SkaForHire

Some great looking builds for sure. I thought I commented already on the house, but I guess I didn't The colors are great, and I really like the roof work. I am interested in seeing where the story is going... but "Zakon: Yes, they will be turned to dog food. Do we have our order's, Master Trian?" I have been waiting for that joke for a long time. I doubt anyone but Americans and Canadians might get it. When I was a kid my family sold Iams in our store, and when I first saw that was what DM called his troops that is all I could think of. I am glad his colors are not green and white.

IF we make something similar to Mitgardia's blizzard... lets agree NOT to call it a sandstorm. hahahaha. But really, I know we have Kai and Gideon the building machines, but can we match this onslaught by the end of June? As a joke I was going to post a guide to all the best taverns of Queenscross... since I made 6 of them for the battle...

Ok, I feel a bit bad now, I didn't mean my criticism of the tactic to bring bad blood. Like I have said, it was clever. And with Ecc reaffirming that there is more time to build free builds, then, I think this actually puts the ball back in the other guild's courts as a challenge. I think what got a few of our blood pressures up was that we thought the deadline was in two days, and felt as we did not have enough time to respond. I hope this acts as a resurgence for all GoH.

@Kabel, I didn't say it was wrong! Just a little surprised and wish it was done in time that other guilds could have had a chance to respond in kind. I never really cared about points total, and I am not really sure anyone in Kaliphlin does either... I am glad you all had fun doing it, and like I said, it was a really cool concept. As DM said, it would be nice to have had the firm deadline in hand for everyone else, but I guess this is an advantage of having a guild leader who is active!!!

Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes. I really like the story, and all of the builds were excellent, I loved that you showed us how you worked the behind the scenes magic in the last build. This is one of my favorite so far (and all have been really good!).

@ Infernum, no I know they probably did them over time. That is what I said, whereas I am impressed by the coordinated strike... it didn't really leave the best taste of sportsmanship in my mouth, since none of the other guilds have time to really respond. It is totally legal, and a good tactic to win, I just was a little shocked to see something so bold used in what has been thus far a very friendly competition. They are all excellent builds and well worth commenting on!!! I just didn't think it was in the nature of the competition thus far. Also, I was not saying we should have build limits, just that I now realize why LCC has them -- to prevent major racking up of points like this. I don't think we need limits, I just now understand why the other project has limits now. Also, I didn't mean any of those as personal attacks against anyone, like I said, they are all excellent builds, and you all are my friends. I guess I should have said "Touche Mitgardia, Touche." (I think that is the correct spelling for Touche.) @SK, I don't know if we had any clear clarification about this, it seemed that anything related to a challenge, even if it had its own thread would be part of the challenge and scored as an auxiliary build rather than a free build... but who knows. Also, as Kai said, it would have been nice to have a firm date for the cutoff. Actually what made me a little angsty was, as Brickinton said, the forum is a bit complicated now. I am not sure if all of those builds couldn't have been scored separately but posted on the same thread.

That second build is just as fantastic as the first. I love that tree too. Wow. Can't wait for the third.

I see a ghost!!!! :)

That is one bad@ss fortress!!! I wish there was a little more color separation between rocks and castle, but great job!

They are, although I am not sure how far behind the judges are. Actually, I am not even sure how many people even judge them anymore! What they are referring to is that there is a cut off point for this "book one" of Historica, which ends with Challenge 6. I think there seems to be plans going forward for more historica challenges but nothing is set in stone yet what happens after the 30th of April. Although there seems to be confusion about the free build cut off... It used to be one month after Challenge 6, but Challenge 6 moved, and no one said anything about when Freebuilds are due now.

Thanks, it was a lot of fun. We will see what the future of Historica holds for what the theme for a next battle could be.

Sorry to be a debbie-downer here, because all of these builds were very nice. Was all that Mitgardian posting meant to count as free builds??? I was under the impression if they were related to their entry, they don't count for scoring. I also now have figured why LCC has a scored build limit per month. It is a bit... unfair... to do that right before the end of scored builds. Especially, since I am guessing you all didn't just build them in the last week or two. Actually, when is the end of scored builds? It used to be a month after Chal VI, but then Chal VI was moved. So shouldn't it be May 30th? I never really cared about who won the final point total, but I kind of feel like if this was an organized play to win the total, that it taints the end of this chapter. Which is sad, because these are all good builds.

Well Ecc, that was an onslaught of new builds, all of them tremendous. I hope to get a few minutes to give some more detailed feedback later, but I wanted to tell you great job!

In 'merica we don't believe in logical scientific measurement systems.

My next planned story starts in Varlyrio - now that Merith lives there. So I hope to build something in the coming months. Also, both of those builds look excellent! Good work Kai and Kabel. I Hope to comment on them in more detail soon.

