28th Kaldmont 1015AC

WALLARA LANDS SWAMPED BY INVADERS!!!

The Invasion - Ator vs Wallara In early winter, a horde of gator men, supported fully by the feral priests of Goron, poured out of the swamps of Ator and into the grasslands of the Wallara. Driven on by the anger of their savage Queen, presumably acting on Pyre's orders, the gurrash met little opposition initially, as the wallara army was in the south, due to the past skirmishing with Jibaru. A number of mercenaries of the Plains Traders were the first to meet the horde, but they were swept away and devoured to the last man. The wallaras eventually got their act together however, and met the gurrash at Oodnatta. Striking from ambush, their boomerangs cut a swathe through the gurrash force, but the wallaras instantly fled when the gurrash attempted to engage them. After looting Oodnatta, the gurrash continued onwards to Quambara, which they pillaged, and once more were ambushed by a wallara army which melted away into the grasslands almost as soon as they appeared. In Risilvar, meanwhile, orcs of the Dark Jungle have taken to banditry and raiding, particularly concentrating on the Chief Mendoo's tax collectors, who are finding walking the city at night most dangerous, as a poisoned blowgun dart can lead to a slow, agonising death...
Pyre and the Sea Powers Clash The straits near Puerto Maldicao saw two large naval battles last season between Vilaverde and Texeiras on one hand, and the navies of Nimmur and Pyre on the other. The first battle was with a fleet of Pyre's war canoes, who were attempting to patrol the seas there and came under the attack of an erstwhile Vilaverdan admiral. Pyre himself was not in evidence, and without him his war canoes proved to be outmatched, with the Sea Powers fleet having both a numerical and qualitative advantage. It is believed that the orcs were wiped out without significant loss to the Verdans.	A Whiff of Grapeshot Gilmun's navy also attempted to brave the Verdan presence and seek out an apparently hidden Eshu navy, but their fleet - a mixture of war canoes and galleons - were unfortunate enough to be sneaking south just as a Texeiran convoy of merchantmen were sneaking north. With considerable bravery, the Texeiran admiral engaged the Nimmurian fleet, taking losses but holding the Nimmurians up, while the nearby Vilaverdan navy sped to the rescue. When the Vilaverdans finally arrived the manscorpions found themselves sandwiched between the two fleets, and were sent to the bottom amidst hails of gunfire.
Innana and Barana-Ui fall out? Queen Barana-Ui and her Warchief, Innana, allegedly have been arguing and having several disagreements in Jibaru over the last few months. Apparently the reason for the dispute was regarding the Queen's foreign policy - in particular, it seems that the Queen's vassalage with Nimmur is the cause of friction. Apparently her Warchief would rather the phanatons look another way - to Vilaverde perhaps - and rumours fly in Jibaru about Vilaverdan support to split Jibaru from the Nimmurian bloc.	The Toothed Tax Collectors Already poor relations between the shazaks and their covassals, the gurrash, have been strained again. Gurrash "tax collectors" collecting loot in Shazak allegedly for their master, Pyre, triggered a fight in the province of Snaat. Shazak peasants - apparently not connected to any Forked Tongue organisation in any way - attacked the gurrash and drove them back into Ator. The peasants had apparently already paid their taxes to King Shaz, and reasoning that King Shaz already pays a large tribute to Pyre, they had no wish to be taxed twice.
Elections Held in Bellayne The counts for the general election here in Bellayne were only completed a few days ago, and the Company of the Sun is proud to reveal the result. Edward Hampden was campaigning hard, taking a broadly pro-royalist line, but as usual the Might of Belbion also funded MPs of it's own, and gave them support from the pulpit. Queen Catherine did not stoop to directly campaigning, but a great many rakasta voted for MPs professing loyalty to the Sovereign nevertheless. The next term of Parliament will be made up of the following breakdown of MPs (according to allegiance) :- Queen Catherine - 14 seats Edward Hampden's party - 31 seats Sancta Bellania - 10 seats Might of Belbion - 21 seats Lion Trading - 6 seats Vintage Guild Royale - 1 seat Jorge Vilaverde - 3 seats Independent - 14 seats
Deals struck between Gilmun and neighbours More gold was sent by Apsur to their sundwelling neighbours, as Gilmun's army once more taxes the nations economy to the fullest. Reliable estimates place the Nimmurian war machine at approximately six thousand manscorpions. Also, deals were struck with Pyre for the purchase of war canoes, and King Anupalassar had obtained some galleons from somewhere too. However, this was all for naught when matched against the combined Verdan navies. (see above).	Second Claw strikes in Cay A band of caymas, apparently working independently of the Queen of Cay and calling themselves "the Second Claw" attacked the guild holdings owned by Bellayne. A band of cayma thieves snuck in and looted the place thoroughly, as well as writing unflattering remarks regarding the beloved Queen Catherine, all over the walls with spilled ink. The theft was not insignificant, and Parliament has already contacted Queen Ss'aa in an effort to curb the thievery.
