A mix of history, fantasy, and certainly lots of wacky things to make the quest unique in a sense. This quest aims to answer the question. "What if a gate to another world opened in the 19th century? What sort of creatures, mysteries, horrors, and epics will be found there?"
A Gate to Another World [19th Century Fantasy Imperialism Quest]
- Created
- Status
- Ongoing
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Statistics (6 threadmarks, 17k words)
User Total Murtox 6
Main Story
- Location
- Peru
The year is 1860 of the Victorian Era, an era known for massive changes in society propelled by never-ending inventions and a grand desire of nationalists to proclaim their nation as the greatest on the globe, empires are being built while others fight to keep their long achieved status.
However, a twist of fate would change it all, for in the first hour of the first day of May a great fog started to envelop the world, a fog so dense and so large that the whole world was deprived of sunlight. Nobody left their homes for fear of the unknown while many ships fell into the abyss unable to find even the slightest glimpse of land or light. Some cities, in particular, London continued life as normal, however, in many other places superstition and fear took over the hearts of many and for a moment authorities were at a loss as to how to explain this strange phenomenon.
Some spoke about strange prophecies that foretold the end of the world, others that the ultimate judgment from God was about to come to pass. However, a week later on the 8th of May to be exact, the fog began to dissipate. This left millions confused unable to understand what had led to such a strange event. The majority cheered for the end had not come to pass. Ultimately, the gears of life returned normalcy, however, just as most of the world regained their peace of mind. Sighting of giant gates with strange writings began to flood newspapers all around the world. Sometimes the gates would be inside of cities and sometimes in the countryside. These monolithic structures attracted the attention of many and it didn't take long for their true purpose to be known.
The gates were exactly a hundred meters wide and a hundred meters tall. The tempting and mysterious gates stood unopened and silent, their pillars colored in pure blackness. Authorities and leaders of all nations wondered what to do about these giant gates that had suddenly been brought from the darkest depths of mythology. Leaders and authorities from all spectrums began to speculate about the nature of these gates. Some argued that it was a gate to hell and it was not to be opened under any circumstances for this was yet another test from God.
In contrast, others thought that it could be a gate to heaven left by God and only the innocent and pure would be able to pass through. Even more curious theories of all sorts circulated around the global population, a strange curiosity making them wonder about what exactly was on the other side of the gate. Yet, many undecided did not open the gate both due to fear of the unknown and due to the social upheaval that these strange gates brought about with their simple existence.
The British, who had had their gate appear in some field near the city of York, were the first to open theirs, they found vast plains of green pasture on the other side, with fauna and flora totally unfamiliar to those found on Earth or so they told the world. Soon, other countries followed in the steps of the British, establishing small outposts on the other side of their gates each on a strange new planet, meeting strange new beings. It is now the 30th of May and it seems like the world may just have found itself in a race of discovery and colonialism. Many nations around the world are ordering their troops to set up outposts and carefully explore the other side of the gate.
One way or another you have found yourself in charge of a military regiment and with the permission of your government, you have stepped for the first time on the world of Arcadia.This was a rather important day for you, you were to go to the military HQ of your locality. The reason rather clear in your mind:
Military or Civilian:
[X] I was called by a superior officer to attend a meeting regarding the plans of my nation to colonize and explore Arcadia. [Military Route][Going Military Route means following orders and accomplishing objectives set by your own government]
[X] I was determined to convince the government officials to give my mercenary company permission to engage in colonial activities on Arcadia. [Civilian Route][Going Civilian Route means having a PMC and going to Arcadia for capitalist profit]
Nationality:
First of all, you must begin by picking a nation of origin that's to say your base of operations on Earth, the nation you pick will influence the equipment available to you, the quality of its soldiers, possible contracts, and the national objectives of your nation in Arcadia. Not all nations are equal and each has different capabilities meaning that not all will perform the same in Arcadia. For example, the United Kingdom and France will probably pour more funds and resources into Arcadia than let's say Portugal or Sardinia. They will also have more cutting-edge equipment available to them, alongside a bigger presence in the other world.
The nations of origin are divided into three different categories. Great Powers (UK, France, Prussia, Russia, and Austria-Hungary ), Regional Powers (USA*, Spain, Sardinia, Ottoman Empire, Sweden, Mexico, etc.), and Unmodernized.
OOC: The game consists of our protagonist taking command of a military regiment and being sent out to Arcadia a new world that has been newly discovered through the use of gates that have appeared in various places around the world. The year is 1860 so don't expect majors curb stomps against native forces or not to expect the reverse. Your regiment will be highly customizable and you will be able to lead it to glory or death. This is also a reboot from a quest I did in SB a long time ago and I have been having new ideas about it and hopefully, I will be able to give it an interesting twist.
However, a twist of fate would change it all, for in the first hour of the first day of May a great fog started to envelop the world, a fog so dense and so large that the whole world was deprived of sunlight. Nobody left their homes for fear of the unknown while many ships fell into the abyss unable to find even the slightest glimpse of land or light. Some cities, in particular, London continued life as normal, however, in many other places superstition and fear took over the hearts of many and for a moment authorities were at a loss as to how to explain this strange phenomenon.
Some spoke about strange prophecies that foretold the end of the world, others that the ultimate judgment from God was about to come to pass. However, a week later on the 8th of May to be exact, the fog began to dissipate. This left millions confused unable to understand what had led to such a strange event. The majority cheered for the end had not come to pass. Ultimately, the gears of life returned normalcy, however, just as most of the world regained their peace of mind. Sighting of giant gates with strange writings began to flood newspapers all around the world. Sometimes the gates would be inside of cities and sometimes in the countryside. These monolithic structures attracted the attention of many and it didn't take long for their true purpose to be known.
The gates were exactly a hundred meters wide and a hundred meters tall. The tempting and mysterious gates stood unopened and silent, their pillars colored in pure blackness. Authorities and leaders of all nations wondered what to do about these giant gates that had suddenly been brought from the darkest depths of mythology. Leaders and authorities from all spectrums began to speculate about the nature of these gates. Some argued that it was a gate to hell and it was not to be opened under any circumstances for this was yet another test from God.
In contrast, others thought that it could be a gate to heaven left by God and only the innocent and pure would be able to pass through. Even more curious theories of all sorts circulated around the global population, a strange curiosity making them wonder about what exactly was on the other side of the gate. Yet, many undecided did not open the gate both due to fear of the unknown and due to the social upheaval that these strange gates brought about with their simple existence.
The British, who had had their gate appear in some field near the city of York, were the first to open theirs, they found vast plains of green pasture on the other side, with fauna and flora totally unfamiliar to those found on Earth or so they told the world. Soon, other countries followed in the steps of the British, establishing small outposts on the other side of their gates each on a strange new planet, meeting strange new beings. It is now the 30th of May and it seems like the world may just have found itself in a race of discovery and colonialism. Many nations around the world are ordering their troops to set up outposts and carefully explore the other side of the gate.
One way or another you have found yourself in charge of a military regiment and with the permission of your government, you have stepped for the first time on the world of Arcadia.This was a rather important day for you, you were to go to the military HQ of your locality. The reason rather clear in your mind:
Military or Civilian:
[X] I was called by a superior officer to attend a meeting regarding the plans of my nation to colonize and explore Arcadia. [Military Route][Going Military Route means following orders and accomplishing objectives set by your own government]
[X] I was determined to convince the government officials to give my mercenary company permission to engage in colonial activities on Arcadia. [Civilian Route][Going Civilian Route means having a PMC and going to Arcadia for capitalist profit]
Nationality:
First of all, you must begin by picking a nation of origin that's to say your base of operations on Earth, the nation you pick will influence the equipment available to you, the quality of its soldiers, possible contracts, and the national objectives of your nation in Arcadia. Not all nations are equal and each has different capabilities meaning that not all will perform the same in Arcadia. For example, the United Kingdom and France will probably pour more funds and resources into Arcadia than let's say Portugal or Sardinia. They will also have more cutting-edge equipment available to them, alongside a bigger presence in the other world.
The nations of origin are divided into three different categories. Great Powers (UK, France, Prussia, Russia, and Austria-Hungary ), Regional Powers (USA*, Spain, Sardinia, Ottoman Empire, Sweden, Mexico, etc.), and Unmodernized.
-
[X] The United Kingdom: The premier power of the world and the unchallenged controller of the seas. The United Kingdom is the most powerful country in the world by sheer diplomatic, economic and military influence. It boasts a large colonial empire, a professional military, and cutting-edge technologies that make them one of the most suited to engage in expeditions to Arcadia. However, another concern of theirs lies in what could be on the other side and the dangers that could mean to their little fortress island that has not been invaded for centuries.
- Begin with $100,000 for regiment creation
- Gain "Colonial Experts" trait for free
- Strong Presence in Arcadia
- Cutting Edge technology
- Professional Army
- The Defense of the Isles
[X] The 2nd French Empire: A victory in the Crimean war and another in Italy have once again raised the international prestige of France. Its emperor Napoleon III seeks to reestablish the preeminence of France in the world expanding its colonies and influence in Europe. So far, he has been successful in both endeavors which have secured him a measure of popular support. Expansion into Arcadia would be the main policy of the French Empire to enrich itself and to improve its prestige.
- Begin with $100,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Charge Experts" Regiment trait for free
- Strong Presence in Arcadia
- Cutting Edge Technology
- Professional Army
- The ambition of Napoleon III
[X] The Russian Empire: The humiliation in Crimea has left a large scar in the Russian political sphere, which is now attempting to modernize in order to regain its premier position in the world. It must deal with modernizing its army, its economy, and its laws. A massive endeavor that will take decades to truly be realized.
- Begin with $80,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Unprofessional Regiment" Regiment trait
- Weak Presence in Arcadia.
- Regular Technology
- Semi-Professional Army
- The weak grip of the Tsar
[X] The Austrian Empire: A prosperous nation even if stagnant with little liberal reforms. Its recent defeat against France and Piedmont has meant that it has lost its influence in Italy, however, its army, the one that fought off Napoleon for many years is still relatively intact. An expedition to Arcadia could mean profit and prestige for the nation.
- Begin with $80,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Artillery Experts" Regiment Trait
- Gain "Bureaucratic Mess" Regiment Trait
- Regular Presence in Arcadia
- Cutting Edge Technology*
- Professional Army
- The Stagnation of a Nation
[X] The Kingdom of Prussia: The small but rather important kingdom of Prussia remains in competition with the Austrians for dominance over the German nations. After a failed mobilization that took place during the French campaign in Italy, the Prussian army has begun a modernization process. With no colonial experience and with a smaller army than its neighbors, an expedition into Arcadia will prove a daunting task.
- Begin with $100,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Disciplined" Regiment trait for free
- Weak presence in Arcadia
- Cutting Edge Technology*
- Professional Army
- The Future of Germany
- Begin with $80,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Pioneer" Regiment Trait
- Strong Presence in Arcadia
- Cutting Edge Technology
- Semi-professional Army
- Manifest Destiny
-
[X] The Kingdom of Spain: Fallen from grace, the kingdom of Spain is relegated to have an influence only in its colonies and in the peninsula of Iberia. Under Isabella II, Spain has been suffering from political unrest and government issues between the liberals and the old order. Only recently has Spain seen some semblance of stability under a liberal coalition supported by the Queen.
- Begin with $60,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Guerrilla Warfare" Regiment trait.
- Weak presence in Arcadia
- Regular Technology
- Professional Army
[X] The Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont: The leading face of Italian nationalist and reunification. Currently, the realm of Sardinia-Piedmont has come out from winning a war against Austria with the help of France. Its army is bloodied and it has plenty of veteran troops, however, most of these are to be kept home due to the complex geopolitical ambitions of the monarch and prime ministers of the nation.
- Begin with $60,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Famous Regiment" Regiment trait for free
- Very Weak presence in Arcadia
- Regular Technology
- Professional Army
[X] The Ottoman Empire: The Ottoman Empire has seen better days, however, modernization attempts have taken place and been supported by the Sultans, especially after a costly victory in the Crimean War that has shown the need for the Empire to modernize or fall prey to its northern neighbor.
- Begin with $60,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Nature Advocates" Regiment trait for free
- Very Weak presence in Arcadia
- Regular Technology
- Unprofessional Army
[X] The Second Federal Republic of Mexico: Embroiled in civil war may not be the state to begin in the middle of the new Arcadia rush, but what can be done? It's either use it or lose it in these times and Mexico is for sure not going to lose the chance to gain some territory after they lost theirs against the USA, a decade and a half ago.
- Begin with $50,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain "Loyal to Caesar" trait for free
- Very Weak presence in Arcadia.
- Regular Technology
- Semi-Professional Army
-
[X] Qing Empire: Currently in the midst of a bloody civil war against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Their forces still being defeated by the Taiping and also in the middle of the 2nd opium war, the situation couldn't look worse for the Qing Empire yet it seems that it won't be over anytime soon. A gate has now appeared in their territory and they have sent a force to secure whatever's on the other side.
- Begin with $60,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain 1 extra Regiment trait for free
- Very Weak Presence in Arcadia
- Obsolete Technology
- Unprofessional Army
[X] Taiping Heavenly Kingdom: The opposing side to the Qing Empire. Lead by the self-proclaimed brother of Jesus Christ, the Taiping are still high on their horses and control the silk-producing regions of the country bringing considerable wealth to their government, however, their position still remains rather fickle.
- Begin with $60,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain 1 extra Regiment trait for free
- Very Weak Presence in Arcadia
- Obsolete Technology
- Unprofessional Army
[X] Tokugawa Shogunate: Social strife, international humiliation, and problematic politics. The Shogunate of Japan is facing a rather troublesome time with various plots to seek to strengthen the nation but also weakening the central position of the Shogunate. Samurai are beginning to show how much they loathe foreigners and foreigners have many times been killed by them in street encounters. The appearance of a gate to Arcadia only spells more trouble for the nation but perhaps also an opportunity to distract the samurai.
- Begin with $40,000 for Regiment creation
- Gain 2 extra Regiment trait for free
- Very Weak presence in Arcadia
- Obsolete Technology
- Unprofessional Army
Regiment Advantage Traits: Given either by national origin or by purchasing during character creation. These are only for reference until the next phase.
- Disciplined (Your units have increased morale)
- Drilled Aim (Your units have increased accuracy)
- Fast Reloaders (Your units have an increase rate of fire)
- Charge Experts (Units gain a bonus to morale and damage when charging)
- Artillery Experts (Artillery gains bonus accuracy)
- Guerrilla Warfare (Your units can engage in guerrilla warfare with proficiency)
- Loot Masters (Gain extra loot when appropriate)
- Brawlers (Units get a bonus in melee combat)
- Scouts (It's harder to surprise you and easier to detect enemies. Better recon)
- Bullet Economy (Your units consume less supplies after a battle)
- Horsemanship (Your cavalry units move faster and have increased accuracy)
- Colonial Experts (Better rolls for prospecting and settlements)
- Pioneers (Begin with a civilian caravan following you)
- Famous Regiment (Veteran troops cost 20% less)
- Masons (Defensive Structure costs reduced by 25%)
- Budget Allowance (Begin with $15,000 more for Regiment purchases)
- Loyal to Caesar (Your units are loyal to you with fanaticism)(2 Trait Points)
- Political Connections (Your Regiment receives priority reinforcements)
- Nature Advocates(Your units are better in a particular type of terrain or weather)
- Lucky (Rerolls so that terrible things may not happen to you...often)
- No time for Tricks (Supernatural Phenomena is not as surprising to your men)
OOC: The game consists of our protagonist taking command of a military regiment and being sent out to Arcadia a new world that has been newly discovered through the use of gates that have appeared in various places around the world. The year is 1860 so don't expect majors curb stomps against native forces or not to expect the reverse. Your regiment will be highly customizable and you will be able to lead it to glory or death. This is also a reboot from a quest I did in SB a long time ago and I have been having new ideas about it and hopefully, I will be able to give it an interesting twist.
Last edited:
Character Creation
- Location
- Peru
Winning Vote
Stats: All stats are counted from 1 to 6, with 1 being very below average and 6 being exceptional. All stats begin at 2 by default. Each point is one dice, more points means more chances of success.
Leadership: Affects the morale of your men. Your capacity to rally them, issue orders in a sensical manner, and remain calm during times of crisis.
Name:
You were born within the borders of the Iron Kingdom of Europe. A nation that stretched from the Baltic to the Ruhr river. You were born a man and the firstborn to one out of hundreds of thousands of families. Your birth was indeed celebrated and expectations were placed upon you since the moment you were born. Fledgling thoughts of what you would become were placed in the minds of your parents and close family. They will be quite important in your early life and possibly in your later years too. You were born to...
