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Thread: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

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    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    A Preamble

    Due to a slight boredom with Empire:TW and the frustration of not being able to do much modding-wise with it, I recently reinstalled Medieval II and my favourite mod . To get myself back into the swing of things I thought I'd do a first for me and that is write an AAR. Don't expect anything earth shattering, despite reading quite a few I will undoubtedly make some noobish errors but at least Welsh AAR's are thin on the ground and Europa one's unique to the best of my knowledge.

    Settings & House Rules

    Campaign Difficulty: Normal
    Battle Difficulty: Very Hard
    Unit Size:Normal
    Battle Map UI: Minimal/No radar

    No trade rights with factions of poor or worse relations.
    No map trading.
    No alliances with factions of poor or worse relations.
    Alliances only through marriage.
    No construction or unit recruiting unless a governor/general present in settlement.
    If battle is won then no chasing routing foes.
    No unit merging but they can be retrained.

    Will update post later with the first chapter & pics. Comments more than welcome
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

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    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    The clue is in the title
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
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    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Chapter One: Starting Out

    1180

    The Ruler of the Welsh, Rhys ap Gruffydd should have been comfortable in his old age. He had emerged from the revolt against the Norman conquest of Wales as the strongest partisan leader and now in the year 1180, had established Deheubarth as the dominant power in the region for some years now, yet he realised the fragile and vulnerable position that the fledgling kingdom occupied. The mighty Angevin Empire still surrounded him on all sides having recently occupied eastern Ireland as well and the relationship between it's ruler, Henry II and himself was becoming increasingly strained following border raids by bands of outlaws.

    The Kingdom of Wales in 1180



    Still, Rhys had his four sons to console him. He put his amazing fertility down to the apothecary that he had employed..



    ...his only concern being that he would die before seeing them come to their manhood. Only Prince Maelgwn was old enough to wield a sword and he had made sure that would only be a secondary occupation for the young Prince, giving instructions that he should be schooled in the matters of politics & finance. The younger sons could become warriors if they wished but Wales needed someone capable of managing it's backward and poor economy efficiently if it was to survive into the 13th Century.


    Rising from his reverie, Rhys knew that he must start taking action now to preserve his Kingdom for his sons and all Welsh patriots. He instructed the Court Diplomat, Madoc, to pursue trade negotiations with the Scots. They were on good terms and hated the English even more than he did. He sent his faithful spy, Deykin, west to watch over the northern border with England and the young merchant, Cadosan, south to establish a trading post over the profitable gold deposits in the south of his land..



    Caernarvon Castle was sorely equipped with the infrastructure needed to recruit a professional army and to rectify this Rhys ordered stables to be established, sadly this would take at least 2 years. The artisans and horses needed were in short supply. He also sent word to his son in Caerleon that as well as his studies he should oversee the clearing of land around the small town. This should at least enable enough food to be grown to ensure an expansion of the population there. Recruitment notices were also placed in the town centre for Militiamen as the barracks in Caerleon were understaffed, inviting trouble from any local ruffians to run amok.

    In the winter of 1180, two priests Aeddan Fuellt & Einion op Gower achieved their holy orders and because Wales was a predominately Catholic country decided to charter a Welsh cog for the journey to Iberia. It was here, they thought, that their missionary work would be most effective, especially since war had recently broken out between El Reino de Castilla y Leon and the al-Muwahhidun.

    Rhys, ordered the expansion of his forces by recruiting 60 Skirmishers and a yearly budget report from his Chancellor.



    1181

    The new year started badly. The marketplace in Caerleon was damaged by fire, restricting trade for the foreseeable future. It was announced by a travelling merchant that the Ayyubid Sultan had died and that the Hanseatic League had been formed, this was a threat to Wales' already impoverished finances but a far greater threat had been spotted near Gloucester, just over the border with England.



    A goodly sized force of English rebels were hiding in the wild border lands but even though they were in striking distance of Caerleon they were on the English side of the border and crossing the border with his own men would cause a further deterioration in Wales' English relations, something Rhys was desperate to avoid. He was alarmed enough however to send 150 Meirionnydd Spearmen & 60 Gwent Raiders to reinforce the meagre barracks in Caerleon and instructed his spy, Deykin to infiltrate the rebels' camp.



    At least Madoc, the diplomat, had established trade with Scotland (although, typically dour, they didn't seem too happy about the deal) but it meant an extra 500 florins for the Treasury. A watchtower was also constructed on Wales' northern border to compensate for Deykin's absence.

    In the winter of 1181 more news from abroad arrived to Rhy's court. Apparently the war with Spain was not going well for the Moors and they had lost one of their holdings to their Catholic enemies.



    But more importantly the English king had died. It was rumoured that his son Richard had ascended to the throne. He was known to be warlike and aggressive but also obsessed with crusading in the Holy Lands. Rhys hoped that the English would continue to cast their eyes further afield until, at least, he managed to modernise Wales into a more feudal economy. The rebels that had been tailed since the summer had also now moved into Welsh lands and Rhys could bear their insolence no longer. He ordered the recruitment of 180 skirmishers that would safeguard Caernarvon in his absence and rode south with the rest of his army to meet the brigands in conflict.

