Wow, a nice account, Bregil! You really should think about putting the whole of the story in a kind of fantasy war book. It's very well written and contains a high degree of suspense.
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Wow, a nice account, Bregil! You really should think about putting the whole of the story in a kind of fantasy war book. It's very well written and contains a high degree of suspense.
I concur. That was a superb update on your Almo campaign, Bregil. :bow:
I should probably write the history of my campaign here too...playing as Sicily/Hard/Early/GA/XL, and it's been a very interesting campaign. Currently in the year 1143. Let's see, I'll 'summarise' the campaign so far (by 'summarise', I mean write a lengthy account that will bore everyone to death so I can claim myself Master of Earth without any contenders :laugh4:).
To start off with, under King Roger I, I decided that having naval superiority was integral to my campaign, so I began with a mix of ships and an army to invade Naples, snatching it from the Byzantine Empire. This all went according to plan, and I managed to get a ceasefire with the Byzantines too (by making sure I didn't have any ships or borders bordering Byzantine lands). I managed to get an alliance with the Papal States early on, but for the most part my alliance policy went down the drain. During all of this, the Holy Roman Empire became dinner for the Bohemians and French, and made mistakes by attacking Milan, eventually leading to a civil war. This is where I developed my bribery policy...Prince Ludwig rebelled against the HRE, taking a large army and Provence with him, only to find trust in King Roger I soon afterwards. I also sought further expansion, looking first to the Almoravids in Northern Africa, and then changing my mind and focusing on the Serbians in Serbia and Croatia. King Roger I never lived to see the invasion, although he did live to the ripe old age of 70, perhaps give or take a year.
King Roger II was responsible for the invasion of the Balkans and the purging of the Serbians, beginning in 1129. The fleet suffered loses and also celebrated wins against the Serbian fleet. Only one rogue ship caused problems, and it was dealt with swiftly enough. King Roger II really liked consolidating power over the seas, and made sure only Dromons were used to maintain trade routes while the rest of the fleet was moored close to port. King Roger II passed away at the end of 1139, giving way to the short, but nevertheless important, rule of King William I.
King William I passed away at the end of 1142, but his impact on history is not to be misjudged. He saw the opportunities to be gained from a civil war the English had suffered at the end of 1139 when, in an attack by the Almoravids against Anjou, the English lost a Chapter House which had launched a crusade against Tripoli. The rebels in Mercia looked ripe and juicy for the bribe, and Don Marino Caetani, the prime emissary of Sicily, was tasked with bringing the rebels into the rule of a more fitting Norman kingship. The English didn't deserve to own England! And so, a new chapter begins with King Tancred I and a new line of younger heirs to the throne who will superseed the current original, aged heirs when they come of age. Mercia is under Sicilian control, and if intel is correct...the English have only their leader, King Michael, in Wales, and no heirs. A push could be made to eliminate these so-called 'allies' once and for all, leaving the whole of England, save the north where the Scots have re-emerged until King Malcom V, ripe for conquest by the Sicilian Norman colonials.
1143...Sicily has control of Sicily, Malta, Naples, Provence, Serbia, Croatia and Mercia, and has further plans for expansion.
Currently, the superpowers are the Almoravids, the Fatimids, the Byzantines have fair strength, and the French. Kiev is rather large, as is Volga Bulgaria, but it is the Almos and Eggies who pose the greatest threat.
The Seljuks reappeared in 1140 on the Isle of Cyprus...
Currently, Castile-Leon, Aragon, Portugal, Serbia, Armenia and Lithuania are no more, with the HRE not far behind, nor the Polish. The French have been excommed...
Plotting goes on behind closed doors, the fate of England sealed, the Sicilian Normans intent on carrying forth their rule to the deprived lands of England. A new Norman race has been born, as such, which is not nearly as weak as the Vikings whose twilight is upon them, nor as weak as the English Normans who had not the heart nor ability to rule over their lands like a true full blood Norman...one could say the Sicilian Normans believe in a Norman master-race. Not just content with bringing this new Norman breed to England's shores, Sicily intends to one day knock on the doors of the Almoravids and ask them what they think...before killing them all and taking Iberia and Northern Africa for themselves...
'Kill them all and let God sort them out' is Sicily's motto.
Also Sicily's motto: 'HAHA! Look at all those boring fools who have provinces all clumped together! We Sicilians have been creative with our empire! Cower as we create a crazy shape to our borders, far superior to the bland borders of, say...France??? What a silly name for a kingdom! They should have called themselves Blue Man Group! Maybe then they wouldn't have gotten excommed. MUWAHAHAHAH! What's that? This motto is too long? Er...MUWAHAHAHAH! Communication over!' :verycool:
Part Eleven of an Account of a VI 2.01 campaign as the Almohads
The Polish Campaign
Pope Gregory VIII, like his predecessors, preached on a regular basis against the Almohad dominance of Europe. Like his predecessors, he was also content to wear silk and jewels brought to him by Muslim traders, to fill his cup with wine of Gascony and dine on dishes flavoured with spices and sugar from the Levantine ports. The Almohad expansion had never threatened his position in central Italy – in truth it had protected him from the Imperial ambitions of his co-religionists in Sicily and Germany – and the collapse of Eastern Orthodoxy flowing the campaigns of Umar III left Pope Gregory as the undisputed master of the Christian world. Nonetheless, he considered it his duty to condemn the infidel at every opportunity, and in 1331 he found a champion in Konrad I, King of Poland.
Konrad’s attack on Bohemia caught the Almohads unawares. Though strong garrisons had been maintained on every frontier, the armies facing Poland were neither as modern nor as experienced as those waging war in the East. Their leader was the ageing Count of Flanders, Amir Ibn Badis, who had been a young man when war was last waged on these frontiers. The Polish forces ranged against him were based upon the Knights of the Royal Household, elite warriors clad from head to foot in steel plate and mounted on huge warhorses. It was hardly an even match. Nonetheless, the Count disposed of his forces carefully and fought valiantly to stave off the invasion. When Konrad’s horsemen broke through his lines, he entered the fray himself at great personal risk, most of his own guards falling under the swords of the Polish knights as he rallied the Almohad infantry to throw them back. It was an awful, bloody day for the defenders, who lost 547 men; but it was a worse day for the Poles. 813 men were killed, many of them prisoners slaughtered when the battle seemed about to turn in the Poles’ favour, and another 157 prisoners found their way to the slave markets of the south. Those losses included the cream of Polish chivalry. Konrad escaped with his life, as did his heir and eldest son Leszek, but he left two other sons and two brothers on the battlefield as well as most of their knights. The surprise attack had been a disastrous failure.
The Almohad armies which had so recently won victories against the Byzantines and People of Novgorod now converged on Poland. Ibrahim, the Black Prince, crossed into Volnyhia unopposed. His brother Muhammed landed a strong force in Pomerania via the Baltic fleets, while the veteran Ibn Tashufin, Governor of Constantinople and Hammer of the Mongols, landed a similar force in Prussia. Each army was equipped with sufficient artillery to assault the Polish forts in those provinces in short order, but Prince Ibrahim was not prepared to wait. At the head of a huge army he crossed the Vistula and drove Konrad out of the Duchy of Poland, penning what was left of the Polish army in Brandenburg where it would prepare to make its last stand...
Umar III re-established his court at Dresden Castle in Saxony, from which vantage he could supervise the war. He had ruled his empire for more than thirty years and in all those years he had been at war with one or other of the great powers – and yet, like the Pope whose double-standard he so despised, he had never fought a battle himself. He spent many months on his estate near Wolfsburg, gazing across the Elbe and willing the Polish forces in Brandenburg to launch an invasion which he could meet in person.
Saxony, the birthplace of his eldest sons, held mixed memories for Umar. Not far from the palace was the shrine to St Margrethe, the Danish princess martyred by the Syrian assassins during the great Jihad; but the shrine was deserted and neglected already, for Saxony (like most of northern Europe) was by now firmly converted to Islam. It was here he had watched his eldest sons, Yusuf and Ali, growing up - the princes he had allowed to die in his eastern campaign. It was here he had watched his dreams of peace and a new world order cast down by the envy and distrust of his neighbours – mostly dead men now. More recently, it was here that he had learned of the death of Ibn Badis, the faithful old Count of Flanders, who had not long survived his victory over King Konrad. The rigours of a day spent fighting on horseback had clearly done the old fellow no good, though some considered that the shame of having killed so many prisoners when he had feared the battle lost was what had sapped his will to live.
Rather than brood endlessly, Umar set about expanding and improving the palace and court. He also waited anxiously for news of the campaign and, as coincidence would have it, was blessed by yet another son, born to a wife of his now extensive harem. Of all the sons he had been blessed with, only one, Muhammed, been born elsewhere, and that was the prince who was now charged with the destruction of Konrad’s Poland.
That catholic Royal knights formed the core of the Polish army was ably demonstrated in 1322 when Abdullah abn Buluggin led a small skirmishing force against Silesia. The Polish knight Swietopelk Rzeyetha had watched his infantry be routed and almost half his knights killed by the arrows of the fast moving invaders, but he still managed to engage his tormentors in hand to hand combat. That nearly changed the course of the battle as the Polish commander, reckless for his own safety, rode through and cut down his opposite number, immediately routing the Almohad horsemen. It was only the courage and tenacity of two companies of mounted crossbowmen that saved the day – counter-charging against the knights, they refused to allow them to escape the melee and re-group. Sheer numbers told and Sir Swietopelk was the last to fall, though not before he had taken a heavy toll of the invaders.
The battles in Silesia and Bohemia had been close-run, costly victories for the Almohads, but against the veteran armies arriving from the East, Konrad showed himself unwilling to risk more pitched battles. Only in Brandenburg, where defeat would mean utter destruction, did the Polish king turn at bay and fight a defensive battle. He had gathered an army of 2764 to prevent the crossing of the Oder, a substantial and well-equipped force. His opponent, Prince Muhammed, led an army of 5349 men, including some of the elite regiments who had defeated the Golden Horde, the Byzantines and the People of Novgorod. In the open field the advantage clearly lay with the invaders. Konrad’s hope must be to prevent the crossing, using his catapults to rake the troops gathered on the far bank.
But Muhammed had laid his plans for the crossing with great skill. Firstly, he had positioned a demi-cannon and a battery of three serpentines above the bridge, and with these he hoped to be able to drive the defenders far enough back to allow his infantry to cross. In his vanguard he had Nubian and Muwahid spearmen whose valour and experience far outweighed their lack of armour. Against these neither the mounted knights nor the-less able Polish infantry could prevail. This crossing could be supported by the pavise arbalesters he was positioning on the riverbank. He also kept in his second rank one company of mounted crossbows and one of English longbowmen, each a useful counter-measure against Royal Knights, as well as a large number of Almohad urban militiamen. All he needed was a chance to get across the river...
Konrad had positioned his forces well, but the initial exchange of artillery fire clearly favoured the Almohads. Cannonballs ripped through the defenders’ ranks, causing heavy losses and a significant drop in Polish morale. Moving forward to rally his troops, Konrad was himself struck by a flying splinter. Mortally wounded, he was borne from the field by his loyal knights, and as they turned to go the rest of the army followed.
Chanting religious slogans, the Almohad spearmen advanced across the bridge unopposed. They quickly set about destroying the Polish artillery, all the while wary of a counter-attack, but the leaderless Poles seemed unable to co-ordinate any resistance. Each unit that encountered an advancing Almohad unit was broken after the first exchange of blows, so that it was easy for Muhammed to bring his army across the bridge and set out his battle line.
The arrival of Prince Leszek with reinforcements promised to make a battle of the encounter, but to engage with the Almohads first they had to ensure the withering firepower of the arbalesters and longbowmen, and then break through the spearwall. The elite Royal Knights made no more headway than the militia sergeants and Slav levies against their opponents. Muhammed, resplendent in silvered-mail and bright blue silks, led the final charge in person, but in truth the battle had been over the moment he crossed the river. Leszek salvaged what forces he could from the battle and escaped towards Berlin, but he left 542 men dead and 568 captured. By the time Muhammed laid siege to the city, the total number of prisoners had risen to 1817. It had been a decisive victory. Despite the challenge of crossing a defended bridge, the young Prince had lost only 50 men.
Nothing now could save the Poles. Krakow’s defenders succumbed to starvation and opened its gates to the invaders. The walls of Wroclaw in Silesia might have been held for longer, but the Almohad artillery made a breach through which the invaders poured, easily overcoming the tiny garrison. Only an intervention from his Catholic allies could have saved Leszek, and that was not to be. Neither the Doge nor the Pope had either the strength or the will to challenge the Almohads. Recognising the futility of the situation, the garrison of Berlin-Kolln surrendered their Prince to the invaders in April 1335 in order to spare the civilian population. For this act of mercy, the city leaders were themselves spared; but Leszek and a number of nobles were executed for their part in the treacherous invasion of Bohemia.
With the fall of Poland, three hundred years of unbroken warfare came to an end for the Khalifate. Europe at last knew peace. The Mongol invaders, the quarrelsome Orthodox factions and now the last great Catholic power has all been laid low under Umar’s reign. North eastern and central Italy remained under Catholic rule, but since these states had never made trouble for him Umar was more than happy to let them be. Would their leaders do the same? Perhaps, thought Umar with grim satisfaction, for as long as they cared to dress in silk, drink the wine of Gascony and flavour their food with eastern spices. And when they no longer cared for these things, he had the strongest armies in the world, a fleet that ruled the waves unopposed from the Baltic to the Black Sea, and the three finest princes in Europe to lead them...
Magnificent work Bregil!
I do fear that my Aragonese campaign will pale into insignificance beside such an epic, but for what it is worth, here is chapter 7....
Bamff’s Aragonese Escapade
Chapter 7 – An End to The Turks (1205 – 1210)
By the end of 1205, the Turks had been driven from both Edessa and Mesopotamia, although isolated pockets of resistance continued to hold out. The garrisons of these besieged castles had little hope of rescue. The Turkish Sultan’s forces had been so sorely depleted in the fighting between 1203 and 1205, that he is unable to send any troops south to attempt the recovery of either province – certainly not with the Russian bear sitting on his northern borders, licking its lips hungrily. It appeared to be only a matter of time before the Russians sought to take advantage of the Turk’s precarious situation.
Murad al-Abbas was the Turkish commander of Edessa castle. He and his men had fought at Mardin the previous April, and he knew only too well that the Aragonese infidels, though barbarians and savages, could fight, and fight well. Soon after his ragtag band of men had arrived at Edessa Castle, he had taken his son Mustafa aside.
“Musti, my son. I wish you to take this message to the Sultan in Armenia.” He handed a scroll to the young man before him.
“I will father, and then I will ride back with all haste, with as many men as I can gather.”
“No my son. Even before you reach the Sultan, I fear that all here will be dead. The Aragonese already march upon us, and they will come in such numbers that we cannot resist them.”
The younger man was confused.
