When I rise, the World will Tremble

[slepire]

Introduction

This game was originally not intended as an AAR, and I have not previously written an AAR. A rather remarkable event occurred, which I posted in the main forum. After many showed interest in the game, it was suggested that I write an AAR. I decided to try my hand at it. This is essentially vanilla HttT 4.1b, but I've modified a few missions slightly, mostly for European countries. The only change to relevant missions is that 'Conquest of Delhi' will not fire until the 'Vassalize Qara Koyunlu,' 'Annex the Jalayirids,' and 'Sultan of Rum' missions have been completed.

At it's heart, this is a Timurid -> Mughal Empire world conquest AAR. The title derives from the inscription upon the tomb of Timur Gurkani.


Prelude

In the city of Kesh, the great Ghazi, Timur, was born unto Taraghai, chieftain of the Barlas and descended from the daughter of Chagatai, second son of the Great Khan, Temujin, known in his own time and forevermore as Genghis Khan. The world itself shuddered at the birth of he whose descedants were fated to rule the globe, for this was the year the great famine within the lands of the Yuan began, the year the rivers of Europe flooded and the streets of Florence were submerged, the year the Scots of Berwick were crushed by the English, as the English themselves would later be crushed.

The truth of his descent from Great Khan was shown to all, for Timur, even in his youth, showed bravery and cruelty, prowess and cunning. Tall and stern, Timur excelled in his martial pursuits and horsemanship, and admired for his wisdom in strategy and tactics. Thus, he was chosen to become the chief general of the Barlas.

Recognizing the blessings Allah bestowed upon Timur, the Khan of the Chagati asked his aid again against the pretenders of Transoxiana. Whence victory was secured, the Khan of the Chagatai, and to Timur it was pledged that the rule of Transoxiana would become his upon the Khan's death.

After his great victories, Timur's aid was again requested, for the lands of Khorasan, Kwarzem, and Urganj rebelled against the rightful rule of the heirs of Genghis Khan. In his strength and wisdom, Timur accepted this task, and the armies and lands fell to the riders of Timur. For his many victories, Timur was asked to lead to Barlas, and thus Timur became the amir, subject only to the rule of the Khan of the Chagatai.

However, Timur's strength and wisdom frightened Tughlugh, Khan of the Chagatai. Thus, Tughlugh betrayed Timur, and gave the rule of the Barlas and the lands conquered by Timur to his son, Ilyas. Allah was angered, for does not Surah 55: Ayah 9 state, "Verily Allah Does Not Like The Deceiver," and struck Tughlugh down for betrayal.

Timur was thus proclaimed sovereign in the lands of Transoxiana, Khorasan, Kwarzem, and Urganj by both the rights of descent and conquest, for Timur was known to be a true heir of the Great Khan. Tokhtamysh, the rightful heir of the great Khan in the lands of the Golden Horde, sought refuge in the court of Timur, for the Rus had defeated the armies of the Tartar. Timur, in his mercy and wisdom, gave aid to Tokhtamysh, and the lands of the Golden Horde were thus restored to the rule of the heirs of the Great Khan. Tokhtamysh proclaimed that should his heirs be found lacking, the rule of the Golden Horde would fall to Timur and his heirs.

To the south, war was brewing, for the rulers of Persia had become weak and had forgotten the oaths they gave to honor the heirs of the Great Khan. The lands of Persia had descended into anarchy when the last heir of the Ilkhanate died without issue, and the Jalayirid usurpers were not of the true blood. Thus, Timur saw that unto him the duty fell to restore the lands of Persia to the heirs of Genghis Khan. Allah blessed Timur, and his armies found victory in Khorasan and Tehran, from the straights of Hormuz to Armenia, and soon the basin of the Tigris and Euphrates would fall to rightful rule.

Upon the parapets of Tehran, Allah granted Timur a vision, and Timur saw. Thus, Timur declared, "As there is but one God in heaven, there ought to be but one ruler on the earth." And Timur saw that the inhabitants of Delhi were faithless, for they embraced the blasphemy called Hinduism, which proclaims a multitude of gods. Thus, Timur sacked Delhi, and the Sultan of Delhi swore that the holy faith would be kept.

