When 1304 dawned over southern Europe and North Afrcia, many nations were weary of war. Spain had been ravaged. The wars pitting Leon against Aragon, and Castile against Leon and Granada, and finally Aragon against Granada brought the peasants in Iberia to the brink of revolt!

And so it was that as Aragon and Castile mustered for continued war against Leon, the peasants would not support them. In the north Don Juan Dangeroso of Aragon marched from Burgos and put the city of Leon under seige. After fighting a vicious siege all through spring, but failing to take the walls, the Aragonese supplies had run out. Foraging proved fruitless and the peasants refused to give up their goods bitterly in both Aragon and Leon. Because of this, Aragon could not muster the resolve needed to take the gates of Leon, having to constantly battle minor peasant revolts to stay supplied and also hold the seige. Thus, Leon did not fall, and the kingdom would remain independant in 1304.

To the south, Castile mustered what small army it could from the city folk of Toledo and marched north in attempt to reclaim Madrid. But like Aragon, even the small army of Castile could not remain supplied without much effort. After spring and summer had waned, the already small army of Castile had disolved and Madrid remained in the hands of the kingdom of Leon. And so, in spite of the actions of Roberto, king of Leon, the people of Spain put an end to the wars of the Christian kingdoms, and only Leon remained free of all the Iberian realms.

But as the wars of Iberia ground to a halt through 1304, the French did not arrive. Despite their promise to sack Leon along with Aragon, they failed to follow through. In the autumn of 1303 ibn al-Joeahmar forged an agreement with the French and Aragon: Granada would allow Don Juan free passage back to Aragon if both the French and Aragon agreed to sack Leon. They both agreed and Don Juan wintered in Sargossa. France's failure to arrive was nothing short of betrayal, but there was more than just betrayal in the making. Ibn al-Joeahmar heard of a French treachery before Black Jaques Shellac could spring his attack, and messengers were sent, ships dispatched, armies re-deployed, and battle made ready!

The French plot, as it was revelaed to al-Joeahmar, was to bring the kingdom of Naples and attack the island of Sardinia and capture the city of Cagliari from Granada! Ibn al-Joeahmar resolved to never again trust the French, especially kings names after the digestive excretions of unsavoury bugs! (Yes, shellac is bug poop, and you eat it!). Both the Spanish Leon and the French proved themselves without honour! Thus it was that planning and logistics were begun by both the French and Granada to make war for Cagliari!

Ibn al-Joeahmar learned that the French planned to invade Cagliari in the autumn, as it would take them spring and summer to muster their army, build their ships and coordinate with the kingdom of Naples to do the same! Two armies would invade, and whoever faced them would have to face two armies, not one!

A message was sent to Sicily, and Ibn al-Joeahmar forged a pact with the Sicilians: if they would come to Sardinia to battle the invaders then al-Joeahmar would pledge as a tributary to Sicily! And so it was that Sicily and Granada, like Naples and France, made ready to sail and make war over the tiny island of Sardinia!

On the dawn of autumn, just as the weather began the change, the armies set sail. Good winds and steady waves prevailed for all, except the kingdom of Naples. A storm caught a small flotilla of Naplese ships and dragged them down. Despite this, the army of Naples arrived in Sardinia relatively unharmed! And so the armies mustered and were ready for war!

After much debate and tenuous diplomacy, the armies were deployed and ready for battle! The fight that ensued was a tense one. Both sides held their council, many move were monitored with precision and even accusations of cheating were made with offending nonchalance! Campaigns, and the extra consequences of losses really seem to make the ton of a game a little more tense I've found... Despite this however, it was quite the battle! The Naplese held the center firmly, repelling the bulk of the Granada and Sicilian forces, while the French battled over and lost a steep hill, while their entire force of mounted knights and warriors were held at bay by a single unit of skirmishers!

Much blood was spilled and in the end, the Sicily-Granada alliance had lost. Sicily lost four elements while Granada had lost three. The Franco-Naples alliance didn't leave unscathed however, the French having lost three elements and the Naplese one. Thus it was that Sicily and Granada sailed for home as the autumn took hold of the land. However, the Franco-Naples victory opened a gap between the alliance, since possession of the city had still to be decided!

After much negotiation, and reasoned speculation, the French and Naplese were able to find a resolution without coming to blows themselves: Naples would take Cagliari since they dispatched the majority of the enemy during battle, and the French would sail back to Barcelona. And so it was that the campaigning season of 1304 ended, and so war the era of great wars in southern Europe and North Africa! And who would come out the victor? Despite their loss in Cagliari, the Sicily-Granada alliance proved it's strength, and in the end, Sicily held sway over all the lands in southern Europe and North Africa!

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And so it ends! Eight months after it started, we decided to end it with a big battle, two on two game! I was quite happy with it, and overall very happy with how it went. Yes, there was a lot of small rules lawyering, and yes, I was blatantly accused of cheating, which offended my sensibilities greatly! I reacted in a much dramatized and offended way... It didn't help that my blood sugar levels were dangerously low... But I did have a great time! It was the best big battle game I had played to date, and it really added a narrative to the campaign itself. Fun stuff! I would do it again for sure.

In the end, Sicily roke out ahead and took the campaign! Really, I think it was between Naples and Sicily after the Spanish were broken by war. Yes, the French were a force in the end, but had trouble getting momentum in the early part of the campaign, which held them back. Sicily and Naples however suffered few or no defeats, and regained everything they lost or lost nothing at all! I think Sicily pulled ahead because of its battle prowess really, being one of the top battle prestige scorers.

I would like to thank everyone that took part and helped weave the narrative that was the 'Cry Havoc!' campaign! I had a lot of fun, and I appreciated everyone's participation! Overall, everyone put a lot of effort into making it out for the games, painting their armies, developing their tactics, and even role playing... Well, almost everyone... There was one player who after an entire year (that is, a year in real-time) failed to paint their army and fielded a primed army even in the last battle! Yes, Mark, I am giving you a hard time :) It was a great time, and I'm happy with how it ended up! For the nitty gritty final standings, please see the table below.

As winter melted away, and the early blooms coloured the fields of southern Europe and coastal north Africa, for one last year the armies of the various kingdoms of the region mustered and prepared to kill and destroy.

At the outset of 1304 Spain had the highest number of armies per capita with the addition of the French army garrisoned in Barcelona. Aragon stood poised in Burgos to launch yet another invasion of Leon, while Castille's newly mustered force, which was currently at 15% of its full potential resided in Toledo. Granada had mustered its army in Cordova. All four of these armies stood ready to march on Leon, who had wisely chosen to muster in their capital city.

To the south, Mali mustered in its capital, as did the Holy Roman Empire. Mali, after a year of peace and quiet, stood to grow its army to 10 elements this year, unfortunately however, the financers saw no need to raise such a large army given that the kingdom was at peace for an entire year! Why muster a large army if you aren't at war?

