Gameworld News

1005 A.I.
July 13, 1005
December 31, 1005

December 31, 1005:

Crazau, Bilgosh:
   On July 18, the Zdunarovan army successfully captured the Bilgosh 
castle of Golsztyn in the northern province of Crazau.  Zdunarovan 
mages were able to penetrate the Bilgosh defenses, using lightning 
bolts to collapse part of the southern tower.  With the defenders now 
stretched thin trying to cover the gap, the imperial armies raised 
ladders, scaled the walls, and set fire to the inner bailey.  Lady 
Elzbieta of Golsztyn died defending her hold.


Elsitz, Zdunarova:
   With Gravenia (the westernmost of the rebellious duchies in the 
Steinlands) already under siege, on August 16 part of the imperial 
army broke off to advance north and east into the duchy of Elsitz.  
The Steinlander dukes and duchesses rallied to Elsitz's defense, 
moving their knights and soldiers onto the hills at Turbruck to meet 
the Zdunarovan advance one month later.  After several lengthy 
battles, neither side could claim victory; both armies regrouped and 
entrenched.


Biedzko, Bilgosh:
   The castle at Biedzko fell to the Zdunarovan armies as its supplies 
of water were exhausted, and it raised the flag of surrender on August 
27.  Biedzko had been the last stronghold in the Bilgosh barony of 
Pietra Slul to hold out against the Zdunarovan forces.
   With more and more of the army now suppressing the rebels in the 
Steinlands, Lord Wladyslaw of Kaloszyn does not appear to be readying 
his troops to return on the Bilgosh capital.  Lord Wladyslaw is said 
to be frustrated that his soldiers seem to have little confidence that 
they can take the capital with their reduced numbers.  His 
rank-and-file soldiers say in turn that their commander is an 
uninspiring dullard who lacks the charisma of his predecessor, Lord 
Yarakov.  (Conventional wisdom in Zdunarosk now holds that Lord 
Yarakov was brought back to the capital precisely because of his 
popularity; the Czarina feared his troops would become more loyal to 
him than to the Czarina herself.)


Gravenia, Zdunarova:
   After holding out for four months, the rebellious Steinlands duchy 
of Gravenia fell on September 12 as Zdunarovan siege workers collapsed 
part of the outer wall and stormed the ducal keep.  As the armies 
disarmed and looted the town, Gravenian knights and nobles were rounded 
up, and Duke Rudolf and his family were taken back to Zdunarosk to 
await their fate.
   Some of Rudolf's vassals elsewhere in the duchy chose to surrender 
arms and follow their liege’s fate; others took to arms and headed 
into neighboring Elsitz.


Across Hesket:
   On October 1, mages' guilds and academies found new scrolls placed 
in their libraries, signed by the archmage Bernard Aeolus.  The scrolls 
described the incantation for a new spell that combines the elements of 
fire and air to wholly disintegrate a target.
   In his notes, Bernard said that he was dismayed to see the 
Yamamotoans using a spell of this nature, one unknown to Hesket, and 
devoted himself to reproducing its powers.  Upon replicating the 
disintegration spell, he shared the knowledge because of his "desire 
to help protect the civilized kingdoms of Hesket", though he admitted 
that the spell is complex and that "few will be able to master it".
   With a parting note, he chided his fellow archmagi for not following 
his lead, accusing them of "failing to make contributions to the public 
corpus" of magical knowledge, instead preferring to "prance around with 
the fae and give fancy Sturian names to hackneyed old golems."


Toldavia, Zdunarova:
    After fording the river under cover of night, the forces of the 
Steinlands duchies opened a second front on October 14 and advanced on 
the Zdunarovans' southern flank.  With most of the imperial army 
focused on Elsitz, the Zdunarovans were caught off-guard and were sent 
into disarray.  The Steinlanders rejoiced that the celebrated 
Zdunarovan hero Dame Anastasia Fyodorovna was captured by Duchess 
Wilhelmina of Silbermark during the battle.


Dezdovo, Bilgosh:
    Rumors spread throughout the Bilgosh and Zdunarovan armies on 
December 18 that the Zdunarovans had sent envoys to the Bilgosh capital.  
The nature of their mission is not yet known.

July 15, 1005:

Northern Bilgosh:
   For the Zdunarovan army occupying northern Bilgosh, the especially
cold winter made worse the dangers an army must face in wintertime.
Shortages of food and firewood plagued the Imperial soldiers, as did
sickness, and the armies suffered considerable attrition.  While the
mercenary companies had signed on for the campaign and were resigned to
endure such obstacles, the peasant conscripts were often less pleased
about being unable to return to their farms for the winter, and the
Imperial knights and sergeants had to be especially vigilant to prevent
desertions.


Dezdovo, Bilgosh:
   In March, the Zdunarovan army laying siege to the Bilgosh capital of
Dezdovo pulled back to Crazau.  The chills of winter had spread not just
the usual diseases throughout the siege camp, but also an outbreak of
the pox that slew many of the idling soldiers.  Lord Wladyslaw made the
call that it would be better to find fresh food and water in Crazau, and
return in the spring to renew the siege.
   The residents of Dezdovo themselves were largely spared the ravages
of the pox thanks to a fountain within the city dedicated to St.
Enrique.  As the pox spread throughout the Imperial troops, the fountain
began to produce fresh water which the Dezdovans rationed carefully.


Crazau, Bilgosh:
   The Grey Bear company, in the service of the Zdunarovan crown,
refused to fight with Oleg's Eagle company, alleging that the latter
company were infested with werewolves.  "Ever since we crossed the
border into this cursed land," proclaimed the commander of the Grey
Bears, "the unholy have infiltrated them. We're not about to trust our
necks to them."  Captain Oleg Nivarski outright refuted the claims, but
neither group could muster up enough holy water from the reticent local
clergy to put soldiers to the test.


Dorne, Chardreau:
   Locals in this village in the far eastern part of Chardreau report
the visitations of several saints in early April.  Two Kahla-Ranite
saints appeared near some local ruins around the same time as monsters
began to plague the town, and several buildings were burned to the
ground.  Locals also report the appearance of St. Marcus the Vigilant,
holy to Nen, and credit his benevolence with restoring peace to the village.


Sobliadz, Bilgosh:
   Dame Oksana Duryev was found staked through the heart in the middle
of a field in this small Bilgosh town on April 29.  Her troops were
nowhere to be found and had apparently deserted.


Gravenia:
  With spring thaws allowing for troop movements once again, the
Zdunarovan crown moved its troops into the rebellious duchy of Gravenia,
in the western Steinlands, on May 4.  Ducal forces fought bravely,
especially with the assistance of some troops from neighboring
rebellious duchies, but the sheer size of the Zdunarovan army left them
battered and in retreat to the ducal castle.  The Zdunarovans are
expected to prepare siege engines shortly, and have begun pillaging the
land for food and supplies to use during the long siege.