Let's Play Crusader Kings 2: So Much for the Glory of Rome

[OrcusMcP]

I'm not sure whether to be slightly offended or dreadfully flattered. Can I sig this?

I'd go with flattered, and go nuts with sigs!

[OrcusMcP]

State of the World 957: Transactio Byzantium

The Compromise of Byzantium is one of the most important legal treaties of Europe in the Medieval period. Just as significant as when the Roman Empire split into East and West the first time, it saw King Justin of Italy donate all of the land captured from the Abbasids in Greece back to Byzantium, over the angry protests of the Latin clergy, especially Pope Hyginus II who called for the crusade. These same clergy conveniently forgot that this crusade was called to alleviate the pressure on Byzantium in the first place.

In return, Basilieus Isidoros donated all of the lands still held by the old empire in Sicily, Venezia and Sardinia to King Justin. This tidying of borders and expansion of King Justin's lands gave him the authority he required to declare that he was no longer just the King of the Italian Kingdom, he was the King of All The Italians. Styling himself an Emperor, he still avoided the trappings of being a renewed empire of the West, due to the explicit language of the Compromise that declared the Emperor of Byzantium to be the true inheritor of Rome.

It is worth examining the wider region of the time before we go too deeply into the nitty gritty of the Compromise.

ANATOLIA

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The Compromise brought much needed land and manpower back to Byzantium, which had been struggling mightily. Basileus Isidoros was still waging his war for Trebizond against the Abbasids, but he now had a much more secure powerbase to deal with breakaway kingdoms like Serbia and unruly vassals like Bulgaria and Georgia. After his first wife, King Justin's aunt, passed away, he married an unlikely princess: A Catholic Umayyad from France.
Kasjan the Liberator of Serbia is an interesting figure of this period, and it is a shame he isn't better known. Born Orthodox under Byzantium, he revolted after the Abbasids invaded Greece and managed to carve out a small Kingdom for himself, including taking land from the Abbasids. His Kingdom was still small, however, and surrounded by major empires.
Boethios Katakylas was the latest in a long line of unruly Georgian Kings who chafed under Byzantium ever since the loss of Anatolia proper to the Abbasids. Independent and resentful, Georgia has been at the heart of every major revolt against the Basileus.

ABBASID EMPIRE

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It seems a bit ironic that Caliph Abdul-Gafur is styled as "The Great" considering his humiliating loss to the Latin Crusaders and the other threats on his periphery, his empire was still one of the greatest the world has ever seen. Many in the Christian world gave tacit support to the tribal revolt brewing in Tunis against Abbasid decadence, and many in India sent gifts to the Zoroastrian Jamshid as he sought to break away in Khiva.

ABYSSINIA

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King Georgios Shendi of Nubia and King Lema Solomind of Abyssinia paralleled their realms in many ways. King Lema ruled over an old, powerful but fading land, while young King Georgios ruled a land that was young and fresh on the world stage, but in a very precarious position.

TERRA GIGANTEA

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Interesting fact, King Justin's family originally comes from this region and turned it into a major power before the Shia Jihad. At this time, the Catholic Ammarids under Sultan Aszellay have made into a power once again. Sultan Aszellay was even married to King Justin's sister. He continued to fortify and secure his borders on the North African coast, fighting with the Umayyads of Spain. Records from the time of the Crusade indicate that while he was sympathetic to the cause, his borders were too unstable to send troops. He had designs on conquering Tunis, but the tribal unrest against the Abbasids was strong in the region, so he decided to wait.

HISPANIA

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The Umayyad Empire had been in a rough position in the first half of the 10th Century CE. Its conquests in France undone by Franks and Italians, its holdings in North Africa taken by Berbers, its Badshah a decadent but penitent old man continually struggling to keep his own house in order.

