EU2 AAR: Venice, from Mare Nostra to Terraferma, from Republic to Empire

[Tani Coyote]

Venice: From Mare Nostra to Terraferma, from Republic to Empire

1419:

Prologue:



Venice begins as a large but vulnerable overseas empire. It is locked in a war against Hungary and Croatia for control of the Dalmatian coast, it faces competition in the Eastern seas from it's rival Genoa, and if it doesn't keep it's guard up, will fall victim of Ottoman expansion. The other small Italian states are so pre-occupied with their foolish ignorance of the overall balance of power in Europe that they would rather remain divided, then stand as a unified force against the ever-growing monarchies in Iberia and France - so an Italian unification is not likely in the beginning.

This is why the early decades of Venice's rise to greatness will be to occupy the Adriatic Sea, and eventually expand to cover Greece and possibly some of the Black Sea. This entails war with Genoa and the Ottomans - potent foes on sea and land, respectively. If the Italian Carthage can muster this, then it is possible for Venice to fund a massive campaign to end the petty quarrels in Italy that have existed for nearly a millenia - and re-establish Italy as the glorious nation it once was.

Hungaro - Venetian War:

The Doge's first decision is to reform taxes in the republic to improve the economy. As a result, tax collectors are promoted in all the provinces - except for the city of Venice itself, the republic had no real tax collection services...

The action was not cheap, however. It would take a year to fully install the system, and 45% of the nation's treasury was emptied in order to tax more efficiently. But we believed the system would pay off.

Now to the meat and potatoes.



Under the command of Lt. General Savorgnan, 10,000 brave infantry are marching into the region of Krbava, which is held by Croatia. A smaller force of 5,000 cavalry is heading to the Bihac province in the north to further destablise the Croatians. The plan is to sieze primarily Dalmatia - but perhaps Krbava will make a healthy addition to the Venetian realm as well.

As our troops begin their advance, news reaches us about the nation of Ragusa: it has broken away from the Hungarian yoke! We would rush to gain the small country as an ally, but they are too poor and small to be of much use. We will conquer them given time, however, as the Serenissima must dominate the Adriatic. As a plus, Ragusa is also heavily destablised by canceling it's vassalage.

February heralds the arrival of our troops in the heart of Croatia. We anticipate the destruction of the Croatian realm.

We are attacked in Bihac by a regiment of Croatian cavalry, but they are defeated - they do harm our siegers enough to lift the siege on the region. We stay in Bihac to plunder it to weaken their war effort. Meanwhile, Krbava slowly starts to fall.



In May, we agree to a trade agreement with the German state of Mecklenburg. The Doge was too busy handling the war to get muddled in economic disputes.



In late August, the radicals known as the Hussites break away from the Bohemian crown and plunge central Bohemia into chaos. We wonder if this heresy will draw Hungary's attention away from us....



In September, we finally take Krbava. We also are heavily inflicting damage on Bihac with our new troops. Savorgnan is ordered to take Zagreb and end this war with Croatia. Once Croatia is defeated, we can focus on a white peace with Hungary.

As Winter approaches in December, we march victoriously into Croatia's central core. Zagreb is besieged, and the nation's ruler a prisoner in his own palace. We hear word of an approaching Hungarian force from the east - 22,000 men strong. Savorgnan's men dig in, ready to repel the threat.

And exactly on Christmas day, we get a great gift - Bihac! The city finally submits, leaving Croatia proper the last free bastion of the Croatian kingdom. The battle of Zagreb will determine the war for Dalmatia - and for Croatia as well.

 

[Dell19]

I do like playing as Venice. Usually I avoid Italy at the start and go for Greece as often the various Greek states are extremely weak and I would rather not let them fall to the Ottomans. Byzantium is the risky province to take as it causes war with the Ottomans but if you hold it then you significantly weaken the Ottomans. I avoid Italy to start with as Milan is stronger.

 

[Olav]

Hey, nice with a new EU2 AAR! It's been a while since the last one was active. It seems like you got a good start in the war against Croatia. Perhaps settle for a forcevassalization as well as taking Dalmatia (and Krbava)? But as you say, the upcoming battle against the Hungarians will determine a lot.

Muslim sprites on the Venetian troops? That's strange.

By the way, what difficulty is it?

 

[Tani Coyote]

Hey, nice with a new EU2 AAR! It's been a while since the last one was active. It seems like you got a good start in the war against Croatia. Perhaps settle for a forcevassalization as well as taking Dalmatia (and Krbava)? But as you say, the upcoming battle against the Hungarians will determine a lot.

