382YE Summer Solstice winds of war

Overview

(This is where the overview goes).

Life is short; let it never be dull!

Devil Take the Hindmost (Brass Coast)

The Drakes are in Madruga, fighting the remaining Grendel for control of the islands around Atalaya. They are supported by Freeborn corsairs and fisherfolk alike, ferried across the hungry sea in boats and ships pressed into service as troop transports. There is significant grumbling on both sides - the Marchers do not enjoy the boats and the Freeborn do not enjoy having to turn aside from their business to deliver soldiers to their destinations. Both groups enjoy having Grendel on Imperial soil even less, however, and so the matter is dealt with expeditiously - so the Drakes can get back to dry land and the Freeborn sailors get back to work.

Thanks to the efforts of Imperial heroes who struck at key targets during the Spring Equinox, there is little fight left in the orcs. Those who remain on the Brass Coast are mainly chancers, risking everything for a chance to make a profit or build a name for themselves. They are no match for the disciplined Marcher army. The situation is slightly different on the island of Atalaya - there is a solid core of Grendel troops here who do their best to to resist the army of Tom Drake - but they are outmatched, outnumbered, and outclassed.

My merry lads and lasses, those cheeky Grendel so-and-so's have been baring their arse cheeks and giving us for the last month. Their time si up. We're going to board the skiffs of our Freeborn allies and sweep the arrogant bastards from Atalaya. Slow and steady though, we don't know what traps they've laid so make sure we preserve marches lives in this steady conquest. Let them slee across the Bay if they wish, there are Corsairs in these waters no doubt, hungry for payback. Once we're done, time for foot the ball on the beach. Mitwold town Forever!

Will Talbot, General of the Drakes

When it becomes clear they will fail to hold the Freeborn town, the Grendel garrison simply surrenders - to the surprise of many. By this point there are perhaps fifty Grendel left; their commander opens the gates of the town, and offers her spear to the first Marcher captain she sees. The orcs are currently corralled in a makeshift pen on the small island of Mariposa - the Freeborn will not suffer them to remain on Atalaya, not after all they have done and the Drakes are somewhat at a loss to know what to do with them. The captain - Innevia, daughter of Moorvain - is quite up-front about her orders, seeing no reason to conceal them. They expected the armada to return, she says. They were to hold Atalaya and Free Landing as a beachhead against a more sizeable Grendel force returning. No such force has arrived. Presumably something happened to change the plans of the Salt Lords.

Madruga, then, is once more in the hands of the Empire in its entirety.

This is not the only military activity in south-west this season, however.

On the other side of the Brass Coast, as far away from Free Landing as it is possible to get but still be in Freeborn territory, an army emerges from the hills of Reinos. Three weeks after the Spring Equinox over fifteen thousand orcs cross the border into Kahraman. For the most part, they seem to be Jotun, but many wear hoods or sashes of a bright orange hue over their armour. These orcs march beneath the banner of the firebird - a great eagle wreathed in orange flames. This design was first seen in the months leading up to the Winter Solstice last year, and is now recognisably the device of the orcs of the Lasambrian hills. Others march under more traditional Jotun standards, red banners topped with the skulls of great bears.

The Jotun under the banner of the bear take the lead; they push straight toward the town of Damata, a lightning advance that seeks to crush the defenders before they can be sure what is happening. The border watch is quickly overwhelmed, and it is pure chance their strategy is unsuccessful. A patrol from Fort Braydon catches sight of the smoke from their campfires, and sends three runners to warn the Freeborn that the Jotun have come back. As the bear army pushes forward, the orcs of the Hierro clan- and their new banners - follow in their wake. The Lasambrians are more cautious, dfensive, prepared for a trap. They secure the territory the army of the bear has claimed rather than pushing to the heart of the territory. A combination of the two strategies proves very effective - without the Imperial soldiers from the fort it is likely that the whole of Serra Damata would have fallen to them in short order.

At the same time, the Corazón range far and wide across the territory. They are clearly more interested in causing as much disruption as possible than on engaging with the scattered Freeborn defenders. The are not shy about fighting - and those who try to resist are dealt with without pause - but they do not go out of their way to kill anyone who does put up a fight. Instead they raid caravans and farms, rob paradours and mines, and even take the time to carry away crystal mana from any mana site they encounter. Anything that might be useful to the defenders of Karhaman appears to be fair game. Nowhere is safe - bands of Corazón orcs are seen as far east as Nestor's Bounty. Both the Great Mine of Briante and the Damation Cliffs are targetted by these fast-moving orcs, who raid caravans transporting valuable mithril and white granite carrying away some of the bounty of the two Bourse seats.

When the Jotun retreated from Kahraman in the Winter of 380YE, they left a message on the walls of Damata saying they would return. It seems it is a promise they seem intent on keeping.

Game Information : Madruga and Kahraman

Madruga is entirely in Imperial control once more. There are fifty Grendel prisoners in a makeshift pen on the island of Mariposa in Free Landing, including their commander Innevia, daughter of Moorvain. A decision will need to be made about what to do with them. The Imperial Military Council will most likely be called upon to make this decision. There seem to be three likely outcomes. The orcs could simply be executed - they are barbarians after all. They could be released, given a boat and told them to go home. Or someone could try and negotiate with the Grendel somehow for a suitable ransom. Regardless of what is done, if they are still prisoners by the end of the Summer Solstice, they will need to be fed and watered and Freeborn guards employed to keep an eye on them. This will be paid for out of the Imperial treasury, and is estimated to cost 2 Thrones each season until the prisoners are dealt with.

In Kahraman, Jotun conquerors have have claimed everything of note in Serra Damata with the exception of Damata itself, and the Damatian Cliffs that overlook it. Without the garrison at Fort Braydon, they would have taken the entire region and likely have made some headway into Gambit or (more likely, judging on past campaigns) Serra Briante. At the same time the Hierro and the army beneath the bear banner have been doing theri best to conquer Serra Damata, the Corazón have been extensively raiding all across the Freeborn territory.

The first result of this action is that the production of both the Great Mine of Briante and the Damatian Cliffs will be reduced next season as a consequence (four fewer wains of white granite for the Damatian Cliffs, two fewer wains of mithril for the Great Mine of Birante). If the Corazón continue to raid the territory, then the production may be impacted again. Worse, if their raids continue then every personal resource with the exception of a military unit or fleet in the territory will lose a fifth of its production next season.