The Fourth Age (Dominaria Supplement)

The Fourth Age

The Formation of the 3rd Imperium (17-22 FA)

High Lord Edward Tionne, High Seat of House Tionne and Lord of trans-Ostria, unites many of the Illyrian and Cormyri Houses behind him. He marshalls an army and declares the formation of the 3rd Imperium of the West. Unaligned Houses in Cormyr and Illyria struggle to muster defenses as Charles goes on a series of offensives. By 21 FA all of Cormyr and Illyria Except for Ghaeldan and Aryth had fallen and 'Emperor' Tionne launches his final offensive. XXXX The young Lord Bryan Ingramar and Lord Sandar Shae surrendered after the Battle of Bowervale in 22 FA and Emperor Tionne was coronated in full in the Centrality in the fall.

A New Golden Age (22-65 FA)

The new Emperor Tionne moved swiftly to consolidate his empire. He levied taxes on the High Houses and moved the new Imperial armies across his domain. Most of the High Houses and cities had grown wealthy in the early years of the 4th Age and the new Imperial Government was able to leverage enormous sums to put into infrastructure and public works. The Emperor leaned heavily on the Houses during his first 5 years on the throne, and the Imperium as a whole benefitted. New roads and bridges encouraged trade and travel, and the return of the Imperial Banks spurred the economy.

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The Ramosian Unification Wars (27-32 FA)

Lord Adam 'the Jackal', Lord of House Renzel and High Seat of Ak'kritar launches an assault on Balmorra. Balmorra sues for peace after three field battles and joins Ak'kritar. The two cities' combined forces conquer and unite Ramosia over the course of a 6 year war.

The Andoran Reformation and the rise of the Demigod Mage (28-29 FA)

Jared 'the Ætherborn', a half-elf born in Venecia, claims the throne of Andor and opens the long-sealed doors to the Lion's Den with his own hands. He rallies the Houses of Andor to him and is coronated in Whitebridge. Under his rule, King Jared Ætherborn rebuilds the ruined port of Aldemoor, restarts the Red Tower Mages' Guild of Andor, begins a mining guild to extract Adamantium Ore from the mountains near Kingshaven, breathes life into the once great trade city of Whitebridge, and forges an alliance with the Southern Kingdom of the Mountain Dwarves.

The Adamantium Wars (31-38 FA)

The nearly decade long struggle by the regional powers to claim Andor and its rich Adamantium deposits. The War would claim the lives of Hellenites, Ramosians, Arcadians, and Cormyri Imperials, as well as many Andorans. Mercenaries from all over the world came to fight for one side or another in hopes of a share of the vast wealth under contention.

The Hellenic Invasion (31 FA)

Looking at the new Kingdom's rapid advancement, wealth, and progress with envy, the Hellenites ally and invade. They are checked at the Battles of Scottsmoor and Trakand River, and retreat in good order.

The Ramosian Invasion (33-35 FA)

Lord Adam 'The Jackal' Renzel of Ak'kritar leads the now united armies of Ramosia against Andor. The Andorans win the first day of The Ford, but the Ramosians break their lines on the second day and advance on the northern cities of Sentrium and Luften, sacking them before winter. In the spring the Ramosian and Andoran armies meet again on the field at Blackridge Pass. The Andorans technically win at the Pass but have to fall back, and then the Ramosian army surrounds the Lion Keep and sacks Kingshaven. The Jackal here split his forces and sent 30,000 men to besiege Whitebridge. The Andoran's originally try to stop this force from reaching the city, but this was a mistake and the Battle of Hammersford was a disaster for the Andorans. The remainder of the Andoran field army fell back into the city and allowed the Ramosian army to surround the city. The city was still supplied by river, and the Andoran fleet sailed up the Daan to fight the Ramosian river fleet at the Battle of North Harbor. A terrible storm wracked the region that day and most every ship in both fleets lay at the bottom of the harbor by nightfall.

The remainder of the Ramosian Army marched south from Kingshaven towards the mines at Rockwarden. Men hastily mustered from Neversfall joined what Andoran troops remained outside of Whitebridge and marched for Rockwarden. While these sieges were underway Andoran diplomats rode their horses to Arcadia as fast as they could to beg for aid. The hope was that they could hold long enough for the Arcadian negotiations to bear fruit. Whitebridge held throughout the winter, and the defense of Rockwarden was so bitter that the Ramosians never fully encircled the warren of mines, towns, and the city.

Andor joins Arcadia (35 FA)

After negotiations, the King of Andor swears for Arcadia in order to save his country. Eight Arcadian legions already massing near Syracuse marched west and moved on Rockwarden.

The Arcadian Intervention (36 FA)

Lord Renzel ordered his men back from the siege in he face of nearly 40,000 fresh Arcadian troops, and through forced march massed both of his armies on either bank of the Melidaa. After a final savage bombardment and assault on Whitebridge, stopped only by heroic defense of the fallen gatehouses, Renzel pulled his forces back and camped his army south of the Middle Finger. He still held Sentrium and Luften and had 40,000 men surviving off of Andor. Lord Renzel chose to leave the cities garrisoned but lift the siege of the Lion's Den, massing his men on the plains near Luften. The forces inside the Lion's Den had no way to resupply and as such were in no condition to harry him. King Jared II &Aelig;therborn, now proconsul of Andor under Arcadia, leads the Arcadian Legions and joins up with his men in Whitebridge before moving north. Two demi-Legions of Arcaidan Marines move up the river alongside his now massive army.

Lord Renzel appeared outnumbered and over the month it took for this series of maneuvers to take place, the Arcadians acted under this assumption and moved to hit him hard near Luften. But 'The Jackal' of Ak'kritaar had other ideas. Ramosia had a healthy relationship with the the Dwarves under King Joshua Brighthammer of Argentum, and their thriving trade partnership and alliance would benefit greatly from both Andor's Adamantium and a true sea port. And as the Dwarves of Argentum have never liked the Arcadians, King Brighthammer's decision to march was almost an afterthought. So 15,000 Dwarven warriors, along with mages, beasts of war, supplies, and fearsome siege weapons joined the Ramosi host. The Arcadians and Andorans press the attack unknowing. The army numbered some 60,000 with all of the Andorans that remained fit to fight, and arrived at the plains by the beginning of the Autumn Equinox.

The last thing they expected to see was a well rested army of Ramosians backed by Dwarves entrenched across the plains. A wall of earth and stakes stretched across the plains and Dwarven stoneshapers had created redoubts to anchor the line. The Arcadian force camped south of the defenses for two days planning and making ready, while also giving their Marines time to unload south of the field and march up the east bank of the river, around the Ramosi/Dwarven lines in secrecy, and begin to construct a floatilla of rafts to cross the river upstream. Jared &Aelig;therborn made the case to assault soon rather than opt for a protracted bombardment, making the point that the Ramosians could now resupply from the north with impunity. So on the third day a massive Arcadian army stood in full array and began to bombard Renzel's lines. The bombardment lasted an hour, until a runner snuck downriver to signal the Marines' readiness, before the call was given to advance. The Arcadian and Andoran ranks crashed against the battered line from one side, with the marines soon hitting the other, and the battle started. The arrival of the marines was a total suprise, and turned an unwinnable battle into a difficult one. By the end of the day the Battle of Luften Plains would be cemented as the Age's new standard for brutality both sides had to retreat badly bloodied.