“Then surely you must withdraw, father. Take these men back to Armenia to rebuild our strength…” Mustafa’s voice trailed away as his father raised his hand.
The old general smiled wryly at his son. “I am a soldier, Musti, as are you. I am bound to follow the orders of my commanders, and the Sultan himself has decreed that this castle must be held. So it is simple. Here we stand, and here we die. Now go, my boy, ride fast, and ride carefully. The infidels are already to our north.”
As Mustafa climbed into his saddle, Murad al-Abbas stepped forward and grabbed his sleeve.
“You will be the head of the household now. You must take care of your mother and your brothers.”
“I will father. May Allah be with you.” Mustafa spurred his horse and raced out of the gate. He had no desire to let his father see the tears that welled in his eyes.
“And also with you, my son.” Replied the old general. He paused to dab at his eyes before turning back into the fortress and signalling for the gates to be drawn shut.
That conversation had occurred almost two days ago now, and yet every moment was still so fresh in the mind of Murad al-Abbas as he once again surveyed the defences of Edessa Castle. It was but a wooden fortification. The Aragonese siege engines would quickly reduce these great wooden palisades to little more than kindling, he reflected, running his hand across one great beam. His gaze shifted to the camp fires that glowed all around the castle. The Aragonese had arrived during the day, several great columns of men. Far more than were housed inside the walls of this fortification. Murad al-Abbas looked up at the stars.
“One last night of sleep, and tomorrow we die as martyrs,” he thought grimly as he walked back towards the keep.
Meanwhile, outside the castle walls, Don Pedro de la Cerda was far more optimistic about the coming battle – and with good reason. He had just over 700 men under his command, including some 420 archers and 3 catapults. The locals that had been questioned throughout the afternoon had all indicated that the fortress contained no more than 100 Turks, and the walls that his artillery would be hurling their projectiles against were constructed of wood rather than stone. Clearly God himself smiled down upon the pious, he reasoned – and it was the duty of the pious to repay the Lord with as many Saracen deaths as possible. Don Pedro was often referred to as “fervent”, a true zealot, and this had fuelled his desire to join the crusades in the first place. He meant to do more than take the fortress. He was going to teach the Turks a lesson. The death of all of the defenders would serve as a warning to the local populace of the might of the Aragonese forces.
The Assault on Edessa Castle
As the first rays of dawn sunlight spread their fingers across the hillock on which Edessa Castle stood, the occupants of the fortress had already been awake for some time. Two of the urban militiamen under the command of Qalawan Arslan had been caught attempting to desert during the night. They had been summarily executed by al-Abbas’ second in command, Orhan al Mahmudi, and the resultant noise had served to awaken the whole garrison.
Murad al-Abbas knew that his men were on the knife edge as it was, and that an event such as this could spark a mutiny. He had no intention of allowing the fortress to fall without a fight. He addressed his troops. “The infidels will very soon be attacking these walls, my sons. Many, possibly even all of us, will die this day. There is no escape – the infidels surround us. You all have a choice to make. Would you choose the ignominious end that this pair chose? Sweating with fear, pleading for your life. Or would you choose the glorious end of a holy warrior? That is our only hope, my sons. We must fight as we have never fought before. Fight for Allah, for Turkey, for the Sultan. Death to the infidels!”
A rousing cheer erupted from the ranks. Murad al-Abbas turned to look out over the Aragonese positions. He knew that his men would die, but at least they would die like men. The first missile crashed into the top of the wall far to his right, sending a shower of splinters and fragments of rock over the Desert Archers. One man screamed, and recoiled back from the point of impact, a large shard of shattered timber protruding grotesquely from his shoulder. Al-Abbas signalled for his troops to move well back from the wall.
“And so it begins,” muttered Murad al-Abbas as the second and third missiles struck home.
Don Pedro de la Cerda watched from his saddle as the catapults unleashed their missiles against the fortress. For each one that struck home, a loud cheer would go up from the Aragonese ranks. A great chunk of the easternmost wall collapsed inwards. Soon after, a second section of wall was smashed away.
“Bring down the tower,” de la Cerda ordered the commander of the nearest catapult.
“Should we advance now my Lord?” queried Don Martin Diaz de Haro, commander of a unit of Militia Sergeants.
“No. Let the catapults finish their work. Then, as I explained last evening, when they are done I will send the archers forward”, responded de la Cerda curtly, clearly losing patience with the Militia Sergeant.
Orhan al Mahmudi called his surviving men to order. Through the choking dust that now blanketed the courtyard, he saw his commander approaching him. Above the screams and moans of the injured and dying, the Aragonese trumpets could be heard, and then the beat of marching feet.
https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...leassault3.jpg
420 marching feet as the Aragonese archers advance
“They are come for us old friend,” said Murad al-Abbas to al Mahmudi.
“Then let us greet them,” responded al Mahmudi. He waved his archers forward to the place where the wall once stood. Many of them never even saw their foes through the blinding dust. A hail of 200 or more arrows fell from the heavens. A dozen of al Mahmudi’s men died, many more were wounded.
Even as the survivors raised their bows, a second volley of Aragonese arrows came from the opposite flank, tearing great gaps in the desert archers’ lines. A similar fate was befalling al-Abbas’ Turcoman foot, who had similarly moved forward to guard a breach.
The Turkish archers gamely held their ground, returning fire when they were able, but simple mathematics dictated that they were progressively more and more outgunned by their Aragonese counterparts. Al-Abbas and al-Mahmudi perished side by side, without even having the chance to raise a sword against their antagonists. Still the Aragonese arrows rained down.
Don Pedro de la Cerda watched as the Turks were efficiently despatched by his archers.
“Enough!” he ordered. “Those arrows cost good money. The Saracen archers are no longer a threat.” He turned to Don Hernando de Escobedo.
“Don Hernando, I promised your knights some sport. Perhaps they would enjoy riding down the last of these Saracen rabble?”
Don Hernando smiled, nodded, and raised his lance. His royal knights followed. All that was left to face their charge were a handful of Urban Militia and Desert Archers. As the charging knights closed, they tried in vain to flee. De la Cerda’s orders were clear, however, and the knights did not spare a single Turkish life. And so it was that the entire garrison of Edessa Castle were slain, for the loss of just 17 Aragonese lives.
https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...leassault4.jpg
Victory!
The Drive North
Barely two years later, the last Turkish province of Armenia is overrun by the Russians. The huge Russian army sweeps all before them, avenging their own embarrassing defeat in the same province in 1206. This conquest results in the great kingdoms of Russia and Aragon sharing a border, with Armenia in Russian hands, and Mesopotamia part of the Kingdom of Aragon.
Whilst Russia and Aragon are allies, they are of different faiths, and it is fair to say that some measure of mutual distrust lingers between the two kingdoms. Both maintain significant military forces along their new shared borders in the east.
By 1208, King Fernando’s forces are strong enough that the Aragonese monarch deems it time to sweep the Jacquerie from Aragon’s northern borders. The Frenchmen decline to give battle in the face of the large Aragonese armies that march into Brittany and Anjou, and both provinces are quickly subdued.
News of these latest Aragonese conquests spread quickly, and alliances are soon negotiated by both King Erik of Denmark, and King Madog III of Ireland. King Samuel of Hungary follows suit in 1209.
As 1210 dawns on Europe, the elderly King Fernando reigns over an impressively expansive empire indeed. The Kingdom of Aragon now stretched from the Iberian peninsula to Brittany and Anjou in the north. All of northern Africa was part of the realm, as were Malta and Cyprus. Antioch, Edessa, Mesopotamia, Tripoli, Syria, Palestine, and Arabia all flew the Aragonese flag. Many Catholic factions have allied themselves with the Aragonese, as have the two Orthodox factions of Russia and Byzantium. In the west, Aragon’s borders were shared with their allies the Genoese, and with the Normans. In the east, Aragon shared borders with their Russian allies, and with the Armenians. King Fernando was indeed pleased with the state of the realm. He felt secure in the knowledge that he would live out his days with his beloved kingdom of Aragon basking in peace and prosperity.
Author's notes:
Okay so it seems a bit odd that in my recounting of the assault of Edessa castle I have appeared to side with the Turkish defender. Don't ask me why, that was just the way it came out - perhaps I felt sorry for the guy, trapped in a pretty ordinary position.
As for the deserters being slain prior to the battle, that was inspired by a curious twist in the game itself. Pre-battle the Turkish army was listed as 99 men including al-Abbas. At the end of the battle there were 97 dead, no prisoners....so what happened to the other two? I didn't see anyone running away (and in any case the fortress was entirely surrounded, so they couldn't go anywhere without bumping into part of the attacking army).
As for the state of the world, the Byzantines have pushed as far west as Venice, and the Russians hold pretty much all of the north east and have made a couple of raids on Flanders and Normandy (with little success so far, but they keep trying). The Danes are doing quite well in northern Europe. The Hungarians look to have strong armies (at least in terms of numbers) and should offer the Russians or Byzantines a fair fight if either invades. The Poles and Bohemians are involved in a protracted war in central Europe.
Previous Chapters of This Campaign
Chapter 6 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1101
Chapter 5 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1061
Chapter 4 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1039
Chapter 3 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1033
Chapter 2 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1014
Chapter 1 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1000
Here’s my go at the Turks (MTW/VI, GA, Early, Expert, no mods). I used Katank’s guide and crushed the Egyptians first and then beat the Byz down. The Golden Horde was absolutely no problem. I then built up and took out the other factions one at a time. By 1299, I left the Byz on Cyprus-Rhodes-Crete, the Sicilians on Malta and the Italians on Corsica-Sardenia. I did not incur any auto-mass-rebellion after I chose to conquer everything, although I had spies everywhere and strong garrisons. Every few turns, I crushed an upstart Pope. My trade kept things going. I switched all the taxation levels from very high to very low as an experiment. No matter what the tax rate was, my gov’s still got bad vices. I think this is because I had about 2 million florins in excess.
The first 9 slides show my expansion. The next slide shows my final GA score (394) and then the usual final screens. I then did an alternate ending where I conquered everyone. The last two slides are two shots of my economy at 1299 (very high tax) and 1452 (very low).They also show a typical army stack of each period.
https://s132.photobucket.com/albums/...urkish%20Game/
Magnificent, guys! I can't think of any further praise without being overly verbose. :medievalcheers:
Well done Agent Miles! That is an impressive end result alright!:2thumbsup:
Thanks! I think that the Turks are the easiest faction. A simple blitz opening that gives them a rich corner of the map, great units to choose from, and then you get to skull drag the Golden Horde.
Can't praise your works enough, Bregil the Bowman, bamff, and others. I'm starting to read these as alternative to fantasy/sci-fi novels, and have to admit that many are actually better than some publishing books. Your writings are unbelievable good.
:book:
Keep it up guys, and thanks for the hours of entertaining.
Truly excellent accounts, everyone~:cheers: Thanks for the good reads!
I'm sorry I haven't posted anything in quite a while now and the truth is I haven't played for about a month or so (summertime, a lot of things to do). My current situation is this (as far as I remember it): I own everything east of the Baltic now except Livonia and Estonia which belong to the Swedish (Catholics which means it's risky to attack them) and Georgia makes up for my southern border.
My king is in his fifties or sixties and will die any year now and I'm planning to take advantage of this han grab the rest of the eastern Baltic coast while he is still alive, giving him the excommunication. Unfortunately his sons are all crap so I'll have to rely on my good generals for a while until my royal line has recovered from the loop-effect. Also I've definitely reached the bloat-effect now, but that shouldn't be a problem as I'm already stinking rich and can mass-produce my armies (I think I have 10 or more provinces capable of training silver-armoured, +2 morale halberds now).
Anyway, we'll see when the next episode appears in this thread.
So I’ve been lurking around here for a while and I thought I’d try to write a little about my own empire. I’m going for Spanish-early-exp-GA with some extra rules to make it tougher
(I got vanilla MTW btw)
Self imposed rules:
Max. 500 soldiers per province (Doesn’t include mercenaries or foreign troops in a crusade.)
Mercenary troops must be disbanded 5 turns after they are hired.
Only one Grand Inquisitor allowed
The popes word is law! If he ask me to stop bothering someone, I must.
No declarations of war the first 10 years
Titles go to the noblest men, not necessarily the ones with the greatest acumen
We are Christian fanatics and can’t ally with Muslims or Pagans
And so here we go...
1086
In Leon Don Garc Mendoza is granted the title Duke of Leon, and he starts training of another troop of Jinetes like the one he commands.
In Castile the King orders the building of watchtowers along the borders in order to gain valuable information of his neighbours. The title Duke of Castile he gives to the able commander (3) Don Enrique de Luna, who also receives the title Lord Chamberlain. His first act was to begin the training of a company of spearmen
1087
Our Lord’s year 1187 saw the birth of Prince Fernando, Alfonso’s third son.
More happy news came from Don Alfonsoo Mendoza, an emissary, who had succeeded in getting King Sancho I of Aragon as an ally to the Spanish Kingdom.
Less happy news was the mobilization of Almohad troops in Cordoba, 660 in total. King Alfonso became worried that more might come and threaten his borders if not worse and so he sent his emissary Alfonso Mendoza to persuade Lord Cid of Valencia to join the Spanish.
1088
Unfortunately Lord Cid had no intensions of giving up his sovereignty, but Alfonso has ordered his emissary to try again when once there’s enough gold in the treasury. After all, he wants a peaceful outcome of this
Good news was however, that Prince Garc had been born.
1089
Prince Ferdinand is born.
1090
This year the Almohads sent a small army to invade Portugal. The army seems to have been to small since less than half the men returned.
Prince Alfonso matures and is put in charge of the army in Leon.
1091
The Almohads sent a larger army this year and took Portugal. They have 412 men in Portugal and only 37 in Cordova.
1092
There is news of unrest amongst Christians in Portugal. 180 Christian rebel archers stand up against the Almohad tyrants.
Traders report that The Byzantines are the richest of the earthly powers. The Kings emissary again found Lord Cid unvilling to join our cause. At the same time another emissary brings an offer of alliance from the Italian Doge, an alliance which King Alfonso accepts.
1193
The uprising in Portugal is crushed but another soon follows. The King accepts an offer of alliance from King William II of England.
To strengthen his kingdom’s economy King Alfonso orders the improvement of the Spanish farmlands. At the same time he prepares for the invasion of Valencia, which he will lead personally. The Spanish army now consists of 300 spearmen, 240 jinetes, 180 urban militiamen, 60 archers and 40 royal knights. Spain can feed 280 more.
1094
The second Portuguese rebellion is crushed, but a third follows, consisting of 80 feudal knights and 60 feudal men-at-arms. 750 Almohads are now stationed in Cordoba.
At home Prince Pedro is born and Prince Sancho comes to age.
1195
In the service of God and Mother Church, the Pope grants Spain 1000 florins. The King of Aragon declines a marriage proposal between Princess Beatriz and Prince Sancho.
1096
The Pope grants Spain another 1000 florins. The King accepts offers of alliance from the King of Denmark, the King of Hungary and the Prince of Novgorod.
