"The Guardian of the Eurasian steppe" - A Bulgarian Empire AAR

[sirrichard]

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Welcome to my first AAR! I have decided to play Bulgaria, AKA The 1st Bulgarian Empire for my first AAR! The Bulgarian Empire has a lot of possibilities for conquest and fun narrative, as it is one of the few countries at the Old Gods start that start at war.

Bulgaria is a modest challenge for a CK2 player, because the Magyars whom you start at war with surpasses your levy by thousands of troops. I decided to start documenting this AAR after I won the 1st Magyar invasion of Bulgaria, which then followed by a long civil war.

The format of this AAR will be Gameplay pictures and a loose narrative going with them.

The AAR begins with the victor of the civil war on the throne, the Balgarsko ruler; Emperor Iakov the 1st, "The Wicked", of the Bulgarian Empire. Iakov is a son of Emperor Boris, whom in my timeline died in a battle against the Magyars. We start in a very rough spot, -52 prestige, -357 piety, less than a thousand levy, and a realm that hates us and wish to start a new civil war as soon as possible. If you haven't played as the Bulgarians before, you should know that in the start you play as Boris the 1st.

Good ol' Boris has stupidly granted all his sons a duchy each, which on succession is bound to cause trouble if you survive the invading scourge. the Bulgarian Empire at the start also own the Pannonian Plains (Modern Hungary), which is filled with Avars following Tengriism, whom are already disgruntled for the Bulgarians having conquered them just years prior ( I would assume ).

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The House rules and ambitions for this AAR are:

• No POWERGAMING. This is when you play a realm, and have gotten to a size where you can begin swallowing other realms with a distinctive culture whole without problem. I instead have goals of conquest that I have decided I wish to rule over, and once those goals are done, I will slow down a bit and instead "liberate" countries to glorious Orthodox Christianity.
  
  
  
• No CHEATING (this includes save scumming). Albeit obvious, some people still want written clarification on this, as it makes most AAR's boring when the writer clearly cheats to win. I think its more fun to see a country fall, than to see a guy cheating.
  
  
  
• Also; This is an AAR about the Empire of Bulgaria, not the Balgarsko dynasty. This means if the emperor falls and another family rises to take the throne, I will play as that family. However, I am not allowed to make this into an advantage, which means I will avoid losing the throne at all costs to another family.
  
  
  
• ENGLISH IS MY SECOND LANGUAGE, so beware for crappy spelling, misplaced punctuations and grammar which will make you want to tear your hair out of your head , please, if there is some crazy combination of words I formed which makes no sense, tell me, I want to be good as well!
  

I am going to play this CK2 game (883 - 1444) then continue on in EU4 (1444 to end date of the game) and then, if by then I don't feel very exhausted, I might try my hand at converting the game manually over to Vic2. If I am too lazy though, I will write up a "History of the Empire after EU4" instead, if I don't lose prior to that.

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883 - 1444


Chapter 1: The Lion wakes Again
Chapter 2: The Emperor of the Steppes
Chapter 3: The Neverending Hunt​

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[tnick0225]

Looks like an interesting premise....looking forward to seeing the first chapter!

 

[sirrichard]

Chapter 1: The Lion Awakes Again​

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The Bulgarian Empire in 883 was at it's roughest time yet, with the peasants, clergy and nobles all collectively despising the emperor, Iakov the 1st. Years prior, the Bulgarian Empire had managed, though with the loss of the beloved Boris the 1st, to repent the Magyars(aka the Hungarians) and sent them fleeing from their settlements in Bulgaria.

This victory made the otherwise zealous and stubborn Avar Tengriists to see the might of the god of Christianity. However the prestige of this victory were not to last long as the sons of Boris I all wanted the throne of the empire for themselves. Different dukes, counts, and lesser nobles flocked behind different brothers' banners, as the Bulgarian Empire plunged into deep civil war.

The sides of the nobles changed hands frequently, and when finally, 5 years later, the realm came out in one piece, and the nobles could agree that Iakov the 1st had shown true valor and diligence through combat, the realm settled for peace... for now

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This is our Emperor, Emperor Iakov the "Wicked" of Bulgaria. He is a diligent, ambitious patient man, with a small taint of his love for food. It is commonly known he was a pilgrim (since he used it for all the prestige it was worth during the civil wars) but his enemies claim it was only to drink, eat, and partake in questionable acts with women in Constantinople.

