Lithium Flower
Arcane
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2016
- Messages
- 1,832
The reply to your decision comes as a chorus of "yes sir," and in Blaylock's case, a barely-hidden sigh of relief. Working together, the four of you quickly put together a list of villages to visit before setting off once more.
At each village, the routine is much the same. The serfs who work the surrounding fields are always the first ones to greet your approaching column, but the instant the mention of money is made, they are shoved aside by an entirely different sort of figure.
It is a different man in each village, of course, but they are all of a model—bright felt jackets, a sabre at their belts, an ingratiating smile which does not reach their eyes—the village factotum, a baneless freeholder who manages the village in the absence of his noble lord.
These are the men you must deal with, for under Antari law, serfs are not permitted to handle money, a tradition too entrenched for even nearly a decade of Tierran occupation to overturn.Unlike the serfs, the factotums are literate and numerate.
Unfortunately, none speak Tierran.
Though Lieutenant Sandoral has a sufficient grasp of the Antari language for him to interpret, he is not quite skilled enough in the locals' tongue to translate your attempts to haggle the price down. Although you try your best to spend as little as possible at each village, you cannot help but feel somewhat cheated as your column rides away from each settlement with your feed bags heavier and your coin purse lighter.
You end the day 120 crown poorer but with fodder enough to keep your column's horses and mules fed for a few days longer. Your men sleep well that night, resting easy in the assurance that they shall not have to watch their beloved mounts starve.
-
The ground around you changes once more as your column works its way down the final stretch of road to Solokovil, the town where the King's Army is encamped. The trees begin to thin out, and the brush becomes more sparse as you begin to see steep hills rising to the east, towards the faint blue shapes of distant mountains.
You are near the source of the River Kharan now, where the northern edge of the Great Forest meets the place where the plains abut the mountains that split the Calligian continent from east to west. As the forest falls away, the road begins to twist and turn in on itself, winding its way around scree-footed cliffs, rough hills, and rocky drumlins. Unfettered by the interference of the forest, your banesense is not so obstructed as it was when your route was bounded on both sides by living forest, but that only seems to make things worse. Instead of a solid wall of interference on either side of you, the chaotic profusion of bushes and isolated clumps of trees that cover the hilly ground seem only to play merry havoc with your senses, littering them with potential threats and hinting at the possibility of an ambush behind every rocky outcropping, an enemy skirmisher atop every hill.
It is thus perhaps understandable how you do not realise that your column is not alone until you turn a forested bend to find yourself not thirty paces in front of them.
They are mounted, all seven of them, on superb horses. Most of them wear the bright jackets of a noble house's livery, of a vaguely familiar pattern. Some carry carbines; the others, slim lances. All of them look like veterans, hard-faced, their weapons leaping to hand as you appear before them.
Their leader is of an entirely different calibre.
She sits in her saddle astride, like a man, but with all the straight-backed bearing of a highborn lady. She wears the tight-cut frogged jacket and trousers of a Lancer officer, both of which do little to hide her full-bodied figure, the softness in her features behind the intensity of her expression, and the severe style of her chestnut hair. She is, to put it bluntly, like nobody you have ever seen before.
She is also pointing a pistol at your head.
-
"A full squadron of cavalry approaching the encampment of the King's division from the general direction of Prince Khorobirit's army," the young lady muses in the polished mezzo-soprano of a Warburtonian noble. "Ain't that seem the tiniest bit suspicious?"
You open your mouth to explain. The woman responds by pulling her pistol to full-cock. "Your jacket is green-grey and crimson, double-breasted. Your helmet is black leather, silver fittings, white and red plumes," she rattles off. "You are dressed as Royal Dragoons, a regiment which is currently stationed with the Duke of Havenport in Kharangia; that makes you an imposter." She peers down the sights at you with bright-green eyes. "So, what I would like to know is who youreally are."
It is at this moment that you hear the slow beat of hooves approaching from behind you.
"Might I enquire as to why we have sto—" Lady Katarina begins, only for her eyes to widen in recognition. "Ellie?" Then, louder, with a genuine cheerfulness. "Ellie!"
-
The woman before you lowers the pistol, one hand deftly slipping the hammer forward as her expression turns from hostility to delight. "Rina! I thought you were in Kharangia!"
Lady Katarina, animated by a brightness which you have not often seen in her, shakes her head. "I was, now I am here." She turns to you. "Sir Alaric, I present to you, Lady Eleanora d'al Welles, Countess of Welles." With the lightest of smiles, she turns back to the Countess. "Ellie, Lord Captain Sir Alaric d'al Ortiga of the Royal Dragoons." Her smile turns impish. "Yes, Ellie, the real ones."
"Oh, but my apologies! You fought with Wulfram's army at Blogia!" the countess exclaims, though how she knew of such a thing is beyond you. "I should have recognised you!"
