Megas Logothetes' and Senators' Reports

[TinCow]

Taking the save (one that Ignoramus provided to me, not the most recently posted one).

[TinCow]

Changes:
Rejected the MoH adoption for Armatos ek Naksou according to this post.
Added 7,320 to the treasury for Crusade upkeep for 1117.
Added 6,870 to the treasury for Crusade upkeep for 1119 (3 ships were disbanded, reducing upkeep).
Moved Gottfried de Payns, the Templar who was blocking the route between Antioch and Adana. His position was seriously screwing up the Crusade and Jihad armies.

Crusade Movement for 1117:

Kosmas Mavrozomis (Zim) is on a Mission from God. His startling luck has held beyond all possible expectations, and he has successfully arrived in Egypt. He now stands on the shores of a foreign land without allies or support. The cities of Alexandria and Cairo lie before him, but they are garrisoned and will not fall easily to such a small force, even if it is blessed by the Heavans. Still, it is a Mission from God. It's 106 miles to Cairo, he's got a full year lead, half a stack of Crusaders, it's the desert, and he's wearing a sun visor on his helmet.

Vartholomaios Ksiros (Rowan) spared no efforts in ensuring that his fleet was fully repaired and provisioned in Rhodes. Inspired by his efforts and his holy cause, the local laborers worked through the nights and within a few days the entire fleet was ready to sail again and with fresh provisions graciously donated by the local Christian population. Their morale greatly buoyed by these acts, the sailors of the fleet put all they had into the sailing and resumed their fabulous performance after their initial departure from Constantinople. If their skill and luck holds, they will make landfall in Egypt next year.

The vast open sea was daunting to the crew of Vissarionas ek Lesvou's (Ramses II CP) fleet, but they persevered. Large waves tossed the ship and rumors of Egyptian fleets gave many men sleepless nights. Still, moderate progress was made and Egypt is closer this year than it was last. With a strong push next year, landfall may be possible.

Their morale increased by the previous year's friendly race, the sailors of Annios Solomon's (woad&fangs) fleet set a similarly steady pace this year. Good cheer reigned in all quarters, prompting competition between the various shifts to see which one could perform better. Unfortunately, this revelry reached a peak with a bawdy celebration of the winning team one night, resulting in several days of hangovers and seasickness. As such, their progress was good, but not as good as it could have been. Egypt is close, but barring an act of God, it will not be reached next year.

Efstathios Laskaris (Ibn-Khaldun) gave a rousing pep talk to his crew at the beginning of year, urging them to improve their performance, for once. The speech seemed to have the desired effect, though perhaps it was the subsequent flogging of a particularly lackadaisical sailor that had the greatest impact. Regardless, good progress was made this year, and Rhodes is finally well and truly behind them.

The men of Stavros ek Amarinthou's (Knights_of_Palma) fleet were also greatly cheered by the previous friendly race with Annios Solomon. Unfortunately, they did not find quite as productive an outlet for their high morale. Instead, several nights of drinking and wenching on Rhodes scattered the crew across the entire island. Stavros eventually had to ask the local militia to aid him in rounding up the wayward men, and nearly the entire year was lost trying to relocate the crew and restore discipline. They finally managed to set sail, but almost no progress was made towards reaching their destination. The passing of Stavros ek Amarinthou will not be forgotten by the locals, however, who are already expecting the birth of a slew of Crusader bastards.

The makeshift repairs that Methodios Tagaris' (Tristan de Castelreng) men performed the previous year held until they reached Rhodes, preventing total catastrophe. However, the damage was extensive and a long stay in port was required to prepare the ship for the open sea. The crew are now freshly provisioned and ready for the voyage, but they are the last to depart the island of Rhodes and the prospect of reaching Egypt before the Crusade finishes is looking increasingly slim.