General Uprising in Shazak The Forked Tongue, split by an internal schism, reorganised and continued the good fight in the last season. King Shaz was countering by attempting to recruit more wardens and constables, and peacefully combat the Forked Tongue insurgents, but with minimal success, when the attacks began to happen. Real Forked Tongue forces attacked King Shaz's army in Snaat, where they also encountered Pyre's own Imperial forces. Desperate fighting broke out in the forests, but, amazingly, the Forked Tongue carried the day, driving out the governmental forces. The Forked Tongue apparently have widespread support from the population, and were strengthened in the attack by shazak peasants, who helped them drive away Pyre's orcs. The backing of a new cadre of shazak monks in the area helped no end. Provisional partisans also seized the undefended province of Ss'ikk, and launched their own attacks all across Shazak, but King Shaz's forces managed to beat them back almost without loss. King Shaz has been considering declaring martial law across the entire nation, surely if he intends to do so it must be next season.
Nimmurian Agents in Eshu again Nimmur has again sent subversives to the mountain kingdom of Eshu, as they are finding landing a military force exceedingly difficult with the mighty Sea Powers in the way. King Gildesh was ready for such a move, but he did not count upon the determination of the Nimmurians, who succeeded in establishing semi covert operations in the mountain kingdom.	Sea Power in waiting Although the humans won the first two naval battles in the West, the orcs of the Dark Jungle should not be lightly dismissed. While their war canoes have limited range due to their unseaworthiness, their orcish crews are famed for their fierceness and skill in battle. And unlike the expensive Baronial ships with their smokepowder and muskets, the canoes can be quickly built, and with the huge population of the Dark Jungle this combines to produce a potentially very large orcish horde - in ships.
Herath tied to the Forked Tongue? Reliable reports of large amounts of Herathian cash headed for the Real Forked Tongue may explain a great many things about events in that troubled land. The recent attacks, in particular, could not have happened without a source of gold, and it seems that many powers have an interest in seeing Shazak descend into anarchy.	Renardy Trains Archers In an effort to counter the musketeers of the Baronies, King Louis has set several units of archers training to increase their accuracy to unheard of levels in the Royaume. Couple with the famous lupin strength of arm, these new lupin archer companies will doubtless prove devastating in battle. King Louis also attended to his defences, enlarging castles all across the Royaume.
Hulean Colony in the West A Hulean fleet of zebecs travelled to the Horn, stopping off in Bellayne for suppllies with Queen Catherine's blessing, and founded a Hulean colony near Jibaru. The Hulean presence may influence the balance of power in the region, or at least give the Sea Powers undisputed naval dominance of the reason a pause for thought.	Eusdria Working on Smokepowder Baron Max of Almarron has been instructing Eusdrian scholars in the art of making smokepowder, and Eusdrians have finally mastered the technology. Sadly, smokepowder is scare in Eusdria, and there is little to mine. But doubtless King Sigismund's Almarronan ally will solve that problem.
Pirates off Texeiras While the Texeiran fleet is off playing with the manscorpions, piracy has been getting closer to the Texeiran home, with trade routes off Boa Mansao being pillaged by unknown pirates. Pirates also raided the Isla del Cayo, but they were repulsed by the Baronesa's guard there.	Religious strife in Slagovich MSH, displeased with Margrave Miosz' refusal to allocate funds to the temple to MSH in Grabana while simultaneously lavishing money upon his wardens and merchants there, has reacted by splitting from the Slagovich government. A new Patriarch, presumably one less loyal to Miosz and more loyal to Halav, has been installed, and he has certainly being going about his business with a righteous fervour. Temple troops were dispatched to Grabana to presumably forcably eject the priestesses of the Judge, but the Margrave's men intercepted them and turned them back. And more - the cathedral of Halav in Slagovich has been glowing with a divine light in the last month. What does it mean?
