Crusader Kings

[narikel]

December is a quiet month for me during the daylight hours. School is out, and as such most of our customer interaction will only be with faculty and staff through email, with very infrequent instances of people actually coming in person to see us. In between shooting out resumes to various "real jobs" (as my mother calls them) I will need to

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[narikel]

Andonikos's reign was probably saved by the coming of age of his uncle Stanislav, a decent warrior and capable marshal for the realm that managed to conquer the fractured Muslim provinces of Armenia Minor. The provinces themselves connected the eastern portion of the Serbian conquests together, provided lands to grant to would-be Prince relatives, and further more saw the death of the last great Seljuk Turk leader. Further fortune found the growing Syranerid Empire when Western Europe erupted into chaos. The Islamic lords of Cordoba and Granada rampaged over the struggling reconquista and drove deep into the heart of unprepared France. The Empire of the Germans dissolved into civil war, and all of their holding in the holy lands were either lost or broke off into lordless robber barons or lonely bishoprics. Stanislav had only appoint a man of his court as general of an army and let them loose, and new lands would be added to his demesne. Andronikos was now the King of Serbia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Aleppo, and Mesopatamia, with Syria, Persia, and even Tunisia being added later in his reign as he turned his attentions to the isolated Fatimids.

Beyond picking generals, his talents and virtues of a king were lacking, however. He was unable to amass much of a fortune despite all the conquests, and was under strain to produce an heir. He fathered three bastard sons, 2 infant heirs that did not survive their fifth birthday, and numerous daughters. It seemed likely that his grandnephew would be inheriting the throne, when his bastard son Alexios claimed himself a legitimate heir based on his own personal power, as he was placed as Prince of the island of Sicily after he helped take that for the throne. Alexios died shortly thereafter, but his son's place in succession was secured, and when Andronikos passed at the age of 51, Andronikos II, a four year old, took the throne.