FRANCIA AND FRISIA

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The two mighty Karling realms of Francia and Frisia continued to had internal trouble that prevented dedicated outward expansion. King Marachar's nobles preferred to squabble among themselves, while the King himself was more concerned with the fact that he had no sons, which left King Clovis of Frisia as the current heir. King Clovis, the Titan of Frisia, despite his promise to turn back the Germanic and Slavic pagans, seemed unable to keep his vassals happy for more than a year, and was dealing with another revolt against his authority.

BRITTANIA

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Chaos. Chaos reigned in Brittania at this time, and the few records we do have come from Cathar Wales.

GERMANIA

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Bavaria, despite its victories in Savoy, was in one of its declining periods, while Bohemia and Saxony slowly began to consolidate into more organized feudal realms. The Ruthenian exclave of the Slavic Church in the middle of Germany continued to rankle the noses of both Christian and Norse alike, but no-one could as yet dislodge them.

WENDIA

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The twin Slavic realms of Poland and Lithuania were both seeing internal conflict, but while King Spytko of Poland was dealing with a revolt against his modernizing efforts, King Boris the Usurper was seeing revolt for his very crown.

SCANDINAVIA

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The time of Danish power in Scandinavia was over by this period, with King Suni of Sweden rising up. Norway was also a major Norse power of the time, but not compared to Sweden. Meanwhile, Aul of Estonia had managed to unite the Suomi peoples of Finland and Estonia into a large, if precarious federation. Conflicts with Sweden were constant.

STEPPES

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Ruthenia soldiered on as it had for a long time since its failed invasion of Bulgaria, but the young King Vsevelod would change that. He showed remarkable skill and zeal even at a young age, and studied the tactics and formations of the various Tengri tribes and kingdoms surrounding him as they squabbled on the open plain.

And now we will discuss ITALIA IRREDENTA

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Justin Gigas was easily the most powerful and brilliant man of the age. His writings are standard reading for both generals and statesmen, contemporary records talk of him like he was both Ceasar and Pompeii merged into one man, and yet he was kind to his friends and merciful to his enemies. Brokering the Compromise brought him and his Kingdom substantial power and prestige, but his writings tell us that he was forever concerned about creating something that lasted. Rather than ruling like most other Kings and Emperors would, consolidating all power to themselves, Justin delegated. He gave his brother Marius the crown to all of Aquitaine, and the writings make clear this was to eventually and intentionally become a fully independent crown, and he crowned his youngest brother Carinus King of Sicily, to better administrate the southern tip of his empire.

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He also re-arranged the mercantile centers of the realm. The longtime merchant city of Amalfi had its trading apparatus moved to Venice, with instructions to seek wealth in the Adriatic and Eastern Mediterranean, leaving the longtime republic of Genoa to focus on the West.

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The internal law and order of the Empire was also well in hand, with no challengers to King Justin's authority and plenty of able administrators to council him.

Truly it was the dawn of a new age.

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[Valley]

State of the World 957: Transactio Byzantium


Truly it was the dawn of a new age.

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Wow. Kind of surprised on how far Sunni has spread or how fast it dug itself into Asia Minor. Still, it is surrounded in Europe and the parts in Asia Minor could easily be overwhelmed if the folks in Byzantium decided to do something.

I wonder - who owns the Pope right now? Er...I mean, who has him in their pocket? I mean...is he happy with you?

[OrcusMcP]

He's reasonably happy with me, especially since we Crusaded together. He's under no-ones thumb, at least I can't tell if he is.

[Dragolord]

So proud. I told you all Italia Irredenta would work!

[OrcusMcP]

So proud. I told you all Italia Irredenta would work!

Don't count your castles before they're conquered. Justin Gigas is a singular individual. A lesser king or queen might not be able to hold it all together.

[Lord_Burch]

So proud. I told you all Italia Irredenta would work!

Sure, but remember- the Kings of Aquitane and Sicily will be at each others throats as soon as Justin dies. They're both claimants to the empire, after all. Assuming Aquitante doesn't murder the boy-King of Sicily first, anyway.

[Dragolord]

Don't count your castles before they're conquered. Justin Gigas is a singular individual. A lesser king or queen might not be able to hold it all together.

