Considering Asbjorn 'trained' that horse, it's almost certain that horse was beaten all the time while the beater kept reciting that speech.
Rome AARisen - a Byzantine AAR
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Reminds me of the death of Basil II under similarly mysterious circumstances with a similarly muddled inheritance situation. I expect to see Persian Nikephoros insisting on his inheritance rights, even if Gabriel doesn't.
Hah.
Assassin-horses strike again! But Nikephoros was certainly far more of a loss than Stanislav (who I was going to kill anyway story-wise). The Emperor of the United Empire, killed by a horse.
17 1/2 hands is enormously huge even for a greathorse (in all likelihood the greathorse was just under or around 16 hands, like a modern sporting horse). 17.5, that's about a big as the Massive Type of the Budyenniys (afaik largest common sporting horse) or bigger, and in fact bigger than most cold-bloods including Percherons.
The thing must have been a monster.
Romans+Mongols vs. the Mark. This is extremely difficult for me to say, as you understand, but Go Rohan!
Assassin-horses strike again! But Nikephoros was certainly far more of a loss than Stanislav (who I was going to kill anyway story-wise). The Emperor of the United Empire, killed by a horse.
17 1/2 hands is enormously huge even for a greathorse (in all likelihood the greathorse was just under or around 16 hands, like a modern sporting horse). 17.5, that's about a big as the Massive Type of the Budyenniys (afaik largest common sporting horse) or bigger, and in fact bigger than most cold-bloods including Percherons.
The thing must have been a monster.
Romans+Mongols vs. the Mark. This is extremely difficult for me to say, as you understand, but Go Rohan!
Those stupid Danes are at it again! I kind of hope Nikephoros trains that horse, if only because it's probably the largest horse alive, and it'd be a true triumph to train your would-be assassin as a mount.
Hmm, two of the coolest peoples in worldhistory vs once mighty vikings, now degenerated to the point being represented by Rohan?
End those pathetic Danish wannabe's. Please, I cry everytime I see a viking on horseback.
Ho-ly shit.
Albrecht's been so powerful for so long that it was easy to forget just how much of a virtuoso he is at governing. He's going to throw every last inch of his experience, every IOU he's accumulated, every agent and ally he has at his disposal into containing and controlling the fallout from the Emperor's death. And there's going to be a LOT of fallout: the Danes are going to invade, Stego's going to rebel, a madman and an 11-year-old are now the official emperors, Gabriel and other-Nikephoros might decide to invade from Persia after all, the military reforms have put a bunch of senior generals in positions of huge power that they can now use to their own advantage... But if I had to bet cash money, I'd bet it on Albrecht. He already has an ace up his sleeve with the Mongols (which Mongol sucessor state did he represent?), he has the Patriarch, and he's seen everything twice already. Unless Gabriel pulls something unexpected out of the back of his mind, Albrecht will probably win. Ar what cost, though, is an entire other question.
Albrecht's been so powerful for so long that it was easy to forget just how much of a virtuoso he is at governing. He's going to throw every last inch of his experience, every IOU he's accumulated, every agent and ally he has at his disposal into containing and controlling the fallout from the Emperor's death. And there's going to be a LOT of fallout: the Danes are going to invade, Stego's going to rebel, a madman and an 11-year-old are now the official emperors, Gabriel and other-Nikephoros might decide to invade from Persia after all, the military reforms have put a bunch of senior generals in positions of huge power that they can now use to their own advantage... But if I had to bet cash money, I'd bet it on Albrecht. He already has an ace up his sleeve with the Mongols (which Mongol sucessor state did he represent?), he has the Patriarch, and he's seen everything twice already. Unless Gabriel pulls something unexpected out of the back of his mind, Albrecht will probably win. Ar what cost, though, is an entire other question.
If it was Berke-Khan, it's the Golden/Blue Horde. The Caspian-Steppes one.
I cry every time seeing them polluting Russian steps with their Catholicism.