She peers at, then past the men sitting uneasily in their saddles behind you for a moment before glancing at Lady Katarina. "A diplomatic escort?"
The dark-haired noblewoman nods. "The Takaran ambassador," she replies. "What about you, Ellie? What are you doing in Antar?"
Lady Welles shakes her head. "Best not to discuss it out here," she replies. "Perhaps at dinner? The King is sure to put together something to welcome the ambassador." She turns to you. "You must come with me, sir. It is the very least I could do by way of apology; I insist."
You nod. An invitation to a dinner with the King by a lady of the blood as a formal apology? It would be the height of churlishness to refuse.
The Countess smiles brightly. "Excellent, quite excellent. I'll form up my houseguards and see you to Solokovil. It's no more than two hours' ride."
Thus, freshly acquainted, you follow the Countess's guards as they lead your weary column down to the walled town where the King and his army await.
CHAPTER VIII
Wherein the CAVALRY OFFICER is made familiar with the affairs of those forces commanded by H. M. THE KING.
"…so you must understand," Lord Cassius continues as the liveried grenadiers remove the half-empty plates of iced creams and jellies from the table before him. "Since the League of Antar fields no standing army, Prince Khorobirit's forces qualify as agents of a private citizen. This means that if I am attacked, I could legally defend myself to the full extent of my ability, as with, say, a footpad or a highwayman. So you see," the Takaran concludes, flashing the table a boyish smile, "there is no reason why I cannot accompany your army the next time it sees battle."
The uniformed men around the bright-lit great hall of the Lord of Solokovil's residence look at each other, wearing expressions of anxiety or exasperation. The dinner had been a slap-dash affair. With only a few hours of warning, the King's staff had to scramble to provide for a formal diplomatic banquet. Somehow, they had managed to do it in the time it took you to get billets for your squadron, yourself a bath, and change into your full court rig. Still, there had been no time to decorate the hall or invite the local ladies who would have made up the numbers for a formal dance.
So instead, the dinner's complement consists only of yourself, Lady Katarina, Countess Welles, Lord Cassius as the guest of honour, and the senior officers of the King's division, of whom only the King himself, resplendent in the uniform of a Grenadier colonel, seems entirely composed.
"Your Excellency," begins a middle-aged man with piercing eyes and florid cheeks: the Earl of Castermaine, commander of one of the King's brigades of foot. "I intend no offence, but surely, the changing nature of a battlefield means one might never be perfectly safe, regardless of one's personal prowess at arms."
"My lord, I intend no offence," the Takaran begins to reply smilingly, "but surely, one must recognise that I am far from incapable of handling myself on a battlefield."
For a moment, the Tierran officer seems trapped. To agree to the Takaran's self-assessment would be to concede the argument, and to contest it might be seen as an insult, something which neither the King nor Castermaine could very well afford.
"I must admit that I am in no position to judge His Excellency's abilities," he begins, somewhat warily. "There is, however, someone present better suited to offer an opinion."
Then the Earl turns to you, smiling the sort of grin you might expect a hawk to have upon spotting a mouse. "Captain, you have travelled with His Excellency the Ambassador for nearly a month now. Surely one might offer a comprehensive view on the matter after such an extended time in close quarters?"
In a stroke, Castermaine has turned the burden of reply on you and away from him. You must admit, it is quite clever.
Not that this stops the cold sweat from trickling down your spine as the Takaran Ambassador, a dozen colonels, three generals-of-brigade, and His Tierran Majesty all await your answer.
1) "We should not take the risk."
2) "Surely we might indulge His Excellency, for the sake of diplomacy, at least."
3) "I would trust His Excellency to handle himself."
4) "I am afraid I have no opinion to offer."
EARLY SPRING, 610:
Reports indicate that Prince Khorobirit's army is once again on the move, this time towards Havenport's division and Kharangia.
AUTUMN, 609:
Lurid accounts of the sack of Kharangia shock the courts of the Infinite Sea. In Varsovia, the Takaran Richsenaat once again votes to send an observer to the Tierran Army in Antar; this time, a full ambassador.
LATE SUMMER, 609:
A comprehensive report on the Battle of Blogia is published for general circulation. The competence and ability of the late Duke of Wulfram becomes a matter of fierce public debate in Tierra. With the Crown now nearly 40 million crown in debt and no end in sight, criticism quickly spreads from the Duke of Wulfram's conduct to that of the entire army.
Assisted by a battery of experimental siege guns, Kharangia's walls are breached. The city is taken by storm.
SUMMER, 609:
The Duke of Havenport's army begins to lay siege to Kharangia. Initial progress is slow, with Havenport's artillery proving inadequate for the task of breaching Kharangia's walls.
The King's division takes the town of Solokovil on the northern edge of the Great Forest, facing Khorobirit's army.
SPRING, 609:
The army in Antar splits into two divisions. The King's division, consisting of 12 000 men, is to head north, while the Duke of Havenport's division of 11 000 men is to advance west and take the fortified Antari port city of Kharangia.
