With the Portuguese Republic's position, Spain was an easy target. Attacks from both sides would cripple the Spaniards. The new cavalry regiments would also give a healthy advantage. On top of that, Spain was likely worn down from constant warfare with the Romans and Ethiopians.
670 CE, the Mongols were contacted thanks to usage of Chinese lands. Finally, the ancient state could be dealt with, and it was noticed they were far weaker than China.
Meanwhile, in Spain, 13 Cavalry, 4 Lancers, and 3 Crusaders were ready to attack at any moment, while several Musketeer divisions stood ready to defend any newly-conquered lands.
It was decided that Barcelona and Madrid would be the best targets; they would split Spain in half, and the legendary Tercios would lose prominence rapidly as the Iron of Spain was severed. Pamplona was too heavily guarded to be attacked directly and still split Spain.
2 Spearmen, 6 Tercio, and 1 Crossbowmen regiment protected the capital; Barcelona was protected by 1 Crossbowmen and 2 Tercio. 12 units could attack Madrid, and 5 Cavalry could attack Barcelona. It was reasoned to defer the attack until more units could be built.
690 CE, the Egyptians declared war on Rome, likely seeking to conquer Libya. That would suck Rome's forces into yet another conflict, distracting them from the destruction of Spain.
The right of passage was finally torn up. The table was set, and the festivities were about to begin.
710, Spain's defenses were re-evaluated. Madrid was now 6 Tercio and 2 Crossbowmen; Barcelona was 1 Crossbow and 2 Tercio strong still, and home to one of the Spanish fleets.
The first wave of four units on Madrid killed 4 Tercios with no units lost. The next wave of 2 Cavalry kept up the success, with no units lost while killing 1 Tercio.
Madrid's forces were destroyed with no units lost. With the Spanish down 8 units, attention could be focused on Barcelona. The new capital, Pamplona, was too well defended to be seriously considered as a target.
FOUR cavalry units were lost taking Barcelona. The Catalans were brave in their defense of the Spanish crown, but alas, their efforts were futile. As compensation, three of the four were enslaved and thus liberated post-capture.
The Spanish homeland was now cut in half. Due to the Catalans' effective defense, the ability to strike elsewhere was hindered. Fortunately, the removal of the Spanish from the Eastern provinces by threat of war had made those frontiers safer, allowing the removal of the local Cavalry further west.
Immediately in the aftermath, 2 Archer divisions were easily picked off by Crusaders and Fusiliers.
A raid on Santiago - using a single Grand Battery - destroyed all but the Warriors, making it a likely next target of French expansionism. The usefulness of the Grand Battery's all-terrain capabilities were realised, and the Consulate ordered more be deployed to assist in taking heavily-fortified cities.
British expatriate William Shakespeare set up his headquarters in Strasbourg come 730 CE. The cultural loss that losing the Sacrificial Altars would inflict was greatly reduced as a result.
The fall of Santiago with no losses was a crushing victory, sealing off the sea zone around Pamplona and thus dooming it to deprivation. Units that were outside Santiago were ordered to siege the fields around Pamplona, to reduce its population. The captured Spanish laborers were forced to watch one of their companions be executed and sacrificed to God. They were then themselves sent to Oporto and butchered for the glory of God.
Troops sieging Pamplona reported that while the city was size 6, it could only support size 4. That would drive the resilience of the new Spanish capital down immensely.
Come 750, studies revealed Pamplona to have 15 troops inside and training more Tercios. As Iron deposits were located under the city itself, it would be impossible to severe the Iron needed to provide such deadly units. Starving the city out and using Grand Batteries to weaken its defenders, therefore, would have to be the course of action.
Grand Batteries wounded the Tercios and forced Crossbowmen to take the defense; the Elephant Archer divison killed a Crossbowmen unit and a band of Crusaders butchered a Tercio.
