A Sacred Affair - CK3 AAR Slavic Catholic Conquest.

[ConDud]

Hey folks... this is my very first time running an "AAR" but I've been reading around the forum and thought of an interesting idea. Really been getting into old early Church writings, where legends of saints and angels come into play. Thought it'd be interesting to do a heavily story focused AAR around that, I already have most of Chapter 1 complete (Which focuses on the OG Angel-man himself) and that should be out soon. I will note that the character of Seraphiel is a custom made character with some super OP stats, but for the sake of the story as a sorta legend I thought that would be fine. I hope you all enjoy, here is a short log of events that occur before the start of the playthrough:

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- Preface -​

It had been 834 years since Jesus ascended into heaven. His church had fractured and split in the west, while those in the eastern regions remained unaware of his word. The savagery and warfare in the eastern Slavic lands were abundant and in need of a savior.

One day, the Father heard of a quarrelsome angel, one that had been a part of Michael's army during the War in Heaven: . Recently, the angel had been growing ever more prideful and instigating fights amongst his peers. God the Father called upon Seraphiel. Seraphiel answered, "Lord, speak; your servant is listening."

The Father yelled out in a booming voice, "Seraphiel, your pride consumes you. It is as if you are no better than the men who dwell upon the earth. I ought to banish you as I banished the demons with Lucifer."

Seraphiel pleaded with the Father for thirty days and thirty nights, until the Lord offered him a deal: "Seraphiel, I shall redeem you and welcome you into my kingdom again, only if you follow my word. You shall descend to Earth as a man. Unlike my son, you shall not be free from sin, and you shall face its cruel wrath. You shall not re-enter the Kingdom of Heaven until you and your earthly descendants have saved fifty thousand souls in the east. Do you understand me?" Seraphiel had no choice but to accept the Father's offer, and so he was banished from the Kingdom of Heaven.

Upon reaching Earth, Seraphiel was pleased, for God the Father had granted him a strong, beautiful body, fit for subjugating and converting the locals. He found himself upon a tall mountain, where he saw a crowd of men and one woman. The Father spoke to Seraphiel: "That woman is to be your earthly wife, and those men are to be the first generation of servants. I have willed it." Seraphiel said to the Father, "Thy will be done." And he called to the people below, "Hail, humans who dwell upon the earth! It is I, the angel the Lord has sent to save you."

The crowd rushed to Seraphiel, where he was crowned Chief of the people of Ishim. On that very rock, the people bowed to him; on that very rock, he was crowned, and on that very rock, he wedded his wife and began his reign...

 

[Chac1]

Welcome to the Forum!
Nice start. Not exactly a throng following the fallen angel, but from humble beginnings....
Wishing you the best as you begin your AAR journey.

 

[HistoryDude]

Welcome to AARland!

I like the idea of this legend to start. What will the Church think of Seraphiel's descendant's claims?

Subbed. I love vaguely mythological AARs!

 

[Koweth]

I'd like to also give you a warm welcome!

I agree with HistoryDude, mythology is always so fascinating, and I wish nothing but the best for your story.

 

[ConDud]

Welcome to AARland!

I like the idea of this legend to start. What will the Church think of Seraphiel's descendant's claims?

Subbed. I love vaguely mythological AARs!

Thanks! That's an interesting question I'll definitely work that in in the future

 

[ConDud]

Welcome to the Forum!
Nice start. Not exactly a throng following the fallen angel, but from humble beginnings....
Wishing you the best as you begin your AAR journey.

Made sure to keep track of those around him to build a interesting cast!

 

[ConDud]

Hey folks, this Chapter covers a LOT OF TIME, and so some things that happened are not mentioned (Such as conquest of smaller tribes with no interesting events) I also made the mistake of not taking enough screenshots... It should be enough but future chapters will for sure have a lot more screenshots of the map that will make it easier to tell what's happening. Now that that's out of the way here's Chapter 1:

( Here is a screenshot of the angel himself and all of his OP Stats: )

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- Horrid Beginnings -​

The early days of Seraphiel "The Redeemer" (As he was called by those around him) were not glorious nor honorific, instead his early reign was filled with death, grief, and defeat...

