Multi-Player AAR Guide

A very short AAR (~25 turns) of a Multi-Player game between beta testers for FOG:Kingdoms!

Introduction

This is a short AAR (~25 turns) of a multi-player session between seasoned Kingdoms beta testers! The cast of characters are:

jimwinsor (aka Grognerd aka me): England
Surt: Byzantine Empire
deadtorius: Holy Roman Empire
dooya: Scotland
Nepos96: Castilla
Trueknight: Poland
trex1983: Apulia & Calabria
Pocus: Genoa
mhart43068: Wales

Not all players offered commentary! And not all players that did offered commentary did so on every turn, or provided screenshots. So the format of this AAR will be a bit more varied than the Abbasid AAR posted by me earlier, but should also serve to give more varied perspectives on strategy.

Also, the same caveat as appeared in the Abbasid AAR applies here as well: This is from pre-release beta testing play of the game. So any rules or mechanics or apparent imbalances you might see here, may well be changed for the release version!

New for Kingdoms Multi-Player: Private Messaging!

Before we begin, I'd just like to highlight the cool new Chat+ feature for the game engine's multi-player system, which now allows for fully in-game private messaging!

As those of you who played Empires in multi-player will recall, you could broadcast a message to all player factions in a game, but you could not send private messages in-game (you'd have to use private email or some such if you wanted to do that). Well no longer! As you can see below, the new system not only allows one-on-one private messaging, but you can also set up a small group of players to have a private chat with.

The possibilities for diplomatic intrigue are limitless!



Pretty neat, huh! Now on to the game play ...

Turn 1

England

I have a Recruit Local Unit (RLU), which I play to summon a Knight as I do want to build up my standing army. There are two Recruit Non-Standard RGDs (RNS) in my hand as well. It looks like I have a marriageable daughter, but there is a hefty penalty to marriage acceptance now (something about using my daughters as pawns), which I am guessing has something to do with the fact that I am in 3 Royal Marriages already. Strategically, I’m not sure what I want to do yet. I have two Peasants in my current army, which I disband for the Manpower. Starting constructions are: Cambridge begins a Flax Field, Northampton a Peasants Roundup, Derby a Flax Field, Nottingham a Craftsman Borough, Kent a Clay Pit, London a Beekeeper. Sussex and Lincolnshire are awaiting open slots through Pop growth.




Apulia and Calabria (T1-5)

Settings my eyes on where I will attack first, I try to fix my economy first (ahem, more on that later). Dismantling a structure or two for resources is out of reach and too costly to import.



Setting things straight with the so called "Emperor of the Romans” and realizing that he is cooperating with the Infidels in Northern Africa. I did leave a note for the Pope regarding this while gifting him some money... I do want the Pope on my side in all cases.

Proceeded to insult these independent "Principalities" in Italy, whatever that means. For me, it means charcuterie for my hungry Knights and Spearmen.

About money... Yeah, 0.72 introduced a cost of tweaking RGD. So... someone borrowed a lot of money at the bank and decided to tweak the RGD, and I will have to disband a lot of my expensive troops and see how I will navigate the next 10 turns or so...

But I did get my RGD "Forge a Claim”!!! However, -900 gold isn’t a tiny pit to get out of...



Thinking I wouldn't suffer too much from choosing Edicts, I spend 3 Authority to prioritize a couple of structures. The next turn, I immediately regress and get a "baddy token". Well, that's a great start!




Byzantium

The Emperor sends his greetings so all his subject, unfortunately the secretary who should send it clicked around on the wrong stamps and some random lesser king got the mail.

Sir Buildalot gets orders to fill the Imperial treasury by building new taxable buildings.

Some northern barbarians try to make war on the One and only Roman empire.




Castilla

Introducing King Fernando the Great, sovereign of Castilla and the most powerful Christian ruler of the peninsula. A fairly skilled but old statesmen, I will have to take as much as possible advantage of his skills before he gets replaced by his son.



The medium-term goals for our realm are simple. Evolve our “Minor Reino” into an actual “Reino” (which would grant bonus to max demesne size and therefore authority available for other activities).

Reach the top 10 of most pious nations in the world for a further boost to out authority (currently 39th). And finally expand our territory towards central Spain, possibly moving our capital to Toledo (once the capital of the mighty Visigoths (and a city located at the heart of Spain, making the rule of the entire peninsula from there much easier to achieve without major penalties). In doing so I need to be careful as the taifas might band together under the leadership of a North African faction.




Genoa

I'm playing Genoa, on the western coast of northern Italy. The situation is rather good I believe, as I start with 2 regions, a decent fortress, and some money. I'll need time to expand though.

One of the main gameplay loops of this Italian Maritime Republic is to place commercial enclaves in foreign territories and get money from it. There are other features I'll talk about later.

My ruler is Consul Famiglia Spinola, a truly excellent leader, with 5-3-3 stats, plus Very Good Administrator, plus Very Good Diplomat. I should really try to not lose him from disease or in battle.
My strategic appraisal is that I'll try to dispose first of adjacent Pisa, another maritime republic. Venice is tougher to crack and separated by several other minor Italian states in any case. The big guys in the vicinity are the HRE, which has interest and some holdings in the area (played by a human, I'll try to stay on good terms), and Verona, that controls no less than 5 regions.

I'll start by slightly reorganizing my army, appointing an alternate general, spending some money on regional decisions, and wait to see what Pisa does with his army.

I have also started dismantling 2 structures in my home region that are not very useful at start, this will free me 2 construction slots. The drawback is that it hits the regional loyalty as they are disbanded, but I'm with a comfortable margin as this is my capital.




HRE

I went through all my regions moving freemen to income slots to build gold. I started with negative gold but now have a positive per turn. I mostly built infrastructure or food buildings as needed per region. Not the greatest build times for the most part although some regions will complete their buildings on turns 3 and 4. I built 1 military structure in a region. Wanting to get a start on those fine German castles.

I assigned a peer to my single province, and he helped to eliminate the unrest. I have no idea if he is loyal but so far, he is competent.

I played the Recruit Non-Standard units in the capital region and got some sergeants and crossbows. Army now at 90 strength.


Scotland

The Scottish Highlands are mostly this, high and land. No men, no infrastructure, no entertainment! We have one domain and appoint Colban McQuaire (4-4-2 / admin-military-piety) to take care of it. I think he might be the king's uncle, but seriously - who isn't?

We start construction of a Shepherd's house in Moray to have food for faster population growth and a Village green in Inverness for a bit of Stewardship.