Heck, I made count during my posts to the BoQ!!! Yay!!!! Also wondering what this "winter" is that you speak of, is that the time of year it gets down to 80 degrees Fahrenheit? (27 degrees Celsius)?

Battle of Queenscross – OOC Wrapup I thought I would do a final Out of Character wrap up with quick summaries of the main actors of the battle. I also will try to post my representation of them, along with talking about a few game mechanics. General Overview: When we went into this we had a general set story line. The bad guys would get their reinforcements early, and we would add any further good guy reinforcements after they had been posted on the forum. If the good guys drove out the forces of evil completely, then they would be declared the winner. If the bad guys took and held the east side of the bridge for more than ten turns, they would be declared the winner. We tried to keep the command structure in place, making it as realistic as possible. If Paulos could not get a signal to a location on the battlefield, then those troops must continue what they were doing. At the end we decided that Jakos, Sergio, Craxus, Gideon, and Amiril would also be local captains for telling troops what to do – especially after the tower was hit by a ballista. The battle started out with the enemy, played by my friend, concentrating his heavy forces on the weakest part of the good guy line, the right flank. It was thought that the elven archers, who had very good stats, would be able to balance this, so it was actually much too late to pull back when we realized they were overmatched. The heavily armored orks did a number on most of the lightly armored elves. In fact, most of the enemy was heavily armored where I would call the good guys were on average, light to medium armored. The most impressing part of the early battle was the forum, where a bunch of average men and a few heroes fought a series of mythical creatures (who all had very good stats) to a draw. Without the T-rex, I think the forum would have gone in the favor of the good guys. If we would have stopped the battle before the retreat across the river, I would have told you the bad guys won. They were overpowering the forces of good, and they were going to easily take the west side of the bridge. There was no dramatics here (although I did have Gideon’s and Tiven’s life spared through plot and we may have added a little more movement to the characters to speed things up a bit) and everything was played out according to the rules set. It really looked like the enemy was going to win heavily, especially when they landed the ship, and the betraying army killed almost all of their “non-traitor” brethren in one round. But we were surprised when the senator and the team on the bridge held off two pushes, and Hugh Hos held off the orks from coming into the town on the east side, making the other orks easier to defeat. Then the “Thrash” ork took out five guys one turn, four the next, and two the next. He basically wiped out a whole squad in three turns and his buddy was about to kill the merman holding the bridge, trapping everyone else on the other side. The heroes rallied, Alfadas killed a bunch of thrash’s men, and Gideon, who we had pulled from the battle to keep him alive, was reinserted to help as it looked pretty bleak. The ship was another problem. It failed a series of basic navigation rolls, and thus had its accident. It was intended to land next to the other vessel, but it broke loose and killed those few on the bridge it ran over. Gideon had a “No die” tag, so we brought him back with the mermaid plot. All of those on the boat that went out of play were alive; they just were unavailable for the rest of the battle. That is where many of you saw your characters go. We knew the battle was over when two guys miraculously killed 15 heavily armored orks. Kessler literally rolled 5 critical hits in one turn, and actually did, in game mechanics, dance the dance of death around those orks. Once half that army on the ice bridge had been destroyed, and the commander fleeing, we decided to call it. So here is the rundown of the units: (Some pictures included, trying not to duplicate) Hugh Hos – Gerden – Deceased – Survived by two of his soldiers. Hugh took place in the early morning battle on the East side of the river, helping the Mypa Stedor troops with the first wave of orks. He then rushed back to the middle to hold the bridge as long as possible and to keep the orks out of the town. He was killed by one of the ork leaders, but killed many of the orks himself. DSC_2324 by skaforhire, on Flickr Sir Gideon – Gideon – Lived. Gideon took command at the forum, fought and killed men, minotaurs, and Cyclopses. He avenged Sir Derrick’s death by slaying the Cyclops King, but also lost his squire. He was almost killed in this battle, and sent to the other side of the river to take command. He was hit by the runaway boat and almost drowned, when he was rescued by a mermaid and brought back to the shore. He then defied the odds again by returning to battle with just a short sword to kill the beast, Thrash the Terrible. Sir Gideon wins the prize for killing the most named baddies. DSC_2254 by skaforhire, on Flickr Sir Derrick – Gideon – deceased – no survivors of his guard. Sir Derrick took Gideon’s side at the battle of the forum. To save a flank which was falling, he spun out into the enemy forces and killed many men. Unfortunately this drew the attention of the Cyclops King and after a quick fight he was overwhelmed and killed. Ediz Falconi – Gideon – Alive. Oddly, Falconi’s men held a flank at the forum that rarely saw action. At the end of the fight, they attempted to engage the wingless dragon, but better judgment got the best of them. One of his men were eaten there. One of his men were killed by the Cyclops King, and one of his men fell off the Merfolk Bridge and swam to shore, while the last was killed on the east side of the same bridge by Thrash the Terrible. Roger Farstrider was not present at the battle. Carol Anne the Defiler and Klugg the Defiled – Captain BeerBeard – lived. Klugg saved the day at the parle. He held off the orks while the Mitgardians retreated. He was killed, but later that night healed by Carol Anne. During the battle the next day Klugg fought alongside Sergio Jarrett on the right flank, trying to protect the chain. He must have slain 10 orks there, and while he was next to Sergio, the two were nearly invincible. When the retreat was called, Klugg stayed to hold off the orks while the elves ran. Carol Anne who was hiding behind the elves was slinging harm spells at the enemy, she killed a few, but used most of her mana to heal Klugg. When klugg fell again, his Horse tried to take him the long way around the battlefield to get back to Carol Anne. Carol Anne ended the battle hiding in the remnants of the bridge tower. Steen Larsson’s men – Kabel – Deceased. One man fell at the Parle Ambush on the first night. Three men fell at the forum under Gideon. Their captain took control of the town guard for part of the battle and did well holding off the enemy for most of the battle. During the retreat across the Merfolk bridge he lost his horse, but saved himself enough to stay on the bridge. He was one of the first to engage Thrash the Terrible, but succumbed to the ork’s axe. DSC_2292 by skaforhire, on Flickr Men of Valholl – Ecclesiastes – Deceased. One man fell at the Parle on the first night. Two others