Peril in Palmyra

Reading the missive, I let out a sigh of frustration.

“What is it?” Centarch Ulveblod asked.

“Now they’re sending us to Palmyra.” Palmyra, only a couple thousand miles away.

Here is the letter I received.

The Voyage
Immediately, we set off, marching through the forest and occasionally fighting off marauders. We marched with minimal rest until we reached the city of Rivoltus on the coast.

Here we secured passage on a ship captained by a seafarer named Soulrithen. We also took aboard Pontifex Marcellus and the Eyes of Pandora, two powerful artifacts that we need in our quest. Marcellus used his powers to conjure up a wind that sped us on our journey.

Arriving in Palmyra, we met with another priest, Pater Tiberius. He agreed to assist us with our mission.
We then sailed down the Kemi River to the town of Panria. Here, we expected to meet our next foe.

The Anubai
The Anubai, jackal-like humanoids, had joined the Dark Alliance and plotted to invade Palmyra from the desert wastes. We learned that they planned to cross the Kemi at the town of Panria, whose bridges were the only crossing for hundreds of miles.

Our Mission

We had two missions to complete:

• Assist settlers on the far bank to make it across the river before the Anubai slaughtered them
• Most importantly, assist Pontifex Marcellus and Pater Tiberius in placing the Eyes of Pandora on the bridges and activating them. Activating both will create a powerful storm that will shield Palmyra from the Anubai.

I split the Legion into two forces, each covering one of the two bridges.

First Century

The first century (company) went to the north bridge. This company, led by Howl and including Lionheart, Izzy, and Chris, were tasked with protecting Pontifex Marcellus.

The Anubai reached the bridge first. They poured across, overrunning the settlers struggling to get across the bridge. The settlers either dove into the water or were cut down.

Then the Anubai reached the east end of the bridge. The century charged, smashing into the Anubai. A vicious melee ensued. Hacking and slashing, our legionaries cut through the hordes of the enemy. Marcellus bombarded the enemy with bolt spells. Our losses mounted but the enemy seemed to keep coming.

Suddenly, our troops broke through, pushing the Anubai back across the bridge. Pontifex Marcellus reached the center. Placing one of the Eyes of Pandora, he began chanting an praying. The Eye activated.

The rest of the century rescued a wagon train that had been abandoned in the middle of the bridge. It was laden with food for the hungry refugees.

Second Century

Meanwhile, the second century quick-marched to the south bridge. A similar scene awaited them – panicked settlers fleeing from the horde of Anubai.

Pater Tiberius blessed the legionaries, giving them some protection from harm. The century, led by Celer with Wren and Soulrithen, then joined the battle.

Again, it came down to a vicious melee, but the Anubai seemed more numerous on this bridge.

Celer reached a wagon and tried to make off with it. It got damaged, but he still managed to drag it across the bridge.

Tiberius cast Shadow Walk on himself, then confidently strode among the Anubai, whistling as he went. Confused, the Anubai lashed out but could not strike him. Then, they began to ignore him. Tiberius took this opportunity to strike a few down from behind. Then, reaching the center of the bridge, he placed the Eye and began the incantation, The Anubai did not notice him, and the Eye activated.

The End of the Anubai

Suddenly, there was a loud crashing sound. The river itself reared up in a gigantic wave. It crashed upon the western shore, sweeping away the Anubai reserves. Pandemonium reigned on the bridges – the Anubai fleeing in fear and the legionaries retreating with alacrity.

In a matter of minutes, it was all over. The waves tore away the bridges and surged into the town of Panria. The townsfolk and the Legion retreated east, safe from the waters and the Anubai.

Meanwhile, the river shined with magical power, keeping the remaining Anubai at bay. The Legion was victorious, saving Palmyra.

Commendation

The entire Legion fought well. I consulted with the officers, and we decided that Wren deserves the Order of the Eagle for this battle. Her glaive work cleared out space, allowing the Legion to advance.

OOC NOTES

Above is an in-character account of our November 8 lore battle. As usual, I embellish in places.

RJ played Marcellus and I played Tiberius. We welcomed Steve aka Soulrithen and Izzy to our ranks. I hope they enjoyed themselves.

I was too engrossed in the battle, so I did not catch what other people did. Feel free to post in the comments about your contributions or the contributions of others.

Essentially, this was a bridge battle with a heavy object objective. We used my hand cart as the wagon. It started in the middle of the bridge – the Legion needed to rescue it. Meanwhile, the priest had to reach the middle, place the Eye, and recite an incantation.