King Alfonso sends Prince Sancho to invade Valencia together with 80 jinetes, 200 spearmen, 60 urban militiamen and his personal bodyguard.
At the same time he sends his son Prince Alfonso into Portugal, which is again ruled by the Portuguese. Prince Alfonso is assisted by 80 jinetes, 100 spearmen together with his bodyguard. King Alfonso knows this is a risky move as his forces will be stretched out and in Cordoba Prince Idris (6 stars) sits in charge of 780 men. He hopes the Prince wont attack right away, but give him time to build an army strong enough to push the Almohads out of Europe.
In Portugal the outnumbered defenders decided to stand and fight. Their army consisted of 44 feudal knights and 42 feudal men at arms.
Prince Alfonso decided to proceed with caution, as his enemy, although fewer, were not unfamiliar to combat.
The enemy general emediately positioned himself on a hilltop. Alfonso and the spearmen positioned themselves on the flat field below while the jinets rode towards the enemy in order to draw them down.
The jinetes first finished of a small group of 4 knights, then the rest of the Portuguese knights charged towards the Prince who had left his spearmen and ridden towards the enemy. He turned back and called for the spear company to assist him. The enemy knight reached him first however and 12 bodyguards in the rear quickly fell. Then the 100 spearmen reached them and engaged the enemy knights so that the Prince could get away. Alfonso then rode away a bit to start a charge into the rear of the enemy with his 7 remaining men. At the same time the two units of jinetes had managed to souround the enemy general and his feudal men at arms. When he had lost half his men to the jinete’s javelins, the horsemen charged and the swordmen panicked and tried to flee. None managed however. When the knights pinned between the Prince and his spearmen saw how their general fared, they also gave up and was captured.
In Valencia, the Almohads had sent a force slightly larger than the Spanish. Prince Sancho realized that a war with the Almohads at this point would be unwise, and so he called off the attack. His men however did not like it. The Almohads defeated the foolish Lord Cid and now had 400 men under Prince Idris in Valencia. In Cordoba Prince Ali (4 stars) sat with 600 men.
The King also accepted an offer of alliance from the king of Poland this year.
1097
This year more troops were sent to Portugal as there was a slight chance of rebellion.
At the same time Prince Sancho invaded Navarre with 120 militiamen, 100 spearmen, 40 jinetes and his bodyguard. 100 spearmen and 200 peasants were expected to meet them.
And they did..
Although slightly more numerous than the Prince’s army they were poorly trained and had poor leadership. This resulted in 8 dead Spanish spearmen, while of the enemy 31 was killed and the rest was taken prisoner.
And Princess What’s Her Name marries a Byzantine prince.
1098
Prince Garc is 10 yrs and has a party. :balloon2:
1099
Prince Sancho is 20 yrs and has an even bigger party! :balloon2: :clown:
1100
The Germans are now the richest. No one else has such a large income. Good for them!
An English princess marries Prince Sancho! Now Prince Alfonso must find someone before his younger brother Prince Fernando comes of age. (They always seem to prefer the youngest)
We get some GA points.
1101
Chapter house done in Castile and I start on the crusade marker. I’ll send King Alfonso on his way across Europe to Jerusalem with some men and hope he picks up some more on his way.
1102
The King of France sends an emissary with an offer of alliance. He is however at war with the Aragonese, our neighbours, so we decline.
Prince Fernando matures. He’s a great general (7 stars) and a good runner :/
1103
Prince Garc matures and gets a French princess for his birthday. He’s btw also a great general (7) and a great leader! He’s going to the holy land!
1104
Someone tries to kill my emissary!
And Prince Ferdinand comes of age. He is a 6 star general and is nervous and dead drunk
(-25health) hehe…
1105
The Germans are now my allies. Olala!
I continue to build my army for the invasion of Cordoba.
1106
The Germans are considered to have the strongest military might. Wow!!
1107
build, build, build
1108
Prince Pedro matures. He is btw a 7 star general
Prince Garc has become strange
1109
Our King dies from an illness! Crap! Just to make my year, the town watch in Navarre is destroyed in an earthquake.
Prince Alfonso is crowned King Alfonso VII. Long live the king!
He got 6 in influence btw (one less than his father).
When I’ve been busy at home, King Sancho of Aragon seems to have invaded Toulouse. Funny.
1110
Oops! It seems like I have 320 to many men if I am to follow my rules (which I am). So I disband a little and say WAR!!!!
Prince Garc marches with 1318 men, including 240 brave crusaders, into Cordoba, where the inbred Prince Ali sits with 1020 soldiers. Castile is guarded by the young Prince Pedro and 600 men in case dangerous Prince Idris in Valencia makes a move with his 353 men(mainly almo UM).
On his way into Cordoba, Garc gets reports of Almohad reinforcements numbering 1000, believed to include Prince Idris (6 stars). This is bad news for Garc, who now stands against an army numbering 2085 men. But Cordoba is a key province and with it the Almohads can attack a thinly defended Spain. The Moorish army must be beatened or at least weakened by the death of their general.
And so, Garc and his men marches on.
To be continued….
I was a little uncertain how to write this but it seems to have developed into a Captain’s log style. Think I’ll stick to that…
I also haven't found out how to get screenshots. I'm a noob on that area. Any hint?
Nice work, knutis!
For screenshots, just press F2 - the shot will be saved to a directory called "TGAs".
Okay, time for me to saddle up once again....
Bamff’s Aragonese Escapade
Chapter 8 – War with Byzantium (1210 – 1220)
Disturbing news had reached King Ferdinand in the spring of 1210. A papal inquisitor was reported to have arrived in the newly conquered Aragonese province of Brittany. As further reports were received in Zaragoza, it became clear that this man was not just any Inquisitor. The man in question is the much feared Don Peter of Verona, a man reputed to have burned more suspects of heresy than all other papal inquisitors combined. Worse still, he is rumoured to be targeting “a number of Aragonese generals”. Try as they might, Fernando’s spies and informants in the region have been unable to secure any more specific information in relation to his targets.
Whilst Fernando would happily bid farewell to some of his less than effective commanders in the region, the uncertainty about Don Peter’s targets is unsettling to the Aragonese king. There is also the issue that the mere presence of an Inquisitor in this newly conquered principality may have an unfortunate impact on the happiness and loyalty of the local populace. There is no option, Fernando decides – Don Peter must be stopped. He directs his Chamberlain to make the necessary arrangements, and soon after, the shadowy Don Arias de Agreda is riding north to Aquitaine.
Just as Don Peter has been responsible for many deaths, so too has Don Arias de Agreda . He is known by the chilling sobriquet “el aguja” (“the needle”) due to his weapon of choice, the narrow stiletto blade.
Some days later the body of Don Peter of Verona is found by a roadside in southern Anjou. King Fernando sends his condolences to the Pope, noting that that the province is only recently conquered and that “there is still some bandit activity and general unrest” in the province. He reassures the Pope that these will soon be quelled. The Pope is moved by Fernando’s communication, and in light of Aragonese efforts in the spreading of Christianity throughout Europe and the Middle East, he sends a gift of 1,000 florins, much to King Fernando’s amusement.
The following year, King Stephen I of England offers an alliance with Aragon. Fernando accepts the offer. The aging King is pleased with the world. His Kingdom remains at peace, his treasury continues to grow, his armies are strong, and his alliances secure. Unfortunately, the King has precious little time to enjoy his achievements. In the winter of 1212, at the venerable age of 66 years, Fernando passes peacefully in his sleep. Aragon mourns the passing of a beloved king, before celebrating the coronation of King Pedro I.
The first year of Pedro’s reign proves to be a tumultuous one. The Byzantines declare war on the Papacy in the spring of 1213. For Pedro, there is no option, and he immediately declares that Aragon, as a faithful Catholic kingdom, would remain loyal to the Papacy. The truth of the matter is that King Pedro has seen a perfect opportunity to secure the islands of Rhodes and Crete for his kingdom. Both islands are currently in Byzantine hands, and will be vulnerable to Aragonese attack due to their isolation from mainland Byzantium. Pedro sends an emissary to Rome to petition the Pope for the blessing of a crusade against Crete.
The Papal blessing is duly received, and in 1214, King Pedro I announces that Aragon is once again at war. The King calls all Christian soldiers to join the Aragonese crusade against Crete, and a mighty army begins to gather in Leon.
Before any ships set sail, however, the seas must be cleared of the Byzantine navy, and the sailors of Aragon set about this task with great gusto. The first of a series of fierce naval engagements takes place in the Gulf of Lions in late 1214, when a solitary barque under the command of Don Martin Ramirez surprises a pair of Byzantine dromons at anchor. In a short, sharp engagement, Ramirez’ crew board the dromons. The sleeping Byzantine sailors have no chance, and quickly surrender. Ramirez and his crew sail the captured vessels and their prisoners into the harbour town of Port Vendres to the rapturous cheers of the local inhabitants.
King Pedro immediately appreciates the chance to bask in some reflected glory from this action, and orders a great feast for the man that he christens the “Lion of the Gulf”, Don Martin Ramirez. Whilst many nobles cringe inwardly at this appallingly obvious play on words, it does strike a chord with the common folk, and offers a hint that King Pedro’s descendants may many years later find employment with a tabloid newspaper as copywriters.
Ramirez is successful in a further engagement in the Gulf of Lions, sinking a third dromon in early 1215. This year proves a most difficult one for the Byzantine fleet. The combination of the increasing number of more formidable Caravels being launched by Aragon, and the superior seamanship of the Aragonese sailors sees the Byzantines suffer an embarrassing series of defeats. The battles of the Tyrrhenian Sea, Malta Channel, Gulf of Gabes, Ionian Sea, and the African Coast all see the Aragonese navy victorious without the loss of a single vessel. Even with the loss of a barque in the battle of the Straits of Sicily, the Aragonese are victorious. It is only in the Adriatic Sea that the Byzantines are successful, capturing one barque and sinking another. In the course of one year of naval warfare, the Byzantines have lost 13 ships and the Aragonese only 3 barques, and the Byzantine navy is ill prepared for a war of attrition, with few dockyards capable of building any ships more powerful than a dromon. Their sole remaining fleet is penned in the Adriatic Ocean, not daring to sail south due to the Aragonese fleet that lies in waiting in the Ionian Sea.
1215 had proven to be a year of heavy fighting on the high seas, and the following year was to be a year of heavy fighting on land.
The year long war at sea has presented some problems to the Kingdom of Aragon. The uncertainty of isolation had provided fertile ground for Maltese nationalist Don Enrico Macchiavelli to inspire his countrymen to rise up against the Aragonese garrison on the island. Fortunately, Aragonese spies on the island had advised King Pedro of the impending uprising in sufficient time to allow for the despatch of reinforcements. The King’s younger brother, Prince Enrique was to command this force. He and his troops disembarked in Malta in 1216.
The Battle of Mdina
Prince Enrique had left little to chance when planning his Maltese expedition. While it was certainly true that the army that he commanded was by no means the largest fielded by Aragon, it was certainly superior to anything that the Maltese would be able to field against them. His troops were well equipped, well trained, and highly motivated. News of their arrival to support the local Aragonese garrison spread quickly throughout Malta, and Macchiavelli’s rebel forces suffered an immediate drop in troop numbers. Many among his ragtag band of farmers, labourers, and tradesmen knew all too well that they were not soldiers. Whilst the desire for freedom and independence still burned bright for these men, they were all too aware that it was one thing to march into battle against a handful of garrison troops, but quite another to have to meet a professional army and hope to live to tell the tale. They were not cowards, just pragmatists.
Despite the desertion of some of his troops, Macchiavelli pressed on doggedly, and the two armies came face to face near the township of Mdina.
The disparity between the two forces in terms of skill at arms, training, discipline, equipment, and leadership becomes quickly apparent. With Prince Enrique’s Aragonese forces occupying the high ground, Macchiavelli gives the order to advance. As they move across the valley floor, they find themselves under fire from Don Felipe Gonzalo’s Turcopoles from their rear, and from the Dejma of Don Pedro Mendoza and Don Gonzalo D’Antequera, and the archers of Don Gonzalo Gonzalo to their front.
The rain of arrows soon breaks the spirit of most of the Maltese, and as the Maltese archers and urban militia drop their weapons to run, they find Gonzalo’s Turcopoles and Prince Enrique’s knights bearing down on them. The Maltese militia sergeants hold for long enough to meet the charge of Don Alfonso Lerma’s feudal men at arms, but only just. As their compatriots flee the field all around them, this unit is soon also routing, with the desire for survival quickly overcoming any remaining desire for victory.
Macchiavelli and his troop of mounted crossbowmen soon find themselves caught between the charging Aragonese knights and Don Ferdinand Mendoza’s jinetes.
It is not long before the battle is over. 121 Maltese lie dead, their bodies strewn across the field mirroring their attempted flight. 76 more sit forlornly awaiting their fate after surrendering. The victory has been so complete and so decisive that only 7 Aragonese lives have been lost.
https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...avictory-1.jpg
The Battle of the White Mountains
Further to the east, on the Byzantine held islands of Crete, the Aragonese crusaders waded ashore. This army had started its holy mission two years earlier in Leon. The crusade was led by Don Pedro Ansurez. Whilst he was indeed a devout man, Don Pedro Ansurez was far from the most able of field commanders, and sadly he did nothing to further enhance his reputation in this engagement.
In his eagerness to engage the enemy, Don Pedro Ansurez inadvertently gave the order to autocalc whilst attempting to take a screenshot of the respective dispositions of the two armies!
Whilst undoubtedly clumsy, Don Pedro Ansurez is most certainly a lucky man, and good fortune once again smiles upon him. In the ensuing battle, the Byzantine forces are crushed, suffering 403 casualties for the loss of only 99 crusaders.
The Battle of the White Mountains, whilst certainly the most unusual battle fought by the Aragonese in 1216, is not destined to be the last for the year. In September, Don Enrique Gonzalo and a substantial army land on Rhodes, intending to wrest control of the island from its Byzantine overlords.
The Battle of Lindos
The Byzantine general charged with the defence of Rhodes is Nicephorus Diogenes. He is acutely aware of how ill prepared his garrison is for battle, but isolated as he is from the rest of the Byzantine Empire, he has no option but to meet the Aragonese. The Byzantine garrison is outnumbered by almost 2 to 1, and Diogenes notes that most of his force have either seen too many, or too few summers…..but he is determined that he will not be known as the general who meekly surrendered Rhodes.
The subsequent action does indeed ensure that Diogenes will not be remembered as the general who surrendered. Instead he will be remembered as the general who led his men into a battle they could not win, and who was slaughtered pointlessly alongside many Byzantine soldiers who died in vain.
