Corweena

A fittingly epic challenge for the end of an era......time to get building!

Thank you! The scene from Vikings was my inspiration for this, and what I thought was a fitting end to such an evil villain. I took a little creative editing to make the torso.... From the front pics, it is a standard blank yellow torso. The rear photos, I use a separate cracked striped pirate torso I had laying around. The crack ran up the whole length of the back of the torso. so I didn't mind cutting it up to use for this build, since it was pretty much useless otherwise. Same with the skeleton piece....one of the arm joins was broken off, so cutting up a damaged part wasn't an issue for me. @Khorne it was made by me. I used a hobby knife/scalpel to cut out the crack on the rear, and trim the skeleton frame down to snugly fit inside the torso. I have a good amount of practice with cutting tools and small parts from other hobbies, so I was pretty comfortable doing this.

Thank you gentlemen! I took inspiration from some furniture designs I found online, but tweaked some things to suit the styling better.

A Tale of Revenge: Part 1: The Day the World Stood Still Part 2: Heretic! Part 3: Baptism of Fire Part 4: Casting a Wide Net Part 5: Ghosts of Days Past Part 6: A Blood Soaked Symphony <--- You are here ______________________________________________________________ A desolate un-named island in the frigid North Sea A bone chilling wind cut through the air. Cleric Bertrand, stripped down to bare skin, had long lost feeling of his arms and chest. He was laying on his knees, arms spread wide, tied to two posts. "What kind of pagan devilry is this?" he thought. For a man who live his whole life controlling others, being tied up and helpless was a foreign feeling to him. Seeing the mental cracks starting to form, Corwin finally spoke to the man. "I see you have questions Cleric.....let me enlighten you. You see Bertrand, you took my parents away from me using the practices of your Order of the Faith, and I intend to do the same to you, as the Old Northern gods demand. Now, if you were an honorable man....you would have the courtesy of a swift and painless death by the sword. But for a morally devoid snake such as you, a more sacred ceremony is allowed...the Blood Eagle." Upon hearing those words uttered, Bertrand trembled with fear. He had never seen a Blood Eagle, but had read a few accounts in the old texts in his studies to become a cleric. Many nations had tried to subdue the wild northern lands, but all had failed. While still stuck in a feudal clan system, the Northerners were renowned for the penchant for violence and savagery. Chief among them being the Blood Eagle ceremony, in which the prisoner (often a leader, or especially vile person) had his back hacked open, and his lungs pulled out and draped over his shoulders like wings. Bertrand slumped to the ground as the full realization of his fate came to him. Seeing the cleric despondent before him, Ragnarrson continued "You will have wings dear Cleric, but cannot fly. Your body will become a feast for the crows, and your flightless soul dam*ed to wander this desolate island for all eternity. You will NEVER find peace. That is my gift to you....eternal life, and eternal suffering." With that, Ragnarrson raised his axe, and began his bloody work of giving the Cleric his wings. Bertrand was conscious through the whole thing, but unable to move as he had near frozen in artic weather. All that escaped his lips were faint cries at every strike of the axe. As his body drained itself of its life-force, the world began to fade as he met his fate. His quest for revenge completed, Corwin Ragnarrson found himself for the first time in 25 years without a driving purpose in his life. As he boarded his ship and returned to New Nassau, he contemplated this new chapter before him. While the need for revenge was no longer there, he was not the same man he was before. These events had changed him. Gone were any remaining traces of softness and compassion. In its place was an iron will and ruthless determination to succeed at all costs. The Black Wolf has risen, conquered his enemy, exacted his revenge, and his time to rule is NOW. _____________________________________________________________________________ That concludes this series. With Era III coming soon, and the pivot in direction to focus more on characters, I wanted to set the groundwork for a new direction when the update happens. And since I missed the first few transition challenges, I figured this story arc would be the perfect way to do so. Hope you all enjoyed it, and here's to the upcoming change!

My dear professor, that would be far to easy of a death for a man such as this. His end will match his evil deeds in life

Thanks gents! Should be dropping the final chapter tomorrow.

