Today is the first day of Spring. But the snows have been melting for some days, and in many places the campaigning season is already well under way. In the depths of the Dungeons and in the more warlike Lands of the Underworld it never stopped.
Despite the threat of the Lawful invasion, the Evil/Chaotics have continued the bitter fight for control of the town of Ved, with heavy casualties on both sides. Today the Northern half of the Citadel fell to the Knerrish besiegers, but the Southern half and the Tower itself still hold out.
With the coming of Spring calm weather has returned to the Sea of Sighs. Speculation is rife in the Southern Cities that the rumoured Goblin fleet has set sail, and fast ships have set sail to scout for them. The Jungle Ports are shoring up their seaward defences, but Iklaron prefers to rely upon the strength of its navy. The press gangs are out in force.
The leading elements of the E/C army of Kraz Warlord of Vlàger have begun to arrive outside Klìn in the Land of Zarmator. Inside the town there is fighting between rival factions as Zert, Warlord of Klìn attempts to put down an uprising by Brazh's mercenaries (financed, it is said) by the Merchants' Guild. The Wizard Yeohrl's Flying Castle is overhead, and the streets are running with blood. Kraz has halted outside the city, content to let his enemies kill each other whilst he discusses business with representatives from the merchants. Just to add to the confusion, rumours have started of an Elvish invasion from the West, through the Lost Country.
Scouts are reporting that the Lawfuls have crossed the River Sarif and are into the Gums Hills. The besiegers' supply line is looking exposed. However the Lawful invaders are also looking rather exposed, as Knerrish and Vedean wargriders are ranging freely into the Far Hills. The Dwarves must be supplying an army so far from home by Planist means, but will this be enough?
Word is beginning to filter through from those returning from the War in the Dungeons that the Dwarves have launched a major Spring offensive towards Hell: Operation Pounding Hammer. There are reports of heavy casualties and collapses of large areas of Dungeons.
In Valdran it is said that the Emperor Arril I has himself led a group of Champions of the House of Tarm to take part in the Pounding Hammer offensive. Cynics comment that he needs the fighter experience to be able to continue to defeat the challenges for the Lion Throne.
There has been a naval battle in the Bay of CASPIS between a small force of sailing ships defending Port Kambo and the large Goblin fleet of galleys approaching up the coast. The Kamboese attempted to pick off the invaders, but were hit by Fire Bombs from catapults and were overwhelmed by the ferocity of the Goblins when they attempted to board them.
The E/C forces of Kraz Warlord of Vlàger have entered the town of Klìn in the Land of Zarmator in support of the rebel forces of Brazh and the Temple of ZAKEL, who are being hard-pressed by mercenary units brought in by Zert, Warlord of Klìn and the Wizard Yeohrl. Kraz's Nazgûl and Stormwalkers have also made an attack upon Yeorhl's Flying Castle, but have been driven off by Demons. Battle rages through the streets, and those merchants who can have Teleported out.
Today the Garrison of Ved in Trikāf surrendered to Azord, Warlord of Kner, after a siege of just under two months. Dirhjg, Warlord of Ved, and the major DAELOTH followers had all Teleported out, and the remaining orcs mutinied, killing the remaining DAELOTH-Faithful commanders left in charge, and offering their surrender. Azord allowed the mutineers to join his army on swearing allegiance to himself and pledging their Faith to STRAMMASCH, and has spared the Citadel (or at least the homes of those merchants who bribed him sufficiently) from serious looting.
Reports are emerging from Port Kambo that the Goblins have stormed, captured and looted the town. They have raped and massacred (not necessarily in that order) all the humans, put the buildings to the torch, and are said to have already set sail again for Port Habawi. Although Habawi is 300 miles to the North along the treacherous Jungle coast, its inhabitants are already beginning to flee into the Jungle or set sail across the Sea of Sighs. A fleet from the Southern Cities and Kuntax is said to be preparing to come to the aid of their trading partners, but is likely to be some way away in the Southern Sea.
