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

[Lord_Burch]

I always thought that you were meant to banish them and steal their money. Does making them join give you Piety or something?

That's adventurers you're thinking about, the ones with 500 gold, title claims and a year or two warning. Rebel leaders don't have anything worthwhile.

[Sange]

I usually blind them, imprison them again, castrate them, make them Court Jester and then make them educate that-child-that's-seventeenth-in-line-for-inheritance.

[OrcusMcP]

Chapter 14: "People should know when they're conquered." (925-933)

As we come towards the end of our discussion of the Turmoil period of Christianity in Europe, it is tempting to think of history, especially history related to Rome, as cyclical. Rome shifted from Kingdom, to Republic, to complex Imperial mess and back to a Kingdom again. Romans cultivated a deep reverence of their ancestors that bordered on worship, seeking to emulate the greatness of their elders. The Romans themselves were conquered and driven out of Italy, only to resurface in Africa and come to power on the Peninsula once again centuries later. Christianity may have been pushed back and doomed to heresy as the Muslims, Slavs and Norse pressed into the heart of Europe, but then exploded under the pressure to become more powerful than ever.

We see these events and our brains immediately assume they are a pattern. Maybe someday our modern world will look like antiquity again, science fiction certainly does love the aesthetics of the toga in space. Though, not so recently, history was seen less as a cycle than an sloping curve pressing onwards towards progress. Many now believe we are approaching a singularity point of such significance that nothing can be predicted about what might happen beyond it.

It is important to remember that history is neither a circle, nor a straight line, but a jumbled mess of string that we sometimes notice particular threads of. History only seems inevitable and circular and progressive because of hindsight, because of picking of those threads that we like or recognize. History is our story, and since we are forever resistant to categories, so too should our history. Sometimes many events will happen in what seems like a short span of time to us, reading about them, but felt like lifetimes to those living it.

With that out of the way, we turn now to the ascension of Maximus Gigas to the Italian throne. He finally married, before his father passed, to the most beautiful woman in all of Bavaria, so the story goes. Italy was powerful under the Lombards, and Maximus came to power with many talented men on his council with thousands of troops to command. The decentralization of the realm, however, meant that the King was little more than a figurehead, with the powerful dukes forever squabbling to take pieces off each other. Maximus would spend the next ten years re-organizing the ducal seats, much to the Dukes' frustrations, and also consolidating more land for the Crown in the Lombard region proper, eventually settling a new capital near Milan. He also sought to enrich and defend the many merchant centers of the coast, as they were forever in danger of Norse raids.

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In late 926, the King received word that the Abbasids had finished their invasion of Greece, and were now poised to strike deep into Europe proper. Better news came in the West, as the Ammarids continued to consolidate Terra Gigantea while the Franks still pressed against Umayyad power in Aquitaine. Some minor Orthodox rulers in Sicily managed to break free in the chaos of the Abbasid occupation of Greece, and Maximus sought to bring them under his protection. Maximus granted his brother-in-law, Theodoros, a mighty Nubian warrior, the duchy of Provence in return for pacifying the Muslims in the region, so as to keep at least one route into Italy safe.

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The Turmoil continued into 927 and 928, especially in the Mediterranean, where Catharism was still plaguing much of Southern Italy and causing major uprisings. Byzantium received a new threat in the form a Slavic Crusade for Bulgaria, but a new power block began to form, as Maximus' sister Palatina was betrothed to the heir of the Empire, forging an alliance. Italians were massing troops and holy knights by the end of the year in the Carpathians and were decisive in holding the line against the Slavs back while the Greeks pulled together their mighty but disparate forces to eventually push them back.

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Meanwhile, Maximus was also securing other family legacies. His son and heir, Marius, was born in 928, and his daughter Marcia in 930. Not long after the birth of Marina, a betrothal contract was drawn up between the Italian Gigas family and Ammarids of Terra Gigantea. Marcia would marry the heir to the African crown when they came of age, adding another powerful ally to the new Roman dynasty. Word also reached Maximus's ears that a distant cousin of his had been named Grandmaster of the Calatravan Knights, adding to the prestige that continued to grow around the family. Despite all the conflict and rebellion in the Mediterranean, though, business began to improve. Though he had yet to really expand the Kingdom properly, what Maximus brought to the peninsula instead was a measure of stability. While the nobility despised him, the townspeople loved him. Perhaps that cyclical conflict of the Populares and the Optimates was renewing as well.