And to the east, both Sicily and Naples mustered in their capital cities, determined not to give away their intentions until they absolutely had to! Either that, or they resolved to play a defensive year in attempt to hold on to what kingdoms they had managed to carve out for themselves in the previous four years!

As the warm winds of summer cooled, the armies of those nations who still had armies to command readied once more for battle. Although most armies were idle, or biding their time, there was one decisive battle!

After chasing the army of Leon from Cordova, Ibn al-Joeahmar turned his attention to the capital of Castile. With no army of its own, Castile was enduring a siege by the army of Aragon, who was in fact attempting to liberate the Spanish kingdom from the dominance of Granada. So it was that al-Joeahmar turned his army north to finally realize the long-awaited confrontation. Granada mustered for battle in a wooded area to the north east of Toledo, cutting off Aragon's supply lines. Don Juan Dangeroso responded gladly to a field battle and released the siege of the city to meet the army of Granada.

As spear clashed with lance, and crossbow bolts pierced horse flesh, the battle was finally decided; despite destroying two units of Spanish soldiers, Ibm al-Joeahmar's own guard could not save him from being run down by Don Juan Dangeroso and his noble cavalry! Despite the loss however, the defeat did not turn into a rout primarily due to the cunning of the French king Black Jaques Shellac!

Through some cunning scheming and due to the fortunate timing of the end of the Franco-German-Naples war to the north, the French invasion of Aragon was well underway. The capital of Aragon, Sargossa, survived a season of siege in summer, but the resistance would not last out the year. As the siege ladders of summer were replaced by the siege towers of autumn, the French attacks on the wall of the city became more and more brutal. And so it was that as autumn came to a close, and as the army of Aragon defeated Granada in Toledo, the Fernch army broke the gates of Sargossa and forced Don Juan's Aragon to pay tribute to France!

Shortly after Don Juan himself heard the news of Sargossa's fall, the king of Leon, Roberto the Newly Freed declared independance from the Aragon! Roberto mustered the remains of his army and fortified Madrid against the passage of his former overlord! Thus it was that Don Juan and his army were stranded, far from home, between Granada and Leon. And because of this, Don Juan entered negotiations with Ibn al-Joeahmar, requesting safe passage back to Aragon through Granada.

In the end, safe passage was acquired by Aragon. As Don Juan sailed home through Cordova, and then Cagliari, he had a chance to reflect on the deal he had struck with Granada for the unfettered journey home. Ibn al-Joeahmar had insisted that in payment for passage, both Don Juan of Aragon and Black Jaque Shellac of France would invade Leon! And so, Ibn al-Joeahmar would get his revenge for his perceived betrayal at the hands of Leon at the end of 1302!

While the fate of Spain was being decided, only Italy and Sicily took a posture of defiance and aggression. Vowing to raise the siege against Feggio, Mark-Charles of Naples marched his army south to do battle with the Sicilians! As he marched to lift the siege he found many acres of destroyed farmlands and despoiled towns. But once arriving at Feggio, deserted siegeworks and rejoicing city folk greeted him! As Mark-Charles joined the celebration, he realized that it would be short lived. Without the precious crops from the surrounding farmlands, Feggio would be hard pressed to survive the winter!

And indeed, that is what Seanmund of Sicily had intended. By destroying and despoiling southern Italy, he had left Mark-Charles in a compromised position; if Mark-Charles didn't exact revenge against the Sicilians, surely his people would overthrow him. But if Mark-Charles landed his army of Naples on the coast of Sicily, surely his knights would be cut down in the rocky hills of the island! Indeed, only the fates can know who will dominate Italy in 1304.

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And so the second last year in the Cry Havoc! medieval campaign comes to a close. Christian Spain, ravaged by constant war throughout the campaign, looks as though it will be dominated by its French neighbors at the closing of the campaign, unless something happens to unseat Black Jaques Shellac! An interesting turn of events to say the least, and unforeseen by many I think. And now with the French and Aragonese sworn to invade Leon it looks as though Spain will not be at peace until the very end of the end!

As for Italy and Naples, nothing yet was resolved! Many thought that the battle of Feggio would decide the dominant kingdom in the east, however it was not to be! The cunning Seanmund must have realized that his psiloi and auxiliary heavy army was no match for the knights of Naples in the open. But will Naples invade Sicily? Or will Sicily and Naples finish out the campaign by standing on their respective coasts and making rude remarks at each other over the water? Tough to say, but I am not sure how that will end up!

As the last rains of spring ended and fulls summer heated the hills, valleys and plains of the southern kingdoms, once again farmers toiled in spite of the threat of invasion. Raids, kidnappings, and death entered the lives of all as the armies marched once more.

To the east the kingdom of Sicily mustered and moved north east to make battle on their neighbors in Naples! As dawn came over the sea, so too did the ships of the Sicilian army, much to the dismay of the dwellers of Feggio. Riders were sent with tidings of the invasion to the king of Naples in the north, but all knew that the army of Naples was too far to give aid to Feggio in summer, and so the city prepared for a siege.

Bolstered by the promise of aid from the north, the city folk of Feggio stood shoulder to shoulder on the walls and repelled the tenacious attacks of the armies of Seanmund of Sicily. And so, despite superior numbers and weaponry, Feggio did not fall to the Sicilians.

To the north west, the Frankish army of Black Jaques Shellac marched east and put the capital of Aragon under siege. Despite having no desire to risk the destruction of their city, Sargossa's strong Spanish identity fueled a resistance that saw the French repelled from the walls of the city time and again.

Still, much damage was done to both the resolve of Sargossa's defenders and to the city itself during the fighting. Furthermore, when news came from the south that the army of Aragon would not return in defense of the capital, the spirits of the defenders fell even more so. Despite this however, the Spanish city would not fall to the French in the summer of 1303.

The king of Aragon, considering the strength of his enemy in the south, and perhaps preferring to be threatened by the Christian kingdom of France than the Sultantate of Granada stirred his army and marched south into Toledo. His tributary, the lord of Leon, marched on Granada as well, to the gates of Cordova; the remaining Spanish kingdoms planned to Granada from two fronts in hopes to stretch its defense.

Granada, choosing to take a defenisve posture for the summer, found itself with the choice of which army to defend against. When news reached the ears of al-Joeahmar, he mustered his army and marched south from Toledo to Cordova, where the army of Leon fled to Madrid rather than face a far superiod foe. And so it was that the summer of 1303 came to an end.

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At the end of summer 1303, the east and the west look to be on the edge of a decisive war that will likely bring each reagion under the control of one power... With Sicily and Naples about to come to blows, the winner of that battle is likely to become the power in that region, and the same seems to hold true in Spain; with the armies of Leon and Castile all but destroyed, Spain rests on the brink between Islam and Christianity!