Azord, Warlord of Kner and Ved, is organising his Knerrish, mercenary and ex-Vedean forces to seek out and destroy the Dwarvish invaders in the Far and Gums Hills of Trikāf. The Dwarves and their E/L orcish allies seem to be avoiding pitched battle and fighting a guerrilla campaign. There are various reports of atrocities committed by them. It is said that orcish women and children have been turned into Green Slime, and that they have turned a stretch of the River Sarif upstream of Ved into a lagoon in which the Creeping Death feeds upon the bodies of drowned slaves, who were unable to escape when it holed their barges because they were chained to their oars. Rumours are circulating in Ved, and amongst Chaotic sympathisers in the Overworld, that the Dwarves have found mithril in Trikāf and are seeking to exterminate the local population and take it for themselves. To add to the confusion, it is said that the DAELOTH adventurers who escaped from Ved are also holed up in the hills (possibly in one of the mithril mines), and making their own Terrorist attacks on both Azord's forces and the Dwarvish units.
Nima and Quázil announce that they are shutting up their Magic Item shop at Fort Venture until further notice.
Last night there was an attack by Ghosts upon the poor quarter of Gorreth in Kyr. Reports vary as to how successful it was, but large numbers of Clerics of ESCUS and allied Gods were brought in to get the situation under control, and a large part of the City remains cordoned off by guards with flaming brands and crossbows with silver quarrels.
After some 2 weeks of bitter street fighting, the E/L forces of Zert, Warlord of Klìn and the Wizard Yeohrl have defeated the E/C forces of the mercenary Brazh and Kraz Warlord of Vlàger. The turning point was the intervention of a large, two-sword-wielding Demon (rumoured to have been BOTIS, Demon of Swords, Himself), supported by a number (reports vary as to how many) of Minor Demons with swords, and E/L mercenaries also wielding black-bladed magic swords. In a vicious attack, in which their foes died on taking the slightest damage (and it is rumoured their souls were stolen to pay the Demon), they cut through the E/C mercenaries and Vlàgite troops, and routed the main army outside the city. The rats and ghosts then emerged from the sewers to claim any survivors. Brazh died in the battle, having gone into melee against the Demon, and his head now adorns the gate of the Citadel. But Kraz escaped, and is rounding up his retreating troops somewhere to the East of Klìn. With the sword-wielding Demons gone, the victorious defenders are not in a position to pursue them. The town is in ruins, and the Temple of ZAKEL in flames.
A force of orcish mercenaries and wargriders, sent out from Ved to retake the old wargriders' fort on the River Sarif in the Far Hills, East of Ved, has been ambushed outside the fort by dwarves and Creeping Death that emerged from Teleportals. The orcs were initially routed, but then a star fell from the sky (said to have been summoned by a ChaosMaster) and possessed the orcs with a blue fire that turned them into berserkers with flaming weapons. It then became a fight to the death, as the dwarven Paladins pressed remorselessly on, Dispelling the Chaos, and the orcs threw themselves maniacally at the dwarves and Creeping Death. Eventually the dwarves triumphed, but took heavy casualties. Only a few orcs escaped, into Chaos, across the river, or riding away on their wargs.
A fleet of freelance Valdrean Noble Champions and adventurers has set sail from Hapral for the Jungle Ports. Some say it is already at Fort Venture.
The 12 year old Crown Prince Arril II of Valdrea has been confined to the Imperial Palace, after escaping his bodyguards and ending up in a brawl with other young Nobles (which Valdrean rumourmongers are at pains to emphasise he won).
General Thorgrim 'Bloodwaster' has announced a major victory in the Pounding Hammer offensive against Hell. Yesterday an entire Dungeon complex was captured in a single attack, supported by his crack Keragund Druidic Organism-controllers.
Wild stories from the Orcish side tell of the Creeping Death having become bigger and more powerful than ever before, and of Green Slime that flies through the air. Several raw recruits who deserted their posts have been executed for spouting such nonsense to justify their cowardice.
Rumour amongst the Dwarven army says that it was the gnomes of the Keragund who engineered the transfer to Operation Pounding Hammer themselves. This followed mounting concern over the cruelty of the Trikāf campaign under the tactical leadership of Valdrean commanders. The gnomes objected to the massacres of non-combatants and Chaotics, including the extermination of an entire tribe of snake cultists. Most consider this another example of how gnomes are soft, but the story about Valdrean ineptitude has gained credence in Dwarven ranks.
Officially the Valdrean Empire has denied any role in the invasion of the Underworld, but when pressed on the point over a few brandies its ambassadors have admitted that it is possible some of its citizens may have joined the Dwarvish expeditionary force as freelance adventurers.
The wargriders' fort on the River Sarif in the Far Hills of Trikāf has been retaken by a Vedean mercenary strike force.
