[SS 6.4] Imperial Purple Never Fades

**Deepstrike101** · October 14, 2014, 12:20 PM

Imperial Purple Never Fades- A Roman AAR

Welcome, royalty and peasantry alike, to the Imperial Purple Never Fades After Action Report. This is the AAR of my campaign as the East Roman Empire, starting in the year 1220 and continuing into the decades as the Imperial family attempts to regain their lost glory.

1220 is a very difficult year, in which what remains of the East Roman Empire are three separate kingdoms struggling for survival after the Fourth Crusade ripped Constantinople- the beating heart of the Roman Empire- from the Empire's chest. To reflect the difficulty of the times and the huge adversity the Emperor faced, I am setting the campaign difficulty to very hard and the battle difficulty to hard.

I will be dividing the story into books and chapters. The chapters in a book will be united by a single underlying theme- such as the basic struggle to survive, or by the reconquest of once lost lands. There will be as many chapters per book as I need, and a new book will begin when the theme of the campaign changes.

This AAR is for your enjoyment. I will be doing my best to make it entertaining, but I am still fairly new to AARs. I received some helpful criticism in my Knights of Rhodes thread, and have improved my AARs in some ways after that. Criticism is one of the best ways to learn- so please, let me know what you think!

Table of Contents Book One: A New Era
-Prologue: Battered, but Never Beaten
-Chapter 1: The Sun Rises on Rome
-Chapter 2: Under the Cover of Darkness
-Chapter 3: Two Sunsets
-Chapter 4: Flashbacks of Trebizond
-Chapter 5: Flashbacks of Epirus
-Chapter 6: Many Battles
-Chapter 7: The Liberation of Constantinople
-Chapter 8: The Four Emperors
-Chapter 9: Symbasileus and Heir (Part 1)
-Chapter 9: The Emperor and the Sultan (Part 2)

Family Tree (Periodically Updated)

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Character List

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Additional Information

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

**Deepstrike101** · October 14, 2014, 12:25 PM

Book One: Prologue
Battered, but Never Beaten

And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that ye not be troubled,
for these things shall come to pass, and the end is not yet.

“Your highness, the watch reports more villagers outside the gate. Shall we admit them?” Mumbled the out of breath militia captain. It was an expected question.

Basileus Theodoros looked up from the map he was studying and nodded to the captain with a tinge of sadness in his expression. The captain bowed and departed towards the gatehouse, just half a hundred meters down the road. After looking at the gatehouse, deep in thought, Theodoros returned his glance back to the map.

The map had seen better days. It was faded and torn in several places. One of the edges looked like it had been consumed by moths over the years. When Theodoros had first found the map, he judged it to be at least twenty years old. The map still showed Constantinople as part of the empire, and many themas which had been lost in recent times were still labelled as Roman territory. Theodoros has a scribe scribble corrections onto the parchment, but the map remained a painful reminder to Theodoros of the lost glory and the poor state of the Roman Empire.

After the fall of Constantinople itself to the traitorous Fourth Crusade in 1204 AD, the East Roman Empire fell apart. Constantinople and the land around it became known as the Latin Empire. It was little other than a puppet state to the Bishop of Rome in Italy. To the west, Greece broke apart into three rival kingdoms- The Kingdom of Thessalonika, the Duchy of Athens, and the Principality of Achaia. To the south, Crete and Rhodes were occupied by the Venetian Trade Empire. They were used to maintain both trade and a strong naval presence, which was constantly harassing Roman trade and blockading ports. Further to the north, beyond Adrianople, lay the Kingdom of Bulgaria. The Aegean had proclaimed itself the Duchy of the Archipelago and although it considered itself a rival to the Roman Empire, there was nothing it could do militarily and was thus not a major player in the conflicts that went on. All of these new territories were highly hostile to what remained of the East Roman Empire.

Basileus Theodoros had very few allies in 1220 AD. He himself ruled the Empire of Nicaea, which he regarded as the surviving successor to the Roman Empire. His only allies in the world were the Despotate of Epirus in the west of Greece and the Empire of Trebizond on the south coast of the Black Sea. At war with most of his neighbors, Basileus Theodoros was in a truly dire strait. Basileus Theodoros focused his mind back to the matter at hand.

On the map, a stack of wooden chips with the engraved Seljuk Crescent lay to the east of the Nicaea. On Nicaea itself, lay a far smaller stack of chips with a Roman symbol on them. Theodoros picked up two chips from the side of the table and held them above the Roman stack. He then looked up at the Captain of the Guard.

“Captain Alexandros, will your contaratoi militia be trained and equipped by next winter? I would really like to have those extra 300 men if we are to fall under siege or meet the enemy in the field.”

“I believe so, your highness. We have already obtained uniforms and shields. We have spear shafts already finished and the tool smith is fashioning spearheads and daggers as we speak. I only wish that I had armor with which to protect them from the Muslim arrows. The leather tanner of this city says his shop cannot handle the volume we ask for.”

“That is unfortunate,” replied Theodoros. “Should we survive the onslaught, we must try to reequip our cities. These damned times- we cannot even provide the contaratoi companies with padded armor. My empire is truly in ruins if it has come to this. To think, that the mighty Rome cannot equip her armies in time of need…” His train of thought ended abruptly at the sound of a horn from the gates.

The city watch had opened the gates and in stumbled several hundred refugees. Several of the men were limping or otherwise wounded, and most of the women were weeping. Their village had likely been raided, and they must have been on the road for weeks. Over the last year, the Saracen army had been terrorizing the countryside, yet reluctant to attack the Roman army while it remained behind the fortified walls of Nicaea.

Theodoros looked away and released a deep sigh. It was hard to watch his people struggle, and that day he grimly made himself a promise: He would not allow Rome to fade away before the world. Rome would either restore its former glory, or go out in a blaze of glory. There would be no siege. He would take the field of battle, and make the world think twice before writing off the Roman Empire as a forgotten relic of the past.

**Deepstrike101** · October 15, 2014, 05:46 PM

I think I should get chapter one up tonight.

**Stavros_Kalmpou** · October 16, 2014, 06:20 AM

Good! an aar about the eastern roman empire... finally another one except my own! Good luck to you sir!

**Deepstrike101** · October 16, 2014, 11:59 AM

Originally Posted by Stavros_Kalmpou

Good! an aar about the eastern roman empire... finally another one except my own! Good luck to you sir!

Thank you! With all of the wars I'm tied up in, I'll need it!

In other news, I decided to slightly delay chapter one by one night to add extra narrative and quality. The family tree is updated (other than the "random children") and I am working on a character list.

**Deepstrike101** · October 16, 2014, 03:30 PM

Book One: Chapter One
The Sun Rises on Rome

"In Hoc Signo Vices"
In this Sign, Shalt Thou Conquer

Basileus Theodoros landed quite heavily, and his exhausted legs almost buckled from the landing. He had just dismounted from his horse after a forced march of 18 miles, and he could barely stand. The twilight hours would soon roll in, and it was finally time for some rest.

A member of his bodyguard, a captain by the name of Alexander (if he recalled correctly), made his way over and presented an old map of Anatolia. “We marched almost eighteen miles today, your majesty. We are right on top of the Turks’ last known position.”

Theodoros walked past Alexander, handing him the reigns to his horse as he did so. “Make sure the horse is fresh and ready for tomorrow’s battle. We have made good time and the enemy will finally stand their ground. I only fear that we may exhaust ourselves in our eagerness.” He stopped walking and turned back to Captain Alexander. “Captain, how close would you say the Turkish army is likely to be?”
“They could not be more than five miles gone,” Alexander replied. “They will either attack tomorrow morning, or tonight. By now, I believe they know they have nowhere to run.”

“An animal is most dangerous not on the hunt, but when it is backed into a corner. These Turks will likely do their best to harass us before the battles even begin. That’s what characterizes these Eastern Wars- attacks always come from around a corner, or from your back. The enemy does not stand to fight. See to it that spies and patrols are sent out, and that foraging parties do not stray far from camp.”
“It will be done, my Lord. Shall the rest of the men raise camps for the night?”

“Yes, but tell the men to sleep in armor and set up the camps according to their formation. I want to be ready should an attack come at night.” Theodoros nodded to indicate he had concluded the conversation and the captain should get moving. Immediately, Captain Alexander bowed and moved on to fulfill the emperor’s wishes.

Theodoros drank from a flask to quench his thirst as he watched his tent being set up. The sun was setting behind the distant Anatolian hills, illuminating the dust which floated over the land, as well as the sparse clouds in the sky. It was a red orange hue, and everything seemed surreal and ironically peaceful considering what was to come on the following morning. It was the calm before a storm.
Captain Alexandros returned and reported the enemy had set up camp around a nearby town, and would not attempt to attack during the night. Basileus Theodoros nodded with some satisfaction, and asked, “What is the name of the town, captain?”

“Malagina, your imperial majesty.”

“Excellent. I am retiring for the night. Set the watch and wake me upon sunrise. Early Tomorrow, we fight the Battle of Malagina.”

Battle of Malagina, Summer of 1221 AD (Click to Read)

Battle Summary

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

The Roman army had not gone unnoticed by the Seljuk Turks. The enemy general, rumored to be a tribal warlord named Captain Kasim, had rallied his men before first light and marched his army two miles west, where he took a favorable position atop a hill and prepared for battle.

Basileus Theodoros had also prepared his army and was eager to attack. The sun was rising behind his army, and he rode to the center of his line for his speech. “Men of Rome. Today, is a day of great significance. For decades, our empire has endured a long night, barely getting by. Well today, by our courage and skill at arms, we will change our fortunes. The sun rises in the favor of Rome, while the crescent of the moon sets behind the Turks. They may outnumber us, but they will never have our skill, nor God’s blessings. As the cross in the sky led Constantine to victory over his enemies, let the sun lead us on this day. Let the sun be our cross, and let victory be ours. God wills it so!”

A loud cheer of confidence rose from the crowd. His troops were ready to advance. Satisfied that his army was prepared to fight, Theodoros rode slightly back and pushed his plan into motion. The Roman cavalry would attack first and strike at the Turkish flanks, which were heavily bolstered with horse archers. The infantry would follow and strike into the Seljuk battle lines. If all went according to plan, the Turkish flanks would collapse from the cavalry attacks while their center would be forced back and broken by the heavier Roman infantry.