A Tale of Revenge: Part 1: The Day the World Stood Still Part 2: Heretic! Part 3: Baptism of Fire Part 4: Casting a Wide Net Part 5: Ghosts of Days Past <--- You are here Part 6: A Blood Soaked Symphony __________________________________________________________ Charlatan Bay Aldric Buchannon had a million things on his mind as he walked back home from his late night meeting. The last year had been tumultuous to say the least.....ships were disappearing into thin air with more frequency, there were sights of strange creatures and beasts through the islands. Storms ripped across the water with no mercy. The islands were abuzz with speculation of the root cause of these events. Aldric normally would pay no mind to such rumors and gossip, but as the owner of a successful Import & Export Company, these happenings directly affected his livelihood. Buchannon had been more fortunate than most....he had lost only one small ship, but had narrowly avoided losing many others. With so many ships disappearing, the time was now to expand his reach and fill the vacancies left by the lost ships. To any potential customer looking for goods, his business looked 100% legitimate, his storefronts in the various islands were professional, clean, and well stocked. What the customers did not know, what that his goods were not purchased from the various countries of Halos.....they were sourced from Black Flag pirates ( his "suppliers"), repacked in his warehouses in Sea Rat controlled ports with his branded markings, and then often sold right back to the merchants they were stolen from (at a hefty mark up of course). His unscrupulous suppliers loved him....as he paid more than other black market vendors, and would buy their whole stock. Buchannon disliked travelling to Sea Rat Ports, as their filth, chaos, and unpredictability put him out of his comfort zone. But striking deals with new "suppliers" meant he himself must broker the deal. With a successful pact negotiated, all he wanted to do was get back home, open a bottle of his best brandy to celebrate. He planned on making as much money as possible in this next year, then selling everything, and heading south to purchase a plantation to retire on. Buchannon had a deeper, darker secret....he was formerly a Cleric of the Order of the Faith, but had been excommunicated for fraud and theft. His past was hidden well, but the Order was slowly growing its presence across the islands, he knew at some point, he may be found out. As Aldric was enjoying his first glass of brandy, a match struck in the dark corner of his room. A lantern spilled light across the room, illuminating a menacing figure draped in a dark cloak. Without turning around, Buchannon said "you can tell your Captain my price is final, he agreed to it in writing, and I do not break written contracts." This wasn't the first time a greedy pirate Captain had tried to intimidate him. The shadowy figure replied: " I'm not here about any contracts Mr. Aldric Buchannon.....or should I say Cleric Gerard Bertrand?!? Don't even try and deny it, I know it is you." All the blood drained from Bertrand's face, as he heard his true name aloud, one he had not used in over 15 years. His mind raced as he stood still in shock. "Who could possibly know his real identity? Did someone sell him out? But no....the two people he had known from his past life as a cleric that he had met again out here were sitting at the bottom of the ocean, nothing but bones now" he thought to himself. The cloaked figure (Corwin Ragnarrson) stepped forward into the center of the room, sword in one hand, shackles in the other. "Turn and face me" commanded Corwin, and Bertrand complied. The younger man standing in front of him was a stranger, but something about him nagged at the back of Bertrand's mind that he couldn't quite decipher. Before he could think of what to say Ragnarrson spoke again "The sins of your past have come back to haunt you this day Bertrand. You may be asking yourself who I am....I'll clear that up for you. I am the one who got away. You may not remember my dear parents, but you took them from me, and almost took me as well. I swore the day of their burning that revenge would one day be mine......today is that day. As he heard these words, it all came flooding back to him...a young boy who vanished into thin air at his parents execution, in a small country village in rural Oleon. He had looked high and low for that boy to no avail, and never figured the means by which he had escaped. "Put on these shackles" commanded Corwin. As Bertrand obliged, Ragnarrson pushed him towards the door. "Don't even bother trying to alert your crew once we get outside and near the docks. They are sound asleep courtesy of some very special rum my men gave them. We are going on a journey Bertrand....if you still believe in your gods, pray to them now. Because were we are going....they can't help you." For the first time he could recall in recent memory, Bertrand felt the cold rush of fear and uncertainty envelop him. The Final Chapter will be dropping soon. How will it end? _________________________________________________________________________________________ Some full lighted shots of the build. I picked up some lighted brick elements from Brickstuff a while back and wanted to use them for a night build such as this. They work great, and even have built in flickering into the lights. I also wanted to practice some furniture and tile design for this build. Pretty happy overall.

Thanks Professor! I like the shack as well. Took a few tries to get the proper "lean-to" look. I have most of the next chapter built, just waiting on some specialty bricks to arrive to finish it off. Most of my collection is classic pirates and 90s era sets. I've been visiting the local used book/game/toy store that sells loose bricks by the bag. Been trying to grab as many modern colors and useful pieces as possible. Thank you! You will definitely like the next chapter coming up

