Road of Queens - CKII India AAR

[Eurasia]

Crusader Kings 2 - The Road of Queens
Chapter Eight Hundred-Eighty-Four : The Super Powers of 934 AD

We open this chapter on the 20th of June, in the year 934 AD, and we will be examining the Seven Top Military Powers Of The (Known) World.

First we will fly to the steppes of Asia where we found the first Realm on our short list. The Mongol Empire with over sixty-five thousand warriors.

Khagan Yokhunan of the House Borjigin was now 50 years old, his wife was dead, one of his three Concubines were in jail, and he had no children. And he smelled.

He was in a war with Khagan Cat. Again. Seemed the Mongol Empire were always fighting Khazaria. Maybe it had become a tradition now? Or maybe a hobby?

The raiding of his territory likely didn’t help either.

The Ruler wasn’t looking too bad. He was impatient, sure, but was still doing a good job of keeping the Empire together. At least he was slightly better off than the next Ruler.

We need to fly to Western Europe to see the next Realm on the list. The Aztec Empire!

Huetlatoani Ueman “Bloodaxe” was 45 years old, had one surviving wife, and one Concubine. He also had eight children and was in debt. A lot of debt.

Luckily, there were no wars going on. But his Empire was dealing with a lot of Hosts. A lot. His fifty thousand warriors were likely engaged with all the Hosts. Which, no doubt, increased his debt.

Besides the debt, people were unhappy with him because he had abandoned them at one point - locking himself inside his Palace to protect himself against a illness maybe? - and there were vicious rumors being spread around about him.

The Third Realm on the list was in the middle. So let us go to the Middle East to visit the Arabian Empire!

The old Ruler, Zeyd, had died and left his 7 year old son on the throne. Caliph Qawurd had a club foot and was being educated in money.

His Realm was in a war with Kashgar and was being heavily raided. Not that there was much he could do about that. Being 7.

With 26 vassals all plotting, scheming, and being trouble makers I can’t help but wonder on how long the boy will last.

But that is for history to decide. Let us go on to number Four on the list. The Byzantine Empire! How far have they fallen.

​

Basileus Bosporios “The Missionary” of the Home Souanites was the Ruler. He was 33 years old, had one wife, three kids, and was also in debt. His troops were also involved with the war against the Mongol Empire.

On top of the debt he was also a known adulterer and had selected a scandalous Councilor for his Council.

The Byzantine Rulers have always caused me some trouble. It has always been hard to keep track of which part of the Dynasty they are from. So I decided to add this simple History of Rulers:

As you can see the poor Realm has had a lot of changes in upper management. Add the raiding and one Rebellion and you get what most citizens of the Empire would call, “Same old, same old.”

And next on the list is….oh…them. Yes, we must go to India to see the Maurya Empire.

Basilissa Eulalia “The Unfaithful” of the House Dysnomia has just gained the throne. She was 36 years old, had four surviving children, a husband, and six siblings. She had also inherited a nice military, no debt, and a Peace Treaty with China. She was also somewhat of a bookworm and a Celibate. Which was likely why she had all that time to read books.

BUT she didn’t get her nickname for nothing. There was horrible rumors being spread about her and she WAS also secluded from the common people. Which didn’t help improve people’s opinion of her and her rule. She was also somewhat deceitful, terrible with a weapon, and not a people person.

And was directly responsible for at once one death. Ewwww.

So, the next Realm on the list is back in the Middle East! Known as Al-Jazira. Or the House of Mirzid!

Ruled by the 29 year old Caliph Mirza II “The Evil” it was also in the war with the Mongol War. And was being raided.

At least the Caliph had four wives and seven kids. And wasn’t in debt. Though he was somewhat stressed out.

And it seemed he had a maid as a lover also. Not surprising. He was a seducer and had at least another lover besides the maid.

So now the last Realm on the list. A Realm that we have already mentioned in passing. Kashgar!

Shah Bori of the House Manarid was 65 years old, had a wife, two Concubines, six kids, and was in two wars. He was fighting both the Mongols and the Arabians.

The man was possessed, scarred, suffered from gout, was crazy, one-eyed, and was severely injured.

If you never heard of the Realm of Kashgar before this there may be a reason. It was kind of new and was created by Shah Uzur “The Sword of Tezcatlipoca” of the House Tortogulid. The most interesting thing about the founder was that he was a follower of the Reformed Aztec Religion.

