Derc Plays Through World History

[Turkafinwë]

A very good intro to this wonderful campaign indeed! The screenshots from the beginning brings back memories and I can hear Brian Blessed his voice in my head. I think the House rules/special goals you've put for yourself will make an otherwise already interesting campaign into something extraordinary. I really liked the Alexander expansion, not only did it have a good campaign but also the campaign-like historical battles, progressing through most of Alexander's major battles is one of my favourite features of the game something they only reproduced with Napoleon TW I think. They really put in some time with this expansion I find.

Suffice to say I'm really looking forward to this one!

[Cookiegod]

I did not have the time to read into your AAR yet but your images are absolutely stunning. The high resolution graphics coupled with a map full of details especially in the Aegean has exactly the level of complexity I can handle.

Have you played the campaign yet, or are you possible taking suggestions regarding the overall strategy? I was thinking that given your goal to take a road less traveled, you could go west and hit India from the other side. They'd never see it coming!

I'd second that but since India isn't on the map I suggest marching across the entire map peacefully to then take them from behind in reverse order: Baktria > Persia > Mesopotamia > Egypt > Levant > ...maybe wait with the last one since Asia's a minor.

[Derc]

Oh great, I'm looking forward to this. A few months ago I was reading up on the Diadochi Wars. Does this campaign include Alexander's generals in his army? I look forward to seeing your battles against the Indian forces. Nice intro you made to this AAR also. Top-notch!

There is only Permaion.
Generals that join you during the course of the campaign are randomly generated, just like in every other TW. Would've loved to see Ptolemy here.

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Make it happen Derc!

Have you played the campaign yet, or are you possible taking suggestions regarding the overall strategy? I was thinking that given your goal to take a road less traveled, you could go west and hit India from the other side. They'd never see it coming!

As mentioned from the opening post ...:

You're welcome to comment and make suggestions, of course. But keep in mind that all campaigns shown are already over. So things like "please attack the French!" can not be considered. Don't worry, though. I will fight them anyway.

... all campaigns shown are already over. I would not be able to manage all of this otherwise.
It would still be nice to hear suggestions and possibly brainstorm about them. Maybe they can be considered in later campaigns.

Alexander in America, now that's a cool suggestion . Sadly no Persians there.

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A very good intro to this wonderful campaign indeed! The screenshots from the beginning brings back memories and I can hear Brian Blessed his voice in my head. I think the House rules/special goals you've put for yourself will make an otherwise already interesting campaign into something extraordinary. I really liked the Alexander expansion, not only did it have a good campaign but also the campaign-like historical battles, progressing through most of Alexander's major battles is one of my favourite features of the game something they only reproduced with Napoleon TW I think. They really put in some time with this expansion I find.

Suffice to say I'm really looking forward to this one!

Yes, this is the only TW where I played the historical battles. Loved the videos.

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I did not have the time to read into your AAR yet but your images are absolutely stunning. The high resolution graphics coupled with a map full of details especially in the Aegean has exactly the level of complexity I can handle.

I'd second that but since India isn't on the map I suggest marching across the entire map peacefully to then take them from behind in reverse order: Baktria > Persia > Mesopotamia > Egypt > Levant > ...maybe wait with the last one since Asia's a minor.

That's why I write so little. There's enough text in the other AARs already. Not much time needed to "read into" here. The Text could be skipped altogether and it would still work. The Images are (mostly) self-descriptive. I mentioned that in the opening post too.

India is on the map. It's the southeasternmost province. More on that later.

[Cookiegod]

Instead of taking the path of evil and violence like Alexander did, you should conquer the world with love and kindness.
Fun fact: Jesus and Alexander died the same age.

[Alwyn]

I'm looking forward to this Alexander campaign, I'm wondering which route you'll take.