Nikephoros is one lucky SOB to survive a horse deciding to try and kill him. Still, it's a very shallow assassination plot that points right back to who tried it. Sortmark is going to be in for a well-deserved ass-kicking, if Albrecht can keep the Empire from falling into civil war...
Albrecht von Franken reminds me, not for the first time though, of a certain OTL-man called Armand-Jean du Plessis.
Yours,
AdL
Yours,
AdL
Jesus Christ! You better get to work on the next update fast, because this is getting really intense.
4th Dimension said:
Ha ha! Take that Orthodoxy!
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I'm sad. I sincerely thought Albrecht is thinking about getting help from Gabriel. Seeing the picture made me almost sure. And then it turned out he's not thinking about that.
Why can't the hitman horses attack Nikephoros the Pers instead? I want Gabriel to rule god damn it!
And considering the Civil War.... Being realistic, Albrecht will probably prevail.
----
Another funny thing is, what if Andronikos somehow met Gabriel and befriended him? Imagine the face of Albrecht if he found out the child he just made emperor is a friend of one of his biggest enemies.
Yeah it is. This is really intense, like Moses and the Children of Israel intense.
And thus dies Seyf-u-Allah, the Moorish Emperor. Now I want Gabriel back. And Nikephoros the Persian.
May I assume Andronikos is the disastrous 1300's emperor alluded to so long ago? An 11 year old and a religious nut cannot run an empire as massive as Romanion.
May I assume Andronikos is the disastrous 1300's emperor alluded to so long ago? An 11 year old and a religious nut cannot run an empire as massive as Romanion.
Of course he can... try
MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAI foresee the end of the Roman dominance. Gabriel the Lion of Persia will roar, and his cubs will reach for the Imperial throne... but Byzantium is a gigantic snake pit, where venomous beasts and man eating pythons lurk in the dark. Now that the light has been snuffed out, the snakes are going to slither out of their snake pit and they will find the lions mighty tasty. The Komnenos line will bleed...
RGB - A zoo, in some many sense! And yes, Kragesort likely wasn't really 17.5 hands tall... like any good servant trying to build goodwill for his master, Auden probably stretched the size a bit. Still, for a medieval horse, 16 hands was enormous--it'd be regarded as a steed fit for an emperor, regardless. And yes, it was Berke-Khan, but in this timeline, they’re known as the Blue Horde… they haven’t done well enough to be ‘Golden…’
Leviathan07 - Has the light been snuffed out? When we last left off, Nikephoros was still breathing. Grievously wounded, yes. Dead, not yet. The bigger question is will the next update be bedside, or at a funeral fit for an emperor? And regardless, if Nikephoros is down in body, as we saw with Manuel, its grounds for all sorts of people to come out and play...
Hannibal X - He didn't die in the update though!:rofl: At least not yet... as for Andronikos, read back more carefully, and you'll see the answer in the name of that emperor...
AlexanderPrimus - Except I don't see Albrecht parting the Marmara to allow the Byzantine state to flee a Persian horde...
Vesimir - Nope... Albrecht and Gabriel are now full archenemies. Even if Albrecht wanted help from Gabriel, he's boxed himself in a corner where he couldn't do that--years before to get the crown for Nikephoros, Albrecht threw the 'un-Christian' card at Gabriel and was instrumental in Gabriel's excommunication and subsequent deposing. I highly doubt Gabriel is going to forget all those events...
asd21593 - Actually, work is progressing quickly on the next update, mostly because at least one part of it I've had in my mind for months now...
Alan deLane - It's an apt comparison--now, will all Albrecht's work be the setup for Andronikos to become Louis XIV? Or will he be more of a Necker in the end result?
KlavoHunter - Nikky was helped by the fact there were so many people around to drag him away and distract the horse. And yes, it won't be long before Albrecht et al figure out who did it. Will they be in a position to react, however?
4th Dimension – By this point, Sortmark’s capital province had already converted to Catholic in CK. As for the horse, your guess is a safe bet.