A Tale of Revenge: Part 1: The Day the World Stood Still Part 2: Heretic! Part 3: Baptism of Fire Part 4: Casting a Wide Net <--- You are here Part 5: Ghosts of Days Past Part 6: A Blood Soaked Symphony _______________________________________________________________ For this next chapter in the series, we jump forward in time to the present day, 25 years after the events in Parts 1-3. _______________________________________________________________ January 13, 625AE Maldria, the interior For the last two years, Corwin and his finest intelligence agents had been scouring every corner of Halos for information regarding the Cleric of the Order responsible for his parents death. The search so far had turned up nothing but false leads, dead ends, and disappointment. Until last month, when a local black market rum-runner was bribed to reveal that he had delivered a shipment of rum to Maldria, to a lonely old hermit, rumored to be a former cleric. They immediately set out for the island, and after 2 weeks trekking through the interior, located the old hermit's camp. "Good evening to you old man" said Corwin, as he walked up to the hermit's fire. The hermit, slowly looked up from his bottle of rum.....his eyes glazed over with drunken stupor. He slowly glanced around at the stern figure in front of him, and then men surrounding his camp, and it came into his foggy brain that he was being robbed. "Pleaaaasththh" he stammered....."jushhht leave me my rum, and you can have everything elsth." Corwin glanced at the sparse camp with its few remaining supplies "we aren't here for your things old man, we are here for YOU". Those words cut through the hermit's rum-fog like a hot knife, he instantly woke up, as fear washed over him. "Me? Why in the blazes would you want a poor old man wishing to be left alone? "We have it on good authority that you were once a Cleric of the Order of the faith. And that you participated in and were responsible for the deaths of dozens of poor Citizens" stated Corwin. The old man replied...."while it is true I was a cleric, I despised those burnings....the head cleric above me was an extremist and forced us to execute those poor people!" "Still!" continued Corwin, "you were complicit in the deaths of those people, whether you like it or not. I'm going to ask you this once, and answer me honestly old man. Was your master Gerard Bertrand?" "h-h-how did you kn-" stammered the man. "Look at me" said Ragnarrson. Do you remember....25 years ago. A man and his wife burned to death in a small villlage. They had a son, and-" "You're the boy that got away!" cried the old man. "Cleric Bertrand rained holy hellfire on us for letting you escape. I'm ashamed to admit it, but I was there that day." "I know you were. The moment I set eyes on you, I knew you were not Bertrand. I assumed correctly that you were associated with him though. Which leads me to ask...where is that ill-gotten excuse for a priest?" inquired Corwin. The old man paused, trying to remember through his soupy rum-laden memory..."Bertrand was excommunicated about 15 years ago....long before I left the order. As it turns out, the only thing he loves more than burning heretics is stealing their wealth. The church caught wind that he was taking almost half of all of the gold, jewels, and money that his victims possessed. And for that, he was summarily kicked out and excommunicated from the Order. I can't say for certain, but I heard some rumors that he has setup shops in a few Sea Rat ports....acting as middleman for Black Flagged Pirates and selling their stolen wares back to the very people they stole them from! I would start your search there." "You wouldn't lie to me, would you old man?" asked Ragnarrson. "Never! Cried the old man......"please have mercy on me!" Corwin looked over the old man for a minute, before saying "I had in my mind to kill you where you stand....but it appears the rum is already doing that. I pity you.....and the Old Gods will judge you according to your actions." With that, the group of men set back off into the jungle towards their ship, to continue their search for the infamous Cleric Bertrand. The old man cracked open another bottle, intent on drowning the memories of the past in the euphoric embrace of rum. Stay tuned for Part 5 next! ________________________________________________________________________ Some top-down pics of the scene:

He doesn't blame Oleon for what happened to him....the Order of the Faith is the real villain here. They used their power to influence the King into making their terrible practices acceptable. And, this was 25 ish years in history. The Order is not as extreme now it seems (at least from what you can see on the outside)...but who knows for certain. ANd he doesn't see himself as an Oleander...being as only his mother is from there, and that he hasn't set foot in Oleon since he was 8 years old. He fully identifies with his father's Vikendian heritage in the frosty northern lands of Halos. I'm waiting to see exactly how the changes in Era III will affect gameplay and the story telling....but the conclusion of this story arc (working on the last 2 chapters now), just may push Corwin from level-headed leader of a small trading company into a new direction

With the first half of this series taking place a small town in the countryside, I figured the Clerics of the order would be lower level, and thus not dressed as pompously as those in the larger cities. And yes, very similar to the Sparrows from GOT. The words of the gods and a firm hand are all the peasantry need to keep them in line.... Excited to be back after about 4 years. Sad I missed some good adventures during that time, but excited for what's to come! Thank you Professor! Young Corwin was spirited away to Corrington, where he was adopted and raised by a Captain in the Royal Navy. He received a full military and navel education, but upon completing school, he sailed back to his homeland in the frigid Northern territories, to reconnect with his father's clan and learn their ways. After those 10 years in the north, is when he returned to Halos to establish his own trading company and hunt the man responsible for his parent's death.