Sure, but remember- the Kings of Aquitane and Sicily will be at each others throats as soon as Justin dies. They're both claimants to the empire, after all. Assuming Aquitante doesn't murder the boy-King of Sicily first, anyway.

Hmmm? Oh, not the boring political stuff. We've got much prettier borders now! Isn't that why we're conquering stuff?

[Artanis]

Hmmm? Oh, not the boring political stuff. We've got much prettier borders now! Isn't that why we're conquering stuff?

Nah, it's for getting more farmland, just like the Romans used to do.

[OrcusMcP]

Nah, it's for getting more farmland, just like the Romans used to do.

Gotta conquer land for the legions to farm, but then we'd need more legions to do the conquering, then we'd need more lands for the legions, then we'd need more legions for conquering..........

[Valley]

Gotta conquer land for the legions to farm, but then we'd need more legions to do the conquering, then we'd need more lands for the legions, then we'd need more legions for conquering..........

Well, to be honest much of the best bottom land went to the Rich and was worked on by slaves. So we need more slaves.

[OrcusMcP]

Next update will be delayed. Succesion game turn combined with other writing I need to get done is taking priority.

[Artanis]

Gotta conquer land for the legions to farm, but then we'd need more legions to do the conquering, then we'd need more lands for the legions, then we'd need more legions for conquering..........

This is why Mars was also a minor agricultural deity

[Hydranova]

Gotta conquer land for the legions to farm, but then we'd need more legions to do the conquering, then we'd need more lands for the legions, then we'd need more legions for conquering..........

So the Roman Empire only came into being because some Roman dude's plan to steal his neighbor's barn just kinda snowballed?

[OrcusMcP]

Everyone and their mother has their own theories on why the Romans rose and fell, but I think there are two key aspects to the Roman character that made becoming an empire inevitable.

1) Institutionalized ambition. It was considered good an proper for an upper crust Roman to dream big and seek to exceed the glory of their ancestors, and with military service a prerequisite for political power,that snowballed.
2) An incredible ability to take horrendous losses in a war, not give up, come back and win. By all the standards of the time, Hannibal should have beaten Rome, with the sheer amount of legions he killed and the freedom to move and harass he had in Italy. But Rome would just not surrender, and eventually attrition and some victories in Spain helped make Carthage capitulate.

[Rockphed]

Everyone and their mother has their own theories on why the Romans rose and fell, but I think there are two key aspects to the Roman character that made becoming an empire inevitable.

1) Institutionalized ambition. It was considered good an proper for an upper crust Roman to dream big and seek to exceed the glory of their ancestors, and with military service a prerequisite for political power,that snowballed.
2) An incredible ability to take horrendous losses in a war, not give up, come back and win. By all the standards of the time, Hannibal should have beaten Rome, with the sheer amount of legions he killed and the freedom to move and harass he had in Italy. But Rome would just not surrender, and eventually attrition and some victories in Spain helped make Carthage capitulate.

My understanding is that the second ability was a product of Rome's policy of "if you come fight for us, you can be a citizen all you want". So every time some genius invaded Italy and smashed the extant legions, there were still lots of farmers waiting in the fields ready to lay down their lives for the hope of becoming a citizen of Rome!

[Dragolord]

My understanding is that the second ability was a product of Rome's policy of "if you come fight for us, you can be a citizen all you want". So every time some genius invaded Italy and smashed the extant legions, there were still lots of farmers waiting in the fields ready to lay down their lives for the hope of becoming a citizen of Rome!

Interestingly, the Reformed Roman Empire's Ambition in EUIV gives it +33% national manpower.

[OrcusMcP]

So, as some of you might be aware from the GMR threads, I lost my job on Friday. The good news of this, is that it means I can get LP updates to you much faster

The next update should come tomorrow, but in the meantime, though, I would be very appreciative if you took some time to check out my podcast I've been running the past couple weeks. Todays episode is easily the best one yet, and if you like the sort of stories I'm telling here, then this show might be up your alley.

