The Gardener's Rod

While the army of the Undying besieges the Wardens and Iron Hearts, the defenders continue to make forays into the wilderness to gather supplies.

On one such expedition, the party came across a hidden pathway. Here they find the skeletal remains of a Warden. Searching him, they find the following note:

"I have been wounded during a melee with goblins. I can no longer keep up with the party so I have asked Shroudstar to leave me while she searches for the Rod."

The party leader sucked in his breath. This was a clue to the lost expedition on the quest to find the fabled Gardener's Rod!

Excitedly, the leader read more:

"It has been days and Shroudstar has not returned. Now I hear scuffling from the thickets. There could be trouble."

There was no more to the note.

The leader determined to press on, and hopefully discover the fate of Shroudstar and the Rod.

After traveling a bit further down the path, the woods parted and the group entered a secluded glen. In the middle was a statue, with a staff lying at its feet.

A pair of tall trees flanked the statue.

As the party approached, the trees came to life and attacked. At first, this assault forced the scouts back. They tried to counter, but their blades could barely nick the hardened trunks.

"We must get that rod!" called the leader.

One of the party, a bard from the Iron Heart Accord, began to chant. A powerful ray of energy emitted from him, shoving the trees away from the Rod. Another scout grabbed it, and began backing away, shielded by a third member of the party. Enraged, the trees rushed forward, but again the beam of energy forced them back. The party was able to retreat from the glen with the Rod in their possession. As they returned to the path, the trees ended their pursuit. The Gardener's Rod was theirs!

But what happened to Shroudstar and the Horn of the Hurricane?

OOC Notes

• This was the second scenario from our February HFS day.
• Xhorja, Artemis, and Ferrum played the scouting party while Beast and Blade were the trees (Amtgard oakens). I believe Xhorja played bard; in any event he used Shove to move the trees away. Ferrum was able to grab the Rod and Artemis protected his escape.
• According to our lore, Shroudstar had the Horn when her party was defeated by the oakens. Since then, she has not been spotted in Ember Shoals (IRL she moved from the area). So now I need to explain how we get the Horn back!

The Ironheart Accord

After reporting my discovery to the Sentinels at Landfall Castle, I Rufus returned to the main island of Ember Shoals and headed toward Heron Hall. I passed ruined fields and the remnants of once-prospering villages. All human habitation was now in ruins. Of people, however, I saw not a trace.

On a couple of occasions, I was attacked by fell beasts. Apparently left on the island by the Faedwyr. These I managed to slay with sword and arrow. I made it safely to the remain of Heron Hall. I strode through the now burnt and blackened corridors. The heron tapestries of the Great Hall lay in ashes upon the floor. All was in ruin, or so I thought.

I next visited the chapel, and found it remarkably preserved. The altar, the chalices, the pews, and the ornamentation were all untouched. I gazed in wonder at this miracle.

"Holy ground. The Faedwyr cannot enter." a voice spoke from the doorway. I whirled around, unsheathing my sword and dropping into a fighting stance. As light shone on the speaker's face, a flash of recognition passed over me.

"Brother Jaromir?"

"Brother Rufus?" he replied. "Is that really you?"

I sheathed my sword, rushed over, and grasped his hand. "Aye, it is me!"

After a very brief, happy reunion, Jaromir grew serious. "Come, let's leave. It's not safe. The Faedwyr keep Heron Hall under watch." He led me out of my old home and into the woods.

On our journey, Jaromir explained what had been happening in Ember Shoals. The Faedwyr had killed or enslaved most of the people, but some had escaped into the wilderness and had formed scattered settlements. The Faedwyr (and their fell beasts) still appeared, seemingly at random, so it was unsafe to travel far. The settlements eked out a meager existence in the shadow of the enemy.

I was greeted warmly at Brother Jaromir's settlement, located in a concealed clearing deep in the woods. It was a ragtag group that included a wide variety of the citizens of Ember Shoals. Wardens rubbed shoulders with corsairs, farmers, adventurers. You name it.

At dinner, I mentioned my resolve to fight the Faedwyr and reclaim Heron Hall (and all of Ember Shoals). My statement was greeted with mirthless laughter.

