing his administration. Starting with a group oath to the Western Empire by the Imperial Court, he announced the creation of a Cabinet to advise him and deal with the more mundane tasks of governance. He created 5 ministries to oversee the administration of the Empire:
Ministry of State - Led by the Magister Officium, this ministry would be tasked with mediating disputes between the nobles of the Empire as well as accepting and sending ambassadors.
Ministry of War - Led by the Magister Militum, this ministry would be tasked with coordinating the armies and navies of the Empire and had the power (shared with the Emperor) to appoint command officers.
Ministry of Coinage and Trade - Led by the Questor, this ministry would be tasked with coining currency, combating counterfeiting and managing trade.
Ministry of Intelligence - Led by the Frumentarius, this ministry would be tasked with espionage and counter espionage.
Ministry of Faith - Led by the Diviner, this ministry would be the political arm of the Faith.
To these positions he named, on condition that they swear an oath of loyalty to him personally and acknowledge the divinity of the Olympians, the following to these positions:

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Domitian was called forward for he had, as Captain of the Guard to Emperor Julius, been part of every negotiation, every treaty and every war. When he failed to step forward a murmur spread across the throne room. The 'insult' was resolved in short order when courtiers close to Domitian got word to Aeneas that he had remained with Julius as his bodyguard and so was not present at court. Aeneas waved over an aid and gave him instructions to find Domitian and order him to Court to be confirmed in his position.

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Decius was called forward, an obvious choice for the position. He calmly walked to the throne, bowed and made his oaths. Upon rising, he was formally released from his position as Captain of the City Guard so as not to interfere with his new duties.

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Marcellus was called forward. As quartermaster of the City Guard, he was an obvious choice. He came to the throne almost at a run and gladly gave his oaths. He was also released from the City Guard in order to focus on his new duties.

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Decius, of no relation to the Magister Militum, was called forward. A respected officer with a keen eye for detail, he was a fine choice. He calmly walked up to the throne, gave his oaths matter of factly without bowing and then turned and walked away.

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Aeneas rose, informed the court that his choice for Diviner was known to be absent (left unsaid was that he was the Emperor's foster family's diviner), and walked briskly out of the throne room to reunite with his wife who was undoubtedly confused by the chaotic power shifts of the day. If there was any doubt as to Aeneas's goals, the decidedly martial makeup of the Cabinet put them to rest.

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Empress Marcella, beloved wife of Emperor Aeneas.
 
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Good luck. Should be interest. Always good to see a narrative and historical mix style.

Cheers!
 
It has nothing to do with my image hosting (I do use Imgur) but rather my screenshot folder. For some reason my screenshots stopped being sent to it.

Ah, I understand now. That's annoying. I found I had to clear my screenshot folder once it filled up to 9,999 images, because new images wouldn't save.
 
Ah, I understand now. That's annoying. I found I had to clear my screenshot folder once it filled up to 9,999 images, because new images wouldn't save.

That was my thinking as well. It didn't work.

I just did a validation in hopes there was something broken. I'm not willing to reinstall (the game itself works fine and that could take hours) so if that didn't work, this will, at least for now, have to be a text only AAR.

If anyone has any ideas, I'm open to suggestions.
 
That was my thinking as well. It didn't work.

I just did a validation in hopes there was something broken. I'm not willing to reinstall (the game itself works fine and that could take hours) so if that didn't work, this will, at least for now, have to be a text only AAR.

If anyone has any ideas, I'm open to suggestions.

Hmmm. You could use print screen or a screen capture tool to get key screenshots and Paint etc to create pictures. Inconvenient and not ideal, I know, but it is an option if the problem remains and you want to keep graphics in the AAR.

http://www.tomsguide.com/us/pictures-story/615-best-screenshot-tools.html
 
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Hmmm. You could use print screen or a screen capture tool to get key screenshots and Paint etc to create pictures. Inconvenient and not ideal, I know, but it is an option if the problem remains and you want to keep graphics in the AAR.

http://www.tomsguide.com/us/pictures-story/615-best-screenshot-tools.html

I'll be off to the gym soon so I haven't fired up the game yet. If validation didn't work, I'll try this.

Edit: Your suggestion worked, screenshots coming up.
 
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Courtly Life


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As Aeneas settled into his new role, he threw himself into his work. After weeks of overseeing military and bureaucratic overhauls he could finally feel the stress crushing his soul. Committed as he was to the Empire's revival, he chose to pursue a pastime with military applications, falconry.

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Aeneas, despite his endeavors, was not blind to the passions of others. This was particularly true of his wife who while proper at court he knew to be a passionate woman both in and out of bed. His addressing of her needs proved profitable when she announced her pregnancy. The Empire rejoiced at the news of a coming heir.