There is no free building slot in our capital Edinburgh and the food situation in Angus is so dire that we need every man in agriculture, thus, we do not build there for the moment.

Our fortunes lie to the West - two independent regions wait to get picked up. To be able to, we play the regional decision "Recruit Non-Standard units" in Edinburgh.

Turn 2

England

My Knight is recruited, and I play RNS next, hoping for more SAUs. I draw another RNS, which is nice! Wales, I noticed, tried to invade Morgannwg and got hurled back with losses. Perhaps I should try my hand at taking out this Celtic Independent region? That probably will antagonize Wales, who is another human player. I should probably make sure Scotland and Wales aren’t plotting against me first (Scotland is another human).


Byzantium

The Emperor tries again to send his greetings to all his subject, this time it succeeds when he receives a unintelligible message from a minor western noble.



Castilla

Success against Albarracin, time to make preparations for war. Tudela in unrest. Not much I can do at the moment, except increasing piety production and national authority (it will take time for that). Not much else to report for this turn.


Genoa

The news of importance is that we are regressing to tier III (my Authority is too modest), so it means we can accrue negative tokens and ultimately get civil wars and other bad events. We also have an epidemic appearing in our 2nd region, coming from Nice it seems (although the Nicean people were more lucky, as their local physician averted it).

Apulia and Calabria (Italo-Normans) are insulting a lot of people in Italy, plus the Byzantines (probably it means he wants Bari). In game terms, they want to get extra claims from that. The player will have to be prudent here, as too many diplomatic actions can hit his authority.

It was a good move to wait some time as I see that Pisa's main army is now commanded by a 1-2 general and has recruited 2 spearmen levies. I'll stock up a bit on money and then spend my recruitment decisions so to get a large army (that I will not be able to sustain for long, but if Pisa falls, then it's good enough). I have a few turns before they can erect anything passing for a castle, so no rush either here.


HRE

The army moved from the capital region to the south, there is a neutral region just dying to become absorbed into a nice, civilized realm. Unfortunately, it will take 4 turns to get adjacent. I need to start looking for those village roads and get the road network started too...

Money is doing well; metal is still positive. I gave a gift to my single peer, no idea what his loyalty is but hopefully he is not an ingrate, and it helps.

I agreed to some treaties with fellow players and sent a gift to Hungary as I know eventually, we may cross swords. Might as well try to make some friends now.

Most of my vassals are not overly friendly and unrest is rampant in those single regions but not totally out of control yet. Health is not great but no plagues yet and so far, no revolting peasants, other than some body odor issues....


Scotland

There is nothing to do in administration, as building all those buildings takes time. We did get a +1 Authority bonus, though, because Edinburgh has such a fine stewardship.



"Recruit Non-Standard" decision brought us two archers and two Scots Highlanders. Archers are nice, but getting more Highlanders instead would have been better, because with only four non-missile units in total we lack a bit of punch in the front row.

The new troops bring the combat power of our force to 74. That's only slightly above what might await us in Argyll (estimate of 72, according to the tooltip). Also, with a frontage of 6 the fields in Argyll offer more front row seats than we can fill, but ... there is no glory for the craven.



We move against the independents in Argyll!

Turn 3

England

The RNS play brings in 2 SAU Defensive Spearmen and one Levy bow unit, and I disband the latter. It looks like I can raise Levy archers at will, so no need to keep them active in my army.


Byzantium

Some peasants are getting uppity.


Castilla

I decide to postpone any conflict with Albarracin to build up a proper war chest. Interestingly, of all human-controlled factions mine is the one with most authority (for the time being), giving me some breathing room and the ability to evolve over time my administration. England and Genoa accepted my cooperation proposals. That will come in handy in the future.


Genoa

Not much happened this turn, although we reached the top Authority tier. This won’t last, as we will declare war to Pisa next turn, claim or not! We are also bolstering our ranks with 2 regional decisions recruiting units, one will get us Genoan crossbowmen, the 2nd is more diverse, so we will see what we draw.



HRE (T3-6)

So far, I have managed to make some friends in the game as I now have 3 cooperation agreements in place.

I have sent a gift to Hungary hoping to get on good terms as they will likely be a main threat later.

The single army continues to march south, and I have committed them to invasion by adding an extra move into an independent region.

My single Province has recruited two raw spears for my army so I may stop a turn to allow them to catch up. I have a couple of sergeants and a bunch of crossbows with 3 spear units so I thought some more spears would not be a bad idea.

Finally got to build a new structure, should have a few slots opening next turn.

It appears the Italians are not overly happy with each other as Genoa makes a habit of tossing about insults quite often towards its neighbors.

Of course, I just noticed there was an independent region by Lorraine which would have been closer to march to, but such is the consequence of old eyes and addled brain that I did not notice till now. I really need to get started on some roads, takes forever to get about in my small kingdom...

Generally, my vassals hate me so trying to build some good relations with some spending money, shall see how that goes eventually.


Scotland

Our councilors inform us that the world looks with envy on the progress in the Scottish realm (+1 progress token) and laud our fine stewardship in Iverness (+1 Authority).

We receive regional decisions "spy on nobility" and "Remove hostiles". It takes two fierce battles but eventually we gain the upper hand and take Argyll from the independents.



This allows us to form the domain of Moray and appoint Malise Balfour (4-1-4) as peer of the realm. We start construction of a Poultry Farm in Argyll.

Turn 4

England

I gift 70 Money to East Anglia, the idea being to raise relations to 50 so I can Absorb Vassal on them. An epidemic which began in Essex spread to Sussex. The RGD draw for this turn was Remove Hostiles. More good SAU recruits from last turn’s RNS RGD play, 2 Heavy Crossbowmen (*) and1 Def Spear (**). I now have a pretty respectable standing army of 9 units of 171 Power. My SAU cap is 11; what happens if RGD play puts one over that limit? We may find out, as I am playing another RNS this turn! I begin a healthy Smokehouse in epidemic-stricken Sussex.




Byzantium

The Emperor hears complaints from Apulia, whose administrator apparently absconded with all their gold.

A hectic flurry of small hammers are heard all over the empire, only a few regions do not participate. The population of Constantinople is still recovering as is another region.