Muslim sprites on the Venetian troops? That's strange.

By the way, what difficulty is it?

I have no honest clue why this version of MyMap switches around the sprites for units...

Currently, I am on Easy difficulty. Once my empire's a tad larger and I don't have to worry so much about survival, I'll make it a bit harder. I can also edit the code to give my rivals benefits if necessary.

 

[Tani Coyote]

1420:

On New Year's Day, a brave force of 2,000 Croatians futilely tries to repel us. But they fail. Zagreb is soon to become a battlefield - the Hungarian Army nears. If it is defeated, it will spell the end of the war, and Croatia will be condemned to become a Venetian subject.

The Croatian King tries to negotiate, offering us both Krbava and Dalmatia... but realising a secure frontier along the river is far too much to pass up, we refuse.



January 22nd is the day of a great battle in Zagreb. The Hungarian Army is 6,000 men larger, but is primarily cavalry, and lacks great leadership. They do have superior power, but as the battle goes on, the tide turns. Venice wins the Battle of Zagreb at the cost of heavy casualties thanks to attrition and combat. However, the Hungarians are temporarily repelled.

June 17th is of no importance to us, but could alter the power in the Iberian peninsula. Castile declares war on Tlemcen, and Portugal joins in the crusade against North Africa. In turn, Tunisia and Morocco back Tlemcen. This could potentially change the makeup of the Western Mediterranean... but back to Hungary.



The Doge marries off his close relatives and associates to the royal families of Milan, Tuscany, and Austria, in an attempt to improve relations and prevent any intervention in the conflict in the event it turns sour. He also decides to quash anti-war sentiments in the Orthodox colonies by persecuting the non-existent Muslims instead of the Orthodox citizenry. This causes great amounts of support around the Republic's territory.

Oh right, Hungary and Croatia.. October 16, 1420 was the day the victorious Venetian Army marched into Zagreb.



Commander Savorgnan would recieve great honors by the Doge himself for such a great victory. We held the whole Croatian government prisoner, except for King Zigmund - who was also King of Hungary, and as such was in Buda. But Hungary's security was about to be breached... we intended to attack Hungary itself, and Savorgnan would thrust 12,000 men into the heart of the Hungarian Empire with the task of ending this conflict once and for all.

Meanwhile, we drew up peace terms with Croatia...



They could not become our vassals without their lord's consent, but they did agree to yield to us all their provinces apart from their capital... while conservatives in the Republic were weary about maintaining Krbava - as it was inland - they were swayed by how the river north of it would make it strategic to prevent Slavonic raids into our Adriatic colonies. The Serenissima, just expanded.

Of course, taking the territories of Bihac and Krbava had the negative effect of adding 4 badboy to us... so we would have to be more weary of our decisions in the coming years...

But enough about the Croatian War, which has ended. ON TO BUDA!

We entered Hungary to find out that most of it was ill-defended: the King had sent most of his troops to defeat the Hussites in Bohemia, for they had produced ungodly numbers of soldiers who threatened to defeat the Catholic Romanists.

A small contingent of 2,000 recent recruits had the ill fortune of assaulting us near the capital. They were all promptly slaughtered. With the Hungarian Army mostly not at home, things did not look well for the capital. And for Holy Roman Emperor Zigismund, who was trapped in his own palace and unable to signal for help thanks to the Venetian encirclement. He sent out fresh recruits, about another 2,000, but these were defeated with ease and eliminated. The remaining Hungarian forces were farther and farther each day...

But the campaign did have some drawbacks. Our brave division of 2,000 soldiers were freezing in Slavonia thanks to the cold December, and it was expected about 15 percent of them would perish. But we needed to keep Slavonia pillaged so that it would remain secure.

And with a victory over Croatia, and a stunning assault about to be mounted upon the Magyar Kingdom, Venetian year 1420 ends.

 

[Olav]

Nice progress! I didn't expect the Venetians to win at Zagreb against that large army, but I guess Savorgnan saved the day. Too bad that you couldn't vassalize Croatia, though.

Sounds like you got the Hungarians on their knees now - an excellent opportunity to loot their lands...

 

[Tani Coyote]

1421:

1421 would be the year of a great battle. What was left of the Hungarian Home Guard was sent against us in Buda. King Zigismund had managed to slip a few letters out to the countryside and called for troops to liberate the capital.

