Difference between revisions of "The Strike on Turrosh Mak"

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The Army’s half-ogre/half-orc General [[Durbamog Elfmangler]] was slain in an epic battle with the Expeditionary Force’s commander, [[Tanevir Calywyn]] on the ramparts of [[Stormlight Keep]] and the remnants were forced to flee the city.
 
The Army’s half-ogre/half-orc General [[Durbamog Elfmangler]] was slain in an epic battle with the Expeditionary Force’s commander, [[Tanevir Calywyn]] on the ramparts of [[Stormlight Keep]] and the remnants were forced to flee the city.
  
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The battle was won, but the much larger fight remained. The remainder of the Army of Infernal Might were absorbed by the much larger [[Army of Vengeful Wrath]] led by the ruthless General [[Azog Deathsmasher]], cleric of [[Grummish]].
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The battle was won, but the much larger fight remained. The remainder of the Army of Infernal Might were absorbed by the much larger [[Army of Vengeful Wrath]] led by the ruthless General [[Azog Deathsmasher]], cleric of [[Grummsh]].
  
 
In the months that followed Tanevir continued his winning strategy of dispatching “special forces” of adventuring guild heroes – including Blackrazors, [[Orcslayers]] and [[Ralleymen]] -- into the occupied towns and cities of the Principality to gather information and to sabotage military targets.
 
In the months that followed Tanevir continued his winning strategy of dispatching “special forces” of adventuring guild heroes – including Blackrazors, [[Orcslayers]] and [[Ralleymen]] -- into the occupied towns and cities of the Principality to gather information and to sabotage military targets.

Revision as of 05:20, 26 August 2016

About the Saga

Timeframe

Cast of Characters

Notable Quotes

None.

What Has Come Before

War has returned to the Pomarj. The allied forces of Obsidian Bay, the Principality of Ulek and the Kingdom of Keoland launched an offensive on the Orcish Empire of Turrosh Mak’s western front in Wealsun CY 591. Their intention was to drive the Despot’s forces from the occupied lands of the Principality, forcing them back across the Jewel River.

They have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. The orcish armies of Despot’s Army of Infernal Might was destroyed in a lightning fast invasion of Orc Harbor by the Obsidian Bay Expeditionary Force, an invasion made possible by the deft scouting efforts of the Blackrazor Guild.

The Army’s half-ogre/half-orc General Durbamog Elfmangler was slain in an epic battle with the Expeditionary Force’s commander, Tanevir Calywyn on the ramparts of Stormlight Keep and the remnants were forced to flee the city.

The battle was won, but the much larger fight remained. The remainder of the Army of Infernal Might were absorbed by the much larger Army of Vengeful Wrath led by the ruthless General Azog Deathsmasher, cleric of Grummsh.

In the months that followed Tanevir continued his winning strategy of dispatching “special forces” of adventuring guild heroes – including Blackrazors, Orcslayers and Ralleymen -- into the occupied towns and cities of the Principality to gather information and to sabotage military targets.

The strategy worked. Appledown, Bridgeford, Goldmine, Grimfire, Madlond, Thunderstrike; Month after month these and other towns were freed from their orcish overlords. There were setbacks to be sure – the First Battle of Thunderstrike saw Tanevir’s first significant defeat as the orcs surprised him by launching a force of half-black dragons at his men – but he returned three months later and smashed through the city’s defenses, achieving total victory.

Now, in Wealsun 15, CY 592, the western war is nearing its end. Standkeep Castle on the eastern side of the Jewel River has just fallen to the Obsidian Bay Expeditionary Force, and the Army of Vengeful Wrath has fled back into the Pomarj.

And yet … all is not well. The battle at Standkeep Castle was hardly worthy of the name, and the Army of Vengeful Wrath put up only a token fight, instead choosing to withdraw from the battlefield. Never before had Azog given up a significant target without a fight, and this change in strategy worried Tanevir greatly … especially when news arrived of the other armies of the Despot withdrawing as well.

But withdrawing to where … and for what reason?

The Saga

Wealsun 15, CY 592

War Council

Lord Mayor Gabriel Longriver of Obsidian Bay has called for an emergency war council. In attendance are:

Lord Mayor Longriver begins the meeting thanking all for meeting, and praising the numerous gains over the Orcish Empire in the past year. He also specifically thanks the efforts of General Calywyn. He then shifts his tone, describing the troubling reports of orcish armies withdrawing from their defensive – and occasionally offensive – positions:

The clerics of Heironeous have used their devine power to attempt to discover where Mak is located. Unfortunately even a commune with Heronious himself is unable to reveal Mak's current whereabouts. They were however able to discover the answer to Mak's whereabouts can be found in the cities of Highport, and Fury Bay.

With this in mind, Tanevir charges his hand-picked strike team with two tasks: learn where Turrosh Mak is and, if possible, determine why the armies of the Pomarj are withdrawing from their positions. Once this is complete, this group of hand picked warriors can take on Tanevir's ultimate plan: kill Turrosh Mak.

The group quickly splits into two teams. Tanevir, Erilar, Moraim, and Pag will scout out Highport; while Kalib, Gideon, Merwyn, and Lyle will head to Fury Bay.

