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Not the real Bourbons. :p

By that I assume you mean the Capetian Bourbon's whom will start out in the 14th century? I did consider playing as them, but in the end figured that a game lasting only a few decades wouldn't be very interesting. Hence, choice of the earlier Bourbons.

Who by the way are just as "real" Bourbons as the Capetians... in fact they are older and hence one could make the argument they are the "real" Bourbons. ;)
 
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1st of January, 1072 AD. Reign of Comte Archambaud of Bourbon.
With a new year here and the snows having melted, it is time now for something new... until now I've allowed myself to remain placid and within our lands, only playing at the distant inheritance games. Right now however it is a time for action. My agent Betrand has returned from La Marche with a most certainly authentic document which states that in addition to Bourbon, King Robert I of France also ennobled my distant ancestor Aymar the province of La Marche which was later on stolen from our family. Whilst I know the whole document to be a load of horse droppings, it is authentic enough looking and allows us to move on the offensive for once. Never before have Bourbon levies marched under the three fleur-de-lis of Bourbon. This time they are not being sent to some distant land to perish in foreign lands... this time they fight for their Counts.

I've assigned my sons, Archambaud and Aymon to ride with my kinsman Bernand to battle. I expect with the assistance of my wives levies from Auvergne we will have no trouble defeating the de La Marche family in detail. How wrong I was...

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The initial battle is a defeat. I receive word that the Marcher lord had ambushed my sons on a river crossing and defeated them before my wives levies could move into assist. Whilst only a part of the host survived, it was enough to recoup in Auvergne and after merging their hosts, the Bourbons and Auvergnian troops attacked once more. However another near defeat ensued, until I had enough and spent what little money we had left hiring the Company of the Hat and sending them to fight the battle alongside my sons. Finally they managed to break through the La Marche battle lines, destroy the host and siege the castle. However in the aftermath it became apparent that what little money we had left would not be enough to pay for further services and I was forced to disband the mercenaries before Turenne castle could be captured. Now left with only some 200 men, my sons are sieging Turenne with little hope of ever capturing the formidable fort.

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Now I am forced to turn to... different means of gaining victory. Perhaps my Steward, the quite rich Bishop Betrand can help me with this issue?
 
I honestly have no idea how I lost that battle... twice. :( Now I have to figure out a way to raise enough money to get mercs to siege La Marche. Already have taken Jew loan so that's a no go...
 
the cause seems lost :( but a true Bourbon never surrenders :p river crossing is a disastrous every time ;)
 
By that I assume you mean the Capetian Bourbon's whom will start out in the 14th century? I did consider playing as them, but in the end figured that a game lasting only a few decades wouldn't be very interesting. Hence, choice of the earlier Bourbons.

Who by the way are just as "real" Bourbons as the Capetians... in fact they are older and hence one could make the argument they are the "real" Bourbons. ;)

Yeah, if the scenario that lead to the formation of the called "real" Bourbons was replicated in CK2, they would still be called the Capets, though I've got to say such a scenario wouldn't be bad to have in something like CK3 where landed branches of the dynasty have the option to create an actual cadet house.

Anyway, I really love the story so far, I really liked the part where Archambaud expressed remorse at killing, definitely added a lot to his character since most AAR's seem to feature the usual ambitious/ruthless landlord who would stoop to any level to get what they want. Consider me a new fan. :)
 
Yeah, if the scenario that lead to the formation of the called "real" Bourbons was replicated in CK2, they would still be called the Capets, though I've got to say such a scenario wouldn't be bad to have in something like CK3 where landed branches of the dynasty have the option to create an actual cadet house.

Anyway, I really love the story so far, I really liked the part where Archambaud expressed remorse at killing, definitely added a lot to his character since most AAR's seem to feature the usual ambitious/ruthless landlord who would stoop to any level to get what they want. Consider me a new fan. :)

Yeah, ironically for a dynasty based game I feel that CK2 actually lacks the most in its dynasty management. Landed rulers don't really seem to think "dynastically", but will amass as much land and titles as they can and then promptly collapse, lose all their lands and that's the end of that dynasty. Plus things like Cadet branches, appanages and such are either represented in the lightest way possible... if at all. You already noted the Cadet branch thing which I noted myself. Sometimes I actually go out of my way just to have a few bastards so I can go through the extremely annoying procedure of acknowledging them, and then landing them to make them a new "cadet" branch.