Two regiments of line infantry, three companies of engineers, and the Experimental Corps are dispatched from the Duke of Havenport's division to reinforce Fort Kharan, an extant outpost at the northern crossing over the River Kharan.
Prince Khorobirit moves his army to the town of Mhillanovil in preparation for the year's campaigning.
WINTER, 609:
The Earl of Weathern is able to assemble a temporary coalition between the various factions of the Cortes for the duration of the war. Rumours abound that both Lord Barithorne, the head of Royal Intelligence in Aetoria, and the Queen-Dowager Gwyneth d'al Havenport were heavily involved in negotiations.
Major Victor d'al Reyes of the 8th Regiment of Foot submits a proposal for the creation of a small force of foot skirmishers armed with rifled muskets. The King responds positively to the proposal and orders the creation of a temporary Experimental Corps of two hundred men, under Major Reyes's command.
SUMMER, 608:
Still mourning the death of his father, Ewen d'al Candless, the new Duke of Wulfram makes his first appearance in the Tierran Cortes. The young Duke aligns himself with the peace faction, throwing the precarious balance of power into disarray.
A board of inquiry is commissioned by Grenadier Square for the purpose of investigating the events of the defeat at Blogia.
AUTUMN, 607:
With the onset of the autumn rains, Prince Khorobirit retreats to winter quarters near the fortress of Januszkovil, on the southern edge of Antar's southern plains.
King Miguel orders the temporary reinforcement of line infantry regiments serving in Antar with men from marine complements serving on-board the ships of the Royal Tierran Navy. The move proves deeply unpopular with the Tierran Admiralty, but it serves to help replenish the Army's depleted ranks with hardened veterans.
Faced with the spectre of food riots an order of magnitude more severe than those of the year before, the Cortes, led by the Earl of Weathern, implements a grain subsidy. With Tierra starved of Antari grain by the war, Tierrans must now buy their grain from Kian merchants, who do not hesitate to raise prices to meet increased demand.
SUMMER, 607:
The Duke of Havenport is officially appointed Lieutenant-general and Councillor-Militant, to replace the late Duke of Wulfram.
Prince Khorobirit begins to send raiding parties south to probe Tierran defences. Anxious to avoid making plain the weakness of his position, the Duke of Havenport orders the Tierran cavalry, under the command of the Duke of Cunaris, to intercept these raids with utmost vigour.
LATE SPRING, 607:
Leading the bulk of Tierran forces in Antar, the Duke of Wulfram fights a larger Antari army led by Prince Mikhail of Khorobirit in a set-piece battle north of the town of Blogia. The Antari score a decisive victory, killing the Duke of Wulfram, many of his senior staff, and nearly three thousand Tierran soldiers.
The battered remnants of the Duke of Wulfram's army retreats to Noringia. King Miguel of Tierra arrives in Antar to take personal command, leaving the Earl of Weathern to lead the government in his stead.
Starved of supplies and reinforcements by the machinations of his rivals within the League Congress, Prince Khorobirit is forced to halt his advance on Noringia.
For the purposes of replacing the men lost at Blogia, the King orders the beginning of limited conscription. Vagabonds, debtors, and the unemployed are now liable to be forced into the army by recruiting agents in Tierra, to be sent to Antar.
At each village, the routine is much the same. The serfs who work the surrounding fields are always the first ones to greet your approaching column, but the instant the mention of money is made, they are shoved aside by an entirely different sort of figure.
It is a different man in each village, of course, but they are all of a model—bright felt jackets, a sabre at their belts, an ingratiating smile which does not reach their eyes—the village factotum, a baneless freeholder who manages the village in the absence of his noble lord.
These are the men you must deal with, for under Antari law, serfs are not permitted to handle money, a tradition too entrenched for even nearly a decade of Tierran occupation to overturn.Unlike the serfs, the factotums are literate and numerate.
Unfortunately, none speak Tierran.
Though Lieutenant Sandoral has a sufficient grasp of the Antari language for him to interpret, he is not quite skilled enough in the locals' tongue to translate your attempts to haggle the price down. Although you try your best to spend as little as possible at each village, you cannot help but feel somewhat cheated as your column rides away from each settlement with your feed bags heavier and your coin purse lighter.
You end the day 120 crown poorer but with fodder enough to keep your column's horses and mules fed for a few days longer. Your men sleep well that night, resting easy in the assurance that they shall not have to watch their beloved mounts starve.
-
The ground around you changes once more as your column works its way down the final stretch of road to Solokovil, the town where the King's Army is encamped. The trees begin to thin out, and the brush becomes more sparse as you begin to see steep hills rising to the east, towards the faint blue shapes of distant mountains.