The bigger this gets, hopefully the more of it I can produce and turn storytelling of various forms into something more than just a hobby.

Check out What's The Story here

[OrcusMcP]

Chapter 18: The Justinian Papers (Volume 3) (957-976)

"With the Compromise finally completed, I was master of all Italia save Rome. Thus, I felt it was necessary to put up my sword and start developing a proper administration for my new empire. I was young and naive. War was still necessary, and the administration was far more difficult than the Greek crusade. My brother Marius requested assistance in finishing the reconquest of northern Aquitaine, many of the more minor landholders chafed under the new order and the Muslims again sought to claim the land of my ancestors. Such wasted years.

The only clear, bright moment of those times was the birth of my daughter, Lucinetta. Never had Christendom beheld such a princess."

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"The reconquest was completed in the Year of Our Lord 960, and the Umayyad empire continued to crumble, as their lands in Burgundy, cut off from the rest of the empire, begin to burn in revolt as good Christians sought to remove the Muslim yoke. With Bourbon under his control, it was time for Marius to finally become a Brother Monarch in his own power. I granted him and his realm independence of Italia, with the understanding that while there were no longer any feudal obligations, we were still of the same family and that we would never abandon each other."

"I had the most incredible meeting with His Holiness. While he was saddened that I did not take his offer, there was no ill will between us, and we spoke at length about the future of Christendom and about the Gospels. He left me with a chest of gold as a gift to my soldiers as they fought against the Heathen, as he knew that the enemy is more important than any petty disagreement."

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"Hellfire upon it all! Why can no one understand what I am trying to accomplish? Do the Dukes think that a lasting Empire is just willed into being? That such an institution will be just like the times under the old aloof Lombard kings? This is ITALIA! I am confounded at all turns by the technicalities and legalities and vulgarities that come with running the administration, and I tire of it. I am beginning to fear that I may never see Italia become a lasting power."

"My Empress has suggested I take a Pilgrimage to the Holy Land, that I might find solace and guidance from the Lord in the quest, and perhaps find humility."

"Jerusalem is a wonderous city. Though the Caliph and I have been at blows, he still yet permits pilgrims of all faiths to wander to the most Holy of cities. I travelled austerely, not wanting to draw attention to my Imperial status, so that I might know the city as my subjects would. The spices and fruits and meats, the languages, the art, this is truly what I seek Milan and all of Italia to become."

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"I found Europe had changed much after my return, and for the better. Faith was resurgent. The glory of the Lord shined upon us. Under the power of the subject Christians Burgundy was once again becoming free. The King of Saxony had accepted the Lord into his heart. My wife presented me with my beloved Riccardo. Praise Jesus, perhaps all was not lost."

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"My honoured subjects, I have invite you all to Milan to celebrate! We have come a long way since the Crusade, and though we still have challenges ahead of us, I know we can accomplish great things.

"You remember ten years previous, when my dear brother, King Marius passed before his time, leaving Aquitaine in the hands of his younger son.

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"You remember the growth of new threats on the outskirts of Christendom of 8 years ago.

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"You remember the victories struck against the Caliphs 6 years ago.

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"Even 3 years ago, I told Prince Justin, my eldest son, who in any other realm would be awaiting his rise to the throne, that he was destined for greater things. It is not enough for a Gigas to rule, a Gigas must lead. Thus, Justin took the oath of a Hospitaler at my order. Riccardo was to be my heir.

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"But the rain falls on the just and the unjust alike. The Slavs gain progress against the Byzantine empire, while suffering from unrest in the Baltics. Meanwhile, our own realm had seen a unity under Christ never before known.

"My beloved wife Altruda, dead of an infection, yet I was approached by a Princess of Africa, of a dynasty older than Christendom, that she sought power in a great realm.

