All those moments

Chief Vallack stooped over the steaming pot and ladled a generous helping of stew into the wooden bowl. It was still hot, although only just, so he hastened away from the fire. A few people raised an eyebrow at the sight of their chief taking food a patient. He could see the accusation in their eyes - there was a lot of work to be done - surely a chief had better ways to spend his time than indulge one sickly child?

Vallack knew better. He'd sworn a solemn oath on the Dark Heart of the Forest to look after the man's son if anything ever happened to Giofre. But it wasn't about what he owed the boy. There were plenty of orcs who would be only too happy to take this burden from him and see it was done right.

Instead he clung to what Chief Erdrol had told him the very day he stepped down. "The role of a chief is to lead, not to rule. The moment you stop serving our sept, you stop being our chief." Wise words that he'd tried to keep close to his heart since that day.

He walked to the side of the young boys pallet and slowly handed him the bowl. "Eat" he commanded, "You're safe now, but you must eat."

Even as he said it, the words were bitter ash in his mouth. Nowhere was safe now.

Even conquered by the Empire, the Barrens is wild and unknown.

Overview

A dark wind is blowing through the Barrens, and this time it does not come from the East. The Druj have been driven out by the Golden Sun, though the forests still rage with the fury of their curses, a parting stab delivered as they fled. But the Montanians have been slaughtered by the Northern Eagle, the leaders of the Black Wind have been executed by the Iron Helms, and the Vendarri have been all but wiped out by the Karass. The land is soaked in blood, leaving the surviving orc factions of the Barrens in a state of shock.

There is some good news. The Great Forest Orcs have returned to their homes with the aid of the Quiet Step. They are overjoyed to once more be beneath the boughs of the forest that has been their home for centuries. But the dark wind makes it a bittersweet homecoming. When they learn the fate of the Montanians and the Black Wind, the news turns their celebrations to tears and fills them with dread for what might comes next. The Karass are clearly pleased to have been accepted as foreigners by the Empire and are already looking to the next opportunity to impress their new allies. And plenty of Dawnish citizens are pleased that the Montanians who rebelled against the Empire so long ago have finally got the justice they deserved, and that the Black Wind, whose army is currently fighting with the Druj, have born the same fate any other Druj would have.

Eyes turn now to the Rahvin, still occupying the mithril mine on Bittershore. They have received vital support from the Imperial Orcs, enough supplies to ensure they survive the harsh winter. But as barbarians who have raised their banner against the Empire, their future looks ominous. And as people look east to the Fangs, thoughts turn to the Mallum, to where the army of the Black Wind waits.

Karass

• The Karass have taken the opportunity to settle old scores and are eager for more blood

When the Karass discovered that they were foreigners, that they enjoyed the protection of the Empire, while the Vendarri did not, they swiftly moved against the other orcs in force. The two septs have been in conflict for generations, feuding over land and resources, but the Druj always forbid open warfare between their subjects. There were raids and even occasional murders, but punishment is swift and final if the Druj catch anyone breaking their laws. With the tyrants gone, the Karass seized the moment, believing that this chance might never come again.

If the sept are aware of how their actions may have impacted Imperial politics in the region, they don't show any signs of it. Nor is their appetite for vengeance sated. They are very clearly eyeing the Rahvin and asking pointed questions about what the Empire intends to do with their old rivals. They have no interest in working the Fangs, but it is obvious they will be only too pleased to deal with them should the Empire allow it.

For too long the peoples of Navarr have struggled to claim the entirety of their homes. Let us not sit idle whilst those who have stood with us suffer a similar fate. We send Enis Rootbloom with 50 doses of liao to encourage the people of Navarr to help the Great Forest Orcs in the fight to reclaim the Heart of Peytaht.