----------

As a Crusader has now landed in Egypt, the garrisons of Alexandria and Cairo have been boosted to 10 units (not counting a family member in Cairo) according to the rules for the Event. If the AI insists on moving these garrisons each year, I may have to play the faction myself each turn to make sure they stay inside the cities until the Crusade is done.

At the start of 1119, an adoption has been offered for Ioannis Kantakouzinos and an Explorer's Guild is offered for Antioch. These scrolls remain up. A mission has also been given to blockade Gaza. Annios Solomon has scurvy and a couple new Pagan Magicians have popped up. A Turkish Jihad army was seen moving southwest from Yerevan. Two Egyptian Jihad armies are passing Aleppo. An Egyptian army has disembarked between Corinth and Athens. The HRE Crusade army is north of Antioch. A French Crusade army has entered Byzantine lands near Bucharest.

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1119-1.zip

[TinCow]

I have tested it, and the AI insists on removing a large part of the Alexandria garrison next turn. I will therefore be forced to control Egypt next turn. I will continue doing so every turn that the AI reduces the garrison of either of those cities below 10 units, to ensure that the balance of the Crusade is maintained. This may mean that the Egyptian armies will temporarily move in slightly more logical manners than you would otherwise expect for the AI. I will evaluate whether further turns of control over Egypt will be necessary in future turns.

[Kagemusha]

Taking the save.

[Kagemusha]

Refused the adoption and destroyed a small rebel stack of spear militia, near Nicae.

Here is the new save: http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1119-2.rar

[OverKnight]

Taking the save.

[OverKnight]

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1119-3.zip

Moved Aleksios and army to the capital. I raised taxes to very high while he is there, since we need the money.

The offer for the Guild is still up.

[Cecil XIX]

Taking the save.

[Cecil XIX]

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1119-4.zip

Declined Guild Offer, moved Armatos to block the Jihadists.

[Ignoramus]

Taking the save.

[Ignoramus]

Save for TC only:

http://rapidshare.com/files/135455580/LOTR-1119-5.zip

[TinCow]

Crusade Movement for 1119:

The local Egyptian peasants fled for their lives before Kosmas Mavrozomis' (Zim) army. Though small, they are of high quality and fearless. Such a deep attack into Egyptian territory may have been known to the Sultan, but the commoners were ignorant of any such moves. The sight of the magnificent Great Cross moving steadily towards Alexandria ignited a panic. The people fled almost instantly, leaving behind a horde of supplies and a completely empty road. All in all, it was something of a miracle. The march to Alexandria could not have been easier, and the army arrived with enough time to scout a proper defensive location for the main encampment, which was placed by a nearby river ford. Construction on a battering ram and a set of ladders has already been completed. The army is greatly outnumbered by the defenders, but they do not seem inclines to sally forth and the other Crusaders have not even made landfall yet. Essentially, everything has gone perfectly for Kosmas Mavrozomis and he can be assured of being the first to assault Alexandria, even if he waits another year to do it. (Zim is crazy lucky, his rolls so far have been 6, 5, 6, 6, 6.)

As the Egyptian shore grew closer, the morale of Vartholomaios Ksiros' (Rowan) fleet began to ebb. The voyage had not been easy, but the reality that they would soon be irrevocably stranded in a foreign land, far from a friendly Christian settlement, began to dawn on them. As they neared the Egyptian coast, their progress and efforts diminished rapidly and progress slowed to a crawl. When at last land was sighted, an argument erupted amongst the tense crew and the only way Vartholomaios could keep order was to agree to remain offshore temporarily to make further preparations for the landing. Landfall is guaranteed to occur next year, but by all rights it should have been this year.

The 'liberties' of the previous year had the men of Stavros ek Amarinthou's (Knights_of_Palma) fleet in particularly high spirits. They sailed their hearts out, anticipating further pleasures when they reached the wealthy Egyptian homelands. The ships flew like the wind and quickly passed Efstathios Laskaris. They exceeded all possible expectations and before they knew it the vast majority of the Mediterranean lay behind them. Towards the end of the year, a cluster of ships arose in the horizon before them.

