War of the Three Kings

The War of the Three Kings was a six year war that occurred in central Pavlostani, following the Vitus War. It was focused on the Pavlostani reform of 1903, which ended the Brandburg Genocide and reformed the Socialist State of Khamul into the People's Democratic Republic of Pavlostani.

The War of the Three Kings was a multi-theater war, as Emir Yusuf of Hintindar attempted for form a Khamulist Islamic Emirate in Zhao, and Earl Brunilov began a separatist movement in Percepliquis. The end results of the war included the pacification of Hintindar and Percepliquis, and the destruction of much farmland, and Ming artifacts and widespread devastation of central Pavlostani.

The Islamic Front
Following the end of the Vitus War, the Emir Yusuf of Hintindar seceded from Pavlostani, and formed a camp known as al-Shakar where many activities similar to those of Brandburg began. Pavel VIII responded by swiftly invading Hintindar. However, Pavlostani troops were unused to the desert climate formed by the Trentian Mountains, and soon found the guerilla tactics of Yusuf's jihadists pushing them all the way back to Togia. However, out of the desert, the Pavlostani beat the Muslims back to Hintindar.

In 1904, Hintindar invaded Trent. The Mountain People welcomed the Muslims, and showed them routes through caves and passes. The Pavlostani had difficulty adapting to the terrain in the mountains, and began making use of aeroplanes for the first time.

Percepliquis Secession
After the invasion of Trent, Earl Brunilov of Percepliquis believed the Pavlostani to be weak and seceded, attempting to form a new nation, a resurgent Ming Empire. Soon afterwards, Yusuf declared a fatwa against the Ming.

The Ming Empire invaded Delgos quickly after their secession. The Pavlostani were busy with mountain warfare in Trent, and were caught unaware in Delgos. The Delgosi capital of Tur del Fur was siezed in four days, the Ming managed to construct fortifications quickly. A Hintindari army moved north in the spring of 1905, and attacked a Ming army at Taringrad. A stalemate ensued, which dissipated after a two pronged Pavlostani attack in Trent and Delgos. The Pavlostani soon were marching on the capitals of Hintindar and the Ming Empire when they signed a desperate deal with both sides following the Apelanse Empire's invasion.

The Apelanese Empire
In 1906, the Apelanese Empire under the leadership of Patriarch Nilnev invaded Pavlostani. A temporary cease-fire was signed between the Pavlostani, Ming and Hintindari as the Apelanese represented a threat to all three powers.

The War Widens
Following the end of the War of the Melting Ice, the Pavlostani were in debt to their enemies for their aid, particularly the Ming for their ingenuity with Ming fire during the Battle of Vitograd. However, the War of the Three Kings restarted and the Hintindari and Ming resumed the offensive.

The first major action of the renewed war was a massive Ming invasion of the Pavlostan province, home to the capital city of Attograd. Through the devastating use of Ming fire, it is estimated that the population of the Pavlostan province was reduced by almost thirty percent during the invasion. The Pavlostani calculated less than a week left before they lost the war when the Hintindari launched an invasion of the Ming Empire, unaware of the service they had done the Pavlostani.

The Islamic Offensive
The Hintindari wasted no time with their actions. Jihadists streamed into Smerina and the Ming Empire, raiding near Dunmore and Togia, some troops making it as far as Galilin. Both the Pavlostani and Ming were so caught offguard by the Emirate that Pavel considered signing a defense treaty with the Ming Empire until they could pacify the Hintindari juggernaut. In 1907, Emir Yusuf of the Hintindari was almost assassinated with poisoned meat. He barely survived and during his recovery he appointed a man named Fa'ad Rahman Yasin as his replacement. Yasin was even more aggressive than Yusuf, launching an attack on Attograd itself. Although the attack was almost completely destroyed, it was a sign that the Hintindari would stop at nothing to secure independance.

In 1908, a Pavlostani GBV team landed at al-Shakar and liberated the camp. Pictures of it were released and it found its way into national news. In an outcry, uprisings occurred throughout the Emirate and Trent threw its support behind Pavlostani.

Endgame
The Ming Empire, seeing the dying throes of the Hintindari also invaded but their early advance forces were repelled by the Pavlostani. The Pavlostani sacked the Hintindari capital of el-Harim and in two days, the Emirate surrendered. Yusuf was placed in a maximum security prison with a life sentence, but was released by Pavel in 1910 after issues of succession arose.

The Ming Empire was humiliated after its failure to conquer Hintindar and began fighting bitterly for every step into their territory. The Pavlostani invaded by way of Delgos, and the Delgosi turned their support back to Pavlostani as the Premier's forces were a day outside of their capital city. In 1909, the Pavlostani began their full invasion of the Ming Empire. General Sora Shin commanded the army as they began a burning campaign, setting the lanscapes, towns and even people on fire as they ravaged the Ming Empire. The food stores of the Empire were diminished enough that famine wracked the country by the end of the war. Emperor Brunilov surrendered personally following the Battle of Novron's Crossing. He was meant to be placed in a maximum security prison but was murdered a few days later by a man named Ivan Gerasimov who would be known as the Mingbane for his action.

Aftermath
The War of the Three Kings saw widespread destruction and devastation throughout central Pavlostani. Nooses lined trees as one walked down a road and spikes carrying heads lined the rivers. Successor conflicts plagued the nation for decades afterwards and the nation itself would not recover for almost a century. The Mingbane, Gerasimov would end up serving as the Grand Vizier to succeed Alberto Milanvanzi despite protests for his murder of the Emperor. The names of those who died at al-Shakar were carved into the memorial in Attograd detailing those who lost their lives in Brandburg. Pavel VIII was placed under great amounts of stress during the war and died the following year after World War I. Overall, Pavlostani was very weakened from the short and long term effects of the war.