Renzel and Brighthammer took the hint though, and realized that their situation would prove untenable given Ramosia's youth and Arcadia's might. Renzel ordered Sentrium and Luften looted but left intact, and pulled his men out in an ordered withdrawal north as Brighthammer moved east into the Middle Finger. The Arcadians smelled blood however, and pursued. Five more Legions marched west in hopes of eventually forcing Ak'kritar's surrender and the Arcadian force already in Andor moved north with no delay, seeking to cut off Renzel before he could make it back to Ak'kritaar. The Jackal begins a headlong retreat at this news, but would have to turn and check the Arcadian advance at the Battle of Dragonbone Ford on the Ramosi Border. The battle is a perfunctory affair, but it forces Jared to hold his men back until reinforcements arrive. Adam moved north after this, and did not stop the withdrawal until his army was inside Ak'kritar.

Arcadia begins to mobilize for an all out war. The quick though bloody gain of Andor only whets the Emperor's appetite and he plans an invasion of Ramosia.

Ramosia joins the Imperium (37 FA)

In return for Imperial Legions to counter the Arcadians and High Seats for the Lords of Ramosia, Lord Adam agrees to join Ramosia into the Imperium. He pledges fealty to the new Emperor Charles Tionne, son of Edward Tionne and already a respected ruler. The Third Imperium of the West is now the largest country in the world.

The Imperial Intervention (38 FA)

Cormyri Legions march into Ramosia and muster alongside the now reinforced Ramosian army gathering at a collection of standing stones known as 'The Fist'. The Arcadian/Andoran Army had been gathering strength in the lull in the war after Dragonbone Ford and, now reinfoced by the fresh Arcadian troops, march for 'The Fist' to do battle. The West holds it's breath as the largest battle in living memory, and indeed the largest West on West battle in centuries looms. Nearly a quarter of a million men go to battle at 'The Fist' and more than 40,000 lie dead after 5 days of fighting. At the end of the battle the Arcadians and Imperials agree to a truce, and the Adamantium Wars are over.

The Northern War (39-42 FA)

After brief negotiations the 3rd Imperium, along with House Arafel of the North, goes to war with the Northern Alliance in an attempt to bring them into the Imperium. The Northern Houses fight behind House Malkeir until they are able to force an advantageous peace. They become part of the 3rd Imperium on their terms.

The Felix Campaign (40-41 FA)

Arcadia's Emperor, emboldened by Arcadia's first significant territorial gains in 250 years resolves to retake the Felix Region, lost nearly 100 years ago to misrule, barbarians, and Orcs. The new proconsul of Andor volunteered to lead the campaign and executed a brilliant piece of strategy. He retook the ancient city of Tel Jerrod in 14 months and was named interim proconsul until such time that Felix could sustain the duties of a full Province.

Peace in the West (43-65 FA)

Emperor Charles Tionne, second of the Tionnic Dynasty, now rules over the largest country the world has ever seen. The 3rd Imperium dwarfed past Imperiums and he was able to leverage an unprecedented amount of money towards state projects. Charles continued the policy of his father to use state money to unite the Imperium through improvement. He was very adept at gaining the loyalty of his people and actually wrangled many of the High Houses into cordial agreement with him. He and his father had the remarkable quality of being visionary men. Ambitious to be sure, and willing to kill, but also men with a genuine concern for the people of the west. It will be some time before scholars are done debating if they were "good" men, or simply great men.

The 3rd Pardic War (47-48 FA)

The Pardic Barbarians of the Skirk Ridge launch raids into northern Caliphi territory and pillage vast swaths of land. Their masterstroke was the sack of the trade city of Hisham and then the rout of the forces under Sheikh Alim Al-Safi at the Battle of Twin Peaks. Following this loss and the Pardic Barbarian's advances south, the Caliph ordered his Emirs to muster their forces for war. The Pardic Barbarians fell back to the Twin Peaks and forced several battles in and around that maze of rock before falling back to Hisham. They plundered what was left of the city and retreated ahead of the Caliph's men, falling back into the Arixo Wastes. The Caliph ordered pursuit and the two sides fought all winter. By springtime the Pardic Barbarians had tired of fighting, having gained all they wanted and more, and fell back to their holds in the Skirk Ridge. Both sides claimed victory.

The Caliph used his newfound 'dominance' over the Arixo Wastes to attempt to claim the old Elven bridge Dîs-Luin (the Orange Bridge) which spanned the Arixo Wastes into Southern Paladonia. The bridge, claimed by both the Arcadians and the Caliphi is one of three primary trade routes into Otaria and it's total control would give the Caliphi a distinct advantage.

The Arixo War (48-49 FA)

The Arcadians under the Selucian Proconsul contest Caliphi control of the Dîs-Luin. The war is fought mostly in and amongst The Arixo Wastes and is brutal and hard. The war ends in truce after the Arcadians wrest control.

The Zoma Gowanga Campaign (53-54 FA)

The Caliphate invades and pacifies the free islands to it's south, clearing them of pirates and city-states, ending the prosperous existence of the Free Emirates. After the campaign the Caliph pulls his forces out and proclaims the islands open to settlement. Men from Shangzi and Gaudan quickly move in and take control several islands, likely fulfilling some deal with the Caliph.

The Concordian Revolution (53-55 FA)

Arcadian Praetor Percival Hottuffe became the Proconsul of Concord in 50 FA for his long service to Arcadia. As a true "provincial" man, Hotuffe was never seen as a true Arcaidan but he was greatly respected nonetheless. His record included commanding the 1st Concordian Legion through the Adamantium Wars, then leading the 13th Arcadian and 3rd Concordian Legions through the reconquest of Felix, and finally the Arcadian cavalry (with several detachments of Concordians) during the Arixo War. He was a veteran and a hero, but Hotuffe had grown to resent the weight of Arcadia. The tilting point was probably the Felix campaign. Hotuffe had been in vocal opposition to the deployment of the new and untested Concordian 3rd Legion to the year-long Felix Campaign, and the Legion had been sorely tested and badly bloodied in the forests of the North. So when he became Proconsul of his native Concord, Hotuffe started to subtly distance himself from Arcadia. He immediately but quietly moved to oppose the higher taxes levied to help equip Andoran Legions and begin rebuilding in Felix. He used the money in Concord, improving infrastructure and quietly buying weapons. When the 2nd Concord was sent to garrison Felix and the Arcadian Eastern Fleet was re-based in Eastport in 62 FA, Hotuffe began to speak more openly against Arcadian rule. The Arcadian Empire had been stretched over the last decade but Hotuffe felt with good reason that Concord had borne an uneven share of the burden.

In 53 FA events came to a head and Proconsul Hotuffe made his move. XXXX

After two years he was crushed and sent running across the Sea of Storms, settling Free Concord on a pair of islands in the Zomahastra.

Nova Concordia

General Hottuffe and his large remnant establish a city state on the westernmost island of the Zomahastra. Over the next few years they spread out over the island and begin farming and building.

The Storm War (65-70 FA)

The Seeds of Revolution

In 65 FA the bitter Logan Ingramar, High Seat of Ghaeldan, seceded from the Imperium and began raising an army. Logan's father had risen to power before the formation of the 3rd Imperium, earning fame and glory as commander of the Ten Thousand Swords and fighting across Illyria. He'd been a respected sovereign and led a free and prosperous Ghaeldan, holding the liege over Aryth and Altara as well. Logan was raised in a House and an area of the Imperium resentful of the Emperor and he led the men of Ghaeldan afield from an early age. Logan fought at the head of the Ten Thousand Swords in Beldron, the Sword Coast, and the Southern Isles and earned the nickname “The Stormbringer” for his savage cunning and prowess in battle. His men claimed that one day his actions would wreak a great storm across Jovia's surface. As he entered his prime, he took to politics and objected to the new Emperor’s tactics during the reformation of the Imperium, called the Wars of Unification genocide, and accused the Emperor of orchestrating assassinations during his rise to power. By the time he seceeded, men flocked to his banner and Roran Dromar, High Seat of Altara, threw in his lot with Logan.