Fulcrumvale – Yes, Albrecht’s seen it all, but you’re right, navigating this mess is going to require a virtuouso performance if he hasn’t planted some seeds for this potential disaster beforehand. The army reform has handed many generals a great deal of power, but look at who the generals are:
Megos Domestikos – owes his position to Albrecht and Nikephoros
Commander in Chief of the West – brother of Nikephoros, uncle to Andronikos
Commander in Chief of the East – Father of Andronikos’ playmate and best friend
Commander in Syria – Andronikos’ grandfather
Commander of the Reserve Army – Tatikios, friend of Andronikos’ father and mother
Commander of the Transpontus – Bataczes, same as Tatikios
The chief potential problem position looks to be the Italian commander, a Komnenid who isn’t related by blood or friendship to the ruling clique. In fact, he’s a descendant of Thomas I Komnenos by another branch, so he has an imperial claim of his own. The Egyptian Komnenids also are a problem, but their contingents are going to be as large as Italy’s. The Balkans have proximity to Konstantinopolis, but not the troops of Italy, and the Transistros has even fewer troops than the Balkan command. The Mauretanian command and African command are both distant, and lacking in troops.
So from the army perspective, a lot is going to hinge on the Italian commander, Konstantinos Komnenos, Prince of Toscana…
FlyingDutchie – Aww! What’s wrong with the Rohirrim-wannabes? If you’re looking for actual Vikings, the Swedes are likely the closest remaining group, and they built quite an empire at one point…
Kirsch27 – That would be a coup—and if that horse gets trained properly, it’d probably be one of the most feared chargers in the Western World…
c0d5579 – It’d probably be the other way around—Persian Nikephoros has so far proven the cautious one. Gabby would likely be haranguing his sons to go West. Alexandros is hot headed enough he might do it. With this kind of opportunity, maybe even the cautious Nikephoros would be tempted to move…
Enewald – The Danes for sure. Segeo has been hoodwinked—the horse was supposed to go to his rival, Alexandros, the CinC of the West. If he’s smart he’ll cut and run, but as we saw, he’s not especially the brightest political light bulb…
Tommy4ever – There’s been precedent. Demetrios and Nikolaios both shared the highest imperial position, as did Basil III and Manuel briefly, and Alexios I and Thomas I. Positions are likely to be the least of Byzantium’s worries—the Emperor is down, and the only able-bodied, able-minded replacement nearby is his 11 year old nephew…
loki1000 – I got the idea from hearing a computer-geek friend of mine complain about a Trojan he got on his rig… that made me think of Trojan horse, and then the idea wound up from there.
Leviathan07 - Has the light been snuffed out? When we last left off, Nikephoros was still breathing. Grievously wounded, yes. Dead, not yet. The bigger question is will the next update be bedside, or at a funeral fit for an emperor? And regardless, if Nikephoros is down in body, as we saw with Manuel, its grounds for all sorts of people to come out and play...
Hannibal X - He didn't die in the update though!:rofl: At least not yet... as for Andronikos, read back more carefully, and you'll see the answer in the name of that emperor...
AlexanderPrimus - Except I don't see Albrecht parting the Marmara to allow the Byzantine state to flee a Persian horde...
Vesimir - Nope... Albrecht and Gabriel are now full archenemies. Even if Albrecht wanted help from Gabriel, he's boxed himself in a corner where he couldn't do that--years before to get the crown for Nikephoros, Albrecht threw the 'un-Christian' card at Gabriel and was instrumental in Gabriel's excommunication and subsequent deposing. I highly doubt Gabriel is going to forget all those events...
asd21593 - Actually, work is progressing quickly on the next update, mostly because at least one part of it I've had in my mind for months now...
Alan deLane - It's an apt comparison--now, will all Albrecht's work be the setup for Andronikos to become Louis XIV? Or will he be more of a Necker in the end result?