The Ottoman Sultan, in his arrogance and pride, challenged Timur's rightful rule over the Turkmens, and thus the armies of Timur marched to the west again. It was then that Bagrat, who was at that time the King of Georgia, chose to ally with the Jalayirids, and attacked. Timur also saw that the Black Sheep Turkomans refused his rule, and that anarchy reigned in their lands, and swore to bring them into his righteous rule, as an heir of the Great Khan and chosen of Allah.

Note: This where the game starts, in 1399.

 

[Ashantai]

Very interesting! I saw your original posts, and I'm looking forward to a Timurid AAR. A very difficult and varied nation, but one that is awesome at the same time.

 

[slepire]

Chapter 1: The Consolidation of the Western Tribes

Thus, Timur's armies marched to the north and to the west, to bring his rightful rule to those lands that had become his right. With his great cunning, Timur had determined his strategy. Timur himself would lead the armies against those blind Christians of Georgia that supported the Jalayirid pretenders, while the armies that were tasked with the conquest of Baghdad were entrusted to Miran Shah. Meanwhile, a third army was tasked with the restoration of the Black Sheep Turks to their rightful rule. Meanwhile, he would let his allies, the Turkish tribesmen of Dulkadir, Ramazan, and Karaman that had faithfully recognized his rule, take charge of the initial fight against the treacherous Ottomans, until his armies had completed their conquest of Georgia and could be marched against the Sultans of Rum.

The Georgian army that had amassed to the south of T'blisi was crushed to the last man, and Timur sent two divisions to besiege each of Georgia's primary fortresses, those of T'blisi, Alania, Georgia, and Batumi. He issued further orders that new divisions were to be raised in Ereserum, Van, Yerevan, and Sharizhor to join with his primary army as it marched to Sivas. He also sent runners to the lands of Transoxiana and Ferghana, with orders to raise a host from the remaining Barlas horsemen and the tribesmen, for Timur knew the faith of the Sultans of Delhi was weak, and their people remained idolators.

The Jalayirid pretenders made their stand to the fields just north of Basra. Miran Shah had lead his troops to a righteous victory in the name of Allah, and the canals flowed with the blood of the slain. The fortress itself remained, and thus Miran Shah issued orders to split six divisions and besiege the cities of Baghdad, Karbala, Mosul, Badiyat Ash Sham, and Al Jawf.

The third army had sent a division of cavalry to bring the cities of Qarbagh, Shirva, and Derbent into their righteous and proper rulership, while the primary force was to crush the army of the Black Sheep outside Baku, and then to bring Rasht and Mazandaran.

The allied tribesmen, however, were weak, and the armies of the faithless Sultans and their Christian allies from Serbia had begun to besiege the fortresses of the Karaman tribesmen. Thus, Timur decreed that his armies would relieve the fortresses, and that, for his failure to acknowledge his proper overlord, the Anatolian lands of the Sultan of Rum were forfeit. Timur's army paused in the hills of Ereserum while the newly conscripted regiments were joined into the primary host. During the week spent reorganizing and reinforcing the army, word came that the Black Sheep had surrendered, Timur's rightful overlordship was recognized, and tributes would be paid.

Timur's army began its march into Anatolia, and small forces were sent to besiege the fortresses of Sivas and Angora, while the host marched to Konya to relieve the siege. In the plains north of Karaman, word was received that that fortresses of Georgia had fallen, its cities sacked, its people enslaved, and its rulers had turned to Allah and sworn fealty and tribute to Timur and his heirs in exchange for their lives.

The battle of Konya was fierce, and the fighting lasted for two-score and three days. The ground itself turned red from the blood spilled, which is why the soil in Anatolia is red to this day. Timur's cunning and prowess had turned back the Sultan's forces, and the Serbs were killed to the man. With Timur's liberation of Konya, a pact was sworn that the amirs Karaman would provide Timur and his heirs with soldiers, and Timur would protect their lands from the Mamluks to the south.

Timur's army marched north, against the remnants that remained of the Sultan's forces as they regrouped in central Anatolia. The forces surrendered and dispersed, for they knew that Timur was merciful and just to those who acknowledged his rule, and they were spared. However, the fortresses of Anatolia in Eskisehir, Nicomedia, Bursa, Izmir, and Antalya remained, and thus Timur sent forces to besiege. Timur invited the Byzantine dog, Manuel II, to view his vast army, and they spoke of how Byzantium could be spared Timur's wrath. In exchange for a twenty year guarantee of Byzantine freedom, Manuel II allowed for Timur's army to march unmolested through Byzantine lands and to provide sustenance for the troops, and to make war upon the Sultans of Rum.

