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Thread: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Going East, XI-4

  1. #21

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, I-Ep2

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-1: African Adventures



    (Soderino's PoV)

    As we made camp on the rather dry (but still green) lands of Africa, I saw a small figure walking a short distance just past our tents, about the perimeter that sentries patrol. My bodyguard hurried after me as I went to talk with her.

    _____Aa: Ah, the air here is quite fresh and open, isn't it?
    Soderino: It's hot.
    _____Aa: Well I think if you wait for nightfall, you will change your mind. But never mind that, be ready to move early tomorrow. There's an opportunity.
    Soderino: We will be ready.

    And she disappeared. Hmm, even though she says to report to her, I'm pretty sure she's acting on some information even the scouts haven't seen yet. But that's none of my concern.




    Soderino: Make sure to set a careful guard, I wouldn't want any raiders to suddenly... raid us.
    __Officer: We will keep a close watch!

    And what do you know, early the next day, we were attacked! Yes, suddenly people emerged from the desert and attacked us on our grassy encampment.




    Early on we spotted a small group moving to flank us and focused our crossbow shots in their direction. Afterwards, it seems that we killed an important general of Tunis. It's one of the things of missile weapons, people just die due to being unlucky, and you don't really know who you downed until afterwards.

    Oh well.




    The bulk of the enemy force tried to swarm us, but they were in disarray. Their lightly armored units were easy prey, and we shot them down without any fuss. We can, of course, defeat much heavier forces.




    The spearmen have the be ready for melee combat, but the best case scenario is certainly shooting the enemy to death from long range. You can see here that they are already experimenting with dense mail reinforced with bits of metal plates (somewhat larger than scales).






    ===============================================================



    ===============================================================



    After securing Tunis, we quickly marched south based on another bit of Our Lady's information. And what do you know, we managed to draw out the al-Mahdiya garrison onto the field!

    This force was better composed than the milita of Tunis, not surprising given they were occupying a Fortress.




    We quickly formed up into a large hollow square when scouts confirmed that the enemy was approaching with great speed (they are quite used to the desert, after all). With spearmen at the front and flanks to defend the crossbowmen, the rear was taken up by our most mobile units in reserve - the cavalry.

    The mixture of powerful ranged capabilities and steady infantry on prepared ground would prove to be quite powerful despite being very much dominated by foot. Even in an age increasingly gripped by heavy cavalry.




    In doing so we gave up to the enemy a piece of high ground. However, unfortunately for the enemy, if they were to crest the hill in front of us, the advantage to their missile troops was a little blunted by the fact that their positions were just in range of our crossbows.

    As it turns out, our large number of armored crossbowmen can be relied upon to inflict high casualties on relatively unprotected archers.






    A charge of light infantry, first coming over the top into a wall of bolts then down into our spear line failed horribly. Seeing this, the enemy hesitated to directly attack, but their position on top of the hill was, as mentioned, fully in range of our crossbows.

    They did send out a skirmishing cavalry unit to throw javelins at our spearmen, who were unfazed. On our side, the crossbows found an easy mark, wiping out the horsemen in just a couple of reloads.






    Heavier cavalry met a similar end, being in full view and shot on their way into our spears. Admittedly, they had a more powerful charge than you would imagine on sandy ground, but in the end our men stood firm and the line held.

    The enemy general himself took part in one of the charges and lost many men to both crossbows and spears before withdrawing.






    The last parts of the enemy force was left huddling together on their hilltop taking the remaining crossbow bolts we had to shoot at them. We rotated the back units to the front after the first three units used up their ammunition.

    Later on, we would find that the archers were shooting our infantry line, rather than the crossbowmen. This meant that we didn't take many casualties from them, either.






    There was really no possible outcome. Thus weakened, it was only a question of death by crossbow bolt, spear, or the swords of our knights. It doesn't make sense how bodies can pile up like that on a sandy slope without rolling down or something but as long as they are enemy bodies and not our own, I won't complain.

    Heavier militia tried a few last attacks but it didn't do anything of course. The piecemeal engagements made by the enemy meant that each small portion was focused on by every single crossbowmen, quite an intimidating prospect even if you have heavy armor and a large shield.






    Unlike before, this time we had to rely on the strength of our missile troops a great deal more than before. Certainly we love crossbows and they prove able to do good work.

    Our knights were aided by the Cavalry Militia in cleaning up the last quarter of the enemy when the remnants finally routed.




    Spoiler for Details




    (Soderino's PoV ends)


    It's worth noting that if you leave the rebel provinces adjacent to this as rebel provinces (as I do for a while) the Moors and Egyptians will not really be interested in attacking them, but if you do take them, you're probably now bordering the AI and they will now start attacking you, especially annoying (as we will see) when the Egyptians have nothing else to do but constantly send stacks streaming over in your direction.
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 12:57 AM.

  2. #22
    Caillagh de Bodemloze's Avatar to rede I me delyte
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-1

    The last few updates have been fun.

    The desert is obviously a whole new environment for the Pisans - I'm looking forward to finding out whether it slows them down at all!






  3. #23

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-2

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-2: Romans.



    (Marco's PoV)

    With my father's First Army busy in Africa, it was my own Second Army that was on defense when the HRE attacked our city of Verona. They came in great numbers with knights (mounted and dismounted) in quantity. However, we had the newest and heaviest forces available to the Greater Pisa at the time, with a great deal of mail, and heavy mail.