Pick 1
The year of your birth was 1820. Five years after the battles of Waterloo and Wavre, after which twenty eights years of peace would follow. Years of prosperity, reform, and population growth for the central European kingdom. You joined the actual rank and file of the army of Prussia at the age of 19 do your two years of service in the army. During military training you...
You finished your two years of service as many other Prussians, however, you decided to continue a career in the military. You knew that advancing the ranks was just a matter of time and time did indeed pass rather quickly, however, in the year 1848 an incident in the territories of Schelisweig Holstein brought Prussia to war with Denmark. The war lasted three whole years during which you...
Pick 1
A Different Germany
The war ended although its result was certainly inconclusive, nonetheless, for your actions and certainly thanks to the death of some officers further up the line of command. You were promoted to captain of your own company. It seems that your years of work were beginning to pay off. Nine years of peace ensued, but you returned to a changed Prussia. One with a constitution and with representation for the people. Your inclinations towards this were...
Your military career steamed on and after four years of service in your company. You were promoted to Major and a year after, to Colonel. You were growing older but had finally achieved a high enough rank to grant you a comfortable position in society, nonetheless, you weren't thinking of retiring just yet and the elusive rank of General seemed all the closer. During these last years, you focused on...
Pick 1
The Gates Open
And finally, you are here. The gates to a literal new world have opened and your regiment has been ordered to go through the strange gate and learn more about the world on the other side. However, You have a feeling that this isn't going to be as easy as your superiors make it out to be, it is a new world after all. But you feel confident in your ability to carry on your duties.
OOC: You may now begin voting, voting only for plans and not individual options, please name plans accordingly. 24 Hours of voting. Next phase will be regiment creation and then straight to the quest.
[X] I was called by a superior officer to attend a meeting regarding the plans of my nation to colonize and explore Arcadia.
[Military Route][Going Military Route means following orders and accomplishing objectives set by your own government]
[X] The Kingdom of Prussia
Stats: All stats are counted from 1 to 6, with 1 being very below average and 6 being exceptional. All stats begin at 2 by default. Each point is one dice, more points means more chances of success.
Leadership: Affects the morale of your men. Your capacity to rally them, issue orders in a sensical manner, and remain calm during times of crisis.
- To show confidence in diplomacy and first contact scenarios.
- Rally retreating men and make them follow orders that depending on the situation they would not otherwise follow.
- To respond rapidly to new threats without losing your cool.
- To lead bigger forces and manage them correctly.
- Grants one leadership dice for any actions in combat for every point above 3.
- Used to spin losses into victories to your superiors or minor victories into great victories.
- To maneuver in the political sphere, ensuring that your voice is heard in the complicated politics of 19th century Prussia.
- To know who to talk to when it comes to achieving promotions.
- To do diplomacy without being manipulated.
- To request greater funding and reinforcements in the right ways
- Increase Prestige Gain by 10% for every point above 3.
- To know when there is an opportunity to make a profit.
- To get the best prices for stuff.
- To promote the viability of certain projects
- To increase your personal wealth. For every point above 3 get a +10% Personal Income Bonus.
- Each point above 3 at the start of the game enhances the procurement phase spending by $10,000.
- To drill your men into performing better.
- To have a keen eye to look out for promising officers and soldiers.
- To ensure that your men follow the rules and conduct of war.
- Reduces costs of recruiting new veteran companies by 10% for every point above 3.
- Companies become veteran companies faster.
- To maintain a lookout for experimental weapons and innovations.
- To ensure that your men are well equipped.
- To get supplies on time and enhance sieges.
- Reduces costs of recruiting new companies by 10% for every point above 3.
- Reduces supply use slightly.
- To avoid Teutoburg Forest (Fewer chances of getting ambushed)
- To find easier ways to traverse the land (Faster movement)
- To get around rivers and mountains
- To better estimate enemy sizes and composition.
Name:
[X] Random
[X] Write-In
Parentage and Class
You were born within the borders of the Iron Kingdom of Europe. A nation that stretched from the Baltic to the Ruhr river. You were born a man and the firstborn to one out of hundreds of thousands of families. Your birth was indeed celebrated and expectations were placed upon you since the moment you were born. Fledgling thoughts of what you would become were placed in the minds of your parents and close family. They will be quite important in your early life and possibly in your later years too. You were born to...
Pick 1
[X] A Peasant Family: Accustomed to the life of a farmer, you learned what hard labor could do from an early age. You were also expected to fulfill your draft service for the state. [+1 Training and +1 Reconnaissance]
[X] A middle-class city family: A man from the city, business in one of the main cities of Prussia was simply not the thing for you and even though you learned a great deal from your parents. You still decided to go ahead and join the military. [+1 Economy and +1 Logistics]
[X] A Junker Family: Born to the landed junker aristocracy. You had an easy path to join the military with connections and the possibility of entering a military academy at a young age. [+1 Politics and +1 Leadership]
Two-Year Draft
The year of your birth was 1820. Five years after the battles of Waterloo and Wavre, after which twenty eights years of peace would follow. Years of prosperity, reform, and population growth for the central European kingdom. You joined the actual rank and file of the army of Prussia at the age of 19 do your two years of service in the army. During military training you...
[X] Showed great promise at your ability to lead your men and quickly arrived at a position of trust amongst your comrades in the company you were assigned to. [+1 Leadership +1 Training]
[X] Managed to attract the attention of your officers due to your excellent athletic performance granting you a spot in one of the elite royal guard regiments. [+1 Reconnaissance +1 Training ]
[X] While your athletic ability wasn't the best your mind was the sharpest and you were assigned to help with the quartermaster when you weren't on patrol or other duties. [+1 Logistics +1 Economy]
The First Schleswig War of 1848-1852
You finished your two years of service as many other Prussians, however, you decided to continue a career in the military. You knew that advancing the ranks was just a matter of time and time did indeed pass rather quickly, however, in the year 1848 an incident in the territories of Schelisweig Holstein brought Prussia to war with Denmark. The war lasted three whole years during which you...
Pick 1
[X] Took command of your company after your commanding officer died. You still suffered heavy losses but managed to hold your ground until reinforcements arrived. [+1 Leadership]
[X] Participated in Rear Line duty ensuring that the men in the front could count on supplies arriving on time. [+1 Logistics]
[X] Had to work as a spy for Prussia behind enemy lines. [+1 Politics]
[X] Were an example to the rest of your men through your accomplishment in battle. Obeying orders and executing them like none else. [+1 Training]
[X] You were ordered to work in the Aeronauts corp. Providing reconnaissance to your officers. [+1 Reconnaissance]
A Different Germany
The war ended although its result was certainly inconclusive, nonetheless, for your actions and certainly thanks to the death of some officers further up the line of command. You were promoted to captain of your own company. It seems that your years of work were beginning to pay off. Nine years of peace ensued, but you returned to a changed Prussia. One with a constitution and with representation for the people. Your inclinations towards this were...
[X] You were amenable to the ideas of the Liberal Revolution. [Gain Liberal Leanings]
[X] You were for king and country, not entirely sure that this experiment of representation was going to work or strengthen Prussia against her enemies. [Gain Conservative Leanings]
[X] None. You simply didn't politics that much and preferred to stay out of it.
Career Prospects
Your military career steamed on and after four years of service in your company. You were promoted to Major and a year after, to Colonel. You were growing older but had finally achieved a high enough rank to grant you a comfortable position in society, nonetheless, you weren't thinking of retiring just yet and the elusive rank of General seemed all the closer. During these last years, you focused on...
[X] Studying war from a historical perspective. Participating in the Military Historical Section to accrue greater knowledge about the matters of war. [+1 Leadership +1 Reconnaissance]
[X] Focused on your estate and the state of your regiment's logistics. Making sure that it was well-fed and well-armed for battle.[+1 Economy +1 Logistics]
[X] Implemented new training regimes for your men. Ensuring that they would be fit and would perform well in combat. [+1 Training and +1 Leadership]
[X] A mix of stuff. [Write In: +1 to two Player Selected Stats]
Misc Trait
While your military career was your main focus this did not take away from your other pursuits of life. In the end, it could be that said that they also shaped you and helped you in your military career in one way or another, either that, or they will prove useful sooner rather than later.Pick 1
[X] Knack for profit (Buildings owned by you produce 20% more profit)
[X] Xenophile (Better results on interactions with Arcadian NPCs)
[X] Diplomat (Better results on interactions with Earth NPCs)
[X] Explorer (Better results when prospecting or exploring ruins)
[X] Famous (Gains prestige at a higher rate)
[X] Tough Imperialist (Gains a bonus when intimidating Arcadian NPCs)
[X] Trusty Sable (Less likely to be killed by assassination or duels)
[X] Cowboy Justice (Colonists like and help you more)
The Gates Open
And finally, you are here. The gates to a literal new world have opened and your regiment has been ordered to go through the strange gate and learn more about the world on the other side. However, You have a feeling that this isn't going to be as easy as your superiors make it out to be, it is a new world after all. But you feel confident in your ability to carry on your duties.
OOC: You may now begin voting, voting only for plans and not individual options, please name plans accordingly. 24 Hours of voting. Next phase will be regiment creation and then straight to the quest.
Last edited:
Regiment Creation
- Location
- Peru
[X] Plan Well balanced and ready to explore
Character Bio:
Name: Vikton Friedrich von Rees
Nationality: Prussian
Rank: Colonel
Age: 40
Prestige: 0
Stats:
Soon after your services were required not as a soldier but as a spy behind enemy lines. You took on another name and assumed another personality, you managed to get in the social circle of a Danish Brigadier general. Lucky enough, your reports helped your country in the war effort even if the result wasn't the desired one.
Your return to Prussia found it besieged by a liberal sentiment through and through. This culminated in a constitution in which the Prussian king recognized the rights of the people of Prussia. This was considered a win for the liberals but an affront against the status quo that reminded them too much of the French Revolution. You joined with the conservatives of Prussia to protect the monarchy and tradition.
For the rest of the years, you focused on becoming an independent man accruing enough funds to build your own humble estate. You were getting older and thoughts of forming a family began to appear in your mind. Did you seek to marry someone during this time?
[X] Yes, and you sought someone of your same class creating ties with another junker family in Prussia.
[X] Yes, but you found yourself attracted to a town girl instead of a noble. There was slight protest from your family but it was quickly hushed up.
[X] Yes, but it was a farmer girl which ensued some protest from your father.
[X] No, you didn't care for marriage just yet. You had enough on your plate with ordering around so many people.
Your regiment marched on, you were, of course, in the vanguard. The view from horseback of a dozen or so green fields in the distance was simply beautiful. This was compounded with almost perfect weather with a warmth that was comfortable for everyone in your regiment. Your regiment had a good mood and it showed as your men heartily sang as they marched.
Memories from your younger years reminded me of the feelings of what it felt like to go to war. What it felt to do your duty for your country and what it felt to finally prove yourself to your superiors and to your men. While the Schleswig war had not been a victory, it had nonetheless helped you shape up to the man you were now, and thanks to it you were also more politically savvy. In this train of thoughts, you entertained the idea that now that a gate to an entirely new world had opened, the liberal Landtag would have no other option than to accept the King's army bill.
God himself had reminded them that without a strong army Prussia would not last and had provided the nobility another chance to prove just how needed they were. Your support towards the Minister of War and General Albrecht von Roon* had not gone unnoticed in the army circles, after all, you agreed on the basic notion that the liberal diet was not able to see the bigger picture and perilous situation of Prussia. The Landtag had to listen to the experts when it came to such important national matters.
Regardless of current political events, you saw this as a chance to expand the territory of Prussia and maybe even your own estate. Albeit this was not to be done in a typical manner. After all, you certainly did not know what could be found on the other side of the gate. The concept of exploration wasn't foreign to you. You had read the works of Alexander von Humboldt in your spare time and found them interesting, to say the least. You didn't consider yourself a Humboldt but would do your earnest to help Prussia investigate and learn more about the new world, also defend her if a threat to her was unveiled on the other side.
Regiment Creation: A regiment in this quest is composed of companies. Companies are typically 100 men and lead by a captain. The same applies to cavalry. For Artillery it is considered to be 128 Men due to needing more me to operate artillery batteries.
All Regiments are unique and thus have unique advantages or disadvantages not only depending on their country of origin but also on the esprit de corps that belongs to that Regiment. All Regiments begin with 1 free trait, alongside their national trait if applicable. You can have up to two disadvantages to get two points for positive traits. All traits cost 1 point unless otherwise noted.
Regiment Advantage Traits:
Regiment Budget: $100,000
You will purchase companies for your regiment. You can purchase as many as you have the budget for. You can apply the following quality cost modifiers for companies purchased.
Green/Regular/Veteran/Elite
Musket Company: Represents soldiers armed with smooth-bore muskets. They usually formed in three ranks deep in close formation, often drilled to quickly change from column to rows formations quickly in battle. Each platoon fired a simultaneous volley but more often than not this devolved into independent shooting in combat conditions. Volley fire at close range often resulted in heavy casualties, although, this was mostly to soften the enemy before a bayonet charge. Their use of bayonets allowed them to defend themselves against cavalry charges.
OOC: The descriptions were taken from a wargame FYI since I found them very useful for explaining the unit types.
[X] Viktor Friedrich von Rees
[X] A Junker Family [+1 Politics and +1 Leadership]
[X] Managed to attract the attention of your officers due to your excellent athletic performance granting you a spot in one of the elite royal guard regiments. [+1 Reconnaissance +1 Training ]
[X] Had to work as a spy for Prussia behind enemy lines. [+1 Politics]
[X] You were for king and country, not entirely sure that this experiment of representation was going to work or strengthen Prussia against her enemies. [Conservative Leanings]
[X] Focused on your estate and the state of your regiment's logistics. Making sure that it was well-fed and well-armed for battle. [+1 Economy +1 Logistics]
[X] Explorer (Better results when prospecting or exploring ruins)
Character Bio:
Name: Vikton Friedrich von Rees
Nationality: Prussian
Rank: Colonel
Age: 40
Prestige: 0
Stats:
Leadership: 3
Politics: 4 [+10% Prestige Gain]
Economy: 3
Training: 3
Logistics: 3
Reconnaissance: 3
Biography: You were born to a Junker family, the Rees family. You were the firstborn in a family of six, you would be eight but two of your siblings died due to disease. At Age 12, you entered an academy for young cadets and thus began your path in the military. Once you began your official military training at age 19, you quickly became noticed by your superiors as a quite physically capable man. Your height and body built probably helped you with that. At age 28, you saw your first combat at the Battle of Schleswig where you killed your first man during a bayonet charge.Soon after your services were required not as a soldier but as a spy behind enemy lines. You took on another name and assumed another personality, you managed to get in the social circle of a Danish Brigadier general. Lucky enough, your reports helped your country in the war effort even if the result wasn't the desired one.
Your return to Prussia found it besieged by a liberal sentiment through and through. This culminated in a constitution in which the Prussian king recognized the rights of the people of Prussia. This was considered a win for the liberals but an affront against the status quo that reminded them too much of the French Revolution. You joined with the conservatives of Prussia to protect the monarchy and tradition.
For the rest of the years, you focused on becoming an independent man accruing enough funds to build your own humble estate. You were getting older and thoughts of forming a family began to appear in your mind. Did you seek to marry someone during this time?
[X] Yes, and you sought someone of your same class creating ties with another junker family in Prussia.
[X] Yes, but you found yourself attracted to a town girl instead of a noble. There was slight protest from your family but it was quickly hushed up.
[X] Yes, but it was a farmer girl which ensued some protest from your father.
[X] No, you didn't care for marriage just yet. You had enough on your plate with ordering around so many people.
A Prussian Regiment
Your regiment marched on, you were, of course, in the vanguard. The view from horseback of a dozen or so green fields in the distance was simply beautiful. This was compounded with almost perfect weather with a warmth that was comfortable for everyone in your regiment. Your regiment had a good mood and it showed as your men heartily sang as they marched.
Memories from your younger years reminded me of the feelings of what it felt like to go to war. What it felt to do your duty for your country and what it felt to finally prove yourself to your superiors and to your men. While the Schleswig war had not been a victory, it had nonetheless helped you shape up to the man you were now, and thanks to it you were also more politically savvy. In this train of thoughts, you entertained the idea that now that a gate to an entirely new world had opened, the liberal Landtag would have no other option than to accept the King's army bill.
God himself had reminded them that without a strong army Prussia would not last and had provided the nobility another chance to prove just how needed they were. Your support towards the Minister of War and General Albrecht von Roon* had not gone unnoticed in the army circles, after all, you agreed on the basic notion that the liberal diet was not able to see the bigger picture and perilous situation of Prussia. The Landtag had to listen to the experts when it came to such important national matters.