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Deeper into Europe, the King of Bavaria had finally remembered he was a warrior and decided to invade the Umayyads for control of Savoy, calling Maximus into that conflict as well. The timing could not have been better, because while the Umayyads were still mighty, they were still trying to hold back the West Francian armies in Burgundy and their Badshah grew ever more decadent in his palace. Further on, heretics continued to rebel near the Rhine, while the feared unity of the Norse crumbled as the Danish King died leaving squabbling sons on various thrones.
(OOC: I cheated to give the Danish guy the required provinces in Norway and Sweden to reform, and he seemed ready to, but then he died. Cue messy borders)

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The other major Muslim empire was not doing any better in 932, as the extremely powerful Caliph Jalil had outlived all his sons, but died before he could properly teach his grandson Abdul-Gafur, who upon succession was cloistered away by less than sterling councilors who sought to usurp power from the Caliph. However, this usurpation was seen as ungodly and unholy by many of the wider flung provinces in Khiva and Baluchistan, but also in many central and rich areas like Egypt and the newly conquered territories in Thrace.

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By late 933, the Turmoil seemed to be winding down, at least in the Mediterranean. Maximus, with his mother Octavia's assistance, had managed to mostly eradicate the Cathar presence in the Kingdom. When Octavia the Holy received word that all of Capua had finally declared their loyalty to the One True Church, she went to sleep and never woke. Happy to finally be reunited with her beloved Faroald. The Byzantines, despite their humiliating loss to the Arabs had at least managed to hold their Balkan mountains from the Slavs. The Muslim empires were beginning to feel the same pressure they had only ever before used against their enemies.

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It was at this time that Maximus called together a major gathering of his Councillors, Dukes and Bishops on the island of Corsica. The island was chosen due to its minor status in the realm, avoiding any potential for betrayal on any side, since tensions were still high. The Council of Corsica, as it has become known, set the stage for the end of the Turmoil and has been studied by all serious students of history, but because of the secrecy of the council very little was actually written of the debates. We only know what was presented in dry ink weeks later. What stories could be told of the days on the island, I wonder. What stories indeed......

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Quick OOC info dump: Currently at low CA, completely decentralized, Gavelkind. Capital is now Lombardy county, but I feel that needs a rename. Feel free to offer suggestions.
Remember that at heart, Maximus is a Diplomat and a scholar. He, meaning "I", will likely debate you on any objectionable points.
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"We have not always seen eye to eye, many of you are angry at my redistricting of your provinces, while others are angry at my lack of clemency towards your rebellious factions, perhaps many of you are simply angry at me because I am Roman.

I am here to tell you that there are larger threats. Our faith has been under attack for years. There are enemies both beyond and within our borders. Heresy is no laughing matter. Islam is no laughing matter. We must find a way to secure our realm and end the Turmoil that has beset the Church. What does the council suggest?"

-The powerful Duke of Tuscany rose first, speaking as diplomatically as he could: "Majesty, it is true that your ways seem strange to us, but you are correct that Islam is no laughing matter. If you wish our support, then we must show solidarity with our Germanic and Frankish cousins and remove the Muslim presence in Aquitaine. Once securely in the hands of the faithful, you will have my support to strengthen the crown."

-The Lord Mayor of Genoa spoke next, almost spitting his words: "Germanic solidarity, bah! The Muslims will fall on their own, we see it happening already! Why should we tether ourselves to a dying, broken land any further than we already are? For that matter, why tether ourselves to a relic of an Empire? Let us finally liberate Sicily and Venice from the clutches of the Greeks! Heresy takes root because of lack of opportunity, let us become the trade center of the world as we were in ancient times, so that none may be tempted!"

-Finally, the Bishop of Milan spoke up: "Do not be so quick to abandon our brothers, my Lord Mayor, and they will not be so quick to abandon you. We must not abandon the brothers of our faith, either. We have plucked the weeds of heresy from our lands, but I hear tell that in the islands of Brittania they have flowered! Crush them, root out the heretics, and the True Church will bless the house of Gigas from now until the end of days."