died valiantly in battle against the cyclopses at the forum. They were the first to kill one of these Cyclops. Their captain, on mount engaged in the first charge against the enemy. He attacked a troll one on one, dealt it a dire wound, but was decapitated when the troll lashed out in pain. Artesdror – Niku – Deceased. He spent most of the battle in the Tower of the Old Kings, sniping. He must have had something against Captain Tiven, because he shot and killed Tiven’s horse. (The game mechanics here give a chance to shoot an ally who is in combat when you are targeting the enemy he is engaging. Artesdror rolled and hit Tiven, and then rolled and hit Tiven’s horse instead of Tiven… it was also a critical hit, and did double damage, outright killing the horse.) Artesdror retreated from the tower with Paulos and crossed the river safely. He took up a perch on the monument in the park, where he shot a few more Orks, before trying to kill Thrash the Terrible. Artesdror was Thrash’s last victim, when Thrash used the length of his axe to hit Artesdror. Ser Blaore, the Oak – Niku – Deceased. Blaore had the honor of leading the only cavalry charge of the battle. He killed two men, included an enemy mounted knight, before attacking the wingless dragon. He was the first person to wound the dragon, missing killing it by a few points of damage. After dodging a few of the monster’s attacks, the Wingless Dragon picked Blaore out of the saddle and ate him. Captain Tiven – Niku – Injured, but alive. Tiven road in the cavalry charge with Blaore, he cut off and attacked some of the dwarf snakes, killing a few. Then, out of nowhere his horse was shot out from underneath him. He quickly recovered and killed a few snakes. He then retreated to the line and held a route of escape open for soldiers on the bridge. He refused to cross the merfolk bridge, and stood guard with Paulos and Cannondale. He was injured at the end of the battle, almost mortally. Alfadas Manderdson – Jeroenaa – Lived. Alfadas perhaps had the most robust battle of all the characters. He was at the Parle. He lost both of his men early at the forum, but he made short work of a few minotaurs. He was knocked unconscious at the forum by another minotaur, dragged to safety by the piper (who drown later on), healed by the Centaur shaman, and crossed the Merfok bridge successfully. He was in the middle of the chaos caused by thrash, but at the last moment, when things looked their worst, he had a round where he killed three of Thrash’s buddies, turning the tide of the battle at the monument. He later found himself on the other side of the bridge finishing off badguys. DSC_2299 by skaforhire, on Flickr Sir Phil Lepe, Sir Kristo, Sir Flor Ente – DaMaximus – Sir Kristo survived. Most of DaMaximus’s men fought together. However, the original Mpya Stedor men that got there first were put in charge of the chain under Sir Flor Ente. Sir Ente then met up with the other Aleenridders as they tried to engage the first orks on the East side of the battle. Ente’s men did not listen well, because three of them got on a rowboat to save a drowning soldier and to shoot at the enemy ship. Leaving one to guard the chain. The latter was assassinated by a Ninja (that Sir Kristo killed later) and the chain was broke. With the spearmen of Ximus, the Aleenridders dispatched the first ork threat, and raced back to the bridge to fight the second wave of Orks. All three, later accompanied by the remaining Ximus Spears, fought and held the ork landing party from folding over Jokas’s soldiers. Although the commander of the orks in this flank slayed both Sir Flo Ente and Sir Phil Lepe in one swing. (Technically two rolls, but it was on a cleave, so we pictured it as one swing). Sir Kristo was angered and killed the ork for vengeance. He made it through the battle, along with one soldier from Mpya Stedor and one from Ximus. Most of the other troops that were sent to Queenscross stayed with King Draconis in his separate fight. Azc – Kai – Lived. Azc was the third member of the Klugg, Sergio trio. He did not start with them, but with the elves on the right flank. As the elves got ran over by wargs and orks, Azc cut his way to Sergio and the three of them kept off much of the advance. He also retreated with Sergio, while Klugg held the line. They got on the boat commanded by Deragar the Bull and were swept downstream when the rudder broke. Sergio Jarrett – Scarst – Lived. Sergio commanded the Mitgardian troops at the Parle, and teamed up with Klugg and Azc the next day to hold off much of the initial Ork advance. He too was swept down the river on Deragar’s boat. Bishop Jamon’s Flame Archers – Masa – 4 Lived, 1 deceased. Perhaps the least talked about troops of the whole battle, the flame archers took up position at the top of the bridge. The were responsible for killing 1 troll and severely wounding a second. They also were responsible for keeping much of the undead at bay during the first assault on the bridge. When the traitor company turned on their allies on the bridge, one of these men were surprise attacked and killed. The other four made it down the mast of Derangar’s ship and floated away. Jokas Hoenfall – Skyrimguy – Lived. Jokas brought in disciplined troops, held the bottom of the bridge after Hugh fell, and was successful defeating the final ork push from atop the bridge. He later crossed over and helped relieve Paulos and Cannondale. The tactics of his troops probably stalled the enemy just enough so that they could not converge on the East Side of the bridge, allowing enough time for Frankenhulk to show up. Robuko -- Frankenhulk and the Order of Eden did well cleaning up and relieving the Alleenridders. Although Frankenhulk did take a dirt-nap during the contest. He was healed by the order and they helped kill of the remaining orks. The lion troops that came with them rushed to the ice bridge but Kessler and Arimil had done so much damage there, their services were not needed. Taras (lived), Arimil (assumed dead), Kessler (Missing in Action) – Soccerkid. The final chapter had a lot about what happened here, but a few other notes. Arimil killed about four orks, Kessler the rest. Taras was actually in the window of the mill, but I never got a good shot of him perched there. His rolls were not good, and he only wounded one ork. However, had the enemy made it across his stats would have made him a very effective assassin from behind. I think that is everyone… I did not count casulties, but there had to be over 100 on each side, if not nearer to 125. That is not counting the undead, who were continually resurected by the necromancers on the field. Concluding thoughts: I had a lot of fun. It was more work than expected, but I liked having a 100% brick battlefield this time around and we had really good participation. I would do it again in the future if there is interest, but not for a few months (although I will be visiting my brother in May, so we may throw together a smaller battle). I was a little sad that the fighting did not progress into the town on the east side, as I made all of those inns able to be opened, but I was at the point where I wanted the battle to finally end by the time we got there, so I am OK with not using the buildings. I hope you all enjoyed this thread as much as I enjoyed writing it. Final Random thought – Historicans need to breed tougher horses, almost every mount was killed before its rider in this battle.

