u/Fardrengi

Picking up from my last post here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Medieval2TotalWar/comments/1t06414/aar_norway_ss_64_turn_25/

I know 35 turns sounds like a lot, but in reality not too much changed from where I left off at turn 25:

• The HRE forced our hand in ending our vassalage when they declared war on my other allies. Being the aggressor, they gave me the perfect excuse. Our spies are carefully watching Hamburg for any potential invasion from the south. Oddly enough, my alliances with mutual HRE allies, Poland, Sicily, and the Teutonic Order, are still perfectly intact!
• Scandinavia has been united under the Norwegian crown - as reflected by Haakon's son and successor, Sighvat. A battle-tested and fierce warrior, Sighvat will surely continue to bring glory to the Kingdom of Norway!
• Our Viking heritage has called our hearts back to the British Isles - before Haakon's death, he oversaw Sighvat's marriage to England's princess and laid the foundations of a legitimate claim to the English throne and its prosperous lands.
• As our new (temporary) ally was in the middle of conflict with their Scottish neighbors, Sighvat sanctioned a surprise invasion of the Highlands. Two of our most trusted generals took Inverness and Aberdeen simultaneously! Scottish shields fell to the fury of the Norse axe - our newly developed trebuchets also greatly contributed.
• Seeking to placate the papacy, our diplomat established peace with the Scottish king, making him and all that remained of his kingdom a vassal to our own! Unexpectedly, this new Norwegian sovereignty sparked unrest amongst the populace - and a hero by the name of Uilleam Uallas has rallied two armies of battle-ready highlanders! While Scotland remains our vassal, we are wary this newfound force may inspire them resume hostilities...
• England has targeted our allies, the French, and thus given Sighval the perfect opportunity to end our military alliance. With our Scottish vassal holding Edinburgh and eager to point Uallas's army in any direction, perhaps the English-Scottish conflict will resume and give us the politically sound reason to press our claims to English lands.

Haven't done an After Action Report in years, so I just decided to go by milestones.

Been an interesting first quarter of the century for the Kingdom of Norway:

• England beat three kingdoms to Bruges, including myself, within the first 6 turns. My disappointed invasion force had to sulk their way back to the fleet as the riches of the mainland were snatched from our grasp.
• My faction leader's second son successfully conquered Skara while my Danish neighbors observed at the edge of the territory. Soon after, they attacked and held the castle under siege.
• The Danish fleet must have been busy in the Baltics, because my would-be Bruges invasion force was still on its way back to our homeland before the foolish Danes decided to declare war. I rerouted their return to land unopposed at the Danish capital's doorstep - our mighty army took the city and killed their ill-prepared king in one fell swoop!
• Meanwhile, my diplomats utilized their Norwegian charms to establish alliances with France, Poland, Hungary, and pretty much the entire Iberian peninsula (until Castile got belligerent with its neighbors and I had to break off our fledgling alliance), among others.
• As King Haakon's son beat back waves of Danish armies, the force that took Aarhus recovered it's losses and prepared to march on Roskilde. But before they could advance, the Holy Roman Empire cast aside our trade agreement and blockaded two of my ports! A foolish move - our Longships and Dragon Boats made short work of the pitiful German Cogs! My general in Aarhus wisely left behind a small garrison and sallied forth southwards to take Hamburg from the Empire for our troubles!
• Surprisingly, an envoy from the HRE arrived just before the army could reach its target. The HRE demanded our vassalage! At first, the hot-blooded Norwegian King Haakon was ready to raze the German north to punish the Emperor for his impudence. But, shrewdly, Haakon reconsidered his position and the initial goal of seizing the North and destroying his Danish rivals. Roskilde and Lund remained under Danish control, not to mention the mighty castle of Kalmar. The King of Norway demanded a hefty sum of 10,000 florins in exchange for Norway's vassalage to the Holy Roman Empire. With how quickly the diplomat agreed, our only regret was not demanding more...
• Once our new arrangement with the HRE was set, we received offers of friendship from their own allies, Sicily and the Teutonic Knights. Cautiously, we accepted.
• With the southern borders safe (for now), the army moved to take Roskilde: a large battle outside the city walls was initiated, and the Danes foolishly set out the city's defense force as reinforcements - my newly acquired Merchant Cavalry from Aarhus made short work mopping up any and all Danish troops by the end of the day, and my general took the city without need for a siege!
• The king's son at Skara held the castle and managed to slay the newly crowned King of Denmark! The Danes, in typical hubris, dedicated their resources to try and take the independent settlement of Nykoping and failed twice. Would they have committed fully to their attempts on Skara perhaps they would not have had another coronation so soon!
• Lund was taken without much event, and the king's son converged with the second army to assault Kalmar. As the siege continued, we were issued a strongly worded demand by the Pope to cease hostilities with our Christian neighbor. Though our courts and people follow the Cross, every home in the North still holds Tyr's spirit for battle! With the risk of excommunication, we continued our attack on Kalmar and took the castle after a bloody battle! Oddly enough, no message was brought to our king about our failure to hold Rome's commands. To salve the wounds of Christian blood being spilled, our diplomat established more alliances with the Italian republics, as well as joining in on the Crusade on Gaza.
• The winter after the Danes' expulsion from Kalmar, we received word that the Kingdom of Denmark was no more! Though it was not by our hand, the people of Norway still cheered at the defeat of our rival. Our spy ventured to the Baltics to see what became of the last Danish settlement at Riga - Novgorod had dealt the final blow.
• Our generals celebrated the end of our long war by acquiring the isle of Gotland and its trading hub at Visby. Once the rest of the independent settlements of our homelands are brought to the fold, King Haakon can put his attentions to restoring the prestige of our people with the reformation of the North Sea Empire...or should we look to the East and help our allies, the Teutonic Knights, against the growing shadow of Novgorod?

An intense 25 turns - the Norse Archers were vital in my expansion through the rest of Scandinavia. The opportunity to be the AI's vassal is something I've always wanted to try - right now there doesn't seem to be any negative side effects to my treasury, and the roleplay has been fun!