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Petraea, golden jewel of the southern guild, and home to some of the most impressive gardens in the guilds. With the civil war coming to an end, all three factions found themselves facing off against each other. This part of the gardens was where Petraea portrayed the different agricultural differences from across the guilds. It housed some of the only man-eating pumpkins seen outside of Nocturnus. When the battle started, a music grinder and his monkey were caught up in the action. They fled as soon as possible, leaving the fighting to the soldiers. The troops from Ulandus had taken this part of the gardens first. But the forces from the High Council and the Desert King's men were coming at them from both directions, catching them in-between. The Desert King mummies thought they were out-numbered and didn't expect to get out of the battle alive, but then Charlemagne showed up on a wyvern of all things! He had been off in Ulandus and hadn't been seen for some time. But he showed up just in the nick of time to turn the tide of the battle in the Desert King's favor.
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Over thirty years ago a Leander woman had fallen in love with an Avalonian Elf. They were married and had a son. The other elves disapproved of the marriage and looked on the baby with scorn. When the baby was still a child, the father met an untimely end in the Mystic Isles. A few months later the mother died of grief, having been cast out of society after her husband died. She was buried in a pauper’s grave with nothing but a small bouquet of scarlet magnolias to mark her resting. The child was taken in by a peasant family and raised as one of their own. They were kind, but the child still felt the cruelty of the Avalonians around him who did not approve of his parent’s union. This child was Charlemagne. When he was old enough to travel on his own, Charlemagne left Avalonia and headed for Kaliphlin. He ended up in Budd-apest without a penny in his pocket. The monks of the Red Guard took him in and gave him a home in their compound. He grew up learning chivalry and how to fight from the knights of the Red Guard and he learned to love the God of The Way from the monks. During all these years he learned to forgive the elves of Avalonia who had treated he and his family so poorly. He had moved on and had built a new life for himself and in so doing he removed himself from both Elvish and Leander cultures. He wanted nothing to do with either of them. When reports started coming in of the coming war, Charlemagne assumed he would remain uninvolved. He heard about the unrest within the High Council, of the rise of the Desert King, and of the strange Ulandians. When reports came through Budd-apest about how the First Centurion kept Leanders as slaves, servants, and warriors, Charlemagne tried to ignore them. “What does that have to do with me?” He would ask himself. But each night as war drew ever closer Charlemagne could not get the thought of his people being subjugated by the cruel Ulandians. He talked about his concerns with one of the monks who had been his friend for many years. “Methuselah, I have had nothing to do with the Leanders since my mother died, why would I trouble myself about the fate of one group of them now?” Charlemagne asked. “Perhaps you were born for a greater purpose than you think” Methuselah replied. “Maybe you are supposed to free those of your people who are in bondage.” “I know how to fight, and I know how to behave at dinner parties, but how does that help me do anything to help the Leanders of Ulandus?” Charlemagne continued, “I would have to take on the entire empire!” “There is an ancient proverb that says, ‘The most impressive stain glass window can still be broken by a single stone.’” Methuselah stated. “Be that stone.” Charlemagne still wasn’t convinced, but he didn’t stop thinking about his brothers and sisters in Ulandus. He had started to change and hadn’t even realized it and his actions started to show the change. He went to the Masketeers and asked them for a rapier because he needed a less conspicuous weapon. He began to gather information about Ulandus and the First Centurion. He followed the unrest in the High Council at the death of Flagg. He listened as the Sultan of Budd-apest asked the Masketeers and then the Red Guard to fight on behalf of the city if the Desert King called on them. He then asked to see the Sultan himself. “I’d like to be involved in the war” began Charlemagne. “That’s a little preemptive since the Desert King hasn’t officially declared war, but I appreciate your desire to serve” answered the Sultan. “The Red Guard has had only good things to say about you. I know you will bring honor to the city.” The next day the emissaries from the Desert King showed up and Charlemagne took his place alongside the Red Guard outside the city gates. After the skirmish against the attacking army, the Sultan asked Charlemagne to go on a mission to the Dune Sea. After he returned from the Dune Sea, Charlemagne found himself back in the library reflecting on how far he had come since his mother’s death in Avalonia. He thought about his mother’s unassuming grave, his new life in Kaliphlin, the words of Methuselah, and the suffering Leanders in Ulandus. He had fought on behalf of the Desert King, but he knew now that he needed to do more. He made up his mind at that point that he would go to Ulandus and would do everything he could to be that stone that broke the window. Charlemagne knew he couldn’t just walk into Ulandus so he devised a plan to go as a supposed emissary from Budd-apest, seeking to change the city’s alliance with the Desert King to Ulandus. Once he got into the country he would then stage his attacks and claim they were the work of a terrorist known as the Scarlett Magnolia. In this way he would protect his identity and with some irony, honor his mother. There was no denying it, war had changed Charlemagne. OoC: This will make much more sense if you read my minichallenge entry as well as my Cat. B entry. Lots more pictures on my flickr!