*General Albrecht von Roon. Intimate friend of Prince Regent Willhelm and current minister of war. He recently managed to replace the last Minister of War (Eduard von Bonin) in a power struggle for the favor of the Prince Regent. He argued for an increase in the size and quality of the Prussian Army and diminishing the size and prominence of the Landwehr. His goals, however, as not as conservative as some may think. His goals are towards helping Prussia reach hegemony in Germany and to restore the military prestige of Prussia.
*Landwehr part of the Royal Prussian Army. Founded in the year 1813. It is now considered by conservative elements as nothing more than a militia of little military value and as a threat to the monarchy by more extreme Junkers, who believe it to be a tool of the Liberal Landtag to use against the monarchy. Nonetheless, it is held in popular veneration helps in a certain way to keep social cohesion between the army and the people of Prussia.
Regardless of current political events, you saw this as a chance to expand the territory of Prussia and maybe even your own estate. Albeit this was not to be done in a typical manner. After all, you certainly did not know what could be found on the other side of the gate. The concept of exploration wasn't foreign to you. You had read the works of Alexander von Humboldt in your spare time and found them interesting, to say the least. You didn't consider yourself a Humboldt but would do your earnest to help Prussia investigate and learn more about the new world, also defend her if a threat to her was unveiled on the other side.
Regiment Creation: A regiment in this quest is composed of companies. Companies are typically 100 men and lead by a captain. The same applies to cavalry. For Artillery it is considered to be 128 Men due to needing more me to operate artillery batteries.
All Regiments are unique and thus have unique advantages or disadvantages not only depending on their country of origin but also on the esprit de corps that belongs to that Regiment. All Regiments begin with 1 free trait, alongside their national trait if applicable. You can have up to two disadvantages to get two points for positive traits. All traits cost 1 point unless otherwise noted.
Regiment Advantage Traits:
- Disciplined (Your units have increased morale)[This regiment begins with this trait]
- Drilled Aim (Your units have increased accuracy)
- Fast Reloaders (Your units have an increased rate of fire)
- Charge Experts (Units gain a bonus to morale and damage when charging)
- Artillery Experts (Artillery gains bonus accuracy)
- Guerrilla Warfare (Your units can engage in guerrilla warfare with proficiency)
- Loot Masters (Gain extra loot when appropriate)
- Brawlers (Units get a bonus in melee combat)
- Scouts (It's harder to surprise you and easier to detect enemies. Better recon)
- Bullet Economy (Your units consume fewer supplies after a battle)
- Horsemanship (Your cavalry units move faster and have increased accuracy)
- Colonial Experts (Better rolls for prospecting and settlements)
- Pioneers (Begin with a civilian caravan following you)
- Famous Regiment (Reduce Veteran and Elite modifiers by 20%, however, you have to live up to the fame of the regiment or this trait will be lost.)
- Masons (Defensive Structure costs reduced by 25%)
- Budget Allowance (Begin with $15,000 more for Regiment purchases)
- Loyal to Caesar (Your units are loyal to you with fanaticism)(2 Trait Points)
- Political Connections (Your Regiment receives priority reinforcements)
- Nature Advocates(Your units are better in a particular type of terrain or weather)
- Lucky (Rerolls, so extra plot armor)
- No time for Tricks (Supernatural Phenomena is not as surprising to your men)
- Disliked by your men (Reduce unit morale)
- Penal Regiment (Your Regiment is cannon fodder and unruly)(Cannot recruit Elites)
- Unruly Regiment (Create more diplomatic incidents and possibly laws are not obeyed)
- Unsupported (Receive less support from your mother country)
- Enemies Above (Political Enemies that make will your life harsh)
- Incompetent Officers (Reduce morale and combat effectiveness)
- Minimal Equipment (A random amount of your companies will either be ineffective equipment or lost equipment)
- Lost Regiment (No way back home)(+2 Traits)
- Superstitious (Supernatural Phenomena have a greater negative morale effect on your soldiers)
- Horrible accuracy (Can't hit a side of a barn even if they're standing right next to it)
- Wasteful (They eat a lot, drink a lot, and waste a lot.)
- Sleepy Sentries (Reduces Reconnaissance and you are more likely to be ambushed)
- Destroyers (They are not pyromaniacs but they certainly bring the same events. More likely to destroy buildings inside of a town.)
- Illiterate Engineers (20% increase in time it takes to build stuff and the cost)
- Weak arms ( Your men are not good at melee combat. Weaker than most and not as brave to hold themselves in face to face combat.)
- Old-timers (Your regiment is mostly composed of old soldiers, weakened by age. However, they are not as afraid of death as their younger men. Your officers are also old and will take a while to accept new ideas.)
Regiment Budget: $100,000
You will purchase companies for your regiment. You can purchase as many as you have the budget for. You can apply the following quality cost modifiers for companies purchased.
Green/Regular/Veteran/Elite
Green: Represents units that are just out of basic training and do not possess the same performances as other units. Applies 0.75x Cost modifiers
Regular: Represents units that have troops that have been drilled and trained for at least two years, these troops perform in an average way in combat. 1x Cost Modifier
Veteran: Represents units with a sizable amount of combat veterans possibly in the officer ranks rather than in the rank and file. 1.5x Cost modifier
Elites: Represent units that have very high levels of morale and motivation. These are your guard companies that will not falter even in very disfavorable odds. 2.0x Cost Modifier
Musket Company: Represents soldiers armed with smooth-bore muskets. They usually formed in three ranks deep in close formation, often drilled to quickly change from column to rows formations quickly in battle. Each platoon fired a simultaneous volley but more often than not this devolved into independent shooting in combat conditions. Volley fire at close range often resulted in heavy casualties, although, this was mostly to soften the enemy before a bayonet charge. Their use of bayonets allowed them to defend themselves against cavalry charges.
- Recruitment Cost: $3300
- Manpower: 100 Men commanded by a captain
- Recruitment Cost: $4000
- Manpower: 100 Men commanded by a captain
- Recruitment Cost: $8000 (Will get lower as the years pass)
- Manpower: 100 Men commanded by a captain
- Recruitment Cost: $8750
- Manpower: 100 Horsemen commanded by a captain
- Recruitment Cost: $4750
- Manpower: 100 Horsemen commanded by a captain
- Recruitment Cost: $4500
- Manpower: 100 Horsemen commanded by a captain
- Recruitment Cost: $4000
- Manpower: 100 Men
- Recruitment Cost: $11,250
- Manpower: 128 Men and a commanding captain
- Recruitment Cost: $11,875
- Manpower: 128 Men and a commanding captain
- Recruitment Cost: $12,500
- Manpower: 128 Men and a commanding captain
OOC: The descriptions were taken from a wargame FYI since I found them very useful for explaining the unit types.
Last edited:
First Contact
- Location
- Peru
[X] Plan: Feuer Frei
- 2 Veteran Minie Companies - 12000
- 8 Minie Companies - 32000
- 1 Veteran Breechloading Company - 12000
- 2 Light Cavalry - 9500
- 1 Repeaters - 8750
- 2 Mixed Artillery Battery - 23750
- Trait: Fast Reloaders
$2000 left in procurement budget.
[X] Yes, and you sought someone of your same class creating ties with another junker family in Prussia.
Chapter 1: Discovery and Unknowns
A meeting at the Gate
At last, your regiment arrived at the military camp near the gate. Upon arrival one of your officers said. "So it was that f**** big?" A fitting expression for such a large and strange structure. Your eyes didn't lie to you, its size was probably equal to that of a cathedral. Except that its design was far simpler. The gate was simply two large pillars and a triangular roof, the walls were made out of an ominous onyx color. From here, you would be able to spot a few strange carvings into the stone as if chiseled into the walls by an expert artisan, a warning perhaps. But so far nobody could make sense of them. Two large doors concealed the portal itself but one was semi-open, probably to make way for the scouts and personnel to come and go without too much of a fuss.
The placing of the gate was also quite surprising just outside of the main roads of the city. Meaning that there were plenty of civilians' eyes gathered around, but also plenty of hotels and other far more comfortable lodgings that would otherwise be unavailable.
You told your men to get some rest but to be ready to march again in a few hours. As you unmount your horse a messenger approaches you. It's a young soldier no older than seventeen, probably another cadet from the same academy that you attended. "Viktor von Rees?" The messenger asks.
You nod and you manage to spot a little relief on his face. He was probably looking for you for a long while. "Brigadier General Vinzenz von Acker is waiting for you at hotel "Alexander" . You remember the hotel from your times as a young officer but given the circumstances, it's better not to reminisce too much about it. You call for your second in command, your right hand in handling the regiment...he is.
Pick 1
[X] Major Wetzel Käufer: A brave albeit a bit of a reckless officer. He is well-liked by the men and quite charismatic, capable of making men follow him wherever. He was once part of one of the royal Prussian guard regiments just like you and perhaps that its the reason you chose him to be your second in command.
[X] Major Wilhelm von Kurzmann: The intellectual type great qualifications and quite the letters of recommendation from his professors in the kriegsacademy. Sharp and quick to formulate flexible plans, he does seem like a good officer or at least a diamond in the rough, however, his young age makes you think that it is his family and not his wits that got him the quick promotion.
[X] Major Manfred Dunajski: From the Prussian Polish territories. Manfred saw that he could only raise his social status through the Prussian military system and has done it quite well. He may be half a decade younger than you, but he seems well-composed and most importantly a confident officer. One whom you can trust to keep his act together even in tough situations.
However, a small problem with mismatching ledgers keeps him from following you into the meeting. You tell him that you will inform him later and then you walk in the direction of the Hotel, which is not that far from here. Thankfully, you arrive on time and but it seems that everyone is already inside. Brigadier General Vinzenz is there with his officers and the other staff. He is a man only a decade older than you, however, his perfectly erect posture tells you that he anything but an old man yet.
"Good afternoon herr Viktor. It's been a while since we met."
"Not too long, but yes. The regiment has been moved around many times since I got command." You replied as you scanned the room and greeted the other officers present with a firm handshake and nod.
"I agree, but right now I am glad to have you here. We have a sudden gate literally next to our capital and reports are certainly concerning." Vinzenz was quick to be done with the niceties which spoke of the urgency of the task at hand.
"Concerning?" You ask.
"I assume you are aware of fossils." Vinzenz says. You nod and he instantly continues his speech. "Very well, whatever creatures we had here on Earth no matter their size would be ants compared to the titanic fossils we found on the other side of the gate." Vinzenz says.
"Titanic? That must surely be wrong." You think for a moment that he must be joking, but his face replies to you that he is serious.
"Not wrong, not at all. I saw one of them myself, you can see them if you step into the gate and climb the watchtower. Thankfully regardless of the number of bones laying around, no scout has reported seeing any creature of such size alive." He says that with a tone of relief as if Armageddon had suddenly been avoided.
An officer interjects. "However, we do have a couple of missing scouts."
"Aye, And that's what worries us at the moment. Beasts of such size would make exploring and colonizing...difficult. But that's not our only problem, other humans have been sighted. Natives maybe, but also possibly spies from another nation, as far as we know the Austrians could well already be encroaching the land next to our gate."
"Which is why this is urgent right?" You say reminding yourself of the large amount of political and geopolitical issues that Prussia has to handle daily.
"Quite so, my orders are to keep the gate safe and sound. Meanwhile, you will do deep reconnaissance and try to go as far as you can without breaking lines of communication. It would be a good idea to prepare yourself for unexpected encounters too." He adds.
"Understood, but will I only have my regiment at my disposal? I don't have enough cavalry for doing large reconnaissance duties."
"Thankfully no. The war minister has ordered that the 11th Cavalry Battalion will aid you during this expedition. As of now, he is trying to scrape a few more units without weakening our borders to send them to secure the gate and its immediate surroundings."
"The War Minister is busy already? Good news at least. Anything else?"
"Nothing else that I think I must inform you of. I wish you the best of luck in this assignment and I know that you will bring great results."
And with that, the meeting was over. You were given a few hours to prepare, hours that you made use of to procure more supplies for your men and to visit a bakery to enhance your personal supplies. Including a bottle of wine and some souvenirs for when you returned home.
A few hours later.
The hours went by fast. The temperatures had also simmered down to a comfortable fresh temperature. Your regiment composed of mostly regular soldiers assembled rather quickly after you gave the order to your officers to get them ready to march out. Soon enough a column of men wearing their Prussian blue uniforms had assembled in front of the large gate. You were not the only ones as the cavalry battalion you had been promised was in the vanguard together with your own cavalry.
Major Reinhold von Alscher, a blonde man in this thirties approached you with his own cadre of officers. He greeted you formally and elegantly, an easy way to tell that he came from a noble family. He began by introducing himself. "Reinhold von Aslcher, 52th Hussar Battalion at your service."
"Nice to meet you, Major Alscher." A similar formal greet came out of your mouth.
"It is good to know that I will be working with a veteran in the field." He nods and glances at the gate. "I heard what the Brigadier General said and well, finding bigger game is a bit of a concern of mine. I may not be able to eat it all." His men laugh and you grin too, you can't help it after all those good memories of hunting with your father in his estate.
"I think we would find some space in our soldier's stomachs." You add before regaining your composure. "Anyhow, the 8th Infantry Regiment is also looking forward to collaborating with you."
Once the niceties were over. You rode to the front of the column, your eyes inevitably finding themselves drawn to the now opening doors of the gate. The two doors had to be opened by nothing less than dozens of men on each side. The gates open and an entire different lightness different to that of the sun comes from within the gate. The portal if it could be called that, is a seamless connection to Arcadia. On the other side, you manage to see the beginnings of a fort with men cutting down large trees to make space for tents and men.
You give the order to the march and the entire column begins to move. Cavalry at the helm and artillery at the back. You were told to blindfold your horses as they apparently were easily scared to pass through the gate, probably a result of the myriad of different smells that you sense once you pass through.
It takes half an hour of march to leave the gate and the fort in construction, your men probably as surprised as you to find all sorts of new fauna and plants that seem every bit as exotic as strange and dangerous. Small nimble animals watching you from above as you advance following a trail of marks that previous scouts left behind to guide themselves.
The only part of your regiment that moves slowly is your artillery and it's probably due to the lack of roads in this region. Well, there is little that can be done about this at the moment and if the reports from the scouts are correct, then there should be some grasslands only a few kilometers to the north.
You take another look at your trusty compass and clean some sweat off your brow. The temperature here in Arcadia is considerably higher than that of Berlin, probably five or more celsius. "Colonel, we have passed the last mark of the scouts, the grasslands should be here somewhere." One of your men explains and as always you send a few forward scouts to confirm this. They return a few minutes later and they nod.
"Colonel, we saw them. The skulls the scouts spoke of...they are certainly titanic, taken out from a children's fairy tale." One of them says. Their expressions say it all, their pupils are as open as they can be almost as if they had seen a ghost or a dead soldier. You nod at them and thank them for their report. It doesn't take long for you to see what they saw with your own eyes.
A single massive white skull, the size of a large house, two massive openings where you think there were once eyes and teeth so big that for your innermost part of your brain makes you recoil back upon its sight, the part of your brain that tells you that if that thing were still alive you would-be prey and probably only a snack to a creature of such massive size.
You see in your men the same expression that you saw in your scouts and decide to reassure them. "We can rest assured that if these things were still alive, we would have already seen them. Let's leave gazing at it all day long to the scientists." You tell them. Your column marches and their awe is replicated with every company that sees it.
This is as far as the scouts had gone, at least, the ones that returned and that means that you are now entering unexplored territory. Totally unknown, totally foreign to you and your experience. You find a tall hill upon which to inspect the landscape not too long after. In so far as you can see, grasslands to your north, more hills to your west, a few more kilometers of grasslands before another forest appears to the east, and forests to your south.
You tell one of your men to hand you your field glasses to inspect the terrain and once you have them. You take another more meticulous look at the terrain.
3d6 (Reconnaissance) = 6,5,4 = Two Successes
It all looks in order, nothing more than fantastic animals and more empty terrain. Until finally to your east, you find something out of place. You see what seems to be a small bush that's a little too conveniently placed if there is a word for it. Below it, the reflection of two bright eyes or it could be the reflection of a telescope too. You are not sure, but what you are sure of is that you are being watched.
You blink and manage to see a couple more of said bushes and hideouts. Where something or someone is waiting for you. You notify your officers and make your soldiers get ready for whatever may come. But it seems so far that they want you to come to them instead of the other way around. You tell one of your men to keep a close eye to the east.
