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Thread: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

  1. #1

    Default Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Hi Everyone, its been a really long time since I've posted in these forums, but I figured I would get back into them by starting up an AAR. Lately I haven't been feeling too attached to my playthroughs, and I figured writing an AAR was a good way to get more into them.

    Details of the Playthrough:

    Faction: Sclavenians
    Difficulty: Hard
    Mods: Base Income 500, Better AI Recruitment and Army Composition, Imperium from Technology Gain Removed

    Because I am playing with a mod that decreases the base income, the armies at the beginning will likely be much smaller. I prefer playing like this though, as it forces me to be really careful about my economy in the early stages of the game.

    I will be writing the AAR in a historical-fiction style, while still trying to give most of the details of my actions in game as well. Each update will cover approximately one year in game, and I'll try to post at least one a week.

    I'll be posting the Prologue tomorrow likely, and if you have any advice, feel free to voice your opinion.



    Table of Contents

    Prologue
    Chapter I - A New Chief
    Chapter II - The Lower Sclaveni

    Last edited by Maniple Mayhem; June 11, 2016 at 01:17 PM.

  2. #2
    Lugotorix's Avatar non flectis non mutant
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Very interesting. I'll be looking forward to this one. Attila is a good engine for AARs, just as good as ShogunII IMO.
    AUTHOR OF TROY OF THE WESTERN SEA: LOVE AND CARNAGE UNDER THE RULE OF THE VANDAL KING, GENSERIC
    THE BLACK-HEARTED LORDS OF THRACE: ODRYSIAN KINGDOM AAR
    VANDALARIUS: A DARK AGES GOTHIC EMPIRE ATTILA AAR


  3. #3
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Welcome back, Maniple Mayhem - I look forward to seeing how your campaign develops.

  4. #4

    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Prologue


    Little known to most of our people, after the conversion of the ancient Sclaveni to Orthodox Christianity in the 5th century, the old Slavic traditions were neither supressed, nor forgotten. The Kings of the Sclaveni saw their heritage as a source of strength and power, and believed that should it be forgotten, the strength of their people would falter. The ancient temple of Svarog thus continued to maintain its prominence, now as the entrusted keeper of the traditions and lore of the Sclaveni people.

    For hundreds of years, the High-Priests of Svarog continued the tradition of composing great epic poems to record the deeds of the High-Kings and their people. The poems would be passed from one generation of priests to the next, growing in length and number as time passed. In order to maintain the tales, the priesthood was ever-expanding, with each priest responsible for remembering and passing on just one of the great epics. Despite our Christian beliefs, the temple flourished and became one of the greatest institutions of our Empire - for a time.

    This golden age of the temple of Svarog would not last. With the growing raids by the pagan Vikingr in the north during the 8th and 9th century, the people became polarized towards the pagan customs of the ancient Sclaveni. Many believed that the Vikingr were a punishment by god for our continued veneration for false deities and demigod ancestors. Calls were made for the destruction of the great temple, with the Patriarch of Constantinople even threatening the Emperor with excommunication should he not dismantle the priesthood.

    Initially, the priesthood was simply hidden from the eyes of the people, shunned to seclusion within the palace walls. This seclusion and secrecy however made it difficult to maintain the great institutions of the past, and the priesthood shrank considerably year-by-year. This is how we come to my story. I, Lazlo, last High-Priest of the temple of Svarog am now the only remaining priest of our once great temple, tasked with single-handedly holding the great knowledge of every epic of the ancient Sclaveni, must now pass on my knowledge to posterity. Under the command of his most august majesty, Vlad X Vladislavovich, Emperor of the East Romans and High King of the Slavs, I shall end the great oral tradition of our people, and write the grand history of the ancient Sclaveni and honorable house of Vladislavovich.