The Legion had 3 lives. We used a bucket as a marker. Essentially, it was a Well of Life – sort of doing the work of a Maester.

The Anubai had 2 hp and a howl ability that froze an enemy. The Anubai leader had 4 hp and spells.

As Tiberius, I kind of cheated. I went to the middle of the bridge using Shadow Walk. Then, when the Anubai passed, I quietly began the incantation. While I was doing this, the Anubai kept running past me. They did not know I was out of Shadow Walk. Currently, there is no rule saying you have to state you are out of Shadow Walk (which differs than Amtgard). We did this on purpose to allow people to make sneak attacks out of Shadow Walk. I probably should have been incanting loud so people would know that I was visible. Next time we’ll make that a rule. Sorry for being a cheating bastard. 😉

Anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed the battle. Thanks, RJ, for creating the scenario.

Rescuing the Dryad Lord

My Lord Commander of the Imperial Army,

I am pleased to announce that our mission has been a success. We have rescued the Dryad Lord and have "him" in our protection now.

The First Rescue

I personally led the First Company into the western woods. We could see satyrs skulking about. We tried to reason with them and asked them to bring us to their leader. They responded by attacking us.

We fought off their attack and pushed deeper into the forest. At one point the trail split. There seemed to be more satyrs to the right, so we went in that direction. When we did, we got swarmed from front and rear. Fortunately, our troops fought like heroes, staving off the attacks and steadily pushing forward. We had the benefit of some healing potions as well.

Then I heard a commotion in our rear. There was the Satyr Lord! 

The Satyr Lord

We turned and fought our way back. Once we approached, the Satyr Lord called off his warriors.

We then negotiated with him. We had to answer a riddle before he would relent. Fortunately, Centarch Howl answered it. The Satyr Lord agreed to let us pass. He warned us that some satyrs would still fight us despite his orders.

We then pushed on into the woods. More satyrs joined the fray. In the distance, I could see the Dryad Lord. Suddenly, the fight seemed to veer to one side, and my path to our objective lay open. I rushed over, freed the Dryad Lord, and led him to safety. All the while, First Company protected my back.

The Interrogation

This part is pure fiction intended to tie the two rescues together

After arriving at camp, I interrogated the Dryad Lord about the machinations of the Dark Alliance. He knew some information but seemed ignorant of other facets.

“Are you holding back on us?” I asked him. “Imperial High Command said you knew that.”

“Oh,” the Dryad Lord replied, “my twin would know that.”

“Twin?” I asked.

“Yes, my twin. Most people don’t know I have a twin. They think we are the same person.”

Great. I wasn’t ready for this twist.

The Second Rescue

I sent out scouts, who reported sightings of the Dryad Lord, presumably the twin, in the eastern woods.

I sent Second Company, under the command of Centarch Ulveblod to look for him.

Ulveblod split his company into two parts, encircling the satyrs. Battle erupted on the company’s left flank. Our troops held off the attacks, and steadily advanced deeper into the woods.

They spotted a Satyr Lord. Not the same as before, a different one. We believe that there are two (possibly more?) – one of the West Woods and one of the East Woods. Celer rushed forward and brought this Satyr Lord to heel. At this point, the Satyr Lord offered to negotiate.

Thus Satyr Lord was a silly one, laughing and calling the legionaries funny. This seemed to irritate Ulveblod, who asked rather provocatively if the Satyr Lord thought the Legion was a joke. The Satyr Lord did not take kindly to this. He demanded a gift. Then Ulveblod offered him a ship. This amused the Satyr Lord to no end, and he readily agreed!

So now the Empire is committed to sending a ship into the deep woods. I have no idea how we’ll accomplish this, but I will confer with the Engineers.

Anyway, the Satyr Lord proposed a game – could the Legion rescue the Dryad Lord? Ulveblod and his company fought their way through more satyrs. Celer reached the Dryad Lord and proceeded to lead him out of the woods. Game over. Victory!

As noted, we now have secured the Dryad Lord(s). We await further orders.

GAME NOTES

This is an account of our lore battle from October 11.

As usual, this is my version, based on my best recollection of events. If you have corrections, or additions, please add a comment to this post. You can also post in our Discord and I will transcribe here.

RJ, our battle master for this season, played the Satyr Lord and Dryad Lord in the first run-through. Then we switched teams and did it again, this time with me in the main NPC roles.

• Note: I created the Satyr Lord image in Chat GPT using the picture of RJ from this post.