    As he approached the town of Caerleon, the sound of the church bells carried happier news to him. His son, Prince Maelgwyn, only 13 years old, had declared his love for his childhood sweetheart. Rhys was glad to see the prospect of the royal dynasty being extended and gave the marriage his full blessing.



    1182

    Due to the terrible Spring rains the roads out of Caerleon were impassable for a large contingent of armed men and so Rhys put them to good use in rebuilding the marketplace while he waited for the weather to clear. He was still in Caerleon when his first grandchild, a daughter, was born but the birth had been a difficult one and the midwives feared that the mother had been spoiled by the birth and would struggle to carry another babe.
    The news from the quayside was that the County of Flanders and France had made peace after a bitter struggle. This was good news for the Welsh king perhaps France would now renew it's ancient enmity with England?

    Eventually the rains cleared and gathering together the men from his northern army plus a few local militiamen Rhys rode out to meet the English rebels some miles east of Caerleon in a place called Maisemore.

    The Battle of Maisemore

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Despite being outnumbered and his enemy possessing large numbers of deadly, renegade Welsh longbow men, Rhys felt confident that his presence and command ability would be more than enough to ensure victory on this fine, June day.



    He surveyed the battlefield, heavily wooded with the enemy hidden and ordered his men to advance. The rebels struck the first blow when their longbow men emerged from their hiding places and launched the first salvo at his still regrouping forces.



    But swiftly Rhys ordered his own archers to deploy and to fire back at the cowardly rebels.



    With the arrows spent, the infantry (comprising mainly spear and one unit of Gwent swordsmen) were ordered forward to strike at the rebel's heart.



    All along the line, battle was joined. Brutal, merciless...



    ...but swift. Lacking the courage of a great commander to lead them the rebels soon broke and ran, sobbing and pleading for mercy.



    Victory was soon his. Rhys was pleased with the outcome. Relatively few of his own men had been killed and those that had survived had learnt some valuable lessons in the art of combat this glorious June day.



    With the battle over, Rhys dispatched those militiamen from Caerleon back to their town barracks and started on the long road through the mountains to Caernarvon. He had heard that the stables were completed and knew he now needed to address the poor quality of infantry available to him. Also a page brought news that an English spy had been captured and executed whilst trying to sneak into the castle. This troubled him, if the English were to attack in force now he knew Wales would not be able to withstand such an assault.
    Last edited by Harry Lime; September 17, 2009 at 03:34 AM.
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

  5. #5

    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Nice start Harry, I always love it when there is some character development! How can you not root of Rhys holding back the English juggernaut. Fight the good fight, Harry!

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    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Story updated. I didn't realise how long it takes to write and gather the screenshots for these
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

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    Agis Tournas's Avatar ★ Modder-at-Arms ★
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Very nice story Harry.
    I feel I am reading a novel..!
    Keep it up

    Cheers
    Agis
    PS I wish I knew English that well so I could write an AAR too...
    A mini-mod is never late! Nor is it ever early. It arrives precisely when I mean it to do!


    Son of Agisilaos / Grandson of jimkatalanos / Great-grandson of Garbarsardar





  8. #8

    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Come on England, crush this Welsh upstart!

    Ooops sorry, just got a bit carried away. Very enjoyable reading.

  9. #9
    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Story updated. That concludes the end of chapter one.
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

  10. #10

    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Very well written Harry! Please continue... Welsh AAR'S have to be the rarest of all

  11. #11
    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Thanks guys

    Just played up to 1190, so there's at least enough material for another chapter. Rhys faces some tough decisions...
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

  12. #12

    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Great AAR I enjoyed the first chapter very much. Keep up the good work

  13. #13
    Saint Nicholas's Avatar No Avatar Specified
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Looking good so far Harry. Interesting playing as a small faction and a new one in this mod. Downloading the mod as I type this aswell but it does look very nice.

    Keep up the good work.

  14. #14

    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    a wonderful stroy! bravo! Bravo indeed! continue! you must!

  15. #15
    René Artois's Avatar Dux Limitis
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Pretty good. Pretty darn good.
    Bitter is the wind tonight,
    it stirs up the white-waved sea.
    I do not fear the coursing of the Irish sea
    by the fierce warriors of Lothlind.

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    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Thank you all for the gracious comments. I will continue but I've just started a new job and I'm currently working 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week so I'm pretty knackered. Hopefully I'll have a lot more free time at the end of October.
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

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    Hesus de bodemloze's Avatar The Gaul
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    You planning on updating this Harry?
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    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Quote Originally Posted by Hesus de bodemloze View Post
    You planning on updating this Harry?
    I have played it up to 1190 & got the unedited text, screenshots etc but didn't want to post that unless I was committed to playing further. Currently I'm well into a game of heavily modded Oblivion and can't put it down
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

  19. #19

    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR

    Something like this?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkBlf4ZdyeA

    Sweet start though, I'd love to see more of it!

    Under the benevolent guidance of jimkatalanos

  20. #20
    Harry Lime's Avatar Not a ToS violation
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    Default Re: The March of Wales - A DLV Europa, Welsh AAR



    No, not quite that heavily modded. I like to keep things lore friendly. That vid made me laugh though, especially the dancing Khajits.
    Proud Patron of derdrakken, dave scarface, J@mes & irishron
    Indulging in the insight & intelligence of imb39

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