Castilla

New turn and it seems my decision to spend money to get more military RGDs is paying off. Huddled Shanties are completed in Gormaz, netting me an extra pop. A Stone Quarry now would speed up the development of my kingdom. Tudela is now able to offer proper refuge to pilgrims. Next on my to-build list is a prayer bell (which coupled with a Church would make for a powerful Piety-producing combo). A Prayer Bell has just been completed in Valladolid. I could spend some authority to top it off with a church, but the game already gave some interesting proposals. The Astronomer Study could help me build win the legacy game (and the required Copper is easy to find in Spain, saving me some money), while the Spearmaker could help me improve my army. In the end I opt for a Clay Pit for faster construction. Not only a neighboring building (most likely a Giant Cross) would produce more Piety, but the combo of Clay Pit, Pottery Workshop and a Market (the yellow building proposed by the game), could net me an extra 20 gold per turn. Not a bad amount of Money early game. The increased Piety production moves me up to 33rd most pious nation in the world. Still a long way to go to reach top 10. Aragon can recruit mercenary Almogavars, a good type of medium infantry unit (useful for sieges). MI is difficult to come by, so getting my hands of those units could really help my army (or I could trade those to the best bidder).


Genoa

We obtained Genoese Pavisiers and some knights from our special recruitments. Meanwhile, we are insulting Pisa again, and now Lucca, trying to get a claim on these foul and misguided nations. It has a hidden cost though, as this raises our Diplomatic Activity significantly. Nothing much to speak about on the rest, we are building freemen cottage, it will give us a bit more stewardship and Health.


Scotland

Again, Scottish statesmanship is top notch in the world; soon we will run out of wall space to hang up those fancy medallions (+1 progress token). We start building a Pig Sty in Angus. Three Scottish Highlanders join our mighty army. We send off the troops to take Lothian from the independent tribes.



Since the region has a frontage of 10 and the independents can field up to 12 units (combat power 78), we again will need luck to succeed.

Turn 5

England

We gift East Anglia 120 Money, which boosts relations to 50, making Absorb Vassal a possibility. So that is ordered, and I think I’ll Forge a Claim on Essex as well. And just to be safe, I’ll send another gift to them as well … I don’t want relations to go below 50 and cancel the RGD. The Epidemic in Sussex spreads to London. Edward the Confessor’s Health degrades to Poor, but a new son is born, Hamond. A Show of Authority is ordered in Nottingham. And our RNS got is 1 SAU Heavy Crossbow and 2 Levy Archers, so we will disband the Archers. Our standing army is now 10 units, 190 Power. I’m going to send it into Essex in case there is trouble there because of the takeover attempt. Looking across the Channel, France has taken Vexin from the Normans. Hmmm … maybe I can do a reverse Norman Conquest …


Byzantium

Some buildings finished and new projects are begun. A few troops are hired in case of barbarian attacks.


Castilla

Nothing much happens on this turn, except for the welcome establishment of a Fuero in Tudela (game event).




Genoa

We are seemingly on good terms with the Holy Roman Empire (Human Player: Deadtorius) as we signed a cooperation agreement (it’s a general-purpose, low-commitment treaty that raises relationships, favors commerce, and provides a slightly more precise estimate of the assets of the other nation in the ledger) and this turn involved an exchange of money for metal.

In other news, Apulia and Calabria (Human Player: Tres1983) continue to insult the Italian principalities to his north, so I guess he will expand soon in our general direction, which is not a good thing. I would have preferred him to go south, to some islands…




Scotland
Again, our mighty army is victorious on the field – the region of Ross now belongs to the Scottish Kingdom and so all of Moray is united under our banner. The peasants in Ross are close to finishing a Closed Settlement, so we let them proceed.



From the hills of Ross, I can see the frontier to Sutherland. Those sneaky bastards over there sit on greens that rightfully belong to my realm, but since they swore fealty to the King of Norway, they are safe for now. But I let them know what I’m thinking about them…

Turn 6

England

I gain a token. The epidemic in London is contained. I draw yet another RNS, and a Convert to New Faith. But the big news is the absorption of East Anglia! Unfortunately, that got resolved before my Forge Claim, so that RGD was cancelled. Oh well, can’t complain too much, East Anglia is three regions under my direct control now, and I get to form the East Anglia domain. A Beekeeper completes in London, next up will be a zero-slot Rat Catcher. A Flax Field in Derby is planted, next up a Local Market. I change production in Essex from a Charcoal Pit to a Candle Shop, Suffolk begins a Wood Cutting, and Norfolk a Poultry Farm. Peasants to Freeman is played in Suffolk, and yet another RNS with the main army in Essex.




Byzantium

Hmm, well not enough Peers were available to fill all the positions so the Emperor can't really be bothered by moving them around to see where it’s possible. And they would be pissed off by the moving any way. But it would have been nice to see potential vassals.




Castilla

The Holy Father has decided to personally intervene by nominating a bishop for Valladolid (extra pop and increased piety production).




Genoa

That's it. Even if we did not manage to get a claim on Pisa, we are invading them thanks to our massive drafting campaign. Our economy can still support it for a while, as we did not recruit mercenaries and are not too far from our Retinue limit (an allowance in units with a large discount on upkeep). We have strong hopes that we will beat the Pisans, even if their general has tactical superiority on the battlefield, given he is 2 in defense, while our man is only a 1. We have some quality troops, and our battle line will be larger, so we will get flanking attacks. We will see…




Scotland

The peasants in Ross have finished the Closed Settlement. I want them to build a Legumes Farm next, but it takes a bit of convincing (I spend 2 Authority for this choice). Not much to do apart from this, so I send another letter to the imbeciles in Sutherland (Insult sent).

Turn 7

England

The latest RNS brings in 3 SAUs in total, 2 Armored Defensive Spear, and 1 more Heavy Crossbow (a mercenary crossbowman … is that supposed to happen with a RNS?). Merging those with my main army puts it at 13 units strong, 1 mercenary and 12 SAUs. My SAU cap is supposed to be 11, so yes, the cap can be exceeded by RGD play. I also play Send Councilor to London to check up on my governor there.

[You know, perhaps I was allowed to go over by one, when those two Armored Def Spear were randomly selected. But then, the Crossbow became a mercenary, because the code then noticed for the first time that I was over the cap? A possible theory, which means my RGD exploit here is, at best, a minor one!]




Byzantium

We need more buildings. A few more regions maxed out in buildings, and some got a new free slot.

The Norman barbarians to the west are on vacation, but unfortunately, we can't afford to take advantage of that. Some heretics rebel in the northwest, we will make an example of them. A blacksmith is built in a critical region to improve recruitment.




Castilla

We develop the region of Tudela, we recruit some extra special units and with our war chest having reached 300 gold (with an income of 55 per turn) we get ready for war against Albarracin.




