The Crownless again shall be king

Advisor Choice

Who are you Suladan? You could answer so many things to this question. You are lord of the desert, safely hidden from the pitiless of the sun in palaces of stones. You leave to other people the pleasure to build mountains. You did not need it. Art has made the stone the surest of refuge. You have taken the mountains of the south and you have made gates and adorned temples of them. You have covered bare rocks with carpets of silk and multicoloured veils.
You are child of the night and the dark, living at the light of lamps casting their shadows on the walls where the history of the city spread in long tapestries.

You are lord of raiders, trained since childhood in the wielding of bow and saber. You never excelled in it but you did not shame your elders when you mounted your first horse and led the first raids. You brought back riches and bathed your sword in hot blood. If need be your arrows are swift and you are no stranger to the arts of poison. You are the child of the desert and the son of the sands, tracking your prey across the dunes be it living or inanimate.

But it is the high arts who left you enamoured. Beautiful are the sands of your home, of Harad the red where stars shine in the summer nights. More beautiful still are the forgotten songs of the star-people and the arts of the children of stone in their mountains. You have learned the chants who lull the mind and inspire the heart, the songs who call to the spirits around and those of the first people who have remained in their home and never depart westwards to the lands of the gods. You speak their tongue so like and yet unlike the names of the men of the north who sneer at your name. some of your beliefs you hide with the speed of the snake for the men of Umbar kneel before the Mighty in the east, the lord of the Eye who comes wreathed in flame heralded by nine undying kings. You sing of the gods revealed to the firstborn near the lake of heavens and you sing of they who are beyond the gods. Their name cannot be pronounced and their titles are only fit to adorn secret amulets. For they are the One and all gods are but his servants.

Still you are not alone in the leadership of Hidar, struggling against the demands of Umbar and the needs of rulership. Who is your best support? Choose 1

[] The Captain: (Strength, Command, Warfare): Aasima is a leader of men, praised among Hidar for her bravery and gallantry. She gained her accolades in a thousand skirmish against other tribes but also the strange creatures of the desert. She can order a band around and on a horse with a bow in her hands she fears no living creature. She fights at the manner of your people, lightly armoured, all in speed and ambushes. The quicker the battle is ended the quicker she can return home to her family. While not someone you would call subtle she is responsible for the disappearance of several Umbari slaving bands. None ever survived to bring news north.

[] The Strider (Nature, Diplomacy, Tracking): Hilaal's heart is taken by wanderlust. His family are merchants and nearly from birth he walked the hot sands and knew the fellowship of the dunes. Still it was not enough to sate his hunger for new sights. He took a vows to the Hunter and entered his priesthood, praising him above even other Powers. He walked the desert and rode the sea of dunes and he learned the arts of hunting. He speaks to you of the sights he saw, of ruins haunted by wraiths who flee from the presence of the sun, of riches left in tombs to wait around their owners. He speaks of this bird he calls the Roc who is greater than any other bird and nests once a year in a secret place. Seven times he left Hidar and came back to bring wonders. He will not do so an eighth time alone.

[] The Priest (Nature, Lore, Magic): Khadija is accounted as one of the greatest beauties of the land and yet she swore herself to a life of eternal service. She is veiled in the colours of the night, adorned with pendants representing the stars of heaven above. For she entered the priesthood of the Star-Kindler who your people revere as the regent of the earth. She listens to the voice of eagles and the whispers of waters and her days are spent caring to the city's spring and praising the powers who gave the city life. She knows the stories of your people, including many secrets hidden from the eyes of the Land of Shadow. She is wise in many songs of power for she travelled in her youth to Aldor and apprenticed herself to one of their Singers, a red-haired northerner whose hands were burnt beyond soothing.

[] The Merchant (Diplomacy, Husbandry, Subterfuge): Don't call Altaïr son of eagles and falcons a liar. He is adorned in colored silk, painted with expensive dyes, breathing riches with every inch of his expression but he will not be called liars. Truth he considers to be a matter of point of view but he is as honest as any merchant will ever be. Altaïr suffers from a strange affliction who makes loneliness unbearable to him, physically so even. As such he has embraced his work and his steps always lead on the caravan's road to proclaim the reputation of his goods. Except flesh he has sold everything under heaven. Still he is generous and a full third of his profits are given to the city and to you his ruler. Charity is after all pleasing to the gods.

[] The Avari (Nature, Tracking, Magic): Aendir comes from the south, from the kingdom of Aldor where remain the Firstborn. According to the lore they have given to your people, they refused to leave the land of their birth for the kingdom of the powers. Still they could not remain in the north where ruled the Mighty and so they fled through the earth. Aendir is a worshipper of the Queen of Sacrifice who crafted plants and beasts. He knows the secrets of nature and he offers his prey to the Hunter. He speaks often of his people in their hidden kingdom, for in Hidar where come those who have lost faith in the Mighty, he has come for he longs for the fair land to the west and thinks it can be attained only when the Lord of Shadow will be cast down for good. When asked how he learned of that, he speaks of a stranger in blue robes.

