Rise of the Turkish Sultans

[The_Emperor]

After some nods in favor of a Turkish campaign, I have decided to start one off.

There is a list, send me your email address or post it in this thread. Write-ups are requested, because we all like a good read

I will also request that a copy of the Savegame is sent to this address at the end of each reign.

ralphwolf@clara.co.uk

Its on Expert Difficulty with Total Domination as the key.

We have an Early Period start with a strong, yet weakening Byzantium to the West and the Egyptians gathering to the South.

There are no easy pickings to be made.

If you want to be Sultan, list your interest below

[Revenant69]

Me me me me ...pick me I want to be a sultan.

my email is xRevenant69x@hotmail.com

Finally the Turk campaign has been started
Cheers Emperor

[Shahed]

Hmm count me in.

Well I was just thinking of startign a new SP Turk campaign, but then I thought I'll just w8 till after the 56 bug is fixed. Personally I think we should wiat, shud'nt be much longer, but count me in.

[Revenant69]

kool. Seljuk is in it too. This is gonna be great stuff.
Hopefully i wont screw up and attack the Byzantines too early this time

Personally i dont mind the 56 year bug that much anymore. Sort of makes the game predictable. Oh well.

Got to go party right now, but i will check on this thread later tonight.

[The_Emperor]

Ok then,

So far we have The ever-reliable Revenant69
The master of Cavalry himself SeljukSinan
And we also have Monk another PBM Regular

Seljuk an email address will be needed so you can participate.

[Shahed]

Here you go...katsujin_ken@hotmail.com

We gonna start now or wait for patch ?

[Monk]

Im in to

monk643@yahoo.com

this should prove fun,

[The_Emperor]

Quote[/b] (SeljukSinan @ Sep. 06 2003,22:24)]We gonna start now or wait for patch ?

Thanks Seljuk,

I think we are gonna start now since we don't know when the VI Patch is going to Arrive.

I think I'll kickstart the Cmapaign as Sultan Suleyman. I was originally going to skip it... But I just can't resist the temptation.

Monk I'll add you to the list.

[The_Emperor]

Right guys, My reign is nearing an end (it seems to have gone by real quick).

In a lot of the battles the Byzantines withdrew without fighting, and Emperor Alexius made it easier for me by advancing Northwards to do a Steppe land Grab... He marched back down to Bulgaria but died the following year

Alexius JR proved to be a lot more difficult by hanging around near our borders...

Expect a write up to appear tomorrow, for it looks like I will be done tonight.

Sadly I didn't take many screenies, but you'll read all about it later on.

[econ21]

This sounds like fun - please sign me up:
simon.appleton@nottingham.ac.uk

[Mount Suribachi]

I'm there mate. 6th on the list..hmmm, I'll check back around christmas time

Better start learning how to use cavalry...

[Revenant69]

Quote[/b] ]Ok then,

So far we have The ever-reliable Revenant69
The master of Cavalry himself SeljukSinan

Oh my god, you really think of me as that reliable...*feels the warmth around him*...Emperor thanks for the compliment...I shall try to do my best. For which i have to thank Seljuk's replays - thanks man they realy helped to teach me how to use hordes of cavalry efficiently.

Unlike the Russian campaign, i want to keep the momentum going cuz when we lose the momentum the campaign will die..and Turks are waaaaaay cool to play. Alright i have to stop blabbing OT... Cant wait for your writeup Emperor.

Cheers fellas

[The_Emperor]

The Emperor's unanswered Call

The Year was 1087, and the Byzantine Emperor Alexius faced a tough road ahead... He knew that the new threat of the rising Seljuk Turks in the east would need to be countered.

For a long time Christendom had come to an understanding with the Egyptians for allowing Christian Pilgrims to the Holy Lands, But these Turks had no respect for the old deals. They moved with great prowess on the battlefield and had the Zeal of Converts. He had written to the Pope about this emerging threat and asked him to call for true Christian warriors to Crusade to the Holy Land and drive back the Turks...

Emperor Alexius had designs on Tartar lands that stood between him and the Kingdom of Novgorod, and he wanted to use these Crusaders to secure his eastern territories for him. Sadly no Crusade would be sent during his lifetime and his Empire would lose many key territories.