To the North-East lays Bulgaria's arch nemesis, the Magyars. Although the throne of Bulgaria switched hands 3 times after the invasion of the Magyars, the khan of the Magyars still remains the same since the invasion; "Almos the "Just" of the Magyar Khanate" After the failed invasion of Bulgaria, they compensated the loss by subjugating smaller nations to the east.

In the South lays the mighty Eastern Roman Empire, self proclaimed Roman Empire, and the historian coined Byzantine Empire. The Romans had been the Bulgarians oldest foe, they had fought countless wars against them to be where they are today, it is only recently now that the Bulgarians converted to Christianity that relations with the Romans have been, tolerable, at best. The current emperor is Basileios of house Makedon, a relatively young emperor with much promise.

What a mess.

The ruler of Tyrnovo was a disgruntled peasant whom used his skills in diplomacy to command a flock of farmers to seize independence during the great civil war of Bulgaria. Many whom fled the Bulgarian Empire in the face of constant revolt and destruction settled here when they achieved independence, and still reside there in fear of another civil war breaking out.

As a result of this, to Iakov's embarrassment, made his pathetic levy smaller than the one of a peasant leader in Tyrnovo, and his band of farmers. Truly the "Empire" of Bulgaria had fallen greatly since the Magyar invasion of Bulgaria.

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Overview over House Balgarsko, and their sigil, a dancing lion.

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Our "meh" court

Succession laws of the Bulgarian Empire are elective due one of the many wars in the Civil War period demanding Elective Monarchy.

Our terrible levy.

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When peace settled in the Bulgarian Empire, so did it for our Roman allies. In their war that we loosely participated in, The Romans managed miraculously to conquer the short lived independent Merchant Republic of Venice.

To celebrate this victory, Iakov takes a romantic trip to Venice and makes sweet love to his wife.

In church, Iakov is met with many troubling questions to his psyche. Who is god? Does he have a plan for us all? The priest told Iakov that God has a plan for everyone, be it bad or good. The ceremony touches Iakovs interest a little bit, but fails to make a lasting impact.

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Late afternoon on the 10th of September, Iakov issues a warning to the peasant occupier of Tyrovo to give up the county or be faced with an invasion from the mighty Bulgarian Empire. When no response came back, Iakov decided to declare war, to make good on his promise.

The battle for Nikopolis was the trivial battle that decided the outcome of the war. Tyrnovo had foolishly attacked the Bulgarians on their own territory, failing to notice the army in Severin that reinforced the army in Nikopolis on their arrival.

The armies of the Bulgarians begun sieging the makeshift walls of Tyrnovo, but before long the peasant leader sued for peace, relinquishing all control over Tyrnovo, and issuing a formal "apology" to the people of Bulgaria.

But with the levy that Iakov had halvened in the war, the duke of Vidin, and Iakov's youngest brother's son, saw an opportunity to declare a new civil war to change the succession laws in the Bulgarian Empire, (Which no doubt would favor him over Iakov).

Iakov, refusing to surrender to civil war demands anymore took up the sword, much to the Duke of Vidin's surprise and fear.

In the middle of the war, after refusing the call for aid, the Byzantine envoy comes back and Iakov is overjoyed, however It turns out the squire only wanted his opinion about their crown laws. The squire went back home to Constantinople with the contract stuffed into his mouth and one eye less than he arrived with.

However, the Bulgarians prove that they do not need any help as they swiftly defeat the revolt, formally ending the time of Civil War for the Bulgarians, and entering into the Age of Recovery. The Lion awakes, and he will awaken the world with his roar.
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[mike the knight]

Iakov seems to be our salvation! Let the lion wakes up! Though Iam a little impressed about how you repelled the Magyars.......Maybe a little chronicle could be nice

 

[sirrichard]

Looks like an interesting premise....looking forward to seeing the first chapter!

Hope it will live up to your expectations.

Iakov seems to be our salvation! Let the lion wakes up! Though Iam a little impressed about how you repelled the Magyars.......Maybe a little chronicle could be nice

Managed to do it on my 2nd attempt. My main strategy was to have the AI rush siege till I would have more troops than them if I borrowed gold and hired mercs. I also made use of the rivers and bumpy terrain in the mountains.