General Thorgrim's new Pounding Hammer offensive has been stalled on the exit from the dungeon complex he took a week ago. The word is that the orcs have started using Walls of Death mixed in with Walls of Darkness. An old trick, but the Creeping Death proved especially vulnerable to it.
By Royal Proclamation of the King of All Dwarves, all Teleporting and like means of instantaneous transportation into the Khazâd-Valga and the Underworld Land of Flerrig other than to authorised Teleport Gateways is prohibited with effect from today. Anyone breaking this prohibition without licence, who manages to escape certain unspecified "countermeasures", will be considered a spy (spies are executed and interrogated by Speak with Dead). Teleport Gateways have been established at Gabilkhazâd-Dûm, Taramkhazâd-Dûm, Tumunzahar, Barrakizdîn, a few other major towns and various border posts. Registered Druidic Cults will be licensed to operate their own Gateways for an annual fee and provided they maintain a watch upon them. The system is similar to that already operating in the Valdrean Empire. However, legitimate traders and visitors are given a one month licence (expiring 25 Varech / Day 101) during which they may Teleport once only to each of their existing locations, provided that they then report as soon as possible to a Gateway location to register themselves. The Dwarf King does not guarantee that any such existing locations will continue to operate as previously for this one month period.
The Goblins continue their rampage up the Jungle coast. The latest rumours say that they have now stormed and captured Port Habawi, and that the last of the three Jungle Ports, Port Daruo, is preparing for the worst. Meanwhile, somewhere out in the Sea of Sighs, the Kuntacian fleet is rendezvousing with ships from the Southern Cities and the Valdrean freelance fleet.
General Thorgrim has broken out of the dungeon complex, but the orcs are at last beginning to develop effective countermeasures against the Creeping Death. The latest fashion amongst the veteran fighters is gold-plated breastplates and shields, which are said to be invulnerable to its acid touch. Some are even paying to have their wages turned into armour plating.
Rumours are emerging from the Underworld Land of Flerrig that some of the local Gnomes have been making attacks upon the Mountain Dwarf and Hill Dwarf forces who are occupying it as part of the war effort against Trikāf and to defend it against enemy counterattacks. Royal Guard internal security units are said to have been mounting operations to root out the rebels, blaming Hellish Troublemakers and Evil dwarvish sympathisers. The usual stories of women and children being massacred are beginning to circulate, but the official line is that these are no more than Hellish lies.
In the Gums Hills of Trikāf a Dwarvish and Evil/Lawful Orcish fortified camp has been attacked under cover of a Teleport Block by a small force of the Violent Ones of STRAMMASCH and Evil/Chaotic wargrider mercenaries in the service of Azord, Warlord of Kner and Ved. In a violent and bloody slaughter, in which neither side would give ground, the outnumbered Evil/Chaotics were ultimately defeated, but at a heavy cost to the dwarves. The Lawful invaders are now being harassed by guerrilla forces of both the STRAMMASCH and DAELOTH factions in Trikāf, as the Defenders of Hell begin to show their Teeth.
General Thorgrim Bloodwaster's Pounding Hammer offensive towards Hell in the Dungeons has succeeded in capturing the first of the Hellish mithril mines. The initial scouting mission that located the mine was caught in a Teleport Block, and four Balrog-Hunting Dwarven Paladins of SARAN stood and fought to the death against an overwhelming force of Balrogs, Trolls and orcs. The Bloodwaster has announced that statues to the Four Paladins will be erected at the mine, which has been claimed by the Angels of SARAN for the King of All Dwarves. Fuelled by the lust for more mithril (and the big bounties promised to those who capture mines), the dwarves have thrown themselves into the offensive with renewed vigour.
In the Grasslands there has been a spate of skirmishing between factions of the old Mist Warriors, an old ORIL Cult that acted as defenders of the Tribes. The Mist Warriors are now split in allegiance between OPSOR / TIPRE, DALA / MIRIMI, RAYLIT and even ZAKEL / TERRIK, and their rivalries have now broken out into fighting, especially where different factions are competing to defend the same tribe.
