Paradox AAR - Saga of the Slavs

[SilverLeaf167]

Long, long ago, in the age of heroes and song, the three brothers Lech, Czech and Rus said their farewells and went their respective ways.
Czech went west, Rus went east, and Lech made his home in the great Polish Plain.
Now the sons of Lech find their ancient way of life under threat by the pawns of patriarchs and crucified gods.
Their promises of wealth and salvation hide motives much more sinister, and the only way the Poles can survive
is by making the gods of old their sword and shield...

This is an AAR, or "After Action Report", chronicling the events of a game starting in Crusader Kings 2 and hopefully continuing into Europa Universalis 4 and beyond, should we get that far. Though primarily played by myself and then... reported after the action... readers are encouraged to participate either in the form of free-for-all comments or the occasional special vote. There will be emphasis on the characters and narrative elements themselves, hopefully crafting ourselves an extensive alternate history along the way. May the song of the old gods never cease to play across the plains!

Spoiler: Crusader Kings 2

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Mods: Self-made cosmetic changes

Prologue: The Legendary Lechoslaw (Lechoslaw, 867-924)
Chapter #1: Skarbimir the Unscarred (Skarbimir, 924-948)
Chapter #2: Unholy Alliances (Mszczuj, 948-980)
Chapter #3: The Stargazer (Bozydar, 980-987)
Chapter #4: Parades & Poisonings (Gniewosz + Wladyslaw, 987-1002)
Chapter #5: Of Gods and Kings (Spytko, 1002-1014)
Chapter #6: Divine Disgrace (Nadbor, 1014-1041)
Special #1: Centennial of the Slavic Church (1041)
Chapter #7: A Small Step for a King (Prendota, 1041-1056)
Chapter #8: Feudal Faceoff (Strasz, 1056-1057)
Chapter #9: Apocalypse After Another (Strasz + Skarbimir, 1057-1082)
Chapter #10: No Time to Lick Old Wounds (Pelka + Gaudenty, 1082-1104)
Chapter #11: Architecture of Demise (Zelibrat, 1104-1116)
Special #2: Politics & Estates of Medieval Poland (1116)
Chapter #12: An Island in the Storm (Nadbor II, 1116-1154)
Chapter #13: A Sword in a Sheath (Swietoslaw, 1154-1174)
Chapter #14: How to Build a Well (Sulislaw, 1174-1194)
Chapter #15: Witch & Witcher (Wojciech + Zygmunt, 1194-1240)
Chapter #16: The Great Oriental War (Krzeslaw + Sambor, 1240-1254)
Chapter #17: Waves in the Aegean (Niezamysl, 1254-1269)
Chapter #18: Sword and Plowshare of Triglav (Niezamysl, 1269-1283)
Chapter #19: Szczesny's Legacy (Szczesny + Trojden, 1283-1301)
Special #3: The Matter of Moldavia (1283)
Chapter #20: Sins of the Father (Trojden + Lechoslaw, 1301-1345)
Chapter #21: Gods Save the Queen (Grzymislawa, 1345-1373)
Chapter #22: Warlords vs. Warlocks (Grzymislawa + Dobrogost, 1373-1403)
Interlude #1: The End of the Beginning (1404-1444)

Spoiler: Europa Universalis 4

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Mods: Thicker Borders and Recolored Water, TBARW Extra: White Font, handmade conversion and assorted mechanical changes