A still cocky Seraphiel journeyed north with a large and capable force of 1000 men, they marched upon the town of Sibir. Alongside Seraphiel were his trusted knights Pivtsay, Nuyat, Koksha, and Malyaka. In the days leading up to the battle the men had taught Seraphiel the ropes of earthly life, and he had grown attached to the men.

When they reached Sibir they camped outside of it for three days, after that all peace was stripped away from the men. A force twice the size of the Angel's

descended upon their camp, it was quickly apparent that the Lord was not with Seraphiel. The Angel prayed to the Lord in the middle of battle and asked, "Why do you allow so many to die, am not I thy servant?" But the Lord said, "Your Pride still consumed you, you should've known that you could not win this war. And so I allowed you to fall, you must be humbled to truly be my servant."

Quickly Seraphiel watched before his eyes as Pivtsay, Malyaka, and Koksha died. Seraphiel felt true pity for the men of the earth then, for he knew they experienced this regularly. As the dust cleared Seraphiel managed to organize his men out of the camp and back to the city of Ishim.

Seraphiel realized that he could not simply waltz around and expect great victories, so he sat with his wife and sprawled over maps and scrolls. He prepared a party to go and conquer a much smaller tribe to the south.

Seraphiel quickly realized however, that he would need fresh recruits to lead this force. As he had led all of his other to death.

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- Recruitment of Sviatoslav -​

A man from the wastes of Siberia barged into the court of Seraphiel, the man was short yet well built and carried great arms of steel, alongside him was a much taller however scrawny man. The stronger man kneeled before the angel Seraphiel, "A voice called me heere, it told me to serve the lord of Ishim, and that is you." The man was named Sviatoslav, and his friend was Biyar.

Seraphiel baptized the two men, and knew that Sviatoslav was the man for the job. He gave him charge over his army and sent him south to conquer Kyzylzhar, Sviatoslav said, "thy will be done," and conquered the land.

By that time the year was 869, and much had changed. Seraphiel's wife and she was expected to conceive soon. Later that same year she did, and Seraphiel named him Koksha in honor of his fallen knight.

Meanwhile his wife quickly grew pregnant again, and Koksha was due for training. So Seraphiel sent his trusted knight Sviatoslav to Bardak with Biyar by his side. The two conquered the land and returned to the city of Ishim.

Upon their return Seraphiel's second child, Mary had been born. Named after the Blessed Mother. Seraphiel wandered off during the birth of his daughter, discovering a sword in an abandoned Church. God spoke to Seraphiel, "You have done well my servant, this sword is my gift to you. Use it to strike down the heathens and convert the masses."

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- The Journey to Skardu -​

At time the year was 872, and back from war Sviatoslav brought a heathen from the court of Torum the Pagan Chef. The heathen was named Chichayka and upon seeing Seraphiel he immediately agreed to be baptized. The man was a respected physician, and so Seraphiel appointed him as his Court Physician as the advice of Sviatoslav. It was the night after where Seraphiel was awoken by a ruckus in his throne-room, upon investigating he found the recently baptized physician.

"What is the meaning of this?" Seraphiel yelled out to the man, who was seemingly in a frenzy. Chichayka turned towards the Angel, "The Lord your God has told me this message, we are to travel south and learn the art of earthly war! A great threat brews in the east and it shall engulf us otherwise!" Seraphiel understood that Chichayka was telling the truth, "Where is this land in the south?"

Seraphiel was presented with a map where Chichayka pointed far south in the mountains, "There, in the land of Skardu is where the temple lies, and there the Lord your God commanded we go." Seraphiel felt troubled, why hadn't the Lord reached out to him? Why did he reach out to this freshly baptized man?