263 Byzantines are killed in the battle, and 55 are captured for the loss of but 31 Aragonese troops. Another victory is won for Aragon.
https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...ionvictory.jpg
The naval war is renewed in 1217, as the Aragonese fleet sails north into the Adriatic. The second battle of the Adriatic Ocean has a far different outcome than the first. The Byzantine fleet is destroyed for the loss of a single barque. With the opening of passage across the Adriatic, the soft underbelly of the westernmost provinces of the Byzantine Empire lay exposed and vulnerable to an Aragonese assault. The Byzantine Emperor, John I, realises this danger immediately, and despatches emissaries to Aragon, seeking an ending to the “unfortunate hostilities” which had broken out between the two nations. He is a cunning and devious strategist, however. At the same time that he is extending the hand of friendship, his left hand is moving to caress the handle of his dagger. Even as the emissaries arrive in Aragon and Rome, great numbers of Byzantine troops rush westwards to reinforce the provinces of Milan, Venice, and Croatia. No matter what diplomatic overtures are made, it is clear to Aragonese agents in the region that the Byzantine Emperor will not surrender his western provinces easily….
https://i140.photobucket.com/albums/...ssie/12202.jpg
Previous Chapters of This Campaign
Chapter 7 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1115
Chapter 6 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1101
Chapter 5 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1061
Chapter 4 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1039
Chapter 3 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1033
Chapter 2 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1014
Chapter 1 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...postcount=1000
Welcome to the Org, knutis! Your Spanish campaign is a worthy entry, and I look forward to more. :medievalcheers:
To bamff, I can only say "well done" as always! :2thumbsup:
:laugh4: :laugh4:Quote:
King Pedro immediately appreciates the chance to bask in some reflected glory from this action, and orders a great feast for the man that he christens the “Lion of the Gulf”, Don Martin Ramirez. Whilst many nobles cringe inwardly at this appallingly obvious play on words, it does strike a chord with the common folk, and offers a hint that King Pedro’s descendants may many years later find employment with a tabloid newspaper as copywriters.
Bampf
Great work on the narrative - up to your usual standard. Looking at your screenie provoked a couple of questions:
1) It looks like every province has at least 1 assasin - in fact most have 2 - is that some form of cunning plan you have hatched? You seem to have a lot of agents about - do you make a wide use of them - I often think that side of the game is the one I could do with improving.
2) 1220 and you have over 200,000 florins!! As a person who rarely has more than about 30,000 florins in the bank I am impressed - do I detect a closet turtler here!! - Personally I like to spend it as fast as I can get it and enjoy living on the cusp of an economic crisis (in MTW that is - I am very boring with my own finances!!). So how about sharing some of your thoughts with us?:book:
Here's a little more from my Spanish campaign
A report of the Battle of Cordoba:
Prince Garc walked onto the field of battle with 500 spearmen, 200 order foot soldiers, 40 dismounted Knight of Santiago, 60 urban militiamen, 240 jinetes and his bodyguard of 19 royal knights. The enemy with its 150 archers, 120 almo um, 160 milita sergants, 100 nubian spearmen, 120 um, 100 peasants and 40 ghulam bodyguards positioned themselves halfway up a steep hill. Tricky tricky tricky..
Garc then sent 120 jinets to poke the almohad urban militamen with their javelins, while the rest of the army walked towards a small walley below the enemy. Unfortunately one of the jinete commanders did not get his troops away when the enemy milita charged and half the jinete troop was cut down in mere seconds before the rest fled. A bad start for the Spanish this was. Even worse when 2 more jinete troops were almost annihilated. Things got better for a while when jinetes managed to brake the enemy by drawing them out from the main army and charging their backs when the turned around. Then the crusaders engaged the Almohads pursuing the jinets and the whole Almohad army started towards them. The rest of the Spansih infantry was then forced to fight an uphill battle to protect the order foot soldiers and the Santiago foot knights. In the middle of all this Prince Garc personally charged upon the enemy prince who was battering the rear of a crusader foot soldier company. The two bodyguards seemed to be equal in valour, for for each Spanish that fell, a Ghulam also fell to the ground. The Spanish however did not wish to risk their general, and a troop of militiamen charged into the Prince and his men while Garc some bodyguards pulled Garc away from the fray.
He did not stay out for long though, for without his presence the Almohads were able to rout some of the lesser Spanish men, and so he charged toward the enemy again. Because of this they say, the enemy’s advance was halted and the enemy forces present on the battle-scene were overwhelmed. This included their general who refused to surrender and was slain.
Without the guidance of their general the remaining enemy reinforcements were unorganized and with poor morale, and so easily routed by the remainder of the Spanish army.
After the bodies had been counted, they found that that 2/3 of the Spanish army had been lost. Also 2/3 of the Almohad army were lost to them, half captured, half dead. The captured prisoners were however put to the sword, since Spain could not afford to meet them again.
After the battle 1475 florins are pillaged and 252 Almohads is trapped inside Cordoba castle, which will hold for 1 year.
The King of Hungary, the King of Aragon, the King of Poland and the Holy Roman Emperor all cancel their alliances with the Almohads.
King Alfonso VII finds himself a bride amongst the Spanish aristocrazy.
1111
Troops are sent to Cordoba to defend against a possible counter attack,
a counter attack that turns into reality when an Almohad army of 1207 men marches into Cordoba to lift the siege of Cordoba castle. Prince Garc and his 833 men turn to face them.
A report of the 2nd Battle of Cordoba:
Prince Garc set up most of his infantry halfway up a hill. Some he told to hide in the woods in case a flanking opportunity should present itself. The jinetes he orders to go fourth and confront the enemy.
They did and on the left flank the jinetes had a standoff with some of the enemy’s berber camels while the jinetes on the right were chased back by Almohad urban militia. The militiamen were however divided, surrounded and crushed by the fast jinete riders. The jinetes on the left did not do so well after a while and was routed by the enemy general and his men. The enemy general who did not have a bodyguard became a little to much exited from this and rode at full speed and more after the fleeing Spanish horsemen and straight into a Spanish wall of spears. Ouch!
After this the Almohad army was no match for the Spanish.
1112
Prince Pedro marches into Valencia with 354 men, where he meets 100 poor peasants. Some of them leave the field as prisoners. Some don’t.
A proposal of ceasefire is rejected.
1113
An offer of alliance from the King of France is declined, as it would mean breaking the alliance with the English. Khalifah Yusuf II accepts an offer of ceasefire! YES!
1115
Prince Garc gathers men for a crusade to the holy land.
The Italians cancel their alliance with the Egyptians.
1119
Prince Garc marches into Morocco with 1600 men. The Almohads don’t really like crusades so they won’t let us pass and declares war. They don’t dare to meet us in Morocco however. The clash with the Almohads will be in Cyrenacia where the kalifah waits with 1600 men of his own.
Princess Jimena is born.
1120
We starve the garrison a little
1121
Marching on…
1122
Marching on…
1123
Prince Felipe is born and….
We meet 1641 Almohads in Cyrenaeia. The crusading army now numbers 1567 men.
It seems that somewhere along the way, Our beloved Prince Garc has DEFECTED!!! Cowardly dog!! :furious3:
Now Don Alfonso Berenguer (2 stars) is in command of the army. Oh well. There’s no turning back now.
The clash in Cyrenaeia
Don Alfonso marched his army towards the enemy with his cavalry in front, followed by his archers and other infantry.
When he came over a hilltop, he saw the Almohad army positioned 150 meters below him, and their desert archers moved to start firing at the horsemen. A troop of Spanish jinet charged against a lone archer troop on the flank, but was unable to brake them and was itself beaten back with heavy losses. Then the Spanish infantry to came over the hilltop and charged down on the Almos. The meele was long and hard and both sides suffered significant losses. This was espessially bad for the crusaders as they could not afford to loose too many men if they were to take Jerusalem. After a while the Spansih were able to surround and kill the kalifah and the enemy army routed. The Spanish pursued them until they met reinforcement. This was a mistake, as the reinforcements were able to beat back the unorganized and tired Spanish. A troop of Saharan cavalry did esspesially much damage until Don Alfonso with his 6 remaining bodyguards beat them back. The battle ended with a Spanish victory when their reinforcements came onto the field, but it was a costy one. 554 Spanish men lay dead on the field. While twice as many of the enemy had fallen, that was of little comfort to Don Alfonso, who now had only 1095 men, including 277 useless peasants, to finish his quest for the holy city. And then there was the issue of holding it.
After the battle, Don Alfonso was promoted.
Thanks King Kurt!Quote:
Originally Posted by King Kurt
In answer to your questions , I advise as follows:
1) As far as agents are concerned, I try to position 1 (or 2) assassins in each of my provinces so that they are on hand and ready to deal with any agents from rival factions that may be attempting to cause disturbances. I also like to have a priest in each of my provinces to help keep the good local folk happy. Priests are also handy in foreign provinces - my experience is that they enjoy a far greater longevity than either emissaries or spies. You will note that most of my provinces are also home to 1 spy, just to keep an eye on things. Inquisitors are probably the unit that I under-utilise. Like some others have mentioned, I sort of felt that they were agents of the church rather than the state, so it just "doesn't feel right"...I do have a couple wandering around, but often I wind up using them as "target practice" for assassins when II decide that I shouldn't really have them...
2) Yes, the economy is going nicely, and with all taxes currently set on "normal" (sorry - a correction - Arabia is "low", but it produces 2/5 of bugger-all anyway, so no loss). I will confess that I have a tendency to concentrate on "economic issues" in the early game. Once I have sufficient troops for my defence, ships get a preference over all other units until such time as I have my trade networks covered. In the very early stages, I am often plagued with the "insufficient funds" message (ships are expensive), but it pays off later. As far as taxes are concerned, I never shrink back from socking it to some of my wealthier provinces early, but as soon as the treasury is under control, I ease them all back to "normal" or "low".
Knutis - going well mate! I trust that your agents will deal with Prince Garc when they catch up with him! Given that your troops have marched as far as Cyrenaica, does this mean that the Almohads are finished, and that the Egyptians await on the other side of the border?
Part Twelve of an Account of a VI 2.01 campaign as the Almohads
Peace, Piety and Papal Plots
Umar III did not live long to enjoy the peace his sword had bought. With his realm at peace, he made preparations to complete the Haj. First he visited the Grand Mosque at Jerusalem, and conferred with the Grand Mufti. While there, he made arrangements for certain lords of the realm to join him, some to have honours bestowed, others to have their conduct reviewed – for the great wealth of the empire had encouraged a tendency to graft and corruption. But after long years spent in the North, the desert climate did not suit the Khalifah’s constitution. In 1338 he died, aged only 54, and was buried on the Mount of Olives, within sight of Ismail the Magnificent’s mosque.
Idris I ascended the throne aged 30, and set about continuing his father’s reforms. The court was established at Jerusalem, and the Amirs were summoned to pay homage. Those who had proved unsuited to their posts were removed; the worst offenders were assassinated. Idris had inherited a treasury of over a million florins, but was determined to increase the wealth of his realm still further.
In 1342 Pope Gregory died, and the Papal See passed to John XXI. Idris might have hoped that this would lead to better relations between the Cross and Crescent, but almost the first decree of the new Pope was to call for a crusade against the Muslim world. Fortunately, the only leader who might have answered this call was the ailing Doge of the Italians, who possessed neither the will nor the strength to make war. He was the next of the great lords to pass on. By 1345 Idris Ibn Tashufin, Governor of Constantinople, was also dead. The old order was passing. A great pestilence swept through Europe, and in its wake no-one would have any thought of war for many years to come. Besides the occasional peasant uprising, easily suppressed by his veteran armies, Idris reigned in peace.
***
Tarkhan Sansam was not the sort of man upon whom one expects the history of nations to depend. A Turk by birth, he had spent his adult life in the service of the Khalifah, and had risen by dint of unimaginative discipline to the rank of Captain of Horse Archers. His ambition was to serve out his captaincy seeing as little action as possible, so as to retire with a little wealth and all his limbs intact. Though the arid plains of Anatolia were his spiritual home, he had in recent years developed a great fondness for the green hills of Italy, and he had it in mind to spend his latter years here raising sheep and making cheese. The command of the Milanese garrison, offered to him upon the withdrawal of the main Almohad army in 1352, might have afforded him some respite from the scrutiny of his military superiors, but it brought its own burdens – even the Tarkhan was happy to confess that it was an appointment beyond his talents.
It was with some concern, therefore, that he rode out in the Spring of 1354 to investigate rumours of banditry on the Genoan border, and discovered that a party of Italian knights were responsible for the pillaging and burning of several villages. The banners of the knights indicated that they were led by one Don Bernadino Piccolomini, a leading member of the Doge’s court. And this was no mere border raid. Don Bernadino, clearly aware that the garrison was below strength, was marching on Milan itself. Forty royal knights against forty unarmoured, lightly armed horse archers… Tarkhan Sansam harboured no illusions about his chances in close combat.
He pulled back towards Milan where the rest of the garrison was quartered – a company of goddams, the ubiquitous English mercenaries. Their corporal responded to the news of the incursion with a stream of expletives in his native tongue, followed by a mixture of Italian and bad Arabic from which Sansam managed to identify the phrase “Dead horses” spoken with great enthusiasm. Even early in the morning, the Englishmen were drunk on a strong ale they brewed themselves, and the smell of bacon broiling on their campfires pervaded the camp – after so many years, the English remained half-hearted converts to Islam. Having issued his instructions, the Tarkhan left as quickly as he could. The notion of dead horses appealed less to a Turkish horse archer than to an English longbowmen.
Don Bernadino’s knights approached boldly, well aware of the weakness of the force ahead of them. Their commander felt certain that even such a small force– two conroi of twenty knights each - would quickly overwhelm the archers ranged against them. For a party of knights armed and armoured in the modern style, this might have been true. But the raiders were mostly drawn from the poorer families Italy, wearing outdated mail hauberks and riding unbarded horses. The flights of arrows with which the horse archers greeted them brought down riders and horses in greater numbers than the Don had expected, before the swift Turkish ponies bore their riders quickly away across the plain. The knights gave chase, but every so often the horse archers would turn and unleash another deadly volley. As the knights closed in on their prey, they saw men lined along the top of a ridge – a jeering, raucous crowd armed with the unmistakable longbow of the English. Even the Italians knew of this weapon, and what it was capable of doing. They drew back, unwilling to lose more men than they had already. The Turks followed them cautiously, all the way to the frontier. Sansam had turned back the invasion without losing a man. Don Bernadino returned in shame, leaving 12 dead behind him.
The consequences for Italy went beyond shame. Idris the Thunderbolt shook off the years of peace and unleashed the Almohad war machine. The first blows of vengeance were struck by stealth. The assassin’s dagger claimed Don Bernadino as its first victim, revenge for the ravaged homesteads of the frontier. Nor was his master spared. The Doge Pietro X was cut down by his own guards in the corridors of the Sea Palace – the Syrian assassins had long perfected the art of infiltration and bribery. Recognising the role of the Papacy in these new hostilities, Idris also ordered the death of Lord Scotti, commander of the Papal States. Faced with the Holy Father’s protests, the Chief Imam in Lazio, Ibrahum Ibn Yaqub, conveyed to the Papal legate the Khalifah’s terms for a lasting peace. Generous terms had been rejected so many times, the Imam was now authorised to try another approach.