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The half-Leander Charlemagne, a soldier for the Desert King, began his soldier’s journey in Budd-apest. He was born in Avalonia, but after his father and mother died, moved to Kaliphlin and took up residence among the Red Guard of Budd-apest. There he learned the basics of chivalry and fighting. As the certainty of war grew, Charlemagne started preparing. He first went to the Red Guard’s rivals, the Masketeers for a sword. The Masketeers favored the rapier and Charlemagne thought he might be better equipped for the coming battles by having a lighter, quicker blade than the Red Guard were want to use. As the war began, he took on the name of the Scarlet Magnolia to honor the memory of his mother. He became more and more determined to help his fellow countrymen, enslaved in Ulandus. He hired the services of Uriako who was able to sail him through the Serpant’s Crawl to Ulandus. Once he arrived he was able to enter Ulandian society by posing as an ambassador from Budd-apest to Ulandus. He claimed the city wanted to be free of the Desert King’s clutches. This caused him to be well received in high Ulandian society. He was able to use this as a cover for his true purpose, the liberty of the Leanders. He began by providing bread to the starving Leanders. When war began, resources grew scarce on Ulandus. What resources there were never found their way to Leanders who were more slaves than citizens. His next mission was to help free some of the key, Leander leaders who had been imprisoned for talking against the government. The Scarlet Magnolia had struck again! The city was abuzz with the talk of the Scarlet Magnolia, high society included. As Charlemagne talked to the other Ulandians they asked him, “Who could this Scarlet Magnolia be?” Charlemagne responded with, “Whoever he is, he’s making life nearly impossible for all of us who aren’t Ulandian! I can’t go anywhere without being quizzed on my identity for fear that I may be the Scarlet Magnolia. In fact, I’ve written a poem for the occasion, They seek him here, they seek him there. The Ulandians seek him everywhere. Is he from Mitgardia, or is he from Avalonia? That darned, elusive, Scarlet Magnolia.” He continued his subversive activities and continued to help Leanders throughout Ulandus. He was a soldier for the Desert King, but a secret one. After a couple weeks he heard about the orders of execution for some of the Leanders he had personally helped as the Scarlet Magnolia. It seemed that the Ulandians where trying to flush him out. He took the bait and went to the wilderness where the Leanders where sentenced to die. He found them guarded, chained to rocks, and waiting for their death. Charlemagne didn’t know how they were going to be killed, but he knew he needed to save them. He charged the guards, and made it through their defenses to race to the prisoners to break their chains. As he ran he saw a large shadow pass overhead. He freed the first Leander and shouted at him to dive to the ground. Charlemagne heard a commotion behind him, but he focused on freeing the Leander’s first. All of a sudden, two more beasts landed, and Charlemagne saw that the beasts were wyverns. All three prisoners were now free and laying still on the ground. Charlemagne looked around and saw that all the Ulandian guards had been consumed. The wyverns seemed pacified for now. He urged the Leanders up and one of them said to him, “Please, I’ve worked with dragons for my whole life. These are a loyal breed. It is most likely that they see you as having fed them. They can be ridden if they are willing to take you, and I can think of no better way to get out of here!” Charlemagne trusted the Leander and approached one of the wyverns. The wyvern were seemingly passive now that their bellies were full and Charlemagne was able to mount it easily. The other Leanders mounted up as well and they flew off to safety. Charlemagne continued to harass the Ulandian army, using the wyvern whose trust he had earned all the while furthering the Desert King’s cause. OoC: This will make much more sense if you read my minichallenge entry as well as my Cat. A entry. Lots more pictures on my flickr!