Bori “Peacefully Usurped” it. How ever that works. Funny enough Uzur’s oldest son survived and still ruled a small Realm right next door!

How the Aztec Religion made it all the way to the steppes from Western Europe I have no idea.

But that ends the list of the Seven Top Military Power of the Known World!

Next chapter - Bonus Material!

 

[iain_a_wilson]

How the Aztec Religion made it all the way to the steppes from Western Europe I have no idea.

Ha! This why I love this game so much! Whenever I stop to do a "people watch" in my AAR I'm always amazed by the little details like this that crop up!

Great update - I love when writers give us a little look into the wider world. Keep up the good work!

 

[NarcomancerPL]

Aztec Roman Empire looks scary. Can you show religious and cultural maps for Europe?

 

[Eurasia]

Aztec Roman Empire looks scary. Can you show religious and cultural maps for Europe?

Some information on religion and culture has been added to the chapter on Bonus Material.

 

[Midnite Duke]

Military Power review very good. Bonus material better! Thank you for updating

 

[Eurasia]

Crusader Kings 2 - The Road of Queens
Chapter Eight Hundred-Eighty-Five : Bonus Material!

Raid Them In The Name of Christ!​

In the last chapter one of the questions I had was HOW was it that the Reformed Aztec Religion made it all the way to the Steppes of Asia. And it seems the answer is somewhat simple.

The Aztec Religion has the highest Authority in all the lands. Which makes it easy for its Priests, and general followers, to spread it around. Such high Religious Authority just makes it easier for them to convert the unbelievers.

While such Religions such as, oh let’s say, the Catholic Faith are having problems because of their low Authority. Low Authority which resulted from failed Crusaders, losing Holy Sites, and Christian Rulers losing battles, in general, to Rulers of other Faiths. Even when their followers occupy more Provinces than those followers of the Aztec that ISN’T eough to counter all their failures.

Even the Orthodox Christians, who have a powerful Empire on their side, are kind of low on the list of Religions.

A Religious Map of the World shows that the West is a mixture of Pagan and Christian Religious Groups. It also shows how Sunni Islam has pushed into Africa while the Aztec were trying to push into Eastern Europe.

Western Europe is just a mess - which is why it is such a hotbed of violence and chaos.

While the Catholic Church had a more solid base in Northern Europe. Why was this?

Such Rulers as King Nynniaw “The Hammer” of Brythoniaid and King Sigtrygg “The Just” of Svipjod keep the North, and the islands, loyal to the Pope.

A Map of the Cultures of Europe tells us that the Aztec Empire is being held together by the will of the Emperor. And spit. The Aztec Empire may have an official Religion and Culture but does not share a common Religion or Culture once you look closely at the individual counties.

Compare it to the North and you see the Realms up there are more monocultural. This may help keep them together and allow them to stand their ground against other Religions and Cultures.

Still the mess in Europe does not keep some Realms, such as the Kingdom of Poland, from standing tall and beating back the Aztec invaders.

And while Asia is also becoming a mess that does not keep Realms, such as the Kingdom of Lanka, from surviving by, basically, isolating themselves from the rest of the world. In this case using an island as a fortress.

This suggests that Rulers, and their loyal vassals, have a lot to say about if a Realm stands strong or dies under a flood of invaders and strange Gods.

Now, next time we will return to India and the main story!

-----​

Author’s Notes:

OOC: The future of this Earth is going to be strange when you take into account the Roman Catholic Church is pretty much a underground movement.

 

[Midnite Duke]

The QTL (Queens TimeLine) is very different from OTL (Other TimeLine). Island fortresses are very effective as naval invasions are hard in ATL (Any TimeLine). Thank you for the update. Now back to the less crazy Basilissa.

 

[Surt]

Hmm Burning the midnight mayor is apparently not popular.

 

[roverS3]

So, the Empire of Maurya is more powerful than China? That's great news.

Looking forward to the tenure of the sane (for now) adulteress.

 

[iain_a_wilson]

Excellent update. Thank you for sharing.

 

[Eurasia]

So, the Empire of Maurya is more powerful than China? That's great news.

No. If I were to attack China it could field a army of around 172.5 K. And that's not including reinforcements.

 

[roverS3]

No. If I were to attack China it could field a army of around 172.5 K. And that's not including reinforcements.

How come China is not on the list of top 7 super powers but Maurya is No.4? Because they are not fielding such a large force now? I only know CK2 from the AARs, so forgive for some degree of ignorance of the game's mechanics.