One of the settlers stated: "We cannot fight the Faedwyr. They have dark, mysterious powers. It's a hopeless dream."

"A dream perhaps," I replied. "But not hopeless." I told them about the three druidic artifacts and the Faethorn. I saw a glimmer of hope in their eyes.

"Come friends, let us band together. Though in the past we have had our differences, let us put those aside and join as one. We will forge weapons of cold iron so that we can stand up against our enemy."

Brother Jaromir interrupted me at this point. "We will need more than iron weapons to be victorious. We will need hearts of iron."

"Yes!" I responded. "And that we have in abundance." I gazed around at the gathering around the fire. I saw a few nods and smiles.

"Therefore, let us form an alliance of the ironhearted men and women of Ember Shoals. Together, we will find the artifacts, fight the Faedwyr, and free our home!"

Cheers greeted my statement. And on that night, the Ironheart Accord was born.

The Last Stand of Ember Shoals

From atop the ruined keep of Heron Hall, the Faedwyr lord looked out upon the plain before the castle. Gathering there, in the rear of his troops was another army. He gazed upon the many varied banners - the Wardens, the Bilgewater Brigade, and even our neighbors from Kage and from the Barony of Crest Haven.

"Where did this army come from?" he wondered.

In his haste to raze Heron Hall, he had left pockets of defenders in his army's wake. One of these was I, Brother Rufus, commander of the Wardens. I had been on patrol, hunting monsters in the forest known as the Hundred Needles, in the north of Ember Shoals. When I received word of the return of the Faedwyr, my patrol immediately rushed back to our home. On the way, we encountered scattered remnants of the populace of Ember Shoals. Warned of the invasion, volunteers arrived from Kage and Crest Haven. We joined forces and marched in unison toward Heron Hall.

Now we stood at the foot of my stronghold. Tears streaked down my face, for we were too late. It was clear that the castle had fallen. Very well, we would inflict vengeance upon our defeated comrades. The charge was sounded and we fell upon the Faedwyr baggage camp and siege train. We hacked down the enemy until blood ran in torrents.

The Faedwyr lord could not overlook our challenge. Instead of setting up a defensive position in the castle, he launched a counterattack upon our position on the plain. The horde rushed upon us, smashing into us and forcing us back. Dark magics lashed out and bedeviled our troops. We retreated to a hilltop, determined to make our stand. We cut down any enemy that tried to rush up the hill, but there were too many. One by one, the defenders were cut down.

I knew we were doomed but I was determined to fight to the bitter end. Then one of my lieutenants grabbed my arm and yelled in my ear. "It's hopeless, commander! We need to retreat!"

"Never!" I cried but he persisted.

"We will never free Ember Shoals if we are all dead. Live to fight another day!"

I saw sense in his words. Reluctantly, I sounded the retreat. The survivors fled into the wilds of Ember Shoals.

Ember Shoals has fallen to the Faedwyr. But we the survivors are determined that it will not be our last stand.

The Fall of Heron Hall

Mighty Heron Hall, stronghold of the Wardens, had become a symbol of vigilance and righteousness. Its residents were on the forefront of battle with the forces of evil. When the Faedwyr burst back into Ember Shoals, they set their sights upon the fortress.

The Faedwyr army ravaged across the breadth of Ember Shoals, leaving a path of destruction in its path. Scattered forces tried valiantly to stem the tide but they were overwhelmed. Within days, the Faedwyr army was encamped on the outskirts of Heron Hall.

When night fell, the enemy forces moved to the attack. First, dark sorcerers used infernal powers to blow open the gates of the castle. The Faedwyr bridged the moat then a horde of bloodthirsty warriors rushed across.

Picture from http://raymondminnaar.deviantart.com/art/Avalon-Lords-Castle-Siege-450232609

The defenders valiantly tried to stave off the attack. They cut down the Faedwyr left and right, but the enemy kept coming in droves. They forced the defenders back from the gate into the courtyard. From there, the Faedwyr scattered throughout the castle, cutting down all who stood in their way. A small coterie of defenders retreated to the keep. They kept up a stiff resistance, but the Faewyr attackers seemed limitless. One by one, the Wardens fell.

