[DM AAR] Osman's Vision: An Ottoman AAR

[Chirurgeon]

1740 - Belgrade
The army was idle for most of the year as many of the conscripts were released from their duty. The core of the army worked to help build infrastructure in the much neglected Balkans. Most of the work occurred in Bosnia in order to appease the people. Many of the people are still resistant to their new masters and the Sultan is preparing Bosnia as a base for moving forward into Croatia.
Most of this work has been to improve fortifications and roads. Also the coast has to be secure so tha our armies cannot be surprised by a landing of enemy troops behind us. The Sultan was preparing for a push into the heart of Austria itself. The conditions were right. The Christians were still fighting amongst themselves. The Prussian king being Protestant is seeking to convert Catholics in many of the German states. Despite their alliance the Prussians have largely stayed away from our ambitions. However with such a powerful northern neighbor and with our relatively weak hold on some of the areas the grand Vizier has ordered a series of protective forts to be built along the Danube to prevent the Prussians, or anyone else from storming down into the Balkan Peninsula.

In the Adriatic a huge naval engagement occurred that ultimately destroyed the Austrian Fleet. It began as our forces were moving north to blockade one of two shipyards in Croatia and near Venice. As our fleet approached the Austrians raced out to meet our fleet. Although made of small light ships they did have heavier ships of the line. As the battle progressed and the Austrians were being sent to the floor of the sea, new ships emerged into the theatre and soon they were also fighting our men. It became a huge battle in which the enemy suffered terribly. Ships exploded and burned right down to the water line. Others simply sank from being riddled with gaping holes. It was chaotic but the discipline of our forces prevailed. The Hope of an Austrian naval authority now lies on the bottom of the sea.







During the Summer I journeyed to Sarajevo. In the 1400s it was founded by our people and prospered under Ottoman rule. Its name comes from the name of the governors palace the "Saray". After our loss in 1683 in front of the gates of Vienna the Austrians pushed into the Balkans and ultimately plundered Sarajevo. This occurred right before the treaty of Karlowitz. We lost the territory shortly after Prince Eugene of Savoy sacked the city, burned it, and left the survivors to deal with the plague. It was a terrible time and the people here are not soon to forget it. However there are few survivors of that event to tell the story. By 1700 the territory fell back into the hands of the Austrians and they had retained it until General Halim liberated the city once again. However in the 40 years since occupation by the Austrians, much of the city had changed. At its height the city claimed to have a hundred mosques and now not one can be found. Our Imams have visited and are working on constructing new Mosques as I write this.

[hooahguy14]

EPIC naval battle! please say you saved the replay!

[Chirurgeon]

Ah i didnt I am sorry. But thank you for following. I will have a short update tonight

[-iceblade^]

epic, absolutely epic AAR. brilliant work. can't wait to see more!

also, fool hearty should be foolhardy

[Chirurgeon]

1741- Belgrade
I have fallen in love with this city of Belgrade. It has been a wonderful place to stay in the hotter months. I had a small villa built in the surrounding mountains, and the cool breezes makes for a pleasant day on the hottest of days. Many people here appreciate the wines from Marmara and so I have opened up a shop here in the capital. I spend the winters primarily in Marmara or in Istanbul. However this is a lovely place in the summer time.
Troops have been moving through the city to an army encampment near the border with Bosnia. Here they base their campaigns. Earlier this year the main garrison of Zagreb threw down their arms in protest of not being paid. The bankruptcy of the Austrians has caused much chaos and our men have been happy to take advantage of it. General Halim ordered an Ottoman garrison into the city so as to claim the city as ours. The populace may be unhappy with the lack of funds from Vienna but having us as occupiers is not all to pleasant. The Garrison has had trouble maintaining order and it is expected there will be resistance to the rule of our people.
I received a letter from Aazim today:

It seems that problems with our enemy grow by the day. We have many spies in the region and they to know of the problems. I have no doubt that the Sultan will sense the weakness of his enemy and attack relentlessly. I can tell by the bustle of the war camp that a major campaign is being planned. I await with anxious curiosity as to what will happen.
While our empire grows herein the Balkans, the Catholic nation of Spain is rapidly expanding in Africa. Our brothers in Islam are asking us to intervene. However Spain is a powerful ally of France. Warring with them will likely bring our good friends the French into the war. The French have been ecstatic at the crushing of the Austrians beneath the feet of our soldiers. We need the French in order to contain other states such as Prussia.

[Lowes]

Been following your AAR for a while now, and its quite the read, spot on job old boy! I'm a bit kerfuffled over Morroco's tenacity! I say, 1741? I would've expected such small nations to have been utterly annihilated by that time, eh what!

[Chirurgeon]

Been following your AAR for a while now, and its quite the read, spot on job old boy! I'm a bit kerfuffled over Morroco's tenacity! I say, 1741? I would've expected such small nations to have been utterly annihilated by that time, eh what!