It seems that whoever is waiting near the edges of the forest has been there for a long time. A long enough time for you to doubt that it was you, whom they were waiting for. Those prepared positions they have would have probably taken them longer to make. Your first thought is to send someone to know exactly who they are. But your thoughts become a secondary concern as one of your scouts notify you that someone to the West is approaching. A contingent of armored soldiers is marching fast to your Regiment's position.
Somewhere to the South West
The trees were silent as they had been more than a thousand years ago. The trees of this world were uncaring, unloving, and undeserving of the protection of the elder houses. Iñelda chuckled at her own thoughts, there were no elder houses anymore. There was only one and only one that had been sent to oversee the conquering of the new world or as the other elves put it. To enlighten it and cleanse it of unpure essences.
How long ago had that been? Probably eight hundred and twenty-five years ago, she was still so young back then. Yet, old enough to wield a sword and a bow with the dexterity of a hundred of the beings of this world. Yet, her skills were useless in what was truly important. For her going back home was but a delusion, another thought to keep her from disobeying the orders of the Marshall and the tenets of the Elder.
Two hundred years ago, she had been sent to this same exact forgotten land to see if this gate led back to the world and she had received only a burned hand and another two hundreds year of delusion. There was not going back to her homeworld, no going back to the whispers of the wind and the smells of flowers that only bloom once in a hundred years.
Yet, here only skeletons welcomed her with their wicked smiles. Skeletons of beings that had been here longer than she had been in this world or in the other. "The gate is close. They are never in exact same spot but the magic is undeniably here." She told to her men. "When are the scouts going to report?" She asks but her question is answered by a fast arrow that she perfectly catches in her hand. She opens the small message attached to it and nods.
"Humans? I thought they were already extinct. I guess the reports that the dragon had a new few pets around were true." Iñelda nods to herself not reading the whole message and gives the order for her soldiers to run forwards. They carry specially crafted bows each so similar but so different at the same time, crafted to perfection to suit their users. The perfect weapon to kill.
Back to the regiment
The armored soldiers take a position in a nearby hill which is about three hundred meters away, they carry bows from what you can see and they are not in the column but in a line formation. It doesn't take you too long to realize what's going on but it's too late. A volley of arrows lands against your regiment. Horses and men alike screaming in pain as they land against their unprotected bodies. You order your officers to organize your men.
You ride around giving orders and your army albeit shocked by the sudden attacks pulls itself through. 300 meters is quite a long distance to do an aimed shot, but your men are not doing an aimed shoot. They reply in the same language as your enemy shooting volleys of lead, smoke coming from out of their barrels as the continuous shooting creates a barrier of white that makes it hard for your men and your enemy to see. Yet, your men continue to shoot in the general direction of the enemy.
It's hard to see the effect of your bullets on the enemy but you spot some fallen amongst the enemy until they retreat behind the hill. Your casualties are at least eighty to ninety men in total, hit by an arrow most of them but only around twenty of them are dead. It takes a while for your men to stop shooting as they only realize the enemy is gone far too late but that is only typical of a regiment mostly composed of regulars.
You begin to ponder what to do now. You could pursue the enemy, they were not that many of them after all...and they were natives most likely. Capturing a few of them could yield valuable information later on but just as you plan your next move, you are informed that a man came from where you had spotted the hidden scouts and it's not exactly a man either. You tell them to let him pass and once he does, you notice that he is not alone. Rather he is followed by two human natives, and "he" is not a human. Not in the strict sense of Homo Sapiens Sapiens, he has a tail and two ears that reassemble those of the foxes you used to hunt in your father's estate.
You cannot understand the language in which he tries to speak, for a moment he pauses and seems to ask his men why you cannot understand him but they shrug. Then he points towards one of your men's rifles and then to the hill where your men had shot the enemy, then he points to himself. He finally points to the place where the rest of his men and gives them a signal which prompts them to come out from their hiding spots. There were more than you thought as you count more than two hundred humans and...two hundred more of whatever the name of his people is. They are all wearing some form of armor, mostly bronze including the ones in front of you. They are armed with bows and swords, which doesn't really surprise you.
You call for a linguist to come help you to understand him but it seems that not much is going to come out of this. At least not in the short term. In the end, you decide to...
Pick 1
[X] Communicate with them as best as you can so that they can guide you back to their village. You don't know if there are more enemies coming and it's better to seek cover in the forest than to wait for something sudden to happen. (Automatic "Do nothing for now" in military orders)
[X] Communicate with them to try and enlist their help against the other native enemy. They may or may not aid against this strange enemy but what better way than to strengthen first contact relationships than by spilled blood.
[X] Communicate with them to tell them to leave you alone. You have no time for natives when the enemy could attack at any moment.
Military Orders: You will send a messenger back to report your recent encounter as the fort is not that far away. You may receive reinforcements.
[X] Do nothing for now. You will wait for reinforcements to arrive, they make it in an hour or more though.
[X] Send the cavalry to pursue the enemy. The rest of your forces will support and your artillery now finally in position will be able to strike at the enemy from a safe distance.[700 Light Cavalry and 100 Repeaters]
[X] March the regiment against them. You will take no chances and move your entire regiment against them.
[X] Write-In
Your regiment:
2 Veteran Minie Companies
8 Minie Companies
1 Veteran Breechloading Company
2 Light Cavalry
1 Repeaters
2 Mixed Artillery Battery
Trait: Disciplined (+Morale )and Fast Reloaders (+Damage)
Info on the enemy so far: You think they are about a hundred or more of the enemy natives. There may be more behind the hills. Your companies are all ready and operational casualties spread over the various companies meaning that they are still at least more than 80% strength.
OOC: Moratorium of 24 Hours until then no voting.
- 2 Veteran Minie Companies - 12000
- 8 Minie Companies - 32000
- 1 Veteran Breechloading Company - 12000
- 2 Light Cavalry - 9500
- 1 Repeaters - 8750
- 2 Mixed Artillery Battery - 23750
- Trait: Fast Reloaders
$2000 left in procurement budget.
[X] Yes, and you sought someone of your same class creating ties with another junker family in Prussia.
Chapter 1: Discovery and Unknowns
A meeting at the Gate
At last, your regiment arrived at the military camp near the gate. Upon arrival one of your officers said. "So it was that f**** big?" A fitting expression for such a large and strange structure. Your eyes didn't lie to you, its size was probably equal to that of a cathedral. Except that its design was far simpler. The gate was simply two large pillars and a triangular roof, the walls were made out of an ominous onyx color. From here, you would be able to spot a few strange carvings into the stone as if chiseled into the walls by an expert artisan, a warning perhaps. But so far nobody could make sense of them. Two large doors concealed the portal itself but one was semi-open, probably to make way for the scouts and personnel to come and go without too much of a fuss.
The placing of the gate was also quite surprising just outside of the main roads of the city. Meaning that there were plenty of civilians' eyes gathered around, but also plenty of hotels and other far more comfortable lodgings that would otherwise be unavailable.
You told your men to get some rest but to be ready to march again in a few hours. As you unmount your horse a messenger approaches you. It's a young soldier no older than seventeen, probably another cadet from the same academy that you attended. "Viktor von Rees?" The messenger asks.
You nod and you manage to spot a little relief on his face. He was probably looking for you for a long while. "Brigadier General Vinzenz von Acker is waiting for you at hotel "Alexander" . You remember the hotel from your times as a young officer but given the circumstances, it's better not to reminisce too much about it. You call for your second in command, your right hand in handling the regiment...he is.
Pick 1
[X] Major Wetzel Käufer: A brave albeit a bit of a reckless officer. He is well-liked by the men and quite charismatic, capable of making men follow him wherever. He was once part of one of the royal Prussian guard regiments just like you and perhaps that its the reason you chose him to be your second in command.
[X] Major Wilhelm von Kurzmann: The intellectual type great qualifications and quite the letters of recommendation from his professors in the kriegsacademy. Sharp and quick to formulate flexible plans, he does seem like a good officer or at least a diamond in the rough, however, his young age makes you think that it is his family and not his wits that got him the quick promotion.
[X] Major Manfred Dunajski: From the Prussian Polish territories. Manfred saw that he could only raise his social status through the Prussian military system and has done it quite well. He may be half a decade younger than you, but he seems well-composed and most importantly a confident officer. One whom you can trust to keep his act together even in tough situations.
However, a small problem with mismatching ledgers keeps him from following you into the meeting. You tell him that you will inform him later and then you walk in the direction of the Hotel, which is not that far from here. Thankfully, you arrive on time and but it seems that everyone is already inside. Brigadier General Vinzenz is there with his officers and the other staff. He is a man only a decade older than you, however, his perfectly erect posture tells you that he anything but an old man yet.
"Good afternoon herr Viktor. It's been a while since we met."
"Not too long, but yes. The regiment has been moved around many times since I got command." You replied as you scanned the room and greeted the other officers present with a firm handshake and nod.
"I agree, but right now I am glad to have you here. We have a sudden gate literally next to our capital and reports are certainly concerning." Vinzenz was quick to be done with the niceties which spoke of the urgency of the task at hand.
"Concerning?" You ask.
"I assume you are aware of fossils." Vinzenz says. You nod and he instantly continues his speech. "Very well, whatever creatures we had here on Earth no matter their size would be ants compared to the titanic fossils we found on the other side of the gate." Vinzenz says.
"Titanic? That must surely be wrong." You think for a moment that he must be joking, but his face replies to you that he is serious.
"Not wrong, not at all. I saw one of them myself, you can see them if you step into the gate and climb the watchtower. Thankfully regardless of the number of bones laying around, no scout has reported seeing any creature of such size alive." He says that with a tone of relief as if Armageddon had suddenly been avoided.
An officer interjects. "However, we do have a couple of missing scouts."
"Aye, And that's what worries us at the moment. Beasts of such size would make exploring and colonizing...difficult. But that's not our only problem, other humans have been sighted. Natives maybe, but also possibly spies from another nation, as far as we know the Austrians could well already be encroaching the land next to our gate."
"Which is why this is urgent right?" You say reminding yourself of the large amount of political and geopolitical issues that Prussia has to handle daily.
"Quite so, my orders are to keep the gate safe and sound. Meanwhile, you will do deep reconnaissance and try to go as far as you can without breaking lines of communication. It would be a good idea to prepare yourself for unexpected encounters too." He adds.
"Understood, but will I only have my regiment at my disposal? I don't have enough cavalry for doing large reconnaissance duties."
"Thankfully no. The war minister has ordered that the 11th Cavalry Battalion will aid you during this expedition. As of now, he is trying to scrape a few more units without weakening our borders to send them to secure the gate and its immediate surroundings."
"The War Minister is busy already? Good news at least. Anything else?"
"Nothing else that I think I must inform you of. I wish you the best of luck in this assignment and I know that you will bring great results."
And with that, the meeting was over. You were given a few hours to prepare, hours that you made use of to procure more supplies for your men and to visit a bakery to enhance your personal supplies. Including a bottle of wine and some souvenirs for when you returned home.
A few hours later.
The hours went by fast. The temperatures had also simmered down to a comfortable fresh temperature. Your regiment composed of mostly regular soldiers assembled rather quickly after you gave the order to your officers to get them ready to march out. Soon enough a column of men wearing their Prussian blue uniforms had assembled in front of the large gate. You were not the only ones as the cavalry battalion you had been promised was in the vanguard together with your own cavalry.
Major Reinhold von Alscher, a blonde man in this thirties approached you with his own cadre of officers. He greeted you formally and elegantly, an easy way to tell that he came from a noble family. He began by introducing himself. "Reinhold von Aslcher, 52th Hussar Battalion at your service."
"Nice to meet you, Major Alscher." A similar formal greet came out of your mouth.
"It is good to know that I will be working with a veteran in the field." He nods and glances at the gate. "I heard what the Brigadier General said and well, finding bigger game is a bit of a concern of mine. I may not be able to eat it all." His men laugh and you grin too, you can't help it after all those good memories of hunting with your father in his estate.
"I think we would find some space in our soldier's stomachs." You add before regaining your composure. "Anyhow, the 8th Infantry Regiment is also looking forward to collaborating with you."
Once the niceties were over. You rode to the front of the column, your eyes inevitably finding themselves drawn to the now opening doors of the gate. The two doors had to be opened by nothing less than dozens of men on each side. The gates open and an entire different lightness different to that of the sun comes from within the gate. The portal if it could be called that, is a seamless connection to Arcadia. On the other side, you manage to see the beginnings of a fort with men cutting down large trees to make space for tents and men.
You give the order to the march and the entire column begins to move. Cavalry at the helm and artillery at the back. You were told to blindfold your horses as they apparently were easily scared to pass through the gate, probably a result of the myriad of different smells that you sense once you pass through.
It takes half an hour of march to leave the gate and the fort in construction, your men probably as surprised as you to find all sorts of new fauna and plants that seem every bit as exotic as strange and dangerous. Small nimble animals watching you from above as you advance following a trail of marks that previous scouts left behind to guide themselves.
The only part of your regiment that moves slowly is your artillery and it's probably due to the lack of roads in this region. Well, there is little that can be done about this at the moment and if the reports from the scouts are correct, then there should be some grasslands only a few kilometers to the north.
You take another look at your trusty compass and clean some sweat off your brow. The temperature here in Arcadia is considerably higher than that of Berlin, probably five or more celsius. "Colonel, we have passed the last mark of the scouts, the grasslands should be here somewhere." One of your men explains and as always you send a few forward scouts to confirm this. They return a few minutes later and they nod.
"Colonel, we saw them. The skulls the scouts spoke of...they are certainly titanic, taken out from a children's fairy tale." One of them says. Their expressions say it all, their pupils are as open as they can be almost as if they had seen a ghost or a dead soldier. You nod at them and thank them for their report. It doesn't take long for you to see what they saw with your own eyes.
A single massive white skull, the size of a large house, two massive openings where you think there were once eyes and teeth so big that for your innermost part of your brain makes you recoil back upon its sight, the part of your brain that tells you that if that thing were still alive you would-be prey and probably only a snack to a creature of such massive size.
You see in your men the same expression that you saw in your scouts and decide to reassure them. "We can rest assured that if these things were still alive, we would have already seen them. Let's leave gazing at it all day long to the scientists." You tell them. Your column marches and their awe is replicated with every company that sees it.
This is as far as the scouts had gone, at least, the ones that returned and that means that you are now entering unexplored territory. Totally unknown, totally foreign to you and your experience. You find a tall hill upon which to inspect the landscape not too long after. In so far as you can see, grasslands to your north, more hills to your west, a few more kilometers of grasslands before another forest appears to the east, and forests to your south.
You tell one of your men to hand you your field glasses to inspect the terrain and once you have them. You take another more meticulous look at the terrain.
3d6 (Reconnaissance) = 6,5,4 = Two Successes
It all looks in order, nothing more than fantastic animals and more empty terrain. Until finally to your east, you find something out of place. You see what seems to be a small bush that's a little too conveniently placed if there is a word for it. Below it, the reflection of two bright eyes or it could be the reflection of a telescope too. You are not sure, but what you are sure of is that you are being watched.
You blink and manage to see a couple more of said bushes and hideouts. Where something or someone is waiting for you. You notify your officers and make your soldiers get ready for whatever may come. But it seems so far that they want you to come to them instead of the other way around. You tell one of your men to keep a close eye to the east.
It seems that whoever is waiting near the edges of the forest has been there for a long time. A long enough time for you to doubt that it was you, whom they were waiting for. Those prepared positions they have would have probably taken them longer to make. Your first thought is to send someone to know exactly who they are. But your thoughts become a secondary concern as one of your scouts notify you that someone to the West is approaching. A contingent of armored soldiers is marching fast to your Regiment's position.
Somewhere to the South West
The trees were silent as they had been more than a thousand years ago. The trees of this world were uncaring, unloving, and undeserving of the protection of the elder houses. Iñelda chuckled at her own thoughts, there were no elder houses anymore. There was only one and only one that had been sent to oversee the conquering of the new world or as the other elves put it. To enlighten it and cleanse it of unpure essences.
How long ago had that been? Probably eight hundred and twenty-five years ago, she was still so young back then. Yet, old enough to wield a sword and a bow with the dexterity of a hundred of the beings of this world. Yet, her skills were useless in what was truly important. For her going back home was but a delusion, another thought to keep her from disobeying the orders of the Marshall and the tenets of the Elder.
Two hundred years ago, she had been sent to this same exact forgotten land to see if this gate led back to the world and she had received only a burned hand and another two hundreds year of delusion. There was not going back to her homeworld, no going back to the whispers of the wind and the smells of flowers that only bloom once in a hundred years.