Enis RootBloom, Navarr Assembly, Mandate, Upheld with a Greater Majority (355-0), Autumn Equinox 385YE

No priest can tell you what you are loyal to, but we can guide you on that path. Under the Eyes of Loyalty we send Veikko Bondforger to support the following mandate: For too long the people of Navarr have struggled to claim the entirety of their homes. Let us not sit idle while those who have stood with us suffer a similar fate. We send our priest with 50 doses of liao to encourage the people of Navarr to help the Great Forest Orcs in the fight to reclaim the Heart of Peytaht.

Veikko Bondforger, Loyalty Assembly, Mandate, Upheld (279-0), Autumn Equinox 385YE

The virtuous inspire others to greatness. We send Neala Blackhawk with 75 doses of liao to urge priest to engage with the Great Forest Orcs to learn their ways to discover if we might bring them to the Way.

Haewyn Eternal, Pride Assembly, Mandate, Upheld with a Greater Majority (468-63

Great Forest Orcs

• The Great Forest Orcs control the region of Heart of Peytaht
• They control the weirwood grove of the Eaves of Peytaht
• They are sending an emissary to Anvil to speak privately with their allies among the Navarr

The Great Forest Orcs returned in triumph to the Heart of Peytaht, their ancient home from which they were forced to flee years ago. But their jubilation turns to shock and then to fear when they hear of the fate that has befallen their closest allies, the Montanians. When the two groups fled the Barrens, they did so together, side-by-side as comrades-in-arms. They made peace with the Empire together, and for several years they walked the trods together.

At first they confront those Navarr who have accompanied them, demanding explanations, but when news of the Iron Helms arrives they fall quiet. Some Navarr find the silence more painful than the accusations, especially when they realise the cause. With each passing year the Great Forest Orcs had grown closer to the Navarr, a friendship that began in pragmatism but bloomed in unlikely ways. Now nobody knows how to act. The orcs of the Great Forest find it difficult to reconcile the words of their Navarr friends, or the assurances of the Imperial Senate, or the actions taken by the Imperial Synod with the reality of what is happening in the Barrens. They look to their allies for explanations, for reassurances that the Empire will keep its promises to them, but it is hard to find comfort to offer.

Some of the orcs grow angry, challenging the thorns and the followers of Loyalty inspired to accompany them, refusing to believe that they were unaware of what was planned. Plans to arrange trade with the Eaves of Peytaht dry up. The elders of the Great Forest are facing the possibility that they might need the weirwood themselves, to fortify their homes against attacks from the Dawnish and their allies.

When the survivors of the attack on Hope's Rest reach the Heart of Peytaht, they are immediately granted sanctuary. There are perhaps a hundred of them, mostly children, young parents, those too old or sick to fight, those who would not countenance armed resistance or were pulled away from Dourfell Keep by obligations of Loyalty. Chief Vallack is calm and proud, makes no effort to hide what is happening. The Great Forest Orcs do not abandon their allies.

As the Winter Solstice arrives, it is not clear what will happen next. Many of the Great Forest Orcs in Therunin had been considering asking for leave to remain. While the Eyes of Loyalty were focused on the Quiet Step, their glance encouraged both orcs and their Navarr neighbours to consider what "home" actually means. There was the beginnings of a serious discussion about whether those orcs who have put own roots among the Navarr might petition for a change to stay, and what that might look like. Now, those conversations are faltering and falling silent. If the Navarr do not find a way to restore the trust that has been so badly frayed by events in the Barrens, their former allies will feel they have no choice but to leave, to prepare for the defence of the Heart of Peytaht alongside their families.

Harwyn Eternal and the Pride Assembly urged priests to visit the Great Forest Orcs and learn about their faith. That conversation had been progressing well, but it too is cut short by events in the Barrens. One of the Navarr has prepared a short report for Harwyn and Neala Blackhawk on what they managed to find out, but it is not clear now how much more they will learn. Conversations about faith become stilted and perfunctory. Chief Vallack has warned his people not to discuss any spiritual matters with the humans, lest it give anyone a justification to declare them heretics.

