Jai Kashi Nath! - AAR of Bihari Dream of Unification

[wown]

Preface​

Hello All,

I bought EU3 over the weekend and absolutely loved it. I am so excited that I am going to write my first AAR. I will be writing this AAR in real-time (as in while playing the game). I will play as Bihar, a small Hindu nation in Northern India (I have provided the historical context below). I am especially excited because I am from the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, specifically from the province represented by Allahbad in the game.

Being my first AAR I want to welcome everyone for feedback on the game, my writing, and any other comments. As I mentioned, I have just bought EU3 and would appreciate guidance on handling the complexities of the game.

A quick note on the writing style: I will write every 10 (game) years, imagining that as part of a decade’s census, a government historian is writing about the events of past 10 years. The introduction is the only exception in that the introduction is written from the perspective of my first monarch’s teacher. He presents historical context and the general goals to the first ruler. Even though I foresee bias in my AAR (e.g. hatred for Muslim nations), it does not reflect my personal views. The historical context is mostly factual, except the bias present when talking about the invaders.

From time to time, you may see side notes highlighted in red. These, I hope, will be few but will help provide context or clarity as needed.

With that said, thanks for reading and hope you enjoy.

PS: The below legend may be useful.

Ekant Ka Sapna (Dream of Unity) (Historical Context)

Bihar is a land of fertile soil, plentiful monsoons, with a rich religious, cultural, and economic history. Maharaj, as you sit in the throne that has supported some of the world’s greatest Maharajas of the, you must guide your people to triumph and re-achieve the dream of uniting Hindustan.

Dharti aur Dharma (Geography and Religion)

Geographically, the lands are protected in the North by the mighty Himalayas and in the West by the Bengal Jungles. The plains are watered yearly by the monsoons that allow farms to prosper and provide much needed relief against the blazing heat. The Ganges River running through these lands have provided the people a means of navigation and trade since time immemorial.

With plenty of food and natural protection, the people have focused on spiritual and economic development. Kashivishwanath (in the province of Allahbad) is the holy city for the millions of Hindus all across the sub-continent. The city is said to have been founded by Lord Shiva himself and is known as the “City of the Dead”. In Hindu tradition, one’s ashes must be scattered in holy waters of the Ganges to achieve Moksha and millions of people make the pilgrimage to find their final resting place in this city, ensuring that trade prospers in the region.

Bihar is also the birth place of Buddhism which has influenced much of East Asia. Founded by Prince Siddhratha the Gautham Buddha, who renounced his kingdom, Buddhism is a perfect example of how Bihar personifies the belief in spiritual fulfillment and coexistent living.

Pichle Rajya (Historical Dynasties and Empires)

While peace is priority, the land has also been home to some of the largest empires in the world’s history. Bihar was home to the Magadha Empire, which dominated the sub-continent for over 1,000 years. With its capital in Patliputra, Bihar’s capital today, the Mauryan Dynasty (322-185 BC) was perhaps the first to give birth to the idea of a united Hindustan. Their empire stretched as far as West as Persia and as far South as Ceylon. Using their vast resources, the Mauryan Dynasty greatly improved the infrastructure and life quality of Bihari citizens. They also invested in the sciences and the arts heavily. In fact, one of the most important mathematicians, Aryabhata, who is credited with inventing the concept of zero, called Patliputra his home.

Mauryan Empire at its Height
​

Following the Mauryans, various other dynasties (the Sunga, the Gupta, and the Palas), with varying success, have called Bihar their homes. The most notable of these was the Gupta dynasty that also conquered many parts of Hindustan and vassalized almost all of it. The Gupta Empire is considered by many scholars to be the "classical age" of Hindu and Buddhist art and literature. The Rulers of the Gupta Empire were strong supporters of developments in the arts, architecture, science, and literature. The Gupta Dynasty also left behind an effective administrative system. During times of peace, the Gupta Empire system was decentralized, with only taxation flowing to the capital at Pataliputra. During times of war however, the government realigned and fought its invaders.

Akranamkari (The Invaders)

Unfortunately, after the Gupta Empire, the land has seen many invaders. First, the Huns from the North pestered Biharis and Hindustanis across the sub-continent. These invasions were followed by the Pashtuns from Afganistan and Turkic invaders from further West. While the invaders at first were mostly interested in looting and pillaging, the vast resources offered by our lands are attracting some of these invaders to stay.