Chichayka was appointed the Caravan Master, and Seraphiel instructed Sviatoslav to further the Holy Conquest. It is then when Seraphiel set out for Skardu, and Sviatoslav (with Biyar by his side) set out for the northern lands.

The journey south was long and treacherous, however the Lord sent Angels to guide Seraphiel. The Angels recognized Seraphiel and asked him, "Why do you possess the body of a man, and are subjected to sin?" Seraphiel eased their worries, "The Lord has been gracious and bargained with me! I was to be a fallen Angel no better than Satan's, however the Lord allowed me a second chance as a man!"

As they entered the lands of Khan Bilge, specifically Lake Balkash a strange thing occurred. As Seraphiel sat upon a rock in his camp he realized he was the only one there, the men in his party had left to hunt and the Angels went with them to defend them.

A stranger approached him, clearly a man of the steppe. He drew his weapon and a duel ensued, the duel raged on for what seemed to be hours. When finally Seraphiel slew the man:

It was clear that this was part of the test, and Seraphiel had succeeded. He and his group continued south, where they learned that Khan Bilge had sent a hunting party after them.

The hunting party quickly reached the group, slaying Chichayka in battle. Seraphiel looked upon the body of his old friend, drawing his blade and charging. He and the remaining men with him slew the hunting party in a quick victory.

The group sat and said their prayers for Chichayka, but it was made apparent that the Lord wanted them to continue. The Lord's Angels protected them the rest of the way until they reached Skardu.
There he met a warrior-priest Utkarsa. The priest wasted no time and drew his blade, Seraphiel drew his. The duel lasted a week, and the two led each other into the depths of the Himalayas. It is on the night of the 7th day where Utkarsa said, "I yield! The Lord smiles upon you and your descendants, and has blessed you with a son! Let us together make haste to Ishim where your son and your crown await you."

They made their way back to Ishim, and no troubles met them.

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- The Crowning of Seraphiel -​

By that time the year was 884, and much had happened. Sviatoslav with Biyar at his right hand had conquered many lands to the west and south. Davyd, the third child and second son of Seraphiel had been born in 875. Judith, the fourth child and second daughter of Seraphiel had been born in 881. And on the beginning of 884 Seraphiel II of Kush-Murun, the fifth child and third son of Seraphiel had been born.

Koksha (Now known as "The Beautiful") had come of age and was wedded to a former Buddhist Sati. Sati was pregnant and would the follow year birth Seraphiel II.

Seraphiel, now most wise had divided up the land amongst his sons and closest peers.

• To the east in Ostyaki lied Chieftain Sviatoslav.​
• North of him lied Koshuki led by Chieftain Davyd.​
• The large region of Northern Sibir was jointly ruled by a Frenchman named Alphonse and Koksha "The Beautiful"​
• The northern land of Kazym was to be granted to the newborn son that God has promised Seraphiel. (This would be Cain)​

In between these times, Seraphiel sent Sviatoslav to conquer the northern regions of Konda. Konda was a coalition against Seraphiel, the coalition of heathens would be slayed by Sviatoslav and his army. However, Biyar would be slain in battle.

Mary had been shipped off to India to wed a lord from the south. This lord declared himself Christian however broke away from the Catholic Church, he was followed by Mary who was then struck down by the Lord most righteously.

Soon, the son promised by the Lord turned out to be two. Seraphiel was unaware of their birth as he had joined Sviatoslav in his war against the heathens, however the Lord whispered to Seraphiel, "Your Wife has given birth to two children, they are the reincarnations of Cain and Abel. Now that I have given you seven children I have taken your Wife to ascend into Heaven. Seven children is all you need, however your son Davyd has grown most distant from me. Care for your newborn daughter, and your newly born twins, for they need your guidance. Do not allow them to become the same as Davyd the Athiest, and Mary the Apostate." The Lord then left Seraphiel.