The New Sultan

Sultan Suleyman was Camped in Armenia, and he spent the early days planning his Campaign to expand the Sultanate.

To the South and Southwest there was the forces of the Egyptian Sultan, and to the West and slightly to the North The hated Empire of Byzantium sat in all its decadence, beyond it lie the Great Prize The City of Constantinople itself. Suleyman had a great hatred for Byzantium and long ago he swore an oath that he would never be a friend to the Byzantine Empire.

Suleyman met with a council of his best Commanders...

You are gathered here today in the Glory of Allah to prepare for a great Campaign. We have been chosen to spread the Glory of Islam to the far off reaches of Europe

There are no easy tasks ahead of us, but today our war must begin... As long as the Byzantine Empire exists on our doorstep we will always face great peril, today I will order preparations be made for the great campaign, go now and prepare your toops

As the commanders left, The Sultan waved his hand and his noble Emissary stepped forward...

I wish for you to travel to Antioch and seek and Audience with the Egyptian Sultan, tell him that the time has come for all the Children of Islam to stand as one, for everywhere we are under threat... In the West the Almohad Kaliphate is under threat, and we share the Common enemy of Byzantium, We must stand together

The Emissary bowed and left immediately... His mission would succeed and the Egyptian/Turkish Alliance would be born, how long the fragile peace would last only Allah himself knew.

[The_Emperor]

The War with Byzantium



The War began after around four years preparation.

Sultan Suleyman saw that the key to the Byzantine Empire was Constantinople. It was a great city and housed some of the most skilled labour in the Empire, without Constantinople the Byzantines would be unable to reinforce their numbers as effectively.

The Sultan ordered his great general Amir Sabbah, to advance on Trebizond with a sizable force... That same year Prince Suleyman attacked Georgia with a small force.

In both cases the Byzantines withdrew their forces without fighting, a bad move because the army in georgia was cut off and captured. The troops were ransomed back for 500 Florins which helped the war effort.

The Sultan sent another small force to take Lesser Armenia, again the Byzantines withdrew without a fight.

The war would be forced to pause for a few years as more troops would be needed, a Byzantine Emissary arrived and begged for a ceasefire... As a great act of deception we agreed to it, thinking its eastern borders were secure the Northern Byzantine army marched away from Constantinople to secure lands in the North, it would prove to be a fatal mistake.

The Sultan's army marched into Trebizond he encountered a stange shadowy figure on the side of the Road who then approached,

I know what your planning to do great Sultan but this is not as it supposed to be... Fate has decreed that you should not have Constantinople for at least another 200 years

I do not care about Fate I have a war to win in the Name of Allah the Merciful

If you enter the City of Constantinople, Sultan you and all your bloodline will be cursed to never live to see your 57th Birthday

I will not put this off for over two hundred years The City will fall

The Sultan turned to reply but the black figure was gone... There was no trace of his existance anywhere.

When the Sultan reched Trebizond he added more troops to Amir Sabbah's army, before sending him on ignoring the warnings of the dark Stranger... His destination Constantinople itself

The Sacking of Constantinople

It was Winter 1095, and Nicephorus Nicephoritzes was walking through the Streets of Constantinople from the Church of St Sofia where he had his early morning prayers... It was a fine sunny day and the atmosphere was relaxed int he city as daily life continued at its usual pace.

Constantinople was his while the Govenor and the main armies of Byzantium were away to the North fighting Tartar rebels, another army was to the South in Anatolia and a smaller force in Nicea, The people were happy peace had been achieved with the Turks despite losses in the East.

Everyone was talking about the Emperor's campaign to the North, rumor had it that he had taken several territories North-West of the Black sea, Emperor Alexius was getting old approaching his mid-50s but he was still successful at campaigning.

Suddenly he heard a general alarm sound from the direction of the South Wall...

Must be a mistake, peace has been made with the Turks and even if they did strike at us The Infidel's forces would be so over-extended it would prove fatal

He hurried to the South Wall tower and looked out over the countryside... He could not beleive his eyes, a Turkish Army was advancing on Constantinople



Increase the Wall guard, use conscripts if you have to Bring the food and provisions inside and find my Men We have to Hold out until the Emperor Arrives

The Turkish commander rode up and down his lines on His Camel, Nicephorus Nicephoritzes could not understand their language but he knew one thing they were keen and eager for a fight. He looked over his people, ordinary citizens lining the walls with bow ready to help repel the enemy, they were not trained regulars like his Trebizond Archers.