After a long hiatus, I am back! And with Era III looming on the horizon, I wanted to button up this story line before the transition is final. Stay tuned, these last chapters will be dropping in fast succession. _______________________________________________________________________________ A Tale of Revenge: Part 1: The Day the World Stood Still Part 2: Heretic! Part 3: Baptism of Fire <--- You are here Part 4: Casting a Wide Net Part 5: Ghosts of Days Past Part 6: A Blood Soaked Symphony _______________________________________________________________________________ The day was here...execution day. Two pyres were erected in the town square, kindling was laid out, and the prisoners were brought out and tied up. Cleric Bertrand and his aide arrived, gleeful sneers plastered to their faces. The cleric raised his hand, which grasped a document...."in my hand is the writ of execution for Ragnar Halfdan and his wife Patricia. By the power given me by the Order and the King of Oleon, you are sentenced to death, by way of Baptism of Fire." He turned to Ragnar, and said, Any last words, heathen?" Ragnar turned to little Corwin and simply said "Remember who you are. We love you and will be with you always." The other cleric lit both pyres, and they were quickly engulfed in flames. As young Corwin watched in horror as his parents burned, a stranger walked up behind him. "Come with me son, I'm going to get you out of here, Magistrate Dumond sent me to help you escape the order"." Young Corwin quietly left with the stranger, as the Clerics reveled in delight at their work. That concludes the portion of the story from the past, and the final few episodes will take place in present times. Stay tuned!

This is exactly the information I needed. A ship is definitely in the works, but I'll hold off on some more specific items until more info is released. I was actually able to find the old account sheets, and I was still on it....I was just looking in the wrong place. And a question about the future....if everything is reseting, will it be from absolute zero? As in like you signed up like a new member, and have your initial small amount to begin building from? Just trying to gauge who/what I want to build. Don't want to overdo it with stuff I couldn't register to start. Thanks!

Hello Gentlemen, it's been a while! Excited to see what Era III has in store. With leadership changing, who should I contact in regards to the state of my accounts? I unfortunately lost all my lists of my properties, ships, etc. in a computer crash. I didn't see my name in any of the recent KPAs, since I haven't been active in a while. I currently have a good bit of free time on my hands, so I wanted to do some pre-building in anticipation for Era III. I wanted to see what monetary funds and what not I have at my disposal before I start building. Whoever can point me in the direction of who to contact, I'd appreciate it!

November 24, 620AE Corwin Ragnarrson had just received an urgent dispatch from his homeland of Vikendia in the far north. His worst fears had been confirmed; his uncle, the ruler of their tribe, had been killed by an ambitious nobleman seeking to rule himself. Now, Corwin's cousin Ivar, was engaged in a civil war with the usurper, fighting for his life and to keep the tribe unified. Upon receiving this devastating news, Ragnarrson recalled all of the Black Wolf Company military assets that could be reached quickly, and immediately set sail for Vikendia to aid his cousin. The remaining army, along with all of the BWC trade assets, were left in the hands of his most trusted Lieutenant, Freya. He had complete faith in her management skills, he only worried about the Terraversan war spilling into other territories, and the decreased numbers of soldiers in New Nassau left it vulnerable to attack. But it was a risk he was willing to take, as his only remaining family was in danger. _____________________________________________________________________________________ February 6, 622AE It had been almost 15 months since the fateful day that Corwin Ragnarrson had departed New Nassau in support of his cousin. Now, many months and battles later, the war was finally over. The enemy was vanquished, and the tribe reunited. On the shores of Vikendia, Corwin and Ivar say their goodbye's as the BWC soldiers load the boats with supplies for the long journey back to New Nassau. As they said their farewells, Ivar motioned to a small group of men standing a few feet off. "Take these men with you back south. They are some of my finest intelligence agents. They have no direct connection to you or the BWC, so use them as you see fit" he said with a wry smirk. "I owe you my life, and I hope these men plus that blasted traitor's gold can only start to even us up. Send us a ship once a year with any news or requests you need to help you in your ventures south. Goodbye cousin." Many of the Black Wolf Company soldiers were new recruits when they sailed north, but now with many battles under their belt in the past year, they moved and acted as a veteran unit, loading the boats with speed and precision. _____________________________________________________________________________________ June 4, 622AE New Nassau After a long but uneventful journey, Ragnarrson and his men were back safely in New Nassau. Corwin immediately made his way to his private office where Freya could meet him and fill him in on the Company business in his absence. "Freya, come in." said Corwin, as there was a knock on the door. "I'll keep it brief, as I am exhausted from the journey. Here are letters to all the leadership in the BWC, please distribute them for me. I've set a meeting for next month to discuss what the future holds for us. Is that the master ledger you have? You can leave it with me, I'll take a look at it tomorrow, but I'm sure all is in order. Anything special to report?" Freya thought a moment, then replied "as of late, it has been pretty quiet and non-eventful. Our businesses and properties have continued to rake in steady profits. The soldiers that remained here have continued to train and stay ready should they be needed. Our ships the Akela and Nymeria had some great trade runs at the height of the Terraversan War, delivering some much needed goods at a HEALTHY markup, as the situation provided", she finished, with a twinkle in her eye. "The rest, I've included in the ledger, which you can read at your convenience. I'll drop these letters off right away. Its good to have you back, Commander." _____________________________________________________________________________________ Just a little free build, to say "I'm back!" after a year and half away. Can't wait to get rolling again Some bonus shots of the two scenes I built for this post.

