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We Need a Jagiellon! - A Crusader Kings 3 Story
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I'm really hoping to wrap up the murder mystery, cover the reforming of the religion, and the rest of Skirmantas' reign in one part - but that really depends on how long Skirmantas lives. I'll play a bit tonight.
Anybody want to guess the identity of the killer? I'll say they are someone who has been named in the parts covering Skirmantas' reign
Suffer Game Sicko
Dodo Tier Player
June 2nd, 2021, 01:09
(This post was last modified: June 2nd, 2021, 01:27 by Brian Shanahan.)
 (May 27th, 2021, 14:49)pindicator Wrote: I was hoping to wrap up Skirmantas today but he is still ticking. So I do not think I will get another part up before I leave for my backpacking weekend. With that in mind, I wanted to give you all a teaser for the next part since it will be some time off: Teanants! They pay good rent. Killer is
Travelling on a mote of dust, suspended in a sunbeam.
June 2nd, 2021, 11:04
(This post was last modified: June 2nd, 2021, 13:18 by pindicator.)
Skirmantas, Part Six: What We Leave Our Children
Skirmantas felt like he always filling positions, and nobody was as good as the person who the murderer had taken from him. Charna had been such a constant in his life - brought in by his father when he was a young man - and he had leaned on her heavily in these stressful years of building an empire. But now she was gone. As was Karatas. And his wife, Soaba. Yet positions still needed to be filled. High Chieftess Betten had been there immediately after Charna's death, taking on the responsibility of security alongside Sotvara. Skirmantas knew they had differences in the past, yet Betten was the best qualified person after Charna. She naturally assumed Charna's responsibilities and it was a few days later that Skirmantas made it official: Betten was his new spymaster. For Karatas, he let the clergy appoint their own choice of Vaidilute; Skirmantas did not bother to meet the man. And then queen. His councilors told him he would need to marry again, though they all disapproved of his choice.  Skirmantas knew he would need someone capable to help him now, and Danute may not have had prestige or alliances or a family name, but she was certainly capable. She was also beyond her child bearing years, and Skirmantas did not want to have to worry about another son. Inheritance was already such a messy thing. Danute had acclimated to the role instantly. She acted as if the impending doom of an unknown murderer was nothing to keep the other goings-on from happening. She did not ignore the threat, and made some smart recommendations for safety, but she also did not seem to let it weigh her down as it was weighing Skirmantas. As the months went by, Skirmantas saw little of her but her presence was constantly at work through the palace. By summer the cloud of the previous winter's murders began to lift and moods began to relax. Perhaps it had been a wandering vagabond, or a courtier who had moved on, people surmised. The Danish Duke agreed to a white peace and for a brief while there was peace. Fall came and with it the harvest. Skirmantas had been secretly obsessing about his succession ever since his wife's murder. In reality that was what the whole empire-building exercise was: a way to ensure everything he and his father had built would be continued and not fall apart into squabbling tribal feuds, each son taking a portion and fighting amongst each other for the rest. When he had been crowned High King he thought that was the end, that would have been enough to keep everyone together. In reality it was only the beginning:  Currently it states:
This would be a mess with different sons inheriting lands in multiple kingdoms. All this would only lead to more strife. Skirmantas decides to gift Szczecin to Vingoldas, because he already has nearby Walcz. But the game still wants to give him the kingdom of Poland. Skirmantas will have to create the Kingdom of Pomerania explicitly for it to inherit here. Lacking funds to create the title, we wait for the rest of the portioning. But the wait would not be long. The month did not yet end when Skirmantas returned to his room to find a note waiting for him:  He could hardly believe it, could hardly wish to believe it, that Sventaragis would have been the one behind all these deaths. Anger began to rise in him. The son that he was trying to do everything for, betraying him like this? Skirmantas set out to confront him immediately.  "Hello father," Skirmantas said, looking me up and down. "It is about time you found me. I take it you enjoyed my ... gifts?" "Why? How? How could you just throw away everything like this?" Skirmantas stammered out. "You were the one throwing it away!" Sventaragis' eyes boiled in anger. "You are the one throwing my kingdom out! Just like you threw out my mother." "Your mother? You murdered your mother!" "I murdered the woman you replaced my mother with! You threw out my mother the day you became king! Do you know she died this last year father? Guadimante died alone in some inn, drink in hand. That is how I found her!" Skirmantas stepped back in horror as his son seemed to grow in stature. Unknowing he took step after step back until he found his back on the closed door. But once he had him cornered, Sventaragis seemed to lighten, the anger just as quickly dissipating. "I should do the same to you," Sventaragis continued, and turned back to the wine he had on the table in the room. "But first I need to undo all this mess you're making, giving out my inheritance left and right first. Who knows - if you take back the titles, maybe I will let them live." "Let them live?" Skirmantas stumbled forward, his eyes on the wine. "Yes, though I suppose they will have to be disinherited as well. They will have to be poor and no lands to their name, but they would be alive." Sventaragis' mouth slowly turned up into a smile. Skirmantas then knew he had no intention of leaving anyone alive. "You look pale, father. Have some wine." Slowly Skirmantas took the goblet, his hands shaking. Then as soon as Sventaragis turned for a second goblet he swung. The first swing was off, but the stone goblet crumpled against the back of Sventaragis neck. Skirmantas did not take the time to see whethr the first blow had been effective, but swung again and again, each blow causing Sventaragis to stagger lower. On the third strike the goblet shattered. Still Skirmantas swung, rage consuming him. Skirmantas the Shy, Skirmantas the Forgiving - part of him still awake to these monikers he had been given, but the rest of him could only see Soaba, bloody and cut like ribbons from what this monster had done to her. When the goblet broke into piece and cut his hand he threw them away, grabbed the wine pitcher, and continued to pummel his son. He pummeled until the guards came from the commotion and found him beating away. ![[Image: palemonaitis%20-%2002.06%20-%20sventarag....jpg?raw=1]](https://www.dropbox.com/s/oa103pr4gi3ypjt/palemonaitis%20-%2002.06%20-%20sventaragis%20death.jpg?raw=1) When he had exhausted himself, Skirmantas sought out his new spymaster. Fittingly he knew she would succeed here. Charna had never tacitly disapproved of these measures, but there had been too many slip-ups in past murder plots. He knew Betten did not hold the same reservations. When he found Betten she did not question the blood on him, only asking if he was injured. And when he told her the task at hand, she did not hesitate.  Sventaragis' only son had unfortunately inherited the same good looks that had plagued Sventaragis and his mother. Skirmantas did not hear further on this, only a few weeks later when Betten came to him and told him "It is done".  It was only then, with the news of his grandson dead at his hand, that the weight of all these events finally caught up to the High King.  After this Skirmantas was rarely seen. He would come out from his chambers to rule or to inquire with Sotvaras how the conquering of Pomerania were coming along. (Duke Vaclav had died and the remaining counties had splintered, each to their own lord. Independent of each other, they all had been given the choice of swearing fealty. All had denied and in turn fallen by the sword.) Then Skirmantas would retreat to his chambers not to be seen for days, weeks, months.  More minor wars followed. The Danish grip on Natangia, that county they had taken from Prussia at the beginning of the game, was finally released, and Lithuania took advantage of the Danish King fighting the Swedes to take back the de jure county. Khan Aibak again asked for help with a rebellion, and this time 5,000 men were sent to aid. They returned with gold from ransom and plunder. Skirmantas would take news of it quietly and then retreat to his chambers. The money from these wars went directly to create the titles for the kingdoms of Estonia and Pomerania. Four kingdoms for four sons. Some corner of Skirmantas' mind found that fitting. He went back into seclusion  But from his seclusion Skirmantas called for another epic to be wrought. He did not care who would write it, some commoner from within town would do. But he must tell the tale of Soaba and the tragedy of his life, the treachery of his son. He focused on the family, as that was who this tragedy surrounds. Skirmantas earns more renoun for the Palemonaitis name, and Danilla, the commoner who wrote the epic, did a decent job in the end. By the time it is finished Skirmantas has a new friend and lover. Danilla would bear two daughters