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Not all was well at court, of particular concern were 2 generals in the Imperial Army. 1 had developed a reputation with his men as lazy and incompetent (something that pained Aeneas as they were friends) while the other, commander of the Empire's last surviving legion, seemed to have a problem of timidness questioning his commitment to train with the men. Moving quickly, he called both men to private audiences and at each spoke plainly to his generals, stressing the need to toughen up before the men (and he) started questioning their leadership.

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Aeneas' interest in falconry proved productive and he picked up the sport quickly. Naming his falcon Mars, he spent much time on the march training Mars to scout for enemy positions using his best skirmishers to test the falcon. The men came to enjoy these training exercises as Mars ended most days with rabbit and fowl waiting for them at camp.

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At court Aeneas' endeavors required the accumulation of scrolls and books from what was left of the Empire so that he would enjoy reference material in his efforts to save the Empire. The resulting library quickly became the largest in Dalmatia and many at court wished to browse the collected works. An academic as much as a soldier and needing competent advisors, he was eager to see their wishes fulfilled.

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Aeneas' awareness of the needs of others did not go unnoticed and several courtiers were known to approach him with their troubles when matters of state didn't dominate his attention.

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During these down times, Aeneas would also seek resolutions to his own problems and would often be found in his library researching solutions for any number of personal and professional problems he was facing.

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Despite Aeneas' best efforts to seek consensus at court, some matters simply couldn't be resolved without conflict. Of particular annoyance was a general of questionable loyalty to the gods. Despite his best efforts to instil a proper respect for the Olympians, the man wouldn't budge. Even pointing his being named for a Pontifex Maximus seemed to leave no meaningful impression on the man. Disgusted but unable to dismiss such a competent general, he reluctantly let the matter drop.

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Such concerns were quickly forgotten when Marcella bore Aeneas the long anticipated heir, Crown Prince Aeneas.
 
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Now that my dynasty is safe and considering a lack of pretenders, I'll start attempting to expand back into Italy and beyond. As in my last attempt at this ARR, the format will become more dialogue heavy as my commanders and counselors become bigger players in the story.
 
Any chance that Aeneas will be carrying his father through a burning palace? :p
 
Roman Trifecta


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Aeneas looked up in shock as his meeting with a local merchant seeking aid for a trade mission to Egypt was interrupted by the door to his office violently opening, a large crack ringing out as 1 of the door hinges broke. Before he could call his guards the intruder, gasping for air, sidesteps the merchant and shoves a scroll in his face. "What..." He stops as he recognizes the intruder, Magister Officium Domitian.

"Apologies my Emperor, I'll see to the door's replacement at once. This couldn't wait, a large Ostrogothic host has invaded."

Aeneas turned to the merchant, "Out!" As the merchant scurried out, he turned back to Domitian, "Have you informed Decius yet?"

"No, I only just received word. I have sent a messenger to have him meet us, he should be along shortly."

Just then Magister Militum Decius appeared in the doorway, pausing with raised eyebrow to examine the door. "I was about to ask what was so urgent but..." Stepping past the broken door he walked up and bowed. Rising, he continued, "Something drastic must have happened to warrant your door getting kicked in."

Aeneas nodded toward Domitian.

Domitian taking his cue, "It seems that we're at war with the Ostrogoths."

"Italy wasn't enough for them? Greedy bastards."

"No, their brethren to the east."

"The last thing we need is for 2 enemies at this stage."

At this, Aeneas spoke, "Do not worry my friend, I have no intention of going forward with the liberation of Italy with the current threat looming."

"You assume the usurpers in Italy will oblige us."

"I do actually. It seems the rumors of rebellion are true. Having used the invaders to reestablish their authority, the Senate now betray their benefactors in hopes of establishing a new Republic. Not only will this keep them out of the current war, the Eastern Empire has landed in southern Italy. Even if the rebellion is crushed, they'll be unable to intervene in our own conflict.

"If we're lucky they'll still be distracted when this host is dealt with and it will be dealt with, allowing us to go forward with our invation with greater ease than expected."

"Yes my Emperor, it will be dealt with. As sorry as your predecessors left the army, I'd still take a shadow of a legion over these barbarian scum. It was poor leadership and treason, not our soldiers, that left us so reduced."

"Very good, Decius. Be sure Constantinus understands the importance of victory. The fate of the Empire depends on it."

"Yes my Emperor."

"You're both dismissed, I have much to attend to now."