On the right wing, charged latinkon knights and Skythion mercenary horse archers. On the left was Basileus Theodoros himself, leading his cataphract bodyguards and some lighter cavalry. Typically, Roman armies of this time would lead a strong cavalry attack from the right flank, and the enemy was sure to expect this. A strong charge on the more vulnerable flank of the enemy, on the left, would leave their whole formation vulnerable. As long as the Roman cavalry on the right flank could keep the enemy horse archers there tied up, Theodoros’s army would have a free cavalry arm and a significant advantage.

Dust clouds rose as the Roman cavalry began their attack against the Turks’ flanks. Warlord Kasim had prepared his lines in a deep formation with several companies of archers both in front and behind of his spearmen, and his horse archers were ready for battle on the flanks. As the Roman cavalry came into range, they let loose a shower of arrows upon the advancing Roman cavalry. As arrows rained down, Theodoros realized he had misjudged the enemy’s capabilities. Although his cataphracts mostly shrugged off most of the arrows, Theodoros knew the lighter cavalry was vulnerable. The strataroi which rode alongside the cataphracts lost many horses to the arrow storm. If the cavalry had continued on its present course, it would have ended up taking enfilading fire from the Turks.

Improvising, Theodoros yelled to one of his bodyguards. “It’s a trap! We need to divert right and charge their archers. Sound the charge!” The cataphract grasped a horn hanging around his neck and blew into it, creating a long, deep note. The stratatoi, which had ridden faster, understood the order. They immediately turned right and crashed into the Turkish lines, which were taken by surprise. Theodoros and his bodyguards also turned to the right. Unlike the charge of western knights, the cataphract charge was no faster than a gallop. Nonetheless, it rammed through the archers and into some spear militia behind them. The enemy archers and horse archers ceased firing, afraid of hitting their own men caught in melee. The Roman cavalry on the left flank was temporarily stuck, but still quite alive.

On the right flank, the Roman cavalry had not been so lucky. Their eagerness, particularly of the mercenary latinkon knights, resulted in their isolation from the other Roman forces. Dozens of mercenaries fell to arrows, and surprisingly almost all of the Skythion were immediately unhorsed. The last several men, seeing their friends cut down by arrows, began an organized retreat. The latinkon knights held on, and continued their charge against the Turkish horse archers, but were taking heavy casualties.

At last, the Roman infantry arrived. At this point, Theodoros’s cataphracts had strewn disorder among the enemy lines and seeing reinforcements arrive, he ordered his cavalry on the left flank to pull out of the melee. The stratatoi immediately began being showered by arrows and they turned their attention to the horse archers. Theodoros and his cataphracts were too slow to chase down enemy cavalry, so they chose to stay near the infantry fight.

Two companies of heavy archers had fallen further behind the Turkish lines and were now raining arrows onto Romans. The Roman cataphracts made their way behind the enemy lines and attacked these archers. Unlike the lighter Turkish archers the cataphracts had charged earlier, these men were well equipped and trained for melee. Wearing chain armor from head to toe and armed with a shield and sword in addition to their bows, the Turks stood their ground and took the Roman charge.

In the meantime, the Roman line was having a good amount of success. Led by Captain Alexander, whom Basileus Theodoros had ordered to accompany the Varangian guard, they were pushing through the enemy spearmen. The heavy infantry of the Romans outnumbered that of the Saracens, and Alexander ordered a final push against the enemy. Formed up in an unbreakable shield wall, the scoutatoi under Alexander’s command smashed into the enemy formation, and began to push them back with their mass alone. As the enemy men were knocked down, they were immediately trampled by the advancing Romans.

As the Roman line stressed the enemy line to a breaking point, Theodoros’s cataphracts finished off the enemy archers and charged what remained of the horse archers. Soon, the heavily armored cataphracts routed these, and turned their attention to the entirely open backs of the enemy infantry.

While the slaughter inflicted by the professional Roman infantry was already sapping morale from the Saracen militia, they could stand their ground and fight for a while longer, hoping for some sort of intervention on behalf of their warlord. Being trapped between the immovable shield wall of scoutatoi and the unstoppable force of the cataphract charge, was an entirely different matter. Distracted by the scoutatoi, most of the Saracen militia only noticed the approaching threat when a dozen men went flying forward through the ranks, and another dozen stumbled forward, knocking down their brethren. Amidst all the chaos, and then the realization of their situation, there was no way the militia would stand their ground. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, they began to flee violently, push, shove, and trample each other to break out.

The enemy’s flank collapsed and the Roman infantry began to envelop the rest of the enemy army, quickly routing another hundred enemy men. As the cataphracts rode past the Varangian guard, Theodoros yelled to Alexander, “Continue the advance. Push through the enemy and run them from this hill! I will take care of Kasim.” With that, he diverted his cataphracts against the enemy bodyguard, and surviving horse archers, which had been skirmishing with the stratatoi.

The two elite forces of cavalry met on the left flank, and a melee ensued. Freed up from the right flank, the Latinkon charged into the rear of the Kasim’s bodyguards. Before long, the Romans held a decisive advantage. Suddenly, something changed in the demeanor of the Turkish cavalry. Fear showed on their faces, and many began to yell something in Arabic. Basileus Theodoros, who was in the thick of the fighting, could make out the name, Kasim. He did not speak Arabic, but deduced that the enemy warlord likely lay slain.

What few Seljuk forces were left on the battlefield broke after seeing Kasim’s bodyguards fleeing, and ran for the hills in all different directions. Some Roman cavalry pursued the enemy infantry, but Theodoros was rather pleasantly surprised by a shout from one of his bodyguards and told his cataphracts to hold off the pursuit. Two cataphracts dismounted and dragged before Theodoros a bloodied, but alive, Kasim.

The two cataphracts threw Kasim to the ground, prompting swearing in Arabic. The Greek speaking Basileus Theodoros laughed. “Well, it’s all ~~Greek~~Arabic to me! We’ll see if we can get a ransom for this… I don’t want to say dog, that would give him too much credit. Puppy, maybe?” His men laughed and one spat in the direction of the warlord. “Someone, give this dog some wine.” He turned his gaze back towards the warlord. “Well Kasim, until we hear back from your desert friends, you’re going to get to know the inside of Nicaea’s prison very, very, well.” He smiled- it was the first time he could gloat about a Roman victory. “Send him away, and make sure he is secure. The rest of you, accompany me.”

Basileus Theodoros rode to where the rest of the Roman lines were. Men were roaming around, collecting some Turks as prisoners and ending others. Those with knowledge of tending to wounds were treating many of the Roman wounded. Theodoros approaching, Alexander bowed, and spoke. “Victory is ours, your imperial majesty. The Turkish infantry has fled and we are counting our dead and wounded.”

Theodoros smiled with pride at the mention of victory. “Yes, captain. Today will be remembered as the end of Rome’s long night and the beginning of a new era of reconquest. Tonight, we shall march to Malagina and feast to our victory, and to many more.

Battle Summary
Basileus Theodoros led his forces in a fairly decisive victory against a larger Seljuk force. By attacking the enemy's cavalry on the flanks with his own, he allowed his superior infantry to break through the enemy line. Although the Roman cavalry had difficulty on the right flank and many Roman horses were killed by Turkish archers, Rome secured cavalry superiority and was able to scatter the Seljuk army and capture its leader, Captain Kasim. This victory, although leading to some casualties among the Romans, gave Theodoros some breathing space to begin regrouping and reorganizing his empire.

**Deepstrike101** · October 20, 2014, 09:44 PM

Book One: Chapter Two
Under the Cover of Darkness

"Order makes men bold, and confusion, cowards."

After his victory in the Battle of Malagina, Basileus Theodoros began immediate reforms to his armies and infrastructure. Several land clearances were commissioned throughout his empire, and he also arranged for the construction of leather tanners and blacksmiths to armor his armies. The emperor’s victory had forced the Seljuk Sultanate to temporarily abandon the prospect of invading Nicaea in the north. To the south, however, a small Seljuk army had set its sights on Smyrna. Much of the armies from the south of the realm had been sent to Nicaea earlier in the year, and Smyrna was vulnerable.

The strategos of Smyrna was none other than Symbasileus Ioannis, son in law of Theodoros. Although Smyrna was not an important center such as Nicaea, many noble cataphracts had accompanied Ioannis when he travelled south to govern it, and so the city was not entirely undefended. Nonetheless, without proper information about the incoming army, Ioannis wished to be cautious. Taking the field against an army full of heavy cavalry or horse archers could be disastrous even for his cataphracts. Instead, Ioannis decided to train some more militia and prepare for a siege.

The long awaited Saracen force was taking its time- likely pillaging along the way. Finally though, in the winter of 1222 AD, it arrived outside the walls of Smyrna.

Ioannis was enjoying the hot water of his personal bathhouse. He understood that few outside of Roman nobility could enjoy such things, and he was quite grateful to be able to indulge in the pleasure of this luxury. He had been soaking in his bath for the better part of an hour when the screaking of the door woke him from his sleep. He turned around and grinned seeing his wife, Irena Laskarina, walk in. She was constantly away, talking to nobles or the other classes. She was a religious woman and very socially involved, often travelling to stress the importance of religion and morality to her subjects. She was far more modest than her husband, and preferred horses and society more than the luxuries of a bathhouse.

“Welcome back, Irena. Come on in, honey. It’s been a while since you’ve joined me for a bath. Or are you here for something else?” He turned around some more and noticed how distraught and exhausted she looked. “You look like you have been riding for days straight! What has happened?”

“Hello, my dear. My escorts and I have been riding almost nonstop for two days. We nearly encountered the Turkish army, and we have raced them here. They are not far behind.” She walked over to the bathtub and kisses her husband before continuing. “My father sends his regrets that he is unable to send reinforcements, for he says a great Turkish army gathers to the east, and he will once more have to take the field at Malagina. He has confidence in you though, Ioannis. One of my escorts rode to scout the enemy, and he says they are only half a thousand in strength, and without cavalry.”

