seasong's Light Against The Dark II (May 13)
- Thread starter seasong
- Start date
seasong
First Post
It is surprising, because every other time they've set foot in the wilderness, something really nasty has been in their way (except those times they were in a very large group, or had a very good guide). Not that the movement of orcs from the east has caused a mass migration of things normally deep in the wilderness.
No, nothing like that.
No, nothing like that.
Serpenteye
First Post
Thank you and, eh, thank you for your excellent SH. Thank you also to your skillful players for their essential contribution to your masterpiece.
In light of that military superiority why is it that Theralis hasn't yet conquered (or attempted to conquer) their softer yet richer neigbours? A few years without any orcish raids, a swift mobilization, some intelligent planning and victory would be pretty certain. It would seem reasonable that a society that is cohesive and militarized to such degree as Theralis would have the political will to expand their borders to increase their long term strength. The cost-benefit ratio to a successful invasion would be well worth it in the long term and the large military of Theralis shouldn't have much trouble keeping the population of the conquered country down until it has acclimated itself to their new masters. The common religion and similar culture of the two countries would make the integration of the two societies relatively easy. Theralis seems pretty goodly, though, maybe that's why.
Maybe I'm just a hopeless imperialist,
Also, I've always wondered. Why hasn't Theralis fortified the passes leading into their valley (particularly the one the orcs are repeatedly trying to pass trough? A mere wall would do some difference. A couple of towers on the mountain-sides to throw stones from high enough that giants couldn't throw back and some arcanists for support and they could slaughter any number of orcs without a single casualty.
Oh, and btw. no offence was intended with my questions, just curious.
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seasong
First Post
Believe me, I loooove questionsSerpenteye said:Oh, and btw. no offence was intended with my questions, just curious.
.
Partially, because this is D&D, and that there wilderness is damned dangerous - and Aglaonis is a good ways to the north, hence the trade route and fortified caravans (our favorite greedy merchant from Part I was unusual). The dragon (Amalan) is also a consideration. Any major military push through the wilderness would have to be very careful about how much damage they did on their way to the field of battle.
And Aglaonis isn't a pushover by any means - they could be conquered, but it would cost. Theralis has to weigh that somewhat unknown cost against an also unknown benefit. As they become militarily more strong, however, that will eventually become a serious consideration.
Particularly if the orcs can be shoved/diverted north, away from Theralis, to weaken Aglaonis and allow Theralis to swoop in, save the day, and "help rebuild".
Indeed, they have the military will to do many things we might find distasteful in our quiet modern age. Particularly once they've got their war dander up (which I believe they could be said to have, by now
).
Nah
. What you're seeing in Greppa is the first stages of "their military SUCKS; well, that's because they are innately inferior; well, maybe we should help them; maybe we should rule them".
Eastpass is pretty well fortified by a human wall. It's narrow, and more easily accessed from the interior of the valleys. As has been proven, a few hundred soldiers can make it nigh-impassable. Any more fortification there would render it useless for trade... and Theralis HAS to have that trade.
Theralis Ridge is a bit different - it's steep enough that it hasn't needed walls, and it's useless for trade. The idea that it would be seriously attacked was ludicrous prior to a few years ago - and one of the difficulties the orcs have had in penetrating the shield wall has been the fact that the shields are above them on the slope.
Theralis itself HAS walls, but the idea of covering the entire ridge with a wall simply wasn't considered necessary until recently... and the idea has been slow to catch on, due to its expense, difficulty, and the niggling possibility that Amalan might consider a wall far enough downslope to be useful "encoraching".
On the other hand, once the Olympiad is over, a fair amount of funds may be freed up for just such a thing.
That's actually how they viewed the human shield wall up until recently (Theralis tactics haven't really had to evolve in warfare in several hundred years - they've only been facing western orcs). The idea of facing giants in war was considered ludicrous, and the idea of 800+ pound armorcats fighting on behalf of the enemy was considered ludicrous, and the idea that shamans could return fireball fire was considered ludicrous, etc.
That Theralis is holding up as well as they are in the face of a changed battlescape says a lot for them. That they are going to improve drastically (and have improved drastically) is inescapable, and possibly something to be feared.
Serpenteye
First Post
Sounds like interesting times ahead.
seasong
First Post
Somewhat off-topic:
I've been running a macabre horror campaign for one of my (non-Theralis) players, and the player has been keeping a story hour. It's not something that I think I can recommend to y'all, because it's very different from Light Against the Dark, but I think the writing is very nice, and some of you might decide you like it, so I'm posting it here.
A few disclaimers:
Not The Same: It's not at all like Light Against the Dark, it's not D&D, it's not heroic power fantasy.
Action Lite: The story starts slow (there is a lot of buildup), and the action is mostly cerebral and emotional, rather than action scenes or booms.
Academia Lite: There's no academia - it's all from the players' point of view - and things are only ever partially explained.