However, to the north the French threaten to capitalize on the strife in Spain, and could upset the entire balance if Sargossa is captured! Leon would be freed from it's tributary relationship with Aragon, and the Aragonese army might find itself stranded behind enemy lines! Also, to the south, the kingdom of Mali waits for an opportunity to move into Europe again! Nearly four years, the fortunes of many kingdoms have been won and lost, but the ends is still some time away and the overall victor has yet to be decided!

As the winter released its grasp on the land, the armies of the southern kingdoms mustered what they could and resolved to expand their borders! For each precious city gained, blood would be spilled, and another kingdom would decline, such is the way of war and death!

And so it was that the army of Castile mustered less than half of its full strength and marched south in an attempt to recapture Cordova from the kingdom of Granada. But the kingdom of Granada was not idle, and so the army of Castile met the army of Granada on the road between Cordova and Toledo, and battle was joined.

Despite an aggressive assault on the Castillan camp, Ibn al-Joeahmar's army could not hold it. Unfortunately for Castile, the defense of their camp caused the Castillan king to be caught out in the open by a band of crazed Granadan crossbowmen, and the Castillan army fled the field, leaving the gates of Toledo open for Granada!

While battle waged to the south, the armies of the northern kingdoms of Spain maneuvered to bring aid to Castile, but were unable to do so in a timely fashion. However, they were both poised to strike at Granada come summer.

Further north, the armies of France, now unmolested by their now defeated enemy the Holy Roman Empire, mustered and marched south into Barcelona! The Spanish city was loath to make battle or stand a siege, especially given that they had been without war for many a year. And so it was that after some stiff negotiations, and a promise from the French that the city would not be sacked, Barcelona pledged allegience to the French king!

To the north east, despite its meagre strength, the army of the Holy Roman Empire mustered and marched south to Marseille in an attempt to re-capture the city from the Kingdom of Naples. Despite extreme effort and cunning, the Naplese garrison at Marseille held out against the Holy Roman Empire; their strength was not enough to capture the walls.

While the army of the Holy Roman Empire had marched south, the army of Naples had marched north to once again attempt to capture Strassberg and subjugate the German kingdom. The battle for the gates of the city was fierce and deadly, however the city folk were no match for the professional army of Naples, and the city was captured! With King Mike-Frederick IV away in Marseille, the two kingdoms were able to come to an agreement, and only minimal noble blood was shed before hostilities were ended. Unfortunately for the HRE, a large tribute was the price of peace!

To the south, both the armies of Sicily and Mali stayed ready, poised to defend themselves from any foreign aggressor; despite their readiness, their armies were never called out in defence of their nations, and so a rare season of peace reigned in the south for the spring of 1303!

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Oh how the winds of war shift the fortunes of people and nations! As the beginning of the second-last year of the campaign opens up, the power seems concentrated in the east and west! Unfortunately for those in the east and west, that power is not united! Spain is embroiled in a war that could possibly break all of the kingdoms involved, and see Spain subjugated from outside by the likes of the French and Malise!

To the north, the Franco-German war looks to finally have come to an end with the fall of Strassberg. But as France marches south, and rumours that Sicily and Naples will come to blows, north and east will soon see war! See the table below for the standings!

Winter winds slowly turned to warmth and the clutches of the cold season slowly changed to the warm rains. With that, the armies of Europe and North Africa mustered to make their wars once again.

The Kingdom of Aragon, fresh from its victory over Leon and its subjugation, was the foremost empire in Europe and North Africa at the outset of 1303. Having taken relatively few losses during 1302, and despite losing Cagliari, the number of remaing cities under its control allowed Aragon to replenish its armies to full strength as well. Aside from its standing, Aragon bolstered in a new age for Ibernia, and Spain specifically by uniting two of the three Spanish kingdoms and making a firm alliance with the third, thus securing Aragon's southern border! Aragon mustered in Burgos for spring 1303.

Sicily also came out as one of the major powers in Southern Europe in 1302, and proudly held the place of second formost Kingdom among the lands. Sicily's prominence was largely due to prowess in battle, however the kingdom did gain one city from its adversary, the kingdom of Mali. Sicily was easily able to replenish its army and will stand ready against invasions in the spring of 1303, and mustered its full army in Girgenti.

Granada, who is closely ranked with Naples made few gains other than a single city, carved with great difficulty from the Kingdom of Aragon. Despite losing half of its army, due to the five cities under its control, Granada mustered a full army in Cordova for the spring of 1303.

Naples played it cautiously at the outset of 1302, however once the Holy Roman Empire was tied up in Avignon fighting the French, Naples mustered and marched on their enemy to the north. By capturing Mersaille they were able to secure their victory against their German adversaries. By taking few losses and holding five cities, they easily will muster a full army in the spring in the city of Aquila.

Depsite Leon's loss of the Leon-Aragon war, it still came out rather well. Aside from losing its entire army during a siege, the kingdom lost only one city, and so was able to bring it's forces up to a third of their starting number. The Leonese army will muster under Roberto the Bold in Madrid at the outset of 1303.

Both the French and the Castillans are celebrating their freedom in 1303. The French are free of the threat of the Holy Roman Empire, since what remains of the Holy Roman army lies behind Mersaille, a city controlled by the Kingdom of Naples. France will muster its army in Avignon at the outset of 1303. The Castillans on the other hand are still only a single city kingdom, however they are now free to make war on who they will, having come out from under the thumb of their former overlord. Castile will muster in Toldeo.

Despite fighting tenaciously, Mali lost two consecutive battles and one city (Tunis) to the Sicilians. This robbed them of not only their city, but also of their former tributary. With their two cities, Mali will be able to field more than half of its original number of elements, and will muster in its capital of Taghaza.

The Holy Roman Empire saw the most losses in the campaign since the dismantling of Castile that ended in 1301. Due to the most unfortunate circumstances, the Holy Roman army was destroyed, and two of its cities were captured by its enemies. The army of the Holy Roman Empire will muster in Strassberg at the outset of 1303. See below for standings at the outset of 1303!

As the harvests began to ripen, the wars of Europe nearly came to a close, giving the people a hope of a peaceful century to come! With the breaking of the Holy Roman Empire, the people of Avignon turned back to their fields and their lands and began to rebuild. Once again they were French, and overseen by their French King Black Jaques!

The people of the neighboring city of Mersaille were not so lucky however, as the army of Mark-Charles stood at their gates! Given that the city's supplies were running low, and that the Holy Roman army was broken, the will of the people of Mersaille to resist the Naplese was broken, and they gave in to the heavy demands anf taxes that Mark-Charles promised them and opened their gates. With no army and only one city remaining, the Holy Roman Empire has seen no greater time of woe...

In Iberia, at the gates of Leon, a similar fate to the one of the Holy Roman Empire befell the kingdom of Roberto the Bold. As the army of Leon fought tenaciously against the attacking army of Aragon, a great crack split the air and stilled the combatants. The cracks was followed by a deep rumble that started slowly and shook both the ground and the air! A breach had been opened up as Don Juan's army had successfully undermined the city wall! Within moments the army or Aragon was swarming through the streets of Leon, and the Leonese army was destroyed! And so it was that not only was Leon under the rule of King Don Jaun, but also that, because of Leon's defeat, the King Marco-Polo of Castile was free to rule his own lands and claim his allegiance to Don Juan also!