Battle of Queenscross -- Aftermath No pictures, I figured you all had seen enough pictures with bodies strewn everywhere. Wrote in Paulos MacLean’s hand one day after the battle. We had finished the battle by around 16th hour of the day, and as I said in my last letter at the end of the battle the Heliotropes had opened up the magical mist that isolated us from everyone else and in came the PGTC’s army and DaMaximus’s army to help support us. The battle was over, but these two newcomer armies took upon the mop up duties. They ran down many of the enemy stragglers, and also captured some high profile prisoners. They also tended to the wounded as our healers and soldiers were exhausted. Lord DaMaximus caught Lord Pastroo, their general, trying to flee the city. We will have him sent to Petraea for trial. The Stormmistress Avonia seems to have escaped, along with the Purple maiden and Harold the Smooth. We thought we had killed the Necromancer Lord, Archbishop Rolis Grover, but his body was never recovered. I have been told that the man could not be killed, maybe it is true. There was another noble taken prisoner, along with the wingless dragon rider. We will interrogate them both to figure out their secrets. The Great Span itself is in terrible shape. After inspection, we are quite confident the Alleenridders will make it across, but not much more use can be made of this structure. When the Triumvirate convenes again to pick a new third member, they will have to discuss funding a new bridge. Oddly enough, the only other building to suffer in this attack was the Tower of the Old Kings. I doubt it is structurally sound, and will have to come down. It turns out the enemy ballista was terrible at aiming, and hit the river most of the time. However, they also had catapults out of our vision that did some damage on the East side of the river, but mostly to trees. DSC_2167 by skaforhire, on Flickr We have set to work preserving the bodies that we could of nobles. Most commoners will be buried on a small hill on the west side of the river. Abu Dun will be brought back to Eastgate for a grand funeral. Florbad the Mighty will be burned, as those were his wishes. Hugh Hos will have a special Nestlands ceremony tonight, and the Aleenridders will be sent home via arrangements made by Lord DaMaximus. We found out the fate of our compatriots to the South and West. King Dragonius, who had been sent to the south to cut off another force had an overwhelming victory, however the enemy had delayed him long enough that by the time he returned, his golden dragon could not penetrate the mist. Count Darzag of the Southern Lions had held the Jackal’s Teeth. Surprisingly, the enemy had moved a token force across the river undetected and engaged Darzag at the fortifications. In all, it was a hard fought victory but we have succeeded. I have been recalled by Petera, or else I would march on Cedrica with Lord DaMaximus. My cousin, Deragar the Bull may take his retainers and follow Lord Damaximus, but that is only if he is in shape to leave when our army sets off soon. For now, Kaliphlin’s interior and Petraea is safe. Sir Captain Paulos MacLean GEAR Co’s Master of Arms, Acting General.