The Great Forest Orcs are angry and many of them are afraid. Alone of the factions of the Barrens, they had first-hand experience of the Empire at its best, as well as at its worst. They heard the words of the Synod and the Senate, they fought alongside the Navarr in Brocéliande against the vallorn, they offered their expertise in the care of weirwood trees freely, where the Druj had always extorted it from them. Many of them are feeling betrayed. They're not interested in causing trouble for the Empire - they are also the only Barrens orcs who have any concept of how big the Empire is. But there is a real fear that they have made a fatal mistake trusting the Empire, mistaking the friendship of the Navarr for friendship with an Empire they are no longer sure can be trusted.

There are a number of ways the Navarr might reassure the Great Forest Orcs, might maintain their good relations - assuming they still wish to try. The Great Forest Orcs are hurting at the moment, trying to find a way forward, and they are not in the mood to suggest these courses of action - it is up to the Navarr to think about what might be done.

There are likely to be repercussions either way - the Navarr encouraged ambitious Great Forest Orcs to settle in Miaren and Hercynia knowing that if the Empire ultimately turned against them these new steadings, and their friends, would be very much in the firing line.

If we are to be liberators not conquerors, then our pride must be conveyed by actions not by words alone. We send Skywise Rykana with 75 Thrones to provide food and other vital supplies to the Rahvin in Bitter Strand. All that is worthwhile is shared with those who deserve it.

Bleakshield Zorra, Autumn Equinox 385YE, Upheld (Greater Majority 78-0, Imperial Orcs Assembly)

Rahvin

• The aid provided to the sept has changed their perception of the Imperial Orcs
• They are desperately seeking weapons and armour to arm themselves
• They are sending a representative to Anvil to meet in secret with the Imperial Orcs

Last season the National Assembly of the Imperial Orcs voted to enact the mandate raised by Bleakshield Zorra to send Skywise Rykana with 75 thrones worth of food and other supplies to the Rahvin. This lifeline was gratefully received by the desperate orcs, ensuring they have plenty to eat and are able to keep warm and dry over the cold winter period. Life in the Fangs is far from easy but this freely given gift has challenged the Rahvin's perception of the Imperial Orcs.

Like the Great Forest Orcs, they are shocked by the violence and bloodshed that occurs. The Empire's treatment of the Black Wind in particular is a hammer blow to their confidence. The two bands of orcs were once part of the same sept, and it is clear the Rahvin were desperate to reconcile. When the Highborn negotiated with the Rahvin, they took in good faith the claim that the Empire were not here to conquer them and engaged with the priests to make clear what outcome they sought.

There is no more talk of demands now, in part because they have lost all faith in diplomacy. Instead they seem resigned to their fate, convinced that it is only a matter of time before either the Empire or the Druj wipe them out. They are doing what they can to gather the mithril from the mine with which to arm themselves, but it is painfully clear that none of them imagine it is going to make any difference. They are under no illusions that once the fighting starts they will not share the same fate as the Montanians and the Vendarri. They don't have many real weapons yet, but even if they did, it's hopelessly naive to imagine that seven hundred and fity orcs are going to hold out for long against an Imperial or Druj army.

There is one small chink of light that might yet provide hope that that outcome can be averted. The support of the Imperial Orcs has earned the appreciation of the Rahvin, if not quite their trust... not yet at least. But what it has persuaded them is that if any aid is to come their way then it might yet come from the Imperial Orcs. They are desperate to acquire weapons and armour, to prepare for the battle they believe is inevitable, and so they have sent a small delegation to Anvil to meet with the Imperial Orcs. They have deliberately asked the Imperial Orcs not to tell anyone when their representative will arrive - to make it harder for their enemies to find them at Anvil - instead they have informed the egregore when they will be arriving.

Of course the Senate has declared the Rahvin to be barbarians, so any attempt to provide them with weapons or armour would risk prosecution under Imperial law. An intentional act of treason carries the death penalty, so anyone who thinks to aid them would need to be very very careful indeed.

