Well that week went by quickly. It was nice to see my AAR in the spotlight, especially as it nears its conclusion. Thanks again to Avindian for the nomination, which I deeply appreciate. Now for some recommendations. There are so many great AARs out there that deserve recognition, but I shall try to narrow it down to only a couple before announcing my nomination. blklizard's
Towards the Present We Go, Langobards AAR has really drawn me in recently with its highly detailed narrative and intriguing plot. While the sheer size is daunting to many, there are several good points to jump into where you can still enjoy the AAR without needing to read the earlier parts to understand. I know not many people delve into EUIII AARs anymore, but it's gone way beyond that now and I'd highly recommend it.
"Up to the Euphrates and Tigris" - An Egypt AAR by Attalus is a personal favourite of mine in V2 AARs, with the perfect mix of gameplay and narrative. It's always great fun to see a nation outside Europe get played and its even more fun when Attalus lets the readers vote on decisions that will affect the direction that Egypt, and even other nations, will take. I could go on, but I see that this AAR won this award before, so you all should know how great it is by now. I seem to be rambling at this point. You don't need an in-depth analysis of every AAR I read, after all.
While I have pointed out great AARs already, there is one that I'm honestly surprised hasn't won already. That AAR is
The Long(er) Lasting Lombards (Lombard Mega-Campaign pt. 2) by RedTemplar. The AAR is part of a mega campaign starting in CK2, and if you decide to check out this AAR I definitely recommend reading the first part. What I love about this AAR is not only the engaging story RedTemplar crafts around the Lombard, or rather now Italian, nation but also the world he's created. His time spent in CK2 has led to a game of EUIV where many giant blobs exist right at the game start. It's like a late game scenario in 1444. The result is a fascinating power balance as these giant nations engage in periods of cold wars followed by titanic struggles. RedTemplar has also put a lot of dedication into this AAR, personally modding in custom ideas for many of the nations and adjusting things to make the world just right for the perfect AAR. The fact that this is apparently his first time playing EUIV is astounding. Now that I've laid on the praise real thick, I would like to officially congratulate RedTemplar and his AAR as this week's winner of the Weekly AAR Showcase. Congratulations!