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"But for now, as we approach the Year of our Lord 977, times are changing. Though our relationship with Isidoros was warm, his newly crowned son hates us, for what reasons, I do not know. There are rumblings of a threat growing in the lands past Persia.

"But I have made arrangements to help strengthen our realm. I have deepened our relationship with Terra Gigantea, with my daughter being betrothed to a lesser Ammarid Prince.

"But the real reason we are here is to celebrate! I am prouder than I was after my victory in the Crusade: Justin Gigas has been named the new GrandMaster of the Knights of the Hospital. Such an event is worthy of a feast.

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"May the Lord keep Italia strong, may the Virgin Mother keep ourselves safe, may the Son keep our souls in his heart. May there always be room for Giants in the Kingdom of God."

[OrcusMcP]

Chapter 19: The Justinian Papers (Volume 4) (977-984)

Editor's Note: Every version of the Justinian Papers presents them in their preferred orders, depending on what they wish to use the papers to say. I am closing my edition with the last letters we have of Justin's. It seems only fitting to allow him to have his own last word. The touching letter from Justin to Riccardo, Emperor to heir, Father to Son, reminds us that even when we focus on the Great Men of history, they are still men, still people. We may not all be capable of greatness, but are all capable of humanity.

"My son, my dear Riccardo, I am returning to Milan. I tire of Africa, I tire of the Caliph, I tire of the toil. Jesus forgive me, I tire of life. Perhaps I have seen too much death. The death of your dear mother, the death of Falashina, the deaths from the Crusades, the deaths in Africa. I no longer feel joy for joyful events. I am told your sister Fosca is growing into a lovely young woman. I remember when Prince Sinbad joined our family when he married your sister Lucinetta. But I feel no joy from those events anymore.

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"There was a time when I felt some satisfaction, not long ago, when we were fighting in Toulouse. I felt as though I had finally achieved something truly great and lasting. Italia was strong, the family was strong, Christ was strong.

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"I remember when Caliph Gafur rose to succeed his father. Despite our conflicts, I have held great respect for the Islamic traditions. I sent a gift of oils and cloth to the new Caliph, in the hopes that we might find more in common than not. But alas, it was not to be. The eastern provinces of the Caliphate abandoned their liege, and are now prey for the Seljuk Turks. Gafur feels constant pressure from Byzantium. Thus, perhaps it was inevitable we would be at conflict.

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"I feel shame that I had to be at war when you came of age, my dear Riccardo. War ever sunders the bonds of family, as the many dead in the lands of Tunis and Cyrenaica could attest.

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"But for now, I am returning home. The Ammarids have regained their momentum, our brothers in Aquitaine have launched their own invasion of the Umayyads to distract them, I have brought a most fascinating prisoner, and I hear strange news from Byzantium. Have you heard tell what the Ecumenical Patriarch has planned?

"I am at least more at peace than I have been, but I am tired. I will see you soon, my son."

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As we all know, Justin Gigas never made it home, dying in his sleep on the voyage.

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All Hail Emperor Riccardo! Hail!

My fellow Lords of the Council, Emperor Justin the Great has passed, and Italia may never see his like again. Emperor Riccardo Gigas is an extremely savvy man in his own right, and he may yet go beyond the deeds of his father. For now, though, it is time to honour our late Emperor. How should we honour him?

-Let us honour the Warrior. The Slavic church continues their illegal occupation of Cologne, Germany is still splintered and disordered, and there are still Muslims to push back. Italia is the sword of Christ, now and forever.
-We must honour the Builder. Italy has not seen prosperity like this since the times of Augustus. We must continue the centralization of the realm, empowering the merchants, dismantling the Lombards and entrenching the Gigas presence.
-Honour the Christian. Our late Emperor was a great Theologian, and we must honour his wishes to enrich the church. We must offer new lands to the Holy Orders, corner our influence in the Curia and crush heresy wherever it might be found.

As always, the most convincing arguments will more likely win over sheer numbers. Each of these options may have hidden consequences.