[] The Dwarf (Crafting, Warfare, Lore): Laila is the name she uses when she goes among mortal Men. You know enough about her culture to know she has another secret name she will never gives you. She is daughter of Vigdis and proud member of his clan. She has come to Hidar in pilgrimage and never left. She is a servant of the Maker of Mountains and she delights in crafting items of wonders. She is wise in the lore of the world for the Dwarves walked the earth before Men came to the great desert and when you come to see her, you feel the very rock whisper when she walks, remembering the hand that shaped them. She is also a warrior by trade, using her art to deadly effect.

Turn 1
Suladan of the Haradrim, lord of the desert proud raiders and priest of the One beyond all powers, looked at his dominion and felt great wonders. For the land of Hidar was deep into the desert and its hidden palaces were still little protection against the host of the Umbari if they wished to harm him. North were the lands of people hostile to the Haradrim since times gone by and south were the realms of the Mahud and further southwards other kingdoms who were unknown and the rumors of great cities filled with cruel people whose ancestors had come from the sunset.

Yet he was lord of the hidden city and would not rest until the world knew the people of Harad beyond what the Corsairs of Umbar brought to other nations.

Suladan has 3 actions; Laila Daughter of Vigdis has 1. Assign actions to characters. You must choose an option from any named Vital


Vital: Tribute of Umbar (Five Years)
Since before anyone can remember the lords of the City of Umbar have pursued a simple politics regarding the Haradrim: Levying tribute. Refusing to pay the exorbitant tithe is liable to have you be attacked by the Umbari and any who smell blood on the water. Yet you cannot pay a tithe so large on your own resources. Indeed, you suspect it is exactly the point of the Lords of the City. Fortunately, there are ways to gather the resources you need.

Do nothing for the moment: (0 action) Five years is enough time to prepare. Do nothing this year

Raid other tribes: Your neighbors' resources could be yours for the taking if you acted decisively. Do it and be ready to seize the occasion to increase your standing by battle.

Raid the Mahud kingdoms: The Mahud are a proud people but they hold resources coveted by Umbar like the great Mumakil. A herd of these beasts is worth enough to redeem your people.

Pledge to the Eye: Sweetest of all temptation, the power of Mordor is always listening. If envoys pledge the direct fealty of Hidar to the Dark Lord, then he will take you under his fiery wings and free you of the tribute forever. You would not be a vassal of Umbar anymore but a servant of the Eye.

The Path of Faith
Seek other Magicians: Sorcerers are not an unknown quantity among the citizens of Hidar. Sorcerers is not even the right word for your city holds no bargain with the Eye and the Mighty. There are priests and wise women who know rhyme of lore and music to charm the mind. They listen to the winds and the stars and the world answers to their song. Their charms are not the spells of the disciples of Umbar but fool would be who underestimate them.

Seek Smiths: Smithing and crafting are not your arts for you have been trained in the lore of the wild desert and the howling sand. Still there are those of your people who have learned the secrets of the forge and the imbuing of power into items. They are students of many sources but most of their lineages go southwards to the mansions of the Dwarves where the heirs of Var and Vigdis taught your ancestor how to wed metals to metal. Alchemy is valued in their hands although it never managed to shift metal to one another.

The Pantheon of the Heavens: Many are the gods revered by the Haradrim and yet you bow to only one master. They have appointed many a governor for the world. Some of these cults are dedicated to the heavens. They sing of the lords of the winds and the lady of stars, of the great lord of the waters above who bring rain and others. Among their ranks are the twin masters of dream and death and the ladies of healing and destiny but also the great warrior Quos who came from outside to battle in the name of the Everlasting.

The Name Everlasting: Above the Gods, mightiest of all powers stands the Name Unspoken who is Lord. They are beyond form and beyond name and yet your people kept their faith in the ages. No temple is risen to them, no prayer is uttered for They stand beyond the worlds and men come to them only after death. Still they have devotees who are persecuted in many lands save in Hidar where they hide from the gaze of the Eye. For it is said no faith is more hateful to the Lord of the Dark Land than this one.

Plying the Red Sands
Seek captains: War is the lifeblood of nations even in the great desert. Pillage and poison are the ways of your people and you do not renounce them. There are those among your people who are wise in these ways and would be apt commanders for your forces. Indeed you think war will be close for your borders are always threatened and the yoke of Umbar begins to feel heavy to your shoulders.

Seek Rangers: You have heard the tales of the seas of green who are called forest in the lands of the north and south. You do not know them even you have led expeditions to the savannah where the Mahud live and hunt the Mumakil. Still only idiots would see your land and not know its dangers and wonders. The expanse of the sands is vast indeed and goes forwards and backwards. You have need of people who know such beauty and can discover its secrets. For here are secrets the north has long forgotten.

Conduct great hunts: There is prey in the lands south of yours. Where the domain of the Mahud begin there can be found great herds of antelopes and lions and horned beasts. Hunting them brings food to the people but also is an occasion to meet in friendship with other tribes as they conduct their own expeditions. Who knows, a successful hunt can also mean you have enough to offer a feast.