“Thank you, Irena. You must take a bath and sleep to recover your strength. I must take care of this matter now.” He slumped, letting the water up to his chin, and relishing the last few moments of the hot water on his skin. Then, with great reluctance, he climbed out. “Irena, please hand me that towel…”

Ioannis stood on the ramparts, looking out into the arid plains where the enemy army, which he estimated to be composed of 600 men, was setting up camp. The Turks were evidently tired from their march and, with the sun beginning to set, they decided to pitch their tents rather than encircle the city and build fortifications to box in the Romans.

The young Symbasileus, a man only 25 years of age, but gifted with a natural talent for command and a military education, felt confident in victory. The time for baths was over, and the time for a saddle and a sword was at hand. He was dressed in the finest lamellar armor, with gold trimmings on his helmet, and a robe flowing from his shoulders. Several of his cataphracts stood near him, their armor also glimmering with the last rays of the sun. Once an unproven son in law to the emperor, Ioannis now stood as a symbol of hope for the people of Smyrna, and he would show that he embodied this symbol for a reason.

“Captain Sergius. What do you make of them?”

“They are stricken with audacity. To set up camp within three hundred meters of our walls? That is quite bold!”

“Yes, it rather is. They are over confident. Though I think, they may be well trained. Those spearmen and archers seem well armored. I believe they are not levies. What is their deadly sin, Sergius?”

“Islam, lord?”

“Well… uh… yeah, that too. But I was thinking more along the lines of pride. Now tell me, captain. Why is it called a deadly sin?”

“It is a sin that poisons their souls and leads them to ruin.”

“Yes. I don’t believe these Turks go to confession, do they?”

“I would not know, my lord.”

“Tonight, I say we let them confess to our swords, which will absolve them of further performing their sins on Earth. The enemy are confident in their safety and superiority. If we can sally forth during the night, the enemy will be taken by surprise. ”

“Your wisdom is truly as boundless as the seas beyond Spain, sire.”

“Gather the men, we will attack at midnight. Position the toxotae on the walls and the contaratoi at the gate. I intend to ride out and meet the enemy.”

Battle of Smyrna, 1222 AD (Click to Read)

Battle Summary

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Sorry for the faded images. I was trying to make the battle lighter by turning up the brightness- which for some reason only affected Fraps.

Within hours, and darkness had fallen. As quietly as possible, the Roman army was assembled on the Northeast wall of the city. As Symbasileus Ioannis had ordered, toxotae were positioned on the ramparts and contaratoi stood behind the walls, near the gatehouse. Ioannis, now atop a great steed, whispered to his cataphracts. “We will quietly sally forth. It will not take long for the enemy to see that we are attacking, so we must be swift and fearless. God is with us tonight, and victory must be ours.” Then, he addressed the captains of the contaratoi. “My cataphracts will be the first to sally. However, should we be overwhelmed by the enemy, I shall blow this horn. Shall this horn sound, you will rally and come to our aid- and the enemy will surely be crushed. God bless us tonight.”

Without another word, he drew his sword and waved the attack. A militiaman opened the gates, and the cataphracts rode forth through the night like phantom riders of death. Only moments later, a frightened Turkish voice pierced the darkness. “Oloom yaklashimlar! Geri chekilme!” Death Approaches! Retreat!

Suddenly, the enemy army was on its feet. Most of the Turks had not taken off their armor, either because they were too tired from the day’s march or because they were afraid that Roman militia might try to sneak into their camp. They slept with their weapons, and it only took several seconds for them to jump to their feet, armed. However, they were not ready to stand their ground. Many of them were in panic, surprised that the Romans were attacking the camp with strength. Groups began to peel off from the camp, and more and more troops ran from the cataphracts. As they ran, they finally reformed into semi-cohesive units.

Still, they were not prepared to receive the Roman attacks. Several companies of Turks absorbed the charge at once. Many of them had stopped and charged at the Romans, while some where caught still running away. Ioannis rode to the left of his men, striking at an enemy archer as he rode into the Turkish mob. He thrust his long sword again, stabbing into the chest of an enemy. Invigorated and eager to fight, he slammed his stirrups into his warhorse, propelling him further into the mob, and knocking several Turks back. He continued to stab and slash and the Turks around him, and his cataphracts did the same.

Slashing yet another azab, Ioannis noticed something. He reared his horse and the enemies in front of him stumbled back, in fear of its hooves. With the second this bought him, Ioannis glanced up. There were men- probably a company or two, standing behind the mob of Turks he had been fighting. Dozens of little fires appeared, and Ioannis gasped. “Archers!” A hundred fire arrows whizzed through the darkness, over the heads of the Turks and into the cataphracts. Two arrows ricocheted off of the symbasileus’s armor, but captain Sergius was not as lucky. He was hit by several, and one lodged itself in his cheek. Screaming, he fell from his saddle and writhed on the ground before a dozen hooves and boots trampled his life to a miserable end.

Ioannis screamed with rage at the sight of his friend’s demise. “A thousand sins be upon you! I will smite you for this! Athanatoi, with me! We shall show these damned archer hell spawns how real men fight!” With that cry for a rally, he sounded the horn he spoke of earlier to the militia. He galloped away from the Turkish mob, and his cataphracts followed. Once they were disengaged, he dug his stirrups into his horse’s sides, and charged around the mob and at the Turkish archers.

The archers were just about to loose another volley of fire arrows when the cataphracts broke their ranks. Seeing an archer about to release an arrow at a cataphract to his left, Symbasileus rode up to him and brought down his sword with such zeal that it may as well have been the hammer of God he was holding. The sword cleaved the archer’s forehead in two. Now, with many of their lances broken, and their desire for blood mounting, the cataphracts really pitched into the melee, Ioannis at their forefront. Behind them attacked much of the Turkish mob they had charged earlier, but they were no match for the Romans’ zealous rage.

In the meantime, three companies of contaratoi had been running towards the cataphracts. Seeing torches approaching in the distance, some Sipahi spearmen turned their attention to this Roman militia instead of the far more terrifying cataphracts which had nearly broken their lines earlier. They marched towards the contaratoi, until they were finally close. Then, the two lines charged each other. The Sipahi spearmen were feudal land owners, much like European knights. Many of them were even Christian. They were well trained warriors and could stand their own quite well against Roman levies. Initially, they started pushing back the Roman militia, but their attack quickly ran out of steam. Worse yet, they had underestimated the commanders of the Roman militia. The contaratoi had approached as a line, but the center had received most of the charge while the flanks continued their advance. Now, the Roman flanks wrapped around the Turks, who continued to hold their ground despite increasingly bleak odds.

The cataphracts, having finished with the archers, azabs, and other Turks, noticed the battle between the contaratoi and the Sipahi spearmen. Quickly, Ioannis turned his horse to face them. “Athanatoi! If your lance is broken, take a spear from the ground. We are going to finish off those dogs!” Once the men had grabbed spears and formed a line, the cataphracts charged for the last time.

The Sipahi routed when the sounding of hooves became apparent. They had been losing the battle against the contaratoi militia, and now panic set in. When the charge hit, they were utterly unprepared. In just moments, most of the Sipahi were trampled, lanced, or speared. The few who remained alive made a break for the hills far away in the distance. Exhausted, the cataphracts gave chase, but soon their desire to continue the chase died out. Their horses were slow. Their arms ached. Many were bleeding. Ioannis called off the chase, finally parking his horse and yelling into the distance. “Run! Run you desert scum! Run and pray to your heathen God that you never see a Roman on the field of battle again, for that day will truly be your last!”

The victorious Roman army returned to the city, where the illumination of fire finally showed the more gruesome aspects of battle. Catching his breath, Ioannis noticed the amount of blood that had been spilled that night. His horse had red smudged all over it. Most of it was the enemy’s blood, but in some places, there were minor wounds as well. He himself had a spear point painfully jabbed at his thigh earlier in the night. It was not a large cut, but as the adrenaline of battle wore off, the pain finally set in. He dismounted from his horse and limped towards Irena. She was waiting by the town hall to treat his wounds.

Battle Summary
Under the zealous command of Symbasileus Ioannis, the Athanatoi cataphracts surprised a well equipped Turkish force during the night. The Turks initially fled, but were chased down and forced to fight. Suffering light casualties, many from Turkish archers, the cataphracts managed to defeat most of the enemy army. A company of dismounted Sipahi lancers attacked some contaratoi militia which had also sallied and were slowly advancing, but were defeated and finally devastated by a charge from the rear by Roman cavalry. The battle ended with a heroic victory to Rome, which sustained only 50 casualties while destroying a 600 man strong Turkish force.

With this crushing victory at Smyrna, Ioannis eagerly scribbled a letter to his father in law, Theodoros. The southern realm, he wrote, was secured by the valor and skill of Roman arms. Of equal importance, he had received a letter from his Doukas relatives, rulers of the Despotate of Epirus. He forwarded this letter to Theodoros. Their plans were starting to take shape.

**Deepstrike101** · October 21, 2014, 02:58 PM

I partially updated the character list, adding in all of the male rulers as of 1221 AD. After I post chapter 4, I will add in all other characters thus far mentioned in the story. The idea behind the character list is to obtain additional information about certain characters, or to quickly consult it if you forget who a character was. The characters who had a history before 1220 AD have parts of their real life biography included. Some character descriptions may be short, but they will increase in length as the character lives on in the AAR and becomes more significant to the story. If a character does not participate in any battles or important actions in his life, I will still try to dedicate a chapter to him in some form.

**m_1512** · October 25, 2014, 12:18 PM

Excellent AAR. The quotes at the top of chapters is really an immersion plus. On few things I would like is some mention of court interactions, side plots, some maps and pics accompanying them.

**Deepstrike101** · October 27, 2014, 11:38 AM

Originally Posted by m_1512

Excellent AAR. The quotes at the top of chapters is really an immersion plus. On few things I would like is some mention of court interactions, side plots, some maps and pics accompanying them.

Thank you!

Sure, I can certainly work on weaving in some of those. I'll have to read a few AARs to figure out how that it done, but I will make sure to include some court interactions/plots in chapter 4.

I am working on finishing chapter 3 at the moment, which will focus on several battles for the Empire of Nicaea. Chapter 4 will focus on Trebizond's and Epirus's battles and politics. I intend to weave in the loyalty conflicts these two kingdoms are having towards the Empire of Nicaea, and their own internal going-ons.