Who did the council support?

[Cristo Meyers]

The invasion of the Muslim is a pain that your departed mother knew all to well in her life. In our lifetimes we have seen them crash like a wave upon our shores again and again, eating away at our homes, our kingdoms, and our very faith.

But now... now they are divided. Now we have shown that they can be beaten: our great Crusade in Francia and news reaches us that their jihad against Gigantea has been repelled. Now is the time to press them like they have pressed us.

Our allies are arrayed, morale is high, say the word and we march to Aquitane, to Greece, even to Moorish Spain beyond.

[Artanis]

The Mayor of Genoa is a fool. The entire reason the Muslims got so strong in the first place is because the followers of Christ squabbled while Muslims smashed our brothers' citadels nigh-unopposed. Terra Gigantea, a bastion of the true faith if there ever was one, was inundated by the Crescent tides because the Gigas family's allies chose dishonor and petty ambition over their blood-sworn alliances. The Genoese proposal is the very sort of thing that brought Christendom to the brink of extinction in the first place, and it would be true madness to squander the chance that the Lord has given us to finally push back and spread His word as He commanded.

The Bishop of Milan has his heart in the right place, but I fear that while his zeal is commendable, an invasion of Britannia is not yet feasible. With Muslims on our very borders, a drawn-out conflict over the heresy in such distant lands would leave us open to the enemies that lie far closer. Islam still holds much of the wealth and might of Aquitaine in its thrall, and the faithful in Brendesion can practically see the heathen fleets that lie in wait across the Adriatic, moored in harbors that the enemy only holds because the Byzantines were left to fight alone by those like the Mayor of Genoa.

No, I say that of those assembled here, the Duke of Tuscany speaks most true. For many generations, Islam has been the greatest threat to Europe and Christendom. It has been weak and vulnerable before, but there has never been a push to take advantage of the Muslims' divisions, and so they have grown ever stronger. Rebellions once rocked Iberia, and yet the Muslims still hold Aquitaine. Heresy once weakened the Caliph, and yet mosques are now being raised in Athens. How many times must the Lord give us the opportunity to take back the souls of our oppressed brethren before we finally act? Aquitaine now stands surrounded by the followers of Christ, ready to be liberated and made into an example from which all of Christendom can take heart as we strike ever-stronger against the shadow which seeks to engulf the world!

[Malistrae]

I concur with my fellow advisors that following the Mayor of Genoa's advice is a sure way towards disaster. Such a revolting betrayal would possibly weaken Christendom in an irreversible manner. The short-term gains to our kingdom are undermined by the collapse of Christianity this action would lead to.
The Bishop of Milan's opinion is unfeasible and ignorant. Starting holy wars against heretics on the other side of Europe is a fool's errand, and will critically weaken our own kingdom against the opportunistic muslims. Material concerns must take precedence over spiritual ones, if we wish to mantain the kingdom's power.
The wisest one is undoubtably the Duke of Tuscany. The muslim presence in Aquitaine is the spearhead they use to further spread their faith and rule into the heartlands of Europe. They must be eradicated before they become too entrenched. Such a campaign would also reap a great amount of prestige for our noble king, lending him the power and majesty necessary to expand his authority.

[Dragolord]

I agree with those above, albeit less floridly. We fled our homeland to escape the Muslims, yet now we find d that they are here as well? We must follow Il Duca's plan and destroy the Ummayads!

[OrcusMcP]

Maximus at first seemed taken aback by the force and verve of the council. The Lombards had not shown such enthusiasm against Islam before, perhaps the Roman way truly was beginning to return. After an hour of yelling and debate, he stood and motioned for the floor.

"Very well, the lords of the realm have spoken and we will wage such terrible war against the Umayyad Empire that all will tremble at its coming. The crown will need substantial powers to win this war, and as such I will tolerate no treason or resistance to my flexing of those powers. I am a Gigas, a Giant, and I will not allow myself to simply be a weapon wielded by overzealous dukes.

My the Lord God have mercy on all our souls for the lives we will be taking, and may there always be room for Giants in the Kingdom of God."