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The Desert King had sent in his reserve troops to attack Xersia, but that didn't mean they were the weakest. These mummies were highly trained in city combat. They were also armed with a special weapon from the Desert King himself, said to be able to penetrate any magical protection guarding the First Centurian's objects of power. When the mummies jumped through the portal, they found themselves immediately next to the first object. The Ulandians were quick to react, but the Desert King's mummies were even quicker at destroying the object of power.
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After securing a foothold in the spice islands, the Desert King immediately began to live up to his end of the bargain, particularly the part about restoring peace and prosperity to the region. Priority one was reestablishing order on land and within the waters around the isles. Due to the ongoing conflict on the mainland, the Spice Islands were left isolated from any type of true assistance. The Ulandians had claimed the area as part of the Empire, but they were having a hard enough time right now holding on to the sub continent. Pirates and Slavers were free to roam the waters, raiding merchant vessels and towns for a wealth of material goods and free forced labor. The Desert King decided to fight fire with fire, as such he decreed that anyone caught in the act of raiding or pillaging for the purpose of supplying Historica's black markets were to have their assets seized, and become slaves themselves. Here we see a group of Gal-Turok's forces, carrying off a notorious group of slavers to the lava fields of Nocturnus, where they will spend the rest of their days toiling away in the hot, sulfuric flows of Nocturnus volcanoes, to supply an endless amount of raw metal to arm and equip the Goblin Empire.
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*edit* Can a moderator or regulator please add "Prison Doors Were Open Wide" to my title? Thank you! *DOULBE EDIT* Since N18 is already under DK control, can I have this moved to M16? The Scarlet Magnolia was not captured by Ulandian militia as was rumored. Someone else had stolen his cart and had gone about robbing people of their hard earned money. This perpetrator was caught, but meanwhile the Scarlet Magnolia was still on the lose. How, no-one knew, but he had snuck into a Ulandian prison and had freed all the Leanders wrongly being held prisoner there. He left behind his trade mark.
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The people of Ulandus were starving. Their leaders had tied up all their resources in the way against the Desert King and the High Council. The result of this was that commoners were without even the most basic of necessities, like bread. A mysterious stranger appeared in the streets one day handing out bread to all who needed it. No one knew his identity, but when the guards came to try to arrest him, all they found was a bunch of scarlet magnolias. This led the people to call him The Scarlet Magnolia, and he became a symbol of freedom amongst the oppressed peoples of Ulandus. OoC: If you've ever seen The Scarlet Pimpernel, then you'll know my source material. Otherwise this will probably seem pretty random to you. If you are into witty, older dramas, I recommend the movie to you. I haven't read the book so I don't know whether I can recommend it or not.
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Enter two soldiers in HC garb running. "We have to find someplace to hide!" one mercenary said. "Maybe if you hadn't misinterpreted the Ulandian orders to steal Desert King uniforms, and not High Council ones." "Well, it's not my fault! Anyway lets hide in this alley." "Now we need to change. Because right now everyone in the city will kill us." "Forget it i'm resting. Wait, did you hear that?" Fugue in D Minor starts playing softly "It's just an organ. This city is full of rich merchants." "Its getting louder" "The wall is falling! Run!" A sickening splat seconds later was drowned out by the close of the song. Here's the elderly merchant contributing his Music to the war effort. My entry for WZ14. C&C Appreciated!
