So to recap: I’m playing EU2 again, and to warm up before returning to Ireland, I’ve started a separate new game as Malacca. I picked a slightly shorter scenario, one beginning in 1492 and ending in 1819. For the Europeans — not that I’ll see very much of them on this side of the world — it is the dawn of the Age of Exploration.
For Southeast Asia, it’s just business as usual:
This is all I know of the world at this point.
Southeast Asia consists, as always, of a number of smaller and oft-feuding kingdoms. I won’t point them all out, because many won’t last very long, but those who will become major regional players include the Vietnamese Dai Viet nation (light green), Cambodia (dark gray), the Laotian state of Vientiane (dark blue), Ayutthaya, aka the Kingdom of Siam (reddish brown), and various Burmese states of which Arakan (light orange) will prove the greatest.
Of course up north, hulking huge and dark brown, is China, and at first glance it might look like a shoo-in for conqueror of the whole region. But actually, we are in the declining years of the Ming Dynasty, and China is in for a loooong period of isolationism, uprisings, and ultimately full-on rebellion against the Manchu. Built-in scenario events will keep China very busy for the next hundred years or so.
Then, finally, there’s the hero of our story, the Kingdom of Malacca:
In 1492, the Petronas Towers are only 18 inches tall!
Malacca was established as a Muslim sultanate on the Malaysian peninsula in the early 1400’s and was a big factor in the spreading of Islam across the Indonesian archipelago. Malacca itself was the center of the incredibly lucrative spice trade and was home to the busiest port in the region. That vast commercial wealth was what prompted Portugal to conquer it in 1511. Needless to say, that’s one fate I plan to avoid. My Malacca ain’t goin’ down like no punk. Fortunately, the European nations in EU2 are more sluggish about exploting the Far East than they were historically. We won’t see much of them in my game — they’re too busy squabbling on the European continent and colonizing the Americas.
Which brings me to my own goals. Recalling the wisdom of The Princess Bride, I’m choosing to curb my hunger for territory on the Asian mainland, and instead focus on growing Malacca to a maritime commercial power. Colonizing the islands of Indonesia and their spicy wealth is my primary goal (there are a few small rival kingdoms there, but most of the territories there are empty). Once that’s accomplished, and Malacca has built a vast and rich empire on black pepper and nutmeg, we’ll see what opportunities arise next.
So that’s 1492.
————————-
Not to keep you in suspense, here’s 111 years later:
Gradually, terra incognita becomes less incognita.
As you can see, I managed to avoid conquest by Portugal.
In 1603, Malacca has expanded its interests in Indonesia, colonizing western Java and establishing trading posts in east Sumatra. Colonization in this part of the world is a slow and expensive process, because most of the unclaimed provinces are the home of large populations of hostile natives. (To avoid too much gamespeak, I’ll sum it up thus: natives make a province harder to colonize, but if you can restrain yourself from eradicating them, you get a nice starting population when your colony’s finished.) Bandung province in central Java is the hairiest of the lot, which is why I’ve kept it wild so far. As my economy and population grows, the hope is that I’ll later be able to plant a nice big army there to protect the colony as I grow it. It won’t ultimately work out that way, for reasons I’ll explain as we move into the 1670’s.
My rivals in Indonesia have been the petty kingdoms of Brunei, Atjeh, Makassar and Mataram. Mataram quickly proved the bad boy of the bunch, conquering Makassar and seizing territory from Brunei. Later they picked on me and didn’t do quite so well. After a hard-fought naval war, Malacca laid a punitive smackdown on them, winning eastern Java and the province that originally belonged to Brunei. They now know who’s boss.
Mostly I’ve kept aloof from mainland politics at this stage, but Ayutthaya made a few efforts during the 1400’s to conquer the Malaysian peninsula, and each time I managed to drive them back, though not without some effort. The states of Southeast Asia have warred with each other throughout, and you can see that some of the smaller states of Burma and Laos have been swallowed up by Arakan and Vientiane. (As we move into the 17th century, I’ll be embroiling myself more and more in local politics, and SE Asia will become a battleground of two alliances: Dai Viet, Vientiane and Ayutthaya on one side; Arakan, Cambodia and myself on the other.)
Europe has not involved itself much in local affairs this century. The most that’s happened is that Portugal has settled the Chinese port of Macau, as they did historically, thanks to a built-in scenario event. They’re that green province you see in the north.
————————-
Tune in next installment to see the next 100 years of growth for Malacca. Highlights include warfare, the extermination of native peoples, colonization, more warfare, and the growth of Malacca into a full-fledged empire. Believe it!