In January, we defeated a one-thousand-man contingent in Slavonia. Just because our men were cold, didn't make them any weaker. But the Battle for Buda was about to begin... unfortunately, they made the foolish mistake of crossing the river to get to us. But the King was desperate.



February 4, 1421. The Battle of Buda begins. 6,666 Hungarian men - well-trained but not veterans - go against us to liberate their precious capital from our force of 14,000. We had cavalry and the great Savorgnan - victory was expected. We lose 500 men, while the Hungarians lose 3,000. They retreat demoralised into the countryside, allowing us the time to take Buda.

Hungary offers us a great sum of 171 gold... but the Doge has a much better idea in mind for the Hungarian Crown...

May 1 marks the end of the Franco-English War. France has to give up half it's territory - cutting it off from the sea. The pretender Dauphine throne is starting to look less like a pretender and more like a legitimate opposer.

The war over France escalates - Britain and it's Irish allies go against the Dauphine and Scottish people. The reason we inform you of this irrelevant conflict? The war in Hungary is going slow, so we want to keep you entertained. D:



Later in the year, we get a message that King Murad of the Ottoman Empire has died. Because of a pretender to the throne's release, chaos is being stirred up in the Empire. The Doge and the Council of Ten decide to deal a blow to the Ottomans while they are engulfed in chaos... once our war with Hungary is complete.



November 13, 1421 yields to us the city of Buda. The King of Hungary is finally captured and imprisoned. A lot of debate flies around about the King's fate... many desired to execute him and make an example of him to all who would dare try to crush the Serenissima. Others wanted to simply snatch the whole Hungarian treasury, and empower the people of Croatia. A compromise was reached and given to Zigmund: he could either give us all his gold, military access, and surrender his power over Croatia(albeit still rule it in personal union, but Croatia would be extremely more autonomous) and finally, cede all his territory south of the Danube to Croatia... or suffer death.



December 18, one week before Christmas, a treaty was signed. The war with Hungary that began over Dalmatia was over. Zigmund was restored to the throne as if nothing ever happened. Our claims to Krbava - but not Bihac - were recognised by the international community. We collected plenty of gold and territory, while dealing a huge blow to the prestige of Hungary... and in a very strange mix of relations, but made great enemies with Croatia, but also great friends.

 

[Tani Coyote]

1422:

Fake(Not pre-coded) Event: The Re-Organisation of Krbava

Description: Following the stunning victory in the War For Dalmatia, Krbava - also called Northern Dalmatia - was among the provinces siezed by Venice. The Doge believed that the unruly elements in the two provinces might make them hard to hold. So he cracked a master scheme. To assert Venice's control over Dalmatia, 3/4 of the local Croatian population of 2,000 would be deported to northern Italy, where their relative power would be diluted by the Venetian citizenry. As time went on, colonists could be sent from the city of Venice itself to repopulate Krbava and make it an Italian-styled area.

Effects: Stability - 1. Population in Krbava drops to 1500.

Fake Event: The Warming of Venetian-Croat Relations

Description: Croatia had expected Venice to reap the rewards of a victorious war, and annex the Croat-dominated region of Slavonia to it's empire. But Venetian preference to sea-based territory prevented it, and Venice did not want a front against Hungary... so it did something else instead. During the treaty, Croatia's territory doubled when Venice surprisingly asked Hungary to cede Slavonia to the Croatian crown. Croatia was also freed from it's vassalage to Hungary. In a seperate treaty, Croatia agreed to abandon it's claims to the territories Venice held, in exchange for Venetian aid should anybody attack them. It was the beginning of a beautiful - if somewhat unusual - friendship...

Effects: Relations with Croatia go to +200. Gain an alliance with Croatia. Croatia loses cores in Krbava and Bihac, gains one in Slavonia. Croatia gains a royal marriage with Venice.

--- A Balkan War? ---

With a war ended, friends made and a 'defender of the Danube' established, Venice was at peace once more. But that would not last long... the Doge intended to make good his ideas of attacking the Ottomans to sieze their riches. But he had to think of a gain... and he found one.



(Venice and it's allies outlined in blue, potential allies in streaked blue. Ottomans and their allies in red)

The Balkans was divided into many states, but the majority of these existed under the hegemony of the Ottoman Empire. Bosnia and Albania were the strongest allies the Ottomans had in the region, while the Byzantine Empire and Athens were under their heel as vassals. Serbia and Morea were independent, but could be threatened by such a force. The Doge's plan was risky... he would drag Cephalliona, Venice, Florence, and Croatia into one huge war against the Ottoman Empire. He would try to bribe Serbia and Attica to our side once we gained a few victories. Most importantly, he could conquer and vassalise Bosnia... and perhaps add some of it to the Croatian or Serbian Kingdoms. This would secure our Adriatic possessions.