Soon enough ever louder battle cries echoed from the Turkish army, Allah Akbar Allah Akbar and great fear gripped the troops as the Turks rushed forwards to ram down the gates and take what was theirs

Great Casualties were inflicted on the Turks, who lost over 200 men, but such efforts could not turn the tide of battle and once the gate was open the enemy stormed in...

Nicephorus Nicephoritzes rallied his Archers and they loosed their bows upon the enemy, who quickly cleared the breach and entered the city. Soon a Force of Armenian Heavy cavalry chaged through the gate and slaughtered the hapless archers, Nicephorus Nicephoritzes was cut down where he stood.

The remaining Turks flooded in to begin the three days Pillage that they were entitled to when a city was sacked by force.

Churches were burned and Turkish Banners were raised above the walls... Constantinople Had fallen.



Securing the South
The Byzantines withdrew from Nicea to Anatiolia for a last stand in the South.

Sultan Suleyman was quick to realise the Value of Mercenaries, and Byzantine Territory attracted more than its fair share... The Byzantines were very fond of using mercenaries and several of their recently taken territories contained many men able to fight for the right price.

It would prove to be very expensive as the Sultan Exhausted his Treasury to field an army to deal with the last of the Byzantines who now remained surrounded in Anatolia.

Amir Sabbah, who was newly appointed Govenor of Constantinople after he was removed from Office in Rum. Commanded the Attack in anatolia, it would culminate in victory for the turks and the destruction of the Southern Byzantine Empire...

Only the Islands of Rhodes Crete and Cyprus remained in the south, cut off from the rest of the empire by the ocean.

The Emperor's heir, Prince Alexius died in the fall of the local Fort...

The Emperor's End
Emperor Alexius withdrew back to Bulgaria upon hearing of the massive Turk campaign and his son's death, he intended to advance south and re-take lost lands.

In an effort to gaher intelligence he climbed the local Watch Tower and saw the flames rising from Constantinople, the sight of the beloved city in flames was too much for him to bear and he died of a broken heart...

The Aftermath of the conquest
With the death of the Emperor in Bulgaria his army never arrived in the south and was broken up.

Sultan Suleyman spent the remaining years disbanding the Mercenary forces and improving Farmland and Trade in his lands... He was also worried about the appearance of vast Peasant and Miltia Armies in Antioch and Tripoli, he suspected treachery on the part of the Egyptians.

As he neared his 56th Birthday he travelled to Constantinople with his Eldest Son Prince Suleyman, there they remained for the rest of the year... Until one day a Dark Shadowy figure entered the Sultans throne room and stood before the Sultan.

I told you not to come here... And exactly as I warned you and your bloodline have been cursed

The Sultan stood up furiously, Are you threatening me? I will take your head

The Sultan approached the dark figure with his sword drawn and when he was within striking Distance the dark figure uttered a single word... The Sultan fell backwards, he was dead before his body hit the floor.

The Sultan's aides came in and found his body alone in the centre of the room. There was no-one else to be seen. The Sultan's body was laid upon a stone slab within the Palace where people could pay homage to him...



The year was 1111AD, and Sultan Suleyman I was dead... His Son Suleyman II was crowned the new Sultan and the Turkish Sultanate's borders looked something like this...

[The_Emperor]

Right guys the game was sent on to Revenant69 just before I started the write up...

So the line of Turkish Rulers is as follows...

The_Emperor
Sultan Suleyman I (1087 - 1111)

Revenant69
Sultan Suleyman II (1111 - ?)

SeljukSinan

Monk

Simon Appleton

Mount Suribachi

Good luck Revenant

[Shahed]

Brilliant start Emperor

Power to the Sultan

[The_Emperor]

Quote[/b] (SeljukSinan @ Sep. 07 2003,17:16)]Brilliant start Emperor

Power to the Sultan

Thanks Seljuk

I was real nervous about fighting the Byzantines but all those Byzantine Inns I kept on finding as I advanced had to be put to good use...

