Allied with the Mongols

[Doug-Thompson]

Playing Eqypt, I expected to get hammered by the Mongols. Instead they are my allies, they have about 10 stacks that have lived on my territory for more than 25 turns and are causing no devestation.

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Early on, I prepared for the Mongol invasion by putting one stack each of high quality units at two river crossings: One north of Mosul and one between Mosul and Baghdad. This still left one open east of Baghdad.

I also put a full stack of archers and spears in Baghdad, and was working on filling up another one in Mosul. The Mongols and the Russians had a war in the meantime.

About 4 1/2 stacks worth of Mongol units show up. I go on a mercenary hiring binge and recruitment drive. Now I have one stack at each river crossing, and the one north of Mosul has another stack in easy reinforcement range. The Mongols have sacked and destroyed the province north of Baghdad, several times.

I have another full stack up near Trebizond.

The Mongols shuffle back and forth between my two river crossing for a while, but don't attack. I send a diplomat, who's treated with something very similar to hatred. Meanwhile, spies notice Russia coming in behind the Mongols, mopping up destroyed provinces. I send the stack from Trebizond to the province capital north of Baghdad, pre-empting the Russians and hoping to lure the Mongols back northward. Now the Mongols are living on my territory.

Nothing happens. By now, I've completed an upgrade of Baghdad's fortifications to include cannon towers, and strengthened Mosul. I leave a couple of infantry units in the town east of Trez and await developments.

Time passes and another five full stacks of Mongols arrive. However, they join the original stacks and assume the same pastoral lifestyle.

OK. More time passes. I send another diplomat and offer alliance, which is accepted. I move away or disband about a stack worth of units. I replace many of the units left guarding the river with infantry, including desert archers and javelinmen. These are much cheaper.

I assume this docile existance will continue until the Timurids hit. I don't know if the Mongols and Timurids will fight, or if I'll suffer the Mother of all Barbarian Invasions. Curious to find out, though.

If the Mongols and the Timurids fight each others, I'll be quite pleased.

[katank]

That would be hilarious. Or will you be able to get the Timurids to stay at peace with you also? The big happy Islamic trio.

[zulukiller]

Thats sounds brilliant Doug-Thompson your gonna have to keep this post updated as i want to know what happens (im adding this page as a favourite now). Will you get the biggest arse raping in history or somthing else lol its better than watching the soaps this.

[Shahed]

LOL ! I was thinking just the same thing !!! If I don't get attacked by the Mongols and the Russians do... oh oh.. did I ally with the Russians ???? EEEEKKK!!! Well I don't remember, but I could'nt have done something so darn foolish. I was thinking if they atack the Russians I'll ally them.

Will be great to know what happens when the Timurids come. I'll tell you one thing Turk-Mongol duo vs Timur = dead Timur. I'm only in 1140 though still have time a lot of time to kill.

[Doug-Thompson]

Giving the Mongols a more agressive AI is a specific feature of an uncoming patch. Therefore, this little story won't have any lasting implications. I'll post what finally happens just to satisfy any curiousity.

[Doug-Thompson]

The Mongols finally betrayed me at either turn 130 or 131. At the same time, I got the "Black Death" cutscene. Wasn't exactly a smiley, happy turn.

They broadcast the fact they were turning on me by dispersing to threaten multiple crossings. Next turn, one stack besieged Baghdad. I had to cross a river to disperse them but did, although losing about twice as many men as them. Most were bargain-rate Baghdad garrison troops, at least. One Mongol stack routed and it's general killed.

Then two stacks attacked me at the river crossing north of Mosul, which turned out to be one of the best bottlenecks I've ever seen. It's a deep gorge with a bridge and one other crossing a bit downstream. One force could cover both. Even the deployment by the computer was pretty good. I did send two more Mameluk Archers to cover the ford, though. Their reinforcements arrived. My reinforcements arrived. Four full stacks glared at each other accross the gorge in full laggy glory at night.

We wait. And wait. And wait. There is no time limit. Since I'm sure my dumb AI reinforcements will attack across the river if I don't do something, I send one unit of desert archers to try and provoke an attack. I lose five of their 60 men for nothing.

Sure enough, my dumb reinforcements cross the river bridge. I get to watch Mongol rocket launchers in action for the first time. Mamaluks (archer and melee), desert archers and such attacking two full Mongol stacks deployed on a steep slope with artillery, including a trebuchet. I considered myself lucky that the reinforcement army only suffered 60 percent casulaties and routed after their one-star general got killed. I stayed where I was, hoping the Mongols would chase the routed across the bridge.

They did -- with one whole unit -- which happened to be their general's bodyguard. (Their second stack was led by a captain.) I killed him and the whole Mongol army comes pouring over the bridge. Now its my turn. Heavy cavalry charge into what's largely a cavalry fight, but I have three units of decent spears and two mercenary javelin units. These prove to be my secret weapons, with a high-value horse to kill everywhere they turn. The desert archers are pouring it on from height, too, and so are the Mameluk archers.

Still, I just don't have the numbers any more, so as the last survivors of spears and heavy cavalry die I tighten up my Mameluk archers and charge them into the brawl, practically rolling like an avalance down the steep slope. The Mongols are still pushing, so I commit the last reserve: The Sultan himself and his bodyguard. The desert archers keep up the fire. Thirty-six bodyguard charge into the wild melee. The sultan was one of two left before I finally got them out.

The Mongols are beaten, and what's left of my Mameluk archers chase them mercilessly, even going after the trebuchet crews.

Two more Mongol stacks routed. That makes three. A second of their generals killed.

My depleted sultan's army is attacked again. I can't stand against another full stack, and retreat. New troops are headed my way from across the empire , mercenaries are hired and more units rebuilt in Mosul and Baghdad. Two more full stacks are ready near Mosul, and I attack the army that forced me from the bridge.

So now I'm the attacker at the famous gorge. I send a mercenary elephant unit across the bridge to cause some losses, create some confusion, and then run amok. They do a little, then rout without running amok. Uh-oh.

My full-stack army gets wiped out, almost to a man. This time, my reinforcements are riding to my rescue. My original general's bodyguard stack is covering himself with glory as unit after unit routs or is simply wiped out. At one point, I'm more than 60 percent casualties among my two stacks and the Mongols are in the 40s with one. But this time, they run out of men. They commit missile troops to melee, but these cav archers (who must have been out of arrows) are not Mamaluk archers. They commit their general, who's killed. The dam bursts, and the Mongols are swept away. All that's left of my original stack is a bodyguard unit that's down to 10 men and one dismounted Arab Cavalry that has about one man left and he hasn't reached the map edge.

Four Mongols stacks routed. Three of their generals killed.

And that's that. I'm installing the patch today, and have no doubt that my vast Egyptian empire's ability to reinforce itself would ultimately defeat the Mongols. I can take losses. He can't.