It turned out to be the Byzantine fleets of Vissarionas ek Lesvou (Ramses II CP) and Annios Solomon (woad&fangs). After coming along side, the crews relayed their harrowing tale. As it turned out, Vissarionas' flagship had been struck by a breaching White Whale. The size of the beast and the ferocity of its attack struck many men with horror. The ship immediately began to take on an immense amount of water, and the crew began evacuating into the few launches that were available. This plan was quickly scrapped, though, as the whale smashed one of the boats with its massive tail, scattering the men into the ocean. Vissarionas' other ship came alongside and began pelting the beast with arrows and bolts, eventually forcing it to flee back into the depths. As it fled, some men swore they saw a man bound to its side, beckoning them to follow him into the depths.

It did not take a long to realize that the other ship was too small to hold the entire army and that it was too far to swim to Egypt. Repairs, however, were all but impossible and doom seemed certain. Suddenly, though the fleet of Annios Solomon appeared on the horizon. They were making very good time, and pulled alongside Vissarionas' flagship within moments. The plight of their fellow Crusaders struck them deeply, and the men began a furious effort to aid them. One particularly insightful sailor pointed out that they had an extra mainsail and suggested that it could be wrapped around the underside of the leaking vessel like a bandage to slow the leak. Several incredibly brave and strong men volunteered to dive under the crippled ship towing the heavy sail behind them. Despite the huge risk of drowning, the men succeeded and emerged alive. The sail was quickly tied tightly to the top of the ship and soon the leak slowed to a level where a small bailing crew could keep the ship from sinking. As the year ended, the fleets of both Stavrok ek Amarinthou and Annios Solomon remained close to the crippled ships Vissarionas ek Lesvou, to ensure that they did not founder. Egypt is only a moderate distance away, and all three will likely make landfall next year.

With his ship fully repaired, Methodios Tagaris (Tristan de Castelreng) set out from Rhodes for the great crossing to Egypt. Good time was made and they soon passed the slow-moving Efstathios Laskaris, whose ships seemed strangely short-handed. The voyage was otherwise relatively uneventful, and a good half of the sea was crossed. Another strong effort next year may result in landfall on the Egyptian shore.

The man who was flogged on Efstathios Laskaris' (Ibn-Khaldun) ship the previous year soon recovered from his ordeal and began spreading subversive talk amongst the crew. Most of the men were perfectly content with their commander, but there are always a few troublemakers in any army, and this one was no exception. Soon these men were sowing discontent and discord amongst the fleet. The officers did their best to counter it, and they were aided by a large number of the crew, but a sizable minority soon began to openly express grievances. One morning, this entire group simply refused to emerge from their cabin to work the ship. The remainder of the crew did their best to keep the fleet moving, but the fleet had few hands to spare under normal conditions, and their progress soon slowed to a crawl. As the year ended, little progress had been made and the situation remained in a tense standoff.

-----------------

Added 6,870 to the treasury for Crusade upkeep for 1120.
Jihad armies moved adjacent to Armatos ek Naksou.
Egyptian army in Greece besieged Corinth, but their fleet was defeated by a nearby HRE fleet and the army can no longer be evacuated by boat.
Ioannis Kalameteros has had a child.
Methodios Tagaris has scurvy.
Hypatios Machonios picked up a Pagan Magician.
Ioannis Kantakouzinos has another candidate for adoption (scroll remains up).

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-1a.zip

Note: Since Alexandria is now besieged, the AI cannot remove units from it. Some play ahead by me shows that the AI still does not seem inclined to remove any units from Cairo. As such, I am hopeful that I will not have to take control of Egypt again for the rest of the Event. Please be aware that I will, however, take control of Egypt again if any player blocks a choke point in front of the Jihad armies with the specific intent to delay their movement without a battle. If such a blocking occurs and results in a significant (multiple turn) detour for the AI army, I will move the Jihad armies myself and attack the blocking army. Any battle like this will be fought as an autoresolve. If the armies are allowed to proceed freely from here on out, I will leave them in the hands of the AI.