Genoa

How Authority crumbles in a major way, as we declare what is felt as an unprovoked war against Pisa. We have no claim against their land, but it still feels just to Consul Spinola. Pisa, being a maritime republic, has for too long sabotaged our economy and well-being! The ensuing battle is without much doubt, given the superiority of our army, although we get a bad surprise at sea, as the Pisan fleet sorties out and sinks a lone galley we had as a spotter. Worse, even if Pisa is now firmly conquered, their navy at sea prevents complete absorption, and we must enter negotiations with the admiral to end the war!

So, a 2-turn delay, as we ask them to surrender, and then they need to reply. Let’s do this, and not do much besides that. Given our army needs a bit of rest and our Authority being very low, it would not be wise to deal with Lucca without a claim.







HRE

New turn and I finally managed to get my army into the neutral region and welcome it into the holy embrace of our Empire. I have also noted that there are a few other rebel regions adjacent to me or my vassals that need some possible attention, however they will have to wait as I defeated the independent army, but they have walls, so it is siege time.

I have also built some new raw spears and recruited some light archers who are now marching to join the main army in its glorious siege.

To show that I am not an unkind and heartless overlord I have been spending money on my vassals trying to improve relations.

I only got one region building this turn and started on some fortifications up near the French border. One can never trust those cheese eating cousins of ours too much.

So far, no roads showing in the build choices...


Scotland

Still writing letters to Sutherland. (Insult sent.)

Turn 8

England

My Five Boroughs Peer goes corrupt, while my Peer in South Anglia gets Counselled. I think I am going to attack Wales next, as Scotland is busy insulting Norway, indicating to me he is heading north (and possibly east). In fact, why don’t I send them a Royal Marriage proposal! They are human (dooya), so I can ignore the game telling me I have a 0% chance. Once we arrive on the border in 3 turns, we will get a claim on a Welsh region using our RGD. I’ll go ahead and raise 2 levy Light Archers to round out my army. I also play Reinforce March in Kent.




Byzantium

Heretics are revolting. The Emperor has sent relieve forces, but will they arrive in time, the food and infra stocks are empty.




Castilla

My mighty army moves against Albarracin.




Genoa (T8-9)

Some strategic analysis: The army rests in Pisa while the peace treaty is being debated. Pisa accepts, which leads to the formal ownership of their capital. They have a fleet at sea, but given they have no allies, it will melt away. We start to insult Corsica (2 regions) and Pentapolis (3 regions). Insulting nations can produce a claim if you have none and lower relationships. You can also get a spontaneous claim against nations with whom you have bad relations, and this is what we expect. Corsica is interesting because it’s an island (so +1 building slot per territory for us, an Italian Maritime Republic), is weakly defended, has no ally, and has 2 interesting buildings. Pentapolis … it’s more about crossing the Italian peninsula and preventing the Norman knights in Italy (Apulia & Calabria) from going too far north. They have 3 regions, but we are confident we can beat them, as we have money to spare to use our regional decision “recruit mercenary company,” which will produce experienced, powerful (and costly to maintain) troops!


Scotland

The recent lack of action made me turn my attention towards other…ehm…activities, resulting in the birth of another son. He does have a lot of hair for a newborn, though. He seems to be a bit more talented than his older brother.





A Shepherd House in Moray is finished and we start building a Village Green. Our army, which is still stationed in Ross, gets marching orders to Edinburgh.

Turn 9

England

I draw another Absorb Vassal, which gives me the option for another bout of peaceful expansion, this time with Mercia? I can’t really gift up relations with them right now, however, as I am running a deficit. A Clay Pit completes in Kent, along with a Fortified Village due to the Reinforce March played there. I draw another one of those too this round (I’ve been drawing 2 RGDs per turn a lot lately). So, wall-less Suffolk will be the next region to get Reinforced.


Byzantium

Some random ruler in the east went insane and attacked our vassal. The Emperor dispatches yet another army to help, though the vassal and allies might solve the problem before the imperial army arrives. Trade missions are sent to all friends of the Roman empire.




Castilla

Good and bad news. We are now in the top 10 of the legacy ladder, making progress tokens more likely to appear.



Unfortunately, our battle with Albarracin turned out to be a defeat. The lack of skirmishers probably played a big role here. I'll come back with more Slingers and hopefully no other Taifas will take advantage of this defeat to declare war on me.


HRE

My first foray into battle proved to be successful as Caslav is now part of our Holy Empire. They had a small standing army that fell to our swords, and we laid siege to their city. Next turn they came to their senses and flung the gates open. My new spear units showed up just in time to see the new coat of arms being painted on the gates.

So far, I'm doing OK with gold, manpower and metal. Now if I could just move about a bit faster...
Checking the map I don't see too many independent regions of opportunity that I can take as they are on the far side of neutral nations. My Italian holdings seem to be upset about something, but the Alps will take forever to cross....

Hoping to see some roads pop up in the build panel soon.


Scotland

My vassal, the ruler of Lothian, asked for a position at court. Granting his request would give him money or legacy but might cost him authority at home. Hoping to increase the relations between our countries, I honor his wish.



The Poultry Farm in Argyl is completed, and we build a Shepard House next.

Turn 10

England

Ooops I accidentally sent the Royal Marriage proposal to Lothian, not player-controlled Scotland. It was rejected. I draw and play Spy on Nobility, which is a good draw for me as there are many with questionable Loyalty currently in my court. Rich citizens of London give me 50 Money. A new Pop in Kent allows the dredging of an Anchorage to begin; Suffolk builds a Fortified Village from last turn’s RGD play; A Flax Field is planted in Cambridge; which leads to the start of a Wood Cutting, the Peasants Roundup is finished in Northampton, next up is a Bakery; and a new Pop in Lincolnshire allows a Farm to begin. I Forge Claim on Morgannwg, in prep for the Welsh War to come …


Byzantium

Peasants are revolting. Heretics are revolting, Tashiri are revolting! The garrison far away in Travnik has been ordered to feast on their last supplies, sally out and meet up with some mercenaries and random troops nearby, Maleinos Christophoros who just sneaked into the city, makes a inspiring speech. The emperor orders some roads to be built so the troops can move faster to suppress revolts.




Castilla

Toledo tried to intervene diplomatically, with very little success, to end the current war.



The reinforcements are ready. I order them to force march so that next turn I can strike again against Albarracin.