As Timur marched his forces through Constantinople, word was received that Byzantium had won a resounding victory over the Sultan's navy, and that the distant land of Hungary had chosen to bring war upon the Sultans. Allah is merciful, to choose for heathen dogs to die for this Holy victory. Allah is just, for thus was destruction visited upon the Sultan that broke the covenant with the heirs of the Great Khan. Allah is great, for the tribesmen of Anatolia submitted to the righteous rule of Timur. Allah is the subduer, for the Jalayirids, too, submitted their lands to the rule of the glorious Timur. Allah be praised, for the word would be spread to the heathens to the east, and with the word would be Timur's dominion. After all, the rule of the world was to be entrusted to the heirs of Timur, Allah willing.


What happened in-game:
The taking of Georgia, Qara Koyunlu, and the Jalayirids was pretty straightforward. The first missions I got were 'Vassalize Qara Koyunlu' and 'Vassalize Georgia.' My third mission was 'The Sultans of Rum,' the fourth was 'Annex the Jalayirids.' There were some royal marriage missions interspersed between them that I'll detail in the next chapter, which will be about political relations with the rest of the Genghisids and war against Delhi. My personal mod always allows force conversion as part of a peace deal, and I force converted Qara Koyunlu and Georgia as well as vassalization. The Ottomans were fairly straightforward, but the war with Hungary actually started earlier than indicated in the text above. Hungary forced them to release Serbia and Bosnia, and also released Bulgaria. I took all of their lands in Asia Minor, and then Byzantium declared war and annexed the rest, but by that point I had already made peace with the Ottomans, and racked up 28 infamy taking 7 provinces (warscore cost of the provinces was 99).

 

[slepire]

Thanks, Ashantai. I expect that the big event that makes things crazy will happen at either the end of Chapter 3 or the beginning of Chapter 4. I'm taking some liberties with the AAR narrative, so things that happened in-game may be described as happening in a different order (or different manner) than they occurred in game.

 

[Ashantai]

I just loved this piece. It feels exactly like a pangeryic or epic poem composed by those attached to the Khan. A very interesting and effective piece of writing. I shall be following this even closer now!

 

[jii]

Great writing style! One of the few pictureless AARs that I read thoroughly.

 

[Boris ze Spider]

Awesome, but can you provide some pics?

 

[unmerged(3999)]

I just read your GD thread, and I will be following this. Very nice writing style.

Boris - I'll let the authAAR have the last word, but as he says, in the early years he had no idea this would develop into an AAR and, as such, was taking as many screenshots as you would in a normal game. i.e. zero.

 

[Boris ze Spider]

I just read your GD thread, and I will be following this. Very nice writing style.

Boris - I'll let the authAAR have the last word, but as he says, in the early years he had no idea this would develop into an AAR and, as such, was taking as many screenshots as you would in a normal game. i.e. zero.

I apologise, thought he was up to after he decied to make an aar.

 

[slepire]

Yeah, I didn't start this game with the intention of making it an AAR. I've got a few screen shots of the events of 1410, but it wasn't until 1415 that I had decided to make it an AAR. The idea of making an AAR was suggested to me after the events of 1410, when the save game was up to 1415. The AAR has covered everything until 1404-1405. The next two chapters will cover roughly the same time period, with one devoted to politics and war in the east, and one devoted to war in the west. Chapter 5 will be built upon the political claims in chapter 3, involving the unification of the Hordes. I have shunted several events that happened in earlier years to 1410 to allow a coherent narrative to be developed around a certain set of events. Chapter 5 will be the first one that will have screen shots.

Incidentally, I'll be posting the next chapter within the next 48 hours. It's basically composed, but I'm unhappy with the cadence, and trying to rework some of the areas where the lack of scan destroys the flow of the narrative. If I were a better poet, I could rework it into a true panegyric, but I'm a mathematician... so you'll have to settle for a cheap novice attempting to imitate Xenophon and Thucydides.