  5. #5

    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Chapter I – A New Chief


    In the year 394 AD, the Sclaveni were not a united people. The people were divided amongst two loosely organized tribal clans, the Upper and Lower Sclavs. The centre of Upper Sclav settlement was the fortified village of Kariskos, north of the Donets river upstream of where it makes a westward turn. Further downstream the Donets, between the Donets and the Don river lay the lands of the Lower Sclavs and their capital, Gelonus. The two tribes maintained close cultural ties, and at time were even led by a single warchief against marauding nomadic tribes, however at most times they acted as separate political entities.


    Fortified village of Kariskos (left), settlement of Gelonus (right)


    Lands of the Sclaveni in 395AD

    Since time immamorial, the Sclaveni had been raided frequently by the nomadic peoples of the steppes. When the Huns arrived several decades before, the Sclaveni saw them simply as another tribe that would raid, grow more bold, attack in force, be defeated and then leave the rugged Sclaveni to their impoverished lands. This belief would be proven wrong as the savage Huns stormed into the Sclaveni lands, raping pillaging and driving the less ferocious tribes that the Sclaveni had pushed back decades before deeper into their lands.

    The Upper Sclavs were shown the folly of their ignorance in the Autumn of 394 AD when the pacifist chief, Darko, marched out with 1000 men to meet a Hunnic raiding party and was crushingly defeated by the mounted warriors. The chief was captured during the battle, and flayed alive by the barbaric Huns. With their chief dead, and their lands looted, the Upper Sclavs were devastated, but in this devastation came a saving grace.

    During the pitched battle, a great warrior distinguished himself. The future chief Valdislav, then only 21 years old, was said to single handedly take down 30 of the Hunnic raiders. He led a group of 50 other Sclaveni warriors armed with only crude hand axes and round shields and charged on the Hunnic chief. Rather than striking at the mounted warriors, he instructed his followers to strike at the horses carrying the men. The ingenious tactic was successful, leading to panic among the horses and causing a significant portion of the Huns to flee. This brief lull in the slaughter gave the surviving Sclaveni an opportunity to retreat, thus saving the Sclaveni from total extinction, and birthing a new elite class of Sclaveni warrirors, the Horse Cutters.

    Upon their return to Kariskos, the surviving warriors proclaimed that they had found their new chief. The young Vladislav would be the saviour to bring the Sclaveni back from the brink. Thus it was that in the Spring of 395 AD, Vladislav was made chief of the Upper Sclavs.



    Vladislav

    At the time of his rise to power, the Upper Sclavs were once again beset by the nomadic tribesmen. The Huns had ridden off to the west to trouble the Gothic peoples, however in their place the Bundinians had arrived, hoping to pillage the lands of the weakened Upper Sclavs while the Huns were away.

    Knowing that he could not take on the Bundinians alone with the small number of warriors that had returned from the battle with the Huns, Vladislav set out to bolster his forces. He sent riders southward to the Lower Sclavs in the hope of securing an alliance against the Bundinian horde, while he traveled with a company of loyal warriors to the many villages in the vicinity of Kariskos, hoping to levy more men into his war party. In his stead, he appointed his loyal companion Zdravko to govern the tribe.

    Vladislav’s war party had camped outside a small Upper Sclav village along the Don river east of Kariskos while his companions scoured the countryside looking for volunteers to join the party. While his men worked fervourously outside, Valdislav sat in his tent polishing his axe. He listened to the subtle sounds of the wind on his leather tent and tried to clear his mind. Suddenly there was rustling at the entrance to his tent, and it opened to reveal a disheveled man dressed in a light tunic. It took a few moments before Vladislav realised that the man was one of the mounted skirmishers that he had sent south to treat with the Lower Sclavs.

    The man spoke at once, “Chief, I bring urgent news. The chief of Gelonus, Braslav, has sent his son, Mladen, to speak with you regarding the alliance.”

    “Tell him to enter.”

    On these words, another man, this one dressed in mail armour and a fine iron helm entered the tent. The man removed his helm to reveal long, flowing blonde hair and a masculine face. Vladislav then stood to welcome his guest, saying, “Welcome. You must be Mladen. I am Vladislav.”