It was then that the emissary for Granada in Leon offered Roberto the choice to flee the slaughter and escape to Granada, where he could muster a resistance to regain his lands. But Roberto chose differently. Thus it was that when Don Juan came upon the throne room of Roberto, king of Leon, Roberto offered fealty to him, and to prove his loyalty, he had the emissary of Granada executed. The alliance between Granada and Leon was broken, and the Kingdoms of Christian Spain were united un Don Juan king of the Spanish!

In north Africa, Kankan Corymusa rallied his army once more and rode to Tunis to repel the invading army of Seanmund of Siciliy once more. It was one year ago almost to the day that the army of Mali rode to free Tunis from the threat of the Sicilians to engage in the first battle of Tunis. And so it was that the second battle of Tunis began.

Despite failing to muster as many men as he had hoped, Kankan Corymusa lead his warriors against the Sicilians. The battle was hard fought, and the tenacious Malise looked as though they might hold against the Sicilians once again, however it was not to be. The Sicilian light horse, for the third consecutive time, got behind the Malise lines and sacked their camp. With the warriors torn between winning the battle and saving their loved ones and wealth, the King of Mali was defeated. Tunis fell into the hands of Sicily!

The fall of Tunis had far reaching effects that reverberated beyond the borders of Mali and Sicily. With the defeat of the army of Mali on two occassions, the former Malise tributary of Granada claimed independance from its overlord!

Despite Seanmuund's victory, the King of Sicily offered good peace to the Malise, in hopes that they could now become allies, reasoning that all was fair and no harm was done. Perhaps the desired peace would come to pass, but perhaps not. Only the fates, and time, will tell!

And so, as the autumn of 1302 came to a close, and many kingdoms were devastated, a conference of the Kings of North and East Europe was held. Many negotiations were had, and plans for the future were made. And thus it was decided that the Christian Spanish kingdoms would begin in earnest the reconquest of Spain. Much to the surprise and dismay of Ibn al-Joeahmar, the talk of crusades came most fervently from his former ally Roberto the Bold, who he re-named Roberto the Betrayer. Despite negotiations aimed at peace, Roberto along with Marco-Polo and his maniacal laughter ensured that war would be had in Iberia still, and that it would rage over the cities of Granada!

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Well, what a narrative we have woven so far! I would like to agian say thanks to the players, without whom there would be only me telling funny stories to myself.... It's been a lot of fun, and with so many turns (only three years so far, but still it seems like so much has happened) and so many kingdoms, it's been really cool to see how thing will unfold!

That being said, organizing the time for the campaign is a lot of work... I barely managed to play a single game over the period of about an hour and a half that was broken by much organizing and whatnot... So, I do believe I will put a cap on the campaign at the end of 1305. That means that we are exactly half way through the campaign at this point, and it should end on the third weekend of April at the latest! It's been great fun so far, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it unfolds in the second half!

Just a note on the narrative above... I try to put in narrative as much as possible, and I try not to over-dramatize things too much. Hopefully I haven't offended anyone, there's nothing personal about any of it! However, if there's a problem, let me know ;) See below for the current standings!

With no time to mourn the dead of spring, the hosts of the kingdoms of southern Europe and north Africa marched on. The farmers who were able tended their crops or grain and vegetables despite the looming threat of war that would likely sweep across all the lands and realms before long!

And so it was that the armies or Aragon, emboldened by their victory over Leon marched to the capitol of Leon itself and put the city under siege. Roberto to Bold, recently defeated on the road to Valencia chose not to ride out to meet the Aragonese threat and ordered his army to fortify the city walls against attack. Despite many attempts to break the walls of Leon, Don Juan and his army of Aragon could not break the city's defences.

With the Don Juan outside the gates of Leon, The Leon-Aragon war looked to be firmly in the hands of the Aragonese. All hope was not lost for Leon however, as Roberto's tactic of hiding behind his walls for a season and then making battle was tried with success once before in summer of 1301, when Leon broke Aragon's siege of the city and sent Don Juan back to Valencia!

To the north east of the wars in Iberia, the Franco-German-Naples war came to an abrupt and startling end at the hands of the French king Black Jaques Shellac! After Avignon held out against the French siege for a season with the aid of the Holy Roman Empire's army fortifying it's walls, the tide turned in favour of the French. Although Avignon was well stocked to keep the citizens of the city fed for an entire year, that failed to include the soldiers of Mike_frederik's army. And so, although the army helped immensely with the defense of the walls, it undermined the city's ability to withstand the blockade, and ultimately caused its downfall!

So it was that when in mid-summer, Black Jaques commanded another attacks on the walls of Avignon that the people of the city rose up against their German overloards and opened the gates to the French! The remnants of the army of the Holy Roman Empire was chased down and destroyed, and the city was taken! Despite this however, King Mike-Frederick was able to escape, and was spirited away in the night to his capitol of Strassberg.

As Avignon fell, the army of Naples marched northwest and laid siege to the Holy Roman city of Mersaille. Despite repeated attempts at breaking the walls, Mark-Charles was unable to capture the Holy Roman city! Despite his failure however, his confidence was bolstered by news of the defeat of Mike-Frederick at Avignon, and he promised the siege would continue!

Further south the Sicilian army took to its ships once more and returned to the shores of Tunis hoping to find the army of Mali there and to make battle once more. However, upon arriving the cryers claimed that the Malise army had marched to Taghaza, the capitol of that Kingdom. And so, Seanmund put the city of Tunis under siege. Despite repeated attempts at taking the walls, and due to having too few trees to build siege towers, Tunis did not fall and Mali remained whole!

Both Granada and Castile stayed their armies and did not take action against their neighbors. Castile being forced into their predicament by their overlord, they were biding their time in hopes that Leon would be defeated by Aragon. Granada, being crippled by their tragic sea voyage in the spring decided it was best simply to sit and enjoy the beaches and breeezes of the Mediteranean in their newly acquired island city of Cagliari.

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With the aftermath of spring and the destruction of the army of the Holy Roman Empire during the summer, at least one war is over... for now. The Franco-German-Naples war has ended with the German Holy Roman Empire in defeat, and the Franco-Naples alliance intact. The war of Leon-Aragon and the Siculo-Mali war continue to rage, but will the tides turn completely come autumn? Only the fates can tell!

Please see below for the current standings!

Despite the ravages of war that left a bloody scar across Europe and North Africa in 1300 and 1301, the Kingdoms of the land readied their armies once more and marched to war! The Leon-Aragon war continued as both kingdoms mustered their armies and marched on each other!