Chapter 3 will likely go up tonight, and I should finish chapter 4 by Thursday.

EDIT: I decided to change some things around with the chapters, and so it took a little bit longer than expected to post. Anyways, here is chapter 3, with some court interactions. Hope you enjoy.

**Deepstrike101** · October 28, 2014, 03:03 PM

Book One: Chapter Three
Two Sunsets

We went to Greece, and they took us where they worship their God,
and we do not know whether we were in heaven or upon earth,
for there is not upon earth such sight or beauty.

As though with a box of brightly colored oil pastels, the sun boldly painted the horizon with all hues of orange, yellow, and red. The daylight was fleeing, now replaced by this short-lived, yet glamorous, fluorescent display. Basileus Theodoros stood at a window of the city hall, using the last of this beautiful light to read a letter sent to him by his son in law, Symbasileus Ioannis, from Smyrna.

This letter was a paraphrased summary of another letter from the Despotate of Epirus.

If you are too lazy to figure out what the letter says:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

Basileus Theodoros smiled gently and set the letter aside, on the railing. He looked at the fading sunlight as twilight replaced it. This was his favorite time of day. The air was cool and there was little wind. The city seemed so quiet and pleasant. In times like this, he thought back to his days spent in the heart of the Roman Empire before its fall.

Many Years Ago...Under a Different Sunset

It must have been the single greatest room in the world. Theodoros Laskaris stared, awed, at the dome far above him. That grand church, the Hagia Sophia, never ceased to amaze him. The sunset's light flowed through the window and seemed to swirl around the dome, finally coming down towards the floor. It formed a symphony with the red, orange, and yellow paint, and amplified the gold which trimmed the icons decorating the walls. There was an indescribable, holy, energy which congregated in the center of the dome.

The evening service was ending, and confessions were about to begin. The Patriarch finished a prayer, and retreated to a stand near the back of the church, to which a line was then formed. Feeling already purged by the holy atmosphere of any wrongdoings he may have committed during the week, Laskaris decided to skip the confession. Instead, he made his way out, stopping in the garden to admire the sunset.

Between the towering Hagia Sophia, the lush green vegetation, and the brilliant light reflecting from the clouds, Theodoros felt as though he were in heaven. No marvel of the ancient world could compare to this splendor, he thought.

His serenity was slightly put off by a voice from behind him.

"You feel you have no need to go to confession, Laskaris?"

"Theodoros Doukas, I have never known you to be a man concerned with religion. If you were, you would feel that standing here is confession enough. There is no place more holy."

"Still, a man can never know if his life will end the next day or today. Be careful, you know how easily royalty can vanish these days... Especially with crusaders outside the wall..."

Annoyed, Laskaris turned around to glare at Doukas, who was sporting a smirk. "Doukas, can you not spend a moment without plotting the Empire's downfall?"

"Plotting? A Doukas does not plot! I am only saying, that Alexios III is a danger to our empire. Did you not see him lead his force of 8,500 retreat in the face of a Crusader force half the size, without even giving battle? Or do you pretend that Alexios IV will be a benevolent ruler should the crusaders gain victory? Soon, there will be a purge, and a rightful ruler shall be placed upon the throne."

"That is treason! You know he is my father in law. Besides, who would you make emperor? Yourself? Michael Komnenos Doukas?"

"Peace, Laskaris. I do not wish to anger you or become enemies. On the contrary, you have proved yourself valuable. At least you gave the crusaders battle at Scutari while your father in law was attempting to bribe the invaders. We could be powerful allies, Laskaris. As coemperors, we may restore the Roman legacy which many emperors have soiled."

Theodoros Laskaris dropped his voice to a whisper and walked up to Doukas. "I shall hear no more of this. I agree about the incompetence of my father in law, but what would the people say if we obtained power the same way as him? No, I will not let myself be remembered as the ringleader of a coupe against my own father in law. Maybe a day will come when we will restore Rome, but with God as my witness, upon the steps of the greatest church on Earth, I tell you: You shall not lay a finger on the emperor, or an eye on the throne, or God help me..." He distanced himself from Doukas a little before continuing. "The city's fall is soon at hand. Our mercenaries are deserting. The others are failing in courage or morale. It pains me, and I will fight until the city falls, but it is undeniable that Alexios III will not stay on the throne for long. Have patience. One day, we may be allies, and we will have our chance."

Theodoros Doukas nodded in understanding. "Alright, Laskaris. I'll play your game." He looked sternly at Theodoros Laskaris, turned slowly, and began to walk away.

Alexios Komnenos approached and watched Doukas leave. "Doukas was plotting again?"

Theodoros Laskaris looked at his friend. "He says that a Doukas does not plot." He let out a controlled burst of laughter. "Though I suspect he cannot wait to get his paws on the throne. Offered me an alliance of sorts, but I told him that only the future will hold that prospect."

Alexios nodded, frowning for a moment. "Well, Theodoros, only time will tell. I must hurry home, but you be safe. We will meet again. God be with you."

"May God be with you as well. We will all need his help before the end."

**m_1512** · October 30, 2014, 09:23 AM

Nice, this is what I was talking about - a mysterious sub-plot of the past, which adds something in future updates. Waiting to see how to take this plot.

**Alwyn** · October 31, 2014, 02:46 AM

Great story-telling and use of images.

**Deepstrike101** · November 04, 2014, 02:58 PM

If you like mysterious subplots, you will love the next couple of chapters. I've been really busy the last few days (and travelling a lot) which made it difficult to write stories with lots of images to upload (ie, battles). This means I'm being forced to write more court interactions, and while reading Wikipedia for historic ideas and information, I have stumbled upon several incredibly intriguing plotlines for both the Empire of Trebizond and the Despotate of Epirus will make great flashbacks.

We may also see the Empire of Nicaea and Theodoros Laskaris cast in a slightly darker light than previously, so I am excited to write these stories.

**Deepstrike101** · November 06, 2014, 04:13 PM

Book One: Chapter Four
Flashbacks of Trebizond

There is no greater pain than to remember
a happy time when one is in misery

The thin high pitched sound of the harbor bell again sliced into Emperor Alexios’s focus. Sitting out on his balcony overlooking the harbor, he could hear it all too clearly. He lay down the quill with which he had been writing a bill, and rubbed his forehead in a sign of exhaustion. He stood up slowly, painfully aware of an ache in his side. Alexios leaned over his table and released several hard coughs, nearly falling over. His advisor came running over to support him. He waved the adviser off and proceeded to limp over to the stone railing of the balcony.

Alexios looked at the harbor and back at his advisor. “What is so damn important at the harbor today that they have been ringing that bell all morning? It disturbs my calm.”

“Galleys are arriving from Rus’, your highness. I did not wish to interrupt your work, but one of them gave me a letter from their Duma and another from Theodoros Laskaris, Basileus of Nicaea. They are here.” The adviser bowed and moved back so a servant carrying a small box decorated with gold could walk past him to Alexios. The servant bowed too and extended the box.

Alexios opened the box and extracted two letters. He broke the seals and read through both of them. He placed them back in the box afterwards and walked back to the railing, silently gazing out to the harbor. He stood like that for a while before speaking, but his furrowed brow and heavy breathing indicated that his mind was racing.

“Do you know what these letters say?” Alexios exclaimed. The advisor shook his head, so Alexios continued. “Basileus of Rome, Theodoros Laskaris… is poised to strike at Constantinople. He has the support of Kiev, now. Those ships in the harbor were merchants?” The advisor nodded. “This… this is intolerable. He has arranged a trade pact with the Russians not only for the Empire of Nicaea, but on behalf of Trebizond as well!” Alexios began to cough and a servant rushed to his aid, helping him back to his seat.

“Laskaris thinks that because he has beaten back some Turkish armies, he is now entitled as Basileus of Rome. You know, he and I were once friends, for I occasionally visited Constantinople while I lived in Georgia, but he has attacked Paphlagonia and taken out territories, among all his past sins. Now, he treats us as a vassal. Perhaps my brother was right about Nicaea and the treachery of the Laskaris name.”

“Your brother, sire… did you not order him locked away to the monastery many years ago?”

“Yes, but as you said, that was a long time ago…”

The City Hall of Trebizond, The Night of the 23rd of April, 1204 AD

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

"So tonight, I propose a toast to our great victory over Trebizond and to the many future victories that await us! Georgia will provide us with many funds and soldiers, and with the help of my generous relatives, especially Tamar of Georgia, we will cleanse the Roman Empire of corruption. Perhaps you will all be even more elated, however, to hear that Constantinople's evil emperor, Alexios III has been deposed! Today, I received news from a friend that Constantinople has fallen to Alexios IV and his crusading mercenaries! Now, the reconquest of a new Rome, under our soon to be restored Komnenos dynasty of me and my brother, David, can begin." Alexios Komnenos, or Alexios I of Trebizond as he would soon be known, held a large cup of wine towards the ceiling and, to enthusiastic applause from the nobles at the table, downed it in one go.

The party continued late into the night, and finally ended when a drunk Georgian knight tried to dance on the table, slipped on a dish of chicken, and fell to the floor. The servants swarmed around, quickly carrying the injured knight out of the room. Alexios declared the party a great success, made another toast, and vaguely recalled that he had some important business to attend to.

The important business awaited him in a small, dimly lit, room beneath the city hall. Alexios stumbled in, obviously drunk. The Nicene diplomat in the room was livid with anger, and his face was blood red. "Alexios, how dare you style yourself emperor of Rome? You have forgotten your place. Laskaris will not take this lightly."

"Laskaris? What do I... what do I care about Theo? Who is he anyways, now? Son in law of a deposed emperor is who."

"Theodoros Laskaris is the rightful heir to the Roman throne. He is the rightful ruler of Trebizond as well!"

"Laskaris, he is a nobody. His father in law was a usurper and Theodoros has no claim to the.. the uh... the throne. But look at David and me. We are conquerors of Trebizond. We are Komnenos. I will be Rome's new emperor."

The diplomat was turning redder. "You are a Georgian. You hardly even speak Greek! Visiting Constantinople and knowing Laskaris and some other nobles does not make you Roman. You have no place in Constantinople. I suggest that you do not make an enemy out of the Roman lands."