And thank you. :) I'm trying to come up with an interesting character based story as based on character traits. Whilst Archambaud's traits make him a nice guy, I felt that to get the story going I had to have him leap a bit at the chance of marrying Princess Emma which thrust him into the situation he finds himself.

Glad to have you along for the ride!
 
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1st of January, 1073 AD. Reign of Comte Archambaud of Bourbon.
on the 24th of March Agnes de Barcelona and Aymon get married. Sadly neither one of them is in the same place, as Aymon is busy besieging Turenne and Agnes has only just left Barcelona. She is currently on her way to Moulins and we can hope that in the coming months the union between the Houses of Barcelona and Bourbon will be fruitful indeed. She's an impressive woman this Agnes. Smart, ambitious and capable I hope she will be an asset to my family in the future and will whip up some spirit into Aymon. de Barcelona family however has always been fruitful so I don't see any risk of the union not producing offspring.

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As the siege continues on Turenne with little effect, I find myself needing more and more troops...and money. Though I've requested Bishop Bertrands assistance on the matter, the man continues avoiding me and what little results he shows are always mired in the commons starting small scale revolts. This is not the kind of man I want running the church in Bourbon. Having decided to get rid of him, I order him arrested and trumped up charges (or not so trumped up if you ask the commoners...) and having him brought before me, banish him from the Bourbon realm, seizing all of his possessions... including the wealthy bishoriphic of Souvigny. This action allows me to raise another 400 men and send them to the front, finally restarting the siege of Turenne effectively. The strength only increases when Count Hugues... also known as the "Devil of Lusignan" offers his assistance and joins another four hundred or so men to the siege. Whilst the siege may still take months or even years, at least it is progressing and I hope I can ignore it from now on.

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In other news, with the shaming of Bertrand, my son Pierre needs a new mentor and I set my sights on the best one of them all: Prince-Bishop Gervais of Reims. He agrees to mentor my son easily enough and I expect great things from him in the future. Perhaps he will join the Church and even be allowed to don the Red? However it is not my son that has my attention right now... my son Archambaud and his young wife Princess Emma have done their duty and continued the sacred Bourbon and Capetian lines by giving me a grandson. Though my son suggests we name him Archambaud in honour of his... extended lineage and myself, I suggest he goes with something a bit more royal. In the end after prolonged discussion he is named Charles, after Charles the Great.

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With the year coming to an end I can only look to the future. Our men are sieging La Marche, and Bertrand has already offered another claim on Limousin... though I had to turn it down due to the bribes involved, but I expect once we have La Marche under our control our fortunes will rise steadily. Please Lord, though I have no right to request anything of you, allow me to see my efforts... allow my family to rise to prominence in my life time and give my grandson long life and happiness. That is all I ask.
 
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1st of January, 1074 AD. Reign of Comte Archambaud of Bourbon.
The past year has indeed been... full of events. The War for the English crown has ended, the Bretons have invaded and the lands of House Bourbon have multiplied. An eventful year indeed..

Whilst our forces besieged Turenne, the Breton King Konan II emboldened by the success of the Flemish and the Germans decided it was an optimal time to invade the Kingdom of France and press his claim on the Duchy of Normandy. He managed to muster a host of some four thousand mercenaries, levies and professional men at arms at Nantes where he was met in battle by the Kings assembled host of five thousand led by Count Raoul of Amiens and a lowborn Knight called Bernard. Whilst Konan II led the troops himself, and was a renown orator and a great king all things considered, he failed to match the Frankish fury with his own and his army was beaten in piece meal by Count Raoul whom apparently broke through the Breton lines with his heavy cavalry. The war since then has been little more than one sided Sieges as King Philippe hopes to hold as much territory as he can before he makes peace with the Bretons.