Finally, only one defender remained. He stood on the top of the keep, surrounded by enemies. One of the Faedwyr lords called for his surrender. He refused, and with a shout of defiance, he charged the enemy. One-two-three-four and more fell to his determined blade. But he could not resist the numbers. A spear thrust out, catching him in the leg. He fell to his knees on the stone tiles of the roof. A blade sliced his back and he pitched forward onto his face. Then the enemy rushed in and began to hack at him.

As he took his last breath, the could hear a sound in the distance. A horn resounded through the valley. Reinforcements! Alas, they were too late. Heron Hall had fallen.

OOC Notes:

• This story represents the second battle game of our February event. It was a castle battle. The attackers had to cross a drawbridge and take a control point past the "castle" gates. Each side got a chance to defend (we actually ran the scenario four times. Each time the attackers overwhelmed the defenders).
• The story of the last valiant defender is pure fiction.

The Faedwyr Return

My narrative of the Faedwyr War skipped over some other important events in Ember Shoals's history. I shall return to those events but for now I focus on the Faedwyr because of their importance in recent affairs.

The troubles began after a particularly rowdy celebration after the rebuilding of Lander's Edge. Some of the freebooters imbibed a bit too much and became quarrelsome. Tempers flared and a riot started. Before order was restored, several of the newly erected building had been burned down again. In the aftermath, a group of concerned citizens called the League of Purity prevailed upon the new Commodore of the Shoals, Brother Rufus, to outlaw alcohol, which they blamed for the riot.

Alas, prohibition did not go over well with the free-living corsairs of the freehold. Smuggling and illegal manufacture was rampant. Although armed with enforcement powers, the League of Purity could not stem the tide of alcohol.

Then one day a wizened figure paid a call to the League's hall. He offered to summon celestial forces to aid the League in its battle against bootleggers and rum runners. The League foolishly accepted and that night a strange ritual was held in the hall, attended by the members of the League. Alas, the conjurer duped the League and opened a portal to the land of the Faedwyr. Suddenly, a horde of huge, ravenous black dogs raced from the portal.

The beasts ripped apart the members of the League and then rushed out into the streets. A bloodbath ensued as the startled citizens were torn limb from limb. The hounds were followed by an army of Faedwyr, intent on revenge for their defeat a year earlier.

OOC Notes

• The League of Purity was a storyline that I developed for my first reign. I have more to tell about the League at a later time.
• I decided to cap off the storyline with a dramatic turn of events, hence the summoning of our old nemesis, the Faedwyr.
• The remainder of my tale of the Faedwyr will relate the events of my end-reign in February 2016. The attack of the hounds was our first battlegame of the day. Teams portrayed hounds vs. humans (those trying to escape the attack). Per design, the humans died in droves. Scenario notes:
• 2 teams (one plays hounds and the other humans. Each team gets a chance to play hounds)
• The human team tries to get its people to a safe zone on the other side of the field. 1 point for every human to make it.
• When a human makes it to safety, he/she can respawn at the start and run the gauntlet again to score another point.
• Timed scenario with unlimited lives.

The Faedwyr War

Faced with an imminent invasion, Rufus gathered the Wardens while Kettlebaun rallied the Bilgewater Brigade, the militia of Lander's Edge. The portals opened and the Faedwyr poured into Ember Shoals. The freehold's troops put up a stiff resistance but they could not stem the tide. Slowly but surely they were pushed back to their strongholds.

Then, another seeming calamity befell. The Royal Navy of the neighboring kingdom executed an amphibious landing upon the main island. They pushed inland, seizing towns and villages and pillaging the locals' wealth.

But then fortune turned for Ember Shoals. They Royal Navy ran into the army of the Faedwyr. As the Wardens and Bilgewater Brigade watched, the two invaders battered each into tatters. Disheartened by the unholy terrors of the Faedwyr, the Royal Navy retreated from the Shoals.

Now vulnerable to counterattack, the Faedwyr tried to regain their dominance by launching a new terror upon Ember Shoals. They opened a a long shut cavern that bore into the heart of the volcano known as Cinderglow Mountain. Out from the depths crept the great wyrm known as Meraxxion Flamefiend. He flew the length of Ember Shoals, scorching all in its path. Then it settled upon the peak of Dargus Rock near the mouth of Hull Breaker Bay.