Highport

Lord Tanevir decides the best course of action for the small team is to infiltrate the town and see what they can learn on the streets. The only problem is disguises. A human can pass pretty easily in Highport, Elves would be rare but acceptable, but a dwarf? Moraim prays to his god for some guidance, and casts a spell to disguise himself. With that the group teleports off to highport.

They sneak around for a while, gathering intel on various armies. Seems they are all on the move, and heading East. To where though, what's the target? Could it be an all out strike on Obsidian Bay? And where is Mak? The party had to find out more.

Finally they find their answer: The Army of the Trembling Fist has been tunneling its way to Waterton. It's going to be a surprise strike on the water supply of Obsidian Bay. The rest of the armies are positioning for a siege, because without water the city would be in trouble. However the biggest news is that Mak himself is preparing to lead the strike. The party wastes no time in teleporting back to Obsidian Bay and calls the war council back into session.

Fury Bay

Kalib believes the first move his group should make is to gather whatever information they can on Fury Bay. Of course, this isn't as easy as it sounds. They know the Starfire Guild assaulted the city on Patchwall 3 CY 591. Unfortunately, there is some bad blood between the Starfire Guild and the Blackrazors. So Kalib tasks Merwyn and Lyle with the task while he and Gideon make other preparations.

Information Gathering

Merwyn and Lyle head to the Starfire Guildhall. At the front desk, Merwyn introduces himself stating he is on a mission for Lord Tanevir. This prompts the scribe to quickly excuse himself only to return moments later to lead them further into the guild. There they are brought before guildmaster Nola Fireheart. She immediately recognizes Merwyn as a Blackrazor, and states she only agrees to meet with him because of his respect for Lord Tanevir. Merwyn attempts to smooth things over with his charm, but Nola is unimpressed.

Merwyn then gets down to business stating his team has been tasked with scouting out Fury Bay. She agrees to relay all the information her guild had gathered, including producing a quick map for Merwyn. She tells him about the Temple of Gruumish, Fort Fury, the "Naval Academy", the dry docks, and the slave camps. She regrets that they were unable to do more; but the half-mad Beholder general of the Army of the Ever-Watching Eye was rallying his troops against the guild. Merwyn thanks her, then he and Lyle head out to find Kalib and Gideon.

Securing a Fleet

Merwyn and Lyle return to Kalib and Gideon who are preparing supplies and magic for the Fury Bay trip. The inform them what they found out from the Starfire Guild. The description is all lost on Kalib, as he only hears one thing: "slaves". He decides their new primary mission is to free the slaves, as they will likely have vital information to add once they are free.

The group quickly decides the best way to get the slaves out of the city quickly is on ships. They head to the docks, and luckily the Sea Razor is in port. After Kalib convinces two other captains to join his cause, his so called "Fleet of Vengeance" is ready to go. Using magical means they disguise the ships and quickly sail up the coast towards Fury Bay. When they are just in site of Fury Bay the team teleports in and heads for the slaves, cutting through any resistance in the process. They also cause a distraction across town to cause confusion. They free the slaves and lead them to the fleet. As soon as they are loaded the hightail it out of town with all speed towards Obsidian Bay.

They question the slaves and find out that Mak is planning to release some sort of powerful weapon in Stoneheim. So as soon as the fleet is in the clear, the group teleports to Obsidian Bay to report their findings.

Reconvening the War Council

The Council reconvenes to reveal what they have found. They begin to make quick plans for the strike team to save Waterton. Suddenly Pag attempts steal the bag everyone's gear was placed into for security reasons. The team acts fast to stop him. Unfortunately his word of recall goes off, leaving parts of Pag behind due to the magical restraints.

A quick investigation reveals that this was Pag's identical twin brother who had taken his place. He was somehow swayed to report to Mak's Suel Archmage advisor Saver-ni. They free the real Pag who vows vengenance for the death of his brother on Saver-ni.

The team grabs their gear, spells up, and then teleports to Waterton.

Wealsun 16, CY 592

The Second Battle of Waterton

The strike team teleports into Waterton. The battle is already underway, but they quickly confront Mak. He states it's too late, the Horror at Stoneheim has been released. Waterton is already lost. They should join him.

An enthusiastic "no" starts battle. The strike team faces Turrosh Mak, his Half-dragon Half-Umberhulk General, and his adviser the Suel Archmage Saver-ni. The battle is in the strike team's favor and they take the General down quickly. But then Mak's invisible bodyguard The Silent Guardians of Silas reveal themselves. The battle rages on, and at some point Saver-ni escapes. In the end, the bodyguard are taken down, and Turrosh Mak, the despot of the Pomarj, former slave lord, and scourge of the civilized is finally dead.

Unfortunately in the process Waterton is destroyed. However with their leader gone the Orc hordes stand no chance when the Obsidian Bay Army arrives.

Rumors come down from the mountains of the state Stoneheim. They say it lays in ruins, with some gigantic monstrosity moving amongst the wreckage.

Obsidian Bay may need to do some rebuilding, but at least for now it is safe.

Experience & Loot

  • No experience and/or loot is available for this saga.
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