for Skirmantas: Gaudimante - though odd to choose the name of Sventaragis' mother - and Ausra. It was in these twilight years that Skirmantas began writing to the clergy of the real, the different Vaidile that lived throughout the realm. His letters would be about the stability of the realm and the need for a unified faith for all of Lithuania and gathering information about what differences were practiced in the different corners of the realm. During these correspondences Skirmantas was eventually invited to take a pilgrimage to the holy temple at Chelmno, and in 1131 he undertook the journey:  Skirmantas would later say this trip influenced him to see how the Slovianskan and Catholic faiths were still alive within their lands, not necessarily as hostile invaders, but as currents within a stream that was the Greater Lithuania. They moved and shaped one another, and in turn were shaped and moved by their brethren faith. Inspired by his new discoveries Skirmantas continued his letter writing. Some of the vaidile accepted his ideas and others met with resistance. He knew he could not shape his grand design for a Lithuanian faith by just writing as one man. He would need to bring them all together. Here, to Kernave. And so he began writing, inviting them all to come and discuss their ideas in person, to set apart an organized Lithuanian faith that could withstand the influence of the Catholics that were besetting them on all sides. It took years to gather them all.  In the end they agreed on a pluralist faith that was tolerant of the Slovianskan and Catholic peoples within their land, but especially close to the Christian faith. There would be no official head of the religion, but each Vaidile would be free to teach within their temple as they saw fit. It did not feel like a lot of change to Skirmantas, but there was still resistance, and the Vaidile from Courland and Latigalians went home before the gathering had ended, cursing the effort as a demonic influence upon Dievas' sacred name.  Skirmantas was disappointed that more of the kingdom did not embrace this new burgeoning of their faith, and knew that his sons would have to continue his efforts if this was to succeed. With the faith question settled, he turned his eyes towards reforming all of society:  There was to be no more raiding, no more wars of conquest simply for conquests' sake. Lithuania would look inward now. It would develop itself and turn itself into a beacon of faith and learning and plenty. He would be called Emperor now, fashioned after the Holy Roman empire to the south and west. It was here that Kaiser Poppo reached out, again congratulating Lithuania on it's accomplishments, and again offering that their heirs should meet. Poppo had also had some changes to his succession, although his eldest son still lived it was now his 2nd son Anselm who had the favor of the princes and was set to inherit. Skirmantas was set on hosting this time, but in the end he seemed to be in the way more than a help and Vingoldas and Anselm did not get along. At least they did not leave as enemies. Not satisfied with the result, Skirmantas came up for a different offer for the Holy Roman Emperor:  Poppo's younget son, Kuno, would be betrothed to Skirmantas' youngest daughter, Ausra. And with them the Holy Roman - Lithuanian alliance was sealed. At 68 years old, Skirmantas had finally achieved the stability that he had longed for over his last 20 years of reign. Lithuania was moving into a new golden age, its succession was set and its borders secure. An alliance to the Holy Roman Empire would mean its enemies would not dare trouble their combined might. He decided that there should be one last Epic commissioned, to tell of this tale. He called for the best scribes in the land to come to Kernave and work with him, like he had worked with Evalda and Danilla before. He could feel the relief of a long and satisfying life. When the scribes found him, he was sitting in his chair, pen in hand, already sketching out the notes of the tale he wished to tell. He was not breathing and seemed to have peacefully passed exactly like that, dreaming of the greater Lithuania that he had shaped and helped bring about.  ***** Other happenings:
Suffer Game Sicko
Dodo Tier Player
Big levies decline, what makes Feudal lower it so far?
Also, I’ve bought the game! Playing the extended tutorial in Ireland and I feel like gold costs are high for everything. I make like 5.5/mo and an economic building which pays .3g/mo costs 100+ gold! Should it really take 2+ years full income to buy a building which will then take 30 years to pay back its investment?! |
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Are you, in fact, a pregnant lady who lives in the apartment next door to Superdeath's parents? - Commodore |