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Aeneas charged forward on his mount as the infantry line started to falter. "Hold the line you bastards, give these barbarians a taste of cold Roman steel!" The line stabalized, riding closer to the front, ignoring the Ostrogothic javelins thrown his way in hopes of a lucky shot and continued to rally the men. "Shield wall! Steady now..." With his command whistle blowing, the infantry line began to march forward, pushing back the Ostrogothic soldiers that had pressed themselves against the line in hopes of a breakthrough. "Kill them, kill them all!"

Rallied by their Emperor, the 1st Dalmatian Legion, the Western Empire's last, smashed the Ostrogothic lines and took the field.

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Forced from the field by fatigue, Aeneas rested in his command tent as the latest battle raged just beyond the camp. Too tired to fight, he refused to not contribute to the battle and insisted his commanders bring him regular reports so that he could continue issuing orders. When the messenger came in, offered him a scroll and stiff salute and left, he thought it more of the same. Then he noted the Imperial Seal and quickly opened the scroll to see what news had come from the capital:

My beloved Emperor,

I write to you now in hopes that this message reaches you with haste. I have born you a beautiful son, a brother for Prince Aeneas. In your absence I have named him Saturninus, may Satern look kindly on him for this.
I know you are busy with matters of war and so I will not keep you any longer.

May Mars bring you victory,

Fortunata

Fortune indeed.

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Constantinus looked at Aeneas, smiling, "A good day. The barbarians never saw it coming."

Aeneas chuckled, "Indeed. Foolish to not keep sentries on the hills. We were able to match right up to their rear. I don't think they noticed us until the javelins started flying!"

Both men chuckled at that.

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"A great day," Aeneas shouted to his men as the Ostrogothic army began to route. The men cheered, not understanding his meaning. Gesturing for everyone to calm down, he continued, "Yes, yes. This day has seen a great victory. The good news does not end with this battle however for I have just received word that a beautiful baby daughter has been born to me, healthy and strong."

The renewed cheer was deafening and the Ostrogoths fled with greater haste at the terrifying sound.

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The Ostrogothic king surrendering to Emperor Aeneas with an offer of tribute.

***​

The Western Empire didn't waste it's victory. Taking advantage of the windfall the Ostrogothic invasion proved to be and the continued strife in central and southern Italy, the 1st Dalmatian Legion paused only to regroup before enacting it's interrupted liberation of Italy.

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Aeneas looked around him. Behind the dust billowed up as a battle hardened legion in high moral marched. To his left was the 1st Dalmatian Legion's commander, General Constantius. To his right was Magister Militum Decius, 2nd only to him in command of the Empire's forces and a trusted friend.

He smiled, "A fine day, cool and fresh."

Chuckling, Constantius replied, "For us maybe. I imagine the sorry bastards behind us in the heat and dust of the march would disagree."

"Ha! No doubt. They can at least take comfort in the knowledge that glory and wealth await them if victorious."

"What of the dead," asked Decius.

"I've made arrangements. Provided the men filed the proper paperwork, 20% of the loot taken by the army will be set aside and doled out to the designated benefactors based on rank and length of service. Do not worry, I've not forgotten the burdens of military life from my lofty position.

"To the matter at hand then. Constantius?"

"We'll start at the coast to secure our supply lines, the usurpers have no navy of note and so any seabased supply will be immune to any attempts to disrupt our supply lines.

"From there, we'll march east until the entire border is secure. Intelligence reports that the Eastern Empire has occupied most of Southern Italy. The treasonous Senate has begun to falter but it seems the Eastern Empire has offered more support than we originally understood and kept them in the fight."

Decius spoke up at this, "I understand keeping the usurpers occupied but surely they don't want to see a pretender Republic any more than we do."

Grumbling at the interruption, Constantius, "No, of course not. As I said though, the Senate is losing ground. The Eastern Empire had to step up support to keep them in the fight.

"My point for bring all this up is simple, I don't foresee any serious opposition. Once the border is secure, any hope of counter attack will be lost and we'll be free to push the usurpers out of Northern Italy. That being said, our fellow Romans could frustrate any further gains unless..."

Aeneas stopped him before he could finish, "I'm not spilling any Roman blood if I can help it.

"Decius?"

"As stated, our land based supply lines are subject to disruption. I've sent word to all garrison commanders to be on heightened alert and to provide extra escorts to our supply trains as we march north. There's no helping it once we're in enemy territory but we should mostly be fine until then. Even once we do get to Italy, the locals are Roman so the issue should still be manageable."

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Constantius rode up to Aeneas to make his report, "We're making good time and our scouts report no activity ahead. It would seem that the road to Ravenna is open to us."

"Never assume anything without reason. Still, I do tend to agree.