You are near the source of the River Kharan now, where the northern edge of the Great Forest meets the place where the plains abut the mountains that split the Calligian continent from east to west. As the forest falls away, the road begins to twist and turn in on itself, winding its way around scree-footed cliffs, rough hills, and rocky drumlins. Unfettered by the interference of the forest, your banesense is not so obstructed as it was when your route was bounded on both sides by living forest, but that only seems to make things worse. Instead of a solid wall of interference on either side of you, the chaotic profusion of bushes and isolated clumps of trees that cover the hilly ground seem only to play merry havoc with your senses, littering them with potential threats and hinting at the possibility of an ambush behind every rocky outcropping, an enemy skirmisher atop every hill.
It is thus perhaps understandable how you do not realise that your column is not alone until you turn a forested bend to find yourself not thirty paces in front of them.
They are mounted, all seven of them, on superb horses. Most of them wear the bright jackets of a noble house's livery, of a vaguely familiar pattern. Some carry carbines; the others, slim lances. All of them look like veterans, hard-faced, their weapons leaping to hand as you appear before them.
Their leader is of an entirely different calibre.
She sits in her saddle astride, like a man, but with all the straight-backed bearing of a highborn lady. She wears the tight-cut frogged jacket and trousers of a Lancer officer, both of which do little to hide her full-bodied figure, the softness in her features behind the intensity of her expression, and the severe style of her chestnut hair. She is, to put it bluntly, like nobody you have ever seen before.
She is also pointing a pistol at your head.
-
"A full squadron of cavalry approaching the encampment of the King's division from the general direction of Prince Khorobirit's army," the young lady muses in the polished mezzo-soprano of a Warburtonian noble. "Ain't that seem the tiniest bit suspicious?"
You open your mouth to explain. The woman responds by pulling her pistol to full-cock. "Your jacket is green-grey and crimson, double-breasted. Your helmet is black leather, silver fittings, white and red plumes," she rattles off. "You are dressed as Royal Dragoons, a regiment which is currently stationed with the Duke of Havenport in Kharangia; that makes you an imposter." She peers down the sights at you with bright-green eyes. "So, what I would like to know is who youreally are."
It is at this moment that you hear the slow beat of hooves approaching from behind you.
"Might I enquire as to why we have sto—" Lady Katarina begins, only for her eyes to widen in recognition. "Ellie?" Then, louder, with a genuine cheerfulness. "Ellie!"
-
The woman before you lowers the pistol, one hand deftly slipping the hammer forward as her expression turns from hostility to delight. "Rina! I thought you were in Kharangia!"
Lady Katarina, animated by a brightness which you have not often seen in her, shakes her head. "I was, now I am here." She turns to you. "Sir Alaric, I present to you, Lady Eleanora d'al Welles, Countess of Welles." With the lightest of smiles, she turns back to the Countess. "Ellie, Lord Captain Sir Alaric d'al Ortiga of the Royal Dragoons." Her smile turns impish. "Yes, Ellie, the real ones."
"Oh, but my apologies! You fought with Wulfram's army at Blogia!" the countess exclaims, though how she knew of such a thing is beyond you. "I should have recognised you!"
She peers at, then past the men sitting uneasily in their saddles behind you for a moment before glancing at Lady Katarina. "A diplomatic escort?"
The dark-haired noblewoman nods. "The Takaran ambassador," she replies. "What about you, Ellie? What are you doing in Antar?"
Lady Welles shakes her head. "Best not to discuss it out here," she replies. "Perhaps at dinner? The King is sure to put together something to welcome the ambassador." She turns to you. "You must come with me, sir. It is the very least I could do by way of apology; I insist."
You nod. An invitation to a dinner with the King by a lady of the blood as a formal apology? It would be the height of churlishness to refuse.
The Countess smiles brightly. "Excellent, quite excellent. I'll form up my houseguards and see you to Solokovil. It's no more than two hours' ride."
Thus, freshly acquainted, you follow the Countess's guards as they lead your weary column down to the walled town where the King and his army await.
CHAPTER VIII
Wherein the CAVALRY OFFICER is made familiar with the affairs of those forces commanded by H. M. THE KING.
"…so you must understand," Lord Cassius continues as the liveried grenadiers remove the half-empty plates of iced creams and jellies from the table before him. "Since the League of Antar fields no standing army, Prince Khorobirit's forces qualify as agents of a private citizen. This means that if I am attacked, I could legally defend myself to the full extent of my ability, as with, say, a footpad or a highwayman. So you see," the Takaran concludes, flashing the table a boyish smile, "there is no reason why I cannot accompany your army the next time it sees battle."
The uniformed men around the bright-lit great hall of the Lord of Solokovil's residence look at each other, wearing expressions of anxiety or exasperation. The dinner had been a slap-dash affair. With only a few hours of warning, the King's staff had to scramble to provide for a formal diplomatic banquet. Somehow, they had managed to do it in the time it took you to get billets for your squadron, yourself a bath, and change into your full court rig. Still, there had been no time to decorate the hall or invite the local ladies who would have made up the numbers for a formal dance.