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As mentioned prior, in March the Kings of England and Norway as well as the Duke of Normandy assembled at Wessex where a peace was forged. The House of Godwin was allowed to remain on the throne, but neither of the King of Norway nor duke William saw fit to relinquish their claim. The death of King Harold has seen his son, Godwine crowned as the King of England and it now remains to be seen how well the young king can reign over such a vast territory. Like King Philippe (his brother in law) he seems like a nice enough lad with a tendency for counting coppers rather than leading men in war.

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To my surprise in November Duke Guilhém assembled all of his vassals, including myself at Agen where the Prince-Bishop Guilhém held a fiery speech on the evilness of Jews and their money loaning ways. Whilst I bear no personal enmity with the Jewish peoples, I must admit I have fallen to the same trap as the Duke himself clearly has and loaned money from them. Seeing a chance to rid myself of said misery I rallied support for the Dukes cause and by the end of the day a Pogrom had been orchestrated by Duke Guilhém, forcing all Jews in Aquitaine to leave their worldly possessions and part from these lands. Whilst seeing the small knot of people leaving Moulins made me feel a little guilty, at least I managed to ensure that my own family would not have to worry about moneylenders coming after us anytime soon.

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Finally on the 21st of December the men of Bourbon batter down the La Marchian defenses and capture both Turenne and the largest city in the provinces. My sons prove themselves to be honourable knights, by allowing the former Count to flee to Savona... though I had requested they bring him before me in chains. Whilst in public I fume and condemn them for their insolence and disobedience, I could truthfully not be more proud. They are not like me, they are Knights... and Knights will always hold sway over the hearts of others. I know that when my days are over my sons will carry on the family legacy and restore to it, it's former shine.
 
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1st of January, 1075 AD. Reign of Comte Archambaud of Bourbon and La Marche.
I am kept awake at night by the thought of the deeds I have committed in the past ten years. I have conspired against Dukes and Kings. Murdered my kinsmen and lied without fail. So far none can see the elusive hand that I wield within the realm, but I still feel the guilt of those deeds. Only a fool would not...for I have spat in the face of our Savior with these deeds and will pay for them...eventually. But clearly the Lord means to keep me on this earth despite my advancing years, and hence my work continues. Someone must lay the foundations for Bourbon greatness and that someone must be me; for I would not wish this burden upon my worst enemy.

I finally move against my own family... namely my second son Aymon. He has of late distinguished himself at the siege of La Marche and is hailed as a hero. He is popular with the men and confidently expects either myself, or his brother whom is his true friend, to grant La Marche to him as an appanage. When I called him to my office he arrived with such satisfaction on his face I felt crushing despair as I explained the realities of the situation to him. His older brother was going to inherit it all, and no... not by his request, but by my decision. His shock and the look of betrayal on his face was evident, and he spluttered attempting to comprehend what was happening and how to counter it. He may not be the smartest lad, but he is a good one and eventually subsidies... for now. The relationship between him and his brother will never be the same though.

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Instead of gavelkind, I have organized for the Count of Bourbon and La Marche to be picked by elective with the mayors, bishops and such holding a vote. My son Archambaud is clearly the favourite and with some light bribes I ensure that he will inherit both provinces, in addition to Auvergne which he will receive upon his mothers death. With a few sheets of parchment and a quill I make him the most powerful Count in all of France, with a domain closer to that of a Duke than one of his low position. Whilst no man is immune to the temptations of such power, he still attempts to convince me to give his brother La Marche. I am touched, but remain frosty... making the divide between us ever the deeper. If there is one thing I will always regret of my last years is that I will never have the chance to tell my sons how proud I am of them, how much I love them and how I believe they will always do the right thing in the end.

I thought myself past such thoughts, but as the months grew on I felt more and more guilty... I had to get away. I had to at least try and cleanse my sins. Hence I prepared for a pilgrimage to Rome. I had originally planned on Jerusalem, or Santiago, but those places are far away and in dangerously contested regions. Hence I decided that I could at least go see the Tomb of the Apostles. And hence on the 10th of July I set out for Italy.

On the way I experience very little... in fact the entire trip is a simple bland journey on foot to Rome, where I was at first struck by the beauty and grace of the city... the sights, the smells and the multitudes of languages I've never heard of. However as I reach the tomb itself and expect a divine revelation I find... nothing.