Genoa (T10-11)

Despite us throwing numerous insults to several neighbors, they don’t budge (and we don’t get claims). In the meantime, the Byzantine are approaching us, it seems they would want to deal with the Normans. Why not…

We completed a Discreet Hamlet in Ventimiglia. This provides 2 extra garrisons (permanent, and cost nothing) and +1 Fortification level. Once we reach 3 points of Fortification, we can build the first permanent Defensive structure with a wall, among a choice of 3 possibilities.




HRE

Due to a lack of supply in Caslav the army will spend the next 4 turns moving to a more central location within the empire, I told you it takes a while to move about.

I recently played recruit non-standard units RGD and got some more archers, however it hit the royal treasury a bit harder than anticipated so at a minor loss of gold this turn. Hoping it bounces back next turn.

I had 5 regions that opened for new builds, all of them were food production buildings as I have no growth throughout the empire and food production is mostly still in the negative.

I completed a successful National Decision, a border region dispute that I settled to the satisfaction of both parties and gained some bonus points there.

Nassau sees some bandits appear after I built an enclosed settlement. Fortunately, I had a remove hostiles RGD on hand, set it for high odds and played it to remove that problem.

My stellar performance has disturbed the Pope, and I gained the Anti-Pope modifier. I will be telling the royal ladies to start embroidering that on my tunics. A personal high achievement by turn 10.



Scotland

The decision to invite our vassal to court turns out to be beneficial.



Village Green in Inverness was completed and we start construction of a Shepard House. Food, it is always food.



Our army reaches Edinburgh and is garrisoned in the city.

To speed up construction, all priests throughout the realm are ordered to work in infrastructure. Likewise, the nobles are asked to employ themselves in commerce to fill the coffers of the crown. Given that these measures increase the danger of heresy and lower local authority, this is a risky move. But with a greedy England in the south, our economy desperately needs a push.

Turn 11

England

My Forge Claim into Welsh lands failed, meaning the DOW will be painful (13 Auth!) I draw Grant Land and Prospect for Resources. It looks like my vassal, Northumbria, decided to release the Cumberland region, which is now the independent Earldom of York. A Candle Shop sets up in Essex, next we Edict up an Anchorage (1 slot left). I’ll also Prospect for Resources in Derby. Another Royal Marriage is proposed, this time to the correct country of Scotland.


Byzantium

The mercenaries and sallying troops make short work of the heretics, putting the revolting peasants in their place.

Our recent trade delegation to Genoa tells they have a real nice Fortification and their public work project is delayed as no funds are available for the new peasant processing stockade.

The patriarch makes special prayer for the growth of the city, all clerks to the shovels. Is Thrace the first province to be fully developed? This will be the envy of the barbarians.



We send a gift to the Buyids to make them fight harder against the Seljuqs, but our envoy does not have great hopes.

State of the Nation speech:

The state finances seem to be good, the manpower a bit slow in recharging and metal is improving rapidly from an all-time low.

The war with the Tashir drags on, the army is still years away. The emperor reminds his lords to make more efforts in road building as only one new road was started this half year. A 5th army is being assembled in the east in case earlier intervention is needed.

The western barbarians look slightly more to the usurper emperor than to us, we will have to remedy this! They also are more successful in their propaganda each year.

The Kingdom of Poland seems to be in a target rich environment, a lot of independents are ripe form annexation.


Castilla

Our newly assembled army was finally ready to take revenge on Albarracin. Genoa has decided to establish a trade enclave in Santander. We will monitor their activity with great interest.




HRE

Quiet turn as the army takes in the scenic views during its walking tour of the Empire. Heading towards Northern Italy as I noticed I border another independent faction who will soon be joining the mighty and prestigious holy order of our empire. Unfortunately, it means going over the alps and will take 6 turns to get there.... I really need some roads.


Scotland

With our army being moved to Edinburgh, the bastards from Sunderland run rampage in Ross. Damn!

Turn 12

England

War is declared on Wales. Mercia and Northumbria join in (but not Wessex). Wessex, the vassal who hates me, needs help from me to build a Village Green. Unfortunately for him I just started a war, and my income is negative, so no, go fend for yourself! We gain a second token, yay! Instill revolt is drawn. My Royal Marriage with Scotland was rejected … hmmm, I was under the understanding from private chat that it would be agreed to … did the request not go to the player (dooya)? Prospecting revealed a Lead Vein in Derby. May army (15 units, 246 Power) plots to invade Morgannwg. It is lead by my 0-1 Pampered 30 y/o son and heir, because he is the only general I have with decent Loyalty (84). Yes a Pampered incompetent leading a campaign in Wales … what could possibly go wrong? The army I likely go up against is 7 Welsh Light Javelinmen (Power 23), plus 4 units of the local militia.




Byzantium

Nothing new on the eastern front, armies are still gathering. The two eastern armies might have to join to overwhelm the Tashir.


Castilla

Finally, we receive our first progress token. 9 more to go. Genoese presence is not causing any economic issue so far. Without much food stored, I do not expect Albarracin to hold out for long. I would not be surprise if they decided to sally out instead.




Genoa (T12-13)

After repeatedly insulting Lucca without any claims appearing, we decided to declare war on them, costing us significant Authority, as we now appear aggressive and expansionist. The enemy leader is better in defense, and since we ordered an assault, the first battle took place behind the wall, which we did not expect! Indeed, treacherous Lucca, upon receiving the declaration of war, retreated all its units behind the walls. Consequently, we were greeted by no fewer than five spearmen behind the walls, along with a large assortment of troops. The battle raged on, and only the superior support from our ranged units prevented our defeat. In the fourth round, the enemy general died, and in the fifth, we managed to win, but the losses are dire, including our two Pavisiers and Crossbowmen units, superb special units with dual combat abilities (and very beautiful 3D models). But Lucca is ours, at a high price though! Time to lick our wounds.




HRE

The army continues its scenic walking tour of the realm, at present we are taking in the wonderous sights of Bavaria, partly because my other vassals have little to no food and my troops will likely starve to death. Some Lord in charge of farming needs some sense knocked into his head with a nice soft mace...

I had 4 new builds this turn, Nassau got a Craftsman's Borough, I decided to ignore the starving peasants and try to speed up future builds. Ansbach gets a Traders Borough, I have positive money, but not a great amount so some extra gold revenues would be welcome. Let the peasants starve. Nordgau gets a Manorial Demesne first one in the kingdom. Last but not least Ivrea gets a Poultry Farm in preparation for more Manorial Demesne being built.

Most regions have no growth as I am mainly in negative food at present. I have most of my population in Infrastructure or it will take half the game to complete a single structure. The peasants may go hungry, but it is for the advancement of the kingdom.