 

[iain_a_wilson]

How come China is not on the list of top 7 super powers but Maurya is No.4? Because they are not fielding such a large force now? I only know CK2 from the AARs, so forgive for some degree of ignorance of the game's mechanics.

I don't think China is ever listed as it's "off board". The Western Protectorate exists, but it doesn't, by any means, represent the full extent of China's might. Chinese armies are CRAZY in CKII.

 

[Eurasia]

How come China is not on the list of top 7 super powers but Maurya is No.4? Because they are not fielding such a large force now? I only know CK2 from the AARs, so forgive for some degree of ignorance of the game's mechanics.

China isn't on the map so it isn't really in the ledgers. It controls some of the provinces but they are Tribute States and don't count as being part of China.

 

[Eurasia]

Crusader Kings 2 - The Road of Queens
Chapter Eight Hundred-Eighty-Six : Getting Organized

This chapter starts in India, in late June of the year 934 AD, where Basilissa Eulalia “The Unfaithful” had to get a good idea of the material she had to work with.

But first she told her Duchy Retinue, which was now part of the Imperial Retinue, to move north to join the rest of the Imperial Retinue. And to get away from the Slow Fever.

Then she requested the lists of her Vassals. And the lists of the Religious Leaders. And the lists of the Trouble Makers. And, she ended up with a lot of lists.

Out of the forty-three Vassals twenty-two had a negative opinion of their Liege. Which meant that not only would they refuse to help her during wars. It also meant that many of them refused to pass on her fair share of the tax farming. In fact some of them refused to pass on any of the taxes she was due!

On top of that one of her Councilors had left the Council. So she had two empty positions to fulfill.

So she made Orestes “The Sleepy” the new Sakellarios and Bhikkhu Ioulianos of Para-Lauhitya the new Upadhyaya. The NEW Upadhyaya was sent to the County of Dimapur to convert the masses. The NEW Sakellarios was kept in the Capital to work on the books.

She also noticed that her Magistros didn’t like her. So she sent him a gift which helped. A little. Very little.

The Factions were still there and still a problem. There were too many people in power in the Empire who didn’t like the current Empress. To be honest they hadn’t liked the old one much either.

At least the Buddhist Leadership seemed to have, mostly, good opinions of the Empress. No doubt decades of the Empire supporting the Buddhist Faith had something to do with that. And having three of the Holy Sites under the Empire’s control likely helped also.

The Empress looked over the Societies she could join but decided that the Savaka-Sangha was not for her. And the Eagle Warriors was not open to her as she didn’t live as a dirty nomad on the steppes like a Mongol.

She also decided to pass a Law that stopped Vassals from waging wars. Inside AND outside the Realm. She just worried about if the Council Members would pass it.

And the Council passed it. Almost instantly. It made the Empress a tad wary. Why were they so willing to pass a Law that would limit THEIR powers?

The Empress realized she had to lead by example. So she canceled a plot she was hatching to take the County of Kodalaka Mandala from the Doux of the Ghosha Raj.

True, the guy hated her. But this early in her Reign she had to try to…well…behave.

And talking about behaving she decided to focus on Theology for the next few years to strengthen her support among the Buddhists.

With her decision to pick Theology she, of course, needed a Guru. So she paid to send messengers off in all directions to find one.

Also a few days later she found out her Doctor had done a excellent job at helping her sister, Princess Pulcheria, feel better. She decided he deserved a small reward.

At this point she finally noticed one of her Armies were just sitting on the southern border and she ordered it to march north.

Little did she know that she would be needing those soldiers, and many more, very soon.

 

[Midnite Duke]

Who would dare strike Maurya? Why does no one want to give the new Empress a chance? Thank you for the update.

 

[Eurasia]

Crusader Kings 2 - The Road of Queens
Chapter Eight Hundred-Eighty-Seven : More Getting Organized

This chapter opens in early July, of the year 934 AD, with Basilissa Eulalia still working on the Empire while thinking about the future.

She, and Duke Jau Wenshunu of Kalinga, had a Peace Treaty that kept her from attacking him until around September 939 AD. The two hated each other. Mostly because she had kept attacking him before becoming the Empire.

She wanted those lands.

Then the Duke’s wife died and the Empress decided to suggest some wives for him.

She figured that helping him find a new bride would allow her to get a foot into the door - help develop a relationship with him. Or at least lower that rage he felt towards her. Surely every man liked having gifts in the form of future brides, right?

