Gameworld News

1006 A.I.
April 24, 1006
July 25, 1006
November 30, 1006

November 30, 1006:

Toldavia, Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    After successfully capturing the duchy of Toldavia, Zdunarovan forces 
under the command of Baroness Daria of Morovsk moved eastward toward Alsoria 
and the five remaining rebellious duchies throughout August. Steinlander 
rebels harassed the troops during the march, destroying bridges and plowing 
up roads.


Camden, Camdenshire, Allondell:
    Mother Angelica Rose, Mother Superior of the Order of the Blossom, 
announced on August 12 she and her aides would be personally traveling to 
Kjolnir to investigate the unprecedented blight in the country's central 
region.


Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    On August 30, Duchess Wilhelmina of Silbermark and her four Steinlands 
allies put out the call for mercenaries, offering rates above standard.
    With Gravenia, Elsitz and Toldavia back under the Czarina's control, 
the remaining Steinlands rebels are feeling increasingly outnumbered, 
especially as more Imperial troops move northward out of the now-placid 
Bilgosh. Having already called their own vassals to service and raised what 
levies they can, the rebel dukes and duchesses have recognized the pressing 
need to recruit professional swords-for-hire.


Silbermark, Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    On September 2, Duchess Wilhelmina of Silbermark met with 
representatives of several merchant houses. There was widespread belief 
among her court that the she and her allies were taking out loans to 
finance the hiring of mercenaries.


Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    With the Steinlanders offering better rates than normal, mercenaries 
companies across Hesket began to flock to the Steinlands within the week. 
The Company of the Silver Shield, Alina's Adders, the Red Hawks, and 
Dunkirk's Company have already entered into the Steinlander's service and 
been sent to the front.
    Soldiers at the front say there is some unease with the hired blades 
standing side by side with native Steinlanders, but that the rebels are 
happy to see increased numbers of any kind.


Northhaven, Ragnorack:
    On September 12, King Dmitri announced that Sir Wesley MacGerrie would 
be invested first Baron of Marilyna for his service in taming the Marilyna 
region.
    Sir Wesley is the younger brother of Baron Thomas of Kinlott, and was 
appointed by the King to head up the first settlement in Marilyna two years 
ago. He led the Ragnorackans against an attack from a grum horde several 
months later, and since then has built the village into a thriving border 
town.
    Sir Wesley's investment will take place in early November in Cadfaigh, 
where King Dmitri and Queen Marilyna spend the winter.


Alsoria, Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    On September 22, Zdunarovan forces engaged the Steinlander rebels in 
the duchy of Alsoria. Lady Daria, Zdunarovan commander, ordered her troops 
to engage the assembled rebel armies in the fields outside of Hannhorst. 
Duchess Wilhelmina of Silbermark led the rebel armies, now buttressed by 
mercenary companies.
    The Zdunarovan knights led the first engagement, a horseback charge 
against the rebel line. While the rebel left flank buckled, mercenary pikemen 
stepped up to replace the fallen and repel the knights back to the Zdunarovan 
line. A full foot battle followed, with the Zdunarovans' superior mage forces 
felling Steinlander knights with lightning, but themselves falling victim to 
a flash barrage of arrows from the rebels' mercenary archers.
    By nightfall neither side could claim victory. The Zdunarovans retreated 
to Hannhorst, while the rebel forces camped outside of Parringen.


Dremmen, Allondell:
    Throughout October, a dragon besieged several towns in the Grendarr 
foothills in the barony of Dremmen.
    The creature emerged from the mountains to the south, flying in at dusk 
to eat the locals' livestock, and it looted one trade caravan heading 
northeast to Ennswick. Some of the residents of Dremmen proposed leaving an 
offering of cattle and gold in a field in hopes of placating the creature. 
Meanwhile, Earl Godwulf of Dremmen has put out a call to any brave enough to 
vanquish the dragon.


Sørenheim, Kjolnir:
    On October 1, in light of the remarkably poor harvest throughout much of 
Kjolnir, Jarl Healfdene of Sørenheim ordered the rationing of grains and 
other foodstuffs against the coming winter. Some farmers responded with 
dismay, but most tightened their belts and assented to the Jarl's wisdom.


Del Reyo, Inarra:
    The estate of Lord Roberto del Reyo was burglarized on October 9 by 
unknown bandits.
    A small group of armed persons attacked Lord Roberto's hacienda, killed 
several of his servants, and made off with an item from the Lord's collection 
of Bocornan artifacts. Several of the lord's men gave chase, and were able to 
capture and execute the apparent leader of the group, whose identity was not 
made clear. The artifact was not recovered, and the search is still underway 
for the bandit leader's accomplices. Lord Roberto and his personal guard were 
not at home at the time, suggesting that the group was well-informed of his 
movements.