[OrcusMcP]

Apologies for the delay, had to actually completely replay this update(long story) and still not quite done. Update should come by early next week. In the meantime, still awaiting a New Name for the county of Lombardy/Milan

[Flickerdart]

I recommend that the kingdom be named, in honour of our nation's African origins, Madiq. In order to incentivize name suggestions, of course.

[Cristo Meyers]

The only thing I can come up with would be something like Gigantea Minor. And even I'm not sure I like the ring of that...

[OrcusMcP]

To be clear, I'm not renaming the country, but the COUNTY of Lombardy. The Kingdom is Italy.

[Cristo Meyers]

To be clear, I'm not renaming the country, but the COUNTY of Lombardy. The Kingdom is Italy.

That actually warms me up to my first suggestion a little.

Although, we could go the 'act of hubris' route and re-name it St. Octavia or somesuch.

[OrcusMcP]

Chapter 15: A Very Human Rampage (933-942)

Power Metal can be described many was, but one thing it is not described as is subtle. Even among the more cerebrally minded bands that write songs about slaying dragons and rampaging hordes you get historical epics that sounds like something out of the Iliad. Hell, even Christopher Lee unashamedly wrote a power metal album about Charlemagne, even though he never really got up to much.

Sometimes, though, a little subtlety sneaks in through the power, and that's the case with the DragonForce album Inhuman Rampage, especially the song The Flame of Youth. I will argue that the song is about the early nationalism and cultural melting that came about during King Maximus's Aquitaine Crusades in the 10th century.

Spoiler: Listen along

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"Close your eyes hear the thunder and rain/Fear inside of the torturing pain/For the cries of the world and the last lives remain/
Chain your heart swear to die for their gain/Deep inside slowly fading away/And the last breath remains and the fear turns to rage"

We start off with a translation of an old Lombard soldier's chant, used to steel themselves before a battle. In 933, King Maximus was still assisting the Bavarians in their fight for Savoy against the Umayyad empire, and while Maximus's favourite son Justin was born at this time and prosperity was spreading in Northern Italy, many soldiers were off dying in the alps to wrest control of the area from the Muslims.

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"Locked in a world by the fallen evil souls/Torn right apart for your life insane/Burning in my mind now to bring my life to hold/Reach out and die in the flames/
See through the lies and their ever staring eyes/Now is the time to defend your ground/Destiny will call to remind us all now/
Fly free so far from here/This life we know will end/In dreams of everlasting pain/The fallen now rise again"

As the Cathar crisis died down in Southern Italy, most prominent Cathar men were pressed into service in the King's armies. It was only their numbers that allowed the Italians to have the numbers necessary to press forward. These lines describes the general feeling a Cathar might have at the time, of not just being cursed to the world of flesh by the "fallen evil souls" of the Demiurge but of also being cursed to recant and fight on behalf of their inquisitors.

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"So free your heart leave your life far behind/
In the cold of winter skies escape the pain inside/
Now feel your soul lost in seas of all eternity/
Everyday this life, defending and the flames of youth not ending/
In a lifetime, searching, we must fight through the eternal pain"

The Savoy and Aquitaine Crusades are famous for their cold and their mud, and many soldiers suffered both in the lengthy sieges along the alps and in the marshes and fields. It is not surprising that DragonForce would want to highlight that despair.

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Savoy was finally liberated in 935 after over 6 years of fighting and occupation, but the Dukes of Italy called for Maximus to immediately press further into Muslim territory. 6 more years of conquest in the cold and the mud followed for the soldiers. The next lines highlight their isolation, but also hints at the growing comraderie between the Roman soldiers of the King, the disillusioned Cathars of the south and Lombard levies of the dukes.

"So alone in the world far away/memories of a dream will remain/As the world's falling cold and our lives all in vain/
Fire in my soul will forever rise again/Nothing in my mind to remember now/Broken by the fear of the dark night calling/
Ride free on endless seas/The final curtain falls/Cut the ground from down below/The time to lock and to load"

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Finally, as the armies clashed in Aquitaine, the Italians managed to push back Muslim expansion singlehandedly, the first Catholics to do so since the early Karling period. The next lines exhort the bravery of the soldiers, and the bridge before the solos echo Arabic musical themes to place you in their world before dissonant keyboard chords break the flow much as the invading armies did.