Yet, here only skeletons welcomed her with their wicked smiles. Skeletons of beings that had been here longer than she had been in this world or in the other. "The gate is close. They are never in exact same spot but the magic is undeniably here." She told to her men. "When are the scouts going to report?" She asks but her question is answered by a fast arrow that she perfectly catches in her hand. She opens the small message attached to it and nods.
"Humans? I thought they were already extinct. I guess the reports that the dragon had a new few pets around were true." Iñelda nods to herself not reading the whole message and gives the order for her soldiers to run forwards. They carry specially crafted bows each so similar but so different at the same time, crafted to perfection to suit their users. The perfect weapon to kill.
Back to the regiment
The armored soldiers take a position in a nearby hill which is about three hundred meters away, they carry bows from what you can see and they are not in the column but in a line formation. It doesn't take you too long to realize what's going on but it's too late. A volley of arrows lands against your regiment. Horses and men alike screaming in pain as they land against their unprotected bodies. You order your officers to organize your men.
You ride around giving orders and your army albeit shocked by the sudden attacks pulls itself through. 300 meters is quite a long distance to do an aimed shot, but your men are not doing an aimed shoot. They reply in the same language as your enemy shooting volleys of lead, smoke coming from out of their barrels as the continuous shooting creates a barrier of white that makes it hard for your men and your enemy to see. Yet, your men continue to shoot in the general direction of the enemy.
It's hard to see the effect of your bullets on the enemy but you spot some fallen amongst the enemy until they retreat behind the hill. Your casualties are at least eighty to ninety men in total, hit by an arrow most of them but only around twenty of them are dead. It takes a while for your men to stop shooting as they only realize the enemy is gone far too late but that is only typical of a regiment mostly composed of regulars.
You begin to ponder what to do now. You could pursue the enemy, they were not that many of them after all...and they were natives most likely. Capturing a few of them could yield valuable information later on but just as you plan your next move, you are informed that a man came from where you had spotted the hidden scouts and it's not exactly a man either. You tell them to let him pass and once he does, you notice that he is not alone. Rather he is followed by two human natives, and "he" is not a human. Not in the strict sense of Homo Sapiens Sapiens, he has a tail and two ears that reassemble those of the foxes you used to hunt in your father's estate.
You cannot understand the language in which he tries to speak, for a moment he pauses and seems to ask his men why you cannot understand him but they shrug. Then he points towards one of your men's rifles and then to the hill where your men had shot the enemy, then he points to himself. He finally points to the place where the rest of his men and gives them a signal which prompts them to come out from their hiding spots. There were more than you thought as you count more than two hundred humans and...two hundred more of whatever the name of his people is. They are all wearing some form of armor, mostly bronze including the ones in front of you. They are armed with bows and swords, which doesn't really surprise you.
You call for a linguist to come help you to understand him but it seems that not much is going to come out of this. At least not in the short term. In the end, you decide to...
Pick 1
[X] Communicate with them as best as you can so that they can guide you back to their village. You don't know if there are more enemies coming and it's better to seek cover in the forest than to wait for something sudden to happen. (Automatic "Do nothing for now" in military orders)
[X] Communicate with them to try and enlist their help against the other native enemy. They may or may not aid against this strange enemy but what better way than to strengthen first contact relationships than by spilled blood.
[X] Communicate with them to tell them to leave you alone. You have no time for natives when the enemy could attack at any moment.
Military Orders: You will send a messenger back to report your recent encounter as the fort is not that far away. You may receive reinforcements.
[X] Do nothing for now. You will wait for reinforcements to arrive, they make it in an hour or more though.
[X] Send the cavalry to pursue the enemy. The rest of your forces will support and your artillery now finally in position will be able to strike at the enemy from a safe distance.[700 Light Cavalry and 100 Repeaters]
[X] March the regiment against them. You will take no chances and move your entire regiment against them.
[X] Write-In
Your regiment:
2 Veteran Minie Companies
8 Minie Companies
1 Veteran Breechloading Company
2 Light Cavalry
1 Repeaters
2 Mixed Artillery Battery
Trait: Disciplined (+Morale )and Fast Reloaders (+Damage)
Info on the enemy so far: You think they are about a hundred or more of the enemy natives. There may be more behind the hills. Your companies are all ready and operational casualties spread over the various companies meaning that they are still at least more than 80% strength.
OOC: Moratorium of 24 Hours until then no voting.
Last edited:
First Contact Part 2
- Location
- Peru
[X] Plan: Hit em while they're running
-[X] Major Manfred Dunajski: From the Prussian Polish territories. Manfred saw that he could only raise his social status through the Prussian military system and has done it quite well. He may be half a decade younger than you, but he seems well-composed and most importantly a confident officer. One whom you can trust to keep his act together even in tough situations.
-[X] Communicate with them to try and enlist their help against the other native enemy. They may or may not aid against this strange enemy but what better way than to strengthen first contact relationships than by spilled blood.
-[X] Send the cavalry to pursue the enemy. The rest of your forces will support and your artillery now finally in position will be able to strike at the enemy from a safe distance.[700 Light Cavalry and 100 Repeaters]
Character Bio:
Name: Viktor Friedrich von Rees
Nationality: Prussian
Rank: Colonel
Age: 40
Prestige: 5+2 (First Contact Battle) = 7
Wealth: $2000 (Savings)
Income: $50/quarter (From Salary) + $100/quarter (From Estate)
Stats:
Traits:
Established Junker: You have followed in the footsteps of your family and have managed to establish your own estate. You will most likely inherit your father's estate almost in full in coming years but at the same time being the family patriarch carries responsibilities and duties in the social and familial spheres. [+5 Starting Prestige]
Explorer: You have a keen eye for exploring, which will come in handy to find treasure and ruins in the world of Arcadia. [+1 Dice to Exploration Rolls]
Trait:
-Fast Reloaders (Inflicts greater damage both to morale and enemy formations)
-Disciplined (Morale Checks are easier to pass)
1st Infantry Battalion - Friedrich von Brabeck
Artillery Battalion:
- 2 Mixed Artillery Battery - 16 Cannons & 256 Men
Leftover Procurement: $2000
Quarterly Procurement: $2,500
Outline:
Communication roll with natives: 20
Cavalry Roll: 65
Elf Roll: 65
Legend
On top of the Hill
You watch as the linguist tries his best to communicate the feelings of fighting to beat the elves to the weird eared fellow and the other humans. However, it takes him a while to communicate your intentions with a rather rushed understanding of their language and also through the improvised use of signs.
In the end, though, the natives agree though after a few confused nods. But at the same time, your linguist speaks up. "That's as far as I can go I am afraid. There is little I can comprehend from their language at this point." The linguist says and with that, your communication with them is cut at least for the time being which means that coordination between your two forces will be sloppy at best and nonexistent most of the time.
The weird eared man raises his arm and sends a signal to the rest of his men. In the distance, you watch as loose formations of soldiers begin to march in the direction of your right flank.
"Bows and swords? Reminds me of the Cossacks." Major Dunjski exclaims. Indeed, the soldiers are wearing crude ancient-looking armor. Nothing at all like the orderly and standardized uniforms of your men.
"Hopefully they fight just as well. I heard that they used to give the Russian Tsar quite a lot of trouble back in the day" You say to Dunjski. Hoping that your words are true as with their numbers they could help you quite a lot. However, you return your attention to the incoming fight.
You watch as your two cavalry battalions commanded by Major von Waldeck and Major von Alscher begin to ride against the fleeing the enemy. The sound of hundreds of horses stepping on the ground is something that you can hear and even feel from here. Behind them, a trail of dust forms up as dirt is kicked up from the ground.
Meanwhile, the rest of your forces march forwards. The battalions of Brabeck and Limburg aiming to take positions in the hill that the enemy natives have just left. Then you hear a roar as each of your cannon batteries begins to fire at the enemy. Some of the cannons are aiming a bit high and some of the shells miss and land on the other side of the hills. Hits from the rifled artillery new explosive shells manage to deal a moderate amount of damage to the retreating enemies. Leaving several bodies on the ground and disrupting the enemy formations as your cavalry closes in.
It is almost a perfect textbook example of what artillery, infantry, and cavalry combined can do to a smaller and weaker enemy. Almost...
Alscher's Battalion
Reinhold, the young junker officer, leads the cavalry action against the enemy, he orders the dragoons with their repeater rifles forwards as they begin harassing the enemy from afar. From this distance, he notices that the natives are wearing heavy armor that in theory should slow them down to quite a slow pace but they are marching as if the armor was not there. Reinhold, however, gives no further thought to this as he begins to give orders to his men.
"They want to take the hill. We will stop them before they reach the top." Reinhold tells his men. He spots von Waldeck's battalion also closing the distance with the enemy as they continue harassing them with their pistols. Taking down the few stragglers that are limping towards the top with their sabers.
The enemy forces continue to take a beating as the cavalry closes in at what basically is the point-blank range for them as they discharge another volley from atop their horses. Some arrows are fired back but not enough to stop four companies of Prussian cavalry.
Reinhold decides to seize the day feeling a rush of adrenaline and battle-hungry ness that makes him shout. "Charge!!" to his men. From his lessons he knows that this would be the correct option, the enemy is outnumbered and battered. All that it would take to break their formation would be a simple charge and he feels confident in his chances of success.
But it isn't going to be so easy. The natives stop on their tracks as precisely as a clock's inner gears. The warriors amongst them carrying halberdiers and other sorts of long weapons. Assemble themselves in a line formation facing both battalions. They are outnumbered though and pretty badly, but the determination in their eyes shows confidence in victory. Perhaps Reinhold under other circumstances may have been able to tell that they won't break by a simple charge. But it's too late.
Reinhold's cavalry clashes against the native infantry. It is a very bloody affair. The natives prove to be extremely skilled fighters in close range and in the midst of the carnage Sigmund's horse is beheaded. The major falls to the ground but quickly stands on his two feet watching from up close the carnage of a battle as he grabs the pistol and saber on hand trying to make sense of what's going on.
His vision blurs for a moment and when it comes back. He sees the blonde natives with tall knife-eared ears. His attention is suddenly drawn as he hears the battle cry of one of the natives as he charges at him. He raises his pistol but realizes it's unloaded, he hears a loud bang from behind and sees his aggressor fall to the ground.
"Colonel! You got to get out of here" Reinhold's second in command shouts. Reinhold doesn't answer but follows the voice, he mounts and sees the carnage around him. "Enough. Call the retreat." He tells as a loud trumpet gives the order to the rest of the men. The retreat is messy at best as Reinhold's cavalry is hailed by arrows from behind. The repeaters who had stayed behind picking their targets give enough covering fire reducing the casualties of von Alscher's cavalry.
Alscher's Battalion charges against the natives
von Waldeck Battalion
"Hot-headed lad! They have massacred his cavalry." Sigmund said out loud. His officers couldn't help but agree too, watching as the massacre unfolds in front of their eyes. They saw as the stragglers of von Alscher's battalion ran way but to no avail as they were downed by extremely precise arrows from behind. "Fall back. We should let the cannons and rifles soften them up more." He gives the order and his battalion retreats to the line formed up by the infantry.
Back on the hill
"Not looking good for von Alscher's. Let's hope that Limburg and Brabeck forces can continue to give the natives enough led to keep them at bay. Oh for fuck's sake. Look at that Colonel more of them over that hill." You take a good look and watch as another a hundred-men-strong formation raises over the hill and takes aim at von Alscher's battalion hitting it from the flank as they retreat.
"Not good news for us. Arrange the men in a defensive position, as you said keeping our distance would be for the best Dunajski." He nods and you watch your men take position over the next hill. They are a bit lower than the enemy natives as they have occupied the taller and bigger hill.
The duel of the bow against musket continues with both the enemy and your men suffering casualties. The thunderous and deafening sound of your muskets firing volley after volley seem to have no effect on your enemy's morale to the contrary of what happened to Pizarro or Cortez in their first engagements against natives.
The natives in the right flank finally join in the fray with their own archers but it doesn't take long for the enemy to give up. It seems that in the end your cannons and your numbers advantage were enough to win the fray. From their position at the top of the hill, they begin to retreat once more. "No use trying to pursue them not after what happened to von Alscher. Tell the men to take prisoners and to recover our wounded." You send a messenger to relay the order to your officers.
At the moment all you can think about is the casualties report that you are going to have to read and being fairly honest. The enemy archers were simply too accurate. You remember hearing legends of some English longbowmen that could hit targets from pretty damn far away and these natives would simply surpass them.
The situation at the End of the Battle
A while later
You take a sit inside of your tent reminding yourself that your men are setting up camp under the shadow of the enormous bones that you found beforehand. It is a rather surreal picture that no doubt a painter or two will want to see with their own eyes once the area is secured from most dangers. Major Dunjski snaps you out of it as he continues his debrief of what they have found out about the natives.
"We counted their bodies and ours too. They lost more than a hundred soldiers today and we lost a similar amount. As for the ones we fought today, they look like humans from afar but their features are far different up close and I am not talking only shapes and sizes of their noses and mouths. But that's as far as I been told, their bodies have been taken to Berlin with some of our wounded."
"But the other natives did look quite human to me. Are they not humans either?" You ask Dunjski.
"Yes and no, about half of them are human and they have been quite curious about our rifles. If you don't mind, I gave von Braveck permission to teach to a few of them how to shoot just as a sign of goodwill." Answers Dunjski
"Good that should keep them distracted, but I hope we don't end up with a few missing muskets. It's probably best to leave the option of arming natives to the Chancellor and the War Minister. We still don't know much about them at least they don't look as dangerous as today's enemy."
"They have maintained their distance but seem to be glad about our presence. Maybe we gained their respect after the battle?"
"It could be that but let's leave figuring that out to our experts. In the meantime, I want von Waldeck to send out more patrols. I don't want any surprises tonight or tomorrow. We could have just been engaging the vanguard and when they realize they bit more than they could chew they retreated but they could come back tomorrow with more."
"Understood Colonel, anything else?" Dunjski says to you as he stands up from his seat. His ginger beard and hair looking reddish with the light from the candles inside of your tent. "Nothing more Major. You may leave." He nods and you retreat for the night.
[Losses 1 Light Cavalry Company from von Alscher's Battalion]
[Raise one of your companies' veterancy]
The next morning
You find yourself inspecting the terrain once more. This is, after all, a new land both familiar and foreign at the same time. The wind is as fresh and cool as that from Earth but it carries a different fragrance that for now, you can't explain just yet. A messenger arrives and unmounts right next to you. "Colonel a message from Brigadier General Vincent von Acker" You take the message and begin to read it.
Pick your next mission
[X] "I have received the news of your recent battle and your recent acquaintance with the natives of this land. As per our scouts, it seems that the unfriendly natives you found are part of a larger empire and they have a city not that far away from your position. Another regiment will set up a wooden fort in the hills you described and fortify the position. You are to do the same but also ensure that our relationship with the natives warms up. Just so that we may count on them for supplies and scouting. Gain their trust colonel as I would rather not lose more scouts to these unknown lands." [Continue on current path]
[X] "A recent report from one of our scouts has found out about the ruins of what seems to be an abandoned fortress just south of the Gate. Its position near a river makes it of vital importance that we take it as it would make a perfect outpost in this foreign land. You are ordered to march back to the Gate, where you will meet with the scout that found it and then proceed to take the Fortress." As per the attached description, the fortress seems to be made out of the same ancient material as the gates. You wonder if there is something that you could find out there. [Fortress Capture Mission]
[X] "Colonel terrible news has arrived from a recent gate in the region of Schleswig-Holstein. The Danish tried to keep it quiet but our spies there have told us of an invasion in their lands that the Danish army has failed to contain. We cannot allow our German brethren to fall to the savages from the other side. Your regiment due to their experience dealing with natives is to immediately go through the gate and be attached to the 5th Infantry Brigade." [Offensive Mission / Dangerous]
The Native Camp
"What are you thinking about?"
"Just about how the dragon was right. His prophecy about the arrival of the great kingdom would save us when he was gone. I bet the ones in the village will be happy to hear it." The young man nods, he is wearing light armor made out of bronze forged by the dragon himself to protect his kin.
"Really? I thought I am glad too but because I am not dead. All the stories, we got told were real. I saw no mercy on the elves and the way they fought...we would have not stood a single chance if not for the new arrivals." The other young soldier tells him. He continues sharpening his blade under the moonlight. Just as another of his friends join him in the campfire.
"The foxkin aren't as happy. Tonight they went back to the forest to pray." Athir tells them as he sits facing them. The younger of them smiles and laughs. "Of course! It is not their legend that came true after all. The gates are not supposed to open twice at the same place but ours did. The gods finally smile on us and not on our enemies."