"How dare you? I am emperor of Trebizond! Soon, I shall become emperor of Constantinople. Tell Laskaris that he has no right to usurp a Komnenos. Our past friendship will not keep me from obtaining my rightful place."

"Lord Laskaris will not stand for your insults or your arrogant claims to the throne of Rome."

"If that is how Theodoros feels, then let it be known: I declare war to whatever pathetic state he can gather for himself. I will defeat him and take back what is mine. On behalf of our past friendship, I will spare him when he is defeated... but he will not keep me from my destiny!" Alexios threw his metal cup at the diplomat in his drunken rage. "Let him know what I say!" He then grabbed a guard by the shoulder. "I need more wine! Now!"

"I woke up the following night with the strongest hangover of my life, and it took me nearly a week to piece together what had happened in that room. By the time I came to my senses, it was too late to change the course history would take. I would have to live with the repercussions I had brought upon myself and upon my empire. Laskaris saw my conquest of Trebizond as treason and, ironically, saw me as a usurper. I wish I could change what I did and said that night... but the damage was truly done.

Still, I thought myself in the right and did not appreciate the weight of the consequences I would suffer, until four years later."

The Imperial Palace of Trebizond, A Day in November 1208 AD

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

"That was really the start of a rift between my brother an me which would continue throughout the years. Ultimately, it was not something that could be settled through words. David continued to defy my and ally himself with the Latin Empire. Eventually, his half of Trebizond was little more than a puppet state to the Latin Empire. I would not let that stand."

Alexios coughed a while and entered deep thought for a moment. His face shifted into a pained expression as he recalled the ultimate end to that conflict.

"Though I knew something had to be done, I could not easily bring myself to turn against my brother. I did not want to kill him or blind him, so I delayed it all for as long as I could. Finally, he left me no choice. Although David sent his delegation to Henry of Flanders in September 1208 and with his help, managed to scare Laskaris into abandoning the siege, Laskaris remained undeterred. After defeating the Turks, he forced them into an alliance against us. He again invaded in 1212. At this time, I was at odds with David, and I refused to send him the extremely needed reinforcements. He tried to turn to the Latin Empire for assistance again, but he was given a condition. He would only receive their aid if he would surrender our territories and become a vassal to Henry, who was the Latin Emperor at that time. David agreed, but I would not let this happen."

An Abandoned Village in the West of the Trebizond Empire, A Night in 1212 AD

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

"I really never did see David again. He was imprisoned on my orders, but tried to escape to the Latin Empire. As I had instructed in such a scenario, the guards I had assigned to detain him brought him back to the monastery and made sure he could not escape once more. He was blinded, and I was told that he died of these wounds on December 12th of 1212 AD."

Alexios closed his eyes for several seconds, seemingly in regret of the past. "We ended up conceding many of our lands to Laskaris, and even more to the Turks. My family and the nobility never truly forgave me for my actions against David. I was captured while hunting outside of Sinope during a siege, and tortured in front of the walls. My sons and many loyal nobles were inside, but they refused to surrender in order to spare me. I have drawn the ire of many of my subjects, and this feud finally tore my empire apart. Look where we are now. Our territories are nothing more than a shade of their former selves. Our armies are weak and..." He closed his eyes again, struggling to express the painful truth. "We may not be a vassal to the Latin Empire, but we are certainly a vassal to Laskaris and Nicaea."

The advisor butted in. "But sire, we are independent and our armies are strong. We are not lost yet."

"Are we not? Georgia, basically my home, was just captured by the Turks. We are isolated from Europe and the rest of Rome. Laskaris has consolidated his power, and in my foolishness, I have sent armies to aid him against the Latin Empire."

"But sire, the troops you sent, combined with those of Theodoros Doukas, may restore peace and bring you the throne of Rome."

"Yes. The plan Doukas and I have created must work, or Laskaris will rule us all. No matter what past friendship he and I had, I, for one, do not wish to be a vassal."

**Deepstrike101** · November 11, 2014, 03:05 PM

Book One: Chapter Five
Flashbacks of Epirus

No enterprise is more likely to succeed than one concealed
from the enemy until it is ripe for execution.

Theodoros Komnenos Doukas could immediately tell that Ioannis was not pleased about something. Theodoros had just ridden through Arta's gates with his bodyguards when he saw his oldest son pushing through the welcoming procession crowd towards him. Theodoros groaned in his mind, guessing why his son was angry, and quickly looked away, wishing to delay the conversation for as long as possible.

Ioannis Doukas was now within 10 paces when he started calling for Theodoros. "Father! Father!" Theodoros held his gaze straight forward, pretending not to notice him. It was rather futile. Ioannis continued to pursue him, finally catching up and breaking through the crowd, and grabbing Theodoros's horse by the reigns. Theodoros was forced to stop.

"Ioannis! I did not see you there. How are you, my son?"

"Father, I am distressed at your decision."

"Forgive me, I do not know what you are referring to. Should you clarify, perhaps I could put your mind to rest."

"Your orders last year... to send our best men to aid Nicaea in taking Constantinople. I do not mean to question your experience and judgment, but I see not one reason on God's green Earth that we should help the enemy so."

Theodoros sighed. "We are holding up the procession. Walk with me and I will explain. Also, talk quieter for we do not wish all to hear. The houses have eyes and the streets have ears."

"Yes, father."

"Also, stand up straight like a man. You spend so much time reading books and scriptures you resemble a priest more than my heir."

"Father..."

"You should have been born a priest! Then you could bury yourself in books without worry."

"I wish I had been."

"Nonsense. And Ioannis, have you seen your city? It is filthy! That man looks like he is starving. Son, when was the last time you participated in the affairs of this place?"

"I am twenty-one, father. I do govern, but there are more important things than insisting that peasants polish their houses or that the rabble is well fed. Besides, do not change the topic. I want an explanation to you sending our enemies troops."

Theodoros again sighed and slumped a little in his saddle, for his efforts to distract his son were thwarted. "Alright. Wait until we are out of the crowd." They walked for another minute before finally leaving the procession behind them. Then, he continued. "I trust you know of Alexios Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond?"

"Yes, what of him?"

"He and I are... acquainted."

"I presume you knew him before the fall of Constantinople?"

"Yes. We were both younger. He was part royal Georgian blood and part royal Roman blood. Anyways, though he lived in Georgia for many of his years, he would also occasionally come to Constantinople. He was a friend of Theodoros Laskaris, and I was ambivalent to them both, though I tried at different times to incite them against that fool, Basileus Alexios III. Neither would join me, and my efforts were thus wasted."

"So what bearing does this have on the present?"

"Though Alexios was a friend of Theodoros's, he desired to restore the Komnenos dynasty to power. Though he knew he could not take Constantinople, he used his extensive ties to Georgian royalty, along with a fair amount of empty promises and flattery, to raise an army and take Trebizond with his brother. This alone would have angered Theodoros as a Roman, but since he became the Nicene emperor and made a claim to the Roman throne shortly after, he was infuriated. Since then, Alexios has been an enemy to Theodoros."

"I still do not see where you are going with this..."

"Have patience. After this feud began, I did my best to make out of that schism a canyon. To a large degree, I succeeded. I was, at the time, in the service of Theodoros Laskaris..."

The West Bank of the River Sangarios, December 1208 AD

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

"...Since then, Alexios and I were in a steady correspondence. I told him much of Laskaris's plans. I drove Laskaris's nobles against his will when possible. I even got over my hatred of the deposed Alexios III and began to feed him and the Sultan information in an attempt to convince them to invade Nicaea."

"You were trying to get an enemy of Rome to invade?"

"Yes, I realize this sounds bad... but once Nicaea was weakened, Trebizond would lend me its support and I could get rid of Laskaris and Alexios III."

"But why? Laskaris seems like a rather competent emperor and Alexios III Angelos did not appear a major threat."

"You knew Michael Komnenos. My half brother who ruled Epirus before me. He was ruler at the time, and I figured that if I were to seize control of Nicaea, I could unite two of our three Greek states. With Epirus and Nicaea as allies instead of enemies, we could retake Constantinople. Better yet, once my Michael died, I would likely inherit Epirus as well. That would unite much of Rome. Laskaris, competent as he may have been as an emperor, stood in the way of my ambitions and in the way of a reunited Rome."

"Very well, but if you were such an enemy of Laskaris, why aid him now?"

Theodoros grinned. "I have not yet told you everything. See, Laskaris was becoming more and more suspicious as time went on. This was a problem, and I had to curtail my communications with Alexios III to avoid being caught and executed. When information stopped flowing to Alexios III and the Sultan, they viewed this as incompetence on my part and threatened to torture me when they invaded if I did not continue to aid them."

"So what did you do?"

"Well, that is the reason I came to Epirus. I could not risk discovery by Laskaris, but I could likely not simply stop speaking to Alexios III. I was forced to relocate. You were ten at the time and living in Epirus, remember?"

"Yes."

"It turns out that was for the better. Alexios of Trebizond and Theodoros of Nicaea were enemies with Michael because he had sided with the Latins shortly before founding the Despotate of Epirus. When I escaped from Nicaea, I lay low for a while, fearing assassins. Luckily for me, Laskaris, to this day, has not discovered that I was an ally of Alexios of Trebizond or my correspondence with Alexios III. After I was ready to reassert my status, I arranged... the removal... of Michael."

"What?!"

"Calm yourself."

"You had him killed?"

"No! I wanted him captured and sent off to Nicaea so I could take the throne while he collected a ransom. Unfortunately, he attempted to resist and one of the servants I had hired tried to subdue him, which ended with a murder. I had that servant hung for this, but made sure to quickly move to take power nonetheless. You see, this was necessary. Once Michael was out of the picture, I had the throne. I was already an ally of Alexios and although Laskaris fought off the Seljuk invasion I had encouraged, he never figured out my involvement. Therefore, Laskaris was rather ambivalent about my rule."

"So then you sent these troops to make peace with him somehow?"

"Not quite. However, that is the way I intended it to appear..."

"Then what was your purpose in doing so?"