[Derc]

Rome - Alexander
Alexander's Campaign
#1

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Alright, here we are. This is one ugly map but this it what gives it that special oldschool feeling somehow. Let's see ... we need these provinces in order to win. The most important decisions are made in the first turns. Everyone would have attacked Halicarnassus. But this is no option here. Just crush that army, conquer Halicarnassus and we're good to go? Nay! That'd be too easy; too predictable! We go over Egypt! And for that we need some ships. Let's have a look at the diplomacy ledger. Dear Lord. Everyone is already against us from the start up! As if mighty Persia wouldn't be enough. There's also no possibility to make peace. Rome - Alexander features no diplomats. These guys are the backbone of our army. Good that we can recruit them from the start up but unfortunately we don't have the time to put more of them in Alexanders army. I still recruit some of them to protect the homeland. Well ... crap. I miscalculated when I loaded Alexanders army on the ships. The Persians managed to reach the fleet with their fingertips and destroyed it. That's it. Hope you enjoyed this AAR. See you next time. ... No. I do something Alexander couldn't do. I try again. This time we place our Navy a bit more to the West - just out of reach of the Persian ships. The troops were loaded up and are on their way to Egypt ...- and that's when the stinky Barbarians witted their chance. It was too late to return now. Our people back home would need to defend themselves. And so they did. The siege was breached and the enemy engaged outside the city walls. We throw some spears at them ... ... and make them flee. Very good! They won't come back anytime soon. The Homeland is safe, at least for now. In the meantime Alexander successfully landed in Egypt. I was really curious how the A.I. was about to react. Would I have to face many armies in Egypt or none at all? 📕 History & Culture Alexander in Siwa A major part in Alexanders journey were the events in Egypt. In reality Alexander had already fought many battles and conquered a good chunk of Persian land when he entered a weakly defended Egypt. There he was celebrated as a liberator, freeing the Egyptians from the Persian yoke. Alexander founded a city at the Nile Delta that'd wield his name and would develop into one of the most influental cities of the Mediterranean. The talk is about Alexandria of course, the most prominent of all the cities he'd found eventually. Egypt was an insanely rich land and regarded as ancient, even back then. Having secured control over it, he should immediately have rushed back to confront the Persians in Mesopotamia. But he didn't. He went West instead, travelling to a location that would not wield any strategic value: Siwa. Siwa was in the middle of nowhere. Losing a lot of time and risking your life in the scorching desert just to reach it? Why? There must've been a purpose, right? There was. The Oracle of Amun-Ra was located there. Siwa might not have been of any strategic significance but it influenced Alexander more than anything else did. It seems like Alexander was a spiritual man. Or a man with a lot of doubts and conflicts inside him, just as we all have them. He was convinced he'd get his answers from the Oracle of Amun-Ra. As it turned out, he did. It is well documented that Alexander left Egypt a changed man. He kept sending large amounts of presents back to Siwa during his lifetime and continued to ask the Oracle for advice until his death. He even asked to be buried there eventually. What is not documented is just what Alexander asked the Oracle. But it's simple, really. He wanted a confirmation that he is the Son of Zeus. A god in human flesh, walking around at the surface of the Earth. This confirmation would boost his already high confidence even more and further legitimate what he's doing. Unfortunately this, together with all the battles, led to the result of Alexander becoming more and more irritable. Nothing is without price, it seems. In the timeline of this AAR Alexander did not have many victories yet. He was still inexperienced, Egypt still unconquered. Just as it happens Alexander landed relatively close to Siwa here. It'd make all the sense of the world to think that he would then had visited the Oracle first before conquering anything. His experiences at this place would have been different but the result would had been mostly the same. It's an interesting scenario. Every victory he had would then be attributed to the Oracle at Siwa. The campaign, every battle, every decision would've had a different taste to it, even if the result would've been the same. Here's a map, just for the lulz. The solid black line is the route Alexander took in reality. The dashed blue one is the one he took here.

Instead of taking the path of evil and violence like Alexander did, you should conquer the world with love and kindness.
Fun fact: Jesus and Alexander died the same age.

What do you think why Alexander went on to push into India? He wanted to find Shangri-La and live in perfect harmony, of course. Namaste!

I'm looking forward to this Alexander campaign, I'm wondering which route you'll take.

If it wouldn't have been for the other houserule I would've taken the steppe eventually.

[Kilo11]

I love the start to this campaign, and then... "Oh crap, he's dead!" Glad to see it was just his body-double on the ships though, and that "the real Alexander" was hiding and waiting for you to bring him out to play in Egypt!

[C-Beams]

Hah, well done Alexander.

Should have devoted some time to swimming lessons.