My connection to God has never been the strongest and unlike my sons I cannot claim religious fervor as one of my strong suits. However even with my past actions I've always attempted to remain true to the father above, but... as I reach one of the holiest places in Christendom, I feel... nothing. I do not feel his presence. The Tomb is merely a stone building, much the same as the one I live in. The Cardinals I see are simply men in red and my brief contact with the Pope, our Holy Father reveals him to be simply an overweight man with a harem all of his own.

Is this what Knights fight and die for in Iberia?

My entire way back I ask myself these questions... what, how, when and of course... why? If God is indeed real, why is there so much suffering in the world? Would a truly good god allow people such as myself to murder infants and throw out his chosen people? Does God even exist?

I swallow those thoughts and do my best to keep them to myself as I return home to Moulins. I have barely cleaned the dust of the road from myself when an envoy arrives from Paris... Duke William of Normandy has claimed the throne of France and is invading the northern parts of the Kingdom!

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Even I, with all my insider knowledge am taken aback. I had expected Duke Robert of Burgundy to be the first one to claim the title, but he has clearly been outdone in speed at least. The Norman, a veteran warrior and one of the brightest minds in Christendom has clearly decided that it is a good a time as any to claim the throne of France, and with at least three thousand men at his back I am uncertain if the King has the strength to defeat him. Already the garrison a thousand strong at EU has fallen to Richard de Conteville and the Dukes are refusing to grant the King access to their levies.

Dark times have come, and the Bourbons are not ready. I swallow and begin to plan my next move.
 
What's wrong with Archambaud I wonder, it's got quite a character associated to it, not enough of them nowadays. ;)

Also seems like poor Archambaud IV, ( the guy you're playing as) is suffering from severe delusions and muses about some former glory that his ancestors have had. God have mercy.

Seriously though, seems like William de Normandie's desperate for a kingdom, having failed in England and now has his eyes on France. While I don't expect the norman to have many allies in the nobility thoses event spawn-troops who survived his ill-fated invasion to be more than enough of a threat against the already fractured state.
 
Yeah, Archambaud is a manly enough name, but I personally want to avoid having every first born son being called as such... especially since even now de Bourbon dynasty male children always get either Archambaud, Aymar or Aymon as recommended names. Figure it's time to spice up the names a little! ;)

Yeah, Archambaud IV (if we want to go with regnal count) is embracing the idea that you can fabricate claims and hence back story for your dynasty! Makes for fun times in Europe... And God will definitely not have mercy now that he got the cynical trait from his pilgrimage!

Yeah, I was a bit taken aback by Willy's readiness to go from one war to another even before he has full levies replenished. So far he hasn't invited anyone to the war, and doesn't look to be having many allies as you said... Pierre de Bourbon was to marry his youngest daughter Agathe, but guessing that after this mess he will either bring another princess to the family or break betrothal to the wicked harpy that no longer has any useful lands or allies! And yeah... I am a bit afraid on how many troops will spawn this time. Hopefully not too many since so long as the weakened Capets are in power it's easy to "inherit" the throne, but the moment a dynasty with strong basis like de Bourgogne (or god forbid the de Poitou's...) come to the throne the jig is up.
 
Loving this diary-like style and the excellent characterisation. Consider this subbed! ;)
 
I'm really loving this AAR, I'm still somewhat new to the game and AAR's like these are what convinced to get my hands on CK2 :). I hope Archambaud and his descendants have long and fruitful reigns! :)
 
I'm really loving this AAR, I'm still somewhat new to the game and AAR's like these are what convinced to get my hands on CK2 :). I hope Archambaud and his descendants have long and fruitful reigns! :)

Glad to hear that you're liking this and that it has had a positive effect on this games popularity. :) Welcome to the Ck2 community, we are made greater by your presence!
 
By that I assume you mean the Capetian Bourbon's whom will start out in the 14th century? I did consider playing as them, but in the end figured that a game lasting only a few decades wouldn't be very interesting. Hence, choice of the earlier Bourbons.

Who by the way are just as "real" Bourbons as the Capetians... in fact they are older and hence one could make the argument they are the "real" Bourbons. ;)

Lol, nope.