KlavoHunter - Nikky was helped by the fact there were so many people around to drag him away and distract the horse. And yes, it won't be long before Albrecht et al figure out who did it. Will they be in a position to react, however?
4th Dimension – By this point, Sortmark’s capital province had already converted to Catholic in CK. As for the horse, your guess is a safe bet.
Fulcrumvale – Yes, Albrecht’s seen it all, but you’re right, navigating this mess is going to require a virtuouso performance if he hasn’t planted some seeds for this potential disaster beforehand. The army reform has handed many generals a great deal of power, but look at who the generals are:
Megos Domestikos – owes his position to Albrecht and Nikephoros
Commander in Chief of the West – brother of Nikephoros, uncle to Andronikos
Commander in Chief of the East – Father of Andronikos’ playmate and best friend
Commander in Syria – Andronikos’ grandfather
Commander of the Reserve Army – Tatikios, friend of Andronikos’ father and mother
Commander of the Transpontus – Bataczes, same as Tatikios
The chief potential problem position looks to be the Italian commander, a Komnenid who isn’t related by blood or friendship to the ruling clique. In fact, he’s a descendant of Thomas I Komnenos by another branch, so he has an imperial claim of his own. The Egyptian Komnenids also are a problem, but their contingents are going to be as large as Italy’s. The Balkans have proximity to Konstantinopolis, but not the troops of Italy, and the Transistros has even fewer troops than the Balkan command. The Mauretanian command and African command are both distant, and lacking in troops.
So from the army perspective, a lot is going to hinge on the Italian commander, Konstantinos Komnenos, Prince of Toscana…
FlyingDutchie – Aww! What’s wrong with the Rohirrim-wannabes?
If you’re looking for actual Vikings, the Swedes are likely the closest remaining group, and they built quite an empire at one point…Kirsch27 – That would be a coup—and if that horse gets trained properly, it’d probably be one of the most feared chargers in the Western World…
c0d5579 – It’d probably be the other way around—Persian Nikephoros has so far proven the cautious one. Gabby would likely be haranguing his sons to go West. Alexandros is hot headed enough he might do it. With this kind of opportunity, maybe even the cautious Nikephoros would be tempted to move…
Enewald – The Danes for sure. Segeo has been hoodwinked—the horse was supposed to go to his rival, Alexandros, the CinC of the West. If he’s smart he’ll cut and run, but as we saw, he’s not especially the brightest political light bulb…
Tommy4ever – There’s been precedent. Demetrios and Nikolaios both shared the highest imperial position, as did Basil III and Manuel briefly, and Alexios I and Thomas I. Positions are likely to be the least of Byzantium’s worries—the Emperor is down, and the only able-bodied, able-minded replacement nearby is his 11 year old nephew…
loki1000 – I got the idea from hearing a computer-geek friend of mine complain about a Trojan he got on his rig… that made me think of Trojan horse, and then the idea wound up from there.
Certainly trained - the groomsman's neurotic thoughts reveal that well enough, as it is noted that he was given strict instructions on the precise words to say when the precise situation emerged. I'd never heard of a horse being used as a weapon of assassination, but it's somewhat clever, although it seems dangerous to train a horse to do that kind of stuff. A well-foreshadowed moment, I think, with the kind of it's-about-to-happen, oh-it-didn't-happen, oh-oh-it's-happening tension that we're trained to expect by televison. I dig it. Albrecht is also a fine character - this is my introduction to him, on account of having been away from the forums for so long. I like his, er, frankness, but also think he is making a mistake in trusting that priest to transmit a message on which the fate of the empire hinges. Is that our lovely Derek Jacobi in the role? Magnificent, although a little soft to be a believably fearsome fellow, isn't it? Not that I care; Mr. Jacobi rocks. Nicely done. Quickly readable. Thanks for writing it.
No, but I see Thomas draining it, and the dams collapsing right as the army gets past, but not before Thomas makes a hilarious speech, and is crushed by the walls of his mighty dam, along with the Persian scourge.