    Mladen

    “It’s a pleasure, chief. I come to say that my father will fight with you against the Bundinians. We Sclaveni must support each other against these nomadic hordes,” responded Mladen.

    “Excellent. I need you to meet me in Kariskos with your war party by the seventh moon. Together we will march east…” Before Vladislav could finish his statement, one of Vladislav’s trusted companions, Bogdan, came bursting into the tent.

    Bogdan burst out, “Chief, they have crossed. I was in a village to the north. A large force of Bundinians has crossed the Don. They look to be heading to Kariskos!”


    Vladislav turned to Mladen, “March south immediately and gather your men. When you return, we will march out together and meet these nomadic scum.”

    Mladen nodded and then departed from the tent. Vladislav and Bogdan looked at each other, worry in their eyes, unsure whether Mladen would be able to reach them in time.

    Nearly a week later, there was still no sign of Mladen and his war party. It seemed as if Vladislav and the Upper Sclavs would have to fight the Bundinians alone. Vladislav had delayed as long as possible, but he could not bear to watch the Bundinians inching ever closer to their settlement, burning and pillaging the vilages along their way. Early in June, Vladislav made the decision to meet the Bundinians head on.


    By the time Vladislav’s war party met the Bundinians, it was late July. They outnumbered the Bundinian raiding party, however Vladislav knew that the greatest danger were the nomadic cavalry. Should they charge his line, his men would go down in droves. For this reason, Vladislav hired a small band of the native nomadic peoples, who were equally as troubled by the Bundinian raiders coming to seize their grazing lands and steal their herds.


    When the opposing sides were arrayed in the field, Valdislav could see an opportunity. If he could force the cavalry to charge early, he could send in his specially trained horse cutters to hew them down. With the cavalry defeated, he would then be free to circle around and tear apart the Bundinian archers. To his left flank, he placed his Sclaveni mounted skirmishers, to the right, the nomadic allies. In his main line were levied Sclaveni tribesmen fighting with only a spear and shield.

    As the two armies met, Vladislav commanded the mounted skirmishers to throw their javelins into the Bundinian cavalry and then retreat back behind the main line. As the Bundinian horsemen neared the Sclaveni line, he then commanded the horse cutters to blindsight the horsemen, charging from the side and cutting the horses to pieces.


    The tactic was a success, and the horsemen were soon nearly all cut down. Those that did survive chose to flee rather than continue the fight. In the centre, the Sclaveni spearmen charged the Bundinian infantry, easily pushing the nomadic tribesmen back.


    Following this victory, where the losses on the Sclaveni side were minimal, the men were heartened, and morale was high. The captured Bundinians were massacred, and their bodies sent back eastward atop their horses. On their march home though, the Sclaveni were to receive even more dire news. Their new allies to the south had been beset by another Bundinian horde. Vladislav now knew the reason for their delay and decided to march in haste southward to aid his newfound allies.
    Last edited by Maniple Mayhem; June 11, 2016 at 01:25 PM.

  6. #6

    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Sorry for the triple post. I didn't expect those images to come out so tiny. How do most people post their screenshots?

    Another quick question, how do you link to a later post in a thread? I was hoping to link the table of contents to the actual posts, but wasn't sure how to do it.

  7. #7
    waveman's Avatar Decanus
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    I do it through Photobucket, which is free until a certain amount of bandwidth is used. I think some people use Tinypic. They're image hosting sites, so you upload the pics to them and then use links to post them using the "insert image" button

    To link right click the post number and you should have an option to copy link address, then use the "Link" button at the top of the comment box. Highlight some text (like 'chapter 4'), then click Link and past the adress

    Looking forward to more of this!
    Last edited by waveman; June 08, 2016 at 08:25 PM.

    My AARs/writing: Link
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  8. #8
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Great start, I like your story of the rise of Vladislav. I had trouble with posting screenshots, too, until someone told me how.