So instead, the dinner's complement consists only of yourself, Lady Katarina, Countess Welles, Lord Cassius as the guest of honour, and the senior officers of the King's division, of whom only the King himself, resplendent in the uniform of a Grenadier colonel, seems entirely composed.
"Your Excellency," begins a middle-aged man with piercing eyes and florid cheeks: the Earl of Castermaine, commander of one of the King's brigades of foot. "I intend no offence, but surely, the changing nature of a battlefield means one might never be perfectly safe, regardless of one's personal prowess at arms."
"My lord, I intend no offence," the Takaran begins to reply smilingly, "but surely, one must recognise that I am far from incapable of handling myself on a battlefield."
For a moment, the Tierran officer seems trapped. To agree to the Takaran's self-assessment would be to concede the argument, and to contest it might be seen as an insult, something which neither the King nor Castermaine could very well afford.
"I must admit that I am in no position to judge His Excellency's abilities," he begins, somewhat warily. "There is, however, someone present better suited to offer an opinion."
Then the Earl turns to you, smiling the sort of grin you might expect a hawk to have upon spotting a mouse. "Captain, you have travelled with His Excellency the Ambassador for nearly a month now. Surely one might offer a comprehensive view on the matter after such an extended time in close quarters?"
In a stroke, Castermaine has turned the burden of reply on you and away from him. You must admit, it is quite clever.
Not that this stops the cold sweat from trickling down your spine as the Takaran Ambassador, a dozen colonels, three generals-of-brigade, and His Tierran Majesty all await your answer.
1) "We should not take the risk."
2) "Surely we might indulge His Excellency, for the sake of diplomacy, at least."
3) "I would trust His Excellency to handle himself."
4) "I am afraid I have no opinion to offer."
As of the Spring of the 610th year of the Old Imperial Era
Sir Alaric d'al Ortiga
Age: 22
Rank: Captain
Wealth: 383
Income: 15
Soldiering: 75%
Charisma: 43%
Intellect: 5%
Reputation: 24%
Health: 65%
Idealism: 69% Cynicism: 31%
Ruthlessness: 33% Mercy: 67%
You are a Knight of the Red, having the right to wear bane-hardened armour and wield a bane-runed sword.
You have no decorations as of yet.
Sir Alaric d'al Ortiga
Age: 22
Rank: Captain
Wealth: 383
Income: 15
Soldiering: 75%
Charisma: 43%
Intellect: 5%
Reputation: 24%
Health: 65%
Idealism: 69% Cynicism: 31%
Ruthlessness: 33% Mercy: 67%
You are a Knight of the Red, having the right to wear bane-hardened armour and wield a bane-runed sword.
You have no decorations as of yet.
Sixth Squadron, Royal Dragoons
Senior NCO: Staff-sergeant Hernandes
Discipline: 39%
Morale: 44%
Loyalty: 45%
Strength: 85%
Senior NCO: Staff-sergeant Hernandes
Discipline: 39%
Morale: 44%
Loyalty: 45%
Strength: 85%
IAGO D'AL BLAYLOCK
(Born 588 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon Regiment. Noted duellist. Baneblood.
GLEN D'AL BUTLER
(Born 594 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon Regiment. Baneblood.
LOUIS D'AL ENGLESSEY, EARL OF CASTERMAINE
(Born 558 OIE) General-of-brigade in the Tierran army. Commands an infantry brigade in the King's Army. Baneblood.
SIR CAIUS D'AL CAZAROSTA
(Born 585 OIE) Lieutenant in the King's Army. Commander of Third Squadron, Royal Dragoons. Knight-Companion of the Order of Saint Joshua. Illegitimate son of the Countess of Leoniscourt. Deathborn.
SIR JOHANNES D'AL FINDLAY, DUKE OF CUNARIS
(Born 556 OIE) Colonel-in-chief of the Royal Dragoon regiment. Knight-Grandmaster of the Order of Saint Jerome. A sitting member of the Cortes and head of the noble house of Findlay.Commander of the cavalry brigade in the King's Army. Lost the use of his legs at Blogia. Married with three children. Banecaster of the eighth calibre.
ULRIKE ECKHARTS
(Born 458 OIE) An Intendant of the Takaran Empire, assigned as an observer to the Duke of Wulfram's army prior to the Battle of Blogia.
LORD DAVIS D'AL ELSON
(584-607? OIE) Captain of the Royal Dragoon regiment, eldest son of the Baron of Hawthorne, a poor but politically influential Cortes noble. Former commanding officer of Third Squadron, Royal Dragoons. Missing and presumed dead after the Battle of Blogia. Banecaster of the third calibre.
LORD RENARD D'AL FINDLAY
(Born 594 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon regiment, eldest son and heir of the Duke of Cunaris. Baneblood.
EDMUND GARING
(Born 575 OIE) Master gunsmith and junior partner in the Aetorian firm of Garing, Gutierrez, and Truscott. Baneless.