I'll take 2 ramen to-go, please Great job, and the amount of details in such a small space is amazing.

Another outstanding write-up as always! And perfect timing too, as I'm just coming back from an 18-month hiatus and have been catching up on the events that I missed.

Please take your sweet time Life has been so hectic lately I haven't even had a chance to look at my bricks the last 6 weeks.

Thanks for putting on such a fun Challenge! I had a blast building for it. Now to brush up on my microbuilding skills...

You're welcome, it was a fun experience and a welcome change in building scenery. That's what I was going for.....Sea Rats will be.....Sea Rats. Many don't care who they steal from, as long as they come out ahead . Best friends for hire, and equal opportunity thieves! Thank you. Had to add a little bit of debauchery to the build, befitting a man with "flexible" morals and convictions....and who knows, I may continue the story of Young Jaime and his antics in Mesabi Landing.

26 October, 620 Infero Pordejon You could almost feel the excitement in the air, like an electrical charge. Today was the day. Training was over, and The Black Wolf Company Expeditionary Forces were being deployed! Months of drilling and training exercises behind them, it was finally time to go to war. A busy scene unfolded on the small estuary on which they descended. The soldiers carried their boats from their camp in the jungle down to the beach. A short trip along the coastline to Charlatan Bay was ordered, where they were to await the arrival of their transport vessels. Then on to Terraversa! The young men in the group were almost jumping with excitement at the thought of battle and war, but the older and more experienced men knew the dangers and possibilities that lie ahead. But regardless of their outlook, all the men were eager to finally put the training behind them, and show their worth. Carrying the boats down from the jungle was no easy task Colonel Lindstrom and his officer discuss their plans for the journey with their Oleonaise liaison one last time before departure. The contract has been signed and sealed, and all that is left is the journey to Terraversa. To be used to raise two Companies of Infantry out of Charlatan Bay.

To be licensed as a small Residence, as a result of the Chance Roll while docking there.

As the youngest and newest member of the crew about the Nymeria, young Jaime had the pleasure of doing all the unwanted tasks aboard the ship, left by the more senior crew. When he heard the Nymeria was headed to Mesabi Landing to trade, he knew this was his chance, and secretly began preparations, stowing small parts of cargo away to keep for himself to sell. Once the ship docked, and the cargo was unloaded (and his stolen portion quietly offloaded elsewhere), he finally got his permission to see the town. He turned back to the crew, gave them a smile and said "I hope you all get eaten by Dolphins" then disappeared into the crowd. When the time had come for the Nymeria to disembark, he was nowhere to be found, and a good thing too, the Crew would have strung him up if they could find him, for stealing part of the cargo and taking a significant chunk out of their profits. Meanwhile, young Jaime was living the dream. He sold his goods, and was hidden out in the Sunken District of the city, and procured a small shanty away from prying eyes. He holed up there until he knew the Nymeria had left the port, and any danger to him was gone. To pass the time, he relied on every Sea Rat's favorite go-to.....rum and pleasurable company. And with coin in his pocket, neither were in short supply (for now). Who knows what the future holds for Jaime, but that is not something young Sea Rats generally think about, at least while they still have coin To be licensed as a small residence in Mesabi Landing, as the result of the chance roll for docking at the port.

Thank you! I definitely tried to give each table a unique flair and character to set it apart from the others. Thank you for the kind words! Thank you! That waitress with the beer was one of the first ones I had in mind when designing the scene. Even here in America, that's one of the biggest Oktoberfest visuals you will see. And thanks, I think the instruments are my favorite part as well. Thank you!

a PERFECT addition. I love the sleeping pirate that lost his pants the best