387YE Winter Solstice winds of war

War batters at the borders of the Empire.

Overview

Over the last three months, Imperial forces have engaged in military campaigns. Sometimes those engagements have been wide-ranging and dramatic, other times they have been more sedate. Where there has been dramatic action, or where there are opportunities, we've given a Wind of War its own page; other military actions are discussed here.

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 War and the Winds of Fortune is to make players aware of things their characters should know, based on what their roleplaying says they have been doing, and to maintain the Empire as a living, breathing place where all kinds of events take place beyond the scope of Anvil.

It should go without saying that we ask everyone to abide by the rules about online roleplaying with regard to the military campaign. It's important that the key in-character activity of the Empire world takes place at events. The game is busier and better if everything that can happen in the field, does happen in the field. Military planning and political discussions should happen at events. For this reason, we generally discourage too much downtime roleplaying between events and put strict limits on what can be done online, particularly using our forums and Facebook groups.

All that said, we now present a summary of the key military activity in the Empire - both with links to the expanded Wind of War pages and notes about other important things that have happened that didn't need a full battle campaign write-up.

Fire and Wood, Water and Stone

Autumn to Winter, and the year ending. Nights lengthen at the expense of the day. Long evenings give way to long nights, rain and wind to snow and ice. As the rhythms of the earth slow, the drumbeat of war continues undiminished, unrelenting, never changing.

Turn your eye to the east, to the borders of the Empire, to sodden Therunin. First came the Druj, harbingers of slaughter and fear. They still hold that land which for centuries belonged to the Navarr. Their malice has awoken the vallorn of Tharunind, which swells and blooms beyond the Sweetglades and Greenheart. The colder weather does nothing to slow that irresistible vegetable tide that, unchecked, will swallow the marshes and the forests entirely. The Imperial armies have withdrawn but the fighting is far from over; the waters run crimson and green.

Battle opportunities

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Imperial prognosticators have identified several possible major conjunctions of the Sentinel Gate at the coming summit. The Military Council will muster on Friday night, and the generals will select two of them to be taken up by Imperial heroes. At the moment the full details of these opportunities are not clear; more information will be provided nearer to the event.

All battle opportunities are Combat Highly Likely environments.

Conjunctions

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The Sentinel Gate also allows smaller groups of Imperial citizens to reach locations all over the Empire where their intervention might change the course of events. Many of these conjunctions involve combat, but there are also a variety of other opportunities presented by the magic of the Gate.

For most conjunctions, the Civil Service has identified the Imperial titles that are the most appropriate to take overall responsibility for ensuring that a response is organised. Whilst the individual has been named by the Civil Service, there is no legal requirement for them to coordinate a response or travel on the conjunction. They may delegate oversight to another individual of their choosing. As always, Imperial war scouts will be on hand at the Sentinel Gate to provide further information to any citizens wanting to learn more. They can provide updates on the barbarians' goals, guidance on how to engage the enemy troops or advice on how to avoid casualties and return back to Anvil in safety.

Sometimes it is necessary for us to make small adjustments to the timing or size of encounters at the time of this publication and when an encounter runs at an event. Details for the conjunctions on Friday will be finalised on Friday afternoon of the event before time-in (18:00) whilst details for the conjunctions on Saturday will be finalised on Saturday before time-in (10:00). Please check the details of any conjunction you are interested in as soon as possible to ensure that you have the full and up-to-date information; it might also be sensible to check again shortly before the planned time of the encounter. You can check the details of a conjunction by casting Detect Magic (Discover Conjunction) on the Sentinel Gate in the presence of a referee.

It's very important to pay attention to the accessibility note for each conjunction, which covers the likelihood of combat. Further details about the accessibility of a conjunction are available both before and during the event. You can learn more about this on the accessibility page.

Military Considerations

This is a placeholder page for content that PD are actively working on.

Several territory pages now contain details of strategic obstacles presented or advantages provided by movement through or fighting in those lands. There are also several fortifications that follow different rules. Several armies or nations have special rules or opportunities related to the orders they can issue, which should be borne in mind when discussing military strategies during the Winter Solstice.

• Billeting: Any Imperial army can take the Billet order in Bregasland, Mitwold, Mournwold, or Upwold. Link
• Dawn:
  • Dawnish armies cannot take the Cautious Advance order or the Give Ground order. Link
  • The borders of the Barrens are patrolled by citizens of the territory as a result of the mandate enacted by Ser Tunic. The Druj require 25 victory points to claim a beachhead in the Barrens.
• Highguard
  • Highborn armies can take the Protect the Innocent order. Link
  • Any Highborn army attacking into Zenith from Morrow gains a 20% bonus to any territory captured and suffers a 10% reduction in casualties inflicted. Link
• The Marches:
  • Marcher armies cannot take the Give Ground order. Link
  • The Strong Reeds receive an additional 1000 strength when fighting in Bregasland. Link
  • The Tusks receive an additional 1000 strength when fighting in Mournwold. Link
  • The Drakes receive an additional 1000 strength when fighting in Mitwold. Link
  • The Bounders receive an additional 1000 strength when fighting in Upwold. Link
• Urizen:
  • The borders of Morrow and Zenith are patrolled by citizens of the territory as a result of the mandate enacted by Herminius of the House of the Wanderer. The Druj require 25 victory points to claim a beachhead in Morrow and Zenith.
  • Any Urizen army attacking into Zenith from Morrow gains a 20% bonus to any territory captured and suffers a 10% reduction in casualties inflicted. Link
• Varushka:
  • The borders of Ossium are patrolled by citizens of the territory as a result of the mandate enacted by Velko Perunovich Razorasza. The Druj require 25 victory points to claim a beachhead in Ossium.
  • Varushkan armies can take the Hospitality of the Boyars order whilst in Ossium. Link.
• Wintermark:
  • Wintermark armies can take the Fight with Honour order. Link.
  • Wintermark armies fighting against the Jotun will gain 10% more victory points but inflict 20% less casualties. Link
  • Wintermark armies fighting against the Jotun have their casualties taken reduced by 10%. This effect continues as long as the Winterfolk continue to fight honourably. Link

Click Expand to see military considerations that are less relevant at the current time but are still active.

• Morrow: Any Highborn or Urizen army that defends in Morrow against an army attacking from Zenith gains a 20% bonus to defend territory and suffers a 10% reduction in casualties inflicted. Link