Aragon and Leon will mustered and made battle on the road, since Leon and Aragon invaded each other on the raod between Valencia and Burgos. The battle was fought on two fronts, which were decided by a large hill in the center of the field. The spearmen of Leon marched toward the knights of Aragon bravely, but their bravery was not enough and they were overrun by the Aragonese gentry. Thus it was that Don Juan Dangeroso rode through the gates of Burgos as victor once again while the armies of Leon marched back to their capitol. Would this defeat mean the end of the Leon-Aragon war, or would it only even the score between the two kingdoms?

The spring of 1302 also saw the Franco-German-Naples war produce battle! The French, eager to recapture Avignon from the clutches of the Holy Roman Empire once again mustered and marched south. King Mike-Frederick marched to Avignon in response to the invasion with the intention of riding out to make battle against the French host. However, it was not to be, as the King of the Holy Roman Empire was unable to muster his army on the field of battle for reasons unknown, and so the army of the HRE stood on the city walls and repelled the French siege, wave after wave. And so, at the end of spring, Avignon was still held by the Holy Roman Empire and the French siege continued into the summer.

Despite having laid siege to Strassberg in the autumn of 1301, the King of Naples opted to put caution before expansion and had his armies remain in Pisa, ready to react in defense of the realm against any potential invaders. This reprieve could potentially give the Holy Roman Empire time to repel the French once more and then turn to make battle with the army of Naples again!

Further south, the Siculo-Malise war raged as the Malise sailed from Tunis to Girgenti in attempt to capture the city for a second time. The king of Sicily, wary from the outcome of his previous battle against the Malise in Tunis decided to play the defensive role. He knew that if the Malise were to invade, he would have the choice of ground upon which to make battle. And so, when word came that the army of Mali had landed on the shores of Sicily, King Seanmund marched his army to make battle with the invaders!

The armies of Seanmund, King o Sicily took to the baren beaches of the kingdom to make battle against Kankan Corymusa. The Malise fought bravely, but were unable to protect their camp from the ravaging Sicilian light horse, and so for the second time the Malise camp was sacked! Unfortunately for Corymusa, he was unable to retake his camp, and so, despite destroying one unit of Sicilians, he was forced to withdraw from Sicily, leaving Seanmund victorious! Similar to the war between Leon and Aragon, this battle could be a turning point in a war, but it could also merely even the score between the two nations as a prelude to a lengthy conflict!

After the autumn of 1301 it seemed that the Emirate of Granada had abandoned the Leon-Aragon war. However, with the coming of spring 1302, Granada made a move that apparently placed the Emirate firmly on the side of Leon in the war for dominance of the Iberian peninsula. For the first time in nearly 600 years the Granadan ancestors of Tariq ibn-Ziyad put their backs to the building of ships and set sail for conquest!

The spirit of Tariq ibn-Ziyad had its way with the Granadan fleet however, seeing a full half of its numbers broken by a great storm and sent to the deeps! When Tariq ibn-Ziyad burned his ships and promised to stay in Iberia, apparently he meant it! Thus it was that the decimated Granadan army reached the shores of Sardinia and laid siege to the city of Cagliari.

Despite their small numbers, the Granadan army fought tenaciously in their attempts to take the walls of the Aragonese city of Cagliari; they were dead set to once again win the favour of their ancestor through over-seas conquest in the name of Allah! And so it was that the city of Cagliari was captured!

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The spring of 1302 really resembled the first turn in the first campaign I ever ran, which is a good thing. However, the stability of many realms hang in the balance i think... But you never know, the battles which rage may not prove decisive, and the wars for which they are fought may drag on, leaving a bloody trail, into 1303! Great times, and I would like to thank everyone taking part!

Please see below for the current standings!

As the summer waned and turned to autumn, many armies in southern Europe and north Africa stayed in their cities and watched the wars unfold from the safety of their walls, but not all kingdoms. The Leon-Aragon war continued to rage in Iberia. Roberto the Bold mustered his army and marched to Burgos on the heels of Don Juan's Aragonese army.

Don Juan Dangeroso, King of Aragon decided to play it safe and withdraw from the city to prepare for the war in spring 1302, and so it marched to Valencia and away from the besieged city of Burgos. Despite Aragon having left a strong administration that supported Don Juan in Burgos, the city fell to the army of Leon quickly; given that the city had seen battle before, the people didn't have the will to fight overlong, especially since the time to harvest what was left of the crops was quickly approaching!

The French again mustered their few remaining soldiers and attempted to take back the former French city of Avignon. Unfortunately for Black Jaques Shellac, Avignon would not be taken in the autumn of 1301; apparently, given all of the battles that have taken place in Avignon in the past couple of years, the people of Avignon have no desire to leave their walls!

The Holy Roman Empire not only stood against the French siege of Avignon, but also against an attack by the Kingdom of Naples against their capitol city of Strassberg. Despite the many sorties thrown against the walls, the German capitol would not be captured in the autumn of 1301.

Despite the lack of will to make battle in Europe, men took to the battlefield in north Africa outside the gates of Tunis, as the Sicilians lead a late invasion into the Kingdom of Mali. Seanmund of Sicily, hoping to win back some honour and revenge against the Kingdon of Mali and its King Kankan Corymusa, crossed the straight and sailed to Tunis.

As the Sicilians disembarked from their ships and made for the gates of Tunis, they heard word that an army of Mali rode out to make battle with the invaders in defence of the city! Gaining the initiative, the Sicilians mustered their forces and attacked the Malise. Unfortunately for the Sicilians and their large units of heavy knights, the Malise deployed their lines in the rough; thousands of Malise soldiers called jeers at the Sicilian knights as they stood across a small open field from each other.

The battle itself was never properly joined. Two units of Sicilian knights broke ranks in attempt to chase down some Malise cavalry and were wiped out, along with some Sicilian auxalia that attempted to support them. And so the Sicilians were forced to retire and cede the battle to the Malise, but not before the Sicilians sacked the Malise camp! Surely the Siculo-Mali war will continue into 1302!

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Overall, the campaign is going very well! Despite having three people unable to make it to the game day, everything came off without a hitch! One player made arrangements to have someone else (in this case, yours truly) play their kingdom, which is greatly appreciated (the fact that they made arrangements), despite the fact that I failed to lead their army (Sicily) to victory... Oh well, it's good for the Malise player at least!

As for the action this season, it was as expected. I think that everyone was waiting for the year to turn over to gain back the quality and quantity of their armies. At the end of the year, there are three real wars raging still: The Leon-Aragon war, the Siculo-Malise war, and the Franco-German-Naples war between France, the HRE and the Kingdom of Naples. The Spring of 1302 will tell all, but it is worth noting that everyone' armies with the exception of France, the HRE, and Castile will be up to full strength again in the autumn of 1302!

As the spring drought extended into summer the armies of southern Europe and north Africa marched, greedy for blood and conquest. And so it was the after defeating the armies of the French, Mike-Frederick turned his army from its western border and marched east and south to relieve the siege of Pisa from the onslought of the Kingdom of Naples!