Satyrs had 1 hp, although I bumped that up to 2 hp the second time. I also gave Bentley a charm spell. The Satyr Lord counted as a mystic and had 6 hp. Fortunately, the Legion never had to fight the Satyr Lord.

We had a good crowd – 11 people! In addition to our regulars (me, Ulveblod, Howl, Jayden, Celer, Lionheart, Chris, Bentley, Wren), two new players from Amtgard joined us – Diego and Neeth.

The Satyr Lord's Storm

I, Comes Elias of the Chimera Legion, have received two communications.

Report from Our Scout Jayden

Jayden reports that the dark elves have given up hopes of opening the World Portal. Instead, they have turned their sights on our world and wish to conquer it.

Because their numbers are few, the dark elves have called upon every dark and wretched creature in our lands - goblins, trolls, gargoyles, minotaurs, basilisks, and all manner of tormented beings.

Jayden also reports that the King of Chevalia has been affected by the loss of his son and is now in an unpredictable state of mind. He could use his power to put the Legion in danger.

Orders from the Emperor

The Emperor has ordered us to rescue the Dryad Lord, held in the satyr controlled forest of Rhuunheim.

In addition, we need to negotiate with Satyr Lord to prevent him allying with the Dark Alliance.

Notes about the satyrs:

• They're cunning and hedonistic
• They're carefree and indulgent, which tends to get them into troublesome situations
• They favor humorous fair play, clever comments, and tend not to take anything as serious as it should be taken
• They don't take kindly to direct insults
• Do not underestimate them in combat
• They are prone to random emotional outbursts so do not overreact to their comments
• They enjoy offerings and gifts
• They dislike serious talk.

Report from the Front

This is my initial report to High Command.

My Lord Commander of the Imperial Army,

We have received the order to negotiate with the Satyr Lord and to rescue the Dryad Lord. To complete our mission, we have marched into the heart of the satyrs' forest. Yet we have not yet made contact with either satyrs or dryads.

Our march was interrupted by a terrible storm. With the muddy conditions, we were not able to continue our march. We hunkered down and waited for the storm to pass.

I have spoken with our Legion chaplain. He says that satyrs have magical powers. Most can charm enemies, and powerful satyr lords can even control the weather. Thus, it seems likely that the storm was a satyr prank.

Conditions have improved and we are preparing to resume our search. I will continue to send regular reports.

By my hand and seal,

Comes Elias Artocopus

Commander of the Chimera Legion

Servant of the Eternal Aurelian Empire

OOC Notes

Thanks to RJ (Jayden) for the background information, the report and the Imperial orders. I summarized the documents he created.

On the day of our event, we started with some sparring (Valhalla if I recall). Then, as we prepared for the lore scenario, a storm struck. It kept raining and raining, so I served lunch (hamburger stew). Thanks to Jesper for bringing some delicious, homemade bread and sausage.

By the time the storm subsided after nearly and hour, the park was swamped. We did not want to traipse through mud and standing water, so we called the event. We starting joking that the storm was a satyr prank, so that became the lore!

The Dark Alliance

My Lord Commander of the Imperial Army,

I have disturbing news to report. There is a new enemy that threatens the Empire. They call themselves the Dark Alliance.

One of my Legion's patrols brought me the news. Ulveblod led a routine training patrol. They came to a clearing filled with fetid corpses. Cautiously, they investigated. Suddenly, a figure emerged from the shadows. Dressed in black with black armor, his face was skeletal. A death knight!

Mocking the Legion, the death knight stated that the dark elves were angry at our thwarting their plans. They have formed a Dark Alliance to destroy the Legion and the Empire. With that, the knight commanded his minions to rise. The corpses reanimated and attacked our patrol!

It was a short, sharp battle. Our forces were severely outnumbered and their blades did little damage to the enemy. How do you kill what is already dead? The patrol fought valiantly, but ultimately succumbed to superior numbers. Soon, only Ulveblod remained.

The horde surrounded Ulveblod, striking repeatedly until he fell. The death knight approached, grabbed Ulveblod and pulled him to his feet. The knight spoke to the wounded Ulveblod, warning him that the Dark Alliance was coming. Then the ghastly warrior and his minions melted into the shadows.

Ulveblod managed to stumble back to camp. I sent another force to retrieve the fallen. Through the efforts of our gifted healers have revived them all.

We are now readying ourselves for battle. We await further orders.