Eventually, the plan was scrapped. Instead, we would focus solely on a land-based campaign. Venice's troops would conquer Bosnia with the aid of Croatia and hopefully Serbia. Our navy would hold off the Ottomans if necessary. We would also need to deploy large numbers of troops to protect our colonies near Ragusa from Albanian - and later Ottoman - attacks. The Doge's next action was decided. But until the day came, Venice would enjoy peace.

--- Absorption of Dalmatia ---

The Doge went about assimilating Dalmatia into the Venetian yoke. He funded expeditions from Venice to Krbava so as to replace the local Croatian people with Italians instead. The estimated cost to complete the operation? 100 ducats. We expected to complete the colonisation sometime in 1423.

---



General Savorgnan dies in late March. The nation mourns the loss of the great man who managed to take 2 capitals during his career, and in the process end the great war with Croatia and Hungary.

--- War With Genoa ---

The Doge readies for the next wave of expansion... pushing the potential Balkan War to the side, he intends to strike at Venice's chief rival: Genoa. Genoa owns several of the northern Aegean Islands, mainly Lesbos. We intend to sieze the territory in a quick, cheap war. We sign a military access with the Byzantines, as small group of 6,000 men is sent to get ready to strike, while on the mainland, we amass forces for an assault on Genoa proper...

To guarantee the non-interference of Milan and it's allies in the war on Genoa, we also sign access agreements with them and their allies Parma and Mantua. We hope the fact Genoa is a vassal of Milan does not cause a conflict of interests...

November 4, 1422. As the last band of 100 colonists is about to enter Krbava and push it's provincial capital's population past 1000, diplomats are sent to Genoa to declare war... and an assault launched on the island of Lesbos. We foresee the demise of their Aegean Empire.



We declare war on Genoa, losing 1 stability. However, all our allies rally to our side, while Genoa cannot form alliances thank to it's bondage to Milan. The Milanese Duke Visconti promises to not intervene so long as we do not try to take Genoa proper from him - he has no interest in it's overseas possessions, as he is a land-based ruler.

A few days after, Krbava reaches 1,000 citizens in it's capital city. We promote tax collectors there in order to collect further revenue. As Genoa is almost completely unguarded - isolated Corsica holds it's sole army of 9,000 men - we expect little resistance to a grand campaign of conquest.



December 1st marks our siege of Lesbos. The Genoese have not tried to recruit a single troop, our spies tell us. It would seem Genoa's takeover by Visconti is preventing it from acquiring the support it needs. But we are not complaining. If we get lucky, perhaps Corsica can become a Florentine possesion...?

--- War with Byzantium ---



Unexpectedly, Byzantium attacks us as well. They attack defenseless Cephallonia - Croatia decides not to aid us, the ungrateful b***ards! We decide we can make this work to our favor... how does Venetian Thessaloniki sound...? We also realise this entails war with Morea - which we have cores on. It's going to be a fun war for the conquest of the Aegean Sea.

--- Hussite Victory? ---

We learn that Bohemia and the Hussites have signed a treaty, resulting in the cession of much of Romanist territory to the Hussites(new territory is striped)...



However, the disciples of Jan Hus still must defeat Austria and Hungary - if they can defeat Austria, then we may need to keep an eye on them, as they will be far too close to Venice's doorstep. We're content with the large numbers of Hungarian troops along the Bohemian frontier, however.

Finally, we bring Croatia back into our allegiance so as to prevent them from siding with dangerous Hungary.



And with that, 1422 ends. The wars for the Aegean will take off full-swing in 1423.

 

[Dell19]

A bit of a shame that Byzantium declared war as there is an event that gives you Macedonia anyway.

 

[Tani Coyote]

1423:

1423 opens with the government(obviously) collecting census taxes. We only collect 65 ducats. The Doge says that the government should try to expand Venice sufficiently to raise 100 a year instead. Thus, we hope to acquire rich territories in Morea and the Byzantine Empire to add to our income.

The Pope also declares war on Modena and Ferarra during the beginning of the year so as to legitimise his claims to the area. The peninsula detests the action, but Venice is too busy with it's war overseas to get involved. A new trade center also opens in Norwegian Iceland, not that we give a d@mn.