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Once the bridge across the river had been cleared by other troops, it was a simple matter for the Desert King's soldiers to march in. The towers of Eastgate shall fall! More pics. C&C appreciated! My WZ18 entry.
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When the peasants of Auner took the Desert King's men to the top of their tower and threw them over, what they didn't realize was that it was all part of the mummies' plan. The Desert King had sent his men to Auner to establish a trade route within the city. When the mummies applied a very lenient tax on all goods traded with them, the people of Auner rebelled and called them thieves. What they didn't remember was that you can't kill the undead. They are already dead. So when one of the mummies' wrappings got caught on the rough stone and a corpse started walking away, it gave the men of Auner quiet a fright! The mummies locked the rebels in their own tower and posted a guard to keep them in there until the war was over. OoC: I built the base using the same stud count, but arranged differently. Can someone official confirm that this is okay for this counter?
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After explaining the rules to the two combatants, the elven official quickly reclined with his wine. The competitors were dueling on small log in a part of the Edge-Less pool. Unfortunately for him, the High Council Captain was out of his league. He quickly found himself disarmed and slowly being choked to death. The Elf. My DK entry for WZ11. C&C appreciated!
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In Qarkyr, there are two distinct cultures. In certain parts of the city these two cultures can be seen across the street from each other. When it became clear that their city was not only divided culturally, but only in which war-ing faction they supported, the merchants of the city took up arms against each other. Having only knives and their fierce passion to win whatever the cost, the fight promised to be a bloody one. The sultan of Budd-apest had heard about the coming conflict and had sent one of his men to help the western merchants in the defense of the Desert King's right to rule. A dwarven captain stood on the side of the eastern merchants, urging them on to fight for the freedom that Ulandus offered. OoC: So I found out I'm really bad at building Asian style buildings. This was the best I could come up with. I hope you all like it.
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The Spice Islands are jewels along the southern coasts of Kaphilin and are the gateway to The Great Southern Ocean. The islands vast supply of hardwoods, gems, exotic animals and plants, and of course spices, are wanted highly desired all over Historica. However, due to the political upheaval on the mainland, the islands have been more or less been isolated and left to their own devices. As a result, trade has decreased greatly, and the islands' economy is in ruin. Today, there is a chance to make a full recovery, as a Desert King official (Yes our Surveyor is back and has been promoted again), accompanied by two escorts, has paid a visit to the "Governor" of one of the islands, and has convinced him to declare independence, in exchange for a hefty amount of gold, and the promise that they will always have an abundance of trading partners and renewed prosperity.
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After helping Charlemagne through the desert, Cyprian traveled to the northern territory of the High Council. He had been tasked with poisoning the wells in that area with a poison that had been procured from Nocturnus. It was designed by a master poisoner to be able to contaminate a well for months on end with but a few drops.
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In order to survive easily in the Desert the Desert King has outfitted some of his cavalry with Moles. The moles dig down to find water beneath the sands. While looking for water one unit finds a long buried shrine to the desert king. The Mole and rider My entry for WZ5. C&C appreciated! More pictures in my bricksafe: http://www.bricksafe.com/pages/Umbra-Manis/GOHStuff
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The forces from Ulandus had taken as many aqueducts as they could, knowing that whoever controlled the water supply would be in the best position to continue their attacks. A small force of the Ulandans had decided that it would be faster to press-ganged some of the local farmers into hauling water for them to increase the flow instead of fixing the water-pump. The men of Budd-apest, fighting for the Desert King, saw the slavery in action and decided to do something about it. OoC: I originally wasn't going to build for this WZ. But then I got this idea in my head. I hope it works as a "medieval pumping station." The instructions just said to make it realistic based on what they had available back then. And what was more readily available than men?
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A normal day for the citizens of a Ulandian City... Until some magic user opened a portal to unleash a giant dog! More Pics: C&C wanted! Thanks for looking!