Theodoros grinned again and dismounted, for they had now reached the palace. "I think I will tell you of that inside. These are things which it's best for the public not to hear... It's a plan Alexios and I have been working on for the better part of 5 years..." With that, they entered the building and disappeared behind the door to Theodoros's study.

**Deepstrike101** · November 11, 2014, 03:13 PM

Alright, so now that the setup chapters are finished, I can get back to the battle chapters! Time to march against Rome's enemies!

I'm going to shortly update the character list to account for the last three chapters.

**Merchant of Venice** · November 21, 2014, 03:27 PM

This is absolutely great stuff. I just read through all of it and I must say I do love it. I think your 'flashback' are great at setting up the future plot and providing some interesting back story to the characters. I hope you're still going to continue with this because I'd really like more.

**Deepstrike101** · November 26, 2014, 12:30 PM

Originally Posted by Merchant of Venice

This is absolutely great stuff. I just read through all of it and I must say I do love it. I think your 'flashback' are great at setting up the future plot and providing some interesting back story to the characters. I hope you're still going to continue with this because I'd really like more.

Thanks! It's always nice to see your work appreciated.

I am continuing with this, I've just been unexpectedly busy within the past couple of weeks. I'm a college student and we're in that pre-final phase right now when all these projects and essays I've been putting off are due all at once. I hope you enjoy the rest.

Chapter Six is posted, but I will add two more battles and some more campaign stuff shortly.

Next chapter, we get to see Constantinople.

**Deepstrike101** · November 26, 2014, 12:26 PM

Book One: Chapter Six
Many Battles
The Strength of God will enable us, a small but faithful band,
to triumph over the multitude of the faithless.

Although the victory at Malagina afforded Basileus Theodoros a year to begin rebuilding his infrastructure and army, the peace it gave would not last. Spies had reported that two Turkish armies regrouped in the distance, and battle was imminent. Some of the Turkish army from Malagina regrouped with the first incoming Turkish army, bolstering it by some 170 men in addition to the 920 already marching towards Nicaea.

Basileus Theodoros gathered his men, totaling around 1,200 in total- most were militia, though many of the veterans from his previous wars or from Malagina remained as well. Most significantly, most of his cavalry had recovered from the Turkish arrow storms that had decimated them before. Many scoutatoi and Varangians were available as well, leaving Theodoros confident in victory.

He reasoned the Turks had made a mistake invading as two separate forces rather than a united one, and he could take them apart piecemeal. However, he could not lead the Roman force he assembled far from the capital. Though he would have liked to once more take the field at Malagina, (for he knew the lay of the land well), he could not leave Nicaea without a sizeable garrison. This forced him to await the enemy force until it was almost ready to lay siege.

Finally, he sallied forth to meet the enemy.

Battle of Nicaea, Winter 1222 AD

The two armies met several miles from Nicaea in the evening. Theodoros looked onwards from his horse at the faint glimmer of lamellar and chain armor in the distance. His advisors were huddling around him, also on their horses.

Though the constant noise from the yelling and bustling of soldiers was ever present, Theodoros had learned to block it out. To him, there was only silence in that moment. The silence that comes so often before the storm of battle. The advisors were nervously eyeing one another, as if they were daring each other to speak. Finally, Captain Mario, a chubby middle aged Latinkon knight with an eerily optimistic outlook no matter the situation was the first to speak up.

"Sire, I believe it would be prudent to wait until morning, wouldn't it? Our army won't be in formation until sunset, and we would be hard pressed to advance during darkness."

Theodoros looked over at the leader of his Latinkon knights and shook his head slowly, still considering his possibilities. "I don't think so. We marched several miles, and the Turks must have marched twenty-two. They will be tired and ill-prepared for a battle at night. Their arrows will not find their targets so easily, for darkness plays tricks on the eyes and distances are not what they seem. The enemy will not be able to keep order, and these men they bring to fight Romans are cowards. Should confusion begin as it so often does at night, they may flee."

"Of course your wisdom is great, sire. However, my knights will not be able to gallop to a proper charge in the dark, and it shall be difficult to maintain our ranks as we move forth."

"Gallop slower then, Mario. In battle, it is not the man that doubts himself and hesitates for the moment of advantage, but the man that marches with bold confidence and is willing to do what is necessary no matter the odds that is victorious."

"You are right, my lord. We shall claim victory tonight."

The order was given, and the Roman army moved into formation. Battlefield inspection found the troops to be ready and motivated, and so Theodoros waited for dusk. His Skythikon mercenaries continuously rode just outside of the reach of Turkish bows, forcing the Turks to keep repositioning their forces. This taunting wore down the Seljuk army's morale and by sunset, they had just about had enough. The Scythian mercenaries retreated to the Roman lines, and Theodoros cast a last look over his army to make sure they were ready for what was about to come. In the eyes of his warriors he saw determination and fortitude. Courage and eagerness. They were ready.

As the sun cast its last rays over the battlefield, the Romans began a steady advance towards the enemy. The infantry advanced in front with the cavalry in the rear. As the lines closed, Theodoros rode over to his captains. "Mario, take your Latinkon knights, the stratiotae, and Skythikon ercenaries and advance on the right flank. I will take my cataphracts and we will attack from the left. Engage their horse archers first and if you can, try to flank their infantry. You must advance far ahead of our lines and attack their horsemen before our lines clash."

"Gladly my lord, it shall be done. What if the cowards should flee and shoot arrows upon us though?"

"I don't believe they will. It will be difficult for them to flee at night for they cannot move fast in the dark and besides that, attempting their Parthian Shot retreat will leave their infantry too exposed."

"Then, we ride."

The cavalry force separated into two wings and began to gallop, quickly leaving behind the Roman infantry. The Latinkon, stratiotae, and Skythikon advanced especially fast, leaving Theodoros to remark that Mario was a truly eager individual. Unfortunately, the over eagerness of the Italian left his cavalry charging into a shower of Saracen arrows.

Many of the Roman horsemen were felled, but with a cry of, "After me, you rascals! For money!" he lanced a horse archer, and his mercenaries hit their targets soon after. The statiotae hit the horse archers soon after. Unfortunately, the Skythikon mercenaries which had accompanied this cavalry force had been shot to bits and now fled the field. Without their support, the Latinkon and statiotae were left vulnerable, and began a disadvantageous melee.

Meanwhile on the left flank, Theodoros's cataphracts had managed to avoid a similar storm of arrows and those which did come were insufficient to penetrate the thick, multilayered, lamellar of the Romans. Like at Malagina, Theodoros diverted his cavalry towards the infantry on the right flank of the enemy formation. These were archers and light spearmen, and the cataphracts swept through them without special effort, lancing or slicing down most. Then, the unstoppable mass of cavalry moved on towards the horse archers.

With the right flank of the Turkish formation in disarray, the Roman infantry closed in. In the center were Varangians and scoutatoi swordsmen. On the flanks were contaratoi spearmen. The two lines clashed, and the Romans quickly began gaining an advantage. Wielding their massive two handed axes with great strength, the Varangian guards began to cleave through the enemy center. Terrified Turks did their best to stand their ground, but it was clear that they would not hold back these mighty warriors. Slightly to the right of the Varangians, the scoutatoi swordsmen too were pushing back the enemy, though with cold discipline rather than the red hot fury of the Varangians.

As the Varangians viciously fought to break the center of the Turkish formation, towards the enemy general, scoutatoi spearmen were determined to get there first. Two hundred scoutatoi made their way around both flanks and attacked the Middle Eastern bodyguards.

The elite Turkish bodyguards were the only heavy cavalry the enemy possessed, and so it was a priority to keep them occupied. The scoutatoi were many, and they were well armored and shielded. The Turkish general and his guard began to fight a long, but ultimately futile, melee against the professional Roman spearmen.

Most of the horse archers the cataphracts attacked were quickly routed, or forced to retreat. Theodoros turned his horsemen's attention towards a group of archers which had retreated from the front lines, and ran them down. These archers were heavily armored and, though they were caught unprepared, managed to stand their ground for a minute. It was really futile, for they inflicted almost no damage against the Roman cavalry.

Now, with his heaviest cavalry free of harassment, he could focus on breaking the enemy army. The best way to do this, he figured, would be to create miscommunication in the dark... and what better way to create miscommunication than eliminating the Seljuk general? In a thundering charge, the cataphracts smashed into the rear of the bodyguards of the Saracens.

Now with the elite cavalry of the Romans and Seljuks exchanging blows, the scoutatoi were free to move against other targets. On the left flank, a group of horse archers which had fled earlier now returned to battle, only to be met with a charge of heavy spearmen out of the dark.

Meanwhile on the right flank, the scoutatoi chose to charge some heavy archers. They would have liked to break the enemy's militia infantry, but attacking them from behind would leave their own backs exposed to the Turks' arrows. Onwards they charged, and soon began beating through the enemy with ease.

In the center of the battle, the melee continued. The Varangians were massacring the enemy, but it was the scoutatoi swordsmen who turned out to be the line breakers. After some time in their prolonged melee, both forces were getting tired. While the Roman morale was high, however, the Turks' morale was quickly dropping. Behind them were some 400 scoutatoi and almost 40 heavy cataphracts working to kill the general. Seeing the fear spread through Turkish lines, a Roman captain ordered his scoutatoi swordsmen to lock shields and push forward as hard as possible. "Like our Greek ancestors of old!"

The enemy lines staggered back and many fell and were trampled. Their spears had a difficult time finding their way around the great Roman shields. Soon, their battle line was broken. At this point, the Roman shield wall dissolved into individual combatants again, and they began to wrap around the enemy line to the right and left.

The battle continued for many more hours. Though now at a massive disadvantage, the Turks continued to fight, knowing that there was no retreat in darkness like this, flanked by enemy forces. Behind the battle lines, the heavy cavalry were still fighting. Over time, it was clear that the Romans were gaining an upper hand. Theodoros tried to fight the enemy general personally several time, but could not find him in the melee. Eventually, despite insignificant horse archer interference, it became clear that there was no salvation in this melee for Bahadir Al-Din. Desperate, he ordered a retreat. Himself, he ran from the field. Most of his bodyguards were then cut down as they fled, but with three other men he made his escape. The Roman cataphracts- exhausted and too heavily armored to pursue the faster Middle Eastern cavalry, were forced to stay put. Theodoros ordered four stratiotae horsemen to follow the enemy general.