The battle hung in the balance, both side struck for the heart of the opposing army at the outset of the battle, seeing devastation on both sides! On the first charge of the mighty knights of the Holy Roman Empire, Mike-Frederick bested the King of Naples and his guard, scattering them and breaking their unit! Fortunately for the army of Naples, one unit of the HRE was also destroyed, and so the battle raged on. It raged until Naples counter-charged, which brought about the shattering of the guard of Mike-Frederick, king of the HRE! And so the battle ended with the royal guards from both armies shattered. Luckily though, both Mark-Charles, King of Naples, and Mike-Frederick, King of the HRE survived to fight another day! But Pisa was now a part of the growing Kingdom of Naples!

Further south, in Sicily, Seanmund, after starving out the garrison ot Girgenti throughout the spring and early summer, ordered an assault on the walls and also under ground in attempt to undermine a corner tower. Just as the siege engies were pushed into place and Sicilian knights assaulted the walls, a deafening crash split the air and the undermined tower gave way. Shouts of 'into the gap' rang out from both sides of the wall, but with the assault along the wall as well as through the breach, the city garrison of Girgenti would not stand and the city was recaptured by King Seanmun for Sicily.

Naturally, after four seasons of siege, the army of Sicily was eager to whet their appetites, among other things, with the bounty of the city, and many, many people were purged in an attempt to ensure that the city would never stand against Sicily again! Sicily was once again whole, but what now? Would the Sicilians wage further war against the Kingdom of Mali in retribution?

While Girgenti was falling, the army of the Kingdom of Mali, lead by Kankan Corymusa was making ready to sail across the straight from Tangier into Granada and the city of Algecira! But what was awaiting there when the army of Mali arrived? No, it was not the Andalusian Jinites ready for battle, but hordes of gift bearing nobles from across Granada, suing for peace with their Malise neighbors to the south. Both side quickly agreed that the previous battles were a mere misunderstanding, and that Granada would happily swaer fealty to the crown of Mali, and pay tribute to them. There was much feasting and celebration, at least by the King and his nobles anyway, no self-respecting muslim peasant soldier would partake in such gluttony!

And while his nobles were assuring the fealty of Granada to the Malise crown, Ibn al-Joeahmar was marching his army against an invasion from his Iberian neighbor to the north: Castile! Marco Polo, King of Castile had mustered his armies and marched south along the road to Almeria, and Ibn al-Joeahmar had ridden out to meet him there! As the armies drew up for battle, all present noted how small they were, sporting on a few thousand armed riders, spearmen, nd crossbows per side! Still, the battle was both bloody and fierce, and went wholy in favour of Granada as the King of Castile's guard was broken and fled the field, the remainder of the Castillan army disolved, leaving the gates of Cordova open to the army of Granada.

While battle raged between Castile and Granada, Roberto's army of Leon sallied out to lift the siege against the city that was put there by the army of Don Juan Dangeroso's Aragon. The battle commenced, with a raging river splitting the battlefield, forcing the army of Aragon to cross piecemeal to come to blows against the Leonese. Both armies either failed or didn't bother with committing their knight nobility to the battle, and the peasants and jinites fought it out on the banks of the river. Despite defending from a heavily fortified town, the army of Aragon could not bring their forces to bear against Leon, and so were routed from the field! The siege of Leon was lifted and the army of Aragon, along with King Don Jaun began the retreat to Burgos! Will Leon follow up on their defeat and attempt to recapture Burgos from King Don Jaun in the autumn of 1301? Only time will tell!

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Three battles that saw the destruction of 11 elements in total and three generals! I think many Kingdoms will have to bide their time in autumn and hope to renew their numbers in Spring of 1302! But not all armies are in such trouble. The Leonese most notably have only lost a single element, and may very well follow up on their victory and invade Burgos in attempt to recapture it. Further south, the Malise and the Sicilians have yet to whet their blades on the field of battle, and are likely to come to blows in autumn!

And Granada and Naples are in a similar position. Both faced off against armies and defeated them, and both have the option of following up on their victory to capture the capitols of their enemies. But will the quavering alliance between Granada and Leon hold given that Granada's declaration of war against Castile extended its overlords in Leon? Will the Kingdom of Naples have pity on the Holy Roman Empire and stay its advance? I am sure there will be a lot of bloodshed in the autumn, and I look forward to it!

A strangely dry spring had sprung in souther Europe and North Africa, forboding the bloodshed that was to come in the year of 1301. The spring saw no shortage of death and destruction, and what moisture that was missed from the sky was made up for in blood... the blood of soldiers, pawns of kings in their games of war!

In an attempt to avenge the defeat of Castile in the autumn of 1300, Don Juan Dangeroso of Aragon marched his armies from the city of Burgos to the capitol city of the kingdom of Leon. Roberto the Bold saw fit to wait out a siege from inside the city walls! The stout walls, built so long ago by the Andalusians of generations passed held out against the attacks of the army of Aragon, and so Leon would avoid battle with Aragon during the spring of 1301. Castile likewise remained in their capitol for the spring, as they did not want to declare war on their former ally Aragon.

The armies of Granada and Mali were on the move against each other over the dry plains of Mali. Kankan Corymusa marched his army from Tunis across the long road to Tangier and laid siege to the city, while at the same time, Ibn al-Joeahmar marched his army of Granada out of Tangier and to Taghaza, the capitol of Mali and laid siege to it. Both sieges factored heavily on the coming year for both armies. If Taghaza was to fall, the Malise would be under the rule of Granada. However, if Tangier was to fall, that Granadenes would be cut off from their lands and the Granadene army would begin to crumble!

The fates would have it that the Kingdom of Mali would recapture Tangier and the Granadenes would fail to take Taghaza, forcing them to flee north Africa and make for Algacira on the Iberian peninsula, losing a total of five units from their army in the process (technically, this was the wrong way to deal with the situation, and it will be dealt with properly going forward, sorry guys!). With the army of Granada all but broken, the rest of 1301 would be decisive for Granada.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the Kingdom of Mali, the Sicilian king Seanmund II mustered his army and marched on Girgenti, his former city. A siege was begun, and many men were slain, but to no avail for Seanmund and his army. The muslim denizens of the city held out against the Sicilian siege, which would carry on until the summer at least.

The war between the French and the Holy Roman Empire continued in the spring of 1301 as well. The French, Lead by a determined Black Jaques Shellaque refused to fall under the foot of the Holy Roman Empire, rallied an army, and marched from Paris to Avignon in an attempt to defeat the garrison there and recapture the city. King Mike-Frederick of the Holy Roman Empire hoped to finally subject the French to his rule and intended to march through Avignon to Paris. The two armies met in Avignon and battle was joined!

The French faught tenaciously, destroying two units of the Germans, but alas, it would not hold out. Despite many regrouping and re-engagings, the French were defeated and driven from the field when Black Jaques himself was wounded and his bodyguard fled the field! The armies of France were all but broken and Avignon remained in the hands of the Holy Roman Empire.