Scotland

We are busy building:In Ross a Legumes Farm is finished and we start a Beekeeper, in Argyll a Sheperd House is finished and a Woodcutter is started, in Inverness another Shepherd House is completed and a Parchmenter is started and in Angus a Pigsty was built and construction of a Herbalist starts.



Messengers from England arrive at court, delivering greetings from the English King. He offers his daughter’s hand to my eldest son. What seems like a friendly gesture is the opposite, as the treacherous bastard had offered her to my vassal before. Luckily, my faithful bondsman declined and informed me. The fact that my son was offered a bride who was clearly a damaged good by then due to the rejection by my vassal can only be meant as an insult.

The fact that he started a war against Gwynedd also speaks a clear language – he wants to press the free folks of the isles under his yoke. We send messengers to Gwynedd offering an alliance.

Turn 13

England

“The Witan” has been a steady source of free Auth for England, and this turn was no exception, the event bringing in 2 Auth. I guess this will keep up until I reach 50. I draw Deploy Spy Network, but playing it costs 2 Auth and I’m not sure its worth it right now. We took Morgannwg from the Welsh without serious opposition. I’ll try to assault Deheubarth next turn, but that battle will be iffy, with my 0-1 general in charge. Harold Godwinson of Wessex was unhappy I did not help build his structure, and he reportedly called me an impotent donkey (relations drop to -37). A Rat Catcher is now catching rats in London, next up a Chalk Quarry.

[This 'Witan' event for the A-S English is nerfed for the release version, partly based on this AAR, the extra Auth being perhaps a bit too generous.]




Byzantium

The last preparations are made for the attack on the Tashir, there should now be enough troops to try taking back our vassals’ region.

Now if only no bad thing happens.


Castilla

We receive a proposal of cooperation and a gift of 18 ingots of metal from the Normans of Italy which is deeply appreciated. We are currently in a situation where all human players are not able to project much power in Iberia nor am I able to project power outside of it. That might change in the future though, so building up relations with a few of them might be useful in mid-game.



And the garrison in Albarracin is starting to suffer from starvation:



Scotland

We have received the new non-standard units we requested in the last turn: they’re Light Archers and Ribauds again. Playing this RGD was a mistake, given that I already had enough archers and skirmish units.

We will join them with our main army that just arrived in Edinburgh, which has a combat power of 98 currently.



In Moray the Village Green is completed and we start building Hovels that will provide us with additional manpower.



Finally, we march our army to Lothian close to the Northumbrian border. Unfortunately, we are already down to 6 manpower, thus, if fighting starts, we will be short on reinforcements.

Turn 14

England

Three Battles in Deheubarth: Battle 1 = Draw, Battle 2 = Defeat, but we killed the Welsh 0-2 general, then, for some reason, there was a Battle 3, which we won. So we held the field but lost 2 SAU Defensive Spear and a Huscarl. Also, the Welsh navy is in force in the Bristol Channel, so the siege is at -7. And there is a Welsh army of 5 Noble Cavalry, 3 Welsh Spearmen, and a bunch of Javelin chuckers on Powys to the north. And I notice Scotland and Wales just allied, putting us at war, so things are looking iffy right now on the military front! Heresy breaks out in London, but I have a Convert to new Faith in hand to deal with that. A Smokehouse filled the last slot in Sussex, with one turn to new pop growth. Kent dredges an Anchorage, next up a Farm; Norfolk builds a Poultry Farm, next up a Craftsman Borough. I play Instill Revolt into Powys to cause the Welsh some grief. I plot to pull my army back to Morgannwg, as it is in danger of being cut off by the Welsh army in Powys. Diplomatically however, I notice Genoa has sent a “Make Peace with” proposal naming Wales. I’ll agree, because I find myself in a tricky spot, but I’m doubtful Wales will too … in any case, Genoa making this diplomatic play does have the practical effect of raising relations between us two warring powers. Also, Apulia & Calabria (Norman Italy) offers me Cooperation and 18 Metal, which I could certainly use, as the Instill Revolt costs a hefty 10 Metal … so yes to that too. And I’ll raise a Raw Spear levy in London.




Byzantium

The eastern army finally moved to liberate the region occupied by the Tashir, it should be an short victorious campaign against 2 units.


Castilla

I send an insult to the ruler of Toledo in the hope of gaining a claim on their territory. Sure I could declare a war without a claim (especially since I hold a "Sneak Attack" RGD), but by holding claimed land you gain more Legacy, which I need to win against the other human players.




Genoa (T14-21)

Alas, the chronicles were lost! A young monk somehow managed to immerse all the papers of the chronicles in the warm Mediterranean Sea while traveling to a nearby island. Suffice to say, we did not do much except prepare for our next war with Corsica, which would allow us to form our first Domain!


HRE

The walking tour has been halted as Caslav is in unrest and it will take 3 turns to back track if any evil rebel types pop up. To make things more difficult one of my Italian regions is also in unrest but is 6 turns out. Oh, those Alps, so scenic and yet so slow to cross... Roads, roads my kingdom for some roads....

Only 2 builds available this turn. Bamberg finally gets the road building guild to start surveying as we get our first Village Road started.

Leipzig gets a Poultry Farm which will hopefully ease the food issue locally.

Last turn I built a new Sergeants and a Light Crossbowmen. They are ordered to wait for the spear unit from the capital which has been dispatched south to join them. This is all a just in case I see a rebellion in Caslav. It will take too long to try to get to Italy and I don't have the resources to build a second army. Splitting my one army is not an option as it is not strong enough to deal with any potential threats. Overwhelming force is still the best strategy.

I am still showing positive for Money, Manpower and Metal. Manpower being the lowest right now so not likely to see any new troops. I am still reluctant to play the merc RGD as it always ends up leading to bankruptcy, however I still hold one just in case of absolute emergency.

Managing to get good tokens but need 4 regions to evolve and I don't have the military strength to start any wars other than invading independents.


Scotland

Wales accepted our alliance proposal, and we instantly join its fight for freedom against the English king and his pawns.

Ross got raided again by those peasants from Sutherland. To add insult to injury, heresy appears in Ross too. We play the “Holy Procession” RGD, which we had received just this turn. Now let’s hope for the best.

With these religious troubles and the upcoming war, we move all clergy and nobles back to religious duties and administration.

Our army receives orders to cross the border into Northumbria and invade Dunbar. Hopefully this attack brings some relief to our new allies in Gwynedd.