    Less flashy but also critical were our reinforced helmets and shields.




    These were new men who had only seen small-scale actions, and sadly they did not think much of my leadership. But I had no doubt we would be victorious. It also helped that just as the scouts' reports were coming in, Our Lady arrived to "assist" which in my mind meant victory was inevitable.

    In any case, this was not a force raised to sit around and polish armor all day. Actually because we had so much undecorated metal armor, it was known in the HRE as the Grey Army, just so you know.




    We also had a unit of Genoese Crossbowmen from Genoa (they were actually trained in Venezsia though). They took a look at our crossbow deployments and added to their panolpy a large shield. They also had their servants (these are the richest members of Pisan society, who did not sign up for General's Bodyguard duty).

    With additional helpers to carry their shield for them and even plant stakes, they definitely made good use of their wealth on the battlefield, and Our Lady was quite approving.






    As one would expect of an empire, the enemy advanced in well-ordered ranks even when we opened with our customary "full volley". While they did have some crossbow units, these were vastly outmatched by our own, so a swift advance into melee was probably their best option.

    Our officers checked the spearmen ranks and prepared to receive the enemy's infantry charge.




    The enemy was also preparing flank actions, which we were aware of. Our own flanks stood ready to defend their positions while our crossbows were able to reach out and harass these enemies from safely behind the infantry brawl.

    Crossbowmen in the rear units had just enough range to reach the enemy center reserves. However, most critically if enemies actually pressed an attack against a flank, they would be in range.




    Those in the first ranks (and of course the officers) could see across the field thanks to our positioning. Of course the actual melee fight was too close, but beyond that our crossbows simply shot normally and the missiles went over the infantry's heads.

    Of course the infantry line could not win the battle on their own, in fact they would most likely lose given enough time against the Roman dismounted knights.




    The most important targets were enemy cavalry. And after that the priority shifted to the enemy general. Yes, in fact it is critical to only kill the enemy general right when you are ready to rout the enemy.

    Ironically, killing their general too early allows them to "re-adjust" and makes it harder to rout them if you take too long.




    The Romans are preparing to send their infantry reserves to the flanks. This is not a problem, compared to the threat of heavy cavalry. We prepare our own movements, concentrating all our horse into a single wing.

    Ideally infantry on that flank would also prepare to move up, essentially allowing for a great thrust against the very end of the enemy line.




    The enemy general finally took a crossbow bolt that ended him.




    And at this point the enemy infantry give way and begin routing. Of course once they run away from our lines somewhat, they are now in optimal range for our crossbows to shoot them in the back. Note that our horse are now moving to the far rear of the enemy force, not charging into the mass of infantry.

    This is because all those infantry are not threatening anyone (they are not in melee) but if we charge in it will not only cause them to potentially start fighting to the death, but also means our crossbows cannot shoot.




    Rather, the horse carefully move around the back and sides picking off units which had run a little too far from the main mass (which is still being shot up by our crossbows). Some of the infantry do regain their senses and realize that they are surrounded and taking ever more losses to our bolts...

    But now they have few good choices, exactly as planned.






    Even if they stand together, these are their last moments. There is no way for them to escape. Our crossbowmen, as before, rotate to keep up the volume of our missile attacks.






    And thus the battle finally comes to a close as the enemy fully routs and are taken out by our mounted Anti-Router Corps. A clean victory.

    However, a dark shadow descends upon the battlefield...




    ===============================================================



    Marco: Something wrong?
    __Aa: These Romans are spreading the plague. Care is needed in disposing of them.
    Marco: How should we do that?
    __Aa: Set them ablaze without any delay.




    ===============================================================



    At this point, forces are coming back up from my father's battles in Africa, but it will take them "too long" to be able to fully participate in this fight. We are training fresh recruits, creating new units and producing massive amounts of "cheap" and functional (if uninspired in design) heavy infantry armor.

    Unsurprisingly the rich north Italy so coveted by the Romans is in fact our production, recruiting and training heartlands




    Large mountains of grey iron (which is to say relatively low quality) were pressed into use as armor. Honestly, the Romans might have had better armor, if they had it, but unlike them we had nearly full adoption of metal armor. Even if it isn't the best, metal armor is definitely the way to go

    Our dedicated network of Armorers would generally not be replicated in Europe untl quite some time of people being rolled up by our heavy infantry.






    Roman reinforcements "attacked" from the north, presumably hoping to reinforce their Milanese holdings. Caught off-guard by our presence they were taken out with minimal trouble. Perhaps they had not expected our numbers, equipment, or resolve to fight. Our Lady had also warned us about this group, as they marched from the east side of the HRE on Verona, rather than the west side as we had expected.

    It is possible they were actually intended to be part of a dual-prong attack, with one side coming from Milan and this second force from the other side.






    It's amazing just how they managed to even make it to the battlefield, because....




    ===============================================================





    These soldiers were also plagued.

    ===============================================================



    At this point, north Italy is suffering greatly under the Roman plague, with Milan, Genoa, Verona and Venezsia all overshadowed by this deadly cloud. However, Pisa, Firenze and Bologna were still free of the plague, and thankfully Our Lady was able to protect them and us in the Second Army from this disease.

