PBM Levels of Losing

[Privateerkev]

Level IV: The Cockroach-Nuclear Bomb Strategy
Definition: So there’s a mild annoyance, flying around, looking ugly, and generally making a minor mess of things. You try to deal with it, but this threat just won’t go away no matter how many times you try to kill it. All the while, it’s doing more and more damage. Maybe it bit you and the wound’s becoming infected. You finally get fed up and, in an effort to deal with the problem once and for all, take it out with a nuclear bomb; however, in your final seconds you realize that in an effort to destroy the threat, you’ve taken out everything you’ve worked for with it, as well as your life.

Best example: The Battle of Bern, Loyalist side. Dietrich von Dassel, a minor member of the Illuminati, had been threatening the trio of Elberhard, Hans, and Jan von Hamburg, for years, eventually making it to the point where he was seriously challenging for the Duchy of Swabia which would give the Illuminati unsurpassed power. In an effort to check this effort as well as stop the religious unrest tearing apart the Reich, Hans and Jan marshaled two huge armies and assaulted Dietrich-controlled Bern. Hans, Jan, and most of their forces perished, netting them only one dead, uninfluential Illuminatus in return.

Ah the battle of Bern...

That was fun...

But that was less about killing Dietrich and more about preventing him from becoming Duke. And in that, Hans and Jan were successful. They did die, which certainly dragged down their success, but it was war and you take your chances.

[GeneralHankerchief]

But for Dietrich, it was less about becoming Duke and more about killing Hans and Jan. Hence its placement.

[Privateerkev]

But for Dietrich, it was less about becoming Duke and more about killing Hans and Jan. Hence its placement.

Yeah, I kind of figured.

From Jan's point of view, he just couldn't sit by. He highly suspected Lothar, Arnold, and Dietrich were part of a secret 'order'. With two of them Dukes, Jan got scared when he saw the 3rd try to become Duke. He knew those three would become politically unstoppable for the rest of their lives.

So, it became imperative to stop it. It was worth leaving Outremer and giving up the Kingship. And it was worth his life. I saw the character winding down anyways. If he survived Bern, he was going to semi-retire to Franconia and maybe make a trip back to Outremer so he could fight Timurids in his old age.

[Ramses II CP]

Ahh Trent, the unholy treachery which Vissarionas is contritely paying for still today.

I have a feeling poor scurvy afflicted Vissa may be heading for a fairly epic defeat himself at Cairo. I don't know how many hps it costs, but since the BGs are the only troops that matter it's a bad sign when they're weakened.

[Cecil XIX]

I saw the character winding down anyways. If he survived Bern, he was going to semi-retire to Franconia and maybe make a trip back to Outremer so he could fight Timurids in his old age.

Something tells me woud have come out of retirement a little sooner...

[Privateerkev]

Ahh Trent, the unholy treachery which Vissarionas is contritely paying for still today.

I have a feeling poor scurvy afflicted Vissa may be heading for a fairly epic defeat himself at Cairo. I don't know how many hps it costs, but since the BGs are the only troops that matter it's a bad sign when they're weakened.

I wouldn't worry. Mak has pneumonia and has been able to take a massive amount of damage. It's true that he has sweet armor but it's more than that. I play him a little risky in battles. I'm not trying to lose him but it fits his personality. He's a lead from the front kind of guy. :D

So, have confidence in your Jedi generals. I am sure they will cause an inordinate amount of damage to the enemy.

Something tells me woud have come out of retirement a little sooner...

Yeah, the battle of Trent would have been interesting that's for sure. He didn't trust Fritz or Karl. In fact, the sides might have ended up wildly lopsided against the Imperialists since Jan would have caused a stink about Fritz or Karl's son being allowed to join. My guess is both of those characters would then join the Illuminati side using the claim that "we aren't trusted by the Imperialists."

So, either way I think the Imperialists would have lost. There were just too few of them at that point of the game. But Jan might have prevented them from gettiing caught from behind with their knickers down.

Jan didn't know Fritz was Illuminati but he sure as heck didn't trust him. Alfgarda coming out for Fritz was because I was out of the game for months and hadn't caught up yet on events. Plus, at that point the battle was already underway and decrying Fritz as a possible traitor would have been pointless. As well as meta-gaming since the Battle was very much under way. I did tell GH OOC my thoughts on Fritz because he asked in the OOC thread for people to send him their speculations.

Same with Karl. Jan didn't know Karl was Illuminati but Jan would never trust a Zirn. They were just too close to Arnold. So, the Ruppel assassination probably wouldn't have happened. And who knows what havoc FH would have caused with those cavalry charges.

So yeah. The outcome would probably have not changed. But it would have been interesting...

[flyd]

I think "campaign killer" is something to be judged in retrospect, you know, after the campaign.

Interesting list though, with some long-forgotten oldies in it.

[AussieGiant]

Ah the battle of Bern...

That was fun...

But that was less about killing Dietrich and more about preventing him from becoming Duke. And in that, Hans and Jan were successful. They did die, which certainly dragged down their success, but it was war and you take your chances.

From where I was sitting at the time...the result was more than perfectly described...

The Grand Master would have sold that result to the highest bidder had it been offered. That's just the calculated ruthless way it was back then.