Turn 15

England

It looks like the Welsh garrison of Deheubarth tried to sortie but lost. And I killed a 0-2 general, again. An epidemic gets contained in Northampton, but spreads to London. A draw Prospect for Resources again. And I convert the Heretic in London back to Catholic. I think my army in Wales will just defend in Morgannwg for a bit and do some unit recovery. Sussex begins work on a Farm. An Anchorage completes in Essex, next up a Manorial Demesne.


Castilla

As expected, Albarracin tried to break the siege, unsuccessfully. Time to assault the walls and crush the weakened defenders.

Finally, a new token. And it would seem the Taifa of Almeria is busy fighting their own civil war …




HRE

Only a couple of builds this turn, Caslav settled back down but the army stayed in Bavaria waiting for some new reinforcements to catch up before we continue the walking tour. I like to build my armies around 4 cavalry then spears and finally ranged units and skirmishers. I have a 3rd sergeant on the road to join up with the main army and another being built.

Caslav built a mining exploitation as they have a silver vein. Likely the game won't last long enough to mine it but all the same why not?

Piacenza has both health and piety concerns, so they get a Commoners Cemetery which helps in both those areas.

While I wait for the new troops I am debating where to invade next...


Scotland

The Northumbrian commander in Dunbar offers battle as soon as our army arrives in his region. His small band of warriors, however, does not stand a chance. Dunbar is conquered, we move on to Durham. Unfortunately, our manpower runs out and we are not able to recover losses.



The loyalty in Ross reaches rock bottom, but at least the religious procession seems to bring results.



We offer cooperation treaties to Genoa and the Holy Roman Empire.

Turn 16

England

Thanks to all these battle wins, plus my Witan, my Auth score goes way up to 45, putting me solidly in the top tier. Genoa plops down a Fondue (or whatever) in London. It says it is costing me 7 Money and 3 Stewardship, but then a notice says it earned me 8 Money, I guess due to the 3% Faction-wide Commerce bonus? The London Flue fails to spread to Sussex, and the RGD draw this turn is Peasants to Freemen. It looks like the Scots invaded Northumbria, taking Dunbar. Rich citizens of London donate 50 Money. A Wood Cutting is cut in Suffolk and with one slot left, and in need of more Health, a Rat Catcher is ordered up. And I think we will do Peasants to Freeman in Lincolnshire.


Byzantium

The Siege of Tashir is on! Unfortunately, the only loyal and competent general is the Emperor.




Castilla

Victory for Christianity and a mighty reward for Castilla!




The emperor of the Romans is willing to cooperate with us. Let's see where that leads us.




HRE

Doubleby is the only region building and they get a Wood Cutting as their build times are super slow due to low infrastructure. Also, Wood Cutting is a great trade commodity.

The first of the new troops are only 1 region away. So far, the army has not broken anything in Bavaria so all is good... I guess.

Still keeping positive in gold manpower and metal.

Turn 17

England

Another 'help Wessex build a structure' event, which I pretty much must refuse because wartime funds are tight right now. I get a third token. An Epidemic is prevented in Northampton, and we draw Forge Claim. No action on the Welsh front, but Scotland is besieging Durham (+20, will be quick). I think I will toggle Full Call Always on Mercia, as I could use their small army of Spear and Huscarl units about now. I sell Gift to a Peer and Prospect for Resources for some quick cash. Derby opens a Local Market, next up a Traders Borough. I’m pulling my army out of Wales for now, back to Hereford, where they can join up with other forces converging on the region.




Castilla

Amazing news, a new claim on the Taifa of Toledo has been established:



Not wishing to waste time, and noticing that most enemy cities are not well fortified, I decide to play both a "Sneak Attack" RGD (allowing to invade the enemy right away) and a "forced march" RGD (so that I may crush the enemy defenders and annex as many cities as possible in a short and quick campaign, before anyone else can intervene).




HRE

Not much is going on this turn. Lugano was the only region to get a build slot and they got a poultry farm. Food is still an issue along with the lack of roads.

Taking advice from Surt I increased the odds of Develop Region in the RGD list. The royal coffers were sitting at +0 so I had to move some freemen into income slots. It raised the revenues to +12 gold but will likely see a loss next turn.

My reinforcements finally caught up now just need the new sergeant and spear unit to move down and join the fun. The walking tour has commenced southwards again, but there are some avalanches and blizzards ahead so a slow trudge regardless.

Our esteemed leader decided he likes Sunny Italy and has laid claim to the region just north of Venice. I guess I know where we are heading soon. Off to go tame some wayward independent and then off to lay claim to what is rightly ours.

Manpower took a slight hit and is sitting at -2. Hopefully it recovers next turn.

My population growth is ridiculously slow. Hoping they get a boost to crop production next spring, or it will take all game before I can open a new build slot in some regions.

Turn 18

England

I missed this turn for some reason, possibly due to a version change that happened around this time? While I was away, Edward the Confessor died, and was replaced by a new king. He is a 1-0-2 Abysmal Administrator and Bad Diplomat (this should be fun!).




Castilla

Guadalajara falls to the armies of Castille:

Turn 19

England

RGD draw was Build Harbor. Cambridge begins work on a Commoner Cemetery. The Scots army has moved south to West Riding, so I’m actually going to play Grant Land in Derby so a Baronial Vassal and his castle will pop up there (there are no walls there currently). I play a Remove Civilized in Cambridge to remove a Baronial Vassal, amusingly. I also play Build Harbor on London. I suddenly have a ton of Money in my Treasury (probably brought in by the new king) so I will go ahead and Forge Claim on Powys too.


Castilla

One Muslim army is butchered just outside the gates of Toledo, which prompts a panicked Bajadoz to intervene and declare war.

We receive another token, while one of our vassals nets us a profit of 92 gold serving at our court (special event). Time to deploy the big guns for the siege of Toledo:



And while our heir leads the siege, we decide to split our army for mop up operations south of Toledo:

Turn 20

England

The turn opens with a victory over a small Deheubarthian army that tried to move into Morgannwg where my main army is parked again. I get a fourth token! I draw another Grant Land, which I can use to form another Baronial Vassal like I did in Derby (the Scots retreated north, however). I also draw Attract Migrants. My new king’s health degrades to Good (yay!). My Forge Claim on Powys failed, making me 0-2 on those. London chisels out a Chalk Quarry, next up a valuable Toolsmith. I am putting a 2-1 uncle with unknown loyalty in charge of the army, which is risky, but I think my best option.