[IthilanorStPete]

RIP Justin the Great, a man truly deserving of that title, first Emperor of Italia.

Not sure which option to back yet, I'll post something later. What's the significance of the screenshot of Constantinople; what's the Patriarch doing, exactly?

[Dragolord]

Is that an independent Ecumenical Patriarchy I spy in old Byzantion? How interesting.

[OrcusMcP]

Yup, that's the Ecumenical Patriarch independent and in control of Constantinople. Not sure exactly when or how that happened.

[Dragolord]

Yup, that's the Ecumenical Patriarch independent and in control of Constantinople. Not sure exactly when or how that happened.

Perhaps you could do some digging around in the history thingies. Maybe the Emperor really needed Piety, and donated his capital? I can't see how a faction would have caused this at all.

[Cristo Meyers]

Yup, that's the Ecumenical Patriarch independent and in control of Constantinople. Not sure exactly when or how that happened.

*obligatory 'blackjack and hookers' joke here*

I've never seen anything like that, but then again the last game I was in we kinda broke the Orthodox faith.

--

As our great king has gone to meet his Glory, so too should be reflect that glory here in the Lord's realm. We have restored much of Europe to the light, now we should honor the Christian. Let the holy orders, the brave Knights, and set up strongholds in the pagan lands to continue their righteous work. And if they cannot, we will do it for them: raise castles, fortresses of faith far and wide to stand and remind the heathen just who they are dealing with. Restore the wayward to the fold and build up a new kingdom of Heaven on earth. As in Heaven, so in Italia, and as in Italia, so the world.

[Artanis]

A few preliminary OOC comments:

Is that...is that Ruthenia in western Germany? Even if that's what the map says, the concept of Ruthenia getting their hands on something that far west and then it not being instantly chain-Holy Warred right back away from them is...I mean, as bizarre as an independent Ecumenical Patriarch controlling Constantinople is, at least the Patriarch is still at home, you know? But Ruthenia being...they're not...how did...what is this I don't even...

Secondly, is it currently possible mechanically and/or IC-wise to get the Holy Orders as vassals? I think it's mechanically possible via accepting one of their land requests and then diplo-vassalizing them, but I may be wrong on that. Even if it is mechanically possible it seems like it might be too impious a brand of pragmatism for the character himself to use.

Third, 984? It's like some inverse of time flying while having fun: I've enjoyed this so much that it's hard to believe that we aren't even at the original default start date yet. Keep it up!

[OrcusMcP]

Is that...is that Ruthenia in western Germany? Even if that's what the map says, the concept of Ruthenia getting their hands on something that far west and then it not being instantly chain-Holy Warred right back away from them is...I mean, as bizarre as an independent Ecumenical Patriarch controlling Constantinople is, at least the Patriarch is still at home, you know? But Ruthenia being...they're not...how did...what is this I don't even...

Way back the Slavic church did a Great Holy War for Germany, and the Slavic Church itself won. The SC being a vassal of Ruthenia, we get the situation as you see it. There were a lot of holy wars, especially from Frisia/Middle Francia/Bavaria but the Christians were never able to get decent sieges or won battles, so it has stayed in Slavic hands for some time.

Secondly, is it currently possible mechanically and/or IC-wise to get the Holy Orders as vassals? I think it's mechanically possible via accepting one of their land requests and then diplo-vassalizing them, but I may be wrong on that. Even if it is mechanically possible it seems like it might be too impious a brand of pragmatism for the character himself to use.

I don't think it's mechanically possible, no.

Third, 984? It's like some inverse of time flying while having fun: I've enjoyed this so much that it's hard to believe that we aren't even at the original default start date yet. Keep it up!

[Dragolord]

Our blessed Emperor was a Christian. For his God, the lands and people of Greece were liberated from the depredations of the Muslim conquerors, and returned to their rightful lords. And yet, he was pious. He refused the lands that were his by conquest and Papal Bull, and by the Gigas blood in the Isaurosi for centuries. He went so far for the glory of the Cross as to give his beloved son's life into the hands of the Knights Hospitaller.