Mark-Charles II, King of Naples also mustered his army and marched north, back to Pisa. Again he put it under siege, and again the city held out. Of all of the cities in southern Europe and North Africa, only Pisa could boast of holding a city without an army garrison for three seasons back to back! And so Mark-Charles II would have to dig in an extend his siege into the summer of 1301.

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Spring saw every army but three lose elements, despite the fact that there was only one battle! Lots of movement, not a lot of contact between armies... But I am sure that will change as the kingdoms expand and the free space to move gets eaten up! Overall, I am happy with how things have worked out so far!

As the winter of 1301 waned, armies were mustered, generals were promoted and plans were made for the wars of the coming year! Many boundaries had changed, kingdoms had expanded and been depleted, and many good soldiers were killed in the year of 1300.

At the outset of 1301, the Kingdom of Leon, lead by Roberto the Bold held Madrid and forced the Castillans to pay tribute. This along with Roberto's battle prowess saw Leon as the foremost kingdom in southern Europe and North Africa. Castile, after two hard fought, and expensive battles against Leon was much depleted, and could not muster a full army for the coming year. Both Leon and Castile mustered their armies in their capitol cities.

Two other Kingdoms that were able to gain ground in the year of 1300 were Aragon, the Holy Roman Empire, and Granada. Aragon in its war against Leon in the defense of Castile captured Burgos from Leon, swelling the number of cities in Aragon to five, the most of any kingdom within southern Europe and North Africa! Aragon's armies marshalled in Burgos, likely ready to continnue the war between Leon and Aragon. The Holy Roman Empire, in its war with France captured Avignon and almost Paris, but they had to settle for Avignon for the year of 1300, wih four cities in the empire. Mustering their armies in Marseille, the Holy Roman Empire took position to counter invasions from either France or Naples. Granada captured the costal city of Tangier from the Kingdom of Mali, which allowed Mali to remain at three cities in size thanks to the fall of Girgenti. Granada's armies mustered in Tangier, and the Malise armies mustered in Tunis.

For the year of 1300, neither Sicily nor Naples would capture any cities. Both nations played it cautiously in the spring of 1300, and as a consequence, they failed to gain the initiative necessary to capture the cities they put to siege. Sicily having to fight against a garrison of the Milise army, and Naples having to fight against the determined city guard in Pisa. Sicily deployed her armies in the Sicilian capitol of Palermo, while Naples deployed in Aquila, likely to shorten the march to Pisa in the north!

Both France and Sicily would end the year with only two cities. Neither could turn their invaders, and so both would be left in 1301 to regain their prestige and their lost cities! See below for the standings at the outset of the year 1301 in the campaign!

And so it was that the summer of the year 1300 gave way to autumn, leaving much blood spilled and promising rain and cold weather to wash away the deaths of the campaigning seasons. The autumn of 1300 saw the end of all of the outstanding sieges of the summer, giving victory too all the attackers but one....

The armies of Granada, using cunning during the night, captured the gate of Tangier, opening it to the Granadine army, and forcing the defenders to relinquish their defense. The Sultantate of Granada has spread to North Africa!

On the other side of the Malise empire, things would go better for the kingdom of Mali. Despite the repeated attempts at storming the walls of Girgenti, the Sicilians proved unable to take the city... However, still the King of Mali had yet to appear! Not a sign of him anywhere, although rumour promised that he was wrapped up in various games of enjoyment, refusing to pay any heed to the wars he had commited to! So, in the end, the Sicilians would not take the city and control of their entire island.

Like their Sicilian cousins, the Kingdom of Naples also failed to capture the city that they held under siege for two full seasons. Despite redoubling the attack on the gates, Mark-Charles' army failed to crash through the defenses of Pisa. As a result, the armies of Naples marched back to their homelands to take up the harvest without the hoped for bounty of Pisa.

However, King Mike-Frederick of the Holy Roman Empire did not turn away from his conquests in France. Hoping to force the French into tributary status to his crown, he marched north to Paris. Fortunately for the French, Black Jaques also marched north to Paris from Toulouse, arriving just before the Germans, Black Jaques was able to reinforce the city against the German attacks. Despite heavy fighting throughout the city, Paris would not fall, and the Holy Roman Empire would be forced to return to their homelands to overwinter... And then ultimately decide between pursuing their conquests in France, or dealing with the kingdom of Naples to the south.

The city of Burgos, proud member of the Kingdom of Leon could not hold out against the siege it faced from the forces of Aragon, and so, nearing the end of autumn, the armies of Don Juan Dangeroso marched through the gates of the city. The king of Aragon ordered the heraldry of Leon burned and appointed his nobles to control the city and make preparations to march on the city of Leon in the spring of 1301!

Despite the fall of Burgos, Roberto the Bold, king of Leon, stayed outside of Toledo, hoping to capture the capitol of Castile before being forced to deal with the Aragonese. Just as Roberto was about to order his forces against the walls of Toledo once again, and earn the name Roberto the Relentless after his war against the forces of Castile, the army of Castile sallied forth! Marco Polo would lead his armies against those of Roberto the Bold once again!

Much to the surprise of Roberto the Relentless, and with the help of divine powers unknown a portion of the Castillan army deployed onto ships in the Rio Tajo (Tajo River) while the remainder of the Castillan army formed a short line on the field of battle. It was unknown where the boatcraft was learned from, as Castile was never meant to be a naval power within this medieval world, but alas it happened, and the naval forces of Castile disgorged their warriors on to the beach next to the Leonese camp! Despite a brutal fight at the water's ege and much consternation in Roberto's head, he lead his armies to victory, forcing the Castillans back into the water! The Counsel of Castile then recognized the validity of Roberto's claim over all Iberia and swore him allegiance, thus becoming his tributary.

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What a crazy campaign year so far! A total of six cities have already changed hands! That's the same number of cities that changed hands for the entire Viking campaign that I ran last winter! Given that there are more people, and that the campaigns turns are simultaneous, I think it's not too surprising; there are fewer battles and more cities! Still, it's been great so far.

One battle was not completed though, that of Castile and Leon. Life got in the way, and so it will have to be completed at the next meet-up. Although, if it proves tough to re-create the battlefield in the middle of battle, I will give the players the following options: to re-play the battle, or to take the mid-game score as the final score. UPDATE** The battle will be re-created and finished soon! Stay tuned!

As the spring rains passed on to the hot, dry summer, more than one armies were set to marching! Fresh from their victory over the Castillans at Madrid, Roberto's Leonese army sprang to the march and moved to Toldeo. The march was pleasant, and all hoped to gain more honour and prestige through another battle with the Castillan King Marco Polo and his army!