Meanwhile, Cavalrymen descended and hit the city from the East. Crossbowmen eventually gave up, and so the Tercios again had to take up the defensive. The Tercios were the finest units in the city; much of the garrison, while large, was Warriors and Spearmen, who'd easily be devoured by a horde of Cavalry.
The 2 Tercios were butchered with no losses incurred. Spearmen had to take up the defense. A 66% chance of victory was now 75%. 2 Cavalry units destroyed another Spearmen; the first was smart enough to retreat.
Further East, a Lancer and a Crusader killed 2 stray Tercios who were harassing Lemberg's suburbs. That would neutralise their threat in the region.
In the Far East, contact was established with the tiny, weak Koreans. The Consulate made plans to colonise them at some point, so as to gain a base against northern China.
By 770, the Black Death was starting to resurface in Trieste and Amsterdam. The Consulate imposed many quarantines while retreating to their country resorts.
A Crusader was sacrificed to the Pamplona Spearmen's hunger before Cavalry mowed them down.
With no more losses, but a few retreats,
the Pamplona garrison was wiped out. Spain lost its one source of Iron left. It would now be a march southward to purge them from Seville. 3 Bands of Settlers were captured, and they were transformed into 9 workers, ordered to labor in the fields.
Only Seville remained independent on the Spanish landmass, and while well-guarded, its small size would surely prove a liability to the defenses. Cavalry were ordered to screen it. 12 units, composed of a Crossbowmen base with Tercio supervisors, protected the city and the 2 proud galley fleets contained within. Conquering it would damn the Spanish to obscurity forever.
790 CE, fearing Spanish power, Britain signed an embargo against the French Republic!
It was also noticed Britain had landed some Musketmen and Pikemen near weakly-defended Santiago. Were the British considering an invasion? It wasn't unbelievable.
So, the Consulate demanded their removal. The British chose war instead of reason. Grand Batteries and all available troops were ordered to squash them. The vaults of Paris were opened up and their gold distributed to all coastal centers; fleets would need assembling, musketmen needed training, and Grand Batteries needed loading.
All 4 units the British had landed were wiped out with ease. Grand Batteries fortified northern France, while Musketmen and offensive units took supporting positions so the entire coastline could be reinforced. Galleasses were ordered tobe built in several key ports so that the British fleet could be picked off. The Consulate would have to be careful though; reckless moves would cause the British alliance with India to activate.
It was decided to renew an alliance with the Scandinavians, as vulgar as the idea of allying with monarchists was. They were a traditional ally and could also use their fleet to attack the Brits. With a fleet of 6 galleys and 13 Galeasses, the British were quite formiddable.
The alliance was inked and some techs given to the Vikings as compensation. The Vikings were backward but as allies of the Republic this would be remedied quick. It was known the Austrians would surely trigger the Alliance, but being in Central Asia, they were of no consequence.
Further South, the Seville garrison killed two Cavalry, but many losses were inflicted on their ranks in turn. The plan was to crush Seville, get whatever out of the Spanish for peace, and then focus entirely on the British.
Some Spanish Knights failed to take Transylvania in 810, triggering a Golden Age.
Seville was conquered at last with the loss of one Cavalry. The Peninsular Campaign was finished, and Iberia now firmly under French control sans some tiny fishing villages along the coast loyal to the Balearic Spanish. It was time for peace.
The Canary Islands were demanded in the treaty, reducing Spain to two cities - the Balearic Islands and whatever "Hispaniola" was. Spain could now be written off like Germany and Austria. Spain was carved up, the Portuguese Republic's borders being more compact, while Spain proper was sliced up into Galicia, Navarre, Cantabria, Castile, Andalucia, Catalonia, and Aragon.
Meanwhile, contact was made with the Axumites. The British galleasses could move 50% faster than the French ones due to the works of a Spanish expatriate, Fernando Magellan, and their own naval prowess. Thus, they were quite deadly.
Now, it would be a test of wills. Who would emerge triumphant? Wealthy, naval-based Britain or industrious, land-based France? Only time would tell.