"Through the fire, through the rain/far across the distant plains/
Feel the wind beneath the steel/as your mind becomes insane/
Save the pain from all humanity/their rides trough our destiny/For freedom now we rise for all again"

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Further Crusades followed, but treasure, manpower and will were decaying in 942. King Maximus had placed his young first son Marius in charge of the region, Christianity was settling back from the Turmoil and the Muslim empires were beginning to crack from the decadence of their ruling dynasties.

And in the rich areas of Northern Italy, a Roman renaissance mixed with Cathar fervor and Lombard martial thirst to start a new national identity. The subjects of the Kingdom of Italy had begun to think of themselves as proper Italians.

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It's for this reason that the song ends with what has become the motto for the modern Italian military:
"We fight through the eternal pain"

[IthilanorStPete]

Best. Update. Ever.

[Cristo Meyers]

Best. Update. Ever.

Indeed. This is the best one since the 'school report' in the succession game.

[Artanis]

Best. Update. Ever.

This. So very much this.

[mythmonster2]

Man, how do you come up with this stuff, Orcus? A great update here.

[OrcusMcP]

D'awww, thanks guys.

[Dragolord]

Looks like somebody did a creative English course once! Seriously, this is insane! Also brilliant, though, so...

[OrcusMcP]

Looks like somebody did a creative English course once! Seriously, this is insane! Also brilliant, though, so...

Oddly enough, no create writing courses. Vast majority of what I know of writing/story-telling is iterated from lots of reading/theatre/role-playing. I do love story-telling, though.

Any other genres/styles people are interested in seeing in the LP?

[Cristo Meyers]

Oddly enough, no create writing courses. Vast majority of what I know of writing/story-telling is iterated from lots of reading/theatre/role-playing. I do love story-telling, though.

It shows.

Any other genres/styles people are interested in seeing in the LP?

I'm of the opinion that it ain't broke, so don't fix it. The 'research documents' style that you've got going is great, reminds me of papers I used to do in college (5 papers of critical analysis of Silent Hill, none got less than a B).

[OrcusMcP]

It shows.

I can't tell if that's a sly dig or a impressed kudos.
Maybe it's both.

[Cristo Meyers]

I can't tell if that's a sly dig or a impressed kudos.
Maybe it's both.

I'm not that sarcastic.

There's a sincerity to your writing here that I honestly don't think someone can fake (and believe me, I've tried). It's a good thing.

[Artanis]

*conversation about the writing style*

Honestly, one of the things I love is how it pokes fun at the people who write that sort of deconstruction seriously. To somebody who once got so frustrated with an English teacher that he wrote an essay disproving the existence of symbolism, using such peoples' own tone of voice to do a tongue-in-cheek deconstruction of how a power metal song is actually an emotional recollection of the trials faced by homesick warriors fighting bravely in the name of their faith is the best thing ever

[Cristo Meyers]

Honestly, one of the things I love is how it pokes fun at the people who write that sort of deconstruction seriously. To somebody who once got so frustrated with an English teacher that he wrote an essay disproving the existence of symbolism, using such peoples' own tone of voice to do a tongue-in-cheek deconstruction of how a power metal song is actually an emotional recollection of the trials faced by homesick warriors fighting bravely in the name of their faith is the best thing ever

Heck, to someone that has a BA in English it's pretty much the best thing ever.

There were more than a few folks in my years in college that needed to be reminded to not take their interpretations and deconstructions so seriously. The point is the exercise, not the conclusions.

[IthilanorStPete]

The history book style is good, though I also like epistolary updates, particularly when we get letters from multiple people writing back and forth.

[OrcusMcP]

Chapter 16: The Justinian Papers (Volume 1) (943-953)

Excerpts from the collected writings and diaries of Justin Gigas, King of all Italians.

"I remember, as I neared my 11th birthday, having a dinner with my father, the King, where I sought to learn as much as possible about the realm I was to inherit. Many legends were spun about his conversions of the Cathars and the crusades in Aquitaine, but I was never one to succumb to mere legend. I needed to know about the pragmatic realities. The careful balancing of carrots and sticks against the Dukes, knowing when an enemy is weak enough to invade, keeping the traders content and prosperous enough that they are happy to pay their taxes.