A map of the Shoals

A party of valiant warriors (including Shroudstar, Scaetha, Christophe, Octave, Kain, Huntario, and the Wardens) gathered a war fleet and sailed out to do battle. Meraxxion flew down from his perch and burned their fleet to the waterline.

The determined warriors swam to shore and straggled up the craggy sides of Dargus Rock. The accurate archery of the heroes wounded the beast and brought it down from the sky. Yet it had plenty of life left. It attacked with its massive jaws and sharp talons. Many a warrior was wounded and bleeding from the battle. But the heroes were undaunted, and after an epic struggle, one of the warriors delivered a telling blow (no one knows who it was). Meraxxion shuddered and collapsed. The great wyrm was no more.

The Faedwyr had bound up much of their power into reviving Meraxxion. With the beast dead, their power was broken. Keldric Lenarus rallied the armies of Ember Shoals and led them in a victorious counterattack upon the remains of the Faedwyr forces. Soon, they were banished back through the portals to their lands in the Otherworld.

The Faedwyr War was over. Or so we thought.

OOC Notes

• The Faedwyr storyline was the highlight of Kettlebaun's (Robb's) first reign. The three-way battle between Ember Shoals, the Faedwyr, and the Royal Navy was the scenario at our first end-reign. I don't remember all the details or who actually won (it wasn't Ember Shoals, unfortunately) so I improvised for dramatic effect.
• Shortly after end-reign we wrapped up the storyline with the battle against "Meraxxion" (played by Keldric/Evan). It was an epic battle that ended with the dragon's "death." I have to say that this was one of the most intense fights of my LARPing career. I feel that the RP backstory contributed to the intensity.

Kidnapped!

Shortly after the founding of the Wardens, I Rufus was riding on patrol through the wilds of Ember Shoals. My troop came upon an abandoned village. There was an eerie silence that pervaded the area.Then seemingly out of no where a strange man appeared. He called himself the Peacock and he spoke to me in riddles, but one thing was clear. He claimed that his master was ruler of the Shoals. I was not aware of any other authority in the area. I motioned to my comrades to ride for assistance and then asked to be escorted to this "master."

Suddenly, I felt a strange sensation as if my head was spinning. The world seemed to fade away, and then I found myself in a dimly lit grand hall. A dark yet noble man stared down upon me. 

My heart fell for I knew where I was - the chaos lands of the Faedwyr (a powerful, magical, and capricious race). Fortunately, my iron cross protected me from direct harm, but the Faedwyr Lord still imprisoned me when I refused to pledge fealty to him.

It must not have been long but it felt like weeks. I neither ate nor drank, for it is said that to taste the food of the Faedwyr will cause one to be trapped forever. Finally, I had my chance. I surprised the guard and pressed my iron cross against its skin (the Faedwyr cannot abide the touch of cold iron and the cross is anathema to them). This allowed me to force the guard to escort me out of the Faedwyr lands. I crossed the portal back into Ember Shoals.

But the Faedwyr were not done with me. The dark lord sent his minions after me. Weakened by lack of nourishment, I could barely stumble through the wilds. I could hear the Faedwyr draw closer. Then I heard the sound of salvation. A search party was combing the area. Feebly, I called for aid. The Lord was with me, however, and my cries were heard. My rescuers rushed to my side, and amidst a battle with the Faedwyr, they pulled me to safety.

Before I blacked out, I was able to croak a warning: "Tell the Commodore. They're coming!"

This would be the beginning of a conflict that we call the Faedwyr War.

OOC Notes

• This story began as a little online roleplaying between Robb and I. He laid out the scenario of an empty village and the strange man. I responded with Rufus's actions as he came across the Peacock while on patrol. Rufus asked to meet with the so-called lord of the lands, with the result that he (I) was whisked away to the land of the Faedwyr.
• Rufus's escape was a battlegame scenario that we played at our park. Essentially, it was a heavy object scenario, with me as the heavy object. The 2 teams portrayed the Faedwyr vs. the troops of Ember Shoals