Revolt in Budavik An individual known as Sergei is believed to have started a minor revolt in the Hulean town of Budavik. The residents of Budavik seem to be largely apathetic, and the revolt has had little effect on the Hulean administration, but about a quarter of the town is effectively in a state of anarchy. The Hulean response has so far been measured, partly due to the lack of military forces in the town which would be required to quell the mini-uprising.	La Baronesa vs the Swordsman The Baronesa of Torreon has been questing for the last three months solid, trying to find the swordsmen who beat Don Jorge Vilaverde in a duel four months ago. She succeeded in her aim, meeting the swordsmen in the plains of Terra Vermelha. There, even she was bested with the blade, although the duel was only to a single blood. This stranger has certainly made an impression on the fighting community of the northern Baronies, and may find himself sought out by students eager to discover the secrets of the blade.
Guadalante vs LBT Baronesa Catalina has spared no effort in attempting to remove the LB Trading Company from wherever she has influence, both in Cimmaron and Guadalante. Her efforts met with some success, with the pressure from the government making it very difficult for the LBT Company to conduct business. In Dos Cabezas, the Guadalantan population was even incensed enough to burn down one of the LBT trading posts and lynch the employees.	Baron Hugo's Daughter Kidnapped! Baron Hugo's daugher Danita was captured in a daring raid by the pirate and freebooter Miles Killian O'Kayne. Apparently already well aware of the layout of Hugo's castle, the swashbuckler attempted to use illusion magicks to sneak into the castle, but the warding spells of the Holy Church of Narvaez saw through suck trickery. Defeating a number of Hugo's guards outside Danita's door, the rogue broke into her room, swept her up into her arms and swung out of the window, using a hastily procured curtain as a makeshift rope. Danita and Miles were last seen running at full tilt towards the harbour. Exactly why Miles hates Hugo so is yet to be resolved.
A Note from the Margrave of Zagora ”Due to the increasing presense and activity of arcane spellcasters in Zagora, and the problems caused thereby to the civilian population, the Margrave Munte III with the advice of the Ministry of Matters Arcane decrees that all practitioners of the arts arcane entering or residing in Zagora must make their presence known to the authorities and get themselves registered in the catalogues of magic-users. This registration can be made at the Ministry’s agencies which exist in every province, and will not include any fee of any kind, nor will it in any way be restrictive for the individual’s freedom of movement and actions. Furthermore, those magic-users of so high power as to own their own magical source holdings in the realm of Zagora are hereby obliged to pay a tax of 2000 golden crowns (1 gb) per level of power of the source(s) they own, every three months, starting the season just begun. Non-compliance with the above will result in arrest and fines, as well as the destruction of any offending source holdings. Magic-users who are granted a Certificate of Arcane Practice by the Margrave are exempt from all the above (including the taxes, though already paid taxes will not be returned nor will debts be deleted). Anybody may apply for a Certificate at the Ministry of Matters Arcane (or a local agency), and all applications will be considered individually and in a case-by-case manner, by the Margrave Himself. As a result of it’s special status of priviledges, the colony of Nova Zagora is excepted from the above decree. Magic-users from Nova Zagora visiting the metropolitan Zagora must however still register themselves upon arrival.”

• Esteban is a crook - he's counterfeiting gold and using it to buy gnoll mercenaries. Those gnolls are not going to be happy when they catch on.
• The City of Raska saw this turn an expansion of power and wealth, the policy of Derdren Zvornik are making his subjects happy and thrive in wealth and success. In the streets they sing praises to Halav, and are constantly expanding in their cities. Some merchants want to rename Raska as the Pearl of the Traladarans.
• Ivan Kovalski and Bosit Hojah have had an unfortunate breakdown of trust between them, with the Margrave opposing the development of Ivan's sources on the Four Isles.
• The Royal Navy of Bellayne has made a breakthrough in ship design, thanks largely to the frigates sold to Queen Catherine.
• Aeryl is planning to doublecross LBT and nationalise all trade within Aeryl's borders.
• Slagovich has been selling galleons to Nimmur for hard currency. Does Margrave Miosz' corruption know no bounds?
• Hule and Nimmur have struck a deal in secret - Hule will help Nimmur subjugate Eshu in the short term, while Nimmur will assist Hule against the City States in the distant future.
• LTI is trying to sell baubles to the gurrash. A risky business adventure, and not merely to the bottom line.
• A large treasure hoard has been found in Almarron lands and is being used to finance a massive army to retake Almarron.
• The gnoll lieutenant of Force Lady Marelder, Gribar, has been having meetings with Abolar while divesting the province of Cactus Eaters from Baronia de Saragon.
• The Swashbuckling Temple of Milan has come to Baron Max's assistance, and is getting ready to finally drive Don Esteban out of Almarron once and for all.

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