Horror: The easily offended should probably stay out. The imagery is at times macabre, sexual, and/or grotesque. The basic theme is that Lewis Carroll's Wonderland is a bright and cheery reflection of a darker truth, that numerous authors, madmen and prophets throughout history have caught glimpses of something that lay behind shadows and mirrors and dark dreams... and that the main character has stumbled into that.
There are torture scenes, gothy angst, vile characters. There are characters that make me feel sticky and creepy roleplaying. You may read this and decide that I and the player are freaks.
There is no victory planned at the end.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With all that said... it's a pretty good story so far. You can find it here: http://pub21.ezboard.com/fseasongsmusefrm9. Obligatory Warning: Not appropriate for Eric's Grandmother, children, or the easily offended.
I've been running a macabre horror campaign for one of my (non-Theralis) players, and the player has been keeping a story hour. It's not something that I think I can recommend to y'all, because it's very different from Light Against the Dark, but I think the writing is very nice, and some of you might decide you like it, so I'm posting it here.
A few disclaimers:
Not The Same: It's not at all like Light Against the Dark, it's not D&D, it's not heroic power fantasy.
Action Lite: The story starts slow (there is a lot of buildup), and the action is mostly cerebral and emotional, rather than action scenes or booms.
Academia Lite: There's no academia - it's all from the players' point of view - and things are only ever partially explained.
Horror: The easily offended should probably stay out. The imagery is at times macabre, sexual, and/or grotesque. The basic theme is that Lewis Carroll's Wonderland is a bright and cheery reflection of a darker truth, that numerous authors, madmen and prophets throughout history have caught glimpses of something that lay behind shadows and mirrors and dark dreams... and that the main character has stumbled into that.
There are torture scenes, gothy angst, vile characters. There are characters that make me feel sticky and creepy roleplaying. You may read this and decide that I and the player are freaks.
There is no victory planned at the end.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With all that said... it's a pretty good story so far. You can find it here: http://pub21.ezboard.com/fseasongsmusefrm9. Obligatory Warning: Not appropriate for Eric's Grandmother, children, or the easily offended.
Indigo Veil
First Post
Hah. And if they thought that you and I were freaks before...? ^.^;;
...funny how often you keep reminding me of that...
;;<returns the thread to seasong's very fine SH, and whispers into seasong's ear, "more Aggie vignettes..."> ^_^
seasong
First Post
Oops - I just realized I never completed this one. This happens AFTER her fight behind the barracks, which is probably why I forgot it. So... here it is again, completed this time.
Vignette: The Little Soldier
Her year of Service was a surprise to everyone. Despite dire predictions of her own ability, Aggie turned out to be exceptionally fast and deadly with the spear, and what she lacked in strength, she more than made up for with devoted mastery of the forms.
Aggie liked the heft of the spear in her hands, the violent dance of movements that allowed her to own the field of combat. She liked formations, orderly processions of shield and spear, the logical application of simple principles to achieve maximum fighting strength with minimum numbers.
She was vaguely considering becoming a performer, dancing with the spear, when her group was dispatched to drive off a black hound haunting a vineyard near Eastpass. The plan was to drive it into the open, where it could be set upon by the entire century of soldiers.
The first thing to die in any battle, of course, is the plan.
Hunter and Hunted
A black hound is a malevolent creature of lurking intelligence. While the soldiers were working their way through among the grape vines with spear and torch, it had dug itself a small hole and covered itself in dirt, further concealed by artfully arranged vines. A soldier passed by it, unaware - holding the torch near the vine had reflected back only dirt, and discerning the shape of the dirt was too difficult for so quick a glance.
When the soldier passed, the hound confirmed there was no one behind him, and then began stealthily padding the opposite direction toward the Captain.
Agina, fear welling like bursting song in her chest, gripped her spear and looked and looked. She half hoped she would stumble across it first, so that she would have a chance to test the half-formed fantasies of bracing the spear against its charge and heaving it overhead into a vine trellis.
Instead, she heard the Captain sob, the start of a scream, the low-toned intake of breath, cut too short to rise in pitch. While other soldiers were still not sure what they'd heard, Agina yelled, "ITS BEHIND US! TO THE CAPTAIN!"
They ran back, to find the hound pulling meat from the Captain's neck. It fled, and they stumbled after it as it smoothly shifted into a long-legged lope. It hoped to find another vineyard to hide in, to evade pursuit as long as needed.
The first thing that dies in any battle is the plan. Agina, after she'd yelled, had moved laterally, trying to determine where it might run to hide. While the hound was zig-zagging down the road and through vineyards, Agina made a beeline upslope, then down, cutting the shortest path rather than the easiest.
As she ran, she pounded on doors, yelling "Black hound! Help!" as they opened their doors. Not every citizen who heard her came, but Theralis was built on a militant citizenry, and a few had spears that they picked up and chased after her with, while others grabbed the nearest grape club or stone pestle.
As the hound rounded the mountain road as it wound its way along the edge of the valley, Agina and a few dozen civilians ambushed it. That held it long enough for the soldiers to arrive, and the hound died, and took too few with it to brag about.
Agina became a squad leader by the next morning. But she never got a chance to try setting her spear against the black hound.