The invaders bring with them diseases, put a strain on our resources, force our people to fight their battles, and, most importantly, punish those who worship the Vedic Devas (Hindu Gods). The invaders follow Islam which promises glory and salvation in battle. They are a violent people and unlike us do not believe in coexistence. If they came as guests, we would have welcomed them with open arms. But they came first as robbers and now they mean to kill us…

Lakshya (Goals)

Maharaj Mubarak Shah Sharqi, you follow in the footsteps of Asoka the Great and Chandragupta Maurya. These great kings once dreamt of a united kingdom of under the Bihari rule and you and your government must try to achieve the same dream, once and for all.

However the challenges you face will not be easy. Never before have we as a people dealt with a more persistent invader. Our allies are few and weak. Our people, scared of persecution, are defecting to Islam. The journey to unification will be long and hard …but it is our destiny. Ekant Hamari Ho Gi!!

To get you started, I have outlined priorities that need your immediate attention. To the East and West we are surrounded by Muslim enemies who would destroy us without a thought. Your priority should be to subdue the Bengal kingdoms in the West while defending the encroachments by the Delhi Sultanate. We should also strive to befriend the nearby Hindu kingdoms, especially the Rajputana kingdom.

We are also a trading nation. Bihar is a center of trade where much of east Hindustan trades. We must secure and capitalize this position. Invest in trade technologies, enact policies to attract merchants, and most importantly establish a dominant trading position in Bihar. Also look to expand trade networks in Kutch and Malacca as these will be vital to your treasury.

If you can secure your borders and your trade, my king, our nation will be in a strong position to expand and rid the Islamic threat forever. We can then turn our attention to collaborative incorporation of the other Hindu kingdoms that should rightfully be part of Bihar.

 

[wown]

1400: Chhoti si Shuruaat (From Humble Beginnings)​

Mubarak Shah Sharqi took the throne of Bihar on 14th October 1399 and immediately dispatched merchants to trade in Bihar to strengthen our treasury. He also hired advisors to improve trade practices and discover new trading methods.

However, the most important decisions by our king so far have been in foreign policy. In an attempt to build better relations with the Hindu nations, the king dispatched ambassadors to the Rajputana and Orissa Kingdoms, requesting an alliance. The alliance was gladly accepted by both kingdoms, but as a result we were drawn into the Rajputana holy war against Sind and Gujarat. The Muslim invaders are once again threatening our brothers and have declared a Jihad against the Rajputs.

Our king realizes the strategic importance of the Rajputs. He knows that their help will be crucial in our defense against the formidable Delhi Sultanate, which threatens our borders and claims legal right on all our lands. However, the Delhi Sultanate is busy defending against the Timurid and Chagatai invaders from the North, buying us some time to build our armies.

​

As such, the king has decided, for now, to focus our war effort against the Bengals. Our nobility believes that the Hindu persecution by the Bengal Kingdom is appalling The Bengals have murdered thousands of pilgrims that arrive in Bengal on their way to Kashivishwanath. These atrocities must be stopped and the nobility has given the king a mission to conquer the Bengala region.

Our troops now lay siege to the province of Jharkhand with more troops being trained for a siege against Bengala province. We have requested aid from our allies in Orissa and we hope with their help we can stop the inhumanities of Bengal. We can then assist our Rajput brothers.

 

[loki100]

really good opening, you really have picked quite the challenge here, with the Timurids primed to enter N India and Viyanagar's habit of expanding to capture all of India.

 

[vasziljevics]

subscribed!

 

[wown]

1410 - Meditating like Shiva

1410 - Shiva Ka Dhyan (Meditating like Shiva)​

Aaj Ka Samachar (Summary of Current Affairs)​

The early years of this decade were marred by major wars against the Muslim nations and by the middle of the decade the Muslims had largely been expelled from Hindustan. Peace prevailed for a few years until the expansionist ambitions of our neighbors plunged them all into war.

Hugely successful against the Muslims, King Mubarak Shah was never eager to fight our Hindu brethren. We narrowly avoided major involvement in these latter conflicts, even though we had standing alliances with many of the nations. We briefly participated in the war against Orissa, but made no territorial gains. Additionally, our neighbors quickly declared peace while they dealt with internal rebellions. Peace prevails today, but tensions are high.

We are warily watching both, the Rajputs and the Vijayanagaris, as they expand their military and economic powers. Rajputs especially are a threat to us as they control the trading port of Kutch which, as of today, outshines Bihar in trade.

While peace, trade, and harmony is our priority, we have seen our neighbors are warmongers that must be tamed. We have also brushed up against the Chatagai raiders that will need to be stopped.

Thus military must not be neglected. Territorial expansion will be necessary if Hindustan is to exist. Perhaps our neighbors to North, Nepal, need to be subjugated. Assam and Orissa also seem like excellent candidates for conquest or subjugation. We must be patient, however. Let the rest of the land fight and weaken themselves.