Seraphiel rushed to the capital of Ishim where he met his two sons, Cain and Abel. There he also met Igor, the man who had delivered them. Seraphiel thanks Igor and recruited him as a knight to his cause along with his mother Nyv. Seraphiel called upon Sviatoslav to return to the capital, the war in the east was halted.

It was then when Seraphiel was crowned King of the Holy Kingdom of Sibir, he was told by the Lord, "Go, for you have made great progress in your journey. Your descendants shall finish your work for you, now I command you to rest for 14 years, then you shall go and conquer Konda." By then the year was 900.

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- The Later Years of Seraphiel's Life -​

After the conquest of Konda in 914, Seraphiel declared, "There shall be no more

conquest in my day." For he had seen Igor slain in battle, and was told by the Lord, "Soon you shall grow infirm and weak, and still face heathen rebels in the west."

Just as the Lord said, Chieftain Viryay of Konda rose up the following year (915) and slew Abel in battle. Seraphiel then led his last battle where he slew fifty men single-handedly and Viryay himself. After the rebellion ended in victory for Seraphiel he grew weak, just as the Lord said.

By that time the year was 920, and the now old Koksha son of Seraphiel fell over and died of his Old Age. Seraphiel knew that his son would be in heaven, same as Sviatoslav who died that year of his Old Age as well. In those days Seraphiel dawned an Iron Mask that obscured his vision so he would not be tempted by the women of his court, which had tempted him in years past.

Seraphiel, weak yet distinguished died at the age of 87 in the year 936. His Kingdom quickly fractured as his son Davyd "The Peaceful" took the throne, backed by the son of Sviatoslav Stepan. In the capital however Seraphiel II (Son of Koksha) took the reigns and declared himself King backed by Marguerite daughter of Alphonso the Frenchman.

Civil War ensued, and the fate of the great Empire of the Angel was called into question...

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- Concluding Notes -​

Alright! That was Chapter 1 and I hope you enjoyed it, as laid out at the end the Kingdom was fractured in two after Seraphiel's death. In the west is King Davyd son of Seraphiel, and in the east is King Seraphiel II son of Koksha. I'll let you guys comment on which of the two you think I should play as, but if not enough people vote I'll just pick whoever I want.

Thanks for reading this!

 

[Chac1]

Well, that was quite the epic life. I do wonder, was following God's instructions the simple path to redemption for the fallen angel? Did he face any other tests besides dueling and learning the art of war?

Seraphiel quickly realized however, that he would need fresh recruits to lead this force. As he had led all of his other to death.

I do like that he fails at the beginning. It seems he must have overcome his hubris,

The duel lasted a week, and the two led each other into the depths of the Himalayas.

And I thought the Norse Sagas were filled with hyperbole! What a tale.

I do think one of the mistakes of the fallen angel was not instructing his children about fighting each other. It seems this succession war will not be pretty. Looking forward to this as you move forward. Thanks for the update.

 

[HistoryDude]

This war of succession will be fascinating...

I like how you justified the game's occurrences within the story's context.

Why do the people of Sibir believe in reincarnation? That strikes me as heretical to the Catholic Church...

Why do I feel like Cain is going to betray whoever he sides with?

What happened to Seraphiel after his death? Did he become an angel again? Does he have a normal human soul in Heaven now?

 

[Midnite Duke]

Thank you for your wonderful work! Love choice of Ishim with the word's two meanings. Though Ishim as a Siberian place is almost a millennium early, but that is bad Paradox research. I am not real enamored with Russian Catholic. Russian is too early for anywhere and I would prefer a local Finno-Ugric culture. C2's Khanty is better than C3's Ostyak. If wanted something larger, better known than local, Finnish and Hungarian are Finno-Ugric. Would prefer Miaphysite-Nestorian-Massalian as closer than Catholic with even Orthodox over Catholic. C3's Ukonusko seems to be another word for C2's Suomenusko. Why change if not improving? Prefer grandson over Davyd.

 

[overthetop_G]

play as grandson. Why play as David the atheist?