Vignette: The Little Soldier
Her year of Service was a surprise to everyone. Despite dire predictions of her own ability, Aggie turned out to be exceptionally fast and deadly with the spear, and what she lacked in strength, she more than made up for with devoted mastery of the forms.
Aggie liked the heft of the spear in her hands, the violent dance of movements that allowed her to own the field of combat. She liked formations, orderly processions of shield and spear, the logical application of simple principles to achieve maximum fighting strength with minimum numbers.
She was vaguely considering becoming a performer, dancing with the spear, when her group was dispatched to drive off a black hound haunting a vineyard near Eastpass. The plan was to drive it into the open, where it could be set upon by the entire century of soldiers.
The first thing to die in any battle, of course, is the plan.
Hunter and Hunted
A black hound is a malevolent creature of lurking intelligence. While the soldiers were working their way through among the grape vines with spear and torch, it had dug itself a small hole and covered itself in dirt, further concealed by artfully arranged vines. A soldier passed by it, unaware - holding the torch near the vine had reflected back only dirt, and discerning the shape of the dirt was too difficult for so quick a glance.
When the soldier passed, the hound confirmed there was no one behind him, and then began stealthily padding the opposite direction toward the Captain.
Agina, fear welling like bursting song in her chest, gripped her spear and looked and looked. She half hoped she would stumble across it first, so that she would have a chance to test the half-formed fantasies of bracing the spear against its charge and heaving it overhead into a vine trellis.
Instead, she heard the Captain sob, the start of a scream, the low-toned intake of breath, cut too short to rise in pitch. While other soldiers were still not sure what they'd heard, Agina yelled, "ITS BEHIND US! TO THE CAPTAIN!"
They ran back, to find the hound pulling meat from the Captain's neck. It fled, and they stumbled after it as it smoothly shifted into a long-legged lope. It hoped to find another vineyard to hide in, to evade pursuit as long as needed.
The first thing that dies in any battle is the plan. Agina, after she'd yelled, had moved laterally, trying to determine where it might run to hide. While the hound was zig-zagging down the road and through vineyards, Agina made a beeline upslope, then down, cutting the shortest path rather than the easiest.
As she ran, she pounded on doors, yelling "Black hound! Help!" as they opened their doors. Not every citizen who heard her came, but Theralis was built on a militant citizenry, and a few had spears that they picked up and chased after her with, while others grabbed the nearest grape club or stone pestle.
As the hound rounded the mountain road as it wound its way along the edge of the valley, Agina and a few dozen civilians ambushed it. That held it long enough for the soldiers to arrive, and the hound died, and took too few with it to brag about.
Agina became a squad leader by the next morning. But she never got a chance to try setting her spear against the black hound.
seasong
First Post
Breaking the Siege
With the giants dead (one still gruesomely erected over the battlefield), the loss of their shaman, and the deaths of many armorcats and warriors, the Breaking Cat tribe decided that they'd had enough for now. Licking their wounds, they disappeared overnight, covering overland terrain in the way that only disciplined orcs can. They were gone to the east again, to rest, recuperate, and plan how best to visit vengeance upon their enemies.
Greppa felt cheated of some needed venting. Merideth was just relieved. Bellos, absorbing stories from Theralis soldiers, began to wonder what he'd gotten into.
As the remainder of the summer passed, the Tattered Tribe returned (shortly after Breaking Cat left) and began guarding the Eastpass areas again. Winter began to set in, and plans for the Olympiad began to set in motion.
Greppa and Merideth grieved briefly, for Athan would have been in many of the contests they would have wanted to see, but decided that the best send-off for Athan's spirit would be to live the Olympiad to the hilt.
As the day grew nearer, Greppa also made sure that Captain Agina was prepared for an orc attack... He was one of many, of course - Theralis was in no way planning to leave the border unguarded, and soldiers were working and playing in shifts, to compensate.
And then the celebration arrived, and spirits were high.
With the giants dead (one still gruesomely erected over the battlefield), the loss of their shaman, and the deaths of many armorcats and warriors, the Breaking Cat tribe decided that they'd had enough for now. Licking their wounds, they disappeared overnight, covering overland terrain in the way that only disciplined orcs can. They were gone to the east again, to rest, recuperate, and plan how best to visit vengeance upon their enemies.
Greppa felt cheated of some needed venting. Merideth was just relieved. Bellos, absorbing stories from Theralis soldiers, began to wonder what he'd gotten into.
As the remainder of the summer passed, the Tattered Tribe returned (shortly after Breaking Cat left) and began guarding the Eastpass areas again. Winter began to set in, and plans for the Olympiad began to set in motion.
Greppa and Merideth grieved briefly, for Athan would have been in many of the contests they would have wanted to see, but decided that the best send-off for Athan's spirit would be to live the Olympiad to the hilt.
As the day grew nearer, Greppa also made sure that Captain Agina was prepared for an orc attack... He was one of many, of course - Theralis was in no way planning to leave the border unguarded, and soldiers were working and playing in shifts, to compensate.
And then the celebration arrived, and spirits were high.
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