However given that Constantinople was the key to their empire it had to fall, and I risked much doing it leaving only smaller forces surrounding Anatolia and Nicea where the Byzantines had retreated to.

Now that Constantinople is ours it makes the western part of the Sultanate very defendable, and I did make a start on training Saracens and expanding the western army.

However by concentrating on the West our eastern flank is now more vulnerable, and the Egyptians look like they want a peice of us with their peasant armies... I did make a start on getting some Warriors trained but we are outnumbered and have no good commanders in the East.

However we still have need for a Govenor of Trebizond and if a good commander should appear I am sure that the +2 command could be handy.

As you say...

Power to the Sultan

[Shahed]

Well I just copy paste here a list of heroes:

FAMOUS_HEROES:: FN_TURKISH 5
//hero name date, c,d,p,a,l,v,

recruited
Hasan-e,Sabbah, 1060, 3,3,6,3,3, attacker1, GENERAL, ID_LIMBO, -1 //Nazari leader, could be rebel based on Turkish/Iraq border

receruited
Imad, al-Din Zengi, 1100, 2,3,4,5,6, unbribable1, GENERAL, ID_LIMBO, -1 //atabeg of Musul 1127 on

recruited
Qara, Timurtash, 1101, 3,4,5,3,7, attacker1, GENERAL, ID_LIMBO, -1 //very much a best guess about this bloke

to join forces
Qutb, al-Din Aibak,1150, 3,3,6,5,6, pious2, GENERAL, ID_LIMBO, -1 //Pole Star of the Faith; Turkish viceroy in India; needn't have ended up there

to join forces
Gazi, Evrenos, 1350, 2,3,5,3,7, no_v, GENERAL, ID_LIMBO, -1 //very much a best guess about this bloke

We are now in 1111 (or 1101 ?)AD, so in fact we have already received the most of the Turk heroes. We shoudl use them, guve them the star bonus provinces (like Constantinople and Trabzon). HUH ? I wonder if some are missing hmmmm obviously many important generals and viziers are missing A well another poor CA did not have time to look into Turkish heroes I guess. Well these are what we got. We should find them and give them command.

I copied this from here..

We can now hold Constantinople with a defensive force at the chokepoint while we build up our forces on the Egyptian front. I would suggest building up the military in the rear areas out of sight of the enemy. If we have some assasin we should post them to kill any Egyptian spies (emissaries etc.) immediately. Personally I'd say lure the Egyptians into attacking at least one province and leaving a minimal force to guard the keep. Once the Egytians attack we will have the right to fight back. Should our armies be poised to strike Antioch, Syria, Edessa (these if they take them) and then Tripoli. In this first phase we can capture most of their peasantry. In the second phase we can march to the Sinai and Egypt, covering Arabia in our tracks.

[Revenant69]

Ok i have received the game and shall start playing it immediately.

Emperor you did a marvelous job on those Byzantines, your name shall be entered into istory books By the way, did your Sultan rename the great city of Constantinople into Istanbul or no?

Oh I want to know how you blow the map up so big without distorting details cuz i couldnt b4 when i tried.

Cheers, gotta go play

Power to the Sultan

[The_Emperor]

Quote[/b] (Revenant69 @ Sep. 07 2003,20:08)]By the way, did your Sultan rename the great city of Constantinople into Istanbul or no?

I would have if it were possible to change all the names on the map... But for all extensive purposes it has been renamed

[Shahed]

Hey dudes, which year are we in ? 1111 or 1101 ?

[Monk]

very interesting so far, great job on taking Constantinople Emperor.

Argh fourth in line i dont know if i can wait

anyways, good luck to both Revenant and SeljukSinan. Atleast i know by the time i take command, the tukish empire will be powerfull.

good luck guys

btw: POWER TO THE SULTAN

[The_Emperor]

Quote[/b] (SeljukSinan @ Sep. 07 2003,20:50)]Hey dudes, which year are we in ? 1111 or 1101 ?

it is the year, 1111AD

What a year for the first Sultan to die on

[Revenant69]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.........
The game has taken a really really bad turn. A year after i attacked the Egyptians i got a civil war on my hands. Damn Turkish generals have no loyalty to me. Even though every battle i have fought so far was a victory my sultan didnt gain any influence at all. The following provinces were attacked by the pretenders to the throne: Istanbul, Trebizond, Georgia, Syria, Antioch, Lesser Armenia.