[Derc]

Rome - Alexander
Alexander's Campaign
#2

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Very nice! This does not mean we're automatically at peace with the Scythians but at least we don't have to fear a combined attack from them anymore. I need to hurry it badly. My finances are crushing me. Alexander attacks the first settlement. And we have our answer! The A.I. adapted just nice with us showing up in Egypt instead of Asia Minor. The Persians attack Parmenions army a few stadia before the city. Alexander and his army stand ready to reinforce but Parmenion works it out alone. Damn, the Macedonian Phalangists are really powerful. Another Persian army comes from the Nile Delta. Memphis has a pretty weak garrison so we split our forces. The weaker one under Parmenion besieges Memphis and the stronger one under Alexander blocks the Nile. There he lays the groundwork for the City of Alexandria while waiting for the Persians to arrive. There was not much resistance. But so much money! I'm finally back in the plus again! Then, a little later, the tragecy. Parmenion get's killed! No one knows how. This puts a dark veil on an otherwise glorious campaign. Alexander is furious. The Pyramids were already over 2000 years old when they were conquered back then. It's insane to think that the construction of the pyramids was almost as far away from Alexanders time as we are. The Persians attack Alexander. They brought some reinforcements but they do not arrive in time. Hah! The Persian army is commanded by no lesser than Memnon of Rhodes. No other Persian General was more successful against Alexander. At least in OTL. A dreaded bridge battle. Well, I'm Defender so they have to cross it. Let's see how that will work out. Oh, it works good. It works very good, indeed! They just kept storming in and died like flies. It was one slaughter. My god. This is one of those few battles that left me just speechless. I would not have thought that it would work that well. So sad I didn't save the recording. Kills: 1099 Losses: 192 (mainly caused by their archers) Our spy reveals what is to be expected in the East. Yeah ... great.

I love the start to this campaign, and then... "Oh crap, he's dead!" Glad to see it was just his body-double on the ships though, and that "the real Alexander" was hiding and waiting for you to bring him out to play in Egypt!

Hah, well done Alexander.

Should have devoted some time to swimming lessons.

:|
I have some malicious audience. I like that.

[Kilo11]

I have some malicious audience. I like that.

Well, we tailor our responses to the author. It seems like you enjoy a good give and take, if you know what I mean

But in all seriousness, I like your AAR here. It's different and sort of quirky, and seems irreverent as hell! All good things!

[Skotos of Sinope]

Hey Derc. When I was a kid, my brother would hog the video game controller. Half of the time, my playing video games was watching him playing video games.

Your AAR is like if that happened, but my brother was suddenly the most entertaining guy in the world. BTW, for some reason I read this to the voice of Macho Man Randy Savage.

Subbed. Repped for killing Alexander instantly.

History: “Alexander died young.”

Derc: “Hold my beer.”

[Turkafinwë]

No Battle of the Granicus but a Battle of the Nile Delta in this timeline. It seems Memnon was not as smart in this timeline as he was in the historical one, going on the offensive against a superior force across a river. Not a great choice. Poor Parmenion, still perhaps a better ending than being assassinated by his trusted liege, or was he?

[Alwyn]

Nicely done, I like the way that you showed us what Alexander did historically and contrasted this with Alexander's actions in this timeline. That looks like an exceptionally decisive battle; even so, it looks like Egypt has forces ready to defend Tyre and the lands east of the Nile Delta.

[Derc]

Rome - Alexander
Alexander's Campaign
#3

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Hooray! Oh nay! The Persian army that was meant to reinforce Memnon at the Nile is approached and destroyed. No time to celebrate the victory. There comes another one. This is a very nice picture. Especially because of the blue bar which indicates that I won. And another one! This time led by no lesser than King Darius himself! This battle is autoresolved. Should not have done that (If I had noticed that the army was led by the King then I would never had autoresolved anyway). Persian King Darius is dead. But this means nothing. The war will continue. Four armies gone, at least four more to go. Alexanders forces are grinded up. He has to wait for reinforcements to arrive. But he does not have the time. So he has to rely on mercenaries. The Persians keep pushing and force me to yet another fight ... ... Another one that they lost. 728 kills, 157 losses. Good news from the homeland too: The Barbarians are pushed back once again! Alexander has become a very skillful General so autoresolving now becomes more powerful than manual fights. Mercenaries helped us a lot but the Persians keep coming in seemingly endless waves. We need more reinforcements. I will besiege Byzantium a bit so the Thracians can't recruit new troops. Reminder: I still can't kill them as Persia has to be the first nation to be destroyed. A breakthrough! Our spy opened the gates and Alexander takes a weakly defended Tyre by storm.