[Kagemusha]

Taking the save.

[Kagemusha]

Refused yet another adoption and moved back to Nicae.

Here is the new save: http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-2.rar

[Cecil XIX]

Taking the Save.

[Cecil XIX]

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-3.zip

FRAPS is refusing to take screencaps for some reason. To summarize, it was a close defeat. They lost 48% of their army, we lost 2/3 of ours. (Not counting the ransom) They lost the general in their larger stack, we lost no avatars. (Although Armatos is the only one left in his bodyguard, and Nathanail only has one other guy left in his)

Also, after the battle the enemy Sultan offered to ransom away the soldiers. Since their's no mention of ransoming in the rules, and Armatos is a do-what-you-can-and-damn-the-consequences kind of guy, I accepted that. I hope that's not a problem OOC.

[Andres]

Taking the save.

[Andres]

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-4.zip

Moved Savvas and two units of Horse Archers out of Arta, towards Corinth (currently besieged) as a relief force.

Set taxes in Arta to high instead of very high, to avoid rebellion.

[Privateerkev]

taking the save.

[Privateerkev]

LOTR-1120-5

Merged army units in both Armatos's and Mak's armies. (Had Cecil's permission.)

In Mak's army I disbanded a single lone peasant.

[deguerra]

taking the save

[deguerra]

right back at people:

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-6.rar

Athens garrison mostly removed and placed outside. It is to fall under Tagmata control for the next 5 turns or until the Egyptian Army on mainland Greece is completely erradicated, whichever happens first. I hope this is enough to allow either Tagmata member to take control.

Moved Ioannis south towards, but not into Adana.

[TinCow]

Taking the save for Crusade movement.

[TinCow]

Done.

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-7.zip

For various reasons I do not have time to do the write-up of the events at this time. The write-up will be posted in about 1-2 hours.

[Zim]

Taking the save.

Scratch that.

[TinCow]

Crusade Movement for 1120:

Kosmas Mavrozomis (Zim) continued to besiege Alexandria.

After their offshore rest, Vartholomaios Ksiros' (Rowan) army disembarked on the shore of Egypt. After converting their fleet into carts and siege equipment, they turned south and began the march towards the Egyptian city of Cairo. Due to the time spent unloading and deconstructing the fleet, only moderate progress was made. However, Vartholomais is the first Crusader to turn in the direction of Cairo, and this gives him a substantial advantage.

Kosmas and Vartholomaios were lucky, as being on dry land spared them from the horrors that were about to be unleashed at sea. Whatever holy blessings the Crusaders had earned before the voyage, they were clearly all spent before this year, as the storm that arose was unprecedented in its ferocity. The fleets of Stavros ek Amarinthou (Knights_of_Palma), Vissarionas ek Lesvou (Ramses II CP), and Annios Solomon (woad&fangs) remained together when the sky began to darken and the winds picked up. The suddenness of the gale surprised even the most seasoned veterans, and great damage was done to the sails before the crews could furl them and make the ships secured for the maelstrom. Without their mainsails and unable to see each other through the darkness and massive waves, the fleets were scattered across the open ocean in all directions.

Stavros ek Amarinthou's (Knights_of_Palma) ships were the luckiest, and the wind at least blew them in the right direction. However land is still a short ways off and his sails are in tatters. He will surely reach land next year, but his army has been battered and torn and morale is heavily abused.

Vissarionas ek Lesvou (Ramses II CP) was less lucky, and progress was the last thing on his sailors' minds as they bent all their efforts towards keeping the ships afloat. When the storm finally relented many hours later, the fleet found that it had been blown vaguely in the direction of Egypt, but not very far and their ships were heavily damaged. Landfall itself will, indeed must, come next year, as the risks of another season on the ocean are far too serious.