This act created a domino effect that embroiled the southern Imperium in civil war, and destroyed the two and a half decades of peace the new Emperor had so carefully forged within months. By the end of the next year House Shae of Aryth had joined and the provinces of Trakand, Amacidia, and Tarabon were embroiled in war. In the spring of 66 FA the self-titled “Stormbringer” marched north at the head of almost 100,000 troops.

Bloody '66, the Year of the Storm

66 FA sees a staggering number of battles across the southern Imperium as Cormyri and Illyrian Houses throw their troops against 'The Storm Host' and Imperial Legions are finally recalled from their fortresses and the frontier to fight the Stormbringer. Horrifyingly, on the day of the Spring Equinox, a great storm was observed forming on Jovia. The Storm started as an angry red streak that tore across the atmosphere and eventually wrapped all the way around her bulk. But, by the end of the month it was undeniable. A ferocious storm far larger than any in the Third Age rampaged across Jovia's surface. Men now cowered at the advance of the Storm Host and Lord Ingramar's men began to revere him as nearly a demigod. By year's end Trakand and Tarabon had fallen and Amacidia, Teâr, and Illian were hard pressed by the advancing rebellion. Many Northern and Ramosian Legions were called in at year's end and nearly the entire might of the Imperium was set to fight within its own borders.

The Isen Plains Campaign

The Imperials, determined to crush this “Stormbringer” before he could reach the capital, mustered 17 legions and marched against him. They planned to trap him south of the Aegis Mountains on the Plains of Isen and prevent him from making the crossing into the Centrality. In June of 67 FA more than a quarter million men marched towards the Isen River head and set themselves for the greatest battle in a thousand years.

Heavily outnumbered, the Stormlord marched out of a bottleneck in the hills to the south of the plains and dared the Imperial Army to surround him. They obliged, and trapped him in the shadow of the Aegis Mountains. As the battle reached its peak and the dead climbed into the tens of thousands Lord Ingramar unleashed the Catalyst of the Return, an artifact of great and terrible power originally crafted to call the dread God Orcus, now utilized for a terrifying new purpose.

The Wandering One Returns

The Wandering One, archfiend of Dominaria, thought dead nearly 100 years, walked once more. He rose above the plains wreathed in eldritch power so terrible wizards in the temples of Karnak and the Shamen in the spirit huts of the far Northlands felt the power and trembled. He unleashed a fury built over a century bound in the Heart of Darkness and drove the Imperial Legions before him like leaves in a hurricane. More men died that day than in all the wars of the 4th Age thusfar and on the morrow, they marched once more…

The Imperium Falls

The Storm Host submitted to The Wandering One and the army, now marching under the Broken Circle banner, laid waste to Cormyr and Illyria. The fall of 67 FA was the bloodiest and most destructive period since the height of the Wandering One’s original campaign in the East. In the Centrality the Emperor, his generals, and the High Seats that yet lived attempted a desperate war of survival: always falling back and husbanding troops and supplies while sending emissaries to the far corners of Dominaria to gather aid. Guilds and Orders across the Westlands pitched into the fight on both sides as the war drug on. But for all their efforts the death toll was horrific. Cities fell and armies were crushed all across the south and by year’s end the heart of the Imperium had been cut out.

Darker still were the new powers that crept from the darkness as the campaigns progressed. New cults to unknown gods worked their way into the Stormsworn armies and soon men worshipped The Great Unclean One, the Lord of Change, and many others.

The Coalition

All winter the Westlands toiled. The ancient defenses of the Centrality were activated. Troops in the Northern Houses dug into mountain strongholds and the ancient fortresses meant to hold back the Barbarians of the north. Troops in Ramosia fortified the Melidaa River. Arcadia made peace with the Caliphate and marched its legions into Ramosia. Five of the seven kingdoms of the Dwarves as well as the Elven King across the desert sent men. Preparations made, they waited for winter to break.

The Centrality Falls

The Wandering One had not been idle either, and when spring arrived the Centrality witnessed possibly the grandest army assembled since the 2nd Age. Men – living, dead, and otherwise – marched alongside monsters, constructs, and daemons far too numerous and varied to recount. They surrounded the ancient city and sent forth an emissary, expecting surrender in the face of such unadulterated terror. But the Emperor had declared that it was here he would make his stand, here he would end the retreat. If only to give the Coalition amassing in Ramaosia time to organize – the men of the Centrality would sell their lives dearly.

The mighty Warfoged of the Eternal Legion went forth to their posts and their venerable Praetor Mars stepped form his long repose to lead them. The Eternal Legion was crafted by artificers of the Second Imperium as a praetorian legion for the Centrality and the Emperor. Over the Ages, many of the Warforged of the Legion have been left afield or sent to far away lands on quests of grave danger. Thousands were lost to the Phyrexians as well. So now ~4,000 marched from the halls of the Golden Forge and took their rightful places as defenders of mankind. 500 would leave the city with Jacob Tionne, heir to the Empire and High Seat of House Tionne during his father's rule. It would be years before survivors of the split Legion reunited.

The Wandering One and his forces battered the arcane defenses of the Centrality for 60 days and 60 nights before the arcane shields and wards were broken. At midnight on the 60th day the assault on the walls began. Waves of howling daemons, ranks of hardened human veterans, hordes of undead, and the hulking shapes of constructs and fell beasts assailed the walls. The first wall fell swiftly and the outer city became a maze of melees and crisscrossing battle lines. It was out of this chaos that the Travelers emerged.

The Travelers

Their names are not known, and little is known of their origin. Born somewhere in Ramosia, they traveled the width of the Imperium as wanted men to join the Stormlord and rose through the ranks as heroes among the revolutionary army. After his release of The Wandering One however, they ran and journeyed across the Aegis Mountains to stand before the Emperor and warn him. They fought in the city when the first wall fell, but escaped with the help of the exiled Salerian Mage Gedren Tolorien and set out on a quest to discover a means to finally destroy The Wandering One.

Their journey became a yearlong odyssey across Dominaria: from the verdant plains of the Imperium, to frozen Northerned, east into the Seas of Sand, and further still to the jungles of the Cimmerian Wood. Along the way they awakened the great Darigaaz the Inferno, Red Dragon lord of old, and beseeched him reawaken his kin lest Dominaria be swept into an Age of darkness. Then, following clues in ancient texts Gedren had stolen before his exile, the Travelers delved deep into Dominaria’s most ancient places, a network so deep and so old it may as well be a world onto itself, to unearth the only weapons that might slay their enemy. They found weapons left behind when the Gods still walked Dominaria, ancient artifacts carried by deities themselves in the war before time.

So armed, they returned to the world that they’d left and emerged into Ramosia in the late summer of 69 FA to join the Coalition. The Travelers strode through the miles square camp to the great gathering in the center and presented themselves for service. They were immediately invited into the inner circle and sat alongside the Paladin Lords of Otaria, who had finally made peace and agreed to fight alongside the coalition. At the council of war that evening they learned of the terrible things that had gone on that year.

The Titans Walk

All but the last bastions in the Centrality had fallen and The Wandering One’s gaze was fixed on the Coalition. And he had not sat idle while his forces took the city, he too had delved into the ancient places of Dominaria. A great Titan had arisen from among the Aegis Mountains, a fantastic war machine crafted by the Gods themselves in elder days. This walking mountain range was moving east and ahead of it was a vast host of evil. Out of the Coalition's council a daring plan was hatched: the battle mages of Saleria would forge a portal from the camp directly into the heart of the Titan and the Paladin Lords and Travelers would attack The Wandering One in his sanctum. At the same time the armies of the Coalition would march across the Melidaa Riven and take the vast warhost of The Wandering One head on.

