Get the rest of the story: The Legacy of House Mlechchha

The years up to 1270 AD saw unparalleled aggression in the subcontinent as the Mlechchha Dynasty saw their claims – no matter how weak – pressed upon the Maharajas of the south. The result was an India unified under its first Samrajni Chakravartin.

The First Lunatic

Samrat Jayamala II was a great leader in the beginning, inheriting in 1195 after his father was shot in the head with an arrow. He wasn’t genetically strong, but Midas Touched and Diligent. His mystic Court Physician later performed a ritual on him to cure him of gout, which also gave him a plethora of positive virtues; this was a saintly leader.

So it was particularly sad to see him succumb to lunacy. Despite this hindrance, he pushed forth into the south of India, snatching away counties of the southern kingdoms one claim at a time, either by vassals’ weak claims or fabricated claims.

This was an expensive endeavour. Fabricating claims is costly work, and needs an excellent Chancellor to pull it off in time. Jayamala II, in his infinite wisdom, decided that the best man for the job wasn’t a man at all, but a horse, Glitterhoof.

A month after winning a war pressing his fabricated claims on more than half-a-dozen counties, Jayamala II succumbed to his deteriorating mental condition, dying comatose in bed…

The Lesbian

His daughter, Syamadevi, takes the throne; she is Quick, Attractive, and a lesbian. There is no hate for lesbians from me, but it does make it a little more difficult to have children. (That said, she did managed to raise four “candidates”, which is pretty effective, all considered!)

Syamadevi was extremely effective at capturing the southern counties and, by 1250, there was just a small collection of six counties remaining to be acquired.

It would take a further 20 years to capture these remaining counties. Thankfully, the legendary Syamadevi was still around to enjoy this monumental occasion; the creation of India in August 1270, and the assumption of the title of Samrajni Chakravartin.

The Second Lunatic

From this point onward, my rulers had the backing of a united subcontinent. It was easy to pour money into improving holdings and hospitals, paying for overkill in my plots, and generally consolidating my position.

Not content to rest on his laurels, Samrat Chukravartin Supratisthitavarman (reign starting 1287) cast his eyes upon Persia. An attractive man, Chukravartin also possessed superior stewardship (Midas Touched), but was crazy enough to consider taking a chunk out of his mighty neighbour, Ali. In fact, Chukravartin was a lunatic and a cannibal; surely a man one wouldn’t want to cross.

Clash of the Titans

Chukravartin took advantage of the nature of the Hindu religion to declare the first Holy War against the Persians, the India Holy War for Sistan.

This was probably the most interesting war I’ve fought, tactically speaking. The counties in Sistan (and the surrounding area) were mostly comprised of desert and mountains and had relatively low supply limits. Not taking chances against this great neighbour, I’d raised all levies available to me; I had to go to significant efforts to split up my army while closely monitoring enemy army movements in case I had to temporarily move in more troops to deal with conflict.

This was also the first war I’ve fought where I’ve relied on fleets to move troops to where they need to be. My holdings are still in the east of India, so there’s a significant time delay to march them to the conflict zone on the western border of India; sailing around the south of India is much faster.

All this said, the war was surprisingly easy to win. Ali’s armies never came to much (the largest I saw was about 30k against my combined total of >120k). This bodes well for my expansion further into the Middle-East.

Funding Conflict

The many wars in the south took their toll on the empire’s finances, with significant dips in the 25 year rolling average due to frequently-raised levies and the occasional hire of mercenaries. At its peak, the realm could be relied upon to generate some 130 gold a month, with an absolute maximum of 220 gold/month (achieved in 1220).

The Situation in 1300

The below shows the difference between 1152 and 1300 India.

The difference this time is very stark; India is united, the southern kingdoms are no more, and expansion west has begun.

The difference between 1152 and 1300 for the rest of the world is shown below.

Observations:

Persia, under Ali, has continued to expand into the Steppes. In the north is the new Mongol Empire, which will hopefully be putting the Persian’s through their paces.

Both Éire and Scotland have amazingly made gains in mainland Europe. England is united.

The Byzantine Empire has remained relatively static.

The Umayyad Empire, originally confined to the Iberian Peninsula, has now extended across all of west Africa. It is currently undergoing a major revolt, however.

There is a new eastern European empire, the Empire of Carpathia, which, along with the Khaganate of Menumarotid makes up most of eastern Europe.

The Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea are largely controlled by four dynasties (the Alimids, Quadirids, Axums, and Abbasids), an improvement on the fractured state 150 years ago.

Next Time

There’s really only one direction for expansion at this point – west. I’ve shown that I’m more than capable of snatching territory from the Ali Sultanate; the other states of the Middle-East are weak by comparison. The biggest challenge will be managing my threat and avoiding the defensive pacts that form against me.

The end of the game is in sight – 1444 is less than 150 years away.

Get the rest of the story: The Legacy of House Mlechchha