    (Marco's PoV ends)


    Note: Venezsia "borders" the HRE, but a unit cannot march there via land without entering the Verona province. As such, HRE spies are constantly trying to enter Genova, Verona and Venezsia, although only the first two are under threat of an attack. I solve this by training up and then "locking" a bunch of high Subterfuge spies there and waiting.

    The HRE spies eventually, finally, got caught trying to get in. And then waiting a few more turns to be very sure it was all safe before using these settlements to recruit or retrain.
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:01 AM.

  4. #24
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-2

    Great battles, your images work well with your explanation of what happened. As before, your tips on game-play look useful, such as the point that killing the enemy general too early in a battle is counter-productive, because their soldiers will recover from the loss of morale over time. I look forward to reading more about Marco and the Second Army.

  5. #25

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-3

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-3: Greeks



    There's an excellent reason why this one island is filled with merchants. They aren't being idle either (usually) so take a guess.


    (Soderino's PoV)

    There was a sudden landing of a major Greek force on the north coast of Sicily. Although Pisa and the Byzantines were "Neutral" ...




    We had just landed at Pisa from our African adventure when Our Lady had us quickly organize our reinforcements and immediately reembark on our ships to return south! At first I was worried that perhaps there was a Sicilian uprising of some sort, but it would probably have not needed the full might of the First Army.

    As we landed at the Palermu docks and marched into the city, we saw the Greek icons flying above a camp threateningly close to the walls.






    Amazingly, the Greeks still decided to siege Palermu, which was very bold of them. Of course, there was no intent on our side to sit and be sieged, rather we were ready to sally out for a battle on the plains just north of the city.

    We marched out with our flanks protected by walls and the crossbowmen on top of them.




    These skirmisher units are pretty good, they have a high attack value (if only a few javelins each) combined with a decent armor rating and even a small shield. Makes them much less vulnerable to being shot, while they can walk up and start javelining your front lines.

    Fortunately their range is short and they can't get in range to throw sticks at our crossbows (the spearmen will make them skirmish back).





    Along with an old friend, I took our heavy bodyguard horse out to harass the Greek archers. We rode out to the end of the skirmisher line, which left most of it scrambling while still an easy target for our crossbows, who could keep shooting without putting us at risk.

    When the enemy infantry pushed forward to meet us, we hurriedly retreated, leaving them to run headlong to... our crossbow bolts, of course!




    One point to note is that even these Cataphracts are not immune to the curse of "being charged by generals bodyguards". The important thing is that someone stops them first, which is to say that spearmen use their bodies to stop them.

    And then you charge in the bodyguards, who have a very high charge rating and can even cut through these armored beasts.





    The critical point of the battle came when the Greeks committed their elite heavy infantry. Once pinned and without their customary supporting heavy cavalry, they were easy prey for our own horse who immediately attacked them in the rear. They put up a lot less fight than the cataphracts.


    Yes, in this mod charge cavalry are super dangerous, even if they do things like just charge straight into spearmen (which the AI will do quite readily).






    It would be important to make peace with the Greeks to avoid endlessly fighting off their naval invasions or having to launch our own naval invasion. To show how serious we were, we demonstrated our willingness to kill any attackers.

    (Soderino's PoV ends)


    It's not too hard to make relations improve and get ceasefire, alliances, reconciliation, marriages, if you can get together enough cash. Just throw cash at an AI and they'll get to Perfect with you.

    ===============================================================



    (Marco's PoV)

    With the main Roman attacks stopped, and the plague largely contained, our path was clear to finally take the Large City of Milan. The original plan had been to wait for my father's First Army, but since the Romans were now safely buried as ashes...






    ===============================================================





    Of course we weren't about to simply let the Romans off. THey continued to bring more people to fight us, and when they balked at attacking, we did so instead. With our heavy crossbow units, we could always force them to come to us.

    Our volume of bolts cut through the lightly armored and even the more heavily armored (though the latter needs to be shot a lot more). Horses were particularly important and large targets.






    Confident in their cavalry, the Romans were probably quite displeased at being shot to death from behind a wall of spears (and sometimes defensive stakes). It's worth pointing out that bodyguard units are composed of cavalry even heavier than mailed knights. Yes, even Italians can support some of these units.

    The Italian cavalry militia should not be underestimated either. They are equipped much like knights, and have an easier time due to our heavy use of missile attacks before any charging actions are considered.






    Combined arms is the way of the future. The battlefield cannot be held by people charging with lances forever!




    Also in our favor is the fact that dead Romans cannot tell of how they were defeated, so those who come after them repeat their mistakes**, and we repeat our victories. And the post-victory executions. We can't risk the plague.


    **Yes, as usual, once you figure out how the AI "works" you can just keep on doing the same thing knowing it will nearly always come out with the same response which you can easily crush.
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:03 AM.

  6. #26
    Caillagh de Bodemloze's Avatar to rede I me delyte
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-3

    I agree with Alwyn - your gameplay tips are a great addition to this. And, of course, I'm enjoying the story, too!






  7. #27

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-4: Peace In Our Time



    Our "golden reins" have allowed us an interesting opportunity to distract all of the Savior's followers. It's a risk but at least it should help shake up all the catholic factions.

    (We will be trying to keep the meter at 9+ out of 10, by the simple measure of giving cash. 2500 cash => 1 point, roughly)




    Yes, it is time to unite, take up arms, and kill everyone who harasses those going to the "Holy places" in....




    London.