He was alive. He fell over before I took the picture, and I was tired too. So he just collapsed in exhaustion after the battle. He was knocked out once, and I didn't mention it in the post, but he took a mightily wicked blow from Thrash the Terrible in the back. He was on his last legs along with Gideon most of the battle. We figured that he would fight to the bitter end though and kept him engaged. Falconi lived, although I think only one of the men he brought with him lived too. I will do the aftermath and an out of character wrap up with a little more details about everyone in a little bit. I need to grade some papers first. I kind of felt that Gideon would have a new mortal enemy. I am sure the Cyclops king has a son who will want vengeance too. @ Gedren - Hugh's men were killed except two that were just rendered unconscious. Actually, they both died on the ramp, slid down into Jokas men, who pulled them aside and took them to the healers.

Battle of Queenscross Day Two Afternoon: Part Five – Fate and other terrible mistresses. Sir Gideon had been one of the lucky few who were rescued by a sympathetic mermaid after the merfolk bridge was temporarily destroyed. She brought him to the shore where he was helped by a town’s guardsmen. DSC_2341 by skaforhire, on Flickr Gideon demanded to get back into the fight, but the guardsmen pointed out that he was too week and that he had lost his weapons when he was hit by the ship. DSC_2343 by skaforhire, on Flickr Meanwhile, the Centaur leader Anallia and a few of her band had pressed on to attack the command structure of the enemy. Anallia and a few of the others took on what was left of the death knights, while her husband and war chief, Oxnos, took a few centaurs to engage Lord Pastroo and the Purple mistress. DSC_2350 by skaforhire, on Flickr Oxnos’s men were slain by the purple mistress, but he was able to de-horse Pastroo, and even bring the man within an inch of his life. However, the cruel purple mistress cast a chaos spell that imbued her blade with a life-sucking quality and connected a blow with the tainted blade. Oxnos’s life ended there on the battlefield, but he had forced Pastroo to flee. This severed the overall command structure of the enemy army. DSC_2349 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2368 by skaforhire, on Flickr Alfadas Manderdson took command of the men at the monument. And he struck back at Thrash the terrible and his men. Manderdson on his own killed four of the orks with two great blows and rallied the men. But it was Gideon, who had found a shortsword and reentered the fray that brought down thrash by placing the sword between the beast’s shoulder-blades. At this point the heroes had won the battle for the monument. DSC_2354 by skaforhire, on Flickr They pushed on and helped Jokas clean up the rest of the Hand of Corruption troops. Jokas had frenzied after seeing the brave Hugh Hos die, and killed many of the orks himself. DSC_2362 by skaforhire, on Flickr But perhaps what changed the tide of the battle the most was what happened on the ice bridge. Arimil and Kessler stood staring down 30 elite troops. They decided not to hold the bridgehead, for that would give the enemy opportunity… and as Mitgardians they wanted to fight on the ice itself. DSC_2331 by skaforhire, on Flickr Arimil was cautious, and for good reason. As soon as they met the enemy on the snow, he took a large wound from a Stoneface’s blade. Kessler was more wreckless, and like an angel of death he carved swing after swing into the enemy. DSC_2334 by skaforhire, on Flickr (OOC: In game mechanics, Kessler did the near impossible – like thrash before him – he killed five people on one game turn. Tying the record.) Kessler and Arimil became so efficient, that soon there were few Stoneface orks left on the bridge. DSC_2356 by skaforhire, on Flickr But, even one left was too many, as the second to last Stoneface ork, a chieftan, ran Arimil through. Kessler raged and spun back to finish off the ork, and then killed the last of the Stoneface clan on the bridge. DSC_2357 by skaforhire, on Flickr At this point the Stormmistress Avonia saw the writing on the wall. The leadership was gone and there was a monster on the other side of the bridge that was killing her troops by the handful. She began to let her spell go. Harold the Smooth and the other commanders on the bridge turned and fled, and the Stormmistress didn’t bother to even wait for all of her men to make it back to safety. She let the spell go and the ice quickly began to melt in the warm southern river. DSC_2360 by skaforhire, on Flickr This of course left Kessler stranded in the middle of the ice bridge by himself. Instead of taking off as much metal as possible, he dove into the river to recover Arimil’s body. We still don’t know what happened to him. DSC_2358 by skaforhire, on Flickr Many of the enemy began to flee. DSC_2361 by skaforhire, on Flickr Frankenstein, Jokas, Alfadas, and other crossed the Great Span and helped us finish off the stragglers. DSC_2363 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2365 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2366 by skaforhire, on Flickr With the momentum suddenly shifted, and the enemy breaking, the mist began to part on the east side of the river. The PGTC Heliotropes had dissipated the magical mist, and on the other side was the rest of their troops, along with DaMaximus and the Alleenridders. We had held the bridge so his force could cross safely. We had held the bridge so that Victor Revolword could not move his troops into Kaliphlin’s heartland. He had held for all those who had perished so far. Too tired to write up "The Aftermath" tonight, but hopefully will get it done tomorrow.