 

[Ashantai]

Hey, either works for me.

 

[slepire]

Chapter 2: The Subjugation of the East, and the Great Alliance

With the western tribes in hand, Timur called all to Samarkand and kurultai was declared. Within the hall of Hazret Shah-Zindeh, the Khans of the tribes were assembled. To the gathered Khans, Timur declaimed, "Look upon my lands, ye mighty, and despair. For all pay tribute to this great Khan, from the entrance to Europe to the jungles of Ind. Under the Great Khan, we were one tribe, and the world trembled beneath us. Our forces rejoined beneath a new Great Khan could tear even Heaven asunder."

Beneath his throne, the western khans all chose to kneel. Tokhtamysh gave praise, for Timur's earlier aid, and swore his fealty without pause. Yadigai, Khan of Nogai, swore upon his daughter. Koirijaq of the Kazakh Khanate swore upon his son. Sham-Jahan Chagatai knelt, and wept upon the floor, "For your mercy, Great Khan. Forgive my ancestor's betrayal." The Khans of the Oirat and the Northern Yuan stormed away, and to Timur they issued a curse: "May your enemies be small and worthless. May your quarrels never end. You are forever bound to samsara."

Timur proclaimed "There is no God but Allah; your beliefs will play you false. Allah showed a vision, of dominion in all lands. Your idols will soon be gilt upon a mosque. I am the Great Khan; kneel or face the sword."

The two khans began running, and a silence filled the hall.

His position announced, his forces prepared - the march against Delhi began. With Delhi's Sultan stood King Rathore, and his Hindus joined the fight. The battles were joined through Multan and Lahore, Thar, Bikaner to Ladakh. The cities they fell to the blood and the fire, and Timur's armies spread. From Jaisalmer to Ajmer to Agra and beyond, the Heathens were destroyed.

To the King and the Sultan were messengers sent, bearing offers of peace. "For half your kingdoms and protect the Muslims, and my armies will relent. I offer this once; should you turn it down, the next offer will be for your head." In fear they accepted, and peace was then made, and half their kingdoms were gained.



What happened in game:
I had royal marriages with Nogai, Kazakh, Chagatai, and Golden Horde. I claimed the thrones of Nogai, Chagatai, and Kazakh while my armies were marching to the Delhi border, and managed to luck out and get the thrones over the next few years. The wars with Delhi and Rajputana were incredibly easy, and ultimately the Timurids captured Kohistan, Multan, Chandigarh, Ladakh, Sutlej, and Lahore from Delhi and Thar, Bikaner, Bakkar, Jaisalmer, and Jodphur from Rajputana. The Royal Marriage and Alliance with the Golden Horde was holding steady, with 200 relations, and a pretty good amount of trust. At this point, Georgia and Qara Koyunlu are my vassals, and I had formed an alliance of convenience with Bulgaria, to provide some effortless containment of the Byzantines.

Next update: War to the west, again, and then marriage pays off.

 

[Ashantai]

Very nice post. I do like your style.

 

[Boris ze Spider]

I like how you divide narrative and gameplay, makes it easy to read.

 

[Taylor]

I'll also be following this! May the world tremble!

 

[slepire]

Thanks for the words of support. My view is that the narrative exists to provide meaning to the raw structure of the game's events. A pseudo-historical chronicle, as most authAARs provide, wouldn't work well with the lack of screenshots. Thus, a stronger narrative component was required. I'm using the King James translation of the Books of Chronicles and Kings, Pericles' speeches (as presented in Thucydides), and Tolkein's Silmarillion as style guides for various aspects. Though, suffice it to say that I accept that this is but a poor imitation of its literary sources.

 

[Taylor]

I think it's a cool writing style . Of course, you can always start adding screenshots once you reach the point were you decided to make it an AAR.

 

[BootOnFace]

I was going to ask if I could use the save you gave me for a comedy AAR, but now it'd feel like making a satire of Gilgamesh or the Illiad(Meet the Spartans was bad enough). My first AAR will have to wait for another Timurid game. Probably Divine Wind.

 

[slepire]

I've got the next two chapters drafted. They should be ready tomorrow and Wednesday.

Boot, if you want to write a comedy based off my save, go ahead. I'd be honored.

 

[Ashantai]

Excellent! More Timurid goodness!