The Battle of Nurim's Plains

The next morning, as the great armies of the Coalition crossed the Melidaa River into Cormyr, the Travelers and the Paladin Lords stepped through an arcane construct and into the halls of the Titan. 15 minutes later the Travelers lie slain. When the armies of the Coalition met with The Wandering One’s warhost, the Titan towered behind them and The Wandering One marched in their midst.

But there was a greater power at work, and that power would not allow its world to fall to ruin. Arkon intervened. The Travelers returned, winging down through the smoke and clouds, through battling dragons and swirling summoned beings, down into the melee below. Their landing shook the earth and the battle ground to a halt as the epic face off began. They clashed like Gods for nearly an hour before the end came. The Hunter and the Mage’s blows finally broke through The Wandering One’s defenses and the Warrior’s blade smote him down. The last anyone saw of them was the Mage, his staff at The Wandering One’s throat and his hand on the Warrior’s shoulder, releasing a blast of energy to rival the creation of the Fissure of Autumn. Then they were gone, obliterated to ensure the Wandering One’s final death. The armies disengaged throughout the rest of the day and pulled back. The Coalition returned across the Melidaa River and The Wandering One’s army dispersed across Cormyr and Illyria.

Venicia's Fall (71-72 FA)

In a sudden and incredibly violent uprising, Cabal forces in the sewers rise up alongside a third of Venicia's Guard and pirate forces that overwhelm Venicia's confused Navy. Venicia's Legio IV which was fighting unknown bandits in the Arkerii Forest immediately returned to Venicia and lay siege finding the city all but fallen. They send riders to Arcadia and Venician Legios I and II which were with the Coalition. Before Legios I and II could arrive several tribes of Arkerii along with Orcs led by a silver-masked man, known only as The Leper, attack from the North and challenge the siege.

The counter-siege ended in the climactic Battle of the Storm, and then the Venicians managed to retake their city the next year with Arcadian help. In the end the city entered the Arcadian Empire, political statue to be determined.

Full Article on the Siege of Venicia (71-72 FA)

The Stormbringer's Plot (70-74 FA)

After the cataclysmic ending to the Battle of Nurim's Plains, the two sides separated in awe and went back to their sides of the lines. In a peculiar scene, daemons and knights walked right past each other in a daze, and undead stalked right past priests – all were dumbstruck by the power and might of the fight they’d just witnessed. The two armies returned, the Coalition over the Melidaa and the war hosts of the Wandering One to their captured fortresses and cities, and waited out the winter. By the spring of 70 FA a new picture had emerged.

The Northern Alliance was now an independent though avowed successor to the 3rd Imperium and prepared to reclaim Cormyr and Illyria. Forces of the Tionne Hegemony, a coalition of Illyrian Lords under Jacob Tionne, gathered across the riverlands alongside the Northern Alliance and prepared to fight their way towards the Centrality. Ramosia, now the “legitimate” last province of the Imperium, likewise prepared: their troops stood alongside Arcadians and Dwarven allies from the southern kingdoms of Olgatmar. All of these powers were swollen by refugees from high to low: Lords, commoners, and soldiers all had fled to safety. The other side however, was a confusing twist of alliances and authority in the aftermath of the Wandering One’s death. The Warlords dug their forces into the ruined cities and fortresses of the Imperium and awaited the inevitable invasion. The Stormbringer was the most powerful of the Warlords, but not the only one who thought himself in charge.

When the long winter broke the men of the Coalition and the Alliance began the final act of this long, dark play. All along the Melidaa River, Coalition men left their winter camps alongside Dwarves, Arcadian men, and the knights of a dozen orders. The Coalition advanced along a broad front into the lands of ancient Cormyr, hoping to restore their many refugees and bring peace to the land. The Coalition unified around Adam “The Jackal” Renzel, High Seat of Ak’kritaar and the King of Ramosia before it joined the 3rd Imperium. Even at 70 he cut a powerful figure, and was well respected even after Ramosia’s own Unification Wars. To the north men of the Alliance marched south and focused their first strikes into Onea and on the Centrality with the Tionnic forces. They too marched alongside several knightly orders, some northern and some wholly displaced by the carnage, but the Alliance had the Jack of trumps. Jacob Tionne, son of the last Emperor and commander of the remaining Warforged of the Eternal Legion, marched with them.

So began the 4 year campaign that would end the Storm War and bring “peace” back to the tired Westlands. The Stormbringer would not go down without a fight though. He plotted to use the terrible wars his actions spawned to power a summoning of unprecedented size. Every summoning after all requires an activating force, and the Dragon reasoned that the death and destruction that hung heavy on the Weave would be more than enough should he harness it. So he cut a pact with the dreaded Cabal, the shadowy group that haunts nightmares and more than once tried to engulf the world in darkness in Ages past. His agents and theirs would find suitable places for the 5 corners and then begin the construction of a massive pentagram, nearly 650 leagues across…

Meanwhile, the Stormbringer’s finest silver tongues went to work on the great Caliphate of the East, and persuade the Caliph Hamzar ibn-Jashar Al-Karnak to take advantage of Otaria’s newfound weakness and Arcadia’s western preoccupation. The Dragon reasoned that war in the East would both drag Arcadia out of the Coalition and add yet another war to the sickness that engulfed the world.

Hamzar took the bait, as well he should, for the political climate was perfect for his Caliphate to expand. He massed his great armies and invaded Otaria, declaring to abolish the Paladonian realms and create the fabled Emerald Caliphate. This action set two things into motion that the Stormrbinger wanted: more war, and a distracted Arcadia. The Arcadians, facing the possibility of a great expansion by their rival and the loss of several allies, pulled out of the Coalition and redirected their war-weary troops east. With nearly the entire world at war, the Stormbringer and the Cabal redoubled their efforts to create their massive summoning and were on track to succeed but for a single thorn in their side. With the massive armies of the Coalition and Alliance only serving his purpose, and the Warlords who wouldn’t come to heel only increasing the chaos, the Stormbringer’s biggest problem was a dragon.

Vargash the Storm, a dreaded beast from the 3rd Age, had been reawakened by the Cabal and bent to their will. Vargash had been a feared warrior and borne riders of the evil Order of the Black Sword before his long sleep, and the Cabal knew the chaos and destruction he had a penchant for. He was guarding the easternmost rune of the pentagram and sewing destruction throughout central Ramosia when he met a party of adventurers. They were agents of the Guild of the Red Tower, an ancient Mages’ Guild that had weathered the Purge and guarded the southern coast – honoring the ancient Wizard’s Pact. Vargash knew their purpose, he’d been warned of the Red Tower’s agents, and attacked with relish. He was stopped however, by Jonlammen the Bard, and convinced to talk. Jonlammen and his chief companions, Elam of Venicia and Sean Stormborne, convinced the great and ancient Dragon that they could help him break his bondage and get his revenge if only he would help them.

They helped the mighty Dragon reclaim his treasure and strike back at the Cabal, a cost he was only too willing to pay. They battled the Cabal and agents of the Stormlord across Dominaria and began to uncover plans and secret movements of the Cabal. As the Coalition and the Alliance advanced, they fought in the shadows of the war, in cities and wilderness on both sides of the line, to try and uncover the Stormlord's plan and just why he wanted the Sword of Pelor so badly. When they finally ran down the truth, it defied belief: the massive summoning circle would summon the God of Light Pelor, and the Stormlord would kill him with his own sword. The ancient Sword of Pelor, forged to slay Orcus and lost in that battle, had been recovered in the depths of Carceri. It was one of the very few items legend said could kill a God. And, if the legends spoke true, it would give the powers of the slain to the killer.