    (Which by the way is pretty hard to get to as it requires sea travel, which the AI isn't exactly the best at handling.)

    ===============================================================





    (Marco's PoV)

    With the excitement of a crusade being called on the (excommunicated English's) London, we proceeded to march out and kill more (non-excommunicated) Catholics. Italy is now entirely Pisan and there is no room for Romans. Now, while attacking a crusading army will automatically get one excommunicated, it's entirely "fair" to attack non-crusading armies, or to siege and assault settlements.

    Since the new Pope now "loves" us, there's nothing wrong at all with shanking the Romans from their bottom. South.






    There were some suggestions from the scouts that these Romans had actually been thinking of retreating back north, because they did things like abandon parts of their supply train in order to move faster. Thus they ended up without supplies, not sufficiently scouted, and in a hurry, right into our camp, where we had actually been waiting for them.

    Nothing like massed crossbows to really winnow out a swarm of light infantry.




    And shooting mounted units too, of course. Remember these are the critical enemy which have to be removed before we can really go for a full victory.






    As you can see here, the Romans have decided to form a long line at an angle to our own, while some infantry units break off to fight us on their own like idiots**. Now this isn't exactly great for us, as infantry units engaged in melee are safe from our crossbows, and trying to flank them is dangerous as the enemy army is right there...

    However, as long as all our crossbows do have targets, we will keep on shooting until the enemy fully commits.


    **(This is probably just some sort of AI hiccup, it happens sometimes and doesn't really shake up your approach any.)




    It isn't long before the ones in front rout from seeing their flanks unguarded and realizing they have no chance to actually get through our lines.

    The sound of crossbow bolts is probably highly unsettling, even if they're just going overhead harmlessly (to you anyway).




    And well, with people routing into them, and crossbow bolts falling everywhere, it isn't long before the enemy army is all in flight, while still being shot (now in the back) by our missiles.






    Then we clean up Romans.






    And we clean up Romans.

    (Marco's PoV ends)

    ===============================================================



    This is what having a lot of pope points gets you. When murdering tons of people, ceasefire demands come only with a penalty of "you will lose some points".

    You can just pay money in to get more points, which means as long as you can budget for it, you're good to go!

    ===============================================================





    You can still assassinate people all you want (didn't get caught, not sure if that would break the mission). This will become shockingly common as it's far easier to not have to deal with enemy generals.

    Since all my assassins do a lot of grinding on rebel captains, they are very capable. They're also just clearing out all the diplomats and even princesses to make the map a bit "neater" for me.

    ===============================================================




    That's not very nice. By the way, you can attack stacks which are sieging your settlements, it won't cause any problems.

    ===============================================================





    And as expected, we easily obtained a ceasefire with the Greeks. Excellent, we'll see how a river of gold can water a blossoming alliance, next time.
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:08 AM.

  8. #28
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    A very enjoyable chapter, your screenshots and commentary on the battle with the army from Rome are done well. Marco's terrible rain of crossbow bolts seems to enable his army to win decisively with few casualties - especially when the enemy army has not scouted sufficiently and runs straight into Marco's trap. As before, your tips about game-play look helpful, particularly about maintaining good relations with the Pope and how you trained your assassins.

  9. #29
    Caillagh de Bodemloze's Avatar to rede I me delyte
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    Your writing never fails to be entertaining, Alavaria!

    I'll look forward to learning how to forge good alliances (in a more literal sense than is usual for that phrase ).






  10. #30

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    Fascinating AAR, learning from someone's experiences a little about this great mod is always good. Although, I wonder: is the whole Our Lady and Flower Kingdom thingy a reference to some work? Or is it all completely original?

  11. #31

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    Quote Originally Posted by RodriguesSting View Post
    Fascinating AAR, learning from someone's experiences a little about this great mod is always good. Although, I wonder: is the whole Our Lady and Flower Kingdom thingy a reference to some work? Or is it all completely original?
    Did I reference the Flower Kingdom in these stories? It should only be the Kingdom of Blossoms.

    Yes, it's a reference to something else of mine.

  12. #32

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    Quote Originally Posted by Alavaria View Post
    Did I reference the Flower Kingdom in these stories? It should only be the Kingdom of Blossoms.

    Yes, it's a reference to something else of mine.
    I have beyond pathetic short term memory. Connecting the clues, I presume it is from one of your Roma Surrectum LPs, possibly both. Regardless, fascinating read, specially to gather tips. I will stay tunned for updates. I would just like to ask, if possible and not too much of a hassle, to be more descriptive about your strategies and moves. Would be mighty helpful to me.
    Last edited by RodriguesSting; August 18, 2016 at 10:32 PM.

  13. #33

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-4

    Quote Originally Posted by RodriguesSting View Post
    Connecting the clues, I presume it is from one of your Roma Surrectum LPs, possibly both.
    Actually I checked and it's in the Part 1 Epilogue after the first Podesta (Baldassare) died. So yeah I sort of forgot it was mentioned.

    Quote Originally Posted by RodriguesSting View Post
    I would just like to ask, if possible and not too much of a hassle, to be more descriptive about your strategies and moves. Would be mighty helpful to me.
    I actually had a part written up about the tactics I would use, but the greatest factor in these engagements is that you have these mostly-militia forces while my general is super maxed out on dread, so they actually start routing too fast before I can even really do much at all.