Battle of Queenscross Day Two Afternoon: Part Four – The Day Darkens. This is when things turned for the worse. The bridge was quickly reestablished by the merfolk, but the vessel continued down river, and we lost the use of those troops. Easily, 20 of our best men gone in the mist for the rest of the battle. DSC_2284 by skaforhire, on Flickr Within ten minutes we lost five of our leaders and the middle collapsed. First was senator Craxus. He fell with half of his men on top of the bridge. A member of the Traitor company struck him down. Although, Craxus had held on to fight one hell of a battle. His men killed almost all of the remaining hotknives that had turned on them. It is a shame that he fell there. DSC_2330 by skaforhire, on Flickr Most of Bloodfist’s men had escaped to the merfolk bridge, but his last men were almost overrun by the oncoming horde. In addition, most of the centaurs had been slain again the Stoneface orks still on the west side of the river. DSC_2312 by skaforhire, on Flickr Although he took at least 7 orks, including a commander, with him, finally Hugh Hos fell to the Hand of Corruption. DSC_2352 by skaforhire, on Flickr Around the same moment, Frankenstein received a tremendous blow from an ork axe and was down for about an hour. Luckily the Order of Eden were there to heal him. DSC_2353 by skaforhire, on Flickr If this was not bad enough Sir Phil Lepe and the unnamed Aleenridder were killed by one of the ork commanders in a mighty swing. A swing so fierce that all those who witnessed it said it shred the daylight, leaving a black scar on reality. It must have been a mighty attack to fell two Aleenridders in one swing. DSC_2351 by skaforhire, on Flickr By the monument things had become increasingly worse when a fist of Hand orks made their way to the bridge. After they almost killed the Merman holding up the end, there emerged a leader with a battle axe. Those who witnessed this specimen of ork called him Thrash the terrible, for he was quite terrifying. DSC_2329 by skaforhire, on Flickr Thrash killed my whole body guard in seconds, most of the town guard that had made it over after that, and then even managed to kill Artesdror, who was on top of the monument. Artesdror put two arrows into thrash before succumbing to the ork’s axe, but it did not slow him down. This being was tearing about our whole line. DSC_2339 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2340 by skaforhire, on Flickr With three of the fights crumbling, there opened up another section of combat. My own. I was determined to keep the bridge open long enough for even Bloodfist to make it out. All of our men who were not trapped on the Great span had made it onto the Merfolk’s bridge. Just Cannondale, Sir Tiven and myself stood at the entrance to the bridge. At this point the fist of Stoneface orks that had cut down most of the centaurs came for us. DSC_2347 by skaforhire, on Flickr We fought hard, but Sir Tiven was wounded. At the last second Cannondale was able to parry a killing blow. We had our backs to the wall… and we knew we were done for. DSC_2355 by skaforhire, on Flickr To be continued.