The party raced to the now besieged ruins of the Centrality riding Vargash, and on a cold and cloudy fall day in 73 FA they set eyes on the city. Most of the armies of the Alliance were arrayed before the broken but still majestic city, working their way through the maze of trenches, fortifications, and redoubts that the Dragon’s men had dug in 70-71 FA. The Stormbringer's host was in near total control of the city, lacking entrance only to the Golden Forge and facing a determined Warforged-led resistance. The Stormbringer had fought a brilliant delaying war, sending brigades east and west to hold his territory but concentrating his fierce and cunning mind to making the retaking of the Centrality messy but just barely possible. The Alliance had been forcing the siege tighter and tighter for more than two years, and his plan was working. Knowing time was short, Vargash dove with a roar and broke the low clouds over the center of the city. With a jet of flame he cleared the battlements of a ruined gatehouse in the inner city and deposited Elam and Sean. Johnlammen’s loud voice roared out over the city now, beginning his bardic war chant, and Vargash took to the skies intent on sewing chaos and ruining plans.

Elam and Sean fought their way towards the Centrality’s Imperial Plaza, where the epicenter of the vast pentagram now crackled with energy beneath Jovia's great storm, and confronted the Dragon. To the sound of Johnlammen’s war drums, Vargash began decimating the defenses of the Plaza and Sean called up mighty storms to supplement Vargash’s namesake power. Sean then channeled the power within to strike down lightning ruin on the Stormbringer’s honor guard as Elam charged. Lightning smote anything in Elam’s path until he reached the Stormbringer. Elam battled him beneath a sky lit whitish-blue with Sean’s lightning and bright red by Vargash’s fire, and through air filled with the cordite smell of smashed rock and the actinic fumes of dragon’s fire.

They battled to the brink of death and then Elam struck the telling blow, disarming the fearsome swordsman. As the Stormbringer stumbled back Elam snatched up the Sword of Pelor, uttered an insulting curse that shall not be repeated here, and slashed him deep through the chest. As the Stormbringer stumbled drunkenly, Elam kicked him into the epicenter of the pentagram and watched him disappear in eldritch fire. Elam and Sean have not been seen since the flash that obliterated the Plaza, but Clerics can not confirm their deaths. Johnlammen is alive to this day, preaching the Dragon Cult and acting as intermediary between the dragons of Dominaria, many of whom are just choosing to awake.

The Otarian War (73-79 FA)

XXXXXXX

When Grand Caliph Hamzar ibn-Jashar Al-Karnak, uncle to the current ruler Nurah al-Din, invaded Otaria, Arcadia's greatest ally stood to gain on the loss of some of Arcadia's largest functioning trade partners. Arcadia immediately rushed to Otaria's aid, and pulled back their legions form the West. With the Wandering One dead, the Caliph was a bigger threat. Several years of drug out conflict in Otaria led Proconsul Jared II of Andor to propose a daring strategy to end the war and let an exhausted Arcadia slump into peace.

Jared II would lead an attack with all of Arcadia's reserves and strike into the heart of the Caliphate. The Emperor approved the attack and committed all nine of Arcadia's remaining Legions to the attack. Jared II launched the attack and quickly defeated the Caliph's encamped army near Rishdan. Jared elected to surround Tarkhan-Re and cut it off, leaving siege forces to invest it. he then sent outriders to burn down the coast and marched on Abu Neferet. The Caliph responded with all of his reserves and a massive month long battle evolved down the XXX river corridor towards Abu Neferet. Jared eventually pushed the Caliphi army back towards the city, and forced the general to sue for peace. Sultana X decided to make peace before the grand Caliph, but the sum total of the talks was peace between the two great Empires and the partition of Otaria.

War in Beldron (74-82 FA)

Tallins attacks Ostria and XXXX

The Stormbringer's Legacy (75-80 FA)

It would be another year and a half before the Coalition and the Alliance met in the middle and began eradicating the last pockets of the Warmasters’ Hordes. Alongside this ongoing struggle, the leaders of the two sides began to negotiate what the West would now look like; but this was slow going. Jacob Tionne and Adam Renzel were two equally matched statesman despite Jacob’s youth.

Adam Renzel had carefully husbanded his resources and men and by 75 FA his legions were firmly in control of southeast Cormyr. His front lines stretched to central Cormyr and the coast of the Narrow Sea, with scouts and outriders all over the south. Adam and his son Micheal presided over a well managed state at home, and focused the power of Ramosia into consolidating their holdings in Cormyr.

Jacob Tionne and the Alliance also controlled large amounts of the former Imperium. Their armies held territory all down the coast from the Tionne holdings into Aryth and then east into Illyria. The Alliance was spread thin though, and the Northern Alliance had never been as united as a Province as Ramosia. Jacob Tionne marshalled the Alliance by force of will and drive, and the ghost of the Imperium held them together.

The first meeting of the two sides, after the last warlord disappeared, was at Dol Brandar on the King's River in 74 FA. The old elven ruin played host to a month long celebration and tournament for the leaders and heroes of the Wars that still lived. For much of this celebration it seemed as if peaceful resolution was at hand, but in the third week Adam Renzel and Jacob Tionne got into a shouting match and came to swords in the halls of the Temple. Jacob's youth and Adam's grizzled experience proved equal to each other and after fighting to exhaustion the two parted. Adam and his party left the following day.

So by in 75 FA, the Alliance had a quorum of the living High Seats; but the Coalition had more troops, was better organized, and the backing of the dwarven King Joshua Brighthammer. The many parties met several times over the spring and summer of 75 FA. The halls and fortresses of several ruined Illyrian and Cormyri cities played host to the negotiations, and the High Seats debated everything from full Imperium to individual states and right back to Imperium. Several blocs formed during the summer: there was the Tionnic bloc, the Ramosi bloc, the Arythi and Onean Nobles, the Malkieri bloc, and several smaller groups - all vying for their own interests. Negotiations broke down as the summer progressed and the Stormhost's remaining warlord began to fight insurgent campaigns across the central Westlands; Jacob and Adam's differences were just the main plot in a play fraught with arguments and differences.

By the fall, negotiations were at a standstill. The two sides looked poised for a fractious winter of deliberation but then, all of the sudden, war broke out along the 'front' near Malkier. Tionnic Bloc and Renzel forces went to battle in two places and word spread like wildfire.

The Mutiny of the Eternal Legion (75 FA)

The Warforged of the Eternal Legion, previously fighting for both sides, withdraw from the fight upon hearing of the new civil war. Mars, leader of the Warforged of the Eternal Legion (tied to the Centrality and therefore Tionne), had set a pact with Krieger, the leader of almost 100 Warforged fighting for the Coalition. The two of them had coordinated to withdraw and bring the two sides to peace should war come and now did it. Mars had also gone to extreme lengths to collect the Warforged 'diaspora' from the far corners of Dominaria. Left behind on campaign or sent afield on long patrols or explorations by Emperors long dead, Warforged long absent from the Eternal Legion returned. The mutineers and the long-absent rendezvoused in the ruined village of Chantain. The small town is so long abandoned that it falls on no map, but it was the birthplace of the Warforged. Therein they XXXX

The Treaty of Three Swords (77 FA)

Tl;dr: Lord Adam Renzel's death brought the leaders of the West together. All of the faction leaders and country leaders met in conference. Aryth quickly established itself as independant, and Onea was formed by Michael Renzel out of a coalition of generals and lords willing to break from Malkier. Albia left the Tionnic League against the will of Jacob Tionne but were backed by the Strakenland Lords and a now peaceful Valmorra. All parties agreed that it fell on Ramosia, Malkier, and the Tionnic League to underwrite security in the west going forewords. So out of this came the concept of the 'Three Swords' of the West. Three swords were given to the Lords Michael Renzel, Joshua Malkier, and Jacob Tionne. These swords were beautifully cast and enchanted, and carried with them the responsibility to safeguard and protect the people of the West. The rulers of these three countries became the 'Three Swords' of the 'Council of the West' (Council name tbd).

