HanEmpire: Yeah, some people look to be the new hot thing…and then immediately proceed to faceplant in the pavement.
Aishio: I felt a quick, sharp conflict would be a nice change from the long, drawn-out slugging matches that have been the norm lately.
RogueTraderEnthusiast: The upcoming updates will make it clear, but Andreas III doesn’t consider the matter dropped, just on hold. The plague in Syria makes launching offensives a really unpleasant and expensive affair. However the brief foray into Mesopotamia did export some bacteria…
I haven’t decided on Ibrahim’s family situation (save for killing 3 younger brothers, which is mild by OTL Ottoman standards).
I do like the idea of a mega-Afghan Empire.
Neptune: I’m trying to retain a good balance. And the post is now threadmarked.
Charcolt: The Ottomans do practice polygamy and the Shahs do have harems, so having male heirs isn’t nearly as much of an issue for the Ottomans as a Christian dynasty. And you’re right, the Romans aren’t too happy with the way events turned out (although not too mad either, as they did get some of the Mashhadshar territories back).
Catconqueror: Does having bad luck count?
Earl Marshal: Yeah, Osman is one of those ‘what might have been?’ figures.
Lascaris: Thanks again. I do have Kennedy but it’s been a few years since I’ve read it.
JackExpo: Thanks. I wanted to try and figure out the worth of a Hyperpyron in terms of a concrete value, just so that when I’m throwing out numbers they actually mean something.
I haven’t given any thought about publishing this (I have some sci-fi ideas including a stalled book), although I do like the idea of adapting the life of young Andreas Niketas into a book (maybe turning into a fantasy variant to make it more saleable a la Turtledove).
Altwere: Actually the whole thing earlier about Byzantine history HBO shows came from a realization I had that the life of the biblical David would make a really good GoT-esque show. Especially once he becomes king, where a lot of stuff happens that is never, ever, taught in Sunday School.
Stark: To quote Susan Ivanova of Babylon 5 “No boom today. Boom tomorrow. There’s always a boom tomorrow.”
Nurhaci: To attack Antioch from the west-of-Euphrates forts mean the Ottomans would first have to deal with Aleppo, which is already very well fortified and is getting a lot of attention. So while the security of northern Syria has problems, it’s not a critical issue. More significantly, those western forts allow the Ottomans to outflank the Anizzah buffer state and give them a direct shot into interior Syria, still mostly Muslim.
Derekc2: What are you talking about? Imperial collapses are always exciting, fun for the whole family.
Luis3007: Aside from border tweaks, the Romans aren’t interesting in expanding the heartland. Expansion in Europe brings in Catholic subjects. Expansion in Asia and Africa brings Muslim subjects. The White Palace wants neither. Any expansionist pushes are going to be in Rhomania-in-the-East.
Aha, perhaps not the empire proper, but the despotates are young and hungry. PS why stick to 3 despotates only? wink wink
Wasn't a certain someone known for fighting everyone together instead of one single enemy?
The Romans wouldn't be interested in conquering Mesopotamia for themselves (except maybe a northern strip to buffer Anatolia), but a Despotate of Mesopotamia is an idea. A predominantly Muslim Despotate would be new, but there is precedent for the Romans having Muslim vassals (Aleppo in the late 10th century is one that leaps to mind).