WINTHROP D'AL HARTIGAN, VISCOUNT OF HUGH
(Born 580 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the 5th Regiment of Foot. Related by marriage to the Elsons of Hawthorne. Banecaster of the second calibre.
ARTHUR D'AL HAVENPORT, DUKE OF HAVENPORT
(Born 573 OIE) Lieutenant-general of the Tierran army. Succeeded the Duke of Wulfram as Councilor-Militant and Lieutenant-general. Baneblood.
LORD MARCUS D'AL HAVENPORT
(Born 588 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Kentauri Highland regiment. Younger brother of the Duke of Havenport. Baneblood.
LORD CASSIUS VAM HOLT
(Born 527 OIE) Takaran ambassador to the court of King Miguel of Tierra. Eldest son and heir of Richsgraav Maximilian vam Holt.
MAXIMILIAN, RICHSGRAAV VAM HOLT
(Born 399 OIE) Senior member of the Takaran Richsenaat. Secretary for the Ministry of Barbarian Affairs. Close personal friend of Aldkizern Reskin vam Paulus ai Takara. Former Colonel-in-chief of the Takaran Imperial Life Guards. Father of Lord Cassius vam Holt.
LORD ROLAND D'AL KEANE
(Born 571 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Dragoon regiment. Baneblood.
PRINCE BOLESLAW OF KHARANGIA
(Born 533 OIE) Antari lord of Kharangia. Allied with Prince Mikhail of Khorobirit. Banecaster of the second calibre.
PRINCE MIKHAIL OF KHOROBIRIT
(Born 573 OIE) A powerful Antari nobleman and the League of Antar's greatest general. Defeated the Tierran army decisively at Blogia in 607 OIE. Baneblood.
CEDRIC LEWES
(Born 577 OIE) Sergeant-major in the 8th Regiment of Foot. Holds a brevet commission as a Lieutenant of the Experimental Corps of Riflemen. Baneless.
LORD KAROL OF LOCH
(Born 569 OIE) An Antari Church Hussar sworn to the service of Prince Mikhail of Khorobirit. Baneblood.
ROBERT MARION
(Born 581 OIE) Corporal in the Royal Dragoons, bat-man to Captain Alaric d'al Ortiga. Baneless.
HARLANDO D'AL MARRAS, BARON OF MARRAS
(576-607? OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Dragoons, formerly second in command of the Regiment. Missing and presumed dead after the Battle of Blogia. Baneblood.
HIS TIERRAN MAJESTY, KING MIGUEL OF HOUSE RENDOWER
(Born 586 OIE) Reigning monarch of the Unified Kingdom of Tierra, as well as Duke of Aetoria. Young and impetuous, but capable. Baneblood.
ALEJANDRO D'AL NEILLE
(Born 580 OIE) Major of the Kentauri Highlanders. Baneblood.
HELENA VIZTELAS
(Born 471 OIE) Captain of the Takaran Imperial Guard. Military attache to Intendant Eckharts.
JAMES D'AL SANDORAL
(Born 592 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon regiment. Baneblood.
"STRELLYK"
(Born ???) Antari freeholder turned partisan. Commands a small group of irregulars raiding the Tierran-controlled stretches of the Imperial Highway. Baneless.
ELEANORA D'AL WELLES, COUNTESS OF WELLES
(Born 587 OIE) Tierran noblewoman and civil servant. Currently in Antar at the behest of Grenadier Square. Orphaned by the death of her father at the Battle of Blogia in OIE 607.Baneblood.
SIR ENRIQUE D'AL HUNTER, VISCOUNT OF WOLFSWOOD
(577-607 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Grenadiers. Knight-Captain of the Order of Saint Jerome. Former commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards. Killed at the Battle of Blogia. Banecaster of the ninth calibre.
HECTOR D'AL CANDLESS, DUKE OF WULFRAM
(542-607 OIE) Formerly commanding officer of the King's Army in Antar and Duke of the northern duchy of Wulfram. Killed at the Battle of Blogia. Banecaster of the sixth calibre.
(Born 588 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon Regiment. Noted duellist. Baneblood.
GLEN D'AL BUTLER
(Born 594 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon Regiment. Baneblood.
LOUIS D'AL ENGLESSEY, EARL OF CASTERMAINE
(Born 558 OIE) General-of-brigade in the Tierran army. Commands an infantry brigade in the King's Army. Baneblood.
SIR CAIUS D'AL CAZAROSTA
(Born 585 OIE) Lieutenant in the King's Army. Commander of Third Squadron, Royal Dragoons. Knight-Companion of the Order of Saint Joshua. Illegitimate son of the Countess of Leoniscourt. Deathborn.