The war in Iberia and North Africa ends. Portugal is forced to give up it's city of Ceuta to the Muslims. The Catholic world mourns the loss of a bastion in Africa. But maybe one day, a great Italian Empire can take it back...

February 4 Naples agrees to give us military access to their ports. This allows our 35-man fleet to rest up for an assault on Genoa's equally-sized navy.

March 2, mere days before the Genoese and Venetian fleets will engage eachother, the Doge is on his deathbed. He advises against foreign wars...



But the Council of Ten decides that Venice needs to be stronger, not just against the Italians, but against the Slavonic and Muslim states. So they plan an aggressive foreign policy to expand the Serenissima. Some word gets out and damages our relations with many countries.



March 10, our fleets engage in the Cote D'Azur outside Genoa. Our fleet is superior, we have more galleys and more ships. We also have no transports to take damage from the fighting.




April 7, the battle still continues. We gain a new Doge, Francesco Foscari. Foscari promises he will carry on the legacy of the last Doge and carry the war with Genoa and Byzantium until Venice is the rightful ruler of the seas.



May 3, the Venetian Fleet is victorious. We have lost only 1 of our 35 ships, while Genoa has lost 15, and the remaining ones are heavily demoralised. The fleet is given instructions to remain in the region until the Genoese fleet is destroyed.

Some of our ships are ordered back to the Aegean, to fight the Morean and Byzantine fleets - which are rather small. On June 17th, the half of our fleet that remained - commanded by the great admiral P. Loredan - finally catches up with the Genoese and battles them to the death once more.



Venice enters with 19 ships, Genoa with 15. Of course, 4 of Genoa's are transport vessels, so they are worthless. Genoa has 6 galleys join the fight at the last minute, but they fail to turn the tide. Genoa loses about 7 ships total, bringing down their full naval size to 14 vessels. After restocking near Florence, we will assault them once again. We lost only 1 vessel in the battle. Once again, a battle ensues on July 26th. 18 Venetian vessels go against Genoese 14.

We win once more. Genoa is cut down to 11 vessels while Venice loses none. We expect this strategy to continue until the Genoese fleet is exterminated. Meanwhile, we are attacked elsewhere in the waters between Greece and Turkey:



The Byzantines bring one more warship then us, but they are heavily outnumbered 5 to 1. They manage to wear us down to breaking morale, but the tide turns and the Byzantines are defeated. They lose 1 warship in the battle, and the remainder return back to Constantinople. Our exhausted seamen on the other hand retreat to Attica for supplies...



September 22nd, the start of Autumn, represents a great victory. Just as the leaves fall around Europe, the Genoese start to fall, as we take over Lesbos in the central Aegean. Now that it's Black Sea Colonies and it's motherland are divided, Genoa's demise is imminent.


November 13-16 simultaneously marks battles with Byzantium and Genoa. Genoa is defeated within days, losing 1 of their 6 ships. Admiral Loredan gives chase. It is a tough battle with Byzantium, but we defeat them and destroy their navy once and for all. This frees up the Aegean for our allegiance. We decide to go against Morea first.

And the year ends with the destruction of the Genoese fleets. As our troops from Lesbos prepare to board ships to conquer Morea, the Venetian Republic celebrates the destruction of it's rival Genoa, and how we only lost a galley or two to destroy all 40 of their vessels. Loredan is given the same treatment as Savorgnan - he is a national hero.

1423 ends. The Venetian Republic is on it's way to destroying Genoa, Morea and the Byzantine regime.



As you can see, Genoa has no ships left. They are at the mercy of the Florentines on land and the Venetians on the water.

 

[Tani Coyote]

1424:

Foscari's reign was now in full swing. Foscari had experience as a state inquisitor, and he planned to apply that profession on a national scale...

Event: The Great Deportation and the Great Inqusition

Description: Francesco Foscari was by no means a heartless man, but he did think highly in terms of efficiency and what was best overall. And he saw the large Orthodox communities in the island colonies as a threat to that efficiency. So beginning in 1424, he made meetings with the Pope to discuss what to do with the religious minority.
Though the last doge had made it so Muslims were the persecuted people and not the Orthodox group, Foscari still wanted near-complete religious unity across his vast possessions. So with Papal permission, he prepared the Great Deportation and the Great Inquisition. The first step would involve following the last Doge's experiment in Krbava, but instead of replacing Croatian identity, it would replace Orthodoxy. Then, missionaries would be sent to convert the locals to Catholicism. But unlike the last plan, rather then resettle the people, most would simply be deported from the country and sent to the Orthodox-dominated regions.
The plan said that any Orthodox settlement above 2,000 people must be reduced to below that. The Genoese settlement on Lesbos was hit hard, cut down to 500 inhabitants. Naturally, the Serenissima was greatly destabilised by the massive resettlement and deportation of 18,000 people.