“The right of Christians to worship according to the dictates of conscience is recognised,” announced the Imam. “So, too, is the right of the Holy Father to rule as the head of his church, with absolute authority in all matters of religion, in all realms and among all peoples. But we cannot allow the Pope to disrupt the peace of the Khalifah’s people, or to rule unjustly over the followers of Islam.
“We therefore propose that to secure the peace, the Pope must withdraw from all secular power. He shall not impose taxes save those tithes rendered him voluntarily by the devotees of his religion. As befits a man of religion, he shall neither bear arms nor command those who bear arms, save only a small bodyguard allotted for his personal safety. He shall not preach crusade against the people of Islam, nor in any other way encourage strife among people of different faiths.”
“Is that all the Khalifah demands?” asked the Legate dryly. “Let me know your terms in full before I deliver them to His Holiness.”
“Not all,” replied the Imam. “The lands of the Papacy shall also be forfeit. Churches, Cathedrals and other places of worship shall remain intact, as shall the houses of the priests and the monasteries, and such fields and pastures as are tended by the lay brothers themselves. The remainder of the Church’s estate shall be dispersed to support the poor.”
“Anything else?” asked the Legate, his face reddening.
“Two more items. Firstly, the Pope shall swear fealty to the Khalifah, and pledge obedience in all worldly matters. Secondly, he shall quit Rome and render his palaces to the Khalifah’s men. I understand there is a fine palace at Ravenna, once the home of the Roman Emperors. That shall be the Pope’s new home.”
“And can you truly believe that His Holiness will accept such terms? That all Europe will not erupt in protest against such an insult to Christ’s Vicar on Earth? No, never! Thank whatever horned fiend you worship that we respect the rules of diplomacy and do not order you put to death at once – as your master has put to death so many martyrs in our cause!”
Ibrahum Ibn Yaqub shrugged his shoulders: “What one Pope does not accept, another may do so willingly, and there are priests aplenty who would step into your shoes. As for all Europe, if your master could challenge the armies of the Khalifah in earnest he would have done so by now.”
“We shall see,” replied the Legate, a secret smile playing on his lips. “Meanwhile, return your master’s message with scorn. A Pope bows only to God.”
So ended the diplomatic phase. From Milan and Provence, from Venice and Naples, by land and by sea, the army of the faithful poured into Italy and the Papal Lands. The Almohads outnumbered and outclassed their opponents many times over. The results could hardly be in doubt. In Genoa, Doge Jacopo’s elite royal knights (including his brothers Marino and Enrico) attempted flight and then surrendered without offering battle or attempting to secure the city itself. The Doge himself was in Tuscany, preparing to meet a Papal envoy; his force of 383 men would have to withstand assault by more than 5000 invaders. In the Papal States Lord Scotti’s men also refused battle when Ibrahim, the Black Prince, led his armies across the Po from Venice. Some escaped behind the walls of Perugia, hundreds surrendered without a fight. At a stroke, the Pope’s army was reduced to a fraction of its former strength, with which he had to resist the hordes led by the Grand Vizier, Amir Al-Qasim.
The Almohad victory was inevitable. In Tuscany, Doge Jacopo I manoeuvred his troops with skill, ensuring Prince Muhammed’s men would have to attack up a steep slope while keeping beyond the range of the Almohad guns. Muhammed responded by sending forward Faris and horse archers to harass and distract the Italians while he moved his battle lines up to the ridge. The flight of the Almohad skirmishers, pursued by Jacopo’s royal knights, threatened the left flank of the advancing infantry, and only Muhammed’s personal intervention prevented a calamity. But Poland’s conqueror had lost nothing of the valour and martial spirit of his youth. His Ghulam warriors beside him, he attacked and repulsed Jacopo’s personal guard, so that the young Doge was forced to flee for his life. That was the signal for a general rout, which the Almohads were ill placed to exploit, and the Italians managed to reach the safety of Florence with more than a hundred survivors. Muhammed had lost 63 killed, mostly horse archers of various types. (Tarkhan Sansam survived a bruising encounter with more Italian knights and even managed to take some prisoners. His goddams, now under the command of the main army, were able to report a goodly number of dead horses by the end of the day.)
Pope John’s forces put up a poor show – his knights were clearly discomfited by the Almohad’s mounted skirmishers, and his army buckled from the first contact. The Grand Vizier used all his experience to mount a devastating pursuit, from which Pope John himself barely escaped. For the loss of only 19 men, the Amir killed or captured 133 enemies. The Pope’s defences now consisted of three bodyguards, four archers and the walls of the Roman citadel.
But not all Papal plots had dried up. While the Almohad armies streamed southward, trouble was brewing in central Europe, where the Catholic nobility gathered all their strength for one last throw of the dice…
Well, I think I'll give this a whirl. I can only hope that my campaign can even pale in comparison to the works we've seen so far. And a little OOC: I didn't really think of writing a history of this campaign until I was a littl bit into it, so the first part is probably going to be pretty lame, especially compared to the works Bregil, Bamff, and others. Oh, and for those wondering, this was done with the XL mod.
Carving An Empire
Khan Ogadei observed the empire he held from his base Khazar. He saw that many of his provinces lacked proper infrastructure, and thus was vulnerable, with only a few provinces capable of mass production. He detirmined that it was time for him to expand into other territories so that he would not be so vulnerable should he lose only a few choice provinces. His first target would be the Grand Duke of Lithuania. The Khan marshaled a small force of roughly 340 of his best horse archers and sent them to invade Lithuania. There orders read this: do not come to blows with the Lithuanians. Fire all of your arrows, and once all are gone, withraw. The troops were not excited by this, as they wished to take Lithuania right away. However Khan Ogadei had foresight. The troops did exactly as ordered. While they did not vanqish the Lithuanian army, they did come close: of the near 500 in the Grand Duke's army, nearly 350 perished, as opposed to the meger 23 casualties suffered by Mongol forces. In addition, the Lithuanians lost nearly all of their ranged forces in the battle, with a few crossbowman and some slavic javelinmen for ranged purposes. Now, Lithuania was ready to be vanquished. Ogadai sent the same troops back the next year, with nearly the same orders. There was one exception, however. If Lithuanian troops began scattering, they were to run down all fleeing the battlefield and execute them. The Lithuanian forces ultimately crumbled under the severe arrow fire of the Mongol horse archers. The Grand Duke himself was struck down by arrow fire, resulting in his army scattering without his leadership. Once again, Mongol riders did exactly as ordered, running down nearly all the Lithuanian troops.
After obtaining Lithuania, there was a brief period of peace, until the armies of the Tuetonic Order decided that the Pagan Mongols could no longer be permitted to own Lithuania. They sent a large army, far larger than the Mongol force guarding Lithuania could withstand. So 200 troops stayed behind in the province within the great Citadel, while the rest retreated to Kiev. Ogadei was furious that any would dare to backstab his great empire. He marshaled forces from all of the Steppes, gathering an army numbering over 1,000 to deal with the Tuetons. The Tuetons, however, fell back to Prussia in the face of this army. Ogadei would not be satisfied with just this, he sent the army into Prussia, on the offensive to deal with them. Once again, his foe could not withstand great Mongol archery, and Prussia fell to Mongol hands. However, the Grand Master still resided in Livonia, and could not be spared. Marshaling more forces, Ogadei sent another army to destroy the Teutonic Order once and for all. And it would be in Livonia that the Mongols destroyed the Order. However, the Order would not be the only ones envious of Mongol power. In fact, they would only be the first of many to come to Mongol borders, screaming for blood...
Part Thirteen of an Account of a VI 2.01 campaign as the Almohads
The Final Strokes
In 1331 Konrad I of Poland had led a disastrous invasion of Bohemia, where his army had been defeated and the cream of his royal knights, including his brothers and two of his sons, had been killed in the battle. Shortly before this battle Mieszko, the King’s youngest brother, had placed his own son in the care of a local priest, and in the chaos of the Almohad counter-attack the lad had remained in hiding, unable to rejoin his uncle’s court and therefore spared the eventual fate of the Polish royal house.
Growing to manhood, the young Mieszko’s identity was kept a secret, though as time passed he became the focus for the rebellious hopes of the few remaining Catholics in central Europe. The core of a small army began to gather around him, though plans were laid cautiously – it was clear that if he moved too quickly the young prince’s forces would be quickly crushed.
For the common man, life under Almohad rule was certainly no worse than it had been under the Polish king or the Holy Roman Emperor. Taxes were high, but much of this wealth was reinvested into the economy, with agriculture, trade and industry constantly developed and improved. The practice of slavery, true, had flourished under Almohad rule, but in consequence the condition of hereditary serfdom had largely been abolished. The huge armies maintained by the state ensured that there was little unemployment. The appointment of army commanders as Amirs over the conquered territories had by necessity led to the abandonment of a feudal bureaucracy, supported by the institutions of the Church, and the establishment of a secular system of education and machinery of government founded on meritocracy. In short, the only people who had not benefited from Almohad rule were the Church and the Catholic nobility, whose privileges had been curbed for the common good.
The invasion of Italy in 1356 threatened to drive the final nail into the coffin of the Old Elite. Mieszko’s rebellion, therefore, represented the last throw of the dice, and men and resources were gathered under the banner of Poland from many sources – the last scions of the Holy Roman Emperors, the Capetians and the Plantagenets, all ready to fight in what was to be effectively the last crusade against Islam. Mieszko was able to field an army of more than 4000 men, most of them footsoldiers of the Chivalric class (sergeants and men-at-arms). His original hope might have been to seize his ancestral seat of Krakow, but the positioning of the Almohad garrisons suggested an easier road led to Prague. Therefore King Mieszko, like his ill-fated uncle, found himself crossing the border into Bohemia.
With all the Khalifah’s attention focused on Italy (and all his best generals located there) it would be down to local commanders to save the day. Calls for aid were sent to every neighbouring province, and their garrisons made forced marches from each point of the compass to meet the threat of Mieszko’s rebels. In the absence of any superior general, the Earl of Denmark, Amir Ibn Omar took command of an army that eventually totalled 5000 men (some veteran troops but some levies of questionable battlefield value).
Adopting the tactics that had served the Count of Flanders twenty five years earlier, Ibn Omar lined his men upon a slope with his right flank covered by a wood and his left turned back slightly as a precaution against encirclement. One advantage that he had was the presence of three formidable guns – a demi-cannon, a serpentine and an organ gun – to defend his position. Mieszko, by contrast, fielded three catapults which were sited just out of range of the Almohad position, though they were able to threaten Ibn Omar’s skirmishers during the opening moves.
Two squadrons of Faris from the Western provinces and a squadron of steppe heavy cavalry drew first blood as they quickly advanced upon the Polish position. In response, the lines of Chivalric sergeants advanced rapidly forcing the Faris back, while the catapult crews quickly judged to range and sent stone after stone spinning after the retreating horsemen. Concentrating on this advance, Mieszko failed to take note of the steppe cavalry who rode into an isolated position well behind enemy lines. This precarious position was to have an influence on the outcome of the battle.
Rather than risk an all-out assault on the Almohad centre, Mieszko sent his troops to the left where they could use the woods to cover their advance, thus reducing the effectiveness of Ibn Omar’s cannon. The gambit almost paid off - Ibn Omar had concealed a squadron of horsemen in the trees but realised these would be at a disadvantage against spearmen. As the attack pressed home, he had to re-order his whole battle line to allow a company of Almohad urban militiamen to cover his right flank. This left a gap in the line which would have been exploited by another company of Chivalric sergeants but for the devastating firepower of the organ gun – in a moment, a tightly ordered phalanx of advancing warriors was turned into a rabble of fleeing men. In the meantime, the fight in the woods was clearly tipped in favour of the sword-armed defenders. The organ gun did deadly work to fend off any further frontal attacks against the Almohad right, and soon the attack was driven back.
On the left, Ibn Omar’s re-ordering had exposed his English longbowmen to the advance of two isolated companies of sergeants and men-at-arms. He rushed a troop of Muwahid spears to their defence, and followed this up by charging in with mounted crossbowmen and his own troop of Ghulam cavalry. To his dismay, the sergeants were able to intercept his attack before he could ride down the men-at-arms, and a bitter melee ensued. But here as well, the Almohad forces triumphed, and the Poles were sent flying back down the hill. The mercenary crossbowmen rode after them, and then turned right to attack the lines of arbalesters now engaged in an exchange of shots with the defenders on the hill. This proved reckless, for Mieszko had just despaired of being able to break through the defences on the Almohad right, and was bringing his royal knights back down the hill. Unable to extract themselves in time, the lightly armed crossbowmen were ridden down by the knights and fled. Mieszko pursued them eagerly, glad to have at last broken an enemy unit, but in his absence from the main battlefield the Almohad infantry launched a fierce counter-attack against the Polish pavise arbalesters. Mieszko turned back too late to prevent a massacre, and after his knights had taken heavy losses from enemy arrows they ran into the Muwahid spearmen and a company of English billmen. The knights made little headway, the bills of the Englishmen struck home, and suddenly they were flying for their lives. Mieszko broke free, a handful of knights followed, and the rest went down in a tangle of armour and screaming horses.
Meanwhile the steppe heavy cavalry had crept up on the blind-side of the Polish catapults and scattered their crews, then picked off any routers and stragglers from the main battlefield. These doughty warriors now spotted the fleeing knights and gave chase, and for a moment Mieszko’s life was in the balance. Then the second Polish wave appeared, and the Almohads scrambled back to their positions on the hill, the mounted skirmishers making sure each yard advanced was paid for in blood.
Each successive attack fared worse than the next. The pattern would be the same – the Poles would advance through a hail of fire, taking heavy casualties, and the break upon the wall of Almohad defenders. As soon as the attack faltered, the Almohads would sweep down from the ridge and scatter the retreating Poles and their unprotected missile troops. One determined party of men-at-arms made it as far as the woods on the Almohad flank and engaged Ibn Omar’s squadron in a desperate fight in which the Muslim commander almost lost his life among the piled corpses. But for the most part, the experience and superior positioning of the Almohads paid off. In one instance, a weary and depleted company of Almohad militia caught in the open by a squadron of mounted sergeants fought with such determination that the sergeants were beaten back and routed.
Wave after wave came on, but each one weaker than the last. By the time the last fell back, the defenders were too weary to offer pursuit, but that hardly mattered. The last Catholic army had met with disaster – 1864 killed and 1028 captured in a single day. Over the next few days the stragglers gave themselves up, for there was nowhere left to run. Of Ibn Omar’s command, 421 were dead, light casualties given the intensity of the fighting.
After this battle, the conclusion of the war was a formality. The Doge was besieged in Florence. Prince Muhammed’s guns were able to make a breach in the walls and after heavy fighting the defenders were overwhelmed and killed to a man. In Perugia, Prince Ibrahim obtained an easy win over the Papal defenders.