    It's when I start having new generals go out, while they are still at low Dread there are some slugfests, but very soon after they pass 5+ Dread it's back to the beginning until later on when fighting knight-heavy armies.

  14. #34

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-5

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-5: Three Armies



    It seems the Romans still want to fight for Milan. Very well, to battle then! You can see from the armies that the Roman one isn't suffering from plague (full units) and I've reinforced this army so it, to, has a full set.



    Spearmen like this are actually not very threatening to upgraded heavy spears like I have. It's when you have dismounted knights or people with massive weapons that the infantry fight becomes a bit dicey.

    It also helps that light units tend to have not excellent morale and will break even if relatively unharmed, provided the conditions are right.




    Nothing like looking over a field littered with dead Romans.




    ===============================================================



    I will find out soon enough that of course an AI will have already gotten the Merchant's Guild HQ, but anyway this is perfect, as Sicily is the Merchants' Island so to speak.

    (This is a +2 Finance bonus to merchants trained in Palermu which is a nice additional bit of cash from each).

    ===============================================================



    That was... faster than I expected. Hopefully the HRE didn't grab a bunch of crusader units and is not in the middle of marching tons of heavy troops at me. Well great for London to get reconciled before the crusade really got going.

    I'm not really worried as crusaders are much like knights (mounted and dismounted) and heavy spearmen. Which thankfully the Romans have not started spamming (eventually AIs will presumably start having armies of knights if you let them).

    ===============================================================



    A third group is set to clear out some rebels as well as pick up a little experience (by autoresolving).

    Still experimental, but definitely autoresolve gets XP better than a melee brawl on the field...

    ===============================================================





    This settlement gives an ancillary (only once, of course) for +1 Chivalry. It's handy but as we'll see, holding onto this one can be trouble.

    It's safer to leave it as rebel, honestly.

    ===============================================================



    So, Poland borders HRE and is currently at war with them, right as I notice a high Charm princess of theirs near me. Excellent. One of my princesses wanders over to her and we manage to sort out something before Marco does something reckless.




    It's quite understandable though, as she does have a high Charm rating, however it would be good if he wasn't too distracted while on campaign...






    Even though my reputation is totally shot, who cares!




    Now the game seems to want to give adoption to the oldest people available. In this set up, you can see the people I adopted really early on are the oldest, so I never get a prompt for a marriage for my younger but more imporant heir.

    Thankfully now that he is married, the game should hurriedly give him some children...

    ===============================================================





    Sudden Death!

    ===============================================================



    Although these factions are not neighbors, the Greeks send a small force by sea, land and then siege a small Roman town to show their support. Not that it matters much.

    It's still rather cute though. They also blockaded the port of another town which is hilarious.

    ===============================================================



    These French princesses are constantly waving their hands over this settlement. They are too high Charm to be easily assasinated so I'll just leave them be.

    France doesn't have enough cash to actually bribe such a Large City, I would say.

    ===============================================================



    Having cleared any attackers, the invasion is now on for real! Though I have Podesta Soderino's army coming up to help, Marco's force will just dive in first as I think he'll be able to take what heat remains.

    In fact, my plan is to split up and attack two targets at a time, rather than try to have the two armies huddle together.

    ===============================================================



    Nothing like throwing tons of priests at something to actually get populations converted.

    Removing the Public Order penalty for non-matching religions is nice, so is levelling up all your priests.

    ===============================================================



    Yeah he, uh, misleads people a lot. I think his Authority rating is like 15/10 or something, and his Dread is at 20/10.

    ===============================================================



    Somehow disbanding a troop (like a unit of peasants you don't need garrisoning anymore) counts as a Troop Lost.
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:18 AM.

  15. #35

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: Polishing Pavises, II-6

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-6: Knights



    It turns out trade suffers when armies are surging across your border aiming to take apart your "empire" by military force. Don't worry though, the whole "trade with other factions" thing isn't much of an issue at all. While of course your own settlements trade with one another, Very High Taxes is also really useful.

    We'll gain a lot more income by taking and taxing the Roman settlements, plus what else is the player to do when they have some cash to spare and armies not already fighting someone?

    ===============================================================



    (Marco's PoV)

    The primary targets are the various Roman castles, as these are the recruitment centers. A lot of our Pisan/Italian military power is drawn from cities, with the notable exception of our Pisan "knights**". Despite the fact that cities have much better armorers, don't ask me why I don't understand either.

    This strategy does mean armies (like mine) will be going deep into Roman lands and reinforcing will be hard. Doubtless we all need to be on point and fight efficiently, but if we strike fast and hard, as you've seen, Romans just crumble on the field. Of course we will mop up all the cities/towns in due time.

    (Marco's PoV end)


    **(You can think of them like souped-up "mercs" though it's more like having a standing all-volunteer army, but just for these heavy cavalry. There's no feudal land structure, they're paid directly in coin by the Pisan state.)

    ===============================================================



    As a note, Simone is Marco's younger brother (Soderino only has two sons), so of course he will be leading my newest stack


    (Simone's PoV)

    As the Pisan Third Army marches west, I couldn't help but wonder why we were not joining the main invasion force into the Roman heartlands. But when we encounted Roman forces marching up towards Genova, Our Lady's instructions made a lot more sense. A Roman attempt at cutting our supply lines by surprise?

    Knight Officer: Should we prepare for combat?
    ____Simone: Yes. Take up the usual cavalry deployment.
    Knight Officer: We can do more than the usual militia.
    ____Simone: I don't doubt it. Take your positions.