SIR JOHANNES D'AL FINDLAY, DUKE OF CUNARIS
(Born 556 OIE) Colonel-in-chief of the Royal Dragoon regiment. Knight-Grandmaster of the Order of Saint Jerome. A sitting member of the Cortes and head of the noble house of Findlay.Commander of the cavalry brigade in the King's Army. Lost the use of his legs at Blogia. Married with three children. Banecaster of the eighth calibre.
ULRIKE ECKHARTS
(Born 458 OIE) An Intendant of the Takaran Empire, assigned as an observer to the Duke of Wulfram's army prior to the Battle of Blogia.
LORD DAVIS D'AL ELSON
(584-607? OIE) Captain of the Royal Dragoon regiment, eldest son of the Baron of Hawthorne, a poor but politically influential Cortes noble. Former commanding officer of Third Squadron, Royal Dragoons. Missing and presumed dead after the Battle of Blogia. Banecaster of the third calibre.
LORD RENARD D'AL FINDLAY
(Born 594 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon regiment, eldest son and heir of the Duke of Cunaris. Baneblood.
EDMUND GARING
(Born 575 OIE) Master gunsmith and junior partner in the Aetorian firm of Garing, Gutierrez, and Truscott. Baneless.
WINTHROP D'AL HARTIGAN, VISCOUNT OF HUGH
(Born 580 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the 5th Regiment of Foot. Related by marriage to the Elsons of Hawthorne. Banecaster of the second calibre.
ARTHUR D'AL HAVENPORT, DUKE OF HAVENPORT
(Born 573 OIE) Lieutenant-general of the Tierran army. Succeeded the Duke of Wulfram as Councilor-Militant and Lieutenant-general. Baneblood.
LORD MARCUS D'AL HAVENPORT
(Born 588 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Kentauri Highland regiment. Younger brother of the Duke of Havenport. Baneblood.
LORD CASSIUS VAM HOLT
(Born 527 OIE) Takaran ambassador to the court of King Miguel of Tierra. Eldest son and heir of Richsgraav Maximilian vam Holt.
MAXIMILIAN, RICHSGRAAV VAM HOLT
(Born 399 OIE) Senior member of the Takaran Richsenaat. Secretary for the Ministry of Barbarian Affairs. Close personal friend of Aldkizern Reskin vam Paulus ai Takara. Former Colonel-in-chief of the Takaran Imperial Life Guards. Father of Lord Cassius vam Holt.
LORD ROLAND D'AL KEANE
(Born 571 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Dragoon regiment. Baneblood.
PRINCE BOLESLAW OF KHARANGIA
(Born 533 OIE) Antari lord of Kharangia. Allied with Prince Mikhail of Khorobirit. Banecaster of the second calibre.
PRINCE MIKHAIL OF KHOROBIRIT
(Born 573 OIE) A powerful Antari nobleman and the League of Antar's greatest general. Defeated the Tierran army decisively at Blogia in 607 OIE. Baneblood.
CEDRIC LEWES
(Born 577 OIE) Sergeant-major in the 8th Regiment of Foot. Holds a brevet commission as a Lieutenant of the Experimental Corps of Riflemen. Baneless.
LORD KAROL OF LOCH
(Born 569 OIE) An Antari Church Hussar sworn to the service of Prince Mikhail of Khorobirit. Baneblood.
ROBERT MARION
(Born 581 OIE) Corporal in the Royal Dragoons, bat-man to Captain Alaric d'al Ortiga. Baneless.
HARLANDO D'AL MARRAS, BARON OF MARRAS
(576-607? OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Dragoons, formerly second in command of the Regiment. Missing and presumed dead after the Battle of Blogia. Baneblood.
HIS TIERRAN MAJESTY, KING MIGUEL OF HOUSE RENDOWER
(Born 586 OIE) Reigning monarch of the Unified Kingdom of Tierra, as well as Duke of Aetoria. Young and impetuous, but capable. Baneblood.
ALEJANDRO D'AL NEILLE
(Born 580 OIE) Major of the Kentauri Highlanders. Baneblood.
HELENA VIZTELAS
(Born 471 OIE) Captain of the Takaran Imperial Guard. Military attache to Intendant Eckharts.
JAMES D'AL SANDORAL
(Born 592 OIE) Lieutenant of the Royal Dragoon regiment. Baneblood.
"STRELLYK"
(Born ???) Antari freeholder turned partisan. Commands a small group of irregulars raiding the Tierran-controlled stretches of the Imperial Highway. Baneless.
ELEANORA D'AL WELLES, COUNTESS OF WELLES
(Born 587 OIE) Tierran noblewoman and civil servant. Currently in Antar at the behest of Grenadier Square. Orphaned by the death of her father at the Battle of Blogia in OIE 607.Baneblood.
SIR ENRIQUE D'AL HUNTER, VISCOUNT OF WOLFSWOOD
(577-607 OIE) Lieutenant-colonel of the Grenadiers. Knight-Captain of the Order of Saint Jerome. Former commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards. Killed at the Battle of Blogia. Banecaster of the ninth calibre.