That left Rome. The Grand Vizier’s task was perhaps the hardest of all, a strong citadel with more than enough supplies to withstand a prolonged siege. In any case, his orders were to crush the Papal armies at once, removing any hope that another rebel force would come to the Holy Father’s aid. Al Qasim concentrated his guns to achieve breaches in the inner and outer walls of the citadel, and then unleashed his men against the Pope’s meagre bodyguard. They were met with a hail of missiles from the walls and turrets, most of the Almohad casualties being incurred long before they closed with the defenders (cynically, Al Qasim chose his foreign mercenaries for this perilous assault rather than let Almohad soldiers die). More were killed when one of the great siege cannon exploded, a fault that had cost lives in a number of sieges and battles. Finally the Pope and his three knights – the Horatii as the people of Rome had dubbed them, in memory of the heroes who saved the city from the Etruscans– came out to fight. It was a hopeless cause. The mercenary spearmen surrounded the three knights and one by one they died. John XXI, the last warrior Pope, also died fighting for the cause on which he had expended so many lives.
And so it ended. Idris the Thunderbolt was acknowledged sole master of the known world, and re-established peace in his European realm. It was a diverse realm, encompassing the desert peoples of North Africa and Arabia, the Scandinavians and Balts of the North, and all the peoples of Western, Eastern and Central Europe amd Asia Minor, united under one faith and one leader.
Where next? To the East, Persia and India remained in thralldom to the Mongols. To the South, Islam was penetrating the gold-rich kingdoms of sub-Saharan Africa. Even to the West, shipmen brought rumours of a rich land beyond the ocean.
Was it possible that Idris and his descendants could extend their influence further, to establish a world empire such as Alexander had dreamed of? It seems unlikely. A succession of strong rulers, backed by capable administrators and formidable generals, had ensured that the vast Almohad realm stayed together. The presence of a common foe had also united the Al-Mutamid princes, stifling whatever rivalries might have otherwise threatened to set them against one another. Just as the empires of Alexander and Ghenghis Khan had collapsed under the rule of lesser men, it seemed likely that the Almohad dynasty would likewise succumb to the changes of time.
But this tale can say no more of that.
(Author’s note: this campaign was played on Golden Achievements setting, and I had made a point of never being the first to declare war. Nonetheless, circumstances dictated a war of conquest against each of the major powers in turn. Only in the penultimate turn did I break this rule by making war on the Pope, and even then the attack was hardly “unprovoked.” In any case, the game was won and the conquest of Rome seemed a fitting end to the story. MTW provided some dramatic twists and turns to inspire this account – the precarious succession of Umar III, the capture of the Holy Roman Emperor, the disastrous battle in the Lithuanian snowfields and the re-emergence of the Poles to provide an Armageddon with which to end matters. I’m looking forward to my next campaign…)
A magnificent ending to a magnificent recount Bregil!
Bravo!
GreaterKhaan, I look forward to your next instalment to see how the Khan deals with the rest of Europe.
For what it is worth, here is my latest instalment....I will add the screenshots later if that is okay!
Bamff’s Aragonese Escapade
Chapter 9 – Rulers of the Mediterranean (1221 – 1235)
Late in the year 1220, Emissaries from the Byzantine Emperor, John II, arrive at the courts of Aragon, Genoa, and the Papacy respectively. Their mission is to negotiate an end to the hostilities that have broken out between the Byzantine Empire and each of these three nations. King Pedro, like his counterparts in Genoa and Rome, accepts the Byzantine offer, and an uneasy peace settles over the lands that will one day be known as Italy. While all parties have agreed to the ceasefire, none of the allied kingdoms regards Emperor John II as a man to be trusted.
The peace, however tenuous and uneasy, does afford King Pedro the breathing space to attend to “other issues” of border security. For many years now, raiding parties from the rogue state of Normandy have plagued villages in the Aragonese provinces of Brittany and Anjou. The Norman army is strong, and Pedro is well aware that bringing them to heel will be no easy task. The armies of Russia and Norway have both tried and failed during the past decade. The Normans are commanded by the redoubtable Arthur Touchet. Touchet had been the principle architect of the stunning Norman victory over the combined armies of Russia and Norway at Arromanches in the Spring of 1219. He had also been at the head of the Norman army that destroyed the Russian forces at Etretat in 1217.
King Pedro had decided that he should lead the Aragonese army himself. He was eager to test his own strategic skills against a general such as Touchet. In late June 1221, the Aragonese army with King Pedro at its head joined forces with their Genoese allies near the small township of Sille, and marched north to Couterne.
It was here, in the sparsely wooded plains west of Couterne, that Touchet chose to make his stand against the invaders.
The Battle of Couterne
Touchet had positioned most of his troops in a small thicket, so as to conceal his true strength. As the allied armies approached, all that was visible were two ballistas, two catapults, and a screen of two troops of horsemen.
“Mounted Sergeants.” noted Pedro to his Genoese counterpart, Sir Giovanni Odescalchi.
The Genoese general snorted contemptuously “They should be no match for our knights. We will drive them from the field!”
King Pedro continued, ignoring the statement out of hand “Touchet is no fool. A thousand Russian and Nowegian corpses in the graveyards of Arromanches and Etretat will attest to that, my friend. No, he shows us only what he wishes us to see. A wood such as that could conceal a sizeable army. It would be wise to approach with some caution, I think. My army will approach from the right flank. Yours from the left. I will send my turcopoles ahead of our forces to draw the attention of the enemy artillery, and to determine where the rest of the Normans are disposed. While they distract the siege engine crews, your mounted crossbows should be able to destroy the artillery before our advance.”
Odescalchi protested “Those Normans will withdraw before we can close on them! There is no need to waste time with such a small enemy force opposing us. I say we attack directly and now.”
“Need I remind you, Sir Giovanni, that your consul has placed your forces under my leadership? The attack will be conducted as I direct. We advance from the flanks when I order it and not before.”
As the Genoese general rode back to his troops, King Pedro turned to his adjutant. “Why did the Genoese send us this fool, instead of da Romano?” Sir Ezzelino da Romano had been the general responsible for many Genoese victories in their march northwards through western Europe, and had shown himself to be a military leader of great skill time and again.
Pedro continued “Odescalchi’s foolishness will cost many a Genoese life this day. Sadly, we can not prevent that, but we may stand to profit by it. I want our army positioned along this small rise, so that we are ready to strike when the Normans expose their flank.”
Sure enough, as King Pedro had anticipated, Odescalchi led the Genoese army straight at the enemy position, marching steadily across the open plain. The Aragonese were still arriving at their positions and currently unable to support the Genoese.
As the Genoese drew nearer the Noman positions, ranks of Norman archers stepped forwards from the woods to fire. Their opening volleys tore great holes in the Genoese ranks. Still the Genoese light infantry marched doggedly on. A second, and then a third volley of arrows fell on the Genoese. Still the light infantry moved forwards. Two units of Genoese urban militia broke and fled.
By now the Aragonese were in position, and King Pedro ordered his arbalests forward. A dozen mounted sergeants toppled from their saddles, 3 horses whinnied in pain and threw their riders, and numerous Norman archers collapsed. A second volley yielded a similar result, and now the Norman archers were attempting to return fire on the Aragonese. They did not have the range of the arbalests, however, and the Aragonese continued their grim work undaunted. The surviving light infantry had by now reached the Norman siege engines. The crews retreated, their places taken by Norman footknights and feudal men at arms, that charged from the wood screaming their battle cries. The Genoese line buckled, then regrouped. The Norman charge had driven a wedge through the centre of their line, however, and the Genoese force was now divided.
Touchet’s feudal sergeants had surrounded Odescalchi’s knights. Unable to manoeuvre, the knights were one by one hacked from their saddles by the Norman spearmen. King Pedro was now satisfied that the time was right to strike, and the Aragonese force advanced, with the chivalric footknigts and Knights of Santiago in the van. They crashed into the Norman flank, wreaking carnage on their foes. To their credit, the Normans fought bravely, but they could not withstand this assault. Touchet managed to rally his men for two further counterattacks, but it was in vain. The battle ended in a decisive victory for the allies, and Touchet, like 884 of his countrymen lay dead. 613 Normans surrendered to the Aragonese forces. 240 sons of Aragon had paid the ultimate price for victory. The battle cemented King Pedro’s reputation as a skilled attacker, and had secured the northern border of the kingdom.
The Byzantine Serpent Strikes
In late 1224, the forces of Emperor John II of Byzantium were again unleashed. A large Byzantine army struck south from Milan at the Genoese province of Tuscany, whilst an even larger force marched on the Papal States from Venice. The Byzantine navy was also active, mounting an unsuccessful attack on the Aragonese fleet in the Adriatic. The battle of the Gulf of Venice would prove to be an ill conceived idea by the Byzantines, as the engagement cost them both of their remaining galleys.
The Genoese forces in Tuscany were similarly victorious, forcing the Byzantines to retreat to Milan. The Papal armies were not so fortunate, however, and after a bloody battle, the survivors were forced to withdraw to Perugia Castle.
As spring’s warmth bathed the Italian peninsula in 1225, the armies of Genoa and Aragon struck back at the Byzantines. The Genoese army invades Milan, and sweeps the Byzantine force garrisoning that province aside. The Byzantines are still licking their wounds from their unsuccessful Tuscan campaign, and are in no fit state to mount a defence against the Genoese.
Meanwhile, further to the east, Don Felipe Cisneros leads an Aragonese army into The Papal States to relieve the besieged garrison of Perugia. This army is supported by a large Papal force which drives north from Rome. Emperor John II, faced with this enormous allied army, elects that discretion is the better part of valour, and retreats north to Venice. The siege is raised, The Papal States are returned to the Papacy, and the Pope himself conveys his deepest thanks to Aragon.
The bad news of 1225 for Emperor John is not ended however. Even as his army begins its arduous march back to Venice, news arrives of the successful Aragonese invasion of the provinces of Croatia and Serbia. Emperor John is now isolated from the rest of his empire, trapped in Venice.
But one light shines on the Byzantine horizon in 1225 – an attempted Russian invasion of Greece proves unsuccessful, with the Byzantine garrison inflicting many casualties on the invaders.
Clearly Emperor John must establish a link with the remainder of the Byzantine Empire. He has no option – he must gamble. He gathers almost his entire Venetian garrison and marches south to Croatia in 1226. With an army of just over 3,000 men, he believes that he should be able to best Prince Enrique’s Aragonese force of similar size.
The two armies come together in the hills at the foot of the Dinaric Alps, near the township of Otocac.
The Battle of the Ridge at Otocac
Prince Enrique surveyed his troop dispositions again. He was confident of victory, even though the reputation of the force that now faced him was legendary. The Byzantines had swept all before them in their drive west, and their training and discipline was well known throughout Europe.
Enrique had set his lines such that his enemy would be forced to climb the ridge to meet the Aragonese army, and all the while under a hail of Arbalest bolts and arrows. He watched their advance across the valley floor, noting that the units on their flank were already coming under fire from the turcopoles that he had positioned atop the neighbouring ridge as advance scouts. Enrique rubbed stroked his moustache as he considered his enemy. Even though he could see some of them fall to the turcoples arrows, they did not deviate from their course, nor did they break formation. “What discipline!” he thought to himself.
Emperor John, whilst expecting such discipline from his men, was nonetheless also impressed with the stoicism under fire of the Katphraktoi on the left flank.
“You will soon have your chance for revenge!” he called to his men “Onwards!”
At a pre-determined signal, the Byzantine force split into two. One half of the force, comprising mostly Byzantine infantry marched on up the valley. The second part of the force, largely consisting of Kataphraktoi, marched into the woods that cloaked the lower slopes on the Byzantine right flank. The burst from the trees, charging into the teeth of the Aragonese arbalests and dejma. A wall of spears wielded by chivalric sergeants greeted them to the Aragonese line, but it was clear that the spearmen alone could not contain this force. Enrique ordered his halberdiers to assist the chivalric sergeants. Meanwhile the Aragonese men at arms were fighting tooth and nail to hold the Byzantine infantry on the other flank.
The Aragonese line was indeed hard pressed, and in severe danger of breaking. Enrique knew this was not the time to hold anything back. He raised his sword and spurred his steed forwards, with his knights of his royal bodyguard at his shoulder. Their charge carried them into the centre of the whirling melee – a tangled mess of fighting men, screaming in fear, agony, exultation, or any combination of the three. A young knight called Don Pedro Mendez drove his lance deep into the shoulder of the mount of one of the Kataphraktoi. The lance shattered as Mendez wheeled his steed about and drew his sword. The Byzantine horseman had scrambled to his feet, and was attempting to draw his own sword to meet the second charge of the young Aragonese knight. Mendez spurred his charger forwards, slashing down across the Byzantine’s shoulder as he passed. He felt the heavy blade strike, and heard the man scream. It was only as he turned for a third charge that he noticed the gold band that adorned the man’s helmet. As the last breaths gurgled from Emperor John’s lips, his men lost their desire for battle. As the first units began to waver, casualties began to mount, and there began a vicious circle for the Byzantine force.
They withdrew in disarray from the blood soaked ridge, leaving 1,134 of their countrymen lying alongside 761 Aragonese. 610 Byzantine prisoners sat in dazed disbelief. Their Emperor was dead, the battle was lost.
The Byzantine Empire is further shaken in 1226 by the loss of the province of Greece to the Russians. These are dark days indeed for the Byzantines – but there is worse to come.
The Battle of Padua
The shattered survivors of the Battle of the Ridge at Otocac have precious little time to nurse their wounds. In 1227, Don Sancho de la Cerda leads an Aragonese army into Venice, supported by smaller armies from Russia and the Papacy.
The Byzantines are hopelessly outnumbered, but once again acquit themselves admirably. The same, sadly, cannot be said of the armies of Rome. The Papal army is poorly led, and consequently of low morale. When their commanding general is slain during a clumsy frontal assault, it is not long before much of this force flees the field in disarray. Fortunately the Russian forces prove more steadfast, and the allies prevail. 359 Byzantines are killed, and 44 captured, but victory is bought at a truly horrendous price. 306 Aragonese soldiers have died, and many more that fought under the banners of Russia and the Papacy.
The End of Two Kingdoms
The Russians launch invasions of Constantinople and Bulgaria that same year, and after a series of bloody battles both provinces are subdued. A sole Byzantine garrison remains defiant in Constantinople, but they lack sufficient supplies to resist for long. By the end of 1228, all resistance is crushed, and Byzantium is no more. 1,000 florins arrives at Zaragoza, with a message of thanks from the Pope to King Pedro for the Aragonese part in bringing the Byzantines to heel.
Europe is stunned the following year, as news reaches all nations that Sicily has launched an attack on Naples, and that the Sicilian navy has commenced a series of attacks on Papal shipping.
