The Great Northern War reaches its climax in 1709 as Charles XII's gambit into the Ukraine comes to head at Poltava and will largely decide the war's outcome. Meanwhile the civil war in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth rages on and much of the nobility is on the fence about which side to support. Everyone is holding their breath waiting to see the results of the Swedish campaign before solidifying their stance on the war.

After the disaster of the Grodno campaign, revolts and dissent are brewing, and with Augustus now being officially out of the war, Peter decides to pull back the majority of the Russian troops out of the Commonwealth to prepare for the Swedish invasion. Meanwhile Wladyslaw Leszczynski starts to lose lose his grip on the Commonwealth as an emboldened Charles makes the fateful decision to march East towards Ukraine.

The year is now 1704, The Great Northern War has been raging for 4 years and Charles XII of Sweden has successfully knocked out Denmark from the war and won stunning victories against the coalition forces. Now, Charles will install his own choice candidate for the Commonwealth throne as the Commonwealth falls into a violent civil war. Meanwhile, over the next two years Sweden will achieve even more decisive victories in what will be known as the Grodno Campaign. By 1708 Charles will have successfully dethroned Augustus from the Commonwealth throne and knock out Saxony from the war. Sweden now stands from a strong position as Charles is finally able to plan out an offensive into Russia and hopefully end the war.

Following Charles XII's invasion of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the political tensions that have been building up over the last couple decades finally reaches a boiling point as the country descends into civil war that will decide the Commonwealth's future for the next 200 years. Meanwhile both Sweden and Russia will try to exploit the situation to their own advantage as the conflict intensifies.

As Charles XII ascends the throne at the age of 14, and as the Turkish wars in the East come to a close, Sweden's traditional rivals begin to form a grand alliance to end the Swedish Empire once and for all. But the this young boy king would soon prove to be more than a match for his contemporaries, forging a legend that would be talked about for centuries to come.

With the Swedish economy facing utter collapse and its military in decline, the state is forced to accept French subsidies to help prop up its finances. These subsidies would come with a great cost to Sweden however, as it is forced to join in a war that the Swedes know they are underprepared for and launches a disastrous invasion into Brandenburg. After an initial Swedish defeat, the aura of invincibility surrounding Swedish arms is broken and its neighbors decide to join in. Amidst all the chaos the 21 year old Charles XI would lead the Swedish army personally to defend the homeland and soon prove all of his old critics wrong. Afterwards he would reform the Swedish Empire into a force to be reckoned with once again, laying the foundations for his son Charles XII.

Both Denmark and Sweden peace out 12 years into the Deluge in 1660, however both nations were pushed to the very limit and now face the threat of complete economic collapse. Denmark under Fredrick III embraces an absolutist revolution as it begins to push through radical financial and army reform. Meanwhile Charles X abruptly dies of illness after returning home from the war leaving Sweden with a mountain of debt, a declining military and a seemingly unremarkable 5 year old Charles XI to succeed him. After joining France in a defensive alliance against the anti-french coalition, a reformed Denmark would see a golden opportunity to finally get their their revenge and try once again to retake its lost possessions. These developments would be the foundations for the upcoming Scanian War.

Following the events of the great Deluge, Russia finds itself in a time a great change and reform amidst its wars with turks. Today well be discussing the events and reforms under Tsar's Alexis I, Feodor III, and Peter the Great, which would completely change Russia from the ground up and lay the foundations for its ascension to become a great power on the world stage.