"I wonder if the elves have a legend just like ours? Maybe that is why they sent their scouts to the gate, it doesn't matter now anyhow. They probably know that they will find no way back to their beloved home here. They should probably leave us alone for now."
"Maybe, but we don't know anything about their empire either...only what our elders and the dragon told us. You never know with an elf, they may even appear at night and slice our throats without us as revenge." Athir replied.
"Shut it." One of them tells him. "Just be glad I am not slicing it myself after you tried to steal one of their weapons. God knows what would they have done with us had they found out about you."
"I know but.." Athir begins before the man interrupts him with a frown. "No buts Athir. If they are truly our allies then they will share with us their knowledge as well as their weapons, as I am sure they will but let's leave everything else to our leaders. Do you understand?"
Athir nods and they resume with more casual conversation. Each of them glad that their lives were spared today.
-[X] Major Manfred Dunajski: From the Prussian Polish territories. Manfred saw that he could only raise his social status through the Prussian military system and has done it quite well. He may be half a decade younger than you, but he seems well-composed and most importantly a confident officer. One whom you can trust to keep his act together even in tough situations.
-[X] Communicate with them to try and enlist their help against the other native enemy. They may or may not aid against this strange enemy but what better way than to strengthen first contact relationships than by spilled blood.
-[X] Send the cavalry to pursue the enemy. The rest of your forces will support and your artillery now finally in position will be able to strike at the enemy from a safe distance.[700 Light Cavalry and 100 Repeaters]
Character Bio:
Name: Viktor Friedrich von Rees
Nationality: Prussian
Rank: Colonel
Age: 40
Prestige: 5+2 (First Contact Battle) = 7
Wealth: $2000 (Savings)
Income: $50/quarter (From Salary) + $100/quarter (From Estate)
Stats:
Leadership: 3+1 (Major Manfred Dunjski) = 4
Politics: 4 [+10% Prestige Gain]
Economy: 3
Training: 3
Logistics: 3
Reconnaissance: 3
Traits:
Established Junker: You have followed in the footsteps of your family and have managed to establish your own estate. You will most likely inherit your father's estate almost in full in coming years but at the same time being the family patriarch carries responsibilities and duties in the social and familial spheres. [+5 Starting Prestige]
Explorer: You have a keen eye for exploring, which will come in handy to find treasure and ruins in the world of Arcadia. [+1 Dice to Exploration Rolls]
Prestige: Represents how well known and respected you are within the military circles of your nation. For every 50 prestige, you ascend by one rank with the benefits that it entails in terms of budget increases and possible ranks allowing you to receive a share of the colonial taxes. Prestige can only be gained from completing your nation's missions and by furthering the goals of your nation in Arcadia.
Rank: Represents how high up you are in the hierarchy of your nation's military. As this increases your salary and budget for military purchases increases. If you are ranked high enough it will also involve being able to enact particular policies in a particular region of Arcadia that your patron nation will support either militarily or economically.
Colonel:
- 70 Prestige for a promotion to Brigadier General.
- 85 Prestige for a promotion to Major General.
- 15 Prestige for $10,000 in Procurement. Can't do this if you already have over 50% of your starting budget in units.
- 15 Prestige for receiving a random elite unit.
Rank: Represents how high up you are in the hierarchy of your nation's military. As this increases your salary and budget for military purchases increases. If you are ranked high enough it will also involve being able to enact particular policies in a particular region of Arcadia that your patron nation will support either militarily or economically.
Colonel:
- Commands a regiment.
- Quarterly Procurement is equal to 1/40 of the starting budget. (Subject to Change)
- Answers to a Brigadier General.
- No Authority over colonial settlements unless martial law.
- No Authority to sign deals with Arcadian natives.
- $600 Quarterly Wages that can be spent in any way.
- Commands a Regiment
- Quarterly Procurement is equal to 1/20 of the starting budget (Subject to Change)
- Immediate Allowance of $50,000 for new units. Only on promotion.
- Answers to a Major General
- Limited Authority over colonial settlements
- Limited Authority to deal with Arcadian Natives
- $1000 in Quarterly Wages
- Commands a Division/Corps
- Quarterly Procurement is equal to 1/10 of the starting budget. (Subject to Change)
- Immediate Allowance of $100,000 for new units. Only on promotion
- Answers to a Field Marshall
- Extended Authority over colonial settlements
- Extended Authority over deals with Arcadian Natives
- $2000 in Quarterly Wages
-Fast Reloaders (Inflicts greater damage both to morale and enemy formations)
-Disciplined (Morale Checks are easier to pass)
1st Infantry Battalion - Friedrich von Brabeck
4x Regular Minie Companies - 400 Men
1x Veteran Minie Company - 500 Men
1x Veteran Breechloading Company - 100 Men
2nd Infantry Battalion - Helmuth von Limburg4x Regular Minie Companies - 400 Men
1x Veteran Minie Company - 500 Men
1st Light Cavalry Battalion - Sigmund von Waldeck2x Light Cavalry Company
1x Repeaters
11th Cavalry Battalion - Reinhold von Alscher 5x Light Cavalry Companies
Artillery Battalion:
- 2 Mixed Artillery Battery - 16 Cannons & 256 Men
Leftover Procurement: $2000
Quarterly Procurement: $2,500
Outline:
Communication roll with natives: 20
Cavalry Roll: 65
Elf Roll: 65
Auxiliaries:
Natives of Arcadia can be recruited and given weapons, however, you need a friendly standing with an Arcadian nation to begin doing so. Also, natives of Arcadia, while strong depending on their race and particular cultural traits, will not perform as well in roles such as those that an Earth's nation soldier is used to. Instead, they will more likely fight as they have always fought and provide extra muscle for any Regiment in Arcadia. Auxiliaries are levies provided by an Arcadian Nation to a Regiment or Earth nation. In most cases, you shouldn't expect them to die for you and if put in dangerous situations will most likely run rather than stay and fight unless you give them a good reason to do so, although, to some degree, the same applies to your men.
Later on, it is possible to form more "modern" regiments of Arcadian auxiliaries but it will require better training facilities and greater levels of friendship with an Arcadian nation.
Hiring Arcadian mercenaries is also possible, but it also requires a friendly standing with an Arcadian nation to act as an intermediary. Arcadian Mercenaries are composed of professional units and in rare cases also mage units. Which can be useful to deal with the less orthodox of enemies in Arcadia.
Natives of Arcadia can be recruited and given weapons, however, you need a friendly standing with an Arcadian nation to begin doing so. Also, natives of Arcadia, while strong depending on their race and particular cultural traits, will not perform as well in roles such as those that an Earth's nation soldier is used to. Instead, they will more likely fight as they have always fought and provide extra muscle for any Regiment in Arcadia. Auxiliaries are levies provided by an Arcadian Nation to a Regiment or Earth nation. In most cases, you shouldn't expect them to die for you and if put in dangerous situations will most likely run rather than stay and fight unless you give them a good reason to do so, although, to some degree, the same applies to your men.
Later on, it is possible to form more "modern" regiments of Arcadian auxiliaries but it will require better training facilities and greater levels of friendship with an Arcadian nation.
Hiring Arcadian mercenaries is also possible, but it also requires a friendly standing with an Arcadian nation to act as an intermediary. Arcadian Mercenaries are composed of professional units and in rare cases also mage units. Which can be useful to deal with the less orthodox of enemies in Arcadia.
The situation at the start of the battle
Legend
On top of the Hill
You watch as the linguist tries his best to communicate the feelings of fighting to beat the elves to the weird eared fellow and the other humans. However, it takes him a while to communicate your intentions with a rather rushed understanding of their language and also through the improvised use of signs.
In the end, though, the natives agree though after a few confused nods. But at the same time, your linguist speaks up. "That's as far as I can go I am afraid. There is little I can comprehend from their language at this point." The linguist says and with that, your communication with them is cut at least for the time being which means that coordination between your two forces will be sloppy at best and nonexistent most of the time.
The weird eared man raises his arm and sends a signal to the rest of his men. In the distance, you watch as loose formations of soldiers begin to march in the direction of your right flank.
"Bows and swords? Reminds me of the Cossacks." Major Dunjski exclaims. Indeed, the soldiers are wearing crude ancient-looking armor. Nothing at all like the orderly and standardized uniforms of your men.
"Hopefully they fight just as well. I heard that they used to give the Russian Tsar quite a lot of trouble back in the day" You say to Dunjski. Hoping that your words are true as with their numbers they could help you quite a lot. However, you return your attention to the incoming fight.
You watch as your two cavalry battalions commanded by Major von Waldeck and Major von Alscher begin to ride against the fleeing the enemy. The sound of hundreds of horses stepping on the ground is something that you can hear and even feel from here. Behind them, a trail of dust forms up as dirt is kicked up from the ground.
Meanwhile, the rest of your forces march forwards. The battalions of Brabeck and Limburg aiming to take positions in the hill that the enemy natives have just left. Then you hear a roar as each of your cannon batteries begins to fire at the enemy. Some of the cannons are aiming a bit high and some of the shells miss and land on the other side of the hills. Hits from the rifled artillery new explosive shells manage to deal a moderate amount of damage to the retreating enemies. Leaving several bodies on the ground and disrupting the enemy formations as your cavalry closes in.
It is almost a perfect textbook example of what artillery, infantry, and cavalry combined can do to a smaller and weaker enemy. Almost...
Alscher's Battalion
Reinhold, the young junker officer, leads the cavalry action against the enemy, he orders the dragoons with their repeater rifles forwards as they begin harassing the enemy from afar. From this distance, he notices that the natives are wearing heavy armor that in theory should slow them down to quite a slow pace but they are marching as if the armor was not there. Reinhold, however, gives no further thought to this as he begins to give orders to his men.
"They want to take the hill. We will stop them before they reach the top." Reinhold tells his men. He spots von Waldeck's battalion also closing the distance with the enemy as they continue harassing them with their pistols. Taking down the few stragglers that are limping towards the top with their sabers.
The enemy forces continue to take a beating as the cavalry closes in at what basically is the point-blank range for them as they discharge another volley from atop their horses. Some arrows are fired back but not enough to stop four companies of Prussian cavalry.
Reinhold decides to seize the day feeling a rush of adrenaline and battle-hungry ness that makes him shout. "Charge!!" to his men. From his lessons he knows that this would be the correct option, the enemy is outnumbered and battered. All that it would take to break their formation would be a simple charge and he feels confident in his chances of success.
But it isn't going to be so easy. The natives stop on their tracks as precisely as a clock's inner gears. The warriors amongst them carrying halberdiers and other sorts of long weapons. Assemble themselves in a line formation facing both battalions. They are outnumbered though and pretty badly, but the determination in their eyes shows confidence in victory. Perhaps Reinhold under other circumstances may have been able to tell that they won't break by a simple charge. But it's too late.
Reinhold's cavalry clashes against the native infantry. It is a very bloody affair. The natives prove to be extremely skilled fighters in close range and in the midst of the carnage Sigmund's horse is beheaded. The major falls to the ground but quickly stands on his two feet watching from up close the carnage of a battle as he grabs the pistol and saber on hand trying to make sense of what's going on.
His vision blurs for a moment and when it comes back. He sees the blonde natives with tall knife-eared ears. His attention is suddenly drawn as he hears the battle cry of one of the natives as he charges at him. He raises his pistol but realizes it's unloaded, he hears a loud bang from behind and sees his aggressor fall to the ground.
"Colonel! You got to get out of here" Reinhold's second in command shouts. Reinhold doesn't answer but follows the voice, he mounts and sees the carnage around him. "Enough. Call the retreat." He tells as a loud trumpet gives the order to the rest of the men. The retreat is messy at best as Reinhold's cavalry is hailed by arrows from behind. The repeaters who had stayed behind picking their targets give enough covering fire reducing the casualties of von Alscher's cavalry.
Alscher's Battalion charges against the natives
von Waldeck Battalion
"Hot-headed lad! They have massacred his cavalry." Sigmund said out loud. His officers couldn't help but agree too, watching as the massacre unfolds in front of their eyes. They saw as the stragglers of von Alscher's battalion ran way but to no avail as they were downed by extremely precise arrows from behind. "Fall back. We should let the cannons and rifles soften them up more." He gives the order and his battalion retreats to the line formed up by the infantry.
Back on the hill
"Not looking good for von Alscher's. Let's hope that Limburg and Brabeck forces can continue to give the natives enough led to keep them at bay. Oh for fuck's sake. Look at that Colonel more of them over that hill." You take a good look and watch as another a hundred-men-strong formation raises over the hill and takes aim at von Alscher's battalion hitting it from the flank as they retreat.
"Not good news for us. Arrange the men in a defensive position, as you said keeping our distance would be for the best Dunajski." He nods and you watch your men take position over the next hill. They are a bit lower than the enemy natives as they have occupied the taller and bigger hill.
The duel of the bow against musket continues with both the enemy and your men suffering casualties. The thunderous and deafening sound of your muskets firing volley after volley seem to have no effect on your enemy's morale to the contrary of what happened to Pizarro or Cortez in their first engagements against natives.
The natives in the right flank finally join in the fray with their own archers but it doesn't take long for the enemy to give up. It seems that in the end your cannons and your numbers advantage were enough to win the fray. From their position at the top of the hill, they begin to retreat once more. "No use trying to pursue them not after what happened to von Alscher. Tell the men to take prisoners and to recover our wounded." You send a messenger to relay the order to your officers.
At the moment all you can think about is the casualties report that you are going to have to read and being fairly honest. The enemy archers were simply too accurate. You remember hearing legends of some English longbowmen that could hit targets from pretty damn far away and these natives would simply surpass them.
The situation at the End of the Battle
You take a sit inside of your tent reminding yourself that your men are setting up camp under the shadow of the enormous bones that you found beforehand. It is a rather surreal picture that no doubt a painter or two will want to see with their own eyes once the area is secured from most dangers. Major Dunjski snaps you out of it as he continues his debrief of what they have found out about the natives.
"We counted their bodies and ours too. They lost more than a hundred soldiers today and we lost a similar amount. As for the ones we fought today, they look like humans from afar but their features are far different up close and I am not talking only shapes and sizes of their noses and mouths. But that's as far as I been told, their bodies have been taken to Berlin with some of our wounded."
"But the other natives did look quite human to me. Are they not humans either?" You ask Dunjski.
"Yes and no, about half of them are human and they have been quite curious about our rifles. If you don't mind, I gave von Braveck permission to teach to a few of them how to shoot just as a sign of goodwill." Answers Dunjski
"Good that should keep them distracted, but I hope we don't end up with a few missing muskets. It's probably best to leave the option of arming natives to the Chancellor and the War Minister. We still don't know much about them at least they don't look as dangerous as today's enemy."
"They have maintained their distance but seem to be glad about our presence. Maybe we gained their respect after the battle?"
"It could be that but let's leave figuring that out to our experts. In the meantime, I want von Waldeck to send out more patrols. I don't want any surprises tonight or tomorrow. We could have just been engaging the vanguard and when they realize they bit more than they could chew they retreated but they could come back tomorrow with more."
"Understood Colonel, anything else?" Dunjski says to you as he stands up from his seat. His ginger beard and hair looking reddish with the light from the candles inside of your tent. "Nothing more Major. You may leave." He nods and you retreat for the night.
[Losses 1 Light Cavalry Company from von Alscher's Battalion]
[Raise one of your companies' veterancy]
The next morning
You find yourself inspecting the terrain once more. This is, after all, a new land both familiar and foreign at the same time. The wind is as fresh and cool as that from Earth but it carries a different fragrance that for now, you can't explain just yet. A messenger arrives and unmounts right next to you. "Colonel a message from Brigadier General Vincent von Acker" You take the message and begin to read it.
Pick your next mission
[X] "I have received the news of your recent battle and your recent acquaintance with the natives of this land. As per our scouts, it seems that the unfriendly natives you found are part of a larger empire and they have a city not that far away from your position. Another regiment will set up a wooden fort in the hills you described and fortify the position. You are to do the same but also ensure that our relationship with the natives warms up. Just so that we may count on them for supplies and scouting. Gain their trust colonel as I would rather not lose more scouts to these unknown lands." [Continue on current path]
[X] "A recent report from one of our scouts has found out about the ruins of what seems to be an abandoned fortress just south of the Gate. Its position near a river makes it of vital importance that we take it as it would make a perfect outpost in this foreign land. You are ordered to march back to the Gate, where you will meet with the scout that found it and then proceed to take the Fortress." As per the attached description, the fortress seems to be made out of the same ancient material as the gates. You wonder if there is something that you could find out there. [Fortress Capture Mission]
[X] "Colonel terrible news has arrived from a recent gate in the region of Schleswig-Holstein. The Danish tried to keep it quiet but our spies there have told us of an invasion in their lands that the Danish army has failed to contain. We cannot allow our German brethren to fall to the savages from the other side. Your regiment due to their experience dealing with natives is to immediately go through the gate and be attached to the 5th Infantry Brigade." [Offensive Mission / Dangerous]
The Native Camp
"What are you thinking about?"