Effects:

Stability drops to 0.
Population in Corfu: - 4000
Population in Crete: - 5500
Population in Naxos: - 4500
Population in Lesbos: - 2500
Population in Euboa: - 1500
Population in Constantinople(not controlled by Venice): +6000
Population in Salonika(not controlled by Venice): +3000
Population in Athene(not controlled by Venice): +2000
Population in Pola: +2000
Population in Padova: +1000
Population in Venezia: + 3000

As you can see above, Venice has been rocked by Foscari's radical(or is it evilly brilliant?) policies. The mass deportations and re-organisations of the people could possibly disrupt our war effort. If our stability continues to plummet, Venice may have troubles raising and paying soldiers.

It also made our enemies stronger. Thanks to our efforts, the population of Byzantine urban centers skyrocketed from 16,000 to 25,000 - and increase of over 50 percent. While the Byzantines might have trouble accomodating so many people, they will likely demand that the refugees serve in their army... and seeing as how Venice did screw their lives up, they will likely consent to it. But enough about potential consequences... ON TO REAL ONES!

January 14 will have consequences. The Ottoman Empire declares war on Serbia, hoping to subjugate the last free Slavic Kingdom besides Croatia, and hook up with Bosnia. Hungary supports Serbia, so the Balkans quickly plummet to hell. If the war doesn't drain our resources too much, we too will invade Ottoman territory once our conflict is over.

Troops land in Euboea. In addition to new recruits they are sent to Athens to wait for orders - preparing to attack the Morean Despotate. Morea is ill-defended, and we expect an easy, rapid conquest of the region. We also are readying troops in Italy for an attack on Corsica if necessary.



8,000 Venetians march against 4,000 Moreans. We expect a victory, but given the terrain, the Moreans can win too. The first colonists arrive to repopulate Naxos, changing the dominant culture to north italian, while Catholicism slowly takes hold.



The First Battle of Morea ensues. 8200 Venetians go against 4500 Moreans.



The government of Thessalonika, fearing Turkish assault, says they would be willing to submit to Venice - and they promptly turn over control to us. Unfortunately, there are about 12,000 Byzantine troops right inside it. But they are not besieging it yet, so we promote tax collectors.

We also win the First Battle of Morea, and most of the Morean army retreats. We break off some troops to continue pillaging the region, then move against their capital, where low morale, poorly trained troops will await us.



May 2nd, the Second Battle of Morea occurs. This pits many cavalry units and the low-morale survivors from the first battle against 6,000 Venetians. It's a tough battle, but it looks like morale and troop type will play a significant part.

May 7th, we are victorious over the Moreans. We besiege their capital. In the following months, Morea's troops march back and forth, only to be decimated by Venice and later Cephallonia. Eventually, all Morean troops are dealt with, and we continue our campaign against Morea in peace.



Our stability finally increases late in the year to 1. The country has finally recovered somewhat from the paranoia and uncertainty of the Great Deportation.



September 13 brings more great news. The long siege of Genoa proper finally ends ,and we capture the city. Visconti cares little for our actions, and lets his viceroy in the city offer us peace terms. They offer a lump sum of gold, but it is so petty we'd rather take the islands around Lesbos instead.

Doge Foscari sends his own emissary instead, offering rather good terms to the Genoese...



Genoa accepts, ceding 50 gold to our alliance, and giving us Lesbos. We offer to purchase their Black Sea possessions as well, but they refuse, saying: "Take it up with Visconti if you want those." Hmph.

But enough about Genoa, our war with them is done and Visconti is pleased we did not butcher his possession too much. On to crushing Byzantium and claiming what is ours.

1424 ends. The Moreans have as just a desperate position as the Genoese did the last December.

 

[Tani Coyote]

1425:

1425 begins. It is marked by Visconti vassalising Parma. The Italian peninsula begins to grow scared, is the overseas power of Venice a threat, or is it Milan's peninsular influence? Either way Venice could probably profit...

Speaking of Milan, a week after Parma is vassalised, a man named Carmagnola - former mercenary of the Milanese Army - offers his commander services to us instead.