We shall be like Lord Shiva, and meditate. When the time comes, our third eye will open and unleash Kaal (apocalypse) upon the belligerents.

Pichle Dus Saal (Last Ten Years)​

Bengali Sher Bana Paltu (Bengali Tiger is Tamed)

The holy war against Bengal went extremely well. Bengal got involved in two more wars as our troops laid siege to Jharkhand. Assam and Pegu, Bengal’s neighbors to the east, both attacked Bengal. Pegu especially led a very successful campaign against Bengal, capturing most of Bengal’s provinces. In 6 months, Bengal was decimated, falling easily to Peguvian and our troops. The Peguvians retained control of Chittagong in the east while we annexed the rest of the country.

Pachimi Hindustan Ki Dharmik Jung (Western Hindustan Religious War)

On the Western front, the Rajputs were successfully defending against the Muslims. They were helped by Timurid raiders from the West who occupied the Sindi provinces of Sind and Kutch. Kutch especially is a very strategic province as it is the only other Center of Trade in Hindustan and without it Sind was useless in the war. Rajputs concentrated on occupying Gujarati territories after easily resisting the Gujarati advances.

At the same time, our neighbors to the South, the Gondwanas and Vijayanagar, invaded the Deccan nation in the another religious war. Our Hindu brothers met with plenty of success there as well, with Gondwana capturing territory extending from our borders all the way to Gujarat.

In January of 1401, Sind managed to buy peace from the Timurids but with their allies, Gujarat, under Rajputana control and their economy in shambles, Sind was left vulnerable and ripe for picking. Seeing an opportunity to grab trade in all of Hindustan, King Mubarak shah requested the friendly Gondwana kingdom for military access and moved the troops from Bengal all the way across to Kutch to lay siege on the important city. But the clever Rajputs reached Kutch first and took the province instead.

In the end, The Rajputs dominated Western Hindustan, the Gondwanas had secured control over Central Hindustan, Vijayanagar and their allies extended control over South Hindustan, and we secured our holdings in East Hindustan. Only the North yet remained under Muslim control.

For a while it seemed violence had subsided but the Rajputs had other ideas.

Delli Chalo! (March on Delhi)

With the newly acquired territories, the Rajputs decided once and for all to rid the land of Muslim invaders and declared war on Delhi. At the same time, Orissa and Gondwana also declared war on Delhi.
Not to be left out and seeing this as an excellent opportunity to expand into the North, King Mubarak Shah declared war on Delhi in an independent religious war before our allies would compel us to side with them in alliance.
[Religious War Casus Belli gives far less infamy than Alliance Casus Belli. By declaring war with that Casus Belli I can hopefully annex Delhi and incur less than 10 infamy]

The Delhi Sultanate had been waging wars against the Timurids and their cities were unprotected. We quickly lay siege to Lucknow, Agra, Malwa, Chandigar and Delhi while the Rajputs captured Panipat in the North. In 1404, the crippled Delhi Sultunate conceded defeat, relinquishing all but Delhi and the far North provinces it held.

Desh Drohiyon Ka Sarvanash (Triumph Over Traitors)

During the war against Delhi, revolts erupted in the newly conquered Bengal regions. The main armies were busy besieging Delhi and for fear of relinquishing siege control to Rajputs, the king allowed the rebels to continue their siege while expanding the army in Bihar and nearby provinces.

While some rebellions formulated within the country, many Deva Bengali rebels crossed the border from Assam and Pegu and took control in the East. Aiming to create an independent nation, these rebels were strong in numbers, often besieging cities with 10,000 or more men.

Rebellions also sprouted in the West as the conquered people of the Delhi Sultanate demanded an independent Hindu nation. Poor fools, they had no idea that our King only had their best interest at heart. An independent nation in the West would once again be left vulnerable against Muslim advances or fall to the warmongering Rajputs.

We had no choice; the rebels had to be crushed. But the troops were tired from Muslim wars, the treasury was running low, and the people yearned to return to simple life of trade and spirituality. This is why it took King Mubarak Shah the better part of three years defeating the marauding rebels.

Delhiite and Deva Bengali Nationalists still fester in the region, but violent rebellions were finally suppressed in 1407. Perhaps more than military suppression, the rebels were pacified as political stability returned to the throne as a result of economic and cultural investments by the King.

Vyapari aur Rajneeti Sudhar avam Vistar (Trade and Government Reform and Expansion)

In the year 1402, Bengala province became culturally integrated with us, allowing the king to build a navy. In fact, the nobility issued another mission to expand naval power. But the finances were in ruins. The upkeep of the army was far too much and wars had disrupted trade. The king had already taken out loans to finance the wars underway. Thus, the King decided to hold naval expansion till a more opportune time, but in an address to the Khaas Sabha (Upper House of the Parliament), he clearly articulated and recognized the importance of a strong naval presence for future trade and pledged to improve the naval infrastructure in Bengala and Vanga (the eastern coastal provinces) when money became available.

