Wars of Arcadia

This article is likely to be split into serveral smaller ones, but putting it all here for now.

The Unforeseen War / The Sudden War
Drekis and Akuba War.

Part I Akuba invades by surprise. They take Tulwikk (Outlast) in a single day to use as a staging area for an invasion of Kronwikk and Iron Ridge with the end goal of seizing the iron mines. The Tulwikk family, after losing their capital, joins with the Akubain forces, providing intelligence and stability. Meanwhile, a surprise attack on Cawksport sinks most of the Drekissin navy in the Shallow Sea. A few ships remain but are badly damaged, and the main force of the Akubian navy heads to the south sea.

Forces are landed in the southern region of Iron Ridge, splitting to attack Kronwikk and Krublin, but the hardened people of Ridge County hold off invading forces with the help of the dwarven allies.

Part II Iron ridge stops the invasion at Whalers Bay, and holds the Akubian forces there. Supplies and reinforcements are attempted through the south sea, but the Akubian navy wins a few key battles, preventing resupply, and capturing Bon' Dundisyr. With the Drekissin fleets gone, Akuba is free to resupply their armies across the entire theater.

While their main force sieges Kronwikk and Whalers Bay, a secondary forces pushes across the country taking Renkore and making for Bergshire. Drekissin forces are much more at home in the woods than their Akubian counterparts and the eastern front grinds to a standstill. Akuba makes frequent attempts to capture Bergshire but are rebuked each time. Drekis pushes them back to the plains each time but does not move out beyond tree cover.

The siege of Cawksport lasts a year, until disease ravages the defenders and they lay down arms. Kurshwikk is attacked at the start of the Cawksport siege and taken, but cannot be held. Akubian forces retreat after a few months, burning the town as they leave.

Wikkthronrarenta decides to rebuild their fleet in secret just west of Fen Den after Kurshwikk is burned. Construction and storage of the fleet is done on land half a mile from the river to prevent detection from magical scrying. When construction is done, the ships are put on rollers and moved to the river. The river is deep and can accommodate large seaworthy vessels, but tough to navigate for such large ships. 20% of the fleet is badly damaged or sunk it fleet is eventually moved into the Shallow Sea.

Part III The Drekissin fleet is launched and immediately resieges Cawksport and cuts off supplies from Akuba. Drekissin forces move south first, retaking Arum County before moving west to Stoneport, and then north to Renkore. Troops are landed near Tulwikk and the city is sieged for the first time. The Akubian fleet makes it way back and a nasty naval battle ensues. Both sides suffer terrible losses as magic and siegecraft rain fire across the mouth of the Shallow Sea. The Akubian fleet is destroyed and the Drekissin fleet is crippled.

The remainder of the war is a grind of Drekis slowly taking land and Akuba slowly giving it up. When it becomes clear that resupply of Akubian forces will not be reestablished in time, the remaining army surrenders and is sold into slavery.

Aftermath Incarnum County suffered very lightly in the war but quite heavily in the end. Their capital city was changed to Outlast, the city of Darsis was given over to Ridge County as a reward for their heroic stand against the invading armies, and the spice islands were given over to Voldan.

Centuries later, the effects of the war are still felt. Incarnum has become an extraordinarily violent region. Thieves have their hands chopped off, the great fighting pit of Outlast draws thousands of spectators on a daily basis, and mercenary armies all but grow on trees. They have taken for their motto “Outlast any storm”.

The rest of the country eyes them with great suspicion, but relations continue.

Conquest of Gadia
In 1380, Eridon conquered the Kingdom of Gadia, the small Kingdom that resided on Gade Isle. Eridon's size made the war short-lived affair. So quick and one-sided was the war that the people of Gadia had no choice but to accept new rulers. Pinespur, the former capital of the kingdom, became the County Seat of the new Kell County.

The existing nobility were reduced in rank as new people were placed in positions of power across the island. The language of Gadian was suppressed and Eridonian was taught instead. Very few today know Old Gadian.