The stratiotae gave chase, but could not gain on their foes. Eventually, they had to halt their chase to avoid getting lost in the wilderness. The battle was won. Without their general in sight, and the rising sun showing the scope of their losses and their perilous situation, the Turks began to flee. Many were cut down, though nearly 200 men escaped. Victorious, Theodoros called a gathering of the captains.

"We have won a great victory today. We will have to fight before long once more, but soon we will be free to retake our city of Constantinople. I do not see Mario. Where is he?"

"We know not, sire."
"Not sure, sire."
"He has fallen sire."

"He has fallen?" Theodoros frowned and slumped.

"On the right flank. He was pierced by many arrows."

"Show me."

The captains rode to the far right flank, where they found the corpses of all twenty Latinkon, along with many dead stratiotae and Skythikon as well. Mario lay dead upon the ground, with many arrow shafts protruding from his chest. Most of the shafts were broken off, which Theodoros took to mean that Mario had continued to fight despite those wounds. He lay some distance from his horse, which too was pierced by arrows. The remaining stratiotae approached. "He fought valiantly, my lord. His horse died first, but he continued to fight on foot and suffered many wounds before finally giving in."

Theodoros knelt next to his old friend, remembering the optimism and jolliness this individual had shown even in the darkest of times. He removed Mario's helmet and closed his eyes. Mario would be sorely missed, but there would be time to grieve.

"He was a man of quality. The sun rises. Count our dead and wounded and see to it that those with wounds make a speedy recovery. We've lost enough men this night. Prepare the rest for a return march."

Despite the victory, Theodoros was not impressed by the performance of his relatively professional army. After several hours of observing the aftermath of the battle, he concluded that his infantry force had floundered heavily. The Varangian Guard and scoutatoi swordsmen were the only infantry to perform well. The contaratoi, toxotae, and even the scoutatoi spearmen had all performed rather poorly. This, he concluded, would need some looking into. While he would commission padded and eventually chain armor for his militiamen, he knew that the scoutatoi needed to be better trained. His advisors eventually calmed his mind, reminding him that the scoutatoi were mostly fighting the best that the Seljuks had to offer.

After the Battle of Nicaea, Theodoros continued to work to improve his troops and infrastructure. Shortly after the battle, he received some annoying news from the Despotate of Epirus. The troops which Theodoros Doukas was to send him were delayed by a marauding Venetian fleet, and would not be able to take to the seas for likely more than a year. They had unloaded their soldiers onto land and the ships hastily found safe harbor, waiting for the Venetians to eventually pass. Since they were not leaving, however, the Epirus soldiers had to wait.

It was not long until Basileus Theodoros had to fight the enemy once more. This time, he was facing not an army full of militia spearmen but a well motivated, well trained, army of mostly mounted soldiers. This time, Theodoros Laskaris once more had to allow the enemy close to his capital. He did not dare confront the enemy on the more open expanses in central Anatolia, and reasoned that should defeat near home at the hands of horse archers befall him, he would always have the option of retreating behind Nicaea's reliable walls- a luxury he would not have further east.

Only miles from the previous battle of Nicaea, Theodoros marched against this enemy. Believing his infantry arm to be nothing but a hindrance to him in a battle against horse archers, he decided to march light- only cavalry would accompany him, and they would meet the enemy near Nicaea. The rest of Nicaea's army, some 1,000 infantry, would march to the field but avoid taking part unless necessary.

Battle of Nicaea II, Summer 1223 AD

The second Battle of Nicaea began in the winter of 1223 AD. Attempting to surprise the Turks, Theodoros led his cavalry force around them and attacked from the north. The conditions were not the best for battle- there was rain, and the ground was muddy. Laskaris chose to give battle nonetheless. Unfortunately, he did not manage to surprise the enemy at all. Instead, the enemy spotted his force from a hill at a distance and made ready to defend it, rendering his efforts naught. Despite this, he was (as always) confident in victory and too proud to change plans. Thus, he ordered his force to engage.

His force was fighting many horse archers, and he knew it was necessary to take them out as soon as possible. Thus, he positioned stratiotae on his left flank and skythikon on his right. These two groups were to attack the enemy swiftly and distract them from the powerful impact the cataphracts would inflict on the enemy lines in the middle. His cavalry set into a gallop, hoping to avoid as many Turkish arrows as possible. The mud was thick and the gallop became slow and unsteady, but the Turks were ready to fight. Arrows started to rain down, and many hit horses and men, slaying many Romans before they even reached the enemy lines. The stratiotae slammed into some horse archers while the skythikon made the unfortunate mistake of trying to shoot arrows at the Turkish archers.

Now, the cataphracts finally made their debut. Though slow, especially in mud, they were heavy and intimidating. Grimly facing some archers and spearmen, they lowered their lances and lunged into their lines. The impact was bone shattering. The first few ranks of archers were knocked back ten or fifteen feet and many of the second rank were trampled. The third rank was lanced and the fourth rank staggered back, knocking over some of the fifth. With their mass, the cataphracts pushed onwards, spearing or slashing unfortunate victims.

Although this charge was devastating, the broader battle was not going as planned. Most of the Skythikon now lay dead- pierced by several arrows each. The stratiotae were having little luck themselves and would soon by overrun by the horde of horse archers. Theodoros, seeing this, ordered his cataphracts to withdraw from the melee and charge into the enemy cavalry's rear. The enemy cavalry was taken by surprise when Roman cataphracts drove through them from behind.

The enemy cavalry fought, then fled for some time before reforming and continuing to rain arrows on the Roman cavalry. The last of the stratiotae were unhorsed by arrows, and Theodoros's cataphracts were now in a dire situation. The enemy was raining down a storm of arrows, and even the thickest lamellar could not protect from all of them. The arrows were so many that they invariably found their way into gaps and holes. Even Theodoros himself, screaming with rage each time, yet continuing the fight received several arrow wounds. Some men were hit by many. One man had a dozen arrows protruding from him and his horse. His chest was bloodied and even as he snapped their shafts, he continued to fight the archers who had wounded him. As he brought his lance up to spear another archer, an arrow hit his armpit and he grimaced in pain, bending over in his saddle and dropping the lance. Another arrow found its mark on his unarmored face, and he fell, dead, from his horse.

Desperate and bleeding heavily, Theodoros ordered a retreat into the woods. At great expense, the cataphracts fought through the enemy lines and made their way towards the safety of the forest, though many arrows followed and found a place in several cataphracts' backs. Theodoros was heavily wounded, for there were none who weren't. The cataphracts began to do what little they could to treat their own wounds and prepare to meet their deaths- for they would not run from the field of battle. Then, a horn in the distance brought them hope and elevated them from despair.

It was a Roman horn and, though a mile away, it meant that help would soon arrive. From the southwest marched 800 men under the command of Captain Veniamin, the current commander of the Varangian guard. The infantry advanced very quickly, eager to join battle against the infidel army. Through their eagerness, however, they were quickly worn out. The mud stuck to their boots and their pace soon slowed. By the time they were near the hill, they were exhausted.

Theodoros waited patiently in the woods for the infantry to reach the battle. Upon hearing a horn bellowing a charge, he ordered his cavalry, slow and still wounded, to take the hill. The infantry surged towards the enemy formation, though exhausted. Very many men, especially from the unshielded Varangian Guard, were slain by arrows. When the two lines clashed, it was not immediately certain who would have the advantage. The Romans, exhausted, struggled to take the hill meanwhile the low quality soldiers of the Turks had difficulty weathering the storm of rage the Romans had brought with them. The Varangian Guards, being perceived to be the most vulnerable, yet dangerous, of the Roman infantry became the victims of a charge by Turkish cavalry, and soon many lay wounded, though their formation held.

While the infantry continued to fight, Theodoros had led his cavalry to drive off half a company of horse archers, and as they fled, he yelled taunts at them in frustration at the destruction of his own forces. Eager to finish the battle, he led his cavalry towards what remained of the Turks.

Finally, the last of the Turks began to waiver. Theodoros charged what remained of their horse archers while the scoutatoi routed the enemy infantry and then also gave chase to their cavalry. The final melee lasted for some time, for the Romans were depleted and exhausted while the horse archers were not so tired. Theodoros Laskaris finally sliced down the enemy general and had his head placed on a lance. At this, the last of the enemy routed.

The dead covered the battlefield. A grim sight to behold. For the first time in a long while, the Romans had many dead for a small victory. Few cavalrymen- already difficult for Rome to recruit, survived. Only a handful of stratiotae recovered, and not one Skythikon survived. Now the Empire of Nicaea had a new dilemma, despite the hollow victory it won.

The second Battle of Nicaea destroyed much of the Empire's cavalry, putting it at a disadvantage. However, the Empire of Nicaea now had several years before more enemy troops would be raised, and could take the time freely to reequip its armies and recruit more men for an attack against the Latin Empire. Reinforcements from Trebizond were arriving and soon, though delayed, reinforcements from Epirus would arrive as well. Then, Basileus Theodoros and Symbasileus Ioannis could make their move...

The Empire of Nicaea, however, would not be the only Greek successor state to fight foes on its own soil. While Nicaea faced the brunt of attacks from the enemies of Rome, neither Epirus nor Trebizond were spared conflict. During this decade, the first important battle to take place outside of the Empire of Nicaea occurred in the Empire of Trebizond.

Though the Empires of Trebizond and Nicaea had been fierce rivals, especially when David of Trebizond was still alive and active, their rivalry was fizzling out as Alexios of Trebizond became worn down by it. When many of Nicaea's easternmost provinces, which it had captured from Trebizond, were occupied by the Seljuk Turks, most reasons for rivalry disappeared, leaving only the squabbles of the past to sour relations. Trebizond needed financial aid from Nicaea, but this was granted only under the condition that Trebizond would loosely consider itself a protectorate of the Empire of Nicaea and provide troops when called for.

These developments strongly alarmed the Sultan. Nicaea and Trebizond uniting could prove disastrous for the Seljuk Sultanate, and its leaders considered driving a divide between the two nations to be a priority. Unfortunately, they found that this was not possible. Instead, they focused their war efforts on Basileus Theodoros, hoping that weakening the Empire of Nicaea would encourage Trebizond to seek its independence. Ironically, when four Turkish armies were annihilated in Nicene lands, this had quite the opposite effect of reasserting the military status of Basileus Theodoros and his empire, and pushing Trebizond to further accept Nicene dominance.