“Has King Geoffrey taken leave of his senses?” is the question on many lips, for all know that not only has Geoffrey committed himself to a war that he cannot win, he has also condemned himself and his kingdom to eternal damnation, for as sure as night follows day, war with the Papacy will lead to excommunication.
In 1231 this view is confirmed, as a decree from the Pope declares the excommunication of the Sicilians to all of catholic Europe. King Pedro aligns Aragon with the Papacy, and declares war on the heretic Sicilians. A series of naval battles ensues. The Sicilian fleet is a formidable fighting force, and it is victorious in the Battle of Skaggerak and the Gulf of Lions. The Aragonese fleet also boasts some redoubtable mariners, and a great many caravels, and they emerge triumphant after the battle of the Balearic Islands, North Sea, Sea of Crete, and, most importantly, the battle of the Straits of Sicily. The way is now open for the Aragonese army to land an invasion force on Sicily itself.
Against this backdrop of furious naval action, it is understandable, perhaps that several messages from the east are not paid greater attention. Through 1231 and 1232, there are increasing reports of the appearance of a great army of fierce warriors. Khazar and Georgia are reported to have fallen, and other Russian protectorates in the east are coming under increasing threat.
In 1233, Don Ferdinand de Padilla lands in Sicily, and marches on Palermo. King Geoffrey’s Sicilian army stands to meet this threat to the south of the town of Alcamo. It is a region of gently rolling hills, punctuated by small forest thickets.
The Battle of Alcamo
King Geoffrey positions most of his force atop the highest of the hills in the immediate vicinity of Alcamo, and a small advance force in a small wood in order to take the Aragonese by surprise as they approach his main force. It proves to be a forlorn hope. Don Ferdinand de Padilla is too experienced a general to advance without first carefully surveying the terrain. Two troops of turcopoles scout ahead of the Aragonese army, and the Sicilian ambush force is soon discovered.
De Padilla surrounds this force, and orders his arbalests and dejma to fire. The Sicilian force is comprised of no more than archers, spearmen, and feudal sergeants, and the few that survive the Aragonese volleys are rapidly dealt with by the Aragonese chivalric foot knights and feudal men at arms.
King Geoffrey watches in impotent fury as his battle plan torn apart before his very eyes. He orders his knights and mounted sergeants to charge the enemy. As they near their target, it is clear that the Aragonese have had more than ample time to reset their line. A hail of arbalest bolts and arrows sweep the Sicilian cavalry, emptying many a saddle. The survivors gamely charge on, only to impale themselves on a wall of spears carried by the supremely disciplined Aragonese order foot and chivalric sergeants. The final blow is dealt as the Aragonese foot knights close in from the right flank, and the Aragonese royal knights charge into the exposed rear of the Sicilians.
King Geoffrey is one of the Sicilian knights who did not reach the wall of spears. The accident prone monarch had developed a most unfortunate reputation during his reign, stumbling from one disaster to another, and so it was also with his demise. As he led the Sicilian charge down the slope towards the Aragonese, his faithful charger caught its foreleg in a rabbit burrow, and fell, its leg broken. King Geoffrey was thrown from the saddle, and landed head first in front of the beast, which then fell on his prostrate form. Surgeons who examined his body after the battle declared that the king would have died instantly upon hitting the ground, as his neck was badly broken.
As the dust of battle clears, 624 Sicilian and 178 Aragonese corpses litter the field. 231 Sicilians have surrendered, the rest of the army has fled, seeking sanctuary in Palermo. Their freedom is to be short-lived, as Palermo falls in 1234, and the kingdom of Sicily ends. The island of Sicily is now a part of the Aragonese empire, a mighty kingdom which now controls all of the Iberian Peninsula, all of northern Africa, and most of the island provinces of the Mediterranean.
A Storm in the East
Truly Aragon is indeed a great kingdom, but King Pedro is troubled. The reports of the eastern invaders, the so-called “Golden Horde” have not abated over the past 3 years. If anything, the frequency of these reports have increased, and each one bears more worrying content than that which preceded it. He turned to face the rush of wind that roared across the battlements, heralding the arrival of a thunderstorm. As he gazed at the dark pendulous clouds that swirled above him, a rumble of thunder followed the flashes of lightning across the horizon.
“Oh yes,” he thought, “There is indeed a storm brewing…but it will be nothing compared to that which even now seems to be engulfing the easternmost provinces of Europe….”
Previous Chapters of This Campaign
Chapter 8 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1123
Chapter 7 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1115
Chapter 6 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1101
Chapter 5 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1061
Chapter 4 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1039
Chapter 3 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1033
Chapter 2 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1014
Chapter 1 - https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showpo...postcount=1000
i have to say, these accounts are bloody brilliant (bregil the bowman, bamff but many others). i stand in sheer awe (and possibly a little envy) at the literary skills involved.
what also amazes me is that during all these battles, i have seen kill ratios of 50 men lost for 800-1000 killed plus hundreds more captured. how do you guys do this? i can almost never achieve this and certainly not against an army that is half decent.
So, after more than two months of silence, here you go. A lenghty post considering that it only covers four years. Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I enjoy your stories:yes:
Part one of the Reign of King Casimir I, Hammer of the East: 1275 - 1279 A.D.
Some say that King Casimir I of Poland was not a very great king, neglecting his homelands in favour of conquest and warfare far to the east. Maybe they are right, but few - if any - can deny that under King Casimir the Kingdom of Poland grew into what must be considered an empire, covering the mighty Eurasian steppes. But before we discuss the achievements of Casimir (and they are many) it might a good idea to first take a deeper look at what kind of a man Casimir really was and what drove him.
Casimir was undoubtedly the product of an expanding superpower. By the time he was born (the mid 13th century) Poland was already the mightiest kingdom in central and eastern Europe, and it's only real rival in terms of splendour was the Crown of Castille and Leon to the south and west. His father and forefathers had been great warriors and power hungry despots, with few exceptions. His father in particular had a certain lust for war that was seldom seen. This of course affected Casimir has grew up, and it is only fair to judge his actions if one understands that he was a product of his time.
Yet something separated Casimir from his ancestors: He was not a man of war, he was a man of curiosity (although he no doubt shared the same thirst for power as his forefathers). Most of Casimir's conquests were motivated by the mere will to see and explore (and of course control). He was particularly interested in the east, especially since he had been raised with a certain way to view the world: To the west were the friendly Spaniards and their mighty kingdom. This people had much in common with the Polish - same religion, same fashion etc - and thus the west never interested him very much. It was basically the same as at home, just warmer.
Now the east on the other hand. Here lived strange steppe people with many religions, some were even followers of Islam. These men lived on the harsh steppes, always on horseback, or in the deep dark woods further north. The woodsmen - who actually were very similar to what the average Pole had been like two or three centuries ago - had great beards and drank their mead in great quantities. Curiously, these men were mostly Christian, although they followed the way that the Patriarch of Constantinople had once preached, before the city fell to the Moslems. The people of the steppes had their own ways, and although the Kingdom of Poland had been in contact with such cultures for decades, centuries even, they were still treated as exotic.
The wide steppes and the strange people inhabiting them always interested - and puzzled - Casimir, and this might be what always drove him eastwards. Of course, as king of one of the world's mightiest kingdoms, he could not just fraternize with the people of the east, and many of these horsemen treated the Polish as their worst enemies anyway. Thus, in the mind of a medieval king like Casimir, conquest was the best way to get to know these lands.
What must further be noted about Casimir is his knightly and chivalrous manner. He was born and raised a prince and knight, and was always expected to act like one. Thus, despite his many seemingly cruel decisions on a larger, political, scale, we often find anecdotes or tales of the chivalry of Casimir in personal life. Some of them are written later on to glorify the king of course, but it is not at all unlikely to assume that the king was indeed a very good person at heart, he was just born with a responsibility to live up to the greatness of his ancestors.
Already in 1272 A.D, when his father was still alive, had Casimir begun his wars in the east. He had, as have been described in previous episodes of this chronicle, wrestled Turku and Novgorod from the Golden Khanate. As he became king in 1275, Poland entered a time of great expansion and glory.
He let the war rest for about two years while making the necessary preparations for a continued war, but in the summer of 1277 the full might of Poland was unleashed on the trembling Mongols. In a single, huge, operation the lands of Lesser Khazar, Pereyaslavl, Chernigov and Smolensk were invaded. Nowhere dared the Mongols stay and fight, but it must be said that the Khanate had much trouble in organizing its forces as a civil war had recently swept through the lands and the Khan himself, Chagatai, who was commonly regarded as a coward after the battle of Kupiskis and had a limp from the same battle, was not a very powerful figure.
Casimir himself had commanded the army that marched into Smolensk, and he now ordered a quick assimilation process of the newly conquered lands. Churches and castles were built and the population converted to Christianity. This might seem to contradict with Casimir's interest and respect for the east, but what sort of Catholic king would wish his subjects to go to hell as they died? No, rather convert them to the true faith at the expense of their old ways. Besides, this might catch the eye of the Pope down in Rome. Anyway, Casimir did invite the most respected "scientists" and explorers from Poland to come and see this new land. They were all ordered to depict and document everything they saw and learnt during their voyages, and it is much thanks to these documents we know so much about medieval eastern Europe today (but to tell the truth, these documents are a better source for folklore and Polish superstition than for the everyday life of the common Russian or Mongol).
Down on the south-eastern border however, the Polish didn't have time to celebrate these great successes to the north - as was done across the kingdom - as things took a highly unpleasant turn when the Seljuk Turks finally broke the uneasy peace and marched into Bulgaria with full force in the summer of 1277. This marked the beginning of a dark, yet brief, episode in Turkish history.
The Balkans had been a troubled area all since the Byzantines had been driven away back in the 12th century. Kings and Khalifs came and went with the seasons, and the diversity of faith among the inhabitants meant that the situation was never truly peaceful, even if there was no war. The Polish had expanded southwards in the late 12th century, but had made little progress since the now historic Tatar Rüstem, Voivode of Bulgaria, had incorporated his lands into the Kingdom of Poland in 1225. Since then, the Balkans had been split between the Polish to the north, the Sicilians along the southern coast and the Turks in Thrace and Constantinople.
Lord Wos, the high commander of the Polish army in Bulgaria at the time - and a man who was to become one of the most famous and beloved generals in the kingdom - knew what to do, being experienced after his participation in the Crimean campaign. Wos was a man in his forties and had spent his entire life in the army, being the youngest son of a Moldovian noble. He was a man of few words, but of swift action.
Wos was of about average length and had black hair and brown eyes, but was unusually pale. In his youth, he had been known for his beauty, but his nose had been broken during the Crimean campaign and a nasty scar gained at Cembalo had distorted his upper lip.
Anyway, rather than having his enemies pillaging their way through Bulgaria (for it was a huge army) he decided to meet them early on and save the inhabitants a lot of suffering, and at Elkhovo to the armies met.
Now, we know very little about the battle. It has probably been very well documented once, particularly by the Poles who were keen on documenting battles in which they were victorious. But time has passed and much of the sources have been destroyed or lost. What we know is mostly based on a rhyming chronicle, written by a monk in a monastery not too far from the battlefield (although the exact location of the battle remains unknown). What we can tell is that the Turks marched through a dense wood, and when they came out in the open they were shocked to see Lord Wos and the Polish army positioned on a hilltop right before them. Without much hesitation the Turks attacked the Poles, but were driven back with heavy casualties. The anonymous chronicler states that half the Turkish army was destroyed, which seems unlikely regarding the operations in the following years, but it is not unlikely that as much as 1/5 of the Turks perished at Elkhovo.
The Battle of Elkhovo
https://img403.imageshack.us/img403/2025/battle1jg7.jpg
The survivors now retreated home in good order, but certainly angered and disappointed with the outcome of the war. The Seljuk Turks, embittered by their defeat and foiled plans quickly sent another army of similar size into Bulgaria already early in 1278. What followed was
The Fiasco at Khaskovo
Lord Wos, who still remained with his army on the southern border, fearing another invasion knowing that the Turks were all but defeated was not overly surprised when news reached him of the approaching Seljuk army. He decided to intercept the Turks (whose leader remains unnamed in the chronicles although later chroniclers claims him to be a prince of the blood) and met them in the hills outside Khaskovo.
Again, the Turks were caught by surprise as they had not expected their enemy to still remain so near the border, but they took a more careful approach to the situation this time as they knew that the Polish wall of halberds was nearly impenetrable. Instead, the Turkish commander (whoever he truly was) decided to attempt to trick the Polish into attacking him. Often had the light cavalry of the Turks outpaced heavy armoured infantry, and if their arrows could not pierce their armour (as they often did not in these days) they could always tire the enemy until they finally broke and collapsed.
This was what the Turkish commander had hoped, but all he achieved was the death of his precious horses as Lord Wos understood what his enemy was doing. Knowing that he had the height advantage and that his arbalests outranged the Turkish bows anyway the ordered his men to target the horses rather than the men upon them. A cruel decision considering the love the Turks had for their horses, but an effective one. Soon, as casualties mounted and the Polish remained steady on their hilltop, the Turks realised they could do nothing and retreated.
Less than 200 Turks died that day, which is remarkably little considering the size of the two armies, but approximately 500 horses were lost in the battle. Melee was not joined at all. The Turks retreated without achieving anything whatsoever.
https://img485.imageshack.us/img485/9412/battle2tb5.jpg
The consequent defeats to the north had certainly angered the Seljuk Sultan a lot. It is not clear why he declared war on the mighty Polish in the first place, but after the embarrassment at Khaskovo this had to be settled in blood. On August 12 1278, a Jihad was declared upon the lands of Bulgaria and the Kingdom of Poland.
The Jihad was announced in Constantinople, and quickly gained many followers and much support. Amir al-Suud, the greatest military commander in the Sultanate, was decided by the Sultan himself as the man who would command this army.
al-Suud was an experienced warrior as Lord Wos. He was in his late fifties and in terms of physical abilities he had seen his best days come and go, but he had once been a powerful figure and although not very muscular anymore, he still stood an impressive six foot and ten inches. A giant, in other words, although a skinny one.
It was not body strength who had gained al-Suud his reputation and status however, but it was his brilliant strategic mind. Now, what is to note about al-Suud is that the was of Egyptian descent and had mostly - if not entirely - been fighting against the Sicilians down south, where the climate was much different from in Bulgaria. Armies were always dependant on water, which was sparse in the deserts of the south, and al-Suud was known to use this to his advantage when dealing with the Sicilians who had no experience of being in the desert. This, the difference between Bulgaria and the theatres in which al-Suud was used to fight, rather than his age as some historians have put it, might explain his utter defeat in
The Battle of Hávsa
Amir al-Suud knew very well that he could not hope to take his enemy by surprise. Lord Wos had an extensive intelligence network and besides, the words of the Jihad had spread across all Europe. As far away as in London was this the topic of many discussions among the more educated. Instead, he would try to outmanoeuvre his enemy in the way that he was used to.