    Indeed, our new Mailed Knights corps are quite a cut above the Cavalry Militia used up until now. These formations are made up of selected soldiers from the militia, but critically from a number of families for whom a third or forth son might find a military career an excellent chance for advancement. Supposedly they can match conventional knights in a charge** but I've been forewarned not to waste men in that manner. So they go into the rear behind everyone, to wait for a clear opening.

    So they moved about on the flanks keeping watch as the enemy horse just charged into deep formed blocks of infantry. In this case, the Romans really messed it up, on the left they are in wedge (so minimal effect on the critical charge) and on the right they're charging through trees. Terrible.


    **(They're the same as all factions' Mailed Knights, however I can only recruit them very slowly in castles. Other factions get them with higher availability AND in cities. So really, the main benefit is that they aren't much more expensive then the militia, but can fight knights head on. But I rather use infantry instead, as they are more replaceable. Excellent router killers of course.)



    One of Our Lady's favorite battlefield tactics is moving missile units forward to allow for flanking/enfilade shooting against enemy units still fighting 'on the line'. If the enemy infantry are not interested in routing before this point, they should be now!

    Now if you put pieces on a map and move them about this is rather easy in principle, but it's actually a rather risky proposition as foot can be easily caught out of position, unlike horse. But of course the Italian infantry tradition is strong!

    (Simone's PoV end)





    Romans couldn't pay.

    ===============================================================





    (Soderino's PoV)

    More targeted killings. My "bodyguard" (who is actually the Pisan Assassins Guild Grand Master... maybe) informs me that assassins are just taking out anyone they can in what seems like an unrestricted campaign of terror. I shouldn't be surprised, what else did Our Lady start a massive assassin training program for?

    Still, one feels a little uncomfortable hearing of enemy generals suddenly winding up dead, even if it's an oddly timely "accident" or in some cases literally with taunting messages pinned to their chest with a dagger.

    ===============================================================



    Yes, more knights running about everywhere. The experimental "knights" corps we raised are in the new Third Army, but even if they are successful, I don't think we can start trying up the Northern idea of having horsemen endlessly charging one another. No, standing firm on the ground with your spear and a large body shield is the way to go!

    I will have to keep an eye on these Teutons though, my spies suggest it may be an attempt by the Romans to raise more knights to fight us.

    ===============================================================



    Before heading out on this campaign I was speaking to Our Lady about news that Marco had been showing interest in someone. And what do you know, not long after starting married life, Marco immediately had a child just before setting out on the campaign of a lifetime. Excellent! Now I haven't met his wife (being on campaign) but I bet it wasn't a Pisan.

    With him about to dive into the Roman lands this was rather unexpected. Hmm, I guess with youth comes vigor huh? He isn't even that young, really... How odd, I was talking about grandchildren (even before I heard about the engagement) with Our Lady and she just commented "oh yeah, I forgot about that."

    (Soderino's PoV end)

    ===============================================================



    Italian factions can do pretty well with a City-heavy setup. But I can only get knights from castles. It's why I tend to be very conservative with my horse, Cavalry Militia are not really good at fighting against knights.

    Now the General's Bodyguard units are superior (per soldier) to Mailed Knights, but I prefer as far as possible to grind the enemy horse with crossbow bolts and infantry spears.
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:21 AM.

  16. #36

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: The Grey Army, II-7

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-7: Bases or Homes



    (Marco's PoV)

    I was surveying the terrain around us as the army marched northward. A rather unnecessary gesture perhaps, as our scouts are frighteningly prescient, assuming that they are not beat to all the critical punches by Our Lady showing up just before a battle is about to be joined.

    __Aa: What do you think will happen to this land after the campaign?
    Marco: I would guess it will take the Romans a long time to rebuild.




    From the south, the eye could be fooled into seeing the smoke from the massacre at Ulm, a Large Town of no real note. A small group had gone in and laid waste to the Romans before planting a Pisan flag over it.

    __Aa: No, this realm will not recover if left untended. Iit will become a wilderness as untamed as the Germanic tribes who lived here in ancient times.
    Marco: The cycle of life.
    __Aa: The plan is not to simply leave this as a realm of ash and bones.

    ===============================================================



    It can be useful to dance about sometimes. The AI might move next to a lightly-garrisoned castle but not dare to attack your stack.

    Now, obviously you want to be able to autoresolve the siege fight against the garrison without this additional army. As you see here, even after using a second stack to attack, the enemy simply retreated, but are STILL adjacent to the castle.

    You have to be a bit careful with using your army's units, meaning you will
    1. Pull out your stack, leaving behind one unit (to maintain the siege engines)
    2. Use one unit from your stack to make the enemy stack "retreat" then
    3. Attack with your full stack.

    This trick is also useful to drag out large garrisons by pushing a small army up against a settlement (but preventing them from going in by sieging it) then raising the siege to "allow" the garrison to add to the field battle against the small army.


    ===============================================================



    Marco: So, you intend to create vassal states then?
    __Aa: No, this land will be for your children's children, as Italy will at some point become too narrow for all of them.
    Marco: That's quite forward-looking.
    __Aa: The invitation is open to any of your soldiers who feel like staking out a claim here.
    Marco: Wait, what?