Well, we tailor our responses to the author. It seems like you enjoy a good give and take, if you know what I mean

But in all seriousness, I like your AAR here. It's different and sort of quirky, and seems irreverent as hell! All good things!

I read "irrelevant" at first. That would still had fitted, I think.

It actually had some serious background. I showed the picture of Alexanders early death because I actually failed on the first try. It happens. Failure is part of the game and I won't censor it. I make mistakes too. And it's good to show 'em.
This road is a dangerous one and literally has "all or nothing" stamped onto it.

Hey Derc. When I was a kid, my brother would hog the video game controller. Half of the time, my playing video games was watching him playing video games.

Your AAR is like if that happened, but my brother was suddenly the most entertaining guy in the world.

I know that feeling. Your brother is one evil guy.

BTW, for some reason I read this to the voice of Macho Man Randy Savage.

Dear Lord. What the hell happened?

No Battle of the Granicus but a Battle of the Nile Delta in this timeline. It seems Memnon was not as smart in this timeline as he was in the historical one, going on the offensive against a superior force across a river. Not a great choice. Poor Parmenion, still perhaps a better ending than being assassinated by his trusted liege, or was he?

He got killed when fighting that rebel army east of the Nile. I played that battle a bit too aggressive.

Nicely done, I like the way that you showed us what Alexander did historically and contrasted this with Alexander's actions in this timeline. That looks like an exceptionally decisive battle; even so, it looks like Egypt has forces ready to defend Tyre and the lands east of the Nile Delta.

We just decimated them a little bit.

[Skotos of Sinope]

And another one! This time led by no lesser than King Darius himself!
This battle is autoresolved. Should not have done that (If I had noticed that the army was led by the King then I would never had autoresolved anyway).

For a moment there I was like, "Whoah, I'm actually impressed. I mean, outnumbered two-to-one and he...oh, he just auto-resolved that."

I like Darius being dead way better than Alexander being dead. At least now you won't have to chase him all the way to Afghanistan.

[Kilo11]

Another good one Derc! And I love that you read my earlier post with "irrelevant" instead of "irreverent". That's good stuff!

I have one small point about your title. You've been writing "Alexanders Campaign", but it should be Alexander's Campaign", with the apostrophe. Obviously, it doesn't make a difference to anything after it if the title has that edit or not, but the grammarian in me is going insane with that typo. Would you mind fixing it, or are you going to leave it to rattle my cage?

[Cookiegod]

I have one small point about your title. You've been writing "Alexanders Campaign", but it should be Alexander's Campaign", with the apostrophe. Obviously, it doesn't make a difference to anything after it if the title has that edit or not, but the grammarian in me is going insane with that typo. Would you mind fixing it, or are you going to leave it to rattle my cage?

Could you put the apostrophe after the s to make kilo suffer some more? Also I think there are bound to be several Alexanders in the army. It'd be rude to exclude them.

[Kilo11]

Could you put the apostrophe after the s to make kilo suffer some more? Also I think there are bound to be several Alexanders in the army. It'd be rude to exclude them.

God of cookies, I will tear down your temple!

[Skotos of Sinope]

Hell, we've had two Alexanders in three posts already. And there'll be another one to come if Derc succeeds in killing this one too.

[Derc]

For a moment there I was like, "Whoah, I'm actually impressed. I mean, outnumbered two-to-one and he...oh, he just auto-resolved that."

Those Persians had worn me out pretty good.

I have one small point about your title. You've been writing "Alexanders Campaign", but it should be Alexander's Campaign", with the apostrophe. Obviously, it doesn't make a difference to anything after it if the title has that edit or not, but the grammarian in me is going insane with that typo. Would you mind fixing it, or are you going to leave it to rattle my cage?

Thanks a lot for the information. Your suffering shall end now. I fixed it.

One motivation of this AAR is that I want to train my English skills a little bit. So please feel free to notify me whenever I make some mistakes. I'm grateful for it.