"It was during that talk that two message came, one from the west and one from the east. In the west, my brother Marius had reached his majority and was fulfilling his duties in Toulouse. He re-affirmed his loyalty and fealty and was eager to retake more of Aquitaine from the Umayyads. The news from the east was much sadder. Civil unrest had ravaged the old Empire, and my father's devoted sister, the Empress Palatina had been dragged from her summer home by rabble and butchered in the streets."

"I think my father broke that day, for he never smiled again until his death 2 years later."

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"Despite my clear brilliance and ambition, I was still considered too young and unfit until my majority and so a moronic regency occurred where nothing if import happened. I spent my time with my cousin Petronella in Provence. It is a sad, sad thing that the Dukes will not allow women to command armies, because it was her guidance that taught me all I know of war.

"There were times I would sneak into the regency council to hear news of the realm, and I was most intrigued to hear of the Islamic empires and their descent into decadence. Though held by the Lombard Dukes as mortal enemies, my father always pitied them. My family's Roman heritage taught us that it is only natural for mighty empires to be brought low. To take pride in such a fall is to invite it upon yourself.

"The Dukes saved their real ire for the new cultural mix that was continuing in the countryside. The Italians were thinking of themselves as Italians again, and Lombard culture was dying. I thought long and deep about what this meant for my own Roman upbringing."

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"I assumed the throne in the Year of Our Lord, 949, an immediately set about reforming the Kingdom. I embraced the culture of the people and declared myself King of All Italy. The mix of Latin and German that came to be known as Italian was made the official language of the court. I divorced myself from my Roman roots by returning Latium proper to the Papal States. To placate the Dukes, I took as my wife the most beautiful and noble of the Lombard daughters, my darling Altruda. I was to be like a Warrior King of the old legends."

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"Like my father before me I invaded Umayyad Aquitaine, who were distracted by a bogged down conflict with the Karling Franks in their north, and a Dynastic struggle in their capital. My uncle, Carus, had become the Hochmeister of the Teutonic Order and pledged several thousand soldiers and knights to our cause as well.

"The first years of the conflict went much as my father's had, and in my overconfidence I order several legions to return home, lest our coffers run dry. Sadly, the Umayyads took this as a sign of weakness and launched an offensive that pushed us back nearly to the Alps. Only my clever tactics of bleeding the Muslims as we retreated and fresh mercenaries to reinforce our last stand allowed our victory to hold. Never again would I let pride distract me from my goal."

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"The Sultan surrendered in 953 and the majority of the Aquitaine region was mine. There were still outposts of Muslim power in central Gaul, but I called for a celebration instead. I declared myself the King of Aquitaine as a subordinate crown to the Italians, and sent out a call for all able-bodied knights to show their valor in a display of martial glory."

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"It was in the middle of the tournament that the Papal Bull arrived. There was to be a formally endorsed crusade against the Muslims once more, this time against the Abbasids in the East. Greece was to be liberated.

"The mood of tournament turned after the Bull was read aloud, though I ordered the festivities to continue. Days were spent watching the best of Italy show their mettle, while at nights copious amounts of wine were drank in my council halls as the Dukes and I determined the best course of action. All agreed further war was in the close horizon, the only question was where.

"If we Joined the Crusade, as my father had done in his youth, it would help our standing in the wider world of Christendom, perhaps even allowing us a chance at Papal boons, or even Greece herself. Many of the Dukes worried about our territory in the West, however, and feared that if we sent all our men East we could not Hold our Ground should the Umayyads seek revenge, nor capitalize on our crushing of Aquitaine to reclaim the entire region.

"All awaited my ultimate decision, but I would not give it until the end of the tournament so as not to spoil the mood nor distract the fighters.

"Italy would show her glory once more."

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[Cristo Meyers]

Italy led by example in Aquitane and it should do so again. She has been summoned, and she should respond. Join the Crusade

[Dragolord]

The Caliph is decadent, his armies weak, his lands ripe for the taking. We must join the Crusade for Greece! In Italy, we are well-placed to arrive before any others, and perhaps win the war before any others arrive! One point of clarification, however: is the Crusade to install a new king, or can we claim the lands ourselves?