Annios Solomon's (woad&fangs) were ironically better prepared than either of his rescuers for the storm. With his crew busy repairing and controlling leaks, the ship was about as well prepared for just such a contingency as any man could hope for. With proper direction, they may even have ridden the winds to the shores of Egypt itself. Yet, it was not to be. Just as the hatches were battened down and the ship began to lean into the wind, a great crack was heard from the stern. A brief investigation showed that the rudder of the flagship has torn clean off. It did not take long for the sailors to notice the saw marks on the tiller: the obvious work of a saboteur. As the ship spun in circles, out of control, the frightened crew went on a rampage through the ship, searching for the culprit. A quartermaster's mate was found with a smattering of sawdust on his breeches. The ship's carpenter confirmed that the man had not been anywhere near him for days, and that was all the proof the crew needed. They brutally tortured the man in ways that only scurvy-ridden, scared sailors could imagine. The saboteur quickly gave in and screamed out the name of the man who had paid him to commit this foul deed: Efstathios Laskaris. The crew did not relent in their efforts, though, and the man died a long, gruesome, and agonizing death. When the storm finally passed, the deck was stained red with blood, but none of the other scenery had changed. With the rudder disabled, they had drifted in circles and made no progress towards Egypt at all.

Methodios Tagaris' (Tristan de Castelreng) fleet was set upon just as fiercely. Not interested in fighting the titanic blow, all sails were furled and all hatches battened. His ships were tossed and turned for hours, but they remained safe and secure. When the weather finally abated, the crew emerged from their dark dungeons of seasickness and readied the ship again for sailing. After a short amount of progress was made, they saw the silhouettes of other Byzantine vessels on the horizon. As they pulled alongside, it was apparent that it was Annios Solomon's fleet. For the second time in two years, they have been rescued.

The sudden strike (or mutiny, depending on your perspective) aboard Efstathios Laskaris' (Ibn-Khaldun) fleet abated as the storm approached. Few men set aside their work when their own lives are on the line, and disgruntled sailors are no exception. As with Methodios Tagaris, Efstathios ordered all sails furled and the ships made watertight. They weathered the storm well, and loyalists and mutineers worked together to keep the ships safe and secure. When they emerged from the storm, trust was once again restored on both sides. Recognizing that punishment would do more harm than good in these circumstances, Efstathios let all men return to their posts and the fleet set out towards Egypt once again. Little progress was made due to the storm, and of all the Crusading armies, his is the farthest from its target, but even so landfall is still a strong possibility next year. It cannot come too soon.

[Warmaster Horus]

Taking the save.

[Warmaster Horus]

http://www.mizus.com/files/pbm/LOTR-1120-8.rar

Started moving Manouelitis east, to join with Kalameteros. Seeing where Kalameteros is, though, I doubt Nikiphoros will be there in time...

[Ignoramus]

Taking the save:

[Ignoramus]

Report for 1120

The Germans have reached Jerusalem. With the Fatimid armies concentrating on attacking us, the city should fall to them very soon.

The French Crusade has neared Dardanellia. We will have problems with them once Jerusalem has fallen.

The Fatimid army besieging Corinth raised the siege after the Athenian garrison threatened to encircle them.

My brother, Andronikos, has come of age, and is ready to begin his training in Constantinople.

Ioannis Kantakouzinos has had yet another noble ask to be adopted.

The Seljuk Jihad has entered Bithynia, and could be at the gates of Constantinople within 3 years. I am confident that the walls of Constantinople, having the blessing of Almighty God, will hold off the infidel.

Pavlos Chrysovergos has stormed the city of Yerevan. Domestikos Chrysovergos was severely wounded in the battle, but once again, Roman arms have triumphed over her foes!

http://rapidshare.com/files/135935817/LOTR-1122.zip