"Even still, we can't count on the Senate and Eastern Empire keeping the usurpers pinned down. We're as much a threat as the others and no less Roman. They may decide to risk their operations further south to avoid a Roman takeover of the north. If the reports are correct, the Eastern Empire has already overrun their positions in the south."

"Indeed. Still I remain cautiously optimistic. Even if they wanted to do as you say, I'm not sure they have much of an army left to pull it off."

"Perhaps, the fact that they were able to put the Senate in a bad spot until the Eastern Empire bailed them out seems to indicate otherwise."

"True, I did say cautiously optimistic."

"Indeed, dismissed."

Constantius offered a stiff salute before turning his mount and riding off to his other duties.

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"WHAT DID I TELL YOU?! We must hurry before the usurpers outflank us." Aeneas was livid, up until 5 minutes before the scouts had reported the way ahead clear, Constantius insisting the usurpers had nothing left. They were wrong, the usurper himself had led an army north and had nearly sliped past the Roman lines opening up a flanking attack. The scouts had discovered the army almost too late.

"Apologies my Emperor. Still this could be an opportunity. If we can kill or better still capture the usurper, the war will end without any further conflict."

"If the usurper was the only concern, I'd agree. As it stands, the Senate and Eastern Empire remain concerns and I doubt they'll simply hand over the lands they've occupied."

Just then Decius rode up, "The usurper's army is in sight."

"We have them men, from battle line!" At the Emperor's urging, the 1st Dalmatian Legion formed up,eager for battle.

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Aeneas waved forward Decius as he cleaned his sword at a local stream.

"I have terms."

"Read them."

Decius broke the seal and red the terms offered:

This war has cost us both much...

"Ha! He deludes himself. Go on, read the rest of his foolish words."

As I no longer have any hope of mustering a resistance and rival forces deny you any further gains, I offer the following terms of peace:

1. A tribute of 250 denarii.
2. A recognition of Roman authority under Emperor Aeneas of all lands north of the Revanna as far as the alps.


"Humph, he knows those blasted mountains prevented us from rooting out his supporters in the region. No matter, they'll be cut off and irrelevant now, please continue."

3. All prisoners of war taken from Roman ranks will be released as a show of good faith.
4. Empeore Aeneas will recognize King Odoacer's continued rulership over the Italian peninsula.


"It's fine by me if he wishes to continue calling himself king, the others will see an end to such nonsense.

"Tell the fool his terms are accepted."

***​

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The following months proved brutal for the Christians. Fueled by religious zeal and desire for vengeance for what was perceived as a Christian betrayal of Rome at the hands of Emperor Constantine, Emperor Aeneas enacted a purge of all Christian Romans and Ostrogothic nobles that had been installed by the Senate following Odoacer's conquest. Before the infidels had a chance to stop burning, added insult was offered to the Christians by replacing the Western Patriarch with a woman and installing a Hellenist at the Vatican, largely ceremonial appointments as the Eternal City remained under Senate control.

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To secure the new gains from outside attack the western most areas claimed by the Western Empire, unravaged by war, were given over to Magister Militum Decius to defend. He took the task seriously and immediately moved to push the Burgundians out of Cisalpine Gaul.

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While the fate of the rest of Italy remained undecided, Rome, both east and west, looked to be ascendant once more. The Western Empire was given 1 last prize for its victory with the birth of Prince Octavius to the Imperial couple.

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The Western Empire in 485.
 
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A solid start. Was that purge an event or a decision?

Decision.

I wouldn't consider it a solid start until I have Italy. 1 conquest means no coalitions to worry about and my vassal legion single handedly outclasses and out numbers most of my neighbors in a 1v1 fight assuming no mercs. That being said, I'm not the only Roman Empire and the east is stronger. A holy war or imperial reconquest and I'm done. With Italy added to what I already have, raising levies and affording mercs becomes a non issue and my position will be secured. What I'm waiting to see is if the Senate rebellion wins and sets up a Roman Italy. Some serious RPing issues with that as it both casts doubts on my legitimacy (becuase they'll actually have Rome) and blocks my expansion since I've established Aeneas as someone that doesn't want to fight Romans. If they win AND go Hellenist (as the Ostrogoths have done or I'd have beaten them to the punch with that invasion) I'll really have issues with an RP justification for war as I can't fall back on Aeneas zealotry. That being said, I don't think the CB that the ERE has actually allows for conquest despite how I'm RPing it and the rebellion only has a war score of 2%. Now that I'm not splitting Italy's forces, I expect that the rebellion will get crushed as long as the ERE doesn't march a doomstack north to join in.