By my hand and seal,

Comes Elias Artocopus

Commander of the Chimera Legion

Servant of the Eternal Aurelian Empire

GAME NOTES

I ran a short scenario as an introduction to the season. Next week, the campaign begins in earnest.

I messed up the teams, accidentally stealing someone from the Legion side. As a result, they were outnumbered 6-3. Apologies to the legionaries for that slipup. On the plus side, I think this scenario did an effective job of setting the stage for the new season.

We also had another new player. Welcome Chris!

By the way, here is the original photo of me as the death knight. I used Chat GPT to jazz it up.

Shaking Off the Rust

My Lord Commander of the Imperial Army,

I have the honor to report the that the Chimera Legion has reassembled. After a summer's rest, we have recovered from our strenuous efforts against the dark elves. We are now ready to serve the Empire again.

Preparations

We have begun sparring exercises to remove the rust of idleness and restore martial readiness. The Legion carried out these exercises with vigor, and the our spirit remains unbroken.

Recruitment

We have welcomed some new recruits to our ranks. These recruits include some promising fighters - Jesper and Echo, seasoned warriors from the island of Tortuga, and Bentley and Wren. We hope to convince them to join us in our next campaign.

Tournament

To test the strength of our fighters, I ordered a tournament held. The combat was fierce and worthy of our standard. The warrior Howl emerged victorious, with nary a loss to his name. He, and all the combatants, demonstrated exceptional valor and mastery of arms. I awarded Howl a sword as a memento of his victory.

The victor

Promotion

Ironically, I awarded Howl promotion to Kentarch prior to his victory. Over the past year, he has shown exceptional leadership. His victory in the tournament is just further testament to his ability. I believe he will be a boon to the Legion.

Conclusion

The Chimera Legion stands ready for whatever threats may arise. With our veterans hardened and our new blood tempered, we remain loyal servants of the Empire, ever vigilant against the schemes of any who would threaten the peace wrought by Aurelian steel.

By my hand and seal,

Comes Elias Artocopus

Commander of the Chimera Legion

Servant of the Eternal Aurelian Empire

OOC GAME NOTES

Today was our second practice of the season. I decided to run a tournament, with a sword as a prize.

Everyone faced everyone else once. This gave everyone plenty of fighting!

I also added a little twist. Bouts were best of 3 points. Combatants could use the weapon of their choice for the first point. Then they had to switch with their opponent for the second point. If the bout went to 3 points, it was decided by a knife fight!

Howl was undefeated and took home the sword.

Jayden tries to claim the sword

We were joined by 4 new (to Valiant) fighters, as described above. Hopefully, they enjoyed the experience and will return. We could use the help with this year's enemies!

The Prince's Fate

Once the Legion earned permission to land on the West Isle, we were able to find the location where the dark elves planned to enact the ritual and open the World Portal.

We arrived at the temple that the dark elves constructed for the ritual. Blocks of moon granite concentrated magic, making their incantations more effective. I am grateful we stopped them from acquiring more.

Note: If the dark elves had acquired more, then I would have reduced the time required for the ritual.

I, Comes Elias convened a council of war and we made our plans for battle.

Conferring with the wizard

Entering the Temple

I led the first company in an assault on the temple entrance. A swarm of redcaps blocked our way. There was a mad melee. We had a new wizard helping us. His spells helped us push back the redcaps. Finally, we made our way into the temple.

Beyond us was another door, closed and guarded. I suspected that the dark elves' altar was beyond it.

"That way!" I cried, pointing with my sword.

While the rest of the company pushed forward, I led a small contingent on a flanking maneuver. We swung around the right and then made a beeline for the door. Some redcaps tried to stop me, but my armor kept me safe. Hacking and slashing, I made it to the door and flung it open.

The remaining redcaps retreated past the door.

The Inner Sanctum

While my company caught their breath, Ulveblod led the second company into the inner sanctum.

At the far end was a dark elf priest, chanting an incantation and holding a knife over a figure bound to an altar. Prince Henri!

Alas, between the Legion and the altar was a swarm of redcaps!

The Legion charged, hacking their way through the mass of goblins. They reached the altar and cleared away the redcaps.

One legionary tried to kill the priest. But the dark elf was protected by a magical field. The only way to stop the ritual was to recover Prince Henri.

Next thing I knew, Howl had the prince and was making his way to the doorway. But the goblins converged and cut him down. They grabbed the prince and carried him back to the altar. Fortunately, our healers were able to reach Howl and restore him to health.