Starting in 1402 and through 1407, the king tried a variety of advisors for his cabinet. In the end he settled on competent advisors who aimed to promote trade technology, improvements within the government administration, and bankers for favorable loan repayment terms. King Mubarak Shah also increased the investment in technology, culture, and the arts to promote advancements in these areas.

Akin to the Gupta administration, the provinces were given relative freedom to operate as needed, with only the core provinces under direct kingdom control. Relinquishing administrative controls and investment in domestic economy also increased crown stability and appeased the nationalists in the newly conquered provinces.
The King also turned his attention to trade. Bihar is a major trading city and much of Eastern Hindustan brings its goods to Bihar for shipment to Western Hindustan and to the island nations further South. Tea, Cotton, and Spices are traded by the tons in Bihar and our merchants were bringing in a decent profit from the trade.

But Bihar is still a small trading center compared to Kutch, which Rajputana stole from us (see Pachimi Hindustan Ki Dharmik Jung (Western Hinudstan Religious War)). In 1407, more than half of Hindustan traded through Kutch. In order to remedy this, the King concentrated on improving relations with Godwana and Vijayanagar as well as the nations further East. The fruits of that labor have expanded our trade network, but much is left to be done.

Assami Vyapar Kendra (Assami Business Bureau)
Although our troops invaded Assam during the Madhya Hindustani Jung (Central Hindustani War), the affair was paradoxically quite peaceful. Our troops merely prevented the Assami troops from crossing our borders into Central Hindustan. The King himself travelled to Assam to discuss retreat with the Assami King and even compensated Assam for the resources our troops used while in occupation. This led to much improved relations between our nations and trade flourished as our troops brought back Assami goods.

As a result, the king offered Assam a privileged trading status Assam signed an exclusive trade agreement with us, leaving the trade centers of Malacca. Similar efforts are under way to attract Gondwani and Vijaynagri traders.

Uttar Dakshin Jung (North-South War) and Madhya Hindustani Jung (Central Hindustani War)

From 1407 to 1409, our neighbors waged war against each other. However, due to internal problems these wars were shortlived and no nation made significant territorial advances.

We stayed away from these wars for the most part. Our only involvement was in the Madhya Hindustani Jund (Central Hindustani War) during which we briefly occupied Orissa and Assam. However, we did not invade any of the cities and the lifted the seiges we lay shortly. This course action allowed us to maintain our credibility, our prestige, and at the same time improved overall relations with our neighbors.

Agle Dus Saal - Ek Bhavishya Vani (Next Ten Years - A Prediction)

The warmongers must be tamed. We think the smaller Hindustani nations will be subjugated by the superpowers or eliminated completely. We must tread carefully and not involve outselves in unnecessary conflict while strategically expanding our territory.
If we can lay claim over Orissa and parts of Gondwana while also expanding further East into Assam and Pegu, we will legitimately be able to form Hindustan and can claim the entire sub continent as legally ours. This will be our King's main goal. To achieve it, however, will require more than victory over land. Indeed, the victory over coins will perhaps be more important in the long run.

 

[wown]

ARGH!! How frustrating!! Damn Westernization!!!

I did not know being unwesternized hampered your research rate so much. by 1440 i was lagging behind by quite a bit even though i was making more money than most other nations and putting it all into research. a little bit of googling told me about the HUGE disadvantage indians have in tech (which by the way is kinda BS... in 1500s the mughal empire's GDP was #1 in the world, and innovations like navigation, algebra, religious acceptance, and many canon-related innovations came out of india. that is a separate convo, however).

So anyway, I tried to mod my file to either westernize Bihar or to increase the research rate of the indian culture. I found a savegame editor, but when I used it it corrupted my latest save file D'oh! should have made a backup! so now i am back in like 1420 but with the same westernization problem!!

I had already completed the conquest of the core provinces i needed to form hindustan and after diplo-annexing in about 50 years i would have been done with my original goal. I was hoping to colonize Australia after that; but without westernization that is going to be impossible and I do not feel like writing about what turns out to be kind of a lame story...

I am going to research if I can somehow mod the game itself to allow Bihari westernization (otherwise I would wait till 1600s or whenever a euro nation decided to come over... which would suck!). if I do, i will restart this AAR.

any advice would be helpful.

 

[loki100]

well Westernization is not that essential, check out this Indian AAR

 

[Dovahkiing]

This is an interesting spin on the AAR.