We agree to pay 150 ducats for him, and he also revolutionises the Venetian Army, by giving it higher quality and making it more land-oriented. People are probably casting a weary eye on why the Italian Carthage is showing such an interest in land power...



Feburary 10, we take Morea proper. Once the periphery is taken by Venice, we will sign a peace with the Byzantines and establish ourselves as the prime Aegean power - having toppled Morea, Byzantium AND Genoa all at once.

Byzantium besieges Salonika! Once Carmagnola has conquered Morea, we intend for him to head north and teach the Greeks a lesson in respect.

October 26, Carmagnola and his personal guard of 990 men are deployed to Morea to take the last Morean stronghold. Most of the work is done, but he'll do the finishing touches.



One month later, Achaia falls. Morea is defeated. We bring them to the table. We demand Achaia and their vassalisation. And they accept as they have no other choice.



We then call the Byzantines up, before they can take Salonika from us. We hope our naval battles will give us the leeway to negotiate peace...

They accept our white peace miraculously. They are as tired of warfare as the Venetian people.

So 1425 is at it's end. We managed to end the war just in time. Venice has accomplished it's goal of toppling all 3 countries while barely breaking a sweat. What's next? The Doge thinks Ragusa needs to be removed from the map...



In December, somebody named 'the Monarch' comes up to the Doge and says he is now promoted to 'Lord Viscount'. The Doge does not show humor, and executes the perpetrator for such foolish behavior.

Before 1426 begins, a map of the greatly expanded Venetian Republic:



New territory is in striped blue. We've expanded quite a bit, yes? The rest of the Republic is not shown because there are no changes.

 

[Tani Coyote]

What do you, my readers, think of the fake events I throw in every so often? They're added basically to add spice, and they may help me, but as you can see with the massive stab hits they make when put together, can also cripple me. I'm just about to hit stability 2 or so, thanks to the constant stab hits from the events and declarations of war.

In other words, most of these events are made to make the game more favorable to one group - usually Venice, but maybe others, as the ones in 1426 will show you. Regardless, I've already coded in the effects of the next 2 fake events, so I can't change those(I'm lazy).

So, opinions? =)

 

[toda]

Haven't played EUII for ages and I was never good at it. So I can't really comment on the events.
But this thread needs more love.

 

[Tani Coyote]

Haven't played EUII for ages and I was never good at it. So I can't really comment on the events.
But this thread needs more love.

Indeed it does! One of the reasons for that last post was to convince lurkers to post too...

 

[Tani Coyote]

1426

Doge Foscari announces his plan for peace, saying there's no need to expand the Serenissima, that Venice must focus on expanding the territory it already has. The rich treasury it once enjoyed 7 years ago is now nearly depleted... he also makes note the annual income now is 69 ducats instead of the old 65.

The year begins with tales of terror - the Ottomans absorb the state of Tekke, adding a great deal of Mediterranean coastline to their power base. Luckily, Turkey is still divided, and the Ottoman Empire is weak if you know just where to strike...

The Ottomans had also conquered most of Serbia, and in the treaty took everything but the extreme north and extreme south.

While it is peacetime, Foscari does feel that Venice should try to enhance it's oppurtunities. We look at our ally Croatia - hoping we can vassalise them.



They agree near-unanimously! King Zigmund of Hungary is a tad angry we've taken over what was once his position of suzerain. But he lost the war, so too bad.

Next, we intend to vassalise our ally of Cephallonia, desiring to add their provinces to Venice at a later date.

The year passes by quietly, as Venice lacks the treasury to do much of anything besides send a colonist here and there. April 11 does bring Constantinople ending it's vassalage with the Ottomans. We predicted their deaths.

However, in June, Foscari finds he has an itch for combat... but to avoid it subtly - that and the Council of Ten will not allow further declarations - he has a meeting with the Pope and the ruler of Florence. They draw up plans to balance the power of Milan.

Event: The Triple 'Alliance'

Description:

Doge Francesco Foscari of Venice had developed an itch for war, but lacking the treasury and the approval of the Council, he decided to expand his power by proxy - meaning Tuscany/Florence. Meeting with the Pope, all 3 leaders discussed how to balance the power of Visconti, ruler of Milan. Foscari said they each should claim parts of Italy, and the Pope would legitimise these claims. Florence would gain Siena, the Pope could take small and surrounded Urbino, and finally Venice would take Mantua, it's vassal. The Pope was a bit reluctant to trust Venice, and drew up a compromise instead.
Foscari was reluctant, but agreed to not press claims to Mantua. However, Siena and Urbino would be claimed by their respective owners. In addition, Tuscany and Venice would support the Papal States if Milan grew overly ambitious and tried to gain more territory by going against them. It seemed the peninsula was moving towards solidification and stability...