  9. #9

    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Chapter II – The Lower Sclaveni


    Mladen of the Lower Sclavs, son of Braslav was a man of his word. When news came of the Bundinian incursion into the lands of the Lower Sclavs, he was with his father in the chieftain’s hall. After the messenger left, the two began to debate the best course of action.

    Braslav looked at Mladen. “No matter the pacts we have made with Vladislav, we can’t march north whilst our lands are threatened.”


    Braslav

    “I gave my word I would bring men northward. They need our aid in fighting off the raiders in the north. There are far more Bundinians in the north than those that raid here. We should join with Vladislav. Once we defeat the nomads in the north, we can march together to confront the force in our lands.”

    “You are naďve my son. The men won’t fight knowing they are walking away from their families and their homes when they are most in danger. We hold here. By holding the Bundinians here, Vladislav will have fewer to deal with.”

    Mladen, still not quite convinced conceded to his father’s decision.

    By the late August arrived, the Bundinian horde threatening the Lower Sclavs had surrounded the village of Gelonus and was poised to storm the city any moment. In the second week of September, Mladen and Braslav had gathered the fighting men of Gelonus and sallied forward to strike down the Bundinian force.
    The Lower Scalvs met the Bundinian horde in the plains of the Don Basin, just east of Gelonus. Once they met on the field, it was clear that the Bundinian force was no more than a meagre raiding party, and the Sclaveni hope for victory grew.




    Mladen formed up his spearmen at the front, and enticed the Bundinian cavalry by sending his archers forward. Once the cavalry came close, he pulled the archers back behind his line and commanded his spearmen to form a tight shield wall. The horsemen foolishly continued their charge and crashed into the line of braced spearmen.




    This quickly resulted in a rout of the lightly armoured horsemen. Mladen then pushed his advantage and ordered a charge on the Bundinian main line of spearmen.



    Within minutes, the rout had spread, and the entire Bundinian party was fleeing to the woods from which they had emerged.

    With the Bundinians beaten back, all seemed calm for a moment, but soon the eye of the storm would pass, and the brunt of the nomadic invasion would recommence. News reached Gelonus in November that the Magyar chieftain had met with the chief of the Bundinians, and the two hordes were to join forces against the Sclavs. The Magyars saw the Bundinian defeat as a humiliation of their god Tengri and swore to burn the Sclaveni homeland to the ground in retaliation.

    Mladen was standing atop a lookout tower on the edges of Gelonus when he saw subtle movement in the trees to the north of the city. The first thought that came to mind was that the Magyars were upon them.

    Mladen thought to himself. With the men lost during the battle with the Bundinians, the Lower Sclavs were in no shape for another battle. Should the Magyars reach them this soon, there was no way that they could rebuff them. Their only hope for salvation was for Vladislav to arrive before the Magyars could reach the village. As the movement in the trees reached the edge of the forest, the relief Mladen was praying for came. All across the forest, Upper Scalvs, dressed in traditional Slavic tunics came marching outwards.

    Winter was coming, and Vladislav could not personally remain with his entire war party, but he knew that holding Gelonus was essential in order to stop the Magyars early. In order to help Mladen and Braslav keep control of their lands, he left them with 400 Upper Sclav warriors, including 100 of his elite horse cutters. Vladislav then returned with the bulk of his war party north to Winter in Kariskos.

  10. #10

    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Thanks for the advice. This week the update is a little short, but a little more went on in the next year of the game. I've updated the images in the first post as well.

  11. #11
    waveman's Avatar Decanus
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Ah, so the enemy gathers. Good to see you got the photos embedded nicely

    My AARs/writing: Link
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  12. #12
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Good update, with effective screenshots and growing tension and drama - the threat from the Magyar chieftain sound worrying.

  13. #13
    Caillagh de Bodemloze's Avatar to rede I me delyte
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    Default Re: Epics of the Ancient Sclaveni

    Hi, Maniple Mayhem.

    I was glad the relief arrived in time!

    Also, I'm pleased the advice about pictures worked - I think your images are very effective. And don't worry about updates being short - I think short updates are much easier to read than really long ones, myself.






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