1153Rudolf, my marshal has vowed to not let the little things get to him anymore, this year
He is visibly less stressed; a very good thing.
I will need my marshal to remain capable for we are merely one fish surrounded by sharks
Serbia is neighbored by Croatia to the west, Hungary to the north, an upstart Principality in the northeast, and the embattled Byzantium to our south. While they are all Christian states, they still represent powerful forces in the game of regional politics.
But we must not forget our eastern frontier provinces (ruled by my son) and our far northeast holdings. THey are surrounded by pockets of Christian, Pagan, and Heathan states as well as a mighty heathan empire to the east.
I, King of Serbia, Prince of Rashka, Wallachia, Vidin, and Samos, Count of Belgrade, Turnu, Severin, and Lower Dniepr, am 38 years old and in decent health.
I have two strong grown sons, each ruling lands of their own as well as a near grown boy.
Well, it seems Rudolf will need not worry about ever stressing again
He died in his sleep last night...
I have appointed a new marshal, Ludwig del Antelminelli
He is capable and carries with him military experience from the Germanic region.
My court members augment my own skills well
Unfortunately many members of my court are rather elderly, in fact all are of the generation before me...
Very interesting... Rad has informed me that Michael, my step-son has suddenly began acting... normal...
It seems that he is actually quite a bit smarter than I first thought
He is starting to make himself useful in the realm...
My mother is fallen ill
She is 61, quite old but still capable as my spy master. Aside from her brother, my uncle Gagik, I am the only family she has left. My brother and sisters are dead, my father is dead, her sister and one brother is dead... I fear that soon, with her failing health, she will join the family.
Ludwig died today.
He served a short stint as my marshal, but otherwise died poor and alone.
Michael, my step-son will take Ludwig’s place as marshal
He is by no means a martial expert, but he is the best I’ve got available, and he is partially family. Kyranna, his mother and my wife, wanted me to give him land, like his brothers. Given his mental background, I’d like to avoid that. He’ll do as marshal for now.
The ungrateful swine!
How
dare he come to me with that attitude! It seems his mother’s ideas of being a count got into his head. Good riddance!
He ends up finding refuge as a courtier in Hellas, at the southern tip of Byzantium...
With no other choice, I appoint Michael’s younger brother, Andronikos as marshal.
He is an incompetent fool when it comes to the job, but I have no other...
Lower Dniepr has been causing trouble, it seems they are not very grateful for my freeing them from a pagan ruler
I order the local nobles to round up a number of the rabble and have them hanged.
More trouble from Lower Dniepr
Do they think I will run out of nooses?
Theodoretos, my patriarch appointed Diocese Bishop feels that I have strayed from the True Faith and has left my court
I am disappointed. I am also without a Bishop
...again.
I have granted Lower Dniepr to my son as a Christmas in July present
I originally held the province myself to test the regional waters, so to speak- to see whether the realm’s presence would ignite conflict with neighboring heathens. Experiencing only local unrest, I feel it is safe to hand the lands off to Dauid.
I believe the departure of our Bishop has disheartened my wife
Kyranna has been spending quite a few days with a number of local deacons, reflecting upon her life.
It seems news got out about Anastaso’s bastard boy
Society frowns upon bastards...
Radoslav Vojislavljevic...
He is the phony Prince of Dioclea. He has been a thorn in my side my entire life. We’ve subjected his son’s into the Serbian domain, but Radoslav remains defiant. He tries to project an image of authority among the people, claiming his Serbian blood suits him better for the lands than my Greek heritage. Nonsense. I am King of Serbia. I am (the rightful) Prince of Dioclea.
I instruct my mother, my spy master, to take care of him. With Radoslav out of the way, his son, my vassal, will inherit and he will be much easier to control.
Except...
My dear mother’s agents failed. She sent two condemned poachers to kill him while he was hawking. But it seems they were caught and revealed their origin and purpose. Rad is desperately trying to control the situation diplomatically. Without a Bishop, it is proving difficult to spin the situation with the church. My standing among peers was already sufficiently well off, so any hit to my prestige is easily absorbed, but my the Church is not receiving the news that I attempted to have an Orthodox Prince killed nearly as well as I’d like...
It cannot be... I... ...He acted so fast...
Radoslav Vojislavljevic retaliated and had my son, Macbeatha, killed.
Macbeatha, my son...
my son. Radoslav killed
my SON...
He was nearly a man. But still a boy... An innocent boy. ... ... ...
The anger swelling inside me keeps the tears at bay. There is one word in my mind, and that word is
V I O L E N C EI send the message of war before even summoning my marshal
It seems Radoslav knew I discovered the origin of his assassin, he had his levies ready to be mobilized
His marshal, Vuk, commands the 5900 strong Hum Regiment
Radoslav himself commands the weaker 3700 man Zeta Regiment. I will destroy both.
I mobilize my demesne.
I am eager to see Radoslav in battle, and personally command my Belgrade levies. The Belgrade Regiment is 8400 strong.
Gagik, despite his age, eagerly volunteered to lead the Severin Regiment consisting of 4400 men.
My marshal, my step-son Andronikos, leads the 3800 men of the Turnu Regiment.
Our combined force is in the range of 16-17,000. But I am concerned... Andronikos has no military experience
or training, Gagik is old and likely uninspiring for his troops, and I am fueled by raw emotion... I fear we will lose more men than necessary to execute this grim task.
I make an opening move
Unwilling to wait for the rest of my army, I march on Hum.
Gagik and Andronikos head for Rashka, from which they can strike in any needed direction.
While on the warpath I hear news from home
Zoe is, according to the nuns, entirely unsuited for church life.
She is nearly a grown woman, it is much too late to change her education now... Even as a hermit she will eventually make converts. Regardless, I have not time to worry about these petty matters; I’ve reached the enemy.
My forces are heavily saturated with farmers and peasants, over 3500 of them. But I have over 1000 knights in my ranks while Vuk commands none.
I’ve appointed a new marshal from the battlefield.
A proper Greek from Belgrade named Demetrios has stood out in my forces and is
much more skilled than my step-son.
We’ve been pushed back.
It seems my emotional battlefield management and the chaos associated with changing marshals has lead to disaster. Vuk, the petty marshal of Radoslav, has defeated me. While we inflicted more casualties on his men (2600) than he did to us (1400) it was not enough to keep my troops on the field. Vuk’s home court advantage and his soldiers’ purpose to fight won the day...
I am horribly shamed.
Despite an initial victory, Radoslav knows he cannot win the war
He has offered 866 gold for peace... Is my son worth 866 gold? A courtier yes, a grown man, yes... But my son being murdered by thugs cannot be washed clean with gold.
In fact, offering my gold is an insult. An insult I will not take lightly.
I will show Radoslav Vojislavljevic what happens when you insult me like that...
I will have his
own sons fight him...
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Topic: Let's Play Crusader Kings Deus Vult (Read 137864 times)