Now, knowing that it would be impossible to defeat Nicaea on the field of battle in the coming years, the Sultan tried to turn his attention towards Trebizond and to discourage Alexios Komnenos from aiding Theodoros Laskaris. He intended to do this through military intimidation. Knowing that Alexios recently sent four hundred men from Trebizond to Nicaea via galley, the Sultan believed his armies would be weak and he would easily submit to Seljuk pressure.

Alexios, however, would not be so easily influenced. Giving in to the Turks' demands would set a bad precedent for the future and draw the ireful mistrust of Nicaea. More importantly, it would interfere with his plot... He could not afford to let a marauding Turkish force lead his plans astray.

Battle of Karadeniz, Summer 1227 AD

Alexios had to move quickly. The enemy force was not massive, and he figured that he would be able to defeat them if he took them by surprise. To travel swiftly and avoid wasting time on raising militia, Alexios only allowed his royal cataphracts to accompany him. These men were royal Romans with ties to Georgia and were fierce warriors. The entire army was no more than 33 men strong. Alexios was hoping to find mercenaries along the way, but none were encountered, worrying Alexios greatly.

In the April of 1227, the Trebizond army finally tracked down the Turks, in the western provinces of the Empire of Trebizond. To Alexios's great dismay, this army far outnumbered what he had expected. In total, he counted 800 men marching towards him. Knowing that he would be forced to face them sooner or later, he decided to stand his ground.

He met the enemy on the hills of Karadeniz to the west of Trebizond. Without much of a speech, Alexios ordered an advance, coughing all the while. He had no special tactics or much of a plan- it would be the fairly plain, yet every brutally effective, charge. There were many archers among the Turks, including a large amount of horse archers. These formed up to screen the rest of the Turkish force, and were the first to engage in combat against the cataphracts. The Romans silently advanced to a gallop and dropped their lances in a charge even as arrows began to rain around them.

As though invulnerable, the Roman cavalry slammed through the arrow storm without any signs of slowing, and brought their lances to bear on the Seljuk horsemen. As these horse archers were thrown from their horses and the Romans penetrated the Turkish formation, chaos began to grip the Turkish men. The Roman charge continued on and hit the enemy infantry, though the horse archers tried to salvage the situation by attacking the cataphracts' right flank.

The battle continued for a long time. The enemy cavalry was routed quickly, but the infantry would not be defeated so easily- nearly 700 infantrymen remained, against a mere 30 Roman cavalry. Charging again and again, the Roman cataphracts could shatter the enemy lines, but even so they could not break the Turkish moral. Arrows found their mark on many Romans and most of the cataphracts soon resembled pin cushions- each with several arrows stuck in his thick lamellar armor. Alexios was wounded himself many times, though his sword was coated in the blood of the enemy.

Eventually, the cataphracts began to spread fear among enemy ranks. Though twenty cataphracts had fallen, nearly the entire Turkish force had as well. Under the blood red clouds obstructing the sky, these men began to look incredibly terrifying and some Turks began to think they were demons. Indeed, the Romans fought as such- all wounded, yet driving through Seljuk infantry as though elephants, they were a real sight to behold... The last of the Turks broke and fled the field. Too wounded and exhausted to chase them, the cataphracts relented and let them escape. A great victory, very hard fought, was won. Out of 33 cataphracts, only 9 remained on their horses, and only four others survived the ordeal. Alexios, though heavily wounded by many arrows, made a full recovery.

The battle of Karadeniz was important, for it forced the Turks from the lands of Trebizond and ensured that the Nicene-Trebizond alliance continued. The Seljuk Sultanate was now truly weakened and it would be some years before it would be capable of providing a major obstacle to the Greek successor states once more.

Far to the west, a battle of equal importance raged. The Venetians had grown increasingly hostile to the Despotate of Epirus, both for its anti-Latin stance and for expanding northwards some years before. Like the Seljuk Sultanate, the Venetian Doge noticed that troops were being sent away to aid Nicaea. Venice saw this as an opportunity to invade Epirus from the north and seize Durazzo. In the summer of 1227, the force from Venice, consisting of 1,400 men, reached the hastily erected barricades of the city.

Siege of Durazzo, Summer of 1227 AD

The commander of Durazzo's garrison was Despot Theodoros Doukas. Against the largely professional Venetian force stood only 500 Roman soldiers, most of whom were militia. Doukas knew that he would be unable to defend the city gates with his low quality infantry, and instead planned to rely on his cavalry to carry the day. When the formidable Venetian force was finally arrayed for an attack, they began to cast doubt to these thoughts. Only 30 Roman cataphracts were present, the rest being heavily armored cavalry militia often called archontopoulai- zealous sons of Roman aristocrats.

The Roman militiamen were frightful. Against them were arrayed three times their number, with twice their skill and armor. The contaratoi spearmen were sent to guard the gatehouse. The captains gave speeches to inspire their troops, and called on them to stand their ground and protect the town. A man from the gatehouse tower yelled that a battering ram was approaching, and the contaratoi were ordered to form lines for battle.

To the right of the gatehose was a hill. Here stood the toxotae archer militia. They had the goal of weakening enemy troops before they reached the gate. Morale amongst them was somewhat higher, as they would supposedly be out of the melee against the formidable ranks of Venetian infantry. As the enemy army closed, a man from a nearby watchtower yelled the range and position of the targets, and the toxotae went to work. They had practiced this drill, but it took several volleys until the watchtower confirmed that they were mostly on target.

Now that the enemy was approaching, Doukas ordered his cavalry to sally out onto the fields. His cataphracts would strike from the right flank and the archontopoulai would attack from the left. The goal was to remove enemy archers and cavalry so that the enemy would then be unable to protect their infantry assault on the gates.

Doukas was the first to engage the enemy. Like a great tidal wave, his cataphracts smashed upon archers and crossbowmen who had just moments before been harassing the toxotae. Several crossbow bolts hit the cataphracts, but the unstoppable Roman wave nonetheless swept away the Venetians.

On the left side of the battle, the archontopoulai were less lucky. While the cataphracts of Doukas engaged bow and crossbow armed militia, the archontopoulai were hit by a head on charge of Venetian knights. Thanks to their longer lances, the knights managed to unhorse many of the Romans before they had a chance to retaliate. However, the archontopoulai survived the charge and entered a melee against the elite Venetians, hoping for some relief to come soon.

As the cataphracts ran down crossbowmen and the archontopoulai fought their difficult melee against the Venetian knights, a desperate and extremely bloody battle raged at the gates. The enemy ram had broken through and now close to a thousand Venetian heavy infantrymen poured through. Pressing forward, their weight alone threw back the three companies of contaratoi guarding the gatehouse. The Roman militia hardly stood a chance, but they held their ground with all the savage courage of a beast backed into a corner. The toxotae turned towards the gatehouse and began unleashing volley after volley of arrows at the sea of Venetians. The Italians were so tightly packed that they could not effectively raise their shields for protection, and arrows freely hit the heads, necks, and shoulders of the invaders. Blood stained the men and ground while screams of agony filled the air.

Doukas knew the contaratoi would not hold for long. His cataphracts engaged the enemy general in a brutal charge and fought a melee against his royal knights. It was not long before the far more heavily armored Romans gained the upper hand. While the Venetian general swung at a cataphract to his right, another Roman to his left thrust from above- over his shield. The sword dug into the Venetian's collarbone and he dropped his guard. The Roman cataphract now swung his sword down on the general's neck. Though it failed to cut through the chainmail, the impact of the blow alone was enough to break the Venetian's neck. He fell from his saddle, dead. Seeing this, the royal knights fought for another minute and then, giving up on recovering his body, they routed from the field.

Now, Doukas ordered his horsemen to charge the rear of the feudal knights combating the archontopoulai on the opposite flank. A short gallop later, and the cataphracts dug their lances deep into the backs of the enemy knights. For half a minute, the melee continued until the enemy was all cut down.

Finally free from Venetian cavalry, the Roman horsemen charged into the gatehouse, where they met a solid wall of Venetian cavalry militia and sergeant spearmen.

Even now, the fate of the battle hung in the balance. Only two contaratoi spearmen still stood out of three hundred. The toxotae had expended all of their ammunition and, after throwing any stones they could readily find at their feet, reluctantly charged into the fray. Though far from equipped or trained for the task at hand, these men were not nearly as tired as the Venetians and this gave them a slight advantage.

While the Venetian infantry did not immediately know of their general's death, the sudden appearance of Roman cavalry from outside the walls led many of them to this conclusion. Fear started to spread, though it still took some time before they broke- the battle continued for some time. All of the archontopoulai were unhorsed and wounded. Many of the cataphracts too were wounded, but they started to penetrate into the Italian formation and slash at all around them. Doukas was what changed the battle. A remarkable swordsman, still unwounded among the many bloodied Romans, he forced his way into the center of the fray where, as though possessed by a great demon, he started cutting down many men. Spears and swords only deflected from his fine armor, but his sword often found its mark.

The Romans rallied and the Venetians broke, trying to flee through the gates, past all the Roman cavalry. Both the horsemen and toxotae gave chase and many were Venetians were wounded and captured as they tried to flee. The battle, though very costly, was finally won.

The entire Venetian force was dead or captured. Few men- mostly cavalry, had escaped the deadly encounter against Rome. Among the Romans, the dead were more than the living. Some of the wounded were treated and managed to recover. The archontopoulai especially made a good recovery, with two thirds of their number once again able to walk. The militiamen had not been so luck, and only three dozen of the contaratoi would survive.

Epirus's victory over Venice ensured that Durazzo would be safe from invasion for some time. Shortly following the battle, Doukas ordered the recruitment of additional men for the garrison. The battle was closer than he would have liked.

Now, with all enemies of the Greek states repelled, all eyes came to focus on the Nicene force that stood at the gates of Constantinople... The fate of the world was about to be decided.

Thread: [SS 6.4] Imperial Purple Never Fades

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[SS 6.4] Imperial Purple Never Fades

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