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Many people within the territory held by Ulandus enjoy a little entertainment every now and then. The Monkey Grinder was one such entertainer. He would turn his music box while his trained monkey danced around the courtyard. What the Ulandars didn't know was that the Monkey Grinder was a trained agent of the Desert King. While the people were distracted his monkey would steal coins from those most loyal to Ulandus. OoC: The 2nd to last picture with the monkey balanced on the pillar used no tricks. The monkey is actually balancing like that.
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Captain Uriako had just survived one of the worst voyages of his life. He had been smuggling supplies to the Desert King troops within Ulandus territory for weeks now and had quickly learned how to navigate the Serpent's Crawl. This time through though he had had to navigate those treacherous rocks with only half his crew. The other half had come down sick with the plague. It wasn't until the first few crew members had fallen ill that the captain had discovered the rats on board his vessel. He finally made it into port and sold his cargo to a rich Ulandian. Rather than warn the Ulandian buyer of the plague infested rats, he purposefully kept quiet knowing that the rats would soon spread their disease throughout the city. Captain Uriako knew that this would be far more effective in hurting Ulandus than his supplies would have been to the Desert King troops. Now, the captain was off to a healer to try to get his crew back on their feet. OoC: If you counter this, please leave the captain alive. I need him for future builds and it would be awkward to have to bring him back to life first
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Back when the Queen of Kaliphlin first entered Queenscross the inhabitants had built many celebration arches for the Queen to walk through, showing their support for her. Many of these arches can still be found in Queenscross today. It was at one of these that the men of Budd-apest found themselves battling against the High Council soldiers. The decorative flagstones that had once been carpeted with red flowers when the Queen passed over them now were carpeted with the red blood of the High Council's best soldiers. OoC: The arch is attacked to the base. That was the hardest part of this build.
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A Notice to all Ulandian Soldiers: Attention! Before hanging any spies or prisoners, please check and make sure the tree is not being used as storage by Osric Isentooth and his men. They tend to store their signature brand of torture tar there. C&C appreciated! -
Charlemagne was on a mission for the Desert King that had led into the Dune Sea. He had hired a guide to help him survive the harsh climate. They traveled early in the morning and late in the evening, setting up a canopy in the afternoon to shield them from the beating sun. The guide had warned Charlemagne that there were all many of nasty creatures in the Dune Sea, though he wasn't sure how they managed to survive. All of a sudden a ROUS (Rodent of Unusual Size) had come galloping over a sand dune at them. It had obviously smelled them and thought it had found a quick dinner. The ROUS quickly found out that it had met it's end instead of it's meal. OoC: This is a very unconventional base, I know. I have a limited number of tan base-plates and I didn't want to stoop to using dark tan for this desert. So this is what we got
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The Salamanders of Ulandus were putting up a bold defense. The men of Budd-apest thought of a creative way to sneak into the city to take down the invaders. On a patrol some of the guards found a strange object in a field. They pulled it back to the city gate to bring it inside the city as a war trophy... -
This is the counter against Bregir's guerrilla build. When the dwarves started pulling treasure from the tomb, what they didn't realize was that the hieroglyphics lining the courtyard held a curse for robbers such as them. With a rush, the hieroglyphics started moving and moved inwards towards the tomb entrance. Then the darkness came. An incarnation of Apep emerged from tomb, consuming the robbers.
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When the Lonely Mountain erupted it left behind much carnage. Many building had been overtaken by the lava. The Mummy Captain found himself fighting in one such building. There were little battles taking place all over the city right now thanks to this hair-brained idea of Lord Abrim Kar'dani. The Captain had been walking through the archways of what had once been windows of a residence, but now acted as lonely sentinels of the former beauty that was now mostly hardened lava. A masked Ulandar leaped up to challenge him. A swift kick from the Captain and a fast slash of his sword and the fight was over faster than it took to begin.