    __Aa: But first, to battle.
    Scouts: The enemy! Their aim is probably to reinforce the castle!
    Marco: Form up and prepare to fall upon them!

    I looked around but she had already disappeared. Hey, why did she leave just before the battle starts?




    The infantry quickly moved to take positions, advancing slowly in the direction of the enemy without allowing their formation to fall into disarray even on the cold and uneven ground. From my mounted position, I could see over their helmets and spearpoints a mass of Romans marching towards us.

    Our enemy seemed oblivious to the Italan army in front of them. Did they think they had time? Or perhaps simply could not imagine us having advanced so boldly into their territory?




    When we were finally spotted moving towards them, Roman levied archers tried to screen the formup of the main force with their arrows, but I could only laugh in pity as their arrows made little impression on our heavily armored forces.

    Marco: Have the crossbows shoot behind those archers, I want to hit their army, not the skirmishers.
    Officer: Immediately!




    A sudden roar could be heard after hundreds of our crossbows sent bolts screaming into the Roman main force. However, as it approached us, it sounded more weak and wounded than enraged and powerful. I simply nodded when a rider brought a message to me - "The Romans have called for a general charge!"

    The Romans might have the numbers, but their charge would doubtless break upon our braced front line of heavy infantry. I waved over my cavalry commander in order to have him at hand for the pivotal moment.




    Confused and in disarray, the charging Romans practically bounced off our shields and spears. I gave the critical order to our cavalry to begin circling around the flanks. With triumphant shouts, the infantry began to slowly advance in well drilled steps. Casualties on our side seemed low, which was always a relief.

    This particular tactic had worked many times against the Romans and was no where as risky as a full out pursuit, as it allowed the infantry to stop in a good formation, as well as for the cavalry to regroup in case the enemy did rally together.




    The Romans did not rally together.




    They were killed together on the battlefield or caught and killed separately but in the end they were all killed, which is all that mattered.






    ===============================================================



    After that, we returned to the siege camp to undertake the assault of Nuorenberc castle. Indeed, the halls would be filled with slain Romans. But more important than that was the discussion taking place outside those walls.

    __Aa: It'll be a tight fit in the castle, so you will probably have to encamp some of the men outside.
    Marco: But we'll be moving further into Romans lands, are we not?
    __Aa: Indeed, a minimal, -minimal- garrison is all you should leave, we're not going to build bases.
    Marco: Oh, right. We'll simply take the Romans' homes for ourselves?
    __Aa: Very clever, yes. Hold strong and I will give all generously to all.





    We watched as a Pisan flag appeared on one of the outer walls. It would probably only take a few more hours until the fortress was only flying Pisan flags.

    __Aa: Land you did not tame, cities you did not build, vineyards you did not plant. But you know Marco?
    Marco: I'm listening.
    __Aa: If your children follow you and their children them in their loyalty, this will not seem like very much in the days of your descendants.
    Marco: My father already pledged me into your service before he died, did he not?
    __Aa: He did, but you should build your own merit and prove your own loyalty.
    Marco: I swear it.

    Looking north, the frozen and rather empty landscape, I could almost see all that it could become...

    (Marco's PoV ends)

    ===============================================================



    In another castle, not that far away, the Roman general Engelbert von Karnten was looking southward towards a castle which, he had just been informed, was now in Pisan hands, and fumed.

    Engelbert: To think that my neighbor was so weak. It brings disgrace to our great empire.
    Servant: Lord Karnten?
    Engelbert: What?! What---

    As he turned around to berate the fool who had interrupted his plans to revenge the empire and gain himself some territory, Engelbert instead was left grabbing his throat as a knife pierced deeply into his neck.

    Hoisting the dying man over a shoulder, the assassin threw him over the balcony where he fell to his death.




    The Romans convened some sort of council in Arles. It was rumored they intended to establish a new Papacy, to counteract the one in Roma who had failed to "contain the Pisan aggression".




    Pisan priests in Africa were having a meeting of their own...


    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:23 AM.

  17. #37
    Caillagh de Bodemloze's Avatar to rede I me delyte
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: The Grey Army, II-7

    Nice battle descriptions, as always, Alavaria. I'm interested to know what the priests' meeting was about!






  18. #38
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: The Grey Army, II-7

    Useful tips and dramatic battles, I am enjoying this! Like Caillagh, I am intrigued by the two councils of priests.

  19. #39

    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: The Grey Army, II-7

    Dreadbolt: The Grey Army
    Ch II-8: Roman Hearts



    (At a secret meeting of "The Evangelists" in Africa.)

    "Despite the supposed Day 1 superiority of the Romans, the Pisan Second Army has been gaining ground at a greater pace than I had expected. Losses are also very low, so I'm considering greater escalation. Probably re-tasking the First Army to independent offensive operations. Italy, report in."

    "There should be no issues in the rear if the First Army is put into the field. Production of arms and armor is on track, with recruitment is holding steady. As ordered, we're being more selective for the crossbow units, so a greater fraction of recruits are going into the military. We're still not able to raise any more heavy horse though."

    "Good. The heavy infantryman is a critical part of the field armies. I'm not worried about the horse. Rome."




    "Though the pope's attempt to cease hostilities by diplomacy failed, currently it seems that many kingdoms are happy to see the Romans take some losses. Ultimately it is likely that the pope will attempt to broker peace once again."

    "That's well within my expectations... good, any objections to an escalation of conflict then?"