As the snows melt in the high passes of the Broken Teeth mountains that divide the lands of Trikāf and Harrig, fighting has begun for the watchtowers that control them. Elite Mountain Dwarf pioneer units had seized the Wolf's Fang watchtower that guards the head of the Wolf Pass in a surprise attack whilst the pass was still in the grip of the snows. Now an attack has been made upon the tower from the Harrig side by advance units of the Army of the Most Unholy Inquisition of ALTIS. The dwarves have driven back the first assault with relative ease, but larger Harrig forces are coming up the pass. There are further unconfirmed reports of fighting in the Troll Pass, and that the Army of the Most Hateful Inquisition of HAERIM is also advancing up the Hound Pass (but more slowly than the ALTIS forces).
There are rumours circulating in both Zarmator and Gurdor that elven riders have been sighted by Nazgûl scouts in the area of the Sea of Mizzin. The rumours in Gurdor place them in the desert, following the old Elf Road to Homarkesh. The orcs of Gurdor say that they have formed a treacherous alliance with the Men of Gurdor, renewing old trade links, and preparing for an attack on the orcs in the East. The rumours in Zarmator have them following the South shore of the misty sea and the lost Elf Road up the River Zarq towards Khôm and Klìn. Zert, Warlord of Klìn, is still rebuilding his shattered city after last month's fighting, and it is reported that there has been an uprising against the Wizard Yeohrl in Khôm, where a new local Warlord is seeking to assert himself.
The Great Goblin, Ral-Ksarg, has now laid siege to Port Daruo, the last of the three Jungle Ports. But Daruo will be a tougher nut to crack. It has had time to prepare, and has been reinforced by many freelance Overworld adventurers, eager for combat experience. Meanwhile, the combined fleet of Kuntax, the Southern Cities and Valdrean freelancers sails ever closer.
The Great Goblin, Ral-Ksarg's initial assault upon Port Daruo was bloodily repulsed. Now the Combined Fleets of Kuntax, the Southern Cities and the Valdrean freelance adventurers have appeared on the scene, and in a series of naval battles against the Goblin galley fleet have sunk most of the enemy ships. But most of the goblins have disappeared into the jungle. Ral-Ksarg has taken his remaining shallow draft galleys up the River Daruo, which would be treacherous for the deeper-drafted sailing ships of the Combined Fleet to follow. The adventurers have landed at Port Daruo to secure it, and despatched most of the fleet South to liberate Ports Habawi and Kambo. They are said to be putting an expedition together to pursue the goblins into the mangroves, and the locals are contacting their allies in the jungle tribes to seek support. But the tribes are notoriously disunited and fickle.
There are rumours that the Dwarven invaders in the Gums Hills of Trikāf have now mounted their Evil Lawful orc slaves on wargs, and are using them for scouting and suicide missions. The Wolf's Fang watchtower at the head of the Wolf Pass is under siege by the Army of the Most Unholy Inquisition of ALTIS out of Harrig, and has not yet fallen. Desperate attempts by the Dwarves' wargrider allies to relieve it have been defeated by the Inquisition, who are said to have trapped the Dwarves inside a Teleport Block, and are grinding them down by repeated attacks of fanatical ALTIS-worshippers.
There are reports of a Hill Dwarf village in the foothills of the Kum-Valga in Flerrig, mostly women and children, having been brutally massacred and their SARAN Temple defiled. WAGREN-worshipping Gnomes are being blamed. Some versions of the story say they fed the victims to their Black Puddings, others say they were mounted on wargs. Some outraged Hill Dwarves amongst the Dwarven Army in Flerrig are taking reprisals against Gnomes.
The price of mithril in the Underworld is rising steeply, amidst stories (officially denied in Hell) that the Dwarves have attacked a second Hellish mithril mine in the Dungeons and captured one or more mithril mines in the Broken Teeth mountains of Trikāf. The Higher Powers of Hell (said to be led by STRAMMASCH, Demigoddess of Violence, Herself) are reported to be counterattacking the mine in the Dungeons and various elite Hellish defence units to be active in Trikāf, but confidence in Hellish mithril supplies is shaken and those who have it are hoarding. Meanwhile there is a glut of mithril amongst the Dwarven Army in the Dungeons, and only the Dwarf King's price-fixing is maintaining the official price in the Overworld. Several new suppliers of mithril-based weapons have entered the market, mostly working with the customer's own mithril.