Dawnish

• The Dawnish occupants of Dawnguard and Murderdale are broadly pleased with the latest developments
• If the Dawnish Assembly encourage the Dawnish to settle in Hope's Rest, they will be opportunities to develop the area

Besides the Karass, the Dawnish are the other group in the Barrens who are pleased by the recent news. Many Dawnish noble houses despise the Montanians - they are the descendents of rebels, traitors, and heretics whose rebellion was responsible for the deaths of thousands of loyal Dawnish folk. Ever since then they have been trouble-makers, stirring the politics of the Barrens, always trying to unite the disparate septs of the Barrens against the Empire and the Druj. Now that they're gone, the situation has a chance to develop without their pernicious influence.

In the view of many Dawnish occupants of the Barrens, the Montanians were a dangerous threat, and the Varushkans have done Dawn and the Empire a favour by dealing with that threat before it could grow any larger. More than a few comment on how often an alliance between the Dawnish and the Varushkans has benefited both nations, first in Ossium and now in the Barrens.

The crushing of the Black Wind is even more popular. The Black wind were at the fore-front of attacks on the Dawnish in recent years. They assaulted Drycastle and the Towers of Dawn and though they were easily beaten back, they didn't give up. When the Barrens was split in two between the Dawnish and the Druj, the Great Forest Orcs fled to safety in the Empire - but the Black Wind did the opposite. They surrendered to the Druj and their army is fighting and killing Imperial citizens right at this very minute. The Iron Helms have steel in their bellies - they're not squeamish about doing what needs to be done.

There's no glory in it - which is why it's best left to the Varushkans - but it needed to be done. If the Empire are serious about destroying the Druj, then robbing them of one of their armies is a brutal but effective way to go about that.

Black Wind

• The prisoners the Iron Helms took have been released after providing valuable intelligence on the Black Wind army
• Their army is marching towards the Barrens with all possible speed
• The Empire can force the Black Wind to follow their orders, while they keep an army in the Barrens threatening the sept

The Iron Helms have left the members of the Black Wind sept living in the Barrens in no doubt what will happen to them if their army does not immediately surrender to the Empire. Summary executions of their leaders, by the Imperial Army whose name is a byword for cruelty, has made it clear that their only chance to survive is to do exactly what they are told. The prisoners that the army have taken are released, but only once they have provided valuable information about the army that bears their name and the Druj they fight alongside.

It seems the Black Wind were ordered to the Salt Flats this season to engage in a solid defence of the territory from the anticipated Imperial attack. The army is believed to have an effective fighting force a little over four thousand. Their general is a Black Wind orc, called Alakath the Torn, his name a reference to the disfigurement inflicted by the Druj when the sept surrendered to them.

Ironically the Black Wind are a cruel army. Their spirit is seared by hatred of the Empire, a consequence of the grim betrayals that have seen their fortunes sink ever lower in recent years. The Druj have not been slow to exploit that loathing, encouraging the army to develop the most brutal and crual tactics imaginable when fighting the Empire. There is little that gives the Druj more satisfaction than to take a sept like the Black Wind, that despise them with every fibre of their being, and then finding a way to turn that hatred to their own service.

The prisoners also provide some fascinating snippets of information about the Druj. The news from the army is that the Druj, the masters of fear and terror, are cowering in their marsh strongholds. They are more desperate than ever to reclaim the lands they have given up, first Ossium and now the Barrens. With each loss their ancestral lands grow smaller and their ancestors grow more distant from them or so they believe. For the first time ever, there are signs that the Druj are fearful, panicking that the Empire will continue to advance across the Mallum. Their armies are still strong, but everyone who fights under a Druj banner knows they are losing this war. Septs like the Black Wind would be secretly celebrating their imminent demise, if they did not fear and hate the Empire even more than they fear and hate the Druj.