Also the Treaty of Three Swords finished what Logan Ingramar had begun and formally broke up the Imperium and the alliances that followed its fall. Five new countries sprung from the council and a new international court of Kings sprung up in the West. Far above the High Houses and Low Houses that had dominated the political landscape since the inception of the Second Imperium, this new generation of regents carved the West into a patchwork of countries. In the human West alone there were now eight Kings and two Emperors, plus the myriad warlords, cults, rulers, and strongmen of uncontrolled Cormyr and Illyria. Coupled with the still wild Ardile Fens and the Ingramar heartland in the south, the West is now a very interesting place.

A New Era (82 FA)

So it’s been 8 years since the Dragon’s death, 5 since the the fighting stopped for good. The world has settled considerably since then. The Tionne Hegemony is the patrillineal “true successor” to the 3rd Imperium and holds the Centrality, although the Empire of Ramosia and its satellites have a legitimate claim as well. There are other strong successors like the Malkieri Dominion and Kingdom of Amacidia but no one is concerned with Empire building in the West these days. Several fiefdoms have sprung up in the ashes of Cormyr and Illyria, and many areas are controlled by the stormlord's old Warlords and the cults that his rampage created. Outside these lands though, the great destruction of war and the pall of death are lifting from the land and things are getting better.

The War between Arcadia and the Caliphate ended messily in 75 FA after 4 years of fighting. Under the brilliant leadership of Jared II Ætherborn, the Proconsul of Andor, Arcadia committed all of their reserve forces into a blitz of the western region of the Southern Caliphate. Though they did not take any territory permanently, they sieged several cities and the Caliph was forced to the table or risk the ruination of the vast empire. The Caliph can not be considered to have lost though, for it was only his success in Otaria that forced Arcadia’s desperate move. The Emerald Caliphate, or Al-Khalifa Zumúrrud, was now a powerful young satellite of the great Caliphate. The Pardic Barbarians, long consigned to the Skirk Ridge, now ruled over the Pardian highlands from the Arixo Wastes to the Zion River. Paladonia was reduced to 3/5 its original size and the long reign of the Paladin Lords may be over forever; although the Otarians and the native Daru are firm allies, no strong government has yet coalesced.

So the world stands, shakily, from the depths of war and the blight of powerful evil. In the years of peace since the end of the wars, people have begun to put sense to the world again and fall into a new pattern. The Imperium is gone, with no swift return in sight. Arcadia is tired of war; from the reconquest of Felix, to the Concordian revolution, to the Otarian War they had been at war longer than anyone else. The Arcadian soldiers return to the fields and streets, and the people return to their work free from the burden of distant wars. The Caliph too is satisfied: the Emerald Caliphate grows daily, Otaria is broken for now, and trade on the sea flows freely in the absence of turmoil in the West. Even Beldron, where internecine warfare has been the order of the day for two centuries, is at peace. Tallins no longer fights Ospria and Sipani, great Visserene is showing signs of greatness, and the northern cities have come to their first good truce in decades.

On the micro scale Captains now carry cargos of spice, tobacco, wine, and regional foods to people eager to hold something other than a weapon and eat something other than barley cake and camp spirits. Merchants on land are reestablishing contacts and feeling out the most lucrative new routes, and the great Banking Houses are sifting through eddies of power to find the next greats. City folk are rebuilding their damaged or ruined cities and building new lives in a world of changing rules and broken glass ceilings. In the countryside and small towns many folk are returning to the fields or the smithy and frequenting their taverns once more. In and among these happy but hard times there are still evils; and though dangerous and capable of deadly malice they are greatly reduced. War bands and companies left over from a Warlord’s force roam the country or make a place for themselves in the old watchtowers of the world, and here and there larger groups still exist. But this is the evil of old, the evil that’s known. All in all, the world is returning to form.

The Feast of Blades and High Shield Meet Announced (78 FA)

In the wake of the Treaty of the Three Swords, the massed armies of the Coalition and Alliance took several months to disengage and begin to disperse to their homes or new posts. As the armies broke up, generals and praetors and Lords prepared to say their farewells to comrades and men. As they made their preparations, they discussed the future. Tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of men under arms would return home and the bonds of fellowship and fierce esprit de corps units had built would be no more. The world was shakily returning to peace, but most of the working age male population was trained for war and used to a hard life of fitness and competition. The men eagerly wished to return home of course, but a way of life such as soldiering is not easily shaken. For this reason, Coalition and Alliance correspondence talked of a series of competitions and games: the sort of competitions that forge the heroes of peacetime. The men whom fill the stories of golden ages long past were forged in such games.

The idea really took stride as the summer approached and the armies moved back to civilization. A council of 13 leaders from the Coalition and the Alliance actually traveled to meet on the subject at Dragonwatch East, a castle-manor in Cormyr. They laid the ground work for a series of councils enthusiastically held throughout the leadership of the soon to be dispersed armies. The end result of the Councils' meetings was the Feast of Blades, and accompanying High Shield Meet. The High Shield Meet was to be the culmination of all the games in the land, a tribute to the Olympiads of Mantaéri Legend. It would be held in six years' time, starting on the summer solstice of 84 FA. The Feast of Blades would be a great feast for the competitors and spectators alike - lasting days.

It was left to the generals and Lords to come up with the games that would lead up to the Feast of Blades, and how the champions would be chosen. Circuits, Leagues, Invitationals, Grand Prix, all formats were open and all would be equal by treaty between the regional Grand Masters. XXXX

Inaugural Feast of Blades Delayed (81 FA)

Due to arguments and negotiations on format, as well as the growing interest and money headed for the games, the Grand Masters decide to postpone the Feast of Blades until 86 FA. Work on the venue also contributed to the slow down. Many cities wanted to host the games, but at least half of the cities with stadiums capable of holding such games had been devastated by the war. No one wanted to slight a major power in the drawing for host, so the work was given time to continue and the agreed upon draw would happen in 84 FA. XXXX

First Tournaments Called (82 FA)

Tournaments like the Arythi Grand Prix, Kyprian Games, Syracuse Premier immediately crop up in parts of the world not directly affected by the Dragon's War. Each tournament offering Seals and valuable purses to the winners. XXX

The Seeds of the Fallen (82 FA)

The remnants of the Dragon's forces, scattered by defeat and freed from any driving goal, spread leaderless and root where they fall. Dominaria, returned to peace, is returned to a time where evil pervades the darker places of cities and the quiet wilds. The main hotbeds are the Ardile Fens and Dogaska in Beldron.

The Siege of Northwatch (85 FA)

Opening Moves

The Great Barrier Forest of northern Ramosia became the scene of the first fierce fighting against the Stormlord's successors almost a decade after the treaty of Three Swords. The conflict began quietly, with reports of the local orc and barbarian tribes' disappearance. Obscure reports of movements north of Lugard and as far south as the Nefriti Caldera went unnoticed by the Order of the Wardens, but this should come as no surprise given their distance from the forest. Just before the Vernal Equinox, when Jovia and Dominaria enter alignment with the Sun, scouts came into contact with a fearsome Summoner backed by the Minotaur Warlord Rogan Blackhorn and a host of corrupted Dire Animals.

After several savage clashes Captain Commander Rennault Tenner of the Wardens had to pull his scouts out of the Barrier Forest and Dhazanti Gap entirely and started to hire scouts and call in their reserves from surrounding lands. The Wardens also sent word to the Brotherhood of Pelor and as many Druids clans as they could find to ask for help. Then, as the Solstice approached, the wardens sortied out in several cavalry columns to secure the surrounding areas and see if they could draw out the foe. While this was happening, the Wardens dispatched scouts into the Woods as well to scout for the cults moving in.