But when the Leonese arrived, the gates of the city were shut and fortified, and the Castillan archers cried jeers from the towers! Roberto set up for a siege, and wave after wave of attacks were aimed at the city's walls and gates, but to no avail; the army of Castile would not be dislodged, and Roberto set up his army to starve out the Castillans.

Don Juan Dangeroso of Aragon, who had many messengers back and forth from Leon, knew that Roberto of Leon had no intention of breaking his plans to continue to march on Castile, even though he was warned not to. And so, King Don Juan marched his armies and attacked the Leonese city of Burgos. Despite being defended by only the city guard, Burgos held Don Juan and his Aragonese army out of the city for the entire summer.

Further east, the armies of the French packed up their ships and sailed, with the good graces of the kingdom of Aragon, back through Cagliari to land in Avignon and raise the siege that had threatened the city! King Mike-Frederick IV welcomed the arrival of the French army, and both forces mustered for battle!

The French and German armies met on the plains outside of the city gates that lay next to a forest. The battle was fought on two fronts: in the forst and on the plain. The French spearmen fell to the bows of the Holy Roman empire in the forests, and although the French knights put up a stirring defense, they were unable to hold the Holy Roman Empire at bay, and the city of Avignon was captured by King Mike-Frederick IV. Black Jaques marched his army away from Avignon and to Toulouse to regroup.

While the battle between the Holy Roman Empire and the French had King Mike-Frederick IV occupied, the kingdom of Naples, lead by King Mark-Charles II, marched his armies north into Pisa and attacked the city. The city militia, inspired by their King's victory in Avignon held on and kept the Naplese from taking the wall; King Mark-Charles II of Naples settled down for a long siege. Unfortunately for the Holy Roman Empire thowever, they now face war on both of their borders...

In Sicily, Seanmund mustered his armies and marched to drive the West Sudanese kingdom of Mali out of Girgenti and off of his island. Their march was short, but their attempt to take the city was long. The King of Mali had simply not appeared throughout summer, nobody knew where he was or what had happened to him; rumour of assassination spread among the Sicilians. Unfortunately for them however, the Malise army fortified the city against the siege and the Sicilians did not take it!

Further west the Sultantate of Granada mustered their armies and sailed over the straight and into Tangier. Given the absence of the West Sudanese King Cancan Corymusa, the armies of Granada marched to the gates of the city unmolested. After having their terms of unconditional surrender refused, the Sultan Ibn al-Joeahmar ordered the attack to begin; walls were bombarded, ladders scaled, crossbow bolts shot, but the city would not fall. Yet another siege would have to continue until autumn... Not a single siege ended in success in the summer of 1300, a precedent that none of the attackers hoped would continue!

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Overall, the campaign has been very enjoyable... A lot of scheming and plotting, and a lot of role playing throughout, which is always great fun! Attendance was great as well, as we had all but one player there on the DBA campaign day! Also, given the number of players, and the state of the campaign world at the moment, there's no clear victor yet either! See the results below:

As the spring rains began in Oporto, within the Kingdom of Leon (purple on the map), Roberto the Bold mustered his armies for the long march south to Madrid. War had been coming for some time, and Roberto, along with the Don Juan Dangeroso, King of Aragon and Ibn al-Joahmar of Granada had taken council on how best it would be carried out.

News had reached Marco Polo II of Castile of the invasion however, thanks to the border towers between the two realms that had sent the alarm. The Castillans mustered an army for the defense of Madrid and the two armies joined in battle for the city. At first, the battle seemed to be lost for Roberto of Leon; his camp was sacked and a unit of jinites had been destroyed. However, it was Roberto's boldness that won the day.

Roberto himself lead the charge against the Castillan lines while he sent another unit of jinites to re-take his camp. The Castillans fought tenaciously, but their lines were broken by Roberto's charge and Marco Polo's own guard was routed in the end, leaving Castile's army all but broken (only seven elements remainging), while the army of Roberto the Bold remained strong (with 11 elements).

Given the state of his army and the threat from Leon, Marco Polo offered his daughter and sole heir in marriage to the King of Aragon, Don Juan Dangeroso. This promised that the line of the king of Castile would eventually fall to Don Juan; in return Marco Polo asked for aid against the Leonese threat. In a pragmatic move that (could have) inspired Machiavelli's "The Prince" Don Juan Dangeroso accepted Marco Polo's offer and Aragon became overlord to Castile.

Meanwhile, the Sultan of Granada declared war on the Kingdom of Mali, but made no move to bring battle to North Africa. The King of Sicily followed suit, declaring war on the Kingdom of Mali as well, but he too did not march to war against North Africa.

The Kingdom of Mali, and the King Kankan Corymusa, unlike his two neighbors, was not idle. Gathering an army out of the desert sands he sailed into the Sicilian city of Girgenti and threatened to begin a siege against it. The muslim citizens within the city welcomed Corymusa as a liberator and opened up the gates to him. Girgenti became the second city to change hands in the spring of 1300.

But the invasion from North Africa was not all for Sicily in the spring of 1300. The French, in a move that surprised the whole of southern Europe, saught leave from Aragon to travel through Cagliari and land in the Sicilian city of Syracuse. A siege was threatened and begun, but the citizens of Syracuse, seeing French overlords no better than their current overlords, held fast and the city did not fall.

As the French sailed south, their supposed ally to their east, the German Holy Roman Empire, lead by King Mike-Frederick IV marched his army from Marseille to the French city of Avignon and began a siege there, attacking the city with brutal ferocity! The French held out however, launching vicious taunts at the Germans to keep them away and keep the gates of the city safe!

And what of the King Mark-Charles II of Naples in the spring of 1300? He mustered an army and sent messengers out to all the kingdoms of southern Europe declaring his intentions of war upon them! Despite this bold move however, his army did not march... But sat in reserve, ready to move when the time was right...

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See the campaign standings below. As a quick note on the prestige columns of the table I will explain the difference between 'city' and 'battle' prestige. Battle prestige are the prestige points gained through fighting battles as explained in the campaign rules. City prestige is prestige that is gained only at the end of the campaign for each city that you control, and for each city that your tributaries control. For each city you control you gain 3 prestige points, for each of your tributary's cities you gain 2. So, adding up the battle prestige and the city prestige would be each player's score if the campaign ended on this turn.

The campaign is all set. Above is the map of everything in its initial position. Keep in mind that the players will secretely write down the locations of their armies at the beginning of the first campaign turn/season, and so their armies are not likely to be on their capitols; I wanted to represent the armies though so I figured that was a good place to put them. Below is the player prestige rank table. Currently everyone has zero prestige points as the campaign hasn't started.

This 'turns' section of the Cry Havoc! campaign will give a more detailed account of each turn. A single map will be included with every entry and will correspond with the end of a turn, or potentially the middle of a turn, depending on how long it takes to get through three seasons. Likewise with the prestige table below. So, stay tuned to this page for all the blow-by-blow action, links to potential battle reports, as well as details on bad dice rolls (for ocean crossings as an example) and other conundrums as they occur!