The normally secretive gnomish Druidic Cult of the Keragund of the Shining Caves of Flerrig have issued a proclamation. Firstly, the Keragund challenge the legitimacy of the occupation of their Sacred Site at the Shining Caves by the Dwarvish Defence Forces, whom they have requested to leave. Secondly, they have denied the Shining Caves as a Teleport Gateway location to anyone but members of their Cult (though they have maintained their licence for that purpose). Thirdly, they will disperse to their outlying Sacred Sites, leaving only a strong force of "Guardians" behind so long as the defilement of the Caves by "outsiders" continues. Finally the Keragund declare themselves appalled by the reports of the massacre of innocent villagers at Tumunbizar in the Kum-Valga. They utterly condemn this act and offers their skilled trackers to the Authorities. Those responsible must be hunted down and punished.
In the Dungeons the Dwarves have secured the second mithril mine - or what is left of it after a series of earthquakes and explosions collapsed most of the tunnels. They are now digging out survivors.
Nima and Quázil have re-opened their Magic Item shop at Fort Venture.
There are reports of uprisings and riots in the Gnomish towns of Mastar, Toprí and Perlon in the Underworld Land of Flerrig. The local Dwarvish and Gnomish garrisons have kept order, and have blamed the troubles on Chaotic and Evil spies and agitators. The authorities are also saying that the attack on the Hill Dwarf village of Tumunbizar in the Kum-Valga a week ago was carried out by orcish wargriders who were trying to stir up hatred between Dwarves and Gnomes. Not everyone believes this, and Gnomish refugees have been leaving the towns, some heading for relatives in the countryside, others now searching for the Keragund.
The Armies of Harrig have secured the passes through the Broken Teeth Mountains after three bitterly-fought battles. The Army of the Most Unholy Inquisition of ALTIS claims to have had the first victory, by its taking of the Wolf's Fang watchtower at the head of the Wolf Pass. They say the Dwarves they have killed have all been Ghosted and Zombified or Skeletised, and that the same fate awaits any other invaders of the Unholy Land of ALTIS. They are now hunting down any Dwarves who have escaped into the mountains.
There have been skirmishes between E/C and E/L orcs in the vicinity of Ved in Trikāf, including one battle between opposing wargrider units. Further South there have been reports of an E/L orcish army advancing up the road from the Gums Hills towards Kner. The Warlord Azord is said to have despatched an army of his own to meet them.
In a skirmish on the road from the Troll Pass to Kner in Trikāf, Azord Warlord of Kner and Ved has defeated an E/L orcish force with dwarvish "military advisers", which turned out to be much smaller than had been rumoured. Azord is now hunting down any survivors. His units are now engaged in the Gums Hills from Ved to the Wolf Pass road. Meanwhile Drobag, Warlord of Terz is said to be building his army and recruiting mercenaries, supposedly in response to the dwarvish threat, and units loyal to the former DAELOTH regime in Ved are still active.
Rumours are circulating in the Underworld Land of Flerrig that there has been some kind of attack by Evil and Chaotic rebel gnomes on the Bairguba prisoner camp, where prisoners rounded up by the dwarves were being held. There is said to have been a mass breakout, and dwarvish units are being Teleported in to round up the escapers.
The news of an escape from the Bairguba prisoner camp sparked protests overnight in Mastar and Fipro, which have been put down by the Town Guards, supported by Hill Dwarf units of the regular army.
The dwarvish and E/L orcish forces in Trikāf have now infiltrated the Broken Teeth Mountains as far South as the foothills above the Red Desert, where they are threatening the Mountains of Hell themselves. There they are being hunted by a loose alliance of the Army of the Most Unholy Inquisition of ALTIS out of Harrig, elements of the warring factions in Trikāf, and the Forces of Hell. Tonight it is said an army of dwarves, orcs, gnomes with Creeping Death and Angels of SARAN were hit by a vicious assault led by Six Armed STRAMMASCH, Demigoddess of Violence, Her Devils and werewolves. The orcs were routed, and were hunted down by ravening wargriders. The dwarves and Angels stood Their ground, and were butchered where They stood, the wolves feasting on Their bodies. Only a few Recalled to tell the tale.
Meanwhile in the Dungeons the relentless dwarvish assault continues, as General Thorgrim Bloodwaster has opened a new offensive, codenamed Cleaving Axe. The objective is the Gates of Hell.
In the Overworld the Combined Fleets of Kuntax, the Southern Cities and the Valdrean freelance adventurers have liberated the Jungle Ports Habawi and Kambo, but the goblins have melted into the Jungle, where the local tribes are competing to hunt their heads. But the goblins are not that easy prey, and are taking a few scalps themselves.
Remember, says the rumourmonger, you heard it from me first!
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