Riches of the desert: The desert is not lacking in minerals and ivory and many reagents of power. They are difficult to extract and to map them, you need expertise. Yet there are even treasures greater than any mine. There are places of powers where the song has resounded in ages past, ancient dwellings of the Star People and the Stone People, even ruined cities of your own people when they were mightier, before the coming of the dark men of the West and their god.

The Pantheon of Earth: Governors has appointed the One above all powers. Great powers of the land and sea. They are worshipped in Hidar too. Great lord of the earth who made the mountain and his wife who covered other lands in greenery. Lady of youth unspoiled and the hunter of beasts. The great dancer of the earth who danced in the first fields of war and brought her might to bear against the dark one. They are honored and rightly so for they feed the people and teach wisdom.

Voices to the Outside
Seek diplomats: You need people who know the way of words, the might of the tongue and the delight of the pen. For the tribes cannot live on war alone but on alliance, the telling of tales and the campfires. Soon will come the time where what is not gathered will be thrown into the fire and you are not intending your people to be part of the pyre.

Envoys to the court of Umbar: Umbar is a nest of snakes and you insult the vipers in saying that. The city was built by the men of the West and they have been good and bad and yet no so good as to leave Harad. Now they are led by the worst of their lot in memory, great worshippers of the dark who kneel to greed and bondage. Fitting servants of the Lord of Fetters. Still sending an envoy here would allow you to know what they think and what they intend to do.

Envoys to Abrakan: The City of Tents, sea of crimson in the sea of gold of the desert sands stand in the middle of Harad. There everything can be found and sold and bought. There come all merchants and even amber from the north and the toys of the Dwarves are exchanged for red gold and ivory. There rules the Golden Lord, master of this vast city who is fed and clothed even if it has no crops. They have few soldiers but their wealth buy mercenaries easily enough and they sell the youth of your city as readily as other commodities. Those who survive return in the Golden Guard, their pay adorning their armor and proof of their skill and competence.

Envoys to Bardakhan: On the coast of Harad the Black Numenoreans once built a great haven but as their power in Endor declined they abandoned it. Now only a small garrison remains to man this shadow of Umbar and they have long abandoned their people's obsession with blood purity. They stride the sea with delight and all its riches are theirs. They are pirates and raiders but that doesn't mean much for you who is inland. It is a martial place where you can buy passage to distant lands and see what they contain for yourself. Haradrim are welcome in times of peace even to the havens of Pelargir and northerly harbors. Bardakhani captains even boasts of seeing the grey towers of Mithlond where the Star People still rule.

Envoys to Azdakhar: The Pearl of the Desert stands nearest to the kingdom of the Mahud and so its inhabitants are privy to many secrets even as they hunt ibexes and lions. They are an old people who built great tomb of stone for their kings and continue to paint on leaf and scrolls. Beautiful are their lands and filled with many things other men desire. They are proud and rightly so and sneer to any who would call them savages.

Riches of the World
Seek Administrators: No city was ever governed by blood and fear alone. Accounting and managing are skills who must be honed. Especially in a land like yours where the difference between life and death is small indeed.

Horse Breeding: Great are the steeds of Harad who bear your riders quick as the wind. Renowned is the tribe with the fairest herds. There is a prestige in the rearing of these nobles beasts and you would not have your herds founder from lack of care.

Camel Herding: Camels are noble beasts. They bear you from place and can be trained for war. They and goats are your beasts of preference for herding.

Water searching: Water is scarce in the lands of sand and stone and so its search is a priority. Digging wells and building irrigation canals is a priority and a prerequisite for crops and the like.

State of the City: A city is alive in a fashion, alive with factions and projects. To know them is to know oneself and to understand how to act.

Allies of Old
Avari of Ardor : In the mountains of Ardor to the south in the kingdoms of Mahud dwell communities of the fey people. They stood there in ages past before Men came to these shores and they stayed even when the Dark Lord's influence crept through these lands. They hid from the tall men of the western isle when they came in force to take men for their altars and their galleys but remain visible to those whose blood carry the legacy of their old allies. They are rumored to be a wise and strong people who taught many things to your ancestors. You know them as a race of nightwalkers who love the stars and sing to earth and water.

Dwarves of Var and Vigdis Clan: In the Red Mountains of Harad can be found the mansions of the Khazad. Once there were two clans of them who fought fiercely as they delved in the mountains and found many gemstones and hidden troves of gold. Now there is one people mingled together, still strong and still foes of the great Shadow of the north. They are a proud people, lovers of beauty, splendor and music. Fell are their axes, heavy their hammers, veiled their faces under magnificent weavings and yet they are steadfast allies and ready to bargain for food or lore. Even Umbar tired of sending forces against them due to the hardship of the road and the sheer impossibility of breaching their walls.

Rumors of Desert Gardens: There are rumors in the desert of oases arranged like gardens where the birds sing and wondrous trees can be seen from afar. Beyond the mirages they say are great preserves who are fragments of wild greenery sown in the desert. Tall tales abound of trees who walk as men or rather like women as always the beholder will see something feminine in the shape.