Castilla

Cuenca fall into our hands, while a small Muslim relief army is destroyed outside Toledo.

Turn 21

England

We draw Show of Authority, which is then played in Norfolk. A heretic in Morgannwg repents, possibly due to my large army stationed there. My army is back up to full strength, and my 2-1 general has settled in, so I am going to try to break the stalemate in Wales by attacking Deheubarth, with a direct assault on the walls. No structure news, as everything is taking an eternity to build now, thanks to my Abysmal Administrator monarch.


Castilla

The walls of Toledo have been breached. Unfortunately, the besieging army was destroyed by a sortie before our second army could rejoin them.



My second army is too weak now to get the job done. I decide to bring the campaign to an early end and spend winter back home. New recruits are called up to make up for the recent losses. Nonetheless, our first campaign against Toledo was a success. Many enemy soldiers were killed, and half the land of the emir are now under our control.



Still a long way to go before we reach the top 10 of the most pious nations in the world, but we are slowly getting there.

Turn 22

England

We storm Deheubarth, without taking a single hit, and 120 Money is plundered. The Charcoal Pit building there is switched to a Pilgrim’s Refuge. Ennoble Petty Landowner is the RGD draw, which I’ll play in Lincolnshire. A Craftsman Borough finishes up in Nottingham, next up is a Wheelmaker. I target the Wales army in Powys as my next army move. I think I have the better army, and we’ll both have the same leadership.


Castilla

One more claim on Toledo, which will translate into extra authority and legacy once it falls into our hands.



Unfortunately, we are not the only one seizing opportunity in Spain. With Toledo severely weakened, the emir of Cordoba had decided to seize the city of Calatrava. We need to hurry up to avoid Toledo (and the enemy treasury) falling into the hands of the Cordobans. I also start insulting their emissary to forge a claim on their recent conquest (stolen from our army).




Genoa

After finding clear evidence that Corsica belongs to us, we attack the island with a bold landing on its northern coast. Our navy escorts our transports, which are of good quality since we are a maritime republic, and we immediately storm the walls. This is a glorious victory, the pinnacle of our achievements even!

Turn 23

England

My battle in Powys is a crushing defeat. I didn’t have enough front-line units to cover the frontage, which was 8 for a Hill plus 2 cav flanks, because despite years of play, of both Kingdoms and Empires, I had a brain fart and thought for some reason it was 6 + 2. While I did well in the center, both flanks got crushed. So, the Welsh War is now officially a disaster. The good news is the knowledge of Hill frontage is now burned back into my frontal lobe for a while! Vassal: Border Dispute pops up between Wessex and Mercia, and I side with Mercia. RGD draw is Remove Civilized. Time to raise some troops I guess, sadly without any recruitment RGDs; 3 Raw Spearmen are ordered up.




Byzantium

Sir Buildsalot is rehired after the mess the AI-Council made while he was exiled.

Some minor revolts have sprung up.

The Emperor is a bit ambivalent with this Norman "help" against one of the rebel, maybe they do it for their own gain?

The Fatimids attacked while one of the local nobles revolted.

Somehow part of the army has disappeared in addition to the ones who went over to the rebels.


HRE

Looks like the game progressed while I was waiting for the new build to be released but I am back in game again.

I had set up a few turns worth of moves so I am finally one turn away from my next conquest. Some independent state that longs to be brought into the civilized nation known as the HRE.

No new builds but had to go through all my regions and sort things out again as with the new build things were not as I had left them. I had to move all my freemen back to income slots as I was losing a fair bit of gold at first launch, but I managed to turn that around and now have a healthy surplus. I also had to cancel some weird buildings that I know I did not authorize. Apparently, the virtual builder’s guild had a meeting with lots of beer and things got out of hand. Evil coding and bad AI build choices aside I managed to sort things out to a more common-sense build. The locals are happier now.

Hopefully next turn I will be staining my sword with the blood of our newest citizens.

Turn 24

England

LOL, better late than never I guess:



And Wessex unvassaled. In the border dispute he took control of Gloucester from Mercia, which is now cross hatched. Convert to New Faith is drawn, as is Assassinate Ruler, due to my monarch’s incompetence! That would be a unique way to end this AAR, so let’s do it! But we’ll Deploy a Spy Network in London first, as that will apparently boost our odds. The Loyalty of my 2-1 general is discovered to be 30, and I can do without additional problems right now, so he is replaced by a 0-0 general with a known Loyalty in the 80s. A Rat Catcher is born in Suffolk, and a Craftsman Borough is ordered up next. Deheubarth begins a Wood Cutting. White Peace offers are sent to Wales and Scotland.


HRE

The imperial army finally made it to Geneva and after a 2-round fight, and the loss of one unit of archers, we were victorious and added Geneva to our empire.

I also discovered that 4 turns ago I went to war with Parma and that the war is continuing. Guess I know where we shall march next.

Caslav was the only building, and it got a hunting reserve, extra food and it provides pelts. They may come in handy later.

Our glorious leader was invited on a hunting trip and was mauled by a wild boar. He lost 2 levels of health.

The game won't last much longer with the release almost upon us so hopefully our glorious leader’s wounds do not take him out before launch day.

Turn 25

England

The Welsh moved into Deheubarth and retook the place by storm. My army remnants there had already high-tailed it out of there by sea, because I figured it would be safer than risking an overland march. They are now safely landed in Hereford, where I am joined by my new Mercian forces on loan. My Raw Spearmen recruited in London are slowly making their way there too, as are some newly raised Bowmen. I draw another Convert to New Faith, so might as well sell one (for 10 Money). My Spy Network is set up in London, so now I’ll try out Assassinate Ruler on myself! I would have done so last turn, but I was unsure how the order of operations with those two RGDs would go. A Farm completes in Lincolnshire, next up an Anchorage.


Byzantium

Some peasants defeated an Imperial army, the commanding General is fired.


[And this is where we wrapped up this AAR! I will add as a postscript, after resolving the final turn, that the Assassinate Ruler on my king failed (I should not have placed the Spy Network, I misunderstood how it worked ... it actually hurt my chances, not helped. It only helps when National Authority is negative!), and Wales did graciously accept my peace offer!]

[darth_alles]

Had I known that my texts will be used in verbatim for this AAR, I would have dialed back on the insulting language a bit. Apologies to the Sutherlanders. :D

[TRex1983]

Indeed, the Emperor of the Romans, as he calls himself, is very deeply ruling his Empire without Authority. I would add on more comments , but TOS of Steam would not approve my message!
Thanks Grognerd for posting that so far!