Our wise Emperor was a Builder. Under his guidance, the kingdoms of Aquitane and Sicily were restored, and our great Italia rose from the ashes. He ruled as a true monarch, his lords willingly granting him more power over them than any king of the West had had since the time of Charles the Great. He established a system of succession where only the most worthy may inherit his throne, be it his own blood or no. He has thus created the most stable state in Christendom today.

But more than anything else, Justin Gigas was a Warrior. By his hand, the great victories over the Caliphs of the East and West that made all else possible. Though he refused to name himself Sacrum Romanum Imperator, he was the greatest soldier of Christ of his age, and we shall not see his like again in my lifetime. His was the sword that liberated Greece, that preserved Terra Gigantea and Toulouse from the Umyyad Badshah once more, that freed Bourbon and Tunis and has maintained Christian Africa against the Sunni hordes.

Justin the Great was Father, Catholic, Statesman and Emperor. He has truly earned his eternity in Paradise, more than any man for centuries. His Roman ancestors are proud of this greatest of men, who died peacefully, long after his enemies' blood was spilled for the last time.

Without him, all Christendom may have fallen. With him, Germany, Iberia and much of Eastern Europe remained in the hands of heretics and heathens. There is more to be done! The fight against the enemies of God is eternal and relentless! Our new liege, Riccardo the First, must continue his great father's quest and take the path of the Warrior against those who will not accept remission of their heresies! Let those in future times know him as Emperor Riccardo Gigas the Holy, who stood alone against mighty foes for the Christian souls of all the world!
Haaaaarrrrrruuuuuuummmmppppppp!

[OrcusMcP]

Justin the Great was Father, Catholic, Statesman and Emperor. He has truly earned his eternity in Paradise, more than any man for centuries. His Roman ancestors are proud of this greatest of men, who died peacefully, long after his enemies' blood was spilled for the last time.

Without him, all Christendom may have fallen. With him, Germany, Iberia and much of Eastern Europe remained in the hands of heretics and heathens. There is more to be done! The fight against the enemies of God is eternal and relentless! Our new liege, Riccardo the First, must continue his great father's quest and take the path of the Warrior against those who will not accept remission of their heresies! Let those in future times know him as Emperor Riccardo Gigas the Holy, who stood alone against mighty foes for the Christian souls of all the world!
Haaaaarrrrrruuuuuuummmmppppppp!

Huzzah!

As our great king has gone to meet his Glory, so too should be reflect that glory here in the Lord's realm. We have restored much of Europe to the light, now we should honor the Christian. Let the holy orders, the brave Knights, and set up strongholds in the pagan lands to continue their righteous work. And if they cannot, we will do it for them: raise castles, fortresses of faith far and wide to stand and remind the heathen just who they are dealing with. Restore the wayward to the fold and build up a new kingdom of Heaven on earth. As in Heaven, so in Italia, and as in Italia, so the world.

Deus Vult!

Any arguments for Builder?

[Jonzac]

Lords and Ladies, hear my words.

Long have we pondered and long have we prayed. We must first ask not what the great Justinian would do, but WHY did he do it? Was it for God? Certainly a pious pull direct from the Almighty Himself directed our King's hand. Was it for Glory? I say nae. Justinian never warred for war's sake. Then WHY?

For FAMILY and for the dream that started in Rome and is now realized in the Kingdom of All Italians. For the land long denied our forefathers, for the peace that was won by a warrior's strong right hand, for all the families that have sacrificed to bring us to the apex we have reached. Must we constantly reach for the sword? What has the sword built? Nothing, for it only cuts and if that is the only implement that suits your hand, then you will cut the very foundations of our life.

No, my friends. Now we must build, build the foundations of a new country, a new life, a new empire that will eclipse the old Roman Empire at her height. That is what Justinian and the Lord have planned for us, to build an empire so bright that God himself will look down and proclaim, "THIS IS GOOD!"