In the hundred and thirty years since the war there have been no rebellions and no uprisings. Eridon has had no desire to change the way of life in Gadia, only to redirect the taxes to their own coffers. People change the flags moved on with life, while the island fell into decline.

The Never War
Eridon tried to conquer Mahtava in 1485.

Forces made a 3 prong attack. One prong by sea in the south. One prong over land through the Giant’s Hills. One prong flown in over the canals near Peatsburg using wizards to send elite troops into the Riverwind Forest.

The invading ships were caught in a storm near the Lost Coast, destroying a fifth of the fleet and damaging another fifth to the point they had to turn back. The surviving ships met the Mahtavian fleet south of Yunta in a one sided battle. Eridonian forces retreated, but many of the ships that were damaged in the storm were too slow to escape and were hunted down by the Mahtavian fleet.

The overland prong was attacked by Xorathis' chlorine breath weapon on the edge of The Overgrowth. The remaining troops ran into packs of hill giants, and eventually were turned back without having seen a single Mahtavian soldier.

The elite troops flown in were successful in gathering undetected, but without the main invasion branches, there was little to do. They attacked and successfully conquered Vistria, holding it for a few months. Eventually they were overrun.

The war was a massive defeat for Eridon and almost a footnote for Mahtava.

Hemdorkas Incursion
In early 1508 Grell appeared in the Hemdorkas Hills at the farth north of the Kingdom in huge numbers.

Queen Kiara, at age 19 in the first year of her reign, asked Nixiem to drive back the monsters. Nixiem refused, telling Queen Kiara this was her first big test as a queen and that she would never earn the trust or respect of her people if she didn’t do something about it herself.

After much arguing, Queen Kiara called her banners and sent General Mofkers to quell the grell.

The grell proved to be more troublesome than expected. Their abilities of levitation surprised the Eridonian forces and huge numbers of men died when swarms of grell descended from the sky at night onto unsuspecting troops camped below. This would prove to be a favorite tactic of the grell, one that gave them their best victories, and one that eventually would be their downfall.

The incursion lasted 9 months, and badly bled the kingdom. So many soldiers died in the first four months of the campaign with no sign of progress that barons began appointing new landlords to replace knights sent to war under the expectation that they would not return. Many knights returned to find their lands and holdings given away or repossessed. Soldiers that were paralyzed by grell, but ultimately survived, were shunned under the belief that grell reproduced by laying their young inside those they paralyzed but did not kill.

The source of the grell was never found, but after their defeat at the Battle of Highland Camp, where the Eridonian forces set an ambush for the grell, they fled back into the hills and vanished. The ambush, comprised of building a fake camp for the army while hiding bowmen and wizards on the back edge of camp, resulted in the deaths of many Eridonian soldiers by friendly fire. Some would go on to call the use of soldiers as live bait, and the indiscriminate fire into their ranks (which were swarmed by grell), a betrayal of the very soldiers sent to fight these monsters.

Aftermath The Bastards of the Firewood are veterans of this war, who felt betrayed. Based out of the Firewood led by Kerak the Vengeful, a cleric of Velthara, and the disavowed knight Zaerin, that has been raiding and sacking nearby villages and even Anvil itself. The area has been attacked over and over in the last six months of 1508. In the last month of 1508 one of the temples in town was burned, and the keep was attacked. The gatekeeper and guards on the walls were slain, the keep itself was raided, but the captain of the guard and the men in the keep managed to push back The Bastards of the Firewood, who fled with a sizable amount of loot. The captain of the guard died of his wounds.

In response, Anvil called it banners and marched into the Firewood. Somehow the bandits got word of this plan, and used it as an opportunity to sack and burn to the ground three keeps at three different villages. In exchange, the Bastards of the Firewood lost all their supplies and the fortified camp they had built in the woods. The bandits have been laying low since then, but it is only a matter of time before they strike again.