As the Wardens fanned out against their enemies, urgent messengers sped out into Onea and Ramosia. The Brotherhood of Pelor was the first to send aid, dispatching a full Chapter from Dulharron north of the Centrality. Soon thereafter, the aging Lord Kellen Starna received word and called council with Emperor Renzel. With most of the Ramosi regular army aligned to the south guarding the border or policing the marches, the two decided to send a demi-Legion and a contingent of House troops north under young Lord Andrew Tassarini, newly Seat of Tassarhold and the Kraken Keep. This composite legion assembled over the intervening week outside Balmorra and Riverwatch then marched north. The last group to respond were the Druid clans in Ramosia. Slowly, but with growing resolve, the calls began to stir the avowed isolationist Druids. Soon after the Ramosi force moved the Bear tribe of Nurim's Mountains, the Avanti from the Green Sea, and the Black Rock Shamen from the Nefriti Caldera moved north. The tribes slowly gathered at half remembered shrines and weather worn rocks and by the time they moved north of Telasaro they were a caravan almost 300 strong. The druids were canny though, they arrived at the fortress singly or in twos and always in animal form to hide their numbers.

But even as this impressive coalition gathered at Northwatch, the odds continued to stack up. Scouts came into contact with Bjorn, King in the Hollow, an Elder Dire Bear left by the Druidian Brotherhood of old. He gave them dire news. A powerful Blighter had pitched in with the 'She Witch' Summoner and her allies. He was quite mad, and had set to work bending the forest and Bjorn's subjects to his will. This, alongside reports of 'collared' and mutated animals throughout the Barrier Forest and aberrations in the ruined northern city within the woods, added to the growing tension at the fortress. To make matters yet worse Captain Tenner was dead; killed at the hand of Darkath Shieldbreaker. Shieldbreaker was the chieftain of the Melahari Minotaurs and his appearance confirmed the reports that two tribes of Minotaurs had now moved into the Forest.

So, the forest churned and Northwatch became a hive of activity. Lord Tassarini's troops immediately moved into the fortress and turned the mess of disused buildings around the bastions into a small city overnight. The Brotherhood camped south of the fortress and entered after quickly signing an agreement to be able to open a small monastery in Northwatch's disused Church and Vestry. The newly formed Coalition had less than 48 hours to prepare however. The Minotaur army attacked Northwatch in force on the evening of Midsummer Solstice's Eve.

The Battle of Northwatch

The Assault

The attack began with the blare of trumpets and war drums and a flood of blighted Dire Animals. Waves of ground creatures and birds attacked the fortress walls with the ferocity of the bewitched as the Minotaurs and controlled Aberrations advanced behind. Flocks of birds and hordes of creatures buried or scattered the defenders under a tide of attackers too small and numerous to easily kill. Once the Minotaurs got within range, the coalition at Northwatch began to get the worse of a significant magical battle. Wizards on the ramparts were caught off guard or out-spelled because of the wave attacks and the Minotaur army was able to close the distance and magically raise eight earthen ramps onto the ramparts.

Next came the abberations. A new wave of howling death hurled itself against the fortress as eight Minotaur brigades waited patiently and poured arrows into the defenders. The assembled Wardens, Brothers, Legionaries, and House Troops hit back as hard as they could though. The Minotaur commanders only moved when a breach opened on the wall or when it became clear that the defenders were running out of spells. Their patience under cover of wave attacks paid off. Two Minotaur brigades quickly opened holes in the defenses' south side and drew the fortresses' reserves as the rest slowly pressed in. Minotaur Shamen now dominated the fight, cutting loose with a fusillade of saved spells and forcing the defenders to fight tooth and nail to hold onto the walls.

As the battle progressed and the Minotaurs committed though, Lord Tassarinni and Captain Mordant's plan came into play. The coalition assembled at Northwatch had 2,300 horse to the Minotaur's 0 and 300 druids that their enemy had no knowledge of. This force was carefully shepherded into several large buildings out from the eye of the enemy's birds on the eve of the battle and held in reserve. When the battle started, Lord Tassarini took 500 cavalry and stayed to command the siege with Captain Mordant. When the minotaurs finally committed their forces Lord Commander Boehemond Tybalt of the Brotherhood led the cavalry and druid force out the back of Northwatch.

The minotaur assault was a terrifying thing to behold. Darkath Shieldbreaker and his ally Rogan Blackhorn had somehow crafted 5 tribes of minotaurs into a capable and organized army. Minotaur archers fired massive crossbows into the defenders and their assault troops advanced up the earthen ramps behind towering iron shields and 20' pikes. The southern half of Northwatch fell swiftly. The strain of holding the ramps that fell to the aberrant assault drained the reserves and forced commanders to split vital troops. The southern blocks of buildings soon became the scene of a smoke and magic choked urban battle. In the center and north, the line held. Only the northernmost ramp, where Darkath himself led the charge, fell. Darkath had raised his banner on St John's Keep, the tower of the Warden's wizard cadre, when horns sounded form the plains to Northwatch's east.

Lord Tybalt led his men in a charge for the ages. Blasting his horn astride a massive barded destrier, he led the largest charge since the end of the Storm War into the minotaur reserves. The reserves had seen the cavalry though. Their army's command of the air was challenged only by a small number of Druids and their young Dragon, so they had excellent tactical information. The reserves formed up well under the command of a junior warchief, Telmar Ironjaw. He guarded his flanks with the remains of their summoned auxiliaries and by the time the attack came he faced the charge with 1,500 minotaurs and several hundred horrors.

That first day ended badly for both sides. The battle on the field was fought under the light of Jovia and a full moon, but quickly became a mess. The two sides wheeled and fought for less than half an hour before the fight became an all-out melee. The fight separated near midnight with Ironjaw dead and Lord Tybalt unhorsed and wounded. The battle for Northwatch was a deadlock. The defenders held a line just south of the Winter Grain Stores to the trenches around St John's Tower, with Northwatch in the middle. Much of the hill was afire outside these lines, and neither side would know the true extent of their casualties until the next morning. forces of both sides were on either side of the lines and small skirmishes continued until the second moonrise at 4am. Also in the defender's favor was the head of Rogan Blackhorn on a pike. A ragtag band of Ramosi and Tassarini troops with Brotherhood footmen had held the ramp he assaulted and cut down the beast.

Many stories came out of the night, but none circulated so quickly as the stories of their Leaders and Lord Tybalt's charge. Their leaders they said included a Bear-man 12 feet tall who fought Blackhorn to a standstill alone, a Ranger from the Cormyri Wilds whose bow shot death instead of arrows, a Paladin who fought from the front with no regard for his life, screaming psalms to Pelor with every breath, and a wizard who bellowed his spells from atop the roof of a tavern. Lord Tybalt gained renown for his incredible charge, and several bards on hand swore that his charge, with the Druids' Dragon over his shoulder and Jovia wreathed in smoke would one day adorn the Victory Hall.

The Siege

As Lord Tybalt's exhausted force recovered, Lord Tassarini's plans took shape. Scouts rode south and west, and the heroes of the siege were sent east into the forest, through the Minotaurs' shattered lines, to hunt She Who Floats. Lord Tassarini XXX

Caracen Storyline (Early-mid 80s FA)

As 'peace' stretched into a new decade, the new country boundaries established by the Treaty of Three Swords proved porous. As countries tried to deal with internal struggles, the hardships and opportunities brought on by this new era masked the incipient return of the elements driven back when the Stormlord fell. These forces began to strike out and fell out the new geopolitical tapestry they found themselves in and, for the most part, these acts went unnoticed (either due to preoccupation or willing disbelief). One King who did recognize the threat though was the aging Keran Arrington of Amacidia. The skilled logistician and diplomat picked up on the signs quickly and increased patrols near the treaty border along the border of Cormyr. As encounters increased along the border and trade into Cormyr began to slow, the King ordered forays past the line of hills and forest that makes up the border. Although the first several patrols reported nothing all the way to Caracen, they soon began to report an unsettling increase in Drow activity in the forest and then a resumption of Stormsworn patrols near Caracen - both regular and cult troops.