While looking over the list of available single women in the Empire she received some old news about her Cousin Chief Theophilos of Artux in the Mongol Empire. Seems the idiot had joined the Independent Faction. So outside of knocking up many of the Great Khan’s wives he was now joined a movement which demanded freedom.

She just rolled her eyes and went back to the list. Which was pretty short. There was only three women in the Empire available for marriage.

But when the Empress tried to link the first two, her Cousin Ioulia and a Courtier named Evanthia, up with the Duke it was the women who shot the arranged marriage down. They were not impressed with him at all.

Funny enough it looks like he had been willing to marry Ioulia. For the Prestige anyway.

The third, and last pick, a Courtier named Himadrija was turned down because the Duke felt the 36 year age woman was to old to give him babies.

“Right,” said the Empress to herself. “We’ll do it the easy way.”

So she sent her Magistros to Kalinganagar to lay claim to….anything he could. It could take years but than it would take years for the Treaty to run out. So she had time to burn.

As she waited she received a report she didn’t like. Seems Doux Mukundanarayan “The Lionheart” had forced Doux of the Ghosha Raj to join his Faction. That’s wasn’t good.

She also noticed that Bughu had joined one of the murder plots. So she demanded he withdraw from it.

Then he made Princess Eupraxia her NEW Heir. She didn’t know how her son felt about this. And didn’t care.

Also, nobody had picked the first stage of education for her daughter, Princess Pelagia. The Empress decided to let the Princess struggle and learn to depend on only herself. Maybe she would become a future warrior of the Dynasty?

She also wanted information on China. It turned out China was doing well. It was open and stable and the Chinese Empress liked Byzantine Cultures. Which was good. And disliked Muslims. Which was racist.

In other words the Yuan Dynasty was in a good place and that meant the trade that poured out of it was making the Empress rich. Very rich.

Near the end of July the Empress got more bad news. The Doux Mukundanarayan had forced another Noble to join his Faction.

It was bad enough there were so many Political Movements. But if they were growing in power that was dangerous.

That same day it was pointed out to her that the Future Ruler, Princess Eupraxia had turned 12, and needed the next stage of her education to be selected.

The Empress decided the Future Empress needed to know how to keep the books balanced. In other words she needed to understand math, coins, and how money worked.

So we end this chapter with the Empress deciding to do something about the Factions.

 

[Midnite Duke]

A: Joining Mongol independence movement.
Q: What is Suicide by Khagan?

A: Someone joined a faction in Maurya.
Q: Why God invented industrial strength hemorrhoid cream?

Thank you for the update

 

[roverS3]

I'm impressed by the restraint shown by Eulalia. For now she seems like a wise and rational ruler. I look forward to seeing the empire thrive under her leadership.

 

[Eurasia]

Crusader Kings 2 - The Road of Queens
Chapter Eight Hundred-Eighty-Eight : WAR!

The Traditional New Ruler's Civil War
​

It was late July, in the year 934 AD, the Empress was looking over the list of Factions again and found the biggest trouble maker in the Realm.

Countess Simonis of Kunggar was the Leader of two movements. One of which was to bring Gavelkind Succession to the Maurya Empire. The other was to place somebody else in charge of the Kingdom of Kamanrupa - the core of the Empire.

The Countess hated the Empress and wanted a position on the Imperial Council. As did her husband. But there was a way to deal with her. The Countess had been told to cancel one of her plots. Basically claiming a title that didn’t belong to her.

And she had refused. Which meant she could be arrested. So the Protostrator was sent to bring her in. No one would care as the Countess was a traitor

And failed. The Countess escaped to call forth her vassals and levies.

The Empress wasn’t surprised nor was she too upset about the rebellion.

“Time to clean house,” was her reaction to the news. Then she picked up one of the family’s swords and ordered it sharpened.

Her first action was to hire the Alan Riders. It was always good to have experienced Mercenary Cavalry on the fields of battle.

Around this time the Empress received news of the death of Sergios Dysnomia. But she had no idea who he was or where he had died so she didn’t really care.

And, to be honest, she had other things to worry about. The Countess had reacted swiftly and was already laying Siege to the Castle of Itanagar in the County of Monyul.

So this chapter ends with a Civil War. To be honest, compared to past rebellions, this one was kind of weak sauce. And the Empress hasn’t even called forth her Imperial Levies yet!