Alsoria, Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    Zdunarovan forces, newly resupplied, moved on Octobert 22 to besiege the 
rebel armies camped in the castle at Parringen. The Zdunarovans repeated 
their siege tactics that been successful in Toldavia and Gravenia, moving 
siege engines toward the walls while occupying the defenders in the towers 
with thunderclaps, but the Steinlanders had prepared for these maneuvers, 
and their mages were quick to counter the thunderclaps while the defenders 
poured oil and offal down upon the siege towers.
    After four days of siege the rebels showed no sign of breaking, and the 
Zdunarovan armies settled down to camp, hoping to starve out the castle 
instead. The Lutenians in the Imperial camp blamed their commander, an 
ethnic Zdunarovan, for "hidebound thinking" and said her obvious repetition 
of tactics had cost many lives.


Solvang, Kjolnir:
    His Excellence Knute Harrelsen, Perinnian bishop of Solvang, sent his 
eight-year-old daughter to Tolbury on November 2, seeking treatment for a 
case of the Kjoln "soul sickness". His action evoked widespread fear that 
the disease might be beyond the skill of local healers, and was viewed as an 
insult by prominent Majenirian clerics in Solvang.

July 25, 1006:


Karlsköping, Kjolnir:
   Despite the mild winter and early spring, farmers in Kjolnir are
expecting a poor harvest this year.  Fruits seem to shrivel on the vine,
and in many areas the leaves wilt before the crops even reach full
height.  Many Kjolns are seeking to supplement their stocks with
supplies from Cadfaigh and, to a smaller extent, from Ragnorack and
Linneraigh. The trade routes through northern Cadfaigh are unusually
active for this time of year, but many fear that prices will only go up.
   "It ain't natural," remarked one peasant.  "We have the best soil
around, but our plants are barely breaking the soil when they should be
a foot tall by now."
   However, Skørsund fishermen mock the growing concern about the
downturn. One noted, "I fish, I go out in my boat, I catch fish, I bring
them home and sell them. My family and I will be just fine. If we have
to go a little farther to trade for vegetables and grains, we will."


Zdunarova:
   With the war in Bilgosh ended, Czarina Alexandra moved more of her
soldiers and knights from Bilgosh northward into the rebellious regions
in the Steinlands.  Many of these troops are war-weary, but advisors
believe that since the rebels are few in number and economically
isolated, the rebellions can be put down with superiority of numbers --
quantity instead of quality.


Sørenheim, Kjolnir:
   A growing number of livestock in several jarldoms of central Kjolnir
showed signs of blight in early May.  Under pressure from their peers in
surrounding lands, the Jarls of Sørenheim, Aarfleem, and Kalv declared a
quarantine on livestock in their lands, and decreed that anyone
transporting animal products out of their own township will be severely
fined.   Trade in livestock, furs, and foodstuffs has plummeted across
Kjolnir.


Steinlands, Zdunarova:
   Baroness Daria of Morovsk, who successfully reclaimed the duchy of
Elsitz for the Czarina, led her troops into the neighboring, rebellious
duchy of Toldavia on May 2.  The rebel forces attempted to catch the
Imperial troops off-guard while the latter were fording the river, but
the Imperial mages were able to ward off most of the attacks with claps
of thunder, and Imperial chaplains built magical walls of force to
buttress against rebel arrows.
   Lady Daria’s knights then charged for Duke Mikhail's castle while the
siege engines bridged the river.  Rebel knights made a stand at the
village of Dolganov, but were defeated and scattered, leaving the route
to the castle open.  Siege armies then surrounded the castle and began
to dig under the walls.


Camden, Camdenshire, Allondell:
   Mother Angelica Rose, Mother Superior of the Order of the Blossom,
announced on May 8 that a delegation of her order had been sent north to
Kjolnir to help heal the soil and restore the land's fertility.   She
noted that the noticeable downturn in central Kjolnir's agricultural
prospects seems inconsistent with the early spring they have enjoyed.


Tamplonia:
   On May 26, Captain Pilar Rabassa set sail for her second journey
across the ocean to the newly-discovered lands of Meng Guo.
   Tamplonian shipwrights say that they have improved upon their earlier
designs, and have incorporated shipbuilding techniques gleaned from the
Yamamotoan and Mengguonese "junks".  While Rabassa's previous journey
was dangerous (and indeed, many of her rivals failed to make the journey
successfully), Archpatriarch Paul Carlo IV, speaking for Prince Philip
II, said that his Highness "had every confidence" that the new ships
would be "rightly guided by Kyta's strong hand" to Meng Guo's shores.
   Where the previous expedition involved only one ship, the Santo Sol,
Captain Rabassa will now lead three ships to the east.  The cargo of the
ships is unknown, but widely believed to contain trade goods to be
exchanged for Dosanese valuables such as porcelain plate and jade.
   The Yamamotoan diplomats in Seiguntou made no comment about this journey.