"Just about how the dragon was right. His prophecy about the arrival of the great kingdom would save us when he was gone. I bet the ones in the village will be happy to hear it." The young man nods, he is wearing light armor made out of bronze forged by the dragon himself to protect his kin.
"Really? I thought I am glad too but because I am not dead. All the stories, we got told were real. I saw no mercy on the elves and the way they fought...we would have not stood a single chance if not for the new arrivals." The other young soldier tells him. He continues sharpening his blade under the moonlight. Just as another of his friends join him in the campfire.
"The foxkin aren't as happy. Tonight they went back to the forest to pray." Athir tells them as he sits facing them. The younger of them smiles and laughs. "Of course! It is not their legend that came true after all. The gates are not supposed to open twice at the same place but ours did. The gods finally smile on us and not on our enemies."
"I wonder if the elves have a legend just like ours? Maybe that is why they sent their scouts to the gate, it doesn't matter now anyhow. They probably know that they will find no way back to their beloved home here. They should probably leave us alone for now."
"Maybe, but we don't know anything about their empire either...only what our elders and the dragon told us. You never know with an elf, they may even appear at night and slice our throats without us as revenge." Athir replied.
"Shut it." One of them tells him. "Just be glad I am not slicing it myself after you tried to steal one of their weapons. God knows what would they have done with us had they found out about you."
"I know but.." Athir begins before the man interrupts him with a frown. "No buts Athir. If they are truly our allies then they will share with us their knowledge as well as their weapons, as I am sure they will but let's leave everything else to our leaders. Do you understand?"
Athir nods and they resume with more casual conversation. Each of them glad that their lives were spared today.
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An Unexpected Crumbling Fortress Part 1
- Location
- Peru
A Few Days Later
As soon as the order is given your men pack up the tents, and supplies with diligence. Soon enough your regiment will begin marching towards the Gate and then towards the fortress, leaving this battlefield you wondered just how many more you would witness in this world.
Your eyes gaze at the behemoth-sized bones as you inspect the camp, their shape so profoundly foreign and massive that you wonder if this is how the Romans or Greeks imagined their creatures of myth. A mix of dread and curiosity fills you the longer you look at them, just what sort of force could have brought them to this world?
One of the staff officers asks for your presence at the small field hospital of the camp, he mentions a discussion between the regiment's surgeon and priest. You thought that regulations were quite clear on what to do with the bodies of the fallen, so there is no reason for any trouble, regardless, you can always help clear a thing or two with your knowledge.
The noises only get louder as you approach the tent, and as soon as you enter it...
"You can't do that! It's not the Christian thing to do." Shouted the regiment's priest to the surgeon. His face clearly bloated from the anger, you are quite surprised to see a man of faith so riled up about something. "They are not Christian either way, so why not just let me work? This is important work ordered and I am working under the authority of the Ministry of War here." Replied the bearded but skinny surgeon. His hand wielding a quite crude serrated edge blade with fresh blood dripping onto the ground.
"What's going on here?" You said out loud, loud enough for the priest and surgeon to hear you. The surgeons and priest both recoil a bit and snap out of their anger. But it seems that the experienced priest is the first one to speak. "Colonel, the surgeon here is trying to desecrate bodies. If not for me, I wonder what he would do to the rest of the bodies. Look for yourself." He says pointing to the inside of the surgeon's tent. Just as the smell, the image you get is quite strong. But the one thing that catches your attention is a body that for lack of a better word has been opened and you see the organs inside of it. You notice on its head the knife ears that you had heard about so often.
"That is...one of the natives right?" You ask the surgeon who simply nods.
"Quite so, but a dead one. I am just conducting research on behalf of the medical section of the Ministry of War, all information we may find about these natives will be of extreme importance to the general staff." The surgeon says quite confidently.
"Was this necessary?" You ask the surgeon expecting him to justify himself or give you something to fend off the priest.
"Yes, this a new world. Not a new continent or a new island, finding out whether or not these people share our organs or not could be quite useful when dealing with prisoners. So far though, I haven't been able to recognize their organs with ours, at least, they may look like us on the outside but they are fairly different on the inside or at least look it." The surgeon but it seems that his words are not that appealing to the priest, who looks angrier than before.
You decide to intervene and give judgment before it's too late. "I heard enough. If it is a task from the Ministry of War, then there is nothing I can do Priest. Let the surgeon do his job." You tell the priest, who is certainly not happy with your answer. The surgeons sigh as the priest leaves.
"Thanks for the help." The surgeon says although it is more polite than true gratefulness. "Hopefully, I can resume my work without any more delay."
"If you got orders to engage in your experiments then proceed." You tell him before retiring knowing that for now the matter is settled. But sooner rather than later, you meet with Major Dunajski. He greets you and joins you in your walk back to the war tent. He presents you with a newspaper, the headline is. "The British Victorious against foul beasts in Arcadia." Below is an illustration engraved from a photograph showing British officers next to what looks like a big reptilian beast. Surprisingly, the beast itself has a clearly defined head, what looks to be two arms and two legs too. Perhaps, that was the preferred form of the more "intelligent" beings of mother nature.
"What do you make of it?" You ask the Major.
"Typical British flaunting sir. Not much else, they probably found more aggressive wildlife than we did." The major look upwards for a moment. "That reminds me that we found the reason, we had missing scouts before. A particular predator within these lands is rather fond of horse meat."
You nod. "We will have to keep our eyes open for those types of foul beasts then. I assume you already assigned more men to watch the horses." You ask him and you receive an answer as straight away as ever.
"The men were not too thrilled to have to do extra watch duties but they agreed that they would rather lose a few hours of sleep than carry the supplies themselves," Dunajski answered quite confidently, you knew that for him reining the men to do what was needed of them was probably one of his favorite pastimes.
You carry on as it seems that it won't be too long until the camp is lifted, which would only leave this place under the garrison of the locals and a new infantry battalion meant to prepare the place for the construction of a wooden fort, which given the abundance of wood in the region hopefully wouldn't take too long. You reach your tent only to find a couple of the native soldiers waiting for you inside.
Rockhaven
The clouds above the canyon are nothing but important
Rockhaven is a small town within an artificial canyon. Since time immemorial, this had been the lair of one of the great dragons and in a sense still is, however, it is now inhabited by refugees, outcasts, and exiles. It is not a very wealthy town, food is mostly procured from mushroom farms within a nearby cave system in which an aquifer runs and provides water to the town.
Legally speaking, the town is under the territory of the dragon Lasirus. He has been in control of this region for over a thousand years and has maintained it for as long as anyone can remember. When the elves arrived, they also agreed to respect the dragon's domain. Initially, relations between the dragon and the elves were cordial, until the elves reached the height of their power.
Entire races enslaved or almost exterminated, a war that lasted decades, and then finally, their audacity in trying to enslave a dragon themselves. They failed and paid a heavy price for it, but they would try it again and again. Each time weakening the dragon more and more, his fighting strength depleting with each wound. Then their gate shut down and left the elves stranded. They were still strong but without support from their Metropole, attrition took its toll on their numbers over centuries and left them a pariah in the minds of all.
During that time, the last of the humans arrived at these lands. Forgotten and weak, they were taken under the wing of the dragon and prospered under his protection. However, they were to swear fealty to him and obey without a hitch. They did so and prospered for a hundred years, but their past was lost and their history as well, only the elves keep records of the ancient times when human kingdoms existed. But the humans and their allies in the fox kin are in trouble.
Inside the lair of Lasirus, awaits the elder and his apprentice. The loud breaths of the dragon continue as they have done since the dragon began to sleep. "Nothing's changed? I suppose he was right about us having to fend for ourselves now. We can only pray that our warriors can stop the elves now." The old man monologues while the young man continues to clean the dragon's scales with almost religious fervor.
"If not then, at least, our people have already made good progress on escaping." Said the elder. Footsteps from behind him soon make him alert and fearful of the worst. The elder man had long made peace with death but still felt fear of the unknown.
"Oh, it's just you." Said the apprentice as he waved at the arriving man. The elder confused immediately looked back only to see one of the warriors in his armor returning the salute.
"What happened? Did we win or did we lose? Tell me right now." Shouted the elderly man not knowing what to make of this, as he knew that a battle against the elves was simply a tactic to win time unless a miracle happened.
"Calm yourself, we won the battle. The prophecy of the elders was true and more of our kin arrived to help us in battle. We repelled the elves but we don't know for how long." Explained the young warrior, truly there was no reason to doubt him and the elder sighed in relief. "We should celebrate but first we gotta make sure that the townspeople return."
"I doubt they will be here for a celebration, they are preparing to leave it seems."
"Leave? You mean they will be leaving against the elves."
Back on camp
After half an hour of listening to what the translators had to say, you managed to get a clearer picture of what was going on. The humans here required protection from the elves and were quite insistent on it. You as a colonel had no authority to offer them anything for now, but you did listen to them and that was enough.
"So they need our help." You ask the translator and he nods.
"I see. Well, my hands are tied and I doubt I can make any delays on our orders, but I will make sure to send a message to the Brigadier General to inform them of your situation. I am sure, he will send someone with the authority to conduct proper negotiations. The 31st Infantry Battalion will stay here and they are welcome to join forces with them." You watch as the translator does his work, although, it isn't an easy one by the looks of it and it takes a few minutes to get the message across and you doubt they fully understand you.
Their reply is quick and they nod, for a moment, it seems that their leader is smiling. For being natives, they are awfully friendly. From what you can tell, their commander's name is Cajyan, his fox-like ears and eyes always draw your attention as it is yet another proof of the strangeness of these lands. They seem to agree and seem to trust you and your men. Then someone begins to speak.
"My battalion will do its best to help them." Announces the major of the 31st as he extends a hand to Cajyan and receives a firm handshake in return. Soon the meeting is over but not before you manage to secure scouts and guides for the local region. But finally, the time to leave arrives, you watch as a cavalry squadron is leading the way back into the forest. The journey ahead has just begun.
The Black Fortress
The Prussian scouts were impressed by the size and style of the fortress that had they just found out. For them, the only comparison they could make was to a fairytale castle but certainly grimmer. A long time had passed ever since the fortress was first inhabited, and the signs were clear. The first of which was overgrown vegetation, trees growing as tall as the towers, cracks in the walls, and a deep silence that emanated from the fortress.
The fortress itself was next to a small river that doubled as a moot and that constantly refreshed the water inside. This increased its defensive value but also made it harder to find a way inside. When the Brigadier General received the report he couldn't help but ponder why the fortress had been abandoned but when the opportunity presented itself then it was better to take it.
Meanwhile, your columns traversed the forest once more. The fauna proving to be a dangerous factor to take into account, but with each dead beast that tried to attack your men, the less frequent the animal attacks became. Beyond that, on the same day of the march, you arrived back at the gate. Its surroundings looking more protected by a wooden wall and an increasing amount of tents. All while woodsmen continued to clear the forest.
This was a good time to resupply and rest before you departed the next day for the fortress. You rested and even managed to take some time to go back through the gate for an hour or so, the sounds of Berlin on one side and those of endless arcadia on the other. During your time at the gate, you were able to hear and read the news from all over the world. A gate appearing here or there, this, of course, didn't mean happy news for everyone.
Wild beasts could pass from one side to the other, some even spoke of possible new plagues, and of course, there were the natives...but about the latter, there was but little news.
The next arrived sooner than expected and the march south continued. This time you would have to deal with harsher geography than before, a hilly forest awaited you in the south but your men began to get used to the rough countryside. After all, vast areas of the rural Prussia remained just like this in the eastern provinces of the country.
After a day or two of march, your cavalry spots the fortress from afar. Managing to see it in all its glory, it is a perfect spot to establish a base of operations here in Arcadia. Far too perfect.
A camp near the fortress
For many, the call of the gods was the most important thing that one could ever follow. The Gods from this world periodically choose their champions to spread their worship and lead their people. For the many races of Arcadia, worshiping the Gods of this world took either an act of miracle or many years of proselytism to get them to believe.
It was not uncommon for champions to be recognized for the magical artifacts they possessed. One such example is currently at her camp waiting. She is but a few kilometers to the west of the Black Fortress. Her name is Kriesha, a lizard woman, who holds one such artifact. It looks like a simple hand-held gauntlet but it allows her to express the power of her goddess in the form of healing. From disease to life-threatening wounds, this artifact would fix up any living being provided Kriesha recited the rights mantras to activate it.
But as many other champions found, the artifacts were as much a blessing as a curse. Great kings, wealthy men, and many unscrupulous criminals would do anything to monopolize the time and abilities of the champions, either manipulating them to stay in their courts or to fight against their enemies. This was the chief reason, Kriesha had left the imperial capital forced to do so when she refused to abandon the lower districts and to only serve the nobility. After many attempts on her life, she decided to leave and pray for guidance.
Perhaps, the goddess listened to her as her artifact brought her here. The great black fortress was said to have been as the headquarters of the Gods when they fought against the forces of darkness. Yet, those were only myths and the fortress didn't look at all like the fortress of the gods but rather a half-ruin that was probably crawling with bandits and other vermin.
Kriesha grabbed her spear and headed towards the fortress. Only to stop when she sighted the Elven's Protectorate Banner from the distance. The gold and green colors announced the elven presence. A simple question went to her mind. "What were they doing here?"
Inside of the Fortress
The fortress had laid in silence for centuries. It had been used by the Lizards as a strong point against the Elves a century ago and as the land stands of the Human kingdoms previous to that. Nobody knew when it had been built only that it was there and that it was placed right in the middle of an important crossroads. Its walls were strong, far stronger than anyone could build but they also fell prey to the woes of time.
Skeletons of Elf, Lizard, and Human precedence were littered on the floors of such a great fortress. For a time, sages and mages alike had tried to study the murals of the fortress to understand it better but to no avail even if their senses told them that great power was hiding inside, nobody not even the brightest or wisest could unveil it. Not even the champions were allowed to uncover such a mystery, the truth was, there was never a mystery to be uncovered but rather a power to be unleashed.
Upon the XXth gate opening, the walls of the fortress had been too weakened to stop it slowly but surely, the power within crept outside of the core of the stone and then a tremor, no...an earthquake took place inside of the fortress and its immediate surroundings. The walls cracked and fell on the ground one after another. The elves, the champion, and the Prussians saw as the fortress crumbled.
The black stone melted on the ground with a dark color and a strong power. Then it began to move, small arms began to creep from the small sea of darkness. First only one, then several, and finally hundreds. Grey creatures began to stand up on their two infernal feet. Their faces were stretched out and without eyes, only a mouth and a nose. The creatures of all shapes and sizes began to form up until the dark goo was no more.
They all stood in silence...until the largest of them all. An enormous creature, a giant in its own right with the torso of a fat man but with the lower body of a spider began to move around and extend its arms. It held a long spear that he used to pierce the ground beneath him and then if the scouts, the elves, or the lizard could see it. They would see a long evil smile on its face.
It turned towards where the elven column was and then the demon threw its gigantic spear against them. It whispered something to the wind and the spear was launched from its hand to where the elves had formed up a perfect battleline, just like the one you had seen before. Once it lands, an entire elven section is instantaneously gone, a cloud of grey dust rising from underneath. The rest of the grey creatures rush towards the elves and a new battle begins.
Back on the Prussian Column
You had a hard time accepting what you were hearing from your scouts. "The fortress is gone?" Major Dunajski asked the scouts.
"Yes...Major, we saw it with our own eyes. The fortress crumbled as if was made of dust in a matter of minutes." Replied the man, who was as white and cold as a man could be. "Then...they all rose up from there. Demons...there is no other way to describe it, Sir. They are fighting the natives we fought just a few days ago."
You could not believe it either. Either your men had gone mad or this world was far more chaotic than you originally thought. "We are only half an hour away from there. Surely, these scouts must be wrong. We have allowed far too many peasants in our ranks." Replied Lieutenant colonel Sigmund von Waldeck. His face as straight as his mustache.
Friedrich von Brabeck spoke next. "I don't distrust my men as you do, Waldeck but I agree. Such a wild statement must be corroborated by another group of scouts."