The only hope that the Druj have is the news that the Grendel have launched their own war against the Empire. The Grendel do not trust the Druj one iota but they share a mutual enemy and that makes them allies of convenience if nothing more. But the Druj are confident that if the Empire is forced to withdraw armies to defend against the Grendel threat, then they will be able to survive the current onslaught and then quickly move to retake the lands they have lost.

The loss of the Black Wind army would be yet another blow to the dwindling morale of the Druj forces. Apply enough force and it might even be possible to achieve a final victory over the Druj. That will not be easy however - it will take the continued and constant presence of an Imperial army in the territory to force the army to do as the Empire commands unless some way can be found to make the Empire's control of the Black Wind unshakeable. For now the Black Wind are obeying the orders issued to them by the General of the Iron Helms, but they doing so under the most terrifying of duress. The Iron Helms have terrorized the sept, leaving them cowed and forced to comply, but that state will not last long if that threat is lifted. If there is no Imperial army in the Barrens with clear orders to threaten the Black Wind each campaign season, then there is no telling what the army might do.

The prisoners do not know where their army is now - but they take pains to stress that they are complying with the Empire's threats. The army is marching towards the Barrens with all possible haste. It seems it will only be a matter of time before they arrive.

Let every word you speak carry meaning. We send Exarch Luke of the Navigators of Virtue with 25 doses of liao to persuade the soldiers of the Valiant Pegasus to seek out orc septs oppressed by the Druj. Together we will find the right question.

Exarch Luke of the Navigators of Virtue, Autumn Equinox 385YE, Upheld (437-0, Highborn Assembly)

Salt Flats of Sanath

• Imperial curses in Sanath have damaged the druj war machine and cowed the local populace
• The Druj have spread word of the death of the Vendarri through Druj lands
• The cruel tactics of the Iron Helms in particular, has the Druj worried for the future

The Valiant Pegasus were one of the armies that took the fight to the Druj in the Salt Flats of Sanath after the Summer Solstice. They fought to try and secure a foothold in the Sydathian Fens. During the Autumn Equinox, Exarch Luke of the Navigators enacted a mandate to encourage the Highborn soldiers to seek to make contact with the septs of the Salt Flats. The Valiant Pegasus did not remain in the territory, however, instead withrawing to Astolat as Imperial magicians unleashed curses against the territory.

Still, Luke's work is not wasted. Inspired by his words a small number of Highborn remain in the territory for a few weeks after the armies retreat. With the urging of the Exarch they manage to gather some information from their tentative contacts with local groups of orcs. Some of what they learn helps to confirm the intelligence the Iron Helms have gathered.

The attack on Sanath has left the Druj fearful and afraid of further Imperial attacks. Their forces are suffering from the curses inflicted by the Empire on the territory, the walking trees that smash villages and settlements, the terrible weather, the awful rust infesting the herb fields. They attempt to to portray the curses as acts of studied malice by the Imperial Humans against those who labour under the Druj rule in Sanath. They present the curses as proof of what the Druj had always taught; that the humans hate all orcs and that it is far better to serve the Druj than to be slaughtered by an Empire that seeks only their lands and their deaths. They are clearly rattled, worried that their grip over their subjects will falter, and desperate for any evidence that demonstrates that the Empire are a bigger threat than they are.

Once news of the terrible events in the Barrens reaches Sanath, the Druj take great pains to ensure that every sept in the Mallum is aware of the gruesome details. It is a difficult tale to hear when told truthfully, but the Druj have no use for honesty, and the picture they paint is of a tyrannical Empire bent on ensuring the death of every orc in the Barrens. The story they are most keen to tell is not the fate of the Black Wind or the Montanians, but the Vendarri. The Druj repeat the same story over and over again - "the Vendarri surrendered to the Empire and it did not save them". The message is crystal clear - only we can protect you from the terrifying evil that is the Empire. Their subjects may hate and fear them, but the Druj are adept at ensuring that they fear the Empire even more.