So King Arrington organized irregular parties of tradesmen, ranngers, and mercenaries to travel to Caracen and report on dealings within the city so that he could plan his move. Caracen, as it happened was on the ragged edge. Marshal Arman Pter, the warlord who took the city and then held it as the Stormlord's holdings collapsed, had held power since. His loose alliance with the Cult of the Great Unclean one allowed him to start patrolling North Argentia again and resettle the farmland in the area, but the scouts found this alliance fraying at the seams and XXX

Beldron Storyline

Beldron, despite a large drain in mercenary strength, survived the Storm War intact and more prosperous. From the cities and townships who's good were now sold for double the profit at port to the pirates of Dogaska and the Sword Coast who no longer needed to fear the Imperial Navy, the entire sub-continent benefitted from the war. It was precisely for this reason that they missed the influx of XXXX

Eastern Storyline

WIP

Continuity Break

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This section is part of a current campaign and everything below is underway.

Dragon Attack on Balmorra (82 FA)

An unnamed Dragon attacked Balmorra in the early summer of 82 FA. The young Green female was bearing eggs at the time, found after defenders of the city managed to slay the beast. She inflicted grievous damage on the city during her rampage, but the motive is unknown. This attack marks the first peacetime dragon attack on a city since the first half of the Third Age. Efforts are underweight to find the sire of the eggs and XXXX

The Venetian Commission (82 FA)

The city of Venicia, scant years removed from the iron fist of the Cabal, is now on the rise as a part of Arcadia. New money and a renewed sense of pride means furious work throughout the ancient port but there were some things lost that no amount of work can rebuild. The Great Library in Venecia was razed during the war, and precious few items were saved by the clerical orders and rich of the city. This issue is not unique to Venicia either: the Museum of Amacidia, the Lyceum of old Mayne, the Imperial College in the Centrality (and its Librarium), and numerous other repositories were sacked, burned, or looted during the war. So the wealthy and powerful scholars of Venecia and Arcadia came upon an idea. They reached out to the scholars of the west and came together to offer a hunt of great import. The Venecian Commission would send adventurers to the far corners of Dominaria to hunt down the lost knowledge and to go to the few places where like knowledge could be found. As part of the Venetian Commission, scholars from around the west agreed to work alongside the mages of Saleria to try to catalog what was left in the libraries and universities of the west and reproduce what they could. A new order was suggested, but that discussion is ongoing.

The "Great Hunt" of this Age

Adventurers form far and wide answered the call and the promise of golden rewards to XXX

Looming Succession Crisis

The men of Dominaria XXX (something about are good in the best of times and follow the Gods, but are worn to the bone by the horrific trials of this age. This Age has lost its glory and many of its great men, and this coming century will full of tough years.)

The first succession crisis of the Fourth Age looms large. The most dangerous portions of most nations' histories are the early years of the founder's successor's rule. The Third Imperium was safe through the power of House Tionne and her Illyrian allies, but with so many new countries in the West after the War many historians and lords watch the coming years with worry. Of the Three Swords, House Renzel is probably the most vulnerable. True Michael Renzel is technically the successor of the founder, but he also fought during the war and proved himself a hero and an excellent general. He also provided a clear cut patrilineal successor. His son however, will face the last vestiges of the generation that fought Adam Renzel and the sons they raised. Loyalty of the core Ramosi Generals currently true, but the High Seats of Ramosia and even some Ak'kritaari Lords will certainly position themselves for the sucession. Conversely, the Tionne Hegemony is the most secure of the Three Swords. House Tionne has the loyalty of their High Seats and their country is unified against common foes: (mostly everyone?). Malkier is an interesting case. High Lord Joshua Malkier is a fearsome Archmage, as is his chief advisor and brother Jaroc. The two rule the country now without challenge, though not harshly. They are well regarded as strong in the north, and very nationalistic. Once they pass however, the succession is unclear. Their youngest brother is an old man of great renown with the Morivanian Orders, but unfit to succeed the throne, and the two men have no blood heirs. Many expect an heir to come from the Order of the Broken Towers, but none is yet forthcoming. If there is no heir, and even if their is, Malkier could face a crisis. Indeed this succession could be either the most smooth in the West, or easily the bloodiest.

Other countries at risk in the coming generation are the new countries of the Westlands. Amacidia, Aryth and Onea. In Amacidia, King Keran Arrington is an adept politician and an expert logistitian, capable of managing a growing and constantly evolving country as it rebuilds and finds its normal. His son Matthew is a renowned Drake Rider and knight, but he is more of a warrior than a ruler. He will likely face challenges beyond him in his succession, conflict that could devolve into open war with his High Seats and the juggling of Low Seats. In Aryth House X holds together a precarious coalition of the southern nobility, united out of fear of the Dragon and a universal wish to be rid of the Imperium. Now that both enemies have faded, the wealthy lords of the Aryth Vale could well be wondering if they could not do better on their own (or as King..). In Onea the succession seems geographically secure. Carhane is the only prominent city, and the country's armies are commanded by Lords who all hail from this capital. The King however, was backed by House Renzel when Onea split from Malkier. King X was the most powerful of the Onean nobility and the rest of the nobles were willing to accept him backed by the Renzels. But now Onea is out of the Ramosi sphere of influence and there is worry that squabbling in the capital following the king's death could lead to fighting in the field and the king's court each trying to sack the city. No one really talks about a religious take over by the clerical orders of St. Cuthbert in the country, but it should not be ruled out.

Continuity Break 2

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The section below is also underweigh.

The Conclave of the Shadow Hand (100 FA)

Almost a full generation after the Storm War, the west remains insular or looks south and east. In this void, creeping darkness has filled the cracks in society. In places like XXX

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The below is out of phase while I add section headers to the above.

Redacted/Moved

War in Beldron

Large scale war breaks out in Beldron as Tallins attacks Ospria. Tallins, the victors in a bloody rebellion that saw them throw off the yoke of Sipani two years ago, is now seemingly hell-bent on hegemony over Ospria for their role as Sipani's ally. Their motives however, remain unclear.

The Beldroni Crusade (79 FA-Present)

The Brotherhood of Pelor first moved into Beldron during the early days of the 3rd Imperium, setting up in old fortresses and abandoned watchtowers. The infrastructure that they moved in to was very worn down, in most cases several centuries old and barely recognizable. But with time-tested organization, a large inflow of gold, and fresh recruits - eager to earn gold and join a powerful organization - the Children had a working network by the late 60s FA. They began policing the countryside near their holdings and forming relationships with the city-states of Beldron. XXXX

Eventually though, in the face of the city-states' disunity and the collapse of effective governance in most of the West, the Children decided to act. They began targeting guild-members or people taking independent work, from any guild, in an effort to destabilize the guilds. The Children of the Light considered the guilds of Beldron to be the main driving powers; none individually as powerful as the cities, but collectively much more influential both Beldron- and world-wide. The Guilds of each city provided that city with most of its competitive or commercial organs, and the Children reasoned that without them the cities would be weaker and forced to unify. The Children aimed to take control of this process and bring the Light to Beldron as well, forging the long-splintered land into a powerful theocracy.

The killings started as early as 77 FA, and were initially written off as the result of the dragonsworn and cabal members fleeing the mainland. But by 79 FA Guilds were beginning to drastically lose their ability to function, and the work got more and more violent just to get jobs from place to place. Commerce was maintained for the most part, but caravans got a lot larger as the need for protection came to the fore. XXXX

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