Battle of Queenscross Day Two Afternoon: Part Three – Reinforcements have arrived... Somewhere around this time, our reinforcements showed up from all directions. The first batch was expertly led men of Jokas Hoenfall. His men had been trained in many formations of battle, and although they were not much to look at, these northmen were brave. They arrived in their anti-cavalry formation, but upon seeing elite foot at the top of the bridge, they quickly changed into a catch and surround formation at the foot of the bridge. DSC_2277 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2294 by skaforhire, on Flickr Jokas called for Hugh Hos to disengage and to slowly move down the ramp of the bridge to lure the orks into a trap. Unfortunately this was easier said than done, as Hugh watched all of his companions slaughtered. DSC_2301 by skaforhire, on Flickr However, he held tight, and even though he was forced against a wall, he held three of them at bay as the rest rushed down into Jokas’ s trap. The trap worked well, but these were elite members of the Hand of Corruption. Solid troops, that were the match for any other troop in the world. Jokas’s men fought hard but lost many. Jokas himself never took up position in the line and fought many of the beasts in the middle of trap to relieve his men. DSC_2317 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2325 by skaforhire, on Flickr As the Merfolk bridgehead on the east side of the river was starting to give way to ork attack, another group of reinforcements arrived. The Order of Eden led by Viktor Frankenstein and a group of Kaliphlin foot sent by the PGTC. They had apparently gotten separated along the way because they entered from two different roads. DSC_2302 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2303 by skaforhire, on Flickr Frankenstein had become some sort of hulking beast due to some sort of alchemy, but we didn’t complain. He rushed into battle with the order charging behind him, and they helped relieve the last of the Ximian spearmen and Sir Phil Lepe, Sir Alex Kristo, and the unnamed Aleenridder. (OOC: I assume DaMaximus can give this guy a name and a good burial… whoops spoiler alert!). DSC_2307 by skaforhire, on Flickr Frankenstein helped turn that small fight in our favor, but worse things were brewing a few yards away as the orks were able to keep our men off the Eastern shore. On the north road, three men entered from Mitgardia. Taras the Assassin, Arimil the warrior and Kessler the Bezerker. These men, along with a few archers took up position on the newly formed ice bridge. They made it their mission to slow down the advance of the enemy across the bridge. Just Arimil and Kessler stood against thirty orks and elite Boar Knights of Harold the Smooth. They had to hold long enough so that the PGTC foot soldiers could come hold the bridgehead. DSC_2305 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2313 by skaforhire, on Flickr Meanwhile, the retreat across the river was going somewhat well until Derengar’s boat lost its mast and sailed downriver under the bridge. DSC_2316 by skaforhire, on Flickr They tried to steer the vessel, but the rudder broke against the current and they went smashing through the bridge. It took with it the remaining survivor of Sir Derick’s party, along with Gideon, one of Falconi’s men, the piper, our flagger, Sir Robert Holsten, and a few others I cannot recall. DSC_2315 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2327 by skaforhire, on Flickr This was during a period when there was heavy resistance by the orks on the other side of the bridge. Even with our added strength, few of our men were able to engage the orks that were fighting around the old monument. My whole bodyguard had crossed with Manderdson, not one of them would survive this battle. The last of the Southern Lions sacrificed himself to save the merman holding the bridge when one of the orks made their way onto the bridge to kill the merfolk holding it. Without that man’s sacrifice, most of the men left on the makeshift bridge would have been stranded. DSC_2323 by skaforhire, on Flickr Matters were about to get worse. To be continued:

Battle of Queenscross Day Two Afternoon: Part Two – Holding the Line. At this point the main objective was to get our men back across the river to the East side in order to make a final defense of the bridge. The West side was in ruins, and we had pulled out of two of the flanks and the middle was crumbling from attack on both sides. DSC_2265 by skaforhire, on Flickr The end of the battle at the forum was disheartening. After Gideon’s squire fell, the Cyclops King struck a mighty blow into Gideon himself. DSC_2255 by skaforhire, on Flickr It left him inches from death, but somehow, mustering all of his courage, he was able to press one last attack on the Cyclops king and defeat him – claiming vengeance for the fallen Sir Derrick. DSC_2257 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2258 by skaforhire, on Flickr Outside the forum was another matter, the wingless dragon had eaten over a score of men, including Blaore the Oak. Falconi tried to engage him, but heard the retreat that I ordered. Unfortunately, not all of Falconi’s men were as lucky to miss the appetite of the beast. DSC_2268 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2274 by skaforhire, on Flickr At this point, Anallia, the leader of the Centaurs came to me where I was ushering people across the bridge. She demanded action for her clan. She informed me that the only way her people were crossing back to the East side of the river was over the great span or in a funeral pyre. She said that they would not risk the merfolk bridge. I respected that, and asked her to hold off the oncoming tide or Orks, undead, and that beast. DSC_2273 by skaforhire, on Flickr The Centaurs did not disappoint. They slayed the mighty wingless dragon (already wounded by the Oak’s attempt) in short order. I wish we would have sent them in first, but who could have forseen that heavily armored men would fair so poorly against the beast. DSC_2288 by skaforhire, on Flickr The centaurs also engaged the commanders of the enemy force, including Arangal Pastroo, who still seemed to be the general. DSC_2291 by skaforhire, on Flickr The enemy, sensing victory, began to utilize some of its forces to clear roads and drag away the troll bodies so that they could advance stronger on the final position. DSC_2282 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2319 by skaforhire, on Flickr Meanwhile, our men under Senator Craxus and General Blane Redfist attempted to hold off a two prong attack from the betraying Hotknives and the undead that were making their way to the foot of the bridge. All the while, trying to keep open an avenue of retreat so that the rest of the men could pull out. Captain Tiven and what was left of the town guard formed a defensive line, while the centaurs smashed the oncoming creatures. DSC_2314 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2326 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2322 by skaforhire, on Flickr At this point Gideon, bloodied and on his last legs came to me and insisted on staying by my side as we held this side of the bridge for others to cross. DSC_2290 by skaforhire, on Flickr I commanded him to send his men across, and along with them went the now healed Alfadas Manderdson. Gideon brought up the rear, but noted his objections. I instructed him to take control of the forces on the other side if Sir Alex Kristo had fallen. I hoped that command would keep the man out of the thick of things for a while. DSC_2272 by skaforhire, on Flickr To Be Continued in the next post.