Piramada, Iñarra :
  The Order of St. Catalina the Great, a Majenirian order known for
their scholarly approach to healing, dispatched a considerable number of
their members to central Kjolnir on June 20 to investigate reports of an
unusual illness.  The "Kjoln soul sickness," as the mysterious
affliction has become known, includes minor hallucinations and night
terrors in addition to chills, fever, and wasting.  Concerned that the
potential famine in Kjolnir might hinder the investigation, the order
took the unusual step of hiring an entire sailing vessel and crew to
transport their members and substantial stores directly to
Skørsund.


Northhaven, Ragnorack:
   Queen Marilyn of Cadfaigh gave birth to a daughter, Princess Elsbeth,
on June 20 at the royal palace in Northhaven, Ragnorack.  The royal
physickers and midwives report that the Queen and child are both in good
health.
    This is the second child for her Majesty and her husband, King
Dmitri of Ragnorack, whose eldest child, Prince Martin, will be heir to
both kingdoms.


Toldavia, Zdunarova:
   Zdunarovan forces led by Baroness Daria of Morovsk captured the
rebellious duchy of Toldavia on July 2.  Lady Daria herself led the
assault, after judging that Duke Mikhail and his forces were low on food
and water and had weakened.   Using siege weapons from Baron Grigoriy
Vitalevitch Ivanov of Osadsky, Lady Daria's troops breached the walls,
penetrated the castle and overcame the defenders.
   Other rebels including Duchess Wilhelmina of Silbermark had been
attempting to raise new forces to relieve Duke Mikhail, but had expected
the siege to last longer, and thus had planned to return to Toldavia in
August.  It is not currently clear where the remaining rebel dukes will
make their next stand.

April 24, 1006:


Dubraugh, Cadfaigh:
   With great fanfare, Queen Marilyn of Cadfaigh announced to the Cadfainn 
and Ragnorackan courts on January 17 that she is with child.
   Queen Marilyn of Cadfaigh and King Dmitri of Ragnorack have one child, 
Prince Martin, born in 1001.  Courtiers of both kingdoms were delighted to 
hear of a second heir impending.  The royal physickers and midwives believe 
the Queen is due in June.


Dezdovo, Bilgosh:
   Lord Wladyslaw of Kaloszyn, the Marshall of the Zdunarovan Empire's forces 
in Bilgosh, signed a treaty of peace with Grand Duke Milos of Bilgosh on 
February 5, ending the war between the two countries.  Grand Duke Milos 
recognized that the baronies of Crazau and Pietra Slul are "eternally the 
property" of the Czarina; in exchange the Czarina's troops will leave all 
other territories bearing fealty to the Grand Duke.
   Across Hesket, talk acknowledged that the Bilgoshmen had been unable to 
dislodge the Zdunarovans from these two baronies, but that the Czarina also 
needed to free up her troops to suppress rebels in her southeastern duchies.  
The Czarina is widely expected to have been disappointed with her take, but 
she is also deemed wise enough to recognize that gaining more of Bilgosh is 
not worth losing the Steinlands.


Crazau and Pietra Slul, Zdunarova:
   While many of the imperial troops stayed behind to rebuild these 
newly-acquired regions, Zdunarova sent forces northeastward during March, 
towards the rebellious duchies.  Travelers report that these troops are 
tired and hardly at full strength, "but a soldier's a soldier", remarked one 
smith, and that the Czarina will certainly have the advantage of numbers 
over the rebels.


Steinlands, Zdunarova:
   With the spring thaw approaching, both the Zdunarovan army and the rebel 
duchies began resupplying their forces and moving troops into position.  
Zdunarova began integrating veteran troops from the Bilgosh war into their 
armies, while the Steinlanders hired more mercenary companies.  Forces loyal 
to the rebels have begun to fly blue banners, originally in imitation of 
Duchess Wilhelmina von Silbermark, whose banner is blue.


Montrochers, Chardreau:
    In early March, miners discovered a major gold vein in this small town 
in the foothills of the Grendarr Mountains in western Chardreau. Several 
townsfolk became wealthy nearly overnight, and people have begun flocking to 
the town in droves to establish their claim to a share of the riches.  Law 
and order has had a tenuous hold at best, and the local Traladosian monks 
have been stretched thin trying to prevent gold fever from creating anarchy.  
With winter nearly at an end, the population of Montrochers is expected to 
soar.