Shall the possession of Portugal by the Maratha Confederacy ruffle your feathers old chap? Aye and thanks for the comments.

[Lowes]

Good Lord! I am faint at the very thought old bean!

[Chirurgeon]

1742 - Marmara coast
Each year the tens of thousands of soldiers that campaign in the Balkans cannot actively campaign until the snows retreat. There is a simple reason for this. The thousands of horses and pack mules that are used to move the army must have grazing pasture. Scouts move out ahead of the army and look for those first blades of spring. There is very good pasture in the Balkans but each time we journey north, we have to wait for the snows to melt. This is a hindrance but it makes sure that our animals wont starve. In emergencies hay is carried with us but it would only last a week or two until we found fresh pasture. In some places north of the Danube the first blades of spring do not come up until April. Further south its in March. In Russia it does not happen until May. This is one of the reasons our generals cannot campaign for long seasons in far northern areas.

However this year the army was ready to leave Bosnia by the end of March. A mild winter yielded little snow and the grasses sprung up nearly a week earlier than normal. The roads between Bosnia and Croatia were terrible so the going was tough. As we passed through Croatia the populace was hostile and had actually taken up armed rebellion in some areas. General Halim ignored this as he had a greater target. We roughly followed the inland areas along the Dalmation Coast. Finally we reached a critical juncture in May. We could turn west and south and enter Italy or turn north and march to Vienna on a very fine roadbed which would speed travel. The Austrians did not expect us to march to Venice. And neither did I. The Venetians had become a puppet of Austria and when they saw our forces they did not wish to fight. We walked into the city and although some looting occurred it was much more civil than normal.

In Late summer the arrival of French troops caused quite a stir. A rather stocky French commander led a group of a thousand or so soldiers. It would seem that the Sultan and the French Ambassador in Istanbul had reached an agreement that the French were to retain Venice. The main reason was that it would take a huge force to occupy the city and the outrage would be very difficult to contain. Venice was but a stepping stone away from Rome itself. Even the Sultan knew that the Austrians must be swiftly dealt with.

As we turned over the city to the French and marched back toward Bosnia word reached us of an armed rebellion in Croatia. Although the brigands were not marching on the capital they would have to be dealt with at some point. However before we could march home the Austrians sent a force south to presumably either stop us or perhaps recapture Venice. This was a foolish move and the battle went badly for the Austrians. Unable to organize a coordinated assault they were beaten back and ultimately fled.





With the defeat of The Austrian relief army and Venice securely in our allies hands the time was right for a strike into the heart of Christian Europe. The city of Vienna was a ripe target. In the history of this conflict, for some two hundred years, we had never breached the walls of Vienna. Capturing Vienna would be the pinnacle achievement of the Ottoman Empire. Everyone from the shepherds in the fields, to common housewives, and the Emperor himself knew this was coming. Next year would be a pivotal moment in the history of our people.

[dezikeizer]

Great updates as always. Now comes the critical part: can you manage to take Vienna?
Just one thing: you seem to be less and less descriptive of the events in the battles.

[Chirurgeon]

Great updates as always. Now comes the critical part: can you manage to take Vienna?
Just one thing: you seem to be less and less descriptive of the events in the battles.

Wait till the next update. I promise you wont be dissapointed

[-iceblade^]

great update

who killed off the swedes?

[Lowes]

Oh ho, the second march on Vienna, I like where this is going.

[Horatius Flaccus]

Fantastic!

[Chirurgeon]

great update

who killed off the swedes?

Russians.

Oh ho, the second march on Vienna, I like where this is going.

Yes indeed

Fantastic!

Thanks!

Hope to have an update later today

[Hidole555]

A very, VERY good read indeed. But I have one criticism.

Over time, it seems that the main character's narrative has become less and less personal and is at times simply just describing events in battles. Whether this is a reflection on his increasing foray into old age or the massive amount of time he has been in the army is uncertain to me. Does he not have a wife waiting for him back home? At one part of the AAR it stated he went back during one of the campaigns. Could it be possible that he has a second child waiting for him, only he does not know about it due to his wife being unable to contact him? Far-fetched, but possible.

I will enjoy following this story to the end.

[Boba93]

What are these armies numbers ? 5000-8000 ? how is that ?
The unit consists of 600 men? what did u do to make the game like that?

[Dave Strider]

It's the Darth Mod - Ultimate Commander mod for ETW.

[Boba93]

It's the Darth Mod - Ultimate Commander mod for ETW.

Is there any PC that is able to handle all these numbers of units ?

[Chirurgeon]

mine...oh and work has been crazy. I will have an update tomorrow night. And as someone has said I have drifted away from the main characters a bit. I will try to get back to that again