Battle of Queenscross Day Two Afternoon: Part One – Building Bridges . In the hand of Paulos MacLean. Blood and ashes stain Queenscross. I write to you, noble lords of the realm, of the hard fought battle that has left this fair city in chaos and ruin. At about noon on the second day we had been betrayed by the GEAR 2nd Cavalry, the “Hotknives.” They had held the bridge in our favor, then half of them turned on their comrades and slaughtered them. They then acted as a guard as the elite Hand of corruption soldiers landed a ship against the bridge and poured out onto the bridge and underneath it. DSC_2250 by skaforhire, on Flickr At the same time, the battle in front of us was collapsing, the far right evacuated via a ship that got caught up on the bridge. The middle being hit from both the front and the back by the betraying army. And the left, the forum had been a hard fought victory snatched away from us by a massive wingless dragon that had forced the rest of our flank to fall back to my position. At roughly the same moment as the final showdown between Sir Gideon and the Cyclops King was ending, a ballista round shattered the top of the Tower of the Old Kings where I had taken up a vantage point. DSC_2275 by skaforhire, on Flickr Due to this, I left the tower with my men and the sniper Artesdror to the sea to meet the Centaur Shaman Darnari. We were desperate for a new way to cross the river, or else the army on this side would have to flee into the mist that surround the battlefield. She told us that she could call in a favor, but that I would probably have to give up something to. I had no idea what she meant, but she went to the water and cast a spell. Within a few minutes merfolk showed up. DSC_2249 by skaforhire, on Flickr Now being of a sailing family, I know how treacherous these creatures could be, but we had no choice. The Mer-leader offered to build us a bridge if I would owe him a favor to be determined at a later date. I agreed, not knowing how he would deliver on the bridge in time. To my surprise his people dove to the bottom of the river and pulled up old ship pieces from the many wrecks over the centuries beneath the great span. They then held the pieces in place to make a bridge… a shaky bridge. DSC_2262 by skaforhire, on Flickr I quickly sent the first men across, I warned them not to take their mounts, but some felt that in order to fight the orks on the other side they needed them. Well, the first two made it across, but no other horse would successfully make the journey. The first across attempted to flank the Orks who were coming off the enemy vessel. DSC_2256 by skaforhire, on Flickr Meanwhile on the great span, our forces who were trapped were attempting to evacuate down the Bull’s newly acquired ship’s mast and into the boat. It was possibly the only place they could have gone. I set up a perimeter back to the bridge, hoping to get soldiers out, but we kept getting cut off. DSC_2278 by skaforhire, on Flickr On top of the bridge the good senator held with his personal bodyguard while the archers fled to the ship. DSC_2260 by skaforhire, on Flickr On the other side of the bridge, a few brave tinkers attempted to stop the rushing orks, but were soon overwhelmed. Hugh Hos brought his men up to hold the gap, knowing that if the orks poured through all would be lost. At the foot of the bridge, the Mpya Stedor troops engaged the other stream of orks. DSC_2263 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2266 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2264 by skaforhire, on Flickr It was at this time that I learned about the enemy’s third thrust. Apparently the Stormmistress Avona had taken up position to create a third way across the river. She summed all her strength and raised blocks of ice out of the river. The ice formed and created a bridge. Immediately the enemy began to storm across it. DSC_2296 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2297 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2304 by skaforhire, on Flickr With so few troops on the west side of the bridge, it was even more dire that we got more men across the rickety merfolk bridge. Unfortunately, many men slipped on the unstable surface and fell into the water, sinking to the bottom. Sometimes a mermaid would save a man, but we lost over 15 men to the bridge alone. DSC_2300 by skaforhire, on Flickr DSC_2287 by skaforhire, on Flickr

Yay!!! Interesting way to keep a baddy around and leave it open to the question: "Who will be king?" That third build is marvelous. Absolutely stunning. I too like the planet. Question: did you attach it, or just sit it on top? In the tower at Queenscross, I could not figure a good way to attach my dome and just let it sit there. I would be interested in figuring out how to make those pieces more stable and look good.