Effects:

Papal States gains Urbino as a core province.
Tuscany gains Siena as a core province.
Relation with Tuscany +75
Relation with Papal States +75
Stability + 1

Event: Visconti and Foscari Speak of Genoa

Description:

Genoa had been crippled by the war with Venice. With it's navy destroyed and the key base of Lesbos captured, Genoa could not defend it's Black Sea territory from invaders or even simple pirates. And it was powerless to try to restore it's position, as it was ruled by Felippo Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan. It was over Genoa that Foscari had a secret meeting with Visconti, just after the meetings with the Pope and Giovanni de Medici of Florence. Visconti assumed that Venice wanted the territory of Genoa, but was surprised by what he heard instead.
Foscari asked Visconti to relieve Genoa of it's burdensome colonies, and instead give them to the people of the Byzantine Empire. He made a point that the colonies would be worth more to Constantinople then Milan. Visconti knew little about navies, nor did he want to appropriate the resources to fund a new one. Furthermore, maintaining and defending the Black Sea colonies would be far too burdensome against the combined threats of pirates and the nearby Muslim powers.
When asked what he would get in return, Foscari told Visconti he would defend Milan if it came under attack from the Papal States or a third-party. Visconti was pleased, and the two great powers of Northern Italy made an agreement. They would keep the meeting secret, and Visconti would make it look like an act of political charity. It seemed Foscari was quite the diplomatic snake...
At the same event, he also negotiated for Mantua to be removed from the Milan-led alliance, and it would be added to Venice's. In exchange, Visconti could align Genoa with Milan, and Foscari would placate the Papal States and Tuscany out of a possible war.

Effects:

Monarch's diplomacy skill +1
Genoa cedes it's Black Sea territory to the Byzantine Empire.
Relation with Byzantium + 50
Relation with Milan + 100
Genoa added to Milano Alliance. Mantua drops out.
Mantua added to Venetian alliance.
Milan's Stability -1
Genoa's Stability -4
Relation between Milan and Genoa -200



With these two agreements concluded, Foscari showed he was a master of diplomacy, using manipulation to his advantage. He had weakened Genoa further because Visconti cared little about Genoa for anything besides the wealth of it's center of trade. He had guaranteed the expansion of his alliance, he had curried the favor of the Pope, and he destabilised Visconti's realm as the Genoese people would not approve of such an action. Overall, he had greatly gained points in the game for dominance in Italy.

Now that Italy was for all intents and purposes secure and peaceful, the Doge looked outwards. While the state of Morea was subjugated and could be peacefully assimilated in a decade, there was the problem of the states of Ragusa, Cephallonia and Athens. Ragusa had a firm Catholic population and a Catholic - albeit Serbian - government, so the Doge could not easily destabilise them. But then he looked at Cephallonia and Athens. Cephallonia was a puppet state of Venice, as it's government were strong Catholics despite how it was primarily Orthodox. Athens was no different, with a Catholic government yet Orthodox population... the Doge worked with the Council of Ten to devise a plan to take advantage of religious tension..

1426 ends with an increase in stability. It has been a quiet year, albeit filled with the Doge's sneaky plots.

 

[Tani Coyote]

Things to come:

The epic Balkan War. The Turks have decided to be the jack@$$es of the world and have declared war on us. Watch as take over Greece, Bosnia, and Albania for the Serenissima! And watch us destroy the Turkish fleet, leaving us unchallenged in the Mediterranean!!

By the time the next war is over:

1)Bosnia and Albania will be grossly depopulated.
2)Bosnia and Albania will be our vassals.
3)The Turks will pay a huge indemnity and compensate for their foolishness with many many gallons of blood.

 

[Kyriakos]

Are you using the eep, and if so where can i dl it from? (the link in the paradox forums is corrupt)

Also, is the new map part of the mod?

 

[Dell19]

I believe he is using AGCEEP-Mymap.

I'm not sure about the customised events as Genoa would normally cede those provinces to the Ottomans at a later date and it makes it harder for them to gain Istanbul so it does weaken them quite a bit.

 

[Kyriakos]

Where can i dl the map/mod from?