Demon Invasion of Eridon
In early 1510, a Demon Invasion struck the cities and towns in Eridon of Shirebrook, Thornwood, Rainwood, Peatsburg, Anvil, Plainsview, Tassel, Misty Rapids, Newfort, Cauldron, Heatstroke, Limestone. Projections that at least 30% of the nation's population were slain in the attacks (~57,000 urban & ~215,000 rural).

Kneecap, Longcast & Weatherlight were attacked but survived. The Demons failed to make any ground at the Capital Stromheim. The Longcast firepits were made to burn the bodies of dead demons were so large they were seen from Mistrya.

The Demoms seems to have regrouped at the city of Heatstroke, and a blight is radiating out from the city.

During this time period the population of Whiteshore disappeared (urban pop 4,700), this was blamed on the Curse of the Shadow Mountains. Also Cyclopes attacked Mil Faldur, destroying much of the surface of the city.

Gade Isle, Highcastle County, and Wake County have had no known impact by the Demon Invasion, but it could have occurred off screen.

Drekis War of Expansion
Following the Demon Invasion of Eridon earlier in the year, Drekis saw it as an opportunity to expand their country into an empire consisting of the Mistryan and Eridonian lands.

March 1510 The Caldonian Expediton were informed by letter from the mainland that the war was started by a letter from High Princess Sela Suulwikk. Also that it was very important that the the Caldonian Expediton turn a profit for the war effort. (Letter 151003 Sela).

April 1510 At the start of April, two fleets were sent to Eridon to raid it's wealth. (Letter 151005 Richard & Hardcore Heroes: Episode 42)

July 1510 The Rwalwikk family has sieged Old Vodan. A hundred mounted knights rode Through Bridge Gate and down the eastern bank of the river while their levies were brought up through the woods east of Bon' Theris by Princess Giselle Rwalwikk and a few hand picked knights. The siege is in place, although we expect Old Vodan to hold out for at least a year. (Letter 151007 Richard) The siege on Old Vodan holds strong two months later (Letter 151009 Richard)

One of the two fleets sent to Eridon has gone missing. (Letter 151007 Richard)

September 1510 Major Tavington lead the Rwalwikk cavalry to take Honeyreach and moved against Halfhill as well. With the southern towns and villages of Mistrya under Drekis control, the Drekissin consider themselves in a position of great strength. (Letter 151009 Richard)

In Eridon, things aren't going well for Drekis. They are still missing a fleet Their forces at Peatsburg have been slaughtered. Unknown how the other battles are going due to forest cover. (Letter 151009 Richard)

November 1510 The Mistryan King was been overthrown by Lord Guilder, who is now the king. (Letter 151011 Richard)

Halfhill has been razed, effectively giving Drekis control of the fertile southern half of Mistrya. (Letter 151011 Richard)

March 1511 Drekis considers themselves in a solid position to overrun the remaining armies of Mistrya, and predict in six months the war should be over and six months after that the territories of Eridon and Mistrya will be fully brought into the fold. (Letter 151103 Richard)

Drekis captures a a number of Mistrya soldiers and turns them into slaves. A few of these are sent to Caldonia as a work force. (Frozen Frontier Episode 39)

Scoria and King Alex Guilder have made a deal, with the full implications unknown, (Akuban Knights: Episode 01). King Guilder also has actively raided Eridon for wealth much like Drekis had been attempting, but with far more success. He used these new funds to make a secret arms deal with Akuba. (Akuban Knights: Episode 01).

June or July 1511 Dawngate and the surrounding towns and villages are captured by Drekis. (Letter 151108 Richard)

August 1511 Scoria has been seen working with the Mistryan Military, as well as two of her offspring (Shenanigans Episode 113 & Letter 151108 Richard).

The Drekis armies were marching on Bridgelight when Scoria arrived and destroyed them. Scoria then attacked and destroyed the occupying forces at Dawngate. (Letter 151108 Richard)

The free city of Goldhill is captured by two of Scoria's Offspring & the Mistryan Military. One of the two Offspring are killed by Drekissin mercenaries from Bergshire, but the town remains in Mistryan control. (Shenanigans Episode 113)