2 of my princes defected me at the head of 2000 strong army.

Sorry guys, but i couldnt even prevent it from happening as i needed some good generals to attack the Egyptians. The situation is really dire. I will salvage it (hopefully) but the question will be At what cost? Thankfully the egyptians lost about 4000 of their troops and their best general. So they wont be a threat for awhile.

Damnnit damnit damnit.

[econ21]

Good luck, Revenant, although it sounds like you are coping well with the adverse events.

And well done, the Emperor; I like the explanation of the 56 year bug. Maybe a shadowy figure from CA will provide a cure from the curse before this game is over? (We can only live in hope).

[Revenant69]

Suleyman's diary
Thus begins the diary of Great Sultan Suleyman the Second....

...The shadowy Creature keeps haunting me as it haunted my father the Great Sultan Suleyman the Conqueror of Constantinople. I am losing sleep and my appetite has vaned. I cannot go on like this forever. My constant attempts to convince the Creature to stop tormenting me have ended in failure. To add insult to injury, my generals and staff even the lowly slaves think that i am strange and that I have lost my mind. I am sure they plan and conspire between themselves on how best to get rid of me. Such FOOLS If only they saw the Creature, if only they felt the terror that i feel every night, if only they listened to its decrepid and unearthly voice, if only they looked into its eyes. Oh yes, its eyes - nothing is more terrifying than the Creature's eyes. Dark red fiery eyes they look like two pieces of really hot charcoal and their gaze can melt the thickest armor. DAMN THAT CREATURE
....................................
Today i woke up drenched in sweat again. I must attend an annointing ceremony. It was my decision to give Amir Sabbah the title of the Chief Eunuch and an unnoficial title of the Guardian of Istanbul. Amir Sabbah is our greatest general and is the force that stands between the heartland of the Turk Sultanate and the remnants of Byzantines on the west side of the Bosporus. By giving these titles to him I will buy his unquestionable loyalty and that will be a good asset later on. Besides it is rumored that he is very adept at business matters as well and so Istanbul will prosper under his guidance
.......................................
I keep getting reports that Egyptians have the largest armies in the whole known world. And the bastards keep massing them in Antioch. Reports say that there are 3 huge armies sitting there. That is too close to my borders. I cannot allow these hidden threats go unnoticed. Perhaps I shall send an emissary to the Egyptians.
......................................
Four more years have passed and my battles with the Creature are worsening. It said something about the curse that it had placed on my father. I still do not know what was the reason for the curse and maybe i will find out one day. When servants notice me talk to the Creature they laugh at me, i know they do even though they try to hide it. My brothers are beginning to despise me as well. Perhaps i shall send them to fight a war with the Egyptians. Maybe that will quench their thirst for blood. Yes. Most Excellent idea
....................................
And so it is. The war has started. I send Prince Orhan into Antioch. It is a suicidal attack and I hope he dies there and never returns to bother me again. I have ordered an assault on Tripoli as well so as to cut off the Egyptian army in Antioch. The dogs have fled Tripoli and given it to us without a fight. Now I sit and await reports from Antioch.

[sprucemoose]

sign me up big boy(if the wife lets me&#33

redbarony88@hotmail.com

[Kristaps]

Add me too: kristaps@som.umass.edu

[The_Emperor]

Woah, this is getting popular... looks like a lot of guys want to wear the Sultans Onion Hat.

Well here is the updated list

The_Emperor
Sultan Suleyman I (1087 - 1111)

Revenant69
Sultan Suleyman II (1111 - ?) The Current Sultan.

SeljukSinan

Monk

Simon Appleton

Mount Suribachi

Sprucemoose

Kristaps

[Revenant69]

Kool, this campaign is popular indeed I like that fact very much. Ahem, back to the bad stuff. My reign as Sultan Suleyman the Second should end at 1130 (i think). I have only 8 years left in my reign BUT they will be bloody 8 years trust me. Hopefully i will finish the game tonight and post the writeup abit later.

Cheers,
Rev

PS The ammount of rotting corpses in the desert heat is reaching 5 digits.