The Druj are less quick to talk about what has happened to the Black Wind and the Montanians. It appears that the Empire's actions against these two septs have left them deeply troubled. They have long had a grudging respect for the Iron Helms, what concerns them now is the prospect that the Empire has let the dogs slip their leash. The Druj know the Empire outnumber them, but they have always comforted themselves with the belief that they are more determined to win, more committed to victory by any means necessary than their enemies who are constrained by their foolish notions of virtue. The news that the Empire has adopted the same tactics as the Druj has shaken them to the core. Even as the news strengthens their grip over their subjects, the prospect that the Empire will soon beat them at their own game is a black maggot in the heart of their confidence.

As the Imperial advance in Sanath falters, the Druj assemble a major force to push them back. They advance carefully, clearly exepecting a trap. Most of the Imperial troops still in the Salt Flats retreat back over the river as they advance. The Highborn unconquered hang on til the last moment, gathering what information they can. The quickly learn that the Druj are frantically resupplying, using fear to recruit more warriors to replenish the ranks of their diminished armies. "We are the only thing that stands between you and destruction at the hands of the Empire" they tell their people. "If you want to avoid being butchered like the Black Wind, like the Vendarri... then you will need to fight. For us."

The message seems to be working. It is notable that as the season draws on, contacts with friendly orcs prepared to talk to Imperials become increasingly rare. Any attempts by the Empire to make contact with the septs of the Mallum in the near future is going to founder in the face of the growing pall of fear that the Empire's armies have brought to the Barrens.

With regards the Barrens and the future of its people we remind the Empire of its long history of heterodoxy and accepting non-Imperials and non-Way peoples living in our lands, treated them well, and sought their input when we felt it useful. This includes the Mournwold Orcs, Great Forest Orcs, Sandfishers, Hylje, ex-Iron Confederacy, the Free Folk, and many others. The Empire is ten nations, Wintermark is three people. They will see the value of The Way over time. Rapidly putting them to the sword or ignoring their input imperils souls we could otherwise save.

Maarit Suvidottir, Wintermark Assembly, Autumn Equinox 385YE, Upheld (Greater Majority (312-0))

Turmoil

• The apparent conflict between the Military Council and the Synod has damaged the Synod's authority

At the previous summit, the Imperial Synod passed a number of statements urging caution in the Barrens. Only the statement in the Wintermark Assembly received a greater majority and their people are on the other side of the Empire. But these statements were only the latest in a series of statements issued and mandates enacted, all with a similar message. That the Empire came with the hand of friendship, to deliver these people from Druj rule, not to conquer them.

It is very difficult to square those sentiments with the actions of the Military Council. If there is turmoil here, then the grim reality is that the future will be written by the Empire's generals and not the Synod. The Synod can influence the citizens of the Empire, but it is harder to influence foreigners and barbarians, many of whom do not share the Way. It is difficult to hear the words of a preacher above the din of battle. If the Synod is determined to have its way in this matter, then it would need to employ other powers to pursue that agenda.

This apparent conflict between the Imperial Synod and the Military Council has left citizens confused and worried for the future. It has undermined faith in the Imperial Synod - why should citizens support their pronouncements if the leaders of the Empire don't? And it has undermined faith in the Empire's military - with people worried that Virtue is not at the heart of the Council's decisions.

Fortunately there is a way to settle this matter! When the great houses of state are in conflict, that is when the Empire must look to a higher power to settle the disagreement. After-all, why have a Throne if not to lead? Vesna Borkovna Prochnost is about to be acknowledged as the Throne, the ultimate authority in the Empire, the head of the Military Council and the leader of the cardinals of the Assembly of Nine in the eyes of the common citizenry. As Throne they have a unique power to address the Empire - giving them a unique opportunity to settle this argument definitively and make clear which path the Empire will take from here on.

Further Reading

• The Barrens
• Conflict in the Barrens
• Not to conquer - 385YE Winter wind of fortune detailing the Barrens factions
• The silent page - 384YE Winter wind of fortune
• A curious reprise -384YE Winter battle opportunity involving the Rahvin at the Fangs