A big scrum erupted near the altar. All the while, the priest chanted. Then Ulveblod ended up with the prince. But the redcaps swarmed around him and the priest's incantation was reaching a crescendo. Ulveblod was nearly out of time. There was only one option for him.

With a quick strike, Ulveblod killed the prince. As the royal blood spilled on the temple floor, the priest screamed in rage and frustration.

"Foolish mortals!" he cried. "You shall pay for this!"

In an instance, he disappeared through a portal. Then an earthquake shook the temple. The redcaps fled to the four winds.

"Hurry, let's get out of here!" I cried. Fortunately, someone had the presence of mind to retrieve the prince's body.

The Legion escaped as the temple collapsed.

The battle was over. The World Portal remained closed. The world was safe. But the cost was high.

GAME NOTES

And thus closes our third season. As usual, I embellished the account a little. Still, it is mostly accurate, at least from my perspective.

The Legion has triumphed again, but at a high cost. We were not able to save Prince Henri. What are the ramifications? We'll find out next season.

Thanks to everyone who attended today. We actually had 11 people show up. Besides myself, we had regulars Howl, Celer, Lionhart, Ulveblod, and Brian. It was good to see Xeno again. Thanks to Kenny and Beast for coming by. And thanks and welcome to the new blood - Blaine and Adrian.

Also thanks to Kenny for creating the first image. He based it on this photo he took.

The original photo.

As far as the scenarios:

1. This was a castle battle. Get through the door, make our way to a checkpoint. It was a quick scenario. We ended up playing it multiple times, but I recorded our first attempt.
2. The second was a heavy object game. The Legion had 5 minutes to rescue the prince from the altar and get him out of the temple. Adrian, a new player, arrived just in time to play the priest. Thanks! There was a caveat to the game. As established in our lore in previous battles, we could stop the dark elves from opening the portal by killing the prince ourselves. Ultimately, Ulveblod chose that option. An exciting and dramatic finish! Note that I initially gave the Legion one life. They got shattered so I granted them bonus lives. The game worked better with extra lives. I chalked it down to maesters doing healing.

I hope everyone enjoyed the scenarios and the season. If you have any ideas for improvement, let me know.

We will meet for practices for a few more weeks before convening for tabletop gaming during the summer.

The Leprechaun's Gold

Having retrieved one of the incantations, the dark elves are set to enact the ritual and to open the World Portal. If they do, they will plunge our world into war.

The Legion must get to the ritual site and stop the dark elves from completing the ritual.

To the Western Isle

We were able to use the magical orb to return to the Isles. However, the dark elves have erected a magical barrier on the Western Isle. That must be the location of the ritual site.

We sailed to the Western Isle, but were confronted by King Diarmid. He refused to let us land, unless we paid him 30 pieces of leprechaun gold. When we agreed, he directed us to a glen where the leprechauns live.

I, Comes Elias, tried to negotiate with the leprechaun leader, but he sided with the dark elves. With that, the hunt was on.

The Leprechaun Hunt

Scattered through the glen, the leprechauns carried gold upon their persons. The Legion just had to defeat each leprechaun in turn and take their gold.

We split into two wings, each one advancing along opposite flanks of the glen. Upon seeing us, the leprechauns swarmed to the attack.

The right wing included Ulveblod, Jayden, and Celer. They rushed into the pack of leprechauns, slashing away and taking the gold of the defeated. But more leprechauns arrived, forcing the legionaries to withdraw. Still, they had a nice take - with Ulveblod pocketing the most gold with 8 coins.

Meanwhile, Brian, Howl, Lionhart, and I advanced on the left. While the leprechauns focused om the right wing, we swung in on the flank, wreaking havoc on our target. This allowed us to secure heftier prizes. I garnered 7 gold and Howl had 12!

Ultimately, we had to retire. No deaths but plenty of wounds. Still, we achieved out goal. We had well over 30 gold, enough to gain access to the island.

I then sent scouts throughout the island, looking for the site of the dark elves' ritual. We will find it soon enough, and stop them!

GAME NOTES

• The bit about Diarmid and the leprechaun king is made-up backstory. For the event, we jumped straight into the leprechaun hunt.
• In reality, the two teams fought in sequence. Ulveblod, Jayden, and Celer were legionaries first while the rest were leprechauns. Then we switched.
  
• Leprechauns had 0 hp. Upon death, the leprechaun had to hand over its gold. We had a no backstab rule when a legionary was collecting gold.
• Howl gets the Eagle for the day with his 12 gp haul.
• After the scenario, we played some goblin ball.