Tolbury, Allondell:
   Barbers and surgeons in the wars in eastern Zdunarova and Bilgosh have 
begun to boil their knives or bathe them in flame before cutting open their 
patients, and claim this practice reduces the rate of infections, though 
they do not know why.  Aldora Mathis, a scholar at Peacock College at the 
University of Tolbury, has published a treatise, "On the Heating of Blades 
Used in Surgery", positing a theory as to why this technique prevents disease.
   "While it is well-known that bad vapors are the cause of disease," she 
writes, a surgeon's incision releases heat from the body, cooling it and 
reducing the levels of the element of Fire.  (Sometimes the body then tries 
to overcompensate for this cooling, which we know as fever.)  The imbalance 
of Fire within the body makes it vulnerable to existing bad vapors, and 
inspires the body to then generate bad vapors of its own that may be passed 
on to others.
   However, "boiling or heating transmits the essence of Fire into the 
blade", and the incision then passes that essence on to the patient's body, 
keeping its level of Fire in equilibrium.  As this process negates the 
body's generative power to create bad vapors, she has dubbed the method of 
heating a blade "sterilization", and encourages it among all barbers and 
surgeons.


Porto Delvino, Vallino:
    The Vallinan port town open to Yamamotoan trade was host to a political 
act of theft on March 16.  Individuals opposed to the Doge's normalization 
of trade with the former foe posed as dockside stevedores, boarded a cargo 
ship from Seiguntou, and threw casks of "sache" (the Yamamotoan rice-wine) 
overboard.  The so-called stevedores then opened the bungs on the remaining 
casks and fled the scene before the Yamamotoans and port authorities could 
react.  Almost all of the ship's imported cargo was lost.
    Yamamoto promptly lodged a diplomatic complaint with the Vallinans, 
stating that a lack of proper security in Porto Delvino was damaging their 
trade and that they "may need to reconsider" the current arrangement.  
Reports indicate that Doge Innocenti is considerably worried about this turn 
of events; as Porto Delvino is the only Hesketine port open to the 
Yamamotoans, the Vallians have been making money hand over fist on the 
Yamamotoan trade.


Diamondpride, Earthcrown, Grendarr Mountains:
    An expedition sent through a newly-reactivated dwarven gate in late March 
has discovered a lost Earthcrown colony that had been taken over by unholy 
creatures.
    Clan Earthcrown had already sent three expeditions through the magical gate 
in Diamondpride when they began recruiting from the surface races and other 
dwarven clans, in hopes that a mixed-race expedition might have better luck than 
a purely dwarven one.  This expedition went through the gate on March 24, but 
were promptly captured by "serpentines", a form of darkling apparently known to 
the Yamamotoans and Mengguonese but not found in Hesket.  However, the group 
managed to escape capture, and made it back through the gate to the Earthcrown 
city.
    Now able to ready themselves for what lay beyond, Clan Earthcrown sent a 
small army through the gate, and have announced that they have "cleansed it of 
its unholy inhabitants".  Earthcrown lamented that the descendents of the lost 
colonists had fallen prey to the serpentines. They also praised the expedition 
for its resourcefulness in escaping from capture and for returning vital 
information to the mother clan.
    Reports indicated that Underfall, the lost colony, is fairly inhospitable, 
and few believe that Earthcrown will attempt to recolonize it.  It is not 
currently known where the colony actually lies, but reports state that the world 
above it is populated with primitive humans and orcs.


Steinlands, Zdunarova:
    Hostilities resumed in early April when the snows retreated and the 
countryside became amenable to warfare once again.  Zdunarovan forces led by 
Baroness Daria of Morovsk advanced through the Baresk Forest and into Elsitz.  
With their superior numbers, the Zdunarovan army routed the rebels and advanced 
upon the Duke's castle.  The Baroness opted not to endure a lengthy siege, and 
instead attacked the castle itself with siege engines and magic.  The Zdunarovan 
army took heavy losses, with nearly half of their knights falling in battle, but 
they captured the castle, and by extension the duchy, on April 18.  Duke Karl of 
Elsitz and his family became the prisoners of Baroness Daria.


Scalzo, Veneza:
    Commemorating the seventh anniversary of the end of the war with the 
Yamamotoans, crowds across Delona and other places in Hesket burned effigies of 
Yamamotoans on April 23.  However, in the Venezan capital city of Scalzo, the 
crowds also burned effigies of Doge Innocenti diMarra of Vallino, calling him "a 
traitor to his own people and to those who died" to protect Napermo and Delona.