    "As expected, there's some backlash from Circle over our invasion of the Romans, however in general past Roman attempts to control the Circle mean that they're not as disappointed or saddened as they might make themselves out to be. The Circle will turn a blind eye to this, at least for a bit longer."

    "As to the Romans' neighbors, these kingdoms are of the opinion that Pisa will ultimately lose the war unless we come to some terms with the Romans. Given that, no other kingdoms are considering an intervention. They rather see the most damage possible inflicted on the Romans."

    ===============================================================



    Podesta Soderino was weathering the winter cold in Nuorenberc with his men when an unexpected, but not unknown, visitor entered via the window. He just reached across the table and picked up a sturdy cup of the type carried on campaign.

    Soderino: What a surprise, wine?
    _____Aa: Hmm, sure. Change of plans, prepare to march west.
    Soderino: As you wish... what are the Romans doing?
    _____Aa: We're moving first here. Your First Army is to move into the Roman heartlands.
    Soderino: I'm still young enough to take a few more cities. Should we set out immediately?
    _____Aa: Yes. The replacement for forces which left with your son (Marco) will catch up with you, if not on the way then at the enemy walls.
    Soderino: No Roman is going to get the better of me.

    ===============================================================



    Marco's Second Army began a steady march east, cold weather notwithstanding. His new objective was to take the eastern Roman castles which bordered the Poles. Villages along the way felt a sense of fear but were unable to do much but shiver and hope to be spared from any of the expected purges. By now Marco had acquired quite a reputation for killing "fellow Catholics".

    Remember that his grandfather had been excommuncated twice before his death in old age. Supposedly this had led to some disagreements with them about the afterlife, given various "rumors" about the late Podesta Baldassare. Which were settled very bloodily on the field of battle.




    Certainly none would dare repeat any condemnations of the dead man to his grandson's face. Indeed, his enemies could hardly say anything to his face! On the battlefield, his style of ruthless efficiency was in contrast to the more active flair of his father and grandfather.

    In his line, the "excessive pageantry" of the heavy cavalry charge was to be met with faceless** infantry and crossbowmen who killed in mass from behind them.


    **In comparison to earlier, Pisan heavy infantry adopted a more closed style of helmet than was usual. They also tended towards larger and heavier shields.

    ===============================================================







    (Marco's PoV)

    Fresh from a steady march and the following quick capitulation of the Castle Praha, we began to march back west, following a road that would bring us northward to yet another Roman castle.

    ___Aa: How are your men holding up so far?
    Marco: They seem in good spirits. Minimal losses to cold or disease...
    ___Aa: Hm hm, it would be troublesome to bring soldiers so far to lose them in such circumstances.
    Marco: Did you do something about that?
    ___Aa: I might have, indeed. By the way, don't turn north just yet, keep heading west along this road...




    I had actually recieved word that a new Fourth Army had been raised, which would be supporting out push by taking out backline Roman holdings in the south. This came as a surprise, as before that the news was that my father's First Army was switching into offensive action.

    There must be a lot of soldiers in the Pisan army now. And we're all attacking different parts of the Roman empire. Inspirational.




    Following Our Lady's instructions we dutifully skipped the road north. It wasn't long before, as I suspected, scout reports came in of Romans marching towards Praha, and therefore us.

    We might have missed one another if my Second Army had simply headed north as initially planned.


    ___Aa: Fight battle on battlemap!




    The Romans do well to fear our heavy crossbows. Supposedly in the far east, bows are made of things like horn, bone and glue? Ours are made of solid wood and steel.

    Even a knight's solid mail is not entirely proof against a bolt from one of these at medium ranges. And horses certainly cannot absorb these without serious injury either.






    They really like to show off the various designs on their shields.




    Though they are quite well protected and even have large shields which helpers will handle for them, the standard deployment places them behind the more standard crossbow units (which are being phased out). This is less for their protection than because of the relatively shorter range of the lighter standard militia crossbows, which is about what you'd expect.

    Marco: Here they come, give it to them - crossbows!




    With enemy knights in hot pursuit, Marco's bodyguard rushed back towards Pisan lines, taking a sharp and well-practiced turn into a gap in the infantry lines that was not visible from the front (see the gap there).

    The Romans could not follow as they had been hot in pursuit, from their viewpoint the Pisan horse had simply disappeared.




    The Roman horse found themselves easy targets for our bolts and many lost their mounts. Roman dismounted knights in a close formation approached on the flank, and were able to see clearly how exactly we had laid out our infantry.

    Unfortunately for them, this "gap" was already being closely watched by the crossbowmen who were now able to make aimed shots at tired knights.




    Most of the Romans did not even manage to close with our lines, instead being shot down from range.


    (Take note here, shooting horse to death is critical. Spearmen aren't that fast at killing horse, especially really heavy stuff like general's bodyguard units, getting AI horse off the field is critical to being able to safely flank.)






    ===============================================================



    The Romans are not really as strong vis-a-vis the Pisans as everyone else might be thinking...
    Last edited by Alavaria; June 30, 2017 at 01:27 AM.

  20. #40
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: (SSHIP-Pisa) Dreadbolt: The Grey Army, II-8

    Pisa's continuing advances against the armies of the HRE are impressive. Your comment about what Pisa's crossbows are made of is nicely done and your screenshots are well done, showing the soldiers and their colourful shields against the snow.

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