Meanwhile, Helmuth von Limburg scratched his chin, he was thinking and thinking hard. "If there is no fortress then...it would be better to not move any further. The colonel told us that our mission was to capture it if there is nothing to capture it, I don't see why we should proceed, at least, not without any reinforcements." He replied, in his usual cautious and lawful ways.
"We will have to send another set of scouts...that much I agree, but if what the scouts say is true. We may be fighting another kind of enemy right now. A much fiercer one than the knife-eared natives we encountered. Colonel, I recommend we proceed but only watch them fight. If you see fit we could help them...if not, we can just retreat." Said the Major. In the end, it was up to you to decide.
But before that, Athir and the other natives are asked for their thoughts on this but they know nothing about these demons either or at least, it seems you cannot yet communicate those ideas to them.
[X] Retreat back to the Gate: There is no need for you to fight here von Limburg is right. Retreating back to the gate would be a good option...now, you aren't sure if the things the scouts described will follow you back.
[X] Watch the Fight but do not get involved. Reinforcements will take a day to arrive and you will have time to fortify your current position against any possible incursions.
[X] Join the natives in fighting against the strange demons. They may have been yesterday's enemies but as far as you know, demons are probably worse than them.
As soon as the order is given your men pack up the tents, and supplies with diligence. Soon enough your regiment will begin marching towards the Gate and then towards the fortress, leaving this battlefield you wondered just how many more you would witness in this world.
Your eyes gaze at the behemoth-sized bones as you inspect the camp, their shape so profoundly foreign and massive that you wonder if this is how the Romans or Greeks imagined their creatures of myth. A mix of dread and curiosity fills you the longer you look at them, just what sort of force could have brought them to this world?
One of the staff officers asks for your presence at the small field hospital of the camp, he mentions a discussion between the regiment's surgeon and priest. You thought that regulations were quite clear on what to do with the bodies of the fallen, so there is no reason for any trouble, regardless, you can always help clear a thing or two with your knowledge.
The noises only get louder as you approach the tent, and as soon as you enter it...
"You can't do that! It's not the Christian thing to do." Shouted the regiment's priest to the surgeon. His face clearly bloated from the anger, you are quite surprised to see a man of faith so riled up about something. "They are not Christian either way, so why not just let me work? This is important work ordered and I am working under the authority of the Ministry of War here." Replied the bearded but skinny surgeon. His hand wielding a quite crude serrated edge blade with fresh blood dripping onto the ground.
"What's going on here?" You said out loud, loud enough for the priest and surgeon to hear you. The surgeons and priest both recoil a bit and snap out of their anger. But it seems that the experienced priest is the first one to speak. "Colonel, the surgeon here is trying to desecrate bodies. If not for me, I wonder what he would do to the rest of the bodies. Look for yourself." He says pointing to the inside of the surgeon's tent. Just as the smell, the image you get is quite strong. But the one thing that catches your attention is a body that for lack of a better word has been opened and you see the organs inside of it. You notice on its head the knife ears that you had heard about so often.
"That is...one of the natives right?" You ask the surgeon who simply nods.
"Quite so, but a dead one. I am just conducting research on behalf of the medical section of the Ministry of War, all information we may find about these natives will be of extreme importance to the general staff." The surgeon says quite confidently.
"Was this necessary?" You ask the surgeon expecting him to justify himself or give you something to fend off the priest.
"Yes, this a new world. Not a new continent or a new island, finding out whether or not these people share our organs or not could be quite useful when dealing with prisoners. So far though, I haven't been able to recognize their organs with ours, at least, they may look like us on the outside but they are fairly different on the inside or at least look it." The surgeon but it seems that his words are not that appealing to the priest, who looks angrier than before.
You decide to intervene and give judgment before it's too late. "I heard enough. If it is a task from the Ministry of War, then there is nothing I can do Priest. Let the surgeon do his job." You tell the priest, who is certainly not happy with your answer. The surgeons sigh as the priest leaves.
"Thanks for the help." The surgeon says although it is more polite than true gratefulness. "Hopefully, I can resume my work without any more delay."
"If you got orders to engage in your experiments then proceed." You tell him before retiring knowing that for now the matter is settled. But sooner rather than later, you meet with Major Dunajski. He greets you and joins you in your walk back to the war tent. He presents you with a newspaper, the headline is. "The British Victorious against foul beasts in Arcadia." Below is an illustration engraved from a photograph showing British officers next to what looks like a big reptilian beast. Surprisingly, the beast itself has a clearly defined head, what looks to be two arms and two legs too. Perhaps, that was the preferred form of the more "intelligent" beings of mother nature.
"What do you make of it?" You ask the Major.
"Typical British flaunting sir. Not much else, they probably found more aggressive wildlife than we did." The major look upwards for a moment. "That reminds me that we found the reason, we had missing scouts before. A particular predator within these lands is rather fond of horse meat."
You nod. "We will have to keep our eyes open for those types of foul beasts then. I assume you already assigned more men to watch the horses." You ask him and you receive an answer as straight away as ever.
"The men were not too thrilled to have to do extra watch duties but they agreed that they would rather lose a few hours of sleep than carry the supplies themselves," Dunajski answered quite confidently, you knew that for him reining the men to do what was needed of them was probably one of his favorite pastimes.
You carry on as it seems that it won't be too long until the camp is lifted, which would only leave this place under the garrison of the locals and a new infantry battalion meant to prepare the place for the construction of a wooden fort, which given the abundance of wood in the region hopefully wouldn't take too long. You reach your tent only to find a couple of the native soldiers waiting for you inside.
Rockhaven
The clouds above the canyon are nothing but important
Rockhaven is a small town within an artificial canyon. Since time immemorial, this had been the lair of one of the great dragons and in a sense still is, however, it is now inhabited by refugees, outcasts, and exiles. It is not a very wealthy town, food is mostly procured from mushroom farms within a nearby cave system in which an aquifer runs and provides water to the town.
Legally speaking, the town is under the territory of the dragon Lasirus. He has been in control of this region for over a thousand years and has maintained it for as long as anyone can remember. When the elves arrived, they also agreed to respect the dragon's domain. Initially, relations between the dragon and the elves were cordial, until the elves reached the height of their power.
Entire races enslaved or almost exterminated, a war that lasted decades, and then finally, their audacity in trying to enslave a dragon themselves. They failed and paid a heavy price for it, but they would try it again and again. Each time weakening the dragon more and more, his fighting strength depleting with each wound. Then their gate shut down and left the elves stranded. They were still strong but without support from their Metropole, attrition took its toll on their numbers over centuries and left them a pariah in the minds of all.
During that time, the last of the humans arrived at these lands. Forgotten and weak, they were taken under the wing of the dragon and prospered under his protection. However, they were to swear fealty to him and obey without a hitch. They did so and prospered for a hundred years, but their past was lost and their history as well, only the elves keep records of the ancient times when human kingdoms existed. But the humans and their allies in the fox kin are in trouble.
Inside the lair of Lasirus, awaits the elder and his apprentice. The loud breaths of the dragon continue as they have done since the dragon began to sleep. "Nothing's changed? I suppose he was right about us having to fend for ourselves now. We can only pray that our warriors can stop the elves now." The old man monologues while the young man continues to clean the dragon's scales with almost religious fervor.
"If not then, at least, our people have already made good progress on escaping." Said the elder. Footsteps from behind him soon make him alert and fearful of the worst. The elder man had long made peace with death but still felt fear of the unknown.
"Oh, it's just you." Said the apprentice as he waved at the arriving man. The elder confused immediately looked back only to see one of the warriors in his armor returning the salute.
"What happened? Did we win or did we lose? Tell me right now." Shouted the elderly man not knowing what to make of this, as he knew that a battle against the elves was simply a tactic to win time unless a miracle happened.
"Calm yourself, we won the battle. The prophecy of the elders was true and more of our kin arrived to help us in battle. We repelled the elves but we don't know for how long." Explained the young warrior, truly there was no reason to doubt him and the elder sighed in relief. "We should celebrate but first we gotta make sure that the townspeople return."
"I doubt they will be here for a celebration, they are preparing to leave it seems."
"Leave? You mean they will be leaving against the elves."
Back on camp
After half an hour of listening to what the translators had to say, you managed to get a clearer picture of what was going on. The humans here required protection from the elves and were quite insistent on it. You as a colonel had no authority to offer them anything for now, but you did listen to them and that was enough.
"So they need our help." You ask the translator and he nods.
"I see. Well, my hands are tied and I doubt I can make any delays on our orders, but I will make sure to send a message to the Brigadier General to inform them of your situation. I am sure, he will send someone with the authority to conduct proper negotiations. The 31st Infantry Battalion will stay here and they are welcome to join forces with them." You watch as the translator does his work, although, it isn't an easy one by the looks of it and it takes a few minutes to get the message across and you doubt they fully understand you.
Their reply is quick and they nod, for a moment, it seems that their leader is smiling. For being natives, they are awfully friendly. From what you can tell, their commander's name is Cajyan, his fox-like ears and eyes always draw your attention as it is yet another proof of the strangeness of these lands. They seem to agree and seem to trust you and your men. Then someone begins to speak.
"My battalion will do its best to help them." Announces the major of the 31st as he extends a hand to Cajyan and receives a firm handshake in return. Soon the meeting is over but not before you manage to secure scouts and guides for the local region. But finally, the time to leave arrives, you watch as a cavalry squadron is leading the way back into the forest. The journey ahead has just begun.
The Black Fortress
The Prussian scouts were impressed by the size and style of the fortress that had they just found out. For them, the only comparison they could make was to a fairytale castle but certainly grimmer. A long time had passed ever since the fortress was first inhabited, and the signs were clear. The first of which was overgrown vegetation, trees growing as tall as the towers, cracks in the walls, and a deep silence that emanated from the fortress.
The fortress itself was next to a small river that doubled as a moot and that constantly refreshed the water inside. This increased its defensive value but also made it harder to find a way inside. When the Brigadier General received the report he couldn't help but ponder why the fortress had been abandoned but when the opportunity presented itself then it was better to take it.
Meanwhile, your columns traversed the forest once more. The fauna proving to be a dangerous factor to take into account, but with each dead beast that tried to attack your men, the less frequent the animal attacks became. Beyond that, on the same day of the march, you arrived back at the gate. Its surroundings looking more protected by a wooden wall and an increasing amount of tents. All while woodsmen continued to clear the forest.
This was a good time to resupply and rest before you departed the next day for the fortress. You rested and even managed to take some time to go back through the gate for an hour or so, the sounds of Berlin on one side and those of endless arcadia on the other. During your time at the gate, you were able to hear and read the news from all over the world. A gate appearing here or there, this, of course, didn't mean happy news for everyone.
Wild beasts could pass from one side to the other, some even spoke of possible new plagues, and of course, there were the natives...but about the latter, there was but little news.
The next arrived sooner than expected and the march south continued. This time you would have to deal with harsher geography than before, a hilly forest awaited you in the south but your men began to get used to the rough countryside. After all, vast areas of the rural Prussia remained just like this in the eastern provinces of the country.
After a day or two of march, your cavalry spots the fortress from afar. Managing to see it in all its glory, it is a perfect spot to establish a base of operations here in Arcadia. Far too perfect.
A camp near the fortress
For many, the call of the gods was the most important thing that one could ever follow. The Gods from this world periodically choose their champions to spread their worship and lead their people. For the many races of Arcadia, worshiping the Gods of this world took either an act of miracle or many years of proselytism to get them to believe.
It was not uncommon for champions to be recognized for the magical artifacts they possessed. One such example is currently at her camp waiting. She is but a few kilometers to the west of the Black Fortress. Her name is Kriesha, a lizard woman, who holds one such artifact. It looks like a simple hand-held gauntlet but it allows her to express the power of her goddess in the form of healing. From disease to life-threatening wounds, this artifact would fix up any living being provided Kriesha recited the rights mantras to activate it.
But as many other champions found, the artifacts were as much a blessing as a curse. Great kings, wealthy men, and many unscrupulous criminals would do anything to monopolize the time and abilities of the champions, either manipulating them to stay in their courts or to fight against their enemies. This was the chief reason, Kriesha had left the imperial capital forced to do so when she refused to abandon the lower districts and to only serve the nobility. After many attempts on her life, she decided to leave and pray for guidance.
Perhaps, the goddess listened to her as her artifact brought her here. The great black fortress was said to have been as the headquarters of the Gods when they fought against the forces of darkness. Yet, those were only myths and the fortress didn't look at all like the fortress of the gods but rather a half-ruin that was probably crawling with bandits and other vermin.
Kriesha grabbed her spear and headed towards the fortress. Only to stop when she sighted the Elven's Protectorate Banner from the distance. The gold and green colors announced the elven presence. A simple question went to her mind. "What were they doing here?"
Inside of the Fortress
The fortress had laid in silence for centuries. It had been used by the Lizards as a strong point against the Elves a century ago and as the land stands of the Human kingdoms previous to that. Nobody knew when it had been built only that it was there and that it was placed right in the middle of an important crossroads. Its walls were strong, far stronger than anyone could build but they also fell prey to the woes of time.
Skeletons of Elf, Lizard, and Human precedence were littered on the floors of such a great fortress. For a time, sages and mages alike had tried to study the murals of the fortress to understand it better but to no avail even if their senses told them that great power was hiding inside, nobody not even the brightest or wisest could unveil it. Not even the champions were allowed to uncover such a mystery, the truth was, there was never a mystery to be uncovered but rather a power to be unleashed.
Upon the XXth gate opening, the walls of the fortress had been too weakened to stop it slowly but surely, the power within crept outside of the core of the stone and then a tremor, no...an earthquake took place inside of the fortress and its immediate surroundings. The walls cracked and fell on the ground one after another. The elves, the champion, and the Prussians saw as the fortress crumbled.
The black stone melted on the ground with a dark color and a strong power. Then it began to move, small arms began to creep from the small sea of darkness. First only one, then several, and finally hundreds. Grey creatures began to stand up on their two infernal feet. Their faces were stretched out and without eyes, only a mouth and a nose. The creatures of all shapes and sizes began to form up until the dark goo was no more.
They all stood in silence...until the largest of them all. An enormous creature, a giant in its own right with the torso of a fat man but with the lower body of a spider began to move around and extend its arms. It held a long spear that he used to pierce the ground beneath him and then if the scouts, the elves, or the lizard could see it. They would see a long evil smile on its face.
It turned towards where the elven column was and then the demon threw its gigantic spear against them. It whispered something to the wind and the spear was launched from its hand to where the elves had formed up a perfect battleline, just like the one you had seen before. Once it lands, an entire elven section is instantaneously gone, a cloud of grey dust rising from underneath. The rest of the grey creatures rush towards the elves and a new battle begins.
Back on the Prussian Column
You had a hard time accepting what you were hearing from your scouts. "The fortress is gone?" Major Dunajski asked the scouts.
"Yes...Major, we saw it with our own eyes. The fortress crumbled as if was made of dust in a matter of minutes." Replied the man, who was as white and cold as a man could be. "Then...they all rose up from there. Demons...there is no other way to describe it, Sir. They are fighting the natives we fought just a few days ago."
You could not believe it either. Either your men had gone mad or this world was far more chaotic than you originally thought. "We are only half an hour away from there. Surely, these scouts must be wrong. We have allowed far too many peasants in our ranks." Replied Lieutenant colonel Sigmund von Waldeck. His face as straight as his mustache.
Friedrich von Brabeck spoke next. "I don't distrust my men as you do, Waldeck but I agree. Such a wild statement must be corroborated by another group of scouts."
Meanwhile, Helmuth von Limburg scratched his chin, he was thinking and thinking hard. "If there is no fortress then...it would be better to not move any further. The colonel told us that our mission was to capture it if there is nothing to capture it, I don't see why we should proceed, at least, not without any reinforcements." He replied, in his usual cautious and lawful ways.
"We will have to send another set of scouts...that much I agree, but if what the scouts say is true. We may be fighting another kind of enemy right now. A much fiercer one than the knife-eared natives we encountered. Colonel, I recommend we proceed but only watch them fight. If you see fit we could help them...if not, we can just retreat." Said the Major. In the end, it was up to you to decide.
But before that, Athir and the other natives are asked for their thoughts on this but they know nothing about these demons either or at least, it seems you cannot yet communicate those ideas to them.
[X] Retreat back to the Gate: There is no need for you to fight here von Limburg is right. Retreating back to the gate would be a good option...now, you aren't sure if the things the scouts described will follow you back.
[X] Watch the Fight but do not get involved. Reinforcements will take a day to arrive and you will have time to fortify your current position against any possible incursions.
[X] Join the natives in fighting against the strange demons. They may have been yesterday's enemies but as far as you know, demons are probably worse than them.
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