HECTOR D'AL CANDLESS, DUKE OF WULFRAM
(542-607 OIE) Formerly commanding officer of the King's Army in Antar and Duke of the northern duchy of Wulfram. Killed at the Battle of Blogia. Banecaster of the sixth calibre.
EARLY SPRING, 610:
Reports indicate that Prince Khorobirit's army is once again on the move, this time towards Havenport's division and Kharangia.
AUTUMN, 609:
Lurid accounts of the sack of Kharangia shock the courts of the Infinite Sea. In Varsovia, the Takaran Richsenaat once again votes to send an observer to the Tierran Army in Antar; this time, a full ambassador.
LATE SUMMER, 609:
A comprehensive report on the Battle of Blogia is published for general circulation. The competence and ability of the late Duke of Wulfram becomes a matter of fierce public debate in Tierra. With the Crown now nearly 40 million crown in debt and no end in sight, criticism quickly spreads from the Duke of Wulfram's conduct to that of the entire army.
Assisted by a battery of experimental siege guns, Kharangia's walls are breached. The city is taken by storm.
SUMMER, 609:
The Duke of Havenport's army begins to lay siege to Kharangia. Initial progress is slow, with Havenport's artillery proving inadequate for the task of breaching Kharangia's walls.
The King's division takes the town of Solokovil on the northern edge of the Great Forest, facing Khorobirit's army.
SPRING, 609:
The army in Antar splits into two divisions. The King's division, consisting of 12 000 men, is to head north, while the Duke of Havenport's division of 11 000 men is to advance west and take the fortified Antari port city of Kharangia.
Two regiments of line infantry, three companies of engineers, and the Experimental Corps are dispatched from the Duke of Havenport's division to reinforce Fort Kharan, an extant outpost at the northern crossing over the River Kharan.
Prince Khorobirit moves his army to the town of Mhillanovil in preparation for the year's campaigning.
WINTER, 609:
The Earl of Weathern is able to assemble a temporary coalition between the various factions of the Cortes for the duration of the war. Rumours abound that both Lord Barithorne, the head of Royal Intelligence in Aetoria, and the Queen-Dowager Gwyneth d'al Havenport were heavily involved in negotiations.
Major Victor d'al Reyes of the 8th Regiment of Foot submits a proposal for the creation of a small force of foot skirmishers armed with rifled muskets. The King responds positively to the proposal and orders the creation of a temporary Experimental Corps of two hundred men, under Major Reyes's command.
SUMMER, 608:
Still mourning the death of his father, Ewen d'al Candless, the new Duke of Wulfram makes his first appearance in the Tierran Cortes. The young Duke aligns himself with the peace faction, throwing the precarious balance of power into disarray.
A board of inquiry is commissioned by Grenadier Square for the purpose of investigating the events of the defeat at Blogia.
AUTUMN, 607:
With the onset of the autumn rains, Prince Khorobirit retreats to winter quarters near the fortress of Januszkovil, on the southern edge of Antar's southern plains.
King Miguel orders the temporary reinforcement of line infantry regiments serving in Antar with men from marine complements serving on-board the ships of the Royal Tierran Navy. The move proves deeply unpopular with the Tierran Admiralty, but it serves to help replenish the Army's depleted ranks with hardened veterans.
Faced with the spectre of food riots an order of magnitude more severe than those of the year before, the Cortes, led by the Earl of Weathern, implements a grain subsidy. With Tierra starved of Antari grain by the war, Tierrans must now buy their grain from Kian merchants, who do not hesitate to raise prices to meet increased demand.
SUMMER, 607:
The Duke of Havenport is officially appointed Lieutenant-general and Councillor-Militant, to replace the late Duke of Wulfram.
Prince Khorobirit begins to send raiding parties south to probe Tierran defences. Anxious to avoid making plain the weakness of his position, the Duke of Havenport orders the Tierran cavalry, under the command of the Duke of Cunaris, to intercept these raids with utmost vigour.
LATE SPRING, 607:
Leading the bulk of Tierran forces in Antar, the Duke of Wulfram fights a larger Antari army led by Prince Mikhail of Khorobirit in a set-piece battle north of the town of Blogia. The Antari score a decisive victory, killing the Duke of Wulfram, many of his senior staff, and nearly three thousand Tierran soldiers.
The battered remnants of the Duke of Wulfram's army retreats to Noringia. King Miguel of Tierra arrives in Antar to take personal command, leaving the Earl of Weathern to lead the government in his stead.
Starved of supplies and reinforcements by the machinations of his rivals within the League Congress, Prince Khorobirit is forced to halt his advance on Noringia.
For the purposes of replacing the men lost at Blogia, the King orders the beginning of limited conscription. Vagabonds, debtors, and the unemployed are now liable to be forced into the army by recruiting agents in Tierra, to be sent to Antar.
Last edited:
