Empire - User contributions [en]

Arrows and clay

2026-09-02T19:50:57Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Challenge]]
<ic>
The Queen sat, regal on her throne, frozen in place. Her gold and crimson robes fell in perfect folds around her while she bore the bejewelled sceptre aloft. "Is this going to take much longer" she hissed between her clenched lips.

"I'm painting as fast as I can your majesty," Rill replied, "but your magnificent splendour far outshines the sun. Incomparable beauty defies easy capture by your humble servant's brush. But if you could just keep still for a ''little'' while longer, then I have reason to hope that this simple rendition of your glorious demeanour might yet please you."

Before the Queen of the Brightening Sky could respond, a messenger was announced. A sure-footed owl of a man, bringing word from the Reeve of the Summer Lands. An almost-imperceptible nod was sufficient to instruct the herald to deliver the message. Not that the Queen really cared what Iron-staff had to say, but decorum demanded it. And it was something to do while Rill worked on her portrait.

"To her regal majesty, Queen of the Forests of Glory, undisputed regent of the Forest of Arden, I bring word from..."

The messenger droned on in this way for some time. Bored already, the Queen found it difficult to follow, but it finished with a request for her aid which piqued her. "Does your master imagine that I am a hound that can be called to his side? If he requires my aid, why does he not come in person to petition it?" she demanded, her voice dangerously strained.

"Ah" said the messenger, wringing his hands with obvious nervousness. "Perhaps, I misspoke my lord's intent... It was your renowned servant ''Rill'' whose service my lord desires..."
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 20%; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=BarienArt.jpg|align=left|caption=[[Barien]] exemplifies meeting, setting, and overcoming challenges.|width=3000}}</div>
==Overview==
Each season, the [[inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] of the [[Barien|Iron Duke]] come to Anvil to issue new [[Challenge the Iron Duke|challenges to the mortals of the Empire]]. The ''Lord of the Crossroads'' is eternally eager to test the skills and the wits of those brave enough to step forward, aiming to challenge the Courageous heroes of the Empire.

Every person who has [[Challenge the Iron Duke]] cast upon them will be guaranteed entry to a challenge. Depending on the challenge, they ''may'' be able to bring a certain number of attendants with them to assist. The exact number will depend on the nature of the challenge and the number of challengers. The [[Civil Service|civil service]] will publish exact numbers in [[Anvil#The_Hub|the Hub]] on Saturday morning for all to see.

Challengers will need to choose a reward from one of the [[Challenge_the_Iron_Duke#Rewards_and_the_Dragonforge|items found in the Dragonforge]]. Challengers who have been victorious in the past year may not take part in another challenge until a year has passed.

==Challenging the Duke==
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td colspan="2">'''Last Season's Covens'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>Coven of Endless Summer</td><td>Dawn</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Cabal of Nevezamzer</td><td>Dawn</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Coven of Golden Wings</td><td>Dawn</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Eternal Family</td><td>Navarr</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Glass Mantle</td><td>The Brass Coast</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Glorious Rays of the Sun</td><td>Dawn</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Golden Grove</td><td>Dawn</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Prosperous Pigs</td><td>The Marches</td></tr>
<tr><td>The Tempest Flame</td><td>The Brass Coast</td></tr>
<tr><td>Voices of the Unbound Storm</td><td>Wintermark</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''To formally enter, a challenger must be the recipient of the Challenge the Iron Duke ritual'''
* '''A challenger can only enter a single challenge each summit; if they win, they may not enter again for a year'''
To formally enter one of the Iron Duke's contests, a citizen must be the target of the Summer ritual [[Challenge the Iron Duke]]. The ritual is magnitude 30, and only a handful of [[coven|covens]] have it mastered. It is possible to cast the ritual without mastery, but it is harder and more expensive, so anyone who is interested in entering a challenge would be best advised to seek out a coven known to be able to cast the ritual. According to the heralds of the ''Traveller'', ten covens successfully performed the ritual last season. The heralds advise those interested in taking part to seek out these covens first.

Even for those covens who have the ritual mastered, it is expensive. Champions who seek to prove themselves will need to find some way to convince a coven to put them forward. Just being able to pay the ritual's cost might not be enough, though it is likely the minimum price that will be asked.

===Challenge of the Arrow's Flight===
* '''Barien challenges citizens of the Empire to a test of speed, wits and shooting skill'''
* '''Each challenger will have two minutes to navigate a course of barriers and collect up to seven tokens while being shot at by heralds of Jaheris'''
* '''Challengers may not use melee weapons, but may retaliate with bows, crossbows or thrown weapons if they are able to use them, or defend themselves with a buckler'''
* '''Challengers score a point for each token they retrieve and each herald they incapacitate, for a maximum of ten possible points'''
* '''Each challengers run is over when either they are shot by a herald, time runs out or they score the maximum'''
* '''A run is ended when a challenger is hit by an arrow, even if they are physically able to continue'''
* '''Challengers will make their runs one at a time until everyone has gone'''
* '''The top half of challengers by points (rounded up) will be considered victorious'''
* '''Challengers who score the full ten will always win, and challengers who score zero will not be considered victors'''
* '''This challenge will take place at 4:30pm on the Saturday in Fletcher's Flight, Anozeseri, Segura'''
* '''Spectators are welcome, and up to 100 people may pass through the gate.'''

The ''Iron Duke'' and his heralds enjoy tests of skills of all kind. Twice so far this year he has put on tourneys of martial prowess in the great new arena that has sprung up in Anvil, but tourneys of melee skill are not the only thing Barien has a taste for. The Forest of Arden provides a superb venue for shooting and hunting of many sorts, and the heralds of [[Jaheris]] spend a great many hours atop their spider mounts riding down all manner of summer beast in those dark woods. Now, the Iron Duke has decided to give the heroes of the Empire the chance to be hunt and be hunted against the Unicorn Prince's heralds in a high stakes game at the next summit.

A course will be assembled of barriers and barricades in a glade Barien's heralds have selected in [[The Brass Coast|Freeborn land]]. Three of Jaheris' heralds, armed with bows, will guard it. Placed within will be seven tokens dotted around the arena. Each challenger will be given one attempt to gather as many of the tokens as they can in a strict time limit of two minutes, while avoiding the arrows of Jaheris' archers. The archers will be limited to certain areas of the arena in order to make things more sporting. Challengers are not defenceless though; those running the course may use their own bow, crossbow or throwing weapons to retaliate against the heralds. Landing a hit on a herald will remove that herald from the run and earn a point. Challengers may also defend themselves from arrow fire with a buckler, if they so choose. Fighting in melee is against the spirit of the challenge and not allowed; this is a test of speed, wits and shooting skill, not brute force.

If a challenger is hit by an arrow from a herald their run is over, even if they could recover from it by any means. Otherwise, the run will be over when the two minutes are up, or if they challenger gets all seven tokens and takes out all three heralds for the maximum score of ten. Note that challengers who are not armed with bows or throwing weapons can only score a maximum of seven.

Once every challenger has made their run the challengers will be ranked. The top half of challengers (rounded up) by score will be considered victorious; the bottom half will receive a consolation prize. Any challenger scoring ten will be considered victorious automatically, any challenger who fails to score a point cannot be a victor regardless of what other score.

For those who want to compete or witness, the gate will open to '''Fletcher's Flight, Anozeseri, Segura''' at '''4:30pm on the Saturday''' of the upcoming summit. Spectators are welcome; the gate can accommodate up to 100 people.

===Challenge of the Painted Gallery===
* '''Barien has laid a challenge to the artists of the Empire to create a piece of art with him as the subject'''
* '''A chamber will open at 10:30am on Saturday morning, where Barien will pose for challengers'''
* '''Challengers will have thirty minutes to make any sketches or notes they need about Barien and the scene'''
* '''Barien and his heralds may provide other requirements at the time as well'''
* '''Challengers will need to make a piece of art based on this'''
* '''Barien is not prescriptive about what constitutes "art" - drawing, painting, song, dance, or poetry or other art forms are all permissible'''
* '''Any performance based piece should last no more than 5 minutes maximum'''
* '''Challengers may have assistance from others both in creating and performing their piece, though the challenger should be central when displaying to the judges'''
* '''The final display will take place in the Sodality Chamber in Anvil Centre at 8:00pm on the Saturday until 9:00pm'''
* '''The final products will be judged by selected invitees from Anvil and heralds of Barien'''
* '''Any piece which meets the criteria laid down by Barien will be considered successful'''
* '''A grand prize will be given to the creator of the judges favourite piece'''
* '''Barien formally requests the Maestro of the Cat's Graces, Ralphine, be present to help judge the contest'''

Last year at the autumn equinox, the Iron Duke laid out a challenge to all the chefs of Anvil; make me dishes using my secret ingredient, and prove your worth as cooks and creatives. By all accounts, the challenge was a smashing success, and now the Lord of the Dragonforge wants to set his sights on a new set of challengers.

Barien is a lover of all things made and crafted. While his preference is for superlative pieces of forged equipment, he has a keen eye for anything made by mortal hands. The creation of the Cat's Graces sodality has piqued his interest as a font of creativity and potential challenge. As such, the Iron Duke invites the artists of the Empire to compete against each other in a test of their skill at the coming summit.

For those who wish to take part, a chamber will open via the '''Hall of Worlds portal at 10:30am on the Saturday''' of the summit to a chamber of Barien's design. Here, the Iron Duke himself will be present in order to pose for a piece of artwork. Attendants will have thirty minutes to gather as much information as they need or want in order to produce a piece of creative artwork based on the subject matter. Barien should be the centrepiece of any produced artwork, but careful attention should be paid to all of the details surrounding the Iron Duke, as the pieces will be judged on quality and adherence to the theme of Barien and the scene. If the challenger is unable to journey to the Hall of Worlds, they may send someone in their stead to make any necessary notes. The heralds of Barien will check who is presenting themselves before proceeding through the portal.

After this, challengers will have until 8:00pm to produce a piece of artwork in the style of their choosing, to be presented to the judges. The ''Lord of the Crossroads'' sets no limits on what form the art can take; it could be a painting, drawing, poem, song, dance, or ''anything'' that could conceivably be called art. Challengers may have assistance from others, but it should be clear to the judges that the challenger was the primary producer. '''At 8:00pm in the Sodality Chamber''' in central Anvil a viewing will be arranged. The Iron Duke has formally requested the Maestro of the Cat's Graces, Ralphine, be present to help judge the contest alongside heralds of the ''Keeper of the Revels''.

Physical artwork will be put on display and pored over. Any performance pieces should last at most five minutes, preferably shorter. Once the judges have viewed all the submissions, they will deliberate and decide which pieces meet the criteria for victory, and which piece is considered the best overall and worthy of a grand prize. Participants are free to retain any physical artwork after the challenge is over.

Hero's Journey

2026-09-01T16:09:41Z

Dre: /* Description */

==Rules==
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBUrizen.jpg|caption=This ritual is part of [[Urizen magical traditions#Urizen Lore|Urizen lore]] rather than [[Imperial lore]].|align=right|width=200}}
{{Season|Night|20}}
{{Urizen Lore}}
===Performing the Ritual===
{{Casting time|2}} {{Target Character}} The target character must possess the [[Heroic_skills#Hero|hero]] skill.
{{enchantment}}

===Effects===
The target gains two additional [[Heroic skills#Hero points|hero points]]. At the completion of the ritual, they receive a mystic vision related to things that are happening, have happened or may happen at the event. The information is often cryptic and is not a catalogue of events that ''will'' happen, but rather the suggestion of things that are ''likely'' to happen, or that are relevant to those events.
__TOC__
An individual target can receive only one vision at each event; whether that be from this ritual, contributing to [[Signs and Portents]], consuming [[Goosewhisper Infusion]], or any other method.

While under the [[enchantment]], they also experience a roleplaying effect: ''You are keenly aware of the significance of any impending social or martial confrontation. You feel the urge to carefully prepare for the forthcoming conflict, to ensure they are worthy of a hero's name. You find it hard to contemplate shying away from this confrontation, no matter the danger.''

{{Season Duration}}

===Additional Targets===
This ritual can affect additional characters from the same [[Groups#Banners|banner]]. Each additional character increases the magnitude by 11. Additional characters must be present throughout.

===OOC Elements===
The result of this ritual is liable to be delivered in the form of an out-of-character written vision, acquired from GOD or the referee processing the ritual. The target is free to roleplay however they like - they may play through the process of receiving the vision, or act as if they have been in a waking trance and the vision has already passed. As the vision is purely out-of-character information, it is important not to show it to other players.

As with Signs and Portents, it is not possible to direct this ritual to gain information about specific topics. It also doesn't matter where the ritual is performed - a single pool of visions exists that Signs and Portents and similar effects draw on.

==Description==
This ritual was added to Urizen lore by ''the Crescent's Eye'', a group of Kallavesi mystics, in reciprocity following the gift by the illuminates of the ''Stallion's Volition'' of [[Dissipating Silks]] to Runesmith's Law after the [[The_shadows_fall_behind_you#Visionary|consecration of Elos docks]]. It relies on combining the resonances of [[Night_magic#Inspiration|inspiration]] and [[Night_magic#Emotions|emotions]], granting the target a vision of an important event that was, is, or might be, and enflaming their passions to go and be the [[Heroism|hero]] that bends the weave of fate to their will, just as the [[Fist of the Mountains]] did in their last stand on the shores of Redoubt.

Initially, academics at the Heliopticon questioned why two disparate effects were combined into a single ritual. It would surely be more efficient to have one ritual that grants the target visions similar to [[Signs and Portents]], and one ritual that grants additional reserves of heroic strength like [[Champions Shining Resolve]]. The visiting mystics stated that those two rituals bore no similarity to Hero's Journey, in the way that simply having a field and a flower is not the same as tasting honeybread. A second question was raised as to how a ritual of such magnitude was codified seemingly without the use of a [[college of magic]] or the aid of an eternal. The visiting mystics again cryptically responded that they looked into the future where the text had already been written, and aligned their dreams with it. The ritual had already been made; it was simply a matter of acquiring it from themselves.

Stormcrows from the delegation to Canterspire advised that the ritual was best employed in combination with the practice of [[Dedication#Dreams|guided dreaming]] and employing a relevant aura to aid the target in pursuing the objective revealed to them. Other priests were somewhat suspicious about allowing Night magic to have such an intimate role in guiding the path of the souls of the faithful.

This ritual creates similar effects to the [[Infusions of Feathers#Goosewhisper Infusion|Goosewhisper Infusion]]. Experimentation has suggested that the potion and the ritual both allow one to reach the same extended state of consciousness - visions received using the potion are the same visions created by multiple uses of the ritual, and vice versa ('''OOC Note:''' This means that a given individual has only one vision each event, regardless of whether they are using a ritual or a potion).

==Common Elements==
Performance of this ritual is often done in a somewhat closed setting, with the members of the coven sat around a supine target, guiding them through the visions as they tell them to the casters, encouraging them in their agency to affect the visions that they are seeing. The members of the coven themselves often each hold some trinket belonging to, or symbolising the target, aligning themselves with the [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Skein|skein]] or [[Urizen_hearth_magic#Essence|essence]] of the recipient.

Astronomancers are advised to use [[the Door]] or [[the Stallion]] in this ritual, but under no circumstances [[the Wanderer]], so as not to invite disaster. Unsurprisingly, [[Gralm]] and [[Ull]] are the most resonant runes for the ritual, though ones the Urizen are least familiar with using given how tied they are to the culture of the three traditions.

Goeticists argue back and forth on whether it is more likely to help or to harm to invoke [[Janon]] in the casting of the ritual; it is a matter of personal (and acquired) taste for a coven to do so.
[[Category:Night Ritual]][[Category:Rituals]][[Category:Divination]]

388YE Autumn Equinox winds of fortune

2026-08-31T20:32:15Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]]
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Lights in the Dark.jpg|align=left|caption=Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future. |width=2000}}</div>
==Overview==
<div {{float}}>
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|-
! Wind of Fortune !! Order Released !! Last Updated || Note
|-
| [[The wolves tempt you]] || 1 || data-sort-value="2026/08/15"| 15/08 || Imperial Address
|-
| [[Dream on]] || 2 || data-sort-value="2026/08/17"| 17/08 || Seren
|-
| [[Come together]] || 3 || data-sort-value="2026/08/17"| 17/08 || Apothecary college
|-
| [[Fair share of labour]] || 4 || data-sort-value="2026/08/19"| 19/08 || Artisans Guild
|-
| [[Hidden inventory]] || 5 || data-sort-value="2026/08/29"| 29/08 || Banner-bearers
|-
| [[A fork in the path]] || 6 || data-sort-value="2026/08/27"| 27/08 || Mystics
|-
| [[Outreach across the marshes]] || 7 || data-sort-value="2026/08/27"| 27/08 || Sand Fishers & League highest calling
|-
| [[Stand proud, you're strong]] || 8 || data-sort-value="2026/08/27"| 27/08 || Brass Coast highest calling
|-
|}</div>
Over the past three months, events have taken place which are of significance to the Empire and may require a response from her champions. These are the winds of fortune, counterparts to the winds of war that detail the Empire's military campaigns. They lay out situations and usually include things that characters can do to take advantage of [[opportunity|opportunities]] or to resolve problems. In almost every case, they start with a piece of flavour text. This fiction helps introduce the wind of fortune or draws out a particular theme or element. Often, it represents a viewpoint that one or more NPCs might have in-character. In all cases, these pieces are intended to help create an atmosphere and provide a little entertainment. Where they contain opinions, those are the opinions of the fictional people depicted - and where they contain information or rumours, the assumption is that the reader will create their own context for that information or gossip if they want to use it in character.

The body of the wind of fortune describes situations and lays out ways players can engage with them. Except where we explicitly talk about something being "rumoured" or use a phrase like "some might say..." the details of a wind of fortune are factual. They represent briefing material presented by the civil service or similar authoritative sources and represent something the average educated citizen would acknowledge as a reliable truth. Unless we specify otherwise, we're also being as thorough as possible. This information doesn't need further checking in-character. It's not an opinion, and we're not trying to trick you.
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="width:350px; float: left; margin: 10px;"
|-
! Nation !! Diplomacy Wind
|-
|}

As always, how much or how little of this information you choose to know in character is up to you. Part of the purpose of Winds of Fortune is to maintain the illusion of the Empire as a living, breathing place where things happen - and to make players aware of things their characters could know based on what their roleplaying says they have been doing for the past three months. It's perfectly acceptable to turn up to Empire having read only a few Winds of Fortune that directly interest your character; part of the fun on the field can come from learning about situations and opportunities in other parts of the game.
__TOC__
In each case, we've tried to tag the Winds of Fortune entry with the nations or political bodies to which it is most relevant. We've done this to help people who are interested only in events that are especially relevant to them. In no way are these tags intended to be exhaustive; the Empire is a complex place, and very little happens in isolation. We are also adding the dates that they were last updated (other than typos and correcting [[red links]]) in an attempt to make it easier to keep track of the newest releases.

==Winds of Fortune==
===The Wolves Tempt You (Imperial Address)===
* '''Imperial citizens; Navarr;'''
[[Emperor Vesna]] has used their power to [[The_Throne#Address_the_Empire|address the Empire]] to present a personal reminder to all citizens that the road to salvation is hard, but everyone is walking it together.

The message has been distributed across the Empire by the civil service, and you can read it in the '''[[The wolves tempt you]]''' wind of fortune.
===Dream On===
<div style="float:right; width: 150px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly_Navarr.png|align=right|width=150}}</div>
* '''Navarr'''
In [[Miaren]], [[Miaren#Seren|Seren]] is now become the ''City of Dreams'' in truth. People with hopes and aspirations, with the imagination to perceive what is needed to achieve them and the determination to try, have flocked to Miaren. With the completion of the Temple of the Waking Dream, the [[dreamspeaker]] calling has coalesced as a distinct [[archetype]] among the [[Navarr]] people, one dedicated to making dreams become reality. This has perhaps predictably amplified arguments about what exactly that means, and which dreams should be pursued, and how.

You can learn about competing arguments, and the changes to the city of Seren, in the '''[[Dream on]]''' wind of fortune.
===Come Together===
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBNavarr.jpg|align=right|width=100}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Apothecaries Guild.png|align=right|width=150}}
* '''Imperial Apothecaries Guild; Navarr; Benefactor of High Chalcis; Highguard, the League, Imperial Orcs, and Varushka; Senate
When [[Therunin]] fell to the [[Druj]] [[Thornsinger#Thornsong_House|Thornsong House]] was lost. Despite the valiant efforts of the Navarr and the aid of [[Ossegrahn|Lord Rain]], the college of herbmastery could not be saved. While the house itself burned, many of those who studied there were able to escape to the safety of [[Reikos]]. Some stayed behind on [[Reikos#Chalcis Mount|Chalcis Mount]], but others chose to put as much distance between themselves and the horrors of the Druj as possible. Drawn to the Temple of the Waking Dream, some of these apothecaries and physicks have taken the path of the dreamspeaker themselves, and inspired by the City of Dreams, they have put their ambition to rebuild what was lost into words.

A proposal for a new college of the apothecary arts, and ways various nations may be involved, can be found in the '''[[Come together]]''' wind of fortune.
===Fair Share of Labour===
* '''Artisan's Guild; Throne; Senate; Artisans of all kinds; Golden Pyramid; Pride Assembly; Navarr; Guildmaster of the Artisans, Dean of Runesmith's Caution, Keeper of the Runegrott, Seer of the Spiral Sword, and potentially several other titles associated with magic item crafting'''
At the recent summit, [[Emperor Vesna]], requested that the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|Constitutional Court]] [[Forever_is_composed_of_nows#The_Abraham_Gambit|appraise the implications]] of a new [[Imperial sodality]], the ''Imperial Guild of Artisans''. The Artisans Guild has technically been in existence for some time, with the Senate [[Construct_Guildhouse_of_the_Artisans|ordering the construction of Guildhouse]] in 385YE, creating the position of [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]. Now the Senate is in a position to consider the full implications of making the Guild into an official Imperial sodality.

You can learn more about the potential Imperial Sodality, as well as proposals from some people very excited by the opportunity it represents, in the '''[[Fair share of labour]]''' wind of fortune.
===Hidden Inventory===
{{CaptionedImage|file=Cat's Graces Sodality.png|align=right|width=150}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBWintermark.jpg|align=right|width=150}}
* '''Wintermark, especially banner bearers; Cat's Graces; Minister of Historical Research; Mediator of Hyljehal; Senate
When the tides of fate seem to turn against the Empire, to be able to look and see over the battle lines, the colours of your warband or your nation still [[Pride|Proudly]] flying can help to rally the [[Courage]] and turn the tide. In [[Wintermark]] the [[Wintermark_military_concerns#Banner-bearers|position of banner-bearer]] is seen as vital to the success of any battle. [[Empress Britta]] was a banner-bearer, and bore [[Three Tears|Foe-Slayer]], the legendary war-banner of [[Emperor Guntherm]] onto the field. The great flag was lost when Britta died and it has been near two decades since Wintermark could bear its equal into battle. The artisans and craftspeople of [[Hahnmark#Runegrott|Runegrott]] have a proposal to try to remedy this shortfall, involving the construction of a grand [[edifice]] to house banners and paintings of the great banners of the Empire as well as the creation of a new [[Magic_items#Artefacts|artefact]] [[:Category:Magic Standards|banner]] for Wintermark.

You can read more about this plan, and learn a little of the mighty banner Foe-Slayer, in the '''[[Hidden inventory]]''' wind of fortune.
{{CaptionedImage|file=KallevesiMystic.jpg|align=right|width=200}}
===A Fork in the Path===
* '''Wintermark, especially the Mystics; Raven Seer of Ishal; would-be champions; Keeper of Oaths; friends of Sung
The [[mystic|Mystics]] of Ishal sought to work more closely with the wider nation of Wintermark. They have since decided [[Flight_of_birds#The_Witan|to approach the Witan]] directly, and do what they can to support the goals of the nation itself. The decision to help with the [[Warriors' Gate|exploration of Tsirku]] has made it impossible for the Mystics of Ishal to offer their usual council and support to the [[Raven Seer]] and to that end they have made several changes to the Aviary, and to the support they offer the Raven Seer and the nation. At the same time, there has been a great deal of discussion of the [[Crown of Three Tears]] and the role of the ''Champion of Wintermark'' within the nation - the appointment of who has traditionally been the responsibility of the mystics.

You can read about the changes at Ishal, and the situation of the Crown of Three Tears, in the '''[[A fork in the path]]''' wind of fortune.
===Outreach Across the Marshes===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly League.png|align=left|width=200}}</div>
* '''The League, especially the Bishops and Princes; Merchant Prince of Misericorde Market; Senate
[[The League]] Assembly [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_57|has declared]] that their [[The_highest_calling#The_Highest_Calling|highest calling]] is to bring new peoples to join the Empire. A Virtuous endeavour to bs ure, but even the League cannot move the whole world at once. To be effective the nation needs to [[Any_dream_will_do#Partners_within|focus their efforts]] on one group at a time. Diplomacy is a complicated matter, so they also need to decide who among them would be best to take the lead with each such group. This past season the Princes of the League have reached out to the [[Holberg#Misericorde|Sand Fishers]] of [[Holberg#Misericorde|Misericorde]], the [[orc|orcs]] who once lived on the southern shores of [[Ossium]] as slaves of the [[Druj]] but who have found a new lease of life on the northern shores of [[Holberg]].

Ultimately, the egregore decides who can or cannot join a nation - the nature of the bond is that it can only be formed with someone an egregores recognises as having the potential to be a member of the nation. But the League has already embraced the Apulian Orcs, why not the Holberg Orcs as well?

You can read about how the outreach is going, and what it might take to bring the Sand Fishers into the Empire, in the '''[[Outreach across the marshes]]''' wind of fortune.
===Stand Proud, You're Strong===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Freeborn.png|align=left|width=200}}</div>
* '''The Brass Coast, especially the Freeborn assembly;
After several seasons of deliberation (and funding a [[Construct_City_of_Wonders|whole new city]]), the Freeborn National Assembly has decided that the [[the highest calling|highest calling]] of their people should be on defending their lands. The sentiment resonates with people across [[the Brass Coast]]. It was not long ago that both [[Madruga]] and [[Feroz]] fell under barbarian control, [[Kahraman]] has faced constant invasion from the Lasambrians over the past few years and [[Segura]] has only recently enjoyed a prolonged period of quiet after nearly two decades of constant warfare. Is it a surprise that the people of the Brass coast feel a little vulnerable, given recent history?

There is so much work that could be done, people are at a loss to know where to start. The Assembly will have to consider the options carefully - they have a year to take advantage of the nation's highest calling, but that won't be enough time to pursue every possibility raised by a people as inventive as the Freeborn...

You can find out how the nation can begin to defend its lands, and the proposals put forward toward that aim, in the '''[[Stand proud, you're strong]]''' wind of fortune.
===Here You Come Again (Plenipotentiary)===

* '''Imperial Conclave; magicians; '''
Each [[archmage]] is empowered to send a [[Archmage#Plenipotentiary|plenipotentiary]] message to a single [[eternal]] of their [[Realms|realm]] each season. Bound to respond, the recipients are however free to choose precisely what form that response takes. Following the Summer Solstice, six eternals have responded to what are presumed to be missives from the respective archmages. Some have agreed to [[archmage#Parley|parley]], but not all of them.

You can find out about the eternals, and the nature of their responses, in the '''[[Here you come again]]''' wind of fortune.

==Diplomatic Winds==

==Other Events==
===Dusk===
* '''For this event we are defining dusk as beginning at 19:00 and ending at 20:00'''
* '''No bow or crossbow use in Anvil after 20:00 or on quests that start on or after this time'''
Our [[Bow_safety#Bow_Safety|bow safety rules]] prohibit the use of bows and crossbows after "dusk". At this event we are defining that point as 20:00 each day. This means you cannot use a bow in Anvil after this time, or on a skirmish or quest that starts on or after this time.

The necromantic ritual [[Whispers through the Black Gate]] can only be performed for one hour around dusk - at this event that means the ritual can be performed at any time between 19:00 and 20:00.

===Husky Business (Volunteers)===
* '''There is an opportunity for player volunteers to portray their characters who died during the Saturday battle at the last event'''
* '''Eligible characters must have died during the battle, but not have been killed as a husk'''
* '''Volunteers will need to have their own costume and appropriate weapons'''
* '''The role will last around twenty minutes, starting at 18:30 on Friday'''
* '''The role will involve fighting alongside the skirmish team in an encounter against player characters'''
* '''Please email before 18:00 on Wednesday 26th of August if you are interested in volunteering'''

There is an opportunity for players to portray the husk of their fallen characters at the upcoming event. Anyone whose character died during the battle of the [[Thorn_and_bone#Battle:_Harvester_of_Graves|Fens of Varreth]], raised as a husk but was not subsequently killed again as that husk is welcome to email to register interest in volunteering for an encounter on the Friday. This will be a combat [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|highly likely]] encounter through the Sentinel Gate and will involve fighting against player characters alongside members of our [[Plot_crew#Skirmish|skirmish team]].

If you are interested and would like more information, please email {{plot}} with your PID and the subject line "Husk Volunteer E4", and you will be given more details.

==Summer Conjunctions==

===Major Conjunctions===
<table><tr><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Location'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Opportunity'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Opposition'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Link'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Outcome'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Sarangrave|Sarangrave, Turan Flats, ''Fens of Varreth'']]</td><td>Contain the dead</td><td>Druj</td><td>[[Thorn_and_bone#Battle:_Harvester_of_Graves|Harvester of Graves]]</td><td>[[Field Marshal]] was '''Sigismund Vladislav Kestovia''' of [[Varushka]]; The spirits were not trapped and the husks remain a problem in eastern Sarangrave; The tortured souls of Het Trakaa remain in Turan Flats; Het Trakaa and Sul Maggotgnaw remain alive</td></tr>

<tr><td>[[Mareave|Mareave, Clisearn, ''Ruins of Sinat'']]</td><td>Open the Vaults</td><td>Grendel</td><td>[[Mithril_and_rope#Battle:_Salt_and_Stone|Salt and Stone]]</td><td>[[Field Marshal]] was '''Joaquim i Erigo''' of [[the Brass Coast]]; Saltbound Stone recovered and claimed by '''Terentia of Sarangrave Reforged'''; Ilium Jackals negotiated with and readying support of [[Boyar's Hasta]]; Iontach Leagsaidh remains in possession of their [[Grimnir's Hearthfire]]; Maistir Guaidre remains in possession of the Spiteri necklace</td></tr>

<tr><td>[[Forest of Ulnak|Forest of Ulnak, Ghul'thark Forest, ''Fetid Heart'']]</td><td>Raid the Druj</td><td>Druj</td><td>[[Who_can_you_trust%3F#Battle:_Claim_the_Prize|Claim the Prize]]</td><td>Not taken; Status of the black lotus unclear; Status of the treasures of Taramid Skinwreath unclear</td></tr>

</table>

===Minor Conjunctions===
{|table class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! # !! Location !! Responsibility !! Overview !! Result
|-
| 1 || Sarangrave, Whisperwood, Halfweir Grove || [[Fingers of the Devourer|Custodian of the Fingers of the Devourer]] || [[Thorn_and_bone#A_Testing_(Conjunction)|Destroy the heralds of Surut]] || Heralds of Surut killed; production of Fingers of Devourer has increased by two wains per season for as long as the Great Forest Orcs remain foreigners
|-
| 2 || Astolat, Withy, Igraine's Regio || [[Astolat|Senator for Astolat]] || [[A_wizard_did_it#Rants_and_Roses|Find out why the regio keeps shifting back to Spring, and resolve it]] || Unclear, but '''Éamon Ashenmourn de Cordraco''' might know more
|-
| 3 || Mitwold, Maiden Downs, Maiden Stone || [[Champion of Prosperity]] || [[Pride_in_the_Marches#Apples_First_(Mitwold)|Stop Jyll Longleys from cursing the Maiden Stone]] || ''Jyll Longleys'' and allies killed
|-
| 4 || The Barrens, Dawnguard, Troubadour's Glade || [[Knight of Dawnguard]] || [[388YE Summer Solstice winds of war#A Vow (The Barrens)|Kill ''Prilak Gutdredger'']] || ''Prilak Gutdredger'' and almost all allies were killed
|-
| 5 || Mitwold, Maiden Downs, Golden Fields || [[Keeper of the Golden Fields]] || [[Pride_in_the_Marches#The_Right_Thing_(Mitwold)|Stop Dusty Cobb setting Golden Fields alight]] || ''Dusty Cobb'' and rebels killed
|-
| 6 || The Barrens, Saltmarsh, The Dredging Flats || [[Knight-protector|Knight-protector of Winter]] || [[388YE Summer Solstice winds of war#A Call to Stand (The Barrens)|Kill the Servants of the Burnt]] || All but one ''Servants of the Burnt'' killed
|-
| 7 || Ossium, Echofell, Burned Glade || [[Shadowed Torchbearer]] || [[The_keys_of_blood#Fire_The_Forests_(Ossium)|Prevent the cursing of Ossium]] || Heralds killed and Ossium was not cursed
|-
| 8 || Therunin, Lower Tarn Valley, Rotwood Croft || '''Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was''' || [[388YE Summer Solstice winds of war#After the Taint (Therunin)|Destroy the miasma pillar]] || Miasma pillar successfully consecrated
|-
| 9 || Madruga, Free Landing, Hart's Cove || [[Hand of Guerra]] || [[Keys_of_Enlightenment#Barren_Waters_(Conjunction)|Aid the stranded ship from Sumaah]] || Unclear, but Hand of Guerra should know more
|-
| 10 || Sarangrave, Kroll, Slow Worm's Hill || [[Sevenfold Path|Grandmaster of the Sevenfold Path]] || [[The_keys_of_blood#Boil The Swamps (Sarangrave)|Prevent the cursing of Sarangrave]] || Heralds killed and Sarangrave was not cursed
|-
| 11 || Sarangrave, Turan Flats, The Breakteeth dais || [[Eastern Sky|General of the Eastern Sky]] || [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Greatest_Prize_(Rhianos)|Recover the treasure]] || Treasure successfuly recovered
|-
| 12 || The Barrens, Bitter Strand, Saltshore || [[Merchant of the Fangs]] || [[A_horn_blast_of_victory#Fangs_for_the_Memories_(Conjunction)|Answer General Utmar's call for aid]] || Vassals of the manticore killed
|-
| 13 || Madruga, The Crucible, Talpses Plat || [[Champion of Vigilance]] || [[Phantasms_and_foam#A_Terrible_Feeling_(Madruga)|Claim the ''Snapping Face'']] || Snapping Face retrieved and heralds killed
|-
| 14 || The Barrens, Carmine Fields, Trading Way || '''Rhydian de Rondell''' || [[A_horn_blast_of_victory#Taste_of_Mettle_(Conjunction)|Remove the failed knights-errant of House Courcillion as a threat]] || Named knights have accepted justice from local magistrates
|-
| 15 || Necropolis, Coursmouth, The Veiled Garden || [[Guardian of Britta's Memorial]] || [[Phantasms_and_foam#The_Strength_of_This_Place_(Necropolis)|Spill the waters of Siakha]] || Bucket recovered and returned to Anvil
|-
| 16 || The Barrens, The Untrod Groves, Glade of the Good Knight || [[Knight-protector|Knight-protector of Winter]] || [[A_horn_blast_of_victory#A_Hearty_Meal_(Conjunction)|Thwart the schemes of Ser Gawain Amboise]] || Schemes of ''Ser Gawain Amboise'' thwarted
|-
| 17 || Mareave, Fleisardh, Spring Regio near Golden Wind's Encampment || [[Silver Chalice|Grandmaster of the Silver Chalice]] || [[The_keys_of_blood#Do_Some_Harm_(Arhallogen)|Poison the Grendel]] || Grendel poisoned, Grandmaster of the Silver Chalice should know more
|-
| 18 || Tassato, Cascatas, Campo Verdenta || [[Keeper of the Sapphire Stair]] || [[Phantasms_and_foam#For_What_Has_Been_Wrought_(Tassato)|Kill the heralds of Siakha]] || Heralds of Siakha and wreckers killed
|-
| 19 || Spiral, Apstrus, Alba's Lea || [[Legacy|Custodian of the Legacy]] ||[[Mithril_and_rope#A_Backhanded_Request_(Spiral)|Intercept the mercenaries pay]] || Raid launched on the Legacy and ten wains of mithril claimed by the Haurlatch Iron Consortium
|-
| 20 || Reikos, Haros Water, Couros Field || '''Nekoda of the Shattered Tower''' || [[388YE_Summer_Solstice_winds_of_fortune#A_Sudden_Threat_(Reikos)|Save Professor Gelberg from Grendel assassins]] || Imperials pushed out by Grendel; Professor Gelberg has been assassinated
|-
| 21 || Redoubt, Naris, Isaac's End || '''Telemachus of the Lighthouse-That-Was''' || [[Seeds_of_discord#An_Empty_Bottle_(Conjunction)|Leave no more than a dozen Grendel alive]] || All Grendel killed
|-
| 22 || Kallavesa, West Marsh, The Meeting Place || '''[[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_32|Erlend]]''' || [[Myth_makers#The_Unity_Of_Deed_And_Word|Consecrate the Meeting Place]] || The Meeting Place successfully consecrated with true liao
|-
| 23 || Kallavesa, Wittal Grove, Frithstan's Fen || [[Grimnir of Wittal Grove]] || [[The_keys_of_blood#An_Unexpected_Ally_(Basileia)|Defeat the Grendel (and potentially rescue the Iontach)]] || Ionatch Meddool Miniog successfully rescued and returned to Anvil
|-
| 24 || Forest of Ulnak, Grimfen Mire, Moss End || [[Warmage]] || [[All_I_ask_of_you#Wild_Things_Run_Fast|Take advantage of a recent scouting discovery]] || [[Forge the Wooden Fastness]] successfully cast with eight rings of [[ilium]]
|-
| 25 || Sarangrave, Bloodwater Marsh, Eastern Ward || '''Theodora''' || [[Urizeni_Experiment#Stronger_than_Blood|Cast the permanent ward]] || Ward successfully performed
|-
| 26 || The Barrens, Saltmarsh, Gardenway || [[Envoy to the Karass]] || [[Who_can_you_trust%3F#Protect_Lenna_Karass_%28The_Barrens%29|Prevent Druj raiders from kidnapping Lenna Karass]] || Lenna Karass was successfully rescued and returned to Anvil
|-
| 27 || Sarangrave, Bloodwater Marsh, Western Ward || [[Spear of the Seven]] || [[Urizeni_Experiment#Stronger_than_Blood|Cast the permanent ward]] || Ward successfully performed
|-
| 28 & 29 || Forest of Ulnak, Gloomsea, Islet of Calm || [[Archmage of Day]] || [[Who_can_you_trust%3F#Who's_the_Thief?_(Forest_of_Ulnak)|Prevent the Eyes of the Dragon from using a boon of Kimus]] || [[Wind of Mundane Silence]] performed on regio and bodies successfully destroyed
|-
| 30 || Sarangrave, Bendol, Spring Regio || [[Warmage]] || [[Urizeni_Experiment#An_Open_Gate|Drive the vallorn from the regio]] || Imperial casualties suffered, vallornspawn remain around the regio
|-
| 31 || Sarangrave, Bendol, Spring Regio || [[Archmage of Spring]] || [[Urizeni_Experiment#An_Open_Gate|Cast Dance of Navarr and Thorn]] || [[Dance of Navarr and Thorn]] was not performed
|-
| 32 || Sarangrave, the Whisperwood, Depths of the Hungry Earth || [[Counsel of the Sun Chamber]] || [[Urizeni_Experiment#The_Caves_of_the_Hungry_Earth|Investigate the Hungry Earth]] || Depths investigated, Counsel of the Sun Chamber should know more
|-
| 33 || Volodmartz, Livardz, Sumisev Peegel || '''[[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_167|Auntie Armand Mariyavich Remislav]]''' || [[Sunrise_over_Livardz#Blow_It_Up|Destroy the Sumisev Peegel]] || Sumisev Peegel was successfully destroyed by [[Wind of Mundane Silence]]
|-
|}

Llofir

2026-08-28T14:12:32Z

Dre:

{{CaptionedImage|file=LlofirArt.jpg|title="Ruin" by Marcher artist Martha Riversbank. Painted in 293YE, as part of a commission for the never-completed Hall of Spring (a college of magic intended to be built in Miaren later abrogated by the Senate). One of several canvases recovered in 326YE from a crawlspace in the Forge in Anvil, it was apparently significantly damaged by damp.|caption=''Ruin'' is the slow moving harbinger of fungus, rot, pestilence, and decomposition|align=left|width=400}}
==Eternal of Spring==
===Sobriquets===
Most commonly Llofir is ''The Rotlord'' or the ''Lady of Spores''. It generally uses "it" as a pronoun.

It is also known as ''The Quiet One'', or ''The Great Fungus'', or ''Wisdom of Dead Wood'', but seems mostly unconcerned with what names mortals give it. It appears broadly immune to flattery, enduring it with quiet stoicism before ignoring it and moving on. Other names commonly used include ''End of Empires'', ''Inevitable Circle'', ''Promise of Life'', ''Moulder'', ''Despoiler of Grain'', ''Ender of Empires'' and ''Ruin''. It is called ''Blood Choke'' by the Sumaash.

==Appearance==
As with eternals such as [[Yaw'nagrah]], Llofir is believed to be truly massive - an entire ecosystem with a single consciousness behind it. Where Llofir differs from other Spring eternals is that its body is composed of fungus and moulds - sometimes on an epic scale. It is known to 'bud' smaller, humanoid forms that are in some way vessels for its consciousness with which it can speak to mortals; many of these strange creatures serve as its heralds, guards and courtiers. They range in size from a few feet tall through dangerous animalistic creatures to massive, shambling horrors that move like a tide of animate matter.

Its heralds most often appear as humanoids infested with rot and fungus. Often quiet and slow-moving, their appearance is a little deceptive - they are actually creatures in their own right rather than reanimated flesh.

==Concerns==
The Quiet One is usually described as calm, placid and extremely long-sighted. Where other Spring eternals live in the moment, Llofir seems utterly disconnected from concerns of past and future. It in some way exemplifies ideas of natural rot, corruption, decomposition and decay - the way things tend to break down into simpler forms, from which new things arise. It is also fascinated with disease and sickness, and the way they cause healthy organisms to fall apart or become weak.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Herald of Llofir.jpg|caption=The heralds of Llofir often appear as humanoids infested with rot.|align=right|width=300}}
Some magicians believe that Llofir's interest in rot and decay extends beyond the physical, literal manifestation of decomposition and includes the philosophical idea that complex structures such as societies and empires also need to be periodically killed and broken down so that new societies can grow from the 'mulch' they leave behind. This would be a very sophisticated position for a Spring eternal to take, but not entirely inconsistent with the 'long view' that Llofir appears to take.

The eternal has several times expressed a dislike for the [[vallorn]], and even offered aid in weakening or destroying it. It appears that the unquenchable wellspring of life that fills vallorn-infested areas is at odds with Llofir's focus on the cyclic nature of death, decay, and new life arising from the remnants of the old. In a similar vein, the ''Lady of the Toadstools'' expresses an uncharacteristic virulent hatred for things which inhabit dead flesh and prevent it rotting (such as the husks produced by [[Quickening Cold Meat]] or the transformation effected by [[Mark the Flesh Incorruptible]]). It offers boons to help destroy them or return them to their "natural" space in the cycle; on one occasion this involved investing the unliving husks created by ''Quickening Cold Meat'' with spores that quickly rotted the bodies inhabited by the winter spirits.
==Recent History==
In 380YE, Llofir was responsible for a [[A_season_of_mushrooms|wave of Spring magic]] that swept across newly-liberated [[Reikos]]. In the process, it claimed the region of [[Reikos#Tamarbode|Tamarbode]] for itself. In the years that followed, it resisted Imperial efforts to reclaim the region while simultaneously offering to provide assistance to the efforts to fight the vallorn. The Winter Solstice 382YE saw Llofir [[382YE_Winter_Solstice_Conclave_sessions#Enmity_:_Llofir|placed under enmity]] by the Conclave. Then in Summer 383YE, a [[383YE_Summer_Solstice_winds_of_war#Destroying_Angels|combined operation]] by the [[Wolves of War]] and the [[Towerjacks]] ultimately destroyed Llofir's Garden and drove the eternal's forces back into the Spring realm. Llofir was less than pleased, to put it mildly.

Indeed, when the [[Archmage of Spring]] Ibiss Briarheart next sought [[Archmage#Parley|parley]] with the ''End of Empires'', in Winter 386YE, the eternal [[I_knew_you_were_trouble#Llofir|refused in no uncertain terms]]. Instead, it made an extreme demand of the Conclave - that it be granted [[alignment#amity|amity]] with the intent that it would "ravage the Empire" in retribution for the destruction of its garden. Unsurprisingly, the Conclave refused to provide it with the opportunity to take revenge on Imperial citizens.

In Autumn 387YE, however, Ibiss made another attempt to reconcile the Empire and the ''Rot Lord''. This time, [[Has_reared_himself_a_throne#Hours_Breathing_Faint_and_Low|Llofir's response]] appeared a little more measured. In the end however, the Empire did not meet the eternal's demands; they did however, [[387YE_Autumn_Equinox_Conclave_sessions#Alignment:_Llofir,_Neutrality|remove the existing enmity]] as "a show of trust."

==Boons==
The ''Great Fungus'' has a number of boons that might interest Imperial magicians. It can offer aid with rituals that encourage [[Spring magic#Ruin|decay and collapse]], or the destruction of crafted goods or structures. It also has power to support attempts to renew damaged or ruined lands, or to bring forth new life from rot and decay. As a being fascinated with fungus and mushrooms, it can also offer boons related to replicating or enhancing the hallucinogenic or poisonous properties of many fungi. According to some sources, this interest can provide insight into the magic of Spring, or even into the nature of living creatures.

More than any other eternal except perhaps [[Yaw'nagrah]], Llofir's realm bursts at the seams with magical substances. Often referred to as ''[[Yaw%27nagrah#Donahorti|donahorti]]'', they differ from those associated with the ''Green Mother'' both in their properties - related to ruin and renewal rather than [[Spring magic#Chaos|chaos]] or [[Spring_magic#Fertility|fertility]] - and because they invariably take the form of fungus or fungal spores. ''Whisperspore'', for example, takes the form of pale, powdery spores that can be inhaled to empower an adept of Spring lore to work their magic more easily, especially Spring magic that causes rot and renewal such as [[Turns the Circle]]. There have also been several cases of mushrooms gathered under Llofir's auspices that have produced powerful if sometimes unpredictable mind-altering substances.
===Donahorti===
The [[Realm#Spring|Primal Forest]] is a wellspring of wonderful plants and beasts, and while full of vitality they inevitably die. Llofir maintains vast gardens of fungus, mould, mushroom, rusts, and the like which it can make available to mortal magicians that win its favour. Often taking the form of spores or juices, these boons are referred to as ''donahorti'' (an old Asavean name originally for the boons of [[Yaw'nagrah]] - the ''donahorti mirabilis'', the Marvellous Gifts of the Garden). The ''donahorti'' are similar to [[potion|potions]], and generally [[Potion#Consuming_a_Potion|used in the same way]]. Some of the more common ''donahorti'' drawn from Llofir's demesne are:
* '''''Whisperspore''''': A pale powder with a faint fungal smell that empowers practitioners of Spring lore, especially when performing rituals that draw on the resonance of [[Spring magic#Ruin|ruin]]. An ideal physrep is a small pouch of loose flour or sherbert.
* '''''Magical Mushrooms''''': A plethora of different mushrooms, toadstools, and puffballs grow in Llofir's gardens. Their flesh can cause any number of peculiar effects. Common strains grant boons for magicians casting Spring rituals; endurance or healing at a price (often represented by venom or weakness); or gifts of strange insight, exhilaration, or awareness similar to those experienced by consuming some mundane fungi (albeit much more pronounced and powerful). Ideal phys-reps for such substances might be actual pieces of mushroom or toadstool, or small bags of powder representing spores.

==Further Reading==
* [[Mushroom, mushroom, mushroom]] - 387YE Winter wind of fortune detailing certain boons offered by Llofir especially to the Navarr
* [[Has_reared_himself_a_throne#Hours_Breathing_Faint_and_Low|Has reared himself a throne]] - 387YE Autumn plenipotentiary response
* [[I_knew_you_were_trouble#Llofir|I knew you were trouble]] - 384YE Winter plenipotentiary response
* [[383YE_Summer_Solstice_winds_of_war#Destroying_Angels|Destroying angels]] - 383YE Summer Wind of War detailing the destruction of Llofir's garden in Tamarbode
* [[When_all_the_land_is_in_ruins#The_Aid_of_Llofir|When all the land is in ruins]] - 382YE Winter Wind of Fortune including offers of aid from Llofir
* [[Bury_the_hatchet#Llofir|Bury the hatchet]] - 382YE Summer plenipotentiary response
* [[Under_the_red_sky#Llofir|Under the red sky]] - 381YE Summer plenipotentiary response
* [[380YE_Autumn_Equinox_winds_of_war#Our_Neighbour's_Field|Our neighbours field]] - 380YE Autumn Wind of War involving the Citadel Guard attack on Llofir's garden
* [[A season of mushrooms]] - 380YE Summer Wind of Fortune discussing Llofir's "restoration" of Reikos
[[Category:Eternals]]

Stand proud, you're strong

2026-08-27T16:54:06Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Highest Calling]]
<ic>The commander looked out over the ramparts of Mora's Rock, his gaze flying southwards towards the Spice Gardens, Afarjasse and beyond. News of the conquest of Free Landing had reached the Rock more than a week ago, and he'd been in a fell mood ever since. He paced, wondering to himself how the fuck his life choices had brought him here - trapped inland in the Empire and forced to make nice with a bunch of Freeborn who just wanted them dead. Still, at least Mora's Rock wasn't cursed again by that bloody Hakima Bakar. Be grateful for small mercies he told himself.

If him or Saoirse had more friends in high places, they'd have been allowed to surrender the Rock to the Empire and him and his soldiers could have been on the first boat back home. Of course if either of them had any friends in high places at all, he wouldn't have been posted here in the first place. Instead the only orders they had were to hold the Rock against all attackers. Typical fucking salt lords, they talked about Fidelity, but they'd sell their own mother for a wain of weirwood. Still it could be worse, he told himself, he could be surrounded by the fucking Suranni instead of the bloody Empire. That's what being the commander was all about - working out how any situation you were in could get worse.

Whichever way you cut it, it was bad news that the bloody fanatics were now holding the islands all along the Coast. Suddenly home felt that much further away than it had yesterday. He ran through all the ways that could get worse for him and Saoirse in his head and stopped after the first half a dozen different ways they both ended up dead. The chances of the Suranni stopping at the Cazar Straits seemed slim at best. When did the Iron Confederacy ever stop at anything?

He pondered the prospect of the Suranni taking Afarjasse with growing dismay. If the Empire attacked the Rock, he'd have to make the best showing of it he could and half the men and women under his command would likely end up dead. Storming a castle never ends well for the attacker, but if they win, it always ends up a lot worse for the defenders. Still, he had high hopes that they'd done enough that when, inevitably, that did happen, the Empire would let the rest of them find a way back to the Broken Shore. Hopefully.

But if the Suranni attacked the Rock... well then any chance of any of them getting out of here alive would be gone. Without support, he couldn't possibly hold the Rock and when it fell... well the ones who died defending the walls would be the lucky ones. The Iron Confederacy hated them even more than they hated the Empire, if such a thing were possible. Still, at least the Jotun weren't threatening the region, so things could always be worse.

"Stop pacing" - a woman's voice cut through the cool morning air. "You're only making things worse and you're wearing me out".

"Making things worse is my job" he responded, but he spoke the words under his breath. Such thoughts were best kept to himself.
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 350px; clear: left; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBBrassCoast.jpg|align=left|caption=Few in the Brass Coast would deny that their lands have been easy prey for barbarians in the past; there is certainly a will to see that change.|width=500}}</div>
==Overview==
After several seasons of deliberation (and funding a [[Construct_City_of_Wonders|whole new city]]), the Freeborn National Assembly has decided that the focus of their people should be on defending their lands. The sentiment resonates with people across the Coast. It was not long ago that both [[Madruga]] and [[Feroz]] fell under barbarian control, [[Kahraman]] has faced constant invasion from the Lasambrians over the past few years and [[Segura]] has only recently seen a prolonged period of quiet after nearly two decades of constant warfare. The completion of the Grand Lodge of the [[Silver Chalice]], the [[The_shape_of_things_to_come#The_Well_of_Life|Well of Life]] in Madruga means that fewer Imperial casualties for armies fighting in any of the territories of the Coast, but there is much more that could be done to fortify the lands of the three tribes and bring some semblance of stability to the Coast.

In fact there is so much work that could be done, people are at a loss to know where to start. The Assembly will have to consider the options carefully - they have a year to take advantage of the nation's [[The_highest_calling#The_Highest_Calling|highest calling]], but that won't be enough time to pursue every possibility.

{{SOPInner|statement=The Freeborn Assembly declares that out <u>highest calling</u> is to defend our borders from attack. The Freeborn have endured invasion, occupation and the loss of Feroz and Madruga. We know the cost of complacency. To safeguard our people, caravans and our future, we must commit ourselves to vigilance, readiness and unity in the face of threat. We should aim to secure our borders through strength, alliance, and wise negotiation. Don't let the Freeborn flame be extinguished.|by=Maria i Espiri i Guerra, Freeborn National Assembly|vote={{GM}} 216-0|when=Summer 388YE}}

As the Freeborn has raised their highest calling, the Pride Assembly has [[Lay_the_foundations#Let_the_Call_Ring_Out|one more season]] to consider their options. Technically the Vigilance Assembly could do likewise, but they have rejected the premise of the highest calling, determined not to focus on a single threat at the expense of all the others.

==Gambare==
* '''Over a dozen different paths have been identified that could bring benefits to the Brass Coast
* '''There is only time for the national assembly to pursue four of them
Spurred on and focussed by their national assembly, the Freeborn people are keen to improve the defence of their lands. After studying the issue, the hakima have identified over a dozen different paths that could be taken. Each approach will yield benefits but will undoubtedly come with costs that will have to be born by someone. For the following year, the Freeborn National Assembly can direct the efforts of Freeborn citizens to one of the options listed below each season, using an appropriately worded statement of principle. At most, that means they could pursue up to four of these options. In each instance at least one [[opportunity]] will be identified and presented by the Freeborn working in conjunction with the Civil Service.

===Fortifications===
{{CaptionedImage|file=DawnAndUrizen.jpg|caption=Sturdy castles and great stone walls protect the Imperial heartlands.|align=right|width=350}}
* '''Any of the territories of the Brass Coast would benefit from fortification'''
* '''Fortifications are dependable and effective but expensive to build and maintain'''
The simplest and most effective way to defend a territory is to [[fortification|fortify]] one or more regions in the territory. Fortifications are tried and tested, they are dependable and effective, but they are usually very expensive, both to build and maintain. Any [[opportunity]] that arises might present ways to make a fortification more effective, but it is rare for an opportunity to be cheaper to build than a standard [[commission]].

* '''Fortify Kahraman''' - Since the fall of Fort Braydon, Kahraman has been largely undefended against the incessant raids of the Lasambrians. Fortunately, their armies have been somewhat busy in [[the Marches]] and [[Reinos]] more recently, but it is likely only a matter of time before they or other enemies return to the territory that contains not one but three bourse seats.

* '''Fortify Feroz''' - There are already efforts being made to restore the livelihoods of the peoples of Feroz, but it will also need to be fortified against the inevitability that the Grendel will one day return to their shores. A precautionary line of defence on the southern border of Feroz may not be a bad idea either.

* '''Fortify Segura''' - With the City of Wonders completed, the Freeborn are [[388YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Construct_Sakari's_Legacy|already taking advantage]] of an offer from Adamant to protect the territory from invasion, as the most remote territory in the south-west of the Empire. Far-flung as it is, a single fortification may not be enough to secure Segura, is there more that could be done?

* '''Fortify Madruga''' - The [[Construct_Municipal_Docks|Municipal Docks]], once they are completed, will already serve to defend Feroz from attackers from the sea. Yet one only has to ask the former [[A beacon of smoke|residents of Siroc]] if one fortification on the coast should put peoples minds at ease against the threat of the [[Grendel]] armada. More can and must be done to properly defend against further naval encroachments, and more than one Hakima has raised concerns about what threats might emerge from [[Madruga#Crucible|Crucible]].
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===Eternal Allies===
* '''There are several allies that ''could'' help with the defence of the Brass Coast'''
* '''Eternals can be fickle and their help often comes with strings attached'''
If it exists, there is probably an Eternal who cares about it. This is definitely true of fortifications and defences, and the Hakima could approach various contacts they have with heralds from the realms to see what bargains might be struck for their aid. Unlike fortifications, eternals can be fickle and their help often comes with strings attached. Still, that can sometimes make it cheaper than fortifications, the Coast might need to find less white granite if they're paying with some other coin.

The list of eternals that won't help is long - the [[Rhianos|''Regent of the Eternal Sea'']] might cherish their friendship with the corsairs, but they have no interest in "defending" anything. Likewise the [[Eleonaris|''Queen of the Fields of Glory]] would help the Brass Coast attack their enemies, but she doesn't care for those who want to protect what they already have. Fortunately the Hakima have identified five eternals they would definitely be willing to help, if the Coast could meet their price. The Assembly doesn't have to restrict themselves to this list of course, but they had best be certain of an eternal's nature if they pick another.

* '''Approach Adamant''' - The [[Adamant|''King Under the Mountain'']] encourages mortals to build immense, inspiring structures and his koboldi are known to be able to create fortifications that are almost impossible to destroy. Of course any fortification is expensive, so this option won't end up being any cheaper than the Assembly directing efforts to fortify a territory themselves.

* '''Approach Cathan Canae''' - The [[Cathan Canae|''Queen of Ice and Darkness'']] respects only might and resilience. She resents the loss of any territory she jealously defends her own lands and expects her mortal allies to share her determination never to cede land to her enemies. She would be a natural ally for anyone looking to protect their home, were it not for her infamous temper.

* '''Approach Janon''' - The [[Janon|''Muse of Fire'']] is a passionate supporter of the Brass Coast - not for nothing is he called the ''Firebrand''. He has sent his heralds to fight alongside the Freeborn armies in recent times and would doubtless do so again given the opportunity. The only problem is that the eternal is currently under [[Alignment#Enmity|enmity]] so the Coast would have to persuade the Conclave to change that otherwise any deal would be highly illegal.

* '''Approach Sorin''' - The [[Sorin|''Tomb King'']] can be a powerful ally in defence of any cause, if you can meet the price. He has heralds who can fight in support of mortal allies, often in the form of terrible wolves, and he allows Imperial magicians to summon [[the Basalt Citadel]] to defend a ruin from attack. He is known to exact a heavy price for his aid and bargainers are wise to pay in advance when dealing with the ''Blade of Hunger''.

* '''Approach Ephisis''' - the [[Ephisis|''Hidden Prince'']] is an odd choice, but there is more reason than it might appear to consider asking them for their aid. The ''City of Lead and Gold'' loathes thieves, bandits and raiders so they are a natural ally against the dangers posed by the Lasambrians. There is nothing the heralds of the ''Merchant Queen'' cannot obtain if the purchaser can raise the price.

Of course the hakima ''could'' approach [[Agramant|''the Giver of Gifts'']] but nobody thinks that is a good idea. The ''Voice of the Pines'' never turns anyway anyone who calls on them for aid, which is precisely why nobody ever should.

===Mortal Allies===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=AmbassadorIronConfederacy.png|caption='''Tethros i Zuhri i Erigo''', Ambassador to the Iron Confederacy, is Freeborn...|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Mina6596.jpg|caption=... as is '''Mina i Yashum i Riqueza''', Ambassador to Faraden|align=right|width=200}}</div>
* '''Closer ties with the nation's foreign neighbours could help secure the Brass Coast'''
* '''Foreign powers will always have demands of their own in return for their aid'''

One way to make it harder for enemies to attack the Brass Coast is to strengthen relations with the nation's neighbours. Obviously the Marches and the League are the nation's immediate neighbours inside the Empire, but one of the reasons why the Brass Coast has suffered in recent years is because of its proximity to so many foreign powers. Closer relations with any of them might yield useful benefits - provided that what they demanded in return was acceptable to the Empire.

The obvious foreign powers are listed below in order of military power, starting with the strongest.

* '''Suranni''' - It is impossible to be certain how powerful the Iron Confederacy actually are, but their campaign in Reinos proceeds apace. It would certainly be disastrous for the Brass Coast if the Surrani were to move in force against them. They were more than capable of destroying the Children of Wrecks, but as that campaign showed, they like to claim whatever they defend. There is little to be done to guarantee peace between the two powers besides a formal treaty defining such, but improved trade and other agreements to the benefit of the Dukes might make the idea of war with the Empire less desirable.

* '''Faraden''' - The Faraden have recently re-signed their peace treaty with the Jotun, and the nature of their relationship with the Iron Condeferacy is somewhat unknown, but it seems likely that they would prefer Imperial victory in any conflict between the two. They have little in the way of military forces they can spare, but that does not mean there are no deals that might be struck to help, provided the problems posed by religious differences can be handled.

* '''Morajasse''' - Following their visit to Anvil last season, relations seem to be improving between the Protectorate of Morajasse and the Empire. Few Brass Coast are naturally minded to work with the Protectorate - they are Grendel after all - but they have shown themselves more than capable of defending the Coast from mutual threats. The garrison controls the fortification - the Freeborn could negotiate to see if further deals for mutual military and other benefits are possible.

* '''Maracossans''' - While they may currently be [[Seeds_of_discord#Marracossa|facing issues]] with precent pronouncements by the Synod, the Marcossans have a [[Cede Trajadoz|vested interest in Madruga]] not being conquered by external forces. They are easily the weakest of any of the list of potential mortal allies the Brass Coast could approach but that has the advantage that they are likely to ask for less than the others.

===Espionage===
{{CaptionedImage|file=Rahmah i Darwisj i Erigo.jpg|caption='''Rahmah i Darwisj i Erigo''', Imperial Spymaster|align=right|width=450}}
* '''The more the Brass Coast knows about its neighbours the safer it will be'''
* '''Spy networks can provide up-to-date information on military developments in neighbouring lands'''

A [[spy network]] is cheap to build and maintain, but requires concerted effort to operate. Unless enough [[military unit|military units]] choose to engage in espionage at the spy network, it is essentially useless. The Brass Coast doesn't need any help building a spy network in neighbouring lands, but an opportunity to make them more effective or easier to support could be valuable. It is perhaps also helpful that the current [[Imperial Spymaster]] - '''Rahmah i Darwisj i Erigo''' - is Freeborn themselves.

Any way for the Freeborn to keep an eye beyond their borders could contribute to making the Coast safer for the people who live within harm's reach. Potentially, the Freeborn could even look into any opportunities to engage in sabotage and espionage to keep their many potential enemies fighting each other.

* '''Spy on the Lasamabrians''' - the Empire had a spy network in [[Reinos]] but it was decommissioned almost two years ago. That makes it much harder for the Empire to find out what the Suranni are up to in their attack on the Lasambrian homeland. A spy network here could help the nation abreast of the risks posed by their powerful southern neighbours.

* '''Spy on the Jotun''' - like Reinos, [[Liathaven]] had a spy network for many years before it was uncovered by the Jotun and destroyed, the unenviable fate of most spy networks that discovered by the enemy. The territory has changed significantly since the Jotun conquered it, and the Imperial maps of the territory grow more inaccurate by the day. Any Jotun attack on the Brass Coast is likely to come from Liathaven, so intelligence on what is happening there could be invaluable.

*'''Spy on the Suranni''' - The Empire has recently begun [[Construct_Wrangler's_Market|construction of a spy network]] in [[Bay_of_Catazar#Kalino_(or_“Arbonne”)|Arbonne]], which will allow the Imperial Orcs to gather intelligence on the Surrani activities in Arbonne under cover of the acting as guards for Freeborn merchants. The plan is fool-proof in terms of not being discovered, but it does rely on the Imperial Orcs to have military units to be able to operate the network properly. The Assembly could look for ways to employ the new Wranglers Market to go further, making it more effective or easier to use. If there was a full-scale invasion of the Brass Coast by the Suranni, it would be almost certain to begin in Arbonne, so any intelligence could be crucial.

<ic>Life is short, let it never be dull</ic>

==To Contest Domains==
{{CaptionedImage|file=BurningFalcon Colour.png|align=right|width=150}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=TheFireoftheSouth Colour.png|align=right|width=150}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=RedWindCorsairs Colour.png|align=right|width=150}}
* '''For the next year, any Freeborn army can be given orders to burn brightly, when defending a Freeborn territory'''
The [[corsair|corsairs]] and [[kohan]] of the Freeborn armies have been inspired by the words of the Freeborn Assembly. There is little fear of death to be found of any individual person, but there is now the will to burn so bright that the thought of ever dimming it becomes inconceivable. For the next year, any Freeborn army can take the ''Burn Brightly'' defensive order in any Freeborn-held territory.

While not necessarily a sustainable long-term strategy, the Freeborn armies could throw their all into defending their homelands from any who would seek to take it from them. This ferocious and wild display might be enough to make any invaders think twice about attacking the Coast.

<box>
'''Burn Brightly'''
* '''Casualties suffered by this army are doubled'''
* '''The ability of this army to defend territory is increased by three fifths'''
* '''Casualties inflicted by this army are increased by three fifths'''

The Freeborn are attended to by their cousins in their home land and whip themselves into a frenzy. Any who dare to attack the Brass Coast would find themselves drowned with soldiers determined to do whatever it takes to drive the enemy out with no thought for their own survival. The ferocity and shock value is completely overwhelming to any who would seek to stand against it.
</box>
==Further Reading==
* [[The highest calling]] - 387YE Autumn wind of fortune introducing the highest calling

Forward into depthless dark

2026-08-27T11:00:24Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Into depthless dark.jpg|align=left|caption=Here is the heart of the Druj; black and twisted and filled with hate and fear.|width=500}}</div>
==Wicked Effigies and Twisted Monuments==
The Salt Flats of Sanath are the true heartlands of the Druj. Broad plains criss-crossed by dark waterways. The ground is sodden, and the further east toward the sea one travels, the more marshy the land becomes. The forests common to the rest of the Mallum have mostly been cleared here, by centuries of ravenous industry. Only in the south-west is there any great woodland - the [[Salt Flats of Sanath#Lower Saarnath|lowland valleys]] and the high [[Salt Flats of Sanath#Upper Saarnath|plateau]] that each form half of the lands jointly called the Saarnath.
__TOC__
It rains almost constantly here, or so it seems. Even when it is not actively raining, the air is thick with moisture. The ground can turn slick and treacherous without warning, even in the valleys of Saarnath where the marshes of Sarangrave give way to broad-leafed rainforest. Visibility drops precipitously, a far cry from the relatively open sight-lines of the marshes and the flats to the south-west. Only the [[Navarr]] and the [[Varushka|Varushkans]] are really at home here, but even they must beware of overconfidence. The Druj know these woods better than they do after all.

Thick as the air can be, the [[Druj miasma|miasma]] is thicker, perhaps thicker than the Empire has ever encountered it. It has had generations to take root, to smother hope and ambition, to grind deep into the mud those unfortunate enough to be enslaved by the Druj. It preys on the minds of many soldiers, an insidious urge growing daily to simply give up, to turn back, to surrender, to cower. It requires constant vigilance by the captains, and by each soldier for their comrades, to keep the enervating atmosphere at bay.

The weather worsens as Summer wanes, and with the almost constant rain comes the [[curse]] of [[Spring magic]]. A fragment of [[Rivers of Life|healing power]] falls with every drop, bringing burgeoning life without constraint, without reason or caution. No wounds, save the most egregious, will last the night. Death comes only to those unfortunate enough to fall far from their lines, or to those who are the victims of swift execution. The familiar magic flows everywhere, in all the water in the Sarangrave, and it protects barbarian and Imperial invader alike. It also touches the plants and creatures of the Mallum with supernatural vitality, but driving some of them to the edge of frenzy.

And what creatures they are! The Empire has heard of them, encountered them in the eastern forests from time to time, but just as this is the heartland of the Druj so it is home to the [[Arkad#Hupul|deathstinger]], and the [[Arkad#Vikari|green forest scorpion]], and the awful serpentine [[Arkad#Kallad|coiled shrike]]. These creatures seem to have little fear of humans or orcs, and are ambitious enough to try and prey upon them when the opportunity presents itself. Imperial soldiers quickly learn to fear the droning buzz of ebon-and-scarlet wasps the size of doves, the cold horror of awakening to discover a razor-clawed insect with its tail already poised to strike exploring the interior of their tent, the yell of surprise that quickly gives way to agonised screaming as a friend is condemned to a terrible death at the fangs of an arboreal assassin. The Rivers of Life do little to purge venom, or cure the poison that burns through the belly of those foolish enough to eat the ripe fruit from the wrong tree.

Into this land of death come the Imperial armies, ready to strike against the core of the Druj. They will have their work cut out for them in the months to come, but if they can seize victory... what a thing ''that'' would be!
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;">
<quote by="Sebastián Fawnwood, General of the Gryphon's Pride">My glorious pride. You have bided your time, but now is our opportunity for what we were made for. Conquest. The salt flats of Sanath is our destination, for this is the beginning of the end for the Druj. With our warbanner reforged, it has been named the Pride of the Gryphons. It will be raised high enough that the Druj will see who brings their end. Be Vigilant. Be Glorious. Be the pride of Dawn.</quote>
<quote by="Dame Katelyn Quinnell De Cordraco, General of the Lions of Adelmar">Lions, three years ago I first came to Anvil a woman in pain. Like so many, the Druj had taken everything from me. Like so many, they continued to take our past, our present, our future. Our Gui, our Isaac, our Scout. Their ideology of hatred thrives in the dark and they wish to make monsters of us all. They wish to teach us to be scared of the dark. Let us make them fear the light. May we be the flame the innocent are drawn to as a Beacon of Safety. May our banners show that Courage and Loyalty drives us. May the sound of our roar carry far across the Salt Flats. May the Druj know this sound heralds their end, learn those banners mean those hurt will be saved, learn that flame is Ambition to bring glory with Elodian's Hammersmiths and the majesty of the Lion of Summer. Learn the monster they tried to create, became the lioness that will bring a death to the Druj. Whatever it takes. One day, the Druj will be a bedtime story told of our glory. Let us be the authors.</quote>
<quote by="Cadwell Waystone, General of the Black Thorns">Navarr will serve the Empire in Loyalty, regardless of the theatre of war. The Druj are broken, a scorpion backed into a corner, but their story is still a danger. The Buruk Tepel will fall, their armies laid low by the virtue of Imperial steel and we will free the slaves of the Mallum. Act in loyalty, fight with courage and serve with pride.</quote>
<quote by="Mercia Questor's View, General of the Quiet Step">Navarr, now is the time to hit the Druj where it hurts. We march on Lower Sanath. I may not be who you expected in command but I will see Neve's ambition for this army fulfilled. Whatever it takes. Our cousins in Varushka will take care of our home. Let the citizens of Therunin look to this beacon and away from the arms of Agramant. For those who came before. For those who come after.</quote>
<quote by="Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was, General of the Citadel Guard">Sentinels, Consider the Drowned Man. There comes a point in some fights when you are so much better than your opponent that victory seems inevitable. Your foe does not comprehend that they have lost, for they still stand, still fight. They lack your foresight, your arete, and you must simply walk them through the dance steps of their demise. In that moment it can be tempting to show mercy, even pity your foe. Worse, one can lose focus, looking to the next conflict. The Empire has made this mistake before. This is how the Druj still blight the world. Mercy is weakness - The task is not done until it is done. We begin the end. Make for Lower Saarnath. With Spring's might and Summer knights we soften Leen, bringing ruin to the Beacon of Iskrid. We must not relent until the last of the Buruk-Tepel are marched through Anvil and relieved of the burden of their vile, poisonous heads.</quote>
<quote by="Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka, General of the Northern Eagle">Eagle of the North, I return to you now to guide our path to the last conquest of the Druj. We go to the Sydathian Fens, striding unseen as we hunt for our foe's weakness. To you, Surut, Schlacta of the Roaring Hearth, I present my curiosity to your bargain and welcome your wisdom in bringing bright ruin to old and rotten things. Before us stand wicked effigies and twisted monuments to a dying power, symbols of a strength that has left the heart and limbs of this sickened beast of a nation. We shall make a beacon of them, a sign to our embattled cousins and fearful foes alike that soon all here will be changed by Imperial will. Forward now, into this depthless dark, for herein we shall raise the torches that shall light the way to a better world.</quote></div>

==Who Brings Their End==
Five armies march out of northern Sarangrave, through the [[Sarangrave#Turan Flats|Turan Flats]] into the Sanath. This is the [[A_walk_in_shadow|second time]] the Empire has ventured into Sanath, and the situation in the south is very different to that they encountered in the north three years ago.

The [[Black Thorns]] and the [[Citadel Guard]] are already in place, and they are quickly joined by the [[Gryphon's Pride]], the [[Lions of Adelmar]] and the [[Quiet Step]] from [[Ossium]], and [[Semmerholm]], and [[Zenith]]. The Quiet Step bring word that the [[Axos|Axou]] of [[Sarangrave#Thornfen|Thornfen]] are mobilizing for their [[Skull beneath the skin|advance]] up to the Fens of Varreth. They will hopefully keep the path into the Salt Flats open to Imperial baggage trains, rather than devoured by ravening [[Quickening Cold Meat|Winter spirits]].

When they arrive, these five are met by the [[Northern Eagle]] who are already in position. The Varushkans have been busy in the Salt Flats for some time now, laying the groundwork for this invasion. There are few forces anywhere in the Empire that can match the Northern Eagle when it comes to [[Army qualities#Elusive|mastery]] of the wild forest, the sodden marsh, the rough dark hill. For the last six months they have been engaged in a game of cat-and-mouse with the Druj defenders of the Saarnath, avoiding any attempt to trap them or bring them to battle, and patiently putting their plans in motion.

The captains of the Eagle report an unqualified success; they have collapsed strategically chosen passes and bridges across the southern Salt Flats, destroying carefully selected caches and otherwise putting their guerrilla training to good use. This will not impede the armies of the Druj, who can carry their supplies with them, and resupply from baggage trains but for the [[fortification#garrison|garrisons]] of the Druj [[fortification|fortifications]] - the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#The_Witness|Witness]], the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Spires_of_Rarckan|Spires of Rarckan]], and the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beacon_of_Iskrid|Beacon of Iskrid]] - it is a different matter. This season, those garrisons are unable to intervene in Lower Saarnath, occupied clearing the damage the Northern Eagle has inflicted, limited by their ability to move provisions into the forests of the south. The Empire will still have a fight on its hand, but the forces the barbarians can bring to bear will be limited to their armies - armies already battered from fighting in Sarangrave and the [[Forest of Ulnak]], armies that have still not fully recovered.

The Northern Eagle have laid the groundwork, but they are not finished with the Druj. Not by a long chalk. The Varushkan soldiers are already planning their next strike against the Mallum, and the planning and execution of their strategy requires all their attention. They are still able to provide a bounty of valuable scouting reports, marking out the areas the Imperial armies should avoid, as well as places they may want to target. Then they disappear back into the rainforest. Their fight this season is very different to that of the conquerors here to fight the Druj openly; it remains to be seen what punishment they have in mind for the barbarians in the coming months.

It is for the Gryphon's Pride to step into the breach. [[Army_qualities#Conquering|Conquest]] is their calling after all, and they press forward with a single overriding goal - to seize Lower Saaranth from the Druj and drive the armies of the Mallum before them. They lead the way, a solid spear-strike deep into enemy territory. They are closely supported by the [[Army_qualities#Cunning|cunning]] of the Quiet Step, who focus their efforts on setting ambushes and luring enemies into traps. They remain mobile, taking advantage of every weakness in the enemy strategy to attack from the flanks. Their tactics are unorthodox but effective - poison and venom, targeting healers, magicians, and supplies. They kill without mercy, and perhaps in some way the Druj might even respect them for it.

For the most part the other Imperial armies take a more conservative approach. For those who have fought the Druj before, this caution seems the wisest course. The barbarians are fond of traps and Imperial soldiers have paid a harsh price for their overconfidence too many times in the past. The Black Thorns push forward [[Army orders#Steady Conquest|patiently]], prioritising the preservation of Imperial lives over the pursuit of victory. The Lions of Adelmar complement this painstaking approach; they [[Army qualities#Guardian|stand staunchly with their allies]] wherever they are engaged, shields ready to block the arrows of the Druj, swords unsheathed and eager to fight alongside their comrades. Selfless and courageous, many are the Navarri and Urizeni who will owe their lives to the Dawnish once this campaign is over.

With the Lions also march a cohort of the [[Knights of Glory]]. They are captained by the fearsome ''Elodian'', resplendent in mighty panoply of runebound steel and leading a glorious warband of hammer-smiths no less powerfully accoutred. The unstoppable blows these heavy warriors strike with their great mauls send barbarians sprawling, or smash them into trees, and both their heavy armour and these terrible strikes serves as a perfect complement to the tactics of the Lions. Whispers suggest that the runic knights have been sent personally by their [[Eleonaris|Queen]] to fight with the Lions, and rumour speculates that there may be something more than friendship between the ''Lady of Pennants'' and the general.

Then, at last, the Citadel Guard. The [[sentinel|sentinels]] and the battlefield magicians of Urizen are there beside their allies whenever battle is joined but their goal is clearly somewhere else. They focus on support and strengthening the soldiers of the other nations and their aid is valuable in seizing land from the Druj but actually ''fighting'' the barbarians is of secondary importance. While their soldiers fight, their [[coven|covens]] work together on of rituals intended to gather magical power and direct it toward this unseen goal. As Summer fades the leaves on the great broad-leafed trees in their vicinity turn brown and red and yellow faster than they have any right to do so. As if something primal was being redirected in some way, out of the forests and toward... somewhere else.

There are [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] of the [[Realms#Summer|Summer realm]] with the Urizeni as well - proud ''Dindrayne'' of the feather-brow. A war-witch with a staff of adamant, she commands a cohort of elfin heroes in mithril chain, who enthusiastically fight alongside the sentinels against the Druj. With them are a score of trumpeters, who rouse the spirits of the soldiers they fight alongside, urging them to acts of heroism and glory that are sometimes at odds with the more sober mien of the people of the southern peaks. Their commander, however, remains with the covens further back behind the lines - an uncommon position for a champion of the ''Lion of Summer''.

As well as magical allies, the armies of the Empire are supported by more than twelve thousand strength at arms lead by [[military unit|Imperial captains]], many of whom bear [[enchantment|enchantments]] of their own. The vast majority fight with the Citadel Guard, and while those versed in the arts of war are at the forefront of the campaign alongside the sentinels and battle-wizards, those with even a smattering of [[Magical_skills#Realm_Lore|realm lore]] - especially the lore of [[Spring magic|Spring]] - are stationed further back supporting and protecting the covens. The 'Guard regularly dispatch these auxiliaries on missions deep into Druj territory, to capture resources or secure access to certain location at critical moments.

A strong force, then, bound together by bonds of [[Loyalty]] and [[Pride]], of the love of comrades, and of a singular purpose: the destruction of the Druj.
<gallery heights=150 mode="packed-hover">
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</gallery>

==Scorpion in a Corner==
That unity is not found among the barbarians of the Mallum. Even something as straightforward as a singular purpose is somewhat lacking. One would think the Druj armies would be brought together by the desperate need to keep control of as much of the Salt Flats as they can, but they show no sign of it. The armies come to defend Lower Saarnath, its true, but they do so piecemeal and that gives the Imperial armies an advantage.

The first major force to engage the Empire are the [[Druj_armies#White_Lions|White Lions]]. Named for the large venomous ants that build great nests on the Salt Flats, they are perhaps the most disciplined of all the armies of the Mallum. Some of their troops are already in Lower Saarnath, hunting the Northern Eagle, and they quickly raise a warning once it is clear the Empire has come in force. They avoid direct confrontation with the Imperial forces wherever possible, at least until the rest of the defenders start to arrive. It seems they have accepted unwise boons of [[Winter magic]], likely from the ''[[Agramant|Wastewalker]]''. Wounds that should kill them barely slow them down, but when they fall they die quickly. Worse, they are riven by a terrible hunger; there are disturbing scenes where warriors of the White Lions abandon their own defence to cut strips of warm flesh from the fallen - enemies and friends alike. There are handfuls of bloodthirsty [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] - pale white walkers more beast than human or orc - among their number who urge them on to greater and greater excess. For all this apparent madness, however, when they are able to think clearly the White Lions prove to be a persistent and responsive threat to the Empire, seemingly always in position to counter Imperial tactics.

Over the first few weeks of the campaign, the [[Druj_armies#Hidden Widow|Hidden Widow]], the wild warriors of the treacherous [[Druj_armies#Jagged Claws|Jagged Claws]], and the twisted [[Druj_armies#Red Lizard|Red Lizard]] filter in to join the defence of Lower Saarnath. They are forced to approach through the marshes of [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beladrarsh|Beladrarsh]], and by all accounts receive little assistance from the Skinweaver sept that rule that rich territory. No doubt the wealthy Skinweavers are too busy making preparations for their own survival to see the Druj armies as anything other than a wall of meat between them and the invading humans. Last to arrive are the [[Druj armies#Black Wind|Black Wind]], and for once they seem less interested in [[Army_qualities#Cruel|tormenting]] the armies of the Empire and more in simply trying to stem the flood of Imperial soldiers into the Salt Flats. It is easy to forget that they hate the Druj for what they did to their people - and sometimes hard to bear that they loathe the Empire even more.

The Urizeni quickly note that none of these armies seem to bear enchantments, and that there is a distinct lack of magical wards at least in the south. This is certainly not the traditional way the Druj make war - especially in defence. Speculation runs like wildfire - has the loss of the [[Druj armies#Tainted Basilisk|Tainted Basilisk]] and the disappearance of the cowardly [[Druj lore#Ghulai|Ghulai]] of the [[Sarangrave#Palace_of_the_Sleepers|Palace of the Sleepers]] gutted the magical capabilities of the Druj? Or is it simply that the resources they have are focused elsewhere? Is there some other shoe waiting to drop? Is there a magical trap here, hidden behind the trees, shrouded from the eyes of the magicians and witches and [[vate|vates]]?
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Dancing scorpions.jpg|align=left|width=400}}</div>
==Make Monsters of Us All==
If the Druj are bad when they invade, they are ten times worse when forced on the defensive. Yet the air of desperation here in the dripping woods of Lower Saarnath is different, somehow. There is a tremor of fear in the people of the Mallum, it seems. They rely on purely defensive tactics, seeking to turn their admittedly superior knowledge of the terrain into advantage wherever possible. They still skirmish, but their attacks are much more focused on singular objectives - driving ''this'' specific band of knights away from a defensible position, overrunning ''this'' specific hospital and then retreating, killing ''these'' scouts and then fleeing without even taking the time to string their corpses up from the trees.

Afraid they might be, but they refuse to cede anything that the Empire does not wrest from their tight grasp. It is challenging for the Imperial armies to bring their weight of numbers to bear against the Druj in the confines of the rainforest; hard for them to force a large-scale confrontation when often visibility is reduced to a score of meters in every direction. When it is not the trees alone, it is the ever-present rain, or the thick, warm mists that rise on the rare occasions when the sun peaks out behind the dark clouds for a few hours. The woods favour the Druj tactics of ambush and surprise, which must be accounted for whenever the Empire advances.

Still the Druj ''are'' outnumbered though, and arguably outclassed. Again, though, it is the ability of the Empire's armies to trust one another than proves the greatest advantage. The Lions of Adelmar and the Quiet Step employ strategies specifically designed to aid their allies, to work with their comrades in other armies and nations. The sentinels of the Citadel Guard are adept at deploying their force where it will offer the greatest support, and then moving to another position as the ebb and flow of battle shifts. In contrast there are reports of warriors of the Jagged Claw intentionally abandoning their Red Lizard "allies" in the middle of an engagement, their deaths serving to cover a flanking manoeuvre and hasty retreat. There are incidents where the Hidden Widow are left in an exposed position by the Black Wind just to lure a band of thorns into a trap that closes around the Navarr too late to save their "comrades".

As one Dawnish troubadour marching with the Lions says, it isn't so much that the Druj are intentionally turning on one another, but rather than they seem utterly incapable of seeing anyone outside their immediate circle as being ''people'' at all. Rivals or pawns to be used to their own advantage, in the pursuit of their own ambitions or their own survival. A people culturally incapable of feeling the bonds of fellowship, utterly alien to the understanding of love that the Lions hold at the centre of their philosophy.
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Sebastián Fawnwood.jpg|caption='''Sebastián Fawnwood''' (centre), General of the Gryphon's Pride|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Dame Katelyn.jpg|caption='''Dame Katelyn Quinnell De Cordraco''', General of the Lions of Adelmar|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Cadwell Waystone.png|caption='''Cadwell Waystone''', General of the Black Thorns|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Neve Agra.jpg|caption='''Neve Agra''', General of the Quiet Step|align=left|width=250}}
</div>

==Handfuls of Dust==
A month after the fighting begins, the Empire encounters serious magical resistance. The Gryphons Pride and the Black Thorns have pushed a little ahead of their allies, driving north-east where the land slopes upward toward the great plateau of Upper Saarnath. A major force of White Lions, supported by warriors of the Hidden Widow, attempt a pincer movement and fighting erupts among the trees. At first it seems that the Pride and the Thorns cannot fail to achieve victory, but then a third force joins the fighting.

They are not an army, or even really a garrison, but rather a force of perhaps a hundred or so hooded orcs with bows and barbed spears. The Thorns identify them as [[Arkad#Vikari|Vikari]] although their banner is unfamiliar - that of a skeletal serpent similar to the coiled shrike favoured by the Kallad. This, reason the Navarr, must be the Vileshrike sept from the Dripping Tor. They are some distance from home, presumably on the orders of the rumoured ghulai ''Graknuz Acidtouch''. They are not alone, however.

With the Vileshrikes are a hundred or so beings that seem to be heralds of the [[Realms#Night|Night realm]], similar to those encountered a few months ago by Imperial champions fighting [[alongside the Earthquake Drummers]] in the Forest of Ulnak. Scarecrow-like, in billowing black robes, it is easy at first to mistake them for [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tortured souls]]. Yet these creatures have never been mortal; there is nothing beneath their robes save animate darkness, shadows that seem to seep through the empty eye-holes of the featureless masks they wear. The merest touch of these awful phantoms [[Calls#Weakness|weakens]] the strongest knight, draining away their will to fight and overwhelming them with fear and terror. Their weapons assail the mind as well as the body, creating magical wounds that confuse the confident thorns leaving them riven with self-doubt and uncertainty. A few are armed with terrible pole-arms that drown their foes in [[paralysis|paralysing]] wells of phantasmal horror, leaving them as easy picking for the rest of the barbarians alongside who they fight.

The Vileshrikes - if that is who this is - don't especially coordinate their attacks with the two armies but rather take advantage of their attack to cover an assault of their own. The battle-magicians are clearly experienced fighting alongside their unnatural allies - they [[entangle|bind]] a likely target long enough for the fluttering-robed things to descend on them and assail their spirit. The Rivers of Life does nothing to bolster the broken will to fight, it cannot heal the terrible nightmares that assail those injured by the creatures' weapons, nor offer protection from the sucking quagmire of doubt that overwhelms the doughtiest warrior.

It doesn't help that these vikari are obviously backed by significant magical resources - enough for some of their number to unleash great wails that weaken enemies and allies alike, or terrifying atonal hymns that [[Calls#CURSE|curse]] Imperial soldiers with a growing delirium that takes hold hours after the fighting when they think themselves safe.

It's hard to say for certain how much difference this additional force of Druj makes to the overall battle; for all their magical prowess Vileshrike Vikari and terrorizing Night held alike are as vulnerable as any magician to [[Calls#IMPALE|arrows and mighty blows]], can be put to flight with a [[Calls#CLEAVE|solid strike]] from a skilled fighter. They also seem to have little stomach for a long fight. They expend their magic quickly, it seems, and then fall back while the White Lions and the Hidden Widow still clash with the Pride and the Thorns.

The Imperial advance is turned back that day, although the Pride and the Thorns manage to lead some of the more bloodthirsty Druj into an ambush set by the Quiet Step. Less than a week later, with the Lions and the Step to back them up, the two Imperial armies return and the Navarr and Dawnish are victorious. They continue to push through the Salt Flats, and the further north-east they travel the more common and vicious fighting with the Vileshrikes becomes.

Whoever the Vileshrikes are, whoever their allies are, they do not fight anywhere else in Lower Saarnath; only in the north-east. They also seem to be the source of a peculiar magical effect, a curse of some kind, that is slowly settling over the southern Salt Flats. Soldiers begin to report an increasing number of horrific dreams, and those standing watch at the darkest hours of the night claim to spot hooded figures watching them from the shadows who they ''know'' are filled with poisonous hate. It doesn't seem to be an enchantment; perhaps this mysterious ghulai is drawing on other sources of power to do... whatever they are doing.

Despite all this, the Druj are forced to retreat again and again. As the season draws on, as the Quiet Step and the Lions of Adelmar come within sight of the location marked out by Imperial scouts as the ''Dripping Tor''. It lies in the depths of the forest, far from any other settlement, but it has been identified by the Northern Eagle as a key strategic location to control. When the armies arrive, however, they find the Tor... missing. In its place looms an impenetrable grove of massive, clearly supernatural trees. When any Imperial soldier gets within a mile of the rough location, thick mists boil out of the ground and seethe in the air, creating impenetrable curtains of grey and white. Those who do not turn back soon regret it - scouts report encounters with unspeakable horrors in the depths of the mists. Some who brave the fog are left shattered in mind and spirit, raving about ''eyes'' and ''claws'' and ''the terrible soft music''. Others do not return at all.

The decision is made to give the area a wide berth. None of the armies here are in a position to try and penetrate whatever ward is in place, and there are still Druj to be fought. A watch is set by the Quiet Step, and the Empire turns its attention elsewhere. At least there are no further attacks by the Vileshrikes and their unnatural allies, once the armies reach the Tor.
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka.jpg|caption='''Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka''', General of the Northern Eagle, leads the Varushkans in subtle infiltration of the Salt Flats.|align=left|width=250}}
</div>

==For Those Who Come After==
In the end, there is no single decisive battle in the valleys of Lower Saarnath, only a string of engagements spread out through the woodlands. There are relatively few Druj settlements here - and they are poorly prepared for attack by Imperial soldiers. Unless the Druj armies are present, these scattered arboreal villages and logging camps swiftly fall to the Empire. Even where the Druj defenders are present, it is usually not enough to stop the Empire seizing them anyway. Usually.

Ultimately the Empire is victorious, smashing through the Druj defences and forcing the armies to retreat. Lower Saarnath is captured in its entirety, and the Imperial forces regroup to consider their next move. The Rivers of Life help to blunt the slaughter on both sides, but when the final tally is made it is still sobering. A thousand Imperial lives lost in the woodlands to the Druj. It is scant consolation that, thanks in particular to the presence of so many Imperial captains, the barbarians seem to have paid a much steeper price. It is difficult to say how ''much'' of a price as always, but even with their purely defensive strategy the Druj have ''suffered'' this season.

As Autumn approaches, armies on both sides take stock and consider their next moves; but then -

Then something unexpected happens.
==What Brings Their End==
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was.jpg|caption='''Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was''', General of the Citadel Guard, has unleashed the devastating power of Spring magic on the Druj capital.|align=left|width=250}}
</div>
For three months, the Citadel Guard have been gathering strength, working carefully crafted rituals in each Spring [[regio]] they encounter, weak or strong. They have been studying the flows of [[mana site|mana]] across Lower Saarnath, sending out small bands of diviners and sentinel defenders to learn more about the way power pools across the Salt Flats. A week before the Autumn Equinox, their work is completed.

While it takes time to prepare, and set in motion, the [[Highest_discipline#Technique_of_the_Transcendent_Claw|Technique of the Transcendent Claw]] is not subtle in its effects. At sunrise, the sky turns black, boiling with storm clouds. The rain turns torrential, driven by howling gales. Lightning strikes willy-nilly not only across the valleys of Lower Saarnath but across the entire southern reach of the Salt Flats. Tents are torn up into the sky, unwary folk thrown flat in the mud, branches are ripped from ancient trees creating stark openings in the canopy. Imperial soldiers are at least partially prepared, but it takes the Druj mostly by surprise.

Then, the sole elfin trumpeter that accompanies the Urizen magicians sounds a single terrible note that, impossibly, is heard throughout the lower valleys. It isn't part of the working, but it seems the knights of Eleonaris have a good sense for the dramatic... and this magic is certainly ''dramatic''.

Far away from the Imperial attackers and the Druj defenders, in one of the poorest parts of the sprawling city of [[Salt Flats of Sanath#Leen|Leen]] itself stands the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beacon_of_Iskrid|Beacon of Iskrid]], a fortification garrisoned not by orcs but by humans under the banner of the self-styled ''Prince Tristain the Golden.'' A long way from the fighting, in a city that no doubt still imagines itself beyond the reach of the Empire. That dream is shattered, decisively.

With a deafening peal of thunder, audible all the way back to Lower Saarnath, a cascade of thunderbolts rains from the sky over Leen. The gale force winds become even stronger, battering the stones of the Beacon with the force of ten Winter storms, then twenty, then thirty. The rain pours in sheets, eating away at the mortar that holds the stones together, at the foundations that allow it to stand. The destruction is not limited to the fortification itself; the surrounding buildings are likewise stricken with this devastating, hungry tempest called by the highest arts of the Urizeni magicians. A tornado reaches down from the heavens, down toward the earth, and as it comes the lightning ignites something within it and it becomes a conflagration despite the monsoon deluge.

The Druj of Leen speak in whispered, terrified tones of spirits within those winds, awful shapes of water and wind and fire that somehow poured ''out'' of the tornado. Creatures of the Spring realm, following this consummate magical working into the mundane world for a short time, tearing at the Beacon with the single-minded hatred creatures of the Primal Forest have for all construction. Were they really there, or do the Druj imagine them in the chaos and ruin that attends upon the power unleashed by the Citadel Guard?

And then the weather starts to clear... the tumultuous downpour turns back to ''just'' heavy rain. The winds lessen, ceasing entirely for a moment before returning again at more normal speed. Smoke rises from the rainforest, but the fires find no purchase in the soaking wood. The lightning ceases, the thunder stills, the clouds part and the wan Autumn sun shines through.

It shines on the uncertain faces of the Imperial soldiers, it shines on the satisfied and tired faces of the Urizeni masters, it shines on the terrified faces of the Druj. It shines also, sadly, on the Beacon of Iskrid. The [[fortification#bastion|bastion]] leans dangerously to the side, barely standing. The upper ramparts have been torn away, as if gouged by some mighty claw, and scattered with lethal force into the city below. It looks for all the world as if the slightest push would send it tumbling into the streets of Leen, crushing everything in its path. It is almost entirely devastated... almost.

The Beacon still stands - the power of the ''Onrushing Storm'' was perhaps blunted by the rival resonances of life and healing in the rainwaters of Sanath this season - but only just. And while it may have avoided destruction by a hair's breadth, the people of Leen cannot fail to understand what has just happened. The [[Druj_lore#Buruk_Tepel|Buruk Tepel]], the rulers of the Druj, who imagined themselves safe in their great city have been presented with a potent illustration of just how vulnerable they are. The Druj are ''afraid''.

==Game Information==
<div style="float: right; max-width: 400px; margin-right: 10px;">{{HoverImage|Salt Flats of Sanath Regions.png|SaltFlatsBasic.png}}</div>
===Salt Flats of Sanath===
* '''The Empire has claimed Lower Saarnath
* '''The Northern Eagle prevented any of the Druj fortifications in Sanath participating in the fight and gave the region the under threat quality
* '''The Beacon of Iskrid has been devastated by Urizen magic but still stands - just
* '''The Dripping Tor appears to be hidden behind a powerful shroud of Night magic
As the Autumn Equinox approaches the Imperial forces in Sanath have claimed the region of Lower Saarnath. The Vileshrikes hidden in the north-east clearly intend to resist Imperial control, but it is not clear how much magic they may be able to bring to bear.

Thanks to the Northern Eagle, the garrisons of the three Druj fortifications were unable to operate in Lower Saarnath this season. That benefit ends with the Autumn Equinox - the remaining garrisons will be able to participate in the campaign as normal going forward. They also provided the [[Region_qualities#Under_Threat|under threat]] quality to Lower Saarnath, but that quality has also faded as the Autumn Equinox dawns. The Eagle are in Sanath, but they did not participate directly in the campaign this season. Instead they are arranging another strike against the Druj using their [[Army qualities#Elusive|elusive]] quality.

The Beacon of Iskrid was assailed by the Urizeni using their Technique of the Transcendent Claw. All casualties the army caused were targeted specifically against the Beacon, ignoring the usual reduction in damage done to a bastion. The presence of many military units, and the Knights of Glory, both help this technique have a significant impact. Even the Quiet Step ''Cunning'' strategy works to increase the damage to the Beacon (but only by increasing the casualties caused directly by the army; as with all army orders it doesn't increase the casualties caused by military units or enchantments). It is also worth noting that this effect [[Limits_of_magic#Damaging_Fortifications|cannot be created]] with ritual magic - the direct damage to a fortification is the result of a [[Highest_discipline#Technique_of_the_Transcendent_Claw|unique technique]] that requires an entire season of campaigning in a given territory by an army including powerful magicians who perform dozens of individual rituals before it has any effect.

Only military units supporting the Citadel Guard receive a share of the Imperial Guerdon; other military units receive nothing.

===Strategic Considerations===
* '''Dripping Tor is concealed beneath a powerful shroud of Night magic
* '''It is not possible to move between Upper Saarnath and Leen Rarckan
The Vileshrike stronghold of ''Dripping Tor'' is concealed behind a potent shroud of [[Night magic]], similar in effect to [[Vale of Shadows]]. According to the witches and vates who accompanied the armies into that part of the valleys, it appears to have been performed at magnitude 120 - representing a serious challenge to Imperial magicians who want to remove it. Still, a suitably potent [[Piercing Light of Revelation]] cast at the [[Regio#The_Imperial_Regio|Imperial regio]] could be [[Army_qualities#Magic|channeled]] through the [[general]] of the [[Citadel Guard]] but it will require a magnitude of 240 to bring the effect down. If left undisturbed, the shroud will last until the start of the Summer Solstice 389YE. Other methods might exist to penetrate this magical defence.

If the shroud is removed, the Vileshrike sept could be destroyed by an Imperial army send specifically to root them out. This would need to be done at the same summit the shroud was pierced, or the sept will be able to scatter into the wild places of the Salt Flats and potentially remain as a threat to Imperial forces in the territory. They are not a significant campaign force however; while the army would need to take an attacking order and be busy for an entire season, they would suffer no appreciable damage.

It is not immediately apparent from the map, but Imperial scouts have confirmed what the original spy network used to map the Salt Flats only suggested. It is not possible for an [[army]] to move between [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Upper_Saarnath|Upper Saarnath]] and [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Leen_Rarckan|Leen Rarckan]] (or vice versa) without an opportunity.

===Participation: Citadel Guard===
<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;">[[File:SpringRune.jpg|267px]]</div>
* '''Military units fighting with the Citadel Guard have participated in the working of the Onrushing Storm
Any character whose military unit supported the Citadel Guard this season is free to roleplay their involvement in the performance of the ''Technique of the Resplendent Claw''. This may have involved protecting Urizeni magicians, but might also have involved scouting into other regions of the southern Salt Flats to find specific resources, escorting a coven to a hidden Spring regio, or raiding a specific mana site to shift the flows of mana in a direction that helps support the destructive magic ultimately unleashed against the Beacon of Iskrid. Magicians might have helped with the rituals cast - working with ritual masters from their own nation to perform supportive rituals. An Urizeni magician versed in Spring lore might even have been one of those involved in the final magical workings that lead to the assault on the Beacon. You are also free to roleplay that you fought alongside the sentinels and other soldiers striving to conquer Lower Saarnath instead, of course.

While the army was enchanted with [[Knights of Glory]], the presence of the heralds has not had any noticeable affect on either the military units supporting the army, nor on the soldiers of the army itself.
===Participation: Lions of Adelmar===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=EleonarisArt.jpg|caption=Regal, noble, and terrible in anger; Eleonaris is the Lion of Summer and her soldiers bear many of her traits.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The Lions of Adelmar continue not being able to take the cautious advance or give ground orders'''
* '''Any character whose military unit fought alongside the Lions of Adelmar may be inspired by the Knights of Glory'''
The Lions of Adelmar are accompanied into the Salt Flats by [[Knights of Glory|supernatural warriors]] led by the war-smith ''Elodian''. The presence of the knights continues to [[Even_darkness_must_pass#Sarangrave|exert influence over]] the Dawnish army. The Lions of Adelmar cannot take the [[Army orders#Cautious Advance|Cautious Advance]] or [[Army orders#Give Ground|Give Ground]] orders until a year has passed - even if Dawn were to put aside their [[Dawn_military_concerns#Army_Orders|commitment]] to Glory.

The heavily armoured champions that fight under the banner of ''Elodian'' have relished the experience of battling the Druj alongside the Lions of Adelmar, and not been shy about expressing their approval. The warriors from the Field of Glory take every opportunity to inspire the glorious soldiers of the army. A character whose military unit supported the Lions of Adelmar this season may choose to have been impacted by the experience of battling in close proximity to the glorious heralds.

If you are a Dawnish character whose military unit supported the Lions of Adelmar this season, or the general of the army itself, you may choose to gain a magical boon from the runic war-smiths. To claim this boon you must mark your armour, shield, or a visible part of your body with one or more of the so-called [[Runes#Runes of Summer|Runes of Summer]] - [[Feresh]], [[Jotra]], [[Tykonus]], or [[Verys]]. The boon counts as an [[enchantment]] on your character. As long as at least one of these runes are present, the [[Combat_skills#Dreadnought|dreadnought]] skill provides you with two additional hits, and whenever you use the [[heroic skills#Unstoppable|unstoppable]] skill you regain two additional hits.

If anyone uses [[Detect_magic#Discern_Enchantment|discern enchantment]] on you, you'll need to let the referee know that you are under the effect of a magnitude 7 Summer enchantment, and that you bear the ''mark of runemarked prowess''.

As well as the game benefits, the aura creates a [[roleplaying effects|roleplaying effect]]: ''You feel a strong urge to fight valiantly to support your friends, family, and especially your loved ones. Anyone offending or upsetting someone you care about causes a wave of burning anger to boil up inside you making it hard not to immediately confront them. If you lose your temper it is very hard not to give in to the urge to beat whoever offended you or your ally until they are incapacitated or they unconditionally surrender. At the same time, whenever you feel cherished or appreciated, the sensations are significantly increased to the point where you may experience a moment of rare bliss.''

The boon can be removed [[Enchantment#Removing_Enchantments|as normal]] - “overwritten” with a new enchantment - and will have faded by the start of the Winter Solstice.

===Participation: Bad Dreams===
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Diras.png|title=Rune: Diras|align=right}}</div>
* '''Something is causing particularly bad dreams in Lower Saarnath
Any character whose military unit supported any of the armies in the Salt Flats of Sanath this season may have experienced unsettling dreams. Nightmares are not uncommon when one is exposed to the Druj miasma, but these are a step above what veterans of the Mallum, or of the fight to liberate Zenith, have reported. Nightmares caused by the miasma tend to vary between individuals as much as any other dreams, but there is a suspicious commonality of elements in many of these odd dreams.

They involve being pursued or threatened in familiar places that are twisted with mud and water, or the presence of marsh-dwelling flora or fauna. Horrible phantasmal shapes eventually invade these places, or catch up with a fleeing dreamer, and begin to drown them or smother them. Dreamers awaken terrified, short of breath, and convinced that there is something leaning over them trying to steal their breath, crush their chests, or throttle them in their sleep. Nothing is physically present, and there are no signs of either intruders or assailants.

There is no benefit to doing so, but anyone who has experienced these dreams is encouraged to start the Autumn Equinox without any [[heroic skills#Hero|hero points]] or [[magical skills#magician|personal mana]]. They can still recover hero points and mana as normal - either by getting a good nights sleep at Anvil or by taking advantage of a magical method of recovery such as a [[potion]], or an [[enchantment|enhanted]] area such as [[Herthfire's Hospitality]] or [[Chamber of Delights]].

==Battle Opportunity : What Dreams Must Come==
* '''There is an opportunity for a battle in the Salt Flats of Sanath this season
Imperial prognosticators have identified a major conjunction of the sentinel gate leading to a location in north-eastern Lower Saarnath. They believe it allows an opportunity to clear some kind of supernatural blockage that will spell doom for the Beacon of Iskrid, and may have some bearing on whatever malign power of the [[Realms#Night realm|Night realm]] is loose in the region.

Forward into depthless dark

2026-08-27T10:51:58Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Into depthless dark.jpg|align=left|caption=Here is the heart of the Druj; black and twisted and filled with hate and fear.|width=500}}</div>
==Wicked Effigies and Twisted Monuments==
The Salt Flats of Sanath are the true heartlands of the Druj. Broad plains criss-crossed by dark waterways. The ground is sodden, and the further east toward the sea one travels, the more marshy the land becomes. The forests common to the rest of the Mallum have mostly been cleared here, by centuries of ravenous industy. Only in the south-west is there any great woodland - the [[Salt Flats of Sanath#Lower Saarnath|lowland valleys]] and the high [[Salt Flats of Sanath#Upper Saarnath|plateau]] that each form half of the lands jointly called the Saarnath.
__TOC__
It rains almost constantly here, or so it seems. Even when it is not actively raining, the air is thick with moisture. The ground can turn slick and treacherous without warning, even in the valleys of Saarnath where the marshes of Sarangrave give way to broad-leafed rainforest. Visibility drops precipitously, a far cry from the relatively open sight-lines of the marshes and the flats to the south-west. Only the [[Navarr]] and the [[Varushka|Varushkans]] are really at home here, but even they must beware of overconfidence. The Druj know these woods better than they do after all.

Thick as the air can be, the [[Druj miasma|miasma]] is thicker, perhaps thicker than the Empire has ever encountered it. It has had generations to take root, to smother hope and ambition, to grind deep into the mud those unfortunate enough to be enslaved by the Druj. It preys on the minds of many soldiers, an insidious urge growing daily to simply give up, to turn back, to surrender, to cower. It requires constant vigilance by the captains, and by each soldier for their comrades, to keep the enervating atmosphere at bay.

The weather worsens as Summer wanes, and with the almost constant rain comes the [[curse]] of [[Spring magic]]. A fragment of [[Rivers of Life|healing power]] falls with every drop, bringing burgeoning life without constraint, without reason or caution. No wounds, save the most egregious, will last the night. Death comes only to those unfortunate enough to fall far from their lines, or to those who are the victims of swift execution. The familiar magic flows everywhere, in all the water in the Sarangrave, and it protects barbarian and Imperial invader alike. It also touches the plants and creatures of the Mallum with supernatural vitality, but driving some of them to the edge of frenzy.

And what creatures they are! The Empire has heard of them, encountered them in the eastern forests from time to time, but just as this is the heartland of the Druj so it is home to the [[Arkad#Hupul|deathstinger]], and the [[Arkad#Hupul|green forest scorpion]], and the awful serpentine [[Arkad#Kallad|coiled shrike]]. These creatures seem to have little fear of humans or orcs, and are ambitious enough to try and prey upon them when the opportunity presents itself. Imperial soldiers quickly learn to fear the droning buzz of ebon-and-scarlet wasps the size of doves, the cold horror of awakening to discover a razor-clawed insect with its tail already poised to strike exploring the interior of their tent, the yell of surprise that quickly gives way to agonised screaming as a friend is condemned to a terrible death at the fangs of an arboreal assassin. The Rivers of Life do little to purge venom, or cure the poison that burns through the belly of those foolish enough to eat the ripe fruit from the wrong tree.

Into this land of death come the Imperial armies, ready to strike against the core of the Druj. They will have their work cut out for them in the months to come, but if they can seize victory... what a thing ''that'' would be!
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<quote by="Sebastián Fawnwood, General of the Gryphons Pride">My glorious pride. You have bided your time, but now is our opportunity for what we were made for. Conquest. The salt flats of Sanath is our destination, for this is the beginning of the end for the Druj. With our warbanner reforged, it has been named the Pride of the Gryphons. It will be raised high enough that the Druj will see who brings their end. Be Vigilant. Be Glorious. Be the pride of Dawn.</quote>
<quote by="Dame Katelyn Quinnell De Cordraco, General of the Lions of Adelmar">Lions, three years ago I first came to Anvil a woman in pain. Like so many, the Druj had taken everything from me. Like so many, they continued to take our past, our present, our future. Our Gui, our Isaac, our Scout. Their ideology of hatred thrives in the dark and they wish to make monsters of us all. They wish to teach us to be scared of the dark. Let us make them fear the light. May we be the flame the innocent are drawn to as a Beacon of Safety. May our banners show that Courage and Loyalty drives us. May the sound of our roar carry far across the Salt Flats. May the Druj know this sound heralds their end, learn those banners mean those hurt will be saved, learn that flame is Ambition to bring glory with Elodian's Hammersmiths and the majesty of the Lion of Summer. Learn the monster they tried to create, became the lioness that will bring a death to the Druj. Whatever it takes. One day, the Druj will be a bedtime story told of our glory. Let us be the authors.</quote>
<quote by="Cadwell Waystone, General of the Black Thorns">Navarr will serve the Empire in Loyalty, regardless of the theatre of war. The Druj are broken, a scorpion backed into a corner, but their story is still a danger. The Buruk Tepel will fall, their armies laid low by the virtue of Imperial steel and we will free the slaves of the Mallum. Act in loyalty, fight with courage and serve with pride.</quote>
<quote by="Mercia Questor's View, General of the Quiet Step">Navarr, now is the time to hit the Druj where it hurts. We march on Lower Sanath. I may not be who you expected in command but I will see Neve's ambition for this army fulfilled. Whatever it takes. Our cousins in Varushka will take care of our home. Let the citizens of Therunin look to this beacon and away from the arms of Agramant. For those who came before. For those who come after.</quote>
<quote by="Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was, General of the Citadel Guard">Sentinels, Consider the Drowned Man. There comes a point in some fights when you are so much better than your opponent that victory seems inevitable. Your foe does not comprehend that they have lost, for they still stand, still fight. They lack your foresight, your arete, and you must simply walk them through the dance steps of their demise. In that moment it can be tempting to show mercy, even pity your foe. Worse, one can lose focus, looking to the next conflict. The Empire has made this mistake before. This is how the Druj still blight the world. Mercy is weakness - The task is not done until it is done. We begin the end. Make for Lower Saarnath. With Spring's might and Summer knights we soften Leen, bringing ruin to the Beacon of Iskrid. We must not relent until the last of the Buruk-Tepel are marched through Anvil and relieved of the burden of their vile, poisonous heads.</quote>
<quote by="Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka, General of the Northern Eagle">Eagle of the North, I return to you now to guide our path to the last conquest of the Druj. We go to the Sydathian Fens, striding unseen as we hunt for our foe's weakness. To you, Surut, Schlacta of the Roaring Hearth, I present my curiosity to your bargain and welcome your wisdom in bringing bright ruin to old and rotten things. Before us stand wicked effigies and twisted monuments to a dying power, symbols of a strength that has left the heart and limbs of this sickened beast of a nation. We shall make a beacon of them, a sign to our embattled cousins and fearful foes alike that soon all here will be changed by Imperial will. Forward now, into this depthless dark, for herein we shall raise the torches that shall light the way to a better world.</quote></div>
==Who Brings Their End==
Five armies march out of northern Sarangrave, through the [[Sarangrave#Turan Flats|Turan Flats]] into the Sanath. This is the [[A_walk_in_shadow|second time]] the Empire has ventured into Sanath, and the situation in the south is very different to that they encountered in the north three years ago.

The [[Black Thorns]] and the [[Citadel Guard]] are already in place, and they are quickly joined by the [[Gryphon's Pride]], the [[Lions of Adelmar]] and the [[Quiet Step]] from [[Ossium]], and [[Semmerholm]], and [[Zenith]]. The Quiet Step bring word that the [[Axos|Axou]] of [[Sarangrave#Thornfen|Thornfen]] are mobilizing for their [[Skull beneath the skin|advance]] up to the Fens of Varreth. They will hopefully keep the path into the Salt Flats open to Imperial baggage trains, rather than devoured by ravening [[Quickening Cold Meat|Winter spirits]].

When they arrive, these five are met by the [[Northern Eagle]] who are already in position. The Varushkans have been busy in the Salt Flats for some time now, laying the groundwork for this invasion. There are few forces anywhere in the Empire that can match the Northern Eagle when it comes to [[Army qualities#Elusive|mastery]] of the wild forest, the sodden marsh, the rough dark hill. For the last six months they have been engaged in a game of cat-and-mouse with the Druj defenders of the Saarnath, avoiding any attempt to trap them or bring them to battle, and patiently putting their plans in motion.

The captains of the Eagle report an unqualified success; they have collapsed strategically chosen passes and bridges across the southern Salt Flats, destroying carefully selected caches and otherwise putting their guerrilla training to good use. This will not impede the armies of the Druj, who can carry their supplies with them, and resupply from baggage trains but for the [[fortification#garrison|garrisons]] of the Druj [[fortification|fortifications]] - the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#The_Witness|Witness]], the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Spires_of_Rarckan|Spires of Rarckan]], and the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beacon_of_Iskrid|Beacon of Iskrid]] - it is a different matter. This season, those garrisons are unable to intervene in Lower Saarnath, occupied clearing the damage the Northern Eagle has inflicted, limited by their ability to move provisions into the forests of the south. The Empire will still have a fight on its hand, but the forces the barbarians can bring to bear will be limited to their armies - armies already battered from fighting in Sarangrave and the [[Forest of Ulnak]], armies that have still not fully recovered.

The Northern Eagle have laid the groundwork, but they are not finished with the Druj. Not by a long chalk. The Varushkan soldiers are already planning their next strike against the Mallum, and the planning and execution of their strategy requires all their attention. They are still able to provide a bounty of valuable scouting reports, marking out the areas the Imperial armies should avoid, as well as places they may want to target. Then they disappear back into the rainforest. Their fight this season is very different to that of the conquerors here to fight the Druj openly; it remains to be seen what punishment they have in mind for the barbarians in the coming months.

It is for the Gryphon's Pride to step into the breach. [[Army_qualities#Conquering|Conquest]] is their calling after all, and they press forward with a single overriding goal - to seize Lower Saaranth from the Druj and drive the armies of the Mallum before them. They lead the way, a solid spear-strike deep into enemy territory. They are closely supported by the [[Army_qualities#Cunning|cunning]] of the Quiet Step, who focus their efforts on setting ambushes and luring enemies into traps. They remain mobile, taking advantage of every weakness in the enemy strategy to attack from the flanks. Their tactics are unorthodox but effective - poison and venom, targeting healers, magicians, and supplies. They kill without mercy, and perhaps in some way the Druj might even respect them for it.

For the most part the other Imperial armies take a more conservative approach. For those who have fought the Druj before, this caution seems the wisest course. The barbarians are fond of traps and Imperial soldiers have paid a harsh price for their overconfidence too many times in the past. The Black Thorns push forward [[Army orders#Steady Conquest|patiently]], prioritising the preservation of Imperial lives over the pursuit of victory. The Lions of Adelmar complement this painstaking approach; they [[Army qualities#Guardian|stand staunchly with their allies]] wherever they are engaged, shields ready to block the arrows of the Druj, swords unsheathed and eager to fight alongside their comrades. Selfless and courageous, many are the Navarri and Urizeni who will owe their lives to the Dawnish once this campaign is over.

With the Lions also march a cohort of the [[Knights of Glory]]. They are captained by the fearsome ''Elodian'', resplendent in mighty panoply of runebound steel and leading a glorious warband of hammer-smiths no less powerfully accoutred. The unstoppable blows these heavy warriors strike with their great mauls send barbarians sprawling, or smash them into trees, and both their heavy armour and these terrible strikes serves as a perfect complement to the tactics of the Lions. Whispers suggest that the runic knights have been sent personally by their [[Eleonaris|Queen]] to fight with the Lions, and rumour speculates that there may be something more than friendship between the ''Lady of Pennants'' and the general.

Then, at last, the Citadel Guard. The [[sentinel|sentinels]] and the battlefield magicians of Urizen are there beside their allies whenever battle is joined but their goal is clearly somewhere else. They focus on support and strengthening the soldiers of the other nations and their aid is valuable in seizing land from the Druj but actually ''fighting'' the barbarians is of secondary importance. While their soldiers fight, their [[coven|covens]] work together on of rituals intended to gather magical power and direct it toward this unseen goal. As Summer fades the leaves on the great broad-leafed trees in their vicinity turn brown and red and yellow faster than they have any right to do so. As if something primal was being redirected in some way, out of the forests and toward... somewhere else.

There are [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] of the [[Realms#Summer|Summer realm]] with the Urizeni as well - proud ''Dindrayne'' of the feather-brow. A war-witch with a staff of adamant, she commands a cohort of elfin heroes in mithril chain, who enthusiastically fight alongside the sentinels against the Druj. With them are a score of trumpeters, who rouse the spirits of the soldiers they fight alongside, urging them to acts of heroism and glory that are sometimes at odds with the more sober mien of the people of the southern peaks. Their commander, however, remains with the covens further back behind the lines - an uncommon position for a champion of the ''Lion of Summer''.

As well as magical allies, the armies of the Empire are supported by more than twelve thousand strength at arms lead by [[military unit|Imperial captains]], many of whom bear [[enchantment|enchantments]] of their own. The vast majority fight with the Citadel Guard, and while those versed in the arts of war are at the forefront of the campaign alongside the sentinels and battle-wizards, those with even a smattering of [[Magical_skills#Realm_Lore|realm lore]] - especially the lore of [[Spring magic|Spring]] - are stationed further back supporting and protecting the covens. The 'Guard regularly dispatch these auxiliaries on missions deep into Druj territory, to capture resources or secure access to certain location at critical moments.

A strong force, then, bound together by bonds of [[Loyalty]] and [[Pride]], of the love of comrades, and of a singular purpose: the destruction of the Druj.
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==Scorpion in a Corner==
That unity is not found among the barbarians of the Mallum. Even something as straightforward as a singular purpose is somewhat lacking. One would think the Druj armies would be brought together by the desperate need to keep control of as much of the Salt Flats as they can, but they show no sign of it. The armies come to defend Lower Saarnath, its true, but they do so piecemeal and that gives the Imperial armies an advantage.

The first major force to engage the Empire are the [[Druj_armies#White_Lions|White Lions]]. Named for the large venomous ants that build great nests on the Salt Flats, they are perhaps the most disciplined of all the armies of the Mallum. Some of their troops are already in Lower Saarnath, hunting the Northern Eagle, and they quickly raise a warning once it is clear the Empire has come in force. They avoid direct confrontation with the Imperial forces wherever possible, at least until the rest of the defenders start to arrive. It seems they have accepted unwise boons of [[Winter magic]], likely from the ''[[Agramant|Wastewalker]]''. Wounds that should kill them barely slow them down, but when they fall they die quickly. Worse, they are riven by a terrible hunger; there are disturbing scenes where warriors of the White Lions abandon their own defence to cut strips of warm flesh from the fallen - enemies and friends alike. There are handfuls of bloodthirsty [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] - pale white walkers more beast than human or orc - among their number who urge them on to greater and greater excess. For all this apparent madness, however, when they are able to think clearly the White Lions prove to be a persistent and responsive threat to the Empire, seemingly always in position to counter Imperial tactics.

Over the first few weeks of the campaign, the [[Druj_armies#Hidden Widow|Hidden Widow]], the wild warriors of the treacherous [[Druj_armies#Jagged Claws|Jagged Claws]], and the twisted [[Druj_armies#Red Lizard|Red Lizard]] filter in to join the defence of Lower Saarnath. They are forced to approach through the marshes of [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beladrarsh|Beladrarsh]], and by all accounts receive little assistance from the Skinweaver sept that rule that rich territory. No doubt the wealthy Skinweavers are too busy making preparations for their own survival to see the Druj armies as anything other than a wall of meat between them and the invading humans. Last to arrive are the [[Druj armies#Black Wind|Black Wind]], and for once they seem less interested in [[Army_qualities#Cruel|tormenting]] the armies of the Empire and more in simply trying to stem the flood of Imperial soldiers into the Salt Flats. It is easy to forget that they hate the Druj for what they did to their people - and sometimes hard to bear that they loathe the Empire even more.

The Urizeni quickly note that none of these armies seem to bear enchantments, and that there is a distinct lack of magical wards at least in the south. This is certainly not the traditional way the Druj make war - especially in defence. Speculation runs like wildfire - has the loss of the [[Druj armies#Tainted Basilisk|Tainted Basilisk]] and the disappearance of the cowardly [[Druj lore#Ghulai|Ghulai]] of the [[Sarangrave#Palace_of_the_Sleepers|Palace of the Sleepers]] gutted the magical capabilities of the Druj? Or is it simply that the resources they have are focused elsewhere? Is there some other shoe waiting to drop? Is there a magical trap here, hidden behind the trees, shrouded from the eyes of the magicians and witches and [[vate|vates]]?
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Dancing scorpions.jpg|align=left|width=400}}</div>
==Make Monsters of Us All==
If the Druj are bad when they invade, they are ten times worse when forced on the defensive. Yet the air of desperation here in the dripping woods of Lower Saarnath is different, somehow. There is a tremor of fear in the people of the Mallum, it seems. They rely on purely defensive tactics, seeking to turn their admittedly superior knowledge of the terrain into advantage wherever possible. They still skirmish, but their attacks are much more focused on singular objectives - driving ''this'' specific band of knights away from a defensible position, overrunning ''this'' specific hospital and then retreating, killing ''these'' scouts and then fleeing without even taking the time to string their corpses up from the trees.

Afraid they might be, but they refuse to cede anything that the Empire does not wrest from their tight grasp. It is challenging for the Imperial armies to bring their weight of numbers to bear against the Druj in the confines of the rainforest; hard for them to force a large-scale confrontation when often visibility is reduced to a score of meters in every direction. When it is not the trees alone, it is the ever-present rain, or the thick, warm mists that rise on the rare occasions when the sun peaks out behind the dark clouds for a few hours. The woods favour the Druj tactics of ambush and surprise, which must be accounted for whenever the Empire advances.

Still the Druj ''are'' outnumbered though, and arguably outclassed. Again, though, it is the ability of the Empire's armies to trust one another than proves the greatest advantage. The Lions of Adelmar and the Quiet Step employ strategies specifically designed to aid their allies, to work with their comrades in other armies and nations. The sentinels of the Citadel Guard are adept at deploying their force where it will offer the greatest support, and then moving to another position as the ebb and flow of battle shifts. In contrast there are reports of warriors of the Jagged Claw intentionally abandoning their Red Lizard "allies" in the middle of an engagement, their deaths serving to cover a flanking manoeuvre and hasty retreat. There are incidents where the Hidden Widow are left in an exposed position by the Black Wind just to lure a band of thorns into a trap that closes around the Navarr too late to save their "comrades".

As one Dawnish troubadour marching with the Lions says, it isn't so much that the Druj are intentionally turning on one another, but rather than they seem utterly incapable of seeing anyone outside their immediate circle as being ''people'' at all. Rivals or pawns to be used to their own advantage, in the pursuit of their own ambitions or their own survival. A people culturally incapable of feeling the bonds of fellowship, utterly alien to the understanding of love that the Lions hold at the centre of their philosophy.
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Sebastián Fawnwood.jpg|caption='''Sebastián Fawnwood''' (centre), General of the Gryphon's Pride|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Dame Katelyn.jpg|caption='''Dame Katelyn Quinnell De Cordraco''', General of the Lions of Adelmar|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Cadwell Waystone.png|caption='''Cadwell Waystone''', General of the Black Thorns|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Neve Agra.jpg|caption='''Neve Agra''', General of the Quiet Step|align=left|width=250}}
</div>

==Handfuls of Dust==
A month after the fighting begins, the Empire encounters serious magical resistance. The Gryphons Pride and the Black Thorns have pushed a little ahead of their allies, driving north-east where the land slopes upward toward the great plateau of Upper Saarnath. A major force of White Lions, supported by warriors of the Hidden Widow, attempt a pincer movement and fighting erupts among the trees. At first it seems that the Pride and the Thorns cannot fail to achieve victory, but then a third force joins the fighting.

They are not an army, or even really a garrison, but rather a force of perhaps a hundred or so hooded orcs with bows and barbed spears. The Thorns identify them as [[Arkad#Vikari|Vikari]] although their banner is unfamiliar - that of a skeletal serpent similar to the coiled shrike favoured by the Kallad. This, reason the Navarr, must be the Vileshrike sept from the Dripping Tor. They are some distance from home, presumably on the orders of the rumoured ghulai ''Graknuz Acidtouch''. They are not alone, however.

With the Vileshrikes are a hundred or so beings that seem to be heralds of the [[Realms#Night|Night realm]], similar to those encountered a few months ago by Imperial champions fighting [[alongside the Earthquake Drummers]] in the Forest of Ulnak. Scarecrow-like, in billowing black robes, it is easy at first to mistake them for [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tortured souls]]. Yet these creatures have never been mortal; there is nothing beneath their robes save animate darkness, shadows that seem to seep through the empty eye-holes of the featureless masks they wear. The merest touch of these awful phantoms [[Calls#Weakness|weakens]] the strongest knight, draining away their will to fight and overwhelming them with fear and terror. Their weapons assail the mind as well as the body, creating magical wounds that confuse the confident thorns leaving them riven with self-doubt and uncertainty. A few are armed with terrible pole-arms that drown their foes in [[paralysis|paralysing]] wells of phantasmal horror, leaving them as easy picking for the rest of the barbarians alongside who they fight.

The Vileshrikes - if that is who this is - don't especially coordinate their attacks with the two armies but rather take advantage of their attack to cover an assault of their own. The battle-magicians are clearly experienced fighting alongside their unnatural allies - they [[entangle|bind]] a likely target long enough for the fluttering-robed things to descend on them and assail their spirit. The Rivers of Life does nothing to bolster the broken will to fight, it cannot heal the terrible nightmares that assail those injured by the creatures' weapons, nor offer protection from the sucking quagmire of doubt that overwhelms the doughtiest warrior.

It doesn't help that these vikari are obviously backed by significant magical resources - enough for some of their number to unleash great wails that weaken enemies and allies alike, or terrifying atonal hymns that [[Calls#CURSE|curse]] Imperial soldiers with a growing delirium that takes hold hours after the fighting when they think themselves safe.

It's hard to say for certain how much difference this additional force of Druj makes to the overall battle; for all their magical prowess Vileshrike Vikari and terrorizing Night held alike are as vulnerable as any magician to [[Calls#IMPALE|arrows and mighty blows]], can be put to flight with a [[Calls#CLEAVE|solid strike]] from a skilled fighter. They also seem to have little stomach for a long fight. They expend their magic quickly, it seems, and then fall back while the White Lions and the Hidden Widow still clash with the Pride and the Thorns.

The Imperial advance is turned back that day, although the Pride and the Thorns manage to lead some of the more bloodthirsty Druj into an ambush set by the Quiet Step. Less than a week later, with the Lions and the Step to back them up, the two Imperial armies return and the Navarr and Dawnish are victorious. They continue to push through the Salt Flats, and the further north-east they travel the more common and vicious fighting with the Vileshrikes becomes.

Whoever the Vileshrikes are, whoever their allies are, they do not fight anywhere else in Lower Saarnath; only in the north-east. They also seem to be the source of a peculiar magical effect, a curse of some kind, that is slowly settling over the southern Salt Flats. Soldiers begin to report an increasing number of horrific dreams, and those standing watch at the darkest hours of the night claim to spot hooded figures watching them from the shadows who they ''know'' are filled with poisonous hate. It doesn't seem to be an enchantment; perhaps this mysterious ghulai is drawing on other sources of power to do... whatever they are doing.

Despite all this, the Druj are forced to retreat again and again. As the season draws on, as the Quiet Step and the Lions of Adelmar come within sight of the location marked out by Imperial scouts as the ''Dripping Tor''. It lies in the depths of the forest, far from any other settlement, but it has been identified by the Northern Eagle as a key strategic location to control. When the armies arrive, however, they find the Tor... missing. In its place looms an impenetrable grove of massive, clearly supernatural trees. When any Imperial soldier gets within a mile of the rough location, thick mists boil out of the ground and seethe in the air, creating impenetrable curtains of grey and white. Those who do not turn back soon regret it - scouts report encounters with unspeakable horrors in the depths of the mists. Some who brave the fog are left shattered in mind and spirit, raving about ''eyes'' and ''claws'' and ''the terrible soft music''. Others do not return at all.

The decision is made to give the area a wide berth. None of the armies here are in a position to try and penetrate whatever ward is in place, and there are still Druj to be fought. A watch is set by the Quiet Step, and the Empire turns its attention elsewhere. At least there are no further attacks by the Vileshrikes and their unnatural allies, once the armies reach the Tor.
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{{CaptionedImage|file=Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka.jpg|caption='''Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka''', General of the Northern Eagle, leads the Varushkans in subtle infiltration of the Salt Flats.|align=left|width=250}}
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==For Those Who Come After==
In the end, there is no single decisive battle in the valleys of Lower Saarnath, only a string of engagements spread out through the woodlands. There are relatively few Druj settlements here - and they are poorly prepared for attack by Imperial soldiers. Unless the Druj armies are present, these scattered arboreal villages and logging camps swiftly fall to the Empire. Even where the Druj defenders are present, it is usually not enough to stop the Empire seizing them anyway. Usually.

Ultimately the Empire is victorious, smashing through the Druj defences and forcing the armies to retreat. Lower Saarnath is captured in its entirety, and the Imperial forces regroup to consider their next move. The Rivers of Life help to blunt the slaughter on both sides, but when the final tally is made it is still sobering. A thousand Imperial lives lost in the woodlands to the Druj. It is scant consolation that, thanks in particular to the presence of so many Imperial captains, the barbarians seem to have paid a much steeper price. It is difficult to say how ''much'' of a price as always, but even with their purely defensive strategy the Druj have ''suffered'' this season.

As Autumn approaches, armies on both sides take stock and consider their next moves; but then -

Then something unexpected happens.
==What Brings Their End==
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{{CaptionedImage|file=Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was.jpg|caption='''Andronikos of the Lighthouse-That-Was''', General of the Citadel Guard, has unleashed the devastating power of Spring magic on the Druj capital.|align=left|width=250}}
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For three months, the Citadel Guard have been gathering strength, working carefully crafted rituals in each Spring [[regio]] they encounter, weak or strong. They have been studying the flows of [[mana site|mana]] across Lower Saarnath, sending out small bands of diviners and sentinel defenders to learn more about the way power pools across the Salt Flats. A week before the Autumn Equinox, their work is completed.

While it takes time to prepare, and set in motion, the [[Highest_discipline#Technique_of_the_Transcendent_Claw|Technique of the Transcendent Claw]] is not subtle in its effects. At sunrise, the sky turns black, boiling with storm clouds. The rain turns torrential, driven by howling gales. Lightning strikes willy-nilly not only across the valleys of Lower Saarnath but across the entire southern reach of the Salt Flats. Tents are torn up into the sky, unwary folk thrown flat in the mud, branches are ripped from ancient trees creating stark openings in the canopy. Imperial soldiers are at least partially prepared, but it takes the Druj mostly by surprise.

Then, the sole elfin trumpeter that accompanies the Urizen magicians sounds a single terrible note that, impossibly, is heard throughout the lower valleys. It isn't part of the working, but it seems the knights of Eleonaris have a good sense for the dramatic... and this magic is certainly ''dramatic''.

Far away from the Imperial attackers and the Druj defenders, in one of the poorest parts of the sprawling city of [[Salt Flats of Sanath#Leen|Leen]] itself stands the [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beacon_of_Iskrid|Beacon of Iskrid]], a fortification garrisoned not by orcs but by humans under the banner of the self-styled ''Prince Tristain the Golden.'' A long way from the fighting, in a city that no doubt still imagines itself beyond the reach of the Empire. That dream is shattered, decisively.

With a deafening peal of thunder, audible all the way back to Lower Saarnath, a cascade of thunderbolts rains from the sky over Leen. The gale force winds become even stronger, battering the stones of the Beacon with the force of ten Winter storms, then twenty, then thirty. The rain pours in sheets, eating away at the mortar that holds the stones together, at the foundations that allow it to stand. The destruction is not limited to the fortification itself; the surrounding buildings are likewise stricken with this devastating, hungry tempest called by the highest arts of the Urizeni magicians. A tornado reaches down from the heavens, down toward the earth, and as it comes the lightning ignites something within it and it becomes a conflagration despite the monsoon deluge.

The Druj of Leen speak in whispered, terrified tones of spirits within those winds, awful shapes of water and wind and fire that somehow poured ''out'' of the tornado. Creatures of the Spring realm, following this consummate magical working into the mundane world for a short time, tearing at the Beacon with the single-minded hatred creatures of the Primal Forest have for all construction. Were they really there, or do the Druj imagine them in the chaos and ruin that attends upon the power unleashed by the Citadel Guard?

And then the weather starts to clear... the tumultuous downpour turns back to ''just'' heavy rain. The winds lessen, ceasing entirely for a moment before returning again at more normal speed. Smoke rises from the rainforest, but the fires find no purchase in the soaking wood. The lightning ceases, the thunder stills, the clouds part and the wan Autumn sun shines through.

It shines on the uncertain faces of the Imperial soldiers, it shines on the satisfied and tired faces of the Urizeni masters, it shines on the terrified faces of the Druj. It shines also, sadly, on the Beacon of Iskrid. The [[fortification#bastion|bastion]] leans dangerously to the side, barely standing. The upper ramparts have been torn away, as if gouged by some mighty claw, and scattered with lethal force into the city below. It looks for all the world as if the slightest push would send it tumbling into the streets of Leen, crushing everything in its path. It is almost entirely devastated... almost.

The Beacon still stands - the power of the ''Onrushing Storm'' was perhaps blunted by the rival resonances of life and healing in the rainwaters of Sanath this season - but only just. And while it may have avoided destruction by a hair's breadth, the people of Leen cannot fail to understand what has just happened. The [[Druj_lore#Buruk_Tepel|Buruk Tepel]], the rulers of the Druj, who imagined themselves safe in their great city have been presented with a potent illustration of just how vulnerable they are. The Druj are ''afraid''.

==Game Information==
<div style="float: right; max-width: 400px; margin-right: 10px;">{{HoverImage|Salt Flats of Sanath Regions.png|SaltFlatsBasic.png}}</div>
===Salt Flats of Sanath===
* '''The Empire has claimed Lower Saarnath
* '''The Northern Eagle prevented any of the Druj fortifications in Sanath participating in the fight and gave the region the under threat quality
* '''The Beacon of Iskrid has been devastated by Urizen magic but still stands - just
* '''The Dripping Tor appears to be hidden behind a powerful shroud of Night magic
As the Autumn Equinox approaches the Imperial forces in Sanath have claimed the region of Lower Saarnath. The Vileshrikes hidden in the north-east clearly intend to resist Imperial control, but it is not clear how much magic they may be able to bring to bear.

Thanks to the Northern Eagle, the garrisons of the three Druj fortifications were unable to operate in Lower Saarnath this season. That benefit ends with the Autumn Equinox - the remaining garrisons will be able to participate in the campaign as normal going forward. They also provided the under threat quality to Lower Saarnath, but that quality has also faded as the Autumn Equinox dawns. The Eagle are in Sanath, but they did not participate directly in the campaign this season. Instead they are arranging another strike against the Druj using their [[Army qualities#Elusive|elusive]] quality.

The Beacon of Iskrid was assailed by the Urizeni using their Technique of the Transcendent Claw. All casualties the army caused were targeted specifically against the Beacon, ignoring the usual reduction in damage done to a bastion. The presence of many military units, and the Knights of Glory, both help this technique have a significant impact. Even the Quiet Step ''Cunning'' strategy works to increase the damage to the Beacon (but only by increasing the casualties caused directly by the army; as with all army orders it doesn't increase the casualties caused by military units or enchantments). It is also worth noting that this effect [[Limits_of_magic#Damaging_Fortifications|cannot be created]] with ritual magic - the direct damage to a fortification is the result of a [[Highest_discipline#Technique_of_the_Transcendent_Claw|unique technique]] that requires an entire season of campaigning in a given territory by an army including powerful magicians who perform dozens of individual rituals before it has any effect.

Only military units supporting the Citadel Guard receive a share of the Imperial Guerdon; other military units receive nothing.

===Strategic Considerations===
* '''Dripping Tor is concealed beneath a powerful shroud of Night magic
* '''It is not possible to move between Uper Saarnath and Leen Rarckan
The Vileshrike stronghold of ''Dripping Tor'' is concealed behind a potent shroud of [[Night magic]], similar in effect to [[Vale of Shadows]]. According to the witches and vates who accompanied the armies into that part of the valleys, it appears to have been performed at magnitude 120 - representing a serious challenge to Imperial magicians who want to remove it. Still, a suitably potent [[Piercing Light of Revelation]] cast at the [[Regio#The_Imperial_Regio|Imperial regio]] could be [[Army_qualities#Magic|channeled]] through the [[general]] of the [[Citadel Guard]] but it will require a magnitude of 240 to bring the effect down. If left undisturbed, the shroud will last until the start of the Summer Solstice 389YE. Other methods might exist to penetrate this magical defence.

If the shroud is removed, the Vileshrike sept could be destroyed by an Imperial army send specifically to root them out. This would need to be done at the same summit the shroud was pierced, or the sept will be able to scatter into the wild places of the Salt Flats and potentially remain as a threat to Imperial forces in the territory. They are not a significant campaign force however; while the army would need to take an attacking order and be busy for an entire season, they would suffer no appreciable damage.

It is not immediately apparent from the map, but Imperial scouts have confirmed what the original spy network used to map the Salt Flats only suggested. It is not possible for an [[army]] to move between [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Upper_Saarnath|Upper Saarnath]] and [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Leen_Rarckan|Leen Rarckan]] (or vice versa) without an opportunity.

===Participation: Citadel Guard===
<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;">[[File:SpringRune.jpg|267px]]</div>
* '''Military units fighting with the Citadel Guard have participated in the working of the Onrushing Storm
Any character whose military unit supported the Citadel Guard this season is free to roleplay their involvement in the performance of the ''Technique of the Resplendent Claw''. This may have involved protecting Urizeni magicians, but might also have involved scouting into other regions of the southern Salt Flats to find specific resources, escorting a coven to a hidden Spring regio, or raiding a specific mana site to shift the flows of mana in a direction that helps support the destructive magic ultimately unleashed against the Beacon of Iskrid. Magicians might have helped with the rituals cast - working with ritual masters from their own nation to perform supportive rituals. An Urizeni magician versed in Spring lore might even have been one of those involved in the final magical workings that lead to the assault on the Beacon. You are also free to roleplay that you fought alongside the sentinels and other soldiers striving to conquer Lower Saarnath instead, of course.

While the army was enchanted with [[Knights of Glory]], the presence of the heralds has not had any noticeable affect on either the military units supporting the army, nor on the soldiers of the army itself.
===Participation: Lions of Adelmar===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=EleonarisArt.jpg|caption=Regal, noble, and terrible in anger; Eleonaris is the Lion of Summer and her soldiers bear many of her traits.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The Lions of Adelmar continue not being able to take the cautious advance or give ground orders'''
* '''Any character whose military unit fought alongside the Lions of Adelmar may be inspired by the Knights of Glory'''
The Lions of Adelmar are accompanied into the Salt Flats by [[Knights of Glory|supernatural warriors]] led by the war-smith ''Elodian''. The presence of the knights continues to [[Even_darkness_must_pass#Sarangrave|exert influence over]] the Dawnish army. The Lions of Adelmar cannot take the [[Army orders#Cautious Advance|Cautious Advance]] or [[Army orders#Give Ground|Give Ground]] orders until a year has passed - even if Dawn were to put aside their [[Dawn_military_concerns#Army_Orders|commitment]] to Glory.

The heavily armoured champions that fight under the banner of ''Elodian'' have relished the experience of battling the Druj alongside the Lions of Adelmar, and not been shy about expressing their approval. The warriors from the Field of Glory take every opportunity to inspire the glorious soldiers of the army. A character whose military unit supported the Lions of Adelmar this season may choose to have been impacted by the experience of battling in close proximity to the glorious heralds.

If you are a Dawnish character whose military unit supported the Lions of Adelmar this season, or the general of the army itself, you may choose to gain a magical boon from the runic war-smiths. To claim this boon you must mark your armour, shield, or a visible part of your body with one or more of the so-called [[Runes#Runes of Summer|Runes of Summer]] - [[Feresh]], [[Jotra]], [[Tykonus]], or [[Verys]]. The boon counts as an [[enchantment]] on your character. As long as at least one of these runes are present, the [[Combat_skills#Dreadnought|dreadnought]] skill provides you with two additional hits, and whenever you use the [[heroic skills#Unstoppable|unstoppable]] skill you regain two additional hits.

If anyone uses [[Detect_magic#Discern_Enchantment|discern enchantment]] on you, you'll need to let the referee know that you are under the effect of a magnitude 7 Summer enchantment, and that you bear the ''mark of runemarked prowess''.

As well as the game benefits, the aura creates a [[roleplaying effects|roleplaying effect]]: ''You feel a strong urge to fight valiantly to support your friends, family, and especially your loved ones. Anyone offending or upsetting someone you care about causes a wave of burning anger to boil up inside you making it hard not to immediately confront them. If you lose your temper it is very hard not to give in to the urge to beat whoever offended you or your ally until they are incapacitated or they unconditionally surrender. At the same time, whenever you feel cherished or appreciated, the sensations are significantly increased to the point where you may experience a moment of rare bliss.''

The boon can be removed [[Enchantment#Removing_Enchantments|as normal]] - “overwritten” with a new enchantment - and will have faded by the start of the Winter Solstice.

===Participation: Bad Dreams===
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Diras.png|title=Rune: Diras|align=right}}</div>
* '''Something is causing particularly bad dreams in Lower Saarnath
Any character whose military unit supported any of the armies in the Salt Flats of Sanath this season may have experienced unsettling dreams. Nightmares are not uncommon when one is exposed to the Druj miasma, but these are a step above what veterans of the Mallum, or of the fight to liberate Zenith, have reported. Nightmares caused by the miasma tend to vary between individuals as much as any other dreams, but there is a suspcious commonality of elements in many of these odd dreams.

They involve being pursued or threatened in familiar places that are twisted with mud and water, or the presence of marsh-dwelling flora or fauna. Horrible phantasmal shapes eventually invade these places, or catch up with a fleeing dreamer, and begin to drown them or smother them. Dreamers awaken terrified, short of breath, and convinced that there is something leaning over them trying to steal their breath, crush their chests, or throttle them in their sleep. Nothing is physically present, and there are no signs of either intruders or assailants.

There is no benefit to doing so, but anyone who has experienced these dreams is encouraged to start the Autumn Equinox without any [[heroic skills#Hero|hero points]] or [[magical skills#magician|personal mana]]. They can still recover hero points and mana as normal - either by getting a good nights sleep at Anvil or by taking advantage of a magical method of recovery such as a [[potion]], or an [[enchantment|enhanted]] area such as [[Herthfire's Hospitality]] or [[Chamber of Delights]].
==Battle Opportunity : What Dreams Must Come==
* '''There is an opportunity for a battle in the Salt Flats of Sanath this season
Imperial prognosticators have identified a major conjunction of the sentinel gate leading to a location in north-eastern Lower Saarnath. They believe it allows an opportunity to clear some kind of supernatural blockage that will spell doom for the Beacon of Iskrid, and may have some bearing on whatever malign power of the [[Realms#Night realm|Night realm]] is loose in the region.

Salt lions

2026-08-26T15:20:23Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Strategy of salt and stone.jpg|caption=The Empire has opened the Vaults of the Chainbound, but victory in Mareave is not so easily unlocked.|align=right|width=400}}</div>
__TOC__
==The Strategy of Salt and Stone==
During the Summer Solstice, Imperial heroes clashed with Grendel raiders over the [[Mithril_and_rope#Objective:_Secure_the_Saltbound_Stone|Saltbound Stone]], a [[Skoura|Skouran]] relic of the distant past. A partial [[Autumn magic]] ritual text concealed within a hidden [[regio]] that promised a potent strategic advantage to whichever side managed to retrieve it. The Stone was denied to the barbarians, secured by the Empire, its secrets awaiting the careful attention of Imperial magicians. Custody of the relic brings with it political headaches of course - the [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Ratify_Treaty_with_Skoura|treaty]] between the Empire and the Skouran Consolidation requires that the Empire "''return, at reasonable costs, any cultural and historical artefacts of the Skouran people''". Yet that is a matter for [[ambassador|ambassadors]] and diplomats; more important is that the Grendel were denied their prize and the Empire profited.
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<quote by="Dame Aurum De Castellan, General of the Eastern Sky"><div style="font-size: .7em;">My Sky, It was said that for many years when people looked east they would see only the smog and din of a ruined land. A place that couldn't be home. They said that the hearts & swords of the heroes willing to give their lives would not be enough. They were wrong. Now when they look, these are stars in the sky. Now it is a home once more - a Nova Aurora. It was claimed by each of you, points of light, hope inextinguishable. I'm glad the Beacon sees fit to recognise us now. These are my Final orders to you, my kin, my loves. For my Nation whomst I claim my Truest Love. I will not go far from you. I will be with you til my dying day, as soldier and Captain. But like the constellations I must shift and offer a new glow to guide you. There must always be a star to guide the Sky, after all. From shining the way through Zenith to crushing Druj skulls in the Barrens, I ask you to follow me into the fray one last time. Burn the skies above Mareave so that those beasts fear the stars forevermore. Remind them always that to rear their heads is to look forward to death. For Scout of the Eastern Sky. For Gui of Vexille. Death to the Druj. Long live the Warden Queen. Long live the Eastern Sky.</div></quote>

<quote by="Sychar, General of the Granite Pillar"><div style="font-size: .7em;">Soldiers of the Pillar - A nation of pirates and reavers seek to conquer our lands. Alongside our siblings, with whom we liberated the Mournwold, the Seventh Wave, we fight once more! Plant your shields in the sands, with your courage hold the line, and with our strategic Defence we shall make the Grendel pay dearly for every mistake they make, and teach them this hard lesson: what the Empire takes, it holds! For the Empire, for Salvation! For the Imperial Orcs who bled to reclaim Reikos! For the Virtuous dead, fight with Courage!</div></quote>

<quote by="Wildfyre of Balthazar’s Vineyard, General of the Seventh Wave"><div style="font-size: .7em;">Remember why we wear the bell, we can commune with the dead. I want all my front line soldiers ringing as we stand. For when they come we see the faces of the dead. My knives, I send you out, you are my unconquered the greatest scouts of the Empire. Hunt the. I want their names, I want their orders. Sharp knives save lives and we shall save Mareave."</div></quote>

<quote by="Sand Viper Ikk, General of the Winter Sun"><div style="font-size: .7em;">We return to Mareave. To fall upon the Grendel who try to take our home. Strike from the shadows and fade away. Listen to your ancestors. Wound the Grendel, weaken and make them pay. Mareave is Imperial. We are here to stay.</div></quote>

<quote by="Velasco i Guerra, General of the Fire of the South"><div style="font-size: .7em;">My Fire, we are to traverse this great Empire. In Loyalty once more we go to the support of the Imperial Orcs in Mareave. As we pass necropolis take heed of Exemplar Ahraz's Courage. When we stand united as an Empire little may stand in our way.</div></quote>

<quote by="Jean d'Apulian, General of the Wolves of War"><div style="font-size: .7em;">Let the pale imitations try. Here, loosed, are the world's finest mercenaries to meet such folly. Tell them, tell the Salt Lords, they may cast armies like coin to the four winds. We shall weather them like the tepid waves that they are. Audacity bought is no match for loyalty given. Now, let's be having them.</div></quote>
</div>
In the days following the battle at the ''Ruins of Sinat'', as the [[Rivers of Life]] continued to flow sluggishly over the hot, dry territory, the Empire withdrew all the [[army|armies]] previously stationed in Mareave save the [[Wolves of War]]. They did not abandon the [[territory]]; far from it. Five fresh armies took the place of those returning to the heartlands of the Empire. The [[Winter Sun]] and the [[Seventh Wave]], the [[Granite Pillar]] and the [[Eastern Sky]] took [[Spiral#Curstag's_Way|Curstag's Way]] down the pass from [[Spiral#Apulian|Apulian]], swiftly reinforcing the Wolves in [[Mareave#Clisearn|Clisearn]]. With the Eastern Sky come a great host of Imperial [[military unit|warband]] led by captains from every nation save [[Navarr]].

The generals of the Empire continue to favour a strategy that served them well enough last season. While the Eastern Sky and the Wolves of War go on the offensive, the Sun, and the Pillar, and the Wave take defensive positions, setting themselves as a wall of steel and virtue against Grendel attempts to complete their conquest of Clisearn. Even as they are moving into position, another army arrives down the [[Mareave#The_Apulian_Way|Apulian Way]]. The [[Fire of the South]] do nothing by halves; previously garrisoned in [[Madruga]] to [[Phantasms_and_foam#Take_Your_Prize|defend their homeland]] they have torn a burning path all along the northern coast of the [[Bay of Catazar]] to join the Imperial assault in Mareave. They arrive tired and dusty... and immediately throw themselves into the fray in southern Mareave barely pausing to quench their thirst and set their camps before battle is joined.

Every Imperial army in Mareave bears the mark of [[Day magic]]. Each has been [[enchantment|enchanted]] with the [[Clarity of the Master Strategist]], allowing them not only to coordinate their efforts with expert skill but also ensuring every soldier knows their role. Every flaw in the Grendel strategy is identified and exploited - every overreach, every failure to effectively defend a supply cache, every inconsistency created by squabbling commanders. For those on the offensive, it means they are ideally positioned to probe and test the defences of the Grendel; for those protecting the Unshackled from the orcs of the Broken Shore it means they are able to predict where the barbarians will strike with an uncanny exactitude bordering on prescience.

The Imperials don't fight alone, either. [[Ramparts of Ashlar|Potent sigils]] still burn all along the walls of the [[fortification#Bastion|Bastion]] of [[Mareave#Rucraic's_Redoubt|Rucraic's Redoubt]]. Bronze giants drawn from the [[Estavus|City of Fire and Stone]] continue to fight alongside the orc [[fortification#garrison|garrison]], who continue to support the [[army|armies]] in the south. Three [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae|magical citadels]] loom over Mareave. From [[Mareave#Icarion|Icarion]] and in [[Mareave#Nadir|Nadir]], mighty warriors from the court of the ''[[Cathan Canae|Queen of Ice and Darkness]]'' march to join the Empire's armies. In Clisearn itself, the grey stone fortification rises on the borderland between Imperial-held territory and that claimed by the barbarians, serving both as a base camp for the Empire's soldiers to strike against Grendel positions and for the defenders to hold the line against their assault.

There is also aid unlooked for. A dozen Polemarchs in service to the [[Zakalwe|Master Strategist]] of the [[Realms#Day|Endless Sea and the Fathomless Sky]] arrive shortly after the Fire of the South joins the battle. They observe, offer support, help smooth lines of communication between attacking forces and those defending Mareave. They are adept at supporting those drawing on the supernatural ''Clarity'' created with [[Day magic]] - and looking for opportunities to counter Grendel plots. When their presence is questioned, they seem surprised. Their master promised the [[Archmage of Day]] that he would offer aid to the Empire, and so they are here. Plus, the decision to embrace the power of clear strategy on such a scale, in such a place, cannot help but attract the attention of the ''Tidehunter''. The Polemarchs do not go where they are not wanted, and they do not push their opinions or observations, but their ability to communicate with one another over great distances in particular proves valuable in the days following their appearance. They noticeably avoid both the warriors of the [[Realms#Summer|Summer realm]] and the [[Realms#Autumn|Iron Labyrinth]], however.

==Solid Stand on Shifting Sand==
The Empire's successfully executed two-pronged strategy falters slightly when it rubs up against the plans of the Grendel however. Unlike previous seasons, the orcs of the Broken Shore are not on the offensive. They have dug in, securing the land they have claimed, focusing their efforts purely on the defensive. For the Imperial Orcs and Highborn armies, this means three months of relatively excitement-free patrols. With the Grendel remaining resolutely on "their side" of the border that splits Clisearn - without even light raiding - they have nothing to do but bolster the Imperial positions in the northern quarter of the region.

The Wolves, the Sun, and the Fire however have a ''much'' more perilous time of it. Three armies - albeit three armies supported by innumerable supernatural allies - face the entire Grendel force in Mareave. Fortunately, the supernatural allies and courageous warbands help to even the odds but those three armies are engaging a force of more than forty thousand barbarians, with their magic, and their own allies. Both [[Asavean Archipelago|Asavean]] battleships and mercenary forces are active in Mareave this season, although the impact of the former is thankfully reduced by the fact the bulk of the fighting is taking place inland rather than along the coast.

(And at least some of the mercenaries are fighting elsewhere this season. Their arrangement with the Grendel ''Maistir Brothaig'' resolved, the [[Mithril_and_rope#Opportunity:_Pay_Off_the_Ilium_Jackals|Ilium Jackals]] of [[Sarcophan Delves|Sarcophan]] received a surprising offer on the battlefields of Sinat and are now under contract to the ''Boyar's Hasta''. Can the professional treachery of the dedicated mercenary be made any clearer than this? How the City of Locks must smile to see these fair-weather warriors skip from one side of the line to the other!)

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<quote by="Neeve, General of the Hamsin"><div style="font-size: .7em;">We take a stand, soldiers, against the howling dust storm from the north. We draw steel in the teeth of the gale, and we will cut down the wind itself if it tries to pass us. We fight with warriors from far away, who share our disdain for the chaff that blows down out of the mountains. Plant your feet and when the dust settles we will still be here, and our enemies will not.</div></quote>
<quote by="Rauri Salt-Tooth, General of the Storm Sharks"><div style="font-size: .7em;">What would the Wind Lord do? She'd remind us that you cannot drive an ox with a broken back. What would the Storm Lord do? He'd turn every Imperial scheme to his own use. What would the Salt Lord do? He'd wrap the Empire in chains and throw it into the bay! Bait your hooks well, siblings, for today we go fishing for northerners!</div></quote>
<quote by="Oyrech of Vorlach, Admiral of the Shamal"><div style="font-size: .7em;">There is a word we use to describe those who poison wells. Call such a tactic what it is - a ''Druj'' tactic. The crimson sails will shield the warriors of the Broken Shore from this vile weaponry, and when next you face an Imperial remember the screams of the Golden Winds as they writhed in agony, insides turned to blood, by the Empire's "strategy."</div></quote>
</div>
There is nothing especially subtle about the Grendel strategy this season. The [[army|armies]] simply [[Army_orders#Solid_Defence|hold their ground]] with the [[Navy_orders#Naval_Support|support]] of their [[navy|navies]]. At the forefront of the defence are the bitter Brine Turtles and the youthful Hamsin, along with the siege-engineers of the Iron Gulls and the barely-leashed Storm Sharks. The latter are the only ones who seem to actively relish the chance to fight the Imperial opposition. The others demonstrate the discipline the Grendel are known for, refusing to be drawn out, resisting any attempt to pull them into northern Mareave where the rest of the Empire's forces would make short work of them. It becomes clear early on that these four armies are leading the defence of Grendel-held Mareave in part because they are each enchanted with the same kind of magic as the Empire's armies. They react to threats with supernatural speed and acuity, the insight granted by Day magic guiding them to counter attempts to circumvent their positions or catch them in a pincer movement.

There is no single, key conflict during the months between the Summer Solstice and the Autumn Equinox. Rather there are a series of skirmishes and probing strikes from the Empire which are met with a wall of barbarian iron. The border between Imperial and barbarian held territory frays a little - Imperial troops press forward in one place and make temporary gains before the Grendel regroup and reclaim the land they have lost. The Empire is largely able to dictate ''where'' each battle takes place, but the commanders of the Broken Shore - bolstered as they are with supernatural clarity - are quick to respond to every attempt to gain ground.

When the four armies at the forefront respond to an Imperial incursion, their manoeuvres are given a great deal of additional weight by the rest of the Grendel forces who have for the most part made camp in Fleisardh. The fighting is bitter, brutal work. If not for the Spring curse laid on the territory, then thousands would have died on both sides - as it is, the Empire loses just over a thousand soldiers between the three armies and the garrison of Rucraic's Redoubt. The Grendel pay a higher price - primarily due to the presence of so many independent warbands on the Imperial side. Their defensive position, however, and the fact that they simply need to hold against the Empire means that even there their casualties are reduced noticeably from what they might have been. The Empire struggles to recover its wounded, while the Grendel can ensure that as long as they do not retreat their injured soldiers can return to the fray the next day.

The fact that a large portion of the Grendel forces are at sea, rather than in the shape of boots on the ground, is a blessing for the Empire. It also helps that the ''Golden Winds'' seem to have entirely withdrawn from Mareave - likely due to the [[The_keys_of_blood#Do_Some_Harm_(Arhallogen)|grim boon]] offered to the [[Silver Chalice]] by the [[Arhallogen|Centipede General]]. Plentiful fresh water is rare in Mareave, and it seems that poisoning the wells the Grendel rely on has caused enough death and suffering that the admiral felt the need to flee back to the safety of the western Broken Shore to recuperate.

Even so the support of the remaining Grendel navies strengthens their armies. They transport large amounts of supplies from elsewhere along the Shore, avoiding the desiccating trek through the [[Ayereed#Petrified_Forest|Petrified Forest]], and removing the threat of having their food and drink poisoned by opportunistic wizards. For the most part though the sailors themselves, even those trained in war, do not engage the Empire directly. This also reduces the impact of the Asavean warships sent by the Plenum. While there are a few mercenaries fighting alongside the armies - especially the Hamsin - they seem unenthused by the defensive strategy the Salt Lords have decreed.

If these sea-borne forces ''had'' been involved - if the fighting had taken place in Fleisardh for example - then there's no doubt that a great many more League, Dawnish, and Freeborn lives would have been lost. Perhaps something to bear in mind in the future? The Grendel strength has always lain with their navies, rather than their armies, after all.

Their navies... and their [[Grendel_religion#Cunning|cunning]].
{{CaptionedImage|file=Crab-traced-2.png|align=right|width=250|}}

==The Crab Has Two Hands==
At the same time that the League, Dawn, and the Brass Coast are pressing the defences of the Grendel, the Highborn are about a different task. The Granite Pillar lead a disciplined defence, and that leaves parts of the Seventh Wave free to [[Army_qualities#Scouting|employ different tactics]]. With some support from the [[Army_qualities#Freedom_Fighters|canny guerillas]] of the Winter Sun, and a little assistance from two of the Polemarchs, they send out scouts and spies to seek out both any sign of a Grendel [[spy network]], and any threat of espionage from the Broken Shore. With no enemy forces attacking the Empire, they are free to focus their efforts on Imperial-held territory (and to a slightly lesser degree, on the city-state of [[Mareave#Beoraidh|Beoraidh]]).

Just as well they do. While everyone's attention is in the south, only the most [[Vigilance|vigilant]] eyes are watching in the north, and that almost leads to disaster. While the ''Katabat'' and ''Shamal'' are busy supporting the armies, the ''Tempest'' and ''Simoom'' have split their attention. Along with what seems to be a significant number of [[fleet|independent vessels]] controlled by Grendel captains, they are busy below the cliffs of [[Mareave#Icarion|Icarion]] in a location not too far from where the old Urizen lighthouse once stood.

They are not attacking - they are doing their best not to attract attention at all - and it is initially not clear what they are up to. It seems that the ships are transporting large amounts of rubble and sand from somewhere in the Broken Shore and simply dumping it over the side at several key locations along the cliffs of Icarion. At first the Highborn are at a loss to explain what is going on - partly because the crumbling cliffs present a treacherous obstacle to getting close enough to see what they are doing. Yet with the help of [[Technology#Spectacles,_Spyglasses,_and_Lenses|spyglass]] and not a little luck the shape of the Grendel scheme becomes horribly apparent.

It seems that in some parts of Icarion there are tunnels in the rock that reach up to sites previously occupied by some Urizeni and Grendel ruins. Smugglers' tunnels perhaps - or more likely the remnants of an Urizeni strategy to allow vessels from Spiral to dock at the base of the cliffs and transport travellers and goods up to Mareave proper. The hunger of the Bay has washed away any sign of such docks... but the Grendel are looking to recreate them albeit temporarily. If they are successful, it will mean that Icarion is accessible from the sea, at least for a time. The precise locations of the tunnels is not clear - thanks to the [[A_wizard_did_it#Rains_in_Mareave|recent chaos]] caused by [[Spring magic]] gone awry the ruins themselves are collapsed and overgrown with scrubby grass and orange flowers.

The Grendel however clearly know where the lower levels of the tunnels come out. They are seeking to create a literal "beach head" at the base of the cliffs, one that will likely not be permanent but represents a significant short-term threat to Mareave. With access from the sea to the clifftops, they would be able to bring their full force to bear on Icarion, both the navies themselves and the armies they transport. And if they can use that force to capture Icarion, they would control the southern entrance to the Apulian Way, Disrupting the narrow umbilical that connects Mareave to the rest of the Empire. Such a strategy would not only cut Mareave off from the rest of the Empire, but there is a serious risk it would see Imperial armies caught in the jaws of the Grendel, unable to retreat...

==Game Information==
<div style="float: right; max-width: 400px; margin-left: 10px;">{{HoverImage|Mareave.png|400x400px}}</div>
===Mareave===
* '''No land has changed hands in Mareave this season'''
* '''Beoraidh remains neutral in the conflict between Grendel and Imperial forces
The Empire continues to hold Clisearn, but three-quarters of the region remains in Grendel hands. The Grendel have defended their conquered land, and no headway has been made in pushing them back. On the other hand, there have been no successful attacks into Imperial parts of the region this season, and no repeat of the daring raid against [[Fundindelve]] last season.

The Seventh Wave have undertaken a [[Army_qualities#Scouting|scouting]] order in Mareave this season, and in addition to uncovering the schemes of the Salt Lords in Icarion they will receive a report at the Muster on Friday night detailing any foreign [[spy network]] operating in the territory, and including any strategic or tactical opportunities related to defending the territory from outside forces. They won't receive any details of enemy campaign armies however because none were taking attacking orders. One thing of note is that the Polemarchs of Zakalwe have been active in supporting the Highborn army, and are believed to have an opportunity for the General to pursue involving gaining up-to-date information on Grendel military capabilities.

Finally, the city state of [[Mareave#Beoraidh|Beoraidh]] remains neutral in the fighting between the Grendel and the Empire. The Palace of Chains - the fortification in Beoraidh city - has aided neither side.
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBOrcs.jpg|align=right|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=CathCane001b.webp|align=right|width=250}}
</div>
===Participation : Unshackled in Mareave===
* '''Any Imperial Orc whose personal resource is in Mareave may have received a boon from Cathan Canae
* '''The boon is treated as an enchantment on the character and is removed in the usual way
The heralds of Cathan Canae are once again active in Mareave. While many of them fight the Grendel alongside the Empire's attacking forces, they also protect every part of Mareave. Massive castles drawn from the Summer Realm tower over Icarion, Nadir, and Clisearn and there are plenty of warriors and giants who look to the defence of the orcs who live there. The influence of Cathan Canae is felt in every part of the territory controlled by the Unshackled, not only at the warfront in the south.

Any Imperial Orc character whose [[Resource#Personal_Resource|personal resource]] is in Mareave may choose to have had a significant encounter with one of the servants of the ''Lady of the Frost'' and received a boon from them. You gain one additional [[Combat skills#Endurance|hit]], as if you were under the effect of the [[Strength of the Bull]] [[enchantment]]. You also experience a potent roleplaying effect: ''You find it hard to back down, even if you might be in the wrong. Your natural stubbornness is greatly enhanced, and it feels satisfying to refuse to change your position. It is easy to see anyone who tries to convince or force you to modify your beliefs as a rival or enemy, and it is hard not to respond to such perceptions with force.''

In addition, while under the influence of this roleplaying effect, it is easier for an orc to hear the voices of ancestors who encourage them to stick to their beliefs, to resist anyone who tries to tell them what to do, or who encourages direct action against rivals or enemies. This particularly includes the bold [[Grendel_religion#Rucraic_-_The_Storm_Lord|Rucraic]] and ruthless [[Grendel_religion#Dubhtraig_-_The_Salt_Lord|Dubhtraig]] if you feel a connection to those two Grendel ancestors.

All of these effects are lost if you receive a different personal enchantment during the summit - as with any enchantment you can only have one such effect at a time. Otherwise it persists until shortly before the start of the Winter Solstice 388YE.
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Leomarid.png|caption=The mighty lions of the sea are not native to the Bay of Catazar, but stories of their prowess remain inspiring to the Grendel.|align=left|width=500}}</div>
==Battle Opportunity : Jaws of the Leomarid==
* '''An opportunity exists to disrupt a Grendel plan to establish naval access to the region of Icarion'''
Civil service prognosticators have identified a major conjunction of the Sentinel Gate that will allow Imperial heroes to reach Icarion during the Autumn Equinox, and potentially disrupt Grendel plans to enact an opportunity to allow their naval forces to access northern Mareave.

Who counts the path untaken?

2026-08-26T15:20:14Z

Dre:

[[Category:388YE Spring]][[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:Foreign Nations]][[Category:Jotun]]
<ic>
"''Strike whilst it's hot!''"

Magnhildr shook the hair out of her face and took the blade back to the coals. Working the bellows she kept at it until it was glowing.

"''Hit it you fuck!''"

Reaching back with her hammer she started, striking with precision along the blade. This was going to be her best work yet, she could feel it.

"''Pick up a weapon and use it!''"

Back to the coals again, then back to the anvil and striking the other side.

"''You are born for greatness!''"

She was, she knew she was. First good bit of advice today.

"''It should be yours! All of it!''"

She stopped for just a moment, and looked around the empty room whilst she drank from her cup. Then stepped back to the coals.
</ic>
<div style="float:left; max-width: 500px; min-width: 350px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Against the Jotun.jpg|align=left|caption=The Jotun are a martial and honourable people.|width=2000}}</div>
==Overview==
* '''The Jotun remain at war with the Empire'''
* '''Responsibility and authority for diplomacy with the Jotun falls to the Imperial Consul'''
The [[Jotun]] are a powerful, martial nation led by the Jarl of Jarls - Queen Yrsa Jansdóttir of [[Jotun#History|Kalsea]] and King Gudmundr Arason of [[Jotun#History|Narkyst]]. The Empire has been at war with them for most of its existence, although there have been numerous short periods of peace during that time. They encroach into Imperial lands - having conquered [[Bregasland]] and [[Liathaven]] (which they name ''Ashvale'') they have invaded [[Mitwold]] as well. The Empire launched a [[Rubies in the snow|feint into Skallahn]] that threatened to take control of [[Hordalant#The_Kongegőr|the Kongegőr]], the bridge that connects the northern and southern territories of the sprawling barbarian nation. Jotun response was decisive - a major force was drawn away from the fighting in [[the Marches]] to defend the northern territories and protect the Kongegőr. Yet, despite their swift response, they have left sufficient force behind to continue to threaten Mitwold and Bregasland.

There is no ambassador to the Jotun. They seem never to have been especially interested in such a formalised relationship with the Empire. That is not to say that they are incapable of engaging in diplomacy or negotiation, merely that they tend to prefer to deal with individual nations rather than the Empire as a whole. Over the centuries they have had a "close" relationship with the folk of [[Wintermark]], for example, for all that the two nations clash constantly along their borders. In recent times, they have also shown a similar degree of respect for [[the Brass Coast|the Freeborn]]. When the Empire as a whole must deal with the orcs of Kalsea and Narkyst, however, the responsibility falls to the [[Imperial Consul]].
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Jotunarmy.jpg|title=Jotun banners often show the skulls of powerful creatures.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
==Back to Skallahn==
* '''Imperial inroads into Skallahn have been taken back by the Jotun
The orcs of the west responded to the Imperial attack on Skallahn, to their siege of the city of [[Skallahn#Walls_of_Kierheim|Kierheim]], by a rapid withdrawal of forces from the Marches back across the Kongegőr. The armies, led by the King of the south and the Queen of the north, went all out to face what they assumed must be an overwhelming attack from the Empire. Instead, they found that Imperial forces had already retreated. The land the Empire had claimed in Skallahn has been retaken, with no real resistance.

It's clear that the Jotun are now aware that the Empire can threaten the vital bridge that connects the northern and southern jarldoms. They cannot afford to ignore this threat; if the Kongegőr falls then it risks leaving the northern territories undefended. How they will react remains to be seen.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Osric5853.jpg|caption='''Iron Osric''', General of the [[Green Shield]]|align=right|width=300}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Atte.png|caption='''Atte Arrow-Tongue Metsastajason''' of the Sussivari Oathsworn Fyrd; elder statesman and [[Imperial Consul]].|align=left|width=300}}
</div>
==To the Meeting Place (Conjunction)==
* '''The hetjuveisla is being held at Gull's Isle Hall'''
* '''Ingrid Talon-of-the-Mark, Iron Osric, the Golden Jarl and the Imperial Consul are invited'''
* '''This is a [[Accessibility#Unlikely or Contained|combat unlikely]] encounter'''
* '''''Ingrid Talon-of-the-Mark'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for engaging in the hetjuveisla '''
[[Each_age_a_lens#Rules_of_War|Last season]], the call was issued for the ''hetjuveisla'' - the feast of heroes. A tradition of [[Tromsa#Tromsdalen|Tromsdalen]], it is an important call of hospitality that allows feuding warbands to sit and negotiate in good faith how a battle will go. Both sides bring food and drink, and bards to play music and tell tales. Then, when the feast is over, the sun must rise and set again before violence resumes between those who attended, allowing both sides to safely return to their homes.

Jarl ''Igya Olgafsdottir'', hero-engineer and warleader of the Jotun, made the offer to the Empire and has sent out messengers to the jarls of the Jotun. She will serve as representative of Yrsa Jansdóttir, Queen of Kalsea, Jarl-of-Jarls and Gudmundur Arason, King of Narkyst, He Who Calls Himself Jarl-of-Jarls will also send someone to speak on his behalf. Other jarls and heroes will be present, and they look to discuss matters of war with the Iron Thane, the Golden Jarl, and their guests.

===The Smidr===
* '''A smidr will be on hand to discuss matters of magic'''
''Harald Fourforge'' is a smidr of the Skroh of the Locked Door of Skallahn. [[Bedight_in_veils#Smidr_Clad_In_Scarlet|Recently]], he visited the Empire investigating the murder of two thralls. He was unexpectedly waylaid on his return by the beginning of the [[Rubies_in_the_snow|Imperial invasion of his home territory]]. He was not too late back to participate in the fighting along with his personal sworn guard. Now the Imperials have retreated from Skallahn, and apparently they have found the time to [[Court_Reports#Reports_from_387YE|solve the murder]] as well as splintering the gates of Kierheim! Harald has been very impressed by the Imperial handling of the case. Any unresolved questions about rune and wood and wave he might have are entirely set aside next to the clear demonstration that the Empire are sensible people who know how to work with eternals and what you always must do with cultists of the [[Agramant|Devouring Maw]].

His success in solving the murder of her thralls has impressed Jarl Ottesen of Ulfrsmoor, and she has recommended his name upwards. He has been asked to attend the hetjuveisla. He would like to talk to the Imperials regarding the use of magic in war - specifically, whether they would be minded to set down clear restrictions on the boons that could be called upon, or ritual-magic performed. The Jotun understand ritual magic, though they make little use of it. They prefer to negotiate with the Jarls of the Summer realm directly - using the boons acquired in place of powerful rituals. He thinks that there is clear agreement that Rivers Run Red would not be deployed again by the Empire; they show no sign of casting aside Rivers of Life, which the Jotun do not have the same level of objection to but which, as the past season showed, is surely a curse. He thinks the Empire contains mature magicians capable of having such conversations. In particular, he would like '''Vossk''', [[Archmage of Autumn]], to select one or two individuals to attend and discuss this matter: either ''friends of Melissa'' or sensible icewalkers would be suitable.

==The Chains That Bind Us==
<div style="float:right; max-width: 500px; min-width: 350px; clear: right;">
{{SOP|statement=Following the recent destruction of the historic meeting stone where the Jotun and Empire could meet. We the Loyalty Assembly seek a 'writ of consecration' to dedicate part of the newly built feasting hall on Gull Island to Loyalty. We wish to recognise it's importance and protect from future harm as a place of both virtue and honour. Loyalty is not displayed by words or deeds alone, but the unity of both.|by=Writ of Consecration, Skáldsgrým Dunhearth, Loyalty Assembly|vote=Greater Majority 534-0|when=Winter Solstice 388YE|size=small}}
{{SOP|statement=The vision that led us to Gull Isle showed ghodi and mystic fostering each other's children, Jotun and Imperial learning from each other as equals. This is not a place for preaching, and we do not intend to do so. Rather let us <u>display</u> virtue through our words and deeds in this place. And likewise witness how the inspiration of the ancestors is borne out in the acts of those we meet with.|by=Statement of Principle, Yrkja Riansson Sigeing, Wintermark Assembly|vote=Greater Majority 256-14|when=Winter Solstice 388YE|size=small}}</div>
* '''The Assembly of Loyalty has passed a Writ of Consecration to place a true liao aura on Gull Isle'''
* '''The Wintermark National Assembly have allayed the Jotun's concerns about Imperial evangelism'''
* '''Initial discussions with the Jotun indicate a cautiously positive attitude towards the aura chosen'''
Last season the Assembly of [[Loyalty]] upheld the [[387YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_81|Judgement of Skáldsgrým Dunhearth]] calling for a true consecration to be placed in the new Meeting Place. The civil service have confirmed that the prognostication on this matter was thankfully simple: no alternate sites needed to be considered, and the Jotun had already expressed their openness to this expression of the Imperial faith. Despite some [[Each_age_a_lens#Virtuous_Possibilities|discontented rumblings]] from certain conservative ghodi, the [[387YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_114|words of Yrkja Riansson Sigeing]], coupled with [[387YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_128|those of Ingrid Talon-Of-The-Mark]] have broadly ended the debate. The Empire will show the Jotun Virtue through action, just as the Jotun will show the Empire honour by the same means. So long as everyone holds true to their word, there will be no trouble.

As part of the process of laying the groundwork, a stormcrow of Loyalty laid a sample consecration within a room of the Meeting Place. Numerous ghodi and warriors have taken the opportunity to indulge their curiosity about such a thing. The Jotun are not ignorant of auras, having neighboured the Empire for centuries, but they have neither access to liao nor the skills to use it. As such, the few auras they do experience are usually [[Aura#Spontaneous_Auras|spontaneous]]. Most ghodi see such auras as gifts from the ancestors, each one special. There is no consensus among them as to how liao fits into their spiritual beliefs, but Gull Isle is historically a place of cultural exchange, so the orcs who visit there tend to be open-minded. The experience of the aura known to the Empire as [[Auras_of_Loyalty#A_Peerless_Kinship|A Peerless Kinship]] sparks a lot of debate.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Gull's Isle Feasting Hall.png|caption=Artist's impression of Gull Isle's Hall by Enchantress Rosalynn Asterion|align=right|width=600}}</div>
Absent the inherent belief in Loyalty as a Virtue in and of itself, or even the common wording used to describe the aura in scholarly tomes, they bring their own cultural slant to the experience. Most of them speak of a profound awareness of the bonds of service and obligation to both their leaders and their followers, and of the necessity to play their part in the greater whole. Thralls serve the Jotun. Jotun serve the jarls. Lesser jarls serve greater jarls. Even the monarchs must serve the nation that crowns them and rule unselfishly for the good of all. All play their part, and all make sacrifices to ensure the success of the Jotun. Many who experience the aura speak heartfelt toasts over the feasting table recommitting to the ties of honour that bind them. The spiritual force of Loyalty is of little interest to the Jotun, but the ''concept'' of loyalty strikes a deep chord.

Nobody is quite sure who first suggests constructing a shrine in the Meeting Place grounds. Nonetheless, consensus quickly develops among all parties that this is the best course of action. The ghodi have constructed an ancestral shrine to the faðir and populated it with relics - why should the Empire make do with a repurposed pantry or hastily-abandoned bedchamber? The stonemasons who assist in the maintenance of the buildings quickly begin working on designs for a small monument to [[the Way]]. Something simple enough to match the Jotun shrine, but significant enough to demarcate a permanent aura.

The only thing that remains is to pass the mandate. If the General Assembly pass the mandate to authorise the consecration, they will still need to decide who will perform the consecration. If multiple judgements are raised, then the one with the greatest margin will be enacted.

<quote by="Synod Mandate, General Assembly">The Virtuous build up their fellows, they do not tear them down. We send {named priest} with a dose of true liao to consecrate the Virtuous shrine at the Meeting Place. Let us display our Loyalty through the unity of words and deeds.</quote>

If this mandate is passed and the Consecration carried out, the impact will primarily be felt in relations with the Jotun. As [[A_stone_for_a_stone#Create_A_New_Meeting_Place|previously identified]], building a new Meeting Place will make the Jotun more positively disposed towards the Empire. Not only is the new Meeting Place of truly imposing stature, but the Empire would have marked it as a place of profound Honour within the Way. The nature of the aura would also demonstrate that the Empire value their obligations to their people as the Jotun do, and that they will be prepared to make sacrifices in the name of those they care about.

Interestingly, prognosticators have identified a conjunction of the [[Sentinel Gate]] to Gull Isle due to coincide with the ''Summer Solstice''. Such conjunctions are rare, but not unknown. Details will be published following the Spring Equinox, but it seems that whoever is tasked with carrying out the consecration will have the chance to bring a party from Anvil to execute their duty at the next summit.
{{Jotun Links}}

The Marches history

2026-08-26T15:19:55Z

Dre:

[[Category:History]]
<div style="float:left; width: 600px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Marchers Marching.jpg|caption=The exodus from [[Dawn]] gives the nation its name, and defines their stubborn independence.|width=600|align=left}}</div>
==The creation of the Marches==
The history of the Marchers begins with a rebellion in Dawn. A group of disaffected yeofolk determined to leave their lord's lands and make a better life for themselves. Their complaints were numerous and varied; the lack of opportunities for those of low-birth, the failure to recognise the importance of hard work or to adequately reward it. Personal disagreements inflamed these inequities, petty rivalries and personal snubs exacerbated the tension.

The March began relatively peacefully, with petitions to the [[Dawn monarchy|monarch of Dawn]] for greater opportunity and recognition of the yeofolk. When there requests were refused the rebels laid their plan. With no other opportunities, and nowhere else to go, they marched across the country heading for the western border, intent on claiming land outside of Dawn. This initial diaspora was joined on their pilgrimage by thousands more, until they became known as the Marchers. Not all were driven by disgruntlement, a few joined the March because they imagined it would lead to glory and more than a few marched for love.

After leaving Dawn, the Marchers entered the woods of [[Miaren]]. At this time, much of the territory was still dominated by the [[vallorn]], and the March nearly ended in disaster. The local [[Navarr]], however, offered aid and support to the Marchers. After all, the Navarr have a long tradition of helping those who are unhappy with their situation find a new place to live, or a new way of life. While some chose to join the Navarr, the majority of the former yeofolk wanted a land of their own. With some aid from sympathetic stridings and steadings, the former Dawnish folk passed through [[Miaren#Greenfalls|Greenfalls]] and [[Miaren#Oakways|Oakways]] to what is now [[Upwold]]

The first Marchers had few real weapons or pieces of armour between them. The Dawnish nobility fully expected them to flee the oncoming winter or die at the hands of the orcs. The traditional view is that the Marchers confounded these expectations by taking their farm tools and padded jacks and carving out a kingdom for themselves, slaughtering the orc clans they encountered and driving them before them with grim determination. In addition to their Ambition, the Marchers benefited from a unity of purpose that the orcs broadly lacked. While the barbarians as a whole outnumbered the Marchers, they failed to present any cohesive resistance to the invading humans.

Some historians believe that the Marchers were also given some support by the Navarr, supplementing their armaments with the bows and spears both nations favoured. The benefits to the Navarr are obvious; with a friendly human nation to the west they would be able to expand the [[trods]] and hasten the destruction of the vallorn. Indeed, the Marchers succeeded beyond anything the Navarr could have hoped, ultimately providing an opportunity to reconnect with the steadings of distant Liathaven, isolated since the fall of Terunael by hostile tribes of orcs.

Regardless of how they did it, the Marchers carved out a patchwork of cleared lands controlled by a score of independent-minded yeoman households; first Upwold, and later Mitwold. Attempts to conquer the Mournwold were inconclusive; unlike their cousins in the northern regions, the orcs of the Mournwold presented a much more united front. The Mournwold clans not only found it easier put aside their differences and resist attempts to conquer them, they were more open to the idea of assimilating those orcs defeated by the Marchers. There is also evidence that they enjoyed some support from the orc clans of [[Kahraman]] to the south. While the Marchers were able to hold [[Mournwold#Freemoor|Freemoor]], the [[Mournwold#Chalkdowns|Chalkdowns]], and [[Mournwold#Green March|Green March]] at various points they were never able to hold all three simultaneously nor push the orcs out of the Mourn.

The first forays west into [[Bregasland]] began later, after Upwold and Mitwold had been settled for several generations. Those parts of the territory that were dry and fertile at this time were under the firm control of the orcs, but the estuary of the river Od had always been a treacherous marsh and the orcs gave the whole area a wide berth. It was inhabited by several [[Feni]] tribes, but they proved no match for the heavily armed and armoured Marchers and were soon driven out of the few areas of high ground. The land would support no great households, but the hostile marsh was an effective deterrent keeping the new occupants safe from the orcs and over time it became a haven for Marchers who tired of the internecine feuding between the households. To this day, the archetypal Bregas is seen as aloof and standoffish by the rest of the Marchers - while the people of Mitwold and Upwold were caught up in feuds and alliances they remained broadly independent.

In between fights with the orcs. there were sporadic conflicts with Dawn. Occasionally one or the other would attempt to expand into the neighbouring nation's territory, passing through Miaren to attack Upwold or Astolat respectively. They occasionally clashed in Miaren, but large-scale conflict in the woodlands often attracted the attention of the vallorn, or opposition from the local Navarr. To this day the easternmost parts of the Marches, the westernmost parts of Dawn, and central Miaren are scattered with battlefields and ruined forts built as part of this long-running rivalry between the nations. Despite the conflicts and the tension, the two nations often refer to moving to the other; Marchers who put on airs and graces are told to "Piss off to Dawn", while Dawn nobility or yeomen who question the validity of their ancient traditions are given equally earthy advice to move to the Marches.

==After the March==
Even as the Marches spread and established a thriving nation, there were frequent battles between the Marchers themselves. Although Marcher households found it easy to unite against a common enemy, they often fell to quarrelling amongst themselves. Bitter feuds and grudges developed, usually over land and often paid in blood. By the time the [[First Empress]] began her crusade the Marches was split into half a dozen great households, each supported by the loyalties of countless minor households. While the Marchers were culturally united, these great households (at least two of which, the [[The Marches groups#The_Talbots|Talbots]] and the [[The Marches groups#House_Bolholt|Bolholts]] still endure to this day) each ruled their lands independently. Negotiations between households were usually arranged at fairs where powerful and wealthy Marchers would meet up to make deals and alliances and to discuss trade, politics and war. The most important of these was the [[Upwold#Stockland|Stockland Fair]] held every Autumn equinox on the village green. As the Stockland Fair grew in size and importance it became an essential forum for households to air grievances with each other, make alliances, and broadly agree the defence of the Marches against the southern orcs of Mournwold.

The Marchers had no [[Army|armies]] as the Empire would recognise them at this time. Rather, each household undertook to equip and train themselves for war. If a household was threatened by orcs, the neighbouring [[steward|stewards]] would meet and select a prominent [[Yeoman_of_the_Marches|yeoman]] to act as field marshal for the coming battle. The marshal was required to make the final decision on what strategy to employ for a battle and to provide appropriate leadership once the fighting began. An experienced and successful field marshal was a huge asset to any household, allowing them to dictate terms when negotiating a potential attack on orc lands with other households.

This resistance to establishing any formal permanent leadership was a consequence of the independent and stubborn nature of the Marchers. They were in broad agreement that no single individual would be in charge - they had quit Dawn, after all, to get away from a system where the nobles ruled over those who toiled and the idea that someone would set themselves up as "monarch of the Marches" was anathema to them. Choosing their own stewards to run a household and a [[Field Marshal]] to run a battle was the pragmatic compromise that enabled leadership when it was essential, but it was a system with numerous obvious flaws. Attempts to create some more formal method of providing unity to the Marches were made, but each one quickly fell apart.

In the last years before the foundation of the Empire, this resistance to unification nearly spelled the downfall of the Marches. The Marchers were slowly driven out of their holdings in Mournwold - not an uncommon situation at a time when battle waged back-and-forth across the borders of Upwold and Mitwold. This time, however, the southern barbarians continued to push. They captured [[Bregasland#Gravenmarch|Gravenmarch]] in [[Bregasland]] - then a source of a significant amount of the Marches [[Materials#Green iron|green iron]]. They captured [[Upwold#The Heath|The Heath]] in Upwold, wresting control of [[Sutton Stone Quarries]], and launched numerous probing raids into [[Mitwold#Golden Downs|Golden Downs]] and [[Mitwold#Oddmire|Oddmire]] - the latter having the potential to cut Bregasland off from the rest of the Marches entirely.

Those yeomen who had not lost land to the orcs were not overly concerned - the barbarians regularly raiding the southern Marches and were always turned back - but this time something was different. The orcs fought with a singular purpose, and their internal divisions seemed significantly less pressing in stark contrast to the Marchers themselves. Historians point to a similar situation in [[Kahraman]], and to the rise of the first kings and queens of Narkyst exerting a strong unifying influence over orcs displaced by the Marchers and the Freeborn in previous centuries.

==Joining the Empire==
It is perhaps unsurprising that in the face of the barbarian threat, when [[Landskeeper]] Brigit of Dourfen brought word to the Stockland Fair of the meeting arranged by the [[First Empress]], only a small handful of Stewards were prepared to leave their estates to make the journey to distant [[Casinea#Anvil|Anvil]]. While a number of other households sent representatives along, they were largely more interested in ''"keeping an eye on whatever it is the Dawnish are up to now"'' as one of them put it.

After hearing the Empress' proposal, the Marchers who attended withdrew to consider the matter. Most of the stewards who had attended in person were in favour of the proposed alliance, but there was little agreement among the remainder. The contrary, stubborn, and vengeful nature of the Marchers was a well-known stereotype even in pre-Imperial times and the mere fact that some households were prepared to support the nascent Empire seemed to be enough to ensure that their rivals opposed it. Eventually the group nominated Henry of Meade to present their decision to the Empress and the other gathered dignitaries - some of the Marchers were prepared to join, but the remainder were not prepared to sacrifice their freedom for the security on offer.

The Empress publicly refused to accept the offer. "''I will take all of you, or none of you.''" she announced. It fell to wise Brigit to explain the Empress pronouncement - that the Empire had no use for a divided land. It would not take some of the Marcher Households, and let the others squabble among themselves. The Empress was eager to embrace the Marches but any attempt by her to unite the nation by force would be a disaster. The Empire could not afford to become embroiled in a civil war and worse the Marcher ability to hold grudges would leave the Empire viewed not as liberators but as conquerors. If the Marchers were serious about joining, they would need to be united in doing so.

Another of the Empress' close confidants, Barell, Merchant Prince of Tassato, approached Henry of Meade with an alternative. The cities of Tassato and Sarvos were looking to join forces with others to form a league of like-minded city states. Meade could "cut their losses" and join the Empire as part of this new league. The offer might have been appealing to the [[alders]] of Meade, but it was given short shrift by the stewards of Upwold and their representatives. The city might be an important source of trade and wealth for many yeomen but by long tradition it was land that ruled the Marches, and not coin.

==The Cousin's War==
The Marchers returned home, and brought word of the Empress and her plans to the next grand fair at Stockland. The news was divisive; there were many who argued passionately that this was a chance for the Marches to unite as a nation and that that, and their new allies, would give them the strength to finally drive the orcs from Mitwold and potentially conquer the Mourne. The detractors were just as adamant that the Empire would spell the end of Marcher independence, that they would be ruled over by foreigners, including the widely disparaged nobles of Dawn. The Fair descended into arguments, and in some cases brawling, as drunken Marchers spat insults at each other. It was a relief to many when the Fair managed to close without open fighting breaking out, but the two factions withdrew, hostile and angry, and a descent into civil war began.

Following the dissolution of the Fair, those Marcher households and landskeepers who supported the idea of joining the Empire tried to recruit as many Marchers as possible to their side. Steadily the number of Marcher households remaining neutral was whittled away, with more and more feeling the need to choose one side or the other, or risk being considered an enemy by both sides. There were numerous armed clashes between rival households and old grudges came to the fore, leading to open skirmishes and bloody exchanges. It was always common for a household to call on allies when a grudge turned to open-fighting but the matter of the Empire split the Marches and the bloodshed escalated like never before. There were a few minor battles, but though the losers lost their lands and in many cases their lives, for the most part they were inconclusive, neither side could shift the balance firmly enough to settle the matter.

While there were certainly folk on both sides motivated by the grudges and rivalries that underpinned Marcher society, others had more idealistic inspiration. [[Life of Tom Drake|Tom Drake]], for example, wrote of his certainty that if the Marches could not be united, they would be conquered either by the orcs, or by a newly-invigorated Dawn. With the might of Highguard and the southern city-states behind them, the Marchers would be unable to resist the Empire's hunger for their rich farmlands. Even if they did not ultimately end up joining the Empire, the Marches could no longer afford to be a divided nation of petty households squabbling with each other. Henry of Meade spoke several times of the danger of an Empire where the elitist notions of Dawn were allowed to reign unchecked, and of what such an alliance might look like without any Marcher common sense to balance our Dawnish pig-headedness.

By contrast his main rival on the opposite side of the matter, the fiery Agnes Tiller of Wayford, argued that the Marches would simply be swallowed up if they attempted to join the new alliance. Instead of going cap in hand to this Dawnish monarch and her Highborn allies, the Marchers should look north to their friendly rivals in [[Wintermark]] - after all the Winterfolk king Alof Beorning had also declined to join the proposed Empire. She and her supporters actively sought a military alliance between the Marches, Wintermark, and the Navarr of Miaren and Hercynia, with the Winterfolk serving as liaisons to those Varushkans who were also unconvinced by the First Empress' vision.

After a year of escalation, the stewards again came together at Stockland but this time there was no appetite for trade and celebration. The two factions and their supporters camped separately on either side of Hepton Bridge. Those who sided with the Empress were led by Brigit, Henry, and the canny military commander, Tom Drake. They established an armed camp on Monk's Heath on the northern bank of the River Meade. Those who believed the Marches should remain independent were led by Gregory of Ashill and Mary Hay. They pitched camp south of the river, on the commons at Maiden's Run. The fair itself was cancelled for the first time in living memory, and as the sun rose over the fields both armies began to move.

The fighting was bloody, and continued until close to sundown. Although they marginally outnumbered their rivals, Tom Drake's strategy was widely credited with carrying the day. The defeated stewards were forced to accept the outcome to keep their lands, those who refused either fled the Marches or were executed. The Battle of Hepton Bridge was not strictly the last battle of the Cousin's War, but with the deaths of so many opposing stewards on the fields of Stockmarch, the outcome was never in doubt. Some of the defeated households bowed their heads to inevitability, while others refused to capitulate and lost their lands. A few, led by Agnes Tiller's surviving daughter Hazel, quit the Marches with their soldiers and fled north.

Within weeks of the victory at Stockland, Henry and Drake drew up their forces on the fields in Ashbrook and dispatched an invitation to the Empress to meet them there. The popular version of events tells of how [[First Empress]] marched out of southern [[Miaren]], along the road guarded by [[Brock's Toll]], on foot with her standard bearer, and accepted the Marcher request to join the Empire. There is plenty of evidence in the Marches however that this version of events owes more to fancy than fact. The Marchers bargained with the representatives of the putative new alliance not as humble supplicants but as people who had just won a war of unification. Henry and Tom laid down several very specific demands regarding the nature of the alliance, the position of the nations within it, the adoption of the [[Field_Marshal|field marshal]] to provide battlefield leadership where soldiers from multiple nations worked together, and crucially the requirements for how the military of the member nations would operate. Legend has it that Henry is reported to have thrown the Empress own words back at her when presenting the demands ending with the phrase "''we want all of them, or none of them''" - presenting the very real chance that the Marches would not join the Empire and would seek their own path.

The first foundations of the [[Military Council]] were laid during this meeting, with the Marchers receiving unexpected support from both representatives of [[the Brass Coast]], the early [[the League|League]], and several factions of the [[Navarr]]. In the end, the Marcher demands were met and the newly-united Marches became part of the Empire.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Marcher.jpg|align=right|width=350}}

==The Marches in the Empire==
The first thing the newly united Marchers did was turn their armies south and with the assistance of League mercenaries and bands of soldiers from the Brass Coast and Highguard, drive the orcs out of Graven Rock. By removing the immediate threat to Bregasland, the Marchers of Mitwold and Upwold went some way toward reinforcing their claims to have put the past behind them and unified under a single banner. The Bregasland households officially joined the unified Marches shortly afterward.

The barbarians in Upwold and Mitwold could not hold out against Marchers supported by the Empire, and retreated south into the Mournwold. Their raids continued, but the Marchers were in a much better position to rebuff them. Still, the southern orcs remained a constant threat to the Marches, until 74YE when the conquest of Mournwold drove the surviving forces down into Kahraman.

Almost immediately after securing their southern borders, however, the new armies were called away to fight in the first campaign of the new Empire. Tom Drake of Redston led his household and a band of landskeepers to Varushka along with one of the first Imperial armies - the [[Drakes]]. They fought through unfamiliar forests, alongside all those who opposed [[Alderei the Fair]] and brought Varushka into the Empire. Historians say that Tom faced the boyar-king on the battlefield and ultimately defeated him. The Redston folk wear a broken crown on their livery to this day.

Entry to the Empire brought some changes. Pious Marcher folk returning from pilgrimages to [[Highguard]] founded the monasteries which now dot the landscape. Friars have become an important part of most households and few powerful Marcher households do not have one or more of these learned folk by their side. Imperial writ created the market towns, outside the control of the households. Yet the traditional beliefs that give the Marchers their strength have endured every transformation brought by the Empire.

==Marchers on the Throne==
Two Marchers have sat on [[the Throne|the Imperial Throne]], and their reigns could not have been more different.

The first Marcher to take the Throne was [[Emperor James]] of [[Mournwold]]. Appointed in 257YE, he was crowned as the Empire was in real danger of being destroyed by the barbarian [[orc|orcs]] after decades of fruitless back-and-forth conquest and liberation. He is perhaps most famous for "''fixing the borders''", making it illegal for the Empire to add new territory until such time as the Senate and the Synod were both in agreement that the Empire was sufficiently strengthened as to be able to hold those territories. His reign ushered in the [[Imperial_history#.28281_YE_-_300_YE.29_The_Second_Interregnum|Second Interregnum]], just under twenty years of relative peace and prosperity for the entire Empire during which the Throne remained vacant.

The second Marcher Throne was [[Emperor Walter]] of [[Upwold]]. An effective businessman and [[alders|alder]], he was appointed only a short time ago in 371YE. His reign was very short, and very chaotic - he attempted to run the Empire like a business with near disastrous consequences. He is largely viewed as a failure and an embarrassment by the rest of the Marches. About the only good thing to come out of his reign was an awareness of just how much trouble the Empire was in - laying the groundwork for the appointment of [[Empress Britta]] and the [[Imperial_history#Resurgence|resurgence]] that continues to this day.
===More Marches History===
* [[Life_of_Tom_Drake#Alderei_the_Fair|Life of Tom Drake]] - contains discussion of Marcher hero, and casts a new light on the Cousins' War
* [[Steward of Brock's Heath]] - [[Historical research]] into the life of "old Morgan", a pre-Imperial steward of House Brockheath, which discusses early-Marcher relationships with the [[Navarr]] in particular
* [[Bregasland and the smiths]] - research relating to the sinking of Bregasland, and the story of the disappearing "Marcher smiths"
* [[The Ore Hills Rebellion]] - research regarding the short-lived rebellion in Mournwold in 326YE
{{The Marches Links}}

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2026-08-25T16:46:00Z

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Mitwold

2026-08-24T11:50:49Z

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{{CaptionedImage|file=RegionsofMitwold.png|caption=The households of Mitwold engage in feuding and bitter rivalry.|title=Regions of Mitwold|align=left|width=500}}
==The Pride of the Marches==
Mitwold is arguably the richest of the Marcher territories. There's gold in the soil of Mitwold - the gold of rich harvests of fruit and grain. It has a substantial coast, scattered with small fishing villages and the occasional lonely watchtower. As one moves further inland, the rocky coast gives way to fertile chalk-soiled downs, with rich game-filled woodland, large [[farm|farms]], and prosperous [[market town|market towns]] beyond. The largest settlement in Mitwold - indeed in the Marches - is the "town" of [[#Meade|Meade]], standing proudly at the mouth of the river that shares its name. More a small city than a town, Meade is in some ways the beating heart of the Marches.

When the other nations imagine the Marches, it is usually Mitwold they bring to mind - acres upon acres of well-tended fields and orchards, laid out like a grand patchwork blanket, scattered with villages connected by roads and dirt tracks. Here and there a lonely menhir watches over the land around it, often marking a point of historical interest, or serving as a meeting place for the [[landskeeper|landskeepers]] of the adjoining area.

This is also the territory where many of the best known [[The_Marches_culture_and_customs#Sports_and_Games|ball games]] are played, and it is a regular occurrence for some local dispute to be settled over a savage game of rugby, foot-the-ball, or rounders. Some of the traditional inter-village or inter-household games go back centuries, having become regular fixtures long before the foundation of the Empire. Many have their own traditions - the people of Parkestown and Harwich in the [[#Maiden Downs|Maiden Downs]] compete annually to determine the control of a prime stretch of grazing land between their two villages, for example,

More than anywhere else in the Marches, the [[Marcher household|households]] of Mitwold are engaged in feuding and bitter rivalry. The closer two households are to one another, the more likely it is that they are engaged in a long-running feud. Often the original cause of the feud is lost to history, having become a self-perpetuating state of affairs as each slight delivered by a rival becomes justification for the retaliation that follows. These feuds rarely lead to bloodshed - it is a rivalry of skinned knuckles not bloodied knives.

==Recent History==
Mitwold's history has been comparatively peaceful. Bregasland and Mournwold provide a buffer, protecting it from the martial ambitions of the [[Jotun]]. That is not to say it has been without incident; several times in pre-Imperial history the people of the Marches were at war with the people of [[Wintermark]]. Lonely menhirs and stands of ancient trees along the northern borders of [[#The Meadows|the Meadows]] and [[#Meade March|Meade March]] mark ancient, largely-forgotten battlegrounds. From time to time, stories circulate of unquiet spirits around some of the barrow mounds - bitter Wintermark warriors interred in Marcher soil.

For the most part though, Mitwold has enjoyed the benefits of being a relatively safe place to live, secure in its prosperity - or as sure as any agricultural territory reliant on good harvests can be.

The [[March on their belly|disastrous failure of the Autumn harvest]] in 379YE was followed by a particularly [[March on their belly#Resolution|harsh winter]] during which all the farmers of the Marches suffered significant losses in order to keep the Imperial armies marching. Then the Spring 380YE planting was hit with torrential rains and a vicious blight that devoured many of the seeds before they can be put in the ground. While the rest of the Empire was enjoying a burst of [[The prime colour of the world|vitality and fertility]], the farms of Bregasland, Upwold, and Mitwold were once again labouring under the yoke of a vicious magical [[curse]] that ruined the crops, sapped the life from the beasts in the fields, and spread sickness and hunger wherever it touched.

The plan to construct the ''Imperial Breadbasket'' began in the markets of [[Mitwold#Meade|Meade]] and received immediate support from [[market town|market towns]] across the Marches. Led by the people of Meade, the alders put their hands in their pockets - not as an act of charity, but as recognition of the fact the Marches prosper when the farmers prosper. It was an investment for the future, as well as an effort to "darn the rip" between the folk of the market towns, and the rest of the Marches. As a result, shortly before the Spring Equinox 381YE, work was completed on a network of granaries and storehouses across Mitwold as part of the [[The_Marches_economic_interests#Granaries and Storehouses - the Imperial Breadbasket|Imperial Breadbasket]] [[great work]]. In addition to its work in securing the future of the Marches, this has helped to improve relations between the yeomanry and the residents of the market towns - reinforcing that even though they do not till the soil, they are still Marchers.

Shortly before the Autumn Equinox 380YE, an earth tremor struck Mitwold, its epicentre near the town of [[#Wayford|Wayford]]. At first, the effects seemed minor - a little damage to some of the buildings in Wayford - but shortly after creatures similar to [[ogre|ogres]] began to appear in the area. Investigations by Marcher heroes discovered that the cause of the raids - if not the earth tremor itself - was an unnatural creature, buried deep beneath the earth. "Bloody Jack" appeared to be some sort of horrible troll creature, no doubt the source of the local legends of Jack-in-Chains. The entity lay at the bottom of an old stone-choked well, bound with magical chains - chains that had been damaged in the earth tremor and were close to breaking completely. The creature remained a threat to Mitwold until the Summer Solstice 381YE. With the [[Under_the_red_sky#Tharim|aid of the Winter Archmage]], several brave yeofolk made a bargain with the sinister [[eternal]] [[Tharim]], allowing the subterranean beast to once again be bound tightly. Several foolish youths tried to gain access to the troll-creature's tomb in search of treasure, but such expeditions were decisively curtailed by the placement of the Pale Chain, a white granite stone that now blocks the entrance to the well.

The business with Bloody Jack also brought to light stories of the Marcher blacksmiths - legendary figures who combined a practical appreciation for metalwork with a calling for negotiating with eternals. These capable individuals disappeared from the Marches as the result of a deal with the Autumn eternal [[Estavus]], and so long ago they were largely forgotten. Several Marcher scholars [[Bregasland and the smiths#The Marcher Smiths|looked into the situation]], and worked to secure the return or release of this uniquely Marcher tradition - a possibility that was [[Smith|recently realised]].

After the Autumn Equinox 387YE, a great host of [[Jotun]] [[Rose_grow_the_rushes_o%27#Pride_of_the_Marches|invaded Mitwold]] from [[Bregasland]] and ultimately were able to capture, and sack, [[#Meade|Meade]] itself. The Lasambrian Jotun tried to push east, but were [[Where_the_slow_river_flows|held back]] by Imperial armies. After the Spring Equinox 388YE, they were [[Pride_in_the_Marches#Mitwold_Triumph|ultimately driven out]] and Mitwold liberated, but not without some significant losses.

==Points of Interest==
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Marcher Finery.jpg|caption=Bridget Talbot served as Senator for Mitwold in the difficult years after the death of [[Empress Britta]].|align=right|width=300}}</div>
=== Meade ===
The largest settlement in the Marches is the city (technically a [[market town]]; it received its charter from [[Empress Mariika]] in 225YE) of Meade in [[#Meade March|Meade March]]. Crowded around the mouth of the eponymous river on the shores of Westmere, Meade is not only the spiritual and administrative heart for the nation, it is also a port whose ships deal in fishing, trade with foreign nations and sea defence against the barbarians through Westmere and the cold salt waters of the Gullet.

Meade is where yeomen from across the Marches come to spend hard-earned coin, and often plays host to foreign visitors from other nations. The lavish week-long Harvest’s End Festival takes place in Meade every autumn, and sees the city fill with folk from all across the Empire. Still, Meade is not without its problems. Some yeomen look askance at the citizens, questioning how they can be ''proper'' Marchers given they live in a town rather than on a farm. To many of their critics, they are merchants, not true yeomen. They point to the scandal during the reign of [[Empress Giselle]] when several alders were implicated in a plot to secede from the Marches - a plot that never had much popular support but whose existence alone was enough to rekindle rumours that the folk of Meade are "not proper." At the same time, the alders of Meade know that their settlement is not even half the size of the great cities of [[the League]], and this can lead to efforts to try and compete with the [[The_League_leadership|merchant princes]] of [[Tassato]] and [[Temeschwar]] with predictably disappointing consequences.

Still, regardless of the past and the attitude of some suspicious yeomen, the people of Meade are Marchers through-and-through. They are practical, stubborn people who hold fiercely to the [[The_Marches_culture_and_customs|traditions]] of the Marches. As their recent involvement in the formation of the Imperial Breadbasket demonstrates, when push comes to shove they look out for their own people - the people of the Marches.

In the wake of the death of [[Empress Britta]] in 376YE, semi-organised groups of bandits began to prey on traders travelling by land from Meade. By [[Town defences|order]] of the [[Senate]], in early 377YE a series of watchtowers and earthworks were constructed around Meade to help address this problem. The works were overseen by Bridget Eastville née Talbot (senator for Mitwold) as part of a larger plan to provide protection to towns throughout the Empire. While the defences are not sufficient to qualify Meade as a true [[fortifications|fortification]], they have already helped reduce brigandry throughout the territory. In late 387YE, Meade was [[Rose_grow_the_rushes_o%27#The_Walls_of_Meade|conquered by the Jotun]] for the first time in Imperial history. The barbarians extensively looted the city, and that loot was ultimately used to [[Pride_in_the_Marches#Worrisome_Gullet|secure allies]] - the raiders of [[Sea_of_Snow#Fjorknae|Fjorknae]].

The [[Bailiff of the Grand Market]] has a small office in Meade, although most title holders spend little time there (apart from overseeing the security of the grand market on the third weekend of each month). The Bailiff is an [[Imperial title]] appointed each Winter Solstice by the farmers of the Marches.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Forte Fidelis.jpg||caption=Built by Richard Tunstall to guard Mitwold from Jotun aggression.|align=right|width=350}}

===Forte Fidelis===
In 377YE '''Richard Tunstall''', as the [[Imperial Master of Works]], approved the creation of Forte Fidelis in Golden Downs. It was one of only two castles approved by the Master before the Senate [[Amend_powers_of_Imperial_Master_of_Works|removed their ability to do so]]. Construction was funded partly by the Master's stipend (before it was removed by the Senate), and partly by money raised and donated by the Marchers themselves. Work on the fortification was completed shortly before the Winter Solstice 378YE.

The fortification was completed while the [[Accept_Jotun_ceasefire|Jotun ceasefire]] was still in place as a counter to Mitwold's perceived vulnerability to attack from the Mournwold, once hostilities inevitably resumed. Surrounded on all sides by a deep moat, accessible only by a relatively narrow bridge. the castle has yet to see combat. It takes its name from the [[Languages#Latin|Old Asavean]] motto of the Talbot household - "forte et fidelis." Following his retirement from Imperial politics, Richard Tunstall still serves as the castellan, ensuring that the castle is prepared for any potential invasion of Mitwold.

=== Hay ===
“The golden fields of Hay” appear in many a Marcher song. Hay is quintessential Marches, a small rural town set amongst rolling fields. Following the invasion of the Mournwold, the folk of Hay were been deeply concerned about the threat of further orc aggression. Several locals have formed themselves into the Hay Irregulars, an unofficial force dedicated to helping turn back the barbarians should they attempt a concerted raid. The Irregulars served with some distinction fighting off small bands of raiding Jotun, before the Mournwold was finally liberated in Autumn 381YE.

Hay is rightly famous for its fields of wheat, and for its bakeries. Many of the farmers of the [[#Golden Downs|Golden Downs]] bring their grain to market here, where a significant portion of it is used to make flour and bread products including the famous "Hay Huffer" - a crusty triangular bread roll with a thick, doughy texture designed to fill the bellies of labourers across Mitwold and beyond.

=== Wayford ===
A large market town at the confluence of the upper tributaries of the Meade. A layer of gritstone in between the chalk of the wolds means the river is wide and shallow, allowing livestock from the hills to cross, or embark on riverboats to Meade itself. Built along the southern borders of [[#The Meadows|the Meadows]], it is a bustling settlement known for its travellers' inns and for its monthly cattle and sheep markets. Merchants visiting Meade pass through Wayford, as do Marcher traders exporting food and drink to the wider Empire. The town is quite cosmopolitan - there is a large transitory population of [[Wintermark|Winterfolk]], [[the League|League]] citizens, and [[Navarr]] coming to Wayford to travel.

All this prosperous trade attracts its fair share of trouble, and the [[Bailiff of the Grand Market]] is regularly called upon to deal with bandits and brigands preying on trade along the roads that pass through Wayford. At the river fork stand several gibbets with a long and bloody history, notable in recent years for playing host to Red Walder and his outlaws, a plague on the Mitwold for many years finally brought to justice in 359YE following a week-long standoff in the Shepford Brewery near the Wayford Bridge. The town is also notable due to legends of a monstrous creature known variously as [[Jack of Irons|Jack-in-chains]], Jack-of-Irons and Bloody Jack who is said to be buried somewhere nearby. Shortly before the Winter Solstice 381YE, a menhir of white granite called [[#The Pale Chain|the Pale Chain]] was [[Construct_Giant's_Well|raised]] over the site where the giant is apparently entombed.

The [[Where_the_slow_river_flows#The_Battle_of_Wayford|Battle of Wayford]] following the Spring Equinox 388YE was a decisive engagement in the Jotun invasion of Mitwold. The Empire was ultimately victorious, going on to drive the Jotun out of the Marcher territory entirely, but the fighting was marked by peculiar magical chaos that has led to some concern as to the state of the River Meade downstream from its location.

=== The Maiden Stone ===
An ancient menhir that stands in a scorched area of land in a grove of ash trees. Every year before the Spring festival the farmers of the area weave the largest straw dolly known in the territories. The Straw Maiden, as the creation is known, is 12 feet tall adorned with wild flowers with intricate patterns of vines woven into her skirt. The Maiden’s skirt is hollow at the base and she is placed atop the stone. The [[Landskeeper|landskeepers]] of the [[#Maiden Downs|Maiden Downs]] then perform a night-long ritual designed to bring prosperity to the fields and flocks of the people of the Downs. The Maiden then stands in the grove until the end of Summer, visited by travellers who leave gifts of food, [[The_Marches_hearth_magic#Poppets|poppets]], minor trinkets, and other offerings at her foot in the hope that she may bring them some small favour. Although the Maiden is exposed to all weathers and temperaments, she does not rot, blow away or decay in any way, staying as fresh and brightly golden as the day she was placed upon the stone. Then, at the festival of Autumn Harvest there is another ceremony, the culmination of which sees the Maiden set alight, burning until there is nothing left.

Needless to say, the ceremonies of the Maiden Stone are roundly criticised by priests of the [[Synod]]. There have been efforts by priests from outside the Marches to ban the practice, denounced as the worst kind of [[Religious_crime#Idolatry|idolatry]]. The [[Sevenfold Path]] has occasionally attempted to get the [[Conclave]] to [[Declaration#Declaration of Interdiction|interdict]] the ceremonies without success. In 186YE and 247YE, the ceremonies were stopped for a short time but in both cases resumed less than a year later.

The landskeepers of Meadow Downs claim that they are simply performing the three powerful farm-blessing [[enchantment|enchantments]] ([[Blessing of New Spring]], [[Strong Ox, Golden Sun]], and [[Gathering the Harvest]]) and that the gifts left by visitors are simply a harmless tradition. There is some evidence that the landskeepers also perform a rite in the depths of Winter without any witnesses; lurid speculation surrounds this ceremony.

===The Pale Chain===
The Pale Chain is a hulking monolith of white granite from [[Upwold#Sutton_Stone_Quarries|Sutton Stone Quarries]] raised near the town of [[#Wayford|Wayford]] shortly after the Autumn Equinox 381YE. The looming rock is engraved with a spreading oak tree above a three-link chain, giving the menhir its common name. Some rumours suggest there is a second engraving on the bottom of the stone, allegedly in the form of a peculiarly proportioned lion. The construction was plagued with problems and vocal accusations from some of the workers that the project was cursed. One of the skilled masons responsible for shaping the stone lost her arm as the stone was lowered into place, and many of those working on the site muttered in hushed tones of similar unlikely "accidents".

The Pale Chain covers the well where the ravenous giant known as "Bloody Jack" apparently lies forever entombed. The site is watched over by a handful of yeomen from [[The Marches groups#House_Guildenstern|House Guildenstern]] in [[Upwold#Stock_March|Stock March]] - something that has raised some hackles in Maiden Downs. There are also reports of a peculiar pale figure, wrapped in chains and with unpleasantly inhuman features, lurking near the stone on moonless nights - many believe this is one of the heralds of [[The_Thrice-cursed_Court#Tharim|Tharim]] that came to the Marches via the winter [[regio]] known as the [[Hunters_and_wolves#In_the_Copse_of_the_Bone_Birch|Copse of the Bone Birch]] in [[Upwold#Birchland|Birchland]]. According to local stories, if one approaches the stone on such nights and presses one's ear to the ground, a low rumbling voice can be heard from deep in the earth ranting and raving about thieves and liars. Local children have already begun daring one another to approach the stone and test this story out.

===Statue of Cockscroft Lad===
In 385YE, [[Siakha]] heralds [[When Spring comes|attacked]] a Wanderers-Allfriars game, killing thirty-two. '''Jonathan Piper of Cockscroft''', whose early warning prevented wider tragedy, is celebrated with a statue at the old Wanderers practice ground. His expression is mournful, head turned to the name-covered ball in his left hand as he raises a bell to call the hue and cry.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Householder.jpg|width=250|align=left}}

==Regions==
===Golden Downs===
The rich farms of Golden Downs are home to the prosperous village of [[#Hay|Hay]], as well as a number of smaller farming villages. It is also the location of the [[Keeper of the Golden Fields#The Silent Giant|Silent Giant]] standing stone that watches over the surrounding fields, and is in turn watched over by the [[Keeper of the Golden Fields]]. Several other stones mark the old boundaries of one farm or another but the Silent Giant is the largest.

For the last three decades, the Golden Downs has been in a state of war-readiness, expecting an invasion from the Mournwold - indeed the Jotun raided north into the region many times over the duration of the occupation. Citizen militia such as the Hay Irregulars prided themselves on their readiness to fight off such raids, even in the absence of organised Marcher armies. Many [[military unit|independent Marcher captains]] cut their teeth taking [[Military_unit#Take_Independent_Action|paid work]] protecting the rich farms of Mitwold. The need for such special forces was reduced significantly in 377YE when the [[Imperial Master of Works]] approved the creation of [[#Forte Fidelis|Forte Fidelis]] in Golden Downs.

During the Jotun invasion of the Mournwold in 349YE, many of the citizens of [[Mournwold#Green March|Green March]] fled north to the Golden Downs; a long history of good relations and familial ties between the two regions helped to mitigate any negative effects of this influx of landless yeomen. Unlike many of the Mournwold refugees the majority of these former refugees show little interest in returning to reclaim the land they (or more often their parents) lost three decades ago.

===Maiden Downs===
The Downs are covered in a patchwork of wealthy and prosperous farms. Some outsiders attribute the success of the farms here to the magic of the [[#Maiden Stone|Maiden Stone]], but the yeomen who work the land here disparage such suggestions. Rather, they point out, their farms are prosperous because they work bloody hard to keep them that way. Still, the [[Landskeeper|Landskeepers]] of the Maiden Downs have a reputation for being a little peculiar, and to be significantly more secretive than those in the rest of the Marches - almost ''[[Bregasland|bregas]]'' in the words of some.

There are no large settlements in Maiden Downs - not even along the highway that links [[#Wayford|Wayford]] to [[Upwold#Stockland|Stockland]]. Farmers are as likely to sell their produce in either town, depending on which is paying the better price in any given season. This has led to a few feuds between households of Maiden Downs and those of Golden Downs and the Meadows over what is seen as "''a lack of loyalty to Mitwold''."

===Meade March===
*'''Quality:''' City, Coastal
Often called the heart of Mitwold, Meade March is the location of the small city of [[#Meade|Meade]], built at the mouth of the river that shares its name. Meade is prosperous, and its port bustling, and since the [[Dredge the Westmere|dredging of the Westmere]], the waters are now deep and wide enough to allow passage to an [[navy|navy]]. Before the Westmere was dredged the alders of the city occasionally discussed how dredging the river would allow the construction of a [[shipyard]], but there was never enough support for such a large-scale undertaking. With the river dredging complete there is now discussion on whether a shipyard will be built after all, or at least a [[fortification]] given that Meade is now potentially at risk of being sacked by a barbarian navy.

Outside of Meade, the Meade March is covered with farms and scattered villages, and even a few small towns. The yeomen here have a somewhat undeserved reputation in the rest of the Marches for considering themselves "''better''" than everyone else because of their proximity to Meade - of giving themselves "''airs and graces''". A common stereotype that appears occasionally in plays and stories is that of the Meade yeoman who farms their field wearing a rich outfit, more suited to a feast day than a work day. There is little factual foundation to this prejudice - although many yeomen of the Meade March visit the city at least once a season and thus have access to a significantly wider array of goods and cloth than residents of more isolated parts of the Marches.

===The Meadows===
While most of this region is rolling farmland, the northern Meadows abuts the [[Kallavesa#Wittal_Grove|Wittal Grove]] of [[Kallavesa]]. The woodlands are home to at least one group of [[Feni]], but for the most part the Meadows is a peaceful, pastoral place. Before the Empire, however, there were occasional clashes between Marchers and raiders from Wintermarker along the border, and the northern woodlands still have an unsavoury reputation as being haunted.

South of the border, the forests that once grew in the Meadows were cleared centuries ago. Here and there between the farms however, a lone tree stands as a boundary marker and a silent reminder of a time when much of the Meadows was covered in trees. These so-called ''Lone Oaks'' are reminiscent in some ways of the menhirs found in other parts of the Marches. According to tales told across the Meadows, in the first years of the Marches the northern woods were home to terrible monsters who regularly attacked people trying to settle north of the Meade river. Eventually, however, a wily blacksmith made a deal with the ruler of the monsters. The creatures would leave the settlers alone if in return the Marchers stopped cutting all the trees down. In the end the Marchers had the last laugh however - they cut down almost all the trees leaving only a scattering of Lone Oaks - but by the careful wording of the agreement the monsters were unable to harm the people of the Meadows as they had kept to the letter of their bargain.

In addition to its farms and eerie trees, the Meadows is also well known for its [[herb garden|herb gardens]], especially in the north. In particular, the quality of [[True Vervain]] grown in the Meadows is generally held to be unmatched in the Marches. The herbalists of the Meadows are known to make occasional pilgrimages north to Wittal, in Kallavesa, to share lore and trade herbs.

===Oddmire===
*'''Quality:''' Coastal, [[#Under Threat|Under Threat]] (Jotun) when the Jotun control [[Bregasland#Ottermire|Ottermire]]
When the Marchers first arrived in Mitwold, Oddmire was extremely marshy. Several decades of work reclaimed most of the region, despite the best efforts of angry [[marshwalkers]] to stop the draining of the swamps and marshes. There are still some treacherous bogs in Oddmire, especially along the southern and western borders with Bregasland, but the majority of the region is fertile farmland. As is traditional in the marches, there are large numbers of farms here, but there are also a few more isolated communities built on the small, rocky islands that lie along the southern shore of the Westmere.

The most prominent settlement here is assuredly '''Odd’s End''', a bustling fishing port. The fisherfolk of Odd's End are known to have something of a chip on their shoulder when it comes to the larger, more prosperous Meade. They fly their banner - a leaping salmon - proudly whenever they set sail and barely a year passes without a major row between fisherfolk from Odds End and boats out of Meade over fishing grounds. A well-respected monastery - Odd's House - stands near the port, dedicated to the virtue of [[Pride]], and the monks there regularly encourage the people of Odd's End to stand up for their rights against the larger Meade.

Beginning to rival Odd's End in prominence is '''Steward's Landing'''. In early 384YE, Imperial heroes [[By_fountains,_by_fishes#Steward.27s_Landing|stopped a Jotun raid]] from destroying this small coastal village. ''Jarvey "Strongoar" Oddsboy'', the steward of the small [[Marcher household]] who oversees Steward's Landing repaid that aid by throwing his full support [[By fountains, by fishes|behind the ambitious raids]] into [[Skallahn]]. By all accounts Jarvey and the rest of House Oddsboy did quite well out of [[Take it further|both raids]]. Part of his profits were put towards expanding Steward's Landing, and along with several fellow coastal stewards, they turned the village into a permanent staging post for Marcher [[fleet|ship captains]] - such as they are - to raid the coastline of Kalsea and [[Fleet#Raid_Kalsea's_coastline|take the wealth]] of the [[Jotun]]. The loot that passes through Steward's Landing has helped fund addition jetties, a boatyard, and expanded the prestige of House Oddsboy significantly.
<box>'''Odd of Odd's End'''<br>
Odd of Odd's End is a popular folk hero from the early days of the Empire, born around 45YE. She was an outspoken devotee of the virtue of [[Pride]], and in later life founded the [[monastery]] that still bears her name. Settling her folk on the shore when the Marchers first reached the Westmere, declaring that this would be the place where she would end her days, she was instrumental in the draining of Oddmire among other significant deeds. A series of stories, popular with Mitwold's mummers, recount the many deeds of this folk hero, especially her battles against marshwalkers, and her rivalry with the alders of Meade.<br><br>Despite her popularity, there has been no serious effort to have Odd recognised as an [[Paragons_and_Exemplars#Exemplars|exemplar]] by the [[Synod]]. When the matter has been raised, the abbot of Odd's End generally shrugs and responds with a variant of "We know she's an exemplar, why should we look to outsiders to confirm it?" Regardless, "Mother Odd" was recognised as an exemplar of Pride in 376YE, shortly before the requirements for [[recognition]] were made stricter. This appears to have had little effect on the people of Odd's End.</box>

==Special Qualities==
===Under threat===
* '''Oddmire'''
During the Winter Solstice 384YE, the Jotun worked with Marcher traitors to expand and reinforce the Otterway in Bregasland. Formerly a narrow raised track that could just about allow two ox carts to pass one another without falling into the fens, it is now a solid construction that would allow twenty soldiers to march abreast along it... into Mitwold.

'''Game Effect:''' While a region has the ''Under threat'' quality, the Jotun and their allies are considered to have a [[beachhead]] in that region. This means their armies will not suffer the usual penalty to take the first region in an enemy territory, as long as they are attacking a region with the ''under threat'' quality.

{{Senate Elections|Senator_for_Mitwold|Territory=Mitwold|Season=Summer}}

==OOC Notes==
* As of the start of the Summer Solstice 388YE, the Marches control the entire territory. Mitwold is an Imperial territory.
* [[#Forte Fidelis|Forte Fidelis]] in [[#Golden Downs|Golden Downs]] is a rank one [[fortification]].
* [[Farm|Farms]] in the territory benefit from the [[The_Marches_economic_interests#The Imperial Breadbasket|Imperial Breadbasket]] and the Black Canal and produce an extra 72 rings each season.
* [[Business|Businesses]] in the territory benefit from the Black Canal and produce an extra 36 rings each season

==Further Reading==
* [[Pride_in_the_Marches#Mitwold_Triumph|Pride in the Marches]] - 388YE Summer wind of war concluding the Jotun invasion of Mitwold
* [[Where the slow river flows]] - 388YE Spring wind of war about the effort to push the Jotun from their toehold in the Meadows and start reclaiming Meade March
* [[Rose grow the rushes o']] - 387YE Winter wind of war about the Jotun invasion of Oddmire and Meade March

<ic>Ned shook his head, feeling the wounds under the brigantine. "The gambeson and the brig are holding everything closed Henry. Without the full services of the hospital in Anvil I won't be able to close them fast enough if we take it off. I'm so sorry my friend."

Henry Talbot sat with his back to the tumbled wall of the burnt out homestead, sweat plastering his dark hair to his forehead.

The flush of vigorous life had faded from his cheeks during the escape from the barbarians, but mischief still sparked defiantly in his eyes. Sun beat down and wisps of steam made thin halos about their heads. "Nothing you could have done Ned. Thank the boys for carrying me all this way... How long do you think?"

" It could be an hour, or as short as you..."

Ned paused as he reached into his pouch of herbs. A decade of hunts made him grab instinctively for his pike, the mating cry of a Bregesland Dove in the wrong season could only mean one thing.

"Cullach-A-Cullach!" Sounded to the right, accompanied by a gurgling squeal. A moment later two Orc scouts and a human slave burst from the bushes in front of them. Ned brought the pike to bear, but not fast enough.

The smaller of the two orcs, face split with a recent wound, shoved the slave into the pike and drove her body onto the shaft. Ned drew his dagger, but the orcs were on him before the sword was free. Not relishing the prospect of a standing fight they rushed forward and bore Ned to the earth.

In a flash decision Ned dropped the dagger, grasping the wrist holding a rusty knife and breaking the nose of the second Orc. Broken Nose rolled away from the melee, streaming blood and curses, while Split Face and Ned struggled over the knife.

Suddenly Henry was stood astride Split Face, Ned's dagger in hand. With a butcher's confidence he sliced Split Face's neck to the bone, drenching Ned in ichor.

Ned held fast to the rusty knife, taking it from unresisting hands. As he cleared his eyes Ned heard Henry grunt and the tip of a blade emerged from his stomach. Henry toppled and Broken Nose stooped over the to pull the notched sword free.

Roaring in fury, Ned kicked Split Face's body off and launched himself forward. The notched sword was trapped and useless between them, allowing Ned free reign with the rusty knife...

Ham came to check on them once the rest of the orc scouts were disposed of. Ned sat beside the ashen body of Henry Talbot, truly still now that he had begun his journey through the labyrinth. The remains of a human and two orcs lay in the remains of the herb garden. Not a word passed between the Cullach, just a look and a nod.

With great care they removed Henry's harness and hid it up the chimney of the homestead, suspended from the meat smoking hooks. Ham took the small antler handled knife from Ned's shaking hand and cut Henry's warm heart free from his chest. Ned knelt and filled Henry's mouth with Marcher soil, replaced in the oiled pouch by the heart. They closed his eyes and pushed the remaining wall of the homestead over him.

The fallen stones would conceal him from desecration and keep him from scavengers. Now they had to move on, their burden heavier than a dying friend.

"Rest well Henry Talbot, your march is done."</ic>

[[Category:The Marches]]
[[Category:Gazetteer]]
[[Category:Imperial Territory]]
[[Category:Jotun]]

Limits of magic

2026-08-22T09:59:33Z

Dre:

==Overview==
Magic has many fundamental limits that restrict what can be achieved. In the setting these limitations are well known - magicians have striven for centuries to find ways to overcome them. Some people have devoted their entire lives to researching these limits, but no-one has ever found a reliable way to overcome them. Having a good working knowledge of these limitations is one way you can represent your character being a skilled practitioner of ritual magic.

In the game, these are most of the absolute limits of magic that is possible within the rules for the game. While you might play a character that is striving to overcome one or more of these limitations, it is important to appreciate that that is not possible in the Empire game. Any arcane projection that attempts will automatically fail. For that reason, it is a good idea to check any arcane projection against these limits before you submit it.

==Restore Life==
The Spring realm is powerfully resonant with healing magic, but no Imperial magician has ever been able to create a ritual that restores life to the dead. Some Winter magics allow a magician to contact the recently departed, or even summon back a shade that can be questioned, but like the Spring realm it appears to be powerless to help those who have passed on. In Empire, once a person dies, they are dead for good.

Many magicians have spent their entire lifetime searching for ways to cheat death. None have ever found a way to restore the dead to life, but a few have found ways to cheat death, or at least postpone it for a while. Although there are no rituals of this kind in Imperial lore at this time, anything like this would definitely need to be cast on the target while they were still alive.

There are rituals that allow a magician to give a semblance of life to a corpse, the most famous of which is [[Quickening Cold Meat]]. However these rituals work by conjuring creatures from the realms, usually drudges, to inhabit the corpse and cause it to move. The Winter realm has a strong affinity for magic involving dead bodies, but rituals of this kind make use of the body to house a spirit of the realm, they do not restore the body to life in any way.

==Resist Effects==
It is possible to use the Winter realm to create wards that harm those who cross them, and Night magic can hide the true nature of something, but beyond this there are few if any rituals that can offer protection to a subject. No magician has ever been able to create a ritual that allows the subject to '''resist''' a magical effect such as that caused by the [[repel]] spell. Nor is it possible to use ritual magic to make a subject immune to the blows of swords, bows, or other weapons. There are many rituals that make a subject stronger, allowing them to suffer more such blows before they are defeated, but none that make it so that the subject can resist or otherwise ignore the effect.

==Mind Control and Silence==
Many rituals create powerful emotions, feelings, or sensations in those that experience the effects, either as a side effect of the magic or as the main purpose such as with the [[Chamber of Pallas]]. These rituals can have a powerful effect on those that encounter them, but all serious magicians agree that the nature of the target's response is fundamentally set by them, not by the magician who performed the ritual. Magic is simply not powerful enough to control the mind of another living being, forcing it to act as the ritualist desires.

Of course there are ways to use magic to control your enemies, using it to threaten, cajole, and coerce people. However these methods are not intrinsically more reliable or powerful than a threat of violence. Skilled magicians can use ritual magic very effectively to '''influence''' others, but they cannot control them.

In the same way, magic cannot compel someone to speak the truth, and it cannot read minds. This means that there is no effective "truth detection" magic in the Empire. It is possible to create an urge to be forthright or plain speaking, but it is not even possible to create a roleplaying effect that makes a character want to speak the truth. Nor is possible to remove the ability to speak from a person using ritual magic.
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><box><big>'''Conjured Coastal Citadels'''</big><br>
One topic that comes up regularly with the Day eternals is that of magically summoned fortifications similar to [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae]] but created in regions with the ''coastal'' quality. This matter is raised with some of [[Phaleron|Phaleron's]] heralds, and they provide the following explanation as to why it is not possible for magic to create such a thing. By its essential nature, a coastline is partway between one thing and another. It is a liminal space, neither land nor sea, and defies classification. A fortification or castle, by contrast, has an essential nature of resisting, standing strong, and being immovable and impregnable, which is absolutely at odds with the mutable nature of a coastal area. Ritual magic runs afoul of the [[Laws_of_magic#The_Law_of_Essence|Law of Essence]], and so it will never be possible to create a ritual that conjures a magical fortification using the ''coastal'' quality.<br><small>From [[Hierarchs_of_sea_and_sky#The_Only_True_Treasure|Hierarchs of sea and sky]]</small></box></div>

==Conjuring and Summoning==
It is not possible to use ritual magic to force another being to appear before you, either a mortal or an inhabitant of the realms. There are Autumn rituals that allow you to send communications to another being, such as [[Call Winged Messenger]], but the target is free to respond as they choose. They are under no compulsion to respond and they would need to use methods of their own to appear if they were far distant at the time.

Likewise, there are rituals that allow you to contact certain named eternals, such as [[Swim Leviathan's Depth]]. Some of these rituals create an opportunity to meet with the being at a regio later. Almost always, the eternal will appear as requested, but it is well understood that the ritual itself does not compel the being to appear, rather it is the nature of the eternal that causes them to act in this way. Having long ago agreed to respond if called, they are bound to do so for all time by their nature, not by the ritual itself.

It is possible to create rituals that request or invite inhabitants of a realm to enter the mortal world - albeit only with their agreement - but it is not possible to summon them. Rituals like [[Knights of Glory]] work because Eleonaris has agreed to release her knights into the mortal world when called. Likewise, rituals that attempt to create, conjure, or summon fortifications, citadels, or other structures from another realm will not work without the agreement of an appropriate eternal. [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae]] works because Cathan Canae has many frozen citadels - which she sends to the mortal world in response to the ritual.

There are rituals that appear to breach these limits, such as [[Forge the Wooden Fastness]] or [[Dripping Echoes of the Fen]] where the eternal in question was not recorded for many years. Knowledgeable magicians knew that there must be an eternal in question - such a ritual cannot work without the assistance or involvement of one - but for whatever inscrutable reasons their identity had remained secret. In recent history, the eternals sponsoring those two particular rituals were uncovered by [[Various_storms_and_saints#Fen_and_Fastness|scholars of the Unfettered Mind]].
==Damaging Fortifications==
It's not possible to damage a single [[fortification]] with focused magic from a distance. There are rituals such as [[Thunderous Tread of the Trees]] and [[Mountain Remembers Its Youth]] that can cause damage to a fortification, but only as part of indiscriminately-unleashed [[Spring magic]] that also damages [[army|armies]] and [[fortification#garrison|garrisons]] across an entire territory. This effect was possible in the past, but in-character that was the result of a particularly long-lived conjunction of [[the Claw]] and [[the Drowned Shepherd]]. It's no longer an effect that can be created by ritual magic. Ritual magic ''can'' inflict damage on the battlefield with rituals such as [[Rising Roots that Rend Stone]] or [[Inevitable Collapse into Ruin]] but these effects cannot be targeted remotely, or on a larger scale.

==Teleportation==
It is possible for magicians and others to move from the mortal world to a [[Regio#Portals_and_Chambers|chamber]], but they cannot travel on from there: they must return to the mortal world through the same door they entered by. It is not possible to move onwards from a chamber, nor to re-enter the mortal world in a different location. This limitation is a fundamental restriction of the magic of the realms - it cannot convey a magician from one place to another.

A ritual like Call Winged Messenger will convey a message to a target, but this ritual works by literally summoning a winged messenger from the Autumn realm to carry the message. It takes time for the message to reach the target; it does not travel instantly.

Likewise, resources and commissions cannot be moved from one place to another using ritual magic. An eternal might be able to create such an effect, but mortal magic cannot.

Interestingly, this limitation ''is'' violated by the power of the Sentinel Gate. The Gate is a magical item, and as such it is a thing of the mortal world only and does not draw on the power of the realms. Whether it is this that allows it to exceed the limits of ritual magic is unknown, but certainly all attempts to reproduce the power of the Gate using ritual magic have always failed.

==Invisibility==
Although Varushkan folklore is replete with stories of wolves that are invisible, undetectable to the mortal eye, most magicians consider these tales fit only for a child. There have been countless attempts to use Night magic to render an individual invisible, but none have ever succeeded. The Night realm can mask a thing, change its shape or appearance, but it always leaves something in its place. There is no realm that can be used to make something invisible.

Although Night magic resonates with glamours that change the physical appearance of something, as well as rituals designed to baffle divinations, it cannot hide itself. If an army is enchanted with a Night ritual to conceal it then a divination like [[the Eye of the High Places]] that is lower magnitude than the shroud will still reveal that there is a Night enchantment in place. Similarly, it is not possible to use Night magic to baffle a ritual divination so completely that it returns the wrong answer.

==Divination==
{{:Divination}}
==Enchanting Bourse Resources==
Mithril, white granite, weirwood, and ilium are the most precious resources found anywhere in the Empire, so valuable that control of known deposits is closely regulated by the [[Bourse]]. Countless attempts have been made over the centuries to develop ritual magic that can increase the production of these resources, but all have failed. Even attempts to scry for unworked deposits have proved unsuccessful.

Urizen magicians who have studied the problem for many years have concluded that materials of this kind have a degree of raw magical power inherent in them. This power appears to be a fundamental part of the mortal world, rather than having any connection with the realms. When the materials are in their unworked state waiting to be harvested, they create an interference that confounds any attempts to use the magic of the realms to locate or gather it. Sadly this natural resistance to magic is largely lost when the materials are removed and refined or processed.

So potent is this natural effect, that it has on occasion proved useful. The deposits of white granite in the Brilliant Shore were discovered centuries ago by a young [[Wintermark_magical_traditions#Icewalkers|icewalker]] who took shelter in the area while the region was assailed by a magical storm conjured by the Thule. When the magician noticed that the storm passed over the cave where they were sheltering, they realised that something in the area must be weakening the curse. Further investigation of the cave discovered the white granite deposits, and provided the Wintermark people with a valuable resource.

==Supernatural Effects==
Magicians can use the magic of the realms to change the mortal world, but it has an inherent tendency to resist this change. The more unnatural the change, the greater the resistance. One way that a magician can create a completely unnatural effect is to bring some force or object from the realms into the mortal world. Powerful rituals like Quickening Cold Meat summon Winter spirits to inhabit corpses so that they follow the magicians' will. The fortress "created" by [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae]] is in fact one of the many that exists in the Summer realm and the ritual brings it into the mortal realm for a season.

Experienced magicians appreciate that the best approach is to create magical effects that work with the essential nature of the target rather than trying to create something unnatural. If a magician wishes to burn a forest down, it is infinitely easier to create a forest fire than it is to create a rain of fire.

==Armies and Battles==
It is possible to use magic that enhances the effectiveness of an army - either by requesting magical warriors from the realms to fight alongside them or by enhancing their strength, insight, or bonds. Cursing armies is possible, but is difficult and crucially requires a powerful arcane connection to the army in question - usually the general of the army or a similar figure.

It is '''not''' possible to curse an area or an army so as to impede army or navy movement in any way. Ritual magic cannot, for example, stop an army or navy moving into, out, or through a territory, nor restrict how far armies can move if they start in or move through that territory. It is not possible to use ritual magic to pin an army in place.

It is possible to use magic to affect a territory to increase or decrease the number of casualties that result in from any fighting. Rituals like [[Rivers Run Red]] and [[Rivers of Life]] affect everyone in the territory in a way that makes them more or less likely to die. What is not possible is to use magic ''on a territory'' to directly affect the outcome of a three month long campaign in that territory. Strategic outcomes are too complex and too unpredictable to be influenced by magic in this way.

You can create magic that influences the fighting - you might fill an area with storms for a season - but that does not affect the outcome of the campaign, i.e. it does not affect the victory points assigned to either side. No matter how potent the magic on the territory, it will be indiscriminate, and that means it will create effects that both sides are able to take advantage of based on whatever actions they take.

You can create rituals that enchant or curse armies - to make them more or less effective. But any ritual that attempts to enchant or curse a territory with the goal of positively or negatively influencing the outcome of a military campaign that takes place there will fail.

==Economic Territory Effects==
It is not possible to use ritual magic to duplicate the effect of a [[great work]] - that is, to increase the production of all resources of a specific type in a territory.

==Seasonal Stacking==
The ritual enchantments [[Blessing of New Spring]], [[Strong Ox, Golden Sun]], and [[Gathering the Harvest]] have a unique synergy that allows each to build on the other. It has proved impossible to duplicate this synergy with rituals intended to be cast on resources other than [[farm|farms]] - the rituals remain peculiar anomalies.

==Transmutation==
It is not possible to turn most personal resources into a military unit using magic without the direct aid of an eternal. To be transformed, a resource must have some kind of innate magical power, either a [[mana site]], a [[forest]], or a [[mine]]. You cannot transform businesses, congregations, farms, herb gardens, military units, or fleets.

==Imperial Citizenship==
It is not possible to use ritual magic to sever the connection between a person and an [[egregores|egregore]]. The connection seems to be protected by the [[Laws_of_magic#The_Law_of_Essence|Law of Essence]]. A person can voluntarily choose to give up their connection to an egregore, but this choice cannot be forced using magic.

==Sharing Ritual Lore==
While rituals such as [[Shared Mastery of the Magician's Guild]] allow a [[coven]] to share [[spellcasting]] knowledge between its members, it is not possible to do the same with [[Magical_skills#Mastery|ritual mastery]]. While ritual magic can remove mastery (as seen with [[Infant Starts with a Blank Slate]]), it can never grant someone mastery of a ritual.

==Meta Magic==
It is not possible to use ritual magic to affect other rituals. There is one ritual in Imperial lore, [[Sign of Aesh]], that can be used to reduce the magnitude of a later ritual, but that is deliberately restrictive and not something possible to replicate on a larger scale. It is also not possible to use a ritual to affect the casting time of a different ritual.

==Changing Qualities==
It is not possible to use ritual magic to intentionally change the qualities of something - whether that be the special quality of an army - or the unusual qualities of a region or territory. You can't use magic to make a region [[Region_qualities#Coastal|coastal]], or remove the [[Region_qualities#Haunted|haunted]] quality, or make an army [[Army_qualities#Cruel|cruel]]. Powerful magic may have unusual side-effects in unique circumstances which result in these kind of unexpected changes - but it is not possible to design a ritual to achieve that outcome.
==Targeting Commissions==
It is not possible to use ritual magic to directly enchant a sinecure, ministry, or great work. Commissions might be affected by magic particularly on the territory level but they cannot be the target of an enchantment or curse.

==Inter-Nation Cooperation==
It is never possible to use ritual magic to enable members of different nations to work together to perform a ritual. Covens are powerful tools to allow magicians to work together to perform rituals, and a [[Volhov's Robe]] can help individuals work together, but in every case it can only ever be done in the same nation.
==Magic Items==
Ritual magic can create effects similar to many magic items but by no means all of them. Some effects are unique to magic items. One example of this is the [[Volhov's Robe]]; the ability for an individual to contribute to a ritual can't be provided with ritual magic. Similarly, while the effect of some [[:Category:Paraphernalia|paraphernalia]] can be created with ritual magic (such as [[Garden of Teth-Anon]]), others simply don't work as enchantments (notably the [[Web of Celestial Attunement]]).

==Sacrifice and Limitations==
You cannot make a ritual better, either more powerful or more efficient, by sacrificing something during the casting. Characters cannot sacrifice their body hits, hero points, or similar to empower another character. Ritual magic can make a character stronger in many different ways, but it cannot do so by drawing the strength from another character, it gains that power from the mana used to cast the ritual.

Likewise, some rituals only work in specific situations, but you cannot usually make a ritual better, either more powerful or more efficient by putting limitations on the way it can be used. Magic isn't made more effective or more potent by circumscribing the conditions under which it can be used.
==Learning Recipes==
Ritual magic can't be used to learn how [[magic items]], [[potion|potions]], consumables, trade goods, or similar things are made. Some rituals can divine information about items, such as [[Hand of the Maker]], but even if a divination provides a vision of how something was made, or determine the herbs that went into a potion (such as through [[Distillation of Diverse Parts]]) this will never translate into any ability to actually make an unfamiliar item, potion, or the like. Without access to a [[schema]], [[Potion#Herbal|herbal]], or specific [[opportunity]] there is no way to learn how to make something by examining that item or taking it apart.
==Additional Artisanry==
It is not possible to enchant a character to make more [[magic items]] in downtime using the [[Crafting skills#Artisan|artisan]] skill. It is possible to use magic to let an artisan make additional items ''during'' an event with the [[Timeless Hammer Rhythm]] - which also represents the most potent version of this effect available - but the number of items that can be crafted after an event is set by game design.

==Enchanting Mana Sites==
It is not possible to enchant a mana site to produce additional mana crystals. Any ritual to enchant a mana site to create vis would require the assistance of an eternal and would create fewer magical resources than it cost to cast.

{{Magic Links}}
[[Category:Magic Theory]]
[[Category:Magic]]
[[Category:Rules]]

Skull beneath the skin

2026-08-20T12:57:38Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Casual Undead.jpg|align=left|caption=Ravening Winter spirits take the bodies of the fallen and use them to devour the living, and in Sarangrave there are so, so many bodies for them to choose from.|width=400}}</div>
==From the Fens of Varreth==
The [[vallorn]] of [[Sarangrave#Bendol|Béantal Dol]] is quiescent. The [[Druj]] stranglehold on the [[Sarangrave]] has been broken. Yet still there is no peace in the marshes of the southern [[the Mallum|Mallum]]. Three barbarian armies have collapsed here, a crucial strategic victory, but one that leaves thousands of vicious orc warriors scattered across the marshes. Worse, the [[Fortification#Garrison|garrison]] of the Tower of the Skink has been displaced by the fall of their [[fortification#Bastion|bastion]], and have fled to the recesses of the Sarangrave to hide and plot their vengeance against the Empire and the people of [[Urizen]]. Such mundane threats are par for the course when dealing with the Druj, but there is worse to come.

When the [[Druj_armies#Hidden_Snake|Hidden Snake]] and the [[Druj_armies#Poison Crane|Poison Crane]] disbanded, they were under the influence of [[Winter magic]] - an [[enchantment]] reminiscent of [[Quickening Cold Meat]]. The Winter spirits called by that enchantment were set free, and while there was a valiant attempt made by Imperial heroes to [[Thorn_and_bone#Objective:_Trap_the_Spirits|contain the danger]] it was ultimately unsuccessful. Worse, many champions of the Empire fell in that desperate attempt to reduce the potential threat to the Sarangrave. Worst of all, the bodies of many of those same champions were dragged from their final resting place by that same corrupt magic and turned against their own people. Flesh-hungry husks, more cunning and vicious even than those raised by Imperial magicians, now hunt the Sarangrave and even when their bodies are cut down, the spirits within simply seek out another host.

Just as bad as the Winter spirits are the [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tormented souls]], created by the blackest [[surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecary]] arts from Imperial heroes whose spirits have been broken. The [[Thorn_and_bone#Objective:_End_Trakaa's_Tortured_Souls|many victims]] of the twisted [[Druj lore#Het|Het Trakaa]] now stalk the [[Sarangrave#Turan Flats|Turan Flats]], killing and torturing any innocents they find, and striking terror into the hearts of those they encounter.

The Druj are scattered, their armies broken, but their threat remains. Both Trakaa of the Hidden Snake and Sul Maggotgnaw of the Poison Crane still raise their tattered banners in the Sarangrave, and seek to marshal the guerillas and raiders that still operate here. They may have been betrayed by their own people - there can be little doubt that they hate their fellow Druj - but they hate the Empire more.

==Shield and Scale==
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Alikos Helio.jpg|align=right|width=250}}</div>
There is no peace in the Sarangrave. With the vallorn driven back by Imperial armies, the Empire turns their attention deeper into the Mallum. They entrust the defence of the southern marshes to their [[Axos|Axou]] allies. The ''Shield of Ipotavo'' is still stationed at the Tower of the Skink, in the sodden marshes of the [[Sarangrave#Thornfen|Thornfen]]. Imperial magicians have even laid an enchantment over the [[fortification]], to help the Axou raise their garrison there. It is slow going, however, and the chaos in the newly Urizen territory offers them little opportunity to catch their breath.

The Axou soldiers stationed at the Tower of the Skink have been ordered to remain behind the walls. There are less than three hundred of them, now they have had an [[opportunity]] to assess the threats in the north it is clear they will be slaughtered with nothing show for it. Discretion appears to be the better part of valour, for now at least. The [[Fortification#Bastion|bastion]] can defend the Axou within its walls, although a message goes out to the small number of Urizen establishing spires in the territory offering them sanctuary within the walls of the citadel if they desire it. The Tower, mighty as it is, can do nothing to face down the Druj insurgents gathering in the corners of the territory, to contain the Winter ghouls rippling slowly outward from the Fens of Varreth, or to deal with the tormented spirits unleashed by Het Trakaa. Instead, the defence of the northern Sarangrave falls to the Shield of Ipotavo.

The [[Senate]] has chosen to accede to the [[Seeds_of_discord#Armies_of_the_Dead|request]] that the Axou military be granted [[388YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Permit_Axos_Movement_in_Sarangrave|freedom of movement and engagement]] within the borders of the Sarangrave. There is some uncertainty as to whether this applies to [[army|armies]] or only to the garrison of the Skink, however. When the Shield of Ipotavo mobilize and begin to move north they claim the [[Ambassador to Axos]] has given them leave to do so and there is little interest amongst Imperial citizens in the Turan Flats or in [[Sarangrave#Kroll|Kroll]] in challenging them on this matter.

Ipotavo's forces move cautiously. The [[Axos#Axou_Military_Concerns|Agema]] are at the forefront, clad in their traditional neatly-cut leathers, armed with crescent shield and the long, thin sword favoured by these heavy skirmishers. Behind them comes a solid corps of sable-robed ''necromantia'', magicians versed in realm lore and battlefield magic alike. There is a noticable absence of any of [[Axos#Axou_Military_Concerns|Tavos Ageli]] - the porcelain masked immortal warriors that reek of death - choosing to leave them behind in the Tower of the Skink. If they bear any enchantment, it is subtle enough that it is not apparent to the Urizen in a position to mark the army's passage.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Agramant.jpg|caption=The husks in Sarangrave are inhabited by Winter spirits drawn to the mortal realm with the aid of the ''King of the Feast''.|align=right|width=200}}</div>
As they reach the Turan Flats, the husks are already feasting. When they are not encased in dead flesh, the spirits are all but invisible. As such it is very hard to get a feel for exact numbers, but the ''necromantia'' will later estimate their number at some two thousand ravenous beasts of the Winter realm. All of them have found hosts, not least due to the glut of bodies left behind on the Fens of Varreth. Human or orc, Druj or Imperial, soldier or slave, it matters nothing to these anthropophagous ghouls what remains they don to allow them to touch the mortal world. The husks that have been inhabited the longest bare little resemblance to the person they once were; their mouths jut with fangs, their fingers end in razor-sharp talons. In some cases their stolen bodies have become stretched and warped by the influence of the spirit within them and some are clearly as comfortable running on all fours like beasts as they are on two

At first the Shield face only small bands of husks, easily dispatched, but each day their numbers grow greater. The ''necromantia'' can weaken the spirits, and if they can trap a husk they can try to bind its spirit and force it back whence it came, but the odds are against them. Taking one of these horrors "alive" is no easy matter, given they must often be chopped limb-from-limb to stop them trying to kill anyone who comes near them. The magicians of Axos establish a small number of [[Hold Back Frozen Hunger|warded]] camps, marked with smooth posts of polished weirwood topped with the brooding face of the legendary sorcerer-king Ipotavo themselves. The predatory corpses avoid these encampments, but prowl around their outskirts at night looking for anyone foolish enough to step beyond their bounds.

The best the Shield of Ipotavo can achieve is to stop the Winter husks utterly overwhelming the people of the Turan Flats. They focus their efforts on ensuring the paltry few newborn Urizen [[spire|spires]] are safe, but there are still large numbers of former Druj slaves here. They have mostly been left to scavenge the war-torn farms as best they can. These folk are almost exclusively orcs and they flee when the Axou approach, terrified that they are here to kill them. They flee the tormented souls that roam the region. They flee the marrow-suckers that would prey on them. They even flee the Urizen who try to reach out to them. The tyrants of the Mallum may be gone, but their legacy lives on in the fear that dominates the lives of so many of these people.

The Axou strategy is to deal with the spirits and their husks where they can, but they avoid forcing a major engagement. They prevent the creatures from overrunning any of the slave villages or spires that dot the plains, and delay the spread of the spirits into Kroll for six weeks or so, but their main focus appears to be on making sure that [[Army orders#Give Ground|their soldiers' lives are preserved]]. The Axou have a particular fear of death [[Axos#Axou_Religious_Beliefs|believing]] it puts them into the hands of the Creator they hate and despise; that fear of death drives their strategy.

As the Autumn Equinox approaches, it is apparent to Imperial observers that the Shield intends to fall back toward the Tower of the Skink. Their tactics mean that they have significantly reduced their potential losses to the ghouls of Turan, but every one who fell is a potential pawn for the cruel spirits that still swarm and seethe in the northern marshes.

==Shadow of Hunger==
{{CaptionedImage|file=IrrahHurrah002a.png|align=right|width=300}}
While there is fighting in the north, the rest of Sarangrave is no more peaceful. There are significant numbers of refugees in [[Sarangrave#Whisperwood|Whisperwood]] - the former inhabitants of Thornfen exiled by the Axou. The number of former slaves here has swollen to unmanageable proportions. The [[statement of principle]] of the Urizen assembly urging the few spires in Sarangrave to [[388YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_97|welcome]] the orcs has done nothing to reduce the scale of this problem. The former slaves do their best to avoid the Imperials entirely, and there are many more of them in Whisperwood than there are Urizen in the entire territory. These displaced folk have joined with the mass who were once the thralls of the Thornwasp sept in '''Uklead''' and the eastern forest-farms. Winter is approaching, and those in a position to see the scale of the problem first-hand predict that the coming months will not be kind to these folk. Cold will likely not be a major factor; a bigger issue is going to be food and shelter from the winter rains. If nothing is done it is likely hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of deaths will take place and leaving aside questions of empathy or sympathy, it is rarely a good idea to leave fresh bodies lying around when there are Winter spirits looking for new hosts.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj6.jpg|align=right|width=200}}
Whisperwood is the worst, but there are folk in [[Sarangrave#Bloodwater Marsh|Bloodwater Marsh]], the Flats, and even the lakelands of Kroll who are likewise in a parlous position. The Druj left few supplies behind when they retreated, even being so spiteful as to befoul and destroy what they could not carry. There are farms here, and there are people working them, but their industry is haphazard and uncertain as their future. The Bloodwater Spears have reached out to the orcs in their former homeland to the south, and others have sent messengers to the Turan Forest. The heralds and mortal friends of [[Irra Harah|Shacklebreaker]] have reached further afield - there are reports of a few being spotted speaking with the refugees in Whisperwood - but the rebels have little enough aid to offer to those who shared their durance under the Druj. It is hard not to imagine that a catastrophe is approaching in the Sarangrave. How many people have been freed from the shackles of the Druj, only to die before the year turns again?

If it was just these refugees and exiles that were the problem in Sarangrave it would be bad enough but there is more. There are still Druj in Sarangrave. They gather and regroup in the hidden corners of the territory, in old tunnels dug beneath dry ground, in the depths of the woods and the marshes. Some have even apparently taken up residence in Bendol, within the bounds of the vallorn of Béantal Dol, using lessons learned in Therunin and Brocéliande to build a kind of [[steading]] of their own. Even the other Druj consider those Druj mad.

Worse still, there are Druj hiding in plain sight. Soldiers of the Marshlizard and the Poison Crane, warriors who once served in the garrison of the Tower, concealing their true identity among the very survivors and exiles that strive desperately to survive in the face of the coming Winter. There is little chance that they will be content to stay in hiding - and while they may not be organised enough to threaten the Tower of the Skink the same cannot be said of the farms, and the villages, and the bands of displaced, and the spires brave enough to try and raise themselves in this chaotic land where peace is oh-so-far away.

==Game Information==
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Regions of Sarangrave.png|caption=Sarangrave is mapped, but parts of the territory remain unknown.|align=left|width=600}}</div>
===Sarangrave===
* '''The fallout from the battle during the Summer Solstice continues to be felt
* '''The Winter Spirits in Turan and Kroll will continue to rampage as long as those regions have the ''tormented'' quality
Sarangrave is an Imperial territory, and part of Urizen, but the Nesustak Forest is controlled by the eponymous rebels, Thornfen is under the jurisdiction of Axos, and the central region of Bendol is a vallornheart. If the Empire loses control of any region of Sarangrave, they will lose control of the territory.

Several regions of Sarangrave have gained qualities reflecting the presence of tormented spirits, [[inhabitants of the realms]], and Druj guerillas left from the collapse of the Marshlizard and the Banded Snake septs. The details of these qualities are discussed in more depth in the {{TBC}} wind of fortune.

The Shield of Ipotavo prevented the Winter spirits doing any significant damage in Turan Flats this season, but they took significant casualties in the fighting. Their efforts have not depleted the forces terrorising those regions.

Thornfen and the fortification known as the Tower of the Skink are controlled by the Axou. Imperial forces are free to move through those regions but Axos could withdraw this right whenever they wished. The Civil Service estimate that thanks to six months of magical enchantments placed by the magicians of Urizen, the garrison of the massive Tower is likely to stand at around 500 soldiers.

The Empire has limited ability to move through the Nesustak Forest. At the moment, the rebels there are not minded to prevent Imperial forces doing so given the protection the Empire's armies have provided over the last six months. Again, this could change at any moment, should the Nesustak rebels choose to do so.
==Further Reading==
* [[Sarangrave]]
* [[Thorn and bone]] - Summer 388YE wind of war on the defence against the vallorn and repulsing the Druj
* [[Other monstrous geographies]] - Spring 388YE wind of war on the conquest of Thornfen and the unleashing of the vallorn
* [[Fire and the flood]] - Winter 387YE wind of war continuing the campaign in Sarangrave
* [[Everything is trying to kill us]] - Winter 387YE wind of fortune with the broad problems facing Urizen in the territory
* [[Even darkness must pass]] - Autumn 387YE wind of war continuing the campaign in Sarangrave
* [[Hope and fear]] - Summer 387YE appraisal of Druj military supply
* [[Root and branch]] - Summer 387YE wind of war continuing the invasion of Sarangrave
* [[Unlock thy hidden gate]] - Spring 387YE wind of war about the initial invasion of Sarangrave
* [[Into Béantal Dol]] - Spring 386YE results of a foray into Bendol to explore the vallorn there
* [[Make it happen]] - Summer 384YE wind of fortune regarding [[appraisal]] of the chances of creating an uprising in Sarangrave using the [[spy network]] there

Fair share of labour

2026-08-19T15:24:48Z

Dre: /* Powers */

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Appraisal]]
<ic>
Jasna Kazimerczyk stared at the letter on the writing desk, struggling to believe the news could be true. She'd read it three times now and still couldn't quite believe it.

The Imperial Artisans' Guild... it didn't sound like much. More like a Temeschwari carta with ideas above their station than some body of state. But according to Miloš, the civil service were appraising the prospect of making this League guild into an actual sodality. A body of state, on a par with the Conclave or the Bourse, but there to stand for artisans and to represent their interests to the Empire. No more relying on the Conclave to speak for them, no more urging the Golden Pyramid to fight their corner. The artisans would finally get the recognition they deserved.

Of course it was far from a foregone conclusion. Miloš said they'd done the same for a shipwrights sodality last season and that hadn't passed the Senate. At least not yet. There was no reason to assume this guild would fare any better. And yet Jasna dared to hope that somehow this might finally be their moment. She thought back to her own time in politics, all those years ago, agitating and arguing with people for change. Two years she'd spent traipsing down to Casinea every season, walking around Anvil trying to drum up support for the cause. Always the same answer, too expensive, too difficult, too many other battles to fight. She'd been full of hope when she first arrived in Anvil, convinced that the Virtue of her cause would be impossible to argue with. She'd soon learned that nothing was impossible to argue with. Two years later she'd quit in frustration vowing never to return.

And now, finally, all these years later, there was a chance to do the Virtuous thing. A once in a lifetime opportunity to fix one of the great flaws in the Empire. If Urizen had been a nation of artisans rather than a nation of magicians, the Conclave would have been a hall of craftspeople and the magicians would have been stood round the edges hoping to be let in. Instead they'd had four centuries of fighting for their rights, nearly forty decades fighting for their voices to be heard, the best part of four hundred years fighting for their work to be acknowledged. Surely the Senate would see the Virtue of acting? What senator wouldn't want to seize this opportunity to right this wrong? It might be too much to expect that Virtue would move them to act, but surely they would want to leave their mark on the world? To change the very nature of the Empire? What mortal soul could resist the urge to fashion something new, something better, when given the chance?

Hope is not a virtue she told herself. Leaving this to hope was a bad idea. A very, very bad idea. If this guild was going to become the voice of the Empire's artisans it would need every ally they could muster. The new sodality would face opposition from all corners - every single vote would be needed, of that she had no doubt.

Jasna Kazimerczyk picked up her quill, dipped it in the well and began to write. She was in no condition for waltzing off to Anvil at her age, but she still had a lot of friends across the north from her days as a preacher in the Assembly. Friends and allies she'd made all those years ago when fighting for the cause. Friends who'd sworn that they'd back her when the time came. Well, she thought to herself, it appears that the time has finally come...
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Crafting.jpg|align=left|caption=The Guild of Artisans is currently an informal sodality that welcomes all who master the arts of creating [[magic items]]; the Constitutional Court has considered what form it might take if it were recognised as a true [[Imperial sodality]].|width=400}}</div>
==Overview==
At the recent summit, [[Emperor Vesna]] requested that the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|Constitutional Court]] [[Forever_is_composed_of_nows#The_Abraham_Gambit|appraise the implications]] of a new [[Imperial sodality]], the ''Imperial Guild of Artisans''. Any new Imperial sodality can have significant legal ramifications, which depend on the precise wording of its manifesto. The aim of the [[Civil Service|civil service]] appraisal is to provide clarity on these consequences, to enable the [[Senate]] to better decide the matter.

The Artisans' Guild has been in existence for some time, with the Senate [[Construct_Guildhouse_of_the_Artisans|ordering the construction of a Guildhouse]] in 385YE, creating the position of [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]. Now the Senate is in a position to consider the full implications of making the Guild into an official Imperial sodality.

A single season remains available for [[the Throne]] to instruct the civil service to appraise the legal implications of a new sodality. Whoever is chosen this season, if any, will be the final sodality that can be reviewed in this way, unless the civil service can find the resources to make the facility permanently available (although the Senate would still be able to [[appraisal|appraise]] the implications of a new Imperial sodality of course).

==Consequences==
* '''Emperor Vesna has asked the civil service to assess the constitutional implications of the Imperial Guild of Artisans'''
* '''Magistrate Abraham has delivered their analysis based on the proposed manifesto'''
* '''It would not be possible to create a second sodality concerned with artisans and the creation of magical items'''

Magistrate Abraham has conducted an analysis of the constitutional implications of the new sodality's provisional manifesto. The magistrate congratulates the Guild on the clarity and Ambition of their manifesto which has made this appraisal particularly straightforward.

<quote by="Manifesto of the Guild of Imperial Artisans"> This sodality holds the following to be true:
* Imperial artisans are the finest in the world, deserving commensurate respect, recompense and pride;
* Artisans and the magic items they create are valuable strategic resources for the Empire;
* The voice of the Empire's artisans should be preeminent in all matters relating to artisanry.

The sodality therefore exists to:
* Guide, aid, and provide consultation to the Empire's artisans, bodies of state and wider citizenry on the matter of artisanry;
* Support and coordinate artisans in the study, innovation, and creation of magic items;
* Represent the Empire's artisans, seeking and supporting opportunities within the Empire's borders and beyond.
</quote>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Magistrate Abraham.jpg|caption=Magistrate Abraham, constitutional scholar and part of the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional Court|Constitutional Court]], has taken it upon himself to provide guidance about Imperial sodalities to the Throne.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
The manifesto defines a sodality with responsibility for Imperial [[artisan|artisans]]. The magistrate notes that it makes no mention of having responsibility for the means to create magical items - there is no suggestion that the sodality should have any oversight of [[mine|mines]] or [[forest|forests]] or the [[materials]] they produce. If the Senate ratifies the decision to create the Imperial sodality, they will be responsible for the study, innovation and creation of magical items, but the manifesto would need to be updated if the Senate wanted them to take on any additional responsibilities.

This narrow focus ensures that there is no legal conflict with either the [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild|Imperial Apothecaries' Guild]] or the [[Conclave]]. The magistrate does note that the sodality's name is very similar to the Apothecaries' Guild, which he predicts will inevitably cause errors to happen at some point, when the wrong thing is written down. In particular, as a body of state grows into its power, it is common to refer to it with a singular name. ''Technically'' the Conclave is the Imperial Conclave of Magicians, but literally nobody calls it that - it's just called "Conclave". If people start referring to either the Artisans' or the Apothecaries' Guild as the "Guild" then it's going to lead to problems. The Imperial Archivist apparently sent Abraham an unsolicited list of possible alternative names, but their "suggestions" appear to not have made it into the final text of the report.

The magistrate also raises the concern that employing a name commonly used to describe a League business affiliation risks narrowing the appeal of the sodality to other nations, or giving the impression that the Guild has undue League affiliations which would obviously undermine its status as an Imperial sodality. The magistrate has spoken with members of the Guild about these concerns and understands that they have their reasons for the name and he is the first to admit that there is no legal bar to using the term Guild to describe one - or more - sodalities - but he feels he would be remiss if he did not point out the issue. Ultimately the Senate is contemplating the creation of a new branch of Imperial government - not establishing a trading [[guild]].

Imperial sodalities must be ''singular'' - there cannot be two sodalities in the Empire with overlapping concerns. If the Imperial Senate approves the manifesto of the Artisans' Guild, then it would not be possible to create a new Imperial sodality that had responsibility for the study, innovation, and creation of magic items nor otherwise represent the interests of artisans in the Empire.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Carpentry.jpg|align=right|caption=As an Imperial Sodality, the Guild of Imperial Artisans would represent all kinds of skilled magical crafters, irrespective of the materials with which they work.|width=400}}</div>

==Powers==
* '''The power to enjoin the creation, sale, use and bonding of magic items would be delegated to the Guild'''
* '''The power to disseminate a schema would also be given to the Guild'''
* '''Any new legal powers that were ''solely'' concerned with magical items would need to be delegated to the new sodality'''
If the Artisans' Guild were enacted with the provided manifesto then the ability to outlaw the creation, sale, use and bonding of magical items would be delegated to the Guild. Legally, this power currently lies with the Imperial Senate which can use a [[Senate motion]] to outlaw a specific item - such powers always default to the Senate in the absence of any other constitutional body with the legal authority to govern such activities. Once the sodality was enacted and had its first member, it would no longer be possible for the Senate to use a Senate motion to pass laws around magic items - they would need to respect the authority of the Guild.

In recent years, the Conclave has employed the power of [[interdiction]] to outlaw the creation of some magical items. Abraham notes that there is absolutely no constitutional basis for this activity - or for the interdiction of potions or similar. It represents a very clear overreach of the powers of the Conclave, which ought properly to be restricted to the oversight of magicians and the use of magic. The Constitutional Court failed to notice this at the time, in part because there were no good alternatives in the past. That is definitely not the case now that there is an entire body of Imperial government that has oversight of potions - and certainly wouldn't be the case if the Empire chose to make the Artisans' Guild an Imperial sodality.

The Court haven't taken the step of ruling that the Conclave cannot continue to interdict magic items at this time, if only because they are clearly hoping that the Senate will resolve the problem for them. If the Guild were created, that conflict would be resolved. Any items that are currently outlawed by the Senate or interdicted by the Conclave would remain illegal to create, use, sell or bond - but the power to change their status would pass to the sodality. It would require a majority vote of members present at a session of the sodality to enjoin or permit the use of a specific magic item.

The Guild would also gain the legal power to disseminate a [[Magic_items#Schema|schema]], the detailed instructions that allow an artisan to learn how to create a magic item. Currently the Imperial Senate has this power, but it would pass to the sodality if it were enacted. By default, the sodality would need to provide the ten thrones required to disseminate the schema - the Senate could pass a motion to permit these costs to be borne by the Imperial treasury if they wished.

There are no other legal powers that currently exist that would be automatically delegated to the Guild, but if the Senate created new legal powers in the future whose '''sole''' remit was concerned with the creation and use of magical items then the well-worn path for the exercise of those powers would be by vote of the sodality members. Any legal powers that were related to magic items, but were not solely concerned with them, ''could'' be delegated to the Guild, provided they did not impinge on the constitutionally protected roles of the other houses. For example, the sodality could be given the right to prohibit some citizens from crafting magic items in the same way the [[Conclave]] can [[declaration|declare]] someone a [[sorcery|sorcerer]].

The Senate could grant the sodality the ability to announce one or more [[commission|commissions]] each season. They might include [[Edifice|edifices]] or [[sinecure|sinecures]] that provided materials, but the ability to commission new [[runeforge|runeforges]] would fall squarely within the sodality's remit.
<div style="float: right; width: 200px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Runeforge Symbol.jpg|caption=The creation of the Imperial Sodality would mean some titles would automatically be appointed by the Guild, while others ''may'' be appointed depending on the decision of the Senate.|width=200px}}</div>

==Appointments==
* '''The well worn path for any Imperial title whose responsibilities primarily relate to the creation, acquisition, distribution or research of magical items would be election by the Artisans' Guild'''
The civil service have conducted a preliminary review of all current [[Imperial title|Imperial titles]] to identify those whose responsibilities involve the creation, acquisition, distribution or research of magical items. In all cases these titles ''could'' be appointed by the new sodality if it were passed.

Where a title relates primarily or solely to magical items, then the sodality would become the ''only'' constitutionally valid way to appoint the position. In that case, the title would be automatically amended if the sodality is created. If the are other constitutionally valid ways to appoint a title after the sodality is created, then there will be no change to the method of appointment without direct action by the Senate.

No other details would change; if a position had tenure, it would only come up for election by the sodality at the point where the incumbent died, stepped down, or was [[revocation|revoked]]. National positions would be voted on by all members of the sodality, but only citizens of the relevant nation would be eligible to hold the title.

The constitutional implications of the sodality's existence would also impact any [[New Imperial titles|new Imperial title]]. The [[New_Imperial_titles#Well_Worn_Paths|well worth path]] for any position whose sole or primary responsibility relates to magical items would be appointment by simple vote of members of the Artisans' Guild.
===Amended Titles===
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Automatically Amended Titles'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Dean of Runesmith's Caution]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Keeper of the Runegrott]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Seer of the Spiral Sword]]</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Four titles would be automatically amended to be appointed by the Guild'''
The civil service have identified four Imperial titles whose responsibilities are solely or primarily concerned with the research of new magical items, training new artisans or representing the interests of artisans. If the proposed sodality were passed by the Senate, then the only constitutionally valid way to appoint the listed titles would be by a vote of members of the sodality.

If the Senate pass the motion to create the Artisans' Guild, then all four listed titles will be amended to be appointed by the sodality.
===Potential Titles===
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Potential Titles'''</td></tr>

<tr><td>[[Architect of the Crucible]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Blackroot Broker]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Burgher of Ketsov]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Dhomiro of the Cinnabar Hills]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Marracossa Sendito]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Preceptor of the Skarsind College of Warcasting]]</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Imperial titles whose responsibilities partially relate to artisans or magical items could be elected by the Guild'''
* '''The titles will continue to be elected by the current method if the Senate declines to act'''
* '''There are six titles that could be changed with a single Senate motion to have them all elected by the sodality'''

The civil service have identified six Imperial titles whose responsibilities include the creation or acquisition of magical items, but it is not their sole responsibility. It would be possible for the Guild to appoint these six titles, but it is not obligatory.

Given their split responsibilities, creating the new sodality wouldn't change the appointment method of any of the positions. They could be amended by the Senate; a single [[Senate motion|motion]] could be used to amend any one title or all six simultaneously if desired, making them appointments of the Imperial Guild of Artisans.

The Constitutional Court have noted that the Blackroot Broker could be appointed by the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild, the Imperial Artisans' Guild, or the [[Vallornguard]] - the position has responsibilities claimed by all three sodalities, so it would be acceptable for either one to appoint the position. The [[Burgher of Ketsov]] and the [[Marracossa Sendito]] both deal with groups of artisans who provide the benefits the title enjoys. Before changing their appointment methods it would be wise to consult the Ketsov and the Marracossans respectively.

==Support==
A number of groups have indicated that they might be interested in supporting the Imperial Guild of Artisans, if it were given a broad remit by the Imperial Senate and backed with significant legal powers. As is usually the case, few groups have any interest in supporting a talking shop; they are only prepared to support the sodality if it is clear that it can wield actual power.

===Fire and Stone===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Estavus001a.png|align=right|caption=The [[Estavus|City of Fire and Stone]] welcomes a formal sodality of artisans, and is keen to offer their support.|width=300}}</div></div>
* '''The eternal Estavus would be open to serving as a patron of the new sodality'''
* '''If the sodality is given control of Imperial runeforges, Estavus will provide the sodality with a new schema each season for a year'''
[[Estavus|''The Forgemistress]] is known to favour those who build, construct and create - she is a patron of architects, builders, shipwrights and most especially artisans. Her heralds have made it clear that the ''Prince of Shikal'' would be pleased if the Artisan's Guild where made an Imperial sodality and given the power and authority that goes with that onerous responsibility.

If that happens, then the eternal will be open to serving as a patron fo the new sodality, should they request it. As an example of what benefits their support might entail, they would provide the sodality with a single schema each season for the year after it passes the Senate. Estavus can make any item that is made in the mortal world, each season they would provide the Guild with a list of three schema to pick between. The Guild would need to use a simple vote to select the schema they wanted - and a second vote to select what type of magical item (e.g. [[:Category:Rods|rod]], [[:Category:Shields|shield]] or [[:Category:Foci|foci]]) that they would like to replace it on the list at the next summit.

The eternal asks for nothing in exchange for these gifts - they are pleased simply to do what they can to encourage the creation of the new sodality. Should the sodality find the relationship beneficial, then the eternal would be open to discussing the potential to formalise the relationship by officially recognising the Prince of Shikal as the patron of the sodality.

===Carmine Band===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=OrderGoldenPyramid.jpg|title=Order of the Golden Pyramid|caption=The [[Golden Pyramid]] [[Conclave order]] has long been committed to representing and supporting the rights of Imperial artisands.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The Carmine Band will triple their donations to the Golden Pyramid if the Artisans' Guild passes the Senate'''
There are many groups of artisans and their allies across the Empire who have campaigned for years for the craft to receive the same recognition and status that the magicians of the Conclave enjoy. Many of them have thrown their support behind the Golden Pyramid, hoping that the order would be true to its noble manifesto and work to establish the prominence of Imperial artisans.

Now that the moment is at hand, these groups are looking to the Grandmaster of the Golden Pyramid to throw their weight behind the new sodality. Artisans have always been an afterthought in the Conclave: denied entry in their own right to the Hall of Worlds, they have lacked a voice ever since the Empire was founded. Supporting the Golden Pyramid in the hope that the order would uphold the promises made in its manifesto has been one of the few ways for artisans to get their views aired.

For such groups, this is a historic moment, a chance to right a fundamental wrong in the make-up of the Empire's constitution. As such, there is a heavy expectation that the new grandmaster, Terentia of Sarangrave Reforged, will throw the support of his order behind this proposal - and make clear to the Senate that it has the backing of the Conclave.

If that happens - if Conclave passes a [[declaration]] of [[concord]] calling on [[the Throne]] and the [[Senate]] to ratify the plans for the new Artisans' Guild, then the Carmine Band will increase their regular donations to the order's vaults, providing an additional three measures of Beggars Lye each season. If the efforts are successful, that is if the Senate creates the new sodality, then the Carmine Band add a further three measures of Tempest Jade to the Order's vaults each season in perpetuity, in gratitude for their political support at this crucial juncture.

The Carmine Band are clear that they do expect the grandmaster to support the sodality at this vital moment - if that doesn't happen, or worse the grandmaster is seen as working to prevent the sodality from being ratified, then the Carmine Band will abandon their support of the order.

===Treji's Legacy===
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Starsrest/Goodfellow Brokerage'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Great Work</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Treji, The Glen of Shadows, Hercynia </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 12 weirwood, and 36 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 1 season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Increases investment in forests and mines in Hercynia
* The benefits of the hall could be redirected by the Broker of the Treji Wayhouse using a Senate announcement if there was an appropriate opportunity</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Opportunity ends if not commissioned before the end of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Can only be built if the Imperial Senate approve the Imperial Guild of Artisans</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBNavarr.jpg|align=right|caption=The artisans of [[Hercynia#Treji|Treji]] call on their people to support the newly proposed sodality.|width=300}}</div>
* '''The artisans and brokers of Treji offer to work to boost production of mines and forests in Hercynia if the Artisans' Guild passes the Senate'''
* '''If the guild becomes a sodality, the Empire could commission a great work in Treji to boost the production of forests and mines in the territory'''

The settlement of [[Hercynia#Treji|Treji]] has a long and sorrowful history. Overrun by the Thule when they conquered Hercynia, the countless artisans who worked there were forced to work for the Thule churning out weapons and armour for their soldiers. When the settlement was finally relieved, scores were freed, but scores more had been taken north, to labour in the frigid lands of the Thule, creating powerful magic items for the dragons.

Not until many years later after protracted negotiation with the Thule were the artisans of Treji finally freed and allowed to come home. Slowly, steadily, they have rebuilt Treji, restoring the forges and with the establishment of the [[Broker of Treji Wayhouse]] the town has been restored to life. Prosperous and busy, it has become the beating heart of Hercynia, a place where brokers gather to buy and sell the materials that the artisans of Treji need and the valuable items they create.

The artisans who toiled for so many years under the brutal dominion of the Druj are fierce advocates of the Artisans' Guild. It goes unsaid, mostly, but there is a quiet sentiment that if the Guild had existed a decade ago, then things might have been different. If there had been a political body to rival the Conclave but which existed to represent the interests of artisans then they could have been released sooner. As a result the Treji artisans are eager to offer their support.

Of course there is not much they can do by themselves, but they do have the support of many of the brokers who live in Hercynia. Together they have created a plan designed to try and win the support of their fellow Navarr, both across the North and elsewhere. They hope to persuade the senator for Hercynia and hopefully other senators to back the proposal for the Guild when it comes before the Senate. If the motion passes and the Guild becomes an Imperial sodality then they will propose the commission of a network of brokers, and a small central meeting place to coordinate the movements of brokers working right the way across the territory. The brokers would work to ensure that mines and forests were supplied with all the tools and equipment they needed to maximise their productivity. Several Treji artisans propose to call the central hall ''Starsrest'', after the obscure historical figure many of them have a particular fondness for. Equally, the brokers in Hercynia are more keen on ''Goodfellow Brokerage'' as a name, pointing to the inspiration of the [[Long Tom Goodfellow]], who worked hard to provide support for those who needed it and was especially good at speaking to people of all nations.

Regardless of what it ends up being called, the benefits it provides would be the same. If the Imperial Guild of Artisans becomes an Imperial sodality, then the Empire could commission ''Starsrest''/''Goodfellow Brokerage'' in Treji in the [[Hercynia#The_Glen_of_Shadows|Glen of Shadows]] of [[Hercynia]]. The hall would require 12 wains of weirwood and 36 crowns and take a season to build, but once complete it would raise the level of investment in forests and mines across the territory. The central hub would fall under the aegis of the Broker of Treji Wayhouse, allowing the title holder to use a Senate announcement to redirect the efforts of the brokers and artisans associated with it if the [[opportunity]] presented itself.

===The Last Calling===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|align=right|width=300|caption=Folk from every Imperial nation take great pride in their skills, and seek to form Imperial sodalities to exalt others who share their interests.}}</div>
* '''Members of the Pride Assembly are agitating for their Assembly to throw their support behind the Guild'''
* '''The Pride Assembly could use their highest calling to support Imperial sodalities, old and new'''
''"The Virtuous inspire others to greatness; they do not demean them."'' is one of the five tenets of [[Pride]]. It is often interpreted to mean that members of the Assembly should seek to lift up their fellows, empowering them to enable them to take Pride in themselves. One member of the Assembly, Jasna Kazimerczyk, is a skilled artisan who likes to practice what they preach, providing a [[Biting Blade]] once a year, to young [[schlacta]] who are seeking to prove themselves in defence of their home, the vales of [[Miekarova#Perumaki|Perumaki]] in [[Miekarova]] from wolves.

Jasna is adamant that the artisans of the Empire should finally get the recognition and reward they deserve. Since the Empire was founded, artisans have always been the poor relations of the magicians, condemned to the sidelines of Imperial politics, overlooked and ignored. They argue that the Senate approving the Imperial Artisans' Guild is the only Proud outcome - and they are hoping that the Pride Assembly will employ what influence they have to ensure that happens.

And while Jasna cares passionately about artisans and their fate, she is not blind to the fact that [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild]] was made into an Imperial sodality, but the Senate has pointedly refused to grant the Guild significant legal powers. Jasna accuses them of demeaning the apothecaries, treating them like servants who are obligated to do the Senate's bidding, but denied the authority and standing they would need to make Virtuous choices and take Pride in their status. Jasna is keen that the Assembly do what it can to ensure the new Artisans' Guild does not share the same fate as the Apothecaries Guild - or perhaps as bad - the fate of the Court of the Far Horizons who appear to have been passed over completely.

Jasna makes an impassioned plea for the Assembly to remind the Senate that the Empire must take Pride in the way it conducts itself - that the Senate has a responsibility to inspire others to greatness, not to demean them. If the Assembly agrees, they could offer their backing to the proposed sodality, but they could go much further. Last season the Assembly judged three different highest callings, but in the end none of them achieved a greater majority. If the Pride Assembly made supporting the new Imperial sodalities their highest calling it would lead to opportunities that would put more pressure on the Senate to create new sodalities and give them the authority to match their responsibilities.
===Only So Many Hours===
* '''The Constitutional Court note that the proposals and incentives mentioned here are likely only the tip of the iceberg'''
Magistrate Abraham ends his report by noting that the handful of proposals put forward by groups such as the City of Fire and Stone or the Carmine Band are potentially just the tip of the iceberg. There are many interests in the Empire who work with magic items and artisan lore directly - and also plenty of crafters outside the Empire who would likely respond positively to overtures from such a sodality. The [[Prosperity]] assembly for example may have thoughts on the creation of Imperial sodalities that support the industry and rewards of Imperial citizens once they have discharged their [[The_highest_calling#The_Highest_Calling|highest calling]] in [[Feroz]]. He also mentions the people of [[Skoura]], who are known to elevate artisanry to a fine art, and even people like the smiths of [[Weaving_tangled_nets#Murolosch|Murolosch]] in the [[Commonwealth]].

Appraising every such possibility is beyond his remit, but he is at pains to point out that this is true of ''every'' Imperial sodality. As bodies of state they cannot help but attract ongoing attention and opportunities from groups within the Empire, across the Known World, and in the eternal [[realms]].
==Further Reading==
* [[Imperial sodality]]
* [[Crafting skills#Artisan|Artisan]]
* [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]

* [[In the Court of Far Horizons]] - 388YE Summer appraisal of the Court of Far Horizons
* [[Arranging grace]] - 388YE Spring appraisal of the [[Cat's Graces]]

Fair share of labour

2026-08-19T15:10:39Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Appraisal]]
<ic>
Jasna Kazimerczyk stared at the letter on the writing desk, struggling to believe the news could be true. She'd read it three times now and still couldn't quite believe it.

The Imperial Artisans' Guild... it didn't sound like much. More like a Temeschwari carta with ideas above their station than some body of state. But according to Miloš, the civil service were appraising the prospect of making this League guild into an actual sodality. A body of state, on a par with the Conclave or the Bourse, but there to stand for artisans and to represent their interests to the Empire. No more relying on the Conclave to speak for them, no more urging the Golden Pyramid to fight their corner. The artisans would finally get the recognition they deserved.

Of course it was far from a foregone conclusion. Miloš said they'd done the same for a shipwrights sodality last season and that hadn't passed the Senate. At least not yet. There was no reason to assume this guild would fare any better. And yet Jasna dared to hope that somehow this might finally be their moment. She thought back to her own time in politics, all those years ago, agitating and arguing with people for change. Two years she'd spent traipsing down to Casinea every season, walking around Anvil trying to drum up support for the cause. Always the same answer, too expensive, too difficult, too many other battles to fight. She'd been full of hope when she first arrived in Anvil, convinced that the Virtue of her cause would be impossible to argue with. She'd soon learned that nothing was impossible to argue with. Two years later she'd quit in frustration vowing never to return.

And now, finally, all these years later, there was a chance to do the Virtuous thing. A once in a lifetime opportunity to fix one of the great flaws in the Empire. If Urizen had been a nation of artisans rather than a nation of magicians, the Conclave would have been a hall of craftspeople and the magicians would have been stood round the edges hoping to be let in. Instead they'd had four centuries of fighting for their rights, nearly forty decades fighting for their voices to be heard, the best part of four hundred years fighting for their work to be acknowledged. Surely the Senate would see the Virtue of acting? What senator wouldn't want to seize this opportunity to right this wrong? It might be too much to expect that Virtue would move them to act, but surely they would want to leave their mark on the world? To change the very nature of the Empire? What mortal soul could resist the urge to fashion something new, something better, when given the chance?

Hope is not a virtue she told herself. Leaving this to hope was a bad idea. A very, very bad idea. If this guild was going to become the voice of the Empire's artisans it would need every ally they could muster. The new sodality would face opposition from all corners - every single vote would be needed, of that she had no doubt.

Jasna Kazimerczyk picked up her quill, dipped it in the well and began to write. She was in no condition for waltzing off to Anvil at her age, but she still had a lot of friends across the north from her days as a preacher in the Assembly. Friends and allies she'd made all those years ago when fighting for the cause. Friends who'd sworn that they'd back her when the time came. Well, she thought to herself, it appears that the time has finally come...
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Crafting.jpg|align=left|caption=The Guild of Artisans is currently an informal sodality that welcomes all who master the arts of creating [[magic items]]; the Constitutional Court has considered what form it might take if it were recognised as a true [[Imperial sodality]].|width=400}}</div>
==Overview==
At the recent summit, [[Emperor Vesna]], requested that the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|Constitutional Court]] [[Forever_is_composed_of_nows#The_Abraham_Gambit|appraise the implications]] of a new [[Imperial sodality]], the ''Imperial Guild of Artisans''. Any new Imperial sodality can have significant legal ramifications, which depend on the precise wording of its manifesto. The aim of the [[Civil Service|civil service]] appraisal is to provide clarity on these consequences, to enable the [[Senate]] to better decide the matter.

The Artisans' Guild has been in existence for some time, with the Senate [[Construct_Guildhouse_of_the_Artisans|ordering the construction of Guildhouse]] in 385YE, creating the position of [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]. Now the Senate is in a position to consider the full implications of making the Guild into an official Imperial sodality.

A single season remains available for [[the Throne]] to instruct the civil service to appraise the legal implications of a new sodality. Whoever is chosen this season, if any, will be the final sodality that can be reviewed in this way, unless the civil service can find the resources to make the facility permanently available (although the Senate would still be able to [[appraisal|appraise]] the implications of a new Imperial sodality of course).

==Consequences==
* '''Emperor Vesna has asked the civil service to assess the constitutional implications of the Imperial Guild of Artisans'''
* '''Magistrate Abraham has delivered their analysis based on the proposed manifesto'''
* '''It would not be possible to create a second sodality concerned with artisans and the creation of magical items'''

Magistrate Abraham has conducted an analysis of the constitutional implications of the new sodality's provisional manifesto. The magistrate congratulates the Guild on the clarity and Ambition of their manifesto which has made this appraisal particularly straightforward.

<quote by="Manifesto of the Guild of Imperial Artisans"> This sodality holds the following to be true:
* Imperial artisans are the finest in the world, deserving commensurate respect, recompense and pride;
* Artisans and the magic items they create are valuable strategic resources for the Empire;
* The voice of the Empire's artisans should be preeminent in all matters relating to artisanry.

The sodality therefore exists to:
* Guide, aid, and provide consultation to the Empire's artisans, bodies of state and wider citizenry on the matter of artisanry;
* Support and coordinate artisans in the study, innovation, and creation of magic items;
* Represent the Empire's artisans, seeking and supporting opportunities within the Empire's borders and beyond.
</quote>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Magistrate Abraham.jpg|caption=Magistrate Abraham, constitutional scholar and part of the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional Court|Constitutional Court]], has taken it upon himself to provide guidance about Imperial sodalities to the Throne.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
The manifesto defines a sodality with responsibility for Imperial [[artisan|artisans]]. The magistrate notes that it makes no mention of having responsibility for the means to create magical items - there is no suggestion that the sodality should have any oversight of [[mine|mines]] or [[forest|forests]] or the [[materials]] they produce. If the Senate ratifies the decision to create the Imperial sodality, they will be responsible for the study, innovation and creation of magical items, but the manifesto would need to be updated if the Senate wanted them to take on any additional responsibilities.

This narrow focus ensures that there is no legal conflict with either the [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild|Imperial Apothecaries' Guild]] or the [[Conclave]]. The magistrate does note that the sodality's name is very similar to the Apothecaries' Guild, which he predicts will inevitably cause errors to happen at some point, when the wrong thing is written down. In particular, as a body of state grows into its power, it is common to refer to it with a singular name. ''Technically'' the Conclave is the Imperial Conclave of Magicians, but literally nobody calls it that - it's just called "Conclave". If people start referring to either the Artisans' or the Apothecaries' Guild as the "Guild" then it's going to lead to problems. The Imperial Archivist apparently sent Abraham an unsolicited list of possible alternative names, but their "suggestions" appear to not have made it into the final text of the report.

The magistrate also raises the concern that employing a name commonly used to describe a League business affiliation risks narrowing the appeal of the sodality to other nations, or giving the impression that the Guild has undue League affiliations which would obviously undermine its status as an Imperial sodality. The magistrate has spoken with members of the Guild about these concerns and understands that they have their reasons for the name and he is the first to admit that there is no legal bar to using the term Guild to describe one - or more - sodalities - but he feels he would be remiss if he did not point out the issue. Ultimately the Senate is contemplating the creation of a new branch of Imperial government - not establishing a trading [[guild]].

Imperial sodalities must be "singular" - there cannot be two sodalities in the Empire with overlapping concerns. If the Imperial Senate approves the manifesto of the Artisans' Guild, then it would not be possible to create a new Imperial sodality that had responsibility for the study, innovation, and creation of magic items nor otherwise represent the interests of artisans in the Empire.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Carpentry.jpg|align=right|caption=As an Imperial Sodality, the Guild of Imperial Artisans would represent all kinds of skilled magical crafters, irrespective of the materials with which they work.|width=400}}</div>
==Powers==
* '''The power to enjoin the creation, sale, use and bonding of magic items would be delegated to the Guild'''
* '''The power to disseminate a schema would also be given to the Guild'''
* '''Any new legal powers that were ''solely'' concerned with magical items would need to be delegated to the new sodality'''
If the Artisans' Guild were enacted with the provided manifesto then the ability to outlaw the creation, sale, use and bonding of magical items would be delegated to the Guild. Legally, this power currently lies with the Imperial Senate which can use a [[Senate motion]] to outlaw a specific item - such powers always default to the Senate in the absence of any other constitutional body with the legal authority to govern such activities. Once the sodality was enacted and had it's first member, it would no longer be possible for the Senate to use a Senate motion to pass laws around magic items - they would need to respect the authority of the Guild.

In recent years, the Conclave has employed the power of [[interdiction]] to outlaw the creation of some magical items. Abraham notes that there is absolutely no constitutional basis for this activity - or for the interdiction of potions or similar. It represents a very clear overreach of the powers of the Conclave, which ought properly to be restricted to the oversight of magicians and the use of magic. The Constitutional Court failed to notice this at the time, in part because there were no good alternatives in the past. That is definitely not the case now that there is an entire body of Imperial government that has oversight of potions - and certainly wouldn't be the case if the Empire chose to make the Artisans' Guild an Imperial sodality.

The Court haven't taken the step of ruling that the Conclave cannot continue to interdict magic items at this time, if only because they are clearly hoping that the Senate will resolve the problem for them. If the Guild were created, that conflict would be resolved. Any items that are currently outlawed by the Senate or interdicted by the Conclave would remain illegal to create, use, sell or bond - but the power to change their status would pass to the sodality. It would require a majority vote of members present at a session of the sodality to enjoin or permit the use of a specific magic item.

The Guild would also gain the legal power to disseminate a [[Magic_items#Schema|schema]], the detailed instructions that allow an artisan to learn how to create a magic item. Currently the Imperial Senate has this power, but it would pass to the sodality if it were enacted. By default, the sodality would need to provide the ten thrones required to disseminate the schema - the Senate could pass a motion to permit these costs to be borne by the Imperial treasury if they wished.

There are no other legal powers that currently exist that would be automatically delegated to the Guild, but if the Senate created new legal powers in the future whose '''sole''' remit was concerned with the creation and use of magical items then the well-worn path for the exercise of those powers would be by vote of the sodality members. Any legal powers that were related to magic items, but were not solely concerned with them, ''could'' be delegated to the Guild, provided they did not impinge on the constitutionally protected roles of the other houses. For example, the sodality could be given the right to prohibit some citizens from crafting magic items in the same way the [[Conclave]] can [[declaration|declare]] someone a [[sorcery|sorcerer]].

The Senate could grant the sodality the ability to announce one or more [[commission|commissions]] each season. They might include [[Edifice|edifices]] or [[sinecure|sinecures]] that provided materials, but the ability to commission new [[runeforge|runeforges]] would fall squarely within the sodality's remit.
<div style="float: right; width: 200px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Runeforge Symbol.jpg|caption=The creation of the Imperial Sodality would mean some titles would automatically be appointed by the Guild, while others ''may'' be appointed depending on the decision of the Senate.|width=200px}}</div>
==Appointments==
* '''The well worn path for any Imperial title whose responsibilities primarily relate to the creation, acquisition, distribution or research of magical items would be election by the Artisans' Guild'''
The civil service have conducted a preliminary review of all current [[Imperial title|Imperial titles]] to identify those whose responsibilities involve the creation, acquisition, distribution or research of magical items. In all cases these titles ''could'' be appointed by the new sodality if it were passed.

Where a title relates primarily or solely to magical items, then the sodality would become the ''only'' constitutionally valid way to appoint the position. In that case, the title would be automatically amended if the sodality is created. If the are other constitutionally valid ways to appoint a title after the sodality is created, then there will be no change to the method of appointment without direct action by the Senate.

No other details would change; if a position had tenure, it would only come up for election by the sodality at the point where the incumbent died, stepped down, or was [[revocation|revoked]]. National positions would be voted on by all members of the sodality, but only citizens of the relevant nation would be eligible to hold the title.

The constitutional implications of the sodality's existence would also impact any [[New Imperial titles|new Imperial title]]. The [[New_Imperial_titles#Well_Worn_Paths|well worth path]] for any position whose sole or primary responsibility relates to magical items , would be appointment by simple vote of members of the Artisans' Guild.
===Amended Titles===
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Automatically Amended Titles'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Dean of Runesmith's Caution]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Keeper of the Runegrott]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Seer of the Spiral Sword]]</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Four titles would be automatically amended to be appointed by the Guild'''
The civil service have identified four Imperial titles whose responsibilities are solely or primarily concerned with the research of new magical items, training new artisans or representing the interests of artisans. If the proposed sodality were passed by the Senate, then the only constitutionally valid way to appoint the listed titles would be by a vote of members of the sodality.

If the Senate pass the motion to create the Artisans' Guild, then all four listed titles will be amended to be appointed by the sodality.
===Potential Titles===
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Potential Titles'''</td></tr>

<tr><td>[[Architect of the Crucible]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Blackroot Broker]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Burgher of Ketsov]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Dhomiro of the Cinnabar Hills]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Marracossa Sendito]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Preceptor of the Skarsind College of Warcasting]]</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Imperial titles whose responsibilities partially relate to artisans or magical items could be elected by the Guild'''
* '''The titles will continue to be elected by the current method if the Senate declines to act'''
* '''There are six titles that could be changed with a single Senate motion to have them all elected by the sodality'''

The civil service have identified six Imperial titles whose responsibilities include the creation or acquisition of magical items, but it is not their sole responsibility. It would be possible for the Guild to appoint these six titles, but it is not obligatory.

Given their split responsibilities, creating the new sodality wouldn't change the appointment method of any of the positions. They could be amended by the Senate; a single [[Senate motion|motion]] could be used to amend any one title or all six simultaneously if desired, making them appointments of the Imperial Guild of Artisans.

The Constitutional Court have noted that the Blackroot Broker could be appointed by the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild, the Imperial Artisans' Guild, or the [[Vallornguard]] - the position has responsibilities claimed by all three sodalities, so it would be acceptable for either one to appoint the position. The [[Burgher of Ketsov]] and the [[Marracossa Sendito]] both deal with groups of artisans who provide the benefits the title enjoys. Before changing their appointment methods it would be wise to consult the Ketsov and the Marracossans respectively.

==Support==
A number of groups have indicated that they might be interested in supporting the Imperial Guild of Artisans, if it were given a broad remit by the Imperial Senate and backed with significant legal powers. As is usually the case, few groups have any interest in supporting a talking shop; they are only prepared to support the sodality if it is clear that it can wield actual power.

===Fire and Stone===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Estavus001a.png|align=right|caption=The [[Estavus|City of Fire and Stone]] welcomes a formal sodality of artisans, and is keen to offer their support.|width=300}}</div></div>
* '''The eternal Estavus would be open to serving as a patron of the new sodality'''
* '''If the sodality is given control of Imperial runeforges, Estavus will provide the sodality with a new schema each season for a year'''
[[Estavus|''The Forgemistress]] is known to favour those who build, construct and create - she is a patron of architects, builders, shipwrights and most especially artisans. Her heralds have made it clear that the ''Prince of Shikal'' would be pleased if the Artisan's Guild where made an Imperial sodality and given the power and authority that goes with that onerous responsibility.

If that happens, then the eternal will be open to serving as a patron fo the new sodality, should they request it. As an example of what benefits their support might entail, they would provide the sodality with a single schema each season for the year after it passes the Senate. Estavus can make any item that is made in the mortal world, each season they would provide the Guild with a list of three schema to pick between. The Guild would need to use a simple vote to select the schema they wanted - and a second vote to select what type of magical item (e.g. [[:Category:Rods|rod]], [[:Category:Shields|shield]] or [[:Category:Foci|foci]]) that they would like to replace it on the list at the next summit.

The eternal asks for nothing in exchange for these gifts - they are pleased simply to do what they can to encourage the creation of the new sodality. Should the sodality find the relationship beneficial, then the eternal would be open to discussing the potential to formalise the relationship by officially recognising the Prince of Shikal as the patron of the sodality.

===Carmine Band===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=OrderGoldenPyramid.jpg|title=Order of the Golden Pyramid|caption=The [[Golden Pyramid]] [[Conclave order]] has long been committed to representing and supporting the rights of Imperial artisands.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The Carmine Band will triple their donations to the Golden Pyramid if the Artisans' Guild passes the Senate'''
There are many groups of artisans and their allies across the Empire who have campaigned for years for the craft to receive the same recognition and status that the magicians of the Conclave enjoy. Many of them have thrown their support behind the Golden Pyramid, hoping that the order would be true to its noble manifesto and work to establish the prominence of Imperial artisans.

Now that the moment is at hand, these groups are looking to the Grandmaster of the Golden Pyramid to throw their weight behind the new sodality. Artisans have always been an afterthought in the Conclave: denied entry in their own right to the Hall of Worlds, they have lacked a voice ever since the Empire was founded. Supporting the Golden Pyramid in the hope that the order would uphold the promises made in its manifesto has been one of the few ways for artisans to get their views aired.

For such groups, this is a historic moment, a chance to right a fundamental wrong in the make-up of the Empire's constitution. As such, there is a heavy expectation that the new grandmaster, Terentia of Sarangrave Reforged, will throw the support of his order behind this proposal - and make clear to the Senate that it has the backing of the Conclave.

If that happens - if Conclave passes a [[declaration]] of [[concord]] calling on [[the Throne]] and the [[Senate]] to ratify the plans for the new Artisans' Guild, then the Carmine Band will increase their regular donations to the order's vaults, providing an additional three measures of Beggars Lye each season. If the efforts are successful, that is if the Senate creates the new sodality, then the Carmine Band add a further three measures of Tempest Jade to the Order's vaults each season in perpetuity, in gratitude for their political support at this crucial juncture.

The Carmine Band are clear that they do expect the grandmaster to support the sodality at this vital moment - if that doesn't happen, or worse the grandmaster is seen as working to prevent the sodality from being ratified, then the Carmine Band will abandon their support of the order.

===Treji's Legacy===
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Starsrest/Goodfellow Brokerage'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Great Work</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Treji, The Glen of Shadows, Hercynia </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 12 weirwood, and 36 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 1 season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Increases investment in forests and mines in Hercynia
* The benefits of the hall could be redirected by the Broker of the Treji Wayhouse using a Senate announcement if there was an appropriate opportunity</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Opportunity ends if not commissioned before the end of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Can only be built if the Imperial Senate approve the Imperial Guild of Artisans</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBNavarr.jpg|align=right|caption=The artisans of [[Hercynia#Treji|Treji]] call on their people to support the newly proposed sodality.|width=300}}</div>
* '''The artisans and brokers of Treki offer to work to boost production of mines and forests in Hercynia if the Artisans' Guild passes the Senate'''
* '''If the guild becomes a sodality, the Empire could commission a great work in Treji to boost the production of forests and mines in the territory'''

The settlement of [[Hercynia#Treji|Treji]] has a long and sorrowful history. Overrun by the Thule when they conquered Hercynia, the countless artisans who worked there were forced to work for the Thule churning out weapons and armour for their soldiers. When the settlement was finally relieved, scores were freed, but scores more had been taken north, to labour in the frigid lands of the Thule, creating powerful magic items for the dragons.

Not until many years later after protracted negotiation with the Thule were the artisans of Treji finally freed and allowed to come home. Slowly, steadily, they have rebuilt Treji, restoring the forges and with the establishment of the [[Broker of Treji Wayhouse]] the town has been restored to life. Prosperous and busy, it has become the beating heart of Hercynia, a place where brokers gather to buy and sell the materials that the artisans of Treji need and the valuable items they create.

The artisans who toiled for so many years under the brutal dominion of the Druj are fierce advocates of the Artisans' Guild. It goes unsaid, mostly, but there is a quiet sentiment that if the Guild had existed a decade ago, then things might have been different. If there had been a political body to rival the Conclave but which existed to represent the interests of artisans then they could have been released sooner. As a result the Treji artisans are eager to offer their support.

Of course there is not much they can do by themselves, but they do have the support of many of the brokers who live in Hercynia. Together they have created a plan designed to try and win the support of their fellow Navarr, both across the North and elsewhere. They hope to persuade the senator for Hercynia and hopefully other senators to back the proposal for the Guild when it comes before the Senate. If the motion passes and the Guild becomes an Imperial sodality then they will propose the commission of a network of brokers, and a small central meeting place to coordinate the movements of brokers working right the way across the territory. The brokers would work to ensure that mines and forests were supplied with all the tools and equipment they needed to maximise their productivity. Several Treji artisans propose to call the central hall ''Starsrest'', after the obscure historical figure many of them have a particular fondness for. Equally, the brokers in Hercynia are more keen on ''Goodfellow Brokerage'' as a name, pointing to the inspiration of the [[Long Tom Goodfellow]], who worked hard to provide support for those who needed it and was especially good at speaking to people of all nations.

Regardless of what it ends up being called, the benefits it provides would be the same. If the Imperial Guild of Artisans becomes an Imperial sodality, then the Empire could commission ''Starsrest''/''Goodfellow Brokerage'' in Treji in the [[Hercynia#The_Glen_of_Shadows|Glen of Shadows]] of [[Hercynia]]. The hall would require 12 wains of weirwood and 36 crowns and take a season to build, but once complete it would raise the level of investment in forests and mines across the territory. The central hub would fall under the aegis of the Broker of Treji Wayhouse, allowing the title holder to use a Senate announcement to redirect the efforts of the brokers and artisans associated with it if the [[opportunity]] presented itself.

===The Last Calling===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|align=right|width=300|caption=Folk from every Imperial nation take great pride in their skills, and seek to form Imperial sodalities to exalt others who share their interests.}}</div>
* '''Members of the Pride Assembly are agitating for their Assembly to throw their support behind the Guild'''
* '''The Pride Assembly could use their highest calling to support Imperial sodalities, old and new'''
''"The Virtuous inspire others to greatness; they do not demean them."'' is one of the five tenets of [[Pride]]. It is often interpreted to mean that members of the Assembly should seek to lift up their fellows, empowering them to enable them to take Pride in themselves. One member of the Assembly, Jasna Kazimerczyk, is a skilled artisan who likes to practice what they preach, providing a [[Biting Blade]] once a year, to young [[schlacta]] who are seeking to prove themselves in defence of their home, the vales of [[Miekarova#Perumaki|Perumaki]] in [[Miekarova]] from wolves.

Jasna is adamant that the artisans of the Empire should finally get the recognition and reward they deserve. Since the Empire was founded, artisans have always been the poor relations of the magicians, condemned to the sidelines of Imperial politics, overlooked and ignored. They argue that the Senate approving the Imperial Artisans' Guild is the only Proud outcome - and they are hoping that the Pride Assembly will employ what influence they have to ensure that happens.

And while Jasna cares passionately about artisans and their fate, she is not blind to the fact that [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild]] was made into an Imperial sodality, but the Senate has pointedly refused to grant the Guild significant legal powers. Jasna accuses them of demeaning the apothecaries, treating them like servants who are obligated to do the Senate's bidding, but denied the authority and standing they would need to make Virtuous choices and take Pride in their status. Jasna is keen that the Assembly do what it can to ensure the new Artisans' Guild does not share the same fate as the Apothecaries Guild - or perhaps as bad - the fate of the Court of the Far Horizons who appear to have been passed over completely.

Jasna makes an impassioned plea for the Assembly to remind the Senate that the Empire must take Pride in the way it conducts itself - that the Senate has a responsibility to inspire others to greatness, not to demean them. If the Assembly agrees, they could offer their backing to the proposed sodality, but they could go much further. Last season the Assembly judged three different highest callings, but in the end none of them achieved a greater majority. If the Pride Assembly made supporting the new Imperial sodalities their highest calling it would lead to opportunities that would put more pressure on the Senate to create new sodalities and give them the authority to match their responsibilities.
===Only So Many Hours===
* '''The Constitutional Court note that the proposals and incentives mentioned here are likely only the tip of the iceberg'''
Magistrate Abraham ends his report by noting that the handful of proposals put forward by groups such as the City of Fire and Stone or the Carmine Band are potentially just the tip of the iceberg. There are many interests in the Empire who work with magic items and artisan lore directly - and also plenty of crafters outside the Empire who would likely respond positively to overtures from such a sodality. The [[Prosperity]] assembly for example may have thoughts on the creation of Imperial sodalities that support the industry and rewards of Imperial citizens once they have discharged their [[The_highest_calling#The_Highest_Calling|highest calling]] in [[Feroz]]. He also mentions the people of [[Skoura]], who are known to elevate artisanry to a fine art, and even people like the smiths of [[Weaving_tangled_nets#Murolosch|Murolosch]] in the [[Commonwealth]].

Appraising every such possibility is beyond his remit, but he is at pains to point out that this is true of ''every'' Imperial sodality. As bodies of state they cannot help but attract ongoing attention and opportunities from groups within the Empire, across the Known World, and in the eternal [[realms]].
==Further Reading==
* [[Imperial sodality]]
* [[Crafting skills#Artisan|Artisan]]
* [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]

* [[In the Court of Far Horizons]] - 388YE Summer appraisal of the Court of Far Horizons
* [[Arranging grace]] - 388YE Spring appraisal of the [[Cat's Graces]]

Fair share of labour

2026-08-19T15:09:45Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Appraisal]]
<ic>
Jasna Kazimerczyk stared at the letter on the writing desk, struggling to believe the news could be true. She'd read it three times now and still couldn't quite believe it.

The Imperial Artisans Guild... it didn't sound like much. More like a Temeschwari carta with ideas above their station than some body of state. But according to Miloš, the civil service were appraising the prospect of making this League guild into an actual sodality. A body of state, on a par with the Conclave or the Bourse, but there to stand for artisans and to represent their interests to the Empire. No more relying on the Conclave to speak for them, no more urging the Golden Pyramid to fight their corner. The artisans would finally get the recognition they deserved.

Of course it was far from a foregone conclusion. Miloš said they'd done the same for a shipwrights sodality last season and that hadn't passed the Senate. At least not yet. There was no reason to assume this guild would fare any better. And yet Jasna dared to hope that somehow this might finally be their moment. She thought back to her own time in politics, all those years ago, agitating and arguing with people for change. Two years she'd spent traipsing down to Casinea every season, walking around Anvil trying to drum up support for the cause. Always the same answer, too expensive, too difficult, too many other battles to fight. She'd been full of hope when she first arrived in Anvil, convinced that the Virtue of her cause would be impossible to argue with. She'd soon learned that nothing was impossible to argue with. Two years later she'd quit in frustration vowing never to return.

And now, finally, all these years later, there was a chance to do the Virtuous thing. A once in a lifetime opportunity to fix one of the great flaws in the Empire. If Urizen had been a nation of artisans rather than a nation of magicians, the Conclave would have been a hall of craftspeople and the magicians would have been stood round the edges hoping to be let in. Instead they'd had four centuries of fighting for their rights, nearly forty decades fighting for their voices to be heard, the best part of four hundred years fighting for their work to be acknowledged. Surely the Senate would see the Virtue of acting? What senator wouldn't want to seize this opportunity to right this wrong? It might be too expect that Virtue would move them to act, but surely they would want to leave their mark on the world? To change the very nature of the Empire? What mortal soul could resist the urge to fashion something new, something better, when given the chance?

Hope is not a virtue she told herself. Leaving this to hope was a bad idea. A very, very bad idea. If this guild was going to become the voice of the Empire's artisans it would need every ally they could muster. The new sodality would face opposition from all corners - every single vote would be needed, of that she had no doubt.

Jasna Kazimerczyk picked up her quill, dipped it in the well and began to write. She was in no condition for waltzing off to Anvil at her age, but she still had a lot of friends across the north from her days as a preacher in the Assembly. Friends and allies she'd made all those years ago when fighting for the cause. Friends who'd sworn that they'd back her when the time came. Well, she thought to herself, it appears that the time has finally come...
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Crafting.jpg|align=left|caption=The Guild of Artisans is currently an informal sodality that welcomes all who master the arts of creating [[magic items]]; the Constitutional Court has considered what form it might take if it were recognised as a true [[Imperial sodality]].|width=400}}</div>
==Overview==
At the recent summit, [[Emperor Vesna]], requested that the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|Constitutional Court]] [[Forever_is_composed_of_nows#The_Abraham_Gambit|appraise the implications]] of a new [[Imperial sodality]], the ''Imperial Guild of Artisans''. Any new Imperial sodality can have significant legal ramifications, which depend on the precise wording of its manifesto. The aim of the [[Civil Service|civil service]] appraisal is to provide clarity on these consequences, to enable the [[Senate]] to better decide the matter.

The Artisans Guild has been in existence for some time, with the Senate [[Construct_Guildhouse_of_the_Artisans|ordering the construction of Guildhouse]] in 385YE, creating the position of [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]. Now the Senate is in a position to consider the full implications of making the Guild into an official Imperial sodality.

A single season remains available for [[the Throne]] to instruct the civil service to appraise the legal implications of a new sodality. Whoever is chosen this season, if any, will be the final sodality that can be reviewed in this way, unless the civil service can find the resources to make the facility permanently available (although the Senate would still be able to [[appraisal|appraise]] the implications of a new Imperial sodality of course).

==Consequences==
* '''Emperor Vesna has asked the civil service to assess the constitutional implications of the Imperial Guild of Artisans'''
* '''Magistrate Abraham has delivered their analysis based on the proposed manifesto'''
* '''It would not be possible to create a second sodality concerned with artisans and the creation of magical items'''

Magistrate Abraham has conducted an analysis of the constitutional implications of the new sodality's provisional manifesto. The magistrate congratulates the Guild on the clarity and Ambition of their manifesto which has made this appraisal particularly straightforward.

<quote by="Manifesto of the Guild of Imperial Artisans"> This sodality holds the following to be true:
* Imperial artisans are the finest in the world, deserving commensurate respect, recompense and pride;
* Artisans and the magic items they create are valuable strategic resources for the Empire;
* The voice of the Empire's artisans should be preeminent in all matters relating to artisanry.

The sodality therefore exists to:
* Guide, aid, and provide consultation to the Empire's artisans, bodies of state and wider citizenry on the matter of artisanry;
* Support and coordinate artisans in the study, innovation, and creation of magic items;
* Represent the Empire's artisans, seeking and supporting opportunities within the Empire's borders and beyond.
</quote>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Magistrate Abraham.jpg|caption=Magistrate Abraham, constitutional scholar and part of the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional Court|Constitutional Court]], has taken it upon himself to provide guidance about Imperial sodalities to the Throne.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
The manifesto defines a sodality with responsibility for Imperial [[artisan|artisans]]. The magistrate notes that it makes no mention of having responsibility for the means to create magical items - there is no suggestion that the sodality should have any oversight of [[mine|mines]] or [[forest|forests]] or the [[materials]] they produce. If the Senate ratifies the decision to create the Imperial sodality, they will be responsible for the study, innovation and creation of magical items, but the manifesto would need to be updated if the Senate wanted them to take on any additional responsibilities.

This narrow focus ensures that there is no legal conflict with either the [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild|Imperial Apothecaries' Guild]] or the [[Conclave]]. The magistrate does note that the sodality's name is very similar to the Apothecaries' Guild, which he predicts will inevitably cause errors to happen at some point, when the wrong thing is written down. In particular, as a body of state grows into its power, it is common to refer to it with a singular name. ''Technically'' the Conclave is the Imperial Conclave of Magicians, but literally nobody calls it that - it's just called "Conclave". If people start referring to either the Artisans' or the Apothecaries' Guild as the "Guild" then it's going to lead to problems. The Imperial Archivist apparently sent Abraham an unsolicited list of possible alternative names, but their "suggestions" appear to not have made it into the final text of the report.

The magistrate also raises the concern that employing a name commonly used to describe a League business affiliation risks narrowing the appeal of the sodality to other nations, or giving the impression that the Guild has undue League affiliations which would obviously undermine its status as an Imperial sodality. The magistrate has spoken with members of the Guild about these concerns and understands that they have their reasons for the name and he is the first to admit that there is no legal bar to using the term Guild to describe one - or more - sodalities - but he feels he would be remiss if he did not point out the issue. Ultimately the Senate is contemplating the creation of a new branch of Imperial government - not establishing a trading [[guild]].

Imperial sodalities must be "singular" - there cannot be two sodalities in the Empire with overlapping concerns. If the Imperial Senate approves the manifesto of the Artisans' Guild, then it would not be possible to create a new Imperial sodality that had responsibility for the study, innovation, and creation of magic items nor otherwise represent the interests of artisans in the Empire.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Carpentry.jpg|align=right|caption=As an Imperial Sodality, the Guild of Imperial Artisans would represent all kinds of skilled magical crafters, irrespective of the materials with which they work.|width=400}}</div>
==Powers==
* '''The power to enjoin the creation, sale, use and bonding of magic items would be delegated to the Guild'''
* '''The power to disseminate a schema would also be given to the Guild'''
* '''Any new legal powers that were ''solely'' concerned with magical items would need to be delegated to the new sodality'''
If the Artisans' Guild were enacted with the provided manifesto then the ability to outlaw the creation, sale, use and bonding of magical items would be delegated to the Guild. Legally, this power currently lies with the Imperial Senate which can use a [[Senate motion]] to outlaw a specific item - such powers always default to the Senate in the absence of any other constitutional body with the legal authority to govern such activities. Once the sodality was enacted and had it's first member, it would no longer be possible for the Senate to use a Senate motion to pass laws around magic items - they would need to respect the authority of the Guild.

In recent years, the Conclave has employed the power of [[interdiction]] to outlaw the creation of some magical items. Abraham notes that there is absolutely no constitutional basis for this activity - or for the interdiction of potions or similar. It represents a very clear overreach of the powers of the Conclave, which ought properly to be restricted to the oversight of magicians and the use of magic. The Constitutional Court failed to notice this at the time, in part because there were no good alternatives in the past. That is definitely not the case now that there is an entire body of Imperial government that has oversight of potions - and certainly wouldn't be the case if the Empire chose to make the Artisans Guild an Imperial sodality.

The Court haven't taken the step of ruling that the Conclave cannot continue to interdict magic items at this time, if only because they are clearly hoping that the Senate will resolve the problem for them. If the Guild were created, that conflict would be resolved. Any items that are currently outlawed by the Senate or interdicted by the Conclave would remain illegal to create, use, sell or bond - but the power to change their status would pass to the sodality. It would require a majority vote of members present at a session of the sodality to enjoin or permit the use of a specific magic item.

The Guild would also gain the legal power to disseminate a [[Magic_items#Schema|schema]], the detailed instructions that allow an artisan to learn how to create a magic item. Currently the Imperial Senate has this power, but it would pass to the sodality if it were enacted. By default, the sodality would need to provide the ten thrones required to disseminate the schema - the Senate could pass a motion to permit these costs to be borne by the Imperial treasury if they wished.

There are no other legal powers that currently exist that would be automatically delegated to the Guild, but if the Senate created new legal powers in the future whose '''sole''' remit was concerned with the creation and use of magical items then the well-worn path for the exercise of those powers would be by vote of the sodality members. Any legal powers that were related to magic items, but were not solely concerned with them, ''could'' be delegated to the Guild, provided they did not impinge on the constitutionally protected roles of the other houses. For example, the sodality could be given the right to prohibit some citizens from crafting magic items in the same way the [[Conclave]] can [[declaration|declare]] someone a [[sorcery|sorcerer]].

The Senate could grant the sodality the ability to announce one or more [[commission|commissions]] each season. They might include [[Edifice|edifices]] or [[sinecure|sinecures]] that provided materials, but the ability to commission new [[runeforge|runeforges]] would fall squarely within the sodality's remit.
<div style="float: right; width: 200px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Runeforge Symbol.jpg|caption=The creation of the Imperial Sodality would mean some titles would automatically be appointed by the Guild, while others ''may'' be appointed depending on the decision of the Senate.|width=200px}}</div>
==Appointments==
* '''The well worn path for any Imperial title whose responsibilities primarily relate to the creation, acquisition, distribution or research of magical items would be election by the Artisans' Guild'''
The civil service have conducted a preliminary review of all current [[Imperial title|Imperial titles]] to identify those whose responsibilities involve the creation, acquisition, distribution or research of magical items. In all cases these titles ''could'' be appointed by the new sodality if it were passed.

Where a title relates primarily or solely to magical items, then the sodality would become the ''only'' constitutionally valid way to appoint the position. In that case, the title would be automatically amended if the sodality is created. If the are other constitutionally valid ways to appoint a title after the sodality is created, then there will be no change to the method of appointment without direct action by the Senate.

No other details would change; if a position had tenure, it would only come up for election by the sodality at the point where the incumbent died, stepped down, or was [[revocation|revoked]]. National positions would be voted on by all members of the sodality, but only citizens of the relevant nation would be eligible to hold the title.

The constitutional implications of the sodality's existence would also impact any [[New Imperial titles|new Imperial title]]. The [[New_Imperial_titles#Well_Worn_Paths|well worth path]] for any position whose sole or primary responsibility relates to magical items , would be appointment by simple vote of members of the Artisans' Guild.
===Amended Titles===
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Automatically Amended Titles'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Dean of Runesmith's Caution]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Keeper of the Runegrott]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Seer of the Spiral Sword]]</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Four titles would be automatically amended to be appointed by the Guild'''
The civil service have identified four Imperial titles whose responsibilities are solely or primarily concerned with the research of new magical items, training new artisans or representing the interests of artisans. If the proposed sodality were passed by the Senate, then the only constitutionally valid way to appoint the listed titles would be by a vote of members of the sodality.

If the Senate pass the motion to create the Artisans Guild, then all four listed titles will be amended to be appointed by the sodality.
===Potential Titles===
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Potential Titles'''</td></tr>

<tr><td>[[Architect of the Crucible]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Blackroot Broker]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Burgher of Ketsov]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Dhomiro of the Cinnabar Hills]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Marracossa Sendito]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Preceptor of the Skarsind College of Warcasting]]</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Imperial titles whose responsibilities partially relate to artisans or magical items could be elected by the Guild'''
* '''The titles will continue to be elected by the current method if the Senate declines to act'''
* '''There are six titles that could be changed with a single Senate motion to have them all elected by the sodality'''

The civil service have identified six Imperial titles whose responsibilities include the creation or acquisition of magical items, but it is not their sole responsibility. It would be possible for the Guild to appoint these six titles, but it is not obligatory.

Given their split responsibilities, creating the new sodality wouldn't change the appointment method of any of the positions. They could be amended by the Senate; a single [[Senate motion|motion]] could be used to amend any one title or all six simultaneously if desired, making them appointments of the Imperial Guild of Artisans.

The Constitutional Court have noted that the Blackroot Broker could be appointed by the Imperial Apothecaries Guild, the Imperial Artisans Guild, or the [[Vallornguard]] - the position has responsibilities claimed by all three sodalities, so it would be acceptable for either one to appoint the position. The [[Burgher of Ketsov]] and the [[Marracossa Sendito]] both deal with groups of artisans who provide the benefits the title enjoys. Before changing their appointment methods it would be wise to consult the Ketsov and the Marracossans respectively.

==Support==
A number of groups have indicated that they might be interested in supporting the Imperial Guild of Artisans, if it were given a broad remit by the Imperial Senate and backed with significant legal powers. As is usually the case, few groups have any interest in supporting a talking shop; they are only prepared to support the sodality if it is clear that it can wield actual power.

===Fire and Stone===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Estavus001a.png|align=right|caption=The [[Estavus|City of Fire and Stone]] welcomes a formal sodality of artisans, and is keen to offer their support.|width=300}}</div></div>
* '''The eternal Estavus would be open to serving as a patron of the new sodality'''
* '''If the sodality is given control of Imperial runeforges, Estavus will provide the sodality with a new schema each season for a year'''
[[Estavus|''The Forgemistress]] is known to favour those who build, construct and create - she is a patron of architects, builders, shipwrights and most especially artisans. Her heralds have made it clear that the ''Prince of Shikal'' would be pleased if the Artisan's Guild where made an Imperial sodality and given the power and authority that goes with that onerous responsibility.

If that happens, then the eternal will be open to serving as a patron fo the new sodality, should they request it. As an example of what benefits their support might entail, they would provide the sodality with a single schema each season for the year after it passes the Senate. Estavus can make any item that is made in the mortal world, each season they would provide the Guild with a list of three schema to pick between. The Guild would need to use a simple vote to select the schema they wanted - and a second vote to select what type of magical item (e.g. [[:Category:Rods|rod]], [[:Category:Shields|shield]] or [[:Category:Foci|foci]]) that they would like to replace it on the list at the next summit.

The eternal asks for nothing in exchange for these gifts - they are pleased simply to do what they can to encourage the creation of the new sodality. Should the sodality find the relationship beneficial, then the eternal would be open to discussing the potential to formalise the relationship by officially recognising the Prince of Shikal as the patron of the sodality.

===Carmine Band===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=OrderGoldenPyramid.jpg|title=Order of the Golden Pyramid|caption=The [[Golden Pyramid]] [[Conclave order]] has long been committed to representing and supporting the rights of Imperial artisands.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The Carmine Band will triple their donations to the Golden Pyramid if the Artisans Guild passes the Senate'''
There are many groups of artisans and their allies across the Empire who have campaigned for years for the craft to receive the same recognition and status that the magicians of the Conclave enjoy. Many of them have thrown their support behind the Golden Pyramid, hoping that the order would be true to its noble manifesto and work to establish the prominence of Imperial artisans.

Now that the moment is at hand, these groups are looking to the Grandmaster of the Golden Pyramid to throw their weight behind the new sodality. Artisans have always been an afterthought in the Conclave: denied entry in their own right to the Hall of Worlds, they have lacked a voice ever since the Empire was founded. Supporting the Golden Pyramid in the hope that the order would uphold the promises made in its manifesto has been one of the few ways for artisans to get their views aired.

For such groups, this is a historic moment, a chance to right a fundamental wrong in the make-up of the Empire's constitution. As such, there is a heavy expectation that the new grandmaster, Terentia of Sarangrave Reforged, will throw the support of his order behind this proposal - and make clear to the Senate that it has the backing of the Conclave.

If that happens - if Conclave passes a [[declaration]] of [[concord]] calling on [[the Throne]] and the [[Senate]] to ratify the plans for the new Artisans Guild, then the Carmine Band will increase their regular donations to the order's vaults, providing an additional three measures of Beggars Lye each season. If the efforts are successful, that is if the Senate creates the new sodality, then the Carmine Band add a further three measures of Tempest Jade to the Order's vaults each season in perpetuity, in gratitude for their political support at this crucial juncture.

The Carmine Band are clear that they do expect the grandmaster to support the sodality at this vital moment - if that doesn't happen, or worse the grandmaster is seen as working to prevent the sodality from being ratified, then the Carmine Band will abandon their support of the order.

===Treji's Legacy===
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Starsrest/Goodfellow Brokerage'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Great Work</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Treji, The Glen of Shadows, Hercynia </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 12 weirwood, and 36 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 1 season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Increases investment in forests and mines in Hercynia
* The benefits of the hall could be redirected by the Broker of the Treji Wayhouse using a Senate announcement if there was an appropriate opportunity</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Opportunity ends if not commissioned before the end of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Can only be built if the Imperial Senate approve the Imperial Guild of Artisans</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBNavarr.jpg|align=right|caption=The artisans of [[Hercynia#Treji|Treji]] call on their people to support the newly proposed sodality.|width=300}}</div>
* '''The artisans and brokers of Treki offer to work to boost production of mines and forests in Hercynia if the Artisans Guild passes the Senate'''
* '''If the guild becomes a sodality, the Empire could commission a great work in Treji to boost the production of forests and mines in the territory'''

The settlement of [[Hercynia#Treji|Treji]] has a long and sorrowful history. Overrun by the Thule when they conquered Hercynia, the countless artisans who worked there were forced to work for the Thule churning out weapons and armour for their soldiers. When the settlement was finally relieved, scores were freed, but scores more had been taken north, to labour in the frigid lands of the Thule, creating powerful magic items for the dragons.

Not until many years later after protracted negotiation with the Thule were the artisans of Treji finally freed and allowed to come home. Slowly, steadily, they have rebuilt Treji, restoring the forges and with the establishment of the [[Broker of Treji Wayhouse]] the town has been restored to life. Prosperous and busy, it has become the beating heart of Hercynia, a place where brokers gather to buy and sell the materials that the artisans of Treji need and the valuable items they create.

The artisans who toiled for so many years under the brutal dominion of the Druj are fierce advocates of the Artisans Guild. It goes unsaid, mostly, but there is a quiet sentiment that if the Guild had existed a decade ago, then things might have been different. If there had been a political body to rival the Conclave but which existed to represent the interests of artisans then they could have been released sooner. As a result the Treji artisans are eager to offer their support.

Of course there is not much they can do by themselves, but they do have the support of many of the brokers who live in Hercynia. Together they have created a plan designed to try and win the support of their fellow Navarr, both across the North and elsewhere. They hope to persuade the senator for Hercynia and hopefully other senators to back the proposal for the Guild when it comes before the Senate. If the motion passes and the Guild becomes an Imperial sodality then they will propose the commission of a network of brokers, and a small central meeting place to coordinate the movements of brokers working right the way across the territory. The brokers would work to ensure that mines and forests were supplied with all the tools and equipment they needed to maximise their productivity. Several Treji artisans propose to call the central hall ''Starsrest'', after the obscure historical figure many of them have a particular fondness for. Equally, the brokers in Hercynia are more keen on ''Goodfellow Brokerage'' as a name, pointing to the inspiration of the [[Long Tom Goodfellow]], who worked hard to provide support for those who needed it and was especially good at speaking to people of all nations.

Regardless of what it ends up being called, the benefits it provides would be the same. If the Imperial Guild of Artisans becomes an Imperial sodality, then the Empire could commission ''Starsrest''/''Goodfellow Brokerage'' in Treji in the [[Hercynia#The_Glen_of_Shadows|Glen of Shadows]] of [[Hercynia]]. The hall would require 12 wains of weirwood and 36 crowns and take a season to build, but once complete it would raise the level of investment in forests and mines across the territory. The central hub would fall under the aegis of the Broker of Treji Wayhouse, allowing the title holder to use a Senate announcement to redirect the efforts of the brokers and artisans associated with it if the [[opportunity]] presented itself.

===The Last Calling===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|align=right|width=300|caption=Folk from every Imperial nation take great pride in their skills, and seek to form Imperial sodalities to exalt others who share their interests.}}</div>
* '''Members of the Pride Assembly are agitating for their Assembly to throw their support behind the Guild'''
* '''The Pride Assembly could use their highest calling to support Imperial sodalities, old and new'''
''"The Virtuous inspire others to greatness; they do not demean them."'' is one of the five tenets of [[Pride]]. It is often interpreted to mean that members of the Assembly should seek to lift up their fellows, empowering them to enable them to take Pride in themselves. One member of the Assembly, Jasna Kazimerczyk, is a skilled artisan who likes to practice what they preach, providing a [[Biting Blade]] once a year, to young [[schlacta]] who are seeking to prove themselves in defence of their home, the vales of [[Miekarova#Perumaki|Perumaki]] in [[Miekarova]] from wolves.

Jasna is adamant that the artisans of the Empire should finally get the recognition and reward they deserve. Since the Empire was founded, artisans have always been the poor relations of the magicians, condemned to the sidelines of Imperial politics, overlooked and ignored. They argue that the Senate approving the Imperial Artisans Guild is the only Proud outcome - and they are hoping that the Pride Assembly will employ what influence they have to ensure that happens.

And while Jasna cares passionately about artisans and their fate, she is not blind to the fact that [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild]] was made into an Imperial sodality, but the Senate has pointedly refused to grant the Guild significant legal powers. Jasna accuses them of demeaning the apothecaries, treating them like servants who are obligated to do the Senate's bidding, but denied the authority and standing they would need to make Virtuous choices and take Pride in their status. Jasna is keen that the Assembly do what it can to ensure the new Artisans Guild does not share the same fate as the Apothecaries Guild - or perhaps as bad - the fate of the Court of the Far Horizons who appear to have been passed over completely.

Jasna makes an impassioned plea for the Assembly to remind the Senate that the Empire must take Pride in the way it conducts itself - that the Senate has a responsibility to inspire others to greatness, not to demean them. If the Assembly agrees, they could offer their backing to the proposed sodality, but they could go much further. Last season the Assembly judged three different highest callings, but in the end none of them achieved a greater majority. If the Pride Assembly made supporting the new Imperial sodalities their highest calling it would lead to opportunities that would put more pressure on the Senate to create new sodalities and give them the authority to match their responsibilities.
===Only So Many Hours===
* '''The Constitutional Court note that the proposals and incentives mentioned here are likely only the tip of the iceberg'''
Magistrate Abraham ends his report by noting that the handful of proposals put forward by groups such as the City of Fire and Stone or the Carmine Band are potentially just the tip of the iceberg. There are many interests in the Empire who work with magic items and artisan lore directly - and also plenty of crafters outside the Empire who would likely respond positively to overtures from such a sodality. The [[Prosperity]] assembly for example may have thoughts on the creation of Imperial sodalities that support the industry and rewards of Imperial citizens once they have discharged their [[The_highest_calling#The_Highest_Calling|highest calling]] in [[Feroz]]. He also mentions the people of [[Skoura]], who are known to elevate artisanry to a fine art, and even people like the smiths of [[Weaving_tangled_nets#Murolosch|Murolosch]] in the [[Commonwealth]].

Appraising every such possibility is beyond his remit, but he is at pains to point out that this is true of ''every'' Imperial sodality. As bodies of state they cannot help but attract ongoing attention and opportunities from groups within the Empire, across the Known World, and in the eternal [[realms]].
==Further Reading==
* [[Imperial sodality]]
* [[Crafting skills#Artisan|Artisan]]
* [[Guildmaster of the Artisans]]

* [[In the Court of Far Horizons]] - 388YE Summer appraisal of the Court of Far Horizons
* [[Arranging grace]] - 388YE Spring appraisal of the [[Cat's Graces]]

386YE Winter Solstice winds of fortune

2026-08-19T12:31:48Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:386YE Winter]][[Category:Recent History]]
<div style="float:left; width: 600px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Virtue Exalts.jpg|align=left|caption=News spreads through word of mouth as fast as it does through broadsheets and posters, and is sometimes more reliable. Or at least, unreliable in more amusing ways...|width=600}}</div>
==Overview==
Over the past three months, events have taken place which are of significance to the Empire and may require a response from her champions. These are the winds of fortune, counterparts to the winds of war which detail the Empire's military campaigns. They lay out situations, and usually include things that characters can do to take advantage of [[opportunity|opportunities]] or to resolve problems. In almost every case, they start with a piece of flavour text. This fiction helps introduce the wind of fortune, or draws out a particular theme or element. Often, it represents a viewpoint that one or more NPCs might have in-character. In all cases, these pieces are intended to help create an atmosphere and provide a little entertainment. Where they contain opinions, those are the opinions of the fictional people depicted - and where they contain information or rumours the assumption is that the reader will create their own context for that information or gossip if they want to use it in character.

The body of the wind of fortune describes situations and lays out ways players can engage with them. Except where we explicitly talk about something being "rumoured" or use a phrase like "some might say..." the details of a wind of fortune are factual. They represent briefing material presented by the civil service or similar authoritative sources and represents something the average educated citizen would acknowledge as a reliable truth. Unless we specify otherwise, we're also being as thorough as possible. This information doesn't need further checking in-character. It's not opinion, and we're not trying to trick you.

As always, how much or how little of this information you choose to know in character is up to you. Part of the purpose of Winds of Fortune is to maintain the illusion of the Empire as a living, breathing place where things happen - and to make players aware of things their characters could know based on what their roleplaying says they have been doing for the past three months. It's perfectly acceptable to turn up to Empire having read only a few Winds of Fortune that directly interest your character; part of the fun on the field can come from learning about situations and opportunities in other parts of the game.

In each case, we've tried to tag the Winds of Fortune entry with the nations, or political bodies, to which it is most relevant. We've done this to help people who are interested only in events that are especially relevant to them. In no way are these tags intended to be exhaustive; the Empire is a complex place and very little happens in isolation.
__TOC__
==Winds of Fortune==
===I am Easy to Find===
* '''Imperial citizens'''
[[Emperor Vesna]] has used their power to [[The_Throne#Address_the_Empire|address the Empire]] to present a personal message to all Imperial citizens relating to the [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_interlude#In_the_Barrens|situation]] in [[the Barrens]].

The message has been distributed across the Empire by the civil service, and you can read it in the '''[[I am easy to find]]''' wind of fortune.
===Secret Meeting (Plenipotentiary)===
* '''Archmages, Imperial Conclave; Pale Ravens, Nation's Guard, Whelps (?), Lunete de Cercle, those who believe they bear the heart of Elayne Silverlark; Churnspire Adjutor, those who bear gifts of Meraud; mana-site owners of the Marches; artists of many kinds who are privy to secrets'''
Six [[Archmage|archmages]], six [[Archmage#Plenipotentiary|plenipotentiary]] responses. The [[eternal|eternals]] are bound by ancient compact to respond in some way to each plenipotentiary missive, although sometimes they respond in unexpected ways. Three have chosen to meet with Imperial magicians, in one way or another. Three have chosen to respond in other ways. There is also a matter for the [[Conclave]] to discuss, arising from a [[Synod]] judgement at the Autumn Equinox that relates specifically to the practice of plenipotentiary.

You can find details of the meetings, and notes about the other responses, in the '''[[Secret meeting]]''' wind of fortune.
===Hammers and Boxes===
* '''Imperial Orcs, the League, Wintermark; Archmage of Autumn; Imperial Conclave, Imperial Senate; Autumn magicians and traders; General of the Wolves of War; Herminius of the House of the Wanderer, Bella Di Sarvos'''
Over the last three months, several emissaries of the [[Realm#Autumn|Autumn realm]] have visited the Empire. Some hail from [[Estavus|Shikal the Fire Mountain]] and are apparently here at the behest of the [[Archmage of Autumn]]. Others come from the [[Ephisis|City of Gold and Lead]], and provide updates relating to the ritual [[Ephisis' Scale]]. They're also interested in arranging certain trades - including one relating to the [[enchantment]] on the [[Wolves of War]].

You can learn about the proposals of Estavus, and the deals of the City of Gold and Lead, in the '''[[Hammers and boxes]]''' wind of fortune.
===Gifts of a Green Mother===
* '''Imperial Conclave; Archmage of Spring; anyone with access to the regalia of the Archmage of Spring; Spring magicians; owners of farms, forests, and mana sites; Imperial Senate, Imperial Synod; Day magicians; orcs, briars, humans interested in becoming briars; people with access to realmsroot'''
As mentioned [[Secret_meeting#Forest_Queen|previously]], an emissary of the [[Yaw'nagrah|Green Mother]] has visited the Empire and offered a number of boons to Imperial citizens. They include an offer to secure her aid in uniting the [[vallorn]] hearts; a boon to remove [[Wither the Seed|malign curse]] over [[Brocéliande]]; the ability for Spring magicians to brew a potent magical substance in a [[Churning Cauldron of Bravash|churning cauldron]]; a chance for owners of [[farm|farms]], [[forest|forests]], and [[mana site|mana sites]] to receive some of the eternals largesse if they can find a coven prepared to accept her "bloodamber boon" on their behalf; additional potence for certain [[enchantment|enchantments]] used on [[orc|orcs]] and those with the [[briar]] [[lineage]] - or humans who might wish to gain that lineage; and of course several opportunities to keep tabs on people who are accepting these boons. With Yaw'nagrah under the [[alignment#Enmity|enmity]] of the Conclave, it's quite illegal for ''anyone'' to accept ''any'' of her boons.

You can learn about these many opportunities and boons, and the challenges related to accepting them, in the '''[[Gifts of a green mother]]''' wind of fortune.
===Send for Me (Appraisal)===
* '''Freeborn, especially of Feroz; Imperial Senate; Keeper of the Breadbasket, Marcher farm owners'''
At the Autumn Equinox, [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Senate_sessions#Appraise_Seed_Exchange|the Imperial Senate requested]] an [[appraisal]] related to seed banks, inspired by the [[Upwold]] Seed Exchange. As no specific researcher was requested, ''Gerard La Salle'' has asked [[Appraisal#Graciana_i_Lòpez_i_Guerra|Graciana i Lòpez i Guerra]] to consider the matter. The Freeborn prognosticator is known for her unusual techniques and novel approaches to any problem. And deliver she has! With particular reference to ruined [[Feroz]], Graciana has presented a number of proposals for the consideration of the Senate, and in the process has begun to assess the extent of the damage done to the territory by the wicked [[Grendel]] Governor Rahab.

You can find out about the results of the appraisal, as well as details of the situation in Feroz, in the '''[[Send for me]]''' wind of fortune.

===Million Miles of Water===
* '''Imperial Orcs, Marchers, Freeborn, League; Imperial Senate, Imperial Military Council'''
Like the rest of the [[Broken Shore]], the territory of [[Mareave]] is warm and dry and much of its north is arid and thirsty. Farms struggle to grow crops or raise herds on such dry ground. This is a major barrier to growing the territory's prosperity and attracting more [[Imperial Orcs]] from distant [[Skarsind]] to establish new homes here. [[The Marches|Marcher]] experts from [[Mitwold]] and [[Upwold]] and [[the Brass Coast|Freeborn]] talented in drawing prosperity and growth from barren earth have been invited to the territory on the urging of their National Assemblies to help with this matter. There are also ruins here, built in the Skouran style, including the remnants of an immense aqueduct. There are many options here, and many different ways to address the climate in the new Imperial territory.

You can learn about these various options, and the implications they might have for the larger Empire, in the '''[[Million miles of water]]''' wind of fortune.
===Wasp Nest===
* '''Navarr, Highguard; Imperial Synod; Mistress of Monuments; Benefactor of High Chalcis, High Herbalist of Sybella, Generals of the Valiant Pegasus and the Bloodcloaks; Imperial Senate; Keeper of the Garden; Hazelelponi of the Shattered Tower; apothecaries'''
In [[Full_of_sacred_sound#A_Peerless_Kinship|peerless kinship]], [[Highguard|Highborn]] pilgrims come to [[Therunin]], to work with their peers among the [[Navarr]]. they seek a way to lay to rest the ghosts that throng in the east of the marshy territory, and with a little help from an injured [[Dawn|Dawnish]] soldier a path is laid. But the path cannot be walked, and the living are in as much danger as the dead in Therunin right now. With their final peerless kinship, the Highborn seek ways to help heal not only the spirits of Therunin, but also the water and soil corrupted by the taint of the Sephals Cauldron - and perhaps also ways to cement closer ties between the two nations.

You can read about the suggestions that have arisen from this final use of peerless kinship, as well as the glimmer of hope for the future, in the '''[[Wasp nest]]''' wind of fortune,
===Fake Empire (Appraisal)===
* '''Imperial Senate, Imperial Military Council, Imperial Diplomats, Grandmasters, Ambassadors, and Æsa Sigeing'''
The second [[appraisal]] commissioned by the [[Senate]] instructs [[Appraisal#Naomi_of_Virtue's_Rest|Naomi of Virtue's Rest]] to discover how the Empire might disrupt relations between each [[Grendel]] salt lord. She was asked to find ways to not only disrupt relations between the salt lords but also with their allies, both internal and external. Although this appraisal falls squarely within her expertise, its scope means that her response has been a little limited in application. As a consequence, the prognosticator has split her appraisal into two parts - the first is designed to provide a description of the current situation, providing an overview of the Salt Lords Council, how it is made up and how it functions. The second part of her appraisal lays out what is known about the Grendel's allies and presents some ideas for how they might be approached.

You can read about her findings, and the various suggestions she has made, in the '''[[Fake empire]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly_General.png|caption=The General Assembly|align=right|width=200}}</div>

===A Little Understanding===
* '''Imperial Synod, Imperial Senate'''
At the Autumn Equinox, three of the [[cardinal|cardinals]] of the [[Synod]], and a citizen who was acting as [[proxy]] to the [[Cardinal of Prosperity]], publicly swore an oath to bear an [[aura]] of [[Malign spiritual presences#Peace|Peace]] for the coming year, doing nothing to resist its effects. All four were quickly [[Sanction#Condemnation|condemned]] as [[Religious_crime#Heresy|heretics]] and [[Religious_crime#Blasphemy|blasphemers]] by the Assembly of [[Vigilance]]. The magistrates are now bound to conduct a trial to investigate the [[religious crime|religious crimes]] these cardinals are accused of. Meanwhile, the General Assembly must wrestle with the threat of a growing schism - following so closely on the heels of the [[True faith|recent crisis]] concerning [[Vardas]] - and contemplate what it means for the Way that cardinals dabble with the power of "false virtues".

You can find out about the legal considerations, as well as the potential repercussions of various outcomes, in the '''[[A little understanding]]''' wind of fortune.
===The War of Thorns and Flowers===
* '''Highguard, the League, Varushka; Imperial Senate; Imperial Synod; Imperial Conclave; Master of the Koboldi, Master of Ice and Darkness; anyone interested in the war against the vallorn'''
The nations of the Empire have begun to rise to the challenge of the coming [[A thousand years of longing|war with the vallorn]]. The [[highguard|Highborn]] have called the [[Grey pilgrim|grey pilgrims]] home, allowing them to raise another army. [[The League]] have asked their most ambitious and innovative people to study the problem, while the [[Varushka|Varushkans]] have sought to draw on dark powers to battle civilisation's most implacable enemy. Other nations still debate the shape of the future, and they are by no means united in what the best course of action may be. These three nations, though, have chosen to face their enemy and begin to draw their plans against it.

You can learn about the upheavals in the three nations that choose to support the [[Navarr]], and how they can shape the coming war, in the '''[[The war of thorns and flowers]]''' wind of fortune.
===According to Principle (Commonwealth)===
* '''Ambassador to the Commonwealth; Imperial Senate; League Assembly; Gisli Baerson'''
The [[Commonwealth]] are a militaristic nation committed to the idea of ensuring the greatest good to the greatest number of people. As fellow signatories of the [[Liberty Pact]] they are perhaps the closest allies the Empire has among the great powers of the known world. At the moment they are locked in fierce battle with their historical rivals, the [[Principalities of Jarm]], but they still take time to answer messages from Imperial allies. In this wind, there is a discussion of war, news of visitors from the Commonwealth's universities and an opportunity they present, major changes to trade with the ports of [[Foreign_ports#Leerdam|Leerdam]] and [[Foreign_ports#Volkavaar|Volkavaar]], and an intrigued response to an invitation to visit the [[Holberg|Greatest City in the Empire]].

You can learn about diplomatic matters related to the Commonwealth, and the opportunities they present, in the '''[[According to principle]]''' wind of fortune.

===Little Faith===
* '''Assembly of Wisdom, General Assembly; Advisor on the Vallorn; Navarr'''
The Assembly of Wisdom has called for a [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_69|called for]] a [[Consecration#True_Liao|true consecration]] of the [[Great Library of Hacynian]]. Rather than a [[Inspirational_location#Memorials|memorial]] to an [[Paragons and exemplars|exemplar or paragon]] they wish to create a [[Inspirational_location#Sacred#Sites|sacred site]], a location that resonates with virtue - the place where the way to defeat the [[vallorn]] once and for all was found. The work of the Great Library, and its final revelations, has also inspired members of the nascent [[vine]] movement among the [[Navarr]], which has finally borne fruit in a shared understanding of what their role within the nation might be.

You can find out more about the potential consecration, and the newborn vine movement, in the '''[[Little faith]]''' wind of fortune.
===Theory of the Crows (Sarcophan)===
* '''Sarcophan Ambassador; Imperial Senate; High Herbalist of Sybella; folk interested in recreational consumables; white granite vendors and priests; Hahnmark farmers and Wintermark entrepreneurs; Cardinal of Prosperity, Mistress of Monuments; Bernhard Kleist von Ennerlund; and an unnamed Dawnish artist who presumably knows who they are...'''
The merchant-princes of the [[Sarcophan Delves]] strive for neutrality. They are enthusiastic about trade with the Empire, but their neutrality is precious to them. They hold it a mark of pride that they will deal with anyone who has goods, services, or money. While they have given up the practice of slavery without regret. Yet for all their focus they are still a great power of the known world, and sometimes their neutrality is sorely tested. There is talk of a new treaty, not just with the Empire but with all the great nations, to safeguard international trade. As always though, there is also discussion of trade and commerce, visits, and meetings arranged. The Sarcophan may not flex their political muscle often, but even when they do they do not lose sight of what is ''really'' important.

You can learn about their proposals, and several opportunities and meetings, in the '''[[Theory of the crows]]''' wind of fortune.
===The Long Road===
* '''Summer magicians; would-be champions'''
For the past year, [[Summer magic|Summer mages]] who wished to entreat the [[Barien|Iron Duke]] for a supernatural challenge have been stymied by a conjunction of the stars. The [[eternal]] himself was unable to overcome the power of the celestial bodies that interrupted magic between the mortal and Summer realm. For four summits, there have been no new challengers of the Iron Duke. That changes now. Now that the conjunction has finally passed, the power of the ritual is restored, albeit not as it was. Whether the changes are a consequence of the conjunction or at the whims of the Keeper of the Revels themselves is not known. What is known, is that the heralds of Barien have announced that they are now pleased to present their patron's challenges for the Empire to consider.

You can read about these challenges, and how the ritual so closely connected to the Iron Duke has changed, in the '''[[The long road]]''' wind of fortune.
===It Never Happened (Axos)===
* '''Ambassador to Axos; members of the Shuttered Lantern; General Assembly, Vigilance Assembly, Imperial priests'''
Imperial relations with the [[Axos|Citadels of Axos]] remain rocky. The little nation is clearly undergoing a level of [[Victory_and_unity#Times_Change|internal upheaval]] at the moment thanks to the ambitions of ''Grand Ilarch Kyther'', recently ascended to the Throne of [[Axos#Tunnels_of_Kaban|Kaban]]. The [[Shuttered Lantern]] have completed their infiltration of the nation, and prepared their reports about the politics of the citadels. There is also the attempt to remove the ghosts and haunts from the fallen Citadel of Solokha, the aid that Imperial priests might offer, and the implications of the fact that the people of Axos believe the Imperial faith is a deception perpetrated by a jealous Creator. A misstep here might set the blocks tumbling again, and see Axos withdraw from the Empire again - but with the right approach perhaps the tumultuous nation might provide new opportunities to Imperial citizens?

You can read about the situation in Axos, and its relation with the Empire, in the '''[[It never happened]]''' wind of fortune.
===So Far So Fast (Lasambria)===
* '''Imperial Senate; the Brass Coast; Imperial Synod, Brass Coast Assembly; Imperial Military Council; Imperial Consul'''
Last summit a party of diplomats from the Lasambrian Orcs visited Anvil to discuss peace. The details of their negotiation are known only to those who were present, but it seems that a [[Ambassador#Treaty|treaty]] that both sets of negotiators were willing to endorse was drafted. Since then, there has been a flurry of messages back and forth but the word is sent: in principle, all parties are willing to accept this treaty. The remaining hurdle is the approval of the relevant Imperial bodies of state. To become law, the [[Senate]] would need to [[Ambassador#Treaty|pass the treaty]] with a [[Senate_motion#Constitutional_Vote|constitutional vote]], and it would still be subject to veto by the [[Assembly|General Assembly]] and the Assembly of Nine.

You can learn about the treaty, and its implications for the south-west Empire, in the '''[[So far so fast]]''' wind of fortune.
===Figures From the Past Stand Tall===
* '''Highguard, especially Stewards of the Dead; High Exorcist; people in Reikos; residents of any territory invaded by the Druj; anyone whose previous character has died at the hands of the Druj'''
For several years, [[Reikos]] has known peace. In the aftermath of the [[Druj]] invasion and the expulsion of the rot eternal [[Llofir]] from [[Reikos#Tamarbode|Tamarbode]], its inhabitants have dedicated themselves to arts of healing and purification. The [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Gardens_of_High_Chalcis|Gardens of High Chalcis]], once a mighty fortification reduced to ruins, now stand as a symbol of restoration and resilience in the face of the horrors that came from [[the Mallum]] decades ago. Despite the rebuilding and the dedication of the Highborn, scars remain. Now it is as if those scars have come alive; as the end of the Highborn year approaches, ghosts gather in the shadows of High Chalcis.

You can learn about these ghosts, as well as an opportunity to volunteer, in the '''[[Figures from the past stand tall]]''' wind of fortune.
===Weird Goodbye===
* '''Wintermark; Banner-bearer of Atkonaroq, Keeper of the Runegrott'''
Two seasons ago the Icebarn twins [[Farm,_fur,_and_fish#Out_of_the_Storm_(Conjunctions)|emerged from Sydanjaa]]. This pair of [[Wintermark_magical_traditions#Artok|Artok]] travel a strange, shifting route that sees them vanish into [[Sermersuaq#Sydanjaa|Sydanjaa]] for years at a time. During the Summer Solstice, the [[Banner-bearer of Atkonaroq]] and the [[Keeper of the Runegrott]] were each charged with leading a group of Imperial heroes through the Sentinel Gate to kill the Jotun tracking the pair and deal with ''Big Icebarn'' and ''Little Icebarn'' respectively. The artok were marked with runes of dominion and direction, and now at last the two can be put to work in service of the people of Wintermark as long as the runes hold them. The question is... what should they do now?

You can learn about Big Icebarn and Little Icebarn, and the tasks they may be set, in the '''[[Weird Goodbye]]''' wind of fortune.
===Friend of Mine (Sumaah)===
* '''Ambassador to the Sumaah Republic; Imperial fleet captains; League assembly'''
The [[Sumaah Republic]] are simultaneously allies of, and rivals to, the Empire. Their shared practice of the Way both provide them with common ground, and divides them over questions of orthodoxy. At the moment they are focussed on their own war with the [[Asavean Archipelago]], but they remain committed to spreading the Way through the entire world. That commitment might be challenged; news has reached the House of the People that the Asaveans are gearing up for a major push, intending to wreak fiery vengeance for the Sumaah role in the [[Mosaic|destruction of Chalonsio]]. The Republic asks for help - will the Empire respond? There are advantages to doing so... but also advantages to weakening the powerful Sumaah nation. They are rivals, after all.

You can learn about the diplomatic situation in the Sumaah Republic, and the coming Asavean attack, in the '''[[Friend of mine]]''' wind of fortune.
===Pride and Paragons===
* '''Imperial Synod; Lepidean Librarian; Highguard and those invested in the Grand Inspiration'''
In summer, the [[Lepidean Librarian]] took the [[Courage|Courageous]] decision to publish in full the research on the [[Life of Vardas]]. Vardas had been recognised as a paragon of [[Vigilance]] for well over three centuries but their entire life story was essentially a collection of tall tales, penned by [[The_League_magical_traditions#mountebank|a League mountebank]] to make a quick ring. The discovery that it was all a lie and there was no Vardas threatened to be as a [[True_faith|hammer blow to the faith]] that would damage people's faith in the judgement of the [[Synod]]. At the Autumn Equinox, the Synod moved decisively to prevent a full-blown crisis of faith, but just as anticipated, it has raised more questions than it answered.

You can learn about the repercussions of the Synod's decision, and the ripples it has created, in the '''[[Pride and paragons]]''' wind of fortune.
===Start a War (Barrens)===
* '''Imperial Senate; people of Dawn; folk with an interest in the Barrens or the Mallum'''
As the dust settles [[By_northern_shores|over the dramatic events in the Barrens]], people begin to take stock of what has happened. The wheels of state roll on. [[The Barrens#The Fangs|The Fangs]] are now in Imperial possession and can now be [[Powers_of_the_Imperial_Senate#Allocation|allocated]] by the [[Senate]]. The attack on the Rahvin has polarised views across Dawn, setting houses - even siblings - against each other. There are many who support '''General Achavion Wolfborne''' and argue that he has put his life on the line for Dawn. Others oppose the attack, criticising the latest in a line of atrocities that have taken place since Dawn was given stewardship of [[the Barrens]]. What happens now?

You can learn about the situation regarding the Fangs, and the two opposing factions inspired by events in the Barrens, in the '''[[Start a war]]''' wind of fortune.

===Hard to Find (Barrens)===
* '''Dawn, especially questing knights and those in the Barrens; Navarr; anyone with interest in the Karass; General of the Golden Sun, Hand of the Healers, all four Knight-Protectors'''
While all eyes are on the [[Start a war|conflict in the north]], there is a glorious expedition planned in the south of the territory, a quest deep into the heart of the [[The Barrens#Untrod Groves|Untrod Groves]]. There are rumours of a strange creature dwelling here, a terrible beast that is linked the legendary Earl of the Groves. A band of daring knights is preparing to venture deep into the Groves unaware that disaster is waiting for them. At the same time, the [[Navarr]] have now completed their [[The_way_home#The_Last_Battle|new wayhouse]], in the [[The Barrens#Bleaks|Bleaks]]. It will help to forge tighter bonds between Navarr and Dawn, but the orcs in the Bleaks seem significantly less enthused about its presence.

You can learn about the expedition into the Untrod Groves, and the response to the new wayhouse, in the '''[[Hard to find]]''' wind of fortune.

===Made Anew (Madruga)===
* '''People in Madruga, especially those with herb gardens; military captains who took the ''Explore the Southern Reaches'' venture; Orders of the Unfettered Mind and Rod and Shield; Imperial Senate, Imperial Conclave; Hakima of Salt and Sand'''
At the Summer Solstice, the Scorrero river was driven to [[Where_the_river_rises#Annihilation_and_Transformation|burst its banks]] by Imperial magicians. It streamed into [[Madruga]] and washed away the desiccating blight that had transformed the [[Madruga#Great Grasses|Great Grasses]] into an ashen wasteland. The waters, infused with particles of [[ilium|star metal]] worked a powerful transformation on the territory, already scarred by [[A beacon of smoke|war]] with the [[Grendel]] and the [[Children of Wrecks]]. Now [[Where_the_river_rises#Shimmer|a strange marsh covers the southern reaches]] of Madruga. Following the Autumn equinox, [[military unit|daring champions]] and [[Conclave]] [[Magical skills#Magician|magicians]] alike began to explore the changed territory and try to understand what this transfiguration portends.

You can learn about what they uncovered, and what is still hidden beneath the marshwaters and swaying grass, in the '''[[Made anew]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly_Ambition.png|align=left|width=200}}</div>
===Golden Light (Capodomus)===
* '''Archbishop of Capodomus; Imperial Synod, especially the Ambition assembly; citizens keen to engage in national politics; ambitious folk; artists'''
The [[Assembly#The_Virtue_Assemblies|Assembly of Ambition]] has [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_30|called for]] a [[Consecration#True_Liao|true consecration]] of [[Archbishop_of_Capodomus#Capodomus_Cathedral|Capodomus Cathedral]] in [[Sarvos]]. Rather than a [[Inspirational_location#Memorials|memorial]] to an exemplar or paragon, they wish to create a [[Inspirational_location#Sacred#Sites|sacred site]], a location that resonates with virtue. If the consecration goes ahead, this historic site will quickly become the most prestigious place in the Empire to study the Way, and provide a number of other opportunities to ambitious folk and the priests who encourage them. In particular there is a chance for the Archbishop of Capodomus to reach out to pilgrims across the Empire, to inspire them in the pursuit of their ambitions.

You can learn about the prognosticator's assessment of the writ of consecration, and the opportunities it would create, in the '''[[Golden light]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=RhianosArt.jpg|align=right|width=400}}</div>

===Second Star (Rhianos Race)===
* '''Competitors in Rhianos' great race'''
In Summer 386YE, the [[Rhianos|Regent of the Eternal Sea]], announced they were holding a great race, an [[Famine_and_feast#Rhianos|epic voyage]] to the four corners of the world. Those who successfully completed the [[Famine and feast|first leg]] were [[Roaring_plenty|given three new options]] for the second leg depending on whether they valued loot, adventure in the unknown, or wished to set their sails '''straight on for glory''', hoping against hope to win the sweet prize of victory for themselves. The race is still only half complete, there are two more seasons to go before someone can complete the entire voyage. There are few changes this season for those who have stayed the course, say the heralds of the ''Brilliant Kingfisher'', but the course has shifted again.

You can find out about the new course, and the first inklings of the finish line, in the '''[[Second star]]''' wind of fortune.

===Lit Up (Mareave)===
* '''Golden Pyramid; Imperial Orcs, Urizen; Minister of Historical Research, Imperial Consul, Senator for Mareave'''
[[Mareave]], second territory of the [[Imperial Orcs]] nation, is the southerly territory in the Empire and potentially the most exposed. As autumn turns to winter, its inhabitants pan for the coming year. What endeavours might work, who might be convinced to support whom in an undertaking, and what to do if - or when - the Grendel return. There is plenty going on. The [[Golden Pyramid]] remain in the territory, keenly searching for [[opportunity|opportunities]] to establish new ventures and use their magic to enhance the prosperity of its citizens. The cautiously friendly [[Skoura|Skourans]] look for new ways to approach the fact their old lands of Mahal are now controlled by orcs very different to the original Grendel inhabitants. And in the south the [[Illarawm]] sect make their approach to the [[Region_qualities#Uncooperative|uncooperative]] Brine Turtles, hoping to find ways to build new bridges.

You can learn about these diplomatic developments in Mareave, and the exciting potential of a true grand lodge, in the '''[[Lit up]]''' wind of fortune.
===Obsidian Shards (Spiral)===
* '''People of Spiral; Senator for Spiral, Oblivion Sentinel'''
The situation in [[Spiral]] has been slowly stabilising over the course of the last year, but peace is never a given in a territory scarred by the presence of the {{Black Plateau}}. Now it seems that a renegade force of former rebels, former Urizen who chose to remain in Ankra and become foreigners, have been harbouring a terrible corruption for many years. Their belief that there is a terrible conspiracy afoot in the Empire has led them to begin attacking Imperial citizens. Disavowed by their former allies, they are closing in on targets and only Imperial heroes have a chance to stop them.

You can learn about this renegade faction, and the threat they pose, in the '''[[Obsidian shards]]''' wind of fortune.

===Rumblings in the Gullet===
* '''People who live in territories on the Gullet; Roost's Reeve; Kjellen Saltmire; Claviger of the Basilica of Cora Holdfast'''
A minor tremor has been felt in the territories on the Gullet. Settlements along the coast have suffered some minor, superficial damage, but that alone would not be enough to cause too much of a stir. Then reports of items washing onto shore began. Followed by sightings of strange, shambling figures. Finally, people have gone missing.

You can learn about the strange occurrences centred around the Gullet in the '''[[Rumblings in the Gullet]]''' wind of fortune.

===Watching You Well===
* '''Assembly of Nine; Dedicants of Vigilance; Imperial Senate; The Throne; Allies of the Hand of Dumon; People with an interest in the law'''
Last season '''Constanza i Kalamar i Guerra''' raised a judgement in the Assembly of Nine to direct the [[Silent Bell (Sodality)|Silent Bell]] to investigate the Hand of Dumon, including anything connecting the group to the {{Black Plateau}}. Over the last three months, the Silent Bell have reached out to the Suranni magicians who fled the Iron Confederacy for more information on the membership and ethos of the illegal group.

You can learn about what the Silent Bell were to uncover in the '''[[Watching you well]]''' wind of fortune.
===All the Wind (Faraden)===
* '''Ambassador to Faraden; Celestial Arch Conclave Order; Imperial magicians of all stripes; Holberg Chamber of Commerce; Azure Sutannir; Imperial fleets'''
The lifeblood of [[Faraden]] is trade, but it is also a country of canny wizards, courageous warriors, and proud (albeit heretical) priests. Lying beyond the [[Jotun]] and the [[Iron Confederacy]], they send their caravans to Imperial markets despite the high tariffs they must pay to pass through the lands between. Diplomatic relations between the Court of the Five Winds and the [[Senate]] are changeable - warm one moment, cool the next - but it has never come to open warfare. Right now Faraden is squeezed between two competing interests - the Empire on one side and the angry Plenum of the [[Asavean Archipelago]] on the other - and they must walk a knife-edge between the two powerful nations.

You can learn about diplomatic developments, and several opportunities, in the '''[[All the wind]]''' wind of fortune.

===Bitter and Absolute (Iron Confederacy)===
* '''Ambassador to the Iron Confederacy; Golden Fleet Salvagemaster; Imperial fleets;
The Iron Confederacy sees itself as a potential rival to the Empire, a powerful nation that matches its northern neighbours in size and strength. It's hard to prove or disprove their claims, unlikely as they seem, and despite centuries of grudging trade and even the occasional war, Imperial scholars know little about the south-western nation. Diplomacy between the Ducal Council and the Empire continues to shift, though the Senate's removal of tariffs and outlawing the trade of narcotic goods to the Suranni has seen an uptick in relations.

You can learn about trade, diplomacy, and a strange shipwreck in the '''[[Bitter and absolute]]''' wind of fortune.

===About Today (Thule)===
* '''Ambassador to Otkodov; Scops of Wintermark; Bond Holders of the Five Fang Consortium; Custodian of the Gift of the Dwindling Star; Mediator of Wreck'''
The Thule are ruled by their magicians. Almost all positions of authority are held by those capable of working magic. Ritual magicians - or warlocks - hold more power than those who focus on the performance of incantations, and the nation as a whole is ruled with an iron fist by potent, aged shaman-ritualists called the [[Thule lore#Dragons|Dragons]]. The long peace between the Thule and the Empire is close to ending; if there is no agreement then there will be war after the Summer Solstice 387YE.

You can learn about diplomacy, cultural exchange, and the highs and lows of making deals in the '''[[About today]]''' wind of fortune.

===Mistaken For Strangers (Visitors)===
* '''People with business with the Kulsdottir; Blaze Dunning; High Bard of the Empire; Generals of the Black Thorns, Citadel Guard, Drakes, Granite Pillar, and Tusks; Unlineaged humans who want to become changelings; Questors and Guides dedicated to Wisdom; People of Dawn and Varushka with an interest in the Deadwood Knight; People interested in talking to representatives of ''The Falconer''; Musicians; People of Dawn with an opinion on Glory; People of the League with an interest in deals; People interested in incense; People who called the Ketsov to inquisition; Highborn Unconquered; The Red Bramble; Friends of Rahuun Amahuz; People with an opinion on the Marracossans; and People with an interest in the Sandfishers'''
Every season, people from across the Empire and beyond make their way to Anvil. Not just the Imperial citizens who are drawn to influence the major houses of state, but those who want help with their problems, or who have an idea for an amazing scheme that will definitely make everyone involved rich.

You can learn about some of these opportunities to interact with weird and wonderful visitors in the '''[[Mistaken for strangers]]''' wind of fortune.
===Patterns of Fairytales (Winds of Magic)===
* '''Imperial magicians and the Imperial Conclave; Silver Chalice order, Unfettered Mind or Shuttered Lantern; those who make or own arcane projections; Kallavesi mystics; Dean of the Lyceum, Marchers who like a party, Marcher farm owners, Landskeepers; Icewalkers; people interested in the Loom of Spells; anyone who has a pinch of stardust; Enchanter Edmund Torawyr, Florence i Fuego i Erigo, and any Imperial title-holders who are potentially willing to accept bribes; anyone worried about Tharim'''
The winds of magic blow, through the mortal world and from the [[Realm|magical realms]]. It includes discussions of the [[Silver Chalice]] efforts to help deal with the repercussions of the Scorrero flooding, a grand conjunction with major implications for those who make or [[arcane projection|arcane projections]]; the auction of a [[college of magic]]; and visits to the swamps for [[Kallavesi]] mystic vision questers. There's also additional guests at Marcher Wassail, a strange undertaking involving Azoth and alchemy; discussion of letters to Lashonar; someone odd wanting to speak to Icewalkers; and a whole bunch of other eternal related shenanigans for good measure.

You can learn about magical developments, and opportunities, in the '''[[Patterns of fairytales]]''' wind of magic.
===One of Us (Asavea)===
* '''Imperial Synod; Loyalty Assembly; Sevenfold Path; folk invested in spreading the Way in Asavea'''
The Imperial Synod has committed to the spreading of the Way to Asavea. [[Irreconcilable_differences|Conflict with]] the [[Senate]] has been resolved through the use of the [[veto]], and certain compromises have been suggested, and missionaries and wayfarers continue to head east with the help of the [[the Brass Coast|Freeborn]]. The missionaries are not the only people heaving east. At the direction of the Conclave, magicians of the [[Sevenfold Path]] have slipped into Asavea, in the hope that they may be able to make contact with virtuous magicians who follow the Way. At the same time, the Loyalty assembly searches for ways for its members to directly aid the grand undertaking - not through straightforward missionary work but by identifying those who would change Asavea for the better and urging them to follow the voice of their heart.

You can learn about the recent developments in this grand undertaking, slow and steady as it may prove to be, in the '''[[One of us]]''' wind of fortune.
===Rebels and Loyalists (Marches)===
* '''General Assembly, Loyalty Assembly, Pride Assembly; the Marches'''
There are two developments in the Imperial Synod following the Autumn Equinox that have eyebrows raised across the Marches. The first is the decision of the [[Pride]] assembly to seek [[recognition]] for the [[The_Ore_Hills_Rebellion#The_Ore_Hills_Ringleaders|ringleaders]] of [[the Ore Hills Rebellion]]. The other is the [[revocation]] of one of the Marcher [[Senator|senators]], for what seems to amount to an accusation of being "disloyal to the nation" - something that the [[Loyalty]] assembly has been very clear over the years is not acceptable.

You can learn about these two spiritual matters, and what they might portend, in the '''[[Rebels and loyalists]]''' wind of fortune.

==Other Events==
===Beasts and Birds===
* '''Some animals in Sermersuaq and neighbouring territories have become wilder'''
* '''There is no obvious explanation for it, but it does not seem to be getting more widespread'''
In [[Sermersuaq]], and neighbouring territories, beasts have become wilder. Previously tame livestock have begun to bite or butt at the hands they once welcomed. Birds peck at those that come near, even with feed. Pets bite and hiss at their once-beloved owners.

<big>'''Participation'''</big><br>
If your character lives in Sermersuaq, or one of the neighbouring territories, then this might have happened to
you or someone you know. An appropriate story could involve a wild animal attacking where it usually would flee, or a beloved pet behaving in an unlikely manner.

==Trade Summary==
Rather than spread this information out around the various foreign nations, we've collected it here for ease of reference.

* '''Axos:''' The Axos continue to be annoyed about revelations relating to Imperial involvement in the failure of their [[Roll and fall|joint venture with the Grendel]] into the Mountains of the Moon. Consequently, Imperial fleets suffer penalties to trade with Axos. A fleet captain trading at the [[Axos_ports#Towers_of_Kantor|Towers of Kantor]] suffers a 1 rank penalty.
* '''Commonwealth:''' The ports of [[Commonwealth_ports#Leerdam_.28Eastern_Commonwealth.29|Leerdam]] and [[Commonwealth_ports#Volkavaar_.28Western_Commonwealth.29|Volkavaar]] welcome Imperial traders and their production has been significantly altered. You can find out more about the new items on the '''[[According_to_principle#New_trade|According to principle]]''' wind of fortune. Fleets trading with either Commonwealth port benefit from a 1 rank bonus due to the [[Authority_and_acceptance#Red_Sails|Asavean bounty]] on fleets trading with the Empire.
* '''Faraden:''' The port of [[Foreign_ports#Caitun|Caitun]] welcomes Imperial fleets. Fleets from the Marches and Wintermark benefit from a +1 rank bonus due to close proximity. The production of Caitun has shifted to produce 2 fewer ingots of orichalcum and 1 more giant blood whelk. You can find out more about the situation on the '''[[All_the_wind#Whelks_and_Yaks|All the wind]]''' wind of fortune.
* '''Iron Confederacy:''' The port of [[Iron_Confederacy_ports#Robec|Robec]] is available for Imperial fleets.

* '''Sarcophan Delves:''' The ports of [[Sarcophan_Delves_ports#Sarcophan|Sarcophan]] and [[Sarcophan Delves ports#Betovering|Betovering]] welcome Imperial traders.
* '''Sumaah Republic:''' The port of [[Foreign_ports#Zemeh|Zemeh]] welcomes Imperial traders, and its production has been significantly altered. You can find out more about the changes on the '''[[Friend_of_mine#Inspire_Others|Friend of mine]]''' wind of fortune.


==Mandates==
* '''You can find details of the mandates, along with the rest of the Synod judgements, [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Mandate|here]].'''
A number of [[mandate|mandates]] were successfully upheld in the Imperial Synod last season. As long as the named priest provided sufficient liao, those mandates have been [[Mandate#Implementing_a_Mandate|automatically enacted]].

==Autumn Conjunctions==
* '''Last event there were a number of conjunctions of the Sentinel Gate; their known outcomes are listed here'''
During the Autumn Equinox, there were a number of [[Sentinel_Gate#Conjunctions|conjunctions]] of the [[Sentinel Gate]] identified by the Imperial prognosticators. In each case a band of Imperial heroes used that conjunction to travel to a location far from Anvil and intervene in an ongoing situation. These are the known outcomes of those conjunctions. In the case of battles, it is important to remember that the [[Military Council]] can only make use of ''two'' of the major conjunctions each summit, choosing which to take advantage of during the Muster.
===Major Conjunctions===
<table><tr><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Location'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Opportunity'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Opposition'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Link'''</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">'''Outcome'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Madruga|Madruga, Free Landing, Freeborn Plain]]</td><td>Break the ''Gathering Storm''</td><td>Children of Wrecks</td><td>[[The gathering storm|The Gathering Storm]]</td><td>Not taken; the Children of Wrecks have formed a navy; Thunderous Deluge unleashed across Madruga </td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Mournwold|Mournwold, Ore Hills, Jade Wood]]</td><td>Rouse the Mourn's defenders</td><td>Jotun</td><td>[[The_wild_wind_rises#Sixty_Years_Gone_(Battle_Opportunity)|Sixty Years Gone]]</td><td>Field Marshall was '''Jedediah Boon''' of [[the Marches]]; the Miners of the Mourn were rescued; the Summerborn Champions were defeated; the fate of the Hooper Ghosts is unknown</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Therunin|Therunin, Sweetglades, Ashborder]]</td><td>Stop the Druj's plan</td><td>Druj</td><td>[[Blood_and_mire#All_Along_the_Lakeside_(Battle_Opportunity)|All Along the Lakeside]]</td><td>Field Marshall was '''Cadwell Waystone''' of [[Navarr]]; Blood Drainers coven was stopped; Cintra Blackstaff was stopped; the fate of the Beasts of Sweetglades is unknown</td></tr></table>

===Normal Conjunctions===
{|table class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! # !! Location !! Responsibility !! Overview !! Result
|-
| 1 || The Barrens, Untrod Groves, Skrengal Copse || [[Knight-protector|Knight-protector of Spring]] || [[Blood_and_mire#Dreams_and_Nightmares_%28The_Barrens%29|Kill the Druj ritualists]] || Druj ritualists killed
|-
| 2 || Morrow, Peregro, Iulia's Grove || [[Churnspire Adjutor]] || [[Blood_and_mire#Unexpected_Laughter_(Morrow)|Kill the ''Shuddering Wrast'']] || Shuddering Wrast killed and the rest of the Druj defeated
|-
| 3 || Mournwold, Chalkdowns, Tilly's Howe || [[Keeper of the Happiston Fields]] || [[As_it_is_when_it_was#Between_the_Lines_%28Mournwold%29|Investigate the disturbance]] || Unknown but '''Tilly of Chalkdown''', the Keeper of the Happiston Fields, should know more
|-
| 4 || Miaren, Goldglades, Soured Pasture || [[Rod and Shield|Grandmaster of the Rod and Shield]] || [[How_to_be_dead#A_Sudden_Chill|Kill the followers of the Braying Lord]] || Followers of the Braying Lord escaped and whereabouts are unknown
|-
| 5 || Therunin, Peakedge Song, Bronwen's Stand || [[Eastern Broker]] || [[Blood_and_mire#Colour_of_Trust_(Therunin)|Stop the Druj]] || Druj all killed
|-
| 6 || Hahnmark, Wood Heath, Tainted Bawn || [[Imperial Huntsmarshall]] || [[How_to_be_dead#A_Bitter_Thought|Kill the Crimson Band]] || Crimson Band all killed
|-
| 7 || Nithoggir, Skarlans, Shaft #3 || [[Ambassador to Otkodov]] || [[Authority_and_acceptance#Capital_at_Risk|Investigate the situation]] || Unknown but '''Kindra Surefoot''', the Ambassador to Otkodov, should know more
|-
| 8 || Temeschwar, Vardstein Vale, Putrid Fields || [[Delver of the Depths]] || [[How_to_be_dead#Under_the_Dust|Slay the Braying Lord]] || Some Imperial casualties. Braying Lord and its followers all slain
|-
| 9 || Holberg, Holmauer, Wunderkind Fields || [[Custodian of the Bloody Great Sausage]] || [[Hey_now_how_you_doing%3F#Taste_of_Solitude_(Holberg)|Kill the Feasters of Marrow]] || Feasters of Marrow all killed
|-
| 10 || Tassato, Tassato Mestra, Felladonni Woods || [[Tassatan Hills]] || [[The_wild_wind_rises#Lion_on_the_Hill_(Tassato)|Stop the warband from claiming ilium]] || Jotun defeated and ilium protected
|-
| 11 || Mournwold, Southmoor, Charlie's Coppice || '''Nigel Hornbeam''' || [[The_wild_wind_rises#Leaning_on_the_Knife_(Mournwold)|Kill Dalton Royse]] || Jotun defeated but Dalton Royse not found. Defeat of Jotun meant Dalton Royse was later discovered and executed by beaters
|-
| 12 || Astolat, Winterbourne, the Grand Spinney || '''Jared of the Sentinels Tower''' ||[[Hey_now_how_you_doing%3F#Gifts_(Astolat)|Kill the Speakers of Famine]]|| Speakers of Famine all killed
|-
| 13 || Mournwold, Southmoor, Fecund Boscage || '''Olyvar of Esther's Sanctum''' || [[The_wild_wind_rises#Connecting_Lines_(Mournwold)|Clear the last Jotun cache]] || Jotun killed. Last Jotun cache claimed
|-
| 14 || Ayereed, Cornaghan, Anabla's Orchard || [[Seventh Wave|General of the Seventh Wave]] || [[Steel_and_salt#A_New_Arrival_(Ayereed)|Stop the Asaveans from reinforcing Stormlords Rise]] || Asaveans and Grendel killed. Chest claimed from the Asaveans
|-
| 15 || Mournwold, Chalkdowns, Broken Corral || [[Reeve of the Happiston Mana Exchange]] || [[The_wild_wind_rises#A_Matter_of_Thought_(Mournwold)|Defeat the Jotun]] || Jotun defeated
|-
| 16 || Sarvos, Uccelini, Isle of the Fox || [[Steward of the Sarvos Mana Exchange]] || [[Glass_and_flame#A_Pile_of_Sand_(Sarvos)|Protect the Isle of the Fox]] || Grendel all killed
|-
| 17 || Bregasland, Grey Fens, Hal's Hollow || [[Imperial Advisor for the Feni]] || [[The_wild_wind_rises#Lessons_and_Teachers_(Bregasland)|Stop the Jotun slaughtering the Feni]] || Jotun defeated and Feni protected. [[Liathaven#Liath's Ring|Liath's Ring]] has gained the under threat quality
|-
| 18 || Kallavesa, West Marsh, Ardith's Holt || [[Speaker of the Crows]] || [[Harvest_of_infamy#A_Sense_of_Humour_(Kallavesa)|Protect the Pilgrim's Trail from the Asaveans]] || ''High Voice Chiara'' survived. Grendel and rest of Asaveans killed. Whereabouts of High Voice Chiara unknown.
|-
| 19 || Madruga, Calvos Sound, Santana's Path || [[Hand of Guerra]] || [[The_gathering_storm#Like_Lightning_and_Rain_(Madruga)|Kill the wreckers]] || Some Imperial casualties. Wreckers defeated
|-
| 20 || Necropolis, Longbeach, Magazjin Plain || [[Kruidenkenner Trademaster]] || [[The_gathering_storm#Plans_(Necropolis)|Kill the wreckers]] || Some wreckers killed but Imperial retreat after casualties
|-
| 21 || Volodmartz, Perumaki, the Choked Forest || [[Grim Gardener]] || [[As_it_is_when_it_was#A_Different_Dance_%28Volodmartz%29|Soothe the wolves of Nadezhdikov]] || Wolves of Nadezhdikov soothed
|-
| 22 || Spiral, Apulus, Eammon's Bawn || [[Spiral|Senator for Spiral]] ||[[The_gathering_storm#The_Storm_Gathers_(Spiral)|Stop the ''Wailing Gyre'']] || Some Imperial casualties but the Wailing Gyre all killed
|-
| 23 || Karov, Duzekani, Bulgakov || [[Grieftender of the Forgotten]] || [[All_the_way_to_Anvil#Reclamation_of_Bulgakov_(Conjunctions)|Make the vale of Bulgakov inhabitable]] || Deadly black glass was cleansed and Bulgakov made inhabitable
|-
|}

386YE Autumn Equinox winds of fortune

2026-08-19T12:31:39Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:386YE Autumn]][[Category:Recent History]]
<div style="float:left; width: 600px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Talking in Anvil.jpg|align=left|caption=News spreads through word of mouth as fast as it does through broadsheets and posters, and is sometimes more reliable. Or at least, unreliable in more amusing ways...|width=600}}</div>
==Overview==
Over the past three months, events have taken place which are of significance to the Empire and may require a response from her champions. These are the winds of fortune, counterparts to the [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_winds_of_war|Winds of War]] which detail the Empire's military campaigns. They lay out situations, and usually include things that characters can do to take advantage of [[opportunity|opportunities]] or to resolve problems. In almost every case, they start with a piece of flavour text. This fiction helps introduce the wind of fortune, or draws out a particular theme or element. Often, it represents a viewpoint that one or more NPCs might have in-character. In all cases, these pieces are intended to help create an atmosphere and provide a little entertainment. Where they contain opinions, those are the opinions of the fictional people depicted - and where they contain information or rumours the assumption is that the reader will create their own context for that information or gossip if they want to use it in character.

The body of the wind of fortune describes situations and lays out ways players can engage with them. Except where we explicitly talk about something being "rumoured" or use a phrase like "some might say..." the details of a wind of fortune are factual. They represent briefing material presented by the civil service or similar authoritative sources and represents something the average educated citizen would acknowledge as a reliable truth. Unless we specify otherwise, we're also being as thorough as possible. This information doesn't need further checking in-character. It's not opinion, and we're not trying to trick you.

As always, how much or how little of this information you choose to know in character is up to you. Part of the purpose of Winds of Fortune is to maintain the illusion of the Empire as a living, breathing place where things happen - and to make players aware of things their characters could know based on what their roleplaying says they have been doing for the past three months. It's perfectly acceptable to turn up to Empire having read only a few Winds of Fortune that directly interest your character; part of the fun on the field can come from learning about situations and opportunities in other parts of the game.

In each case, we've tried to tag the Winds of Fortune entry with the nations, or political bodies, to which it is most relevant. We've done this to help people who are interested only in events that are especially relevant to them. In no way are these tags intended to be exhaustive; the Empire is a complex place and very little happens in isolation.
__TOC__
==Winds of Fortune==
===Signal Fire===
* '''Imperial citizens'''
In previous seasons [[the Throne|Throne]], [[Emperor Vesna]], has used their power to [[The_Throne#Address_the_Empire|address the Empire]] to present a personal message to all Imperial citizens. This season, however, she has chosen to allow someone else to make that address on their behalf - Rane Shard-Bearer, the [[Senator]] for [[Kallavesa]].

The message has been distributed across the Empire by the civil service, and you can read it in the '''[[Signal fire]]''' wind of fortune.
===The Fayre Fight===
* '''Dawn, especially those who completed all four stages of the Grand Tour'''
The [[Dawn_egregore|Knight of Roses]] has invited all those who have completed the [[Dog_days_are_over#The_Grand_Tour|Grand Tour]] to take part in a special tourney to be held at [[Anvil]], in the heart of the Empire. The Reeve has gone further, proposing that the nation present a fayre at Anvil, to celebrate all that is best in Dawnish life, and to show the other nations the splendour and glory of their nation. Two other tourneys are also due to take place - to determine the new
[[knight-protector]] of Autumn, and as part of the selection of the [[Challenger in Waiting]] - and there are interesting developments with both those titles that might add extra frisson to the autumn fayre.

You can read about the fayre and the tourneys, and the various opportunities related to each, in the '''[[The fayre fight]]''' wind of fortune.
===Beneath Mithril Spires===
* '''Ambassador to the Commonwealth; Imperial Senate; Dean of the Lyceum; Voice of Liberty; Imperial fleet captains'''
The [[Commonwealth]] is perhaps the closest thing to an ally the Empire has among the six [[Foreign_nations#Great_Powers|great powers]] of the known world. Committed to the principles of the greater good, they disagree with the Empire on any number of things but actively seem to seek points of agreement and common ground over dissent and difference. One day the two nations will fight - it is inevitable given both seek to bring the entire world under the aegis of what the believe is right - but for now there is space for discourse and even cooperation.

You can learn about diplomatic relations and political complications relating to the Commonwealth, as well as several opportunities, in the '''[[Beneath mithril spires]]''' wind of fortune.

===Hyenas and Herbs===
* '''Ambassador to the Sarcophan Delves; Imperial Senate; Custodian on the Concordium Docks; High Herbalist of Sybella; Master of the Root and Stem; Wintermark farmers; Imperial fleet captains'''
The ''Bedelaar Huisbaas'' of the [[Sarcophan Delves]] always seek to maintain a level of neutrality, the better to ensure their ships are welcome at every port. They are enthusiastic trade partners, both with the Empire and the Empire's enemies. Their refusal to pick a side between the nations that make up the [[Liberty Pact]] and the so-called "Freedom Accord" is being tested however, thanks to the Asavean Plenum. Yet they're not ready to give up on the Empire just yet, and indeed some of them seem interested in increasing their investment in Imperial markets - conflict breeds opportunity after all.

You can learn about the state of diplomatic relations with the Delves, as well as a couple of opportunities to trade with them, in the '''[[Hyenas and herbs]]''' wind of fortune.
===Houses of Silence===
* '''Sarvosans, especially the Chamber of Commerce; Imperial Synod; Ambassador to the Sarcophan Delves; Artists; Anyone with an interest in recreational narcotics or the law'''
Three years ago the Imperial Senate ceded the Alivetti estates near [[Sarvos]] to the [[Sarcophan Delves]], so that they could create a trading enclave. Under the sponsorship of the powerful Vandersaar family, that enclave has flourished; but not always in ways palatable to every Imperial citizen. As the Autumn Equinox approaches, the matter of the Alivetti estates receives additional scrutiny - not only because of concerns about the Sarcophan enforcing their own laws there, but of plans to build a blasphemous cathedral on what was until recently Imperial soil. At the same time, the Vandersaar are looking to invest further in Sarvos, setting the stage of a great deal of discussion about the presence of the 'Delves merchants on the southern border of the Empire.

You can read about the controversy, and a rare opportunity for the Sarvosan Chamber of Commerce, in the '''[[Houses of Silence]]''' wind of fortune.
===Victory and Unity===
* '''Ambassador to Axos; Regario Dossier; Assembly of Nine; Shuttered Lantern, Celestial Arch, and Sevenfold Path; Imperial Synod'''
The Empire and [[Axos]] have never been friends, and are at best allies of convenience perhaps. The only signatory to the [[Liberty Pact]] that is not a Great Power, Axos seeks to make it's mark on the world stage - even though it covers less land than many Imperial nations. Relations are always a little volatile - the Axou are prickly at best - but there is talk of a rising movement that seeks to secure the legacy of the sorcerer-kings in a way that is making some observers a little nervous.

You can learn about the current situation, and a few opportunities to engage with the unpredictable Axou, in the '''[[Victory and unity]]''' wind of fortune.

===Where Five Winds Meet===
* '''Ambassador to Faraden; Azure Sutannir and Freeborn Assembly; Shuttered Lantern and Celestial Arch; Master of the Regario Dossier; Gloaming Road; Imperial Senate; people with Weirwood and Iridescent Gloaming to trade; Holbergians'''
The lifeblood of [[Faraden]] is trade, and their caravans criss-cross the Empire even though the Lasambrian [[Jotun]] charge them a steep price for doing so. Relations between the Empire and the smaller nation to the west vary from year to year, warm one moment, cool the next, but it has never come to open warfare. Unfortunately, it seems the Faraden are caught between a rock and a hard place - with the [[Asavean Archipelago|Asavean]] Plenum one one side ant the Empire on the other. Faraden involvement in the recent [[Harvest of infamy|attack on Meade]], the situation appears to be escalating.

You can read about the diplomatic complexities of Imperial relations with Faraden, as well as opportunities to trade with merchants from the western nation, in the '''[[Where five winds meet]]''' wind of fortune.
===A Victory for Diplomacy===
* '''Ambassador to Iron Confederacy; Imperial Fleet Captains; Sianu of Navarr and Caesar of Urizen; anyone who might be expecting a visit from representatives of Baron Bestel'''
The [[Iron Confederacy]] sees itself as a potential rival to the Empire in size and strength and their claims are difficult to prove or disprove. No nation appreciates being threatened or intimidated, but the Iron Dukes react especially badly to perceived slights, and thanks to their peculiar beliefs it is all too easy to offend them – they despise both the [[Conclave]] and the [[Synod]] for example. They seem to respect the [[Military Council]] and [[the Throne]] at least, but it is a narrow bridge to build a shared understanding on. The [[Senate]] has just [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Ratify_Treaty_with_the_Iron_Confederacy|ratified a treaty]] intended to try just that - and now it's time to see how successful they have been.

You can read about the diplomatic relationship with the Iron Confederacy, both officially and unofficially, in the '''[[A victory for diplomacy]]''' wind of fortune.
===The Tale That Speaks To Your Heart===
* '''Ambassador to the Sumaah Republic; Rafe of Wintermark; Imperial fleets; Imperial Conclave especially Sevenfold Path and Rod and Shield; Emperor Vesna'''
Among the six great powers, the [[Sumaah Republic]] are simultaneously rivals to, and uneasy allies of, the Empire. Their shared practice of the Way both unites them through virtue, and divides them through disagreements about how the faith should be practiced and spread. Right now they are allies via the [[Liberty Pact]] and engaged in open warfare with the heretical blasphemous idolators of the [[Asavean Archipelago]]. The Empire offers what aid it can, and the Sumaah in turn show their appreciation as best they can with so many resources committed to protecting their coast from Asavean navies.

You can read about the current situation with the Sumaah, and some of the opportunities they present, in the '''[[The tale that speaks to your heart]]''' wind of fortune.
===Thresher's Summer===
* '''Urizen magicians, sentinels, sword scholars, and priests; Marcher friars and landskeepers; Imperial Senate'''
Determined to bury the hatchet and bring to an end the rumbling conflict between their nations, the [[the Marches|Marcher]] and [[Urizen]] Assemblies have urged people to travel to the lands of their opposite number and engage with them. Urizen has asked [[Magical skills#magician|magicians]], [[sentinel|sentinels]] and [[sword scholar|sword scholars]] to help the Marches bring their harvest home. Meanwhile the Marches have asked their [[friar|friars]] to share their understanding of virtue with the folk of the [[spire|spires]]. After a long Summer, the results of this unprecedented exchange are being felt by folk of both nations.

You can learn about the effects of Urizen helping bring in the Marcher harvest, and Marchers speaking to the virtuous of Urizen, in the '''[[Thresher's summer]]''' wind of fortune.
===Healing Waters===
* '''Imperial Conclave; Imperial Senate; Spring magicians and magical healers'''
At the [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Conclave_sessions#Concord:_Ossegrahn_and_a_College_of_Magic|behest of the Conclave]], and following a [[Famine_and_feast#Ossegrahn|request]] by the [[Archmage of Spring]], [[Ossegrahn|Lord Rain]] has agreed to help the Empire establish a [[College of Magic|college]] dedicated to the study and practice of [[Spring magic]]. Only too happy to help, the [[eternal]] offers more aid than merely sponsorship or patronage. Provided his requirements are met, he will help the Empire create a place steeped in healing magic that will serve as a place not only of scholarship and magical study, but also of healing for all the people in the place where it is built.

You can find out about the proposal, and the restrictions Ossegrahn places on its operation, in the '''[[Healing waters]]''' wind of fortune.

===A Stone for a Stone (Appraisal)===
* '''Imperial Senate; Imperial Military Council; Imperial Consul; Wintermark, Brass Coast, Marches, Navarr; those interested in the Jotun; veterans with stories to tell'''
The Imperial Senate has instructed [[Appraisal#Naomi_of_Virtue's_Rest|Naomi of Virtue's Rest]] to [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Appraise_Peace_with_the_Jotun|appraise what might make peace more appealing for the Jotun]]. Naomi is a skilled diplomat, but few expect her to be able to deliver peace with the [[Jotun|Western orcs on request]]. She has done what work she can in the Empire, and made a short trip under a flag of truce to speak with the Jotun in [[Mournwold]]. Now, she is ready to present her findings - both a summation of what has led to the current situation and a series of things that could be done to make a ceasefire with the Jotun more likely.

You can learn about the proposals Naomi has made, and perhaps learn some history, in the '''[[A stone for a stone]]''' wind of fortune.
===True Faith===
* '''Imperial Synod'''
Following the recent summit, the [[Lepidean Librarian]] gave instructions for the library to [[Life_of_Vardas|publish in full their research]] on [[Vardas]], the paragon of [[Vigilance]]. The extraordinary and controversial findings say that Vardas was not a paragon; that he never existed; that he was little more than a collection of stories, penned by [[The_League_magical_traditions#Mountebank|a League mountebank]]. The news has hit Imperial pilgrims of the way very hard indeed, and a major crisis of faith is brewing. During the Autumn Equinox the Imperial Synod has an opportunity to try and head off that crisis before it deepens sufficiently to tear the faith apart.

You can learn about the crisis, and potential ways to deal with it, in the '''[[True faith]]''' wind of fortune.
===The First Shot===
* '''Navarr; Wintermark and the Imperial Orcs; eventually the whole Empire'''
At the Summer Solstice, the [[Navarr]] took the pivotal decision to [[The final countdown|begin the final battle against the vallorn]]. There can be no going back from such a decision, in [[Wintermark]] they would say that the Navarr have forked their [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Skein|skein]]. The [[striding|stridings]] are coming home, and the nation mobilizes for war, but if Navarr faces that war along they will surely fail. Before the final [[trods]] are put into place, the nation - and the Empire - must be ready.

You can find out about the change to the nation, and opportunities to raise three new armies, in the '''[[The first shot]]''' wind of fortune.
===The Synod speaks===
* '''League and Varushkan assemblies; other national assemblies'''
The [[Navarr]] Assembly has [[The first shot|overwhelmingly backed the mandate]] to begin the final battle against the vallorn. But they are far from the only Assembly to speak on the matter. The [[Assembly#Assembly_of_the_Nine|Assembly of the Nine]] was emphatic that the Empire must be willing to make this sacrifice now and called on every nation of the Empire to take up the call. Two individual nations also did so, [[the League]] and [[Varushka]], both raising clear [[statement of principle|statements of principle]] in support of the Navarr and their Assemblies backed them with a [[greater majority]]. These statements have given rise to not one but three mandates in each assembly, giving an opportunity to guide exactly ''how'' those two nations will rise to the challenge of the vallorn.

You can learn about these mandates, and what it means for the other national assemblies, in the '''[[The Synod speaks]]''' wind of fortune.
===Here to Stay (Appraisal)===
* '''Imperial Orcs; Imperial Senate'''
The second [[appraisal]] the [[Senate]] commissioned in Summer sent [[Appraisal#Eilian_Sweetwater|Eilian Sweetwater]] to the newly conquered [[territory]] of [[Mareave]]. He was asked to find ways to deal with the [[Set_my_lands_in_order#Uncooperative|uncooperative]] inhabitants of the southern regions - [[Mareave#Fleisardh|Fleisardh]], [[Mareave#Clisearn|Clisearn]] and [[Mareave#Eoradal|Eoradal]]. Aided and impeded by [[Autumn magic]], the Navarr [[Appraisal#The_Prognosticators_Office|prognosticator]] has delivered his findings and the good news is that they've found opportunities to deal with at least two of them. The bad news is that they are ''not cheap''.

You can read about the appraisal findings, as well as get some insight into ''why'' the orcs in those three regions are so recalcitrant, in the '''[[Here to stay]]''' wind of fortune.
===We All Stand===
* '''Imperial Orcs, especially the Tamazi and Yerende septs; Imperial Conclave especially the Golden Pyramid conclave order; Imperial Senate; Freeborn, Marches, League, and Urizen assemblies'''
Eilian Sweetwater has not been the only one exploring [[Mareave]] in the last season. Between the [[Golden Pyramid]] magicians and representatives of the [[Tamazi]] sept, and suggestions from [[the Brass Coast]], [[the Marches]], [[the League]], and [[Urizen]], there are plenty of additional opportunities to invest in the new [[Imperial Orcs]] [[territory]], or attempt to combat some of the challenges arising from this arid. comparatively isolated, land.

You can read about the opportunities, and gain some further insight into conditions in Mareave, in the '''[[We all stand]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=BarienArt.jpg|align=left|width=200}}</div>
===A Challenging Time===
* '''Archmage of Summer; Barien's champions of Dawn and Wintermark; warriors without Imperial titles; Summer magicians'''
For almost a year now, the [[Barien|Seneschal of the Road]] has been unable to respond to the ritual named for him, [[Challenge the Iron Duke]]. Determined not to neglect one of his favoured lands, the heralds of the ''Keeper of Challenges'' bring three pieces of news. Firstly, a grand melee to be fought between the absolute best the Empire has to offer the Summer realm, in quest of ''Pinnacle'', a sword of unparalleled quality. Secondly, those from the nations of [[Dawn]] and [[Wintermark]] who have already bested the Iron Duke's challenge once are called forth to take on a second challenge, and finally answer a question long asked in the annals of Imperial history. Finally, an offer to the [[Archmage of Summer]] to identify a competition, contest, or challenge worth of Barien's attention.

You can find out about these challenges and contests, and some notes about Challenge the Iron Duke. in the '''[[A challenging time]]''' wind of fortune.
===When the River Rises===
* '''The Brass Coast; Cerevado nets; Imperial military commanders; Silver Chalice, Rod and Shield, and Unfettered Mind; Imperial Senate; Imperial Military Council; scriers'''
[[Madruga]] has suffered parching blight, pounding rain, vengeful fire, war, death. Now in response to powerful Imperial magic. the river rises, the wild Scorrero. Sweeping down from [[Kahraman]], through [[Segura]], to [[Madruga]]. A maelstrom of [[Spring magic#Chaos|chaos]], [[Night_magic#Transformation|transformation]], and [[ilium|star metal]] the both destroys, and cleanses, and brings new life. The horror of the Blight, and the Dry patricians, is washed away... but is the cure as bas as the sickness? Only time will tell.

You can learn about disastrous developments on the Brass Coast, along with some discussion of the newly liberated [[Feroz]], in the '''[[Where the river rises]]''' wind of fortune.
===Authority and Acceptance===
* '''Ambassadors to Otkodov, Jarm, Asavea, and the Grendel; Imperial Consul; Imperial Conclave; Artisans Guild; anyone dealing with the Five Fang Consortium; Urizeni, especially the House of the Wanderer; Legion Engineer, Senator for Mareave, Friar John of the Mourn; Leage, Wintermark mediators, Navarr guides (among others)'''
Each season the civil service put together a summary of the Empire's relationship with other nations, large and small, near and far. These reports are composed from communications received from their ambassadors, useful intelligence, the words and offers of merchants and traders. While the Senate and the other great houses may use their powers to respond to these offers, it is the ambassador who a foreign power expects to hear from. Sometimes the reports are long and detailed, sometimes for whatever reason they are shorter and more to the point.

You can find summaries of reports from [[Otkodov]], [[Skoura]], [[Tsark]] (!), the [[Principalities of Jarm]], [[Asavean Archipelago|Asavea]], and the [[Grendel]], in the '''[[Authority and acceptance]]''' wind of fortune.
===Seven Locks (Plenipotentiary)===
* '''Archmages; cadets investigating the Tomb of Achism; Unshackled Winter, Circle of the Drowned, Heralds of the Reaper, Wolves of the Pale Raven, Black Garden, Nation's Guard, The Winter Wolfborn, Hraefnhall, and an Imperial Orc named Frith; Imperial Magus, Warmage, Conclave Grandmasters; Bloodcrow Udoo and Quay Stone; Master of the Koboldi; Adelaarscoven, Convocation of the Mistral, Coven of Barabbas, Las Brujahs de Zuhri, Lyktan coven, Saque Magique, Song of Taniki, Spire of the Auric Horizon, the Scrying Pool, the Sphinx's Sage, and Wings of Skywise covens; Navarr'''
Six [[archmage|archmages]], but what seem to be ''seven'' responses to [[archmage#plenipotentiary|plenipotentiary]] messages, so something is off. The eternals are bound by ancient compact to respond in some way to such a missive, although precisely ''how'' they respond is up to them. There might be to a formal [[Archmage#parley|parley]], or something more informal. Or nothing at all. Responses to each archmage's (presumed) plenipotentiary messages have been received, and arrangements made for the Autumn Equinox. Four meetings, and three sets of messages.

You can read about the responses of the eternals, and their various requests and offers, in the '''[[Seven locks]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly General.png|align=left|width=200}}</div>
===Irreconcilable Differences===
* '''Imperial Synod; Imperial Senate; Sevenfold Path'''
During the Summer Solstice, the [[Senate]] made it [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Criminalise_Preaching_the_Way_in_Asavea|illegal to preach the Way in Asavea]]. Following the vote, the [[Cardinal of Loyalty]], indicated to the Civil Service that they intended to [[Veto#Timing|seek the veto]] in the [[Synod]]. The Assemblies have already passed a number of mandates urging missionaries and [[Highguard|Highborn]] [[wayfarer|wayfarers]] to travel to make contact with virtuous [[Bands#Sects|sects]], and preach the Way, but the Asaveans have responded by increasing their support for the Empire's enemies and striking against Imperial citizens directly. During the coming Summit, the Synod must decide whether to uphold the veto, or accept the prohibition against further action in Asavea - with potentially painful consequences for either decision.

You can read about the veto, and the ongoing efforts to spread the Way in Asavea, in the '''[[Irreconcilable differences]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=RhianosArt.jpg|align=left|width=200}}</div>
===Roaring Plenty===
* '''Fleet captains engaged in Rhianos' race'''
Last season the ''[[Rhianos|Regent of the Eternal Sea]]'', announced the beginning of a great race - to visit the four corners of the known world. Having been challenged by the [[Archmage of Summer]], the ''Lightning Fish'' agreed to hold a contest, but one unlike any other. Rhianos has no interest in seeing who can be the fastest, so this race is one filled with peril and calamity where nobody know where they are going, how they are going to get there, or even if they will survive. That hasn't stopped hundreds of [[fleet|fleets]] taking part in the first leg of the race and sailing "Into the Unknown". Now, it is time for the second leg, and when dealing with ''Waverider'' means things are going to get ''weird''.

You can learn about the first leg of the race, and how the next leg will be run, in the '''[[Roaring plenty]]''' wind of fortune.
===How To Be Dead===
* '''Rod and Shield; adventurers who delved into the Depths; Delver of the Depths, Imperial Huntsmarshall'''
Something is festering in the depths of [[Delver_of_the_Depths#Lorenzo's_Deep_Pockets|Lorenzo's Deep Pockets]]. Following investigations by the [[Shuttered Lantern]], the [[Grandmaster]] of the [[Rod and Shield]] chose to take action, directing their order to deal with the growing threat. Battle mages and war-witches have made the journey to the north-western Empire, to beard the creature in its lair, and uncover the true horror lurking in the deeps; the ''Braying Lord'', an [[Plaguewulf#Elder_Plaguewulfs|elder plaguewulf]], the same creature whose malice led to the [[Delerium#Canker|destruction of Isember]], and whose wicked corruption has subverted dozens of Imperial citizens to its will.

You can find out about the situation at Lorenzo's Deep Pockets, and opportunities to deal with the threat before it gets even worse, in the '''[[How to be dead]]''' wind of fortune.
===Unspoken Words===
* '''Dawn; Imperial Orcs; Navarr; those interested in the Barrens'''
Despite the apparent peace, the situation in [[the Barrens]] remains febrile beneath the surface. Like the calm before the storm, there is a nervous energy in the air, a sense of unfinished business that is yet to be resolved. Torn between the rival directions of the [[Dawn|Dawnish]] Assembly and the Dawnish [[senator|senators]], the fate of the Barrens twists in the wind.

You can learn more about the situation in the Barrens, and questions of where everyone goes next, in the '''[[Unspoken words]]''' wind of fortune.
===All the Way to Anvil===
* '''Among others... Rozjenca Vokovitch von Temeschwar, League national assembly; those interested in weird mushroom products; willing test subjects; tombola participants; friends of Melissa (whatever ''that'' means); discreet physicks; Navarr; Grieftender of the Forgotten'''
The powers of the Empire gather at [[Anvil]] for the Autumn Equinox, drawn to the heart of the nation to talk, to argue, to trade, to laugh and cry together and to plan for the future. To engage in the complex unending dance whereby the skein of the Empire is woven. Where the wealthy and the powerful gather, their presence draws others as well - those with goods to sell, secrets to trade, or business of their own to arrange. They may come in secret, or they may be ostentatious in their approach making it clear to everyone their intent to come to the pulsing heart of the Casinean Empire to ply their wares. Of the many folk coming to Anvil this season, here are a handful whose intentions - at least on the surface - are known by rumour, whispered word, or in a few cases, nicely printed posters.

You can learn about some of the peculiar people (of all kinds) coming to Anvil in the '''[[All the way to Anvil]]''' wind of fortune.

===Graveyard Rats===
* '''Citizens of Temeschwar, especially priests; Imperial Senate; Guardian of Giselle's Tomb; Grandmaster of the Unfettered Mind; Senator for Temeschwar'''
For the better part of a year, [[Temeschwar]] has been suffering a [[Pitter patter|plague of rats]]. After extensive investigations by the [[Unfettered Mind]], the city's Chamber of Commerce chose to retain the services of one of the oldest, but least wealthy, guilds in the city - the Ratkings. Experts in vermin control, and veterans of the sewers and underground tunnels that flow under any [[the League|League]] city, the problem seems to be under control. Under control... but not ended. There is still something malign in Temeschwar, but perhaps the Autumn Equinox presents an opportunity to address it more directly?

You can learn about the situation in Temeschwar, and some opportunities arising from the chaos, in the '''[[Graveyard rats]]''' wind of fortune.

===You Could Be Happy===
* '''Citizens and priests of Dawn, Urizen, and Varushka; Imperial Senate'''
Last season the General Assembly upheld a judgement with a greater majority by Herminius of the House of the Wanderer calling on the citizens of the Empire to be proactive in the threat presented by the Druj. This was supported by a judgement raised by Tuuli in the Wisdom Assembly, also upheld with a greater majority. This has struck a chord with the people of the Empire; for simply too long have the Druj been allowed to attack the eastern territories. The chord becomes a song as the message is spread across the Empire, but it resonates most in those nations that border the hated orcs of the Mallum.

You can learn about what this could mean for nations that border the Druj in the '''[[You could be happy]]''' wind of fortune.
===Tourney of the Damned===
* '''Dawn and Varushka, especially citizens of Weirwater and Karov; those interested in the Deadwood Knight or the Schlacta of Rot; Imperial Military Council'''
For the past year an unliving abomination called variously the Deadwood Knight and the Schlacta of Rot has been gathering strength in the wild places of northern [[Weirwater]] and southern [[Karov]]. The creature is a cadaverous warrior and a lieutenant of the Varushkan [[Varushkan_Monster#Sovereigns|sovereign]] known as the ''Howling Queen''. This is not the first time he has emerged, but on this occasion, however, something went wrong with his challenge. He apparently intends to conquer Dawn and turn it into a hollow mockery of life as a kingdom of the dead with himself as its master. He is about to launch his first attack...

You can learn about the situation on the borders of [[Dawn]] and [[Varushka]], and about the faint hope of heading off disaster, in the '''[[Tourney of the Damned]]''' wind of fortune.
===Nightcall===
* '''Wintermark mystics; Imperial Senate'''
Having consulted the omens, the [[mystic|mystics]] of Ishal have come to believe that the best way they can put their skills at the service of the nation is to travel [[Wintermark]] and beyond, seeking signs or omens that might offer some [[opportunity]] for the nation to advance their interests. Their plan is for the [[Raven Seer]] to provide them with guidance on whatever problem most vexes the nation currently and then armed with their knowledge they will go in search of [[Wisdom]]. This season the Raven Seer asked the mystics to seek out new ways for Wintermark's magicians to protect [[Kallavesa]], particularly that at the moment [[Dripping Echoes of the Fen]] is no longer as effective as it once was.

You can learn about what the mystics propose, and an opportunity provided by one of them, in the '''[[Nightcall]]''' wind of fortune.
===As It Is When It Was (Winds of Magic)===
* '''Citizens of Casinea, Imperial Censor; Wintermark Artisans; Navarr herb garden owners, and apothecaries everywhere; Imperial Spymaster and Advisor on the Feni; Vigilance assembly, and guisers, mountebanks, volhov; Thule watchers; those sending letters to Lashonar; Keeper of Happiston fields; the Academy, the Archmage of Autumn, Erasmo di Tassato, and anyone planning on bidding on the Loom of Spells this season; Grim Gardener'''
Not every strange event is magic, not every magical thing is strange. Magic isn't always the purview of magicians either - there is magic in all kinds of places from the herbs favoured by physick and apothecary to the materials drawn from mines and forests. One thing is sure though, from the most mundane [[hearth magic]] to the strange influence of [[Astronomancy|the stars]], to the vagaries of fate and chance, it changes what it touches. And, as the philosophers say, you cannot cross the same river twice. Here we learn about magic that arises from the actions of mortals, or which has unknown provenance.

You can learn about magical events around the Empire, as well as opportunities for all kinds of people, in the '''[[As it is when it was]]''' wind of fortune.
===Hey Now How You Doing? (Winds of Magic)===
* '''Imperial Conclave; Ignacio I Zuhri I Erigo; Dean of the Lyceum, magicians of Navarr; friends of Flavio i Flav i Riqueza; Summoners of the Loquacious Birds, people of Varushka and Dawn especially those who dislike the orcs of the Barrens; visionaries; anyone with a struggle; Polemarch of Highwatch; people living in Madruga'''
Some magic comes from outside the Empire, from the creatures of the realms. Here we read about boons offered, and boons removed. Here we learn about the search of [[Kimus]] for a missing dolphin; boons from [[Sadogua]] for scholars and mage-warriors; the search of [[Ephisis]] for a legendary Freeborn corsair; the disgruntlement of [[Lashonar]]; the visionary interest of [[Sung]]; the little gifts of [[Irra Harah]]; a deal broken with [[Zakalwe]]... and also [[Tharim]] is here. And [[Agramant]] too!

You can learn about the doings of these eternals, and the boons they grant and remove, in the '''[[Hey now how you doing?]]''' wind of fortune

===Rising in Runegrott===
* '''Keeper of the Runegrott; Grimir of Wittal Grove, Grandmaster of Rod and Shield, Benefactor of Regalia, Guardian of Apfal, Seer of the Spiral Sword; Basilisk of the Bourse; Senators for Hercynia and Therunin, Inquisitor of Loyalty'''
At the last Winter Solstice, the Empire saw the would-be sodality called the Rising Tide work with the [[Basilisk of the Bourse]] on shared goals of [[Prosperity]]. They turned their attention to [[Canterspire Circle]] where they were introduced to some of the finest dye-makers in the world and the [[Gloaming Merchant]]. This season the 'Tide have sought out more opportunities of their own, following a visit to Anvil in the Summer. They have new proposals to make, and new opportunities to present.

You can hear about what the Rising Tide suggest, especially with regard to Wintermark, in the '''[[Rising in Runegrott]]''' wind of fortune.

==Other Events==
===Sing of Eagles===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>
* '''Last season the General Assembly chose to create an inspirational location in memory of Ozren de Orzel at Sandling, Weirwater'''
* '''The academy that is to be the anchor of the consecration has yet to be commissioned or paid for'''
* '''The crisis of faith provoked by the revelations about Vardas will prevent any profound effects of the consecration until it is resolved'''
* '''The High Bard has provided a list of eighty-one names to the Witches of Culwich at their request'''
{{:An eagle in song}}
===Ways and Means===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Wisdom.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>
* '''Citizens across the Bay of Catazar are learning what they can about the monsters of the Grendel and Children of Wrecks'''
* '''They will present their findings as soon as they are ready'''
Last season the Wisdom Assembly upheld a [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_44|judgement]] by '''Maelfaisance Remys''' with a greater majority that called on citizens to seek Imperial veterans and hear their tales of shark-slaying and kraken-killing. To find out about the soft underbelly, the armour-chink, and the weaknesses of the monsters of the [[Grendel]]. This has seen a slow but steady take up and, though they haven't much to show for it yet, the ball is now rolling on the project. The ''Sanguine Shields'', the sodality that has sprung up around it, are keen to continue their work and will present it to the wider Empire once they have managed to talk to veterans and catalogue enough information.

'''OOC Note:''' We will add pages for the various monsters that the Grendel and the Children of Wrecks field on battles.

===Hands Open===
{{SOP|by=Aliss Thorn, Marcher Assembly|statement=Wisdom knows all knowledge is incomplete. We send Aliss Thorn with 15 liao to encourage artisans to travel to Oakwood to help the smiths recover and rediscover the lost art. The Virtuous apply what they have learned.|vote=Greater Majority (244-0)|when=386YE Summer Solstice}}
* '''The Marcher smiths have been reconciled with the nation'''
* '''The archetype will be available after the Autumn Equinox'''
The mandate to integrate the [[Rock_and_a_hard_place|Marcher smiths]] was passed and enacted by '''Aliss Thorn''' during the Summer Solstice. Artisans have travelled from all over the Marches to Oakwood to speak with the smiths. The Marcher nation will be reconciled with the lost tradition of their forebears. Those who have integrated have meshed with the nation and been accepted by the egregore, but there are likely to be potential "''teething issues''" as they come to terms with a fundamentally changed world.

'''OOC Note:''' the ''smith'' archetype will be added to the list of Marcher archetypes after the Autumn Equinox 386YE. It is not possible to play one of the original smiths as a character.

<big>'''Participation'''</big><br>
Any artisan or crafter of any kind can have gone to Oakwood Monastery to support the integration of the smiths into the nation. The smiths are by and large mostly confused but are fundamentally Marchers and have been accepted into the nation by the egregore. Stories around them would involve hard working and hearty folk who want to prove themselves the best at what they do, whilst being appreciative to both those that helped them leave whatever they were in and those who have supported them since.

==Trade Summary==
Rather than spread this information out around the various foreign nations, we've collected it here for ease of reference.
* '''Asavean Archipelago:''' The port of [[Asavean_Archipelago_ports#nemoria|Nemoria]] is closed to Imperial trading vessels.
* '''Axos:''' The Axos continue to be annoyed about revelations relating to Imperial involvement in the failure of their [[Roll and fall|joint venture with the Grendel]] into the Mountains of the Moon. Consequently, Imperial fleets suffer penalties to trade with Axos. A fleet captain trading at the [[Axos_ports#Towers_of_Kantor|Towers of Kantor]] suffers a -2 rank penalty.
* '''Commonwealth:''' The ports of [[Commonwealth_ports#Leerdam_.28Eastern_Commonwealth.29|Leerdam]] and [[Commonwealth_ports#Volkavaar_.28Western_Commonwealth.29|Volkavaar]] welcome Imperial traders. Fleets trading with either Commonwealth port benefit from a 1 rank bonus due to the [[Authority_and_acceptance#Red_Sails|Asavean bounty]] on fleets trading with the Empire.
* '''Principalities of Jarm:''' The ports of [[Principalities_of_Jarm_ports#Kavor_.28Northern_Principalities_of_Jarm.29|Kavor]] and [[Principalities_of_Jarm_ports#Vezak_.28Southern_Principalities_of_Jarm.29|Vezak]] remain closed to Imperial fleets.
* '''Sarcophan Delves:''' Imperial captains continue to be welcomed in the Delves. Fleets trading with the great port-city of [[Sarcophan_Delves_ports#Sarcophan|Sarcophan]] receive an additional dose of [[Marrowort]] and an additional dose of [[Imperial Roseweald]] on top of their normal production. The port of [[Sarcophan Delves ports#Betovering|Betovering]] is open to Imperial fleets. Fleets trading with either Sarcophan port benefit from a 1 rank bonus due to the [[Authority_and_acceptance#Red_Sails|Asavean bounty]] on fleets trading with the Empire.
* '''Sumaah Republic:''' There is no penalty to trade with Zemeh and Imperial fleets are welcomed. Be aware that the amount of liao offered has been reduced as per the '''[[Guide_the_spirit#The_Liao_Trade|Guide the spirit]]''' wind of fortune. Fleets trading with Zemeh benefit from a 1 rank bonus due to the [[Authority_and_acceptance#Red_Sails|Asavean bounty]] on fleets trading with the Empire.
* '''Grendel:''' The port of [[Everything_has_a_price#A_New_Destination|Oran]] is closed to Imperial fleets.
* '''Iron Confederacy:''' The port of [[Iron_Confederacy_ports#Robec|Robec]] is available for Imperial fleets but suffers a -1 rank penalty due to sanctions from the Suranni.
* '''Faraden:''' The port of [[Butterfly_in_reverse#Trade_with_the_Faraden|Caitun]] is available for Imperial fleets. Fleets from the Marches and Wintermark benefit from a +1 rank bonus due to close proximity.

==Mandates==
* '''You can find details of the mandates, along with the rest of the Synod judgements, [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Mandate|here]].'''
A number of [[mandate|mandates]] were successfully upheld in the Imperial Synod last season. As long as the named priest provided sufficient liao, those mandates have been [[Mandate#Implementing_a_Mandate|automatically enacted]].

==Summer Conjunctions==
* '''Last event there were a number of conjunctions of the Sentinel Gate; their known outcomes are listed here'''
During the Summer Solstice, there were a number of [[Sentinel_Gate#Conjunctions|conjunctions]] of the [[Sentinel Gate]] identified by the Imperial prognosticators. In each case a band of Imperial heroes used that conjunction to travel to a location far from Anvil and intervene in an ongoing situation. These are the known outcomes of those conjunctions. In the case of battles, it is important to remember that the [[Military Council]] can only make use of ''two'' of the major conjunctions each summit, choosing which to take advantage of during the Muster.
===Major Conjunctions===
<table><tr><td style="background-color: LightGray;">Location</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">Opportunity</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">Opposition</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">Link</td><td style="background-color: LightGray;">Outcome</td>
<tr><td>[[Therunin|Therunin, Lower Tarn Valley, Tarn Bend]]</td><td>Prevent the Slaughter</td><td>Druj</td><td>[[Ashes#Poison_and_Ashes_(Battle_Opportunity)|Ashes]]</td><td>Field Marshal was '''Lofyn Blood-cloak''' of [[Wintermark]]; the Druj advance was slowed; the concoctions within the Sephals Cauldron was unleashed on Lower Tarn Valley. </td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Madruga|Madruga, Siroc Plains, Sabadellano]]</td><td>Assassinate Governor Rahab</td><td>Grendel</td><td>[[Below_the_thunders#Diamonds_are_Forever_(Battle_Opportunity)|Below the thunders]]</td><td>Field Marshal was '''Zoran De Orzel''' of [[Dawn]]; ''Governor Rahab'' was assassinated; the Asavean plan was discovered and [[Harvest_of_infamy|foiled]]; the Dùthcha-Éadrom was recovered; the Star of Attar was claimed; the fate of ''Maistir Rígbarddán Dubh'' is unclear.</td></tr>
<tr><td>[[Bregasland|Bregasland, Gravenmarch, Rock Foot Wood]]</td><td>Stop the Burhfæst</td><td>Jotun</td><td>[[Only_forward#Shadow_of_the_Rock_(Battle_Opportunity)|Only forward]]</td><td>Not taken; the Burhfæst has been established in [[Bregasland#Gravenmarch|Gravenmarch]]; ''Svynna of Ldansk'' still lives.</td></tr>
</table>

===Normal Conjunctions===
{|table class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! # !! Location !! Responsibility !! Overview !! Result
|-
| 1 || Skallahn, Iron Stand, Auguaard's Bluff || [[Champion of Ambition]] || [[Children_of_Wrecks#Heading_West_(Skallahn)|Kill the Jotun]] || Jotun defeated and 14 wains of weirwood delivered to '''Eldrid Vestardottir'''
|-
| 2 || Madruga, Great Grasses, Broken Plain || [[Burning Falcon|General of the Burning Falcon]] || [[Tread_of_dust_and_darkness#Dry_Falcons,_Dry_Drakes_(Conjunctions)|Defeat the Dry Patricians]] || All Dry Patricians and Ashwalkers defeated. The Burning Falcon have been reinforced by fifty kohan
|-
| 3 || Mitwold, Meade March, Jenny's Copse || [[Bailiff of the Grand Market]] || [[Only_forward#Choices_(Mitwold)|Slay Urse Longarm]] || ''Urse Longarm'' successfully killed and rest of Jotun defeated
|-
| 4 || Temeschwar, Hanuri, Terrier's Roar || [[Temeschwar|Senator for Temeschwar]] || [[Pitter_patter#The_Terrier's_Roar_(Conjunction)|Meet with the Rat Kings guild]] || Unknown but '''Giuseppe Sanguineo von Temeschwar''' the Senator for Temeschwar should know more
|-
| 5 || Madruga, Great Grasses, The Arid Pass || '''Tancred of Meade''' || [[Tread_of_dust_and_darkness#Dry_Falcons,_Dry_Drakes_(Conjunctions)|Defeat the Dry Patricians]] || All Dry Patricians and Ashwalkers defeated. The Drakes have been reinforced by fifty yeofolk
|-
| 6 || Hahnmark, Wood Heath, Dun's Reach || '''Tobrytan Dunning''' || [[Last_rays_of_the_sun#Fading_Words_(Hahnmark)|Stop the ''scions'']] || ''Scions'' defeated
|-
| 7 || Spiral, Screed, South-East of Harrier's Nest || '''Estella Lucati''' || [[The_city_below#A_Marvelous_View_(Conjunctions)|Rescue the citizens]] || All citizens rescued successfully
|-
| 8 || Redoubt, Naris, Tilphussian Pass || [[Penumbral Watcher]] || [[Last_rays_of_the_sun#A_Message_Sent_(Redoubt)|Stop the ''scions'']] || ''Scions'' defeated with some Imperial casualties
|-
| 9 || Spiral, Screed, South-West Harrier's Nest || [[Mistress of Medicine]] || [[The_city_below#A_Marvelous_View_(Conjunctions)|Rescue the citizens]] || All citizens rescued successfully
|-
| 10 || Miekarova, Srodkoja, Biljana's Sward || [[Master of Ice and Darkness]] || [[Last_rays_of_the_sun#Pale_Shadows_(Miekarova)|Stop the ''scions'']] || ''Scions'' defeated
|-
| 11 || Madruga, Free Landing, The Baleen Cave || [[Champion of Vigilance]] || [[Children_of_Wrecks#Uncharted_Waters_(Madruga)|Find out what is going on]] || Unknown but '''Jared''' the Champion of Vigilance should know more
|-
| 12 || Brocéliande, Boar's Dell, Starstrand Steading || [[Spear of the Seven]] || [[Tales_of_mystery#Starstrand_(Conjunction)|Resolve the mystery of Starstrand steading]] || Unknown but '''Corwyn Heartsbane''' the Spear of the Seven should know more
|-
| 13 || Madruga, The Great Grasses, Villa of Aldea di Tutamen || [[Hakima of Salt and Sand]] || [[Tread_of_dust_and_darkness|Deal with ''Aldea di Tutamen'']] || Unknown but '''Bakar i Riqueza''' the Hakima of Salt and Sand should know more
|-
| 14 || Madruga, Calvos Sound, Orchard of Tabhorios || [[Strategos|Strategos of the Brass Coast]] || [[Children_of_Wrecks#Glowing_Embers_(Madruga)|Find out what is going on]] || ''Tabhorios'' revealed to have joined the Children of Wrecks. All wreckers killed
|-
| 15 || Mitwold, Oddmire, Halebale Farm || [[Champion of Prosperity]] || [[Kith_and_kin#Raiders_Returning_(Conjunction)|Ensure the ghosts are exorcised]] || All ghosts exorcised
|-
| 16 || Sarvos, Bocche, Ferocity's Stand || [[ Jade Custodian]] || [[Children_of_Wrecks#After_the_Storm_(Sarvos)|Stop the wreckers]] || Ritual prevented and all wreckers killed
|-
| 17 || Mournwold, Southmoor, Glen of Red Shadow || [[Friar of Honour's Rest]] || [[Standards#Tribute_(Conjunction)|Track down the source of the ghosts]] || All ghosts exorcised
|-
| 18 || Necropolis, Longbeach, Grove of Silence || [[Ambassador to the Sumaah Republic]] || [[Guide_the_spirit#Ripped_Away_(Necropolis)|Stop the wreckers]] || Wreckers defeated and ''Kauitalic'' rescued
|-
| 19 || Temeschwar, Hanuri, The Old Priory || [[Unfettered Mind|Grandmaster of the Unfettered Mind]] || [[Pitter_patter#King_of_Rats_(Conjunction)|Speak with ''Brinton von Temeschwar'']] || Unknown but the Grandmaster of the Unfettered Mind should know more
|-
| 20 || Sermersuaq, Suaq Wastes, The Howling Steppe || '''Liv Tidgaring''' || [[Farm,_fur,_and_fish#Out_of_the_Storm_%28Conjunctions%29|Kill the Jotun and deal with ''Big Icebarn'']] || ''Big Icebarn'' dealt with and Jotun killed
|-
| 21 || Redoubt, Siluri, Lucia's Holt || [[Prelate of Adelmar's Shrine]] || [[Drumbeat_of_war#Other_Weapons_(Conjunction)|Defeat the Grendel]] || Grendel and Asaveans defeated
|-
| 22 || Madruga, Siroc Plains, Road to Sabadellano || '''Nicassia Avicia of Phoenix Reach''' || [[Below_the_thunders#Gift_of_a_Blade_(Madruga)|Assassinate Questioner Polh]] || Grendel defeated and '''Nicassia Avicia of Phoenix Reach''' should know more
|-
| 23 || Sermersuaq, Suaq Wastes, Desolate Tarn || [[Keeper of the Runegrott]] || [[Farm,_fur,_and_fish#Out_of_the_Storm_%28Conjunctions%29|Kill the Jotun and deal with ''Little Icebarn'']] || ''Little Icebarn'' dealt with and Jotun killed
|-
| 24|| Ayereed, Gainmeachdubh, Dunreagh's Brush || [[Red Wind Corsairs|General of the Red Wind Corsairs]] || [[Children_of_Wrecks#To_Teach_and_Learn_(Ayereed)|Kill the Grendel]] || Grendel and Asaveans defeated and 12 wains of mithril delivered to '''Delora i Sol-Devorador i Erigo'''
|-
| 25 || Sermersuaq, Silver Peaks, Aino's Rest || [[Ambassador to Otkodov]] || [[The_price_of_peace#A_Hound_of_Darkness_(Sermersuaq)|Kill Maarik the Golden Tongue]] || ''Maarik the Golden Tongue'' killed
|-
| 26 || The Barrens, The Bleaks, The Hollow Tree || [[Knight-protector|Knight-protector of Winter]] || [[Ashes#Fanning_the_Sparks_(The_Barrens)|Stop the Druj and the heralds of Surut]] || Heralds of Surut and Druj defeated
|-
| 27 || Forest of Ulnak, Grimfen Mire, Varnalis' Cache || [[Champion of Prosperity]] || [[Children_of_Wrecks#The_Thread_Burns_(Forest_of_Ulnak)|Claim the stockpile]] || Heralds of Surut and Druj defeated and 16 wains of white granite delivered to '''Hugh Farrier'''
|-
| 28 || Karsk, Moresvah, Gorek's Hollow || [[Custodian of the Lost]] || [[Tales_of_mystery#The_Lesser_Sadness_(Conjunction)|Find out what is going on in the vale of Gorek's Reach]] || Unknown but '''Anthemius Netherwatch''' the Custodian of the Lost should know more
|-
| 29 || Morrow, Peregro, The Still Glade || [[Advisor on the Vallorn]] || [[Ashes#Twilight_(Morrow)|Kill the Druj and rescue ''Megaris'' if possible]] || Significant Imperial casualties. ''Megaris Sunspire'' was not recovered
|-
| 30 || Sarvos, Foracci, Solare Estate || '''Constanza i Kalamar i Guerra''' and '''Marta i Guerra''' || [[Tales_of_mystery#Best_in_the_World_(Jaheris_and_Eleonaris)|Engage in and observe a debate between the self-professed best in the world]] || Unknown but '''Constanza i Kalamar i Guerra''' and '''Marta i Guerra''' should know more
|}

On southern sands

2026-08-19T12:31:31Z

Dre:

[[Category:Recent History]] [[Category:386YE Winter]] [[Category:Military Council]]
<div style="float:left; width: 600px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Stormy Seas.png|caption=Magical storms break against the cliffs and stony beaches of Urizen; an echo of the violence to come.|align=right|width=600}}</div>
==Woven with Shimmering Threads==
{{PDFLink|align=right|link=File:On southern sands.pdf|caption=Click for pdf version}}{{audio|link=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geMam_g1IQs}}
As the Autumn Equinox fades, magic pools and settles over the mountainous territory of [[Redoubt]]. Even as the great and good of the Empire are beginning their long trek back from Anvil to their homes, clouds begin to a gather and angry winds thrash the waves along the coast to thundering foam. Heavy rain, then sleet, then vicious hail whips along the cliffs and beaches. Lightning marches across the horizon. Spring magic is unleashed, a violent expression of the destructive power of that realm. While it is without doubt worst along the coastline, the touch of the storms is felt as far north as [[Redoubt#Limus|Limus]] and [[Redoubt#Willstone|Willstone]], bedevilling merchant vessels visiting Elos and Visten, or travelling up the river Hedra to Cargo.

At night, the clouds remain thick along the coast but clear somewhat as one travels inland. They reveal more magic at work in Redoubt; the sky over the high peaks shimmers and shifts. A shroud of [[Night magic]] stirs the stars, reshaping and reforming them. And if that shroud is of no great strength, insufficient to stymie any save the most cursory of divinations, the fact that it seems the entire Empire rests beneath that same delicate blanket of glamour and misdirection is still cause for comment.

There is some consternation among [[astronomancy|astronomancers]], who must employ enchanted lenses to pierce the [[Drawing the Penumbral Veil|penumbral veil]] to see the [[constellations]] – all save [[the Mountain]] which remains clear in the heavens despite the fact that it ought to be slipping beneath the horizon as winter draws near. An omen, or the whimsy of the Night? Nobody seems to be sure. Predictions are tricky under the shroud of night.

A few nights later, under the shifted sky and battering hail, a citadel of pale stone and dark ice rises on the slopes of [[Redoubt#Siluri|Mount Siluri]], garrisoned by folk with the white fur and visage of great bears. In the foothills below the twisted ruin of Unmade – the font of the [[Unmade trove]] that transformed the [[Citadel Guard]] – three squat towers of rime and rock forge themselves from star and moonlight as the season begins to turn cold. These [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae|frozen citadels]] are only the first of the magical defences that will gird Redoubt in the coming weeks.

Overnight, burning brass sigils unfold across the [[Redoubt#The_Walls_of_Cargo|walls of Cargo]] and the [[Redoubt#The_Court_of_the_White_Fountain|Court of the White Fountain]] that hiss and sizzle as the rain pounds against them. All who see them know, instinctively, that they bind the strength of Shikal – the volcanic metropolis where the eternal [[Estavus]] has her forge – to the mortal [[fortification|fortifications]]. Barely a day later, two cohorts from the Autumn realm arrive to bolster the garrisons in [[Redoubt#Limus|Limus]] and [[Redoubt#Optarion|Optarion]]. Fifty massive metal-and-stone four-armed constructs support each fortification, led by bull-headed minotaurs in bronze armour who set about reviewing the defences of the northern city and the southern [[Spire#Citadels|citadel]], liaising with the mortal garrisons and further bolstering the might of the two castles.

In Cargo these developments are welcomed with curiosity and excitement. Arcanists take every opportunity to examine the [[enchantment]] that surrounds the city – the [[Mystic_scrolls_of_Estavus#Ramparts_of_Ashlar|Ramparts of Ashlar]] woven by Imperial magicians from a ritual scroll sold to them by the Forgemistress. The minotaurs find any number of fascinated scholars eager to interrogate them about life in the City of Fire and Stone; they are quickly disappointed to discover the heralds are significantly more interested in their work bolstering Cargo than in talking to academics.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=CitadelGuard Colour.png|align=right|width=300|caption=The Citadel Guard lead the defence of Redoubt, marshalling their forces wherever they can do the most good.}}</div>
The reception at the Court of the White Fountain is a little marred by the response of the small number of ''koboldi'' that live there. Remnants of the contingent that helped infuse the walls with Summer potence, to make them ''unbreakable'', the little scaled heralds are concerned by the transformation of the fortification, and the presence of the Autumn constructs. They express reservations, worried that the servants of Estavus do not appreciate the strength of stone as much as they do, that this temporary enchantment will not ''last'', has no ''durability''. They can be spotted watching the servants of the Forgemistress with worried eyes, wringing their hands.

Regardless, the power of these enchantments cannot be denied. Between the burning sigils – visible for miles once night falls – and the soldiers of the Autumn realm, the power of the two fortifications is greatly increased. Even as Winter gathers, the temperature within the Court of the White Fountain and on the streets of Cargo remains warm – sweltering at times – and the air is sharp with the tang of smoke and molten metal. No matter where one goes, the distant echo of hammer-on-metal can be heard, and the hiss of hot blades being quenched.

Then in the second week after the Equinox, after storms and shrouds, after magical castles and enchanted walls, another ripple of [[Spring magic]] begins to spread across Redoubt. The power rises in the high peaks, and flows across the land with the [[Rivers of Life|rivers and the streams]], infusing the pools and lakes, mixing with underground aquifers and the cisterns that supply several of the newer spires. It dances in the storm-water, soothes the stinging hail back to rain. The water tingles, almost effervescent, pure and clean and refreshing even as storms lash the coast. Wherever water flows, wounds close, and sickness passes quickly. All the aches and pains that flesh is heir to seem to weigh a little less on the people of Redoubt, as supernatural vitality spreads from the heights through the hills to the plains below. The [[Spring_magic#Healing_and_Vitality|healing power]] of Spring is unleashed, and in the battles to come all save the most grievous wounds will fade like morning mist, provided the ones who receive them survive.

And battles are coming to storm-tossed Redoubt, of that there is little doubt.
==The Arete of Sword and Spear==
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Andronikos of the Lighthouse at Nikephoros, General of the Citadel Guard">Sentinels, consider the Mountain. The servants of Siakha come to Redoubt bringing storm and fang and savagery. The mages of Urizen have met storm with storm. Fey knights will meet fang with Summer steel. You will meet savagery with discipline. You are the rock on which our foes shall break. You are the Mountain.</quote></div>
The [[Citadel Guard]] crosses the Hedra east of [[Redoubt#Cargo|Cargo]], marching south out of Morrow. They are accompanied by a grand cohort of lion-faced warriors of the Summer realm – the knights of [[Eleonaris]] conjured by Imperial magic and bound to fight alongside the sentinels and war-magicians. The scarlet and gold banners of the Lady of Pennants flutter in the wind alongside those of the phoenix, and the white tower. They sing as they come, providing a tumultuous counterpoint to the smooth calm at the heart of the sentinel army.

Pausing briefly beneath the sigil-woven walls of Cargo, they head south toward the coast through Siluri. With expert precision, the strategists of the Citadel dispatch sentinels to Naris and Tomari, using the stuttering lanterns of the [[heliopticon]] to coordinate the defence of the coast with the Court of the White Fountain and the other defenders of Redoubt.

As their network of messengers and watchers spreads, they are joined by two more Imperial armies. The journey of the [[Towerjacks]] and [[Northern Eagle]] has been longer than that of the Guard, leaving war-torn [[Therunin]] and come south through Morrow, past [[Morrow#Highwatch|Highwatch]], to help defend the people of Redoubt from the coming storm. The Northern Eagle have paid a heavy price to be here; marching through the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] vale of the Lower Tarn Valley has cost them nearly two hundred good soldiers who will not fight again, yet the spiteful apothecary of the [[Druj]] and [[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|the Sephals Cauldron]] left them with no other road if they wished to reach Redoubt in time.
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="TBC, General of the Towerjacks">The Fall of general Barossa signals a loss not only for us, but for our Empire. Our enemies will take no more. Travel to Redoubt and build your defences high, that their waves will break on your walls. Show them the strength of your loyalty.</quote></div>
As soon as they arrive, the Towerjacks begin feverishly to [[Army_qualities#Engineer|fortify the coast]] with earthworks, palisades, beacons, defensive vantage points, and more. Working with all their [[Holberg|Holbergian]] ingenuity, backed by the designs of some of the most cunning siege engineers of the League, they reinforce the Elos Harbour in particular, adding significantly to the garrison there while they build their makeshift fortifications. If there is any ill-feeling here about the matter of Spiral, it takes second place to an appreciation of the Leaguish willingness to work night and day to protect the people of Urizen.
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Jaromir Ostrovyn Kostka, General of the Northern Eagle">Redoubt's beacons are alight and so we shall raise our banners in its defence. Hold the mountains and the valleys, the cliffs and the coast, the Spires and the cities. We shall be the hunting bird that haunts the heights, diving upon unwary prey. Vigilant as Sentinels, swift as Wardens, the Imperial Eagle shields all homes.</quote></div>
While the Citadel Guard prepare to respond to an attack wherever it may come from, and the Towerjacks reinforce the coast, the Varushkan soldiers of the Northern Eagle move quickly and effectively through the hills and low peaks, ever watchful for the first signs of an attack. They take nothing for granted – complacency is the enemy of victory. Their strategy complements that of the Urizen sentinels – the army fragments into half a dozen independent groups that maintain communication with messengers and trained birds. Responsible, ready to swiftly gather at the point of any incursion, their [[Army_qualities#Guerrilla|hit and run]] tactics seem particularly well suited to the rough terrain and foothills of Urizen. While some of the Urizen spires are at first reticent about Varushkan soldiers in Redoubt, they swiftly warm to their guests, the long shadow cast by the Iron Helms dispelled by the professional, albeit grim, demeanour of the Northern Eagle.

The warning of the Urizen assembly, shared with every priest of the nation, goes some way toward preparing the citizens of Redoubt for what is coming. Working together and with the Eagle and the 'Jacks, the citadels of Redoubt provide supplies and guides, supporting the armies as the armies prepare to defend them. It helps that Redoubt has so many citadels; while it has been some time since the territory was threatened militarily they are always prepared to face attack from the sea, or from Spiral.
{{SOP|statement=People of Redoubt, watch the coast and prepare for the malice of the Children of Wrecks and the Grendel. Turn your striving to the organisation of your defences. Build up your bonds with your fellow spires and make assurances to share this watch. Hone your courage and do not fear to act. Keep watch upon the Ribbon of Salt and Evenstar. They must not fall into wicked idolatrous hands. Let Urizen's virtue be a light against their darkness.|by=Halkyon of the Myriad Stream, Urizen Assembly|vote=Greater Majority 306-0|when=Autumn Equinox 386YE}}
==On Wings of Storm==
For a time it seems that these preparations might go untested. Days stretch into weeks, and a few of the more critical Urizen begin to question the wisdom of expending so much magical energy to defend against an attack that is ''clearly'' not coming. Then, just shy of a month after the Autumn Equinox, the Grendel arrive.

An armada of ships from the Broken Shore, carrying tens of thousands of Grendel warriors, brave the magical storms battering Redoubt to assail the shores of [[Redoubt#Naris|Naris]]. If not for the [[vigilance]] of the Urizen watchers their attack might have taken the defenders by surprise – they approach not along the coast from the west but from the south – from the open sea. A ripple of concern runs through the strategists gathered in Redoubt. Have the Grendel navies crossed the trackless heart of the [[Bay of Catazar]]? The question is left unanswered as the chaos of war descends on the coast of Redoubt.

At first the assumption is that they have employed some unknown enchantment to travel unseen along the coast. It quickly becomes apparent, however, that while there is magic woven into the hulls, rigging, and sails of the Grendel warships it is a protective charm of [[Autumn magic]] which helps their ships endure the Spring spawned storms rather than anything to do with speed or concealment. This protection is not foolproof - watchers confirm that several ships are swamped or sunk by the enchanted tempest - but it serves to significantly reduce the damage done by Foam and Spittle to the Broken Shore armada.

It's obvious that this force is made up of many of the ships and soldiers that assaulted [[Madruga]] and [[A beacon of smoke|burned Siroc]] - or rather some of them. The Simoom, the Tempest, and the Golden Winds transport the piratical Black Eels, the mercenary army of the Bone Nautilus, the relentless veterans of the Iron Gulls, and the furious war-witches of the Naguerro. They launch a blistering series of raids and probing attacks across the southern coast of Redoubt, remaining mobile and seeking any weakness in the walls of iron and magic thrown up to defend Urizen from the sea.

There are sightings of [[Asavean Archipelago|Asavean]] troops fighting alongside the Bone Nautilus, but no sign of the warships that hail from the eastern archipelago. It's possible that the [[Harvest of infamy|recent fiasco]] at [[Mitwold#Meade|Meade]] has shaken their resolve – or that they are simply busy elsewhere. Even without them, the Grendel forces brought to bear in Redoubt represent a serious threat. On sheer numbers alone, it seems the Grendel outnumber the Imperial armies two-to-one. Unfortunately, that assessment of the defenders of Redoubt takes into account neither the garrisons of Cargo and the Court of the White Fountain, nor the power of Imperial magic. The Summer citadels, and the Autumn enchantments, both help swing the odds back in favour of the Empire.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NorthernEagle Colour.png|align=right|width=300|caption=The Northern Eagle are adept at fighting in the foothills of Redoubt.}}</div>
Raids on Elos and Visten are quickly repulsed by the Towerjacks and the Citadel Guard. The Northern Eagle are called to defend the Brilliant Star from a band of Black Eels who came ashore in Tomari under cover of dark; the orcs have counted without the sure movement and tactical prowess of the Varushkan guerrillas. The invading barbarians clash with Imperial defenders over and over, and while the Empire is not victorious in every engagement it is clear that the Grendel cannot sustain this pace for long. After some initial gains, the soldiers are forced back toward the coast.

One of the most vicious engagements takes place at the Lighthouse at Nikephoros. Once a respected naval citadel, its star swiftly declined after Urizen became part of the Empire. No longer considered strategically important, it was almost drowned by magical storms in the reign of [[Empress Brannan]]. It has weathered many a tempest since, but this season represents one violent tempest too many. The isolated sea-stack where it stands is targeted by the ships of the Tempest, and Bone Nautilus mercenaries. As the storms rage, the barbarians seek to overwhelm the defenders, but before they can claim the spire the defenders choose to collapse the rock tower supporting the ancient citadel and tumbling it down into the hungry, churning sea. While some of the defenders are able to escape the destruction, many more perish, but they take at least as many Grendel with them - including several of the attacking ships. The Grendel will be more much more cautious about assailing lone citadels in the weeks to come, and the secrets of Nikephoros are delivered to the briny deeps rather than the greedy hands of barbarian magicians.

==The Battle of Elos==
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Crab-traced-2.png|align=left|width=300|caption=The Grendel forces seek to conquer Elos - but will settle for destroying its prosperous harbour if they cannot overwhelm the defenders.}}</div>
Any foothold the Grendel manage to establish is swiftly dislodged by Imperial forces, and as the Winter Solstice draws nearer the attacks become more widely spaced apart. Then, with minimal warning, the Grendel launch an almost overwhelming assault against the harbour of Elos. Once a base for what little navy Urizen had before they joined the Empire, the fortunes of the spire slowly declined. Major trade passed it entirely in favour of the larger ports of [[Redoubt#Cargo|Cargo]] and [[Necropolis#Hedrossan|Hedra]] to the north, leaving it little more than a quiet fishing village. Yet even in sleepy obsolescence, the quayside remained extensive and the harbour wall fortified. A few years ago, though, the Imperial senate [[Construct_Great_Harbour_of_Elos|ordered]] an expansion of the docks, restoring them to and eventually surpassing their former glory. In the seasons since the Great Harbour of Elos has once again become a bustling port - and perhaps in time it could become [[To_see_what_you_sell#Additional_Benefits|something more]].

Perhaps it is simple opportunism, or perhaps it is something more, but the Grendel forces throw their full strength behind the capture of the port. It seems their strategy here has been one of misdirection - to scatter the Imperial defenders across the long coastline of southern Redoubt before revealing their real intention. They have counted, however, without the foresight of the Citadel Guard and the industry of the Towerjacks. While the defenders are indeed spread out, Elos is far from undefended. The first marines disgorged from the Grendel ships find themselves pressed up against the barricades and palisades positioned by the Holbergian engineers. Even though the work of creating durable fortifications is still underway, the League soldiers have used the existing defences of the harbour to channel the invaders where they want them. Even these skeletal preparations leave the attackers exposed to the smaller garrison defending the spire, and they are cut to ribbons by crossbow bolts and Urizeni spears.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=TowerJacks Colour.png|align=right|width=300|caption=the Towerjacks strive to build defences along the cliffs of Naris, and fight to protect the port of Elos.}}</div>
The Grendel respond quickly, adjusting their tactics and seeking to land more ground troops on the beaches outside the town. The delay costs them dearly however, and even as they begin to move against the walls of Elos, returning Varushkan patrols and scouts from the Court of the White Fountain fall on them from the east and west. The heliopticon tower above the town sends out a warning and a call to arms that is quickly repeated across Naris and beyond, and the Empire's fist begins to close around the Grendel attackers. This close to the shore, they must also contend with the worst effects of the Spring curse laid across the seas and winds, which dashes more than one invading ship to pieces drowning it and its cargo of soldiers. Those shipwrecked barbarians who make it to shore are little match for the Imperial defenders.

Yet the Grendel are nothing if not adaptable, and in the face of unexpected defenders they change their tactics. The mightiest armoured warships form a tight spearpoint aimed at the heart of Elos, and pierce the defences. The fighting on the docks is fierce and bloody, as the Grendel focus on clearing the defences the Towerjacks have created. They are able to establish a beachhead and from there the battle spills over into the town. Urizen settlements are as often as not laid out with an eye for aesthetics and beauty, with spacious avenues between the buildings - a far cry from the tangled mazes that characterise a League city or a Varushkan town. Pitched battles take place between the Imperial soldiers and the Grendel invaders, with the crossbows and bows on both sides proving to be a powerful asset in the long, straight streets.

The attacking orcs have the upper hand, and so the Empire adjusts its own tactics. They play a delaying game, slowing the invasion and bogging the orcs down wherever they can. With each hour that passes, more defenders arrive - soldiers from the Imperial armies, scouts from the fortifications, and even a scattering of supernatural allies come down from the magic citadels, eager not to miss a fight after weeks of boredom in the foothills. In the end, as night begins to fall, it is clear that the Grendel will not be able to take Elos and they begin to fall back to their vessels. Yet they make one last attempt to achieve their goal; soldiers of the Iron Gulls, adept siege engineers in their own right, try to fire the harbour and especially the facilities for maintaining and building ships. Perhaps control - or the destruction - of this nascent shipyard has been their intention all along. They are able to inflict some damage, but a cadre of Urizeni sentinels breaks through the Grendel defensive line and falls on the would-be saboteurs, and covered by League and Varushkan troops they make short work of the attackers. The survivors are forced to retreat back to their ships.

As the darkness gathers, the Grendel abandon their attempt to secure Elos. Tail between their legs, they limp back to their ships and flee into deeper water, abandoning a few raiding parties who had not made it to the coast to the tender mercy of the Imperial defenders. A cautious cheer goes up from the Imperial defenders. It is, perhaps, a little premature...
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Dapper Carchacadon.jpg|align=right|caption=The carcharodon heralds of the Mother of Wrecks feast in the wake of the Children of Wrecks.|width=300}}</div>

==The ''Second'' Battle of Elos==
While the Empire and the Grendel tear at one another, while the maelstrom roars and the sun sinks, a ''second'' force sweeps in from the west to attack Elos. It's not clear whether they have been intentionally waiting for the Grendel to launch their failed attack, or whether it has simply taken this long for them to gather their strength and bring it to bear. Given the nature of these assailants, it seems more likely that the latter is the case. While the Empire mops up the last of the Broken Shore invaders, while the Grendel retreat deeper into the Bay, the [[Children of Wrecks]] launch their assault.

Through the teeth of the storm come perhaps a hundred and fifty swift-moving vessels, festooned with gruesome trophies and profane talismans. They surge through the spray to attack the harbour, a ragtag mess of pirates and privateers, murderers and thieves. The Grendel have cleared some of the fortifications raised by the Towerjacks, and these jackals prove much more manoeuvrable than the great warships of the Broken Shore, able to dodge the barricades and disgorge their cargo of savage raiders into the streets of Elos. Smaller in number, they still seek to overwhelm Elos with the sheer [[Spring magic#Savagery|savagery]] of the Spring realm.

There is little subtlety in their strategy, and even less cohesion to the raiders that assail Elos. They are here to burn, and loot, and slaughter with no thought for holding territory or establishing supply lines, or anything more complex than sating their greed and bloodlust. Many of these attackers are clearly former orcs of the Broken Shore, either zealots who revere the [[Siakha|Mother of Wrecks]] as a twisted deity, or villains driven by greed to abandon their people and embrace chaos. Many are clearly experienced at assailing Imperial ships, but seem perhaps a little less prepared for a battle on land. Their numbers are swollen by ships and raiders from further afield – it seems that the call of High Priestess Shivaarn has been heard in the far corners of the Known World and cutthroats, pirates, buccaneers, and violent criminals are answering.

To the sorrow of the defenders, there's also ample sign that there are former Imperial citizens among the attackers, mostly ex-Freeborn and League traitors who have thrown off the veneer of civilisation to embrace the chaos of the Children of Wrecks. More worryingly, there is a notable Marcher presence among the attackers - perhaps as many as half a dozen warbands who have removed their livery, but cannot quite conceal their allegiance. The fact they are looking to conceal their identities raises suspicions that they are opportunists; they intend to return to the Marches once the raid is over rather than to join the Children of Wrecks. They fight no less savagely that their compatriots, however, their [[Merciless Wrath of the Reaver|merciless wrath]] just as unforgiving as that of the other Children of Wrecks.

True barbarians, they give no quarter and expect no mercy. Every attacker shows signs of the potent Spring enchantments coursing through their veins that grant them savage strength to cut down defenders, while giving them unnatural vitality allowing them to shrug off powerful blows even lightly armoured as many of them are.

As with other engagements with the Children of Wrecks, there are numbers of [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]], [[Inhabitants of the realms#Guardians|monstrous beasts]], and [[Inhabitants of the realms#Drudges|bloodthirsty supernatural reavers]] bolstering their strength. Alongside humans and orcs throng savage carcharodons, thunderous tempest children, and great bone-armoured sharks ready to devour anyone who falls into the water.

While the majority of the attackers rely on steel to try and overwhelm the defenders of Elos, there are clearly a number of magicians among them well versed in the violent magics of Spring. In the teeth of the gale, they shout words of power to tear down the defences of the town, to sink its ships, to scatter the defenders. The Urizen meet the unconstrained fury of Spring with magic of their own, however, and strong as the Children of Wrecks sorcerers are the Urizeni are stronger. Urizen magic turns aside the more destructive incantations of the Children and their supernatural allies, bolstering and strengthening their allies, and helping them remain calm and focused in the face of the disordered aggression from the sea.

In stark contrast to both the Imperial and Grendel forces warring over the coast of Redoubt there is little organisation here. Some of the Children's vessels lose interest in the attack on Elos, peel off, and pursue the retreating Grendel armada. Where they catch stragglers they gleefully board their warships and slaughter their crews. A number of Grendel troops left behind in Elos, trapped between the bloodthirsty hammer of the Children of Wrecks and the anvil of the Empire choose to surrender to Imperial troops, or in one or two cases strike hasty alliances to fight the new threat.

The attack is chaotic, unpredictable, disorganised. Whatever strategy they may have had dissolves quickly in the face of Urizen's wealth and the chance to murder its people. That same disorder, that makes it hard for the sentinels to predict how the attack will unfold, largely dooms it even before it has started. Despite the smaller number of attackers, the Children of Wrecks are focused on mayhem and theft rather than trying to conquer the town. They kill more people than the Grendel did, because they are not here to conquer merely to slaughter and fill their pockets. Because there is no sense of unity or loyalty between the vicious raiding bands, it matters little to the individuals when their fellow attackers fall. Beyond the point where an attacking army would have sounded the retreat, the fighting continues through the night. Fires erupt across Elos, the cries of the wounded and the dying rise to challenge the thunder of the clouds in volume.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=SiakhaArt.jpg|caption=Those who have the favour of Siakha are equally happy to despoil Imperial towns and sink Grendel ships - and their mistress welcomes both with equal delight.|align=left|width=300}}</div>
Yet as midnight approaches, the furious tumult of the Children of Wrecks begins to falter. They frenzy dims, their strength expended in a crazed flurry of attacks. The sentinels, the League soldiers, the Varushkan schlacta, systematically surround and butcher the straggling attackers. Those smarter raiders know the tide has shifted and fall back to their ships, peeling away from the Naris shore and heading westward, satisfied with their loot, and the slaking of their bloodlust.

There is still violence to come, however. As the ships of the Children of Wrecks flee back toward their [[Madruga#Free_Landing|lair in the west]] two-dozen swift Broken Shores ships attack ''their'' stragglers, cutting down their crews or sinking the pirate ships wherever they can. While the bulk of the Grendel armada is still in full retreat, it seems some of their independent captains are more interested in retribution against the traitors and murderers under the tattered flags of Siakha than they are in making it safely to deeper waters after the failure of their attack.

==Forewarned and Forearmed==
As the morning sun limps above the eastern mountains, the defenders of Elos count the cost. The spire has been damaged, there is still a pall of smoke hanging over the settlement. The Towerjacks immediately set to work repairing and replenishing the barricades on the docks, while the Northern Eagle dispatches details to gather up the corpses of Grendel troops and Siakhan raiders and burn them on great pyres outside the walls of Elos. These funeral furnaces burn low, spitting and snarling in the drizzle that still pours from the heavy Spring-infused clouds above.

The harbour has weathered the storms, and perhaps been made stronger. If there had been no defence, if it had just been the Grendel or the Children of Wrecks against Elos, the story would have been very different. Without forewarning, the Grendel would have taken Elos and established a beachhead in Redoubt, spreading quickly across Naris and threatening not only Redoubt but Necropolis as well. Even without the Grendel attack, the Children of Wrecks alone would have overwhelmed the defenders and Elos would have burned, its people slaughtered or captured by the Children of Wrecks who would easily have escaped any retribution from the defenders of Urizen.

With three armies, and a plethora of magical protections, however, both attackers have been repulsed. Even with the lifegiving rain, many have died. In the skirmishes along the coast, and the defence of Elos, death has claimed soldiers of three nations. For all their lack of numbers, the sheer savagery of the Children of Wrecks rivals the worst excesses of the Druj in its bloodthirstiness and the protectors of Elos have bourn the brunt of that wickedness. In the days that follow, the heliopticon flickers with the news that Elos has survived. At the same time, the fact that there were many identifiably Marcher soldiers among those attackers, who even with the savage power of Spring in their veins showed signs of the discipline common to a [[military unit|trained Imperial force]] leaves a sour taste in the mouths of those who had hoped the recent conflict with the Marches had been laid to rest. It seems there is indeed more than one way to bury a hatchet, as the western farmers have it.

Regardless, the vigilance of the Empire has paid dividends. The Grendel armada has been forced to retreat from Redoubt without establishing a foothold in the territory or succeeding in a single significant raid. The Children of Wrecks have been repulsed, and while the fighting at Elos was savage they were no match for the defenders. The storms that have rampaged up and down the coast blow themselves out three weeks before the Winter Solstice, and in the wake of the violence a sudden calm descends.

The Empire has protected Redoubt, bloodied the nose of the Grendel armada, and delivered a stinging defeat to the Children of Wrecks, but it has paid a steep price to do so.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=RegionsofRedoubt.png|caption=Redoubt has been protected by Imperial forces.|align=left|width=300}}</div>

==Game Information==
===Redoubt===
* '''Redoubt remains fully under Imperial control'''
* '''The Towerjacks have established temporary fortifications in Naris'''
Imperial forces in Redoubt handily defeated attacks from both the Grendel and the Children of Wrecks aimed at the port of Elos. There has been cosmetic damage to the town, and some loss of life, but the harbour remains intact. In addition to the usual damage caused during the campaign by the Grendel navies and armies, the attack of the Children of Wrecks and their supporters has caused additional casualties to the three armies defending Redoubt. These extra casualties have also been reduced by Rivers of Life, however.

Grendel forces have retreated, having failed to establish any foothold in the territory. The Children of Wrecks raid has been held off, and the attackers have scattered into the deep waters of the Bay of Catazar.

The Towerjacks have completed their program of fortifications and bolstering of defences across Naris, and following the Winter Solstice the region will have a 1,000 point [[fortification]]. That strength drops to 500 after the Spring Equinox, and has faded completely by the end of the Summer Solstice 387YE.

Work on the [[Construct Roads of the Sky|roads of the sky]] has been slightly impacted by the terrible storms and magical rain, but given that the destructive curse is focused on the coast rather than the territory as a whole, the effects have been negligible. The presence of both the Towerjacks and the Northern Eagle have also helped to ensure that work has proceeded apace despite the dreadful winds and rains lashing Redoubt.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=SpringRune.jpg|caption=Spring magic brings [[Spring_magic#Ruin|ruin]] and [[Spring_magic#Fertility|growth]] with equal facility.|align=left|width=300}}</div>
===Foam and Life===
* '''Foam and Spittle of the Furious Sea has reduced production from fleets based in Redoubt, and damaged navies fighting in the territory'''
* '''It has also impacted ministries related to coastal trade along the shores of Redoubt'''
* '''In combination with Rivers of Life, the two curses have had additional unpredictable effects on farms, forests, and herb gardens in the territory'''
The territory has been under the effect of both [[Foam and Spittle of the Furious Sea]] and [[Rivers of Life]]. Every [[fleet]] based in the target territory has had its production reduced by two ranks, providing reduced income for the character who owns them. The storms have also battered the coast - any Urizeni whose spire is located in southern Redoubt is encouraged to think about how a season of tempestuous magical weather might have affected them. The rain and hail are also infused with the healing power of [[Rivers of Life]], however. This means that while the damage to property might have been extensive, actual injuries are often healed by the very same bad weather that caused them.

The chaotic weather has had an unexpected effect on [[farm|farms]], [[herb garden|herb gardens]], and [[forest|forests]] across the territory. While the pounding Autumn and Winter hail has damaged warehouses and conservatories, the healing power that infuses it has caused actual plants to prosper, although in keeping with the [[Spring magic#Chaos|chaos]] of Spring magic it has done so in unpredictable ways. Every farm in Redoubt will provide 18 fewer rings this season, but produce two doses of [[true vervain]] instead. Every herb garden provides 2 fewer doses of [[true vervain]], and instead provides 18 rings of valuable or edible plants. Every forest provides 2 fewer measures than normal, but instead provides a single pawn of [[vis#Vital Honey|vital honey]].

Foam and Spittle is not great for international sea trade. As such the [[Custodian of the Concordium Dock]], the [[Quaymaster of the Elosian Docks]], and the [[Elosian Architect]] will all be unable to access the top levels of their respective [[ministry|ministries]] following the Winter Solstice. Fewer ships are visiting the ports, and the disruption caused by the curses coupled with the fighting along the coast have discouraged merchant vessels from visiting these ports.

This change comes from the interplay of the magic of Foam and Spittle and Rivers of Life, the influence of the constellation of [[the Mountain]], and perhaps also the presence of Siakha's chosen pirates and their many enchantments. There's no guarantee the same effect would occur if the two curses were performed together elsewhere.

===Participation: Elosian Raiders===
* '''Players whose fleet or military unit participated on the attack on Elos receive rewards based on their military strength'''
* '''Taking part in the raid alongside the Children of Wrecks is a serious crime; if uncovered and convicted the character likely faces the death penalty'''
Anyone who took part in the raid on Elos fought alongside the Children of Wrecks against Imperial citizens and soldiers. As detailed in the description of the action, any military unit that took this action has definitely killed Urizen citizens as part of the attack and may have killed Varushkan or League soldiers as well. If anyone is convicted of having joined the raid on Elos, they will likely face execution for murder and treachery.
===Participation: Nikephoros===
* '''The Lighthouse at Nikephoros has been destroyed'''
The destruction of the Lighthouse at Nikephoros ensured not only that the Grendel did not capture any of its magical secrets, but also made them more reticent to attack isolated spires along the coast for fear of the destructive power the magicians within might unleash. If you were an inhabitant of the spire, you are free to create a story about your involvement in the raid, and the subsequent decision to collapse the sea-stack rather than let the spire fall to Grendel raiders. If you were not a resident of the spire, you need the permission of the players who were, before you can claim to have been involved in the defence. It is assumed that player characters are among those who manage to get to safety through storm-wracked seas before the tower came down, but you are free to begin the event [[Combat#Terminal|terminal]] if you wish.

==Conjunctions==
{{SOP|by=Halkyon of the Myriad Stream, Urizen Assembly|statement=People of Redoubt, watch the coast and prepare for the malice of the Children of Wrecks and the Grendel. Turn your striving to the organisation of your defences. Build up your bonds with your fellow spires and make assurances to share this watch. Hone your courage and do not fear to act. Keep watch upon the Ribbon of Salt and Evenstar. They must not fall into wicked idolatrous hands. Let Urizen's virtue be a light against their darkness. |vote= 306-0|when=Autumn Equinox 386YE}}
===An Oath (Redoubt)===
* '''Wreckers are withdrawing from Redoubt, having attacked Spire of the Wealdawn'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''''Halkyon of the Myriad Stream'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for killing the wreckers and recovering their loot'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
Following the repulsed raid on Elos Harbour, a warband of wreckers remained in Redoubt. They were separated from those fleeing the harbour and managed to skirt the armies of the Empire and the Broken Shore. Instead, they launched an assault on the [[Sound_the_bells#Sodden_Plains|Spire of the Wealdawn]] and managed to escape with a wealth of mana crystals and sunfruit. Inspired by the words of '''Halkyon of the Myriad Stream''', upheld by the Urizen Assembly, the wreckers have been tracked by several sentinels as they make their way back to their ships. The wreckers appear to be made up of several former Freeborn and Grendel, and are accompanied by heralds of [[Siakha]].

If the ''wreckers'' escape, then they will no doubt be able to use the looted mana crystals, either in rituals or as funds to tempt more to their "''nation''". The words of '''Halkyon''' inspired the sentinels of Wealdawn to follow and keep track of the fleeing raiders, as such it is the responsibility of the questor to stop them. The sentinels are clear that they are happy for Halkyon to retain any of the treasure they can reclaim from the wreckers, asking only that they put it to good use.

===Hill of the Golden Dawn (Ayereed)===
* '''A Grendel maistir is travelling to pay mercenaries to reclaim the Empire's foothold in Ayereed'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Imperial Spymaster'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for killing Maistir Varden'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
Six months ago, the Imperial Spymaster [[Construct Smugglers Cove in Ayereed|announced]] the construction of a [[smugglers cove]] in [[Ayereed]]. A few weeks after the summit, the [[Golden Axe]], the [[Seventh Wave]], and the [[Winter Sun]] [[Steel and salt|invaded]] the territory to the south of Mareave. Last season, the General of the Seventh Wave was able to prevent the [[Steel_and_salt#A_New_Arrival_(Ayereed)|prevent the funding of mercenaries for Stormlords Rise]], but the [[Fake_empire#The_Salt_Lords_Council|Salt Lords Council]] have deep pockets. The Lord of [[Bay_of_Catazar#Gainmeachdubh|Gainmeachdubh]] has sent a ''Maistir Varden'' with funds to pay mercenaries to reclaim the Empire's foothold in the Petrified Forest and destroy the newly-started smugglers cove.

''Maistir Varden'' is accompanied by a guard of Grendel and Asaveans, and reports from unconquered left behind in the territory suggest that they are accompanied by something between an esteemed guest and a prisoner. There is some uncertainty as to exactly who it is, but given the way they have been seen to be treated, it is likely they would appreciate being freed. It is the responsibility of the [[Imperial Spymaster]], '''Bernard Dugdale''', to kill Maistir Varden, the Grendel, and the Asaveans. The Imperial Spymaster might wish to rescue the unknown prisoner, but they would almost certainly need a performance of [[The Cuckoo's Egg]] to return them to Anvil.

==Salt Burned (Battle Opportunity)==
The twin battles of [[Redoubt#Naris|Elos]] have drawn the attention of Imperial forces in Redoubt this season. Through grit and determination, the defenders endured and drove both [[Grendel]] and the [[Children of Wrecks]] from the port. But with storms lashing the coasts of the territory, it is soon apparent that something was missing. The vigilant watch of the seas reveals it; a second raiding force of wreckers put ashore in southern Tomari, landing under the cover of heavy skies, and then quickly disappearing into the interior.

With brutal savagery, they descended on the ''Littilian Fast'', a clifftop defence founded soon after Urizen joined the Empire. With most of the [[sentinel|sentinels]] supporting military efforts to the north, the defenders were quickly overwhelmed, the halls and gardens burned, and the study rooms ransacked, with anything of value carried off. The raiders then turned south and headed into [[Redoubt#Optarion|Optarion]].

As news of the attack spread toward [[Redoubt#Optarion|Visten]], alarms were raised as raiders' ships were sighted off the coast, in the roiling waters near the [[Redoubt#Optarion|Ribbon of Salt]]. This potent spring regio lies off the shore and is only accessible by boat, making it an obvious target for the ''Turn of the Gyre''; a Spring coven favoured by [[Siakha]]. The coven is planning to call on a boon of the ''Maelstrom'' to replicate their recent destructive castings at ''Siakha's Maw'' and upon the ''Freeborn Plain'' to inundate the town with an enhanced casting of [[Thunderous Deluge]].

There is an opportunity on the Saturday of the solstice to intercept the raiders approaching the coast and prevent them from uniting with the coven. If the opportunity is not taken, or the raiders are victorious at ''Visten Head'', then the port that lies at the feet of the town's three spires will be destroyed as the coven will unleash their destructive magic on the coast of [[Redoubt]].

===Objective: Protect the Ribbon of Salt===
* '''Recover at least three timbers from the ''Astral Phoenix'''''
* '''If the coven gains three or more timbers, they will destroy Visten and unleash a pair of powerful Spring rituals'''
* '''If the coven gains one or two timbers, they will cast their rituals but fail to destroy Visten'''
* '''If the Empire recovers all the timbers, their efforts will completely fail'''

The ''[[Redoubt#Optarion|Ribbon of Salt]]'' has long held the interest of scholars and mages from across Urizen. Over the centuries, many have theorised over the regio's origins, the nature of its connection to the Spring realm, and possible ways that the impressive waterspouts might be harnessed. ''Indagius of Visten'' studied the regio extensively during the reign of Emperor Frederick. Eventually, the stargazer acquired a ship, the ''Astral Phoenix'', to search for similar Spring phenomena in the Bay and across [[the seven seas]], but the day the ship set sail, it was swallowed in a magical storm, and all hands on board were lost. Only five timbers were ever recovered, washing ashore on the night the ship was lost.

Along with mana, tempest jade, and assorted ritual paraphernalia, the raiders have stolen the five timbers from the citadel. They are now taking all that remains of the ''Astral Phoenix'' out to sea to the waiting coven. The ''Gyre'' have proven themselves as powerful ritualists, but they lack the Grendel's logistical support, and have burned through most of their supplies. The raid is bringing them the necessary mana and tempest jade for the ritual, but importantly, the remains of the ''Astral Phoenix'' have sufficient significance to Siakha to replace the ilium required to draw on the eternal's dreadful boon. The more of the Astral Phoenix the Wreckers sacrifice to their insane god, the more power they will be granted.

If all five timbers are recovered, then the ritualists cannot perform any rituals and will be completely defeated. If they are able to take one or two timbers to the coven then they will sacrifice them to Siakha in return for the boons needed to cast powerful Spring curses on Redoubt, one for each timber. If they escape with three or more timbers, then they will be able to cast Thunderous Deluge, [[Foam and Spittle of the Furious Sea]], ''and'' call on Siakha's aid to destroy Visten.

===Objective: Eliminate the traitors===
* '''Several notable turncoats have been identified among the Children of Wrecks at Visten'''
* '''They will need to be located and then killed during the battle'''
* '''Each traitor slain will safeguard their former nation from the depredation of the wreckers'''
Observations by war scouts have identified five former Imperial citizens who have joined with the "''free nation''". These five do not currently hold positions of power among the raiders, instead, they have been drawn to the Children of Wrecks following acts of violence and chaos in their pasts. They will be found among the hosts of the wreckers and should be notable for their distinctive national dress. Each of the nation's egregores has made it clear that they have abandoned their oaths and are no longer considered Imperials. The magistrates have confirmed that the five individuals are considered barbarians, are no longer protected by Imperial law, and as there is absolutely nothing to suggest that they would consent to being targeted by [[Cuckoo's Egg]], they can be legally killed by citizens of the Empire in battle.

If a traitor escapes the battle, then they will be able to help the Children's plan raids against their former nations. Wreckers will find ways to loot and plunder the affected region in a territory of that nation, rendering it [[Region_qualities#Lawless|lawless]], swelling the wreckers' coffers, even as they drain the treasury.

The traitors have been identified as:
* ''Maurizia Spada di Sarvos''; an Uccelini merchant who murdered her business partner to ensure safe passage in a storm
* ''Ezhabbenar of Hedrossan''; a retired Highborn sailor who joined the cults for the thrill of piracy and riches
* ''Tuomas of Pirenea''; a stargazer that gained insights into Siakha's ritual boons in return for his coven's blood
* ''Zavetta Voglavnova''; a fallen Varushkan boyar who disappeared after abandoning her vale to wolves in return for personal power
* ''Ioan Bloodstride''; a refugee from a lost striding in Liathaven who joined Siakha's forces during the assault on Meade

===Battlefield opportunity: Capture the ''Jaws of Selachan''===
* '''A devotee of Siakha carries with them a relic of the ''Maelstrom'''''
* '''Locate and wrest the Spring-touched maw from the bearer'''
* '''The relic is powerful and could be destroyed or used against the Wreckers'''
A terrified trader freed from captivity has passed on rumour of the ''Jaws of Selachan'' borne by a group of cultists and understood to be of significance to the ''Mother of Wrecks''. Described as a golden skeletal maw, filled with sharp teeth, the item invokes a powerful, vicious fury for the person carrying it and is held in great respect by those who fight alongside it.

Evidently an item of some magical potency, the most prudent course of action is for it to be located by Imperial forces and for a skilled diviner to determine the nature of the power that created it. As the item is a creation of Siakha, who is under the [[Alignment|enmity]] of the Conclave, any Imperial citizen who recovers it should either destroy it with [[Words of Ending]] or pass it to the magistrates. It would be illegal to attempt to keep the item, regardless of whether the power was claimed or used against the wreckers.

===Battlefield Environment: Salt in the Air===
* '''Visten Head is under the effect of a powerful Spring magic'''
* '''All characters experience a feeling of rising bloodlust'''
* '''Any character who does not resist the aura has a single use of CLEAVE with an appropriate melee weapon whilst in the location'''

A powerful Spring aura will affect everyone who travels to the area of ''Visten Head''. Unless you have a way to resist the power you will experience the following roleplaying effect:

''A metallic taste fills your mouth and the air smells of salt; you feel a growing sense of destruction and bloodshed thumping around your body.''

Anyone who travels to this location will experience a strong roleplaying effect of rising violence and bloodlust, unless they:

* Expend a hero point upon entering the area
* Draw on the spiritual strength of an anointing
* Draw on their [[merrow]] lineage and assume a calm demeanour
* Are bonded to a magical item or have a ritual enchantment that mitigates effects like these

Whilst in the location, any character can make a '''single''' [[Heroic_skills#Cleaving_Strike|CLEAVE]] call with any melee weapon, other than a pike, once during the battle. You do not need to expend a hero point or have the [[Heroic_skills#Cleaving_Strike|Cleaving Strike]] skill to use this ability. This ability is lost if the character resists the roleplaying effect at any point, or upon their return to Anvil.

Wasp nest

2026-08-19T12:31:24Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:386YE Winter]][[Category:Recent History]][[Category:Peerless Kinship]]
<ic>They stood, almost shoulder to shoulder but not quite touching, as the sun hid his face and the darkness crept in. The only sound in the clearing was their slow breathing, the lapping of the waves, and the arrhythmic buzz of diurnal and nocturnal insects swapping shifts. Isaiah marked the unnatural sheen of the surface of the lake; the malign red, sick green, vile yellow. Like droplets of oil in a glass, but worse. Some of the younger trees that drank from the tainted pool were already dying. The older ones weathered it better, but any arborist could see the signs that there was something wrong with them. The Highborn shuddered to think what the water of this lake might do to the people, or the animals, if they drank it. The thought frightened him more than the knowledge that they were no more than a handful of miles from the borders of Eastring, where the Druj were.

Shadows deepened, and Carys unshuttered her clay lantern, spilling out light. The stone's illumination was steady, but caught the lake in such a way as to make the corruption even more evident.

"It happens every night at this time," said the Navarr, her gaze still fixed on the shallow water along the lakeshore. "There, do you see it?"

Isaiah leaned forward, squinting, The pale light picked out movement in the water. Not ripples, not waves, but the suggestion of movement. Then, he saw the boot-tops and the legs. Dark hues spilt upwards from the water, like liquid metal poured into a mould. Legs, torso, arms, a terrified face. All picked out in the water and the corruption of the lake. They were limping, shambling really, through the water along the shore. They looked back over their shoulder, desperation clear despite the barely finished formation of their features.

"They're trying to lose pursuers," said Carys. Her voice throbbed with emotion, as she tried to remain detached. "They're injured. Sometimes the Druj let prisoners... wait, here it comes." She sounded to be on the verge of tears.

The figure stopped suddenly, staggered, collapsed forward. The watery colours that composed them began to become darker. Something like blood thickened their shape from the inside out, and began to drip down into the lake.

"An arrow, in the back," whispered Isaiah.

The wraith shuddered again, and then a third time. Two more arrows striking them from the front, in the stomach, making it clear to them in their last moments that they would never have escaped, that this was nothing more than a game and their fate was sealed before they had begun to run. They fell back into the water, lay face up. Not dead. Isaiah wanted to turn away but could not, knew he owed this spirit, this shadow of someone they had never met.

The ghost reached up, beseechingly, begging. There was no sound, and no answer. The Druj weren't visible - only the poor damned spirit could see their tormentors. Their body convulsed again, and began to sink beneath the water. No, not sinking. Forced. Pressed into the mud by some invisible tormentor with their boot on the figure's chest.

Carys could take no more. She moved forward with her light, as she'd done half a dozen times before on different nights, and called out to the ghost thrashing in the corrupted water, softly, gently, telling them that it was over and that the Dance awaited them. They had tried this before, but each time the ghost had simply faded away, the awful scene of their death ready to replay again. This time, though, the Navarr priest had Isaiah with her. He touched the blue flame stitched into the woollen shawl and smearing a little liao on the icon, and let the scent of it open his eyes. Perhaps he could gain insight into what it was kept this poor lost soul trapped here, on the edge of the lake, reliving their torment and death over and over.

It was too late, had likely been too late since the ghost stumbled in the water. The Highborn had a sense of pain, and loss, and frustration, and the fading hope that shone for a moment through the dark that this person - whoever they had been - would someone make it out would tell... someone... something. Then it was gone, slipped away, and the ghost with it.

Carys breathed a shuddering breath, and did not try to fight back the tears any more. Another attempt, another failure. Isaiah reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder, his own eyes glittering, and spoke with a quiet certainty that welled up from deep within his soul.

"We will do this," he said gently, hoping that she understood that they were in this together, that she was not alone, any more than this poor spirit was alone. "We will do this. We will find a way to make this right. We ''will''."</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 500px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Glade of Farewell.jpg|align=left|caption=Not everyone is remembered in the corpse glades of the Navarr.|width=500}}</div>
{{PDFLink|align=right|link=file:Wasp_nest.pdf|caption=Click for pdf version}}
==Overview==
At the Autumn Equinox, the [[Highguard|Highborn]] Assembly upheld a [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_88|statement of principle]] from '''Hazelelponi of the Shattered Tower''' that restated their [[Full_of_sacred_sound#A_Peerless_Kinship|peerless kinship]] with Navarr. The judgement passed with a greater majority reflecting the desire to help strengthen their kin and do what they could to support their fellow nation. It is the last such judgement that can be passed as a result of the '''[[Full of sacred sound]]''' wind of fortune

'''Arianwen Thornfield's''' [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_189|judgement to guide the Highborn]] proposed a priority of the Navarr asking the Highborn priests to help them lead the restless souls that [[Therunin#Eastring|wander Therunin]] to their rightful place. The judgement is shrewd and well considered - of all the nations of the Empire, none have more experience in dealing with unquiet shades as the Highborn, they are well placed to offer expert help.

Unfortunately, the situation in Therunin is far from ideal. The majority of the ghosts seem to be anchored in [[Therunin#Eastring|Eastring]], a location that is firmly under the control of the [[Druj]]. There may have been a hope that the invaders would have been defeated and Eastring liberated, but any such hope has been [[Under eastern skies|cruelly dashed]]. Nonetheless, working with the help of their Highborn allies the Navarr priests are able to create a plan to deal with the ghosts in Eastring, but it would be impossible to put the plan into action until the entire region is firmly under Imperial control. Any action will have to wait until then.

Thwarted in their primary goal, the Highborn pilgrims look to see what other aid they can offer ''now''.
<div style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr; gap: 10px;">
{{SOPInner|by=Hazelelponi of the Shattered Tower, Highborn Assembly|statement=Highguard, our kinship with Navarr is Peerless. Our Loyalty to them has been acknowledged and praised. So we shall continue our actions in Pride. I once again call upon us to use Peerless Kinship to aid in Therunin as we once did in Brocéliande. They have asked, we MUST answer. Show that we deserve to raise the Grey Pilgrim army. Aid our ally.|vote=Greater Majority 486-28|when=Autumn Equinox, 386YE}}
{{SOPInner|by=Arianwen Thornfield, Navarr Assembly|statement=Unrestful souls wander Therunin unable to find the labyrinth due to the horrid massacre and inaction of this assembly. We call to our siblings in Highguard to help us lead the souls to their rightful places.|vote=190-28|when=Autumn Equinox, 386YE}}
</div>

==A Haunting Melody==
* '''The spirits gathering in eastern Therunin remain restless'''
* '''An inspirational location would help the spirits find their rest'''
The Imperial [[Blood_and_mire#Game_Information:_Therunin|counterattack]] into Therunin left thousands dead, and that butchers' bill has only increased since. Such wholesale slaughter saw Eastring become [[Region_qualities#Haunted|haunted]] by the restless dead, even before the fallen [[Iron Helms]] began [[Under_eastern_skies#Onwards_Through_the_Snow|their rampage]]. Soldiers who escaped the meat grinder speak of uneasy ghosts lashing out at any who come near, or leaving those that listen to their woes and wails with a lingering sense of dread and a bone-deep [[Calls#WEAKNESS|weakness]].

The [[Kaela#The Gift of Kaela|Gift of Kaela]] offers an escape, albeit a tragic one, for those who fall into the hands of the Druj. Yet death in battle is often sudden, painful, and woven with feelings of anger, loss, desperation; perfect conditions for ghosts to arise. There is something about these restless spirits, trapped as they seem to be in the mortal world by their sadness and ire, that seems particularly unsettling for many Navarr. This remaining - not going into the Labyrinth, not continuing the [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#The_Great_Dance|Great Dance]] - is abhorrent. There is perhaps no other Imperial nation better suited to helping the Navarr to deal with these unquiet dead than that of Highguard. The [[Necropolis#The_Necropolis|Necropolis]] in particular is a place haunted by the spirits of the past; there are rumours that at certain times in history, the ghosts have outnumbered the living in [[Necropolis]]. Those ghosts who linger there sometimes become angry and disruptive and must be quieted or dealt with.

Unfortunately, Eastring where many of the lingering dead seem to be found, is firmly under the control of the Druj. There are also unquiet spirits in conquered East Ashes, and in the barbarian-threatened Lower Tarn Valley. The invading armies are buoyed up by the cruel destruction of the Iron Helms and Isaella's Dance. The Black Wind seem particularly eager to get their hands on Imperial priests, to exact a bloody revenge on the Empire who they hold responsible for the [[Ripples_and_shadows#Black_Wind|murder of their sept leaders]]. At best, any priests who attempted to enter Eastring to deal with ghosts would likely be slaughtered by the Druj, or left with no choice but to take Kaela's bitter gift. At worst, the cruel orcs might find a way to break their spirit and turn them against the Empire as they have done before, in [[the Barrens]] and in [[Zenith]].

[[Highguard_religious_beliefs#Stewards_of_the_Dead|Stewards of the Dead]] who have made the journey to Therunin are determined not to disappoint their peers among the Navarr. Together, they discuss a plan. Some suggestions come from an unlikely force; soldiers from the Dawnish armies that have fought in Therunin, receiving sanctuary and treatment for their terrible wounds at Peakedge Stead and the [[Hand_of_the_Healers#Houses_of_Healing|Houses of Healing]], talk about the [[A_glorious_victory#Here_We_Stand_.28Conjunction.29|shrine of hope]] in [[the Barrens]] that helps those who fell in that wild territory find rest.
===Glade of Farewell===
<div style="width: 400px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Establish Glade of Farewell'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Edifice</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Lower Tarn Valley, Eastring, East Ashes</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' minimum 9 wains of weirwood, 27 crowns</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:'''
* The region must be fully Imperial, and not have any poison or other corrupt quality
* Would require a writ of consecration once completed
* Grandeur of the memorial would influence the final effect, but at the minimum would remove the haunted quality from Eastring
</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''A glade consecrated with true liao would help the angry spirits of Therunin to move on'''
* '''A commission is required to make a suitable location, and a writ of consecration is needed to complete it'''
* '''The ''Glade of Farewell'' would need to be built in a region ravaged by the Druj that was under Imperial control and not corrupted by Druj malice'''
A [[Inspirational location|sacred site]] established in eastern Therunin would help the restless dead find peace. There are several locations in Eastring, East Ashes, and the Lower Tarn Valley that would be suitable; it would require a glade and the construction of a memorial that remembered all those who fell to the Druj whether soldiers or innocent civilians claimed by the cruel barbarians. A suitable memorial would not need to be ostentatious; a minimum of 9 wains of weirwood would be required placing the [[commission]] within the reach of the [[Mistress of Monuments]] for example. Contribution of more weirwood would increase the [[Edifice#Grandeur|grandeur]] of the final memorial however, so there are potential advantages to having it commissioned by someone capable of building a larger structure. At the end of the day the important thing is that this place be reminiscent of the [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Funerals|corpse glade]], but rather than one where the bodies of the fallen are laid to rest it would be a place that attracted the spirits of the fallen and helped them leave the shackles of the mortal world behind.

The ''Glade of Farewell'' would need to be built in one of the regions of Therunin ravaged by the Druj, but not necessarily in Eastring itself. While there are more spirits in Eastring, there are also ghosts gathering in parts of Lower Tarn Valley and East Ashes. Indeed, if the Druj engage in further slaughter in either of the latter two regions it seems likely they, too, might acquire the haunted quality. Unfortunately, until Eastring or East Ashes are liberated, or the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|corruption]] that pools in the Tarn Valley is removed, the memorial will achieve nothing save remind the dead of their loss. The region where it is built must be recaptured, or purified, before the memorial can be blessed. Of course, even if this is done there is a chance the Druj might disrupt building if their armies press west.

Once the construction is complete, the Highborn propose that it should be [[consecration#True Consecration|consecrated]] with [[liao#True liao|true liao]] in the same way the Shrine of Hope was. After a great deal of discussion, they recommend that it be consecrated to one of the virtues of [[Pride]] (exalting the sacrifice performed by the fallen and the victims of the Druj), [[Loyalty]] (commemorating the commitments of those who fell to their people and their allies), or [[Courage]] (recognising that those who fell to the Druj fought to the very last for what they believed in). This would require the usual [[writ of consecration]] in the appropriate assembly, and provided it met the usual criteria and the memorial had been completed, it would create an opportunity to consecrate the ''Glade of Farewell''.

Once that were done, the exact effects would depend on the virtue chosen and the grandeur of the memorial, but at the bare minimum, it would allow those trapped as ghosts in eastern Therunin to move on (it would remove the haunted quality from Eastring).

==A Cleansing Song==
<ic>Note that the opportunities here have been superseded by those presented in the [[The dose makes the poison#Sucking the Poison|The dose makes the poison]] wind of war</ic>
<div style="width: 350px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Cleanse the Corruption'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Therunin</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 30 thrones a season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' Six months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Cost would be cut to 10 thrones a season if an appropriate Imperial Sodality of apothecaries voted to undertake the task</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''Highborn magisters are bringing samples of the substance that has poisoned the Lower Tarn Valley to Anvil'''
* '''If an antidote can be found the apothecaries of the Empire could be encouraged to deploy that solution in Therunin'''
Unable to immediately help the Navarr lay to rest the spirits of the dead, the Highborn pilgrims look for other ways to help. Another pressing problem besides the ghosts and the Druj is that of the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisonous]] and ravaged land of the [[Therunin#Lower Tarn Valley|Lower Tarn Valley]]. While it is once again under Imperial control it is far from safe, not least because the orcs of the Mallum are notorious for leaving assassins and saboteurs behind when they are driven out. For the ''Glade of Farewell'' to be built there, the corruption that pools in the earth and water must first be removed.

Like Eastring, the Druj are behind the problems here. The contents of [[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|the Sephals Cauldron]] were spilled in the Lower Tarn Valley during the Summer Solstice, and the cursed brew sank deep into the ground and spread across the region. The situation ''could'' have been even worse if the Druj's full scheme had been realised, but that is scant comfort for those who remain in the region. Already this season, it has [[On_southern_sands#The_Arete_of_Sword_and_Spear|cost the lives of Imperial soldiers]], and in conjunction with the [[Rivers Run Red|Spring curse]] hanging over the territory it has caused the death of two dozen Navarr and Great Forest Orcs living in the Lower Tarn.
===Isolating an Antidote===
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Hazelelponi.jpg|align=left|caption=Hazelelponi of the [[Highguard_groups#The_Shattered_Tower|Shattered Tower]] raised the final peerless kinship mandate.|width=400}}</div>
* '''A herbal antidote to the poisoning needs to be discovered'''
* '''The highborn magisters have asked Hazelelponi who enacted the peerless kinship mandate to take the lead'''
* '''Samples of the poison will be brought to the Highborn camp at 15.00 on Saturday afternoon'''
Between them, the Highborn and the Navarr are some of the most skilled herbalists in the Empire, but dealing with the malison the Druj have unleashed will require first unlocking the secrets of the poisons the Druj created to taint the land. Skilled [[Surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecaries]] would need to analyse the toxic concoction that the Druj brewed, and devise a way to deal with it. To make that possible, Highborn [[magisters]] have carefully collected samples of the poison from the pools and marshes of the Valley. Being at pains to protect themselves against the threat of the venom with solemn rites of [[Highguard_hearth_magic#Corruption_and_Purification|purification]], they have managed to gather a small amount of reasonably pure venom.

Aiming to arrive in the Highborn camp at three in the afternoon on Saturday during the Solstice, their hope is that, with the guidance of '''Hazelelponi''', who enacted the mandate, the apothecaries of Anvil will be able to work together to find a way to analyse the substance and find a cure.

What little is known about the mixture the Druj prepared in the Sephals Cauldron has already been provided by the Civil Service in the '''[[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|Ashes]]''' wind of war. Presumably those seeking a solution will be able to use these initial notes as the basis for a successful approach to analysing the poison.

===Practical Solutions===
* '''If an antidote can be discovered, the Imperial Senate could coordinate apothecaries to remove the taint on the Lower Tarn Valley'''
* '''This would require a Senate Motion and investment of 30 thrones a season for two seasons'''
Presuming an antidote can be isolated, the next step would be to make it as public as possible. The [[Senate]] can use a [[senate motion]] to publicise this information much as they would with a new set of potion recipes being made available to Imperial apothecaries. As part of that motion, they could also instruct the civil service to work with Imperial citizens to put that antidote to work removing the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] quality from the Lower Tarn Valley.

Doing so would take six months, and cost the Imperial treasury 30 thrones each season. It is also quite risky; the Druj are in Eastring and East Ashes. While they might suffer from another attempt to invade the Lower Tarn Valley, they know enough about the venom to ensure that their losses will be fewer than those suffered by Imperial armies fighting in the region. If they plan to continue their invasion of Therunin then they must either push along the northern route through the Tarn Valley or attack the vallorn in [[Therunin#Greenheart|Greenheart]] - the latter is something they are ''very'' unlikely to do. If they went into the Lower Tarn while apothecaries were attempting to deal with the poison there, it's likely the project would be delayed ''at best''. If those working there were unprotected the results would be ''much'' worse.

===Peak Pharmacy===
* '''The Benefactor of High Chalcis could redirect the bounty of herbs produced by the Gardens to treat the poison in Therunin'''
* '''Doing so would reduce the herbs available for purchase by the High Herbalist of Sybella while the work was underway'''
There are a few alternatives to the Senate taking the lead. Across the border, in [[Reikos]], lie the [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Gardens_of_High_Chalcis|Gardens of High Chalcis]], built in part as a monument to those who suffer at the hands of the Druj. In addition to the [[Highguard|Highborn]] who tend the gardens, there is a significant population of [[Navarr]] herbalists and physicks mostly from the [[steading]] of [[Therunin#Peakedge Song|Peakedge Song]].

The [[Benefactor of High Chalcis]] could use their power to [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Redirect_the_Bounty|redirect the bounty]] of the Gardens to help remove the corruption from Therunin. As long as they included the details of the antidote, there would be no monetary cost to the Imperial Treasury. The majority of the herbs would come from High Chalcis, and any shortfall would be made up by devout herbalists in other parts of Highguard. As always, however, using this power would mean the [[great work]] would provide no additional herbs to the herb gardens of Reikos during the time it took to clear the poisonous taint, and the Benefactor themselves would receive no personal herbs either. This decision would ''also'' have implications for the [[High Herbalist of Sybella]] – with fewer herbs available to buy in Highguard they would lose access to the top two ranks of their ministry while the purification takes place (this would not impact their ability to buy herbs from the Kruidenkenner however).

Once committed, the effects would persist until the corruption was removed from the Lower Tarn Valley, or the Benefactor chose to end them with another announcement.

===Militant Physicks===
* '''The Valiant Pegasus, Blood Cloaks, or an army under Bound by Common Cause could help clear the poison, reducing the time needed to a single season'''
* '''Any army working in the region would suffer the effects of poison unless protected by the enchantment Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker'''
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=ValiantPegasus_Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=BloodCloak_Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>
The army of the [[Valiant Pegasus]] presents another alternative. They have many expert apothecaries and herbalists among their numbers. Unfortunately, the army is currently engaged in the liberation of the [[Mournwold]]. If they were to come to Therunin, however, and use their [[Army_qualities#Physick|Tend the Fallen]] order they could clear the poisoned quality from the Lower Tarn Valley in a single season, as well as providing protection to anyone there against a Druj invasion.

There is a risk to such a plan, of course, in that the army would be exposed to the very poison quality they were cleansing. But the magisters of Highguard point out that the Winter ritual [[Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker]] provides protection to soldiers from poison. The Valiant Pegasus – or the physicks of the [[Bloodcloaks]] of [[Wintermark]] – could be defended from the corruption of the Tarn Valley if they bore the enchantment.

In theory, any army could work with the apothecaries encouraged by the Senate to help deploy the antidote. Unfortunately, no other army possesses the expertise of these the Valiant Pegasus and the Blood Cloaks. Perhaps Isaella's Dance might have been in a position to undertake the work but they are no more. Any other army would need the benefits of [[Bound by Common Cause]] to help work with the inhabitants of the Lower Tarn and the apothecaries. This would leave them vulnerable to the effects of the poisoned quality, unfortunately. Regardless, they would also need to take a defensive order that mentioned their intent to help cleanse the Lower Tarn Valley of corruption.

An army deployed in this fashion would be able to clear the poison in a single season, and could ensure that the apothecaries working there were able to complete their work even in the face of further Druj aggression. It would still cost the Imperial treasury 30 thrones, or the people of Reikos their herbs, but hopefully for a single season.

===Limited Opportunities===
* '''These solutions rely on the Empire maintaining control of Lower Tarn Valley - these plans would be defunct if they lose control of any part of the region'''
The plan to restore the Lower Tarn Valley relies on the Highborn assessment of the situation as it is now. If the Druj attack the Tarn Valley again in force and claim ''any'' of the region it will invalidate the scheme and a new approach will be needed.

There are other things that could be done about the poison; the most obvious is that the Senate could commission an [[appraisal]] to find other ways to deal with the quality. An [[Imperial sodality]] with a strong manifesto related to healing and the apothecary arts - there is surely an apothecary fraternity that meets at Anvil that might be able to fulfil the requirement to be recognised as such - then they would likely be in an ideal position to find a solution to the Druj corruption that does not impose such a drain on the Imperial treasury. For now though, the Highborn plan is the only one that is available.

==Stand for a Dream==
<div style="width: 400px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Micah's Stand'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Wayhouse</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Chalcis Mount, Reikos</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 12 weirwood, 12 white granite, and 72 crowns</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Creates the title of ''Keeper of the Stand''<br>Standard [[The_way_home#Building_Wayhouses|benefits]] of a wayhouse.</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:'''
* Increases the production of the Benefactor of High Chalcis to 8 of each herb.
* Increases the great work production of the Gardens of High Chalcis by 1 Imperial roseweald</td></tr>
</table>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightGreen;">'''Keeper of the Stand'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Type:''' Navarr </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Appointment:''' Any </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Powers:''' Receives 10 doses of liao and 10 drams of random herbs each season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Responsibilities:''' To protect the wayhouse and the Navarr who live in Reikos. To work towards the reclamation of Vale's Lament from the vallorn.</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''The ''Micah's Stand'' wayhouse could be constructed in Chalcis Mount'''
* '''In addition to the normal benefits of a wayhouse, this would provide benefits to the Benefactor of High Chalcis and the herb gardens of Reikos'''
* '''This opportunity remains open until the end of the Summer Solstice 387YE'''
Cooperation is not a one-way street. While the Highborn work in Therunin, their efforts provide an opportunity closer to home. When Reikos was reclaimed from the Druj and Urith Barath was torn down, the Navarr and Highborn working together managed to translate the herbals claimed from the Stone Toad sept. Since then, there have been Navarr living around, and caring for, the [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Gardens_of_High_Chalcis|Gardens of High Chalcis]].

With the Last Battle wayhouse built in the Barrens, the steading of ''Micah's Stand'' - a small group devoted to the memory of the Highborn who welcomed them in – suggest that a wayhouse be built in Reikos. A wayhouse built in eastern Reikos would allow the Navarr of Therunin to live close to their home - whilst still being safe from the Druj.

Several of the larger chapters of Chalcis Mount are supportive of this plan; Micah's Stand, and others like it, have proved excellent neighbours, and they remember the suffering of knowing that your home was under the terror of the Druj. The steading, and those who moved, would wish to see an Imperial title who could represent them, someone they could go to with worries and who could be prevailed upon to speak on their behalf at [[Anvil]]. The steadings also look north to fecund Brocéliande, and [[Brocéliande#Vale's_Lament|Vale's Lament]] in particular. The Navarr would want the title, ''Keeper of the Stand'' perhaps, to strive towards removing the vallorn from any border of Reikos.

Building a wayhouse in Chalcis Mount would cost a little more than usual, but it would attract skilled Navarr herbalists to visit the region. The exchange of skills with the citizens who tend the Gardens of High Chalcis could only benefit the Empire, increasing the bounty of herbs delivered to the [[Benefactor of High Chalcis]] by one of each type and providing one additional Imperial roseweald to every herb garden in the territory.

Micah's Stand would need to be commissioned before the start of the Summer Solstice 387YE, otherwise the opportunity will be lost.

==The Deathstinger in the Woods==
* '''The Highborn raise serious concerns about Peakedge Stead being undefended'''
* '''A fortification could be built in Therunin specifically to protect Peakedge Song and the Apothecary college'''
There's one other matter that the Highborn passing through Therunin are concerned by. Peakedge Stead is one of the centres of the healing arts in the Empire. The new college of apothecaries has been established there. In addition to Navarr healers, there are regular visitors from Highguard and a permanent community of Great Forest Orc herbalists here.

The Druj... the Druj have a very nasty track record for targeting places such as these. Centres of learning, hospitals, places where compassionate people work to reduce the pain and suffering in the world. The Druj have poisoned the Lower Tarn and slaughtered both humans and orcs who once lived there, but they may have another juicy prize in their sights - a testament to the friendship between Navarr and the orcs of the Great Forest makes it an irresistible target to the Druj.

With the destruction of the [[Therunin#Holt_of_the_Oak_(Ruined)|Holt of the Oak]], Peakedge Song is protected only by distance. The Highborn are a people who set great stock by sturdy stone constructions, especially castles and forts. They are very concerned that without defence, it is only a matter of time before someone or something destroys the hospital. If the Druj do not manage it, then the vallorn might do it when the [[A thousand years of longing|hearts are brought together]] and abominations pour out of [[Therunin#Sweetglades|Sweetglades]].

The Navarr themselves are not great builders of fortifications - their steadings are strong but they are very far from castles - but they have friends who are. The [[Vigilant Swan]] gives the Highborn access to the white granite needed to construct a castle. The pilgrims also point out that there is a measure of [[Vigilance]] in helping to defend Therunin - if the territory falls entirely and Peakedge Stead is destroyed then High Chalcis itself will likely be the next target for the orcs of the Mallum. Alternatively, the [[Great Forest Orcs]] could likely be prevailed on to build a fortification from weirwood much as they did with the Holt of the Oak; they have an investment of their own in Peakedge Stead, and their own reasons to want to protect Therunin from the Druj.

Of course, a fortification may prove unnecessary. The Druj might be driven out of Therunin at any moment. When the vallorn of Therunin rises, Imperial armies might be able to protect Peakedge Stead. But, even without any special scheme by the Druj, if they were able to conquer Peakedge Song it is inconceivable they would not destroy Peakedge Stead, and the apothecary college, in the process.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Keeper of the Garden.png|caption='''Aerowen Embercast''', first Keeper of the Garden|align=left|width=250}}</div>

==In the Garden==
* '''The briars previously working the Garden of Glory have disappeared'''
* '''The Keeper of the Garden will receive 12 doses of liao each season'''
* '''The Garden is under serious threat from both Druj and vallorn'''
Shortly before the Summer Solstice 383YE, the briars of the Lower Tarn Valley - allies of the Great Forest Orcs – [[Long_walk_home#Liao_garden|were granted permission]] by the Senate to refine their own [[liao]] in an old liao garden located on the edge of Sweetglades, in the far south of the Lower Tarn Valley. '''Aerowen Embercast''' served ably as the first [[Keeper of the Garden]], and the briars were happy to provide six doses of liao in return for keeping half that was produced from their efforts.

The briars have gone, now. It's not known if they were killed at Dourfell Keep, if they were slaughtered during the Druj invasion of the Tarn Valley, or if they escaped to safety in the Eaves of Peytaht. The fact remains that they are no longer here and show no sign of returning. Highborn pilgrims visiting Therunin, and their Navarr guides, found the garden abandoned. It wasn't ransacked by the Druj, nothing was broken or destroyed - it was simply empty. The tools and planting beds are neatly maintained, and it shows little sign of the taint of the poisoned waters.

With the briars gone, Navarr herbalists and priests will move in and take their place. The [[Keeper of the Garden]] will receive ''all'' the liao produced in the garden – twelve doses going forward. It's notable that the garden is under serious threat from both the Druj and the vallorn; if either force invades the Lower Tarn Valley again it's unlikely that the garden would survive a second time.

==A Peerless Future==
* '''This season was the final opportunity for the Highborn Assembly to express their peerless kinship with another nation'''
* '''The Highborn Assembly could potentially embrace this new approach to their Imperial siblings, but doing so would require a significant sacrifice'''
The capacity to support other nations by expressing their kinship has run its course. The movement began in 384YE, [[Full_of_sacred_sound#A_Peerless_Kinship|in response to the mandate suggested by Eli, the aging custodian of Walter's Tomb]] that was so effectively [[384YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_79|taken up by Jared of the Sons of Couros]]. Eli recently passed away, his soul gone to the Labyrinth, but he lived long enough to see Highguard take up the ideas he championed. By all accounts, he died well satisfied by what the nation had achieved in the years that followed, confident that he had done his part in helping to set the Empire on a more virtuous path.

The last two years have seen the Highborn explore ways to [[Questions_of_virtue#Our_Freeborn_Cousins|aid the Freeborn]] in [[Kahraman]]; aiding the [[Dawn|Dawnish]] [[Not to conquer|reach out to the factions]] in [[the Barrens]]; working with the [[Imperial Orcs]] in [[Skarsind]] to [[Standing in the sun|increase understanding of the Ossium septs]]; and helped [[the Marches]] [[Kith and kin|deal with threats]] in the [[Mournwold]]. Reaching out to their sibling nations has presented many opportunities for the Highborn to strengthen the Empire, and sometimes themselves.

There are some who see the peerless kinship as a valuable tool not only for building the Empire but for fortifying the virtue of Imperial citizens. They suggest that if the Highborn Assembly agree with them, they might address the matter with a [[statement of principle]] at the Winter Solstice. If it received a greater majority, it might lead to an opportunity to permanently gain the power of peerless kinship. More cautious voices suggest that valuable as it is to reach out to other nations, the peerless kinship requires a significant amount of focus and organisation and that if the assembly did embrace the power permanently, they would inevitably need to sacrifice something of equivalent commitment.
==Further Reading==
* [[Under eastern skies]] - 386YE Winter wind of war covering the victory of the Druj in Therunin
* [[Blood and mire]] - 386YE Autumn wind of war about the Imperial counterattack
* [[Ashes#Ring_of_Ashes|Ashes]] - 386YE Summer wind of war heralding the coming of the Druj

To hold death's hand in mine

2026-08-19T12:31:03Z

Dre:

[[Category:Recent History]] [[Category:387YE Spring]] [[Category:Military Council]]
<div style="float:left; width: 500px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Path of Thorns.png|caption=There are beacons along the road for those who must seek sanctuary elsewhere, and flames burning in the darkness for those who will not retreat.|align=right|width=500}}</div>
==Blood and Roots==
{{audio|link=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_2SY9QQpS8}}
The Imperial armies, and their allies from the [[Great Forest Orcs]] were forced to retreat into [[the Barrens]]. The Navarr feel the loss of [[Isaella's Dance]] especially keenly. For the first time since they committed to destroy the [[vallorn]], the spirit of the nation stumbles. The surviving soldiers of the [[Black Thorns]] feel the loss particularly keenly. They watch the southern borders of the Barrens, eager to welcome survivors from the 'Dance until the very last moment when they must [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Black_Thorns|march west]] to resupply in [[Reikos]]. Their hope fails quickly; barely a handful of survivors make it to the Barrens after the Winter Solstice. The wound of grief goes unannealed, [[Under_eastern_skies#Objective:_Braid_the_Peoples|without solace]], and it may take a long time to heal.

The scattered rumours emerging from Eastring speak of carnage. The walking dead, the undying remnants of the [[Iron Helms]], continue to feast on the warriors of the Druj. They rip and tear into the orcs of the Mallum, but their fury is ultimately [[Under_eastern_skies#Black_Miracles_(Battle_Opportunity)|unbound and undirected]]. As the weeks pass, it is clear that the [[Quickening Cold Meat|winter spirits]] bound to the shattered army are gaining the upper hand. Whatever remnant of the former soldiers of Varushka still remained within the ghouls is droned out by the indiscriminate hunger rages within them. They are drawn equally to the splintered remnants of the Imperial armies and the isolated [[steading|steadings]] that have so far avoided the attention of the invaders.

Nothing stands between the folk of western Therunin and the orcs of [[the Mallum]]. As the Druj march, word begins to spread that the [[Assembly#The_National_Assemblies|priests of the National Assembly]] urge their people to flee. Therunin is lost, they say. No [[Army|Imperial armies]] are coming to protect it. Those who stand and fight will have no support, although their [[courage]] is recognised. Those who flee should seek to carry the lore of [[Therunin#Peakedge Stead|Peakedge Stead]] with them to the wider Empire.

It is difficult for many of those who call Therunin their home to hear these words. Similar assurances were made about [[Liathaven]] as well, yet years have passed and still the western forests remain solidly under the control of the Jotun. The enemy have built new settlements there, they have even chosen to rename the territory Ashvale. Why should anyone believe that Therunin will be any different? The words of the assembly fall like the grim knell of doom on the ears of those who hear them. So many sacrifices made, and still the [[Military Council]] cannot justify protecting the people of Therunin.
<fourpicture>
{{SOPInner|statement=The Empire armies march west, leaving Therunin alone in hand of the Druj. Those who can fight and choose to - bear arms. Those who cannot should seek sanctuary amongst our neighbours and find safety in our wayhouses. Land can be reclaimed - our people cannot! Survival is not cowardice, it is loyalty to the future. We will one day seize back. Help Thornsong and House of Healing carry their work to safety, let the knowledge and legacy of Therunin outlast the Druj's grasp. We will not all what happened in Liathaven to happen here. We are the shield, the thorn and the song that will not die. You cannot abandon who you are - and we are Therunin!|by=Travid Longest Path, Navarr National Assembly|vote=Greater Majority (331-0)|when=Winter Solstice 386YE|size=small}}
{{SOPInner|statement=Fear blooms in Therunin, but our kin remain! Our hearths roar outside the Druj's grasp, open to any Great Forest Orc. We offer them to resettle out of danger, and protect the young, old and weak through to Hercynia, Miaren and Brocéliande. We are grateful to deep Loyalty forged in blood. May the Spear of Pines rise as saplings again.|by=Brynmor Rootround, Navarr National Assembly|vote=Greater Majority (332-10)|when=Winter Solstice 386YE|size=small}}
{{SOPInner|statement=Sacrifice is the soul, heart and blood of Navarr. We bleed, grieve and stand tall for the choices we make. But we are not the only ones who sacrifice, with the nation of Varushka losing its children for Therunin. Alderai the Fair and all warriors of the Iron Helms sacrificed all. We honour their sacrifice and welcome all who stood with us to our hearths forever. In sacrifice we grieve, in courage we remember.|by=Rhisiart Dancewalker, Navarr National Assembly|vote=Greater Majority (289-0)|when=Winter Solstice 386YE|size=small}}
{{SOPInner|statement=Citizens of Therunin, hear your guides. The Druj have come. If you cannot fight, seek immediate refuge with our Imperial neighbours. Highguard, Urizen, and Dawn have thrown their doors open for us. If you can fight, stay and harass the druj with stealth, ambush and the arts of guerrilla warfare we are so adept at. All refuge offered to Navarri is extended to our oathsworn siblings of the Great Forest Orcs, bound in blood and ink as we are.|by=Raewyn Eternal, Navarr National Assembly|vote=Greater Majority (336-0)|when=Winter Solstice 386YE|size=small}}
</fourpicture>

<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Senate Motion, Raised by Redoubt, Seconded by Miekarova">To instruct the Imperial Apothecaries Guild to coordinate the distribution and application of the recently discovered antidote to the Druj poison affecting the Lower Tarn Valley in Therunin. The antidote shall be shared with all Imperial apothecaries, and the Guild shall oversee its use to cleanse the land and undo the Druj's lingering malice.</quote></div>
==Through the Valley==
The words of the Assembly are not welcome, but some choose to heed them nonetheless, especially in the Tarn Valley. The waters of the [[Therunin#Lower Tarn Valley|Lower Valley]] are [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|tainted now]], corrupted by the effluent from ''the Sephals Cauldron''. The threat of the Druj is immediate; the bulk of the invading forces are still in Eastring and East Ashes and while their armies may be delayed fighting the ravening remnant of the Iron Helms their raiders still strike westward into the Valley.

Some of the people of the Lower Valley have already fled north into the Barrens, to the welcoming [[The_Barrens#Heart_of_Peytaht|Eaves of Peytaht]]. The last of the Great Forest Orc villages and proto-steadings are emptied. As they depart, the orcs invite their neighbours to come with them, to seek the safety of the weirwood groves. The children of the Great Forest know what it is like to lose their homes to the malice of the Druj. Others – orc and human alike – flee up to the [[Therunin#Upper Tarn Valley|Upper Valley]]. Some join the defence of the steadings there, others press on toward Peakedge Song.

Where the Navarr and their friends flee west, they are perhaps surprised to find people travelling in the opposite direction. The [[Senate]] has established the first [[Imperial sodality|true sodality]] of the new era, the [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Create_Imperial_Apothecaries'_Guild|Imperial Apothecaries' Guild]]. Thanks in part to the [[Wasp_nest#Isolating_an_Antidote|support of Highguard]], an antidote to the poison of the Lower Valley has been found, and these masters of herb lore from many nations have been [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Imperial_Apothecaries_Guild_to_Therunin|charged with]] putting it to good use.

Or at least that is the plan. Once it becomes clear that the assemblies are urging everyone to flee Therunin, the plan is forced to change. If there had been any Imperial presence in Therunin, or the Druj hadn't decided to advance, then it might have been possible to begin the work of clearing the poison. Instead, it is clear that it would be madness to attempt to enter the Lower Valley in force - any apothecaries who made the attempt would quickly fall victim to the depredations of the Druj. They would be murdered or, more likely, enslaved, if the Druj discovered they were skilled apothecaries. Either way, their lives would be forfeit - and it would achieve nothing.

Instead, the majority of the [[Surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecaries]] set to work helping the refugees, providing much-needed medical assistance to those who have been injured. Many move to bolster the defences of the Upper Tarn, or turn back entirely to help evacuate [[Therunin#Peakedge Song|Peakedge Song]]. In many ways the Empire has been fortunate - the efforts of the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild have still cost the Senate ten thrones, but the leadership and direction of the sodality has prevented the outcome from being much worse.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj2.jpg|caption=The pack-hunting Razor Skink is the symbol of the chikad, elite skirmishers and clever tacticians, adept at harassing and slowing much larger forces.|align=left|width=200}}</div>
==A Ravening Flood==
There is no doubt they have made the wise decision. The last of those prepared to quit the Lower Tarn have barely crossed the border before the ravening storm breaks. Uncountable thousands of Druj warriors spill out of East Ashes and Eastring, tearing through the defenders who remained behind. The Black Wind are in the vanguard, many bearing torn banners of the Iron Helms and Isaella's Dance, or wielding weapons taken from slaughtered soldiers who never left the eastern regions. The “true” Druj are close behind them, their own standards fluttering in the midwinter winds. Wicked scorpions; pale ants; sickly yellow serpents; crimson lizards with ivory horns and talons patterned with blood; the burning beetles; and everywhere the twining brambles of the Thorn Born.

The Lower Tarn Valley falls swiftly, the remaining steadings offering little resistance to the force that washes over them. Yet the Druj armies seem to want to spend as little time as possible there – they may have their own antidotes to the corruption of the Sephals Cauldron, but the poison that seeped into the ground still costs them. They do not delay, do not divert their forces to all the distant corners of the marshy valley. Only the Thorn Born seem to make a point of seeking out the defenders of the eastern valleys, relishing every opportunity to smash a steading or put a former Great Forest Orc village to the torch. The bulk of the invading force pushes through quickly, following the refugees to the Upper Tarn Valley.

Even the Black Wind seem more interested in conquest than in tormenting the Navarr, always pushing forwards rather than pausing to make an example of those crushed in their wake.

Very few Navarr who face the Druj survive the experience, but their focus does not make them any less terrible. Anyone in the path of the armies is either slaughtered without mercy, or enslaved by the [[Arkad#Chikad|chikad]] of the Red Lizard who follow close behind the other armies. They are especially eager to drag the herbmasters and apothecaries of Navarr back to the Mallum – just as well the Apothecaries' Guild chose the wiser course. Most of those who fall into the hands of the Druj slavers choose to accept the [[Kaela#The_Gift_of_Kaela|Gift of Kaela]] rather than the collar and the lash. After all they know that nobody is coming to save them any time soon. Better to seek the Labyrinth than to become a slave of the Druj. It is no doubt a source of fury for the Red Lizard, for all the good that does those left with no choice but the nature of their deaths.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|caption=Some of the defenders believe that their sacrifice might turn the tide, stop the invaders before they can reach Peakedge Song...|align=left|width=200}}</div>
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Courage.png|caption=...but others know that the best they can do is, perhaps, to delay the Druj long enough to let their fellows escape.|align=left|width=200}}</div>
==Pride and Courage==
The defenders of the Upper Tarn Valley believe themselves ready for what is to come. Resolute, those who have chosen to stay and fight prepare themselves to meet the advance of the Druj. [[Apothecary_Potions#Bloodharrow_Philtre|Bloodharrow Philtre]] flows like water, thanks to the presence of the Apothecaries Guild, and any who want it can secure a flask or two of one of the [[Legacy of Thorns|Legacies of Thorns]]. Their numbers are further reinforced by a scattering of healers from the [[Hand_of_the_Healers#Houses_of_Healing|Houses of Healing]], and a handful of [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] of [[Ossegrahn|Lord Rain]], ready with words of [[heal|healing]] and [[purify|purification]].

Only a scant few of those who have remained behind to fight believe they might halt the invaders' advance. Have they not faced the vallorn for centuries, and turned it back every time? Even there, though, many must know in their hearts that their task is impossible. The Druj are a very different enemy to the vallorn; cunning, cruel, wicked.

Most of the defenders know that the best they can hope for is to delay, to buy more time for those who choose to evacuate to do so. There is a sorrowful [[pride]] in many of those who would not flee. Knowing they are prepared to lay down their lives for their family, for their homes, some find that all those little distractions of day-to-day life drop away bringing with them a bittersweet clarity.

The sacrifice of those who remained behind to garrison the steadings of Upper Valley buys only a few hours. The blighted armies roll over the defenders like a tidal wave, shattering the defences of anyone who lies in their path westward. But each moment they are delayed is precious, granting those Navarr who have heeded the call to abandon their homeland the breath they need to flee.

As in the Lower Tarn, they waste comparatively little time consolidating their hold on the region. Some of the steadings do not see a single orc through the entire campaign. It seems the eyes of the Druj armies are on sweeter fruit.
==Song Into Silence==
The Druj come, then, to Peakedge Song. Here, their advance slows slightly as they encounter the [[Army_qualities#Engineer|swiftly assembled fortifications]] raised by the [[Towerjacks]]. Unfortunately, the embankments and ditches, the palisades and spikes laid down to defend the region have lost much of their effectiveness since [[the League]] engineers left for [[Redoubt]].

Only once, years ago, have the orcs of the Mallum tried to lay siege to Peakedge Stead. The conquerors of [[Reikos]], trapped between the [[Great Forest of Peytaht]] and Imperial armies, sought to [[378YE_Summer_Solstice_winds_of_war#A_whisper_of_magic|escape through Therunin to the Barrens]]. They were pushed back into the killing ground of Highguard by the armies of Navarr and the [[Granite Pillar]]. They did not come close to achieving a foothold, and were ultimately forced to flee north to escape Reikos, paying a terrible price for doing so.

This time, though, things are very different. This is not a beleaguered and battered force of Druj on their last legs but a grand host of spears and arrows, merciless fangs and cruel claws. Peakedge Stead is a powerful and enduring symbol of hope for many Navarr; a place of healing and gentleness, a quiet contrast to the terrible battle they fight against the vallorn. It is a symbol of cooperation, of bringing together, where Navarr, Highguard, and the Great Forest Orcs all worked to preserve life and bring succour to those who cannot be saved. It is where [[Ossegrahn|Tarnfather's]] [[Hand_of_the_Healers#Houses_of_Healing|Houses of Healing]] stand, and where the great college of the apothecary arts [[Thornsinger#Thornsong_House|Thornsong House]], was established.

The college, at least, is safe for now. Barely a day after the Winter Solstice, as night fell, a wall of impenetrable fog wrapped itself around the college grounds hiding them from sight. The wall remains, warding the entirety of the House. Coils of mist form and shift, giving the impression of great thorn-wrapped brambles wrapped around the hidden buildings. Those who dare to venture within are confused and glamoured, unable to find anything within, to the frustration of the invaders from the Mallum. Some of the staff departed as the wards started to rise, but many more remain within. They protect their stores of lore, and by all accounts have enough supplies to last a year. They will wait for the Imperial armies to free Therunin, protected from any danger that might seek to harm them – but hidden also from those allies who might seek to help them.

The Druj beat against the League defences, drawing closer and closer to Peakedge Stead. Many desperate counsels are held, and a significant portion of those who call the steading their home choose to accept the offer of sanctuary in [[Reikos#High Chalcis|High Chalcis]] to the west. Those patients able to make the punishing journey with the Druj at their back do so, but there are more who cannot move, who would not survive the exhausting flight to Reikos. Some of those who tend them, the [[vine|vines]] and [[Surgical skills#Physick|physicks]], apothecaries and magician-healers, refuse to leave their patients behind. Humans and orcs alike refuse to flee, doing their best to reinforce the walls of the great hospital-steading. There is hope that the Druj advance might have spent itself in conquering the Tarn Valley, and against the Towerjacks' defences.
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Rain drops (Unsplash).jpg|caption=As the sun rises of the last day, rain begins to fall across Peakedge Song.|align=left|width=400}}</div>
==Rainfall==
It is a vain hope. The Druj armies do not stop, closing on Peakedge Stead. The drums of war batter and beat in the nights, and the first torches appear through the woods a little less than a month before the Spring Equinox. There will be no [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Welcoming|Welcoming]] this year at Peakedge Stead for the first time in two hundred years or more. There is a bitter argument about whether it might be best to fire the steading, to stop the herb gardens and stocks of medicine falling into the hands of the Druj, but the defenders refuse to give in to despair even though defeat seems inevitable.

As the sun rises on the last day, a soft, sweet rain begins to fall. Where the raindrops strike soil, yellow and white and pale lavender spring flowers bloom. The Druj pause, uncertain – but no more confused than the defenders of Peakedge Stead. Then, with a noise like thunder, the spring that rises in the heart of the Houses of Healing just outside the steading explodes. A waterspout sixty feet high rises over the trees. Water flows down toward Peakedge Stead, streams dancing and coiling around each other joyously, like living things. Within minutes, the streams have become a river – a moat around the hospital and the Houses of Healing. Then, as the Druj launch their first volley of arrows against the defenders, the ground explodes.

Brambles erupt from the wet soil where the flowers bloomed, each as thick as a person around. They rise like serpents, weaving themselves together, with vicious thorns facing toward the Druj armies. They spread outward, as well as upward, creating an impassable barrier around Peakedge Stead, a thicket of impenetrable greenery.

At the same time, heralds of Ossegrahn emerge from the [[regio]] of the healing house, and move through the defenders with words of support and encouragement. As well as the person-sized heralds the Empire has seen before, there are a dozen massive [[Inhabitants of the realms#Guardians|guardians]], quadrupedal creatures of living wood that creak and groan as they walk, flowers exploding in their wake as they move to form a perimeter around the steading and begin to sing – deep, bubbling notes that twine around each other in strange harmony all through the thicket of massive brambles, huge buds emerge and open into beautiful flowers.

The Druj, all their armies, cannot penetrate the wall surrounding Peakedge Stead and the Houses of Healing. Those who try are turned back – hacking at the brambles proves fruitless as the singing guardians simply heal any damage inflicted on the hedge. A few of the servants of the [[Arhallogen|Centipede General]] who often march with the more venomous of the Druj armies manage to find a way through, but the defenders make quick work of them. Peakedge Song falls, but Peakedge Stead stands. For now at least.

There is muted celebration within the walls, but the heralds of ''Father Waterfall'' do not join in. There is a palpable aura of sadness around those who move among the defenders of the steading, and the explanation for their sorrow soon puts paid to any hope of triumph. It seems that this wall cannot last. This unsubtle, ungentle manifestation of [[Spring magic]] taxes Ossegrahn's power greatly. There are armies of Druj, cunning [[Druj lore#Ghulai|ghulai]] and terrible servants of the ''Scorpion Queen'' and the ''Woodwyf'' among them. The wall will not last. As the Spring Equinox falters, so too will the hedge of Lord Rain.

Peakedge Stead, and all it represents, will be destroyed by the Druj. So too will the Houses of Healing. There is a way to ensure it does not, but the means to achieve that end lies in the hands of the Conclave and the Senate, far away at Anvil.

This is a doom held in abeyance, not averted.

==Spite and Malice==
Denied their prize, the armies of the Druj complete their conquest of Peakedge Song. The Arrow Viper and the Hunting Scorpion pursue those who tarried too long before fleeing, chasing them down and slaying them. Most are dead before they realise the danger that surrounds them. The Druj impale their bodies on spears along the road to High Chalcis.

A significant force remains outside Ossegrahn's hedge, watching. The Druj are no masters of [[Day magic]] but it would be foolish to assume they did not know how tenuous this ward will prove to be. The rest of the Druj armies spread through Therunin as the Spring Equinox approaches, securing their new territory.

While Peakedge Stead is safe for a few more weeks, Therunin itself has fallen entirely to the Druj. They are masters of this place now, and those Navarr who remain are hunted prey where once they were masters of marsh and forest.

Of course not all inhabitants of Therunin live in the Tarn Valley, in Peakedge Song. There are steadings within the vallorn itself, fortified structures designed to provide places of fleeting safety against the vallornspawn. They, at least, are not in danger from the Druj.

Surely?
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=SpringEternal1.JPG|caption=The dreadful handmaidens of Yaw'nagrah are creatures of living wood.|align=right|width=250}}</div>
==Tainted Vengeance==
After their defeat during the [[Blood_and_mire#All_Along_the_Lakeside_(Battle_Opportunity)|Battle of Ashwater]], the army of the Tainted Basilisk withdrew from Therunin. Now, it seems, they have returned, following behind the conquering wave of the Mallum. The ghulai who lead the army weave ritual magic to support their fellows, but they rarely engage the Navarr directly. They lag behind as the barbarians press ever westward.

The soldiers of the Tainted Basilisk move slowly, with purpose, more interested in gathering magical resources than fighting it seems. Only at the old, abandoned steading of Return do the Tainted Basilisk take the lead. They seem to have a particular interest in that place where the exemplar [[Known_exemplars#Gerallt_Brackensong|Gerallt Brackensong]] [[The_Pride_of_Gerallt_Brackensong#Gerallt,_Guide_and_Bard|gave his life]] to thwart the machinations of the ''Green Mother'', to keep the slumbering vallorn of Tharunind undisturbed.

So it is of particular concern that the very few eyewitnesses that make it back to Imperial lands claim that among the orcs of the 'Basilisk are a number of unnatural creatures – [[inhabitants of the realms|inhabitants]] of the [[Realm#Spring|Primal Forest]]. Figures of wood and bark, wound with ivy and vines, some no taller than an orc or human, others towering above them. Servants, most likely, of the ''[[Yaw'nagrah|Queen of Brambles]]'' who the Druj know as ''Greenhand'' or ''Nest of Thorns''. Warm honey flows like sap among the ghulai of the Tainted Basilisk as the Spring Equinox approaches.

Then, barely a week before the Equinox, while the rest of the Druj lay siege to Peakedge Stead or hunt straggling Navarr in the Tarn Valley, something happens. Adepts of Spring lore, especially those trained as vates, sense a pulse of Spring magic rising in Therunin and striking out along the [[trods]] into the Barrens, into Reikos, into Redoubt and [[Zenith]]. Those who are drawing on the trods at the time are knocked off their feet, left insensible for a few minutes, by the force of the magic. Everywhere along the trods of the neighbouring territories, plants rise and stretch, leaves rippling across their branches, buds opening, life straining through their roots. It is followed a moment later by a sensation of inrushing, of sucking, as if the magic that has come roaring out of Therunin is being dragged back along the trods, like water spiralling down a drain.

It takes only a few days for the magicians outside Therunin to realise what has happened. With [[blood magic]], with [[Aspect magic#Goetia|goetic]] invocations of ''Greenhand'' and ''Nest of Thorns'', with terrible drums and chants, with the use of items of [[worth]] seized from the steading of Return, and with nobody to oppose them, the Tainted Basilisk have finally realised the ambition that was [[Blood_and_mire#Objective:_Stop_Cintra_Blackstaff|denied them at the Battle of Ashwater]].

They have roused the vallorn of Tharunind to wakefulness.
{{SOP|statement=Guides of Navarr. Urizen, Dawn and Highguard have thrown open their doors to the Great Forest orc and Navarr refugees of Therunin. Go to our displaced peoples, bolster their spirits and show them their Dance is not over! Tend their souls and in Virtue drive out the Fear and Hatred to Druj so readily offer. In strength, in virtue, and in time, we WILL RETURN.|by=Gwenllain Heart's End, Navarr National Assembly|vote=Greater Majority (374-0)|when=Winter Solstice 386YE|size=small}}
{{SOP|statement=Seeing the crisis unfolding in Therunin we, the Highborn assembly, ask the chapters of Reikos to open their doors to the Navarr and Great Forest orcs who seek safe refuge. Let us welcome those in need with a benevolent spirit. Be proud to support our neighbours.|by=Keziah of the Suns of Couros, Highborn National Assembly|vote=Greater Majority (616-0)|when=Winter Solstice 386YE|size=small}}
==Game Information==
===Regarding Therunin===
* '''The Druj have conquered Therunin
* '''Peakedge Stead, the Houses of Healing, and Thornsong House are the only significant structures still in Imperial hands
* '''Several titles have lost access to their commissions'''
The Druj have conquered the whole of Therunin, save only the vallorn regions of Sweetglades and Greenheart. Following the Spring Equinox, all Imperial [[Resource#Personal Resource|personal resources]] will experience the [[Resource#Conquered_Territories|conquered territories]] penalty to their production unless they are protected by magic such as [[Vale of Shadows]].

The loss of Therunin has reduced the ability for Navarr to support armies from six, to five.

The [[Keeper of the Garden|Garden of Glory]], [[Eastern Broker|Peakedge Brokerage]], and [[Factor of Stones from Blood|Stones from Blood]] have all been lost to the Druj. Their current status is unknown, but the titles associated with them will receive no benefit or production until the relevant regions are reclaimed and the situation can be assessed.

At the urging of the assemblies, almost all the Navarr [[striding|stridings]] and many of the Navarr [[steading|steadings]] evacuated Therunin before the Druj could overrun them. Refugees have found a welcome in Reikos, among the Great Forest orcs in the Barrens, and in northern Urizen. Others have simply joined some of the remaining stridings that continue to walk the [[trod|trods]].
<div style="float:right; width: 150px; clear: right;">[[file:Ossegrahn001a.webp|align=right|width=150]]</div>
The plan to remove the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned quality]] from the Lower Tarn Valley has failed. As explained in the '''[[Wasp_nest#Limited_Opportunities|Wasp nest]]''' wind of fortune, the fact that the Druj have captured the Lower Tarn means the original plan will not work. There will be no opportunity to remove the poisoned quality unless the Druj are driven out. The 10 thrones of support the Senate applied has been used to aid the people of Therunin and cannot be refunded.

The situation with Peakedge Stead and the Houses of Healing is discussed in more detail in the '''[[Speak_to_me#Brother_Harvest|Speak to me]]''' wind of fortune.
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=VallornMiasma.jpg|caption=The miasma poses a choking threat to anyone who lives near a vallorn, but a greater danger comes from the creatures that move along with it.|align=right|width=250}}</div>

===The Vallorn of Tharunind===
* '''The vallorn of Tharunind has been roused
* '''It is slowly reaching out into regions neighbouring Sweetglades and Greenheart
* '''Parts of Morrow may also be imperilled
* '''Any forest in Therunin, Morrow, Zenith, Reikos, or The Barrens, that provides chaos fruit will produce two additional chaos fruit after the Spring Equinox
Last Autumn [[Blood_and_mire#Objective:_Stop_Cintra_Blackstaff|Cintra Blackstaff]] sought to direct the force of the vallorn against Peakedge Stead. Now, with the direct aid of Yaw'nagrah, the Tainted Basilisk have achieved something similar, but different. The vallorn is rousing in Therunin, but it seems to be reaching out in all directions, not only towards Peakedge Song. [[Vallorn#Vallorn_Miasma|Vallorn miasma]] drifts north and west, and in Urizen the [[Urizen_culture_and_customs#The_Heliopticon|heliopticon]] glitters with worried news that pools of miasma have been spotted in the northern foothills of [[Morrow#Peregro|Peregro]] and [[Morrow#Altis|Altis]]. Where there is miasma, there are [[vallornspawn husks]] and, because this is Therunin, [[ettercap|ettercaps]]. Abominations shift in Sweetglades and Greenheart themselves, and the steadings within the Tharunind vallorn are quickly placed under siege.

This is not a case of the Druj having awoken the entire vallorn all in one go; rather it is closer to the kind of thing the [[Rise of Terunael|Heirs of Terunael]] tried to achieve. The vallorn has become active, and seeks to expand. At the moment, that expansion is focused on Peakedge Song and the Upper Tarn Valley. The vallorn is moving slowly at this time, but if it follows a similar pattern to that observed during similar incidents, it is likely to gather momentum as it expands. The energy that drives the expansion is likely to be comparatively short-lived - if it can be driven back it will eventually slip back into uneasy slumber again. If it is ''not'' driven back and is allowed to infest an entire region then the unnatural vitality that prevents the vallorn being directly damaged will mean that reclaiming such a region will be next-to impossible.

Navarr prognosticators believe that by the start of the Summer Solstice, the vallorn will have overrun most of the steadings in Sweetglades and Greenheart and have begun expanding into Peakedge Song and the Tarn Valley. After that it's hard to say – a lot will depend on what the Druj are planning to do. It is entirely possible given the involvement of Yaw'nagrah that the vallornspawn and the miasma will not stop at the borders of Therunin and will eventually threaten the people of Highguard, Dawn, and Urizen.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Vallorn Fruit.jpg|caption=These strange magical fruit originated in the depths of vallorn infested Brocéliande.|align=right|width=200}}</div>
The burst of vitality along the trods around Therunin seems to have brought with it a questionable benefit. Any [[forest]] that has been permanently diversified to provide [[chaos fruit]] will provide an additional two fruit at the Summer Solstice.

===Participation - Apothecaries===
* '''Characters with the Apothecary skill may have helped support the defenders in Therunin
The Apothecary Guild, established by the Imperial Senate during the Winter Solstice, sought to remove the poisoned quality from the Lower Tarn Valley. They were prevented from doing so, and some chose to instead put their talents to work helping the defenders of Therunin. Obviously, it was not possible at the Winter Solstice to formally join the Guild, but there are player characters whose interests align with those of the guild. As such, any character with the [[Surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecary]] skill may decide that they would have been involved in Therunin. Any such character may email {{plot}} and request a lingering traumatic wound that represents injuries sustained during your time in Therunin. Be aware that these injuries will take the form of poisoned wounds, and may prove fatal if not treated quickly.

This opportunity is ''only'' available to characters with the Apothecary skill; while anyone may join the Apothecaries' Guild once it is properly established, and anyone can roleplay they were involved in Therunin, the option of being poisoned by the Druj is only available to characters with the apothecary skill.

The deadline for emailing Profound Decisions about this is midnight on the 31st of May.

===Participation - Navarr===
* '''Characters whose personal resource is in Therunin may email plot to request a traumatic wound
Any character whose [[Resource#Personal Resource|personal]] resource is in Therunin may likewise email {{plot}} and request a lingering wound, representing injuries received trying to hold the Druj back. Again, it's fine for people who are not based in Therunin to roleplay that they have been in the territory helping resist the Druj advance, but the option to receive a lingering wound is only available to those who live in the territory.

Alternatively, a character whose personal resource is in Therunin who wishes to have responded to the assembly urging them to flee may email {{plot}} and ask to swap their current personal resource for a new standard personal resource in either the Barrens or Reikos – taking advantage of the [[The_way_home#Building_Wayhouses|new wayhouses]] established there – without paying the usual 2 crown fee. They'll start the Spring Equinox with their resource in the chosen territory.

The deadline for emailing Profound Decisions about either of these options was midnight on the 31st of May.

==Conjunctions==
===Tangles (Therunin)===
{{SOP|by=Raewyn Eternal, Navarr Assembly|statement=Citizens of Therunin, hear your guides. The Druj have come. If you cannot fight, seek immediate refuge with our Imperial neighbours. Highguard, Urizen, and Dawn have thrown their doors open for us. If you can fight, stay and harass the druj with stealth, ambush and the arts of guerrilla warfare we are so adept at. All refuge offered to Navarri is extended to our oathsworn siblings of the Great Forest Orcs, bound in blood and ink as we are.|vote=336-0|when=Winter Solstice 386YE}}
* '''The Lord of Thorns is travelling with a horde of vallornspawn in Sweetglades'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Champion of Vigilance'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for killing the herald and recovering the boon it carries'''
{{NoInnocentsPresent}}
Deep in the lush wilds of [[Therunin#Sweetglades|Sweetglades]], the ''Lord of Thorns'' wanders amongst the ettercaps. It serves as a beacon to the vallornspawn; drawing them from far off to receive some unholy blessing from the Green Mother. The thorns of Fallowblood striding, inspired by the National Assembly's [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_150|call]] to remain and fight, have tracked the Lord of Thorns and call on the Champion of Vigilance to destroy this rot in their field.

The Lord of Thorns has been seen to carry with it a small branch from the [[Realm#Spring|Primal Forest]], the ''Sprig of Fecundity''. If it could be recovered then it could be put to use against the Empire's enemies. The Lord of Thorns is accompanied by several more human-looking servants of the Green Mother, likely [[Inhabitants_of_the_realms#Drudges|drudges]], who support and heal both the herald and the vallornspawn. It is the responsibility of the [[Champion of Vigilance]], '''Jared''' to kill the Lord of Thorns and recover the boon it carries.

===The Breaking Storm (Morrow)===
* '''A horde of vallornspawn are moving towards the Canticulous Valley'''
* '''The horde is led by several creatures of Yaw'nagrah'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Archmage of Winter'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for killing the heralds and the vallornspawn, and performing [[Ward of the Black Waste]]'''
{{NoInnocentsPresent}}
The vallornspawn of Tharunind are already beginning to surge southwards, goaded by the heralds of Barkspawner. Through the valleys between Sweetglades and [[Morrow#Altis|Altis]] they are travelling, and in their path lies the Spire of the Canticle. The spire produces some of the most hauntingly beautiful music in the Empire, and possibly the world. Virtuosos with a deep appreciation for the art make a point to visit the spire and take part in the echoing symphonies. The echoing caverns below, with their songstones, are no place for the discordant cacophony of [[Realm#Spring|Spring]].

The horde numbers in the hundreds – with a vanguard led by heralds of Yaw'nagrah. If the heralds can be stopped, and a [[Ward_of_the_Black_Waste|ward]] placed in their path, then that will delay the horde enough that defenders can be rallied to the spire. It is the responsibility of the [[Archmage of Winter]], '''Ematius of the Great Library of Ankarien''', to perform the Ward of the Black Waste and to kill the heralds and the vallornspawn. Given that this represents a threat to one of the premier places of music in the Empire there is some hope that the [[High Bard of the Empire]], '''Tarik''', will offer aid to the Archmage of the Wasteland.

<box><big>'''[[Vallorn#Vallorn_Miasma|Vallorn miasma]]'''</big><br>
* '''''Tangles'' and ''The Breaking Storm'' both take place within vallorn miasma'''
* '''Anyone in vallorn miasma is affected by [[Calls#VENOM|VENOM]] unless they are bonded to an [[Abraxus Stone]] or are under the effect of [[Vitality of Rushing Water]]
* '''Anyone affected by the VENOM from the vallorn miasma will eventually begin to suffer from symptoms of nausea or mild feverishness
The short length of these conjunctions means that in this instance there is no chance of anyone developing [[Vallornspawn_husk#Green_Lung|green lung]]</box>

===Threads (The Barrens)===
* '''A group of Druj are advancing into Hope's Rest'''
* '''The Druj are accompanied by several tortured souls'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''High Exorcist'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for exorcising the tortured souls'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
Even as the Druj secure their hold on Therunin, thwarted only by Peakedge Stead, they look elsewhere. To the north, beyond Lower Tarn Valley, in [[The_Barrens#Hope's_Rest|Hope's Rest]], a group are advancing on the [[A_glorious_victory#Here_We_Stand_(Conjunction)|Shrine of Hope]] – escorting a group of [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tortured souls]]. These are fallen Navarr; corrupted by the twisted ceremonies of the Druj and powerful infusions of unknown herbs. If they are not stopped, then they will spread like a blight across the region, proving difficult to root out.

These are the first tortured souls that the Empire since the cleansing of Zenith. Where in the past the stoic nature of the Highborn and the martial arete of the Urizen was corrupted, this is the ruthless pragmatism of the Navarr that has been twisted. It is the responsibility of the [[High Exorcist]], '''Belmarie de Courtenay Wyldrose''' to exorcise the tortured souls and the Druj that accompany them.

===Changes (Therunin)===
* '''A group of Druj are starting to corrupt an Axou champion'''
* '''The Druj are accompanied by several tortured souls'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Eastern Broker'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for preventing ''Menoetius'' from being twisted to a tortured soul'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
The Axou of the Khiklotu Khrysoú trade cartel have engaged in trade with the Eastern Broker for years, since 383YE. Each season, their traders have brought with them mana crystals, luxuries and oddities from Issyk to the enclave. Now, the Druj have captured ''Menoetius'', an [[Axos#Axou_Military_Concerns|Agema]], and are taking them back to the Druj encampment to try to corrupt them and convert them into one of the tortured souls.

Menoetius took the opportunity to visit every chance they had, making friends with the locals and sparring with visiting thorns. All signs point to them being a capable warrior and commander, respected in the [[Axos#Chambers_of_Issyk|Chambers of Issyk]]. If they are not rescued, and if they are used against the Axou then that would prove harmful to Axos morale. That such a champion could be turned against them – and worse - prevented from advising [[Axos_religion#Funerary_Rites|future generations]].

It is the responsibility of the [[Eastern Broker]], '''Lith''' to prevent ''Menoetius'' from being turned by the Druj and returning them to Anvil using the [[Cuckoo's Egg]] ritual. Given that this represents a threat to the Axou then there is some expectation that the [[Ambassador to Axos]], '''Fintan Nighthaven''', will do what they can to support the Eastern Broker.

===Beginnings (Therunin)===
* '''A group of Druj are moving to establish a miasma pillar in Eastring'''
* '''The Druj are accompanied by several tortured souls'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''''Blaze Dunning'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for destroying the miasma pillar'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
The miasma pillars of the Druj spread misery across a region, an oppressive haze that crushes dissent. The miasma of the Mallum, in the [[Forest of Ulnak]], the [[Salt Flats of Sanath]], and [[Sarangrave]] is deeply rooted. It has seeped into the very soil itself. The memories of reclaiming [[Reikos]] and [[Zenith]], and the memory of fighting under the miasma, have stayed with the commanders of the [[Knights of Glory|Crimson and Gold Legions]]. ''Elodian'', commander of the hammer-smiths, has charged '''Blaze Dunning''', the Young Lion of Eleonaris, to take their allies and strike at the Druj in Eastring, where they are pushing to establish a [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|miasma pillar]].

Several tortured souls have been sighted surrounding the pillar of grey stone. The Druj are scattered across the area, split into smaller groups to better ambush Imperials. Destroying the miasma pillar won't be easy; it will require the performance of either [[Chimes of Annulment]] or [[Dreadful Ending]], or a [[consecration]] ceremony of strength thirteen or higher. Given that this is a direct request to '''Blaze Dunning''' it is their responsibility to take their circle of Lions, defeat the Druj, and destroy the miasma pillar.

<box><big>'''Druj Miasma'''</big>
* '''''Beginnings'' takes place under the effect of the Druj miasma'''
* '''The miasma [[Calls#WEAKNESS|weakens]] anyone exposed to it who does not have the ability to [[Roleplaying_effects#Overcoming_Roleplaying_Effects|overcome]] it'''

The miasma [[Calls#WEAKNESS|weakens]] anyone exposed to it who does not have the ability to [[Roleplaying_effects#Overcoming_Roleplaying_Effects|overcome]] it. The easiest method to overcome the miasma is to receive an [[anointing]], but particularly [[Heroic_skills#Hero|heroic]] individuals, or those in possession of certain [[enchantment|enchantments]] or [[magic items]] may also be able to counteract the effect. In particular, those of the [[changeling]] [[lineage]] are able to fight the effects of the miasma, but at the expense of becoming ''extremely'' angry - which can cause problems all its own.</box>

==Further Reading==
* [[Therunin]]
* [[Under eastern skies]] - Winter 386YE Wind of War
* [[Blood and mire]] - Autumn 386YE Wind of War
* [[Ashes]] - Summer 386YE Wind of War

Under eastern skies

2026-08-19T12:30:46Z

Dre:

[[Category:Recent History]] [[Category:386YE Winter]] [[Category:Military Council]]
<div style="float:left; width: 600px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Under Eastern Skies.jpg|caption=The sky weeps bitter tears over Therunin, filthy with the cursed corruption of the Druj.|align=left|width=600}}</div>
==Along the Lake==
{{PDFLink|align=right|link=File:Under eastern skies.pdf|caption=Click for pdf version}}{{audio|link=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sHX4iLHEUw}}
Therunin has been invaded by the Druj. They hold East Ashes, giving them control of both shores of the Feverwater, and following a successful [[Blood and mire|Imperial offensive]] last season, they fight to hold Eastring. Even if they are driven from the territory, though, their brutal fingerprints will mark the marshy forests for some time to come. The Lower Tarn Valley has been poisoned by the Sephals Cauldron, and it was only through the terrible sacrifice of Imperial heroes, especially those of Dawn, that the orcs of the Mallum were prevented from [[Blood_and_mire#Objective:_Stop_the_Blood_Drainers_coven|devastating East Ashes]] and [[Blood_and_mire#Objective:_Stop_Cintra_Blackstaff|rousing the vallorn]].

After their comprehensive defeat at [[Blood_and_mire#All_Along_the_Lakeside_(Battle_Opportunity)|Ashwater]], the magicians of the Tainted Basilisk have all but abandoned the territory, retreating back toward the Mallum. Yet before they left, they wove one last tapestry of misery over Therunin with their wicked sorceries.

The twisted ghulai and malicious magicians have twined sickening threads of [[Spring magic]] around the marshes and the forests. Their vile curse [[Rivers Run Red|taints the land itself]], causing wounds to fester, making water unsafe to drink unless it is boiled, bloating vermin and leeches and venomous beasts, and even corrupts the trees and plants. Its malignant touch is even worse in the Lower Tarn Valley, where it further strengthens the residue of the Sephals Cauldron.
__TOC__
[[Forge the Wooden Fastness|Woven wooden wards]] curl around Eastring and East Ashes, drawing power from the Druj's [[eternal]] patrons to turn the woodlands themselves against the Empire. Unnatural brambles and thorns coil around the boles of the trees, beasts turn murderously savage, and dark spirits lurk among the roots and branches of the dogwood and marsh cedar. Unnatural fecundity causes familiar trails to become overgrown, or provides living barricades for the Druj to hide behind. The forest itself acts to protect the orcs of the Mallum, to help hide their presence giving ample opportunity for stealth and ambush.

While the Druj rely on wicked magic, their defences are mirrored in the west by the industry of the [[Towerjacks]]. The League army spent the last season preparing defences around [[Therunin#Peakedge Song|Peakedge Song]], especially around the hospital. Navarr driven from their steadings, and [[Great Forest Orcs]] who cannot make the dangerous trip through the Lower Tarn Valley to the Barrens begin to gather at the sanctuary of [[Therunin#Peakedge_Stead|Peakedge Stead]].

The Towerjacks themselves are gone; leaving Therunin to offer their expertise to the [[On southern sands|defence of Redoubt]]. The [[Northern Eagle]] march with them but the Varushkans pay a steep price for passing through the Lower Tarn Valley, [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] by the [[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|spillage of the Sephals Cauldron]]. The blackest arts of the apothecary, and the insidious influence of Spring curses, means some ten score warriors do not leave the valley alive. Yet they do not pause, following their duty south into Urizen. At the same time, the [[Gryphon's Pride]] march north from Eastring into the Barrens on a grim [[By northern shores|mission of their own]].
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Cadwell Waystone, General of the Isaella's Dance">My Poison Thorns, the Empire has bled in Therunin while we healed. The Magic of Autumn bound our wounds and now we are ready. The Druj have tortured and slaughtered their way through our lands. We will bring a swift death with our poison thorns. We attack via the Barrens into Eastring</quote></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Alderei the Fair, General of the Iron Helms">These are times of great change cousins. Even in death we will finish the work in Therunin, with cold flesh quickened we eradicate the Druj on Imperial soil. This shall mark our rebirth. The dark of winter holds no terror over us. Onwards through the snow.</quote></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Zoran De Orzel, General of the Golden Sun">Glorious knights of the Golden Sun, we continue our grinding advance through Therunin. We avoid the poisonous lower tarn valley. We continue to defend the Navarr territory from the onslaught of the Druj. Dawn have lost much of late, All stories must end, keep your love and loyalty for them in your hearts. In the name of their glory.</quote></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><quote by="Rhisiart Dancewalker, General of the Black Thorns">Blackthorns, we fight for our homes, our people, our land. Fight for the future and one step closer to destroying the Druj, to the vallorn. I call the pines and our kin of the Great Forest Orcs. Bring fury to the Druj and burn them to Ashes</quote></div>

==Burn Them To Ashes==
If the Navarr of Therunin are worried about the departure of the three armies, they keep their concerns to themselves and focus on preparing for another Druj onslaught. They are by no means undefended. The [[Black Thorns]], the [[Iron Helms]], and the [[Golden Sun]] remain in Eastring to fight the Druj, to drive them across the border and secure Therunin.

The 'Thorns are accompanied by a cohort of [[Knights of Glory|elfin knights]], summoned from the court of [[Eleonaris]]. They relish the opportunity to fight the Druj, for the rulers of the Summer realm have little love for the treacherous orcs of the Mallum. The Iron Helms have their own supernatural allies, albeit of a very different flavour. As perhaps fits the dark nature of the Varushkan army the dead march – shamble – with them. [[Quickening Cold Meat|Bound Winter spirits]] throng around the Iron Helms, wearing the corpses of human and orc warriors who fell in Therunin and using them to bring fear and death to the Druj. The red river curse that lies over the territory plays havoc with the meat they puppet; while it does not decompose, it still breeds swarms of writhing worms and clouds of biting flies and the stench quickly becomes almost untenable. They still fight, though, eager to taste the flesh of the Mallum orcs.

Along with their magical allies, both armies are accompanied by independent captains, their grim warbands eager to defend Therunin and drive out the Druj. The Thorns and the Helms essay a balanced strategy that weighs the need to drive the Druj out against the need to avoid their traps. The Golden Sun meanwhile employs [[Army_qualities#Resilient|tactics they honed in the Barrens]], consolidating the Imperial hold and rooting out the guerrillas, ambushers, and assassins left behind by the retreating orcs of the Mallum.

These three remaining armies are joined by Isaella's Dance, well rested after a season recuperating in [[Astolat]]. The newest Navarr army pauses briefly in the Heart of Peytaht before marching east through Hope's Rest and the Bleaks and into Eastring from the north. They bring with them all their [[Army_qualities#Thornbound|thornbound]] expertise, all their green and red wisdom, their understanding of Spring magic and the power locked inside herbs and potions.

With the 'Dance come the Spears of the Pines – the warriors and hunters of the Great Forest Orcs – called by the general of the Black Thorns to fight alongside their Navarr allies. They do little to hide their contempt for the Iron Helms and the Golden Sun, staying close to the Thorns and the Dance. But they still fight; they may despise the Varushkan and Dawnish armies but they ''hate'' the Druj.

For their part, after their defeat during the Autumn Equinox, the eastern invaders seem to be in retreat, apparently preparing to abandon their forces still in East Ashes to the Empire. The Imperial armies press forward, looking to finish what was begun last season.

==Sprung==
For the first few weeks, the Druj fall back, through the magical defences they have raised in Eastring, toward the borders of the Mallum. Then suddenly they are not falling back any more. They are on the offensive. The Deadly Blade and the Hidden Widow emerge from the deep forests to assault the flanks of the Imperial force. They are supported by the stealthy poisoners of the Hidden Widow, and the bite of their blades bring painful death or crippling injuries. At the same time, the other Druj armies – Arrow Viper and Flame Beetle, and Hidden Snake, Poison Crane and Red Lizard and White Lion – push back against the Imperial advance. They probe and test, and wherever they find weakness, whenever they locate a company that has become overextended or a supply line that has been left exposed through accident or misadventure, they strike ruthlessly, cruelly, and blood flows in the marshy woods.

The Hunting Scorpion seem to be everywhere; adept skirmishers they move swiftly and surely through the wetlands to harry the Black Thorns and the Iron Helms at every opportunity, raining barbed arrows down out of the gathering dusk, even hiding beneath the water breathing through hollow reeds to launch surprise attacks in the middle of the night against soldiers who thought themselves safe.

And in the forefront of the fighting, the [[Not_to_conquer#Who_are_the_Black_Wind?|Black Wind]]. The army of the Barrens, the only surviving army of the orcs that sought to resist both Druj and Empire, to secure their home. Twisted by their loss, driven to terrible acts by their unquenchable hatred of the Empire. A hatred stoked to a white heat by the [[Ripples_and_shadows#Black_Wind|actions of the Iron Helms]], who executed the elders of their people living in the Barrens. They were given leave to reclaim their sept, to take their people into the Mallum, and while there may have been mercy in that decision the Black Wind show no sign of repaying it. They are utterly [[Army_qualities#Cruel|ruthless]], driven by a burning flame of vengeance, they seek every opportunity to retribute the Iron Helms. Those Imperials who fall into their clutches die badly, slowly, painfully. Their remains are used to taunt their living comrades, mounted on spikes and poles, nailed to trees, left lying where they can be found. Their hatred knows no bounds, and they pass up no opportunity to engage the Varushkan army that is the focus of their wrath.

Had the Empire been more reckless in Therunin, had they charged into the fray seeking to drive the Druj out with force, things might have gone very badly indeed. As it is, the more balanced approach allows the armies to avoid the trap before the jaws close around their legs. But it soon becomes apparent that the Druj outnumber the Empire by a significant margin.

The Druj are not reckless however, and for a short time that provides a spark of hope that the Empire might still prevail. Their assaults are cautious, measured, cunning. They rely on their dark sorcery to eat away at those they injure, to do their butchers' work for them. A cowards strategy, but one that works.

Whenever they face strong resistance they draw back... only to attack again from a different direction or in a different place. The pressure is constant, the threat of attack never goes away, and the fear and stress it places on the armies of the Empire begins to grow.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj1.jpg|align=right|width=300|caption=The banners of the Druj are decorated with trophies taken from their fallen foes, designed to inspire fear in the hearts of those who dare oppose them.}}</div>

==The Razor Snare==
Then the Druj strategy changes. One cold wet morning, the forest falls entirely silent. The drums the Druj use to communicate over distances are stilled, and the birds and beasts of the forest fall silent. For hours, Therunin itself seems to be holding its breath.

The moment cannot last. With a thunderous crash the drums return, a relentless rhythm that strikes fear into the heart. The Spring magic ward the Druj have placed over Eastring pulses and changes; no longer impeding and protecting the Druj but constricting and trapping the soldiers of the Empire. The trees and animals become actively malign.

Even with the warning, the armies bog down. Roads and tracks are swallowed in the undergrowth; marshwaters rise to swallow and drown. Insects and predators turn savage... and while the mosquitos and flies and wasps are annoying there are ''other'' insects in Therunin. The Druj have already shown some facility with herding the massive chitinous creatures of the marshes, but here it is the power of Spring that fills them and turns them to violence.

While the Imperials are busy dealing with this deadly shift, the Druj attack. They stop retreating, stop probing, stop manoeuvring, and go for the kill with the vengeful Black Wind at the forefront of the attack. The grinding advance of the Golden Sun has secured the rear, but the Empire's flanks are still exposed. Imperial positions are enveloped, attacked from all directions at once. Watchposts fall silent, patrols vanish without a trace, messengers are intercepted and silenced forever.

The armies of the Empire stand, but the Druj keep coming. Brutal, cruel, relentless. Soldiers are struck down by venomed blade and lethal bowshot, wicked spear and malignant spell. Poison is everywhere, [[Legacy_of_Thorns#Redwillow_Paste|weakening]], [[Legacy_of_Thorns#Oil_of_Blackthorn|bringing swift death]], even [[Legacy_of_Thorns#Legionnaire's_Stare|paralysing]] and leaving proud knights to the cruel ministrations of the Druj or the cold embrace of Kaela.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Isaellas Dance Colour.png|align=right|width=300|caption=Isaella's Dance was built on a foundation of vates adept at manipulating the power of the [[Realm#Spring|Spring realm]], and supported by some of the finest masters of herb lore in the Empire.}}</div>

==Now We Are Ready==
It's clear that if something is not done, the Imperial presence in Therunin will end with a massacre. The magic that frustrates their efforts to fall back from the Druj, to answer their relentless attack, is drawn from the Spring realm and Isaella's Dance are well versed in the lore of healing and venom. Even as the war drums thunder, the magicians of the 'Dance consult, work swift divinations, and begin to unravel the nature of the wards that make the Imperial forces easy prey for the orcs of the Mallum. It is not that dissimilar to the Wooden Fastness that Irra Harah taught their ancestors to weave, but where that ward deals with protection and evasion, this one is built to snap shut around the enemies of the Druj.

The commanders meet and reach an agreement. If nothing is done, the Empire's armies in Therunin will be torn to pieces, crucified on poisoned thorns, strangled by creeping roots, smashed by flailing branches, devoured by the beasts of the marshy woods made feral by the enchantment that drips and flows through the water, the ground, the wind itself. There is a way to break free, but there will be a price, paid in blood. A sacrifice.

All those who wear the marks of the thorn and the brand, who have sworn their oaths to serve their family, and the Empire, come together in one place, falling back from the front lines. Then they push north, through the thorns and writhing brambles infused with the malice of the Druj. The Druj realise what they are doing almost immediately, sensing that they have identified a weakness in the trap, and move their forces to intercept, to stop Isaella's Dance leading the other Imperial armies to freedom.

They don't falter, not for one moment. Amidst withering arrow fire they tear through the hedges and walls of thorns – and through the Deadly Blade and the Hidden Widow, the armies of assassins and saboteurs that seek to bar their passage, to push them back into the killing ground.

Swift messengers give the signal, and the other armies follow close in their footsteps – the Black Thorns, the Iron Helms, the Golden Suns. The other Imperial armies fight to defend the 'Dance's flanks but there is only so much they can do.

Like a spear thrust, the 'Dance slices a path through the woods of Eastring. When one of their warriors falls - pierced with arrows, impaled on a spear, frothing their life-blood from their lips as Druj poisons take hold - another steps up to take their place. They weave through the ranks of the Druj, leaving only corpses in their wake. The Druj try to flank the 'Dance, but the other armies, especially the Golden Sun, ensure that those orcs that try to do so soon regret their decision. The Black Thorns and the Iron Helms hold the flanks, but it is the 'Dance in the vanguard that must absorb the force of the Druj assault.

It seems like days pass, but in truth it is only hours. The sun turns its face away, hiding behind thick clouds. It begins to rain. Hard, heavy drops writhing with the cursed power of pestilence and infection. There is no clear demarcation from the edge of the ward, nothing to mark the borders of the killing ground. Yet there is a subtle change in the air, as the rain falls. A shift in the atmosphere. The Druj arrows peter out, the vicious slaughter falls silent.

The Dawnish send up a great cheer, echoed by the Varushkans, believing that victory has been claimed. The Black Thorns are silent, and their silence spreads quickly to the Helms. The triumph of the Golden Sun falters, drops away. Perhaps a third of all the soldiers who began the day in the heart of Therunin are... gone. Dead, maimed, lost to the hungry forest and the blades of the Druj. Perhaps two thousand of the Black Thorns are dead. A thousand Golden Suns dimmed, as many Iron Helms missing in the rain and the gathering twilight.

Yet it is not these losses – this horrible butcher's bill – that makes the Black Thorns weep, the other armies bow their head and count the cost too high. The army named for that Navarr who knew all about prices and consequences... there at the forefront... fighting to save as many of their fellows as they could... are gone.

The dance is ended.
<div style="float:right; width: 600px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Triumph of the Mallum.jpg|caption=The Druj are without mercy, exulting in the slaughter of Imperial soldiers.|align=right|width=600}}</div>

==Desperation==
There is little time to grieve. At least the Gift of Kaela will offer escape to those who have fallen into the hands of the Druj; cold comfort to those whose friends have fallen. The Druj have not gone, have not abandoned their attempt to slaughter the armies in Therunin. There is just enough time to regroup, to gather as many surviving soldiers as possible. The armies cannot afford to stay here, in the woods of Therunin. They are still outnumbered, weakened by the loss of so many lives. It is astonishing that fear and panic do not rip through their spirits the way the weapons of the Druj have ripped through their strength.

There is barely time for a quick meeting among the commanders of the armies, to weigh their options. They cannot return to the killing field of the south; they dare not press east toward the Mallum; to the west lies the poisoned valley of the Lower Tarn where the Druj will have the advantage and where the sickening taint that lies there will be all the worse under the Rivers of Blood. They cannot stay where they are, outnumbered and overwhelmed. They must press north into the Bleaks, and trust that the Druj will not dare follow them or – if they do – that they will be overextended.

The horns are blown, the orders given. The armies push north toward the Barrens. There are shambolic routs and ordered retreats and this is neither, this march northward. Discipline holds, but it is fraying in the face of the terrible losses, the growing awareness of how huge the force arrayed against them is, the pestilential curse, the awful threat of slow torment and death at the hands of the Black Wind, the ragged edges of the Druj wards, and the pounding of the drums.

It would be easy for the Empire's finest to give in to panic, but their courage holds. In no small part this is due to the example of the Iron Helms. The Varushkans are no stranger to the fear that seeks to take root in the desperate soldiers. Many of them have faced it before, in the dark under the trees of their homeland. The Druj wield fear as a weapon, but so do the 'Helms.

Yet even their grim humour, their granite-hard morale, falters a little at the force arrayed against them. Near the edge of Therunin, near the ill-marked border with the Barrens, a huge force of Druj waits. At their forefront, the sable banners of the Black Wind flutter, adorned with cloven shields, broken weapons, scraps of armour, torn shreds of standard and surcoats and cloaks, flyblown bodyparts, all clearly taken from the soldiers who have died in Therunin. The gift of Kaela denies them the bodies of so many of their enemies, but does nothing to stop them taunting the surviving Imperials with proof of their wickedness.

The Black Wind are scattered through the trees, along with the assassins and stealthy skirmishes of the Deadly Blade and the Hidden Widow. More Druj lurk in the trees to the east and west, uncertain numbers of warriors ready to fall on the armies as they try to press north.

Then the drums fall silent again. A messenger – a sneering Druj wearing a torn cloak clearly taken from one of the fallen commanders of Isaella's Dance – approaches the Imperial lines. In an arrogant voice they announce that the Black Wind are minded to be merciful. If the Navarr and the Dawnish lay down their weapons and allow themselves to be taken, they will not be slaughtered. Rather they will be carried east, into servitude, as slaves of the Mallum, servants of the Druj, to work off the crimes of the Empire in the fields and the mines.

For the Varushkans, though, for the soldiers who butchered their elders, the folk of their sept left in the Barrens, there will be no quarter given. Each one will die scre-

The messenger's voice stops suddenly. They clutch at the arrow protruding from their throat with numb fingers. Drowning on their own blood they fall backward into the marsh, dead. It's not clear who loosed the arrow to silence the stream of hatred, but there are few who would criticise it.

The drums begin to beat again, the shouts and cries and screaming instruments drift through the trees. The Empire has given its answer, and the offer will not be made again.

It does not look good. Despite the sacrifice of Isaella's Dance, it is all too apparent that without a miracle, the Imperial presence in Therunin will end with a massacre.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=IronHelms_Colour.png|align=right|width=300|caption=The first army to bear this name was sacrificed to preserve the [[Imperial treasury]]; it rose again six years ago. The army had a long history of subtle patronage from one of the [[Charnel Lord|dark powers]] of the north.}}</div>

==Onwards Through the Snow==
The Golden Sun, the Black Thorns, the Iron Helms. They gather close together, prepare their lines. The most heavily armoured face outward, forming a wall of steel and mithril against the Druj. Archers and spear fighters strike over or through the wall as the Imperial force presses toward the border.

The knights of glory roar their fury. The Golden Sun raise their voices in a single hymn to glory, to the strength of the Empire. The Black Thorns and the orcs of the Great Forest join their voices in a savage lament for the dead. The Iron Helms... the Iron Helms and the dead warriors that fight beside them remain silent, weighing the odds, considering their options.

The Winter spirits that fight alongside the Varushkans do not fear death, know that if their flesh fails they will simply find a new puppet and keep fighting. The mortal soldiers are not insensible as they are, but perhaps that gives them greater strength. They know what is at risk here. These are the elder children of Mother Varushka, of the land of monsters, of the haunted hills and forests darker than anything that the Druj know. They know that sometimes one must choose the lesser of two evils, that the road is rarely easy. Sometimes there are no good choices, and yet one must still choose. It is possible to do everything right, and still lose. The true, final test of the spirit is how one faces the darkness, especially when there may be nobody left to speak of it.

Their magicians reach out to the dark powers of the north, to the connection they have to the creatures that every Varushkan knows to fear. Since they were reformed, the Iron Helms have fought beneath the shadow of crows' wings, and with a great cry the birds take to the air. They soar above the trees, and the houndmasters and schlacta of the Iron Helms break their silence, sound their horns, and ''march''.

The birds lead the way, a cloud of feathers in the gloaming, swooping down like hunting hawks to tear at the eyes of the orc warriors. The hounds and their handlers howl, meeting the savagery of the Druj with equal bloodlust. Axes hew through enemies, collapse trees, smash makeshift barricades, cut through traplines.

Varushka sets the pace, but their fire spreads quickly to the Golden Sun and the Black Thorns. Some Druj are cowards – the kind of bully that instinctively fall back in the face of challenge. Sadly, the Druj are as afraid of their own masters as they are of the Iron Helms, and know that the Buruk Tepel will not hesitate to make an example of them if they show too much cowardice. So when they fall back, they quickly reground and return in force.

The Imperial troops pay a terrible price, and the lion's share is paid by the Iron Helms. Heavy as their armour is, doughty as they are, keen as their axes strike they are at the forefront and they face the full malice of the Druj. Yet the army is also bound around with Winter magic, a host of winter spirits fights beside them, and they slog through mud and blood, forging a path for their allies to follow, selling their lives as dearly as they can. They are cut to pieces.

Then, one by one, the fallen Varushkans begin to rise again. Not only those who fall in this final desperate push to escape Therunin, but emerging through the sleet from the south come many more dead schlacta, cabalists, hounds, and soldiers.

Perhaps it is the spirits summoned with Winter magic, perhaps it is [[Charnel Lord|something else]] but when one of the Iron Helms is slain, by spear or blade, they rise again. Their eyes burn with cold darkness, and they fight with a terrible fervour that gives even the Druj pause. They fight with unnatural vitality, and do not stop until they are literally dismembered or decapitated by the orcs. The soldiers and their hounds refuse the embrace of death for one final chance to hurl themselves at their foes.

It is a horror and a wonder, and it creates a chance. An opening to a future where the armies of the Empire survive this killing zone. The Druj begin to retreat, horrified by the abominations that fall upon them. Where weapons fail, the dead Varushkans use their bare hands and unnatural strength to rip their enemies limb from limb, pausing only to gorge themselves on the remains before leaping to the next kill. Even the Black Wind falter in the face of this dark miracle, this terrible Winter magic.

There are survivors who claim that there were other things, worse things, in the woods with them that night fighting the Druj, Ghoulish horrors in archaic armour not entirely Varushkan in style. Massive birds, with razor talons and too-clever eyes. Warriors with the aspect of wolf or rat or bat, neither human nor orc but some dreadful echo of beast and person. The woods are dark, as night falls, and terror roars through them as the armies clash, and it is hard to tell what is real and what is waking nightmare.

In the end, the Black Wind sound the retreat, falling back. The Imperial armies make it across the borders, into the forests of the Barrens, following by coincidence that same path the Gryphon's Pride took several months earlier.

Some Druj pursue, of course, but only a few hundred. Those Imperial soldiers who are last out, those bringing up the rear, and the scouts of the Black Thorns speak of how the Druj they have left behind are still fighting, even though the armies have crossed into the Bleaks. The dead Varushkans, and their beasts, continue to assail the orcs of the Mallum, making it impossible for them to pursue without leaving themselves vulnerable to an attack from beyond.

The rain falls more heavily in the Bleaks, but the water is clean and fresh. This is the best way to know that the armies have escaped Therunin... but not everyone has made it to the Barrens.

==The Highest Price==
Like Isaella's Dance, the Iron Helms have paid the ultimate price. No more than a few hundred Varushkans escape the Barrens with the Golden Sun and the Black Thorns. Over the next few weeks, a similar number of Navarr escape Therunin, many of them horribly injured or suffering the kind of spiritual wounds that mean they will never fight again.

The loss of life has been catastrophic. Twelve and a half thousand soldiers have been lost. Isaella's Dance, and the Iron Helms, have ceased to exist – although there is some evidence the Varushkans at least are continuing to fight in Therunin, albeit in an unrecognisable state. The Druj have surely paid a heavy price for fighting the Empire this season, but as always with the orcs of the Mallum it's hard to say exactly how many have been killed. Surely they must have lost thousands; the Iron Helms and the Black Wind fought a pitched battle and one does not walk away from a fight with furious Varushkans.

None of Eleonaris' knights leave Therunin; they fought and died alongside the Golden Sun. None of the walking dead leave Therunin – at least for the moment. The Spears of the Pines have been decimated, the orcs of the Great Forest suffering hundreds of casualties alongside their Navarr friends and allies.

The time for mourning, for recrimination, is in the future. For now the Golden Sun and the Black Thorns need to let the rest of the Empire know what has happened: both the unspeakably catastrophic loss, and the awe-inspiring courage of those who sacrificed everything to save their fellows.

==Game Information==
===Therunin===
* '''The Black Wind carried out a Merciless Onslaught in Therunin this season'''
* '''Isaella's Dance and the Iron Helms have disbanded'''
* '''Therunin remains uncontrolled'''
The Black Wind engaged in a [[Army_qualities#Cruel|merciless onslaught]] in Therunin this season. Two Imperial armies – Isaella's Dance and the Iron Helms took sufficient casualties to cause them to disband. While there are some survivors, these armies no longer exist.

The Druj have recaptured Eastring, and still control East Ashes. With the vallorn in control of Greenheart and Sweetglades, and the Navarr still in possession of Peakedge Song and the Upper and Lower Tarn Valley, no faction has majority control so the territory remains uncontrolled.

The temporary defences [[Army_qualities#Engineer|built by the Towerjacks]] before the Autumn Equinox are still in place, but their effectiveness is reduced. They act as a 500 strength fortification until the start of the Spring Equinox when they will have decayed to the point they no longer provide a bonus during the military campaign.

One possible piece of good news is that there has been no sign of the Tainted Basilisk in Therunin since the Autumn Equinox which means that the Druj will not be able to perform large-scale rituals in the territory such as [[Rivers Run Red]] or the creation of magical fortifications.

===Participation===
* '''Anyone whose military unit fought in Therunin this season has suffered grievous wounds'''
* '''The retreat has seen numerous spontaneous spiritual auras manifest among those involved'''
Any general of one of the armies here, and anyone who fought alongside their warband in Therunin this season (that is, players whose [[military unit]] was assigned to one of the armies here or is a [[general]] of one of the armies, and whose roleplaying involves them being personally present) has received a [[Combat#Traumatic_Wounds|lingering wound]]. This will be included in your pack, and either represents a serious injury sustained in the battle, or the consequence of fighting under the effect of Rivers Run Red. If your roleplaying does not involve fighting with your military unit this downtime, then you can hand the traumatic wound back in to GOD. Without treatment, some of these wounds might eventually become life-threatening, so seeking out a [[Surgical skills#Physick|physick]] may be a top priority.

You may also choose to begin the event [[Combat#Terminal|terminal]] if you wish to use the epic battle in Therunin as a reason to retire your character (remember that there is no way to save a character who is terminal).

During the terrible escape from the Druj trap, a number of [[Aura#Spontaneous_Auras|spontaneous auras]] have manifested. Some of these auras will have been manifested by surviving characters, others will be on mementos taken from fallen comrades. You can request a spontaneous aura for your character, but the nature of the roleplaying effect it creates will depend on the motivation that created it. Any character whose military unit supported an army in Therunin can email e-mail [mailto:plot@profounddecisions.co.uk plot@profounddecisions.co.uk] and pick one of the motivations given here that is most applicable to your character, which will influence the ribbon created. You should also state whether you would like the aura to have manifested on a piece of armour or a shield (and which type), or on a piece of jewellery.

For those in Therunin we will create ribbons for those motivated by:

* ''A willingness to lay down one's life when fighting beside ones comrades''
* ''A commitment to do whatever it takes to protect the innocent from the Druj''
* ''The desire to end the threat of the orcs of the Mallum once and for all''
* ''A drive to stay alive no matter the odds''

You can pick whichever one of these four motivations most strongly motivated your character to receive the relevant aura. If you were driven by different motivations, then you won't receive an aura on this occasion.

==Conjunctions==
{{KaelaGift}}
{{SOP|by=Ivana Petara Vodjavic, Prosperity Assembly|statement=The Grendel and the Druj raid our territories, stealing our Prosperity and ruining our lands. We call on the teachings of Zemress, and encourage our corsairs, wagon raiders, reavers, and all truly prosperous individuals to strike hard, take back what is ours so that we may grow the Empire's prosperity and make ourselves safe.|vote=276-58|when=Spring Equinox 386YE}}
===Unseen Eyes (Forest of Ulnak)===
* '''A guard of Druj are preventing wagon raiders from looting a stockpile of goods'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Champion of Prosperity'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for killing the Druj'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
In the [[Forest of Ulnak]], just across the border with [[Ossium#Drownbark_Forest|Drownbark Forest]], is the homestead of the Varnalis. One of the many extended families of Druj that live in Grimfen Mire, the Varnalis are close to recovering from the raid on their [[Children_of_Wrecks#The_Thread_Burns_(Forest_of_Ulnak)|stockpile]] six months ago. Now, inspired by a [[386YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_67|judgement]] from spring this year, the wagon raiders that trade at the [[Merchant-Boyar_of_the_Stinking_Market#Stinking_Market|Stinking Market]] have a plan to get wealthy at the expense of the family once again which will also open the way for other [[wagon raider|wagon raiders]] to raid the Druj.

According to the wagon raiders, the Varnalis are expecting several wains of weirwood to arrive at one of their guard posts shortly after the solstice. If enough of the guards at the post are killed, then the wagon raiders can slip in, finish the rest, and loot the weirwood once it arrives. The wagon raiders just need someone to be responsible, and have asked the [[Champion of Prosperity]], '''Hugh Farrier''', to once again take the lead on killing the Druj. If that happens, then the wagon raiders will send four wains of weirwood to the Champion of Prosperity after the summit. Success will also inspire other wagon raiders to raid the Druj, meaning that the [[Merchant-Boyar of the Stinking Market]] will receive an additional 16 crowns this season from extra fees.

{{SOP|by=Lady Laudine du Lac, Dawnish Assembly|statement=The assembly recognises that leaving the empty lands in the Barrens to waste serves no one. We call on the Dawnish to settle these empty lands to bring prosperity and look for threats with vigilance in order to protect and uplift all those that live in the Barrens.|vote=264-54|when=Autumn Equinox 386YE}}
===Pitfalls and Tripwires (Salt Flats of Sanath)===
* '''A group of Druj are taking goods to the Dripping Market'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''''Lady Laudine du Lac'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for killing the Druj and claiming their wares'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
During the Autumn Equinox, the Dawnish Assembly voted to uphold a [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_130|statement of principle]] by '''Lady Laudine du Lac''', encouraging Dawnish to settle the empty lands and look for threats with vigilance. The judgement did not achieve a greater majority, but some Dawnish still took their words to heart and looked with the Barrens for threats. One group of questing knights have gone beyond the borders of the Barrens, into the [[Salt Flats of Sanath]]. The knights have tracked a group of Druj in the process of taking goods to the Dripping Market hosted by the Skinweavers of [[Salt_Flats_of_Sanath#Beladrarsh|Beladrarsh]].

The questing knights have requested that '''Lady Laudine du Lac''', as the priest who raised the judgement, take responsibility for killing the Druj and claiming their wares. Anything that Lady Laudine du Lac and their allies can claim will, of course, be theirs; the questing knights wish only that the tale be told if it is glorious.
{{SOP|by=Neala Blackhawk, Navarr Assembly|statement=Brothers and Sisters of the Great Forest Orcs. Navarr will do everything we can to liberate our siblings the Druj have taken and bring them home. Navarr will work to remove the threat of the Druj from you, our family, and from the Empire.|vote=228-0|when=Autumn Equinox 386YE}}
===Promises to Keep (Therunin)===
* '''A group of Druj are guarding a captured treetender of the Great Forest Orcs'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''''Neala Blackhawk'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for rescuing the treetender and returning them to Anvil'''
{{AgainstBarbarians}}
During the Autumn Equinox, the Navarr Assembly voted to uphold a [[386YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_192|statement of principle]] by '''Neala Blackhawk''', making clear that the Navarr will do everything they can do liberate those the Druj have taken from the Great Forest Orcs. The judgement did not achieve a greater majority, but some Navarr were moved by the words and sought out chances to rescue orcs of the Great Forest where they could. A dozen thorns of the ''Lonestalk'' striding managed to track down where one of the treetenders, those Great Forest Orcs who worked the weirwood groves of the [[Thimble]], has been taken and is being forced to work on rafts on the edge of the [[Therunin#The_Docks_at_Feverwater|Feverwater]]

The thorns are unable to free the treetender themselves, so they ask '''Neala Blackhawk''', as the priest who raised the judgement, to take responsibility for rescuing the treetender and returning them to Anvil. As the orc is not an Imperial citizen they will need to be enchanted with [[The Cuckoo's Egg]] in order to pass back through the Sentinel Gate. The thorns of the Lonestalk striding will then be able to take advantage of the disruption to claim several of the rafts and help any Navarr who [[Venture#Raid_the_Druj|Raid the Druj]] over the next season, granting an additional rank of production.

==Black Miracles (Battle Opportunity)==
The children of Mother [[Varushka]], the grim-faced schlacta of the [[Iron Helms]], are gone; brutally slain by the barbs and venoms of [[Not_to_conquer#The_Black_Wind|the Black Wind]]. The orcs from the Barrens, consumed by hatred, have taken their revenge for [[Ripples_and_shadows#Black_Wind|past assaults]], running down every Varushkan they could catch and slaughtering them without mercy.

Thousands of Iron Helms are dead, but the peace of death eludes them. The force marched under [[Quickening Cold Meat|a cruel winter enchantment]] that respects neither the sanctity of life nor the dignity of death. The army is no more, but the stony grasp of magic is not yet ready to release them from service. Their bodies are forced to rise from the forest to begin a macabre battle against any foe that comes within range of blade or claw.

For now, they are a problem for the [[Druj]], but should the Empire's enemies leave the territory, then these revenants will immediately turn on whatever threat they can find. They could become a terrible peril to Therunin and the lands around unless some way can be found to bring the magic back under control.

===Objective: Bind the dead in Eastring===
* '''Seize a chance to bind the restless dead of the Iron Helms'''
* '''Conduct a Varushkan hearth magic rite at the Stained Rock'''
* '''If successful, the undead horrors in Eastring can be commanded to attack the Sarangrave '''

There is a chance for Varushka to exert a level of control over the hordes of shambling corpses terrorising the marshes of Eastring. It is perhaps not the most palatable avenue to tread, but the people of the dark vales are used to making hard choices.

In life the Iron Helms swore oaths to serve their nation, to defend its interests and slaughter its enemies. Such [[Varushka_hearth_magic#Oaths|oaths]] have power, even in death, especially if those they swore to serve refuse to release them from their geas. If the people of Varushka return to the site of the massacre then they could perform a dark rite, drawing on the power of the oaths, binding the spirits with wards and compelling them to serve the nation even in death.

This is not a ritual for the magicians nor a ceremony for priests to conduct, though the rites might well resemble either or both these things. Hearth magic must be used to invoke the oaths sworn by the Helms, to force them to submit to the iron will of the rulers of Varushka. Few know how to [[Varushka_hearth_magic#Wards|create wards]] as powerful as the Varushkans, they know how to use [[Varushka_hearth_magic#Hospitality|hospitality]] to force even the most evil creatures to submit to their iron will. The soldiers of the Iron Helms may be slain, but even the dead may long for [[Varushka_hearth_magic#Home|home]].

The ritual rite must be performed at the Stained Rock, an ancient stone cut from the [[Granites of Veltsgorsk]] decades ago and gifted to strengthen the Navarri forests. The original gift has long since faded in purpose and power, but the grey stone still retains a symbolic link to the Varushkan home lands. The ritual could be led by anyone skilled at invoking Varushkan hearth magic, but the rite will be most powerful if the general of the Iron Helms and those who supported the army during their last stand are included. The army may be broken, but many things in Varushka continue to serve long after they are dead. [[Alderei the Fair]] had [[Laws_of_magic#The_Law_of_Dominion|dominion]] over the soldiers of the Helms in life, and may yet be able to command them in death.

If the Varushkans can wrest back control of the undead horrors plaguing Eastring, they could command them to attack the Druj in Sarangrave. That would ensure people across the territory are safe from attack by these ravenous winter spirits. The problems would be for the Druj and their people living in Sarangrave, making natural resupply there impossible until the horrors are dealt with or the magic of the ritual finally ends.

===Objective: Recover the standard of Isaella's Dance===
* '''The army's banner was lost during their final stand'''
* '''Recover the symbolic item and return it to the nation'''
The loss of Isaella's Dance to the Navarr is beyond compare. One further twist of the dagger is the army standard - ''Knife of Thorns'' - fell in battle and now languishes in barbarian hands. It represents those who gave their lives to fight the Druj and ultimately to defeat the vallorn. Even lost it serves as a reminder of them, a symbol of sacrifice, and [[Pride]] for the nation. If it can be recovered then the pale green gonfalon emblazoned with Isaella's blades would offer a glimmer of hope.

The guides and priests of the Navarr Assembly are best placed to decide what should happen with the banner, where it should be displayed and how. However, the nation will resist any attempt to raise a new army that carries the banner or bears the name ''Isaella's Dance''. One option would be to have the standard become an inspirational symbol of the nation's Pride. The Assembly are not the only ones who might be keen to recover ''Knife of Thorns''.

Some eternals are known to place great value in such objects and are prepared to offer boons to those who give them up. The ''Queen of Silence'', as [[Kaela]] is known to the Navarr, is obsessed with the ending of all things and she will surely be interested in this symbol of Isaella's final dance. If the Navarr cannot recover the banner, or it falls into the wrong hands, it may still end up traded to Kaela or one of the other great powers of the [[Realm#Winter|Wasteland]].

===Battlefield opportunity: Stop the Krollthorned===
* '''The Druj are accompanied by a coven of human ritualists'''
* '''In battle the coven will support the orcs with their enchantments'''
* '''Killing the coven early in the battle will deny the Druj of magical support in the fight'''
A coven of human winter ritualists from the eastern reaches of Sarangrave has been spotted aiding the Druj. Little is known about them - besides their coven name - but it is likely they serve a ghulai allied to the Palace of the Sleepers in northern Kroll. Targeting them will open up a chance to learn more about who they are, why they serve the Druj, and if they pose a wider threat to the eastern Empire.

Whilst they have the numbers to cast powerful rituals, individuals are focused on performing rituals to [[enchantment|enhance]] the prowess of individual orcs in battle. The coven will be continually supplied with mana and resources for their rituals, so eliminating them quickly will deny the Druj important battlefield support.

==Braided Dreams (Battle Opportunity)==
The soldiers of the Navarr, the thorns of Isaella's Dance move no longer, their spears no longer weaving a deadly trace in Druj blood. Their weapons are still, their bodies lie where they fell; pierced by arrows, skewered by blade, hewn by axe, or ravaged by toxins and foul ichors. The army rests silently, but not alone. Alongside them lie the dead and mutilated bodies of hundreds of Great Forest Orcs, foreigners first, then friends and allies at the last. They came to make Eastring their home, before the Druj arrived, and they fought shoulder to shoulder alongside the Navarr to defend it when it was threatened.

All that is left of them now is the memories of their deeds in the minds of those who still draw breath. The bodies should be left to moulder in Therunin, but if nothing is done then they will become offal for scavengers or carrion-eaters. The Navarr usually commit bodies to a simple cairn but there is no chance to do that here, with [[Therunin]] under the control of the [[Druj]].

There is a chance for the nation to create a powerful [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Funerals|corpse glade]], one that spreads its calming touch over the whole of Isaella's Fall. Ensuring that Navarr funeral traditions are respected will help to strengthen the spirits of those who survive. A shared ceremony of remembrance and loss might even bind the Navarr and the Great Forest Orcs allies closer together.

===Objective: Braid the Peoples===
* '''Create a corpse glade at Isaella's Fall to protect the fallen'''
* '''The rite should draw on the Navarr hearth magics of braiding'''
* '''The Black Thorns and the Quiet Step will gain five hundred points of supply'''
* '''Involving the Great Forest Orcs will entwine them closer to the nation'''

The thousands of Navarr who gave their lives fighting the Druj in Therunin made the ultimate [[Navarr_hearth_magic#Self-Sacrifice|sacrifice]] to serve the nation. They did not die alone. The alliance with the Great Forest Orcs is still young, but the Spears of the Pines fought and died together as brothers and sisters, giving everything to defend the homeland the Navarr had [[Navarr_hearth_magic#Sharing_a_Meal|shared with them]].

The vates know there is [[Navarr_hearth_magic|power in these acts]] that is not defined by the limitations of [[Ritual_theory|ritual magic]]. They want to draw on that power to create a corpse-glade at ''Isaella's Fall'' to protect the bodies of the fallen from scavengers. The warriors of the Navarr and the Great Forest Orcs sacrificed their lives, creating [[Navarr_hearth_magic#Braiding|the chance to braid their souls together]] in this life and the next. What is needed is a rite, neither ritual nor ceremony but something that reminds every Navarr, living and dead, of [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Tattoos_and_Vows|the vows they swore]] to fight together against the vallorn.

The solemnity can be performed by anyone who is skilled at invoking Navarr hearth magic, but it will help representatives from every part of the nation. By employing the deep magic of braiding, they can build on the shared sacrifice of the Navarr and their allies to bind them together in life and in death. The ceremony can also include marking with [[Navarr_hearth_magic#Tattoos|a tattoo]], the [[Varushka_hearth_magic#Oaths|swearing of new oaths]], or the [[Navarr_hearth_magic#Sharing_a_Meal|simple exchange of food]], all powerful ways to bind people together with a shared fate. If the rite is enacted, then the entire area at ''Isaella's Fall'' would become a vast corpse-glade, allowing the forest to reclaim the bodies of the dead in peace.

Knowing the bodies of the fallen have been properly cared for will help those Navarr who survived the battle at Isaella's Fall to regain their spirits. The army is gone, but there are some survivors, and they will flock to the banners of [[Navarr_military_concerns#The_Black_Thorns|the Black Thorns]] and the [[Navarr_military_concerns#The_Quiet_Step|Quiet Step]], resupplying each army with five hundred experienced soldiers.

If the Navarr chose to include the Great Forest Orcs in the observance, then it may also help to bind their allies closer to them. Just as the first dance of Navarr and Thorn formed the nation it is today, this could guide both the descendants of Navarr and the children of the Great Forest down ever-entwining paths. The power it invokes could turn the recent destruction and death, the burning of the Holt, and the flight from the [[Not_to_conquer#The_Black_Wind|Black Wind]] into a pivotal moment that brings both peoples closer together.

===Objective: Recover the Barrow Axe===
* '''The Barrow Axe, the regalia of the champion of the Iron Helms, was lost here when the army was slain'''
* '''The Axe is somewhere in the area or carried by one of the Druj'''
* '''The weapon could help Varushka to bargain for aid with one of the sovereigns of the iron north'''

The Iron Helms enjoyed a dark reputation for bloodshed that might turn the stomach. Stories are told of ''Hunger'', the artefact axe wielded by a champion of the Iron Helms since their founding. The relic weapon is held by the Malinov family of [[Karsk]], who flatly refused to return it when the army was reforged.

When the army was raised anew, the army's artisans pooled their resources to create a replacement, the ''Barrow Axe'', a new ironic symbol for the Iron Helms. This [[Ironbound Axe]], has been re-enchanted each year and presented to a soldier who had proved themselves in a brutal fight of contenders clad head-to-toe in armour but armed only with steel-shod fists. Asked if this brutal fight could be replaced with a more civilised selection, the answer was always ''"not if you want us to win"''. With each reforging the ''Barrow Axe''' has slowly begun to accumulate a reputation as dark as the artefact it replaced.

If the weapon can be recovered, it would be a powerful bargaining tool for the nation. Most of the sovereigns of Varushka would be eager to acquire such a brutal weapon. The Iron Helms are gone now and they will not return in this age, but the axe could be used to bargain in exchange for support for a new army. Should the blood-stained hewer be recovered, it will be down to the nation to decide who to petition and what to demand in return for this blood-soaked gift.

===Battlefield Threat: The Mirk Lizards===
* '''The Druj are joined by a group of human warriors clothed in scraps of tattered blue fabric'''
* '''They appear to be excommunicating rather than executing their victims in some circumstances'''
A band of human warriors march with the Druj into battle. Wearing tattered scraps of blue tunics, they have the demeanour of grim-faced and seasoned mercenaries, well-armoured and carrying an assortment of weapons. Next to nothing is known of them, but there are rumours that these warriors are driven to oppose the Way in some fashion. There are claims that priests among them have excommunicated foes on the battlefield, rather than executing them as the orcs might do. There is no known reason for their actions, or why the Druj allow it; so the war scouts urge caution. Killing them will put an end to their plans and stop their support for the orcs of the Mallum, but if more can be found out, it could prove useful in time to come.

Therunin

2026-08-19T12:29:56Z

Dre:

{{CaptionedImage|file=Regionsoftherunin.png|caption=The water-logged bayou of Therunin provides a unique challenge to the stridings that travel there|title=Regions of Therunin|align=left|width=600}}
== Overview ==
On the borders of Highguard, the water-logged bayou of Therunin provides a unique challenge to the [[striding|stridings]] that travel here. As the [[Navarr]] recovered territory from the [[vallorn]], the Tharunind presence grew still more malicious. Monstrous insects are a common threat here, even outside of areas where the vallorn still holds sway. [[Druj|Orcs from the east]] were a constant threat, although their incursions are made more difficult by the swampland. This changed in 386YE when a massive force invaded from the [[Sarangrave]], ultimately leading to the Empire losing control of the territory and seeing the vallorn at its heart reclaim Eastring and infest East Ashes.

==Recent History==
The [[Druj]] have long coveted Therunin. Since the fall of [[Reikos]] in 367YE, many Navarr had been expecting an assault from the barbarians. In the Winter of 377YE, this long-anticipated attack finally came. A major force of Druj moved across the border from Reikos into Peakedge Song. Only the courage of the [[Navarr_military_concerns#The_Black_Thorns|Black Thorns]] slowed the barbarian advance. Outnumbered two-to-one, the Navarr army suffered grievous losses, but prevented the Druj from establishing a beachhead in Therunin.

While Reikos was dominated by the orcs, Therunin was connected to the Empire only by tenuous routes through the mountains of [[Morrow]]; with the [[Druj]] gone the old trade routes down from [[Reikos#Chalcis_Mount|Chalcis Mount]] have been restored.

After the Spring Equinox 386YE, the [[Druj]] launched a [[Ashes#Ring_of_Ashes|surprise attack]] on Therunin. Emerging from [[Sarangrave]], their armies swept through [[#Eastring|Eastring]] and [[#East Ashes|East Ashes]], and brought down the [[Therunin#Holt_of_the_Oak_(Ruined)|Holt of the Oak]] in the [[#Lower Tarn Valley|Lower Tarn Valley]]. At the Summer Solstice the heroes of the Empire [[Ashes#Poison_and_Ashes_(Battle_Opportunity)|fought to prevent the use of the Sephals Cauldron]], but were only partially successful leaving the Lower Tarn [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]]. The Druj [[Blood_and_mire|continued their assault]], and while the Empire was able to drive them out of the Tarn Valley the orcs of [[the Mallum]] maintained their taloned grip on the eastern regions. During the Autumn Equinox the orc magicians of the ''Tainted Basilisk'' army attempted to [[Blood_and_mire#All_Along_the_Lakeside_(Battle_Opportunity)|unleash terrible magic]] aimed at [[Blood_and_mire#Objective:_Stop_the_Blood_Drainers_coven|sinking Feverwater Docks into the lake]] and, worse, [[Blood_and_mire#Objective:_Stop_Cintra_Blackstaff|rousing the vallorn of Sweetglades]]. They were prevented from doing so, but victory in the ''Battle of Ashwater'' came at great cost - many Imperial heroes fell, and the price of triumph was paid in particular by the heroes of [[Dawn]].
<div style="float:left; width: 350px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Under Eastern Skies.jpg|caption=The Druj attacked Therunin in 386YE, slaughtering or enslaving all who did not flee before their assault.|align=left|width=400}}</div>
===Druj and Vallorn===
</table>
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="width:300px; float: right; margin: 10px;"
|-
! Season !! Wind
|-
| Summer 386YE || [[Ashes]]
|-
| Autumn 386YE || [[Blood and mire]]
|-
| Winter 386YE || [[Under eastern skies]]
|-
| Spring 387YE || [[To hold death's hand in mine]]
|-
| Summer 387YE || [[Willow and rain]]
|-
| Autumn 387YE || [[Songs like trees]]
|-
| Winter 387YE || [[Crimson and green]]
|-
| Spring 388YE || [[A bright cerulean flame]]
|}
As the autumn faded into winter, Imperial armies - the [[Black Thorns]] and [[Isaella's Dance]], the [[Iron Helms]], and the [[Golden Sun]] - sought to drive the Druj out of East Ashes. Unfortunately the Druj were ready for them, having [[Under eastern skies|set a trap]], and the resulting slaughter saw both Isaella's Dance and the Iron Helms armies disband while helping their allies break free. Some of the Varushkan warriors continued to fight on, rising as unliving horrors bent on slaughtering as many Mallum orcs as possible, but the surviving armies were forced to retreat north into [[the Barrens]].

During the Winter Solstice, the Navarr National Assembly urged the people of Therunin to flee, and following the summit the Druj [[To hold death's hand in mine|swept west]] across the territory conquering the Tarn Valley and Peakedge Song. This brought the entire territory under their control. Worse, as the Spring Equinox approached the magicians of the Tainted Basilisk - a powerfully magical army of the Mallum - roused the Tharunind vallorn to wakefulness.

It [[Willow_and_rain|began to spread]] after the Spring Equinox, gathering strength as it did so. If not for the efforts of the [[Golden Sun]] and the [[Wolves of War]] before the Summer Solstice, it might have dominated the Tarn Valley. The Dawnish and League armies [[Songs like trees|fought the expanding power of the vallorn]] in Peakedge Song, and were victorious enough that it was forced back. After the Autumn Equinox however, in part due to cunning use of magic, the vallorn [[Crimson and green|ravaged Eastring]] and the Druj forces sequestered there, eventually claiming the entire region. While the ghulai tried to exacerbate the situation and drive the vallorn to keep expanding, Imperial heroes [[Mushroom,_mushroom,_mushroom#Waves_of_Ruin_(Conjunction)|prevented them doing so]] with some assistance from the eternal [[Llofir]]. Finally, following the Winter Solstice 387YE, the [[Pilgrim's Defiance]] [[A bright cerulean flame|sacrificed much]] to prevent the vallorn spilling out to consume [[#East Ashes|East Ashes]] before the last of its energy was depleted. As of the Spring Equinox 388YE, the Tharunind vallorn is quiescent again - although by no means slumbering.

==Major Features==
=== The Thimble===
The [[Thimble]] was a Bourse resource located in the [[#Eastring|Eastring]]. Custodianship of the Thimble was an [[Imperial Title]] that brings with it a Seat on the [[Bourse]]. It produced 26 Imperial wains of weirwood every season. Following [[Permit_Great_Forest_Orcs_to_work_the_Thimble|Autumn 381YE]], the custodian of the Thimble received 22 wains a season, with the Great Forest Orcs receiving the other four wains. Control of the Thimble was assigned to whichever Navarr candidate received the most support from Navarr owners of [[herb garden|herb gardens]]. As of the [[Crimson and green|Winter Solstice 387YE]], the Thimble has been lost to the vallorn.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Feverwater.png |title=The water of this massive lake is fresh but tainted with the taste of the marshes.|caption=Feverwater lake|align=right|width=350}}

===The Docks at Feverwater===
Built along the western shores of Feverwater in East Ashes are a series of ancient quays of aged weirwood and white granite. Some have collapsed, and others are now submerged or exposed as the waters of the massive freshwater lake have ebbed and flowed. The docks date back to the time of Terunael, and have been thoroughly explored by the modern Navarr; they seem to be much larger than would be appropriate for fishing the Feverwater, and the ruins around the area are certainly those of a reasonably large Terunael settlement. Their purpose remains a mystery - all that lies to the east of Therunin are the dark woodland homes of the Druj. During Summer 379YE, the [[Senate]] appointed the [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]] to oversee and expand the docks; boats regularly ply the western end of the great lake dredging the waters for valuables. [[Historical research]] commissioned by the [[Advisor on the Vallorn]] in Spring 384YE [[The_Feverwater_docks|further explored]] some of the mysteries of the Feverwater, and the provenance of the ancient quays here.
{{CaptionedImage|file=TheruninLake.jpg|title=Much of Therunin is marsh or open water.|caption=Lake Aescalon in the Lower Tarn Valley.|align=left|width=350}}
===Mudlark's Haven===
Mudlark’s Haven was a bustling steading that wrapped around the shore of the Feverwater protected behind a thick network of mangroves which acted as harbour walls. The steading was raised out of the water on stilts and was popular with traders heading south to [[Zenith]] and beyond, sailors looking for money dredging the Feverwater, and thorns preparing to head into [[Sarangrave]]. The steading’s taverns were always full of deals and celebrations.

At the mouth of the docks, amongst the mangroves and accessible by awkward platforms sat a building made of discarded dredging boats - the office of the Dredgemaster. Flags hanging off the outside were used to communicate the weather conditions. The docks were supplemented by a series of pontoons on wooden supports, some new and some dating back to the Terunael. The moored dredging vessels and houseboats knocked against the docks rhythmically along with the ebb and flow of the Feverwater.

When the Druj invaded Therunin, East Ashes was conquered and Mudlark's Haven served as a centre point for the orcs of the Mallum in their war against the Empire. As of Spring 388YE, the Haven is the only significant Druj settlement in East Ashes, and the barbarians there are trapped in a life-or-death struggle against the vallornspawn of the region.

===Holt of the Oak (ruined)===
This unique [[fortification]] was constructed in the [[#Lower Tarn Valley|Lower Tarn Valley]] by the [[Great Forest Orcs]] from [[weirwood]] rather than [[white granite]] as part of the [[Accept_Orcs_of_the_Great_Forest_treaty|treaty]] between the refugees and the Empire. The [[Fortify_Lower_Tarn_Valley_II|commission]] was beset by challenges but work was completed shortly before the Winter Solstice 383YE. A series of majestic weirwood towers surrounded by a wall topped with living thorns, the beautiful and imposing fortification was [[The_place_you_called_home#The_Holt_of_the_Oak|garrisoned]] by orc warriors - meaning that the Empire did not need to pay for its upkeep. Navarr and Great Forest orcs alike mixed freely in the shadow of the towers, and traders from other Imperial nations - with the notable exception of the Dawnish - found it to be an excellent place to meet and do business with the otherwise standoffish orcs.

If the treaty with the orcs were broken and the Great Forest orcs motivated to try and seize the Lower Tarn Valley the fortification would have taken no part in the initial fighting. If this had happened, and the orcs were to consolidate their control of the region, the fortification would have provided full support to any effort they made to conquer the territory or resist Imperial forces.
{{anchor|Peakedge Stead}}

===Peakedge Stead (ruined)===
One of the most important sites in Therunin, Peakedge Stead stood in western [[#Peakedge Song|Peakedge Song]]. What initially began as a [[steading]] dedicated to fighting the vallorn of Therunin was transformed over the centuries to a place of contemplation and healing. Some stories claim the steading was a remnant of long-lost Terunael; there was something ageless about the trees here. Most of the buildings were built in the spreading branches of these great trees, or clustered around the trunks of these immense green giants. Many of the trees were centuries old, some so tall that on a clear day a Navarr could stand on one of the viewing platforms and gaze across to the hills of [[Reikos]] and even the forests beyond.

Peakedge Stead was for a long time a place for the Navarr to meet with the people of Highguard, especially when it came to their shared interest in the arts of the physick and the apothecary. Some of the earliest work mastering the transformation of vinum sap into [[liao]] took place here, for example. During the occupation of Reikos by the Druj, the great tree-houses served as a sanctuary for those who were able to escape eastward out of the territory. Since the liberation, many of those former refugees returned to [[Reikos#High Chalcis|High Chalcis]] but many also chose to stay in Peakedge Stead. Some still maintained their Highborn identity, but a fair number - especially of the children born amidst the gentle tranquillity of this place - chose to become Navarr. They helped maintain the renown of the steading as one of the Empire's premiere locations for the study of herb lore and healing. In time they were joined by members of the [[Great Forest Orcs]] sept from [[the Barrens]], who brought with them their own understanding of the herbal arts. For several years representatives of the three groups worked in close harmony together to the betterment of all.

Sadly, Peakedge Stead is no more. When the Druj invaded, they sought to burn the place to the ground. Only the [[Willow_and_rain#Raincallers_Song|intervention]] of the eternal [[Ossegrahn]] balked their scheme when his servants hid the place behind impenetrable walls. Sadly, ''Lord Rain'' was unable to maintain the protection for long; after the Summer Solstice 387YE [[Songs_like_trees#In_the_Bitter_Rain|Peakedge Stead]] was burned to ashes by the Druj along with [[#Thornsong House|Thornsong House]].
==Regions==
{{CaptionedImage|file=Scuttling Abomination.jpg|caption=There are strange things in the mists of East Ashes|title=Artist's impression of the abomination spotted at Mudlark’s Haven.|align=right|width=350}}
===East Ashes===
'''Quality:''' Marsh, [[Region_qualities#Infested|Infested]]<br>
Stretching along the shores of the Feverwater, East Ashes is a twisted maze of great mangrove trees and murky water. Like the Tarn Valley it is home to several rare creatures, but the smaller beasts are overshadowed by the occasional incursion by a pack of [[Legendary_beasts#Hydra|hydra]]. Even the threat of the hydra is minor compared to the danger caused by the occasional [[marshwalkers]] attempting to migrate through East Ashes toward the Lower Tarn Valley - when they pass through Greenheart, they invariably rouse the insects there and emerge on the far side angry and twisted by the poisonous air of the vallorn. The Steading of Ruis Farkas is based in East Ashes. Since the death of Empress Britta, this small steading has been highly politically active in the Empire to ensure that Britta's successor has a strong Empire to lead.

While not truly haunted, this region has a reputation for being troubled; the core of that reputation can be traced to '''Fever’s Wake'''. Once a Navarri Glade of the Dead, but over a small space of days all the corpses laid there disappeared completely, with no sign they had ever existed. The area is shunned completely now.

East Ashes is the location of the [[Therunin#The_Docks_at_Feverwater|Feverwater Docks]] which originally date back to the time of Terunael. The docks were [[Permit_dredging_of_Feverwater|restored]] in 377YE and are overseen by the [[Dredgemaster of Feverwater]]. These were supplemented by the construction of [[#Mudlark's Haven|Mudlark's Haven]], a fortified steading on the edge of the Feverwater. Unfortunately both were captured by the [[Druj]] during their invasion of Therunin. As of Spring 388YE, it seems the remaining orcs of the Mallum are concentrated in the Haven, locked in a desperate struggle for survival with the vallorn.

In Winter 387YE, the [[Pilgrim's Defiance]] fought the expanding Tharunind vallorn here as recounted in the '''[[A bright cerulean flame]]''' wind of war. They were successful in preventing the region being consumed by the vallorn, but it was instead left [[region qualities#Infested|infested]] by vallornspawn which will need to be dealt with by any force attempting to reclaim East Ashes.

===Eastring===
'''Qualities:''' Forest, Marsh, Haunted, Vallorn, [[Region_qualities#Under_Threat|Under Threat]] (Empire)<br>
Originally recovered from the vallorn in 105YE, it [[Crimson and green|fell back into the grasp of Tharunind]] in the run-up to the Winter Solstice 387YE. For some time prior to that, it had been part of the Druj stranglehold on Therunin; the vallorn at least ended the dominion of the orcs of the Mallum. Sadly, in doing so, it added significant numbers of new orc vallornspawn husks to the dangers of Therunin.

The ground in Eastring used to be less marshy than that of the Lower Tarn Valley or East Ashes, but there were always several expanses of bayou especially in the west or south. Following the [[Light upon the water#Sodden Ground|terrible storms]] of late 384YE, the bayou spread across most of the region, drowning sections of already sodden land and turning the rest to fens and marshes. The Navarr and Great Forest Orcs were able to mitigate the worst of the rain in the rest of the territory, but it is no easy task. The transformation did nothing to reduce the large numbers of [[Mundane_beasts#Iridescent_Butterfly|iridescent butterflies]] that once flocked here, but while the forests remained rich in hard and softwoods the change in soil quality heavily impacted the previously flourishing lumber trade here.

Eastring was home to several fortified steadings, and a higher-than-average concentration of [[Thorn|Thorns]] due to the constant threat posed by the barbarian lands to the east and north. This was one of the first regions of Therunin cleared of vallorn influence and is the site of [[Thimble|the Thimble]], a valuable source of weirwood.

===Greenheart===
'''Qualities:''' Forest, Vallorn, Vallornheart<br>
The Tharunind vallorn holds the ruins at the centre of Therunin in a fierce grip. While other Navarr forests are generally more threatened by vine-infested husks, the monstrous insects of Greenheart greatly outnumber the unliving corpses. The ruins themselves are water-logged, with large sections submerged in marsh according to the few adventurous scouts who have penetrated into this deadly zone.

===Lower Tarn Valley===
'''Qualities:''' Marsh, Great Forest Orcs, [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|Poisoned]], [[Region_qualities#Under_Threat|Under Threat]] (Empire)<br>
The lower valley is boggy and marshy. It is known as an excellent location for herb gathering, and the steadings here tend to have large numbers of [[herb garden|herb gardens]]. The Lower Tarn Valley teems with rare wildlife seen nowhere else in the Empire - the delicate and deadly red crane, the somnolent bark alligator and the morose blue wave frog. Following the Summer Solstice 386YE, the [[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|spilling of ''Sephal's Cauldron'']] caused insidious Druj poison to [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|spread through the region]] rendering it extremely dangerous for Imperial armies to pass through or fight in.

Until the Druj [[Ashes|invasion]] the region was the centre of habitation for the [[Great Forest Orcs|Great Forest]] [[orc|orcs]]. They didn't control the region - it was still part of the Empire - but there was a sizeable population of orcs here living alongside their Navarr hosts. A small community of non-Imperial humans, all of whom are said to possess the [[briar]] [[lineage]] lived with the Great Forest orcs, and continue to be closely allied with them. While orcs from the Great Forest can be found across Therunin - and indeed the Empire since some of them began walking the [[trods]] - the heart of their community had been in the Lower Tarn Valley since they had arrived. The orcs maintained and garrisoned the [[#Holt of the Oak (Ruined)|Holt of the Oak]] here - a unique [[fortification]] that served to protect the Lower Tarn Valley from enemy invasion.

===Peakedge Song===
Comparatively lightly wooded, especially for a Navarr forest, the steadings of Peakedge Song maintained cordial relations with their neighbours to the north and south. The land here slopes quickly into the foothills of Morrow, and there are several valuable mines along the southern border. During the fall of [[Reikos#High Chalcis|High Chalcis]] the Navarr led several rescue missions across the borders, and as a consequence a number of Highborn refugees camped there, especially in the tree-top town of [[#Peakedge Stead|Peakedge Stead]]. With the final liberation of Reikos, many of them have chose to return - but a significant number chose to remain as permanent residents of the steading. At the same time, a number of Navarr chose to move to Reikos - initially to help in the establishment of the [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Gardens_of_High_Chalcis|Gardens of High Chalcis]], but they also founded a small settlement on the edge of the forest not far from the now-fallen Peakedge Stead. Ironically perhaps, when Peakedge Song fell to the Druj, refugees from Therunin found sanctuary in Reikos in the same way the Highborn had one taken sanctuary among the Navarr.

===Sweetglades===
'''Qualities:''' Forest, Vallorn<br>
The forests of the Sweetglades are ironically named; the vallorn holds sway here. It was from Sweetglades that the attacks on Eastring, and East Ashes erupted and as a consequence there is a higher than normal prevalence of former orcs among the vallornspawn husks that infest the area.

===Upper Tarn Valley===
Looking down on the Lower Tarn Valley, the Upper Valley is comparatively dry but the soil here is rich and healthy. The steadings here take advantage of this fertility, and the relative dearth of trees, to maintain extensive agriculture. The largest steading in the Upper Tarn Valley is '''Return''', a well-fortified settlement surrounded by tall watchtowers that looked out across the forests to the north and east. A place of flowers and memory, the steading had a storied history, but was ultimately harrowed by the schemes of the eternal [[Yaw'nagrah]] and her efforts to rouse the Therunin vallorn. The exemplar [[Gerallt Brackensong]] lost his life thwarting those plans. Today, the old steading is abandoned and has been largely reclaimed by the marsh, the forest, and the great insects although it remains by all accounts quite beautiful.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Travid8781.jpg|caption='''Travid Longest Path''', last Senator for Therunin|align=left|width=350}}
{{Senate Elections|Senator_for_Therunin|Territory=Therunin|Season=Autumn|Controlled=was}}

==Strategic Considerations==
Thanks to the presence of the Feverwater, [[Army|campaign armies]] cannot move east from [[#East Ashes|East Ashes]] to [[Sarangrave]], nor can East Ashes be invaded from the east, without an appropriate [[opportunity]].

The vallorn in Sweetglades and Greenheart mean that it is only possible to move from Therunin to [[Morrow#Peregro|Peregro]] in [[Morrow]] through [[#East Ashes|East Ashes]], and vice versa. Likewise the vallorn in [[#Eastring|Eastring]] represents a significant obstacle to anyone trying to move an army between the Tarn Valley and East Ashes.

==OOC Notes==
* As of the start of the Winter Solstice 387YE, the vallorn dominates Eastring, Greenheart, and Sweetglades, and the Druj [[Songs_like_trees#Game Information|nominally]] control the rest of the territory.
* The [[#Holt of the Oak|Holt of the Oak]] was a unique level one [[fortification]] built and garrisoned by the [[Great Forest Orcs]] before its destruction by the Druj before [[Ashes#The_Shelter_of_the_Oak|Summer 386YE]]
* The [[Great Forest Orcs]] had their main settlement in the Lower Tarn Valley but hunting parties can be encountered everywhere except Eastring, Greenheart, and Sweetglades.
==Further Reading==
* [[A bright cerulean flame]] - Spring 388YE Wind of War
* [[Crimson and green]] - Winter 387YE Wind of War
* [[Songs like trees]] - Autumn 387YE Wind of War
* [[Willow and rain]] - Summer 387YE Wind of War
* [[To hold death's hand in mine]] - Spring 387YE Wind of War
* [[Under eastern skies]] - Winter 386YE Wind of War
* [[Blood and mire]] - Autumn 386YE Wind of War
* [[Ashes]] - Summer 386YE Wind of War
* [[Make a deal]] - Spring 384YE Wind of Fortune detailing several opportunities to improve the prosperity of Therunin
* [[The Feverwater docks]] - Historical Research into the Feverwater and the docks there
[[Category:Navarr]]
[[Category:Gazetteer]][[Category:Druj]]
[[Category:Vallorn]]

The dose makes the poison

2026-08-19T12:03:55Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Axe of Dusk.jpg|align=left|caption=The Golden Axe brave the rotting marshes of Therunin, and the spiteful poison that pools there.|width=500}}</div>
==Gold Axe and Iron Boot==
The rich bayou and dense forests of [[Therunin]] are a shadow of what they once were. Since the [[Ashes#Ring_of_Ashes|surprise assault]] of the Druj a little over two years ago, the [[Navarr]] territory has been torn by war and poison, ravaged by [[Spring magic#Chaos|chaos]] and [[Spring magic#Ruin|ruin]]. The [[Thimble]] was lost, the [[Therunin#Holt_of_the_Oak_(ruined)|Holt of the Oak]] fell, [[Isaella's Dance]] and the [[Iron Helms]] made the ultimate sacrifice to help their allies win free of a Druj trap, the ancient hospital of [[Therunin#Peakedge Stead|Peakedge Stead]], the newly built apothecary college of [[Thornsinger#Thornsong House|Thornsong House]] burned, and [[Ossegrahn|Lord Rain]] withdrew his healing rains from the Empire. Worse, the wicked sorcerers of the [[Druj_armies#Tainted_Basilisk|Tainted Basilisk]] roused the vallorn of Tharunind. Only the [[Songs_like_trees#That_Hill_and_Wood_Shall_Slay|valiant efforts]] of [[Wolves of War|League soldiers]] and [[Golden Sun|Dawnish knights]] saved [[Therunin#Peakedge Stead|Peakedge Stead]] from being overwhelmed; only the courage of [[Pilgrim's Defiance|Highborn pilgrims]] protected [[Therunin#East Ashes|East Ashes]] from [[A_bright_cerulean_flame|being consumed]]. Despite all that sacrifice, all that valorous desperation, [[Therunin#Eastring|Eastring]] was [[Crimson_and_green|still lost]] and while the Druj paid a high price for their arrogance, there is no hope of the steadings or the [[weirwood]] groves being recovered until that day when the Empire takes the final battle to the vallorn.
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;">
<quote by="Vojsuli Cherenkov, General of the Golden Axe">Warriors of the Axe, this season we march to Therunin. We march to where the Iron Helms & Isaella's Dance paid the ultimate price. To where the bonds of Loyalty between Varushka and Navarr were deepened. For too long have the people of Therunin been cut off from our Empire. The dread gaze of Blood-on-the-Snow has turned to the people of Therunin offering false hope. We reject the lies of this Eternal! We march to show the people of Therunin that they are not forgotten. To the Navarr of Therunin, look to the east. We are coming.</quote>
</div>
Into this crucible of pain comes the worst of all possible friends - the [[eternal]] known as ''Twigsnap'', as the ''Giver of Gifts'' and ''Blood-on-the-Snow''. ''He who calls the Lost to Feast''. [[Agramant]]. "''Nobody else cares about Therunin save me''", he whispers. "''I am the only friend to the people of Therunin''", he claims. "''I will help you take back what the Empire has denied you''", he wheedles. And to be sure he has [[The_thing_with_feathers#Heartbreaking_(Agramant)|offered sweet gifts]], and [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Beast_Below_(Agramant)|despite the warnings]] some of those who still remain in Therunin have heeded his words.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=GoldenAxe Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>

Now the Empire responds, and the warriors of the [[Golden Axe|Axe]] march to Therunin. They march in part to deepen the bonds between [[Varushka]] and Navarr, and to urge the people to reject the false hope offered by the ''Cannibal King''. Up out of the [[Sarangrave#Turan Flats|Turan Flats]] they go, fording the Unnamed River at [[Sarangrave#Turan|Turan]], thence to the [[The_Barrens#The_Bleaks|Bleaks]] and a sojourn at the [[The_Barrens#Last_Battle_Wayhouse|Last Battle Wayhouse]]. There the captains meet with the steading that calls that place home, still, despite the jealous anger of the Karass. The Navarr scouts have kept as close an eye on the [[Therunin#Lower Tarn Valley|Lower Tarn Valley]] as they have on the Sarangrave; they are ready to serve as guides to the poisoned morass the Druj have made of that once-beautiful marshland.

The dour Varushkan warriors are bound around with [[Day magic]] that grants vital [[Clarity of the Master Strategist|clarity]] for the battle that is to come. A half-handful of [[Military unit|Imperial captains]] accompany them, but for the most part it is the warriors of the Axe alone that walk south out of the Barrens into the ruin of the Lower Tarn. As they march, orcs watch them from the trees. The Karass resent the Last Battle, and resent the Imperials who visit. They make no effort to impede the army - they are not so brave - but neither do they offer any aid. It's doubtful they have much to give anyway; their warriors are busy in [[the Mallum]] after all.
{{CaptionedImage|file=GeneralGoldenAxe.jpg|caption='''Vojsuli Cherenkov''' (right), General of the Golden Axe|align=right|width=300}}
So, gathering momentum as they go, the Golden Axe leaves the Bleaks and enters a Therunin that is, at least in theory, still held by the Druj.

==Haunted Bayou==
Therunin is haunted, there can be no doubt. For the Golden Axe, it is the spectre of the Iron Helms that they spy beneath the hunched trees of the Tarn Valley. They paid an ultimate price, paid it willingly, and if the story is to be believed some of them still fight on despite having died a year or more ago. The [[Quickening Cold Meat|bitter gifts]] of [[Winter magic]] have a way of lingering. Perhaps it was those lingering spirits who fought beside the Iron Helms that drew the black-eyed gaze of the ''Devourer of the Fallen'' here in the first place. Either way, every Varushkan knows that death is certain, and rarely pretty.

Dwelling on the dead does not pave the path to victory, however, and the soldiers of the Golden Axe are rarely given to introspection when there is battle to be joined. It is not the dead, or their echo, that faces them in the Lower Tarn Valley but the very real threat of the remaining Druj and the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisonous]] legacy of [[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|the Sephals Cauldron]] that occupies their thoughts. The Last Battle scouts warned the Varushkans how bad it was, but even so they are barely prepared.

Its been two years since the Druj spilled the Sephals Cauldron in the Lower Tarn, in an effort to punish Imperial armies fighting in the territory, and a failed attempt to spread their wickedness into the Barrens. Since then, time and [[Spring magic]] both have worked a terrible transformation on the once-fertile Lower Tarn Valley. With the waters poisoned, much of the vegetation here has died and rotted, creating a foul-smelling miasma that hangs at the bottom of the valley like a curse. The skeletons of people, oxen, and beasts lie in stagnant pools of filth, undisturbed by scavengers or predators, food only for the flies that everywhere swarm in buzzing black clouds. What few trees remain, hardy enough to resist or with roots deep enough to reach untainted water far below, are still clearly sick. Their fruit is blotched, marred by the taint of venom, and the first fool to ignore the caution of their friends and pluck a misshapen apple from a sagging bough dies raving within the day.

Not everything is dead - mushroom and fungus both prosper here, feeding on death, untouched by the residue of that twisted cauldron. A particular kind of moss, of all things, has adapted to the poison in the worst possible way. ''Toragh's Beard'' as it has been named by the Navarr, in "honour" of an infamous master of the poisoners arts, hangs in strands from dying trees and the moisture that drips from it contains concentrated venom that burns the skin like acid. Some of the great insects that Therunin is known for have survived, but as with the trees they show signs of sickness. Many have clearly been driven mad by constant pain. Even here, though, their numbers are greatly depleted. One of the things that presses on the awareness of the Varushkan soldiers is the oppressive silence. For hours on end the only sounds are those of boots squelching in mud, the splash of feet in shallow water, ragged breathing, the susurrus of dying wind through dead reeds.

==Those Left Behind==
{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj2.jpg|title=The Razor Skink - symbol of the Chikad|caption=The Razor Skink - symbol of the Chikad|align=right|width=200}}
The Golden Axe are not here for a nature walk though, they are [[Army orders#Overwhelming Assault|here to conquer]]. There are still Druj in the Lower Tarn Valley. Most have taken over the abandoned steadings, or the settlements once raised by the [[Great Forest Orcs]]. At first they present a nearly negligible threat to the Varushkan warriors, armed with up-to-date intelligence provided by the Last Battle steading. It is also clear that, with the route east into Sarangrave sealed by the vallorn and the Empire, they have fragmented and fallen to that factionalism that so often overcomes the barbarians of the Mallum where there is neither outside threat, nor a strong leader to keep them together.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on where one stands, news of the Golden Axe spreads in widening ripples across the Tarn Valley, and up into Peakedge Song. The first few engagements go overwhelmingly in favour of the Varushkans, the Druj barely able to respond before their life-blood spills out onto the poisoned ground. Then, after less than a week, the silence is riven by the pounding of drums, those great echoing drums some Druj use to communicate over great distances. "''Beware!''" they shout to those who know how to understand their tongue. "''The Empire comes! The Het summons!''"

A [[Druj_champion#Het|Het]], then, in the Lower Tarn Valley. The Navarr had rumours of such a thing - a warlord of one of the [[Arkad]] who sought to weld the Druj remnants in Therunin into some kind of order. ''Egrech Skinrazor'', a second-rate [[Arkad#Chikad|Chikad]] commander marooned in western Therunin when they fled the fall of Eastring to the vallorn. With the backing of neither [[Druj lore#Buruk Tepel|Buruk Tepel]] nor sept, they brought together the remaining ''Tepel'' apothecaries and sought to kill any who would not accept their "protection". Controlling the [[potion|potions]] and [[herb|herbs]] the Druj are used to having in profusion, they seek to control those left in the Tarn Valley. The Last Battle say they have done well, considering the naturally treacherous nature of the Druj.

From that point on, the fighting is a little less one sided. Oh, there is never any doubt the Golden Axe will prevail. There are nearly seven thousand Varushkan warriors, possessed of supernatural strategic acumen, supported by scouts who have made a study of both the weaknesses and strengths of the forces here. Yet there is a cost to their victories; soldiers lives are spent to overrun the barbarians' positions. The poison that seeps into everything begins to take a toll of its own; supplies of fresh water and wholesome food are all very well but there is only so much that can be done. Open wounds allow poison to seep into the blood. Even something as simple as slipping in the mud, never mind being knocked prone by some renegade [[Arkad#Pakkad|pakkad]] in the fury of battle, can lead to tainted water or droplets of poisoned mud being swallowed. The healers that accompany the Varushkans do their best, but the pace has been set hard and fast. The emphasis here is on ''victory'' and all too often a [[surgical skills#Physick|physick]] arrives to find their patient already cooling.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBNavarr.jpg|align=right|width=200}}</div>
The Druj are not the only people in the Tarn Valley, however. There are a handful of isolated Navarr steadings who have refused to leave. Through everything - the rampage of the Druj and the poisoning of the marshes and the rousing of the vallorn - they have remained steadfast. Most paid the ultimate price, tortured by the invaders or forced to seek the cold oblivion of [[Kaela#The_Gift_of_Kaela|Kaela's Gift]]. Some withdrew to the places they knew the Druj would not follow, into the depths of [[Therunin#Greenheart|Greenheart]], and while many were lost as Tharunind awoke, others survived and continue to strike against the Druj encampments to the north.

Some of these steadings emerge as the Varushkans press south into the Tarn Valley. They are on the verge of collapse, starved of provisions and supplies, but still they fight. There is no doubt that some of them have heard the words of ''Wastewalker'', and like ''Dochas of the Weeping Glade'' have taken his gifts, but now is not the time to balance that scale. It is not the Varushkan way to question those who feel they must take dark bargains to survive and as long as they are discreet, most soldiers do not pry too closely. Don't ask questions you don't want answered, older soldiers tell their younger comrades. It is for [[general|generals]] and [[archmage|archmages]] and priests to argue over the right and the wrong of tainted weapons, not those who know they must face the greater darkness. Even so there are a few too far gone to trust. The thorns of ''Willowjoy Steading'', who file their teeth to points, who wear armour decorated with flayed orc faces, and who openly fight alongside the long-armed, black-clawed, shaggy beasts of the [[Realms#Winter|Wasteland]] receive short shrift. When a Varushkan soldier spies them gnawing their way into the belly of a fallen Druj, the response is swift, merciless, and bloody.

Realistically it is only a few of the emerging Navarr who are suspect. The rest have done what their people always do. Scattered, hidden, prepared, rationed their food, and water, and arrows. Made contingencies, used their mastery of woodcraft to scout and where possible ambush or assassinate. They may treat the Varushkans with a little suspicion - more than one voices surprise it is the Golden Axe and not the [[Black Thorns]] or the [[Quiet Step]] that have come to Therunin and the small number of orcs of the Great Forest who fled with them have their own reason to be cautious of Varushkan warriors. Yet for all that, they nonetheless welcome the Imperial soldiers as cousins, and a welcome sign the Empire has not forgotten them. Their intelligence, added to that provided by the Last Dance, paints a more detailed picture of life in the Lower Tarn Valley.

''Egrech Skinrazor'' has gathered his forces around him at the ''Razorhill'' - the ruins of what was once the [[Therunin#Holt_of_the_Oak_(ruined)|Holt of the Oak]]. Partially reinforced with [[weirwood|wood]] from the Thimble - before the tendrils of the vallorn sealed all access to the weirwood grove - they fly poorly-painted banners of black lizards from their palisade, and adorn the walls with mortal remains stolen from the defiled [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Funerals|corpse glades]]. They raid those other septs who do not bow to Egrech's dominion, seeking always to claim the herbs they need to ensure their warriors continue to resist the very taint the Druj brought to the Lower Tarn. They trade their jealously hoarded supply of weirwood to the warlords of the Upper Tarn and Peakedge for more herbs but their reserves must by now be dwindling.

It is ironic, perhaps, that a region once known for the generosity of its herb gardens has been so ruined that even [[true vervain]] must be carefully rationed. A perfect example of the madness of the Druj.

==On Razorhill==
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Thorns.png|align=left|width=400}}</div>
The ''Blackrazor'' aspire to be a sept but they are really little more than a rabble of murderers and thieves. Egrech may fancy themselves a great het, but they are clearly nothing more than a scrabbling power-hungry fool desperate to enforce their will on those weaker than them, living in fear of those stronger. For all their talk, as the Golden Axe approach the low hill where the Holt of the Oak once stood the forces "loyal" to Egrech are quick to retreat behind their ramshackle walls. Once a beautiful structure of living wood and timber shaped by the Great Forest Orcs as a sign of their alliance with the Navarr, the Razorhill is little more than a lopsided palisade with a handful of watch towers surrounded by a shallow moat. The moat, rather than the walls or the wooden towers, is the real danger here. The foul, filthy water that fills it stinks like an open sewer but there are telltale rainbow patterns on the surface that speak of the concentrated poison that fills the wide trench.

The Golden Axe do not waste time when they arrive. Forewarned by the Navarr, they carry as part of their baggage train three dozen tree trunks cut down on the edges of the Bleaks where the trees still stand hale and hearty. They also have two wagons filled with the rubble and ruin of the broken steadings and settlements they have dealt with on their route here. Even as Druj archers begin their hail of arrows on the attackers, the Golden Axe raise their heavy shields to protect those charged with putting these preparations to good use. Bridges are laid down, and sections of the trench are filled with rubble, allowing the Varushkans to chop their way through the leaning perimeter wall and force the Druj to face them directly.

Egrech Razorscale has tried to rule by fear, and it shows. Without the bare minimum protection granted by keeping the Golden Axe at bowlength, any suggestion of discipline or coordination melts like ice on an anvil. As veterans of the Mallum know, however, desperation makes these barbarians more dangerous, not less. Flame erupts as some of the tents and shanty buildings catch fire; cornered Druj hurl themselves with murderous fury at the attackers. Many are clearly using the preparation the Imperial Orcs euphemistically dubbed ''[[Double-sided Blade#Warming Armour|Warming Armour]]'' but the Druj know as ''Warspice''. It drives them into a frenzy, lets them fight long after the point where they should have collapsed, but when they finally succumb to their wounds death claims them quickly, the blood flowing hot and fast into the churned mud within the walls of Razorhill.

The cunning Druj still have surprises for the Empire. With half the army on one side of the shallow, poison moat and the rest inside the walls of Razorhill, a hundred or so orc barbarians erupt from hides and shallow pits along their flanks. It's a tactic the barbarians have used before, but never in such poisoned earth. Many of the ambushers show signs of spreading poison, but they hardly seem to care - ''[[Double-sided_Blade#Weakening Sun|Corpseskin]]'' the Druj call it, a drug that removes pain but makes those who use it all too pliable and suggestible. They fight with a grim determination, grinning as the Varushkans hack them apart. For a brief period it looks like this attack might cause some real problem for the Imperial forces - many of the hidden orcs bear bows that they use with deadly accuracy despite their drugged state.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Fire and thorns.jpg|align=right|width=400}}</div>
Then, without warning, the ambushers are themselves ambushed. A cohort of silent Navarr appear seemingly out of nowhere, and rain their own arrows down on the attackers from behind. Caught between the Varushkan anvil and the Navarr hammer, the balance shifts catastrophically against the Druj attackers. They fall pierced by red-fletched shafts or hewn by iron axes. For a moment, the two forces stare at each other over the pile of bodies; then the unexpected archers disappear back into the gathering darkness of late evening. Some of the thorns fighting with the Varushkan army later identify them as warriors of the Weeping Glade; those who have gathered to the banner of ''Dochas'' and openly bear the fell boons offered by ''Whisperer''.

Inside the palisade, the fighting is almost done when Egrech Razorscale reveals the final element of their trap. The fire that spreads among the tents is not an accident; barrels of oil and pitch gathered from conquered steadings have been cunningly hidden in the rough encampment. Some of the Druj have concealed themselves with hand-axes and as the fire spreads they smash these barrels flooding sections of the ruined keep with a horrible, sticky, flammable substance. Others hurl clay pots full of the stuff and follow them with lit torches. Within minutes, the flames are beyond control. The Varushkans are forced to pull back, as walls of fire erupt into the darkened sky.

Unfortunately for the Druj, the soldiers of the Golden Axe are neither fools nor bloodthirsty barbarians. Once it is clear what is happening the retreat sounds and the army falls back across the bridges to the other side of the moat. Razorhill is consumed, the roaring of the conflagration almost drowning out the screams of the Druj left behind, immolated by flames set by their own leader. The tongues of fire leap high into the sky, visible for miles across the flat, poisoned marshes.

Egrech Razorscale is not here. The self-styled het of the Blackrazors was never here. Along with the tepel herbalists they had impressed, along with the core of their supporters, they have fled west towards the Upper Tarn Valley, leaving the bulk of those foolish enough to trust to their leadership to die. Sacrificed to try and harm the Varushkan army enough that it would give up, perhaps. If that was the intent of the Razorscale, it represents a woeful lack of understanding of the Varushkan spirit.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Ripple effect on water.jpg|caption=Despite the victory of the Golden Axe, the insidious poison created by the Sephals Cauldron continues to taint the Lower Tarn Valley.|align=right|width=400}}</div>

==Mopping Up==
Over the next few weeks, the Golden Axe meet with limited resistance. Any Druj who were not lured to Razorhill by Egrech's hollow promise of security, or who did not flee west, are mercilessly and swiftly dealt with. As the Autumn Equinox gets closer, the Golden Axe declares victory. There are still a few warbands of Druj here and there but they are in disarray, fleeing, easy prey for anyone who would hunt them.

Very few prisoners or slaves were liberated from the Druj encampments; presumably any Navarr that had not fled or sought sanctuary in the isolated steadings chose to take that bitter gift that [[Kaela]] offers Imperial citizens captured by the Druj. There are a handful of terrified orc thralls, dragged here by the Druj when they thought they might make Therunin a part of the Mallum, who cower from the Varushkans as they cowered from their cruel overlords. The Golden Axe have minimal comfort to offer them, but most are taken in by the Navarr who still abide in Therunin.

There is one unexpected treasure amidst the rot and ruin of Therunin. One of the last Druj encampments dealt with by the Golden Axe lies along the raised road that once connected the Lower Tarn Valley to Eastring. Here, concealed beneath canvas and mud, the soldiers uncover wagons laden with weirwood. There's no doubt that this is a shipment of wains from the Thimble, likely being transported west to shore up Druj defences as the vallorn ate their settlements to the east. It is only a fraction of the bounty of the Thimble - five wains - but even so it is doubtless better to deny the Druj this treasure. The Golden Axe take custody of the material. Even this offers scant comfort, however, to those sickened by the poison that still infests the marshes here. To those who have lost comrades, friends, loved ones to the Druj or to the mud. Maybe as many as three hundred soldiers have died here, more often to the terrible residue of the Sephals Cauldron that to the fight with the Druj - and that poison is not going anywhere any time soon.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Regionsoftherunin.png|title=Regions of Therunin|align=right|width=400}}
==Game Information==
===Therunin===
* '''The Golden Axe have claimed the region of the Lower Tarn Valley
* '''The General of the Golden Axe has received 5 wains of weirwood recovered from Therunin
* '''The Druj still control Peakedge Song, Upper Tarn Valley, and East Ashes; Sweetglades, Greenheart, and Eastring are completely dominated by the vallorn
* '''Lower Tarn Valley still has the poisoned quality
The Empire now controls the ruins of the Lower Tarn Valley. The Druj control three regions, and the vallorn controls the other three. As such, no one force has overall control of the territory. The Lower Tarn Valley still has the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] quality, and will cause casualties to any Imperial armies that fight there or move through it on their way to attack somewhere else. A key element in the victory here was the assistance of Last Battle Wayhouse in the Barrens - the fact the Lower Tarn Valley has the [[Region_qualities#Under_Threat|Under Threat]] quality provided a major advantage toward claiming an actual beachhead in the territory. The Imperial attack also benefitted from the support of Dochas and the warriors of the Weeping Glade, who attacked at the pivotal moment at the battle of Razorhill.

The General of the Golden Axe has received 5 wains of weirwood, recovered from the territory. While the weirwood clearly came from the groves of the [[Thimble]], it is legally the property of the general.

None of the military units supporting the Golden Axe received a share of the Imperial Guerdon.

There are a few Navarr steadings in Therunin that resist the Druj, the most prominent being that led by [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Beast_Below_(Agramant)|Dochas of the Weeping Glade]]. The wicked eternal [[Agramant]] has been offering aid to the Navarr to take back their territory from the Druj, while denouncing the Empire for abandoning the territory and the people who remain here. There are signs of heralds of the Whisperer everywhere in Therunin, but the situation does not seem to have got any worse in the last season at least.

The stretch of land controlled by the vallorn that runs across the middle of Therunin creates a strategic challenge, similar to that which exists in [[Brocéliande]] and once caused problems in [[Liathaven]]. It is not possible to move between East Ashes to the south and the northern regions of the territory, and vice versa, without passing through the vallorn. Any fighting there would be considered a separate engagement to fighting in the north, and the [[A_bright_cerulean_flame|recent engagement]] of the Pilgrim's Defiance there indicates that there is still a Druj presence in East Ashes centred around the Feverwater Docks.

===Poisoned Marsh===
* '''The poisoned quality presents a strategic challenge
The [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] quality means that each Imperial campaign army that moves through, or fights in, the region suffers 250 casualties during that season of campaigning (which may be increased by the orders issued to the army). The ritual [[Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker]] protects an army from this effect, but orders have no effect to reduce these casualties.

The Empire now has a beachhead in Therunin, but the virulence of the poisoned quality there presents a challenge to any attempts to use that beachhead to attack the [[Therunin#Upper Tarn Valley|Upper Tarn Valley]]. There are two options here:
* Imperial forces could move to attack Upper Tarn Valley, using the beachhead they have created here. If they do so, any army participating will suffer the effects of the poisoned quality.
* Alternatively, they could pull back out of Therunin and attack the Upper Tarn Valley from [[the Barrens#Hope's Rest|Hope's Rest]] - avoiding the poisoned quality but needing to take a new beachhead to do so.

All this presupposes that the poisoned quality still persists, of course.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Apothecaries Guild.png|title=Imperial Apothecaries' Guild|align=right|width=240}}
===Sucking the Poison===
* '''Members of the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild could act to treat the poison in the Lower Tarn Valley'''
* '''Any member of the sodality that takes the special action to treat the poison for the season will see their production halved'''
* '''The work will require at least 30 members of the sodality to act each season to make progress'''
* '''Two seasons of success will be required to clear the poison'''
* '''It will cost the Imperial treasury thirty thrones each season until the poison is removed'''
The "antidote" to the Druj poison is known thanks to the [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild|Imperial Apothecaries' Guild]]. [[Wasp_nest#Isolating_an_Antidote|Ioric's Elixir]] is a herbal preparation that can be combined with fresh water to cleanse the Lower Tarn Valley of the horror the Sephals Cauldron has created here. Indeed, shortly after the [[Imperial sodality]] was formed, they tried to deal with the poison but ran afoul of an invading Druj army and were forced to abandon their efforts. The [[Senate]] already [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Imperial_Apothecaries_Guild_to_Therunin|instructed]] the Apothecaries' Guild to apply the antidote in 383YE so there's no need for further license to empower the sodality to get to work. All that is required is for the sodality to meet and vote to begin their work in the Lower Tarn Valley. A simple majority of the members attending a meeting to discuss the matter would be sufficient, and even if they were to vote not to undertake the effort immediately, as long as the situation didn't change dramatically there'd be no problem with them delaying a season or two.

Unfortunately, as mentioned already, the two years that have passed since the [[opportunity]] was first presented have not been kind. The poison has sunk deep into the earth and water of Therunin. The [[Wasp_nest#Practical_Solutions|basic principle]] is sound; removing the poisoned quality will take six months, and cost the [[Imperial treasury]] 30 thrones each season. There is some risk - there are still Druj in Therunin - but the enemy there are disorganised and the remaining Navarr and their winter allies are prepared to offer protection to the Guild if need be.

Once the Apothecaries' Guild votes to start cleansing the poison, it will cost the Senate 30 Thrones each season until the project is completed or the guild votes to abandon it. It will however require a much more focused effort to actually cleanse the poison, and more expert work not only to deal with the problem itself but to protect those confronting it.

If the sodality votes to undertake the work, it will create a special opportunity in downtime following the event. This opportunity will be available ''only'' to members of the Apothecaries' Guild who possess ''either'' the [[Surgical skills#Physick|physick]] or [[Surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecary]] skill. Other characters can roleplay their involvement, but only those with expert knowledge of how to use [[herbs]] will be able to directly contribute to the cleansing of the Lower Tarn Valley. Each season it will require '''at least 30 members''' with the appropriate skill to support the operation, or it will make no headway. It requires two seasons (which need not be consecutive) to complete the work.

The nature of the opportunity varies depending on their personal resource, but involves participating in the cleansing of Lower Tarn Valley. Any character who does so is assumed to either travel to the territory, or to provide support and resources to those doing the work.

* If a character supporting the operation in the Lower Tarn Valley controls a [[fleet]] or [[military unit]], it will be able to take a ''guarding'' [[voyage]] or [[venture]] as appropriate, which will provide a standard military unit or fleet with seven random herbs. Rituals that boost a fleet or military unit that is undertaking a guarding action will benefit as normal.
* A congregation will be able to perform a [[Congregation#Lectures|lecture]] that means they will receive Synod votes as normal but lose ''all'' their [[liao]].
* A character with any other personal resource will lose ''half'' its production for that season.

This personal cost has caused some people associated with the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild to question the wisdom of trying to deal with the poison - it comes at a significantly greater cost to the members than it would have done two years ago. Nobody has quite come out and said it, but perhaps the sodality might wish to negotiate with the Senate to secure some concessions in return for putting their livelihoods - and potentially their lives - on the line.

====Peak Pharmacy====
<div style="float: right; width: 250px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Highborn.png|width=250px}}</div>
* '''The Benefactor of High Chalcis could choose to support the Apothecaries' Guild by redirecting herbs from Highguard
* '''The Gardens of High Chalcis would provide no benefits, the Benefactor would lose their sinecure, and the High Herbalist of Sybella would have fewer herbs available to them, but
* '''Doing so would remove the need for the Senate to pay to support the Apothecaries' Guild efforts
The poison in Therunin has advanced to the point where it is no longer feasible for the [[Benefactor of High Chalcis]] to simply [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Redirect_the_Bounty|redirect the bounty]] of Reikos to [[Wasp_nest#Peak_Pharmacy|resolve it]]. That is not to say that the herbalists of Reikos could not provide valuable assistance. They could however provide the large number of herbs needed and remove the cost to the Imperial Treasury. Instead the majority of the herbs would come from High Chalcis, and any shortfall would be made up by devout herbalists in other parts of [[Highguard]]. As always, however, using this power would mean the [[great work]] would provide no additional herbs to the herb gardens of Reikos during the time it took to clear the poisonous taint, and the Benefactor themselves would receive no personal herbs either. This decision would ''also'' have implications for the [[High Herbalist of Sybella]] – with fewer herbs available to buy in Highguard they would lose access to the top two ranks of their ministry while the purification takes place (this would not impact their ability to buy herbs from the Kruidenkenner however).

Once committed, the effects would start as soon as the Apothecaries' Guild chose to begin cleansing the taint, and persist until the corruption was removed from the Lower Tarn Valley, the Benefactor chose to end them with another announcement, or the sodality ended the endeavour.
====Militant Physicks====
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=ValiantPegasus_Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=BloodCloak_Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>
* '''The Valiant Pegasus, Bloodcloaks, or an army under Bound by Common Cause could help clear the poison, reducing the time needed to a single season'''
* '''Any army working in the region would suffer the effects of poison unless protected by the enchantment Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker'''
The poison has sunk in, but there is still a chance for the [[Bloodcloaks]] or [[Valiant Pegasus]] to offer their aid here, even [[Wasp_nest#Militant_Physicks|after two years]]. Unfortunately, things have progressed to the point where it needs much more expert herbal lore than even the physicks of these two armies can easily provide. If either of these armies were to come to Therunin, however, and use their [[Army_qualities#Physick|Tend the Fallen]] order they would reduce the time needed to cleanse the region from six months to three months. There is a risk to such a plan, of course, in that the army would be exposed to the very poison quality they were cleansing. But the magisters of Highguard point out that the Winter ritual [[Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker]] provides protection to soldiers from poison. The Valiant Pegasus – or the physicks of the [[Bloodcloaks]] of [[Wintermark]] – could be defended from the corruption of the Tarn Valley if they bore the enchantment.

Regardless, an army involved in helping to deal with the poisoning of the Lower Tarn Valley would ''not'' be eligible for natural resupply while assisting the Apothecaries' Guild.

It would still cost the Imperial treasury 30 thrones, unless the people of Reikos provided their herbs, and still need the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild to commit themselves and their resources to the project for a season.

==Further Reading==
* [[Therunin]]
* [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Beast_Below_(Agramant)|The keys of blood]] - 386YE Autumn wind of fortune relating to the interest of Agramant in Therunin
* [[The_thing_with_feathers#Heartbreaking_(Agramant)|The thing with the feathers]] - 387YE Winter wind of fortune about Agramant's attitude to Therunin
* [[Ashes#Poison_and_Ashes_(Battle_Opportunity)|Poison and ashes]] - 386YE battle opportunity around the Sephals Cauldron
* [[Wasp nest]] - 386 Winter wind of fortune discussing the poisoning of Lower Tarn Valley; while the opportunities here have been superseded the history and context remain the same

The dose makes the poison

2026-08-19T12:02:41Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Axe of Dusk.jpg|align=left|caption=The Golden Axe brave the rotting marshes of Therunin, and the spiteful poison that pools there.|width=500}}</div>
==Gold Axe and Iron Boot==
The rich bayou and dense forests of [[Therunin]] are a shadow of what they once were. Since the [[Ashes#Ring_of_Ashes|surprise assault]] of the Druj a little over two years ago, the [[Navarr]] territory has been torn by war and poison, ravaged by [[Spring magic#Chaos|chaos]] and [[Spring magic#Ruin|ruin]]. The [[Thimble]] was lost, the [[Therunin#Holt_of_the_Oak_(ruined)|Holt of the Oak]] fell, [[Isaella's Dance]] and the [[Iron Helms]] made the ultimate sacrifice to help their allies win free of a Druj trap, the ancient hospital of [[Therunin#Peakedge Stead|Peakedge Stead]], the newly built apothecary college of [[Thornsinger#Thornsong House|Thornsong House]] burned, and [[Ossegrahn|Lord Rain]] withdrew his healing rains from the Empire. Worse, the wicked sorcerers of the [[Druj_armies#Tainted_Basilisk|Tainted Basilisk]] roused the vallorn of Tharunind. Only the [[Songs_like_trees#That_Hill_and_Wood_Shall_Slay|valiant efforts]] of [[Wolves of War|League soldiers]] and [[Golden Sun|Dawnish knights]] saved [[Therunin#Peakedge Stead|Peakedge Stead]] from being overwhelmed; only the courage of [[Pilgrim's Defiance|Highborn pilgrims]] protected [[Therunin#East Ashes|East Ashes]] from [[A_bright_cerulean_flame|being consumed]]. Despite all that sacrifice, all that valorous desperation, [[Therunin#Eastring|Eastring]] was [[Crimson_and_green|still lost]] and while the Druj paid a high price for their arrogance, there is no hope of the steadings or the [[weirwood]] groves being recovered until that day when the Empire takes the final battle to the vallorn.
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;">
<quote by="Vojsuli Cherenkov, General of the Golden Axe">Warriors of the Axe, this season we march to Therunin. We march to where the Iron Helms & Isaella's Dance paid the ultimate price. To where the bonds of Loyalty between Varushka and Navarr were deepened. For too long have the people of Therunin been cut off from our Empire. The dread gaze of Blood-on-the-Snow has turned to the people of Therunin offering false hope. We reject the lies of this Eternal! We march to show the people of Therunin that they are not forgotten. To the Navarr of Therunin, look to the east. We are coming.</quote>
</div>
Into this crucible of pain comes the worst of all possible friends - the [[eternal]] known as ''Twigsnap'', as the ''Giver of Gifts'' and ''Blood-on-the-Snow''. ''He who calls the Lost to Feast''. [[Agramant]]. "''Nobody else cares about Therunin save me''", he whispers. "''I am the only friend to the people of Therunin''", he claims. "''I will help you take back what the Empire has denied you''", he wheedles. And to be sure he has [[The_thing_with_feathers#Heartbreaking_(Agramant)|offered sweet gifts]], and [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Beast_Below_(Agramant)|despite the warnings]] some of those who still remain in Therunin have heeded his words.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=GoldenAxe Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>

Now the Empire responds, and the warriors of the [[Golden Axe|Axe]] march to Therunin. They march in part to deepen the bonds between [[Varushka]] and Navarr, and to urge the people to reject the false hope offered by the ''Cannibal King''. Up out of the [[Sarangrave#Turan Flats|Turan Flats]] they go, fording the Unnamed River at [[Sarangrave#Turan|Turan]], thence to the [[The_Barrens#The_Bleaks|Bleaks]] and a sojourn at the [[The_Barrens#Last_Battle_Wayhouse|Last Battle Wayhouse]]. There the captains meet with the steading that calls that place home, still, despite the jealous anger of the Karass. The Navarr scouts have kept as close an eye on the [[Therunin#Lower Tarn Valley|Lower Tarn Valley]] as they have on the Sarangrave; they are ready to serve as guides to the poisoned morass the Druj have made of that once-beautiful marshland.

The dour Varushkan warriors are bound around with [[Day magic]] that grants vital [[Clarity of the Master Strategist|clarity]] for the battle that is to come. A half-handful of [[Military unit|Imperial captains]] accompany them, but for the most part it is the warriors of the Axe alone that walk south out of the Barrens into the ruin of the Lower Tarn. As they march, orcs watch them from the trees. The Karass resent the Last Battle, and resent the Imperials who visit. They make no effort to impede the army - they are not so brave - but neither do they offer any aid. It's doubtful they have much to give anyway; their warriors are busy in [[the Mallum]] after all.
{{CaptionedImage|file=GeneralGoldenAxe.jpg|caption='''Vojsuli Cherenkov''' (right), General of the Golden Axe|align=right|width=300}}
So, gathering momentum as they go, the Golden Axe leaves the Bleaks and enters a Therunin that is, at least in theory, still held by the Druj.

==Haunted Bayou==
Therunin is haunted, there can be no doubt. For the Golden Axe, it is the spectre of the Iron Helms that they spy beneath the hunched trees of the Tarn Valley. They paid an ultimate price, paid it willingly, and if the story is to be believed some of them still fight on despite having died a year or more ago. The [[Quickening Cold Meat|bitter gifts]] of [[Winter magic]] have a way of lingering. Perhaps it was those lingering spirits who fought beside the Iron Helms that drew the black-eyed gaze of the ''Devourer of the Fallen'' here in the first place. Either way, every Varushkan knows that death is certain, and rarely pretty.

Dwelling on the dead does not pave the path to victory, however, and the soldiers of the Golden Axe are rarely given to introspection when there is battle to be joined. It is not the dead, or their echo, that faces them in the Lower Tarn Valley but the very real threat of the remaining Druj and the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisonous]] legacy of [[Ashes#Objective:_Prevent_the_use_of_the_Sephals_Cauldron|the Sephals Cauldron]] that occupies their thoughts. The Last Battle scouts warned the Varushkans how bad it was, but even so they are barely prepared.

Its been two years since the Druj spilled the Sephals Cauldron in the Lower Tarn, in an effort to punish Imperial armies fighting in the territory, and a failed attempt to spread their wickedness into the Barrens. Since then, time and [[Spring magic]] both have worked a terrible transformation on the once-fertile Lower Tarn Valley. With the waters poisoned, much of the vegetation here has died and rotted, creating a foul-smelling miasma that hangs at the bottom of the valley like a curse. The skeletons of people, oxen, and beasts lie in stagnant pools of filth, undisturbed by scavengers or predators, food only for the flies that everywhere swarm in buzzing black clouds. What few trees remain, hardy enough to resist or with roots deep enough to reach untainted water far below, are still clearly sick. Their fruit is blotched, marred by the taint of venom, and the first fool to ignore the caution of their friends and pluck a misshapen apple from a sagging bough dies raving within the day.

Not everything is dead - mushroom and fungus both prosper here, feeding on death, untouched by the residue of that twisted cauldron. A particular kind of moss, of all things, has adapted to the poison in the worst possible way. ''Toragh's Beard'' as it has been named by the Navarr, in "honour" of an infamous master of the poisoners arts, hangs in strands from dying trees and the moisture that drips from it contains concentrated venom that burns the skin like acid. Some of the great insects that Therunin is known for have survived, but as with the trees they show signs of sickness. Many have clearly been driven mad by constant pain. Even here, though, their numbers are greatly depleted. One of the things that presses on the awareness of the Varushkan soldiers is the oppressive silence. For hours on end the only sounds are those of boots squelching in mud, the splash of feet in shallow water, ragged breathing, the susurrus of dying wind through dead reeds.

==Those Left Behind==
{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj2.jpg|title=The Razor Skink - symbol of the Chikad|caption=The Razor Skink - symbol of the Chikad|align=right|width=200}}
The Golden Axe are not here for a nature walk though, they are [[Army orders#Overwhelming Assault|here to conquer]]. There are still Druj in the Lower Tarn Valley. Most have taken over the abandoned steadings, or the settlements once raised by the [[Great Forest Orcs]]. At first they present a nearly negligible threat to the Varushkan warriors, armed with up-to-date intelligence provided by the Last Battle steading. It is also clear that, with the route east into Sarangrave sealed by the vallorn and the Empire, they have fragmented and fallen to that factionalism that so often overcomes the barbarians of the Mallum where there is neither outside threat, nor a strong leader to keep them together.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on where one stands, news of the Golden Axe spreads in widening ripples across the Tarn Valley, and up into Peakedge Song. The first few engagements go overwhelmingly in favour of the Varushkans, the Druj barely able to respond before their life-blood spills out onto the poisoned ground. Then, after less than a week, the silence is riven by the pounding of drums, those great echoing drums some Druj use to communicate over great distances. "''Beware!''" they shout to those who know how to understand their tongue. "''The Empire comes! The Het summons!''"

A [[Druj_champion#Het|Het]], then, in the Lower Tarn Valley. The Navarr had rumours of such a thing - a warlord of one of the [[Arkad]] who sought to weld the Druj remnants in Therunin into some kind of order. ''Egrech Skinrazor'', a second-rate [[Arkad#Chikad|Chikad]] commander marooned in western Therunin when they fled the fall of Eastring to the vallorn. With the backing of neither [[Druj lore#Buruk Tepel|Buruk Tepel]] nor sept, they brought together the remaining ''Tepel'' apothecaries and sought to kill any who would not accept their "protection". Controlling the [[potion|potions]] and [[herb|herbs]] the Druj are used to having in profusion, they seek to control those left in the Tarn Valley. The Last Battle say they have done well, considering the naturally treacherous nature of the Druj.

From that point on, the fighting is a little less one sided. Oh, there is never any doubt the Golden Axe will prevail. There are nearly seven thousand Varushkan warriors, possessed of supernatural strategic acumen, supported by scouts who have made a study of both the weaknesses and strengths of the forces here. Yet there is a cost to their victories; soldiers lives are spent to overrun the barbarians' positions. The poison that seeps into everything begins to take a toll of its own; supplies of fresh water and wholesome food are all very well but there is only so much that can be done. Open wounds allow poison to seep into the blood. Even something as simple as slipping in the mud, never mind being knocked prone by some renegade [[Arkad#Pakkad|pakkad]] in the fury of battle, can lead to tainted water or droplets of poisoned mud being swallowed. The healers that accompany the Varushkans do their best, but the pace has been set hard and fast. The emphasis here is on ''victory'' and all too often a [[surgical skills#Physick|physick]] arrives to find their patient already cooling.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBNavarr.jpg|align=right|width=200}}</div>
The Druj are not the only people in the Tarn Valley, however. There are a handful of isolated Navarr steadings who have refused to leave. Through everything - the rampage of the Druj and the poisoning of the marshes and the rousing of the vallorn - they have remained steadfast. Most paid the ultimate price, tortured by the invaders or forced to seek the cold oblivion of [[Kaela#The_Gift_of_Kaela|Kaela's Gift]]. Some withdrew to the places they knew the Druj would not follow, into the depths of [[Therunin#Greenheart|Greenheart]], and while many were lost as Tharunind awoke, others survived and continue to strike against the Druj encampments to the north.

Some of these steadings emerge as the Varushkans press south into the Tarn Valley. They are on the verge of collapse, starved of provisions and supplies, but still they fight. There is no doubt that some of them have heard the words of ''Wastewalker'', and like ''Dochas of the Weeping Glade'' have taken his gifts, but now is not the time to balance that scale. It is not the Varushkan way to question those who feel they must take dark bargains to survive and as long as they are discreet, most soldiers do not pry too closely. Don't ask questions you don't want answered, older soldiers tell their younger comrades. It is for [[general|generals]] and [[archmage|archmages]] and priests to argue over the right and the wrong of tainted weapons, not those who know they must face the greater darkness. Even so there are a few too far gone to trust. The thorns of ''Willowjoy Steading'', who file their teeth to points, who wear armour decorated with flayed orc faces, and who openly fight alongside the long-armed, black-clawed, shaggy beasts of the [[Realms#Winter|Wasteland]] receive short shrift. When a Varushkan soldier spies them gnawing their way into the belly of a fallen Druj, the response is swift, merciless, and bloody.

Realistically it is only a few of the emerging Navarr who are suspect. The rest have done what their people always do. Scattered, hidden, prepared, rationed their food, and water, and arrows. Made contingencies, used their mastery of woodcraft to scout and where possible ambush or assassinate. They may treat the Varushkans with a little suspicion - more than one voices surprise it is the Golden Axe and not the [[Black Thorns]] or the [[Quiet Step]] that have come to Therunin and the small number of orcs of the Great Forest who fled with them have their own reason to be cautious of Varushkan warriors. Yet for all that, they nonetheless welcome the Imperial soldiers as cousins, and a welcome sign the Empire has not forgotten them. Their intelligence, added to that provided by the Last Dance, paints a more detailed picture of life in the Lower Tarn Valley.

''Egrech Skinrazor'' has gathered his forces around him at the ''Razorhill'' - the ruins of what was once the [[Therunin#Holt_of_the_Oak_(ruined)|Holt of the Oak]]. Partially reinforced with [[weirwood|wood]] from the Thimble - before the tendrils of the vallorn sealed all access to the weirwood grove - they fly poorly-painted banners of black lizards from their palisade, and adorn the walls with mortal remains stolen from the defiled [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Funerals|corpse glades]]. They raid those other septs who do not bow to Egrech's dominion, seeking always to claim the herbs they need to ensure their warriors continue to resist the very taint the Druj brought to the Lower Tarn. They trade their jealously hoarded supply of weirwood to the warlords of the Upper Tarn and Peakedge for more herbs but their reserves must by now be dwindling.

It is ironic, perhaps, that a region once known for the generosity of its herb gardens has been so ruined that even [[true vervain]] must be carefully rationed. A perfect example of the madness of the Druj.

==On Razorhill==
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Thorns.png|align=left|width=400}}</div>
The ''Blackrazor'' aspire to be a sept but they are really little more than a rabble of murderers and thieves. Egrech may fancy themselves a great het, but they are clearly nothing more than a scrabbling power-hungry fool desperate to enforce their will on those weaker than them, living in fear of those stronger. For all their talk, as the Golden Axe approach the low hill where the Holt of the Oak once stood the forces "loyal" to Egrech are quick to retreat behind their ramshackle walls. Once a beautiful structure of living wood and timber shaped by the Great Forest Orcs as a sign of their alliance with the Navarr, the Razorhill is little more than a lopsided palisade with a handful of watch towers surrounded by a shallow moat. The moat, rather than the walls or the wooden towers, is the real danger here. The foul, filthy water that fills it stinks like an open sewer but there are telltale rainbow patterns on the surface that speak of the concentrated poison that fills the wide trench.

The Golden Axe do not waste time when they arrive. Forewarned by the Navarr, they carry as part of their baggage train three dozen tree trunks cut down on the edges of the Bleaks where the trees still stand hale and hearty. They also have two wagons filled with the rubble and ruin of the broken steadings and settlements they have dealt with on their route here. Even as Druj archers begin their hail of arrows on the attackers, the Golden Axe raise their heavy shields to protect those charged with putting these preparations to good use. Bridges are laid down, and sections of the trench are filled with rubble, allowing the Varushkans to chop their way through the leaning perimeter wall and force the Druj to face them directly.

Egrech Razorscale has tried to rule by fear, and it shows. Without the bare minimum protection granted by keeping the Golden Axe at bowlength, any suggestion of discipline or coordination melts like ice on an anvil. As veterans of the Mallum know, however, desperation makes these barbarians more dangerous, not less. Flame erupts as some of the tents and shanty buildings catch fire; cornered Druj hurl themselves with murderous fury at the attackers. Many are clearly using the preparation the Imperial Orcs euphemistically dubbed ''[[Double-sided Blade#Warming Armour|Warming Armour]]'' but the Druj know as ''Warspice''. It drives them into a frenzy, lets them fight long after the point where they should have collapsed, but when they finally succumb to their wounds death claims them quickly, the blood flowing hot and fast into the churned mud within the walls of Razorhill.

The cunning Druj still have surprises for the Empire. With half the army on one side of the shallow, poison moat and the rest inside the walls of Razorhill, a hundred or so orc barbarians erupt from hides and shallow pits along their flanks. It's a tactic the barbarians have used before, but never in such poisoned earth. Many of the ambushers show signs of spreading poison, but they hardly seem to care - ''[[Double-sided_Blade#Weakening Sun|Corpseskin]]'' the Druj call it, a drug that removes pain but makes those who use it all too pliable and suggestible. They fight with a grim determination, grinning as the Varushkans hack them apart. For a brief period it looks like this attack might cause some real problem for the Imperial forces - many of the hidden orcs bear bows that they use with deadly accuracy despite their drugged state.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Fire and thorns.jpg|align=right|width=400}}</div>
Then, without warning, the ambushers are themselves ambushed. A cohort of silent Navarr appear seemingly out of nowhere, and rain their own arrows down on the attackers from behind. Caught between the Varushkan anvil and the Navarr hammer, the balance shifts catastrophically against the Druj attackers. They fall pierced by red-fletched shafts or hewn by iron axes. For a moment, the two forces stare at each other over the pile of bodies; then the unexpected archers disappear back into the gathering darkness of late evening. Some of the thorns fighting with the Varushkan army later identify them as warriors of the Weeping Glade; those who have gathered to the banner of ''Dochas'' and openly bear the fell boons offered by ''Whisperer''.

Inside the palisade, the fighting is almost done when Egrech Razorscale reveals the final element of their trap. The fire that spreads among the tents is not an accident; barrels of oil and pitch gathered from conquered steadings have been cunningly hidden in the rough encampment. Some of the Druj have concealed themselves with hand-axes and as the fire spreads they smash these barrels flooding sections of the ruined keep with a horrible, sticky, flammable substance. Others hurl clay pots full of the stuff and follow them with lit torches. Within minutes, the flames are beyond control. The Varushkans are forced to pull back, as walls of fire erupt into the darkened sky.

Unfortunately for the Druj, the soldiers of the Golden Axe are neither fools nor bloodthirsty barbarians. Once it is clear what is happening the retreat sounds and the army falls back across the bridges to the other side of the moat. Razorhill is consumed, the roaring of the conflagration almost drowning out the screams of the Druj left behind, immolated by flames set by their own leader. The tongues of fire leap high into the sky, visible for miles across the flat, poisoned marshes.

Egrech Razorscale is not here. The self-styled het of the Blackrazors was never here. Along with the tepel herbalists they had impressed, along with the core of their supporters, they have fled west towards the Upper Tarn Valley, leaving the bulk of those foolish enough to trust to their leadership to die. Sacrificed to try and harm the Varushkan army enough that it would give up, perhaps. If that was the intent of the Razorscale, it represents a woeful lack of understanding of the Varushkan spirit.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Ripple effect on water.jpg|caption=Despite the victory of the Golden Axe, the insidious poison created by the Sephals Cauldron continues to taint the Lower Tarn Valley.|align=right|width=400}}</div>

==Mopping Up==
Over the next few weeks, the Golden Axe meet with limited resistance. Any Druj who were not lured to Razorhill by Egrech's hollow promise of security, or who did not flee west, are mercilessly and swiftly dealt with. As the Autumn Equinox gets closer, the Golden Axe declares victory. There are still a few warbands of Druj here and there but they are in disarray, fleeing, easy prey for anyone who would hunt them.

Very few prisoners or slaves were liberated from the Druj encampments; presumably any Navarr that had not fled or sought sanctuary in the isolated steadings chose to take that bitter gift that [[Kaela]] offers Imperial citizens captured by the Druj. There are a handful of terrified orc thralls, dragged here by the Druj when they thought they might make Therunin a part of the Mallum, who cower from the Varushkans as they cowered from their cruel overlords. The Golden Axe have minimal comfort to offer them, but most are taken in by the Navarr who still abide in Therunin.

There is one unexpected treasure amidst the rot and ruin of Therunin. One of the last Druj encampments dealt with by the Golden Axe lies along the raised road that once connected the Lower Tarn Valley to Eastring. Here, concealed beneath canvas and mud, the soldiers uncover wagons laden with weirwood. There's no doubt that this is a shipment of wains from the Thimble, likely being transported west to shore up Druj defences as the vallorn ate their settlements to the east. It is only a fraction of the bounty of the Thimble - five wains - but even so it is doubtless better to deny the Druj this treasure. The Golden Axe take custody of the material. Even this offers scant comfort, however, to those sickened by the poison that still infests the marshes here. To those who have lost comrades, friends, loved ones to the Druj or to the mud. Maybe as many as three hundred soldiers have died here, more often to the terrible residue of the Sephals Cauldron that to the fight with the Druj - and that poison is not going anywhere any time soon.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Regionsoftherunin.png|title=Regions of Therunin|align=right|width=400}}
==Game Information==
===Therunin===
* '''The Golden Axe have claimed the region of the Lower Tarn Valley
* '''The General of the Golden Axe has received 5 wains of weirwood recovered from Therunin
* '''The Druj still control Peakedge Song, Upper Tarn Valley, and East Ashes; Sweetglades, Greenheart, and Eastring are completely dominated by the vallorn
* '''Lower Tarn Valley still has the poisoned quality
The Empire now controls the ruins of the Lower Tarn Valley. The Druj control three regions, and the vallorn controls the other three. As such, no one force has overall control of the territory. The Lower Tarn Valley still has the [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] quality, and will cause casualties to any Imperial armies that fight there or move through it on their way to attack somewhere else. A key element in the victory here was the assistance of Last Battle Wayhouse in the Barrens - the fact the Lower Tarn Valley has the [[Region_qualities#Under_Threat|Under Threat]] quality provided a major advantage toward claiming an actual beachhead in the territory. The Imperial attack also benefitted from the support of Dochas and the warriors of the Weeping Glade, who attacked at the pivotal moment at the battle of Razorhill.

The General of the Golden Axe has received 5 wains of weirwood, recovered from the territory. While the weirwood clearly came from the groves of the [[Thimble]], it is legally the property of the general.

None of the military units supporting the Golden Axe received a share of the Imperial Guerdon.

There are a few Navarr steadings in Therunin that resist the Druj, the most prominent being that led by [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Beast_Below_(Agramant)|Dochas of the Weeping Glade]]. The wicked eternal [[Agramant]] has been offering aid to the Navarr to take back their territory from the Druj, while denouncing the Empire for abandoning the territory and the people who remain here. There are signs of heralds of the Whisperer everywhere in Therunin, but the situation does not seem to have got any worse in the last season at least.

The stretch of land controlled by the vallorn that runs across the middle of Therunin creates a strategic challenge, similar to that which exists in [[Brocéliande]] and once caused problems in [[Liathaven]]. It is not possible to move between East Ashes to the south and the northern regions of the territory, and vice versa, without passing through the vallorn. Any fighting there would be considered a separate engagement to fighting in the north, and the [[A_bright_cerulean_flame|recent engagement]] of the Pilgrim's Defiance there indicates that there is still a Druj presence in East Ashes centred around the Feverwater Docks.

===Poisoned Marsh===
* '''The poisoned quality presents a strategic challenge
The [[Region_qualities#Poisoned|poisoned]] quality means that each Imperial campaign army that moves through, or fights in, the region suffers 250 casualties during that season of campaigning (which may be increased by the orders issued to the army). The ritual [[Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker]] protects an army from this effect, but orders have no effect to reduce these casualties.

The Empire now has a beachhead in Therunin, but the virulence of the poisoned quality there presents a challenge to any attempts to use that beachhead to attack the [[Therunin#Upper Tarn Valley|Upper Tarn Valley]]. There are two options here:
* Imperial forces could move to attack Upper Tarn Valley, using the beachhead they have created here. If they do so, any army participating will suffer the effects of the poisoned quality.
* Alternatively, they could pull back out of Therunin and attack the Upper Tarn Valley from [[the Barrens#Hope's Rest|Hope's Rest]] - avoiding the poisoned quality but needing to take a new beachhead to do so.

All this presupposes that the poisoned quality still persists, of course.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Apothecaries Guild.png|title=Imperial Apothecaries' Guild|align=right|width=240}}
===Sucking the Poison===
* '''Members of the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild could act to treat the poison in the Lower Tarn Valley'''
* '''Any member of the sodality that takes the special action to treat the poison for the season will see their production halved'''
* '''The work will require at least 30 members of the sodality to act each season to make progress'''
* '''Two seasons of success will be required to clear the poison'''
* '''It will cost the Imperial treasury thirty thrones each season until the poison is removed'''
The "antidote" to the Druj poison is known thanks to the [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild|Imperial Apothecaries' Guild]]. [[Wasp_nest#Isolating_an_Antidote|Ioric's Elixir]] is a herbal preparation that can be combined with fresh water to cleanse the Lower Tarn Valley of the horror the Sephals Cauldron has created here. Indeed, shortly after the [[Imperial sodality]] was formed, they tried to deal with the poison but ran afoul of an invading Druj army and were forced to abandon their efforts. The [[Senate]] already [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Imperial_Apothecaries_Guild_to_Therunin|instructed]] the Apothecaries' Guild to apply the antidote in 383YE so there's no need for further license to empower the sodality to get to work. All that is required is for the sodality to meet and vote to begin their work in the Lower Tarn Valley. A simple majority of the members attending a meeting to discuss the matter would be sufficient, and even if they were to vote not to undertake the effort immediately, as long as the situation didn't change dramatically there'd be no problem with them delaying a season or two.

Unfortunately, as mentioned already, the two years that have passed since the [[opportunity]] was first presented have not been kind. The poison has sunk deep into the earth and water of Therunin. The [[Wasp_nest#Practical_Solutions|basic principle]] is sound; removing the poisoned quality will take six months, and cost the [[Imperial treasury]] 30 thrones each season. There is some risk - there are still Druj in Therunin - but the enemy there are disorganised and the remaining Navarr and their winter allies are prepared to offer protection to the Guild if need be.

Once the Apothecaries' Guild votes to start cleansing the poison, it will cost the Senate 30 Thrones each season until the project is completed or the guild votes to abandon it. It will however require a much more focused effort to actually cleanse the poison, and more expert work not only to deal with the problem itself but to protect those confronting it.

If the sodality votes to undertake the work, it will create a special opportunity in downtime following the event. This opportunity will be available ''only'' to members of the Apothecaries' Guild who possess ''either'' the [[Surgical skills#Physick|physick]] or [[Surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecary]] skill. Other characters can roleplay their involvement, but only those with expert knowledge of how to use [[herbs]] will be able to directly contribute to the cleansing of the Lower Tarn Valley. Each season it will require '''at least 30 members''' with the appropriate skill to support the operation, or it will make no headway. It requires two seasons (which need not be consecutive) to complete the work.

The nature of the opportunity varies depending on their personal resource, but involves participating in the cleansing of Lower Tarn Valley. Any character who does so is assumed to either travel to the territory, or to provide support and resources to those doing the work.

* If a character supporting the operation in the Lower Tarn Valley controls a [[fleet]] or [[military unit]], it will be able to take a ''guarding'' [[voyage]] or [[venture]] as appropriate, which will provide a standard military unit or fleet with seven random herbs. Rituals that boost a fleet or military unit that is undertaking a guarding action will benefit as normal.
* A congregation will be able to perform a [[Congregation#Lectures|lecture]] that means they will receive Synod votes as normal but lose ''all'' their [[liao]].
* A character with any other personal resource will lose ''half'' its production for that season.

This personal cost has caused some people associated with the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild to question the wisdom of trying to deal with the poison - it comes at a significantly greater cost to the members than it would have done two years ago. Nobody has quite come out and said it, but perhaps the sodality might wish to negotiate with the Senate to secure some concessions in return for putting their livelihoods - and potentially their lives - on the line.

====Peak Pharmacy====
<div style="float: right; width: 250px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Highborn.png|width=250px}}</div>
* '''The Benefactor of High Chalcis could choose to support the Apothecaries' Guild by redirecting herbs from Highguard
* '''The Gardens of High Chalcis would provide no benefits, the Benefactor would lose their sinecure, and the High Herbalist of Sybella would have fewer herbs available, but
* '''Doing so would remove the need for the Senate to pay to support the Apothecaries' Guild efforts
The poison in Therunin has advanced to the point where it is no longer feasible for the [[Benefactor of High Chalcis]] to simply [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Redirect_the_Bounty|redirect the bounty]] of Reikos to [[Wasp_nest#Peak_Pharmacy|resolve it]]. That is not to say that the herbalists of Reikos could not provide valuable assistance. They could however provide the large number of herbs needed and remove the cost to the Imperial Treasury. Instead the majority of the herbs would come from High Chalcis, and any shortfall would be made up by devout herbalists in other parts of [[Highguard]]. As always, however, using this power would mean the [[great work]] would provide no additional herbs to the herb gardens of Reikos during the time it took to clear the poisonous taint, and the Benefactor themselves would receive no personal herbs either. This decision would ''also'' have implications for the [[High Herbalist of Sybella]] – with fewer herbs available to buy in Highguard they would lose access to the top two ranks of their ministry while the purification takes place (this would not impact their ability to buy herbs from the Kruidenkenner however).

Once committed, the effects would start as soon as the Apothecaries' Guild chose to begin cleansing the taint, and persist until the corruption was removed from the Lower Tarn Valley, the Benefactor chose to end them with another announcement, or the sodality ended the endeavour.
====Militant Physicks====
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=ValiantPegasus_Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=BloodCloak_Colour.png|align=right|width=200}}</div>
* '''The Valiant Pegasus, Bloodcloaks, or an army under Bound by Common Cause could help clear the poison, reducing the time needed to a single season'''
* '''Any army working in the region would suffer the effects of poison unless protected by the enchantment Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker'''
The poison has sunk in, but there is still a chance for the [[Bloodcloaks]] or [[Valiant Pegasus]] to offer their aid here, even [[Wasp_nest#Militant_Physicks|after two years]]. Unfortunately, things have progressed to the point where it needs much more expert herbal lore than even the physicks of these two armies can easily provide. If either of these armies were to come to Therunin, however, and use their [[Army_qualities#Physick|Tend the Fallen]] order they would reduce the time needed to cleanse the region from six months to three months. There is a risk to such a plan, of course, in that the army would be exposed to the very poison quality they were cleansing. But the magisters of Highguard point out that the Winter ritual [[Why Sulemaine Walked Away From The Baker]] provides protection to soldiers from poison. The Valiant Pegasus – or the physicks of the [[Bloodcloaks]] of [[Wintermark]] – could be defended from the corruption of the Tarn Valley if they bore the enchantment.

Regardless, an army involved in helping to deal with the poisoning of the Lower Tarn Valley would ''not'' be eligible for natural resupply while assisting the Apothecaries' Guild.

It would still cost the Imperial treasury 30 thrones, unless the people of Reikos provided their herbs, and still need the Imperial Apothecaries' Guild to commit themselves and their resources to the project for a season.

==Further Reading==
* [[Therunin]]
* [[The_keys_of_blood#The_Beast_Below_(Agramant)|The keys of blood]] - 386YE Autumn wind of fortune relating to the interest of Agramant in Therunin
* [[The_thing_with_feathers#Heartbreaking_(Agramant)|The thing with the feathers]] - 387YE Winter wind of fortune about Agramant's attitude to Therunin
* [[Ashes#Poison_and_Ashes_(Battle_Opportunity)|Poison and ashes]] - 386YE battle opportunity around the Sephals Cauldron
* [[Wasp nest]] - 386 Winter wind of fortune discussing the poisoning of Lower Tarn Valley; while the opportunities here have been superseded the history and context remain the same

Dream on

2026-08-18T09:25:53Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]]
<ic>
"They're calling it the City of Dreams now," Rhys said as she sat down, tankard in one hand and a bowl of freshly prepared cawl in the other. The broker had asked Kenda to meet her at the Turning Tide, her favourite wayhouse in Seren, because she wanted to get her old friend's thoughts on the latest developments. "Reckon it'll catch on?"

"Reckon it already has, if people are saying it." said Kenda drily, between two mouthfuls of stew.

"I don't suppose it'll make much difference?" suggested Reese.

If the broker's plan was to get their companion to sit up and take notice it worked. Kenda put their spoon down and stared at their friend with a look halfway between outrage and horror.

"Well if it did, they'd change the names of things all the time, wouldn't they?" he said, presenting his argument to fend off the vate's indignation.

Kenda shook her head and smiled at her friend's ignorance. "You can't just change the name of something like that. Names are important, they reflect the nature of a thing, they define it, a name is like a set of clothes, it has to fit. Otherwise, as you point out, it won't "catch on". A name only sticks if it adheres to the true nature of something."

"Well then how come the name has changed now? Folks used to call Seren the Garden City, when they called it anything at all. If the name is what the thing is, how can you change the name?"

"Simple" said Kenda, "You just have to change the nature of something. Change Seren, change its nature, and its name will change to match. That's why it's important - it means something has changed."

"But Seren changes all the time - there are always stridings coming through, people arriving, people leaving. Surely, the city is always changing." Rhys often struggled to understand hearth magic, but he always found it fascinating to have it explained, hence why he was paying for dinner.

"But that's not real change," explained Kenda. "You can change every part of something and still not change the thing itself. It's like the old riddle of the axe where you change the handle, and then you change the head, and then you change the shaft. But it's still the same axe, even though every part that makes it up has changed. Seren, the city of Seren is made up of thousands of people - and those people are changing all the time. But that doesn't change Seren, any more than it would any other great city."

"Ok, but then why is it important? Why does it matter?" challenged Rhys. "It's just a name."

Kenda laughed "Tell that to the Wintermarkers! They know the importance of naming something. A name reflects a thing's fate, it shapes the nature of something, just as the nature of something shapes the name it takes on. Fate can be powerful and dramatic like a crack of lightning, and it can be as subtle as a silverfish slipping through a net. You might never notice the effects of our home becoming the City of Dreams, sure as eggs are eggs they'll be there. Maybe not this week, maybe not this year, maybe not in our lifetimes. But this is the City of Dreams now... and that ''matters''..."
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Rising Smoke.jpg|caption=The "Dream Harvest" - referring to the vivid dreams experienced by many involved in refining vinum sap into liao - has drawn the dreamspeakers together in Seren, City of Dreams.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
==Overview==
While much of the focus in the Empire has been on the construction of the [[Construct_Grand_Inspiration_of_the_Way|Grand Inspiration of the Way]], the [[Navarr]] have been quietly working to complete an inspiration of their own.

In 383YE a judgement [[383YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_88|was presented]] was presented to the General assembly by '''Enis''', calling for [[Miaren#Seren|Seren]] in [[Miaren]] to be recognised as a city of equal standing to those of any other nation. To achieve that [[Ambition]], the construction of the serene [[Miaren#Temple of the Waking Dream|Temple of the Waking Dream]] was [[Comes a time|proposed]], but work didn't actually begin until [[386YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Construct_City_of_Dreams|three years later]] in Summer 386YE. The [[great work]] was huge, and for many years it looked like it might never be completed.

But all things that have a beginning have an ending, and all things that have an ending have a beginning, and so it is with the Temple. Now, with the encouragement of Seren's ''[[dreamspeaker|dreamspeakers]]'', the city has become a haven for those who dare to imagine a new future. The success of the Temple has inspired Navarr all across the Empire by demonstrating what can be achieved when dreams are made real. People with hopes and aspirations, with the imagination to perceive what is needed to achieve them and the determination to try, have flocked to Miaren.

Seren has become the ''City of Dreams''.
{{SOP|statement=While the Ambition of the Navarr may seem to be mainly focused on eradicating the vallorn, we are also a people of great culture, history, and virtue. We move to recognise Seren, in Miaren, as a city of worth equal to those in other nations.|by=Enis, General National Assembly|when=383YE Spring Equinox|vote=587 - 238}}
==Sing With Me==
* '''The Navarr National Assembly can now appoint the Dreamspeaker of Seren'''
* '''The Temple provides every congregation with a dose of Goosewhisper Infusion and one extra liao'''
* '''The Dreamspeaker archetype is now available to any Navarr character'''
* '''Seren has become the City of Dreams'''
The grand Temple of Waking Dreams is an impressive structure. Large enough to house great workshops where vinum sap is converted into [[liao]], the intoxicating aroma of which permeates everything and gives the Temple a strange dream-like quality. The building may not be as tall as [[Sarvos#Capodomus_Cathedral|Capodomus Cathedral]], nor as physically imposing as the grand stone basilicas in [[Bastion#The White City|Bastion]], but the designers accept no rival for its majesty. They have taken full advantage of the space available in Seren to create something extraordinary - designing exquisite gardens that extend in every direction with the temple at their hub.
<div style="float: right; width: 250px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Navarr.png|width=250px}}</div>
Those who walk the gardens find it hard not to be inspired. Those who breathe in the mellifluous aroma that scents the air find their minds wandering, as their thoughts open to imagine new possibilities. The simple elegance of the Temple soothes the troubled mind, settling fears and making worldly concerns either feel like they are distant or filling the heart with the certainty that they can be overcome. The priests who have taken up residence there work to embolden visitors, encouraging them to embrace this unique opportunity to dream of what might be possible. These dreamspeakers seek to foster the imagination and the confidence of their audience, encouraging them to believe that they can achieve anything.

Once the new [[Dreamspeaker of Seren]] is appointed by the Assembly, they will be expected to take [[Dreamspeaker of Seren#Responsibilities|responsibility]] for the Temple, ministering to the needs of pilgrims who come to visit as well as ensuring that production of liao at the Temple is not interrupted. It will also fall to them to encourage the hopes and aspirations of the city and all who visit the Temple.

The new Temple has had a profound affect on the City of Seren, drawing visionaries and dreamers from across the nation to its doors. With the encouragement of the dreamspeakers, the city has become a haven for those who refuse to give up their dreams. Seren has become the ''City of Dreams'', a place where people dare to imagine what the world could become once it is free of the [[vallorn]]. The beauty of Miaren is a testament to what is possible. Freed of the taint of Spring's corruption the surrounding forests invite visitors to explore what it means to be Navarr once they are free of their responsibility to make restitution for the mistakes of the past.
<div style="float:right; width: 500px; clear: right;"><box><big>'''Becoming a Dreamspeaker'''</big><br>Any Navarr character who'd like to embrace the new [[archetype]] can email {{plot}} or [mailto:admin@profounddecisions.co.uk admin@profounddecisions.co.uk] and request the change. It is important to read the [[dreamspeaker]] page first, to see what you are signing up for!</box></div>
===True Majesty===
* '''The Temple could be consecrated with True Liao'''
* '''This would require a writ of consecration sponsored by one of the virtue assemblies and support of the general assembly'''
Impressive as the Temple is, it won't rival the influence of the Capodomus Cathedral without a [[Consecration#True_Liao|true aura]]. The completion of the Temple has had a profound effect on Seren, and the wider territory, but if it were consecrated with [[liao#True Liao|true liao]], then it would become one of the foremost sites of pilgrimage in the Empire. Thousands would travel here to experience the Temple's grandeur and be exalted by its serene majesty, bolstering the importance of the site and its guardian.

To do that, the Navarr would need to acquire a dose of [[true liao]], arguably the rarest and most expensive substance in the Empire. Crucially they would also need the support of one of the seven assemblies of Virtue - to be allowed to perform a true liao consecration a citizen must have a [[writ of consecration]] from the [[Synod]]. The first step would be to determine which virtue assembly to approach to raise the writ, and then secure enough support in that assembly and in the general assembly to allow the writ to pass. The virtue chosen will affect the nature of the Temple, and of the inspiration it provides.

==The Past is Gone==
* '''The dreamspeaker archetype is now available to Navarr characters
* '''The dreamspeakers encourage the people of their nation to look to the future
There have been dreamers in Miaren for centuries, ever since the vallorn was driven out leaving the tranquil forests to became a haven. Now the completion of the Temple has encouraged the most passionate among them to come forth, eager to share their philosophy with others in the nation. These dreamspeakers are passionate advocates of the importance of aspiration and determination - they believe that the best way to follow the Way is to imagine everything that you might accomplish and to set yourself on the path to achieving that.

The dreamspeakers of Seren want to encourage all Navarr to dream of all the things ''they'' could accomplish. The banishment of the vallorn is a crucial element of that, but so is the destruction of the [[Druj]], the defeat of the [[Jotun]], or victory over the [[Grendel]]. For the dreamspeakers, the work done to free slaves in [[Axos]] and other lands is an example of a dream that is every bit as important as freeing [[Brocéliande]] from the taint of Spring magic run amok. The recent endeavours to free the [[Great Forest Orcs]] from the brutal grip of the Druj is a perfect example of what such a dream might look like. Something that looks impossible on the face of it, becomes possible when enough people pull together.

Many of them argue that the nation falls short of everything they could achieve because they focus too much on the vallorn and because they view it as a uniquely Navarr problem to deal with. They argue that the Navarr's true goal is ''not'' the destruction of the vallorn but the triumph of civilisation. According to the Navarr history, the [[Navarr_history#Origins_of_Navarr|oath sworn by Navarr and Thorn]] was to restore the civilisation of Terunael. For the dreamspeakers, the Empire is the true legacy of the Navarr - the vallorn is simply one problem of many that threatens its future.

Two amongst their number are not content only to dream. ''Deryn of Vision's End'' argues that the Navarr nation has suffered because they have become too focused on the vallorn and are losing crucial battles as a result. Contrarywise, ''Eirwen of Mountains Slumber'' in [[Hercynia]] seeks to encourage the Navarr to look for ways they could take up the legacy of their founders, not by destroying the vallorn but by building civilisation.
===Know How To Win===
* '''Deryn of Vision's End says that the Navarr have sacrificed too much and should remind the rest of the Empire of their contributions'''
* '''The Navarr could cease to carry messages the length and breadth of the Empire'''
''Deryn of Vision's End'' once lived in Liathaven, but since the loss of Vision's End steading has been in constant motion cross the Empire with the other survivors. His vision is that the Navarr be more proactive in engaging with the Empire, to fight for their dreams. He believes that the Navarr nation has sacrificed its own ambitions too often for the benefit of others. He cites recent events in [[Therunin]], where he says the [[Military Council]] made choices that ''allowed'' the territory to fall to the Druj and the vallorn. Thousands of Navarr died, Thornsong House and [[Therunin#Peakedge_Stead|Peakedge Stead]] were destroyed, the [[Thimble]] was lost first to the orcs and then to the vallorn. All the work that went into clearing the vallorn from [[Therunin#Eastring|Eastring]] was undone in a way that cannot be resolved without [[A thousand years of longing|uniting the vallornhearts]]. Deryn doesn't downplay the sacrifices made - the [[Under_eastern_skies|loss]] of [[Isaella's Dance]] and the [[Iron Helms]], the undoubted [[A_bright_cerulean_flame|courage]] of the [[Pilgrim's Defiance]] - but he expresses bitterness that the Navarr armies always seem to be somewhere else when their lands are threatened.

Other nations have been much more successful at defending their interests. Deryn points to the example of the [[The Marches|Marcher]] [[general|generals]] who swore [[I_already_know_you#Reeds,_Drakes,_Tusks,_Bounders|mighty oaths]] to ''always'' stand ready to defend their home territory. Some might say that such oaths are madness - that they sacrifice strategic flexibility for uncertain gains - but Deryn disagrees. Marcher generals are forced by their oaths to stand and fight for their land... and every time they do, the Military Council and the people of the Marches stand with them. What might the world look like if the Navarr generals had sworn to die in the defence of [[Liathaven]]? Of [[Therunin]]? Why is there no drive to recover Liathaven, the way the Empire threw themselves into the fray every time the Jotun threaten Mitwold, Mournwold, or Bregasland?

Indeed, how might the future look if the Navarr people took inspiration from the Marchers and brought their own flavour of [[The_Marches_culture_and_customs#Rough_Music|rough music]] to bear when the Military Council disregards their interests? What if the Navarr, instead of sacrificing themselves every time, were inspired by those [[Varushka|Varushkans]] who refused to allow the Senate to take the Iron Roads from them? The Urizen prepared to tear the [[Citadel Guard]] apart if the Empire abandoned [[Zenith]]?

Does there not come a point, argues Deryn, where you have sacrificed so much that people simply take it for granted you will continue to do so without even being asked?
====Messages====
<div style="width: 400px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
<tr><th style="background-color: White;">Brand</th><th style="background-color: White;">Banner</th></tr>
<tr><td>Amdyn Flint Kin</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Avery Farkas</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Broderik</td><td>Driftwood</td></tr>
<tr><td>Brynmor Rootround</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Brynn Tendfallen</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Buck Tri'fol</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Cadfael Silentwatch</td><td>Sea Weasels</td></tr>
<tr><td>Cadoc Thornwatch</td><td>Pathfinders</td></tr>
<tr><td>Cadwell Waystone</td><td>The Waystone Path</td></tr>
<tr><td>Caedria</td><td>Deadfall</td></tr>
<tr><td>Dryn</td><td>Embercast</td></tr>
<tr><td>Drysfa Broken Bough</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Eleri Bronwen's Rest</td><td>Bronwen's Rest</td></tr>
<tr><td>Eosffair Farwalker</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Esper Edgestalker</td><td>The Edgestalkers of Hercynia</td></tr>
<tr><td>face</td><td>Sea Weasels</td></tr>
<tr><td>Fallow</td><td>Whispering Leaves</td></tr>
<tr><td>Gaius Baranis</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Gavynn Bellwood</td><td>The Stormwall</td></tr>
<tr><td>Genrick Nayvar</td><td>Embersworn</td></tr>
<tr><td>Geraint Bronwen's Rest</td><td>Bronwen's Rest</td></tr>
<tr><td>Grundfos Thorn's Rest</td><td>Thorn's Rest</td></tr>
<tr><td>Ioan Longshadow</td><td>Long Shadow</td></tr>
<tr><td>Jora Miroslava Rayne</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Juro</td><td>WinterSuns</td></tr>
<tr><td>Kelia Drifting Bough</td><td>Drifting Bough</td></tr>
<tr><td>Kiàine Thistleseeker</td><td>Sea Weasels</td></tr>
<tr><td>Kyffin Thornfield</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Madyn Bitterbark</td><td>Bitterbark Wayhouse</td></tr>
<tr><td>Malakili</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Morgoth SweetBlood</td><td>The Stormwall</td></tr>
<tr><td>Neasa</td><td>Silverhawks</td></tr>
<tr><td>Neirin Daggersbond</td><td>Thornfang Thornborn</td></tr>
<tr><td>Niamh</td><td>Splintered Oaks</td></tr>
<tr><td>Nos Umbral Path</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Orinn Embracing Fold</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Rhian Brighteyes</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Rhianon Waystone</td><td>The Waystone Path</td></tr>
<tr><td>Shiavek of Miaren</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Sorrel</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Syn Truth-Walker Returned</td><td>Nighthaven</td></tr>
<tr><td>Taliesyn Songweaver</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Taren Summergleam</td><td>Summergleam</td></tr>
<tr><td>Tavvik Splintered Oak</td><td>The Stormwall</td></tr>
<tr><td>Tomos Foxden</td><td>Foxden</td></tr>
<tr><td>Tudalen</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Vaal</td><td>Thorn's Rest</td></tr>
<tr><td>Valeska Pathfinder</td><td>Pathfinders</td></tr>
<tr><td>Wren Embercast</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Wynn</td><td></td></tr>
<tr><td>Yana Balmwood</td><td>
<tr><td>Ynyr Rootround</td><td></td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''Dreamspeaker Deryn argues that the Navarr must remind the rest of the Empire that the nations are meant to be equal
* '''He has asked the brands to make a decision about the shape of the future
Deryn's point is that the ''true'' fight against the vallorn is not a battle against horrors spawned by out-of-control [[Spring magic]]. Rather, it is a fight to convince the rest of the Empire of the ''need'' for that fight, of the dangers of taking the goodwill of the Navarr for granted. One day the war against the vallorn will be a matter for the [[thorn|thorns]], but that day cannot come until the political fight inside the Empire is won. To win that war, the Navarr must get better at fighting it. Political compromise is essential to the functioning of the Empire, says Deryn. Someone must always make a sacrifice, but it shouldn't be the Navarr ''every time''.

Deryn isn't blaming the Military Council or the Navarr generals for this situation. Rather he suggests that too many Navarr think in terms of what ''they'' can do to achieve an outcome. They think of their problems as ''Navarr'' problems, instead of thinking of them as ''Imperial'' problems. According to Deryn, what the Navarr need is some ''leverage''. Like the Marchers and the Urizeni before them, they need a weapon they can wield to fight for their dreams.

Two years ago, the Marchers [[Sound_the_bells#Turn_the_Other_Field|contemplated what would happen]] if their farmers stopped producing the grain that the Empire relied on to feed their armies. Many argued that it was foolish to even put words to such thoughts, given how significant the impact would be for the Empire. Indeed the Marchers soundly voted against the idea - but Deryn argues that they only sheathed their weapon, they did not throw it away, and there is power in knowing that weapon exists. And in ensuring the rest of the Empire is ''also'' aware of that weapon. It reminded everyone what the Marchers do for their fellow citizens that no other nation can. It sent a powerful message that the Empire should not take Marcher grain for granted.

Of course, the nation might not ''want'' such a weapon. The Navarr know better than anyone the danger of dreaming of weapons, and what happens when they are made real without thought to the consequences. With that in mind he has prevailed on the egregores of the nation to put his question to those he considers the best people to make the decision about whether to open a box of trouble or not. The [[Brand|brands]] have sworn oaths of service to their steadings, their stridings, their nation, and indeed the Empire.

The Navarr egregore has agreed to host a meeting at the Songs and Stories Henge in the Navarr camp on Saturday evening at 6:00pm. The question Deryn puts to them is whether they wish the Navarr to explore the ways they could show how important they are to the Empire if it were needed. If there is any support for the idea, then at the end of the meeting, the brands can take a simple vote on it and the egregores will make sure the nation knows of their decision. If this happens, then at the Winter Solstice there will be a wind of fortune detailing [[opportunity|opportunities]] for the Navarr to demonstrate why the Empire needs the Navarr, and to give voice to those angry at the way they feel they have been mistreated by their fellow Imperial nations.

===Where It Goes===
* '''Eirwen of Mountains Slumber argues that the true destiny of the Navarr is to build up the Empire
* '''She dreams of a time when the Navarr are at the forefront of building connections between the Imperial nations
The [[Highguard|Highborn]] may claim that the Empire is their destiny, but ''Eirwen of Mountains Slumber'' argues that Navarr and Thorn swore to this cause centuries before the [[First Empress]] was born. The Empire is the legacy of the Navarr every bit as much as it is the Highborn. The focus on fighting the vallorn has blinded the Navarr to the fact that the founders of the nation didn't swear an oath to destroy the vallorn... they swore an oath ''to restore the civilisation of Terunael''. Her point is that the fundamental focus of Navarri aspirations should be the Empire itself. She doesn't deny that the Navarr would benefit from fighting harder for their own cause, but they would also gain by proactively engaging with other nations, seeking out ways to work together and collaborate to achieve shared goals.

The Empire would simply not exist without the Navarr, says Eirwen. It was Navarr messengers who brought the leaders of the nations together at Anvil, who brought the First Empress to her first allies, helped her build her crucial alliance with Dawn. The Navarr created the [[trods]] that are so vital to allowing the Empire to grow and supporting its armies. It is the Navarr who to this day continue to bind the nations together, ensuring that even the most far-flung outposts still feel connected to the heart of the Empire. Without the Navarr, and their continued tending of the fire of civilisation, the Imperial dream would have guttered and gone out centuries ago.

Eirwen points to the Navarr's [[Every path you know|highest calling]] as an example where the Navarr nation has demonstrated such leadership recently. The Assembly embraced the dream to help other nations prepare for the coming war with the vallorn. Engaging with those nations that were ready to face the coming conflict enabled people to identify ways they could grow stronger together. The Navarr advanced their dream of finally defeating the vallorn not by strengthening the nation directly, but rather by strengthening the Empire itself.

The immediate effects of that highest calling may be coming to an end, but the Navarr have already established another way to collaborate with the other nations. At present there are five substantial [[Navarr_wayhouse|Navarr wayhouses]] in various parts of the Empire. The [[Keeper_of_the_Last_Battle#Last_Battle_Wayhouse|Last Battle]] in built in [[the Barrens#The Bleaks|the Bleaks]] in [[the Barrens]] on lands that the [[Not_to_conquer#Karass|Karass]] claim as their own. The other four are on firmer ground, [[Keeper_of_the_Stand#Micah's_Stand_Wayhouse|Micah's Stand]] in [[Reikos#Chalcis Mount|Chalcis Mount]], [[Reikos]]; [[Strategos_of_Navarr#Awstin's_Rest|Awstin's Rest]] in [[Ossium#Nearwald|Nearweald]] in [[Ossium]]; the [[Keeper_of_the_Ashen_Tears#Ashen_Tears_Wayhouse|Ashen Tears]] in the [[Skarsind#Skogei Glens|Skogei Glens]] in [[Skarsind]] and the [[Keeper_of_the_Splintered_House#The_Splintered_House|Splintered House]] in [[Holberg#Utterlund|Utterlund]], in [[Holberg]]. The number of stridings might be reduced, but there are still thousands of Navarr who pass through these wayhouses every year. Together they give the Navarr a unique opportunity to benefit from the relationship with the nation in question.
====Dreams====
<div style="width: 400px; float: right; clear: right; margin-left:10px;">
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
<tr><th style="background-color: White;">Citizens operating a Navarr Wayhouse</th></tr>
<tr><td>Angela RavensOak</td></tr>
<tr><td>Ciapek SplinteredOak</td></tr>
<tr><td>Dax</td></tr>
<tr><td>Mouse Ddawnswraig</td></tr>
<tr><td>Muse Ashen Tears</td></tr>
</table>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
<tr><th style="background-color: White;">Navarr Wayhouse Groups</th></tr>
<tr><td>Bronwen's Rest</td></tr>
<tr><td>Dreamsreach</td></tr>
<tr><td>Society of the Lute and Moon</td></tr>
<tr><td>Red Star</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''The nation can build on the success of the wayhouses to bring strength to the Empire'''
* '''During the Autumn Equinox the wayhouses of Navarr can choose a single Navarr wayhouse to benefit from their combined efforts'''
The Navarr could take advantage of that to help strengthen a territory or nation hosting one of their wayhouses. They could dream up some way to work together to tackle common problems, or some aspiration to achieve something great together. At the moment, many Navarr are simply passing through these territories; Eirwen wants them to bring something to the table when they arrive.

A dream requires two things - it needs unity of effort and clarity of purpose. The Navarr will need to pick a single territory that contains one or more wayhouses and focus their efforts there. Vague notions of making things better are not something that people can aspire to; they are not a goal that people can strive to accomplish. To make the most of this [[opportunity]], the Navarr need to clearly identify what it is they want to achieve in that territory - what problem are they hoping to solve, or what goal are they seeking to accomplish. What is the dream?

If the Navarr can choose a single territory and define what their dream would be then it is guaranteed to create an [[opportunity]] to do something to pursue that goal. The only limitation is that this goal must be something other than "defeating the vallorn". That noble goal is already the highest calling of the Navarr and the [[Dawn|Dawnish]] - this is a chance for the Navarr to work with the other nations to identify some ''other'' dream that they have in common. Some other way that the Navarr can fulfil their oaths to restore civilisation.

Of course such high-minded ideas are all well and good, but someone is going to have to decide where and when and who and how. Eirwen has asked the Navarr egregore to host a meeting at the Songs and Stories Henge in the Navarr camp on Saturday evening at 17:00. This meeting will allow the assembled wayhouses to discuss which [[Navarr wayhouse]] to select and what the dream should be. Once that decision is made, then Eirwen and her colleagues will look to see what they can do to enable that dream. Given that this ambition depends on the wayhouses, Eirwen has asked those Navarr who have been appointed to run a [[Navarr wayhouse]], or who are from a [[steading]] that is a Navarr [[wayhouse]], to attend and decide the matter. If needed, a simple vote of those attending can take place.

A new wayhouse has recently been [[Construct_Wayhouse_in_the_Barrens|constructed in the Barrens]]. The [[Keeper of Caedwynn's Hold]] is due to be appointed by the Navarr senators at the coming summit. If a new Keeper is in place by 17:00 on Saturday, then they would be eligible to take part in the meeting with the other wayhouses.

===Many Dreams===
* '''Eirwen and Deryn's paths are not exclusive of each other'''
These two dreamspeakers are inspired by very different visions of the future for their nation and the Empire. Yet neither approach is exclusive of the other. The brands could vote to at least consider what lengths the Navarr might go to to force the Empire to take the nation's concerns more seriously, and the wayhouse keepers work to build ties with the other nations. There is no "one true vision" of the future - only the question of which ambitions will be made real and which will fade like dew in the morning sun.

==Further Reading==
* [[Miaren#Seren, City of Dreams|Seren, City of Dreams]]
* [[Dreamspeaker]]

Come together

2026-08-18T09:21:28Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Autumn]]
<ic>
"Didn't you try this once already?" Aedan asked the dreamspeaker.

The old woman ignored the obvious hint of pity in her apprentice's question. "Yes, you're quite right dear, this is an utter waste of time. What is it they teach young people in schools these days. If at first you don't succeed, give up immediately because it clearly wasn't meant to happen. Have I got it right?"

"Haha." he replied to the obvious sarcasm. "You know what I mean," he tried again, "people debated it. For years. Then they decided to do the Temple instead."

Cordelia nodded her head, her long grey braid bobbing in time. "No need to remind me, my memory isn't that bad you know. But the Temple is finished now is it not?"

"Yeah but it's taken us ''years''. We'll never get people to agree to another project on this scale. It's just not possible." Even as he said it, Aedan knew what his teacher was going to say. The same thing she ''always'' said when someone told her something was impossible.

"Everything is impossible until someone does it Aedan. And nothing is impossible afterwards. It's the bit in-between the two that is tricky. Did I ever tell you about the old Wintermark..."

"Topi?" said Aedan butting in. "Yes, yes you did. Moved all his books to Gildenheim with the help of beavers. You've told me that story many, many times Cords." said Aedan. He smiled at her kindly to take the sting out of his words even as he stubbornly refused to let her regale him for the umpteenth time with the story of Topi's books. "This is different, it's not about chasing your dreams, it's a question of ''priorities''."

The aging dreamspeaker laughed, apparently more amused than offended. "No, no Aedan, you're quite wrong. Priorities are literally what chasing dreams is all about..."
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Thornsong.png|width=300px|caption=Thornsong House was lost to the Druj, but the dream it represented still endures.}}</div>
==Overview==
The completion of the ''City of Dreams'' - the transformation of [[Miaren#Seren|Seren]] and the construction of the [[Miaren#Temple of the Waking Dream|Temple of the Waking Dream]] - has inspired some of the [[dreamspeaker|dreamspeakers]] to present [[Dream on|visions of the future]] to be considered by the Navarr nation as a whole. At the same time however, it has reminded the Navarri of the importance of dreaming big, pursuing ambition, and preparing for the future they want to see.

One of the terrible losses when [[Therunin]] fell to the [[Druj]] was [[Thornsinger#Thornsong_House|Thornsong House]]. Despite the valiant efforts of the Navarr and the aid of [[Ossegrahn|Lord Rain]], the college of herbmastery could not ultimately be protected from the orcs of [[the Mallum]]. Thornsong House burned, but many of those who studied there were able to escape to the safety of [[Reikos]]. Some stayed behind on [[Reikos#Chalcis Mount|Chalcis Mount]], but others chose to put as much distance between themselves and the horrors of the Druj as possible. Drawn to the Temple of the Waking Dream, some of these apothecaries and physicks have taken the path of the dreamspeaker themselves, and inspired by the City of Dreams, they have put their ambition to rebuild what was lost into words.

==Live And Learn==
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''The Gardens of the Heart'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Great Work</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Serenael, Miaren</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 90 weirwood, 40 white granite, 20 mithril and 450 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 4 seasons</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Increases investment in Miaren for herb gardens providing 2 true vervain and 1 cerulean mazzarine each season
* Allows the Imperial Apothecary's Guild to direct research into new potion recipes</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, opportunity is lost after the end of Spring Equinox 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Upkeep:''' 10 thrones</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''Dreamspeakers propose an ambitious new project - the Gardens of the Heart'''
* '''It would require 90 weirwood, 40 white granite, 20 mithril, and 450 crowns and a year to build'''
* '''The Gardens would raise the level of investment in herb gardens in Miaren'''
* '''They would allow the Imperial Apothecaries Guild to direct research on new potions'''
* '''The costs could be slashed with the support of other nations'''
{{CaptionedImage|file=Apothecaries Guild.png|title=Imperial Apothecaries' Guild|align=right|width=200}}
The Navarr are widely acknowledged to be masters of the herbal arts in the Empire. Until recently that expertise was focused at [[Thornsinger#Thornsong_House|Thornsong House]] in [[Therunin]], but the unique apothecarion's college was destroyed by the [[Crimson_and_green|Druj invasion]] in 387YE. Though the building could not be saved, the Navarr were able to rescue many of the [[Crimson_and_green#Under_an_Oak_(Therunin)|inhabitants]] of Peakedge Stead, some of whom have now settled in Miaren.

Years ago, when the [[Comes a time|Temple of the Waking Dream was first proposed]], it was not the only option available. ''Bronwen of the Silver Falls'' argued for a great work that would boost the production of [[herb garden|herb gardens]] across the territory. Her proposals are defunct now, but the completion of the Temple has inspired Bronwen and her allies to consider something similar, something that would help the [[Prosperity]] of Miaren and restore the Empire's ability to create new potions. It is an ambitious proposal, but Seren is now the City of Dreams - people are eager to imagine what could be!

The plan would require 90 wains of weirwood, 40 wains of white granite, 20 wains of mithril, and cost 450 crowns. The Gardens could only be commissioned using a [[Senate motion]], and would take a year to build. Once complete they would raise the level of investment in herb gardens in the territory, providing each herb garden with two additional [[true vervain]] and one additional [[Imperial roseweald]] each season.

Seren already has a number of fine schools where students study the [[Surgical skills#Apothecary|apothecary]] arts, but the presence of the gardens would draw dedicated masters of the natural sciences from across the nation and beyond, eager to take advantage of what Seren could offer. Now that the [[Imperial Senate]] has created the [[Imperial Apothecaries Guild]] to ''"Coordinate and support the research, development, and dissemination of ingredients, potions, poisons, antidotes, and drugs"'', that [[Imperial sodality]] could take charge of the efforts to create new potions in Seren, coming together to direct the research, exactly like the [[Thornsinger]] used to do in Therunin.

If the great work were completed then the Empire would be presented with three potential avenues of investigation that could be pursued. A simple vote of the Apothecaries Guild would determine which promising option to focus. The herbalists in Seren would pursue that research, using herbs provided by the ''Gardens of the Heart''. They would need to be paid of course - research is not cheap - so the Gardens would have an upkeep of 10 thrones a season. Once the research was complete, the resulting ''herbal'' would be presented to the [[Imperial_Apothecaries_Guild#Guild_Leader|Guild Leader]].

==Obvious Problems==
* '''The Gardens are very expensive
* '''The Apothecaries Guild is charged with overseeing potion research in the Empire
From the perspective of the Navarr, there are two clear problems. The first are the enormous costs. The Navarr are not a wealthy nation - it took years to fund the creation of the Temple of Waking Dreams - and the latest proposal is a commission nearly twice that size. The second is that control of the research would lie with the Apothecaries Guild rather than with the nation.

However, Bronwen argues that the requirement to involve the Apothecaries Guild is actually a ''benefit''. The Gardens of the Heart would provide a huge benefit to the occupants of Miaren, but they would also provide a big boost to the prestige and power of the new sodality. If the nation embraced membership of the sodality, they might be able to work with members of the guild from other nations to raise the funds needed to build the Gardens. It may be impossible for either the Navarr or the sodality to arrange the construction alone, but maybe not if they worked together?

The Navarr [[Eight_for_a_wish#Bound_by_Thorn_(Navarr)|chose to embrace]] the [[Vallornguard]], accepting them as allies who could help fight the ancient enemy. They could take a similar approach to the Apothecaries Guild. Working with the sodality would create opportunities to collaborate with herb masters of every supportive nation. It needn't be a competition, argues Bronwen, and cooperation could allow the Navarr and the Guild to benefit together.
==Where It Comes==
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBHighguard.jpg|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBVarushka.jpg|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBLeague.jpg|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=NBOrcs.jpg|align=right|width=200}}
</div>
* '''The wayhouses in Ossium, Holberg, Reikos, and Skarsind could be used to take advantage of the great works there'''
* '''If the great works in the territories were reassigned to support the Gardens it would significantly reduce the costs'''
* '''In the event that the proposal got the support of all four nations the college would have more options to choose from'''
The existence of Navarr wayhouses in [[Ossium]], [[Holberg]], and [[Reikos]] presents a unique opportunity for the Navarr to cooperate with those nations on the work for the Gardens. In each territory, there is a [[great work]] that provides benefits to everyone across the territory. If one or more of these great works were redirected to support the construction of the Gardens for the next year, then that would make it significantly cheaper to build the Gardens. In fact if all three were put to the task, then no wains would be needed at all!

There are four possible great works that could be reassigned to help construct the Gardens, they are:

* The [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Gardens_of_High_Chalcis|Gardens of High Chalcis]] could be reassigned for one year to reduce the amount of weirwood required by 50 wains
* [[Holberg#Holmauer_Park|Holmauer Park]] could be reassigned for a year to reduce the amount of white granite required by 40 wains
* [[Ossium#Kurstrozi's_Lumbermill|Krustrozi's Lumbermill]] could also be reassigned for a single year to reduce the amount of weirwood required by 40 wains
* [[Skarsind#The_Red_Blade_Memorial|Red Blade Memorial]] in [[Skarsind]] could be reassigned for a single year to reduce the amount of mithril required by 20 wains.

In each case, the great work would provide no benefits for the year, but doing so would reduce the number of wains needed. Herbs from High Chalcis would enable the Gardens to be established quicker and easier; the materials from Krustrozi's Lumbermill would provide the tools needed and could be used to replace some of the materials needed; the money from Holmauer Park would be used to buy other outstanding resources; and contributions from the [[Yerende]] and Imperial Orcs bonesetters would remove the requirement for mithril in the construction.

Reassigning all these great works would be a diplomatic challenge to put it mildly. It's not even fully clear who could authorise such work. The [[Benefactor of High Chalcis]] has the authority to reassign the benefits of the Gardens of High Chalcis - all that would be required would be for the current Benefactor, '''Enoch of Atun's Sanctuary''', to make an appropriate [[Benefactor_of_High_Chalcis#Redirect_the_Bounty|announcement in the Senate]]. Persuading them, and presumably the other benefactors to make that sacrifice, might be more difficult.

Still, in the unlikely event that the plan benefitted from the support of all four nations throughout, then the college would ultimately benefit from having such a wide base of support. The assistance of the skilled apothecaries in Reikos and the [[Yerende]], coupled with the knowledgeable doctors and learned wise ones of the League and Varushka respectively, would widen the base of study for the college. That would mean it would have four potions to pick from each time a choice was needed, rather than three.

==Take You Away==
* '''The Senate could create sinecured titles to oversee the great works in Holberg, Ossium and Skarsind'''
There is no equivalent figure who could do the same in Holberg, Ossium, or Skarsind but that is not an insurmountable obstacle. The [[Senate]] could create a sinecured Imperial title and give them authority over the great work in question, with similar powers to distribute its bounty when needed.

In addition to specific benefits, each of these titles would be given the ability to redirect the bounty of the great work when an appropriate [[opportunity]] was identified by the Civil Service. To use this power, the title would provide an [[Senate_announcement|announcement]] to the Civil Service, who would present the decision to the [[Senate]]. There would be no voting, but the [[Synod]] may, however, choose to exercise their [[veto]] as normal. If the bounty of the great work is redirected, then they will provide no benefit to the territory, nor would the title holder receive the benefits of their sinecure for as long as the redirection is in place.

In the view of many dreamspeakers, these titles would provide a clear benefit to the nation (and the Empire) even if the nations that build them don't want to support the Gardens of the Heart. The dreamspeakers proposal demonstrates what a great work is capable of - how it can be used to support a grand ambition. The League, Varushka, and the Imperial Orcs might not want to support this dream, but they may feel differently about some other [[opportunity]] in the future. The proposed sinecures would empower the nations in question to better pursue their dreams - and that makes them a net good in the view of most dreamspeakers even if they can't be persuaded to back the Gardens.

===Holmauer Watchhouse===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Holmauer Watchhouse'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Sinecure</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Holmauer, Holberg</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 10 white granite, and 30 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 3 months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Creates the title of Holmauer Watchcaptain</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, until the end of the Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightGreen;">'''Holmauer Watchcaptain'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Type:''' National</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Appointment: '''Tally of the Votes </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Powers:''' Receives 9 crystal mana each season; can redirect funds from the Gates of Holmauer great work </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Responsibilities:''' To keep an eye on Holmauer Park, and ensure that any problems caused by the cursed park are dealt with.</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Restrictions:''' The sinecure only provides crystal mana as long as the Gates of Holmauer great work does</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''A watchhouse could be incorporated into the Gates of Holmauer Park
* '''The title of Holmauer Watchcaptain charged with overseeing the safety of visitors and the funds raised by the gates
The Gates of Holmauer Park allow the League to charge admission to the wonders of that Winter-cursed locale. Yet even the people of Holberg must admit that everyone would feel a little safer with some active presence of people ready to leap in in the unlikely event flesh-hungry ghouls burst out of hiding and start eating visitors. An office to oversee a small contingent of dedicated watch, given the power to reallocate the funds raised by visitors, would provide several benefits. The ''Holmauer Watchcaptain'' would look after the [[Gates of Holmauer Park]], and be responsible for ensuring that any threats arising within, or as a consequence of the [[Winter magic]] the infuses the park, are dealt with efficiently. It would make sense to ensure they had access to the crystal mana that might be needed to put down an incursion of ravenous [[Inhabitants of the realms#Boggarts|boggarts]], or confront a [[coven]] of [[Agramant]] cultists bent on turning everyone in Holberg into cannibals. For example.

===Darkwoods Wagonhouse===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Darkwoods Wagonhouse'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Sinecure</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Drownbark Forest, Ossium</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 10 weirwood, and 90 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 3 months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Creates the title of Kurstrozi Lumberjack</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, until the end of the Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightGreen;">'''Kurstrozi Lumberjack'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Type:''' National</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Appointment:''' Tally of the Votes </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Powers:''' Receives 11 crowns each season, can redirect the bounty of Kurstrozi's Lumbermill</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Responsibilities:''' To look after Kurstrozi's Lumbermill and support the prosperity of the forest owners of Osium</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Restrictions:''' The title only receives money while Kurstrozi's Lumbermill great work is operating</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''A wagonhouse at Kurstrozi's Lumbermill could be dedicated to transporting raw lumber and dressed wood across Ossium and beyond
* '''The title of Kurstrozi Lumberjack would support forest owners in Ossium and oversee the bounty provided by the lumbermill
Likewise, Kurstrozi's Lumbermill is a hive of industry and activity in Ossium. Sawblades manufactured there are spread across the territory, and it is the most likely destination for lumber in the territory. The addition of warehouses and ox-pens dedicated to transporting the bounty of Ossium's rich forests across the Empire would be obvious. The ''Kurstrozi Lumberjack'' would maintain Kurstrozi's Lumbermill, distribute its bounty on the occasions where opportunities were presented, and just as importantly support and protect the forest owners of Ossium when they needed it. There is no doubt that those who owe their livelihood to the Lumbermill would be prepared to show their appreciation for the Lumberjack.

===House of the Lost===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''House of the Lost'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Sinecure</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Drownbark Forest, Ossium</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 10 weirwood, and 90 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 3 months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Creates the title of Rhyv's Blade</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, until the end of the Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightGreen;">'''Rhyv's Blade'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Type:''' National</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Appointment:''' Tally of the Votes </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Powers:''' Receives five ingots of weltsilver, five measures of ambergelt, and three measures of beggar's lye each season, can redirect the bounty of Red Blade Memorial</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Responsibilities:''' Look after the Red Blade Memorial, support the warriors of the Unshackled with potions and healing herbs</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Restrictions:''' The title only receives materials while Red Blade Memorial great work is operating</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''A school could be built at Red Blade Memorial to ensure as many young orcs as possible learn the basics of field medicine'''
* '''The title of Rhyv's Blade would look after the memorial and protect the bonesetters there, and ensure that the Unshackled legions have plenty of support in the form of healing herbs and medicinal potions'''

The Red Blade Memorial in Skarsind is a gathering place for the [[Imperial_Orcs_economic_interests#Bonesetters|bonesetters]] of the Imperial Orcs, veterans with plenty of experience of desperate last-minute medicine on the battlefield. Not only do they understand the need for plenty of herbs, they know the value of a well-placed potion. The [[Yerende]] sept in particular are excited by the potential of the Gardens of the Heart. They suggest that a hospital be combined with the memorial, one that would focus specifically on ensuring as many young orcs as possible learn the basics of field medicine; orcs have only one life to live after all and so being in a position to save those lives is a high calling. The title of ''Rhyv's Blade'' would be charged with looking after the memorial and protecting the bonesetters there, as well as working to ensure that the Unshackled legions have plenty of support in the form of healing herbs and medicinal potions. In return they would enjoy a bounty of magical metals, which could prove invaluable to creating [[:Category:Tools|magical tools]] for Imperial Orcs physicks and apothecaries.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Orinn Embracing Fold.jpg|caption=Orinn Embracing Fold was the last [[Thornsinger]]; do the Navarr still hold the ambition to see the Empire's apothecaries embrace the future?|align=right|width=300}}</div>

===Dream Big===
* '''The Navarr and Apothecaries Guild will likely need to work hard to convince the Senate to support the new college
At first glance it seems unlikely the Senate, or the people of the League and Varushka, will see the value of such costly action. Bronwen argues however that the benefits are obvious - the nation in question receives not only additional prosperity from the new title, but the ability to in the future put their Prosperity to work in supporting their own people or the people of their allied nations. She does, however, point out that if the Navarr and the Apothecaries' Guild want this support, they may have to work for it - speaking to people in those nations to secure their support and bring pressure to bear on their senators. This, she says, is one of the many benefits of having a wayhouse in another nation - the Navarr who live there are in the best position to influence the politics of that nation after all.

==Paths Not Taken==
* '''This opportunity supersedes that offered in Winter 387YE
* '''The opportunity presented by the Yerende is no longer available
* '''The only constitutional way for the college of apothecary to be appointed is via the Imperial Apothecaries Guild
Bronwen's proposal supersedes the [[opportunity]] that was [[Crimson_and_green#Under_an_Oak_(Therunin)|offered]] in Winter 387YE. The plans are more ambitious, but have caught the enthusiasm of the Navarr and especially those who survived the fall of Thornsong House. Likewise, the opportunity [[It%27s_what_we_do#Weeds_and_Seeds|presented by]] the [[orc|orcs]] of the [[Yerende]] sept is no longer available.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Magistrate Abraham.jpg|caption=Magistrate Abraham, a constitutional scholar and part of the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional Court|Constitutional Court]]|align=right|width=300}}</div>
When the [[Apothecaries Guild]] was first established, the [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|Constitutional Court]] offered guidance that there was no requirement for a college of the apothecary arts to fall under the purview of the Imperial Sodality. They have since offered new guidance, revising their original position. The Court are currently [[preparing a report]] on the Artisans Guild and they are strongly minded to rule that the Guild must have authority over the Empire's [[runeforge|runeforges]] if it is to meet the needs of the manifesto proposed by the Throne. The legal parallel with the Apothecary's Guild is overwhelming and demands that the two sodalities be treated the same.

Of course, by that logic, the Imperial Conclave should be the only body able to direct the research of the Empire's colleges of magic. An exception can justified for the [[Doyen of the Spires]] on the grounds that that college is completely unique - it is utterly reliant on the distinctive magical skills of the Urizen and could never be reproduced in a similar form elsewhere. Sadly, legal consistency fails with regard to the [[Construct_Barossa_University_of_Dramaturgical_Arts|Barossa University of Dramaturgical Arts]] which is a national bourse appointment, but that can't used as legal precedent because in the words of [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|''Magistrate Abraham'']] ''"it is a constitutional abomination which should never have been allowed to pass"''.

As such, as long as the Apothecaries Guild continues to exist to ''coordinate and support the research, development, and dissemination of ingredients, potions, poisons, antidotes, and drugs to Imperial citizens'' then a vote of the Guild would be the [[New_Imperial_titles#Well_Worn_Paths|well worn path]] for directing the research done by any apothecarion's college.

==Further Reading==
* [[Apothecaries Guild]] - the [[Imperial Sodality]]
* [[Thornsinger#Thornsong House|Thornsong House]] - the destroyed apothecary college in Therunin

Steeplechase LRP Centre

2026-08-17T12:28:01Z

Dre:

==Overview==
All our events are held at Steeplechase LRP Centre.

==Site Address==
* '''Please use CB25 9QZ or [https://what3words.com/kind.campsites.horseshoe ///kind.campsites.horseshoe] to reach the start of the approved route'''
* '''Once there you can use CB24 8FP or [https://what3words.com/speaker.reseller.aliens ///speaker.reseller.aliens] to reach the site entrance.

The address is Steeplechase LRP Centre, Beach Road, Cottenham, Cambridgeshire.

Please use CB25 9QZ or [https://what3words.com/kind.campsites.horseshoe ///kind.campsites.horseshoe] if you are putting the details into your satnav. This will bring you in by the correct route, avoiding the winding trip through the local villages. It will take you to the turning for Green End, the start of the approved route. Once there you can use CB24 8FP or [https://what3words.com/speaker.reseller.aliens ///speaker.reseller.aliens] for the site entrance.

==Directions==
Please ensure that you avoid coming to site via Cottenham as the roads are very narrow and congested in the village. Our suggested route avoids the village of Landbeach - it is slightly longer but avoids congestion. It is '''vital''' to follow these directions when you '''leave site at the end of the event'''. There will be significant delays for everyone if people try to go through the village to get to the A10.

===On Arrival===
* '''Take the A14 to Cambridge'''
* '''Leave the A14 at J33, take the A10 North for Ely'''
* '''Follow the A10 for 5km, past Landbeach and Waterbeach'''
* '''Take the slip road left onto Green End, signposted Cottenham 3, Landbeach 1'''
* '''After 1km, Take the first right hand turn onto Cottenham Road, signposted for Cottenham'''
* '''Drive 1.5km on Cottenham Road until it becomes Beach Road'''
* '''The centre is the on the right - just opposite the lay-by'''
<div style="float: right; width: 600px; display: flex; flex-direction: column; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Cottenham-A.png|align=right|width=600}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Cottenham-2B.png|align=right|width=600}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Cottenham-2E.png|align=right|width=600}}
</div>
===On Departure===
* '''Turn left onto Cottenham Road'''
* '''Drive 1.5km, then turn left at the t-junction towards Streathem and Ely and away from Landbeach'''
* '''Drive 1km until you reach the A10'''
* '''Turn left onto the A10 heading north'''
* '''Drive 750m to the roundabout, circle the roundabout, and back onto the A10 heading south'''
* '''Follow the A10 until you reach the A14'''

==By Train==
We recommend getting the train to Cambridge North. While Waterbeach is technically closer to site, it is a local village station with no amenities, a tiny car park, and only two trains in each direction per hour compared with Cambridge North's 5. Cambridge central station is on the wrong side of the city. Profound Decisions coach shuttle service is operating from Cambridge North.

===Amenities at Cambridge North===
* '''Seating, though most of it's outdoors'''
* '''Costa Coffee (takeaway only)'''
* '''Co-op'''
* '''Toilets including accessible facilities, inside the ticket barriers'''
* '''Food van'''
* '''Hotel'''
* '''Step-free access throughout, via lifts and an overbridge'''

Cambridge North is staffed at all times, there’s no ticket office but someone from the information desk can help with ticket machines if necessary. There is step-free access throughout, via the lifts, but always check on the day if you’re reliant on the lifts, as outages are not uncommon.

===Cambridge North Shuttle Service===
* '''We operate a coach service between Cambridge North and the site'''
* '''There is no charge for this service this year'''
* '''You may not eat on the coach'''
* '''There is a sign-up sheet in GOD for the Sunday shuttle'''

We will operate a coach service collecting players from Cambridge North train station and bringing them to site and taking them back on Sunday. As you exit the train station, turn left and walk past the cycles to the rail replacement bus bay. We have liaised with the Station and collection will be from there.

On Thursday coaches will run between 12.30 and 19.30. We will run continuously through these times. The round trip to the station and back is 60 minutes but traffic and loading will mean this will not run precisely to the hour. On Friday it will run in the same manner between 11.00 and 16.00.

On Sunday returning coaches will run from 16.00. The first two coaches to leave at the end of the event are often heavily subscribed. There is a sign-up sheet available in GOD to ensure you have a space. We understand that people will be looking to leave to catch prebooked trains and ask that you sign up for the most appropriate coach to get you there on time. You will have to take a taxi or travel on a later coach if the earlier coach is full.

There is no charge for this service this year.

==By Bus or Taxi==
Bus routes are not easy - you will need to get 2 buses; the guided bus to Histon and then change onto a number 8. The walk to site from the bus stop in Cottenham is on a national speed limit road with no pavement.

If you want a taxi you’ll need to summon it most of the time, they only show up to the station on spec at rush hour. Local firms include Veezu and CamCab.

* [https://www.veezu.co.uk/cambridge Veezu] - 01223 715 715
* [https://camcab.co.uk/ CamCab] - 01223 704704

It costs about £20 to get a taxi to site. You should try to get the driver to take the PD recommended route for cars avoiding Landbeach if possible. Uber is available in Cambridge.

==On Site==
* '''You must observe the 10mph speed limit at all times once you leave the public road'''

Turn right into the site from the main entrance off Beach Road opposite the lay-by. There is a 10mph speed limit at all times once you leave the public road. Drive 250m up the site access track until you reach the gate. Profound Decisions gate team will be ready to receive you there. Our team will direct you where to camp. They will be able to answer any questions you have on the day and give you additional direction.

There are roads that go through the out-of-character camp, through Anvil and back. Vehicles are allowed to leave the road provided the conditions are acceptable, please check with a member of crew for further details when you are on site.

==OOC Camping Fields==
There will be a space available for all participants who are camping OOC at the event. There is no need to book a spot in the OOC camping area - there is plenty of room here for everyone.

==IC Camping Fields==
* '''If you want to camp in-character, then you must let your nation camp planner know'''
* '''You must follow the rules for in-character camping and vehicle access'''

Anvil is spread over two adjoining fields. If you wish to camp in-character, then you must let the [[camp planner]] for your nation know. There are [[Event_information#Camping|rules in place for in-character camping]], so we can only guarantee sleeping space on the IC field to people with accessibility or childcare needs.

You can bring your car onto the in-character field to set up your camp. You can drive onto the roads through IC camping fields provided that you do so before time-in at 6pm, but you can only leave the roads if the weather is dry and the ground is in good condition. Space is at a premium on site and the spot where you stop to unload is likely to be needed by someone else to camp. For this reason, you must unload and set up your camp as quickly as you can and then move your vehicle off site as soon as you are done. You must not leave your vehicle on site over night.

During take-down there is simply not enough room for everyone to bring their car onto the site while all the tents are still up. We need participants to make room for vehicles and be off as quickly as possible, otherwise the traffic on the site becomes gridlocked and nothing can move. For this reason you must take your tent down and pack up your belongings before you bring your vehicle on site, unless you need to bring your vehicle on first for accessibility reasons (such as disability, fatigue, childcare, etc). Once everything is down and ready to be packed away, you can bring your car onto site (assuming ground conditions are reasonable), collect your stuff and go. We strongly recommend bringing a plastic sheet, tarpaulin or similar to protect your gear from any inclement weather.

This rule applies up to 7pm on Sunday - after that time participants are free to drive onto site without needing to take their tents down first. We will actively review this deadline between events and move it earlier in the day if we are confident that we can do so without the site becoming deadlocked.

All these rules apply to the IC camping areas only, there are no equivalent restrictions on vehicle movements in the OOC or crew camping areas.

==Crew Camping Fields==
* '''Camping for crew only'''
The crew camping field is for crew only. Crew may choose to camp here or in any of the player camping areas. GOD, and monster will all operate from this area.


==Accessibility Support==
There are dedicated accessibility camps at all entrances to the site for anyone who needs to use them. We will provide additional support available where possible - email us at [mailto:accessibility@profounddecisions.co.uk accessibility@profounddecisions.co.uk] to discuss what arrangements will suit you best. We aim to make our events accessible to all and will do everything we can to help you enjoy the event.

==Site regulations==
==Ground Fires==
Fires must not be set on the ground, they must only be lit on something that keeps the fire off the ground. Existing fires should be completely extinguished each night. We are arranging firewood for the site. The site includes land that is actively farmed - so please do not throw rubbish that does not burn into campfires - particularly tins, bottles and bottle tops.

==Rubbish==
Please make sure that all your rubbish is suitably bagged and disposed of in the skip before you leave site. Do not overfill your rubbish bags - more bags are available on request from GOD at any time. The skip is located in the main OOC field. Please ask for directions if you cannot find it.

==Noise==
We have a noise curfew of 1am. Up until this time loud music, shouting and carousing, etc. are permitted. We expect this to stop at 1am when time in finishes, including in the Senate.

After this time we expect organised noise on the field, such as concerts and singing, to die down to a point people in tents nearby should be able to sleep with earbuds in. We expect a certain amount of noise as people move towards their sleeping and group tents.

If you find the noise level after 1.30am to be unacceptable it would be appropriate to ask them to quiet down or contact our Security team to do so on your behalf.

==Amenities==
The nearest large supermarket is Tesco on Cambridge Road, Milton, Cambridge, CB24 6AY. It provides fuel and four low-power EV charging outlets and can be accessed from the roundabout where the A14 meets the A10 on the way to the site. There is a major EV charging station, 30 fast-chargers, at Cambridge Services, which is about 15 miles away on the A14.

There is a Co-op in Cottenham, on the high street (CB24 8QP), which is smaller but closer and has some parking round the back. There is also a greengrocers on High Street, [https://www.facebook.com/leswardltd/?locale=en_GB Les Ward] which closes at 17:30 on Friday and 16:00 on Saturday and a butchers [https://www.facebook.com/p/SSGawthroupSons-High-Class-Family-Butchers-100063570281170/?locale=en_GB S S Gawthroup & Sons Ltd] which closes at 17:00 on Friday and 13:00 on Saturday.

Cottenham has [https://www.rumblescottenham.co.uk/ Rumbles] chip shop and an award-winning [https://www.currypalacecottenham.com/ Indian Restaurant] both of which are on the high street and open seven days a week.

There are three small cafes in Cottenham, [https://www.facebook.com/Notjustbaguettes/ Not Just Baguettes], [https://www.cottenhamcc.org/ Cottenham Community Centre], and [https://www.facebook.com/p/Baked-100089103853561/ Baked], all of which are on the high street and are open on Friday and Saturday. There is a cafe, [https://www.twentypence.co.uk/our-restaurants/applejacks-restaurant.htm Applejacks Restaurant] on Twenty Pence Road, CB6 3RN. It's barely six miles from the site at the local garden centre, has plenty of parking and is open from 09:00 Monday to Saturday and 10:30 on Sunday.

[https://chequerscottenham.co.uk/ The Chequers] is the closest pub to the site and has some parking. They serve excellent food and are very keen to welcome live roleplayers to Cottenham. There is also [https://www.thehopbind.co.uk/ The Hop Bind] and the [https://www.facebook.com/p/Waggon-and-horses-cottenham-61571796549197/ Waggon and horses].

==Storage==
It will be some time before we are able to offer storage on-site because of logistical and planning restrictions. There is a container storage facility called [https://www.selectedselfstorage.co.uk Selected Self Storage] at Grasshopper Business Park, Ely Road, Cambridge, CB25 9NN, which is 3 miles from site. We recommend contacting them early, as they have limited capacity, but can order additional containers to meet demand with sufficient warning.

[[Category:The Game]]
[[Category:Events]]

Mud, blood, and manacles

2026-08-15T21:10:03Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of War]][[Category:388YE Autumn]][[Category:Military Council]]
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Holding the Line.jpg|align=left|caption=The Jotun have sown seeds of war, and now it is time to gather the bloody harvest.|width=500}}</div>
==What Has Gone Before==
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<div style="font-size: .9em;">
<quote by="Amberlain P. Black, General of the Strong Reeds">From the Rushes we rise from the reeds. Heed not the gnashing jaws and grasping hands of the unquiet Grey walkers, we are of the fens and reeds and are as much a part of the land as they are, our risen neighbours. Seek out the Jotun, strike at them and push them back to Ottermire!</quote>
<quote by="Aracelis I Erigo, General of the Burning Falcon">The Drakes turn south as we turn west. The bonds of Loyalty turn over from nation to nation and through General to General freely given in our actions to another. As an Empire we fight to show the Jotun they cannot take with Impunity and that we answer their threat with standing together whether in Mitwold reclaiming as they quit our lands, or Bregasland where we will face their armies and their Fjorknaw. We are the Burning Falcon, empowered by the might of Summer. Where we tread, Triumph blazes</quote>
<quote by="Lord Daemon Mortére, General of the Golden Sun">The Golden Sun stands where the Empire needs it most. Every oath deserves its shield. We will grinding advance into Bregasland. Out of fields of gold, through the Rushes and Ottermire. No enemy can sever what Loyalty has forged. For family, for the Marchers. We stand for the lore of their land. For the Empire. The Golden Sun will be a glorious arrow into the heart of our enemies. Secure the objective sun. For Gui.</quote>
<quote by="Zadok, General of the Valiant Pegasus">Two Years ago I ordered you to begin a crusade of liberation against the Jotun to free those labouring under barbarian yoke, starting in the Mourn. We inspired and aided the Oakleaf rebellion to free themselves. Then Bregasland fell, and our commitment to our crusade was renewed. Diversionary attacks North and South, the Reeds patience tested, a strike to one of the two hearts of their power, Keirheim, just barely thwarted. All this to make possible the conditions of this season, our return to Bregasland. We are fighting for Dominion, for the Liberty of the people of Bregasland; Accept no less than total victory. One day the Tyranny of Queens and Kings shall end and all people will be free to pursue virtue. We fell their rotten oaks one strike at a time.</quote>
<quote by="Joaquim i Erigo, General of the Red Wind Corsairs">Corsairs we trade a swamp for a marsh in helping our Marcher Cousins reclaim Bregasland. The Lasambrians have stolen from our cousins so we commit to a Daring Riad to reclaim their wealth from the Jotun by Proxy. We must be especially vigilant for the stolen dolmen of Drayham Mere. For the Empire! For the Marches!</quote>
<quote by="Albrecht Sanguineo, General of the Sparrow's Reckoning">Bravos of Tassato, soldiers of the League, heroes of the Empire we stand ready all swords sharpened, armour new and unblemished. Now we test them and ourselves against Jotun steel. We march to Bregasland at steady conquest to retake the homes of our Marcher siblings. We are named for our Empress, let your Pride in that legacy give you the strength to show the world that when the twin cities march to war no one can stand against us.</quote>
<quote by="Fitzwilliam Thorn, General of the Bounders">Jacks of the Bounders. Look into yourself and find your ambition, for there is work to be done. We go back to Bregasland with our Imperial cousins with us. Even the most impenetrable forest may fall one Jotun at a time.</quote>
<quote by="Jack Ashton, General of the Tusks">War is a vicious dog on a long chain. Too fucking long has it been let loose in our lands. Our homes. The time has come to chase the beast from our bounds. I say to you what I did before. Kill the invaders. Leave no Jotun Warrior alive to contest the claim. Make Balanced attack and liberate our home. P.S. if you see Stephen he's mine!!!</quote>
<quote by="Tager Defender of the Fallen Tyrshalt, General of the Bloodcloaks">Bloodcloaks, we go to Bregasland to recover those we have lost and will lose reclaiming the homes of the Marchers. Find the trinkets on the limbs of the trees that sprung up on this blood-soaked beachhead. We collect them to return them to the families of these heroes so their stories can be told and their memories shall survive the cold of night. We are Winterborn and the cold doesn't compromise. All heroes have a name, no matter which nation.</quote>
<quote by="Iron Osric, General of the Green Shield">A red sky after battle day, Bleeds broad beyond the brae; What fields, what fallen friends are they, What fires fade o'er far away? What spears stood stout in storm and shout, What banners broke and burned? What voices, valiant, call me out, To rounds from which we turned? That was the ground of gathered might, Of kin in clash and cry, The steadfast shields, a woman bright, Whose blade sang swift and high. O iron hours and embered eve, O dust and drum and flame, The hands I held, that I've had to leave, Yet thrill to speak their name. Good battle days 'neath shining star, Are loath to lose their lustre, Naught after else their joy can mar, Nor break the band we muster.</quote>
<quote by="Determination of Ice Kaisa, General of the Narwhal's Spear">We are to be a dance of cunning to claim what is before us. Let us weave our way through the lines carrying messages between our many allies. Be the Vigilant eyes and ears that inform every step forward. Seek the flanks and guide the Jotun's path into our Imperial victory.</quote>
<quote by="Ashborn Vana, General of the Autumn Hammers">Hammers, this is the season we strike the Jotun and bind them. This is the season we invoke the contracts with the City of Lock and Bond. We have seen the Hunters walk among us and now we fight with them. Show the Jotun why the Lictors are known as the Punishers, more than that, show them why WE are The Hammers! Strike the blow, cripple them so they cannot flee from us. Have Pride in your strength.</quote>
</div>
</div>
Here are the [[Bregasland#Grey_Fens|Grey Fens]] of [[Bregasland]]. The Jotun rule here, at least in theory. Yet what is this emerging from the marshes, from the dead pools? The [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#Objective:_Dismiss_the_Grey_Walkers|shades of Marchers past]] walk the Grey Fens, now that [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#Objective:_Recover_the_Ullsmere_Rock|Ullsmere Rock]] is gone. They do not tolerate trespassers, and unlike many ghosts they are capable of enforcing their will at least to a degree. They have no time for the self-styled Jarls of Bregasland, but they also care not for the folk of the Marches it seems. The Jotun defend their thralls, which includes those Bregas folk who have taken the Choice, but their efforts go only so far. Slowly, methodically, the Grey Walkers [[Pride_in_the_Marches#Get_Off_My_Fen|drive our]] everyone living in "their" fens, human and orc alike.

Here are the [[Bregasland#North_Fens|North Fens]], where stands [[Bregasland#Fisher’s_Rock|Fisher's Rock]]. The interloper queen of the Fishers is dead now, interred far to the north by her erstwhile Jotun allies. She is gone but the shadow of her touch remains; the bitter anger of [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#Battle_opportunity:_Open_relations_with_House_Brawness|House Brawness]] festers here, steeped in daydreams of [[Bregasland#Rebellious|rebellion]]. Yet it is not House Brawness that the people of North Fens fear at night. It is not rebels who come creeping out of the Gullet to steal away the unwary. It is not the bitter anger of Matilda Fisher's former friends that has seen villages and farms deserted. The Jotun try to defend their thralls here, too, but the monsters that come out of the sea strike without warning and often as not the yeofolk are dragged kicking into the sea, shouting for aid that arrives too late.

Here then is [[Bregasland#Ottermire|Ottermire]], and the town of Ottermire where the Jotun have planted their standards, from where they rule over Bregasland. They control the hub from which roads run like spokes - the Odd's Way east into [[Mitwold]], and Sallow's Walk south toward the [[Mournwold]], and innumerable paths and byways stretching out across the fens. These lesser roads quickly give way to streams and lakes and rivers, and the flat-bottomed boats of the Bregasfolk. Especially since that season of rains which left all the Empire's marshes deeper, and stranger. And the fens of Bregasland were strange enough to begin with...

And here are [[Bregasland#The_Rushes|the Rushes]], and the town of the Sallowfolk, which rises in time toward the dry land of [[Bregasland#Graven_Rock|Graven Rock]] and its [[Bregasland#Gravenmarch|march]]. There is a [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#The_Forest_Endures|new woodland]] here, where the marshwaters give way to the stone, where Jotun and Imperial once fought in the shadow of that great, flat rock (that rock that echoes still with the fading notes of that [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#The_Mountain_Rings|eerie song]] that once rang out across the battlefield). This is the border that the barbarians watch, between their lands and that fraction of Bregasland wrested free from their grasp.

It is from that rock, right down there in the south of Bregasland, that the ripples of [[Spring magic]] still spread across Bregasland bringing with them unnatural life, and the [[Spring magic#Chaos|chaotic touch]] of the [[Realms#Spring|Primal Forest]]. It runs through the waters of the marshes and the swamps, bringing [[Spring_magic#Healing_and_Vitality|indiscriminate healing]] to all who need it, whether they want it or not. Since the flat-topped mountain sang, all save the most mortal of injuries heals in a matter of hours, provided one bathes in or drinks from the waters of Bregasland.

Spring rarely, if ever, brings unalloyed benefit to those it touches, and as Summer fades it is clear that Bregasland is no different. The vitality that infuses the humans, and the orcs, and their beasts, infuses also the vermin of the marsh. Great clouds of mosquitos and biting flies rise from the waters of the fens, spreading fear, and painful bites, and the threat of pestilence. The Jotun fight to defend their thralls, but against clouds of insects, what use can axes be?

The Jotun also cannot forget that out there, hidden in the fens and the marshes, are the [[Strong Reeds]]. They have not forsaken their oath to the Bregas, not for one day. They fought to take back Gravenmarch, and then they slipped back into the rushes and the water without a trace, and every day the Jotun jarls must remember that they are ''still here'', and oh how that must rankle, how that must tug at their pride. They cannot root out the Strong Reeds, and every raid, every battered baggage train, every prisoner spirited away from beneath their noses, is a reminder that the spirit of Bregasland will never submit to them.

This is Bregasland, then, in the heartbeats between the height of Summer and the slow descent toward Winter. And none of these problems besetting the Jotun - not Grey Walkers, not coral-tainted husks, not bitter rebels, not bloodthirsty mosquitos, not even the lurking threat of the Strong Reeds - is anything compared to the storm of war that breaks over Bregasland as the sun rides high in the sky and the grain darkens toward gold in the fields.

==A Storm of Summer's Passing==
Eleven Imperial armies explode into Bregasland with hurricane force, while the Strong Reeds rise from the rushes to meet them, to lead their assault against the Jotun conquerors. Across the territory, those the Reeds have inspired throw their strength behind the Empire, launching long-rehearsed strikes against barbarian strongholds across the fens. They strike supply caches in Ottery, fire the palisade at Sallow, and wreck bridges across the North Fens. Then, with the skill of the Bregas, they melt back into the marshes before the Jotun can retaliate.

Into the Rushes, the Empire comes in force. A dozen armies, half of them marked with the power of Imperial [[enchantment|enchantments]]. A further five thousand strength of [[military unit|warbands]], led by bold captains eager to see the Jotun brought down, driven out of the Marches entirely.

The Strong Reeds rise, flanked by the [[Tusks]] and the [[Bounders]]. This is a war for the Marches, but not solely ''by'' the Marches. Three Marcher armies are matched by three armies of [[Wintermark]] - by the [[Bloodcloaks]], the [[Green Shield]], and the [[Narwhal's Spear]]. The first guards the lives of those who fight, bringing succour to the fallen. The second [[Wintermark_military_concerns#Army_Orders|fights with honour]], reminding their allies that there are some tactics that will not be borne - and showing the Jotun that the heroes of Wintermark at least remember how to glory in battle without letting it taint their spirit. The hunters of the third army, [[Army_qualities#Quick-Witted|quick witted]] and fleet footed and no stranger to fighting in marshes, test the mettle of their foes and seek that understanding which is key to any successful hunt.

Six armies, and only halfway through their accounting!

Next are two Freeborn armies, bright and burning despite the mud and the damp Summer. The [[Burning Falcon]] blaze with passionate ardour, a deadly bonfire of [[Army_qualities#True_Conviction|true conviction]] that will not settle for anything less than absolute victory over the foe. The Jotun cannot help but respect this incomparable enthusiasm for battle. The [[Red Wind Corsairs]] match the bold courage of their cousins with daring and audacity of their own, making the Jotun pay not in blood but in treasure to recover the prisoners they claim on the battlefield. The war-price is a sacred tradition, after all, and the orcs can hardly complain when the Freeborn take advantage of it.

Then the virtuous [[Valiant Pegasus]] and the untested soldiers of the League fresh mustered to the [[Sparrows Reckoning]]. They eschew glory and heroism in the pursuit of preserving lives, a [[Army_orders#Steady_Conquest|steady conquest]] that sees them ensure their soldiers are never far from the healing touch of the [[Surgical skills#Physick|physick]] or the [[heal|healer]]. The soldiers of one of the oldest nations of the Empire fight beside those belonging to one of the youngest. The one shares their experience with the other, who in turn share their pride at their chance to serve their nation, their Empire, and their [[the Throne|Throne]].

Last, then, but by no means least, come the [[Autumn Hammers]]. The [[orc|orcs]] of the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]] have the strangest of allies; with them marches a cohort of figures, features concealed in cowled hoods and metal masks. They fight not with sword or spears but with chains of green iron or pale glass or stranger materials. They are hunters bound by contract with the [[Lictors|Sovereign Lords of the City of Bar and Bond]], and they bring with them the power of the [[Realms#Autumn|Iron Labyrinth]] itself. Its power is subtle, but as the Empire engages the armies of the Jotun, it begins to spread wherever the orc army treads.

Twelve armies. Four - the Hammers, the Reeds, the Tusks, and the Bounders - are at the heart of the Imperial strategy. Their soldiers are granted supernatural [[Clarity of the Master Strategist|clarity of thought]] by the Empire's masters of [[Day magic]]. They can see how best to wield the strength of Imperial soldiers against the defenders, the straight road from where they are to the future where Bregasland is freed.

Two are enchanted with the [[Knights of Glory]]. With the Green Shield is ''Ollavan the Reeve'', sharp-eared archer and master of the bow. He brings his warband of hunters and rust-red hounds, and their arrows sing as they seek out the Jotun foe. When not fighting, they are eager to test their skill against that of the finest archers among the Imperial troops, congratulating winner and loser with equal enthusiasm. Their thirst for glory is contagious, spreading easily through the bold warriors of Wintermark.

The Burning Falcon are joined by ''Kore the Lion-maned'', resplendent in crimson armour, leading their leonine lancers at the forefront of every charge. Kore's knights tower above the Freeborn beside them; while their torso, head, and arms are humanlike, their lower bodies are those of deadly predatory cats. (And if there are also rumours of laughing, dancing [[Inhabitants of the realms#heralds|heralds]] of the [[Janon|Shadowed Fire]] with the Burning Falcon, they are surely just that - rumours. Surely such sightings are simply kohans inspired by the passion of [[Eleonaris|Eleonaris']] captain, and not the servants of any [[eternal]] the [[Conclave]] has placed under [[Alignment#Enmity|enmity]]. Surely.)

The storm of swords breaks over Bregasland, and the Jotun are in its path. But what of the Jotun?
<div style="float:left; width: 250px;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=aurochs.jpg|width=250|align=right}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Jotunarmy.jpg|width=250|align=right}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=wolves.jpg|width=250|align=right}}
</div>

==An Answering Gale==
The Jotun are on the back foot in Bregasland. The challenges to their rule, the threats to the thralls they are sworn to protect, are only the half of it. Their forces withdrew [[Pride_in_the_Marches#Mitwold_Triumph|fell back]] from [[Mitwold]] last season, surrendering the land they had taken without a fight. The Lasambrian armies continued southward, down towards their home in [[Reinos]], beset by the armies of the [[Iron Confederacy]]. The Imperial attack on [[Skallahn]] threatened the unity of the north and the south, and drew the attention of both the king and the queen away from Bregasland.

This season, it seems, the Jotun planned to tighten their grip on Bregasland once more. Perhaps they expected the Empire to be busy elsewhere, perhaps they simply didn't predict the sheer ''might'' that the Empire would bring to bear. Either way, when the Strong Reeds rise and the Imperial armies attack, the Jotun are in the midst of mobilizing for an attack of their own. Led by the ''Skjaldirborn'', the Jotun forces in Bregasland sought to make a [[Army_orders#Cautious_Advance|cautious foray]] into Gravenmarch, to take back the only dry land in the marshes from the Empire.

Likely this was a calculated gamble - if the Empire were to wait another season before committing forces to Bregasland, they would be able to take back the March and remove the Imperial beachhead. If the Empire chose to defend, they could probe those defences without risking too many casualties. And if, as has happened, the Imperials launched an attack of their own they would at least be able to face it without wholesale bloodshed. Unfortunately for the Jotun, it is nowhere near as good as a carefully planned defence for holding in the face of the hurricane of war that has descended upon them.

There are some eight armies remaining in Bregasland, and the warbands of many of the Jotun champions. There are warriors of the ''Fields of Glory'' with them also; the warbands of the hound-knight ''Ser Grumbar'' and the stag-knight ''Ser Helvennan'' battle alongside the Jotun. The households of the rival twins glower and glare at each other, but seem united in their disappointment at how conservative the orcs' strategy is this season. It does not stop them fighting, however, and as always the court of the ''Lady of the Pennants'' seek every opportunity to test their skill against one another.

With the disruption spread by the Strong Reeds and their Bregas allies, the Jotun are barely able to respond to the awesome force of the Empire before they have already lost control of Sallow and most of the Rushes. They rally as best they can; the Roaring Thunder, the Southern Bear and the Shield of the Mountain try to hold the southern end of ''Sallow Walk'' while the skirmishers of the Howling Night and the vanguard of the Bear who Swims seek to flank the Imperial forces. Their rearguard action slows the Empire only briefly; the Jotun are forced to retreat in disarray. In their wake they leave the would-be Jarl Kiergmunt of Sallow. He and his household warriors are found floating in the eel ponds below the town he thought to make his hall, cut to pieces with the distinctive long knives favoured by the reed-cutters of the Rushes. The people here may resent the Empire, but they resent the Jotun even more; and when the Strong Reeds rise, they rise with them.

<gallery heights=200 mode="packed">
File:BurningFalcon_Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Burning Falcon
File:GreenShields Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Green Shield
File:Narwhal's Spear.webp|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Narwhal's Spear
File:RedWindCorsairs Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Red Wind Corsairs
</gallery>
==The Battle of Sallow Walk==
As the Empire quells barbarian resistance in the Rushes, the Jotun regroup and prepare a counter-attack from their stronghold at Ottery. While the siege-engineers of the Tower of the North feverishly reinforce the defences along the northern part of Sallow Walk and the town at its head, the relentless Fell Hammers and the Southern Bear lead the bulk of the Jotun forces against the Empire. As they march south along Sallow Walk, they meet the Burning Falcon marching north, eagerly pulling ahead of the main Imperial line. Perhaps ten thousand Freeborn and allied captains, along with the heralds of Eleonaris, clash with maybe twelve thousand Jotun, and their own supernatural allies. Neither Imperial nor barbarian are prepared to step aside, and furious battle is joined with control of the Walk being the ultimate prize.

Battle rages on the raised road, and the sections of dry land to either side. The four Imperial armies most familiar with fighting in open marsh - the Bounders and the Drakes to the east and the Narwhal's Spear and the Green Shield to the west - sweep round to attack the Jotun from the side. Before they can strike, the rest of the Jotun forces arrive to support their vanguard. It's clear that while many of the barbarians are at a disadvantage when forced to leave the dry ground of the Walk, others have made the most of their time in Bregasland to adapt their tactics a little to the realities of shifting ground and open water.

At first it seems the furious charge of the Burning Falcon will give them the advantage, but the Fell Hammers and the Southern Bear have their own momentum. The enthusiasm of the Freeborn proves to be both an advantage and a disadvantage when tested against the more cautious strategy of the orcs. The front lines press forward too far, and while at first it seems the Jotun line is breaking, they are actually falling back and to the side to allow the Falcon to over-extend itself. The barbarians close around the vanguard of the Burning Falcon like a fist, and exact a terrible price from the bright burning warriors of the south before the tides of battle allow them to retreat to their own lines.

In the end though it is the unstoppable force of the Falcon and their allies that wins the day. The Jotun are forced to sound the retreat - great hollowed horns braying mournful notes across the sodden battlefield. The Empire continues to press them all the way back to Ottery, with the pitched battle of Sallows Walk becoming a ragged mess of smaller fights and skirmishes. The barbarians are still more interested in the fight than they are in defending their hold of Bregasland - at least for the moment.

A butchers' trail lies along the top of Sallow Walk as the Empire presses the Jotun north. The unheard rippling song of Graven Rock still washes across Bregasland, but even Spring magic has its limits. The Jotun take their wounded with them where they can but must leave the bodies of the dead behind; at the same time they make no effort to execute the fallen Imperial soldiers who have fought valiantly against them. The Empire may be their enemies, but to slaughter the fallen would be to surrender the heart and soul of what it means to be Jotun. For their part, the Empire is also restrained in its treatment of barbarians that fall behind the retreating armies - the Green Shield in particular will not allow the mistreatment of prisoners. Some Freeborn joke that the Red Wind Corsairs are spending almost as much time negotiating the exchange of prisoners and the ransom of captured Jotun as they do fighting the barbarians!
<gallery heights=200 mode="packed">
File:GoldenSun Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Golden Sun
File:Tusks Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Tusks
File:StrongReeds Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Strong Reeds
File:Bounders Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Bounders
File:SparrowsReckoning Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Sparrows Reckoning
File:ValiantPegasus Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Valiant Pegasus
File:BloodCloak_Colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Bloodcloaks
</gallery>
==The Battle of Ottery==
The Tower of the North have been busy, wringing every ounce of opportunity from every hour of time the rest of the Jotun have bought for them. Wood is at a premium in Bregasland, but it seems the Tower has brought wagons of lumber out of Liathaven to prepare their defences. A stout wood-and-stone palisade surrounds Ottery, reinforced with archers-towers. Spiked barricades have been thrown like the toys of a frustrated giant across the road, and the marshy land surrounding the town. The Bregas themselves are trapped in their houses, a curfew imposed by savvy Jotun who will not risk Strong Reeds or their sympathisers infiltrating Ottery.

Arrayed before Ottery to meet the Empire is the full might of the Skjaldirborn, banners flapping fitfully in the sour wind blowing from the north. The mighty Jorgen Hylasson, one of the most respected of the northern Jotun warlords, stands a little ahead of the army. As the Imperial forces begin to move forward, he raises his hand in a salute to the attackers, and then sounds the massive horn he hefts easily in one hand. The Jotun are not content to cower behind makeshift walls - and it seems they are not prepared to risk harm coming to the thralls of Ottery. With the Skjaldirborn in the lead, they attack the Empire head-on.

Yet even so, they are not reckless. They make good use of the barricades the Tower of the North have erected; archers are positioned in key locations across the battlefield and in the newly constructed towers of Ottery. Rather than volleying indiscriminately, these skilled marksmen pick their targets with care. More than one Imperial battlemage is brought down without any hint of a warning by an arrow to the back of the head. These deadly warriors support the [[Elite_Jotun_troops#Ulfur|Ulfur]] of the Howling Night in their efforts to counter the impact of Imperial battlefield magic.

Many of the Jotun warriors here bear [[enchantment|enchantments]], or the boons of the [[eternal|eternals]]. Summerbound [[Elite_Jotun_troops#Skjaldir|Skjaldir]] with truly supernatural levels of [[combat skills#Endurance|endurance]] battle relentlessly alongside [[Elite_Jotun_troops#Ulvenwar|Ulvenwar]] with the strength to [[shatter|rend]] the wargear of their enemies. These magically empowered warbands especially seek to test themselves against the knights of Dawn and the Marcher armies, and before the real threat is made clear are able to splinter many Marcher polearms and break the bright heraldry of Dawnish shields.

While the battle rages south of Ottery, the Bounders, Strong Reeds, and the Sparrows Reckoning avoid the thick of the fighting and flank round to the east. They launch a coordinated raid against the less-well defended gates of the town and quickly gain purchase within the town itself. The League army is untested, but the [[bravo|bravos]] that fight with it are well versed in fighting in the confined spaces of city streets - skills that serve them well inside Ottery. Once the folk here realise the Reeds and the Bounders are here, that the Empire is here, many of them take up weapons and join the effort to reclaim their town. The struggle within Ottery itself culminates in a trio of Marcher beaters and a League crossbow marksman capturing one of the archer towers, and firing on the Jotun from behind. When Jorgen Hylasson takes a Marcher arrow to the shoulder, piercing through his mandowla-hide cloak and finding a chink in his armour, it is the turning point of the battle.

Ottery lost, and the Empire pressing forward, the second retreat is sounded. Again the Jotun fall back toward [[Bregasland#North Fens|North Fens]]. Not one Jotun Army tries to retreat west into Grey Fens - they would always rather fight living Imperials than dead phantoms.

The Bloodcloaks quickly take charge of Ottery, establishing field hospitals wherever they can. Public buildings are used, but there are also sickrooms set up in the homes of grateful Bregas who open their doors to the injured and to the Winterfolk healers. There is a significant Jotun supply cache here, and its not clear who gives the order to break it open, but the night after the Battle of Ottery an impromptu celebration begins in the streets of the town. At first it is muted - this liberation has been bought at a terrible cost after all - but perhaps it is that very cost, that spectre of death and war, that adds kindling to the feasting and the dancing and the singing in the streets of Ottery that night. A weight has been lifted from the Bregas - hope replacing fear and bitterness. Perhaps there are some who think the celebration premature, but over the next two weeks the Imperial forces win out against the Jotun again and again and eventually Ottermire is Imperial - and with it the territory of Bregasland as a whole.
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Shiny Helmets.jpg|align=right|caption=With steel, pride, and loyalty, the Empire has been victorious.|width=500}}</div>
==A Long Slog Through Thick Mud==
After Ottermire, the writing seems to be on the wall for the Jotun. They continue to launch attacks against the Imperial armies, but they are short-lived, probing stabs rather than committed efforts to bring the Empire to battle again. The Jotun could dig-in at Fisher's Rock, but for the most part they focus on trying to bog the Imperial forces down wherever they can. It's clear messengers have been sent west and north, to call for aid against the massive Imperial host, to warn King Gudmundr and Queen Yrsa of the situation in Bregasland.

The fighting continues as the Autumn Equinox approaches, and as it does so too the Empire's front line approach Fisher's Rock where the Jotun have their fallback position. One last push, and the Jotun will have no choice but to retreat again - either into the Grey Fens to the south and thence to Liathaven, or west into Hordalant. It seems inevitable that the Empire will win - if they keep up this relentless pressure the remaining Jotun forces will not be able to stand against it.

The cost has been high. Even with the magic of Graven Rock and the efforts of the Bloodloaks, the butchers' road northward has claimed so many lives. The dead are counted in the thousands, and the Empire's forceful strategy has seen them pay the lion's share. Many of the fallen are recovered, but just as many are not, will likely never be found, taken by the mud and the water. The marshes give but they also take, say some of the Bregas dourly.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">[[file:AutumnHammers_colour.png|link=388YE_Summer_Solstice_Military_Council_orders#Autumn Hammers]]</div>
==The Manacle Snaps Shut==
Autumn is in the wind, in the water, in the sun setting behind the western peaks. But that is not the ''only'' place the Autumn lies. All through this long campaign, the Autumn Hammers have been busy. While their warriors have fought no less valiantly against the Jotun than anyone else, that is not ''all'' they have been doing. As the battle presses the Jotun north, bands of thief-takers and oathwrights have made forays into the marshes, or led swift raids against key positions that seem to have little strategic importance. With them have gone the iron-masked chainfighters of the City of Bar and Bond.

The whole time the Jotun have been fighting over the marshes of Bregasland, the Unshackled have been fixing unseen manacles about their ankles. The [[lictors]] are the unparalleled masters of [[Autumn_magic#Binding|binding]] and this season they are contracted to the service of the Imperial Orcs. None of the Jotun armies escape their touch. While binding is often dramatic and obvious - the spells of the war magician that hold folk in place - there are also more subtle methods of holding in place, of impeding travel. As the last light of Summer drains from the sky, and Winter's herald delicately touches the leaves on the scrubby marsh trees, the jaws of the final trap snap shut.

==Game Information==
===Bregasland===
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Bregasland Region Map.png|caption=A very rough region map of Bregasland.|align=right|width=600}}</div>
* '''The Empire has reclaimed the Rushes and Ottermire, and is seven tenths of the way toward claiming North Fens'''
* '''Bregasland is once again an Imperial territory and an administrative motion will be raised at the Autumn Equinox to assign it'''
* '''The Grey Walkers are one-tenth of the way toward claiming Grey Fens'''
* '''Spring magic continues to ripple across Bregasland creating an effect similar to Rivers of Life'''
* '''The Jotun armies have all been cursed by the Lictors and the Imperial Orcs'''
This season has seen the Empire win a resounding victory over the Jotun in Bregasland. Imperial forces liberated the Rushes and Ottermire, and along with their control of Gravenmarch, this means the territory is once again Imperial. As such, an administrative motion to assign the territory will be raised by the Speaker of the Senate at the Autumn Equinox. The Empire is also seven-tenths of the way toward claiming North Fens.

The phantom Grey Walkers are slowly driving "trespassers" - human and orc alike - out of Grey Fens. They are one-tenth of the way toward claiming the region from the Jotun. The [[Region_qualities#Grey_Walkers|Grey Walkers]] will continue to try and claim the region each season.

Spring magic continues to ripple across the territory, emanating form Graven Rock. This creates an ongoing effect similar to Rivers of Life, and seems to be a consequence of the recent magical chaos linked to the [[astronomancy|astronomantic]] [[constellation|constellations]].

The Autumn Hammers have used the assistance of the Lictors to curse all the Jotun armies over the course of the campaign in Bregasland. This [[Highest_discipline#Technique_of_the_Coiling_Chain|special technique]], secured by [[Army_qualities#Contracted|contract]] with the City of Bond and Bar, means that no Jotun army currently in Bregasland will be able to move more than one territory following the Autumn Equinox. If any of the armies try to leave Bregasland, they will be unable to go any further than [[Hordalant]] or [[Liathaven]]. The Jotun will be aware of this restriction.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Osric5853.jpg|caption='''Iron Osric''', General of the Green Shield|align=right|width=200}}</div>
Only military units supporting the Burning Falcon received a share of the Guerdon this season; other military units received nothing.

===Participation : Green Shield===
* '''The Green Shield cannot take the cautious advance or give ground orders for the next year'''
* '''Any character whose military unit fought alongside the Green Shield may be inspired by the Knights of Glory'''
The Empire is aware that use of [[Knights of Glory]] sometimes has unexpected effects on the soldiers in the armies that use it regularly. During [[Even_darkness_must_pass#The_Weight_of_Glory|recent fighting]] in the [[Sarangrave]], this manifested as an ethereal influence over the warriors fighting with the army. Both the Green Shield and the Burning Falcon are now experiencing this effect - their soldiers are even more enthusiastic for battle for its own sake, for tests of glory, for tents of honour and heroism, than ever before.

This means that the Green Shield cannot take the [[Army orders#Cautious Advance|Cautious Advance]] or [[Army orders#Give Ground|Give Ground]] orders until a year has passed without that enchantment being cast on them. Each time they are campaign alongside the Knights of Glory, the clock will be reset.
===Participation : Burning Falcon===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Aracelis4339.jpg|caption='''Aracelis i Erigo''', General of the Burning Falcon|align=right|width=200}}</div>
* '''The Burning Falcon has been inspired by the Knights of Glory
* '''The General can issue a new order as long as the army continues to be enchanted with Knights of Glory or until a year has passed
* '''Characters whose military unit supported the Burning Falcon may begin the Autumn Equinox with a powerful enchantment
This season the Burning Falcon have fought with the [[Knights of Glory]], and engaged in a [[Army_qualities#True_Conviction|triumphant charge]] against the Jotun. The leonine commander ''Kore'', and his warband of lion-bodied lancers, have revelled in the chance to battle the Jotun alongside the passionate warriors of the Brass Coast. For their part many of those who fought with the Falcon this season will have experienced a profoundly heightened thirst for battle and glory. This influence has spread throughout the army - and if there is any truth to the rumours that heralds of [[Janon]] were also present it is likely that they will have intensified this influence even further.

In theory, this would mean that the Burning Falcon would be unable to take more cautious orders... but their ''True Conviction'' means they can't do that ''anyway'' so this is all rather moot. Except that it has made the Freeborn soldiers even ''more'' enthused about fighting. As a consequence, following the Autumn Equinox the general of the Burning Falcon can issue an additional [[Army_orders#Attacking|attacking]] order: ''Leonine Rampage''. To use the order the army must be enchanted with Knights of Glory

<box>'''Leonine Rampage'''
* '''The army must be enchanted with Knights of Glory otherwise this defaults to Triumphant Charge
* '''If available, Knights of Glory used on this army will always call forth ''Kore'' and their leonine lancers
* '''The ability of this army to capture territory is increased by a half'''
* '''Casualties inflicted by this army are increased by one fifth'''
* '''Casualties suffered by this army are increased by three-fifths'''
The soldiers of the army embrace the inspiration provided by the Knights of Glory, seeking a triumphant victory over any foe that dares to stand against them. The victory comes at a cost - soldiers are much more likely to take risky actions, viewing anything save the most basic caution as a distraction or a weakness. They seek out the strongest enemy troops and the most defended positions, and do everything they can to overrun them. The army will gain much more ground, but does so at the cost of increased casualties.</box>

This order will continue to be available until a season passes without Knights of Glory being cast on the army or until the end of the end of the Summer Solstice 389YE whichever comes first. Obviously, continuing to employ Knights of Glory will continue to bring to bear the influences of the Summer Realm on the soldiers of the army.

The lion-lancers have also had a powerful effect on the [[military unit|military units]] that fought with the army. The captain of any military unit that fought alongside the Burning Falcon begins the Autumn Equinox with a boon - an [[enchantment]] that gives them the ability to call [[Calls#CLEAVE|cleave]] twice each day when wielding a [[Weapons & armour#One-handed Weapons|one-handed weapon]], [[Weapons & armour#One-handed Spears|one-handed spear]], [[Weapons & armour#Great weapons|great weapon]] or [[Weapons & armour#Pole-arms|polearm]] with which they are proficient. If anyone uses [[Detect_magic#Discern_Enchantment|discern enchantment]] on you, you'll need to let the referee know that you are under the effect of a magnitude 7 Summer enchantment, and that you bear the ''mark of leonine glory''.

As well as the game benefits, the aura creates a [[roleplaying effects|roleplaying effect]]: ''You feel a strong urge to confront problems head on, and to overwhelm your rivals and enemies with sheer strength of personality. If that doesn't work, smashing them into the ground will do just as well. The idea of holding back when you could be charging into a dangerous situation, or wasting too much time planning when everyone knows plans never survive contact with the enemy, seems like an utter waste of time.''

The boon can be removed [[Enchantment#Removing_Enchantments|as normal]] - “overwritten” with a new enchantment - and will have faded by the start of the Winter Solstice.

===Participation: Marchers===
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: left;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Amberlain7869.jpg||caption='''Amberlain P. Black''', General of the Strong Reeds|align=left|width=250}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Fitzwilliam Thorn.jpg|caption='''Fitzwilliam Thorn''', General of the Bounders|align=left|width=300}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Jack Ashton.jpg|caption='''Jack Ashton''', General of the Tusks|align=left|width=250}}
</div>
* '''Any Marcher character whose military unit supported the Strong Reeds or the Tusks may receive a hearth magic benefit
* '''Any Marcher whose personal resource is in Bregasland may also receive a hearth magic benefit
The folk of Bregasland are often viewed as oddly withdrawn, or even strange, by their fellow Marchers. Recent history has been marked with suspicion of the Empire as a whole, and local politics have boiled over several times. However, the commitment of the Strong Reeds has never been in question by people who might otherwise see the entire Empire go hang as long as they are left alone to tend their eels. This has been particularly apparent in the Bregasland campaign, with the Reeds making good on their promise to drive out the Jotun, supported by the Bounders and the Tusks.

Any [[the Marches|Marcher]] character whose [[military unit]] was assigned to [[Military_unit#Support_Army|support]] the [[Tusks]] or the [[Strong Reeds]] this downtime may choose to gain a special, personal benefit. If they receive an [[Anointing]] of [[Auras_of_Loyalty#Anointing|Loyalty]], [[Auras_of_Pride#Anointing|Pride]], [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Vengeance|Vengeance]], or [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Hate|Hate]] before time out on Friday during the Autumn Equinox, then in addition to the [[Anointing#Effects|normal benefits]] they will gain one additional rank of [[Combat skills#Endurance|endurance]].

As well as those who fought directly, there are plenty of people in Bregasland who heard the call of the Strong Reeds and rose up to resist the Jotun. Any Marcher character whose personal resource is in Bregasland may also receive a hearth magic benefit if they receive one of these anointings before time out on Friday. Instead of receiving a point of endurance, however, their will to live is heightened and they receive a point of [[Combat skills#Fortitude|fortitude]].

A character whose personal resource is in Bregasland and also supported one of the Marcher armies receives ''both'' benefits.

These effects are not magical - they do not register on either [[detect magic]] or [[insight]]. It is likely a result of the powerful hearth magic of the oaths sworn by the generals of the Tusks and the Strong Reeds and the clear demonstration of their commitment to the Marches and the people of Bregasland in particular.

Either benefit lasts only as long as you continue to be committed to driving the last Jotun out of Bregasland as soon as possible; if your will to do so falters then the bonus is lost and cannot be regained. It is also permanently lost if your anointing is removed or changed to one other than Pride, Loyalty, Vengeance, or Hatred.

In any event, the benefit will fade along with the anointing, by the start of the Winter Solstice.
==Further Reading==
* [[Bregasland]]

Cat's Graces

2026-08-14T10:38:43Z

Dre: /* Preserve Art */

==The Manifesto==
<div style="float: right; max-width: 300px; margin-left: 10px;">{{HoverImage|Cat's Graces Sodality.png|Cat's Graces Sodality Eyes.webp|300px|Caption2|Caption3|Caption4|Caption5|The Cat's Graces}}</div>
The sodality is dedicated to art and music. It holds the following to be true:

*Arts are for everyone to enjoy, no matter their skill level
*Virtue demands that we give space for joy as well as for work
*The value of a nation is judged by its culture as much as its might

The sodality therefore exists to:

*Support and promote creatives, providing opportunities to exhibit their talents
*Share learning through the arts, fostering understanding between peoples and traditions
*Ensure creators are valued, and that their work is recognised and fairly rewarded

==Symbol==
The Cat's Graces' symbol is a cat holding a scroll, surrounded by a chain. The symbol was created by '''Anastasiya Lukashovna Volkov'''.
__TOC__
==Membership==
Any Imperial citizen can join the sodality using the [[Mark of Fellowship]] ritual.
==Powers==
If the title of ''Maestro of the Cat's Graces'' is vacant, then the sodality can take a vote to appoint a representative to the position.

The Spring 388YE wind of fortune '''[[Arranging grace]]''' identifies what manner of powers might in the future be granted to the Cat's Graces.

If an [[opportunity]] were identified where the sodality could be deployed, then the outcome of that opportunity would be decided by a vote of the members.

===Preserve Art===
* '''Each season, the sodality can select a piece of art to be recorded as a significant or important piece of art'''
The sodality can select a single piece of art each season for promotion across the Empire. The form of the art does not matter, as long as it can be recorded in some way. It can be a painting, a sculpture, a new song or musical composition, a story, a play, or a poem. In some cases, copies are made and distributed; in others, news of the art is spread across the Empire, and patrons of the art are encouraged to visit. During the Summer Solstice 388YE, the sodality [[388YE_Summer_Solstice_Sodality_resolutions#Other_business|voted]] to place the repository of art in the [[Dean_of_the_First_Voice_Glade#First_Voice_Glade|First Voice Glade]], [[Inspirational_location#Memorials|memorial]] of the exemplar of Pride, [[Gerallt Brackensong]].

If the sodality chooses to use this power, then it is a vote of the assembled members. After the vote, the Maestro can choose to create a short summary of why the piece was chosen, why it is important and worthy of being honoured, and why it should be preserved.

To use this power, the Maestro's player should email {{plot}} before the end of downtime with the piece of art chosen, the name and any relevant credits of the creator, and a summary of no more than eighty words.

====Gallery of the First Voice====

<big>'''[[Morning Light]]'''</big> <small>by '''Lady Mercy Goldvein'''</small><div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
[[Morning Light]] was chosen for its emotional and meaningful message to the nation of Dawn. It was written in the darkest days of recent Dawnish history, after the Sweetglade Massacre and the actions of ''Archavion Wolfborne''. This piece was written to help push Dawn into a new, better era, so recent tragedies would not define the nation. The song was performed by '''Lady Mercy Goldvein''' to earn her title as the first Note of Dawn.
</div>

===Refine Commission===
* '''Each season, the sodality can refine a single existing commission'''
* '''The Maestro must announce the decision in a Senate session'''
The sodality can select a single existing [[commission]] to alter the appearance and character of each season. The work takes three months, but due to the aid of the [[Empress_Richilde#The_Songbirds|songbirds]] - dedicated artists and patrons who look to the inspiration of the [[paragons and exemplars|paragon]] [[Empress Richilde|Richilde]] - it has no cost, nor does it cut into the Senate's [[Commission#Maximum_Commissions_Available|limited number]] of commissions each season. A refined structure would increase in grandeur, and the work of the artists ''might'' unlock an opportunity related to it.

To refine a commission requires a successful vote of the sodality to choose an appropriate commission, followed by the Maestro making an [[Senate_announcement|announcement]] in the Senate. There is no vote but the announcement is subject to veto by the Throne or the Assembly of the Nine as normal. Details of the changes are part of the [[Commission#Necessary_Details|necessary details]] of the announcement so the Senate may wish to know what is planned at the time.

The Maestro is responsible for providing a thorough description of what the sodality wants the artists to do. Provided they have a clear artistic brief which is ambitious and inspirational, then they're likely to get roughly what was asked for. However, the civil service cautions that engaging with artists does come with clear risks: if those working on the commission don't feel inspired by the brief, then they will "complement" or supplant them with their own ideas. Thus, the results are guaranteed to be impressive; they're just not guaranteed to be exactly what was requested. Such is the nature of art. ('''OOC Note:''' The player of the Maestro can email {{plot}} before downtime ends with any supplemental details they wish to add, provided they correspond with anything that has been announced).

===Patron's Fund===
* '''The Cat's Graces can dispense grants to artists'''
The sodality has control over a ''"Patron's Fund"'', similar to the [[Rewarding#Virtue_Fund|Virtue Fund]] used by the Synod. The Patron's Fund is administered by the civil service, and any member can call a vote during an official meeting of the sodality to dispense an amount of crowns for a specific goal, or to a specific Imperial citizen.

Each season, the Patron's Fund receives one throne from the [[Imperial treasury]] and four thrones from an informal alliance of patrons of the arts - [[the League|League]] [[Merchant Prince|merchant princes]] and [[Highguard|Highborn]] [[benefactor|benefactors]]. Represented by [[Dressed_in_smoke_and_fire|Genia Bourné di Sarvos]], the merchant-prince of the influential Bourné fashion house, the group has pledged to provide up to six thrones a season - if the Senate were to ever choose to increase the stipend of the sodality.

'''OOC Note:''' Anyone wishing to donate to the Patron's Fund should [[GOD#Resource_hand-in|hand-in]] their money and email {{plot}} after the event. Donations over one throne are added below with the name of the character responsible for the donation. It is only possible to make donations in crowns and thrones.

Click ''Expand'' to see the list of contributions made to the Patron's Fund.
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
{{CommissionProgress|Cat%27s_Graces}}
</div>

==History==
The Cat's Graces were [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Senate_sessions#Establish_Cat's_Graces|formally established]] by the Senate in a motion proposed by '''Fedelmidd Sydanjaa's Heart Floer''', as [[Sermersuaq|Senator for Sermersuaq]], at the Spring Equinox 388YE following an [[Arranging_grace|appraisal]] requested by [[Emperor Vesna]].

The name for the sodality was chosen in tribute to ''Catalina Barossa'', founder of the [[Senate Motions]] dance group, who come together every season on the floor of the Senate to teach and practice the art of dancing. Many citizens who attend Anvil summits from a wide variety of backgrounds and skill have attended Senate Motions over the years to indulge in the art, as too have several instrumentalists and singers who have provided musical accompaniment for the sessions.

Catalina sadly passed away while fighting on a major conjunction during the Spring Equinox 386YE. As well as her artistic endeavours, Catalina will also be remembered as being the first citizen to make contact with the Waterwalkers sept within [[Sarangrave]].


==Maestro==
The Maestro of the Cat's Graces is an Imperial title awarded to a member of the Cat's Graces. The Maestro is expected to be a mouthpiece for the sodality, with the responsibility to represent their sodality's views to other parts of the Empire, to recruit new members, and to advance the sodality's goals and the members' interests.

====Appointment====
The Maestro is selected by members of the sodality. Only a member of the sodality can present themselves for the title, and only a member of the sodality can vote in the election. The candidate who gains the most votes from the members of the sodality is elected to the title.

They can be [[revocation|revoked]] by the [[Assembly#General_Assembly|General Assembly]], and by the [[Assembly#Assembly_of_the_Nine|Assembly of the Nine]].
<div style="float: right; width=300px; margin-right:10px; margin-left: 10px; clear: right;">
{{#lst:Archive:All_Election_Results|Maestro_of_the_Cat%27s_Graces}}
</div>

====Recent Elections====
{{#lst:Archive:All_Election_Results|Maestro_of_the_Cat%27s_Graces_election}} The table to the right shows the citizens who have been elected to hold {{{2|this title}}} in the years since [[Empress Britta]] died.
[[Category:Imperial Sodality]]
[[Category:Title]]
{{Cat's Graces further reading}}

Insight

2026-08-05T10:10:48Z

Dre: /* Performing a Thorough Insight */

==Overview==
{{CaptionedImage|file=Gatekeeper.jpg|caption=Insight allows a priest to perceive the aura surrounding all living people.|align=right|width=500}}
Through the power of this ceremony, a priest can perceive the aura that surrounds living people, and gather information about spiritual effects. There is some disagreement among priests as to whether what they are seeing is the "soul" of the individual - the core of their essential nature that persists from one life to the next - or simply some spiritual penumbra that surrounds thinking beings.

Whatever they are perceiving, the ceremony allows them to gather information about the person by observing it for a few moments. The quickest information to discover is if someone is a human, an orc, or an inhabitant of another realm, whether they are under the effects of any auras, and the effects of any spiritual wounds they are experiencing. All of this can be found out with a quick overview of a target's aura.

The priest can also perform a slower, more potent version of the ceremony to allow them to identify if the target is [[dedication|dedicated]] and reveals the presence of spiritual marks like the ones created by [[testimony]] as well as any malign spiritual effects such as curses or possessions. This version of the ceremony is also effective on items to discover information about any [[hallow]] they may possess, and again will determine the presence of a spontaneously arisen aura, a spiritual curse, or the presence of a haunting spirit - it can be used to identify a ghostly anchor for example.
__TOC__
There are also plentiful reports of priests detecting ''other'' marks on their subject that do not appear to be the result of the testify ceremony yet still contain information. A commonly cited tale refers to a [[Varushka|Varushkan]] [[Varushka_religious_beliefs|wise one]] from [[Karov]] who used the ceremony to observe a band of travelling musicians only to discover that they each bore a mark indicating they bore a twisted boon from [[Agramant]]. When the minstrels attempted to murder the people of the vale in their sleep, their wicked plan was stymied when they discovered not sleeping victims but fully-armed and prepared [[Varushka_military_concerns|schlacta]]!

The ceremony can also be used to examine objects, but unlike people items do not innately generate auras than can be read with insight. Objects that bear spiritual marks visible to this ceremony have usually been touched by a potent spiritual force - whether a religious ceremony, by close proximity to a profound spiritual event, or by the attentions of ghosts or spirits. It is especially useful for gathering information about spiritual [[aura#Item Auras|auras]] on relics whose provenance is uncertain, as well as to glean information about the anchors of a ghost, or how to combat a malignant curse.

It ''is'' possible to conceal information from Insight, but doing so is of limited benefit. It seems that even powerful [[magic items]] such as a [[Shackle of the Unvirtuous]] or a philtre such as a [[Tisanes_of_the_Labyrinth#Shadowcrow Infustion|Shadowcrow Infusion]] can only conceal the ''entire'' person from insight, rather than specific pieces of information - and the ceremony will always detect the presence of such obfuscation, even if it cannot penetrate it.

==Performing a Quick Insight==
* '''Requires a dose of liao and ten seconds of appropriate roleplaying'''
* '''Does not require a referee'''
* '''Reveals the target's species and any aura present'''
* '''Reveals the effects of any spiritual traumatic wounds'''
* '''[[orc|Orcs]] can be the subject of a quick insight'''
Performing a quick insight on a character uses a dose of [[liao]]. This performance of insight requires ten seconds of appropriate roleplaying and target must be close enough to touch throughout. The target need not be willing. After the insight is complete, you should call "Insight" loudly enough for your target to hear and make clear that they are the target of the effect.

If their aura is not concealed then they must inform you of their species (human, orc, creature of the realms, ghost, other), and tell you what [[anointing|personal aura]] they are under the effects of if any. If the target is suffering from one or more spiritual traumatic wounds, then your character becomes aware of and may open the cards and read the effects. The target of the insight should keep the cards (but not read them) in case any other priest wishes to perform insight on them.

You cannot normally perform a quick insight on an object.

==Performing a Thorough Insight==
{{CaptionedImage|file=I've Seen Things.jpg |caption=A thorough insight can be time-consuming but may reveal deep spiritual secrets.|align=right|width=500}}
* '''Requires a dose of liao and at least ten seconds of appropriate roleplaying'''
* '''Requires the presence and assistance of a referee'''
* '''The target must be within 20 feet'''
* '''Reveals information about the aura of the target'''
* '''[[orc|Orcs]] can be the subject of a thorough insight'''
If you have a referee, then you may perform a more intense version of the insight ceremony to gain more detailed information. Performing a thorough insight requires at least ten seconds of appropriate roleplaying and the target must be within 20' and in clear line-of-sight throughout. The target need not be willing. After the insight is complete, the ref will approach the target to check the results with them.

If their aura is not obscured then you will discover the presence of any malign spiritual effect such as a curse or possession. In addition to the basic information provided by a quick insight, the detailed version of the ceremony reveals the details of [[testimony]], [[excommunication]], [[anointing]], or [[dedication]] (including the strength of [[Aura#Strong_Auras|strong auras]] where appropriate); it will reveal the presence of other spiritual auras and may give information about what they are, what has caused them, or how they might be combated. One piece of information insight never reveals about an aura is which (if any) virtue or [[Malign_spiritual_presences|malign spiritual presence]] it might be tied to.

When used on an object, a thorough insight reveals if the item is under the effect of a [[hallow]], or bears a spontaneous aura, along with details of the effect (including strength, and how to combat it, when appropriate); it will also reveal if the item is an anchor for a ghost or similar creature, and may provide additional awareness depending on the nature of that entity.

==Awareness==
* '''It is not possible to perform insight without the target being aware'''
* '''Most targets will experience the effect as a potentially familiar powerful sense of being observed'''
You can perform insight against the target's will, but you cannot perform the ceremony without the target being aware of what has taken place. Most targets experience the effect of being insighted as a powerful sense of being observed. Most Imperial player-characters are sufficiently familiar with insight and the effects that they will recognize and understand what has taken place.

The awareness is not immediate; it occurs at the point where the priest calls "Insight" or the ref asks the target for their insight response. In effect, this means that a character is always aware they have ''been'' insighted, not that they are ''being'' insighted.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Insightful.jpg|caption=With insight a priest gazes into the depths of the mortal spirit,<br>and few can hide the secrets that are found within.|align=right|width=300}}
==Concealment==
* '''Insight is blocked by any effect that conceals a character's aura'''
* '''Insight will still reveal that the aura is concealed'''
If your aura is obscured through the use of effects such as [[Tisanes_of_the_Labyrinth#Shadowcrow Infusion|Shadowcrow Infusion]] then other characters cannot use insight to read your aura. However you ''must'' respond to any attempt to insight you by stating that their aura is ''concealed''.

It is not possible to dispel or overcome any effect that conceals an aura.

==Cooperation==
* '''There are no benefits from cooperation using the insight skill'''
While priests can cooperate to perform an insight ceremony, there are no benefits to doing so. Specifically, there are no methods of shrouding an aura that can be overcome with a more powerful insight.

==True Liao==
* '''There is no benefit to using true liao to perform the insight ceremony.'''
While [[true liao]] can be used in the place of liao to perform an insight ceremony, it provides no additional information.
{{Ceremonial skills further reading}}

Cowl of Judgement

2026-08-01T16:10:03Z

Dre:

==Description==
A Cowl of Judgement may take the form of an actual cowl, but it is actually more common for it to take the form of a shawl, veil, or stole (a thick strip of cloth worn over the shoulders), or occasionally a mask. When in use, the cowl is lifted to cover the head or face, but for day-to-day wear it is left loose over the shoulders or carried separately. Only when the priest is ready to perform the ceremony of [[excommunication]] is the cowl lifted, the shawl, veil, or stole raised, or the mask used to cover the face. Traditionally, the cowl is only raised at the point at which there is no possibility of reprieve - some even suggest that it is dangerous or "unlucky" to raise the cowl and then fail to go through with the excommunication - it can demonstrate a frivolous lack of commitment or conviction or a weakness of judgement.

Regardless of the form it takes, a Cowl of Judgement is almost always a [[Materials#Beggar's Lye|bleached]] white colour, decorated with [[Materials#Dragonbone|dragonbone]] sigils or talismans representing the virtues and the symbols of the Way. A ''Mask of Judgement'' is often constructed of porcelain or ivory, carefully shaped and inlaid with dragonbone symbols.

The Cowl of Judgement appeals most to priests who are concerned about the spirituality and dedication of their fellows. It allows them to perform powerful excommunications that are very difficult to remove, and so it is rarely invoked casually. Wearers may encounter suspicion from their fellows; after all, by donning this item the priest implies that they believe themselves to have both the judgement to evaluate their peers and the will to cast them out if they find them wanting.

As with many such regalia, it is common for a Cowl of Judgement to be [[hallow|hallowed]], generally with hallows of [[Vigilance]] or [[Wisdom]], or hallows which encourage the wearer to trust their judgement or act with conviction.

==Rules==
{{Regalia}}
* '''Effect:''' When you [[Religious skills#Performing a Ceremony|perform]] or [[Religious skills#Cooperation|cooperate]] with the performance of the [[excommunication]] skill, you may spend up to five additional doses of [[liao]] to increase the [[Religious_skills#Ceremony_Strength|strength]] or the ceremony by the same amount.
* '''Materials:''' Crafting a Cowl of Judgement requires seven ingots of [[Materials#Weltsilver|weltsilver]], twenty one measures of [[Materials#Beggar's Lye|beggar's lye]], eleven measures of [[Materials#Dragonbone|dragonbone]], and five measures of [[materials#Iridscent Gloaming|iridescent gloaming]]. It takes one month to make one of these items.

On the nature of fear

2026-08-01T14:58:03Z

Dre: /* Malign Not False */

[[Category:Religion]] [[Category:The Empire]] [[Category:Auras]]
<div style="float:left; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj6.jpg|title=The Druj are the acknowledged masters of wielding fear as a weapon.|align=left|width=200}}</div>
==Overview==
In Summer 387YE, the [[Synod]] were presented with [[opportunity|opportunities]] to find out more about the [[malign spiritual presences]]. The [[Vigilance|Vigilant]] [[sect]] of the [[Silent_Bell_(Sodality)|Silent Bell]] were [[387YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_195|tasked]] by Lady Laudine du Lac with spying on the [[orc|orcs]] of [[the Mallum]] to see what could be found out about the "false virtue" of [[Know_your_enemy#Fear/Dread|Fear]] or dread.

The [[Druj]] are the undisputed masters of fear, using their [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|miasma pillars]] to spread an [[Druj miasma|insidious atmosphere]] across the lands they claim. This "miasma" cows their subject septs and breaks their will to resist. Infiltrating Druj lands is extraordinarily difficult and dangerous. The human members of the sodality found it particularly difficult, but even the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]] among them found the mission difficult and dangerous. The cost of securing this information was brutal. Despite all their caution, many members who undertook the trip to the Mallum did not make it back alive.

The summary of the Silent Bell discoveries was relayed to the [[Cardinal of Vigilance]] at the Spring Equinox 388YE; later than expected but given the price paid by many Vigilant spies, perhaps understandably so. The report is presented here as it was delivered to the [[Synod]].
==Precis==
Cardinal, I apologise that this report is long overdue. The Silent Bell have done as asked and penetrated the Druj lands to discover everything we can learn of the malign spiritual presence of fear. The cost has been high, more than two dozen of my fellow vigilants have still not returned and I believe we must accept now that they never will. Worse, some of those who did return will never serve the Silent Bell again. Their strength of will has been shattered by what they saw and experienced and it is beyond our ability to heal their spirit. Investigating the moral turpitude of the Druj has left them wracked in mind and spirit.

By the time of the next summit we will be ready to return to duty, but I must warn you that another mission this deadly would deplete our numbers to the point where we could not continue to act. That is a price that may be worth paying if it helps us understand the tools of our enemies. I hope that the information we have gathered will be worth the lives it cost.
==Fear and Dread==
The [[malign spiritual presences|malign spiritual presence]] of Fear is rare in the Empire, but ubiquitous in the areas of the Mallum still under the control of the Druj. Sustained and enhanced by great pillars, rather than a localised [[aura]] of the kind [[consecration|created]] in the Empire by priests using [[liao]], a vast aura of fear commonly referred to as the [[Druj miasma]] blankets their lands.

==Spontaneous==
It is possible that there is a false virtue of Fear that would allow a human dedicant to use liao to create auras of fear. It is hard to prove a negative, as a technicality, so we cannot completely foreclose the chance that such a thing might be possible. However the Druj are masters of fear, they have spent hundreds of years studying this malign aura, they know more about it than any the people in the world and there is no evidence that they have ''ever'' been able to dedicate a human to fear so that they could employ liao to create such auras.

It appears that the Druj have a surprisingly good understanding of the abilities of Imperial priests to create auras. They understand that followers of [[the Way]] who are [[dedication|dedicated]] to a Virtue (true or false) can learn how to create an aura using liao. They have tried for centuries to learn those skills and to find ways to copy them and have never succeeded. They have forced captured Imperial citizens to create auras for them - but they have never managed to force a prisoner to create an aura of fear using liao. Spontaneous dedications are exceptionally rare, but they are not unknown. The few times it has occurred are usually associated with moments where a person's actions were intensely Virtuous. If it was possible for someone to be dedicated to fear, the Druj would have found a way to make that happen.

The Druj employ a much more crude and direct route to create auras of fear. Spontaneous dedications are very rare, but [[Aura#Spontaneous_Auras|spontaneous auras]] on [[Aura#Personal_Aura|people]] and [[Aura#Item_Aura|items]] are much more common. The conditions are the horrifying mirror of when a person's actions are intensely Virtuous. The Druj intentionally take advantage of this phenomena by employing the most horrific torture imaginable to try to make people afraid. They brutalise and terrify their victims, to try to force them to manifest a spontaneous aura of fear. It is clear they do not go to such enormous efforts simply because they are cruel and wicked, but because they have no other way to make fear auras arise.

==Malign Not False==
The malign aura of Fear is fundamentally different to the Virtues in another crucial way. Almost all the auras of the Virtues are intimately tied to the will to act in some way. For example, those affected by the [[Auras_of_Pride#The_Experience_of_Pride|Experience of Pride]] describe an urge to exemplify the quality they felt most [[Pride|Proud]] of when they were anointed. They feel driven to act in ways that will embody their Pride. Every aura is different of course, but in this one respect they are surprisingly similar. Every [[hallow]], every [[anointing]], seems to urge those under the affects to act. The auras produced by consecrations are much more contemplative, but even they seem to produce the conditions needed to drive the will to act.

Auras of fear do '''not''' drive the will to act in this way. What is notable is that these auras generally have the ''opposite'' effect. They ''sap'' the will to act. The most famous aura of fear, the one created by the [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|Druj miasma pillars]], is the perfect example of this. If a citizen isn't spiritually strong enough to overcome the aura of fear, then it saps their will act, leaving them [[Calls#WEAKNESS|weakened]]. Those who succumb to the effects are fundamentally robbed of the will to act by the aura.

The miasma blankets all the Druj lands, but there are accounts of much more localised auras of fear being encountered. These seem to have been deliberately created to function like a ward, preventing someone from entering the area. The aura of fear is so overpowering that someone who lacks the strength to overcome it is so frightened that they simply cannot muster the will to enter the area at all. They may want to enter the location but without a source of spiritual strength to draw on they cannot find it in themselves to do so.

This result is in stark contrast to the auras created by the Imperial Virtues all of which motivate a person to take action. [[Highguard|Highborn]] [[wayfarer|wayfarers]] have always maintained that ''"Only actions are virtuous"'', but it is perhaps not untrue to say that "Virtues are only actions". The Virtues always drive you to take action - they always urge you on, they drive, they motivate, they give you the impetus to act. Fear fundamentally does not do that, at best it might motivate a person to flee, but even this action tends to be limited in scope. Fear robs a person of the will to act, it is never uplifting.

Interestingly, this is not true of all malign spiritual auras. It is possible for humans and orcs to be dedicated to false virtues such as [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Anarchy|Anarchy]] and [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Hate|Hate]], it is possible to use liao to create auras of these false virtues, and crucially those auras ''do'' motivate those who experience them to take action. Such actions routinely bring citizens into conflict with the Virtues of the Way and the laws of the Empire, but what can't be denied is that those who succumb to the lures of the false virtues are still driven to act by them.

Fear is radically different to the false virtues in a way that reflects the fundamental make-up of the mortal soul (while orcs cannot use liao, both orcs and humans are affected by auras in the same way). Fear might rightly be though of as the ''absence'' of Virtue. It works to undermine all virtues, both so-called "false Virtues" and the seven Virtues of the Way. The deeper truth is that Druj society is orchestrated and led ''not to spread fear'', but to try to remove all spiritual virtue from the world.

There may be other malign spiritual auras which work in a way that is similar to fear. There are stories and tales of dread which appear to be very similar to fear - it could well be the same malign presence. There is also talk of auras which induce despair which act in the same way - in fundamental opposition to the Virtues. Whether despair is just another name for fear or is somehow distinct is impossible to know. It is more than possible that fear, dread, and despair are all simply names for the same malign antithesis of Virtue.

==Black Lotus==
How the Druj make miasma pillars remains a closely guarded secret of the buruk tepel, the shadowy apothecarions who rule Druj society with an iron grip. It has long been known that it relies on the arts of the apothecary, those they torture are force-fed a toxic brew of hallucinogenic potions designed to amplify their fears. People who have survived the process describe seeing horrific visions of their deepest fears.

What is less well known is that the process to create the pillars themselves makes use of Black Lotus. How that process happens is known only to the [[Druj_lore#Buruk_Tepel|buruk tepel]] and their most trusted tepel, but it definitely requires the presence of a buruk tepel employing a dose of [[Regarding_Black_Lotus|black lotus]] in the presence of those who are being made to experience fear. The herb appears to be sufficiently powerful that a single dose allows a buruk tepel to create several pillars, but the reports from those who have suffered this terrible fate or witnessed it all agree. Every ceremony concludes with a buruk tepel employing some rare substance that the Druj clearly treat as unbelievably precious from the way it is locked and guarded. Given what we know of the Druj, this must be the precious Black Lotus.

Black Lotus remains elusive and incredibly rare - even in Druj lands. This may explain why it is so difficult for the Druj to replace miasma pillars when they are destroyed by the Empire, it may also explain why they never created miasma pillars in the Barrens. The sheer size of the territory may simply have rendered it too expensive. It is not clear what role Black Lotus plays in the process. It may be that the herb actively encourages the creation of auras of fear - or it may be that it works to fix those auras in place in some way. The Empire would need to know more about Black Lotus to be able to determine that.

It is worth noting that the Druj appear to actively target Virtuous citizens for their corrupt rites to create the miasma pillars and other auras of fear. They seem to believe that the more Virtuous a person is, the more intense an aura of fear they can produce when they are broken. It is difficult to know if there is any truth in these beliefs - what is clear is that the Druj believe it to be true. There could be a form of logic to it - the more spiritual a person is, the harder they may be to break, but in theory, the further they could fall. Regardless of the truth of the matter, this is clearly why the Druj deliberately target Imperial citizens they believe are Virtuous. Such individuals are prized by the Druj as victims for their blasphemous rites that create miasma pillars and [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tormented souls]].

==Utility==
The Druj employ fear to cement their control of their subjects. Their lands are bathed in an unrelenting aura of fear that constantly saps the will of those who live there. It is not impossible to resist that fear, the [[Sarangrave#Nesustak Forest|Nesustak rebels]] demonstrate that given sufficient hope, orcs and humans can overcome the effects and rebel. But the Sandfishers are a better example of the effects of living in constant fear. Forced to survive in a state of continual dread they were systematically robbed of their will to fight back. It is sometimes surprising that groups like the [[Ossium#Ketsov|Ketsov]] are prepared to collaborate with the Druj until you consider what the alternatives are for people who must endure a constant fear that gnaws at their will.

It has long been believed that the Druj themselves are immune to the effects of the miasma pillar, because it is clear that their soldiers are able to fight with full effectiveness while under the effects. However this apparent resistance is nothing more than than an extension of the Druj tyranny - the Druj are not immune to the miasma pillars - rather the buruk tepel pick and choose who to empower to resist it.

The tepel carry herbs that they mix with the army's food to give them the strength they need to resist the fear when fighting. [[Arkad#Vikari|Vikari]] and other leaders of the Druj have more powerful potions that enable them to shrug off the effects completely. Presumably the tepel and the buruk tepel are even better provided for. But the mass of Druj, those who don't serve in the armies and most especially anyone who tried to oppose the rule of the buruk tepel would have no access to such potions.

In summary, the buruk tepel of the Druj employ what is likely to be one of the most valuable resources in the world - as expensive as [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] if not more so - and expend it to create the miasma. They force their own people, and everyone they have conquered, to live in a constant stead of dread designed to sap their will and render them helpless. They impoverish and immiserate their own people to solidify their iron-rule.
==Summary==
As an addendum to publication, the [[Historical_research#The_Department_of_Historical_Research|Imperial Archivist]] appends a brief summary of the finding of the Silent Bell. Fear is a malign spiritual force distinct from the seven Virtues and the so-called false virtues, and is inimical to them all. Rather than encouraging people to actively embrace action, fear stifles the ability to do anything. It does not seem to be possible for humans to become [[dedication|dedicated]] to this force, but it is possible for spontaneous auras to arise that cause mortals to become fearful, suffer from dread, or give in to despair.
==Further Reading==
* [[Know_your_enemy#War_Within_a_Breath|Know your enemy]] - 387YE Summer wind of fortune presenting options to learn more about malign spiritual presences

On the nature of fear

2026-08-01T14:56:38Z

Dre: /* Spontaneous */

[[Category:Religion]] [[Category:The Empire]] [[Category:Auras]]
<div style="float:left; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj6.jpg|title=The Druj are the acknowledged masters of wielding fear as a weapon.|align=left|width=200}}</div>
==Overview==
In Summer 387YE, the [[Synod]] were presented with [[opportunity|opportunities]] to find out more about the [[malign spiritual presences]]. The [[Vigilance|Vigilant]] [[sect]] of the [[Silent_Bell_(Sodality)|Silent Bell]] were [[387YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_195|tasked]] by Lady Laudine du Lac with spying on the [[orc|orcs]] of [[the Mallum]] to see what could be found out about the "false virtue" of [[Know_your_enemy#Fear/Dread|Fear]] or dread.

The [[Druj]] are the undisputed masters of fear, using their [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|miasma pillars]] to spread an [[Druj miasma|insidious atmosphere]] across the lands they claim. This "miasma" cows their subject septs and breaks their will to resist. Infiltrating Druj lands is extraordinarily difficult and dangerous. The human members of the sodality found it particularly difficult, but even the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]] among them found the mission difficult and dangerous. The cost of securing this information was brutal. Despite all their caution, many members who undertook the trip to the Mallum did not make it back alive.

The summary of the Silent Bell discoveries was relayed to the [[Cardinal of Vigilance]] at the Spring Equinox 388YE; later than expected but given the price paid by many Vigilant spies, perhaps understandably so. The report is presented here as it was delivered to the [[Synod]].
==Precis==
Cardinal, I apologise that this report is long overdue. The Silent Bell have done as asked and penetrated the Druj lands to discover everything we can learn of the malign spiritual presence of fear. The cost has been high, more than two dozen of my fellow vigilants have still not returned and I believe we must accept now that they never will. Worse, some of those who did return will never serve the Silent Bell again. Their strength of will has been shattered by what they saw and experienced and it is beyond our ability to heal their spirit. Investigating the moral turpitude of the Druj has left them wracked in mind and spirit.

By the time of the next summit we will be ready to return to duty, but I must warn you that another mission this deadly would deplete our numbers to the point where we could not continue to act. That is a price that may be worth paying if it helps us understand the tools of our enemies. I hope that the information we have gathered will be worth the lives it cost.
==Fear and Dread==
The [[malign spiritual presences|malign spiritual presence]] of Fear is rare in the Empire, but ubiquitous in the areas of the Mallum still under the control of the Druj. Sustained and enhanced by great pillars, rather than a localised [[aura]] of the kind [[consecration|created]] in the Empire by priests using [[liao]], a vast aura of fear commonly referred to as the [[Druj miasma]] blankets their lands.

==Spontaneous==
It is possible that there is a false virtue of Fear that would allow a human dedicant to use liao to create auras of fear. It is hard to prove a negative, as a technicality, so we cannot completely foreclose the chance that such a thing might be possible. However the Druj are masters of fear, they have spent hundreds of years studying this malign aura, they know more about it than any the people in the world and there is no evidence that they have ''ever'' been able to dedicate a human to fear so that they could employ liao to create such auras.

It appears that the Druj have a surprisingly good understanding of the abilities of Imperial priests to create auras. They understand that followers of [[the Way]] who are [[dedication|dedicated]] to a Virtue (true or false) can learn how to create an aura using liao. They have tried for centuries to learn those skills and to find ways to copy them and have never succeeded. They have forced captured Imperial citizens to create auras for them - but they have never managed to force a prisoner to create an aura of fear using liao. Spontaneous dedications are exceptionally rare, but they are not unknown. The few times it has occurred are usually associated with moments where a person's actions were intensely Virtuous. If it was possible for someone to be dedicated to fear, the Druj would have found a way to make that happen.

The Druj employ a much more crude and direct route to create auras of fear. Spontaneous dedications are very rare, but [[Aura#Spontaneous_Auras|spontaneous auras]] on [[Aura#Personal_Aura|people]] and [[Aura#Item_Aura|items]] are much more common. The conditions are the horrifying mirror of when a person's actions are intensely Virtuous. The Druj intentionally take advantage of this phenomena by employing the most horrific torture imaginable to try to make people afraid. They brutalise and terrify their victims, to try to force them to manifest a spontaneous aura of fear. It is clear they do not go to such enormous efforts simply because they are cruel and wicked, but because they have no other way to make fear auras arise.

==Malign Not False==
The malign aura of Fear is fundamentally different to the Virtues in another crucial way. Almost all the auras of the Virtues are intimately tied to the will to act in some way. For example, those affected by the [[Auras_of_Pride#The_Experience_of_Pride|Experience of Pride]] describe an urge to exemplify the quality they felt most [[Pride|Proud]] of when they were anointed. They feel driven to act in ways that will embody their Pride. Every aura is different of course, but in this one respect they are surprisingly similar. Every [[hallow]], every [[anointing]], seems to urge those under the affects to act. The auras produced by consecrations are much more contemplative, but even they seem to produce the conditions needed to drive the will to act.

Auras of fear do '''not''' drive the will to act in this way. What is notable is that these auras generally have the ''opposite'' effect. They ''sap'' the will to act. The most famous aura of fear, the one created by the [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|Druj miasma pillars]], is the perfect example of this. If a citizen isn't spiritually strong enough to overcome the aura of fear, then it saps their will act, leaving them [[Calls#WEAKNESS|weakened]]. Those who succumb to the effects are fundamentally robbed of the will to act by the aura.

The miasma blankets all the Druj lands, but there are accounts of much more localised auras of fear being encountered. These seem to have been deliberately created to function like a ward, preventing someone from entering the area. The aura of fear is so overpowering that someone who lacks the strength to overcome it is so frightened that they simply cannot muster the will to enter the area at all. They may want to enter the location but without a source of spiritual strength to draw on they cannot find it in themselves to do so.

This result is in stark contrast to the auras created by the Imperial Virtues all of which motivate a person to take action. [[Highguard|Highborn]] [[wayfarer|wayfarers]] have always maintained that ''"Only actions are virtuous"'', but it is perhaps not untrue to say that "Virtues are only actions". The Virtues always drive you to take action - they always urge you on, they drive, they motivate, they give you the impetus to act. Fear fundamentally does not do that, at best it might motivate a person to flee, but even this action tends to be limited in scope. Fear robs a person of the will to act, it is never uplifting.

Interestingly, this is not true of all malign spiritual auras. It is possible for humans and orcs to be dedicated to false virtues such as [[Anarchy]] and [[Hate]], it is possible to use liao to create auras of these false virtues, and crucially those auras ''do'' motivate those who experience them to take action. Such actions routinely bring citizens into conflict with the Virtues of the Way and the laws of the Empire, but what can't be denied is that those who succumb to the lures of the false virtues are still driven to act by them.

Fear is radically different to the false virtues in a way that reflects the fundamental make-up of the mortal soul (while orcs cannot use liao, both orcs and humans are affected by auras in the same way). Fear might rightly be though of as the ''absence'' of Virtue. It works to undermine all virtues, both so-called "false Virtues" and the seven Virtues of the Way. The deeper truth is that Druj society is orchestrated and led ''not to spread fear'', but to try to remove all spiritual virtue from the world.

There may be other malign spiritual auras which work in a way that is similar to fear. There are stories and tales of dread which appear to be very similar to fear - it could well be the same malign presence. There is also talk of auras which induce despair which act in the same way - in fundamental opposition to the Virtues. Whether despair is just another name for fear or is somehow distinct is impossible to know. It is more than possible that fear, dread, and despair are all simply names for the same malign antithesis of Virtue.

==Black Lotus==
How the Druj make miasma pillars remains a closely guarded secret of the buruk tepel, the shadowy apothecarions who rule Druj society with an iron grip. It has long been known that it relies on the arts of the apothecary, those they torture are force-fed a toxic brew of hallucinogenic potions designed to amplify their fears. People who have survived the process describe seeing horrific visions of their deepest fears.

What is less well known is that the process to create the pillars themselves makes use of Black Lotus. How that process happens is known only to the [[Druj_lore#Buruk_Tepel|buruk tepel]] and their most trusted tepel, but it definitely requires the presence of a buruk tepel employing a dose of [[Regarding_Black_Lotus|black lotus]] in the presence of those who are being made to experience fear. The herb appears to be sufficiently powerful that a single dose allows a buruk tepel to create several pillars, but the reports from those who have suffered this terrible fate or witnessed it all agree. Every ceremony concludes with a buruk tepel employing some rare substance that the Druj clearly treat as unbelievably precious from the way it is locked and guarded. Given what we know of the Druj, this must be the precious Black Lotus.

Black Lotus remains elusive and incredibly rare - even in Druj lands. This may explain why it is so difficult for the Druj to replace miasma pillars when they are destroyed by the Empire, it may also explain why they never created miasma pillars in the Barrens. The sheer size of the territory may simply have rendered it too expensive. It is not clear what role Black Lotus plays in the process. It may be that the herb actively encourages the creation of auras of fear - or it may be that it works to fix those auras in place in some way. The Empire would need to know more about Black Lotus to be able to determine that.

It is worth noting that the Druj appear to actively target Virtuous citizens for their corrupt rites to create the miasma pillars and other auras of fear. They seem to believe that the more Virtuous a person is, the more intense an aura of fear they can produce when they are broken. It is difficult to know if there is any truth in these beliefs - what is clear is that the Druj believe it to be true. There could be a form of logic to it - the more spiritual a person is, the harder they may be to break, but in theory, the further they could fall. Regardless of the truth of the matter, this is clearly why the Druj deliberately target Imperial citizens they believe are Virtuous. Such individuals are prized by the Druj as victims for their blasphemous rites that create miasma pillars and [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tormented souls]].

==Utility==
The Druj employ fear to cement their control of their subjects. Their lands are bathed in an unrelenting aura of fear that constantly saps the will of those who live there. It is not impossible to resist that fear, the [[Sarangrave#Nesustak Forest|Nesustak rebels]] demonstrate that given sufficient hope, orcs and humans can overcome the effects and rebel. But the Sandfishers are a better example of the effects of living in constant fear. Forced to survive in a state of continual dread they were systematically robbed of their will to fight back. It is sometimes surprising that groups like the [[Ossium#Ketsov|Ketsov]] are prepared to collaborate with the Druj until you consider what the alternatives are for people who must endure a constant fear that gnaws at their will.

It has long been believed that the Druj themselves are immune to the effects of the miasma pillar, because it is clear that their soldiers are able to fight with full effectiveness while under the effects. However this apparent resistance is nothing more than than an extension of the Druj tyranny - the Druj are not immune to the miasma pillars - rather the buruk tepel pick and choose who to empower to resist it.

The tepel carry herbs that they mix with the army's food to give them the strength they need to resist the fear when fighting. [[Arkad#Vikari|Vikari]] and other leaders of the Druj have more powerful potions that enable them to shrug off the effects completely. Presumably the tepel and the buruk tepel are even better provided for. But the mass of Druj, those who don't serve in the armies and most especially anyone who tried to oppose the rule of the buruk tepel would have no access to such potions.

In summary, the buruk tepel of the Druj employ what is likely to be one of the most valuable resources in the world - as expensive as [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] if not more so - and expend it to create the miasma. They force their own people, and everyone they have conquered, to live in a constant stead of dread designed to sap their will and render them helpless. They impoverish and immiserate their own people to solidify their iron-rule.
==Summary==
As an addendum to publication, the [[Historical_research#The_Department_of_Historical_Research|Imperial Archivist]] appends a brief summary of the finding of the Silent Bell. Fear is a malign spiritual force distinct from the seven Virtues and the so-called false virtues, and is inimical to them all. Rather than encouraging people to actively embrace action, fear stifles the ability to do anything. It does not seem to be possible for humans to become [[dedication|dedicated]] to this force, but it is possible for spontaneous auras to arise that cause mortals to become fearful, suffer from dread, or give in to despair.
==Further Reading==
* [[Know_your_enemy#War_Within_a_Breath|Know your enemy]] - 387YE Summer wind of fortune presenting options to learn more about malign spiritual presences

On the nature of fear

2026-08-01T14:56:25Z

Dre: /* Black Lotus */

[[Category:Religion]] [[Category:The Empire]] [[Category:Auras]]
<div style="float:left; width: 200px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Druj6.jpg|title=The Druj are the acknowledged masters of wielding fear as a weapon.|align=left|width=200}}</div>
==Overview==
In Summer 387YE, the [[Synod]] were presented with [[opportunity|opportunities]] to find out more about the [[malign spiritual presences]]. The [[Vigilance|Vigilant]] [[sect]] of the [[Silent_Bell_(Sodality)|Silent Bell]] were [[387YE_Summer_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_195|tasked]] by Lady Laudine du Lac with spying on the [[orc|orcs]] of [[the Mallum]] to see what could be found out about the "false virtue" of [[Know_your_enemy#Fear/Dread|Fear]] or dread.

The [[Druj]] are the undisputed masters of fear, using their [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|miasma pillars]] to spread an [[Druj miasma|insidious atmosphere]] across the lands they claim. This "miasma" cows their subject septs and breaks their will to resist. Infiltrating Druj lands is extraordinarily difficult and dangerous. The human members of the sodality found it particularly difficult, but even the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]] among them found the mission difficult and dangerous. The cost of securing this information was brutal. Despite all their caution, many members who undertook the trip to the Mallum did not make it back alive.

The summary of the Silent Bell discoveries was relayed to the [[Cardinal of Vigilance]] at the Spring Equinox 388YE; later than expected but given the price paid by many Vigilant spies, perhaps understandably so. The report is presented here as it was delivered to the [[Synod]].
==Precis==
Cardinal, I apologise that this report is long overdue. The Silent Bell have done as asked and penetrated the Druj lands to discover everything we can learn of the malign spiritual presence of fear. The cost has been high, more than two dozen of my fellow vigilants have still not returned and I believe we must accept now that they never will. Worse, some of those who did return will never serve the Silent Bell again. Their strength of will has been shattered by what they saw and experienced and it is beyond our ability to heal their spirit. Investigating the moral turpitude of the Druj has left them wracked in mind and spirit.

By the time of the next summit we will be ready to return to duty, but I must warn you that another mission this deadly would deplete our numbers to the point where we could not continue to act. That is a price that may be worth paying if it helps us understand the tools of our enemies. I hope that the information we have gathered will be worth the lives it cost.
==Fear and Dread==
The [[malign spiritual presences|malign spiritual presence]] of Fear is rare in the Empire, but ubiquitous in the areas of the Mallum still under the control of the Druj. Sustained and enhanced by great pillars, rather than a localised [[aura]] of the kind [[consecration|created]] in the Empire by priests using [[liao]], a vast aura of fear commonly referred to as the [[Druj miasma]] blankets their lands.

==Spontaneous==
It is possible that there is a false virtue of Fear that would allow a human dedicant to use liao to create auras of fear. It is hard to prove a negative, as a technicality, so we cannot completely foreclose the chance that such a thing might be possible. However the Druj are masters of fear, they have spent hundreds of years studying this malign aura, they know more about it than any the people in the world and there is no evidence that they have ''ever'' been able to dedicate a human to fear so that they could employ liao to create such auras.

It appears that the Druj have a surprisingly good understanding of the abilities of Imperial priests to create auras. They understand that followers of the [[Way]] who are [[dedication|dedicated]] to a Virtue (true or false) can learn how to create an aura using liao. They have tried for centuries to learn those skills and to find ways to copy them and have never succeeded. They have forced captured Imperial citizens to create auras for them - but they have never managed to force a prisoner to create an aura of fear using liao. Spontaneous dedications are exceptionally rare, but they are not unknown. The few times it has occurred are usually associated with moments where a person's actions were intensely Virtuous. If it was possible for someone to be dedicated to fear, the Druj would have found a way to make that happen.

The Druj employ a much more crude and direct route to create auras of fear. Spontaneous dedications are very rare, but [[Aura#Spontaneous_Auras|spontaneous auras]] on [[Aura#Personal_Aura|people]] and [[Aura#Item_Aura|items]] are much more common. The conditions are the horrifying mirror of when a person's actions are intensely Virtuous. The Druj intentionally take advantage of this phenomena by employing the most horrific torture imaginable to try to make people afraid. They brutalise and terrify their victims, to try to force them to manifest a spontaneous aura of fear. It is clear they do not go to such enormous efforts simply because they are cruel and wicked, but because they have no other way to make fear auras arise.

==Malign Not False==
The malign aura of Fear is fundamentally different to the Virtues in another crucial way. Almost all the auras of the Virtues are intimately tied to the will to act in some way. For example, those affected by the [[Auras_of_Pride#The_Experience_of_Pride|Experience of Pride]] describe an urge to exemplify the quality they felt most [[Pride|Proud]] of when they were anointed. They feel driven to act in ways that will embody their Pride. Every aura is different of course, but in this one respect they are surprisingly similar. Every [[hallow]], every [[anointing]], seems to urge those under the affects to act. The auras produced by consecrations are much more contemplative, but even they seem to produce the conditions needed to drive the will to act.

Auras of fear do '''not''' drive the will to act in this way. What is notable is that these auras generally have the ''opposite'' effect. They ''sap'' the will to act. The most famous aura of fear, the one created by the [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|Druj miasma pillars]], is the perfect example of this. If a citizen isn't spiritually strong enough to overcome the aura of fear, then it saps their will act, leaving them [[Calls#WEAKNESS|weakened]]. Those who succumb to the effects are fundamentally robbed of the will to act by the aura.

The miasma blankets all the Druj lands, but there are accounts of much more localised auras of fear being encountered. These seem to have been deliberately created to function like a ward, preventing someone from entering the area. The aura of fear is so overpowering that someone who lacks the strength to overcome it is so frightened that they simply cannot muster the will to enter the area at all. They may want to enter the location but without a source of spiritual strength to draw on they cannot find it in themselves to do so.

This result is in stark contrast to the auras created by the Imperial Virtues all of which motivate a person to take action. [[Highguard|Highborn]] [[wayfarer|wayfarers]] have always maintained that ''"Only actions are virtuous"'', but it is perhaps not untrue to say that "Virtues are only actions". The Virtues always drive you to take action - they always urge you on, they drive, they motivate, they give you the impetus to act. Fear fundamentally does not do that, at best it might motivate a person to flee, but even this action tends to be limited in scope. Fear robs a person of the will to act, it is never uplifting.

Interestingly, this is not true of all malign spiritual auras. It is possible for humans and orcs to be dedicated to false virtues such as [[Anarchy]] and [[Hate]], it is possible to use liao to create auras of these false virtues, and crucially those auras ''do'' motivate those who experience them to take action. Such actions routinely bring citizens into conflict with the Virtues of the Way and the laws of the Empire, but what can't be denied is that those who succumb to the lures of the false virtues are still driven to act by them.

Fear is radically different to the false virtues in a way that reflects the fundamental make-up of the mortal soul (while orcs cannot use liao, both orcs and humans are affected by auras in the same way). Fear might rightly be though of as the ''absence'' of Virtue. It works to undermine all virtues, both so-called "false Virtues" and the seven Virtues of the Way. The deeper truth is that Druj society is orchestrated and led ''not to spread fear'', but to try to remove all spiritual virtue from the world.

There may be other malign spiritual auras which work in a way that is similar to fear. There are stories and tales of dread which appear to be very similar to fear - it could well be the same malign presence. There is also talk of auras which induce despair which act in the same way - in fundamental opposition to the Virtues. Whether despair is just another name for fear or is somehow distinct is impossible to know. It is more than possible that fear, dread, and despair are all simply names for the same malign antithesis of Virtue.

==Black Lotus==
How the Druj make miasma pillars remains a closely guarded secret of the buruk tepel, the shadowy apothecarions who rule Druj society with an iron grip. It has long been known that it relies on the arts of the apothecary, those they torture are force-fed a toxic brew of hallucinogenic potions designed to amplify their fears. People who have survived the process describe seeing horrific visions of their deepest fears.

What is less well known is that the process to create the pillars themselves makes use of Black Lotus. How that process happens is known only to the [[Druj_lore#Buruk_Tepel|buruk tepel]] and their most trusted tepel, but it definitely requires the presence of a buruk tepel employing a dose of [[Regarding_Black_Lotus|black lotus]] in the presence of those who are being made to experience fear. The herb appears to be sufficiently powerful that a single dose allows a buruk tepel to create several pillars, but the reports from those who have suffered this terrible fate or witnessed it all agree. Every ceremony concludes with a buruk tepel employing some rare substance that the Druj clearly treat as unbelievably precious from the way it is locked and guarded. Given what we know of the Druj, this must be the precious Black Lotus.

Black Lotus remains elusive and incredibly rare - even in Druj lands. This may explain why it is so difficult for the Druj to replace miasma pillars when they are destroyed by the Empire, it may also explain why they never created miasma pillars in the Barrens. The sheer size of the territory may simply have rendered it too expensive. It is not clear what role Black Lotus plays in the process. It may be that the herb actively encourages the creation of auras of fear - or it may be that it works to fix those auras in place in some way. The Empire would need to know more about Black Lotus to be able to determine that.

It is worth noting that the Druj appear to actively target Virtuous citizens for their corrupt rites to create the miasma pillars and other auras of fear. They seem to believe that the more Virtuous a person is, the more intense an aura of fear they can produce when they are broken. It is difficult to know if there is any truth in these beliefs - what is clear is that the Druj believe it to be true. There could be a form of logic to it - the more spiritual a person is, the harder they may be to break, but in theory, the further they could fall. Regardless of the truth of the matter, this is clearly why the Druj deliberately target Imperial citizens they believe are Virtuous. Such individuals are prized by the Druj as victims for their blasphemous rites that create miasma pillars and [[Druj_lore#Tortured_souls|tormented souls]].

==Utility==
The Druj employ fear to cement their control of their subjects. Their lands are bathed in an unrelenting aura of fear that constantly saps the will of those who live there. It is not impossible to resist that fear, the [[Sarangrave#Nesustak Forest|Nesustak rebels]] demonstrate that given sufficient hope, orcs and humans can overcome the effects and rebel. But the Sandfishers are a better example of the effects of living in constant fear. Forced to survive in a state of continual dread they were systematically robbed of their will to fight back. It is sometimes surprising that groups like the [[Ossium#Ketsov|Ketsov]] are prepared to collaborate with the Druj until you consider what the alternatives are for people who must endure a constant fear that gnaws at their will.

It has long been believed that the Druj themselves are immune to the effects of the miasma pillar, because it is clear that their soldiers are able to fight with full effectiveness while under the effects. However this apparent resistance is nothing more than than an extension of the Druj tyranny - the Druj are not immune to the miasma pillars - rather the buruk tepel pick and choose who to empower to resist it.

The tepel carry herbs that they mix with the army's food to give them the strength they need to resist the fear when fighting. [[Arkad#Vikari|Vikari]] and other leaders of the Druj have more powerful potions that enable them to shrug off the effects completely. Presumably the tepel and the buruk tepel are even better provided for. But the mass of Druj, those who don't serve in the armies and most especially anyone who tried to oppose the rule of the buruk tepel would have no access to such potions.

In summary, the buruk tepel of the Druj employ what is likely to be one of the most valuable resources in the world - as expensive as [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] if not more so - and expend it to create the miasma. They force their own people, and everyone they have conquered, to live in a constant stead of dread designed to sap their will and render them helpless. They impoverish and immiserate their own people to solidify their iron-rule.
==Summary==
As an addendum to publication, the [[Historical_research#The_Department_of_Historical_Research|Imperial Archivist]] appends a brief summary of the finding of the Silent Bell. Fear is a malign spiritual force distinct from the seven Virtues and the so-called false virtues, and is inimical to them all. Rather than encouraging people to actively embrace action, fear stifles the ability to do anything. It does not seem to be possible for humans to become [[dedication|dedicated]] to this force, but it is possible for spontaneous auras to arise that cause mortals to become fearful, suffer from dread, or give in to despair.
==Further Reading==
* [[Know_your_enemy#War_Within_a_Breath|Know your enemy]] - 387YE Summer wind of fortune presenting options to learn more about malign spiritual presences

Realmsroot

2026-08-01T13:51:49Z

Dre:

==Description==
Also known as ''bright mandrake'' in the western regions of the Empire and as ''gatebloom'' in pre-Imperial texts, realmsroot is a very rare plant that has a propensity for reacting to certain types of magic. The plant is found growing in the wild around regios, unharvested crystalline mana, and other strange occult confluences, absorbing the ambient magical energies they emit; it is notorious for being extremely hard to cultivate in a garden or other controlled environment. Each individual mandrake flowers once every six years, blooming into vivid, colourful blossoms that indicate the herb is at its most potent. Once dug up, the magically-infused root of a flowering plant can be ground up into a paste that has a dramatic narcotic effect on the lineaged. The root smells earthy even when washed and cleaned, but has a zesty, refreshing note to it as well. Some herbalists draw comparisons between the appearance of realmsroot and bladeroot and consider the two plants to be related.

Most realmsroot in the Empire is acquired and sold on the public Bourse auction. Imperial herbal knowledge is not sufficient for realmsroot to be widely grown in herb garden personal resources, or for herb gardens to diversify into it, outside of specific and unusual circumstances.

The ritual [[Madyn's Gift]] can be used to create additional drams of realmsroot. During the formulation of that ritual, [[Madyn's_Gift#On_the_nature_of_Realmsroot|further information]] about the peculiar magical plant was uncovered. The rare herb is also a key component in the [[Surgical skills#Apothcary|apothecary]] [[potion|potions]] known as [[Runa's Gift]], shared with the Empire by the [[Yerende]] sept of the [[Imperial Orcs]].

==Rules==
* '''Any character can grind up and use realmsroot by rubbing it into their skin.'''
* '''Realmsroot has no effect on unlineaged humans or on orcs.'''
* '''Lineaged characters who use realmsroot experience the effects indicated inside the rip-on-use card.

[[Category:Rules]]
[[Category:Herbs]]

Eternals of the sea

2026-08-01T11:33:10Z

Dre:

[[Category:Eternals]][[Category:History]]
==Overview==
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear:left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Andaman Islands at sunset.jpg|align=left|caption=The magicians of the Sarcophan Delves, as a sea-faring folk, commonly deal with eternals that share their interests.|width=400}}</div>
Following an [[All_the_night-tide#Under_the_Waves|arrangement]] brokered with the [[Sarcophan Delves]], the [[Minister of Historical Research]] Watt Lambrook of [[the Marches]] [[387YE_Autumn_Equinox_Senate_sessions#Research_Eternals_of_the_Sea|commissioned]] the [[Historical research#Department of Historical Research|Department of Historical Research]] to send a scholar to the Delves to learn what their experts knew about [[eternal|eternals]] specifically associated with the sea. [[Historical research#Snowstorm Henk|Snowstorm Henk]] boarded a vessel at [[Necropolis#Hedrossan|Crown's Quay]] and spent the better part of nine months as a guest of the scholars and magicians of the Delves. Their report was eventually provided to the Minister at the Summer Solstice 388YE - overdue but at least thickly detailed. Originally intended to uncover information about [[Khobel Tavah]], the remit expanded significantly while Henk was in the Delves.

It coincidentally arrived at the same time that the Imperial prognosticator [[Appraisal#Lisane_de_Terresford|Lisane de Terresford]] was delivering the first part of her [[appraisal]] discussing attitudes to eternals in the [[Sumaah Republic]], which also referenced [[Satraps_of_the_Abyss#Republican_Eternals|several eternals]] that seem to be unknown in the Empire.

Presented as something of a travelogue, as is often the case with Snowstorm Henk, it also provides some insight into Sarcophan attitudes to the realms in general, and additional information about eternals not directly related to the sea.
==Introduction==
{{CaptionedImage|file=Watt of Lambrook.jpg|caption='''Watt of Lambrook''', Minister of Historical Research|align=right|width=400}}
The trip across the seas was a little longer than I had expected, but proved mostly uneventful. I was not entirely prepared for just how many sharks there are in the [[The_seven_seas#Sea_of_Teeth|Sea of Teeth]], but the [[the Brass Coast|Freeborn]] sailors did their best to hide their amusement at my reaction. I explained several times that we have no sharks in [[Skarsind]] and that just seemed to amuse them even more. I was also a little taken aback at the sheer size of Sarcophan. It is a city to rival [[Sarvos]] and [[Tassato]] both together, a confusing melange of ancient and brand new, without any suggestion of a plan or scheme. Towers and bridges and halls and tombs all hodge-podge together like a box of building bricks upended with little rhyme or reason.

I met with Bedelaar Huisbaas Annike only briefly; she welcomed me to the Delves and reassured me that there were several local [[coven|covens]], as well as individual magicians and scholars who made a study of the eternals, eager to meet me. Helpfully, she had arranged a select gathering for the very next afternoon in which I was able to meet with what amounted to the cream of Sarcophan [[realms]] studies. I shan't bore you with details but I was a little heartened to find that they were for the most part as earnest, opinionated, argumentative, and downright peculiar as their peers at home. There was a definite split, however, between those who made a particular academic study of the realms and those who dealt directly with eternals and [[Inhabitants of the realms#Heralds|heralds]] as part of their professional lives. As always, there is a gulf between the theoretical and the practical, but where possible I shall attempt to synthesise the two approaches.

Before I begin there is one set of eternals that I have not spent much time exploring in the Delves. Many of the [[Archmage_of_Day#The_Eternals_of_Day|Hierarchs of Sea and Sky]] have an association with the sea that seems to be much more metaphorical than literal. [[Leviathan]], [[Zakalwe]], [[Roshanwe]], and even [[Ylenwe]] have a tie to the idea of the sea but are not themselves eternals ''of'' the sea, if you follow my reasoning. With the exception of [[Roshanwe]], they are not especially involved with the Delves, and even there it is the seeking-distant-ports resonances of ''Beachcomber'' that they are more interested in. I focused my attention a little more closely on those eternals I felt that the Empire as a whole had least experience with, and I hope that I am not out of line by doing so.

==A Sarcophan View==
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Taxonomy.png|align=right|width=400|caption=The Esatolian Taxonomy groups eternals not by realm, but by function.}}</div>
One of the more surprising things that arose during this research is that the Sarcophan view of the realms and the eternals is fundamentally different to that of the Empire. Of course, the six realms exist - that is just a matter of fact. However, the Sarcophan do not classify the eternals primarily by realm. Instead, the classification of the eternals is a broad taxonomy based primarily on common functions, with the classification by realm a secondary factor. The name for the study of such matters in Sarcophan is "De taxonomie van magische bestuurders", and an expert is known as a ''taxanoom''. Being a taxanoom is considered a somewhat difficult but respectable profession. Most magicians in the Delves are ''not'' taxanoom: they might deal a little with specific eternals, but they don't make it their business to know all of them. A taxonoom is generally consulted for specialist advice when it is believed a project calls for it: the ritual magic they practice is apparently not unlike [[Aspect magic#goetia|goetia]], but with a legalistic and bureaucratic formulation.

The full ''taxonomie'' is quite broad and contains multiple factors which are debated amongst scholars of the art. "Eternals of the Sea" is one of the clearest ways in which eternals can be classified, but other examples include "Eternals who are Sovereign Rulers" and "Eternals who are Magicians". The Sarcophan believe that in fact it's in the nuances between the realms that you find within these broad themes that you gain the most insight: in contrast they don't really think it's useful to think about the ways that eternals of the same realm relate to each other (with a few special-case exceptions).

The Sarcophan believe a working knowledge of taxonomy to be the only firm foundation for successful trade with eternals. Despite this, there are dozens of competing taxonomies put forward by rival scholars, each of which offers competing classifications. Some of these works include all the known powers, while others have gaps or classify only a handful of eternals. In fact, there are so many different taxonomy, that the Sarcophan have created a classification system for them.

The Esatolian Taxonomy, is one of the more popular systems of classifications, and one of the first that many aspiring magicians learn. It is "complete" in the sense that it contains all the eternals that the Sarcophan commonly trade with. It is singular, which means that each eternal is assigned to a single taxonomy, and economic, which means eternals are presented in order of the most profitable to trade with, rather than by their assessed power. I have included it here as it one of the easiest to understand and use.

==Regent of the Eternal Sea==
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=RhianosArt.jpg|align=right|width=200|caption=Rhinaos, Regent of the Eternal Sea, is a spirit of adventure - but also risk and recklessness.}}</div>
I spent a very enjoyable week with the ''Haaienvermijders'', a Sarcophan magical cabal familiar to some Imperial magicians. It did not cease to entertain me that their name literally translates into Imperial as "Shark Dodgers". They live up to their name - a jovial coven whose members compose a small trading guild - although I will confess I was a little surprised to discover that these adepts of [[Summer magic|Summer]] and [[Night magic]] were almost entirely of the [[briar]] [[lineage]]. Of course the Spring-touched are common in the Delves - the blessings of their heritage help them endure the various problems related to living in what amounts to a plague-haunted swamp with towers in it - but it struck me as a little surprising to imagine such an enterprisingly entrepreneurial endeavour being run entirely by briar folk. I confess this led to a little introspective soul-searching that is beyond the remit of my researches.

Among the ''Shark Dodgers'', I was regaled by multiple stories relating to the [[Golden Voyage]] - the popular ritual developed from the pioneering work of Andreas i Sol-Devorador i Erigo of the Krakenfire Armada - some of which seemed outlandish even for that particular magical rite. This turned out to be more relevant than I at first anticipated, however. Since the exchange of rituals - [[Muffled Oar]] for [[Golden Voyage]] - the Shark Dodgers have sought out a closer relationship with the [[Rhianos|Regent of the Eternal Sea]] who finds a certain appeal in that particular enchantment.

Rhianos - the eternal has as many names in the Delves as they do in the Empire - has reasonably close ties with the magicians of the Sarcophan Delves. While the Delves are best known for their trading empire, there are always venturous souls among them who seek out both new ports and new opportunities for personal enrichment. Rhianos rarely leads them astray in that regard, for all that the eternal themselves is unconcerned with "profit" in a purely pecuniary sense. Rather, the "spirit of adventure" helps them find uncharted waters, lost islands, strange beasts with valuable teeth, and fog-shrouded smugglers ports with equal ease.

According to the ''Haaienvermijders'', more than one Bedelaar Huisbaas through the history of the Delves has managed a lucky find inspired by Rhianos into a personal fortune. As a consequence, Rhianos is seen as a patron of the young and the reckless - those who have yet to make their mark in society prepared to risk all for the chance to shine - and more established individuals and concerns politely decline their gifts. This doesn't seem to worry ''Foamfollower'', and does nothing to tarnish his reputation among the mariners of the Delves.

The ''Shark Dodgers'' mention a spell relatively well known among the magewrights of the docks and quays called ''Where Kraken Lie'' provided by Rhianos that functions in a manner similar to Golden Voyage but is a little less potent, and bears with it an assurance relating to how the enchantment can be purchased. Magicians are not allowed to charge for the service, but must instead agree to take shares of any treasure the adventurous sailor acquires, which again makes it more appealing to the less wealthy segments of society.

==Sailor on the Skerries==
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The Haaienvermijders also spoke at some length about the eternals of the Night realm with an interest in the sea. They mentioned as a matter of course that they had good relations with the ''Brother of Seaserpents'' - [[Sadogua]] - but agreed that while he was always prepared to offer aid with the performing of maritime magic he wasn't actually any ''good'' at the rituals themselves. They were a little reticent to discuss the codification of ''Muffled Oar'', and the involvement of the ''Jolly Patron'' in that endeavour, instead preferring to change the subject. I was happy to let them do so - particularly because what they most wanted to talk about was ''Dathon'', the ''Regent of the Skerries of Dream''.

The name ''Dathon'' comes from the inscription on a statue found in the time between the flight of those who would become the Highborn and the consolidation of the Delves into its modern form. There has been more discussion of this period in the previous research project '' [[Origins_of_the_Highborn#The_Fall_of_the_Umshalla|Origins of the Highborn]]'' especially where it talks about the fall of the Umshalla.

The statue is still preserved, standing over the ''Stergozocht'', a relatively poverty-stricken neighbourhood not far from the wealthy [[Foreign_ports#Betovering|Betovering]] docks. From the waist up it depicts a young human person with arms raised - although the left arm has broken off halfway between shoulder and elbow - one hand cupped as if to catch water and funnel it into a basin before the figure. Due to the missing arm, apparently the water just splashes every which way in modern times. From the waist down, however, they have a much more serpentine form. Not a snake as such - there are a few surviving fin-like structures along the length of the tail which coils round and round beneath the body giving an almost pyramidical base to the entire sculpture.

Most of the old stone fins have been broken off - my guide mentioned a little grumpily that some sailors believed that the fins would bring luck when travelling at sea and were stolen centuries ago. The words on the dais were cut deep, and plainly readable as "Dathon", although whatever else was carved there had long since been erased by the passage of years.

The things that stuck with me most about the statue were its size - it was several times as tall as I was even allowing for the raised dais on which it stood; the obvious fine quality of the sculpture despite its somewhat reduced state; and the face, turned toward the far horizon. Most of the features were gone, worn smooth by time, but there was something about its almost-human proportions that made me certain the visage was smiling a gentle smile of joy, and excitement, and yearning for... something.

My guide also pointed to the areas around the base of the things coils that had been worn smooth over time, she said, by young or desperate sailors touching it for luck, a tradition that continued to this day.

Back in the pleasant offices of the ''Haaienvermijders'' we discussed the eternal in more detail. As with many such creatures, especially in the realm of [[Realms#Night|Night]], ''Dathan'' has a host of subsidiary names. The most common is ''Fisher of the Reefs of Night'' - my hosts got a good laugh out of my attempts to pronounce the name in the Sarcophan language but quickly took pity on me and used Imperial translations from that point onward. They are also known as ''Sailor on the Skerries'', ''Wonderwove'', ''Hypnopheus'', ''Wind of Reverie'', ''Saltsong'', ''Light in the Deep'' and, interestingly, ''Star of the Seventh Sea'' and ''The Shoals of the Star-filled Sky''. ''Dathon'' is not their truest name, but the one that many sailors and mariners of the Delves know them by. The ''Haaienvermijders'' were a little surprised that I was unfamiliar with them, but were not slow to fill in further details.

The statue - a youth with the lower body of a marine serpent - is only one form taken by the traditionally mercurial Night eternal. The ''Haaienvermijders'' spoke of them, or their heralds, taking on the form of a clever rainbow octopus, a drifting jellyfish like creature that glowed with an inner radiance, a small but brightly coloured fish like none seen in the sea, or as a humanoid figure with multicoloured, scaled skin, and a great rainbow robe with trailing sleeves and a deep hood. Regardless of how they or their children appear, though, it is almost always in the context of a sailor, or a creature of the sea.

They exemplify the wonder and excitement of putting to sea, of exploring the strange and unfamiliar, but not simply in the pure practical sense. Dathan speaks of the mortal mind as an ocean - that each human (and presumably orc) has a realm as large as the whole of Night within their head. This is a metaphor, but also a "great truth" apparently. Before anything new can come into the world it must first be dreamed, and then made real. Dreams are were mortals are most free, and able to pass beyond the constraints of their bodies. Awe and joy are the truest emotions of the mortal heart because they are inspired by seeing beautiful, wondrous things or having profound experiences that cause the mind and spirit to grow and spread wings. The desire to expand ones experiences, to seek out new and marvellous things, was the most important drive of all and created a wake - a path - of stars that allowed mortals to make the world outside their heads as amazing as the one within.

The connection with stars, incidentally, attracted my attention but apparently has little to do with [[astronomancy]] - rather it is the ''idea'' of the stars of the night sky and not the [[constellations]] that Dathan represents, the allure and beauty and wonder of the little specks of light scattered across the sable shawl of the skies.

There was a great deal more of this kind of thing, but I was able to distil it down a little. Dathan is a serpent - like [[Sung]] or [[Lashonar]]. Rather than having wings, however, they have great wing-like fins that allow them to move freely through the water that is their domain. Their demesne is a shallow sea sometimes called the ''Skerries of Dream'' that is full of wonders and beauty and which mortals can occasionally visit in their dreams through some mechanism. As well as having a close tie to the sea as a source of awe and joy, they are closely tied to the idea of dreams, imagination, inspiration, wonder, and the drive to expand horizons and experience new things. They also have some connection to the idea of "treasure" - especially natural wonders such as pearls, gorgeous fish, strange beasts, unique fruit or flowers, water with magical properties, and the like, which can inspire and excite those prepared to engage in potentially dangerous quests.

Not, the Haaienvermijders were quick to qualify, ''exploration'' as such. Dathan has little interest in maps, apparently, and argues that they "pin down" the imagination in a way that is contrary to cultivating true wonder. Rather they want individuals to go to remote places and bask in the amazing experiences they can have there. Which as one of the ''Shark Dodgers'' said a little long-sufferingly, makes them utterly useless from a trade point of view. Having a patron that wants you to go somewhere amazing that has (for example) an exotic new breed of fruit that will be very much in demand if you bring it back home, but who actively opposes any effort to initiate a trade route to that location, can be a major pain in the backside. I think they were speaking from personal experience.

That is not to say that the Delves considers them useless - but the Haaienvermijders urged caution in dealing with them despite their apparently positive aspect. There are only a few areas where their power and influence is valuable, according to the Delves. Their focus on wonder means they can sometimes offer boons that help mortals overcome fear or despair, at the cost of perhaps pushing them too far in the other direction. Their fascination with beauty and natural wonders means that they can sometimes be prevailed on to help gain access to rare plants, precious stones, or similar wonders but only where they believe people will appreciate their beauty and inspiration rather than mine them and make a fortune.

Their focus on the imagination means they often serve as patrons for artists and poets, especially those arts that involve creating uplifting and optimistic stories, offering small boons related to dream and wonder. There was also talk of a ritual created with the aid of ''Dathan'' that appeared quite similar to [[Sift the Dreamscape's Sands]] but rather then bringing shifting dreams of jungles, it inspires dreams of wonderful sea voyages or undersea adventures, but specifically empowers the magician's mastery of [[Night magic]] alone. It is apparently well known among practitioners of Night magic in the Delves, while Sift the Dreamscapes Sands seems to be largely unknown despite being somewhat more versatile.

In character they and their heralds are apparently nerve-shreddingly optimistic, upbeat, positive, hopeful, and joyous. They love wonderful things, and go out of their way to encourage other people to share that joy. The consensus of the ''Haaienvermijders '' is that they are pleasant enough to deal with from time to time, but the boons they can provide are often not worth the effort it takes to get hold of them.

They're also a little unpredictable, even for a Night eternal. One of them told a cautionary tale about the ''Wonderverkopers'' - the "Miracle Sellers". This guild became wealthy selling some materials introduced to them by Dathan as recreational narcotics, as well as a small number of marvellous dream rituals developed with the patronage of the eternal (which to my mind sounded a bit like Octavius of Auric Horizon's [[Ride the Noble Steed]]) After a time, though, they became greedy and started placing more and more demands on Dathan, and apparently paying lip service to the eternals goal of inspiring and bringing joy and wonder to drab lives.

At one point, during a meeting of the now wealthy members of the previously underdog guild, to discuss a potential play for the [[Founders_of_the_Delves#The_Buidelrat|Seat of the Buidelrat]], something went horribly wrong. The guild members themselves were eventually discovered sealed in their meeting chambers sound asleep. They remained asleep from that day onwards. Examination by a profession ''vloekprik'' - an expert in curses - determined that they were all enjoying truly amazing dreams of wealth, power, and indulgence that would last for the rest of their lives. Breaking the curse was apparently too expensive, and so the surviving members of the guild had them moved to a nice hospice in the marshes where they each lived out several more decades of endless, wonderful dreams. How true this tale is I cannot say for sure, but the ''Haaienvermijders'' certainly seemed to believe it so...

I asked if the Haaienvermijders knew any reason why Dathan might not have spoken with the Empire in any formal capacity. They weren't able to answer directly but "made enquiries" - they certainly knew some other covens of magicians who had closer ties with Dathan then they themselves did. My studies took me elsewhere, but shortly before I was due to quit the Delves and return to Sarcophan, my former guide came to see me with some news. They had spoken with a magician who engaged in the practice of ''dream trading'' - a combination magician and pharmaceuticalist such as one is only likely to find in the Delves I wager - who had a way to speak with heralds of Dathan. According to this slightly unsavoury individual, Dathan avoids anything to do with Imperial citizens for two reasons.

The first is the activity of the ''Crew of Sodden Trains'' - which we both agreed was probably the [[Whisper Gallery]] - who apparently loathes Dathan for sharing secret and hidden things with people. A more serious concern however was something the herald called the "Lantern Shark". As near as my ''Shark Dodger'' friend was able to make out, there is a creature of the Night realm that Dathan's herald describes as having the features of a rare deep-water fish that uses a lure to draw curious fish toward it so it can feast on them, and a monstrous shark.

I confessed I had no idea what this was about, and my guide ventured that it might be that Dathan is in opposition to a more forthright, dangerous eternal of the Night realm that also deals in dreams and that they (Dathan) believe it to have enough of a claim over Imperial magicians that the ''Sailor on the Skerries'' does not wish - or is unable - to intrude. This is, as my companion ruefully noted, an eternal that is most likely to run away from any conflict and convince itself that it never happened, or spend the next few years daydreaming about how it might have gone differently, than to actually have a fight with anyone or anything.

==Maw of Stone==
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After spending several weeks with the mercantile magicians of the ''Haaienvermijders'', I was hosted for a very pleasant fortnight at the home of the occult scholar ''Mina Luister''. While not actually a magician herself, in her prime she was well paid to serve as an intermediary between folk of the Delves and the eternals, having dedicated her life to studying everything she could about the creatures and their heralds. A true professional, she nonetheless told me many tantalising stories of deals struck, dangerous bargains, hair-raising negotiations, and in one case, a desperate swim through underwater ruins pursued by a hunting ''[[Siakha#Servants_of_Siakha|carcharadon]]''.

This latter brought us naturally to a discussion of the [[Siakha|Mother of Storms]] who the folk of the Delves variously call ''Red Squid'', ''Maw of Stone'', and occasionally 'the Chewer''. The former is a reference to the [[Mundane_beasts#Kraken|kraken]], while the latter two names speak of certain maritime phenomena where a whirlpool or waterspout becomes entangled with lose boulders and razor sharp pieces of coral that can shred hull, sail, or skin with equal aplomb.

Whereas the Sarcophan are likely to treat other eternals with the same laissez faire attitude they do foreign nations and merchants visiting their shores, this is not the case with Siakha. The eternal is seen as a figure of awe, or even terror. She represents the horrors of the ocean - not the unknown or theoretical horrors of the great deeps but the well-known and yet still unpredictable horrors of nature at its wildest. Storms, of course, but also those calms that can leave a ship stranded as the crew slowly go mad from thirst and the sun. Mighty beasts of the deep, for sure, but also the smaller creatures such as termites and poison crabs or deadly jellyfish. The Delves are particularly vulnerable to the machinations of the Mother of Storms, being both a maritime nation and one whose largest city lies along a coast parts of which are prone to flooding.

One bright morning my hostess prevailed on me to join her for a sedan chair ride out to the western docks. I was not enamoured of the sedan chair - while Mina reassured me several times it was a service like any other I felt there was something a little... unvirtuous... about paying other people to carry you around in luxury. Mistress Luister found it amusing at first but became a little waspish over time, and I was at pains to explain that it was not a judgement just a feeling. Apparently it is quite common for wealthier Sarcophan to travel by such a means, allowing them to avoid the mud and dirt that accumulates in the lower parts of the city. One can always tell a wealthy Sarcophan, they say, because their hems are clean.

Anyway, the reason for the sedan chair ride was to see a small wonder she called ''De Negenendertig Tanden'' - the Thirty-Nine Teeth. I'd seen one of them while arriving at the Delves and I presume many of my fellow Imperials who make a regular journey here already know something of them but Mina was able to give me their entire history. Not buoys as I had originally thought, they are thirty-nine columns of white granite inlaid with mithril and ilium that form a somewhat ragged fence across the bay overlooked by the central towers of the Delves. A great work of engineering, one that took the focus of the entire Beggar's Feast a little over two centuries ago, and required several seasons to complete, these teeth fundamentally weaken the servants of Siakha who might try to attack Sarcophan. Even those with powerful boons from the eternal might find themselves uncomfortable visiting the Delves - something Mina considered a point of pride. Pirates are not really welcome here, after all.

I expressed amazement at the sheer majesty of the work and she was more than happy to boast about the political wrangling that was needed to get the Teeth built. The Teeth also discourage the larger and more predatory beasts of the ocean approaching too close - it is one reason that Sarcophan has not had a recorded kraken attack in two hundred years. From time to time foolish servants of the Maw of Stone make an attempt to weaken or breach the cordon, but there is a dedicated naval force that protects the Teeeth supported by magicians versed in battlefield magic with experience fighting the heralds of Siakha and so far they have prevented unnatural threats to the city.

Mina did explain, however, that this fence against Siakha was partially made possible by the assistance of a certain being of the Day realm, and as we took a pleasant tea in one of the towers looking out across the bay, she explained a little about ''Guathier, Lord of the Winds''.

==Lord of the Winds==
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Shy albatross in flight.jpg|title=Grumpy albatross is wise to your malarkey.|caption=Guathier is one of the Hierarchs of Sea and Sky, and strongly associated with weather and the sea.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
Many of the eternals of the [[Realms#Day|Day realm]], the Hierarches of Sea and Sky, have a connection to the idea of the sea. [[Leviathan]] famously swims in the depths of a vast ocean that spreads across the entire realm. [[Zakalwe]], [[Ylenwe]], and [[Roshanwe]] each have their personal realms on the surface of that endless sea, while the domain of [[Phaleron]] is built on coral islands and rises high into the air, and deep into the waters. [[Kimus]] and [[Sinokenon]] meanwhile have their demesnes high above, in the sky over the eternal mirror-like sea. ''Guathier, Lord of the Winds'' is closer to the latter than the former, but nonetheless is counted by the Sarcophan as an eternal of the sea.

Unlike many eternals, ''Guathier'' does not collect names; the only other two commonly used in Sarcophan are ''Who-Sees-The-Wind'' and ''Windwinder''. She takes the form of a great bird, similar to an albatross - to my mind the depictions are very similar to those I have seen of the Imperial Albatross of the cliffs of [[Redoubt#Ventosi|Ventosi]] in [[Redoubt]]. Their feathers are translucent white, with light blue markings, and it is said that when she is in flight they glow with the light of the sun so bright it is impossible for a mortal to look on them without going blind.

Guathier is associated both with the wind, and with the currents of the sea - which her heralds describe as being very similar things seen from different perspectives in different mediums. She observes the flows of wind, and is said to be able to shape the wind and the currents of the sea. Mostly this power is drawn on to quell storms and bad weather of that nature - there are notes about a ritual boon offered by Guathier that provides significant protection to naval forces from the effect of cursed storms for example.

It seems as well that her fascination with currents, with the movement of air and water, makes her something of a prognosticator. Guathier is fascinated with the way that the smallest action can result in significant changes to the way events unfold, just as a rock in the path of a river can divert its flow in ways that are hard to predict. If Leviathan looks at the present that arises from the past, Guathier is concerned with the future that may arise from the present.

There is clearly more to this eternal than I was able to glean in my short discussion with Mina, and she was unable to introduce me to any magicians that deal extensively with her or her heralds. As to why she is not known in the Empire, Mina could not offer any particular guidance although we did discuss the possibility that the Empire's use of curses that inflict bad weather such as [[Foam and Spittle of the Furious Sea]] and [[Thunderous Deluge]] might have some influence on her opinion of our magicians.

==Polyptoton==
{{CaptionedImage|file=Turtle city.jpg|align=right|width=250}}
Shortly before my time with Mina was due to come to an end, she introduced me to a Sarcophan [[cambion]] magician with the delightful name of ''Jaan van Daan''. Jaan makes a living dispatching messages and packages across the Known World through the auspices of [[Autumn magic]], and numbers everyone from ''Bedelaar Huisbaas'', through religious leaders, to fellow magicians among their clients. A true independent, it is likely that if you have received a [[Call Winged Messenger|winged messenger]] from the Delves it is Jaan van Daan that has sent it. Or at least so they themselves claim; but they certainly have the wealth and lifestyle to make me believe their claims.

Mina introduced me to Jaan specifically to talk about the ''Sovereign-Lord of the City of Salt and Sail'', with whom we understood the [[Archmage of Autumn]] had recently become acquainted. The name used by Jaan van Daan is ''Polyptoton''; the Sarcophan said that this is the name of the eternal itself, which takes the form of an immense turtle-like creature upon whose back the city is built. I'm not sure how I feel about the idea of a turtle the size of Sarvos (conservatively; the Autumn realm inevitably claims that their cities are significantly larger than any in the mortal realm) but Jaan was insistent. The being itself goes by any number of names, and is also known as ''Saratan'' and ''Archeloni'', while the city itself is known as the ''Wandering City'', the ''Port Of No Storm'', and ''Mirabilis''.

Over a course of the stickiest sweets I have ever encountered in my life, Jaan shared some of his understanding of the City of Salt and Sail, and its connection to the "winged messengers" that are arguably the backbone of international diplomacy and trade. It seems that the invisible bird-like creatures associated with the spell - whatever precise form it takes in the various lands where it is practiced - are most commonly drawn from immense rookeries that ride on the back of Polyptoton. The rituals themselves don't draw on the power of the city itself, but in most cases they have been developed with the assistance of heralds that call it home. I mentioned that I had heard of magic items that could call up messengers as well, but Jaan was unable to explain how they might work.

Regardless, the people of the City of Salt and Sail feel a certain responsibility to the messengers - which are apparently not invisible in the Autumn Realm as they are in the mortal realm. When a messenger is unable to deliver their letter, or their package, it apparently causes them some distress and the heralds of the Infinite Rookery intercede to deal with the problem. Jaan van Daan was at pains to tell me that this is the only time the heralds of Polyptoton read such messages - otherwise it is a point of pride for them to remain as neutral supporters of communication around the world as possible.

Beyond these rituals, the City of Salt and Sail is concerned with two key resonances of the Autumn realm - [[Autumn magic#Travel and Communication|travel and communication]]. While they have some interest in [[Autumn magic#Trade|trade]], this is true of ''all'' the eternals of the Autumn realm so far encountered, to one degree or another. For Polyptoton, however, the key element of trade is that it relies on the transportation of both goods and ideas over distance. Salt, according to the heralds of the city, is key to the entire development of trade in the mortal world. Once traders are able to travel effectively down rivers and across the seas, they can transport great quantities of goods faster and more efficiently, to markets where they are unknown. Likewise, salt forms the basis of preservation of many perishable goods, allowing them to be transported further and still be viable trade goods. This metaphor puts one in mind of the arguments that the merchants of Ephisis make about "Gold" and "Lead" - a central allegory that underpins some of their claims without really meaning anything.

The city has a strong connection to ships and boats, and Jaan van Daan told me that they are ''the'' eternal to speak to in the Autumn realm - or any other - about facilitating the movement of such. Zartan doesn't limit itself solely to maritime concerns, however, having some interest in the movement of people and vehicles overland. They are not a particularly martial city, but their insight may still prove useful when moving armies or navies over distance. One of the (several) things that apparently piqued the interest of Polyptoton with regard to the Empire was the increasing use by Imperial magicians of the [[Find the Best Path]] ritual in recent years.

Their enthusiasm for communication, says Jaan, has some key differences to that of the eternal Lashonar with which Imperial magicians are perhaps more familiar. Lashonar brings people together so that they can speak face-to-face. Its Caucus Forum is a perfect example of how it sees communication - a chance for disparate folk to come together to share ideas, able to deploy their insight and intuition to evaluate the people they are speaking to, using emotion and subtlety to control the ebb and flow of words. The citizens of the City of Salt and Sail are not ''averse'' to people speaking to each other but they are ''much'' more excited about the written word. Not only letters, but also the myriad other ways that things written down can communicate (and perhaps even exert influence over readers). They certainly have demonstrated the ability to arrange meetings, but like the [[Prospero|Sovereign Lord of the City of Bridges]] they are likely to require a steep price for doing so. Where they shine is in their ability to get a letter to, in theory, anyone anywhere in the world.

==Kobhel Tava and More==
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After a pleasant afternoon spent in the company of Jaan van Daan, I finished my time with Mina by visiting some old colleagues of hers. The ''Stillegolf'' are a small coven who these days are apparently mostly retired. The four of them met with me in their apartments - a series of large open rooms at the top of one of the teetering towers of Sarcophan. We met at night, among candles, and I feel that decision was in part to ensure they presented their home in the best light. It was clear to me that their glory days are behind them, but I have no doubt that they knew it themselves, and knew I knew. In spite of that, the quarter of elderly [[draughir]] were engaging dinner companions and we spoke long into the night about the King of Nowhere and the Queen of the Vast.

Salt in the Lungs and the Prophet of the Last Light are known in the Delves but they are kept carefully at arms length by most of the wizards here. One of the ''Stillegolf'', a droll fellow named ''Marta Kjirik '' with a poetic turn of phrase, described them thus: "''they are the deep oceans, the water you don't now, with rocks beneath the surface that you cannot see. They are the fear of the becalmed sailor, of the captain who sees the storm approaching that she knows her ship will not survive, the dread of being far from shore and feeling your vessel shift beneath your feet as it begins to talk on water. They are the fraying of ropes, and the ripping of canvas, and the doomsong pealing in the depths, where no bells should be."

I can tell you now that, sat in that dark cavernous room full of faded splendor, with candles flickering and my hosts all staring at me unblinking, Marta's words sent a shiver down my spine and I heard the echo of one of my ancestors urging me to get out of there as fast as possible before they ate me. I squared my shoulders and persevered, however.

One of the other draughir, ''Irta Covesaar'', told a story of Khobel Tavah in her heavily accented Imperial that one of their heralds allegedly came to the people of Umshalla, the folk who occupied the Delves before the Sarcophan, and offered a warning of three dooms: chaos, war, and plague. The Diarchs of Parralenth, Elam and Orpa, refuted each of the claims of the herald in turn and cast the doomsayer from their court. They truly believed that their people could weather any storm that might come. Within a handful of years, the Diarchs were dead, the nation had been riven with chaos, civil war burned in the streets, and the final plague had begun to spread.

The tale might be apocryphal, but it led to a discussion that the ''Two-Who-Are-One'' are among the least unpredictable of the eternals the ''Stillegolf'' dealt with in their time. They do what they say, and there is little ambiguity with them. When they warn, their warning should be taken seriously because their words are never idle. They can also be drawn on to provide protection to ships at sea, which is one of the services the ''Stillegolf'' specialised in. They employed enchantments called ''Sails of the Last City'' which was invaluable to mercenary vessels employed to guard trade fleets, and ''Ward of Last Light'' which granted sailors preternatural fortitude and prevented death at sea for a time.

The third member of the coven, the old guildmaster ''Pieter Covesaar'' explained that the ritual texts they had used were sold off years ago, but they showed me several old boons from the ''Old Man and the Sea''. These battered looking foci appeared to have been taken from sunken wrecks, marked by decades of exposure to salt water, but were nonetheless sturdy. Their magical potency had long since leeched from them, but careful examination showed that they had once held powers that allowed ritual magicians to more easily weave spells of [[Winter magic#Preservation|preservation]] and [[Winter magic#Survival|survival]] that were quite intriguing.

It was while we were leaving that the last surviving member of the coven, ''Sjaak Kjikik'' spoke up for the first time, discoursing on the matter of fear, and while I didn't know it at the time my visit was about to take a peculiar tangent. I had made some off-hand comment about fear of drowning, and Sjaak had corrected me. He spoke in tones more suited to a professor lecturing at the [[Sarvos#Diora_University|Diora]], but his expression was scarily intense and his eyes flickered gold and red in the candleflames. He explained that there are two forms of fear, and the Winter eternals represent the more wholesome of the two. The [[Winter magic#Fear|fears]] the Winter eternals exemplify are ''rational'' fears - it is right that people fear drowning because it is a horrible way to die, one that is always waiting just behind the shoulder of anyone who owes their lives to the water. The fear of hunger, of making bad decisions, of the ending that comes with death, of pain, of suffering, are all ''sensible'' fears. Yet there is another kind of fear that has nothing to do with reason or good sense. For ''that'' kind of fear one must look elsewhere - to the ''Hongerigespin'' and to ''Ungholt, the Delerium King''.

==Hongerigespin and Ungholt==
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Delirium King.jpg|caption=Ungholt the Delerium King spreads madness and terror, and twists the dreams of sleeping mortals into terrible shapes.|align=left|width=400}}</div>
Mina looked quite concerned when he mentioned these two, and saw my questioning expression. We sat back down again and Sjaak gave a quick explanation. These were not eternals of the Winter realm, but of Night. He did not talk much about ''Hongerigespin'' apart from the say that it was a creature that devoured everything that made a person a person and brought the kind of living death which ate the entire person but left their bodies behind. Irta tried to interject that the creature also had useful powers over obfuscation and concealment, but even she had to agree that the boons were never worth it given the price. Mina kept trying to catch my eye during this exchange and communicate nonverbally, and on top of that one of my ancestors was growling very loudly in my left ear, and so I did not take much in.

On the subject of ''Ungholt, the Delirium King'', however, Sjaak was much more voluble, seemingly to the chagrin of this three covenmates. Apparently this creature appears as a figure without a face, in a hooded robe. It may also appear as the most terrifying image drawn from the nightmares of those who see them. There is no lesson in the fear brought by the Delirium King, only madness and death. Sjaak began to twitch as he spoke, getting more and more agitated, until Marta brought out a particular deep green liquor and made him down a small glass of it to bring back his calm.

I had to check twice that the Delirium King was a creature of the Night realm, and not the Winter realm, but Sjaak was adamant and the others nodded silent agreement. He then explained that Delirium King is the lord of nightmare, madness, and fear made manifest. It is actually tangentially associated with my commission which is why I mention it here. Where most of the other domains of the Night realm are said to be forests, Ungholt dominates a land of mud and water, creeping mist, and unnatural trees called the Mire of Madness. It is drawn to places where people have drowned, and apparently finds the desperate struggles of someone unable to escape water or quicksand to be delightful music. Given that much of the land in and around the Delves is marshland, I could immediately see why the creature was relevant to the Sarcophan. Also, its tangential connection to water led me to believe that it might be relevant to the wider commission.

Marta broke in at this point to stress again that there is no ''[[Winter magic#Wisdom|wisdom]]'' in the fear Ungholt brings. They are simply a prison, one that eventually breaks the mind of their victims and leaves them unable to tell reality from dreadful fantasy. Its servants move in nightmare, apparently, allowing them to attack sleeping minds and remove the ability to rest. It can also bring weakness and a fear so terrible it paralyses those exposed to it, allegedly with a simple touch or terrible music.

It was around this point that I started to notice that the candles had mostly gone out. We are huddled together around the low table, scattered with the remnants of our supper, hunched forward while Sjaak rambled about nightmare and madness, sucking quagmire, and drifting lights that fed on the souls of the despairing, our shadows seeming to be dreadful giants leaning forward above and around us. It put me in mind of some of the stories I had heard from soldiers fighting in [[Zenith]] and [[Ossium]], and so I interjected and quickly described the [[Druj miasma]]. Might Ungholt be involved in such a thing?

The draughir magicians asked several probing questions, and the more answers I gave the more certain they became that the Delirium King could not be responsible. The Druj miasma and its [[Druj_miasma#Miasma_Pillars|pillars]] have laid over [[the Mallum]] for generations - Sjaak was adamant that any extended exposure to the power of Ungholt on such a scale could bring only madness and death. Whatever the miasma is, it is not a thing of the [[Realms#Night|Night Realm]]. Yet they cautioned that it is the kind of thing that would delight Ungholt, would draw his attention like flies to a rotting corpse. An entire people oppressed by auras of fear, dread, and despair would be a feast for Ungholt and its servants. I was initially a little skeptical, but the more I thought on it the more I came to agree with them. If the miasma of the Mallum ''was'' a thing of the realms we would have known about it decades ago. And I must stress, the four of them were in agreement that exposure to the power of Ungholt for an extended period of time would break the spirit and the mind to the point that nobody - Druj ''or'' their septs - would be able to function in any way.

When Sjaak left to answer the call of his bladder, Pieter quickly explained that there was a reason that Sjaak was so impassioned, and why they were certain that the eternal was not behind this "miasma" I spoke of. Twenty years ago the ''Stillegolf'' ran afoul of a coven of magicians who drew on the boons of Ungholt. The coven dwelled outside the city in the swamps along the Umshalla river, and had come to the attention of the Delves' coven because they were terrorizing Sarcophan ship captains who relied on their warding magic for protection. The ensuing "wizards war" went in favour of the ''Stillegolf'', not least because they were able to call in favours from several of the maritime associations they had worked with, and because they were able to draw on soldiers from the Grim Legion of the ''Maiden of Midnight''. Despite this, the fight left two of their number - including Sjaak's husband - trapped in eternal nightmare slumber, and Sjaak on the verge of madness after six months of awful waking visions.

While Pieter spoke, Irta lit more candles and unshrouded a dim [[Technology#Lightstones|lightstone]], and when Sjaak returned from his call of nature the subject was changed and Mina and I thanked our hosts and left. Sjaak had the last word - he warned that I should not seek to learn much more about Ungholt, and should definitely not seek to attract its attention. If the Empire is not of interest to the Delirium King, they should thank their good fortune and perhaps spare a moment to think compassionately of those in the Delves who are not so lucky.

Mina and I travelled back to my apartments in silence, and I confess that when I finally slept that night my dreams were tormented by the image of a black hooded spectre and an increasingly unhinged Sjaak hunting me through the streets of [[Skarsind#Gildenheim|Gildenheim]], dream-warped such that they were overwhelmed with terrible, stinking swamps.

==Conclusion==
When I awoke, slathered in sweat, it turned out that it was not just the unsettling tales of the ''Stillegolf'' that were responsible for my disturbed night. I had, despite all my best efforts, managed to pick up some awful sickness of the bowels native to the Sarcophan Delves. If I had one piece of advice to give any of my colleagues considering spending time in the Delves it would be to boil the water before you drink it. I spent a week alternating between weeping and hunched over, and writhing wrapped in sweat-soaked bedsheets.

Several of the magicians I had met sent small tokens of consolation, and I can only thank the physician provided by Bedelaar Huisbaas Annike who dosed me every six hours with a preparation of boiled water and [[bladeroot]]. With her assistance, my fever eventually broke and I regained control of my bowels. Two days later, I was leaving the Delves, with a new appreciation of how wide and complicated the world really is. Despite my illness, I think my time in Sarcophan was well spent and I would happily return.

I spent most of the journey back across the Sea of Teeth and the [[Bay of Catazar]] compiling my notes into this travelogue, which I hope will prove of interest. My recommendation would be that the Minister think carefully about how best to present this information to the rest of the Empire. Especially the Conclave who can, sometimes, leave themselves open to criticism when it comes to their enthusiasm for seeking out new creatures of the realms.

While several of those mentioned here seem harmless, some of them may certainly present hidden dangers. I'll leave my final point as an paraphrase of something Mina Luister said to me over spiced cakes. Sometimes it is a blessing to avoid the gaze of the powerful, especially when their desires are unpredictable.

It scans better in Sarcophan, I suppose.
==Further Reading==
* [[Eternal]]
* [[Sarcophan Delves]]

Survival

2026-07-21T22:06:36Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Appraisal]]
<ic>
"On your left!" shouted Fan, locked in battle with an orc with sunflowers for eyes. Gav dodged, pivoted and counter-thrusted into the remains of one he had dispatched earlier and thought neutralised, before freeing Fan from the orc's clutches. "Cheers!" They took a moment to dust themselves off, before signalling to the herald of Irra Harah and the Waterwalkers they were escorting that it was safe to continue along the path away from the main fight.

"You'd think it'd get easier after all these years"

"Are you calling me difficult?"

"The vallorn, Fan! The vallorn! On your right!"

Fan leant backwards, as a jagged branch as thick as one of the pillars that held up her house back in Hercynia sailed within a hair's breadth of her face, fully cleaving one of the braids from her hair off. She responded with a javelin that made a satisfying ''crunch'' as it sank deep into the chest of the humongous vallornspawn that threw it.

"Yes, well, I suspect that this might in fact ''be'' the easy part Gav. The Tainted Basilisk have just given us the smallest taste of the battle that is to come."
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 300px; clear: right; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Sun Chamber colour.png|align=right|width=500}}</div>
==Overview==
The [[Sun Chamber]] is the [[Imperial sodality]] formed of the Empire's newest citizens, those who represent the Empire's future. With them come fresh faces to Imperial politics, fresh ideas, and fresh opportunities. Last season, they chose to use their power to appraise an issue facing the Empire to look into how to protect the various vital pieces of Imperial infrastructure from the expansion of the [[vallorn]]. Joining them was [[Appraisal#Available_Prognosticators|Vainakoma Dawnstongue]] of the Prognosticator's office, who volunteered help co-ordinate their efforts.
<div {{float}}>
<quote by="Sun Chamber">When the vallorn expands it destroys all it touches. How might we protect resources, constructions and infrastructure in regions threatened by the vallorn? Perhaps using living weirwood, ritual magic or learning from our international neighbours, but go wild!</quote></div>
==The Known Unknowns==
The research is difficult, not because there is a shortage of options - but for the opposite reason. There are already a sea of resources available to those who wish to defend against the Vallorn. The Navarr have been working on this problem for a long, long time after all. Ultimately, there are few good solutions that do not require the heavy investment of the armies of the [[Military Council]], supplemented by well-placed [[Fortification|fortifications]] to hold back the ''Green Tide'' from being able to reach Imperial Infrastructure in the first place.

While a great deal is [[A thousand years of longing|already known about the vallorn]], there are also some questions that may well remain unanswered until the hearts are connected. The Empire has never seen a fully roused vallorn at full strength in the way that it will be when the final war truly begins; each one is likely to be qualitatively different. The extent to which they have been drained by the trods, the natural geography and the resources it will consume and weaponise in its wake will all make each one potentially slightly different in the way each Imperial Army is slightly different. It would be invaluable to know what the definitive strength of the vallorn was going to be, what qualities each heart might possess, but at present there is no way to find that out.

Perhaps the most dangerous unanswered question is whether, once a vallornheart has expanded and enveloped every region in a territory, it can then expand beyond the natural borders to threaten adjacent lands? There are two possible answers to that question which is distinctly unhelpful. In Axos, in Visokuma, the vallorn has expanded to fill the territory but has since become largely quiescent. There are occasional forays and attacks from the vallorn, but it doesn't surge out the way Imperial vallornhearts do when provoked or attacked. Perhaps when the vallorn is roused they will do likewise?

On the other hand the Visokuma vallorn does still try to expand - and that is before the vallorn has been roused. That rather suggests that it will become a lot more active once it is joined to the others - and that implies that the vallorn will expand beyond its starting territories. It would be good to know one way or the other what the actual answer is.

The problem is that there is simply no good way to answer these questions. The vallorn is a singular problem, unique to the Empire and the surrounding lands. There has never been a time when the vallorn was fully roused, not since the fall of Terunael at least. As a result, there is no obvious way to give definitive answers to such questions until it happens.

==Living Weirwood==
* '''The vallorn is known to avoid stands of weirwood trees'''
* '''The Empire could build a single civilian commission in size inside each weirwood grove'''
* '''Doing so would double the labour costs'''
* '''A commission would not function if the region was overrun by the vallorn, but it would not be destroyed'''
* '''A great work cannot be built inside a weirwood grove'''

From the studies the Sun Chamber have made, everyone agrees that stands of weirwood trees are unaffected by the vallorn. As it spreads, it grows round them, but they remain free of the miasma, and the growth never infests the ground where the weirwood trees take root.
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Weirwood Commission'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Any civilian commission except a great work</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Any single weirwood grove (bourse resource)</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' All regular labour costs are doubled</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' No change</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' If the region containing the commission is conquered by the vallorn the commission will be deactivated but not destroyed</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Freely available from now on</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Only a single commission can be built in each weirwood grove
</td></tr>
</table></div>
Nobody has ever found a way to use this as a weapon, not yet at least. As soon as you cut the weirwood down to use it, it appears to lose the properties that make it resistant to the corruption of the vallorn. Crucially commissions built using weirwood are just as vulnerable to the vallorn as any other.

"But what if we build a commission in the grove?" asks one of the more enterprising members of the sodality. Nobody has ever tried such a thing before, probably because it would be too expensive, but it's possible. And in theory it would work - the weirwood trees would keep the vallorn at bay and whatever was enclosed by the grove would be safe.

Vainakoma confirms that it ''could'' be done. You can't put a fortification inside a weirwood grove, but the Empire could build a single [[Commission#Civilian_Commissions|civilian commission]] inside each substantial weirwood grove. Each weirwood bourse seat could be used to protect a single commission from the approaching menace.

There are two significant drawbacks. The first is cost - people don't build inside weirwood groves normally because of the costs. All the extra work involved, working round the existing trees and roots would double the labour cost of the construction from 3 crowns per wain to 6 crowns per wain.

The other issue is that the commission would be unlikely to continue to function if the region it was in was conquered by the vallorn. The building would not be destroyed, but if nobody can easily reach it, if it is literally surrounded by the vallorn, most commissions will still be inactive. But it wouldn't be destroyed and people could shelter there until they could be rescued.

Almost any civilian commission could be protected in this way with the exception of a [[great work]]. These structures traditionally stretch over the region and beyond, so they could not be built inside a grove of trees. The other limitation would be that only one commission per grove could be protected in this way.

==Ritual Magic==
* '''There are dozens of rituals that could be useful against the vallorn'''
* '''There are unlikely to be any new rituals that could help'''
* '''The Conclave could interdict the creation of new arcane projections'''
* '''The Sumer Archmage could use plenipotentiary to ask Adamant to empower the Master of the Koboldi'''

There are dozens of rituals that will be essential when the vallorn is roused. Wards like [[Ward of the Black Waste]] and [[Wardens of the Black Waste]]. The recently codified [[Pillars of Adamant]] looks particularly useful for this. Rituals that [[Army#Rituals|enhance the strength of armies]] like [[Clarity of the Master Strategist]], [[Knights of Glory]] or [[Brotherhood of Tian]] will be incredibly important in the coming war. Rituals that [[Fortification#Rituals|enhance fortifications]] like [[Ramparts of Ashlar]] will be just as important as will rituals that summon fortifications like [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae]]

In theory it might be possible to create an [[arcane projection]] for a new ritual, but Vainakoma recommends against this approach in the ''strongest possible terms''. The problem is that every arcane projection requires 10 mana to create, and the majority of them fail. That is a massive cost in mana, resources that could have been spent attacking and defending against the vallorn with the tools the Empire already has. In the words of the notoriously cynic [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|''Leontes the Scribe'']] - "If every mana crystal wasted on an arcane projection were piled up in front of me, we'd have enough mana to defeat the vallorn twice over." Trying to find a new arcane projection that will defeat the vallorn is like wishing on a star - the odds of finding anything new that is worth the cost are vanishingly small.

<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Interdict Arcane Projections'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Declaration Type:''' Interdiction</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Ban the creation of all new arcane projections until the vallorn is destroyed so that the mana is available for the war against the enemy.</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Makes it illegal for Imperial magicians to create arcane projections.</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Open-ended</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Constitution:''' The Court have confirmed this declaration would be constitutional.</td></tr>
</table></div>

That does present one opportunity that might help - albeit it, one that would be very difficult politically. The Sun Chamber could try to get the [[Conclave]] to [[interdiction|interdict]] the creation of new arcane projections. If magicians were forbidden from expending mana chasing new discoveries, they could instead devote all those resources to fighting the enemy. There will be plenty of time to wish on stars ''after'' the vallorn is defeated after all.
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Request access to adamant'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Plenipotentiary:''' Adamant</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Request negotiations with the King under the Mountain to provide supplies of adamant, the unbreakable stone, for the Master of the Koboldi</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Open-ended</td></tr>
</table></div>
While it isn't ritual magic exactly, there is one other option that could be useful. The [[Master of the Koboldi]] is able to construct impressive buildings with the support of the [[Adamant|King under the Mountain]] - but those buildings are constructed with a mix of white granite and regular stone. If the Master were able to employ adamant, the almost-unbreakable stone found in the Summer realm, they could build fortifications and other commissions that were all but resistant to the destructive power of the vallorn. The garrison could be destroyed, the area could be captured, but the fortification would still be standing.

Could ''Deep Dragon'' be persuaded to give the Master of the Koboldi access to supplies of adamant? The Summer Archmage would need to use a plenipotentiary to try to negotiate it, but there is no doubt the eternal ''could'' do it, if he could be persuaded.

==Neighbours==
* '''The Empire knows vastly more than all its neighbours about the vallorn and how to fight it'''

While it is an excellent idea to seek the counsel of the Empire's neighbours, it is important to be realistic about what might be achieved. The Empire knows considerably more about the vallorn than all its neighbours. Have the [[Grendel]] or the [[Iron Confederacy]] have ever even encountered the vallorn? It is clear the Druj only recently started to probe the menace and everything they know about it, they stole from Urizeni spires.

Still it is worth considering the approaches neighbours do use, just in case they reveal new ideas. After a quick consultation with Naomi of Virtue's Rest, the Sun Chamber summarises the current situation.

*'''Jotun''': The Jotun hold [[Ashvale]] (formerly Liathaven) in the West, and it seems that their natural military strength means they have little issue managing the occasional bursts of Vallornspawn that might emanate from Liath's Heart. It is reported that they secured a boon from [[Surut]] of [[the Thrice-cursed Court]] shortly after acquiring the territory. It remains unclear whether that was specifically to combat a threat from the vallorn or to merely to engage in more expedient deforestation.

*'''Thule''': The Thule have long-held [[Otkodov#Sküld|Sküld]], and use a version of [[Wither the Seed]] (though they claim theirs is "more efficient" compared to the "crude" imperial version) to keep the vallornheart of Emrys quiescent.

*'''Druj''': The heart of Bendol in the [[Sarangrave]] came to the Druj pre-contained with wards fashioned by the Terun (with a little help from [[Sadogua]]), and simply maintained the ancient wards (until recently).

*'''Axos''': Possibly inspired by the designs of the wards in the [[Sarangrave]], the Axou's methods of dealing with the vallorn of Cavan are [[Terunael_in_Axos#Part_One|well documented]] thanks to the [[Historical research|Department of Historical Research]] and the work of the [[Advisor on the Vallorn]] at the time, '''Siân Eternal'''.

Naomi is quick to point out that if the Empire can generate or maintain good relations with these powers (if not, perhaps, the Druj), treaties might be signed for mutual efforts to quell any damage that can be avoided. The Thule seem confident in their capabilities of containing the northernmost vallornheart, but having the garrison of the [[Sarangrave#Tower_of_the_Skink|Tower of the Skink]] provide aid in future entanglements with the vallorn of Bendol would undoubtedly be of great value.

After much consideration of the situation with their near neighbours, two things occur to the bright young minds of the Sun Chamber; both are regarding the strategy of containment employed by the Axos.

The Axos have allowed the vallorn to expand to fill the territory of [[Terunael_in_Axos#Venturing_into_Visokuma|Visokuma]], then surrounded the area with fortifications. This approach seems to work remarkably well for the Axos - albeit at great cost. It means they can't access the wealth and resources of the territory - but in return they suffer very little in the ways of attacks and what does occur is easily defeated by the fortifications they have built to ring the territory.

The problem that the sodality has spotted is that that strategy is going to fail badly if Visokuma is joined to the other vallornhearts. If that happens, the vallorn will come flooding out of the territory in force, quickly overrun the Axos fortifications, which are nothing like big enough to repel that kind of attack, wash over their completely insignificant military force, and every single one of them will be killed and eaten within a matter of a year or so at most. That will be a problem for the Empire, who will then have to deal with the Visokuma vallorn after it has devoured Axos, but it might be a problem for the Axou as well?

On the other hand, it does suggest an alternative strategy that might be employed. It's a bit controversial - a bit out of the ordinary, but isn't that what the Empire expects of the Sun Chamber after all? The sodality manifesto instructs them to ''"approach existing problems in new ways"''.

What if, instead of provoking the vallorn, instead of fighting it, instead of prodding it... the Empire adopted the Axou strategy. [[Miaren]] is fine, but the Empire could abandon [[Hercynia]], [[Brocéliande]], [[Sarangrave]], [[Liathaven]] and [[Therunin]]. Let the vallorn slowly expand to fill the territory, then build a few small fortifications around it to keep it contained, the way Axos do, then just... throw away the key?

It sounds a bit outré, but consider what could be achieved if the Empire wasn't constantly fighting the vallorn? Wasn't constantly preparing for an apocalyptic war against this enemy. Yes, they would lose some territory, but it would save thousands and thousands and thousands of lives. The Empire could focus on fighting the barbarians and securing its borders. Sceptics will argue it won't work, but the Axos have ''proved'' it works - it has worked just fine for them for close to a thousand years.
<div {{float}}>
<box>'''Tathenon's Blessing against the Spawn of Chaos'''<br>
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
'''Day; Magnitude 4/2;'''<br>
''Grants a character protection against vallorn miasma for the duration of a conjunction''<br>
At the completion of this ritual, the target is refreshed and purified by a light infusion of energies from the Day realm. They are protected from the worst effects of vallorn miasma. The target is not subject to the venomous effects of the vallorn miasma. They will not contract green lung, nor will they become a vallornspawn husk if they die while under this enchantment.

The target will experience a powerful roleplaying effect: they are more capable of clear, rational thought and working in an organised fashion with others to achieve their goals. They are also keenly aware of any imperfections or stains on their garments and feel an urge to keep them clean and well-presented.
</div>
</box>
</div>
Vainakoma confirms that such an approach would be theoretically possible, although he is not persuaded that it would be politically acceptable. Still, the appraisal did say to go wild. And the idea would remove the threat of the vallorn for good.

One less outrageous suggestion is to negotiate with the Thule to see if they might have some magic that could aid the Empire. The dragons have always been exceptionally cagey when discussing the vallorn with the Empire, but it turns out that two members of the sodality have become firm friends with a young warlock called ''Helgrindur of the Shining Eye'' and they happen to let slip that Tathenon has a ritual that provides the recipient with magical protection from the vallorn miasma. Apparently it is some kind of enchantment from the Day realm that stops the miasma from poisoning the target.

Of course Tathenon won't part with the ritual text for free, but it's not a powerful enchantment, so the Empire could just create their own. And the dragon will ''know'' that, so they'll have some idea of what it is worth. Presumably they would rather get something for a copy of the ritual text than nothing? Perhaps someone could speak with the Thule and enquire?

==From Theory to Practice==
Ultimately, it is clear that there will never be a "one size fits all" solution, other than that of the focused might of armies and fortifications. Instead, the acolytes of the Sun Chamber have compiled a list of extant opportunities to better prepare to defend from the malice of ''Terunael's Folly'' when it rears, as it did this season in the Sarangrave. Thanks to the ongoing [[Every path you know|highest calling]] of the Navarr, there is already much that could be done.

===Brocéliande===
This very season, the joint efforts of Navarr and the engineers of [[Holberg]] have resulted in a [[Viridian_nemesis#Holberg|plan]] to improve the defensibility of [[Brocéliande]], attracting the chaotoc energies of the Vallorn to a chosen battleground by nature will save other key infrastructure from damage.

===Sarangrave===
Similarly, the Navarr's [[Cup_of_choices|recent work with Urizen]] has resulted in a spate of opportunities that will help supplement the defence of key sites in the Territory. As mentioned previously in this report, the future relationship with the people of [[Axos]] will be pivotal to the eventual damage wrought in the east.

===Hercynia===
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Fortify the Heartwood'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' [[Fortification]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Boar's Dell, Brocéliande</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 80 [[weirwood]], 240 crowns</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 4 seasons</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the start of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
Beyond building the [[Every_path_you_know#Beware_of_Dog|Grim Pyramid]], [[Hercynia]] remains somewhat undefended. While not a problem in recent years, the coming final battle against the Vallorn and the potential end of the [[Ratify_Thule_Treaty_Spring_387YE|Thule peace treaty]] in four years means that now may be a better time than ever to invest in preventative measures. The [[Heartwood of the Great Vale]] would be a significant loss if overrun by the Vallorn; while the seat would not be destroyed, losing access to its income would still be terrible. Some keen architectural students among the Sun Chamber put together a proposal to grow the weirwood of the place into a more natural fortification. If (and it is very much an if) the heart of Deer's Folly were to rouse, it is ''possible'' that a fortification constructed in this way ''might'' be more resistant to the Vallorn's horrifying embrace. In any case, it might be easier to find the weirwood than more white granite given the [[A_lasting_commitment|renewed fervour]] in completing the Grand Inspiration of the Way.

The Great Forest Orcs are masters at manipulating the growth and use of weirwood, and are no friends of the Vallorn. They have offered to help out if the Sun Chamber will agree to help them with a matter, which would reduce the construction costs by X weirwood and 3X crowns. Specifically, they are concerned about the alleged intent of the Navarr and the wider Empire to seek out the boons of the [[Surut|Ancestor Slayer]] as part of their war against the Vallorn and in doing so cause unspeakable desecration to the Great Forest. The Great FOrest Orcs trust the [[Navarr]] however, and if they are willing to [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Tattoos_and_Vows|swear an oath]] via their national assembly that they will not engage in themselves, and will oppose Imperial use of the ''Hated One'' to deforest any regions with his fire.

Survival

2026-07-21T22:05:35Z

Dre: /* Neighbours */

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Appraisal]]
<ic>
"On your left!" shouted Fan, locked in battle with an orc with sunflowers for eyes. Gav dodged, pivoted and counter-thrusted into the remains of one he had dispatched earlier and thought neutralised, before freeing Fan from the orc's clutches. "Cheers!" They took a moment to dust themselves off, before signalling to the herald of Irra Harah and the Waterwalkers they were escorting that it was safe to continue along the path away from the main fight.

"You'd think it'd get easier after all these years"

"Are you calling me difficult?"

"The vallorn, Fan! The vallorn! On your right!"

Fan leant backwards, as a jagged branch as thick as one of the pillars that held up her house back in Hercynia sailed within a hair's breadth of her face, fully cleaving one of the braids from her hair off. She responded with a javelin that made a satisfying ''crunch'' as it sank deep into the chest of the humongous vallornspawn that threw it.

"Yes, well, i suspect that this might in fact ''be'' the easy part Gav. The Tainted Basilisk have just given us the smallest taste of the battle that is to come."
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 300px; clear: right; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Sun Chamber colour.png|align=right|width=500}}</div>
==Overview==
The [[Sun Chamber]] is the [[Imperial sodality]] formed of the Empire's newest citizens, those who represent the Empire's future. With them come fresh faces to Imperial politics, fresh ideas, and fresh opportunities. Last season, they chose to use their power to appraise an issue facing the Empire to look into how to protect the various vital pieces of Imperial infrastructure from the expansion of the [[Vallorn]]. Joining them was [[Appraisal#Available_Prognosticators|Vainakoma Dawnstongue]] of the Prognosticator's office, who volunteered help co-ordinate their efforts.
<div {{float}}>
<quote by="Sun Chamber">When the Vallorn expands it destroys all it touches. How might we protect resources, constructions and infrastructure in regions threatened by the Vallorn? Perhaps using living weirwood, ritual magic or learning from our international neighbours, but go wild!</quote></div>
==The Known Unknowns==
The research is difficult, not because there is a shortage of options - but for the opposite reason. There are already a sea of resources available to those who wish to defend against the Vallorn. The Navarr have been working on this problem for a long, long time after all. Ultimately, there are few good solutions that do not require the heavy investment of the armies of the [[Military Council]], supplemented by well-placed [[Fortification|fortifications]] to hold back the ''Green Tide'' from being able to reach Imperial Infrastructure in the first place.

While a great deal is [[A thousand years of longing|already known about the Vallorn]], there are also some questions that may well remain unanswered until the hearts are connected. The Empire has never seen a fully roused Vallorn at full strength in the way that it will be when the final war truly begins; each one is likely to be qualitatively different. The extent to which they have been drained by the trods, the natural geography and the resources it will consume and weaponise in its wake will all make each one potentially slightly different in the way each Imperial Army is slightly different. It would be invaluable to know what the definitive strength of the vallorn was going to be, what qualities each heart might possess, but at present there is no way to find that out.

Perhaps the most dangerous unanswered question is whether, once a Vallornheart has expanded and enveloped every region in a territory, it can then expand beyond the natural borders to threaten adjacent lands? There are two possible answers to that question which is distinctly unhelpful. In Axos, in Visokuma, the vallorn has expanded to fill the territory but has since become largely quiescent. There are occasional forays and attacks from the vallorn, but it doesn't surge out the way Imperial vallornhearts do when provoked or attacked. Perhaps when the vallorn is roused they will do likewise?

On the other hand the Visokuma vallorn does still try to expand - and that is before the vallorn has been roused. That rather suggests that it will become a lot more active once it is joined to the others - and that implies that the vallorn will expand beyond its starting territories. It would be good to know one way or the other what the actual answer is.

The problem is that there is simply no good way to answer these questions. The vallorn is a singular problem, unique to the Empire and the surrounding lands. There has never been a time when the vallorn was fully roused, not since the fall of Terunael at least. As a result, there is no obvious way to give definitive answers to such questions until it happens.

==Living Weirwood==
* '''The vallorn is known to avoid stands of weirwood trees'''
* '''The Empire could build a single civilian commission in size inside each weirwood grove'''
* '''Doing so would double the labour costs'''
* '''A commission would not function if the region was overrun by the vallorn, but it would not be destroyed'''
* '''A great work cannot be built inside a weirwood grove'''

From the studies the Sun Chamber have made, everyone agrees that stands of weirwood trees are unaffected by the vallorn. As it spreads, it grows round them, but they remain free of the miasma, and the growth never infests the ground where the weirwood trees take root.
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Weirwood Commission'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Any civilian commission except a great work</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Any single weirwood grove (bourse resource)</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' All regular labour costs are doubled</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' No change</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' If the region containing the commission is conquered by the vallorn the commission will be deactivated but not destroyed</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Freely available from now on</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Only a single commission can be built in each weirwood grove
</td></tr>
</table></div>
Nobody has ever found a way to use this as a weapon, not yet at least. As soon as you cut the weirwood down to use it, it appears to lose the properties that make it resistant to the corruption of the vallorn. Crucially commissions built using weirwood are just as vulnerable to the vallorn as any other.

"But what if we build a commission in the grove?" asks one of the more enterprising members of the sodality. Nobody has ever tried such a thing before, probably because it would be too expensive, but it's possible. And in theory it would work - the weirwood trees would keep the vallorn at bay and whatever was enclosed by the grove would be safe.

Vainakoma confirms that it ''could'' be done. You can't put a fortification inside a weirwood grove, but the Empire could build a single [[Commission#Civilian_Commissions|civilian commission]] inside each substantial weirwood grove. Each weirwood bourse seat could be used to protect a single commission from the approaching menace.

There are two significant drawbacks. The first is cost - people don't build inside weirwood groves normally because of the costs. All the extra work involved, working round the existing trees and roots would double the labour cost of the construction from 3 crowns per wain to 6 crowns per wain.

The other issue is that the commission would be unlikely to continue to function if the region it was in was conquered by the vallorn. The building would not be destroyed, but if nobody can easily reach it, if it is literally surrounded by the vallorn, most commissions will still be inactive. But it wouldn't be destroyed and people could shelter there until they could be rescued.

Almost any civilian commission could be protected in this way with the exception of a [[great work]]. These structures traditionally stretch over the region and beyond, so they could not be built inside a grove of trees. The other limitation would be that only one commission per grove could be protected in this way.

==Ritual Magic==
* '''There are dozens of rituals that could be useful against the vallorn'''
* '''There are unlikely to be any new rituals that could help'''
* '''The Conclave could interdict the creation of new arcane projections'''
* '''The Sumer Archmage could use plenipotentiary to ask Adamant to empower the Master of the Koboldi'''

There are dozens of rituals that will be essential when the vallorn is roused. Wards like [[Ward of the Black Waste]] and [[Wardens of the Black Waste]]. The recently codified [[Pillars of Adamant]] looks particularly useful for this. Rituals that [[Army#Rituals|enhance the strength of armies]] like [[Clarity of the Master Strategist]], [[Knights of Glory]] or [[Brotherhood of Tian]] will be incredibly important in the coming war. Rituals that [[Fortification#Rituals|enhance fortifications]] like [[Ramparts of Ashlar]] will be just as important as will rituals that summon fortifications like [[Frozen Citadel of Cathan Canae]]

In theory it might be possible to create an [[arcane projection]] for a new ritual, but Vainakoma recommends against this approach in the ''strongest possible terms''. The problem is that every arcane projection requires 10 mana to create, and the majority of them fail. That is a massive cost in mana, resources that could have been spent attacking and defending against the vallorn with the tools the Empire already has. In the words of the notoriously cynic [[Scrutiny#Constitutional_Court|''Leontes the Scribe'']] - "If every mana crystal wasted on an arcane projection were piled up in front of me, we'd have enough mana to defeat the vallorn twice over." Trying to find a new arcane projection that will defeat the vallorn is like wishing on a star - the odds of finding anything new that is worth the cost are vanishingly small.

<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Interdict Arcane Projections'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Declaration Type:''' Interdiction</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Ban the creation of all new arcane projections until the vallorn is destroyed so that the mana is available for the war against the enemy.</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Makes it illegal for Imperial magicians to create arcane projections.</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Open-ended</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Constitution:''' The Court have confirmed this declaration would be constitutional.</td></tr>
</table></div>

That does present one opportunity that might help - albeit it, one that would be very difficult politically. The Sun Chamber could try to get the [[Conclave]] to [[interdiction|interdict]] the creation of new arcane projections. If magicians were forbidden from expending mana chasing new discoveries, they could instead devote all those resources to fighting the enemy. There will be plenty of time to wish on stars ''after'' the vallorn is defeated after all.
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Request access to adamant'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Plenipotentiary:''' Adamant</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Request negotiations with the King under the Mountain to provide supplies of adamant, the unbreakable stone, for the Master of the Koboldi</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Open-ended</td></tr>
</table></div>
While it isn't ritual magic exactly, there is one other option that could be useful. The [[Master of the Koboldi]] is able to construct impressive buildings with the support of the [[Adamant|King under the Mountain]] - but those buildings are constructed with a mix of white granite and regular stone. If the Master were able to employ adamant, the almost-unbreakable stone found in the Summer realm, they could build fortifications and other commissions that were all but resistant to the destructive power of the Vallorn. The garrison could be destroyed, the area could be captured, but the fortification would still be standing.

Could ''Deep Dragon'' be persuaded to give the Master of the Koboldi access to supplies of adamant? The Summer Archmage would need to use a plenipotentiary to try to negotiate it, but there is no doubt the eternal ''could'' do it, if he could be persuaded.

==Neighbours==
* '''The Empire knows vastly more than all its neighbours about the vallorn and how to fight it'''

While it is an excellent idea to seek the counsel of the Empire's neighbours, it is important to be realistic about what might be achieved. The Empire knows considerably more about the vallorn than all its neighbours. Have the [[Grendel]] or the [[Iron Confederacy]] have ever even encountered the vallorn? It is clear the Druj only recently started to probe the menace and everything they know about it, they stole from Urizeni spires.

Still it is worth considering the approaches neighbours do use, just in case they reveal new ideas. After a quick consultation with Naomi of Virtue's Rest, the Sun Chamber summarises the current situation.

*'''Jotun''': The Jotun hold [[Ashvale]] (formerly Liathaven) in the West, and it seems that their natural military strength means they have little issue managing the occasional bursts of Vallornspawn that might emanate from Liath's Heart. It is reported that they secured a boon from [[Surut]] of [[the Thrice-cursed Court]] shortly after acquiring the territory. It remains unclear whether that was specifically to combat a threat from the vallorn or to merely to engage in more expedient deforestation.

*'''Thule''': The Thule have long-held [[Otkodov#Sküld|Sküld]], and use a version of [[Wither the Seed]] (though they claim theirs is "more efficient" compared to the "crude" imperial version) to keep the vallornheart of Emrys quiescent.

*'''Druj''': The heart of Bendol in the [[Sarangrave]] came to the Druj pre-contained with wards fashioned by the Terun (with a little help from [[Sadogua]]), and simply maintained the ancient wards (until recently).

*'''Axos''': Possibly inspired by the designs of the wards in the [[Sarangrave]], the Axou's methods of dealing with the vallorn of Cavan are [[Terunael_in_Axos#Part_One|well documented]] thanks to the [[Historical research|Department of Historical Research]] and the work of the [[Advisor on the Vallorn]] at the time, '''Siân Eternal'''.

Naomi is quick to point out that if the Empire can generate or maintain good relations with these powers (if not, perhaps, the Druj), treaties might be signed for mutual efforts to quell any damage that can be avoided. The Thule seem confident in their capabilities of containing the northernmost vallornheart, but having the garrison of the [[Sarangrave#Tower_of_the_Skink|Tower of the Skink]] provide aid in future entanglements with the vallorn of Bendol would undoubtedly be of great value.

After much consideration of the situation with their near neighbours, two things occur to the bright young minds of the Sun Chamber; both are regarding the strategy of containment employed by the Axos.

The Axos have allowed the vallorn to expand to fill the territory of [[Terunael_in_Axos#Venturing_into_Visokuma|Visokuma]], then surrounded the area with fortifications. This approach seems to work remarkably well for the Axos - albeit at great cost. It means they can't access the wealth and resources of the territory - but in return they suffer very little in the ways of attacks and what does occur is easily defeated by the fortifications they have built to ring the territory.

The problem that the sodality has spotted is that that strategy is going to fail badly if Visokuma is joined to the other vallornhearts. If that happens, the vallorn will come flooding out of the territory in force, quickly overrun the Axos fortifications, which are nothing like big enough to repel that kind of attack, wash over their completely insignificant military force, and every single one of them will be killed and eaten within a matter of a year or so at most. That will be a problem for the Empire, who will then have to deal with the Visokuma vallorn after it has devoured Axos, but it might be a problem for the Axou as well?

On the other hand, it does suggest an alternative strategy that might be employed. It's a bit controversial - a bit out of the ordinary, but isn't that what the Empire expects of the Sun Chamber after all? The sodality manifesto instructs them to ''"approach existing problems in new ways"''.

What if, instead of provoking the vallorn, instead of fighting it, instead of prodding it... the Empire adopted the Axou strategy. [[Miaren]] is fine, but the Empire could abandon [[Hercynia]], [[Brocéliande]], [[Sarangrave]], [[Liathaven]] and [[Therunin]]. Let the vallorn slowly expand to fill the territory, then build a few small fortifications around it to keep it contained, the way Axos do, then just... throw away the key?

It sounds a bit outré, but consider what could be achieved if the Empire wasn't constantly fighting the vallorn? Wasn't constantly preparing for an apocalyptic war against this enemy. Yes, they would lose some territory, but it would save thousands and thousands and thousands of lives. The Empire could focus on fighting the barbarians and securing its borders. Sceptics will argue it won't work, but the Axos have ''proved'' it works - it has worked just fine for them for close to a thousand years.
<div {{float}}>
<box>'''Tathenon's Blessing against the Spawn of Chaos'''<br>
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
'''Day; Magnitude 4/2;'''<br>
''Grants a character protection against vallorn miasma for the duration of a conjunction''<br>
At the completion of this ritual, the target is refreshed and purified by a light infusion of energies from the Day realm. They are protected from the worst effects of vallorn miasma. The target is not subject to the venomous effects of the vallorn miasma. They will not contract green lung, nor will they become a vallornspawn husk if they die while under this enchantment.

The target will experience a powerful roleplaying effect: they are more capable of clear, rational thought and working in an organised fashion with others to achieve their goals. They are also keenly aware of any imperfections or stains on their garments and feel an urge to keep them clean and well-presented.
</div>
</box>
</div>
Vainakoma confirms that such an approach would be theoretically possible, although he is not persuaded that it would be politically acceptable. Still, the appraisal did say to go wild. And the idea would remove the threat of the vallorn for good.

One less outrageous suggestion is to negotiate with the Thule to see if they might have some magic that could aid the Empire. The dragons have always been exceptionally cagey when discussing the vallorn with the Empire, but it turns out that two members of the sodality have become firm friends with a young warlock called ''Helgrindur of the Shining Eye'' and they happen to let slip that Tathenon has a ritual that provides the recipient with magical protection from the vallorn miasma. Apparently it is some kind of enchantment from the Day realm that stops the miasma from poisoning the target.

Of course Tathenon won't part with the ritual text for free, but it's not a powerful enchantment, so the Empire could just create their own. And the dragon will ''know'' that, so they'll have some idea of what it is worth. Presumably they would rather get something for a copy of the ritual text than nothing? Perhaps someone could speak with the Thule and enquire?

==From Theory to Practice==
Ultimately, it is clear that there will never be a "one size fits all" solution, other than that of the focused might of armies and fortifications. Instead, the acolytes of the Sun Chamber have compiled a list of extant opportunities to better prepare to defend from the malice of ''Terunael's Folly'' when it rears, as it did this season in the Sarangrave. Thanks to the ongoing [[Every path you know|highest calling]] of the Navarr, there is already much that could be done.

===Brocéliande===
This very season, the joint efforts of Navarr and the engineers of [[Holberg]] have resulted in a [[Viridian_nemesis#Holberg|plan]] to improve the defensibility of [[Brocéliande]], attracting the chaotoc energies of the Vallorn to a chosen battleground by nature will save other key infrastructure from damage.

===Sarangrave===
Similarly, the Navarr's [[Cup_of_choices|recent work with Urizen]] has resulted in a spate of opportunities that will help supplement the defence of key sites in the Territory. As mentioned previously in this report, the future relationship with the people of [[Axos]] will be pivotal to the eventual damage wrought in the east.

===Hercynia===
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Fortify the Heartwood'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' [[Fortification]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Boar's Dell, Brocéliande</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 80 [[weirwood]], 240 crowns</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 4 seasons</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the start of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
Beyond building the [[Every_path_you_know#Beware_of_Dog|Grim Pyramid]], [[Hercynia]] remains somewhat undefended. While not a problem in recent years, the coming final battle against the Vallorn and the potential end of the [[Ratify_Thule_Treaty_Spring_387YE|Thule peace treaty]] in four years means that now may be a better time than ever to invest in preventative measures. The [[Heartwood of the Great Vale]] would be a significant loss if overrun by the Vallorn; while the seat would not be destroyed, losing access to its income would still be terrible. Some keen architectural students among the Sun Chamber put together a proposal to grow the weirwood of the place into a more natural fortification. If (and it is very much an if) the heart of Deer's Folly were to rouse, it is ''possible'' that a fortification constructed in this way ''might'' be more resistant to the Vallorn's horrifying embrace. In any case, it might be easier to find the weirwood than more white granite given the [[A_lasting_commitment|renewed fervour]] in completing the Grand Inspiration of the Way.

The Great Forest Orcs are masters at manipulating the growth and use of weirwood, and are no friends of the Vallorn. They have offered to help out if the Sun Chamber will agree to help them with a matter, which would reduce the construction costs by X weirwood and 3X crowns. Specifically, they are concerned about the alleged intent of the Navarr and the wider Empire to seek out the boons of the [[Surut|Ancestor Slayer]] as part of their war against the Vallorn and in doing so cause unspeakable desecration to the Great Forest. The Great FOrest Orcs trust the [[Navarr]] however, and if they are willing to [[Navarr_culture_and_customs#Tattoos_and_Vows|swear an oath]] via their national assembly that they will not engage in themselves, and will oppose Imperial use of the ''Hated One'' to deforest any regions with his fire.

Pride in the Marches

2026-07-21T20:21:55Z

Dre: /* Loyalty and Heresy */

[[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Winds of Fortune]]
<ic>"So William Guildenstern's a folk hero now. Like Tom Drake and Jonah Gold and what have you."

Pike stared at his rod but it obstinately refused to move. He'd readily agreed to come with Bridge for the day but he was starting to regret that decision. Bridget Fisher had three fat yellow perch in her basket while his looked like he'd spent the morning straightening daisies. It was always the same when the two went fishing, but it was still grating on him. "Says Who?" he demanded tersely.

"Says the Assembly. You know all the priests and everything, down at Anvil."

Bridget Fisher had an unremittingly sunny disposition. It was one of the things everyone liked about her. It was one of the things Pike liked about her. Still it was easy to be sunny when you'd caught your tea before the first rays of sun had appeared. It was midday now and he had a nagging feeling he was going hungry tonight. "What sort of folk hero goes around putting on airs and graces?" he groused.

"Airs and graces? Have you ever met our William? He wouldn't know a grace if it kicked 'im in the 'ead."

"Well, why dun't he call himself Bill then?" Pike demanded. It was a cheap jibe, but it suited his mood right now. "A proper Marcher name. Should be Bill Guildenstern shouldn't it? Anyway - what's he dun to be so impressive? Why's he a folk hero?"

"Star fell on him. Apparently."

Pike never could catch fish, but he could sense an opening at fifty paces. Bridget was on weak ground, time to press the attack. "Right, so ''Bill'' Guildenstern is up there with ''Thomas'' Drake who killed Alderei the Bleeding Fair and ''Jonathan'' Gold who didn't let dying stop him fighting for the Mourn because a star fell on his head? A bottle of dark ale fell on Drew Miller's head last week when that wonky shelf he put up collapsed on him. They gonna make him a folk hero?"

"It was his chest I think. And Jonah ain't short for Jonathan so that doesn't work. You're being ratty and you know it. ''William'' Guildenstern has done loads of other stuff. Loads of stuff. Oh shit." Bridget jumped to grab her rod before she could explain exactly what the loads of stuff were. It was jerking around like a frit pig.

"Unbelievable." was all Pike could say as he watched his best friend reel in a fish the length of her forearm.

"Nah it's true. He has. He's dun loads of stuff." Bridget knew perfectly well what Pike was unhappy about but she seemed to genuinely want to talk about Guildenstern for some reason.

"Well they should have told us what he's done then shouldn't they? And it better not turn out to be a shopping list of titles he's had. It'd better be things he'd dun, not things he's been. The point of saying someone is a folk hero is so everyone knows what being a hero looks like. It's so they know who to look up to. Who to help. Who to emulate. For that we got to know what they done. Or what they're doing."

"Who to emulate? Pike Bailer! Are you putting on airs and graces?" Bridget grinned at her old friend. She never won their arguments, but a chance to needle him was too good to pass up.

"I'm serious Bridge! If there's an honest to goodness folk hero around the place then it's a bloody good idea to let everyone know about it. Folk need a bit of good news right now, with Jotun in the marshes and everything else. That's the sort of thing gets people fired up. But we ain't got owt to be fired up about, if they don't tell us what he's a folk hero for."

Bridget dropped the large yellow fish into the empty basket. "You'll have to take this one," she apologised, "there's no room in my basket. C'mon lets get back. I'll tell you what William Guildenstern has done, and you can tell me what you're gonna do to "emulate" that."

It was just bloody typical of Bridget Fisher. This was why everyone liked her. Pike contemplated saying no but this was one argument he was not going to win. Not against the hero of Pike's Pond.
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=NBMarches.jpg|align=left|width=300}}</div>
==Overview==
[[Pride]] in small things, [[Loyalty]] to great ones. That's what they always say when people talk about [[the Marches]]. But Pride in what? And Loyalty to what? That's the sort of thing [[The_Marches_history#The_Cousin's_War|people go to war over]] if you're not careful. There's a lot going on in the Marches on the way to the Summer Solstice, a lot to be proud of but also a lot to worry about. The reward for a good job is more work, and if you want a job done give it to someone who's busy, as they say.

It's time to take stock. Of the situation in [[Mitwold]]; worrisome developments in the Gullet; questions of folk heroes new and especially old; hauntings in [[Bregasland]]; and the overwhelming question of the large number of [[heresy|heretics]] in the Marches (also know as the Marcher [[orc]] population); and the scions of Red Walder who have apparently failed to get the message that ''now is not the time'', who are engaging in peculiarly targeted rowdiness that needs nipping in the bud before it spirals out of hand.

So let's start at the beginning, then, with the war in Mitwold...
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=RegionsofMitwold.png|caption=The households of Mitwold engage in feuding and bitter rivalry.|title=Regions of Mitwold|align=left|width=400}}</div>
==Mitwold Triumph==
* '''The Jotun have abandoned Mitwold in the face of the concerted counter-attack by the Empire'''
At the end of last year the [[Jotun]] barbarians [[Rose grow the rushes o'|broke into]] the territory of [[Mitwold]], seizing both [[Mitwold#Oddmire|Oddmire]] and [[Mitwold#Meade March|Meade March]] and pressing into [[Mitwold#The Meadows|The Meadows]]. At the end of last year, five Imperial armies fought to take back what had been conquered, culminating in the [[Where_the_slow_river_flows#The_Battle_of_Wayford|Battle of Wayford]] and the magical chaos that accompanied it. They reclaimed the Meadows, and drove the Lasambrian armies back across Meade March, but it was clear that the orcs intended to fight to keep what they had taken. Only the absence of the Jotun armies that had withdrawn north to [[Skallahn]] allowed the Empire their hard-fought victory. It was clear that if the Jotun contributed more of their forces to defend Mitwold - or to press east - Imperial armies would have a major fight on their hands.

The [[Military Council]] doubled down, with the [[Drakes]] (of course) at the forefront, supported by the [[Autumn Hammers]], the [[Bloodcloaks]], the [[Green Shield]], the [[Valiant Pegasus]], and the [[Golden Sun]]. More than ten thousand force of strength joined the Drakes, who also marched with the sungold banners of the [[Knights of Glory]] at their side, as did the Green Shield. With the [[fortification#garrison|garrison]] of [[Mitwold#Forte Fidelis|Forte Fidelis]] and the [[beater|beaters]] of [[the Marches]] beside them, they enacted a split strategy. While the Autumn Hammers and the Bloodcloaks took a defensive stance, the remaining four armies thrust into the heart of the Jotun held territory, seeking to force them back and reclaim the city of Meade and Odd's End.

They discovered the Lasambrian Jotun in full retreat. They had already abandoned their defence of Meade, and forced-marched westward back into Bregasland. From there, they swiftly withdrew south into [[Liathaven]] and there Imperial scouts lost track of them. The folk of the Marches might characterise their withdrawal as a cowardly rout, claiming they fled with their tails between their legs, but this is far from the truth. ''Abott Matilda'' of [[Old_ways#The_Ambition_of_Margaret_of_Meade|Becktunn Monastery]] told a different story. It was, she said, not as if the Lasambrians were running ''from'' something, but as if they were desperately running ''toward'' something. The most logical assumption is that news of the Iron Confederacy invasion of Reinos had reached them and they were returning to protect their homes.

Not every Jotun fled; some warbands stayed behind intentionally to seek out "a ruck" as the Marchers put it. Others were a little slow to get back across the borders with their ill-gotten loot. Yet the victory of the Empire was bought with a few skirmishes, rather than anything approaching a full-scale battle. On the one hand, few lives lost. A victory is a victory for the Marchers, land is land after-all - but some of their allies grumble that a triumph because the other side ran away is hardly heroic or glorious.
<gallery heights=175 mode="packed">
File:Drakes_Colour.png|link=388YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Drakes
File:GoldenSun_Colour.png|link=388YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Golden Sun
File:GreenShields_Colour.png|link=387YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Green Shields
File:AutumnHammers colour.png|link=387YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Autumn Hammers
File:BloodCloak Colour.png|link=387YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Bloodcloaks
File:ValiantPegasus_Colour.png|link=387YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Valiant Pegasus
</gallery>
===Tom Drake's Pride===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Walls and Statue'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Edifice</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Meade March, Mitwold</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 25 white granite, and 75 crowns in labour</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' 3 months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Repairs the walls of Meade and creates a statue of Tom Drake in the heart of the city
* Improves the ''Drum Up Support'' order available to the Drakes
</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year. Until the end of the Spring Equinox 389YE, or until the general of the Drakes breaks their oath</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' This commission can be undertaken by the Mistress of Monuments despite the amount of white granite needed</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''The people of Meade are Proud that their army and their allies have defeated the Jotun and liberated Meade'''
* '''An opportunity exists for the people of Meade to show their appreciation for the Drakes'''
* '''Investing in swift repair of the walls, and a statue of Tom Drake, will improve the ''Drum up Support'' order available to the Drakes'''
The ''Corazón'' and the Jotun champions between them have looted the heart and soul of the Marches, the city of Meade. They haven't gone out of their way to harm the city, or the people, because that isn't the Jotun way. But they haven't been shy about taking anything of value they can get their hands on. They raided the markets and the warehouses, tore open vaults, took any jewels they could find. They didn't go out of their way to steal old relics or documents - again not the Jotun way - and they've been scrupulous about avoiding anything that might be a burial ground. But the wealth of the city has been decimated. But not ruined.

The people of Meade are angry because they've been robbed and burgled, at swordpoint. But they are overjoyed to see the Imperial armies, with the Drakes marching before them. Tom Drake's beloved army, marching to free Meade from occupation, causes folk to put aside their cares and come out to line the walls and cheer, an inverse rough music. The soldiers that come to Meade, Marcher and otherwise, are showered not with rose petals but with food and drink and comfortable beds. They've lost almost everything valuable, but they've kept what is most precious to them - the Marcher spirit that no bandit can ever steal and no thief ever take from them.

The walls of Meade are broken in places, the gates destroyed, and the scars of the fight to defend the city from the Jotun are still visible. But walls, and gates, can be rebuilt, just as Prosperity can. Because the free people of the Marches can recover from any setback - especially when they have an example like Tom Drake's army to fill them with Pride. As in the Mournwold, as in Bregasland, the people of Mitwold take great Pride in the Loyalty shown them by the general of "their" army, and they are not shy about showing it.

The [[alder|alders]] of Meade don't come out and say it, but this is a great opportunity for the general of the Drakes to make a mark in history. Assessing the damage to the walls, it will require 16 wains of white granite to repair them; yet the alders also suggest that it is about time that someone built a proper statue commemorating the Drakes in Meade, or more specifically its founder Tom Drake. Nothing too extravagant - 9 wains ought to be enough to make a nice sculpture you could take the kiddies to see. The repairs and the statue represent a single [[commission]] that costs 25 white granite, and 75 crowns in labour, and would take three months to complete.

Despite the amount of white granite, the commission ''could'' be overseen by the [[Mistress of Monuments]], '''Ada Droon Drifting Bough'''. The actual statue of Tom Drake is the heart of the commission, the repairs to the city are vital but easily done once the materials are on hand. If the Mistress were to commission the repairs and the statue, the grateful folk of Meade would provide all the labour needed for the entire project - removing the requirement to provide any crowns.

Once the statue and repairs were complete, it would also stand as a monument to the Pride and Loyalty the people of the Marches feel towards their armies. As long as the statue stood, and remained in Imperial hands, the ''Drum Up Support'' order available to the Drakes would be significantly enhanced, providing a total of 500 natural resupply whenever they took the order in Marcher territory.

===The Taken Cup===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Appraise foot-the-ball league'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Motion Type:''' Appraisal</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Appraise ways to implement some kind of foot-the-ball league</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, until the start of the Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''The Empire could appraise the creation of a foot-the-ball league to restore the sport's prestige'''
Meade was looted, but the Jotun had a purpose for that wealth beyond mere theft. Last season there was a report of a [[Where_the_slow_river_flows#Battle_Opportunity:_Plundered_Gold|treasure train]] full of stolen treasures from Meade and Wayford including [[Where_the_slow_river_flows#Objective:_Recover_the_Trophy|Beater trophy]], a symbol of Marcher pride. It's doubtful the Lasambrians realised what they had - it was just a shiny cup to them - but it's struck to the heart of what foot-the-ball means to people of Mitwold (and Upwold, truth be told). The foot-the-ball season has been cut short; even with the Jotun gone there's less enthusiasm for the game than there has been in a while. "''We were robbed,''" as one of the Wayford [[alder|alders]] put it, "''and we can make more coin. But we can't make another Beater's cup.''"

Which is fine as a sentiment if it were ''true''. The Marchers certainly can't replace the history and legacy of the Beater's cup, but they surely could order a new trophy. Truth be told the old one was widely regarded as somewhat cheap and tawdry in appearance. But what can be done about the enthusiasm for the foot-the-ball? Would some kind of grand league help? The League have their great game after all, but the problem with that, as one Marcher points out, is that all that messing around doing politics is neither ''great'' nor a ''game''. Maybe an appraisal is the answer.
{{CaptionedImage|file=FjorknaeSymbol.png|align=right|width=250}}
==Worrisome Gullet==
* '''The Jotun gave the stolen loot as tribute to the Fjorknae orcs
* '''Orc warships have turned up in the Gullet
* '''They are interfering with Marcher and Wintermark fleets
While sporting matters are a concern for the Marches, a bigger concern are the reports of exactly what the Corazón ''did'' with the treasure. There weren't many eyewitnesses, but it seems that the reason they were [[Where_the_slow_river_flows#Objective:_Return_the_Bounty_of_Meade|dragging it on a sled]] to make some formal gift to the folk of [[Sea_of_Snow#Fjorknae|Fjorknae]]. They met an honest-to-goodness fleet of ships at [[By_fountains,_by_fishes#Steward's_Landing|Steward's Landing]] and handed over the [[Technology#Runeboxes_and_Runebound_Chains|runebox]] full of stolen loot to what are described as "very nasty looking orcs in scale and chain". Marchers aren't great at judging such things in general, but the witnesses are confident that these orcs had ''ships'' and not ''boats''. Jotun with ships? Is such a thing even possible?

Not long before the Summer Solstice, it becomes clear that such a thing is indeed possible. Marcher captains engaged in [[Voyage#Raid_Kalsea's_Coastline|raiding Kalsea's coast]], and Winterfolk providing an [[Voyage#Escort_the_Fisherfolk_of_Westerhal|escort to the fisherfolk of Westerhal]] report fast moving ships with uniformly blood-red sails, crewed by armed and armoured orcs. Orcs who are definitely ''not'' Jotun thralls. The assumption is that they are Jotun, but the mere fact they seem to be at home on the sea raises questions as to whether they are true Jotun or represent some other sept the orcs have drawn on. They attack Marcher raiders, and engage with the Winterfolk escort, with clear enthusiasm for the fray that suggests a Jotun connection but they are utterly fearless of the sea of the Gullet. They even give the crews of captured or surrendered ships a version of "the Choice" - they can either lay down their weapons and become thralls, to be carried back to wherever the ships came from, or they can "fight the sea" - they're given a weapon and thrown overboard. These ships at least seem disinterested in making warriors of their defeated human foes, and there are disturbing reports of ''akhlut'' in the Gullet trailing behind the Fjorknae vessels that give the Winterfolk in particular pause.

Following the Summer Solstice, every Wintermark or Marcher fleet suffers a -2 rank penalty to ''Raid Kalsea's Coastline'', ''Escort the Fisherfolk of Westerhal'', or to [[fleet#trading|trade]] with the [[Faraden]] port of [[Foreign_ports#Caitun|Caitun]]. At the moment the presence of these ships is focused in the Gullet and the northern Sea of Snow - Marcher and Wintermark ships who sail fast and don't stop for anything are able to outrun the raiders.

These orcs on ships are also an unknown quality. A little over a year ago, the Senate commissioned [[Appraisal#Graciana i Lòpez i Guerra|Graciana i Lòpez i Guerra]] to look into ways that the [[Skallahn#The_Kongegőr|Kongegőr]] could [[A_bridge_too_far|be neutralized]]. The [[opportunity|opportunities]] she identified had a limited shelf-life anyway, but the addition of this new factor renders them moot. The attack on Skallahn brought the Empire within a hair's breadth of claiming [[Skallahn#Bjarkey|Bjarkey]], and the northern end of the Kongegőr. The Jotun are now awake to the very real threat of Imperial armies permanently separating their northern and southern Jarldoms.

Controlling either [[Skallahn#Bjarkey|Bjarkey]] or [[Hordalant#Alsterbo|Alsterbo]] is no longer a guarantee that the Kongegőr can be severed. It would certainly be possible to damage it, or to create a bottle-neck where Jotun forces trying to cross it would need to recover Imperial controlled region at either end, but to be sure of destroying the bridge permanently the Empire would need to control ''both'' ends. And if the Fjorknae are as comfortable fighting at sea as they appear to be, even that might not be enough.
===Fear the Unknown===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Appraise Fjorknae intelligence'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Motion Type:''' Appraisal</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Appraise ways to find out more about the Fjorknae</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, until the start of the Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Appraise response in the Gullet'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Motion Type:''' Appraisal</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Appraise ways to respond to the Fjorknae threat in the Gullet</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One year, until the start of the Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''The Empire knows nothing about the Fjorknae
* '''There are concerns that fighting on the Gullet will make the ''coral husk'' problem worse
The biggest obstacle to assessing the threat posed by the Fjorknae is that the Empire knows next to nothing about them. During their efforts to map the Sea of Snow, Imperial fleets did not cross the Blood Straits between Bryadvik and Fjorknae. The Empire knows there is what looks to be a huge island on the other side, and the assumption is that it is Jotun held. No landfall was made, although a handful of small settlements were visible from aboard ship, but they looked rough and primitive - crude buildings with slate walls and turf rooves. There were signs of industry, though, and vivid red flags that matched the colour of the ships' sails. Of course the banners also bore the image of a monstrous sea-beast of some kind, and so far that hasn't been seen on the ships in the Gullet.

There's also the worry raised by some of the gloomier sorts about the ''other'' problem the Gullet is having at the moment. Weird coral husks, that rise in the depths and come ashore to drag helpless victims into the surf. The Fjorknae are churning up the waters with violence and blood in a way that it has not been disturbed for centuries, if ever. Even the [[Asavean Archipelago|Asavean]] attempt to [[Harvest of infamy|destroy Meade]] was mostly fought on land or in the immediate vicinity of the city. Is it possible that the Fjorknae are going to rile up the coral horrors even more? They have been conspicuous by their absence for a little while now, and nobody is so addled by [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Hope|hope]] that they can imagine the problem has just... gone away.

At the moment, the Empire seems to have limited ability to find out more about what is going on in the Gullet and the threat the new orcs represent. A [[spy network]] or [[smugglers cove]] needs a certain proximity to the [[territory]] where it will be built that means Fjorknae is out of reach of the [[Imperial Spymaster]]. The [[Regario Dossier]] has no agents that could be assigned there - it's hard to imagine what they might look like - and the [[Shuttered Lantern]] would have no idea where to start.

The best suggestion as to what ''could'' be done is an appraisal. Either one to find out more about the Fjorknae, or to deal with the ships in the Gullet. These are two very different appraisals, in the opinion of the [[Appraisal#The_Prognosticators_Office|Prognosticator's Office]], and to do ''both'' would take two appraisals.

The other possibility lies with [[archmage#plenipotenatiry|plenipotentiary]] either from an [[archmage]] or given Autumn is coming up, from the [[Stone Smith]]. The challenge would be working out which [[eternal]] to ask about the orcs of Fjorknae and the ships in the Gullet. In the past, the [[Archmage of Night]] might have been able to invoke the [[Lashonar#Caucus_Forum|Caucus Forum]] to arrange a meeting with someone from the island, but that option is [[Monarchs_and_outcasts#Closed_Caucus_(Lashonar)|no longer available]]. Any other eternal will want something of value in exchange for their aid, assuming they have any to offer in the first place.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Haunted Fen.png|caption=Some regions of Bregasland are spookier than others.|align=right|width=400}}</div>

==Bregasland==
* '''The Jotun remain in Bregasland
* '''The Strong Reeds are lying low in the territory, building their strength for a counterattack
* '''The Grey Walkers are spreading through Grey Fens to the chagrin of the invading orcs
Last season saw serious fighting in [[Bregasland]], with the Empire ultimately victorious and [[Bregasland#Graven_Rock|Graven Rock]] recovered from the Jotun. In the wake of their victory, the Empire pulled their troops out. All save the [[Strong Reeds]], who have slipped back into the fens and the rushes, and now [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Military_Council_orders#Strong_Reeds|lie low]] waiting for another opportunity to strike. The assumption must have been that the Jotun would immediately move to recover Gravenmarch, but in the end... they don't.

There are still Jotun armies here, but they are braced for further Imperial efforts to reclaim Bregasland. In the absence of such attacks, the barbarians simply continue to consolidate their hold over the marshy territory. Although in the process they encounter problems they themselves have created. At the Spring Equinox, news reached the [[Military Council]] of ''Sunne Astar'' and a [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#Battle_Opportunity:_A_Broken_Rock|quixotic plan]] to drag one of the stones that make up the Ullsmere Rock [[The_Marches_hearth_magic#Dolmens|dolmen]] back to Hordalant to inspire the Howling Night. The Jotun achieved their plan, and as near as the Strong Reeds can tell, the left leg of the dolmen has already left Bregasland and is presumably being installed in the ''kirkje'' of the Howling Night.
{{CaptionedImage|file=StrongReeds_Colour.png|align=right|width=300}}
===Horror at Ullsmere Rock===
* '''The Grey Walkers haunt Grey Fens and seek to drive out all trespassers
* '''They are treating the Jotun as trespassers
* '''Unfortunately they are also treating everyone ''else'' as trespassers
What's unfortunate is that what it has left in its wake are a large number of [[Old_blue_banners_dancing#Objective:_Dismiss_the_Grey_Walkers|Grey Walkers]]. Shadow figures, clearly Marchers, wearing garb common in the fens hundreds of year ago, are draped in the tatters of funeral bindings. They slowly and silently seek out "trespassers" and drive them away. Hitting them with weapons causes them to dissipate... but a few minutes later they simple coalesce again a short distance away. They can be [[exorcism|exorcised]] individually, but there are a ''lot'' of them. Worse, some of them are clad for battle, deliver potent [[curse|curses]], and are much harder to deal with than the "lesser" spirits.

The good news is that right now, they are causing serious issues for the Jotun in [[Bregasland#Grey Fen|Grey Fen]]. The entire region has become [[Region_qualities#Haunted|haunted]] as the Grey Walkers have spread. The Jotun are no stranger to ghosts, but the ability of their warriors and ''ghodi'' to deal with them is significantly lower than that of the Empire. The Grey Walkers are treating the orcs as intruders and trespassers, and slowly eroding the barbarian's control over the entire region. They don't seem to be extending beyond the Grey Fens themselves, at least, but that covers a very large area of marsh. There are Marcher households there, and they are likewise reporting harassment by these spectral creatures. True to form, the Jotun are actively ''protecting'' the households - just as they would any other thralls - but it's clear that they're struggling to keep a firm grasp on the Fens.
{{CaptionedImage|file=trilithon.png|align=right|width=250}}
===Get Off My Fen===
* '''The Jotun are slowly losing their grip on Grey Fen
* '''While this is causing problems for the Jotun, it will also be a problem for the Empire should they retake Bregasland
Something clearly needs to be done, but Grey Fens is currently a Jotun problem. If the Empire retakes Bregasland, however, it's going to become a Marcher problem pretty quickly. While Grey Fens remains under Jotun control, the Grey Walkers are a tenth of the way towards taking the region themselves. What this will mean is impossible to say - but if the region does fall under control of these spectral walkers the one thing it ''won't'' be is under Imperial control, making it that much harder for anyone to control the territory.

There is an effective force of 1,000 strength in Grey Fens - each season it will attempt to take control of the region. ''Any'' army that issues an appropriate [[Army_orders#Defending|defending]] order in the territory can prevent the ghosts gaining any headway, and an attacking order will drive the ghosts back and reassert control over the region (as long as it achieves sufficient victory points). But while the ''haunted'' quality remains, the ghosts will simply come back next season, and the season after, and keep trying to drive everyone out of Grey Fens. They don't take casualties (although they do inflict them), and anyone actively trying to stop them claiming Grey Fens will not be able to resupply that season.

Notably, the presence of these Grey Walkers is even messing with the magical elements of the territory. For some reason, any magical ward created in Grey Fens - [[Dripping Echoes of the Fen]] for example - will not impede the ghosts at all. They will continue to slowly but inexorably try to usurp control of the region, even as the enchantment has its normal effects for everyone else.

==Pride and Politics==
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=William Guildenstern.jpg|caption='''William Guildenstern''', General of the Drakes|align=left|width=400}}</div>
* '''Two judgements of the Marcher assembly related to Pride in a way that resonates with the Marchers
Recently the Marcher Assembly passed two big judgements. The first was about Pride, celebrating a folk hero. It's received a broad welcome across the nation, a bit of good news in dark times. But people can't be Proud of someone unless they know what they're Proud of them ''for''. So they want to know what this folk hero has done to be singled out like that.

The second judgement is also a matter of Pride. Nearly two years ago now the [[Pride]] Assembly [[recognition|recognised]] the leaders of [[the Ore Hills Rebellion]] and then the [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_5|General Assembly narrowly agreed]]. Now it's down to the Pride Assembly to see if they want to consecrate Rebellion's Ridge the new monument they've just built to remember folks by.

If that happens, it will be a lit match in a dry field. All the arguments about just who should be appointing senators will come boiling back to the surface.
===Holding Out For a Hero===
{{SOP|statement=William Guildenstern was recognised as a Marcher Folk Hero in 384YE. As my cousin Pipit Boon called out to our people in 385YE; "Let us sing his story for generations to come, across our territories." There is no better time than these - our homes under siege and our territories dividing - to draw Marchers to great Marcher deeds. As a Folk Hero walks among us as General of the Drakes, remember: Jonah Gold made weapons so fierce it turned a war's tide. Odd of Odd's End drained the Oddmire against the Marshwalker threat. Tom Drake struck down Alderei the Fair. William Guildenstern caught a falling star in his chest. All are Marchers, all fought our battles, all did deeds of great renown, all had rivals who would see them fail, and all are remembered in song.|by=Jedediah Boon, Marcher National Assembly|vote={{GM}} 152-20|when=Spring 388YE|size=small}}
* '''William Guildenstern has been recognised as a folk hero by the Marcher Assembly'''
* '''The Marches are eager to hear what act or acts he has done to be inspired by'''
* '''It is unclear what being recognised as a folk hero will actually ''do'', it will depend on what the act is'''
Most Marchers hold three things close to them: a favourite [[proverbs|proverb]], a patch of land they call home, and someone they look up to. Proverbs are important and an apt demonstration of [[Wisdom]]; they allow an important idea to be communicated with as few words as possible. A patch of land to call home is the foundation of every [[Marcher household]], the starting place for [[Loyalty]]. But someone to look up to can be important too; it lets people take [[Pride]] in the actions of their fellow Marchers, and inspires them to do great deeds themselves.

Last season, the Marcher Assembly upheld a [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_81|judgement]] raised by '''Jedediah Boon''' which echoed the [[385YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_115|call]] from '''Pipit Boon''' that '''William Guildenstern''', General of the [[Drakes]] and former Senator for [[Mournwold]], was a folk hero. The statement of principle called out several other folk heroes from the history of the Marches and the inspirational acts they had done. People are keen to hear more about this folk hero - and Friar Alyn asks that the Marcher Assembly use the coming summit to recognise the thing William Guildenstern has done that is most inspiring. Something that has been done that the Marchers can be inspired by and rally behind. When tales of Jonah Gold were spread of making weapons, it inspired the blacksmiths to focus on making blades for soldiers; when stories of Odd of Odd's End were spread, it led to beaters tracking marshwalkers and protecting settlements from them. If Guildenstern has done something that people be Proud of and rally behind it just [[opportunity|do some good]].
<quote by='Friar Alyn of Hay'>Inspirations are a lot like wheat. You need to harvest them when you can, and be aware that they might turn rotten.</quote>
Some nations have annals or chronicles to record their inspirations. Some assemblies have rolls or walls to mark theirs. ''Friar Alyn of Hay'' pours scorn on that idea. Marchers don't need to keep records of their folk heroes - what's the bloody point? If you have to write their name down to know who they are, then they're not much of a bloody hero are they? In the opinion of the friar, the best inspirations are fleeting. They represent the zeitgeist of the Marches at the height of summer, when the sun is high and there is time to have the proper chats without worrying about the weather.
===Rebellion's Ridge===
<div {{float}}>
{{SOP|statement=Three years ago, Meri stated on my behalf that we knew the importance of all Marchers working the land, that the Nation must consider the plight simmering over Mourn hillsides. The Pride Assembly agreed. The miners of the Mourn have worked their land for us. They have battled the Jotun, fought off the Howling Bear. They raised rebellions against tyranny twice, were the last ones standing against recent invaders. They work tirelessly to supply our armies, to build our Great Works, braving the Singing Caves and tearing its bounty from enemy hands. They have stood with our Nation since Marcher boots first met Mourn soil. So we too stand with them - we will not turn our backs another year not take their Loyalty to the Marchers, the Pride in their work for granted. We recognise their right to a voice in the leadership of the Mournwold, where the ore runs deep and so many of us have fought together, shoulder to shoulder.|by=Jedediah Boon, Marcher National Assembly|vote={{GM}} 208-22|when=Autumn 387YE|size=small}}</div>
* '''Rebellion's Ridge has been completed in the Mournwold'''
* '''A writ of consecration for the Leaders of the Ore Hills Rebellion on the great work would have consequences'''
* '''It would breathe new life into old arguments, long since buried, about who runs the Mournwold'''
During the Autumn Equinox 387YE, '''Alfred Aewulfson-Boon''', as the [[Bearer of an Imperial Wayleave]], commissioned the [[Construct_Rebellion%27s_Ridge|construction]] of Rebellion's Ridge. A [[great work]] in [[Mournwold#Ore Hills|Ore Hills]] dedicated to the [[Known_exemplars#Leaders_of_the_Ore_Hills_Rebellion|leaders of the Ore Hills Rebellion]]. These exemplars of [[Pride]] were [[386YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_5|recognised]] during the Winter Solstice 386YE as a group, in much the same way as [[the Marked]]. The exemplars were instrumental in [[the Ore Hills Rebellion|the Ore Hills Uprising]], and were identified as ringleaders and executed by the magistrates for their role in inciting, and in most cases participating in, the violence that marred Mournwold.

Now, [[Mournwold#Rebellion's_Ridge|Rebellion's Ridge]] stands completed. The finishing touches have been made, and the [[congregation|congregations]] of the Mourn will receive their first doses of [[liao]] at the Autumn Equinox. But what next? During the Autumn Equinox 387YE, the Marcher Assembly voted to uphold a [[387YE_Autumn_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_98|judgement]] raised by '''Jedediah Boon''' which drew attention to the plight of the miners of the Mourn.
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=The Versatile Pickaxe.jpg|align=left|caption=Resentment between miners and farmers in Mournwold had been simmering for almost three centuries, until it finally kicked off in 326YE.|width=500}}</div>
If the Assembly chooses to pass a [[writ of consecration]] for Rebellion's Ridge, then it would inevitably reopen those old wounds. Miners work every bit as hard as farmers, nobody denies that, but they have no say in who speaks for them. That's what the Ore Hills Rebellion was all about. Power, who has it, and who doesn't. The miners demanded that the yeofolk share their power. When the yeofolk refused to let their power be diluted and their traditions lost, it ultimately resulted in bloodshed.

Folks are full of fond memories for the Rebellion now, but it was the most bitter fight imaginable at the time. Any move to consecrate Rebellion's Ridge will force the Mournwold to reckon with that struggle. You simply cannot draw inspiration from a bunch of Marchers who died fighting for something they believed in, without making everyone ask ''what were they fighting for?''. It'll fire up every single mine owner in the Mournwold with fresh demands for a change in how the the territory appoints its senator. And it won't just be the yeofolk who are worried - it'll make every Marcher who thinks traditions are important, worried about where all this is going.

Seriously contemplating a change in how the Mournwold elects its senator is ''absolutely guaranteed'' to open a sack full of angry kittens.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Loyalty.png|align=right|width=200}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|align=right|width=200}}
</div>

==Loyalty and Heresy==
{{SOP|statement=The scars of Whittle run deep. A people massacred due to zealotry. The Marchers know too well the risks of following your traditions. While the Marchers have no intent of undermining the Synod’s spiritual authority, the fact of the matter remains; A Marcher, A Marcher. Should the Synod proscribe the beliefs of the Marcher Orcs as heretical, the Marches as a whole will defend their neighbours as they would any other Marcher unduly persecuted. To echo the words of the First Empress: “You will take all of us, or none of us.” The Synod may make its choice.|by=Statement of Principle, Brother Luke, Marcher Assembly|vote=Greater Majority 146-50|when=Winter Solstice 388YE|size=small}}
* '''The priests of the Marches preach of Pride, inspiring both human and orc
* '''The folk of the Marches are mostly united - the Marcher orcs are Marchers
And talking of lit matches... At the Spring Equinox, the Marcher Assembly voted to uphold a [[387YE_Winter_Solstice_Synod_judgements#Judgement_13|judgement]] raised by '''Brother Luke''' with a [[greater majority]]. It called on the Marches to defend the [[Mournwold Orcs|Marcher orcs]] if things came to a head with the [[Synod]]. After the Summer Solstice, inspired by the statement, more than half the [[congregation|congregations]] in the Marches preached the importance of supporting the Marcher Orcs, and that any attack on them was the same as an attack on anyone else in the nation. "''Pride in small things,''" as the saying goes. The congregations who took this action used their liao to create suitable [[aura|auras]], but in return received gifts of recognition and support from Marcher Orcs and their allies.

It's been less direct than a mandate, but it's had the desired effect. If there was any doubt as to whether the Marcher Orcs are Marchers or not, it's been dispelled. If the Empire sends anyone to attack the Marcher Orcs for their beliefs, whether that be armies or magistrates, the folk of the Marches will resist. The argument that their beliefs mark them as heretics butters no mustard in Mournwold or elsewhere. The nation ''knew'' they believed in reincarnation when they embraced them; the [[egregore]] ''knew'' their beliefs were at odds with doctrine when they recognised them as Marchers. They are Marcher folk, and the general consensus in the Marches is that their belief in reincarnation is not a problem in a nation that firmly believes humans can be reincarnated as trees, or vermin.

When the Generals of the Marches swore their oaths to protect their territories, there was no equivocation about whether they would protect some Marchers and not others. If the Synod moves against the Marcher Orcs, the Marches will resist. With weapons to protect those who won't take them up themselves, if need be. And they will expect the generals to honour their oaths, and if need be fight the armies of the Empire to defend an attack against their own.

Not everyone is on board, but those who are not have the good sense to keep quiet about it. When challenged to explain how the beliefs of the Marcher Orcs can be reconciled with doctrine, one pugnacious Abbott turns the question around, and demands to know why nobody ever asks how Doctrine can be reconciled with the beliefs of the Marcher orcs? The ''only'' thing that brands the Marcher Orcs as heretics is the [[The_Doctrines_of_the_Faith#The_Doctrine_of_the_Howling_Abyss|Doctrine of the Howling Abyss]] that was created less than a decade ago based solely on the spiritual beliefs of the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]] - and a belief that is challenged by septs of orcs all over the world.
===The Tom Drake Revelation===
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Hazelelponi.jpg|align=right|caption=Hazelelponi of the [[Highguard_groups#The_Shattered_Tower|Shattered Tower]] is the controversial [[Lepidean Librarian]] who commissioned the investigation into the life of Tom Drake.|width=400}}</div>
* '''Recent revelations regarding Tom Drake incline the folk of the Marches to view the state bodies of the Empire with scepticism
* '''Inspired by Pride and Loyalty, the human Marchers will defend the orc Marchers
The Marchers as a whole have no patience for people who give themselves airs and graces, but they take a quiet Pride in a number of folk from [[The Marches history|history]]. Among those they are proudest of is [[Life of Tom Drake|Tom Drake]], the original general of the Drakes who helped put the Military Council together. Recently, the [[Lepidean Librarian]] undertook an examination of [[Life of Tom Drake|Tom's life]], and the truths contained within were [[Life_of_Tom_Drake#Unacceptable_History|at odds]] with the popular historical version. Tom Drake fought ''against'' Brigit of Dourfell, and led the rebels. He was rightly recognised as an exemplar of [[Loyalty]], always willing to show it to those who deserved it, to the Marches, and to its people.

It's been quiet, but these historical revelations have spread quietly across the Marches and increased Marcher scepticism of what some see as "Imperial excesses". It's nothing like as dramatic as the problems in [[Bregasland]] in the wake of the Fishers - but there is a quiet, grass-roots belief that the Marcher dislike of people putting themselves above their peers extends to ''everyone''. Including, arguably, the Senate and the Synod. When push comes to shove, they ask themselves what Tom Drake would do, and the answer is usually some variation of "stand up and be counted", "be Proud and Loyal", and "tell the Empire to go... take itself away... if it comes to it."

===What This Means===
* '''The Empire risks a second Cousin's War if they persecute the Marcher Orcs for their beliefs
With these two key factors in mind, the only predictable outcome is that Marchers will defend their orc citizens against the Synod, the magistrates, or Imperial armies. What form this will take is not clear, it will depend on exactly what is tried. There are tens of thousands of Marcher orcs. Their willingness to pitch in, the fact they are never slow to contribute when there's a big project on, and their sheer ''enthusiasm'' for the Marches has won them a lot of friends even before the priests of the Marches spoke of the Pride of having them among their number. Then there's the lessons of Tom Drake, exemplar of Loyalty, who would ''never'' stand by and let the Empire declare war on his neighbours (or at least that's the current feeling).

This is obviously a problem. For an Imperial nation to reject the rule of law in this fashion - the Synod has the power to declare something heresy, which is a crime. The magistrates are expected to deal with criminals under the law.

What seems clear is that any move to condemn the Marcher Orcs as heretics is likely to trigger a conflict along the lines of the [[The_Marches_history#The_Cousin's_War|Cousin's War]], albeit with most of the Marches lining up against the rest of the Empire, and with those Marchers who regularly visit [[Anvil]] to represent their nation potentially caught in the middle.
===Pragmatism===
* '''Some Mournwold priests have proposed a "solution" to the problem
So far only one positive proposal has come out, and that's from the Marcher Orc spiritual leader and a couple of his old friends among the priests of the Mournwold. He proposes that while the Synod determines what is a crime, it's the Senate and the magistrates who decide what the punishment is. There are basically two punishments - death and fines. "So fine us," say the Mournwold priests. "Fine the orcs for their heretical beliefs. How about 5 thrones a season that the Marcher Orcs continue to believe in reincarnation, and then maybe we can all get back on with sorting the harvest?" Obviously this is an outrage and the magistrates will do their nut. But a Senate motion to this effect would see 5 thrones a season into the Imperial treasury, and its likely the Marcher Orcs might go higher if they had to especially if their human neighbours pitched in.

While this proposal seem ludicrous, it does highlight at least one potential avenue to try and deal with the problem represented by tens of thousands of Marchers that the Synod seem to deem to be heretics. Ultimately, the Synod does not operate in isolation within the Empire. Nobody is suggesting that the Senate alone can solve this problem, but at the end of the day it is the Senate that has the power to define the laws, and guide the magistrates as to the punishments that arise when those laws are broken. Perhaps some compromise can be reached?

==Rowdy Bandits (Conjunctions)==
* '''The scions of Red Walder are causing trouble in Mitwold
* '''Jyll Longleys is interfering with the Maiden Stone
* '''Dusty Cobb leads a gang to burn the Golden Fields of Hay
And finally ... the [[Rose_grow_the_rushes_o%27#Objective:_Kill_Red_Walder's_Descendants|scions of Red Walder]] are following in their forbear's footsteps and causing a brace of difficulties in Mitwold. Armed by Stephen of Sarcobe (and many Marchers spit when they say his name these days), there's rumours doing the rounds that they've ''also'' been empowered by the terrible Jack-in-Chains, the horror buried at the bottom of a well near [[Mitwold#Wayford|Wayford]]. Probably expecting the Empire to be busy fighting Marcher armies, two of them have collected rowdy mobs around themselves and set about causing trouble.

Something needs to be done, and fortunately the [[Sentinel Gate]] provides an opportunity for response to immediate problems. Frankly, it might be a bit of a relief to have problems that can be dealt with directly by sticking the boot into some wrong'uns.
{{CaptionedImage|file=Glistering.jpg|caption=The Champion of Prosperity fights for virtue.|align=right|width=350}}
===Apples First (Mitwold)===
* '''A gaggle of rowdy Marcher rebels are travelling to curse the Maiden Stone'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Champion of Prosperity'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for stopping Jyll Longleys from cursing the Maiden Stone'''
{{NoInnocentsPresent}}
''Jyll Longleys'', daughter of the wicked old bandit Red Walder and former flax farmer, has been spotted [[Things_go_awry#Mitwold|once again]] in Mitwold. This time, in the [[Mitwold#Maiden Downs|Maiden Downs]], moving towards the Maiden Stone with fire in her eyes and plagued with tremendously bad luck, if rumours are to be believed. Jyll and her unruly band are travelling with purpose and are - according to hearsay, rumour, and the best guesses - going to "''fuck up''" the Maiden Stone. Whether this is by some unknown curse, malicious use of hearth magic, or they're just going to find some hammers on the way there, it will be bad if they aren't stopped.

The [[Champion of Prosperity]], '''Tom Appleseed''', is responsible for stopping Jyll Longleys before they reach the Maiden Stone. If they cannot be stopped, then it will have, at minimum, consequences for farms across the territory. The farms will be able to cope, but it will eat up the profits from the [[Keeper of the Breadbasket|Breadbasket]] in the territory for at least six months.
{{CaptionedImage|file=GoldenFields.jpg|caption=The golden fields of Hay are watched over by a [[#The Silent Giant|Silent Giant]].|align=right|width=350}}
===The Right Thing (Mitwold)===
* '''A gaggle of rowdy Marcher rebels are travelling to burn the Golden Fields of Hay'''
* '''This skirmish is a [[Accessibility#Combat_Highly_Likely|combat highly likely]] encounter'''
* '''The ''Keeper of the Golden Fields'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for stopping Dusty Cobb from setting Golden Fields alight'''
{{NoInnocentsPresent}}
''Dusty Cobb'', the old soldier turned monk who has once again taken up the mantle of bandit, has been spotted in the [[Mitwold#Golden_Downs|Golden Downs]], travelling towards Hay and its golden fields. Though frustrated by bad luck, the shriver of Red Walder has gathered a gaggle of Marcher rebels to them and is travelling with the intent of setting the Golden Fields of Hay alight with good old-fashioned flint and tinder.

The [[Keeper of the Golden Fields]], '''Nicolas Reaper''', is responsible for stopping Dusty Cobb from setting the Golden Fields alight. If they are not stopped, the [[Keeper_of_the_Golden_Fields#The_Silent_Giant|Silent Giant]] will no doubt suffer damage from the flames, significantly reducing its production of mana crystals until repaired.

Myth makers

2026-07-21T20:19:26Z

Dre: /* Investment */

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Foreign Nations]][[Category:Grendel]][[Category:Jotun]][[Category:Thule]]
{{CaptionedImage|file=Advisor Frith.jpg|align=left|caption='''Frith''', Advisor on Orc Affairs|width=250}}
==Overview==
* '''Five orc nations have engaged in diplomacy of one kind or another with the Empire'''
Many of the nations that border the Empire are [[orc]] nations. Not all are barbarians; the Empire has a long-standing peace treaty with the Thule for example. There are also communities of orcs within the Empire's borders. Some are part of Imperial nations - the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]], the former [[Grendel]] of [[the League]], the free [[Jotun]] thralls of [[the Marches]]. Others maintain a degree of independence while still being at least ambivalent to the Empire - the orcs of [[Mareave#Beoraidh|Beoraidh]] and the [[Feroz#Morajasse|Protectorate of Morajasse]].

While some of these orc nations have [[ambassador|ambassadors]] appointed to speak with them on behalf of the Empire. in many cases diplomacy is handled by the [[Imperial Consul]], '''Atte Arrow-Tongue Metsastajason''' of [[Wintermark]]. The [[Advisor on Orc Affairs]], '''Frith''' of the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]], is in an ideal position to provide advice when needed. In practice, many of these orc groups prefer to deal with members of certain nations with whom they have ties - the Jotun prefer to talk to the folk of Wintermark for example, while the [[Great Forest Orcs]] consider the Navarr to be their close allies (in which regard, one might take a look at the [[All I ask of you]] wind of fortune which relates to that sept this season).
<div style="float:right; width: 350px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Crab-traced-2.png|align=right|caption=Many of the Protectorate orcs are former Stone Born, the most heavily armoured and most disciplined of the Grendel [[Elite_Grendel_troops#The_Moridun|Moridun]].|width=350}}</div>
==Protectorate of Morajasse==
* '''The Grendel controlling Morajasse have been recognised as foreigners by the Senate'''
* '''They have asked that the Imperial Consul handles communications with them rather than the Ambassador to the Grendel'''
While [[Feroz]] has mostly been liberated from the Grendel occupation, [[Feroz#Morajasse|Morajasse]] remains in the hands of the master-strategist ''[[Fake empire#Gallum Fiersach|Commander Gallum Fiersach]]''. Ably supported by ''Wind Lord Saoirse'' - his partner and a master of the [[Autumn magic|lore of Sand]] - along with a significant number of veteran Grendel soldiers, they control the fortress of [[Feroz#Mora's Rock|Mora's Rock]]. The Senate has recognised the orcs of the Protectorate of Morajasse as foreigners, distinct from the Grendel. From there they protect not only the borders of Morajasse, but also the borders of Feroz. They have shown themselves more than willing to fight both the [[A_circle_sewn_with_fate#The_Battle_of_Oran|Children of Wrecks]] and the [[Iron Confederacy]] if it [[Each age a lens#The Protectorate of Morajasse|comes to it]].

The Senate [[387YE_Summer_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Recognise_Protectorate_of_Gallum_Fiersach|recognises]] Morajasse as ''a protectorate under the command of Gallum Fiersach, who will be deemed a foreigner as long as they remain independent from the Grendel''. So far, they seem to continue to be independent of the Grendel. Indeed, the protectorate has requested that all negotiations be handled by the [[Imperial Consul]] rather than the [[Ambassador to the Grendel]].

They clearly have hidden depths. They recently cooperated with the [[Appraisal#The_Prognosticators_Office|Prognosticator's Office]] in an [[appraisal]] regarding [[The Oran operation|bridges across the Scorrero]], in which they particular expertise as scroungers and salvagers could play a key part. They've also made an arrangement with the people of the Brass Coast to concede a treasure of the Freeborn, in return for supplies to support their forces. For the moment, the atmosphere is one of cautious cooperation.
===Soldiers at Anvil===
* '''A delegation from the Protectorate of Morajasse is visiting Anvil during the Summer Solstice
* '''Commander Gallum has asked the Imperial Consul to arrange a meeting and listed several folk he is keen to see there
Following the successes of the last couple of seasons, Commander Gallum has sent a short message to the Imperial Consul indicating that some officers are coming to Anvil for the Summer Solstice. They're empowered to speak on his behalf, and on behalf of the Protectorate. This will present an opportunity to prepare a treaty to define the relationship between the Protectorate and the Empire going forward, securing the freedoms of the orcs and addressing any lingering concerns of the Freeborn of Feroz.

The emissaries are expected to arrive at Anvil at eight in the evening on Saturday. They will make their way to the Forge, which Gallum understands is the primary drinking hole and centre of social life at Anvil. There they would like to meet with the Imperial Consul (or an agent), '''Garviel i Adrina i Erigo''' the [[Senator]] of [[Feroz]], '''Khalil i Carno i Guerra''' the holder of the [[Broken Shore Bounty]], and if possible a representative of both the [[Military Council]] and the [[Conclave]]. The latter has been requested by Wind Lord Saoirse, as she has briefed one of the visitors in line with her interests and concerns.
{{SOP|statement=To promote the prosperity of Feroz, we encourage the Freeborn to trade with their neighbours in the Protectorate of Morajasse.|by=Malaki, Freeborn Assembly|vote=Upheld (102-10)|when=Summer Solstice 388YE|size=small}}
===Spice Gardens===
* '''The Spice Gardens of Feroz are in business once again
* '''Sadiq i Isa i Erigo has resumed their position as Keeper of the Spice Gardens
Following the proposal of the Protectorate [[An_arrow_nocked_and_in_flight#Supplies,_Spies,_and_Spice|last season]], the [[Feroz#The_Spice_Gardens_of_Feroz|Spice Gardens of Feroz]] are now once again part of [[the Brass Coast]]. '''Sadiq i Isa i Erigo''' has resumed their position as [[Keeper of the Spice Gardens]]. Negotiations between Freeborn of Feroz and the quartermasters of the Protectorate have seen several farms reopened in Morajasse, with strict quotas of food to be delivered to the orcs and the surplus being free for the farmers to dispose of as they wish. Effectively, a significant parcel of land around the Spice Gardens is now an Imperial enclave in Morajasse.

As part of the shift from lying fallow to being in operation again, some of the farmers report unexpected assistance from disciplined orc soldiers who dig out irrigation ditches and clear land. They aren't exactly friendly, but they've clearly been ordered to do so by someone who wants to make sure the farms are up and running (and producing food) as quickly as possible. As a consequence, Morajasse has lost the [[Region_qualities#Impoverished|impoverished]] quality - which is admittedly mostly of benefit to the orcs living there but at least represents a further move forward toward restoring Feroz to its former glories.

There is a minor fly in the ointment - during the Summer Solstice the Freeborn '''Malakai''' raised a [[statement of principle]] calling on the Freeborn to trade with their neighbours in the Protectorate. While the intent of the statement appears clear, it just failed to achieve a [[greater majority]]. As such, while some more politically engaged priests of Segura and Feriz are aware of it, it has not had a significant impact on relations between the Freeborn and the Protectorate. There is some trade, but many of the folk of Feroz in particular continue to hold the orcs of Morajasse at arms' length even after the agreement regarding the Spice Gardens. Obviously there is nothing to stop the Assembly trying again to address the situation in Feroz; the important thing from the point of view of the current situation is that they did ''not'' uphold a statement of principle with a greater majority urging their people ''not'' do deal with the Protectorate.
==Otkodov==
<div style="float:right; width: 250px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=thulebanner1.jpeg|align=right|width=250}}</div>
{{Nation|nation=[[Thule]]|status=Foreigner|port=None|ambassador=Kindra Surefoot of [[Wintermark]]}}
* '''The orcs of Otkodov remain at peace with the Empire
* '''The Thule are expanding their domain into the Forest of Ulnak, and are at war with the Druj
* '''Kindra Surefoot of Wintermark is the Ambassador to Otkodov
The [[Thule]] of [[Otkodov]] live in cold lands to the north of the Empire. They share a long mountainous border with [[Wintermark]], the [[Imperial Orcs|Unshackled]], and [[Varushka]]. Their magocratic nation is ruled by the five [[Thule_lore#Dragons|Dragons]]; five allegedly immortal orc sorcerers. For much of Imperial history, they were at war with the Empire. In recent years, a series of treaties have secured peace - mostly by [[Powers_of_the_Imperial_Senate#Concedence|ceding]] parts of the northern Imperial nations. It is not a universally ''popular'' peace.

For now, though, peace endures. [[Dawn]] and [[Navarr]] send shipments of food north to help feed the people of Otkodov and support their armies. It is illegal to preach the Way of Virtue in Otkodov to their citizens. For their part the Thule agree to share the [[white granite]] of the [[Night Quarry]]; pay for the food delivered to them; and ensure Imperial access to the
[[Guardian_of_the_Maze_of_Zoria#The_Maze_of_Zoria|Maze of Zoria]] (while sending their own warlocks to study at the [[Master_of_Ice_and_Darkness#The_Icy_Crag_of_the_Eternal_Sun|Icy Crag of the Eternal Sun]]). And, of course, to maintain their current policies for the reasonable treatment of Imperial citizens choosing to remain and live in ceded lands.

The official ambassador to the Empire is ''Runa Who-Speaks-For-The-Dragons-Undivided''. He is still somewhat new to his post, and something of an unknown quantity, but he speaks with confidence as the voice of the rulers of Otkodov.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Forest of Ulnak regions.png|align=right|width=300}}</div>
===The War in the Trees===
* '''The Thule continue to seek aid for their war against the Druj in the Forest of Ulnak'''
The orcs of Otkodov continue their invasion of the [[Forest of Ulnak]]. Precisely how their war against the northern [[the Mallum|Mallum]] is proceeding is not common knowledge, although stories from those who [[Invited_with_asperity#Hinodir,_Tathenon,_and_the_Eastern_Woods|supported the Earthquake Drummers]] prior to the Spring Equinox have finally [[Alongside the Earthquake Drummers|spread far and wide]]. After the Spring Equinox, Imperial [[military unit|warbands]] continued to fight with the Thule, and it is likely ther tales will likewise filter through to Imperial citizens with an interest in the coming months.

''Tathenon the Gyre'', the most warlike of the [[Thule_lore#Dragons|Dragons]] who rule Otkovdov, continued to direct the invasion. He apparently sees no reason to end a good relationship; his [[Voice_irresistable#Grim_Faces|invitation to the Empire]] still stands. Individual [[military unit|warbands]] are welcome to support the [[army]] of the ''Earthquake Drummers'' if they wish, and will receive a bounty of crystal mana as recognition of their efforts. Likewise any Imperial army is welcome to join the war against the Druj in the north, provided they acknowledge the strategy of ''Tathenon, Whose Fury is the Storm of Creation''.

As before, the civil service caution that sending armies into the Forest of Ulnak this season ''without'' agreeing to accept the strategy of Tathenon the Gyre will mean that the Empire's troops will act as a separate force. Should the two forces assail the same [[territory#regions|region]] there is an unfortunate possibility of "friendly fire" incidents.

The offer to fight alongside the armies of Otkodov may be of particular interest to the [[Winter Sun]], given the [[All_I_ask_of_you#Shadows_And_Light|plight]] of the [[Great Forest Orcs]].

====Participation: Ulnak====
* '''Characters whose military units were operating in the Forest of Ulnak this season will receive additional information'''
Individual captains who accompanied the Earthquake Drummers, and anyone supporting the [[spy network]] in the Forest, will have more information about the situation there. This will take the form of a short out-of-character briefing in their packs, the information from which they can share or keep private as they see fit.
===An Imperfect Forum===
{{CaptionedImage|file=Kindra Surefoot.jpg|caption='''Kindra Surefoot''', Ambassador to Otkodov|align=right|width=300}}
* '''The Ambassador to Otkodov is invited to attend a meeting at 22:15 on Friday'''
* '''The meeting will take place in a Prospero chamber accessed from the Hall of Worlds'''
* '''Members of the Circle of Zulgan Tash are invited as well'''
Runa Who-Speaks-For-The-Dragons-Undivided has invited the [[Ambassador to Otkodov]] to attend a meeting at the Summer Solstice. Runa has expressed that such a meeting would be best held in a [[Lashonar#Caucus Forum | Caucus Forum]], obviously, but that sadly Lashonar is currently unwilling to allow Imperial citizens into such chambers. As a result, the Thule have been forced to ''pay'' [[Prospero]] for use of one of his meeting rooms. Farrimond, a Herald of Prospero will collect the delegation from The Hall of Worlds at Quarter Past Ten on Friday evening and escort them to the ''Aureate Jetty'' where the delegation from Otkodov will be waiting.

Runa has offered his thanks to the Ambassador for supplying a list of agenda items. The Thule have added their own topics to the list, and the agenda will be as follows:
* The [[Vallorn]], and how to proceed in eradicating it
* Breaches of law and treaty, and how best to deal with them if they occur
* Enchantments in shared territories
* [[Otkodov|Otkodov's]] policy as regards the septs of [[the Mallum]]
* [[Great_Forest_Orcs|The orcs of Peytaht]]
* "Defectors"
* The Imperial approach to war in The Mallum, with regard to Ulnak especially
* Division of conquered regions in The Mallum
* Opportunities for economic collaboration in The Mallum
* The Circle of Zulgan Tash and [[Miekarova#The_Painted_Caves|the Painted Caves]]

Runa asks that the Ambassador bring with her Aleksandr of the Circle of Zulgan Tash and Zastyt the Feeder. Runa will be accompanied by [[Invited with asperity#State Visit|Galk, of the Sunken Orb of the Brilliant Sapphire]], a warlock in service to [[Thule_lore#Dragons|Hinodir]], Who Burns Away The Shrouds of Midnight, that the two ambassadors might act as mediators in the matter of the Painted Caves. If the ambassador wishes, then that topic can be dealt with first and their guests permitted to leave the ''Jetty'' rather than be forced to sit through the other negotiations.

===Pilgrims on the Road===
{{SOP|statement=The Guardian of the Maze of Zoria calls for the aid of the wise ones of the Empire. The Maze of Zoria has proven in the past to be a conduit of knowledge regarding magical beings such as the sovereigns of Varushka. Come to the Maze of Zoria, together we shall discern the nature of the creature behind the face-peelers. This creature is known as "The Stranger", "The First One", or less commonly "The Smiling One". Let us learn of this threat to our Empire together.|by=Illya Nikovitch Volkov, Wisdom Assembly|when=388YE Spring Equinox|vote={{GM}} 328-0|size=small}}
* '''Thule warlocks are observing visitors to the Maze of Zoria'''

Several [[Varushka|Varushkan]] [[Wise One|wise ones]] (as well as other followers of [[Wisdom]]) have set out to visit the [[Guardian_of_the_Maze_of_Zoria#The_Maze_of_Zoria|Maze of Zoria]], responding to a call from [[388YE Spring Equinox Synod judgements#Judgement 73 | Illya Nikovitch Volkov]] in the Wisdom assembly. They must travel through Thule land to reach the Maze, which pilgrims are permitted to visit under the terms of the treaty. Fortunately, most of the travellers are familiar with the importance of keeping to the road (though in this case it is the laws of Otkodov not the threat of terrible creatures awaiting them if they stray).

It seems that the Thule are forewarned of the influx of pilgrims and a few Thule merchants make efforts to sell food, water and other essentials for Imperial coin. They do a moderate trade, but most of the travellers have come fully prepared and do not need their services. They are not the only Thule interested in the Imperial pilgrims however. Every now and then, in areas where the merchants are not present, travellers encounter a lone Thule [[Thule lore#Warlock|warlock]] standing on a nearby hill or beneath the boughs of a tree. These warlocks make no attempt to stop anyone using the road, for now at least, they only observing who is passing.

==Beoraidh==
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Loud Gull.jpg|caption=The city-state of Beoraidh continues to seek diplomatic and economic ties with the Empire, among others.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The people of Beoraidh are recognised as foreigners by the Senate'''
* '''They continue to seek trade and diplomatic ties with both the Empire and the Grendel'''
* '''They have accepted the patronage of the Sarcophan Delves'''
* '''The ambassador to Beoraidh is the Highborn Melkior of Balthazar's Vineyard'''
{{Nation|nation=[[Mareave#Beoraidh|Beoraidh]]|status=Foreigner|port=Currently none.|ambassador= Melkior of Balthazar's Vineyard of [[Highguard]]}}
Before [[Mareave]] was conquered by the Empire, Beoraidh was the stronghold of the [[Grendel]] Salt-Lord Ehsan and his supporters. In a surprise move, Ehsan declared independence from the [[Grendel]] and sued for peace with the Empire. He laid out a plan for his people that involved declaring the city, and the neighbouring region of [[Mareave#Sinfoyard|Sinfoyard]], as a neutral state. Now a free port where both Imperial and Grendel merchants would be welcome, without favouring either, and the canny diplomat has also secured the protection of the ''bedelaar huisbaas'' of the [[Sarcophan Delves]].

The newly styled ''Ehsan, Lord of Sand'' rules from the city. They work to mould the place into a "free port" where traders from everywhere are welcome - provided they bring money or goods to trade. As discussed in the '''[[A_wild_night_and_a_new_road#Polite_Correspondence|A wild night and a new road]]''' wind of fortune, Beoraidh has come [[All_the_night-tide#Beoraidh|under the protection]] of the [[Sarcophan Delves]] - something that has not sat entirely easily with their Imperial neighbours. How much influence the Sarcophan have is unclear but it implies that anyone attacking Beoraidh - Grendel, Imperial, or otherwise - will incur the wrath of the Delves, their warships, and their economic sanctions.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Melkior of Balthazar’s Vineyard.jpeg|caption='''Melkior of Balthazar's Vineyard''', Ambassador to Beoraidh|align=right|width=300}}</div>
===Trade Winds===
* '''A meeting between representatives of Beoraidh and Skoura took place with the aid of the Imperial civil service'''
* '''The meeting went reasonably well
* '''As per his promise, Ehsan has arranged a meeting with a representative of the Brine Turtles for the Summer Solstice

The big news from Beoraidh is probably that the [[Senate]] agreed to instruct the civil service to [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Senate_sessions#Coordinate_Meeting_between_Beoraidh_and_Skoura|coordinate a meeting]] between the city and the nation of [[Skoura]]. As a descendant of the people who originally drove the Skouran ancestors into the mountains in the first place, and conquered their lowland holdings, Ehsan was perhaps rightly [[A_knock_at_the_door#Up_In_The_Peaks|concerned]] that he and his people would receive short shrift from the people of the highlands.

According to the civil service, the initial meetings - which took place on neutral ground in [[Mareave#Eoradal|Eoradal]] were guarded but cautiously optimistic. Neither side has committed to anything despite the enthusiastic sales pitch of the Beoraidh contingent, but agreements to engage in further discussion have been made. The civil service do caution that there was an "advisor" from Sarcophan with the city state delegation and while they didn't do much talking they certainly had the opportunity to introduce themselves to the Skouran representatives.

As per his promise, Salt Lord Ehsan has used his own influence to arrange a meeting with representatives of the Brine Turtles sept of [[Mareave#Fleisardh|Fleisardh]]. The delegation will include one of the elders of the sept, a high ranking warleader from the [[army]], and a [[Grendel]] advisor. Ehsan suggests that any Imperial delegation be kept to three likewise; he suggests the [[Senator]] for Mareave would probably be a good choice, as might the [[Ambassador to the Grendel]]. The meeting is due to take place at {{TBC}} in {{TBC}}.
===Investment===
* '''A new trading post exchanging Beoraidh salt for Unshackled beef has been established in Mareave
* '''Ehsan is very pleased to hear that there is further interest in investment opportunities in the city state
The Senator for Mareave also [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Senate_sessions#Construct_Beoraidh_Trading_Post|commissioned a trading post]] that would allow Beoraidh to trade salt for Unshackled beef - a potentially quite lucrative trade that has brought prosperity to both the [[Shepherd of the Southern Herd]] and the [[Shepherd of the Great Herd]] in [[Skarsind]]. A healthy exchange of goods is now taking place across the borders of barren [[Mareave#Sinfoyard|Sinfoyard]].

It appears that the Ambassador also did a good job of warning the citizens of Beoraidh that the [[Rivers of Life]] were due to be raised over Mareave after the Spring Equinox. Ehsan has been voluble in his approval of the move, indicating that it seems to have led to a significant burst of growth in the normally quite hardscrabble farms of Sinfoyard. He is aware the effect is short-lived, and unpredictable. In an unguarded moment, he also mentions "strange crops" growing in the arid grasslands north of Beoraidh, although he does not give any details.

With Ambassador Melkior assuring Ehsan that funding for the trade docks has been secured, and that there is significant interest in the [[A_knock_at_the_door#Diamant_Drakes| colosseum]], it seems that relations between the tiny city state and the Empire are going from strength the strength.

===Sarcophan Concerns===
* '''Ehsan, Lord of Sand thanks the Ambassador for their words regarding the Sarcophan Delves
* '''Beoraidh welcomes the protection of the Delves because without it they do not believe their city state can endure
One thing Ehsan is not entirely prepared to hear from the Ambassador however are any words of caution about the Sarcophan Delves. The self-styled ''Lord of Sand'' politely thanks Ambassador Melkior for their well meaning sentiments, but makes it clear that as a former Salt-Lord he is no naif new to the realities of politics and trade. Yes, Sarcophan will take some of the city, but in return they will deliver the kind of prosperity he and his people need to survive. When the Sarcophan approached them, he and his advisors are under no illusions about the precariousness of their situation. Both the Empire and the Grendel have good reason to want to control Beoraidh, given it represents the only anchorage where trading vessels can dock. Once one side or the other secured their control of Mareave, it would surely be only a matter of time before they began to place increasing demands on Beoraidh.

As it is, the protection of Sarcophan means that both of their neighbours will need to think very carefully about whether they want to risk the anger of the great power. The price is well worth the protection, but the Lord of Sand does thank the Ambassador for telling him that foolish lips are dubbing the City-State a "protectorate" of Sarcophan. Just because it is basically ''true'' is no reason to say it out loud, after all.
==Jotun==
<div {{float}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=Jotunarmy.jpg|title=Jotun banners often show the skulls of powerful creatures.|align=right|width=350}}</div>
* '''The Jotun remain at war with the Empire'''
* '''Responsibility and authority for diplomacy with the Jotun falls to the Imperial Consul'''
The [[Jotun]] are a powerful, martial nation led by the Jarl of Jarls - Queen Yrsa Jansdóttir of [[Jotun#History|Kalsea]] and King Gudmundr Arason of [[Jotun#History|Narkyst]]. The Empire has been at war with them for most of its existence, although there have been numerous short periods of peace during that time. They encroach into Imperial lands - [[Bregasland]] and [[Liathaven]] (which they name ''Ashvale'') are under Jotun control, and their recent invasion of [[Mitwold]] has [[Pride in the Marches#Mitwold_Triumph|only just ended]].

There is no ambassador to the Jotun. They seem never to have been especially interested in such a formalised relationship with the Empire. That is not to say that they are incapable of engaging in diplomacy or negotiation, merely that they tend to prefer to deal with individual nations rather than the Empire as a whole. Over the centuries they have had a "close" relationship with the folk of [[Wintermark]], for example, for all that the two nations clash constantly along their borders. In recent times, they have also shown a similar degree of respect for [[the Brass Coast|the Freeborn]]. When the Empire as a whole must deal with the orcs of Kalsea and Narkyst, however, the responsibility falls to the [[Imperial Consul]].
===The Unity Of Deed And Word===
* '''The shrine to the Way on Gull Isle has been completed'''
* '''A conjunction of the Sentinel Gate provides the opportunity to enact the consecration of the shrine'''
* '''This is a [[Accessibility#Unlikely_or_Contained|combat unlikely]] encounter'''
* '''''Erlend'' is [[Sentinel_Gate#Prognostication|responsible]] for assembling a party to carry out the ceremony'''

<quote by="Mandate, Skáldsgrým Dunhearth, General Assembly, Spring Solstice 388YE, Vote: Upheld (1490-60)>The Virtuous build up their fellows, they do not tear them down. We send Erlend with a dose of true liao to consecrate the Virtuous shrine at the Meeting Place. Let us display our Loyalty through the unity of words and deeds.</quote>

Slowly but surely, the wheels of Synod process turn. Last season the [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_32|mandate of Skáldsgrým Dunhearth]] was passed by the General Assembly, following through on the opportunity to [[Who_counts_the_path_untaken%3F#The_Chains_That_Bind_Us|consecrate a shrine at the Meeting Place]]. The civil service confirms that the conjunction to the Meeting Place that was identified last season has held strong, and that the Sentinel Gate will open at 18:15 on Saturday of the forthcoming summit. Erlend, the citizen charged with fulfilling the mandate of consecration, will be in charge of assembling a group to witness the ceremony. The shrine is completed, and anchoring the consecration should be no more difficult than somewhere in Anvil.

Gull Isle is known to be an ancient place of cooperation and cultural exchange between the ancestors of the Jotun and the Kallavesi. To honour this legacy, three ghodi have travelled to the great feasting hall to witness the ceremony. Gunnr the Watchful is announced as a respected elder, Magni Red Kite as a keen supporter of the new Meeting Place, and Eirik the Golden as a well-known yegarra who has had contact with Imperial priests before. All three hope to discuss the meaning of the aura and what it represents to the Empire.

The Jotun understand that the Imperials will direct the ceremony as befits their faith, with whatever poems, songs and stories feel most appropriate to them. That there will be such expressions of Imperial culture seems to be taken for granted. They also make it clear that this should not be considered closed to just the Winterfolk. The Empire has many nations, after all, and they would be pleased to meet with a broad array of representatives. Any with questions to ask and stories to tell are welcome at the Meeting Place!

==Grendel==
* '''Speaker Morna has been sarcastic at the Ambassador to the Grendel
* '''They have apparently sent a private response to Starlight Starchaser
* '''The Ambassador to the Grendel is Starlight Starchaser of Urizen
And finally... By all accounts Speaker Morna is a little surprised to hear from '''Starlight Starchaser''', the offical [[Ambassador to the Grendel]]. With the [[Powers_of_the_Imperial_Senate#Abrogation|abrogation]] of the [[embassy]] in [[Redoubt#Cargo|Cargo]], he had assumed the ambassador had lost their position as well. Surely the Ambassador cannot expect the Grendel to take an Imperial diplomat without a palace seriously? Beyond suing for peace, what is the value of a pauper ambassador?

All that said, however, Speaker Morna notes that Starlight Starchaser has sent an interesting missive and plans to reply to them directly rather than via their presumably non-existent staff.

Mark of the Ravadi

2026-07-20T16:32:49Z

Dre:

[[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Winds of Fortune]]
<quote by="Hywel Summercrow, pleading Clemency for Ravadi Lonestrider">
I am Hywel Summer Crow. At the time of granting Sanctuary I was the Cardinal of The Way, and I am here to plead for Clemency.

These two are guilty of attempted murder. There is no question that they attempted to kill an Imperial citizen, Santana i Guerra.

There is no question that Santana i Guerra was a heretic and a blasphemer. Indeed, she has already been executed for her crimes by this very court.

But her crimes were ongoing. Both of the accused spoke to her, and she made it very clear to them that she planned to carry on excommunicating citizens and dedicating others to the false virtue of Hatred. She was deliberately using the inertia of the Imperial justice system to maximise the damage she could do the spirits of the virtuous. The accused spoke to her last night, and her Inquisition was not scheduled to happen until three o’ clock this afternoon. Who knew how many citizens she would corrupt in that time?

It is one of the tenets of Vigilance that you should thwart malice before it strikes against you. The accused saw clear malice, and they saw correctly. They saw imminent strikes against the spirits of Imperial citizens, and they saw correctly.

They did not reach immediately for the blade. They considered how else they might act to stop her. They saw her well protected, and well versed in the laws she was abusing. They could see no other way. They acted.

Then, they owned their actions. From the way they struck it is very clear they made no attempt to conceal their crime. They made full confessions. Under questioning, they refused to accept the lesser charge of assault, for they had intended to kill.

This is the path of the Exemplar Isaella, who slew the mad Emperor Nicovar and immediately gave herself up to the Imperial magistrates. They are guilty of attempted murder, yes, but they acted with virtue.</quote>
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=RestfulRavadi.jpg|caption=Ravadi Founders' Dance was recognised as an exemplar at the Winter Solstice 387YE.|align=left|width=600}}</div>
==Overview==
{{SOP|statement=We Recognise Ravadi Founder's Dance as an exemplar of Vigilance. ''Pilgrimage'' - They left Dawn to join the Founder's Dance Striding in Navarr, and walked the original path of the Exemplars Navarr and Thorn when the Trods were first created, guarding the world against the vallorn threat with every step. ''Legacy'' - As Champion of Vigilance they were a driving force to forge mere titles into a cohesive organisation worthy to Inspire the Empire, several other Champions have pointed to this as Ravadi's Legacy. ''Benevolence'' - In sacrificing their dreams for a year to hunt down Bawn-Watch the Champion's Shield they would never hold, on behalf of every Champion that would follow after. ''Inspiration'' - Their Inspirational Vigilance was recognised by the Assembly in their appointment to Champion, and many priests of Vigilance will attest to this and their work that followed, seek us out.|by=Jared of the Sentinel's Tower, General Assembly|vote=1126-219|when=Winter 386YE|size=small}}
{{SOP|statement=We have the exemplar, now where is their tomb? This assembly authorises and applauds the creation of an inspirational site to memorialise the <u>EXEMPLAR OF VIGILANCE, RAVADI FOUNDERS’ DANCE</u> (consecrated to vigilance, of course).|by=Martin Orchard, Vigilance Assembly|vote=334-20|when=Winter 387YE}}
{{SOP|statement=This assembly believes the tomb of Ravadi Founders' Dance should be built in Madruga, site of their last sacrifice, site of their eventual victory. Where they fought against the poison in their neighbour's parched fields.|by=Martin Orchard, Vigilance Assembly|vote=240-0|when=Spring 388YE}}
For a year and a half, the Synod has been celebrating the life of Ravadi Founder's Dance. Not long after their death at the age of 23, the Vigilance Assembly judged them to be a key example of their virtue to be remembered and passed down for generations of pilgrims to come. Doubling down, they have seen it fit that Ravadi's story be elevated above the majority of even other recognised figures by consecrating an inspirational location for pilgrims to visit and consider the lessons they can learn from the example that Ravadi set.

==Founding==
Ravadi Founders' Dance was born Ravadi Watcher to House Berinore of Dawn in 362YE in the waning years of the reign of Emperor Hugh. They never found their way to seek a Test of Mettle, briefly serving as a Retainer to the famed House Castellan and serving in the Golden Sun as an expert marksman before swearing a Binding of Thorns following a fated meeting with '''Dalthios Stormbroke''' and beginning the first of their six pilgrimages to Anvil. It was at Anvil that they found their path of Virtue and was dedicated to Vigilance by '''Gaelen Embercast''' (who notably became Cardinal the same season Ravadi was elected as Champion), and was one of the leading figures in the resurgent movement to reclaim the Pilgrim's Shields to rebuild the Seven Pilgrims, the Champions of Virtue, including recovering Bawnwatch.

Proactively engaging problems wherever they were faced, they were more keen to pick up their spear and shield and deal with a problem than to have a meeting about it. Indeed, it is said that one of the key factors in the Vigilance Assembly decision was their [[Court_Reports#Reports_from_383YE|attempted murder]] of an alleged Purity cultist at Anvil. They said that their partners in the Great Dance were [[Advisor on the Vallorn]] '''Nathair Autumngale''' and the [[Ambassador to Axos]] and now-famous blasphemer '''Fintan Nighthaven''', though did not live to see his fall. After many battles, it was the [[Not_a_drop_to_drink#An_Emerald_Tomb_.28Conjunction.29|fight against the Dry Patricians]] in which they fell to the accursed abominations of Winter Magic, and their remains lost and presumably washed into the Catazar by the flood that cleansed the land of the Parched's taint.

==Dancing==
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Ravadi's Bow'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' [[Edifice]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Lightsea, Madruga</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 10 [[white granite]], 5 [[mithril]] only</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' one season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:'''
* Does not require one of the Senate's limited commissions or have labour costs
* Requires a true liao consecration to provide benefits'''
</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effects: '''
* Provides an income for the Champion of Vigilance of 24 random ingots
* Once during the next year, the Vigilance Assembly can mandate the Champion of Vigilance to lead a new venture against a threat they have identified
</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the end of Summer Solstice 388YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float: left; margin-right: 15px;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Partners.jpg|caption=Nathair Autumngale, Ravadi Founders' Dance, Fintan Nighthaven|width=280}}
</div>
* '''The Senate can commission Ravadi's Bow without using one of their limited commissions'''
* '''If Ravadi's Bow is consecrated with true liao it creates a permanent income for the Champion of Vigilance'''
* '''Once ever, the Assembly of Vigilance can use a mandate to create a new venture in the year after the edifice is consecrated'''
It was this final act that was the inspiration behind the Vigilance Assembly choice for where Ravadi's inspirational memorial should be. This does, unfortunately, present a few problems - the Great Grasses region where Ravadi died was split into the [[Madruga#Quiet_Grasses|Quiet Grasses]] and [[Madruga#Crucible|Crucible]]. The site where they fell specifically is now part of the Quiet Grasses where it is [[Madruga#Quiet|currently impossible]] to create a inspirational location due to the lingering touch of Winter magic.

The extant threads of magic remain potent in Madruga - potent and dangerous. The Wreckers employed a Siakha powered maelstrom to use as a staging point to launch assaults across the entirety of the Bay of Catazar. The wild and currently uncontrolled Crucible is a nexus point for the realms of Adversity (Spring, Night and Winter) which contain the resonances for some of the must dangerous and destructive magic there is.

Ravadi is special, and it is not long before everyone begins to understand why they matter so much to the Vigilance Assembly, and to the wider Synod. They were the among first for the new order of pilgrims to take up the charge, to reclaim the shields, to forge the bonds between the seven of them and their countless fellows on the battlefield, and the first to fall in the name of the cause. As the Second Age of Virtue dawns, it is people like Ravadi Founders' Dance who fought and died that the sun may rise, who will be remembered, even if they did not live to see it. Ravadi fell before they had the chance to truly see the effect they would have on the world, and that tragedy further inspires those who hear their story to spread it and never let it be forgotten.
{{Mandate|mandate=Remember Ravadi and be alert to all dangers; within and without! We send (named individual) with a dose of true liao to consecrate Ravadi's Bow to encourage all to seek out the dangers of this world, and face them head on.|assembly=General Assembly}}
The ''Custodes Clavicum'' have been so invigorated by the stories they have been told of the life of Ravadi Founders' Dance, they insist upon providing all the labour necessary for their inspirational location to be constructed. What they need is the Senate to give them permission to carry out the work and someone to provide the wains required (the senate may approve this [[commission]] without it counting towards the maximum number of commissions they may pass each summit).

They propose a small keep be erected at Lightsea, called Ravadi's Bow. It would include living chambers for the current Champion of Vigilance, alongside facilities to train and prepare for the next venture. Ravadi's Bow would serve as a secure home for all future Champions of Vigilance, that they may be inspired by the first and equip themselves and their comrades-in-arms to strike out and thwart malice before it strikes first. Once it is consecrated, pilgrims from across the Empire will make pilgrimage to the site and donate precious metals to the cause with the intention that the Champion arrange to have them fashioned into powerful weapons and armour for themselves and for other vigilant warriors.

After the keep has been consecrated, once during the following year, the Vigilance Assembly could pass a mandate inviting the Champion of Vigilance to inspire people to take up arms against an identified enemy.

{{Mandate|mandate=Thwart malice before it strikes against you. We send {Champion of Vigilance} with 25 doses of liao to urge the Vigilant to root out and attack {named threat}. Prepare for malice and for the battle to come.|assembly=Vigilance Assembly}}

When this mandate is enacted, if the Champion of Vigilance agrees to lead the cause and provide the 25 doses of liao required, then it creates a new scouting venture to root out the named threat and take action against it. The rewards will include wealth scavenged from slain enemies bolstered by donations from the Vigilant.

In some ways Ravadi's Bow would match the estates created to support the [[Champion of Prosperity]]. With the right encouragement, the Custodes Clavicum would be open to the prospect of building keeps or similar edifices for the other champions and voices assuming they are not to be housed at the [[Construct Grand Inspiration of the Way|Grand Inspiration of the Way]]. The Custodes will look to the the Virtue assemblies for inspiration. Of course such edifices would need to be consecrated with true liao to have the kind of effect identified here.

Mark of the Ravadi

2026-07-20T16:30:31Z

Dre:

[[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Winds of Fortune]]
<quote by="Hywel Summercrow, pleading Clemency for Ravadi Lonestrider">
I am Hywel Summer Crow. At the time of granting Sanctuary I was the Cardinal of The Way, and I am here to plead for Clemency.

These two are guilty of attempted murder. There is no question that they attempted to kill an Imperial citizen, Santana i Guerra.

There is no question that Santana i Guerra was a heretic and a blasphemer. Indeed, she has already been executed for her crimes by this very court.

But her crimes were ongoing. Both of the accused spoke to her, and she made it very clear to them that she planned to carry on excommunicating citizens and dedicating others to the false virtue of Hatred. She was deliberately using the inertia of the Imperial justice system to maximise the damage she could do the spirits of the virtuous. The accused spoke to her last night, and her Inquisition was not scheduled to happen until three o’ clock this afternoon. Who knew how many citizens she would corrupt in that time?

It is one of the tenets of Vigilance that you should thwart malice before it strikes against you. The accused saw clear malice, and they saw correctly. They saw imminent strikes against the spirits of Imperial citizens, and they saw correctly.

They did not reach immediately for the blade. They considered how else they might act to stop her. They saw her well protected, and well versed in the laws she was abusing. They could see no other way. They acted.

Then, they owned their actions. From the way they struck it is very clear they made no attempt to conceal their crime. They made full confessions. Under questioning, they refused to accept the lesser charge of assault, for they had intended to kill.

This is the path of the Exemplar Isaella, who slew the mad Emperor Nicovar and immediately gave herself up to the Imperial magistrates. They are guilty of attempted murder, yes, but they acted with virtue.</quote>
<div {{floatleft}}>{{CaptionedImage|file=RestfulRavadi.jpg|caption=Ravadi Founders' Dance was recognised as an exemplar at the Winter Solstice 387YE.|align=left|width=600}}</div>
==Overview==
{{SOP|statement=We Recognise Ravadi Founder's Dance as an exemplar of Vigilance. ''Pilgrimage'' - They left Dawn to join the Founder's Dance Striding in Navarr, and walked the original path of the Exemplars Navarr and Thorn when the Trods were first created, guarding the world against the vallorn threat with every step. ''Legacy'' - As Champion of Vigilance they were a driving force to forge mere titles into a cohesive organisation worthy to Inspire the Empire, several other Champions have pointed to this as Ravadi's Legacy. ''Benevolence'' - In sacrificing their dreams for a year to hunt down Bawn-Watch the Champion's Shield they would never hold, on behalf of every Champion that would follow after. ''Inspiration'' - Their Inspirational Vigilance was recognised by the Assembly in their appointment to Champion, and many priests of Vigilance will attest to this and their work that followed, seek us out.|by=Jared of the Sentinel's Tower, General Assembly|vote=1126-219|when=Winter 386YE|size=small}}
{{SOP|statement=We have the exemplar, now where is their tomb? This assembly authorises and applauds the creation of an inspirational site to memorialise the <u>EXEMPLAR OF VIGILANCE, RAVADI FOUNDERS’ DANCE</u> (consecrated to vigilance, of course).|by=Martin Orchard, Vigilance Assembly|vote=334-20|when=Winter 387YE}}
{{SOP|statement=This assembly believes the tomb of Ravadi Founders' Dance should be built in Madruga, site of their last sacrifice, site of their eventual victory. Where they fought against the poison in their neighbour's parched fields.|by=Martin Orchard, Vigilance Assembly|vote=240-0|when=Spring 388YE}}
For a year and a half, the Synod has been celebrating the life of Ravadi Founder's Dance. Not long after their death at the age of 23, the Vigilance Assembly judged them to be a key example of their virtue to be remembered and passed down for generations of pilgrims to come. Doubling down, they have seen it fit that Ravadi's story be elevated above the majority of even other recognised figures by consecrating an inspirational location for pilgrims to visit and consider the lessons they can learn from the example that Ravadi set.

==Founding==
Ravadi Founders' Dance was born Ravadi Watcher to House Berinore of Dawn in 362YE in the waning years of the reign of Emperor Hugh. They never found their way to seek a Test of Mettle, briefly serving as a Retainer to the famed House Castellan and serving in the Golden Sun as an expert marksman before swearing a Binding of Thorns following a fated meeting with '''Dalthios Stormbroke''' and beginning the first of their six pilgrimages to Anvil. It was at Anvil that they found their path of Virtue and was dedicated to Vigilance by '''Gaelen Embercast''' (who notably became Cardinal the same season Ravadi was elected as Champion), and was one of the leading figures in the resurgent movement to reclaim the Pilgrim's Shields to rebuild the Seven Pilgrims, the Champions of Virtue, including recovering Bawnwatch.

Proactively engaging problems wherever they were faced, they were more keen to pick up their spear and shield and deal with a problem than to have a meeting about it. Indeed, it is said that one of the key factors in the Vigilance Assembly decision was their [[Court_Reports#Reports_from_383YE|attempted murder]] of an alleged Purity cultist at Anvil. They said that their partners in the Great Dance were [[Advisor on the Vallorn]] '''Nathair Autumngale''' and the [[Ambassador to Axos]] and now-famous Blasphemer '''Fintan Nighthaven''', though did not live to see his fall. After many battles, it was the [[Not_a_drop_to_drink#An_Emerald_Tomb_.28Conjunction.29|fight against the Dry Patricians]] in which they fell to the accursed abominations of Winter Magic, and their remains lost and presumably washed into the Catazar by the flood that cleansed the land of the Parched's taint.

==Dancing==
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Ravadi's Bow'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' [[Edifice]]</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Lightsea, Madruga</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 10 [[white granite]], 5 [[mithril]] only</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Time:''' one season</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:'''
* Does not require one of the Senate's limited commissions or have labour costs
* Requires a true liao consecration to provide benefits'''
</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effects: '''
* Provides an income for the Champion of Vigilance of 24 random ingots
* Once during the next year, the Vigilance Assembly can mandate the Champion of Vigilance to lead a new Venture against a threat they have identified
</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the end of Summer Solstice 388YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float: left; margin-right: 15px;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Partners.jpg|caption=Nathair Autumngale, Ravadi Founders' Dance, Fintan Nighthaven|width=280}}
</div>
* '''The Senate can commission Ravadi's Bow without using one of their limited commissions'''
* '''If Ravadi's Bow is consecrated with true liao it creates a permanent income for the Champion of Vigilance'''
* '''Once ever, the Assembly of Vigilance can use a mandate to create a new venture in the year after the edifice is consecrated'''
It was this final act that was the inspiration behind the Vigilance Assembly choice for where Ravadi's inspirational memorial should be. This does, unfortunately, present a few problems - the Great Grasses region where Ravadi died was split into the [[Madruga#Quiet_Grasses|Quiet Grasses]] and [[Madruga#Crucible|Crucible]]. The site where they fell specifically is now part of the Quiet Grasses where it is [[Madruga#Quiet|currently impossible]] to create a inspirational location due to the lingering touch of Winter magic.

The extant threads of magic remain potent in Madruga - potent and dangerous. The Wreckers employed a Siakha powered maelstrom to use as a staging point to launch assaults across the entirety of the Bay of Catazar. The wild and currently uncontrolled Crucible is a nexus point for the realms of Adversity (Spring, Night and Winter) which contain the resonances for some of the must dangerous and destructive magic there is.

Ravadi is special, and it is not long before everyone begins to understand why they matter so much to the Vigilance Assembly, and to the wider Synod. They were the among first for the new order of pilgrims to take up the charge, to reclaim the shields, to forge the bonds between the seven of them and their countless fellows on the battlefield, and the first to fall in the name of the cause. As the Second Age of Virtue dawns, it is people like Ravadi Founders' Dance who fought and died that the sun may rise, who will be remembered, even if they did not live to see it. Ravadi fell before they had the chance to truly see the effect they would have on the world, and that tragedy further inspires those who hear their story to spread it and never let it be forgotten.
{{Mandate|mandate=Remember Ravadi and be alert to all dangers; within and without! We send (named individual) with a dose of true liao to consecrate Ravadi's Bow to encourage all to seek out the dangers of this world, and face them head on.|assembly=General Assembly}}
The ''Custodes Clavicum'' have been so invigorated by the stories they have been told of the life of Ravadi Founders' Dance, they insist upon providing all the labour necessary for their inspirational location to be constructed. What they need is the Senate to give them permission to carry out the work and someone to provide the wains required (the senate may approve this [[commission]] without it counting towards the maximum number of commissions they may pass each summit).

They propose a small keep be erected at Lightsea, called Ravadi's Bow. It would include living chambers for the current Champion of Vigilance, alongside facilities to train and prepare for the next venture. Ravadi's Bow would serve as a secure home for all future Champions of Vigilance, that they may be inspired by the first and equip themselves and their comrades-in-arms to strike out and thwart malice before it strikes first. Once it is consecrated, pilgrims from across the Empire will make pilgrimage to the site and donate precious metals to the cause with the intention that the Champion arrange to have them fashioned into powerful weapons and armour for themselves and for other vigilant warriors.

After the keep has been consecrated, once during the following year, the Vigilance Assembly could pass a mandate inviting the Champion of Vigilance to inspire people to take up arms against an identified enemy.

{{Mandate|mandate=Thwart malice before it strikes against you. We send {Champion of Vigilance} with 25 doses of liao to urge the Vigilant to root out and attack {named threat}. Prepare for malice and for the battle to come.|assembly=Vigilance Assembly}}

When this mandate is enacted, if the Champion of Vigilance agrees to lead the cause and provide the 25 doses of liao required, then it creates a new scouting venture to root out the named threat and take action against it. The rewards will include wealth scavenged from slain enemies bolstered by donations from the Vigilant.

In some ways Ravadi's Bow would match the estates created to support the [[Champion of Prosperity]]. With the right encouragement, the Custodes Clavicum would be open to the prospect of building keeps or similar edifices for the other champions and voices assuming they are not to be housed at the [[Construct Grand Inspiration of the Way|Grand Inspiration of the Way]]. They Custodes will look to the the Virtue assemblies for inspiration. Of course such edifices would need to be consecrated with true liao to have the kind of effect identified here.

Seeds of discord

2026-07-20T13:40:08Z

Dre:

[[Category:Wind of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Foreign Nations]][[Category:Faraden]][[Category:Axos]][[Category:Iron Confederacy]][[Category:Tsark]]
<ic>Master Azad could barely contain his fury and outrage. Singua had been watched him pace back and forth in the reception area of the palace for several minutes, mentally composing a plan to deal with his inevitable outburst. She knew from reputation that he was capable of cold-blooded murder - never in Faraden of course - and yet at the same time to have her guards present would be to betray weakness. She could not afford to show fear to the Asavean ambassador.

"The Plenum demands that Faraden answer for the unprovoked judicial murder of one of their citizens!" Each word was clipped, almost spat out, as if they were fleeing the cage of his teeth against his will.

Mistress Karadragha made a show of picking up the scroll on the table before her and perusing it carefully, although she knew its contents by heart. Over the top of the parchment she could see Master Azad clenching his fists tight enough to whiten his knuckles. The Plenum would be looking for someone to blame for this disaster. Singua wished the investigators had managed to find a clear link between Master Azad and his proxy but he had been very careful to ensure that there was nothing to find. Not in Faraden, at least.

"I'm sorry, Master Azad, but the evidence is overwhelming. There is no doubt as to their guilt, and the punishment for their crime is appropriate. There is no case to answer - Justice has been served. I don't know what more you want me to say to you, or to your Plenum?"

Azad actually growled, and leant forward, putting his hands on the desk. Ambassador Karadragha was very pleased at that moment that the sturdy furniture between them.

"The evidence is fabricated! The Empire are liars, and enemies of the Plenum, and I demand that everything they have said be stricken from your records."

"You demand? Or your Plenum demands?" Mistress Karadragha looked up at him properly for the first time, favoured him with her cool attention. "Master Azad, Tommasso Triusti was providing money and support to the Cinders. An organisation the Liege of the Five Winds, with the support of the priestly families, had proscribed. There is no mistake here, and no error, and there is no doubt that the Imperial witnesses were telling the truth. You are ''very'' fortunate that the evidence also points to the fact that Trusti was working alone, without the knowledge of the Plenum. Or its ambassador. Because otherwise the Flames of Justice would have spread ''considerably'' farther."

The Asavean ambassador removed his hands from her desk and stood up ramrod straight.

"You have not heard the last of this." He hissed.

Mistress Karadragha inclined her head in calm acknowledgement.

"Of course, and I will convey the concerns of the Plenum to the Liege of the Five Winds, along with your assurance that you were unaware of what your countryman was about, and your condemnation of their actions. Assuming the Plenum ''does'' condemn their actions?"

Azad took a step forward, and Mistress Karadragha felt her heart beating like rain, but then the Asavean Ambassador regained control of himself. He spun on his heel, and strode out of her office, slamming the door behind him hard enough to raise splinters from the frame.

The Faraden diplomat relaxed back into her chair, and not for the first time considered what an absolute toerag the Asavean Ambassador was. She rang the small silver bell on her desk, to call for one of her aides. Tea would not be sufficient this time; it would take a stout mug of airag to calm her nerves. Perhaps more than one.</ic>
==Overview==
There are six great powers in the known world whose influence and reach rivals that of the Empire. There also innumerable lesser powers who do not have the might to shake the world, but who are nonetheless important to those with whom they share a border. The ambitions of these nearby nations are no less relevant to the Empire. Sometimes diplomatic relations require in-depth analysis; sometimes there is an opportunity to catch one's breath and let the drama move slowly towards the next crisis point.

There are [[ambassador|ambassadors]] to some of these nations - the [[Iron Confederacy|Suranni]], [[Axos]], the [[Thule]], and [[Faraden]] in particular. Other nations are dealt with by the [[Imperial Consul]]. Sometimes a neighbouring nation focuses on diplomacy with the Empire, and requires an in-depth discussion. Sometimes however there is less going on in a given season and diplomacy can be part of a wider, roundup. For example '''[[TBC]]''' covers nearly half a dozen of the orc nations that lie near the Empire.

Here we can read about several neighbouring nations to the Empire not covered in detail elsewhere - the [[#Axos|Axou]], the [[#Faraden|Faraden]], the [[#Iron Confederacy|Iron Confederacy]], and [[#Tsark|Tsark]], as well as the folk of [[#Marracossa|Marracossa]], the exiles of the [[Asavean Archipelago]] who live in [[Madruga#Trajadoz|Madruga]].
==Axos==
<div style="float:right; width: 350px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Alikos Helio.jpg|caption=The Victorious Axis continue to go from strength to strength.|align=right|width=500}}</div>
* '''Axos remains allied to the Empire through treaty and through the Liberty Pact
* '''They have taken ownership of the region of Thornfen in Sarangrave
* '''The Imperial ambassador to Axos is Thanmir Hrafnar of Wintermark
Imperial relations with the [[Axos|Citadels of Axos]] remain steadily positive. Partly this is due to the [[Synod|Synod's]] work during the [[It_never_happened#Solokha|reclamation of Solokha]], partly due to the ongoing alliance between Axos and the Empire in [[Sarangrave]] which has seen them gain custody of the massive [[fortification]] known as the [[Sarangrave#Tower of the Skink|Tower of the Skink]]. A new status quo has been established in the tiny nation following the [[Victory_and_unity#Times_Change|upheaval]] that followed the rise of the ambitious ''Grand Ilarch Kyther''. A formal Grand Council guides the nation, and the [[A_better_future#Unified_Convocation|Unified Convocation]] works to bring Axos' disparate religious [[Bands#Sects|sects]] together in a similar way.

The ambassador cannot become complacent however; Axos is no less touchy about its independence that it has ever been, and relations could sour again very easily. For the moment, though, the Axos Ambassador to the Empire ''Ilarch Kario Skopos of Solokha'' remains cordial and sometimes even friendly. Skopos is a scion of an influential family from the [[Axos#Chambers of Ussyk|Chambers of Issyk]], who has renounced his ties to the citadel of his birth at the instruction of the Grand Council for as long as he holds the post. This is intended to signify neutrality in the politics of the citadel, to make him a worthier intermediary through which the Axou can deal with their allies in the Empire.
{{Nation|nation=[[Axos]]|status=Foreigner|port=[[Foreign_ports#Towers_of_Kantor|Towers of Kantor]] and [[Foreign_ports#Chambers_of_Issyk|Chambers of Issyk]]|ambassador='Shacklebreaker' Thanmir Hrafnar of [[Wintermark]]}}
===Claiming Thornfen===
* '''Axos has claimed the region of Thornfen in Sarangrave
* '''They have removed the former Druj subjects who lived there
* '''The Axou are preparing to rebuild the Tower of the Skink
Ambassador Skopos thanks his opposite number in the Empire for their timely warning relating to [[vallorn]], [[Druj]], and Imperial [[enchantment|enchantments]]. They wax lyrical about how this kind of cooperation between allies is a portent of the great things Axos and the Empire can achieve together when they put their minds to it. He even praises Imperial magicians - the [[Autumn magic]] laid on the territory made the task of removing the Druj subjects in Thornfen significantly easier. In return, the experts at the [[Axos#Halls_of_Maykop|Halls of Maykop]] have been considering how to address the dangers presented by Druj armies supported by the shambling dead Ambassador Hrafnar has spoken of.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Thane Thanmir Hrafnar.jpg|caption=Thane Thanmir Hrafnar is Ambassador to Axos.|align=left|width=300}}</div>
Over the last season however the Ipotavan forces in Sarangrave have been occupied by completing the task of claiming [[Sarangrave#Thornfen|Thornfen]]. Their efforts were hampered a little by fallout from the [[vallorn]] expansion, and the need to eject several thousand people from the marshes around the Tower of the Skink. As the Summer Solstice dawns, the region as a whole is now in Axou hands. Imperial armies are free to move through it, as per their [[Ratify_Axos_Treaty_Autumn_387YE#The_Treaty|treaty]] with the Empire, but the civil service note that the Axou could theoretically remove this privilege at any time.

As they [[Wise_and_measured#Sephals_and_Strategy|said they would]], the Axou army has exiled all the former subjects of the Druj they can find in the region. They have been channeled primarily into the [[Sarangrave#Whisperwood|Whisperwood]], with a few stragglers ending up in [[Sarangrave#Kroll|Kroll]]. The vast majority of these exiles are [[orc|orcs]] but there are also humans among their number - only those former slaves of the [[Druj]] who could prove a connection to Axos were allowed to remain. The Axou have by all accounts made only minimal efforts to identify any actual Druj among these former inhabitants of Thornfen - they have simply thrown ''everyone'' out. Or at least, everyone they could find. The army is unable to focus its full attention on the wilder places of the region, and there are a number of organised groups of Druj guerillas in Thornfen who were once part of the garrison of the Tower, who continue to harass Axou soldiers.

This means that there are now a significant number of people whose legal status is very unclear loose in the Sarangrave, without supplies, shelter, or in many cases, any real idea what is going on. That, however, is a problem for Urizen and the Empire, not the Axou.

Most Imperial citizens in the territory are busy engaged with the vallorn, or fighting off the Druj this season, but there are some reports that the Axou are moving large amounts of [[white granite]] into the region through the [[Sarangrave#Path_of_the_Eye|Path of the Eye]] - the pass that links [[the Mallum]] with Axos. They've also brought in a large number of labourers, recruited at apparently ruinous expense from all the citadels of the nation. While some are being garrisoned at the Tower, an equally large number have begun establishing camps in the vicinity of the wrecked city of Sephals - and it doesn't look as if they are planning to rebuild it. Indeed, it looks a lot more like they are planning to tear it apart to salvage building materials. Presumably after looting it.

===Armies of the Dead===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Garrison of Thornfen'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Motion Type:''' Senate Motion or Treaty</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Must explicitly give the garrison of Thornfen the right to move around Imperial Sarangrave and deal with threats to the territory</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' None</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Allows the garrison of Thornfen to operate outside of that region anywhere except Nesustak Forest or Bendol</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the end of the Spring Equinox 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Could be raised as part of a treaty</td></tr>
</table></div>
* '''The Axou are struggling to establish a garrison at the Tower of the Skink'''
* '''Ilarch Skopos asks for the empire to donate up to 80 wains of mithril to help get the new Axou garrison established'''
* '''Before the garrison can protect Sarangrave it requires a Senate Motion granting it the explicit power to move around and fight threats'''
The Axou control the Tower of the Skink, and following negotiations with the [[Military Council]] are prepared to help protect Sarangrave from the threat of invasion or rebellion. With that in mind, Ilarch Skopos asks that the Senate make this arrangement clear with a [[Senate motion]]. If they are prepared to explicitly invite the Axou to defend Sarangrave (with the obvious current exceptions of Nesustak Forest and Bendol), then their garrison stands ready. Such a motion would provide the needed legal permission to go anywhere in the Imperial held regions of the territory and deal with threats to its people as they see fit. The freedom would apply to both the garrison of the Tower of the Skink and Axou armies - who would be free to move should they wish to in the same way Imperial armies can currently move through Thornfen. Without such a mandate to act, the garrison and the army will be restricted to defending Thornfen only.

As it stands the garrison would certainly protect Thornfen from the Empire if they ever tried to claim it, or to move armies through it without the permission of the Grand Ilarchs. The [[Civil Service|civil service]] advise that as well as the obvious benefits, the declaration requested by Ilarch Skopos will give Axou troops to move around Sarangrave, which could in theory present problems if relations with Axos were to sour. Ultimately the key issue is one of control. With the garrison under the control of the Axou it will ultimately be down to them what it does.

That might not be a problem for a while as the new Axou garrison at Thornfen is taking a while toe establish itself. With vallorn and Druj alike in the territory this season, there has been no movement toward establishing the new. Ilarch Skopos informs Ambassador Thanmir that there is a recruitment drive taking place in Axos at the moment but that response has been slow. The Grand Ilarch of Ipotavo is frustrated by this state of affairs - it's not as if the Axou were unaware of this potential problem - and has demanded Ilarch Skopos find a solution.

The civil service estimate that it will take a minimum of two and a half years for the Axou garrison at the Tower of the Skink to reach its full strength, assuming there are no additional setbacks. Any season where there is fighting in Sarangrave will prevent the Axou from resupplying and could even see losses if the garrison is drawn into the fight; opposing forces prevent natural resupply even if the garrison is not directly involved.

The Axou could use either mithril or weirwood to increase the speed with which the garrison would establish itself, but the Grand Ilarchs' Council seems loath to contribute their own comparatively limited wains to do so. Ilarch Skopos does not come straight out and ''ask'' Ambassador Thanmir to see if the Empire can be convinced to provide such support, but the ''implication'' is very clear. If the Empire wants the garrison to be ready for battle on a meaningful time-scale they will need to provide the wains to the Axou.

===Lemuré===
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''Advice Regaring Lemuré'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Motion Type:''' Historical Research</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:'''
* Should clearly indicate it is taking advantage of the offer from the Halls of Maykop
* If the commission mentions specific aspects of dealing with lemuré that may help guide the research result
</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 50 liao</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Produces a historical research document relating to lemuré and methods of dealing with them</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Summer Solstice 388YE</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Tarquinius Ankarien.jpg|caption=Former Ambassador Tarquinius Ankarien (left) tirelessly campaigned to strengthen ties between the Empire and Axos.|align=left|width=300}}{{CaptionedImage|file=Hazelelponi.jpg|align=right|caption=Hazelelponi of the [[Highguard_groups#The_Shattered_Tower|Shattered Tower]] raised the final peerless kinship mandate.|width=300}}{{CaptionedImage|file=Watt of Lambrook.jpg|caption='''Watt of Lambrook''', Minister of Historical Research|align=left|width=300}}</div>
* '''The Ambassador has requested Axou assistance with matters relating to lemuré
* '''The Halls of Maykop are prepared to cooperate with historical research into the matter
While the Halls of Maykop are considering the matter of Druj armies supported by ghoulish horrors, Ilarch Skopos has also asked them for any guidance they can offer the [[High Exorcist]] '''Lord Belial de Courtenay Wyldrose''' in their work to combat one of the ''lemuré''. Ambassador Hafnir mentioned former Ambassador '''Tarquinius Ankarien''', and Ilarch Skopos has had some of his staff review the archives and found some information that his own predecessor ''Maxatios'' provided in the past. The libraries of Maykop are extensive, especially when it relates to ghosts and similar entities. Ilarch Skopos is confident that information exists; the challenge will be finding something specifically useful to the High Exorcist in their current endeavour.

After discussion with ''Grand Ilarch Keloparia'' of Maykop, an agreement has been reached (albeit a little grudgingly). It is the request to study with masters of ''necromantia'' that has apparently swung Keloparia's opinion in favour of the proposal. The High Exorcist of the Empire wanting aid from the magicians of Maykop, rather than the ''Convocation of Faith'' apparently bodes well. Ilarch Skopos cannot quite conceal the fact that the popularity of "Theodosia Azesos' experiment" seems to have stalled a little, to the amusement of some of her political opponents.

Regardless, the Halls will make some members of the research staff and one of the ''necromantia'' librarians available to host an Imperial scholar should they wish to visit after the Summer Solstice to investigate ''necromantia'' relating to the lemuré. Unfortunately, due to the faculty schedules, the Empire would need to take this offer up during the Summer Solstice - after that it would need to be rearranged and there is no guarantee that anyone would be available to assist such a scholarly endeavour. Ilarch Skopos notes that the faculty at Maykop will be expecting a member of the [[Historical_research#The_Department_of_Historical_Research|Department of Historical Research]]; the invitation sadly cannot be extended to other scholars (explicitly this means the [[Lepidean Librarian]] cannot commission this research).

In return, Maykop will expect 50 doses of [[liao]]. As the ambassador proposed, this would be an ideal gift for the Grand Ilarch and the faculty staff to thank them for their time. Not because they intend to use it for any religious purposes, Ilarch Skopos clarifies, but because it is very useful in certain ''necromantia'' rites. ('''OOC Notes:''' The character who commissions the research should ensure they have to 50 liao in their inventory after the event and e-mail {{plot}} so that we can remove it and confirm the opportunity).

The civil service note that if the commission opportunity is taken up, whoever commissions it could include some guidance as to what kinds of things the High Exorcist would find useful. This would serve as a guideline for the researchers, who would do their best to find materials that related to those specific queries. Obviously, though, the final report will depend as much on what the Axou of Maykop are preapred to spare as anything else. There's also a note of caution that it is possible this research may retread some of that already shared with former ambassador Tarquinius - and expectations should be managed appropriately.
==Faraden==
* '''Faraden is at peace with the Empire, and trades freely with Imperial citizens
* '''The Liege of Five Winds appears to favour the Empire, but there are powerful factions in Faraden that prefer closer ties with Asavea
* '''Faraden is in the process of disentangling itself from Asavean interests
{{Nation|nation=[[Faraden]]|port=[[Foreign ports#Caitun|Caitun]]|ambassador=Mina i Yashum i Riqueza of [[the Brass Coast]]|status=Foreigner}}
[[Faraden]] lies to the west of the Empire, across the Lasambrian Hills of [[Reinos]]. Trade is its lifeblood, but it is also a country of canny wizards, [[Courage|Courageous]] warriors, and [[Pride|Proud]] (albeit heretical) priests. They currently do not share a border with the Empire, lying beyond the [[Jotun]] and the [[Iron Confederacy]], but that does not stop them sending their caravans to Imperial markets despite the high tariffs they must pay to pass through the lands between. Diplomatic relations between the Court of the Five Winds and the Imperial Senate are changeable - warm one moment, cool the next - but it has never come to open warfare. Right now Faraden is squeezed between two competing interests - the Empire on one side and the angry Plenum of the [[Asavean Archipelago]] on the other - and they must walk a knife-edge between the two powerful nations.

The Faraden ambassador to the Empire is ''Mistress Singua Karadragha''. Mistress Singua advises the Court of the Five Winds on all diplomatic matters, and speaks on their behalf to foreign ambassadors. Her attitude to the Empire appears to be cool but professional, and heavily informed by the wishes of the Liege and their court, who seek more opportunities to trade with the Empire.
===Notes of Recognition===
<div style="display:inline-block; float: right; width: 300px">{{CaptionedImage|file=Mina6596.jpg|caption='''Mina i Yashum i Riqueza''', Ambassador to Faraden|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''Mina i Yashum i Riqueza, former Azure Sutannir, is the new ambassador to Faraden
* '''The Liege of Five Winds sends a note of thanks to former Ambassador Ebenezer of the Marches
Kistress Karadragha begins by sending greetings and congratulations to the new [[Ambassador to Faraden|Ambassador]] '''Mina i Yashum i Riqueza'''. As former [[Azure Sutannir]], their name is already known to the Faraden diplomat. She also sends a note on behalf of the Liege of the Five Winds thanking the former Ambassador, '''Ebenezer''', for their work cementing the growing friendship between the two nations, along with wishes for a warm future full of Prosperity and Pride.

It is perhaps a shame that the first message to the new ambassador also contains confirmation that the Faraden will be signing a new peace treaty with the Jotun during the Summer Solstice. As discussed [[Five_flames#Peace_and_the_Jotun|previously]], without a major commitment from allies to support Faraden against the [[orc|orcs]] the nation is not prepared to go to war. Reading between the lines, it seems that the [[Iron Confederacy]] invasion of [[Reinos]] is not going the way the Court of Five Winds would have hoped.

In response to the polite request of the new ambassador, however, Mistress Karadragha explains that the main concern for the Faraden at this moment is that their merchants are able to travel freely to the Empire, and trade with Imperial citizens. Ensuring that they retain the ability to do so is of paramount importance.

===Ashes to Ashes===
* '''Faraden authorities have executed an Asavean citizen accused of funding the Cinders'''
* '''The Asaveans have closed their embassy in Faraden, but have not broken off diplomatic relations'''
* '''The Liege of the Five Winds has made a public speech commending Imperial law enforcement'''
For some weeks after the spring equinox Faraden is abuzz over an intersection of international diplomacy and high criminality. Tommasso Triusti, an Asavean citizen caught up in the [[Five_flames#Cinders_Extinguished|purge of the Cinders]], has been publicly executed for conspiracy to commit treason. It was an undignified affair, so the rumour goes. Unlike the Cinders, who met their deaths with dignity, their foreign enabler wept with fear and alternated between pleading for a reprieve and haranguing both the crowd and the executioner. The Faraden have strong opinions as to how condemned criminals ought to act, and this cowardly display has earned opprobrium from all corners of society.

The Asaveans are, by all accounts, beside themselves with rage. After what was rumoured to be a tense stand-off in the Palace of Five Winds between the Liege and the head of the embassy staff, the entire Asavean embassy was vacated. Those citizens of Faraden who once spoke of a close alliance with the Asaveans now carefully step away from their prior convictions, or at least keep very quiet about them. There are apparently rumblings about trade sanctions, but for now diplomatic relations remain open.

Just before the summer solstice, an address by the Liege of the Five Winds is circulated throughout Faraden. While it mostly speaks to national concerns, the Liege makes a point of commending Imperial legal authorities for their recent cooperation in the destruction of the Cinders. The Imperial Magistracy and militia are praised for their diligence and attentiveness, and much is made of the benefits of cooperation between Faraden and the Empire. Despite all attempts to the contrary, the position of the Liege remains strong and relations between Faraden and the Empire have never been better.
===Faith and Law===
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Orchard A.png|align=left|caption=Brother Geoffrey Orchard is a talented horticulturalist, and vigilant investigator, who now lives at Pickham Monastery in Upwold.|width=300}}</div>
* '''Mistress Karadragha asks for clarification relating to a new proscription'''
Ambassador Mina has raised the matter of faith and religion, and Mistress Karadragha responds by expressing Faraden concerns. According to Faraden merchants the Empire has made it a crime to bear a [[dedication]] or [[anointing]] of [[Malign_spiritual_presences#Vengeance|Justice]]. This clearly refers to the recent proscription [[Stones_in_the_wellspring#Blasphemy|recent proscription]] raised by ''Brother Geoffrey Orchard'' at the Winter Solstice.

Obviously there are other prescriptions that are likely of concern (such as [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_72|Judgement 72]] given that the Faraden faith believes that [[Ambition]], [[Wisdom]], and [[Vigilance]] are not useful spiritual qualities). Yet it is this matter on which Mistress Karadragha seeks clarification from the Ambassador.

Previously, sensible Faraden travellers have avoided legal issues while visiting the Empire by simply keeping their belief in the [[On Faraden faith|Five Flames]] to themselves. By not preaching the Faraden faith, they have not been held guilty of [[Religious_crime#Blasphemy|blasphemy]] or [[Religious_crime#Heresy|heresy]]. Now it seems that simply being dedicated, or bearing an anointing, will be a crime in Imperial territory. Is this understanding of the situation correct?

Speaking candidly, Mistress Karadragha expresses the concern that the Liege of the Five Winds and many of the priestly families that support them have spent a lot of time talking about the "new tolerance" of the Empire - that as long as they avoid single-minded pursuit of Justice they will be able to trade freely in the Empire. If this is no longer the case, the Court of Five Winds needs to know so that they can decide how best to proceed when encouraging their people to travel to the Empire.

==Iron Confederacy==
* '''The Iron Confederacy remains at peace with the Empire
* '''They have recently taken both Cazar Straits in Feroz and Free Landing in Madruga from the Children of Wrecks
{{Nation|nation=The [[Iron Confederacy]]|port=[[Foreign_ports#Robec|Robec]]|status=Foreigner|ambassador=Tethros i Zuhri i Erigo}}
The lands of the Suranni people - the [[Iron Confederacy]] - lie directly over the Empire's south-western border. They do not welcome visitors from the Empire except in carefully selected enclaves such as the port of [[Foreign_ports#Robec|Robec]]. While they are currently at peace with the Empire, they are by no means allies. Courted by both the Empire and the [[Asavean Archipelago|Asaveans]], the Dukes have been content to to play both interests off against each other. They made some concessions to the Liberty Pact by "redefining" their slaves as "serfs", but those who have actually visited Suranni lands say that the lives of the lowest class of their society have barely improved with this change in terminology.
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=AmbassadorIronConfederacy.png|caption='''Tethros i Zuhri i Erigo''', Ambassador to the Iron Confederacy|align=right|width=300}}</div>
The Suranni recently moved military forces into the territory of [[Feroz]], attacking and defeating the Children of Wrecks and seizing the [[Feroz#Cazar Straits|Cazar Straits]]. Most recently, they have [[Phantasms_and_foam#Take_Your_Prize|done the same]] in [[Madruga]], having claimed [[Madruga#Free Landing|Free Landing]] as well. Both regions are made up of islands that are a traditional home of the [[corsair]] families for [[the Brass Coast]]. Their ambassador has been clear both that they intend to go further, having dealt with the Children of Wrecks, and that they have no intention of conceding the islands to the Empire.

The Suranni ambassador to the Empire is ''Baroness Katerine Lavasse of Meore'', who operates from the Tour Lavasse in Chaubrette, a territory unknown to Imperial citizens that apparently lies to the west of [[Bay_of_Catazar#Veroigne|Veroigne]]. A noble [[naga]], she replaced the significantly more dogmatic Jeanne de Hibernat, a High Priestess of the Suranni god [[Suranni_pantheon#Evra_the_Smith,_Maiden_of_the_Forge|Evra the Smith, Maiden of the Forge]]. She has already indicated that she is very much more pragmatic than her predecessor and more interested in compromise. She still reports to the Dukes of the Iron Confederacy, however, and so her apparent goodwill toward the Empire cannot be relied upon.
===Diplomatic Considerations===
* '''The Iron Confederacy propose a meeting at the Autumn Equinox to discuss a potential treaty'''
* '''They would like the Empire to prohibit attempts to spread the Way to the Suranni'''
* '''They have no intention to return Free Landing and Cazar Straits, but it is clear they could be bought off, but it would require skilful negotiation'''
[[Gossamer_threads|Last season]] saw diplomatic approaches from the Iron Confederacy that included a request to [[Gossamer_threads#Rings_and_Wains|permit armies]] of the Iron Confederacy involved in their [[Gossamer_threads#The_Western_Hills|invasion]] of [[Reinos]] to resupply via western [[Segura]]. This request was ultimately refused. They also sought to purchase resources to protect the northernmost Suranni territory of [[Bay_of_Catazar#Kalino_(or_“Arbonne”)|Arbonne]], which the Empire knows as Kalino, from an ongoing campaign of baleful [[curse|curses]]. In this, the Ambassador was more able to provide the requested assistance.
<div style="float:right; width: 200px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Kobol.PNG|caption=[[Suranni_pantheon#Kobol the Warrior, Maiden of Battle|Kobol the Warrior]] is the uncompromising [[Suranni pantheon|Iron Confederacy god]] of warriors and battle.|align=right|width=200}}{{CaptionedImage|file=Evra.PNG|caption=[[Suranni_pantheon#Evra_the_Smith,_Maiden_of_the_Forge|Evra the Smith]] is the god of artisans and merchants in the Iron Confederacy.|align=right|width=200}}{{CaptionedImage|file=Dumon.PNG|caption=[[Suranni_pantheon#Dumon_the_Liar,_the_Wicked_One|Dumon the Liar]] is the hated god of traitors, liars, and wizards whose followers strive to overthrow the divine order of the Iron Confederacy.|align=right|width=200}}</div>
Moving forward Ambassador Tethros has apparently been in negotiation with Baroness Katerine regarding a possible [[Ambassador#Treaty|treaty]]. Now that the Suranni have taken retribution against the Wreckers, and dealt with the Hand of Dumon hiding among them, they seem more inclined to discuss such matters. The intent is to send a few diplomats to Anvil during the Autumn Equinox, to see if such a treaty can be prepared, and the points raised by the Ambassador so far have proved very useful. Baroness Katerine asks that this discussion continue between them, with the Ambassador continuing to help refine the matters that will be under discussion.

The first proposal presented by the Imperial Ambassador is apparently an offer to outlaw the preaching of the Way in Suranni Lands. Baroness Katerine indicates that this isn't of interest to the Dukes, because any Imperial citizen found preaching the Way in their lands would be arrested and executed as blasphemers. However what the Dukes ''are'' interested in is for the Senate to make it illegal to preach the Way to Suranni citizens in the ''Empire''. Specifically, to make it illegal to target Suranni travellers when proselytising.

The Dukes are pleased to hear that imperial efforts to restore the bridges over the Scorrero [[The Oran operation|proceed apace]]. They are also open to the idea of establishing a formal trading enclave in the Empire; the town of Bramar in [[Feroz#Fontargenta|Fortargenta]] is well known to Iron Confederacy merchants and some kind of market and a temple for the priests of [[Suranni_pantheon#Evra_the_Smith,_Maiden_of_the_Forge|Evra the Smith]] would be appealing. Either that or dedicated markets in [[Feroz#Oran|Oran]], [[Madruga#Calvos|Calvos]], and [[Sarvos#Sarvos|Sarvos]] for use by ships travelling along the coast through the eastern islands.

Military cooperation against the [[Jotun]] has also been discussed, and Baroness Katerine understands the Ambassador's reticence to commit to anything. Candidly, the fact the Empire is fighting the barbarian orcs in Imperial territories already provides a measure of assistance. The Dukes are however prepared to agree that any Jotun land the Empire takes in Reinos is theirs to keep, without contest - provided the Empire is in turn prepared to offer the same recognition to the Iron Confederacy. Both nations, says the Baroness, would surely benefit from the extermination of the Lasambrian Hills bandits.

As to the matter of Free Landing and Cazar Straits, however, the Baroness is much less forthcoming. As the Dukes have said over and over, they plan to keep what they have taken from the Children of Wrecks. The Empire had every opportunity to destroy the pirates sheltering in those islands before the Suranni took charge of matters. Relinquishment of the islands is unlikely to be on the table during negotiations. In theory at least, it might be possible for the Empire to negotiate the Suranni withdrawing from Free Landing, but the Ambassador must be aware that the price for doing so is likely to be a great deal of money or truly eye-watering amounts of mithril, weirwood, and white granite. The islands of the Brass Coast represent significant economic and strategic benefits to the Suranni. They conquered the islands with the lives of their soldiers, and in the name of the [[Suranni_pantheon#Kobol_the_Warrior,_Maiden_of_Battle|Maiden of Battle]], and any concession to the Empire is going to need to reflect that.

===Hand of Dumon===
* '''Baroness Katerine concedes the Empire had no role in the recent curses on Arbonne
After due consideration, the Iron Confederacy accepts that the Empire had no role in the cursing of Arbonne, and that they will ensure the organisation puts down no roots within their borders. Even the Duke of Arbonne is apparently [[Gossamer_threads#Dumon_the_Liar|satisfied]] with the Ambassador's assurances this time, and the Suranni lawkeepers engaged in assisting the magistrates as part of the [[Ratify_Dumonist_Treaty|Dumonist treaty]] have tempered their zeal a little.

With the provision of [[ilium]] to help create a warding temple in Arbonne to combat the malignancy of the Hand of Dumon it ''seems'' the matter is put to rest for the moment. The civil service are at pains to point out that if any Hand of Dumon agents or sympathisers ''were'' active in Imperial politics, and their identities were exposed, then it could potentially prove quite embarrassing for the Ambassador and the Empire. Having access to the magistracy, even in a limited capacity, means that the Suranni lawkeepers are aware whenever someone is prosecuted for [[Criminalize Hand of Dumon|membership of the Hand of Dumon]]. Obviously there's no evidence of such an individual or conspiracy, but [[Vigilance]] is clear about the need to [[Vigilance#Guidance_on_the_Path|prepare for malice]], and to avoid becoming complacent.

===Marko Siwarsbairn===
* '''The well-regarded scholar has return to the Empire and is eager to return to work'''
Poor [[Historical_research#Marko_Siwarsbairn|Marko Siwarsbairn]]! Their visit to the Iron Confederacy to research military history took significantly longer than expected and arguably at various points they were in fact imprisoned by their Suranni hosts. Worse, when they were finally given leave to return to the Empire, their research complete, they were [[Gossamer_threads#The_Perils_of_Marko_Siwarsbairn_(Arbonne)|attacked]] by the Hand of Dumon and narrowly avoided being sacrificed to the Suranni [[Suranni_pantheon#Dumon_the_Liar,_the_Wicked_One|God of Lies]] . Thanks to the intercession of the [[Minister of Historical Research]] '''Watt Lambrook''', and by all accounts the direct aid of Ambassador Thethros, the [[Wintermark]] scholar was safely rescued. They handed over the fruits of nearly a year of research and then... went straight back to work.

There has been some suggestion that Marko may wish to take a leave of absence to recover from their recent adventures, but the plucky scholar is having none of it. Given time to recover, they are of the opinion that if nothing else all this business has been ''exciting'' - even thought it may have been a waste of a year from a scholastic point of view it was never ''dull''. They're furious with the Iron Confederacy about the way their freedom to explore the subject of Suranni military history was so closely monitored, and how their words were edited and reviewed by the Baroness Katerine and her priests. They also want to be clear that when the document said "area of industry in Arbonne" for example, they meant "mithril mine for supplying armies", as just one example.

There has been some suggestion Baroness Katerine may be required to pay some kind of compensation. Instead the Suranni diplomat merely sends her best wishes to Marko, invites them to visit if ever they are in the vicinity of her holdings, and that given they are now back in the Empire she considers the matter closed. After all, it was Hand of Dumon agents ''in the Empire'' who attacked Marko, and while the Minister of Historical Research may have needed to intercede, her knights still did their job by ensuring the scholar returned to the bosom of the Empire alive. Marko's response involves quite an amount of coarse language.
<div style="float:right; width:300px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Atte.png|caption=Atte Arrow-Tongue Metsastajason of the Sussivari Oathsworn Fyrd; elder statesman and [[Imperial Consul]], is responsible for dealing with nations that do not have a dedicated ambassador.|align=right|width=300}}</div>
==Tsark==
* '''The people of Tsark have sent an adept to Occursion'''
* '''Adept Camilla invites letters on the subject of Prosperity'''
* '''Urizeni congregation will be able to take the lecture 'Discuss Prosperity with the Adepts of Tsark' after the Summer Solstice.'''
The Seeker of the Perfect World has written to Sage Kristoph, the Tsarkoi sage who has long been the primary diplomat of the Tsarkoi to the Empire, opening a conversation on the subject of Prosperity and the ways in which it might benefit Tsark. After a little deliberation, the Council of Sages appointed Camilla - as a senior adept - to be the primary representative to the Empire on this subject. They are - cautiously - interested in hearing more.

Camilla's parents were Urizeni who found a way to Tsark a generation ago and decided to stay, so she is a little familiar with the Empire and [[the Way]] as a result. However, the Tsarkoi do not make use of spiritual forces ''other'' than that of Peace - quite the contrary to their neighbours, the notoriously blasphemous and heretical Axou who make use of auras of every kind, and so she is not greatly familiar with the Seven Virtues of the Way except through her parent's stories.
{{WingedMessenger|address=Those wishing to write to Camilla on the subject of what Prosperity means to them should send a [[Call Winged Messenger|Winged Messenger]] to ''Adept Camilla, Garden of the Perfect World, Occursion, Zenith''}}
Camilla says that she intends to stay a little while at the Garden of the Perfect World. There are other adepts and sages who intend to visit in the season that follows: she has been asked to prepare the way. The Council of Sages believes, from what it understands of Prosperity, that the Virtue ''may'' be one that fits in the perfect world that the Tsarkoi seek - in accordance with their esoteric beliefs - to bring about. Camilla says that she will make herself available for any Imperial citizen who wishes to write to her explaining what Prosperity means to them. In addition, she and the other adepts chosen for this initiative would be delighted to meet with Urizeni who wish to share their perspective on Prosperity.

After the Summer Solstice, holders of an Urizeni congregation may take the lecture 'Discuss Prosperity with the Adepts of Tsark'. This will represent the priest taking themselves - and possibly their congregation - to Occursion to meet with Adept Camilla and her fellows, to discuss Prosperity and demonstrate the auras associated with it. As such, the congregation will not produce its normal complement of liao, as it is assumed it will be used in the creation of auras. However, Camilla has promised that in return she offers a portion of zaboravi. Obviously, any priest who takes this lecture will end up in the Prosperity assembly as a result at the subsequent summit.

==Maracossa==
{{WingedMessenger|address=Leonorada Rousseau'' currently resides in ''Trajadoz'', [[Madruga#Torres|Torres]], [[Madruga]] for anyone who wants to talk about Marracossan business}}
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Eulàlia i Phovas i Riqueza.jpg|caption='''Eulàlia i Phovas i Riqueza''', Senator for Madruga|align=right|width=300}}</div>
* '''The proscription against the Theist Heresy creates major problems for the Marracossans'''
* '''They are appealing to the Marracossa Sendito for help'''
Representatives of the [[Madruga#Trajadoz|Trajadozi Marracossans]], [[Journeys_end_in_lovers_meeting#By_Roads_Both_Straight_and_Winding|came to Anvil]] for the Spring Equinox. They planned to meet with both the current [[Marracossa Sendito]] '''Karg i Estrico i Erigo''' and the former holder of the title, '''Hugo i Bamesh'''. By all accounts the meeting went well - the Marracossans returned to Trajadoz satisfied at least. Or rather... ''mostly'' satisfied. There is a great deal of concern among the former inhabitants of the [[Asavean Archipelago]] regarding the blanket criminalization of their religion.

The [[judgement]] of [[proscription]] raised by '''Frater Pontius of Adoniran’s Temple''' [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_114|defines]] the "Theist Heresy" as ''the claim that there are gods that seek dominance of, control over or communion with sapient spirits''." The Marracossans have never tried to hide their faith in their gods, and given that the town of Trajadoz has been [[384YE_Winter_Solstice_Senate_sessions#Cede_Trajadoz|ceded]] to them by the [[Senate]] they are not concerned that they will need to fend off zealous magistrates. What they are very concerned about is their relationship with their neighbours.

The Marracossans have over the last few years formed bonds of friendship and business with Freeborn folk in [[Madruga#Torres|Torres]] in particular. Some of their number fought against the Grendel when they attempted to conquer Madruga, and indeed the Freeborn Assembly [[386YE_Spring_Equinox_Synod_judgements#Judgement_160|recognised and praised]] them for their [[Courage]], [[Pride]], and [[Loyalty]]. Now they're concerned that anyone who trades with them, visits them, or even speaks to them might face prosecution. Worse, they are concerned that they might face prosecution if they leave the environs of Trajadoz - effectively trapping them in the town for the foreseeable future.

They're ''very'' keen for the Marracossa Sendito to advise them on the situation. This is in line with the [[Marracossa_Sendito#Responsibilities|responsibilities]] of the post - given that this proscription may represent a threat to Trajadoz and involves a request for representation. The civil service indicate that Karg i Estrico i Erigo may wish to seek the advice of the [[Imperial Consul]] '''Atte Arrow-Tongue Metsastajason''' on this matter. While Karg is responsible for dealing with the Marracossans they are legally foreigners with whom the Empire does not have a recognised [[ambassador]], and any [[Ambassador#Treaty|treaties]] for example would need to be prepared by the Consuls office. The advice of the magistrates might also be valuable in what exactly this new heresy means for the Marracossans.

The Marracossans are ''also'' keen for their friends in Madruga to speak on their behalf. Can the Freeborn Assembly offer any reassurance, for example? Or should they begin preparing for a siege? Can they truly be considered heretics when they do not follow the Way, or even pretend to, but likewise have no interest in proselytising their own religion to others?

Keys of Enlightenment

2026-07-20T12:28:30Z

Dre:

[[Category:Wind of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Foreign Nations]]
<ic>"Have they given any context for their query?"

Tipoa and the Cardinal had taken cover from the sun under a rainbow canopy in one of the gardens that spilled over the side of the High House of Wisdom. It was the hottest part of the day and even the jewelled hummingbirds were silent, resting beneath broad leaves. Only the raptors were active, playing their inscrutable lizard games and hunting beetles among the foliage.

"The Censor of Wood, Stone and Metal said it was a request from the Senator of Bastion. They say they are keen to learn more about the exemplar."

The Cardinal pondered for several moments, her attention apparently focused on the task of tending to one of her beast companions. Jormga as a snake easily as long as Tipoa was tall, and she had always disliked it. The serpent was lazy with age, six eyes closed contentedly as the Cardinal carefully rubbed its head and body with coarse sand. His only movement was to flicker his long forked tongue occasionally. In the wild the beasts were deadly hunters, but the Cardinal had hatched him herself, and he doted on her as much as any serpent could dote on anyone.

"To be fair," mused the Cardinal, "it is the nature of inspirational figures to inspire, so there is no reason not to share our stories with the Empire. I wonder if it has to do with a vision of past lives?"

"Would you like me to ask Oxtitocszin to enquire?" One of the smaller raptors had run up and stood staring curiously at her, flicking its blue and green feathers. She flicked a morsel of meat toward it, and it was quickly the centre of attention for three of its siblings.

"No need, I don't think. Traditionally the Imperial Synod is always very excited when someone experiences a vision of having been Sumaash, and cannot wait to tell us. So patience will tell us one way or another."

The Cardinal smiled, humourlessly.

"I do wonder sometimes why they seem to be so constantly surprised when they discover that their people have souls older than the Empire, or from another part of the world? Despite that revelation being the foundation of their entire Empire. And still it is an uncommon Imperial priest that asks about our ''own'' visions, and how they relate to folk from their history."

Tipoa nodded.

"I'll put something together but it will be challenging to know quite how much detail to go into."

"Ah!" said the Cardinal, eye twinkling. "I have a suggestion there. I was speaking to the Cardinal of Vigilance only this morning, and this enquiry comes at just the right time. How long has it been since you last visited the Empire, Utredare Tipoa?"

Tipoa felt her heart sink slightly. She could see the shape of the future and was not sure she was especially excited about it. Travelling to the Empire, especially at this time of year when the weather would be turning inhospitable, was not how she had planned to end the year. Especially with this apparent non-sequitur about the Cardinal of Vigilance.

"To talk about Sjördeyr, Cardinal? Or were you thinking of sending me in an more official capacity?"

The Cardinal didn't reply immediately, but a slow smile spread across her face as she continued to stroke the somnolent serpent in her lap.</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 400px; clear: left; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Sumaah_Raptors.jpg|align=left|caption=it's common for Sumaah citizens to keep small drakes as companions.|width=400}}</div>
==Overview==
* '''The Sumaah Republic is an empire devoted to an orthodox interpretation of the Way'''
* '''The Sumaah Republic remain allies of the Empire in the Liberty Pact
The [[Sumaah Republic]] are simultaneously allies of, and rivals to, the Empire. Their shared practice of the Way both provide them with common ground, and divides them over questions of orthodoxy. As founding members of the [[Liberty Pact]], their ties to the Empire have been strengthened, and they have been closely involved in bringing ruin to those involved in the abhorrent practice of slavery. At the moment they are focused on their [[Guide_the_spirit#Virtuous_War|war]] with the [[Asavean Archipelago]], but they remain committed to spreading the Way through the entire world. In gratitude for [[Two_suns_in_the_sunset#A_Bond_Between_Sailors|major aid]] from the Empire in repulsing an Asavean assault against the port of [[Foreign_ports#Zemeh|Zemeh]], the Sumaah have committed to sharing a dose of [[Liao#True Liao|true liao]] with the Empire every season "''until the Plenum falls and the Way is spread to the Archipelago''." Relations with the grateful Sumaash, which have been bumpy in the past, are now better than ever.
{{Nation|nation=[[Sumaah Republic]]|status=Foreigner|port=[[Sumaah_Republic_ports#Zemeh|Zemeh]]|ambassador=Accalon of [[Highguard]]}}
The Sumaah ambassador to the Empire is ''Oxtitocszin'', who holds the rank of Censor of wood, metal and stone and is a member of the High House of Pride (the Sumaah equivalent of the Pride Assembly, but with significantly more responsibility and leeway to pursue foreign diplomacy). They advise not just the Sumaah ''präster'', but the House of the People (the Sumaah equivalent of the Imperial Senate). By all accounts they are an even-handed, level-headed individual, and a devout practitioner of the Way.
==Mithril and White Granite==
* '''Sumaah is interested in the proposal the Empire might be able to provide resources to fight the Asaveans
* '''They are interested in mithril and weirwood
* '''The High House of Prosperity has arranged a boon from the City of Salt and Sail that can help transport significant numbers of wains
* '''Ambassador Oxtitocszin asks for Accalon to give them an idea of what kind of price will be required
<div style="float:right; width: 350px; clear: left;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Accalon5901.jpg|caption='''Accalon of Felix's Watch''', Ambassador to the Sumaah Republic|align=right|width=350}}</div>
Ambassaor Accalon has mentioned the possibility of providing assistance in the Sumaah war with the Plenum, and that the Empire may be able to send resources that would assist their efforts. Ambassador Oxtitocszin has taken counsel with the High Houses of Courage and Prosperity, and spoken to the Plenum, and suggests that if there is interest in helping Sumaah in their fight against the Asaveans, they would be interested in supplies of mithril and weirwood to supplement their own stocks of these precious materials. While the bulk of the materials would be used to reinforce and strengthen the armies of Sumaah, a portion would be provided to Sumaah allies in the Asavean Archipelago to help support their efforts to spread the Way and bring down the Plenum.

The High House of Prosperity understands that the Empire is rich in both materials, and that there is a considerable surplus available to purchase. The challenge however will be transporting the material - as the [[Drowned_in_tears#A_Gift_of_Pride|Stone Fleet]] indicated the risk of transporting such valuable and bulky materials over great distances is considerable.

However, partially inspired by the [[Satraps_of_the_Abyss|ongoing visit]] of Imperial prognosticator [[Appraisal#Lisane_de_Terresford|Lisane de Terresford]], a coven of magician-präster of the House of Prosperity have sought a slightly less risky solution. The ''Wandering Port'' - the ''Great Turtle'' also known as the ''City of Salt and Sail'' - is prepared to aid in the transportation of at least one hundred wains of weirwood and mithril - either or both - between the Empire and the Republic. There is theoretically no upper limit to how much they can help transport in this way. The offer has been negotiated until the end of the Winter Solstice 388YE; after that the opportunity will be gone.

However, before they can be taken anywhere, the wains must be secured. The Sarcophan do not imagine the Ambassador means to provide them with a gift, and the Censor of Wood and Stone wants to hear from their opposite number what kind of price will be required and what volume of wains would be available. Accalon has indicated they have contacts in the [[Bourse]]; presumably these can be leveraged to arrange a straightforward and Prosperous agreement?

==Sjördeyr==
<div {{Float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: #C994FF;">'''The Life of Sjördeyr'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Motion Type:''' Historical Research</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Necessary Details:''' Should clearly indicate it is an invitation to the High House of Prosperity to send scholars to teach about the paragon Sjördeyr</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' None additional</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:''' Produces a historical research document relating to the paragon Sjördeyr</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' One yer; until the end of the Spring Equinox 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Dependant on the Empire remaining on good terms with the SUmaah Republic</td></tr>
</table></div>
<div style="float:right; width: 300px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Hazelelponi.jpg|align=right|caption=Hazelelponi of the [[Highguard_groups#The_Shattered_Tower|Shattered Tower]] raised the final peerless kinship mandate.|width=300}}{{CaptionedImage|file=Watt of Lambrook.jpg|caption='''Watt of Lambrook''', Minister of Historical Research|align=left|width=300}}</div>
* '''A short essay about the Sumaah paragon Sjördeyrhas been provided by Ambassador Oxtitocszin
* '''Either the Lepidean Library or the Department of Historical Research could host scholars from the Sumaah Republic if they wished to know more
Ambassador Oxtitocszin is a little surprised to be asked about the ''Sjördeyr'', but provides some information in the form of a short essay copied from a book of Sumaah inspirations.

In short, Sjördeyr is a Paragon and not an Exemplar as the Ambassador seems to believe. He is primarily known for inspiration around the importance of celebrating one's labours at least as hard as one worked to achieve them. One of the leaders of the Sumaah rebellion against the Asavean Satraps, he was a loud and persistent voice in opposition to slavery in general, and the wickedness of the Plenum, rather than just the plight of the Sumaah themselves. No great warrior himself, he strove to acquire the resources his people needed to cast off the yoke of the Satraps. In the process he dealt with many unsavoury folk, including some of the corrupt and venal Asaveans. According to the stories, however, so affable and charismatic was he that stories claim he was adept at recruiting others to aid the Sumaah cause, and allegedly he convinced a few of the Asaveans to secretly support the rebels against their own people.

After the Sumaah won their freedom, the flamboyant and passionate Sjördeyr was one of the visionaries who encouraged the people not to lose themselves in endless warfare but to build a Republic from the ashes of their oppression. His enduring inspiration meant that he was one of the first historical paragons recognised by the Sumaah when they embraced the Way and the path of Virtue, .

If the Empire wishes to know more, the ambassador is certain some Sumaah scholars can be convinced to travel to the Empire and spend time working with the [[Lepidean_Librarian#Lepidean_University|Lepidean University]] or the [[Historical_research#The_Department_of_Historical_Research|Department of Historical Research]]. Obviously, this would require either the [[Lepidean Librarian]] or the [[Minister of Historical Research]] (or the [[Senate]]) to commission the appropriate [[historical research]].
==Siblings in Spirit==
* '''The House of the People is discussing the Liberty Pact in light of the Commonwealth concerns'''
* '''Oxtitocszin advises that Sumaah fear their interests will suffer if the Empire and the Axiou can form a majority voting block'''
As the Summer Solstice approaches, the news that the [[Commonwealth]] is [[War_games#Commonwealth_Fury|considering leaving]] the [[Liberty Pact]] has reached Sumaah. Oxtitocszin restates part of the speech given by the präst ''[[Guide_the_spirit#Ripped_Away_(Necropolis)|Kauitalic]]'' after Imperial ship captains helped [[Two_suns_in_the_sunset#A_Bond_Between_Sailors|defend Zemeh]] against the Asaveans. "The Empire and the Republic are siblings - they may squabble and argue but they are united by bonds of Virtue that the Asaveans can never understand much less sever." Whatever happens in the coming months, that will not change, no matter how aggrieved the Commonwealth is.

But the Sumaah Ambassador also confirms that [[Forging_links#Pact_of_Broken_Chains|as mentioned last season]], the Republic is not sure what the point of the Liberty Pact is now. The House of People continues to discuss the matter, as do the High Houses of Virtue. They are broadly in agreement though that a Liberty Pact without the Commonwealth will not survive. No decision has been taken yet; the Houses take their time to consider such matters carefully and avoid rushing as the Empire well knows. However, there are clear concerns around the influence of the Axou should the pact be comprised of only three members able to vote. The ambassador doesn't come directly out and say it, but the fact that the Empire and the Axou could form a majority voting block and decide the issues between them is clearly an issue. Eventually they will take act but the Ambassador stresses that whatever happens, it should not be seen as a failure of the Pact, but rather as further proof that it has fulfilled its Ambition. For now though, they will continue to hold to the Liberty Pact as it stands.
<div style="float:right; width: 150px; clear: right;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly Pride.png|align=right|width=150}}{{CaptionedImage|file=Assembly_General.png|align=right|width=150}}</div>
==Honour and War==
* '''The Sumaah will continue to send a dose of true liao to the Empire regardless of what happens
One final matter brought up by Oxtitocszin concerns the dose of [[liao#true liao|true liao]] the Council of Eight [[Two_suns_in_the_sunset#The_Just_Rewards_of_Your_Labours|set aside for the Empire]] each season. Until the Way is spread to the whole of the Asavean Archipelago, it will continue to be delivered to the [[Gatekeeper|Gatekeepers]] "''to bestow as they see fit on the virtuous of the Empire, in the name of that bond, forged in blood and salt, by the captains of the Empire''." Unless for some reason a state of war erupts again between the two great powers, the Sumaah gift to the Empire will continue.

There have however been concerns raised with Oxtitocszin regarding what might happen if the Gatekeepers were no longer [[Gatekeeper#Responsibilities|responsible]] for determining how true liao is distributed. If that were to happen, the High House of Pride would find another way to ensure their gift reached the Empire to be used in commemoration of the bonds between the two great nations. But as long as the Synod holds the Gatekeepers responsible for distributing the precious spiritual substance, it will continue to be delivered to them each season.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Albrecht von Holberg.jpg|caption='''Albrecht von Holberg''', Custodian of the Regario Dossier|align=left|width=400}}
</div>
==Missing River==
* '''Agent Vassa, who normally oversees the Regario Dossier agents in Sumaah, has gone missing
* '''An urgent message from Zemeh suggests the Imperial espionage network there is being rolled up
* '''The Regario Dossier will ultimately need to decide whether to cooperate with any investigation or not
* '''Re-establishing the Vassa network without knowing what is going on may see more Imperial agents vanish
There is one other matter of concern from Sumaah, but it (probably) doesn't concern the Republic itself. A year ago the [[Regario Dossier]] - which among other things organises the Empire's espionage in foreign nations - [[Talking_to_friends#The_Factions_Listen|reassigned agents]] to investigate factions in the [[Asavean Archipelago]]. Each of the three agents studied a different faction, made a full report during the Spring Equinox [[Regario_Dossier#Annual_Report|as is traditional]]. As far as the Empire knows, three agents were reassigned and those three agents should now be back in their assigned posts.

Unfortunately, one of the agents does not appear to have made it back from Asavea. Agent Vassa normally oversees a small network of agents in [[Foreign_ports#Zemeh|Zemeh]] who report on the activities of the Sumaah Republic. Not only has Agent Vassa not resumed their post, but following the Spring Equinox the Imperial espionage network in Sumaah has "gone dark". A single ciphered message was received at the offices in [[Tassato#Tassato_Regario|Tassato Regario]] that appears to be genuine, claiming that several agents had died and several others vanished and that the writer themselves was in fear of their life and "in the wind." Cautious attempts to connect with the Vassa network to see what is up have yielded no response.

It's not unusual for agents to vanish, but for a whole network of agents to go quiet is a cause for alarm. There are three possibilities; the Sumaah Republic [[High House of Vigilance]] may have uncovered the Imperial agents in Zemeh. They have [[Price_of_prosperity#War_with_Sumaah|taken action]] against Imperial agents within their borders before, after all. Alternatively, the Asavean faction the Sumaah agents were involved in investigating might have attacked them, either in Asavea or when they returned to Sumaah. Finally, it the network might have unravelled due to the actions of a third, unknown enemy. That latter is the most worrying, of course.

Investigating what has happened represents something of a challenge. It will also require the cooperation of '''Albrecht von Holberg''' who holds the Regario Dossier. This cooperation is confirmed by the holder of the seat emailing {{plot}} after the event, before the end of downtime, indicating which if any methods of investigating the missing agents they have supported. Any they don't support will fail.
===Ambassadorial Concern===
* '''The Ambassador to the Republic could ask for help investigating the disappearance of Imperial citizens
* '''Doing so would certainly reveal the Vassa network to the High House of Vigilance
Ambassador Accalon could ask the Sumaah to investigate the disappearances, but doing so would certainly reveal that the missing Imperial citizens were spying on the Republic. There's no need to be specific here - there are few enough Imperial citizens going missing in Sumaah that the High House of Vigilance would be able to investigate what has happened. As long Albrecht von Holberg cooperates, the Sumaah will find out what happened... but it will make it impossible to re-establish effective spies in Zemeh for the next three years. If they don't cooperate, the Sumaah will know that there were spies but will have no useful information that could stop new agents being sent in. The holder of the seat can also use an email to ask that new agents be dispatched, once they are comfortable the situation is resolved.
===Asavean Factionalism===
* '''Contacting the faction the Vassa network was investigating may provide leads
* '''Doing so risks revealing to that faction (or factions) that they were being investigated by the Empire
Someone could contact the Asavean faction the agents were investigating, using the [[Call Winged Messenger|winged messenger]] address already supplied, but again that would almost certainly warn that faction that the Empire had been spying on them. Obviously without the aid of Albrecht von Holberg it will be difficult to know which faction the agents were dealing with. Just asking them ''all'' would make them ''all'' think they were being spied on.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Rahmah i Darwisj i Erigo.jpg|caption='''Rahmah i Darwisj i Erigo''', Imperial Spymaster|align=left|width=400}}</div>
===Spies and Agents===
* '''The Imperial Spymaster could put together an investigation in Zemeh to track down what happened to the Vassa network agents
* '''Doing so needs the Spymaster to use their ability to announce a spy network, and would count as a commission
* '''Such a mission would provide a scouting venture to Imperial fleets - provided they were enchanted with Muffled Oar
* '''A mission will alert the High House of Vigilance that something is happening but as long as the Regario Dossier cooperates will not indicate what
The [[Imperial Spymaster]] and the [[Regario Dossier]] could liase on an operation together. During the Summer Solstice they could use their ability to [[Imperial_Spymaster#Networks_and_Coves|commission networks and coves]] to arrange support for a mission in Zemeh. This would require an [[announcement]], count as a [[commission]], but not require any [[weirwood]] or money. If it were done, following the Summer Solstice any [[the League|League]] [[fleet|ship-captain]] would be able to participate in a special [[Fleet#Scouting|scouting]] [[voyage]] aimed at uncovering events in Zemeh. If at least 3,000 strength were committed to the voyage, the facts about what has happened to Agent Vassa and their network, and who was behind it, would be uncovered. However, unless ''every'' ship that took part was under the effect of [[Muffled Oar]] or a similar [[Night magic]] [[enchantment]], the High House of Vigilance would be aware that ''something'' is going on even if they do not know exactly what. If Albrecht von Holberg doesn't cooperate with this action, it will achieve nothing other than to worry the Sumaah.
<div style="float:right; width: 400px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=GMShutteredLantern.jpg|caption='''Tyburn Natkysset''' (right), Grandmaster of the Shuttered
Lantern|align=left|width=400}}</div>
===Hooded Lanterns===
* '''The Grandmaster of the Shuttered Lantern could take advantage of the outstanding invitation for an order to visit Sumaah
* '''If they do this it will use up the Conclave's opportunity, and ''only'' discover details of what is going on with the Vassa network agents
<div style="float:right; width: 150px; clear: right;">
{{CaptionedImage|file=Roshanwe.png|align=right|width=150}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=City of Locks.png|align=right|width=150}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=Dark_Adapted_Eye_2.png|align=right|width=150}}</div>
There is an opportunity for the [[Shuttered Lantern]] order to [[Satraps_of_the_Abyss#Wisdom_of_the_Conclave|visit Sumaah]] this season, to explore how the Sumaah keep their people safe from dangerous eternals. Instead, when [[Grandmaster#Guiding_an_Order|guiding the order]] the [[grandmaster]] could instruct magicians to investigate the disappearance of the Imperial agents in Sumaah. If this were done, they would not uncover any useful information about Sumaah practices around eternals, but they would discover what had happened to the agents and who was responsible. Doing this would ''not'' attract the attention of the High House of Vigilance. Again, if Albrecht doesn't cooperate with this it will just prove to be a waste of time and the Shuttered Lantern will get ''nothing''.
===Eternal Plenipotential===
* '''The Archmages of Day, Autumn, or Night could enlist the aid of Roshanwe, Basileia Brazen, or the Whisper Gallery to find out more
* '''Doing so would require them to use their plenipotentiary power
Alternatively, there are several [[eternal|eternals]] who might be prevailed upon to offer assistance. While [[Sung]] and [[Leviathan]] might be questioned through ritual magic, it's not clear that would yield anything useful. Sung's answers are always mysterious, and while Leviathan might be able to explain what lead to the Vassa network being rolled up, it's doubtful he will be able to offer any insight into who did it. Among the remaining eternals, [[Roshanwe]], [[Basileia]], and the [[Whisper Gallery]] all have the potential to offer aid. Roshanwe is a seeker, and while it is rarely mentioned, spying and espionage ''are'' a form of seeking. The City of Locks are adept spies, and [[Basileia#The Five Pillars|the Surveyors' Cartel]] in particular has an interest in espionage. The Whisper Gallery are unpredictable, but they enjoy secrets and are generally not as opposed to spies and spying as they are to, say, [[Magpies|hunters of lost artefacts]] or [[Historical_research#The_Department_of_Historical_Research|scholars of lost lore]].

A [[Archmage#Plenipotentiary|plenipotentiary]] for any one of the three would be able to either provide an opportunity to learn more, or simply provide answers directly. In both cases, there is likely to be a price however. There's also a chance that the last two on the list might even be ''behind'' the disappearances. On the plus side, if they ''are'' they're unlikely to deny it if asked point-blank to look into it. This is the only approach that doesn't require the aid of Albrecht von Holberg; the eternals asked to look into the matter will work out what is going on as part of their investigation.

===Wheels and Windows===
* '''Re-establishing the Vassa network without knowing what is going on risks the new agents meeting the same fate as the old ones
* '''There is only a narrow window to uncover what has happened to the Vassa network
Regardless of what is done, the Regario Dossier is short of agents in the Sumaah Republic. The civil service advise caution though. If new agents are simply sent in to replace the old ones, there is no guarantee that whatever happened to Agent Vassa and their network will not just happen again, and at that point the Empire is just feeding espionage agents to unknown enemies.

There's also a narrow window to do something; unless wheels are set in motion at the Summer Solstice, the trail will be too cold for any useful information to be uncovered at all. After that, the only way to find anything useful will be to send more agents and hope they aren't killed before their annual report next year.
{{Sumaah Links}}

Everything is on show

2026-07-20T11:03:01Z

Dre:

[[Category:Winds of Fortune]][[Category:388YE Summer]]
<ic>
"''Because she's a dickhead, that's why!''" Heloísa refused to get back in line as they ran drills. Adriana had been riling her up all day, and the dam had finally burst. "''She's a Mestran! We shouldn't be fighting together; she'll just end up stabbing me in back... she can't even parry without risking her arm!''" Both Heloísa's and Adriana's friends started shouting at that, throwing down their dulled steel and raising fists ready to brawl.

Teodora grimaced and clapped their hands together to try to bring some semblance of order. They knew it was risky; that the other officers were generally keeping the twin cities separate. They had a feeling, though, that this group could be something special if they could start to trust each other. "''I don't care if she's from Cevia! If I tell you to fight alongside each other, you're going to. If you can't do that, then you shouldn't consider yourself a Sparrow. And if you're not a Sparrow... what the '''fuck''' are you doing in my training yard?''" Teodora spat on the floor and stared as the two groups started getting back into their lines. "''Right, from the top. I want us to have mastered the Marcus Shield before sundown.''"
</ic>
<div style="float:left; width: 300px; clear: right; margin: 15px;">{{CaptionedImage|file=Sparrows Reckoning Badge.png|align=right|width=500}}</div>
==Overview==
During the Winter Solstice 386YE, the Imperial Senate passed a [[Raise Third League Army|motion]] to [[Army#Recruitment|raise]] a third [[The League|League]] army in [[Tassato]]. The motion was proposed by '''Cesare Sanguineo Rezia Di Tassato''', as the Senator for [[Tassato]], and seconded by '''Aspar''', as the [[Conscience of the Senate]]. The majority of the funding for the army was provided by '''Vesna Borkovna Prochnost''', [[Emperor Vesna|Empress of the Hearth]].

Last season, Tassato was enchanted with [[Mystic_scrolls_of_Estavus#Hammers_of_Fury|Hammers of Fury]] by [[Varushka_groups#Cabal_Lyktan|Cabal Lyktan]]. Now, eighteen months after it started raising, the army is almost ready to take the field against the enemies of the Empire, and '''Cesare''' has informed the civil service of the army's name, "''Sparrows Reckoning''", but the army's essential quality remains an open question. The army has been raised from across the League, with recruits drawn from each of the five cities. The recruits have studied at the [[Tassato#Five_Cities_Military_Academy|Five Cities Military Academy]], and are close to finishing their [[army qualities|training]].

None of the options available for the army cost any additional resources. Cesare Sanguineo Rezia Di Tassato, as the raising senator, is responsible for choosing the new army's forte. He should inform one of the Speakers for the Senate of his decision during the summit.

==Always Keeping Score==
<div {{float}}">{{CaptionedImage|file=Point of Pride.jpg|align=left|width=600}}</div>
* '''The creation of the Sparrows has swelled Pride in the city of Tassato'''
* '''Newly mustered soldiers are eager for opportunities to prove that they are the equals of any League army'''

There are two famous armies in the League. The [[Wolves of War]] are one of the most experienced armies anywhere in the Empire. Versatile and universally admired across the League, they have a long and studied history fighting in every major conflict in every war since forever. Their reputation for professionalism makes them a feared enemy and a welcome ally on any battlefield. The army has always drawn recruits from every city in the League, making it something every city ''and no city'' can be Proud of.

The [[Towerjacks]], by comparison, were disbanded in 346YE, so the soldiers of the former army spent the next three decades garrisoning the walls of Holberg, keeping the Druj out. It's hard to be ''more'' famous than being the army that held a siege for thirty-three years. As famous as they are, they are also undeniably "Holberg's army". The League might be proud of the Towerjacks, but if folks in Tassato have to hear that "Holberg is the greatest city in the world" one more time, they just might challenge the Towerjacks to a duel themselves.

In the history of the League, Tassato has never had an army of its own, never had a claim to fame the way Holberg does with the Towerjacks. Until today... As the army comes ready to deploy, there is an enormous swelling of Pride in the city at the achievement. Soon, Tassato will have its own army... soon, Tassato will be a rival for Holberg.

Of course, the Sparrows don't have a famous reputation like the Wolves of War or the Towerjacks. They don't have a long and venerated role in the Empire's history. They didn't fight against [[Alderei the Fair]], or take part in any famous wars. Right now, they're the third army of the League - in a nation that notoriously does ''not'' give out prizes for participation.

The Sparrows are like a newborn child - complete with two proud parents in Regario and Maestra. Sure, the army might not be famous - not yet - but already it's filling up with hot-headed bravos and other ambitious types who are eager to take the fight to the enemy and have a chance to prove themselves every bit the equal of the 'Jacks and the Wolves.

==Take It All==
* '''Sparrows Reckoning could have the ''Conquering'' quality'''
* '''A ''Conquering'' army can take the ''Push the Line'' order when attacking'''
The [[Gryphon's Pride]] were raised as [[Army_qualities#Conquering|conquerors]], representative of Dawnish ambitions in [[the Barrens]]. The officers of Sparrows Reckoning could be trained in the same way; encouraged to focus on strategies that capture land from barbarians. The soldiers would concentrate on practising lightning strikes to claim key objectives and break enemy supply lines.

<div style="max-width:800px;"><box>'''Push the Line'''
* '''The ability of this army to conquer territory is increased by three-tenths
* '''Casualties inflicted by this army are reduced by a fifth'''
The army seeks to dominate key strategic objectives, and focuses on claiming territory from the opposing army. </box></div>

==Quick March==
* '''Sparrows Reckoning could have the ''Fast'' quality'''
* '''A ''Fast'' army can take the ''Forced March'' order when attacking'''
* '''A ''Fast'' army can take the ''Desperate Reinforcement'' order when defending'''
The [[The_Brass_Coast_military_concerns#The_Fire_of_the_South|Fire of the South]] are one of the two fast armies in the Empire, trained in tactics appropriate to flat, open land. Sparrows Reckoning could opt for similar, with a focus on travelling light, with warehouses and caches in the towns and cities across the Empire for them to take on supplies. They would, of course, rely on the [[trods]] but also the vast roads that stretch across the nations.

<box>'''Forced March'''
* '''Can move as far as the general wishes this season. It must still stop moving when it enters a hostile territory'''
* '''The ability of this army to capture territory is decreased by one fifth'''
A general who orders a forced march pushes their troops to move swiftly - but also takes pains to preserve their strength so that when they arrive they are in a fit state to fight. Some soldiers may fall behind, but they keep moving until they catch up with the army again. By taking advantage of roads and trods, the general ensures that when the army arrives at its destination it does so with the will to engage the enemy. Yet a forced march is not magical movement - the army will arrive late in the campaign season, meaning their ability to capture territory is reduced.
</box>
<box>'''Desperate Reinforcement'''
* '''Can move as far as the general wishes this season. It must still stop moving when it enters a hostile territory'''
* '''The ability of this army to defend territory is decreased by one fifth'''
Sometimes a situation is desperate, but additional troops may turn the tide of battle. In such cases, the general pushes their troops to move as quickly as possible, to ensure that a faltering garrison receives last minute assistance, or a failing position is reinforced just before it collapses. When time is of the essence, the general can risk exhausting some of their troops to ensure they arrive in time to support their allies.</box>

==Masters of Logistics==
* '''Sparrows Reckoning could have the ''Resourceful'' quality'''
* '''A ''Resourceful'' army can benefit from [[Casualties#Emergency_Resupply|emergency resupply]] regardless of what territory they are in or whether they are engaged by the enemy'''
* '''A ''Resourceful'' army can benefit from [[Casualties#Natural_Resupply|natural resupply]] regardless of what territory they are in as long as they are not engaged by the enemy, even if they are taking an attacking order'''
The excellent logistics of the League are readily apparent to those who know the history of the Towerjacks in [[Holberg]] and the Wolves of War across the Empire. The best and brightest of Tassato could be encouraged to work with the quartermasters. Tasked with ensuring that Sparrows Reckoning always has access to adequate supplies, the army would be able to rely on that logistical support to distribute resources and assign new soldiers, even while under attack.

==Participation: Sparrows==
* '''Players starting a new League character based in Tassato are encouraged to consider playing an officer in the Sparrows'''
* '''Many Sparrows are Ambitious and hungry to prove themselves in the cut-throat world of League politics'''
* '''You can use a symbol of a sparrow or a sparrow-hawk to show that you are part of the army'''

Players who are creating new League characters based in Tassato are encouraged to consider playing an officer in the Sparrows. The army is filled with ambitious, some would say hot-headed, citizens of Tassato who have joined the army looking to get ahead. Those with their own [[resource|resources]] or some get-up-and-go have already been singled out for the army's officer class, so it's a great background for a starting character. You don't have to have a military unit, nor even be a soldier; every Imperial army includes magicians, artisans, priests and other characters who help with logistics and support.

Being part of the Sparrows is an attitude, not a resource or a skill set. They're the youngest of three ''very'' competitive siblings. Your older siblings, the Towerjacks and the Wolves of War, have been around the block - twice. They've done everything and fought everyone, and they're famous already. The Sparrows are just setting out, and they have got ''everything'' to prove. If you're a [[bravo]], you should be in every fight in Anvil. If you're not, then you should be constantly looking for other ways to prove that you and the other Sparrows aren't just the League's youngest army; you're also the ''best'' army.

As a member of the army, you don't have to do what your [[general]] tells you to do while you're in Anvil. Your time at the summit is effectively your own to spend as you choose. However, if you can find ways to support your general and, more importantly, the army itself, then it will make it easier for them to get established. You don't have a say in what the army orders will be, but of course you are free to encourage your general to ensure that the Sparrows go where the fighting is thickest; otherwise, they'll never get a chance to prove themselves.

Many members of the army wear a symbol of a sparrow or, in some cases, a sparrow-hawk, when they're off duty to show their allegiance. Sparrows still fight amongst themselves - Regarians and Maestrans will always have something to squabble about, but most Sparrows are determined to band together when it counts. You won't become the best army in the League unless you stick together through thick and thin.

If you're playing a long-standing character from Tassato, bear in mind that the Sparrows are ''your'' army. Most of the wealthy and powerful inhabitants of Tassato are immensely Proud of their new army and determined to do their bit to see them succeed. After all, the Pride of the city is at stake here. If you are from Tassato and you see a League citizen wearing the symbol of the Sparrows, it is a good idea to give them as much help as you can afford to. The better the soldiers are doing, the sooner people will talk about the Sparrows in the same whispered tones they use to describe the Wolves and the 'Jacks.

==Remnants of the Iron Labyrinth==
* '''The Hammers of Fury ritual performed on Tassato has had unexpected side effects'''
* '''The Chain is seen to be slightly brighter over Tassato than other constellations'''
* '''Artisans from Tassato gain access to an ability at the coming summit'''
As the forges of Tassato begin to grow cold and the last effects of the [[Hammers of Fury]] start to fade, there is a [[Things_go_awry#The_Stars_are_Wrong|subtle shift]] in the air. [[The Chain]], high above, glows eerily in the night sky. Shining brightly and pulsing - almost as if fed by a heavenly bellows - the five stars can be seen across the twin cities. It only happens for one night, but all [[cambion|cambions]] and every [[artisan]] feels an energy in the air - as if some remnant of [[Autumn magic]] remains.

During the Summer Solstice, any artisan with a personal resource in Tassato can use an ability tied to the lingering effects of the ritual. Once during the summit, they can effectively "refresh" a [[Crafting_skills#Journeyman_Item|journeyman magic item]] bonded to them with thirty seconds of appropriate roleplay. All expended uses of that item are refreshed: if an [[Amberglass Chain]] had been used both times, it would replenish both uses, but if it had only been used once, then it would only replenish one use. This ability does nothing to magic items whose effect is passive, such as a [[Landskeeper's Oath]], or where a resource is expended, such as [[Circlet of Falling Snow]].

Cambions who live in Tassato, or who have spent time there this past season, can gain a benefit once at the upcoming summit. They can regain, or gain, a temporary [[Heroic_skills#Hero|hero point]] if they feel they have bested a worthwhile opponent in some manner. This can be as simple as delivering a witty quip or as complicated as unleashing a curse on a worthy rival. This hero point is always the first to be spent and cannot be regained once lost.
{{ItemTable|Artisan_Slot_Two}}

Fist of the Mountains

2026-07-19T09:07:25Z

Dre: /* Overview */

{{Army Page}}
{{CaptionedImage|file=FistoftheMountains_Colour.png|align=right|width=250}}
===Overview===
This army was supported by a number of miners, engineers and ex-prospectors, and the captains were regularly advised by clever [[Wintermark magical traditions#Icewalkers|icewalkers]] and proud [[Wintermark culture and customs#Art and History|scops]]. Centuries of fighting in the mountains of [[Sermersuaq]], [[Skarsind]] and [[Hahnmark]] left their soldiers with a reputation for caution and for an ability to fight viciously in tight spaces over vertiginous drops. By heeding the words of [[Army_qualities#Farsighted|farsighted]] advisors, the general was able to employ divination to allow them to find the perfect place to move their army. While such methods were unpredictable and difficult to make sense of, they meant the Fist of the Mountain was rarely where the enemy expected it to be - something made clear when the army prevented the Grendel from destroying the Great Harbour at Elos shortly before the [[To ruin|Autumn Equinox 387YE]].

The first Wintermark General led the [[Fist of the Mountains]] army, and was appointed (or re-appointed) at the Summer Solstice each year.

===History===
TBC
__TOC__
TBC
====Recent History====
TBC

===Traditions===
TBC
==Composition==
TBC
==Army Quality : [[Army_qualities#Farsighted|Farsighted]]==
Centuries of fighting in the mountains of [[Sermersuaq]], [[Skarsind]], and [[Hahnmark]] left the army's soldiers with a reputation for caution and for an ability to fight viciously in tight spaces over vertiginous drops. By heeding the words of [[Army_qualities#Farsighted|farsighted]] advisors, the general was able to employ divination to allow them to find the perfect place to move their army. While such methods were unpredictable and difficult to make sense of, they meant the Fist of the Mountain was rarely where the enemy expected it to be - and often seemed to be in the perfect place at the perfect time.
{{CaptionedImage|file=GenFistoftheMountains.jpg|caption='''Umarth Kannask''', last General of the Fist of the Mountains|align=left|width=250}}
{{RecentElections|General_of_the_Fist_of_the_Mountains|the title of [[General]] of the Fist of the Mountains}}
[[Category:Imperial Army]][[Category:Wintermark]][[Category:Military Council]]

The shadows fall behind you

2026-07-18T22:10:02Z

Dre: /* Dare do all */

[[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Winds of Fortune]]
<div style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr; gap: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<quote by='The Wind Erodes the Mountain, by Fedelmidd Sydanjaa's Heart Floer'>
The wind erodes the Mountain, the First finally found its end<br>
On south sands the spires and citadels of Urizen<br>
Bore witness as armadas and the army fought and bled<br>
Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest

Those maggots, marauders, they brought with them Mawrig's intent<br>
Destruction, devastation, the dirge of a Grendel advance<br>
A portent's in the water, see the signs, the runes were read<br>
Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest

Fleet foot flanking, they evade the enemy's gaze<br>
Into Elos harbour, the hero's hammer did raise

And shattered the enchantment of a tempestuous talisman<br>
Ruining the ritual and wrecking the purple clad plan<br>
The Warriors whispered "farewell", fell, then rose up from the dead<br>
Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest

Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest<br>
The wind erodes the Mountain, the First finally found its end.
</quote>

<quote by='In Redoubt, by Ethelfrith Sigeling'>
In Redoubt,<br>
The runes fall, fated.<br>
As Ull lies with Yoorn,<br>
As the fleets flow in.

The tide turns, the swords drawn.<br>
Under Wanderer’s eye<br>
Waves wash on southern wharves.

Elos – lost<br>
And no hero hurries to the hopeless fight.<br>
But the skein demands our foe is forced to falter,<br>
The blade blunted, that, sea borne,<br>
Would bleed the mountain mage’s heart.<br>

So our soldiers stand, and,<br>
Step by hard-won step<br>
Break the wave,<br>
Shatter the sea-sphere.

A final blow<br>
Of a far-sighted fist.
</quote></div>
{{CaptionedImage|file=LastFistBanner.jpeg|caption=Great leaders inspire greatness in others|align=left|title=Art by Determination of Ice Kaisa|width=400}}
==Overview==
The ripples of the wave that broke on the shores of [[Redoubt]] continue to wash across the Empire. Last season, an [[opportunity]] was [[Flames_and_the_dark#The_Dream_Master|presented]] to create an [[inspirational location]] at the [[Redoubt#Elos|Elos]] docks using the last banner of the [[Fist of the Mountains]], a gift from [[general]] '''Umarth "Winter's Flame" Kannask'''. The banner was presented so that it could be raised at Elos when the port was retaken from the [[Grendel]]. The Grendel receded, the Empire surged, and the docks were [[Flames and the dark|quickly back in service]], soon to be joined by [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Conclave_sessions#Acceptance:_Phaleron_and_Phoebus_Al-Pulpi|a new guest]] from the [[Realms#Day|day realm]].

None of this would have been possible without the sacrifice of the Fist of the Mountain. The oldest of the [[Wintermark]] [[army|armies]], they [[To ruin|gave everything]] to prevent the Grendel invaders destroying Elos with a weapon seized from the [[Bay_of_Catazar#Temple_of_Tempest_Jade|Temple of Tempest Jade]]. If they had not been in Redoubt, the beautiful port-city would have been destroyed by the unleashed power of ''[[Siakha|Maelstrom]]'', and Urizen does not forget such sacrifice.

The [[Synod]] have indicated that they do intend to [[consecration|consecrate]] the restored docks at the [[Redoubt#Elos|Great Harbour at Elos]]. The benefits could be significant, leaving a lasting impact on the region. The unique and powerful aura would draw virtuous citizens to Elos to experience the effects, contemplate the sacrifice of the [[Fist of the Mountains]] and gaze upon the the banner that is ''Umarth's legacy''.
{{SOP|statement=The Empire is an amalgamation of our Ambitions. Each stronger as others take the burden. As Tian bore the flame, Umarth bore the consequence of decision. The Fist of the Mountains paid the price, now our Urizen must take the branches and carry the light. We call for a writ of consecration to build a flame that will burn on the docks of Elos. Let the mystics of Wintermark and the seers and illuminates of Urizen make pilgrimage. There they will reflect on the gift and burden of farsight, to show the Way to their people.|by=Eldrid 'Phoenix Flame' Vestardottir, Ambition Assembly|vote={{GM}} 332-0|when=Spring 388YE|size=small}}

==Calling==
* '''The Ambition Assembly have claimed Umarth's deed as an example of the path of Ambition'''
It is the [[Ambition]] Assembly who have claimed the deeds of the Fist of the Mountain as an example of their path. They cited the story of [[Tian]] who achieved great things, but at a great personal cost, and draw a parallel to the actions of the last general and the brave [[mystic|mystics]] of the Fist. Already, ambitious pilgrims from across Urizen and Wintermark are making the journey to Elos, to be there to witness virtue being made manifest for generations to come.

If the area is consecrated with [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] in the coming season, it will have a lasting effect - assuming the General Assembly confirm they wish to proceed.

{{Mandate|mandate=Consequences are the price of Ambition. We send (named individual) with a dose of true liao to consecrate the site where the last banner of the Fist of the Mountain flies. May all who see it know that no price is too high to realise your dreams.|assembly=General Assembly}}

Should this mandate be enacted, the banner will be hung in pride of place and the docks consecrated with the [[Auras_of_Ambition#Dare_Do_All|true consecration]] of Ambition. Like the [[Prelate_of_Adelmar%27s_Shrine#Academy_of_Arms|Academy of Arms]] in neighbouring [[Redoubt#Siluri|Siluri]], it will become a place of pilgrimage and stand as a symbol of the courage of the Fist of the Mountain, and the bonds of loyalty between Urizen and Wintermark, as well as a celebration of ambition.

==Drive==
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
<tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Fist's Memorial'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Sinecure</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Naris, Redoubt </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 12 wains of [[white granite]], 8 wains of [[mithril]], 60 crowns, three months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the start of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Requires Elos Harbour be consecrated with true liao following the Summer Solstice 388YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Creates the title Custodian of the Fist's Memorial
* Creates a sinecure producing 9 liao
</td></tr>
</table>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightGreen;">'''Custodian of the Fist's Memorial'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Type:''' Urizen or Wintermark national</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Appointment:''' Ambition Assembly</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Powers:''' Receives an income of 9 [[liao]] each season
<tr><td>'''Responsibilities:'''
* Maintain the site and welcome visiting pilgrims
* Share the stories of the last stand of the Fist
* Encourage Imperial citizens to take a stand against the rapacious Grendel</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''If the mandate to consecrate Elos harbour is upheld it would be possible to create a memorial to the Fist'''
* '''The memorial would require a custodian appointed by the Ambition Assembly'''
* '''The title could be held by a Wintermarker or an Urizeni'''
* '''If the mandate is upheld with a greater majority, the memorial will improve natural resupply for mortal armies and navies from Wintermark and Urizen resting in Elos'''
Unsurprisingly for a cadre of dedicants of [[Ambition]], the visiting clergy are not simply satisfied to do what was asked and then sit on their laurels. Ambition is not Prosperity, it does not leave time for resting and enjoying the fruits of one's labour, but to strive ever onwards to do ever more. The construction of a memorial is proposed, depicting in [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relief relief] the brave acts of the warriors of the Fist for visitors to come and pay their respects for many years to come.

Should it be built, it will create the title of '''Custodian of the Fist's Memorial''', available to any Wintermark or Urizen citizen and elected by the Ambition assembly. They would be responsible for telling the tale of the sacrifice of the Fist, and welcoming any pilgrims to the site. As such, they would receive an income of liao from the civil service each season.

Not only this, but the constant stream of inspired pilgrims would mean that any Urizen or Wintermark [[army]] or [[navy]] who engaged in natural resupply in Redoubt would share in an additional pool of 250 force strength, representing donations and inspired volunteers from among the visiting pilgrims. Armies would need to take a special action to drum up support at Elos harbour, navies would need to put to port there to benefit.

Unfortunately, the [[Argent Sword]] cannot benefit from the Custodian of the Fist's Memorial. The heralds respond to words like "volunteer" and "donation" in the same way a devout follower of the Way might respond to the vilest [[blasphemy]].

As the Urizen and Wintermark Assemblies have called on their people to question the Synod, the memorial will only improve the rate of natural resupply if the mandate to consecrate Elos Harbour is upheld with a greater majority.

{{SOPInner|statement=In the spirit of forging a greater bond between our nations, and in honour of the Fist of the Mountains, we invite the stargazers of Urizen to meet with the mystics of Kallavesa within our swamps. We would share wisdom over the way we build, live and thrive within the swamp with the ambition to help further your aims in the Sarangrave.|by=Otso Usvaling, Wintermark National Assembly|vote={{GM}} 188-0|when=Spring 388YE}}

==Visionary==
<div {{float}}>
<box>
'''Dissipating Silks'''<br>
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
{{Mage Armour}}
* '''Effect:''' You may ignore the ''roleplaying effects'' of any single [[Combat#Traumatic_Wounds|traumatic wound]] until the end of the battle.
* '''Materials:''' Crafting Dissipating Silks requires no special materials. It takes two months to make one of these items.
</div>
</box>
</div>
<div {{float}}>
<box>'''Hero's Journey'''<br>
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
'''Night Ritual; Magnitude 22/18;'''<br>
''Grants a character with the hero skill a vision and two additional hero points''<br>
At the completion of this ritual, the targets receives a single mystic vision related to things that are happening, have happened or may happen at the event, if they have the hero skill. The information is often cryptic and is not a catalogue of events that will happen, more the suggestion of things that are likely to happen, or that are relevant to those events. The vision is one of the [[Signs and Portents]] that a character can access with that ritual. In addition the targets gain two additional hero points, if they have the hero skill.

The target will experience a powerful roleplaying effect: they are keenly aware of the significance of any impending social or martial confrontation. They feel the urge to carefully prepare for the forthcoming conflict, to ensure they are worthy of a hero's name. They find it hard to contemplate shying away from this confrontation, no matter the danger.
</div>
</box>
</div>
* '''If Elos docks are consecrated with true liao at the coming event, the Urizeni will add a schema for a new magical item to Runesmith's Law'''
* '''If that happens, Wintermark mystics will arrange to have a new magical ritual added to Urizen Lore'''

The [[stargazer|stargazers]] of Urizen and the [[mystic|mystics]] of Kallavesa have not historically spent a great deal of time together. Their natural geographical distance is matched by their different approaches to the supernatural. Still, the last few seasons have forged a great bond between the peoples of the north-west and south-east, threads from individual [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Skein|skeins]] interwoven into one great [[Urizen_culture_and_customs#The_Net_of_the_Heavens|net]]. In honour of the links that have formed, each side has worked with their counterparts to prepare a great in the joint traditions of [[Wintermark_hearth_magic#Crafting|crafting]] and [[Urizen_hearth_magic#Cession|cession]].

Arethas is one of the illuminates of the Spire of the Stallion's Volition. Known for his debating skills more than the power of his preaching, he has organised dozens of Urizeni magicians to work together to create a suitable gift for the Wintermark people who heroically sacrificed the Fist to save Elos. With the help of the [[Zenith#Crucible_of_Fate|great foundaries in Zenith]], Arethas and his allies have arranged for the creation of a copy of a rare schema that allows someone to learn how to make Dissipating silks. This powerful magical item can be worn by magicians taking the battlefield to provide them with a measure of protection from deadly blows. If the consecration of the Elos docks goes ahead, Arethas intends to pass the schema to [[Wintermark_Egregore|Wilda]] so that it can added to Wintermark Law.

Keen to reciprocate, a coven of Kallavesi mystics, the Crescent's Eye have made arrangements with [[Sung|Feather on the Breeze]]. A generation ago, a catoblepas killed a favoured herald of the Night Singer and escaped to run amok in the marshes. The coven trapped the monster in a circle of moon-wards, allowing their hunters to finally defeat the beast. The ''Spiral Dancer'' gave the coven a powerful ritual that they could use to grant their hunters the power to overcome the monster. If the consecration of the Elos docks goes ahead, the Crescent's Eye intend to use [[Gift of Knowledge]] to put Hero's Journey into Urizen Lore.

==Dare do all==
* '''The Synod could use the true consecration to celebrate the Grendel's Ambition in attacking Elos docks'''
* '''What effect that might have on Grendel diplomacy or their view of Elos is unknown'''
Just when everyone thought that they had agreed on the proposal and were ready to submit it to the [[Civil Service|civil service]], something perhaps entirely predictable happened; an Urizeni [[questor]] opened their mouth and inevitably an argument followed. ''Incommodus'' of the [[Spire]] of the Stallion's Volition asks a challenging question - was it not ''also'' an Ambitious plan of the [[Grendel]], to bring a volatile boon of the [[Siakha|''Maelstrom'']] to attempt to blow the dock to smithereens? Ambition has much to say about it being better to try and to fail than failing to try after all.

While Incommodus' proposal raises a lot of eyebrows it isn't ''entirely'' without precedent. Some Grendel are known to honour the "inspiration" of both [[Zemress]] and [[Emperor Barabbas]], even though both the [[the Brass Coast|Freeborn]] and [[Highguard|Highborn]] figures were their committed enemies. There is an argument that virtue is contagious. The [[The_Doctrines_of_the_Faith#The_Doctrine_of_Enlightenment|Doctrine of Enlightenment]] says that "''Virtue's power to exalt transcends the boundaries of soul, spirit, and species''" so is it that hard to believe that it can transcend the boundaries of nationality and enmity? Incommodus may be out of order, but perhaps he has a point.

After ''much'' debate, slightly different proposals are also drawn up to show not only the [[heroism]] and sacrifice of the Fist, but the [[Grendel_religion#Audacity|audacity]] and ambition of the Grendel in their plan that - while it ultimately failed - was certainly in service of a challenging goal. There were no Grendel available to comment, what with the war and all, and the [[The_League_people#Orcs_and_Humans|Apulian orcs]] approached for comment said they were now too long removed from the politics of the Salt Lords or the mood of the Questioners for them to feel confident in any suppositions they might make. They're followers of the Way now, after all, and be sure to write that down.

A mandate is somewhat grudgingly prepared, one that very much [[Mandate#Competing_Mandates|in competition]] with the more traditional one already written.

{{Mandate|mandate=Consequences are the price of Ambition and it is better to try and fail than fail to try. We send (named individual) with a dose of true liao to consecrate the site where the last banner of the Fist of the Mountain flies. May all who see it, whether Imperial or otherwise, know that no price is too high to realise your dreams.|assembly=Ambition Assembly}}

If the mandate is enacted, it will still allow the creation of the [[#Drive|Fist's Memorial]], and inspire the exchange between Urizen and Wintermark. If the commission is raised following ''this'' mandate, it will need to be clear whether the focus of the reliefs are to be solely focused on the heroic sacrifice of the Fist, or shared with the Grendel invaders. In the case there is any doubt, the civil service will default to focusing on the Imperial Army.

What other effects it might have, especially with regard to diplomatic relations with the Grendel, if any at all, is unclear. They might ignore it of course, but they have shown a considerable interest in other consecrated locations in the past. The [[Ambassador to the Grendel]] may have their own opinion on the matter, but that will have to be sought at Anvil.

Incommodus' "helpful contribution" does raise an interesting point about inspiration however. Are the acts of the Empire's enemies worthy of commemoration in this way? Can they inspire the virtuous even though the folk who performed them are not themselves followers of the Way? At least one barbarian nation - the Jotun - honours their fallen enemies as well as their own dead and show reverence for the memorials to Imperial heroes they have never met. Should the Empire be doing the same? Any decision on that matter lies in the hands of the Synod, and will thus need to take place in Anvil where Incommodus is not especially inclined to venture.

<ic>
Down they came, the Fist the Fist</br>
And they saw through the mist, the mist</br>
They heard the sound the drums, the drums</br>
The Grendel fleet; it comes it comes</br>
Then Umarth looked he saw he saw</br>
To see their scheme before before</br>
They came to port to fight to fight</br>
But could not dodge his sight his sight</br>
The Maelstrom's gift it roared it roared</br>
And crackled on the shore the shore</br>
But none would stop heroes heroes</br>
They came to fight in throes in throes</br>
A crystal brought to seek to seek</br>
Destruction here to wreak to wreak</br>
Yet heroes there stood tall stood tall</br>
Prepared they were to fall to fall</br>
And so they did proclaim, proclaim</br>
A hero has a name, a name</br>
</ic>

The shadows fall behind you

2026-07-18T22:08:29Z

Dre:

[[Category:388YE Summer]][[Category:Winds of Fortune]]
<div style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr; gap: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<quote by='The Wind Erodes the Mountain, by Fedelmidd Sydanjaa's Heart Floer'>
The wind erodes the Mountain, the First finally found its end<br>
On south sands the spires and citadels of Urizen<br>
Bore witness as armadas and the army fought and bled<br>
Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest

Those maggots, marauders, they brought with them Mawrig's intent<br>
Destruction, devastation, the dirge of a Grendel advance<br>
A portent's in the water, see the signs, the runes were read<br>
Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest

Fleet foot flanking, they evade the enemy's gaze<br>
Into Elos harbour, the hero's hammer did raise

And shattered the enchantment of a tempestuous talisman<br>
Ruining the ritual and wrecking the purple clad plan<br>
The Warriors whispered "farewell", fell, then rose up from the dead<br>
Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest

Stand against storm and sea as sagas are laid to rest<br>
The wind erodes the Mountain, the First finally found its end.
</quote>

<quote by='In Redoubt, by Ethelfrith Sigeling'>
In Redoubt,<br>
The runes fall, fated.<br>
As Ull lies with Yoorn,<br>
As the fleets flow in.

The tide turns, the swords drawn.<br>
Under Wanderer’s eye<br>
Waves wash on southern wharves.

Elos – lost<br>
And no hero hurries to the hopeless fight.<br>
But the skein demands our foe is forced to falter,<br>
The blade blunted, that, sea borne,<br>
Would bleed the mountain mage’s heart.<br>

So our soldiers stand, and,<br>
Step by hard-won step<br>
Break the wave,<br>
Shatter the sea-sphere.

A final blow<br>
Of a far-sighted fist.
</quote></div>
{{CaptionedImage|file=LastFistBanner.jpeg|caption=Great leaders inspire greatness in others|align=left|title=Art by Determination of Ice Kaisa|width=400}}
==Overview==
The ripples of the wave that broke on the shores of [[Redoubt]] continue to wash across the Empire. Last season, an [[opportunity]] was [[Flames_and_the_dark#The_Dream_Master|presented]] to create an [[inspirational location]] at the [[Redoubt#Elos|Elos]] docks using the last banner of the [[Fist of the Mountains]], a gift from [[general]] '''Umarth "Winter's Flame" Kannask'''. The banner was presented so that it could be raised at Elos when the port was retaken from the [[Grendel]]. The Grendel receded, the Empire surged, and the docks were [[Flames and the dark|quickly back in service]], soon to be joined by [[388YE_Spring_Equinox_Conclave_sessions#Acceptance:_Phaleron_and_Phoebus_Al-Pulpi|a new guest]] from the [[Realms#Day|day realm]].

None of this would have been possible without the sacrifice of the Fist of the Mountain. The oldest of the [[Wintermark]] [[army|armies]], they [[To ruin|gave everything]] to prevent the Grendel invaders destroying Elos with a weapon seized from the [[Bay_of_Catazar#Temple_of_Tempest_Jade|Temple of Tempest Jade]]. If they had not been in Redoubt, the beautiful port-city would have been destroyed by the unleashed power of ''[[Siakha|Maelstrom]]'', and Urizen does not forget such sacrifice.

The [[Synod]] have indicated that they do intend to [[consecration|consecrate]] the restored docks at the [[Redoubt#Elos|Great Harbour at Elos]]. The benefits could be significant, leaving a lasting impact on the region. The unique and powerful aura would draw virtuous citizens to Elos to experience the effects, contemplate the sacrifice of the [[Fist of the Mountains]] and gaze upon the the banner that is ''Umarth's legacy''.
{{SOP|statement=The Empire is an amalgamation of our Ambitions. Each stronger as others take the burden. As Tian bore the flame, Umarth bore the consequence of decision. The Fist of the Mountains paid the price, now our Urizen must take the branches and carry the light. We call for a writ of consecration to build a flame that will burn on the docks of Elos. Let the mystics of Wintermark and the seers and illuminates of Urizen make pilgrimage. There they will reflect on the gift and burden of farsight, to show the Way to their people.|by=Eldrid 'Phoenix Flame' Vestardottir, Ambition Assembly|vote={{GM}} 332-0|when=Spring 388YE|size=small}}

==Calling==
* '''The Ambition Assembly have claimed Umarth's deed as an example of the path of Ambition'''
It is the [[Ambition]] Assembly who have claimed the deeds of the Fist of the Mountain as an example of their path. They cited the story of [[Tian]] who achieved great things, but at a great personal cost, and draw a parallel to the actions of the last general and the brave [[mystic|mystics]] of the Fist. Already, ambitious pilgrims from across Urizen and Wintermark are making the journey to Elos, to be there to witness virtue being made manifest for generations to come.

If the area is consecrated with [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] in the coming season, it will have a lasting effect - assuming the General Assembly confirm they wish to proceed.

{{Mandate|mandate=Consequences are the price of Ambition. We send (named individual) with a dose of true liao to consecrate the site where the last banner of the Fist of the Mountain flies. May all who see it know that no price is too high to realise your dreams.|assembly=General Assembly}}

Should this mandate be enacted, the banner will be hung in pride of place and the docks consecrated with the [[Auras_of_Ambition#Dare_Do_All|true consecration]] of Ambition. Like the [[Prelate_of_Adelmar%27s_Shrine#Academy_of_Arms|Academy of Arms]] in neighbouring [[Redoubt#Siluri|Siluri]], it will become a place of pilgrimage and stand as a symbol of the courage of the Fist of the Mountain, and the bonds of loyalty between Urizen and Wintermark, as well as a celebration of ambition.

==Drive==
<div {{float}}>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
<tr><td style="background-color: LightBlue;">'''Fist's Memorial'''</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Commission Type:''' Sinecure</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Location:''' Naris, Redoubt </td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Cost:''' 12 wains of [[white granite]], 8 wains of [[mithril]], 60 crowns, three months</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Availability:''' Until the start of Summer Solstice 389YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Special:''' Requires Elos Harbour be consecrated with true liao following the Summer Solstice 388YE</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Effect:'''
* Creates the title Custodian of the Fist's Memorial
* Creates a sinecure producing 9 liao
</td></tr>
</table>
<table class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><tr><td style="background-color: LightGreen;">'''Custodian of the Fist's Memorial'''</tr>
<tr><td>'''Type:''' Urizen or Wintermark national</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Appointment:''' Ambition Assembly</td></tr>
<tr><td>'''Powers:''' Receives an income of 9 [[liao]] each season
<tr><td>'''Responsibilities:'''
* Maintain the site and welcome visiting pilgrims
* Share the stories of the last stand of the Fist
* Encourage Imperial citizens to take a stand against the rapacious Grendel</td></tr>
</table>
</div>
* '''If the mandate to consecrate Elos harbour is upheld it would be possible to create a memorial to the Fist'''
* '''The memorial would require a custodian appointed by the Ambition Assembly'''
* '''The title could be held by a Wintermarker or an Urizeni'''
* '''If the mandate is upheld with a greater majority, the memorial will improve natural resupply for mortal armies and navies from Wintermark and Urizen resting in Elos'''
Unsurprisingly for a cadre of dedicants of [[Ambition]], the visiting clergy are not simply satisfied to do what was asked and then sit on their laurels. Ambition is not Prosperity, it does not leave time for resting and enjoying the fruits of one's labour, but to strive ever onwards to do ever more. The construction of a memorial is proposed, depicting in [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relief relief] the brave acts of the warriors of the Fist for visitors to come and pay their respects for many years to come.

Should it be built, it will create the title of '''Custodian of the Fist's Memorial''', available to any Wintermark or Urizen citizen and elected by the Ambition assembly. They would be responsible for telling the tale of the sacrifice of the Fist, and welcoming any pilgrims to the site. As such, they would receive an income of liao from the civil service each season.

Not only this, but the constant stream of inspired pilgrims would mean that any Urizen or Wintermark [[army]] or [[navy]] who engaged in natural resupply in Redoubt would share in an additional pool of 250 force strength, representing donations and inspired volunteers from among the visiting pilgrims. Armies would need to take a special action to drum up support at Elos harbour, navies would need to put to port there to benefit.

Unfortunately, the [[Argent Sword]] cannot benefit from the Custodian of the Fist's Memorial. The heralds respond to words like "volunteer" and "donation" in the same way a devout follower of the Way might respond to the vilest [[blasphemy]].

As the Urizen and Wintermark Assemblies have called on their people to question the Synod, the memorial will only improve the rate of natural resupply if the mandate to consecrate Elos Harbour is upheld with a greater majority.

{{SOPInner|statement=In the spirit of forging a greater bond between our nations, and in honour of the Fist of the Mountains, we invite the stargazers of Urizen to meet with the mystics of Kallavesa within our swamps. We would share wisdom over the way we build, live and thrive within the swamp with the ambition to help further your aims in the Sarangrave.|by=Otso Usvaling, Wintermark National Assembly|vote={{GM}} 188-0|when=Spring 388YE}}

==Visionary==
<div {{float}}>
<box>
'''Dissipating Silks'''<br>
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
{{Mage Armour}}
* '''Effect:''' You may ignore the ''roleplaying effects'' of any single [[Combat#Traumatic_Wounds|traumatic wound]] until the end of the battle.
* '''Materials:''' Crafting Dissipating Silks requires no special materials. It takes two months to make one of these items.
</div>
</box>
</div>
<div {{float}}>
<box>'''Hero's Journey'''<br>
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
'''Night Ritual; Magnitude 22/18;'''<br>
''Grants a character with the hero skill a vision and two additional hero points''<br>
At the completion of this ritual, the targets receives a single mystic vision related to things that are happening, have happened or may happen at the event, if they have the hero skill. The information is often cryptic and is not a catalogue of events that will happen, more the suggestion of things that are likely to happen, or that are relevant to those events. The vision is one of the [[Signs and Portents]] that a character can access with that ritual. In addition the targets gain two additional hero points, if they have the hero skill.

The target will experience a powerful roleplaying effect: they are keenly aware of the significance of any impending social or martial confrontation. They feel the urge to carefully prepare for the forthcoming conflict, to ensure they are worthy of a hero's name. They find it hard to contemplate shying away from this confrontation, no matter the danger.
</div>
</box>
</div>
* '''If Elos docks are consecrated with true liao at the coming event, the Urizeni will add a schema for a new magical item to Runesmith's Law'''
* '''If that happens, Wintermark mystics will arrange to have a new magical ritual added to Urizen Lore'''

The [[stargazer|stargazers]] of Urizen and the [[mystic|mystics]] of Kallavesa have not historically spent a great deal of time together. Their natural geographical distance is matched by their different approaches to the supernatural. Still, the last few seasons have forged a great bond between the peoples of the north-west and south-east, threads from individual [[Wintermark_culture_and_customs#Skein|skeins]] interwoven into one great [[Urizen_culture_and_customs#The_Net_of_the_Heavens|net]]. In honour of the links that have formed, each side has worked with their counterparts to prepare a great in the joint traditions of [[Wintermark_hearth_magic#Crafting|crafting]] and [[Urizen_hearth_magic#Cession|cession]].

Arethas is one of the illuminates of the Spire of the Stallion's Volition. Known for his debating skills more than the power of his preaching, he has organised dozens of Urizeni magicians to work together to create a suitable gift for the Wintermark people who heroically sacrificed the Fist to save Elos. With the help of the [[Zenith#Crucible_of_Fate|great foundaries in Zenith]], Arethas and his allies have arranged for the creation of a copy of a rare schema that allows someone to learn how to make Dissipating silks. This powerful magical item can be worn by magicians taking the battlefield to provide them with a measure of protection from deadly blows. If the consecration of the Elos docks goes ahead, Arethas intends to pass the schema to [[Wintermark_Egregore|Wilda]] so that it can added to Wintermark Law.

Keen to reciprocate, a coven of Kallavesi mystics, the Crescent's Eye have made arrangements with [[Sung|Feather on the Breeze]]. A generation ago, a catoblepas killed a favoured herald of the Night Singer and escaped to run amok in the marshes. The coven trapped the monster in a circle of moon-wards, allowing their hunters to finally defeat the beast. The ''Spiral Dancer'' gave the coven a powerful ritual that they could use to grant their hunters the power to overcome the monster. If the consecration of the Elos docks goes ahead, the Crescent's Eye intend to use [[Gift of Knowledge]] to put Hero's Journey into Urizen Lore.

==Dare do all==
* '''The Synod could use the true consecration to celebrate the Grendel's Ambition in attacking Elos docks'''
* '''What effect that might have on Grendel diplomacy or their view of Elos is unknown'''
Just when everyone thought that they had agreed on the proposal and were ready to submit it to the [[Civil Service|civil service]], something perhaps entirely predictable happened; an Urizeni [[questor]] opened their mouth and inevitably an argument followed. ''Incommodus'' of the [[Spire]] of the Stallion's Volition asks a challenging question - was it not ''also'' an Ambitious plan of the [[Grendel]], to bring a volatile boon of the [[Siakha|''Maelstrom'']] to attempt to blow the dock to smithereens? Ambition has much to say about it being better to try and to fail than failing to try after all.

While Incommodus' proposal raises a lot of eyebrows it isn't ''entirely'' without precedent. Some Grendel are known to honour the "inspiration" of both [[Zemress]] and [[Emperor Barabbas]], even though both the [[the Brass Coast|Freeborn]] and [[Highguard|Highborn]] figures were their committed enemies. There is an argument that virtue is contagious. The [[The_Doctrines_of_the_Faith#The_Doctrine_of_Enlightenment|Doctrine of Enlightenment]] says that "''Virtue's power to exalt transcends the boundaries of soul, spirit, and species''" so is it that hard to believe that it can transcend the boundaries of nationality and enmity? Incommodus may be out of order, but perhaps he has a point.

After ''much'' debate, slightly different proposals are also drawn up to show not only the [[heroism]] and sacrifice of the Fist, but the [[Grendel_religion#Audacity|audacity]] and ambition of the Grendel in their plan that - while it ultimately failed - was certainly in service of a challenging goal. There were no Grendel available to comment, what with the war and all, and the [[The_League_people#Orcs_and_Humans|Apulian orcs]] approached for comment said they were now too long removed from the politics of the Salt Lords or the mood of the Questioners for them to feel confident in any suppositions they might make. They're followers of the Way now, after all, and be sure to write that down.

A mandate is somewhat grudgingly prepared, one that very much [[Mandate#Competing_Mandates|in competition]] with the more traditional one already written.

{{Mandate|mandate=Consequences are the price of Ambition and it is better to try and fail than fail to try. We send (named individual) with a dose of true liao to consecrate the site where the last banner of the Fist of the Mountain flies. May all who see it, whether Imperial or otherwise, know that no price is too high to realise your dreams.|assembly=Ambition Assembly}}

If the mandate is enacted, it will still allow the creation of the [[#Drive|Fist's Memorial]], and inspire the exchange between Urizen and Wintermark. If the commission is raised following ''this'' mandate, it will need to be clear whether the focus of the reliefs are to be solely focused on the heroic sacrifice of the Fist, or shared with the Grendel invaders. In the case there is any doubt, the civil service will default to focusing on the Imperial Army.

What other effects it might have, especially with regard to diplomatic relations with the Grendel, if any at all, is unclear. They might ignore it of course, but they have shown a considerable interest in other consecrated locations in the past. The [[Ambassador to the Grendel]] may have their own opinion on the matter, but that will have to be sought at Anvil.

Incommodus' "helpful contribution" does raise an interesting point about inspiration however. Are the acts of the Empire's enemies worthy of commemoration in this way? Can they inspire the virtuous even though the folk who performed them are not themselves followers of the Way? At least one barbarian nation - the Jotun - honours their fallen enemies as well as their own dead and show reverence for the memorials to Imperial heroes they have never met. Should the Empire be doing the same? Any decision on that matter lies in the hands of the Synod, and will thus need to take place in Anvil where Incommodus is not especially inclined to venture.

<ic>
Down they came, the Fist the Fist</br>
And they saw through the mist, the mist</br>
They heard the sound the drums, the drums</br>
The Grendel fleet; it comes it comes</br>
Then Umarth looked he saw he saw</br>
To see their scheme before before</br>
They came to port to fight to fight</br>
But could not dodge his sight his sight</br>
The Maelstroms gift it roared it roared</br>
And crackled on the shore the shore</br>
But none would stop heroes heroes</br>
They came to fight in throes in throes</br>
A crystal brought to seek to seek</br>
Destruction here to wreak to wreak</br>
Yet heroes there stood tall stood tall</br>
Prepared they were to fall to fall</br>
And so they did proclaim, proclaim</br>
A hero has a name, a name</br>
</ic>