Wos however did not wait for his enemy to move and decided to take the offence. He marched southwards quickly and suddenly found himself south of the Turks. al-Suud now triumphed as he thought he had the Polish trapped between himself and his army and Constantinople. Making sure the Polish could not reach the Tundzha or any other major rivers he hoped he could "starve" them out. This failed however as Wos instead adopted a brutal pillaging of the area, and the presence of water made sure that his troops never "went dry". Water was certainly not this common down south, and the pleas of local population ultimately forced to al-Suud to meet the Poles were they wanted to fight. Outside Hávsa Lord Wos made his stand.
Those who have followed this chronicle of the Kingdom of Poland might find the account of this battle very tiring as it is very similar to so many other battles, so I'll be very brief in my description of the events that fateful day, June 3 1279:
Lord Wos positioned his men in a traditional manner atop a slight ridge with a valley below. al-Suud soon found this position impossible to outflank and thus had to rely on a full-frontal assault. He was confident however, as his army was quite simply huge, and the ground shook as it marched.
For an entire day the battle raged on. The Turks came in wave after wave, but each was mercilessly driven back. In the midst of the battle, al-Suud and his bodyguard suddenly found themselves flanked by the knights of Wos himself and within seconds, the greatest of all Turkish military commanders was dead, his heat split in two by the battle axe of an anonymous Polish knight.
As the dust ultimately settled, reflecting the settling sun, 1/5 of the Seljuk army had perished without being able to push the Polish back. Countless laid to rot in the fields and the horrible screams of agony and pain of those who had not been granted with the mercy to die directly echoed through the now silent valley. No one came to put them out of their misery though.
The Poles had fought against hopeless numbers, 3:1 at least, but had still won the day, against all odds.
Leaderless and disorientated the surviving Turks fled, and soon after the Jihad was disbanded on nobody’s orders. This was indeed a great triumph for Lord Wos and a disastrous defeat for the Turks. Many wondered why Allah had abandoned them on their holy quest, and the Sultan, even more furious with rage, saw to that many of the officials behind the Jihad lost their heads.
https://img177.imageshack.us/img177/4213/battle3ft2.jpg
With the defeat at Hávsa, things became quiet and the war went into a stalemate. The prisoners taken during the battle were executed on the orders of Lord Wos who, tired from three years of constant warfare, wished to signal to the Turks that no mercy was to be shown to those who carried arms against the Kingdom of Poland. After this, he marched back north, but he did not rest and the armies along the Polish-Turkish border were always big and ready to react, but for now things settled.
The Turks did not lack the manpower to continue the war, quite the opposite, their armies were seemingly endlessly huge, but the destruction and unauthorized disbanding of the Jihad, as well as the shocking executions of so many important Seljuk officials had caused a theological and political crisis throughout the Sultanate, and domestic matters had to be dealt with before the wars with the infidel could be continued.
Here, with the glorious victory at Hávsa, this chronicler finds it suitable to take a pause, and we shall return to the further exploits of King Casimir I within short. Then, we shall talk more about the personal experiences of Casimir himself and his mighty conquests to the east.
I have tried in my account to strike a balance between telling a story and setting out the game mechanics at each stage. It should be possible to read through the detailed accounts :book: and get an idea :idea2: of how these battles were won.Quote:
Originally Posted by MJF
Strategically, I have endeavoured to fight only those battles I thought I would win, where I felt I had an advantage in terms of the quality or quantity of troops, the terrain or all three. For larger battles I have always tried to be the defender :knight: as this brings considerable tactical advantages.
Developing a strong navy enabled me to move troops quickly to anywhere they were needed, following General Forrest's maxim - "Get there the fastest with the mostest." I can't stress this enough. In the early stages I was dragging the different troop types I needed from Cyrenaica to Cordoba and vice versa with painful slowness:turtle: . (Yes, my berber camels were green). Owning the Med by the end of Early changed all that and by the end I was shipping troops from Lithuania to Rome in a single bound.
On the battlefield itself, once again "Get there the fastest :charge: with :knight: :knight: :knight: :knight: :knight:the mostest." If you're defending, you can set up in the most advantageous terrain and let the opponent come at you. Your reinforcements will be close at hand, his will have to cross the battlefield.
Prepare a killing zone:smg: :ahh: :hmg: with your archers and artillery so that any enemies that reach your lines do so well and truly mauled.
Most casualties will occur after an army is broken, but it is sometimes necessary to curb :ballchain: the instinct to chase a beaten foe. In a big defensive battle it is often safer to return to your starting position, replace your tired and depeleted units, and let the enemy rally for another go. Rallied troops are often fragile and break just as nicely second time around.
High valour troops and high star generals are invaluable. Look after your generals, losing them is usually disastrous :skull: . At the same time, if you get a chance to take down the enemy general, do it by any means you can.
I generally play campaign games so the strategic choices are what lies behind most big wins. I'm sure there are MP experts out there who could give better advice on winning the "equal sides" scenarios. I'm usually looking for casualty exchanges to be at least 3:1 in my favour, ideally 10:1 or better. It doesn't always work that way. Sometimes you end up in a real meat-grinder battle with more or less equal casualties, usually really heavy for both sides. But you shouldn't lose too often, because those are the battles where a sensible general decides he isn't going to fight.
Thanks for that MJF - always nice to get feedback.Quote:
Originally Posted by MJF
In response to your query, I will echo Bregil's sentiments. The key to victory, particularly the big ones, largely comes down to carefully picking your battles, and in engineering situations where your troops enjoyed either a numerical or technical superiority (or both).
My guys have copped a couple of maulings when forced to face Byzantine Kataphraktoi, but have handled most other opposition pretty well thus far.
I try to keep my front line forces as upgraded as possible, with any units no longer able to be upgraded (for example spearmen) eventually rotated back to garrison duty in provinces unlikely to come under attack.
In most of my offensive battles, my army is at least on par with the enemy in terms of size, if not larger. If not, the composition of my army is more balanced, or my troops are better equipped. The latter is certaily true in defensive battles (in which I am almost invariably outnumbered).
I have also devoted considerable time and effort to establishing my trade routes, not just for economic reasons. You need to be ready and able to get troops from one place to another as quickly as possible.
Now that my kingdom is established, I have the luxury of being able to fight predominantly defensive battles, which means that I get to choose my ground (or whether to give ground - on occasions, discretion is indeed the better part of valour).
Often on a defensive bridge or hill battle, the casualty toll on one's enemies can be horrendous.
A long winded response - apologies for that, but I thought that just saying "Yeah, what Bregil said" may have seemed a touch trite!
Innocentius - bravo mate, fabulous stuff - I look forward to reading more of the exploits of King Casimir. In all honesty I have never really looked to closely at the unit roster of Poland - does the heavy leaning towards halberdiers and arbalests indicate a paucity of choices or purely a personal preference (I know that I myself tend to use the combination of arbs, halberds/cfk's, and turcopoles/mtd x-bows wherever possible)?
bamff - First of all, thanks:bow: Second, no: the Polish unit roster is nothing special I'm afraid. It's the same as with any other Catholic just with the nice addition of Polish Retainers (really useful early on) and with the benefits of a more eastern faction (mounted crossbowmen and the Slav units, that make excellent garrison stuff).
This leads me onto the subject raised by MJF. For yes, my armies are designed as they are mostly out of personal preferance. I think I've written it before, but it's worth mentioning again: the combination halberds and arbalesters is, IMHO, probably the best way to deal with any enemy. They pack a good punch, especially when there is a few units of CK around, and can stand a lot of poundering. These armies are cheap and simple to produce and retrain or replace. I can't help the feeling I'm just mass-producing soldiers.
My tactic is - in a way - the opposite of what Bregil and bamff said. My enemies always almost outnumber me, and with good margin. I often find myself in 3:1 battles, which particularly good since this will lure the enemy to attack me, regarding it's superior numbers to be enough (which is precisely what happened in my wars against the Turks above, they had about 5 full stacks in Constantinople before the Jihad).
Anyway, so my tactics are basically to either just let my arbalests (protected by my halberds) mow the enemy down (defensive battles) or to force the enemy into attacking me by sending my arbs up first with my halbs right behind. If the enemy still wont attack, I'll just wear them down and when my arbs are out of bolts, I'll send my infantry in for a huge slugfest (preferably with a few units, ideally cavalry, flanking). To date, I've never seen this tactic backfire. Only drawback would be the low morale of the units, which forces me to have a good commander.
But in short, I'll join the chorus and praise the words of Bregil.
Here is the next chapter on Khan Ogadai's reign over the Golden Horde.
An Empire at War
Having vanquished the Teutonic Order and their Grand Master, Ogadai was content with his empire. He was not one to senselessly attack others, only invading in the case of retribution. However, the Christians of Europe and Asia minor had a less lenient policy towards the Mongols. In 1329, in the south of his Kingdom, Leon V of Armenia coordinated with his Orthodox ally, Yuri III of Russia. While Yuri invaded the province of Ryazan, Leon led his army into the Mongolian province of Edessa. The forces in both provinces were merely small garrisons, and had to retreat to their respective strongholds. Ogadai was outraged at this insubordance. Just three years previous, Leon had sent a messenger claiming word of an alliance. Ogadai, believing him, had agreed to the alliance. Now it was clear that the whole thing was a ruse to lower his guard. Ogadai ordered the hiring of several mercenaries from Mesopotamia, and ordered them, in addition to 280 horse archers and 360 Mongol foot soldiers, to march into Edessa. Leon, in the face of this invasion, decided it would be the better part of valor to abandon the province and retreat to his home in Lesser Armenia. Meanwhile, Ogadai marched north himself, along with his personal guard and a small legion to merge with the troops in Volga Bulgaria and deal with Yuri himself. The next year, Ogadei launched an invasion of Muscovy, while the bulk of the Russian army was still attempting to lay siege to Ryazan. Yuri, who had led the invasion of Ryazan himself, was outraged when a messenger brought word that Muscovy was under seige of by Ogadai and set his army to fall back to Muscovy and retake it. Ogadai, meanwhile, was confident that the Russian army had no hope of defeating him in battle. However, the next year would bring many surprises for the Mongols.
It would seem that in the face of the Mongols, even the Christians and Muslims could unite. Down south, Leon appealed to his ally, Sultan Osman of the Ottoman Empire. Leon was furious that he had to retreat from Edessa, and wanted to recapture the province. Osman agreed to help, and the same year, Mongol forces were faced with a combined Turkish and Armenian army, nearly the full forces of both Kingdoms. With no other choice, the Mongol commander had to retreat from the invasion, with control of the province going to Leon. Meanwhile in the north, Yuri appealed to his Orthodox ally, Mstislav of Novgorod. Mstislav agreed to aid the Russians in recapturing Muscovy. Ogadai was no fool, and when he received word that Novgorod had sent nearly their whole force to aid the Russians, he abandoned the province and fell back to Ryazan, which had been recaptured upon the Russian evacuation. Four of his neighboring factions had declared war upon him in the last 3 years. This was unallowable. He devised a plan to neutralize this, however. In the north, he sent a small detatchment of Horse archers to Novgorod. They were, however, merely a diversion to distract Novgorod. Meanwhile, he would reinvade Muscovy. In the south, he sent another small detatchment of horse archers and Mongol foot soldiers into Rum, the Ottoman capital. Meanwhile, his army in Mesopotamia that had been forced from Edessa would recapture it.
In both the north and the south, the strategies worked even better than Ogadai had hoped. In Novgorod, the Mongol horse archers managed to inflict serious damage with their arrows, due to Mstislave's military mis-management. In Rum, the Mongol army managed to inflict casualties at a 240 to 115 ratio, due to their superior archery. Meanwhile, in Edessa, Leon once again fell back to his capital at Lesser Armenia. His troops were beginning to become disheartened that their leader was constantly retreating when attacked. And in Muscovy, the Russian army proved no match for the Mongols, and was trounced, with only a 84 soldiers making it to the citadel. Things were looking better for the Mongols. Novgorod had lost too many soldiers to pose a serious threat to the Mongols. Armenia had turned into a standoff, Russia was one seige battle from being finished, and a new army of freshly trained troops was being mobilized south to counter the Ottomans. However, Leon was not content being trapped in Lesser Armenia, and it seemed that in his last days, he had begun to lose his coherency. After three years of standoff between Edessa and Armenia, he lost patience and attacked Edessa, this time, however, without Ottoman aid.
The Mongols took position on a hill towards the southern end of the battlefied, forming a half, hexagon battle formation. The battle would prove to be Leon's last, as he himself was shot down by volleys of arrowfire while leading the Armenian charge himself. Disheatened by their king's death, the Armenian troops began to hesitate. It seemed as though they were unsure of what to do without their commander, and many came to a complete halt while still under Mongol arrow fire. They were then quickly routed from the battlefield, never even managing to come to blows with the Mongol defenders. In total, the Armenians lost 435 soldiers, to the Mongol's 23. The Armenians never recovered without their king. The next year, Ogadai ordered the invasion of Lesser Armenia, and the Armenian forces surrendered the province without a fight, handing over control to the Mongol forces.
While this was happening, in the north, Ogadai assaulted the citadel at Muscovy, and captured the province. He left a small garrisson of troops to pacify the population, and continued his armies march, this time to Novgorod. In addition, he met up with a small army from Cherginov, and combined the forces for battle. Mstislav, outnumbered, and faced against superior troops, fell back to his citadel. However, that would not save him, as his army would quickly consume all of their supplies. The siege lasted only two years, before the army of Novgorod starved out, and surrendered. Ogadai had finally obtained a degree of peace, and with the army that was currently in Armenia and lesser Armenia, he felt confident that he could pacify the Ottomans as well. However, in Ogadai's lifetime, peace was something he would never be able to achieve...
Nice work and an even nicer recounting, greaterkhaan. The "teaser" ending indicates further clouds gathering on the mongol horizon, I suspect.
I had always been curious about the GH troop roster. seemed to me to be fairly limited in type, but all available units are rather useful ones (and it appears that you are making good use of them indeed!).
I'm looking forward to reading further episodes - keep them coming!
In my opinion, the Mongol troops are among the best in the game. I have had many a battle where I've gone in with no heavy infantry, and no heavy cavalry, and route the AI off the field, using almost entirely arrow fire. Mongol bows absolutely wreak havoc on armored units, especially when you concentrate fire on the heavily armored opponents. Although I must admit, I have fallen in love with using Korean skirmishers on the defence. I was most impressed when I routed an enemy general(a CMAA) with just the skirmisher's javelins. In addition, with good defence and heavy armor, they can hold on a for a while after they've used up the javelins, making them a decent "anvil" unit in the right circumstances.Quote:
Originally Posted by bamff
Byzantines-MTW/VI, Early, Expert, GA. The Byz are way too easy. I just started conquering and had 60% of the map in less than ninety turns. I even had a minor civil war when the Emperor died before his son had come of age. The slides show the map and a typical army of each period. I was going to conquer everything before the Golden Horde could show up, but I got bored.
https://s132.photobucket.com/albums/...es/Byzantines/