Interlude #2: Polska Uniwersalna (1444)
Chapter #23: Noble Intentions (Stanislaw, 1444-1459)
Chapter #24: Reshuffling of Rights (Stanislaw + Elizabeth, 1459-1472)
Chapter #25: Renaissance, Man (Wladyslaw II, 1472-1484)
Chapter #26: With Friends Like These (Wladyslaw II, 1484-1500)
Chapter #27: Noble Republic (Wladyslaw II + Wolislawa, 1500-1510)
Chapter #28: Here's Waldo (Wolislawa, 1510-1525)
Chapter #29: Cat's Out of the Bag (Wolislawa + Zygmunt II, 1525-1535)
Chapter #30: The Alpine War (Grzymislawa II, 1535-1550)
Special #4: States of the Moscow Pact (1550)
Chapter #31: Heretic-Heathen Unity (Grzymislawa II, 1550-1572)
Chapter #32: Peace of Champagne & Treaty of Algonquin (Kazimierz I, 1572-1589)
Chapter #33: Lightning from a Blue Sky (Sulislaw II, 1589-1604)
Chapter #34: Being Repressed (Sulislaw II, 1604-1619)
Special #5: Story of Eastern Wonderland (1619)
Chapter #35: The Amsterdam Compromise (Lechoslaw III, 1619-1632)
Chapter #36: Bound in Blood (Jan I, 1632-1638)
Chapter #37: Rises and Falls (Kazimierz II, 1638-1657)
Chapter #38: The Kazimierz Gambit (Kazimierz II, 1657-1675)
Chapter #39: Hijacked Ships of State (Kazimierz II, 1675-1685)
Chapter #40: Going South (Stanislaw II, 1685-1695)
Chapter #41: Age of Empires (Stanislaw II, 1695-1711)
Chapter #42: When in Rome (Niezamysl II, 1711-1718)
Special #6: Pagans of the World (1718)
Chapter #43: So Many Emperors, Only One Europe (Niezamysl II, 1718-1734)
Chapter #44: The Dalmatian War (Niezamysl II, 1734-1738)
Chapter #45: Enemies in the Spirit of Civility (Aleksander I, 1738-1745)
Chapter #46: The Meczennik Menace (Aleksander II, 1745-1746)
Chapter #47: Altered Allegiances (Aleksander II, 1746-1758)
Chapter #48: Front Row Seats (Aleksander II, 1758-1770)
Chapter #49: High King on Vacation (Aleksander II, 1770-1776)
Chapter #50: The Amatican Revolution (Aleksander II, 1776-1779)
Chapter #51: Closer to Home (Aleksander II, 1779-1788)
Chapter #52: The New Normal? (Aleksander II, 1788-1805)
Chapter #53: The World of Realpolitik (Nadbor III, 1805-1821)
Interlude #3: Between Wars (Nadbor III, 1821-1836)

Spoiler: Victoria 2

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Mods: Conversion with a baseline provided by EU4-Vic 2 converter, with elements of Pop Demand Mod

Interlude #4: Towards Victory (1836)
Chapter #54: Revolutionary (1836-1840)
Chapter #55: Must Be Something in the Water (1841-1847)
Chapter #56: The Free Nations (1847-1848)
Chapter #57: The Long Revolution (1848-1850)
Chapter #58: World's Unfair (1850-1852)
Chapter #59: The Right to Party (1852-1856)
Chapter #60: Smacked by the Invisible Hand (1856-1861)
Chapter #61: High Queen Wieslawa (1861-1864)
Chapter #62: Red Flags (1864-1870)
Chapter #63: Power Projects (1870-1874)
Chapter #64: Art of the Deal (1875-1880)
Chapter #65: Break Some Eggs (1880-1886)
Special #7: The New Millennium (1886)
Chapter #66: Communication Problems (1887-1896)
Chapter #67: Their Own Gravediggers (1896-1903)
Chapter #68: Red-Stained Band-Aid (1903-1905)
Special #8: At the Dawn of War (1905)
Chapter #69: Not Nice (1905-1906)
Chapter #70: The Two Fronts (1907-1908)
Special #9: The Three Treaties (1908)
Chapter #71: Look Left, Look Right, Look Left Again (1908-1912)
Chapter #72: Crash and Burn (1912-1918)
Chapter #73: Constitution Score (1918-1922)
Chapter #74: Changes in Order (1922-1927)
Chapter #75: Commies, Colonies and Civilization (1927-1933)
Chapter #76: The Common Good (1933-1935)
Interlude #5: Reflection (1936)

Spoiler: Hearts of Iron IV

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Mods: More Division Icons, Player-Led Peace Conferences, Recall Volunteers, handmade conversion and assorted mechanical changes

Interlude #6: Atlas Antebellum (1936) Part I, II, III, IV
Chapter #77: The Waiting Game (January–May 1936)
Chapter #78: The Lights in the North are Fires (May–October 1936)
Chapter #79: Network Work (October 1936–June 1937)
Chapter #80: The Beast in the East (July 1937–January 1938)
Chapter #81: Voluntary Divisions (February–November 1938)
Chapter #82: The Big One (December 1938–July 1939)
Chapter #83: Novelty (July–August 1939)
Chapter #84: A Week Into War (September 1939)