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You can expect an update today.

 

[sirrichard]

Chapter 2: The Emperor of the Steppe​

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Late in September the Byzantines call for aid against the Muslims in the east to take back Aleppo for the empire. Iakov, always loyal and wanting to keep their alliance which protect their flank to the south accepts.

The war is quickly won by the Romans with help from Bulgarian generals and tacticians on their side.
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In late November the following year his Spymaster comes with a proposition regarding their plot to kill the Duke of Vidin. However there is a price to pay, and in a hushed tone Iakov accepts and grants the Spymaster the funds he need.

Zdeslav had managed to "escape" from his dungeon cell with the "help" from a cloaked man, when he "tragically slipped" down the stairs, meeting an unsavory death as the guards heard the commotion and killed him at the spot.

But Iakov pay no mind to the news, as he is more busy with making a grand feast for all his vassals to celebrate the prosperity of the Bulgarian Empire.

The feast is a great success as the vassals talk about it all the way back to their castles and cities.​

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A reknown Tengri avar shaman leading an army of disgruntled peasants and other avars is sighted in the Empire and Iakov orders his guard to find these men and kill them.
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The men are found and swiftly killed, and the shaman is captured and brought back to Tyrnovo, in chains.​

Iakov's son and heir Ljubomir comes of age in December and marriage arrangements are planned. He received an education from a master of mint but the only lasting impact is his love for spending gold.

Meanwhile in the Byzantine Empire the emperor passes reforms to centralize power around the crown instead of being evenly distributed to his vassals, much to the discontent of his vassals.

The Bulgarians had hungrily been looking to strike the Magyars at their worst to eradicate the fear of another invasion since the first invasion. The time now seemed ripe to take Galich from the Magyars, and with the Romans finally out of trouble they would surely come to the Bulgarians aid.

This proves to be right, as the Roman Emperor gladly accepts the call to keep his realm from falling apart in the face of the unpopular reforms.

The Roman regiments storm the sparsely defended Magyar camps unchallenged, and before Bulgarians can arrive they have already looted most of the Magyar camps.

With their armies depleted and their camps destroyed the Magyar Khan is quick to surrender to Iakov's demands, surrendering the entire de jure duchy of Galich.​

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Drunk on victory, Iakov looks towards future conquests and plans on conquest of the cradle of Croatian culture and civilization, Chrobatia.

Only one of Iakov's invitations going to all of the sons of the Chrobatian leader returns, a disgruntled young man whom was disqualified from succession to the Chrobatian throne by his father. He accepts to join Iakov's court if Iakov takes Chrobatia for him and in turn he becomes Iakov's vassal. War is declared after the arrangements.

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The Chrobatian king fight bravely, going as far as to hire mercenaries by the thousands to keep his throne.

But its only a matter of time before their money dries out and they sues for peace to Iakov's terms.

In the last decade Bulgaria has grown to a tremendous size, thwarting any outside snarky predictions of the fall of the Bulgarian Empire. They have repelled, and continuously subjugated a steppe nomadic people, and because of this impressive feat Iakov is nicknamed "Emperor of the Steppes".
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[mike the knight]

Great achievement until now! I was not wrong about Iakov at last.....

 

[tnick0225]

Building a big Bulgaria Is that Bohemia to your northwest? Because if it is they've gotten big to from the look of things.

 

[sirrichard]

Great achievement until now! I was not wrong about Iakov at last.....

He's not out of fuel yet.

Building a big Bulgaria Is that Bohemia to your northwest? Because if it is they've gotten big to from the look of things.

Yes, I was quite surprised to see that Great Moravia as an effect of Tengrii Hungary not destroying them early game, they got bigger than they usually do, and managed to create the Kingdom of Bohemia.

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I am going to create an update today.

 

[Enewald]

A great Czar indeed!

Has there been happening anything very weird in the rest of the world so far?

 

[tnick0225]

Yes, I was quite surprised to see that Great Moravia as an effect of Tengrii Hungary not destroying them early game, they got bigger than they usually do, and managed to create the Kingdom of Bohemia.

Yeah that would do it, I guess with Bulgaria acting as a shield Great Moravia would have the time to focus on creating Bohemia. And then get strong enough to slap some other Pagans around. At least it will help keep your northwestern border secure from pagan invasions.

 

[gooy]

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