It is time for the annual Spring festival again. A tradition started by the founders and the cast-offs of the now defunct town of Zin the week long festival has become one of the most anticipated events of the entire year. The city of Kylterran is as diverse a community as there is on the whole of Palladium and while all major religions and other various customs and traditions are respected the only official holiday is the Spring festival. It is a time when everyone comes together to celebrate family, friends and the good fortune they have to live free in a city like Kylterran, a place unlike any other in the world that is as much an experiment as it is a municipality. With the Pyramid, Moonwell, Tree of Epim, Peakview, sprawling underground metropolis and climate controlled domed arena being just a few of the notable places of interest not to mention the Mythal and democratic form of government making Kylterran one of the most progressive and mystically pervasive societies on Palladium or most any other advanced world for that matter.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:35, Mon 27 Sept 2010.

Measured Response to Provocation of War

 From: General Emmett Highton the Commander of Kylterrans Armed forces; Report to Territorial Governor, Council of Elders, King Haree and Traveler Command

   City is on lockdown and full alert. All armed forces have been recalled and are reporting to their unit commanders. Civil patrol and militia trained citizens are similarly reporting for duty. All allies have been notified magically and by courier.  The farms and settlements outside the walls are being evacuated. Admiral Lance Blackthorne is en route from negotiations in Bizantium and it is my understanding that an emergency Traveler recall has been issued.

   Preliminary reports from aerial reconnaissance indicate a moderately organized barbarian horde of significant strength, estimated 35-40 thousand troops, approximately 35 klicks northwest of Kylterran. Composition seems to be primarily humanoid with some number of giants. No significant cavalry or aerial presence has been noted.  Ranger stations and our northernmost outpost have fallen silent. All homesteads and settlements in that direction are assumed to be lost in regard to our strategy.

   The Dragon Pitch will lead a sortie of one-hundred and fifty Gryphon Knights. Flying at an altitude high enough to avoid all conventional weaponry and standard magicks they will pull short a mile from approaching enemy force. The knights will each drop a single Meteor-Swarm bomblet to present a show of force. But more importantly to create a distraction so that six Psi-Operatives can infiltrate across the enemies ranks and deliver back critical intelligence.   Psi-Ops will be armed with four Annihilation Clusters and contingency spells of teleport all tied to their life-force. Each knight will also release four magic pigeons for a total of six-hundred that will disseminate among the horde and deliver the following message which was based on the limited intelligence relayed us by the Travelers who discovered the plot.

“Attention free peoples of the north. You are being deceived by your leadership. Kylterran and its people are not your enemy. The evidence of attacks on your settlements is a lie that was fabricated in order to trick you from your homes and families. We have shared a border with the Kiridian people for almost twenty years and have always enjoyed peaceful and prosperous relations. Please return to your lands or stop your advance so we can discuss terms. An attack on the Sovereign State of Kylterran will have no other result then a quick dishonorable death by magical conflagration. Peace be with you.”

   We are deploying rangers, forward scouts and saboteurs to further assess enemy disposition, deploy traps, funnel and harrass their flanks with guerilla tactics should their advance continue.  All other outposts are being reinforced and air patrols are scouting at least a hundred miles in every direction.

  Defensive weather protocol has also been initiated and the Warlock and Druid Guilds have commenced their defensive preparations reinforcing and creating impediments and natural barriers. These tactics should enable the funneling of enemy personnel into death corridors as outlined in my strategy for city defense against sizable ground force, see "Northern Aggression Contingency."

   Wall is 98% complete with negligible gaps at only the most difficult geographical locations i.e. mountain peaks, gorges, river and impenetrable magic forest. Archmage Lobel confirms that the Mythal Weave for the proposed shield is still a few weeks short of completion. My intent is to maintain a defensive posture for now and allow the enemy to put its head fully into the noose if they cannot be reasoned with.

Request One: Should the Council or Governor deem any further actions necessary please advise.
Request two: Coordination with Traveler response is critical. I have seen what they can do and do not want to expose my troops to unnecessary friendly casualties. Effective communication will be key to success. A quick briefing before imminent action is all I require. In the interim I will continue to monitor chatter with the Traveler Ring supplied to me by Archmage Lobel.
Request three: As nice as this underground command center is, I formally request to join my men on the field should battle commence.

Respectfully,
General Emmett Highton
This message was last edited by the player at 08:06, Sun 07 May 2017.

About five hours until the eclipse...

Seth is flying high surveying the burning wreckage of Viseroth's Longhouse and immediate area. He decides this is important enough to report so he uses his Traveler Ring for the first time to communicate. Since he procured it two years ago he has only eavesdropped with it. So when he tries to send to Cassandra he ends up broadcasting his thoughts to all Traveler Rings.

“Oh shit is that my blood.. fucking armor saved my arm …Holy shit his spinal cord came right out with his head! Geld is a beast… He always seemed like such a twat… Man they fucked this place up. I can’t believe I blew that guys face off and he was still coming. Fucking concentrate man… okay think of Cassandra… okay… pain in my ass… got it… Mother, mother it’s me Seth."

Still broadcasting to all rings however…

"I wanted to maintain a line of communication with you for times like this so I acquired one of these rings. I think I have the knack of it. I went on a scouting trip with Turil and Torate. We came across the barbarian army and there are a shitload of them. We moved to the vanguard and it was being led by what appears to be Gainum the Wild Lord. But I could see through the illusion and it was actually Quinton Sprinkletease the Lord of Nut Butter. So one god is impersonating another god but who cares because either way there is a god about to attack Kylterran!  Also flanking him were a lot of guys with solid black arms who were supernatural evil. Another thing is all the regular barbarians look like they are under some kind of enchantment or control.

Turil spotted a Northern style long house  surrounded  by a wooden palisade but we were miles off and I couldn’t see any of it. Torate teleported us near it and there was a fight going on. The place was on fire, there was a big explosion and Geld got blasted through the log wall out into the field. Torate and Turil ran in then Turgoz bloody body came flying out of a hole in the wall and crumblr in a heap about a hundred yards off. There was a lot going on but once I was able to fly up and see through the big holes blasted in the ceiling I could see Kels dead body missing an arm. Torate and Turil were fighting this huge barbarian king. It was beautiful to watch. That guy was super tough he took at least twenty direct hits in the neck and when he died he turned into this huge giant unlike any I have ever studied from our world. He also had one of those black arms. That’s about all I got except I think maybe shit is about to get real bad. This has to be the largest force that has ever attacked Kylterran. I can still see the dust from the tail end of their army marching through the gorge."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:13, Fri 15 Sept 2017.

In response to Seth

"Understood, stick with Turil and Torate until you hear from me. Anthony is at the command center and I will try to contact Occubus but I don't even know if he is still alive. If there are gods involved then I am going to issue a distress call. When I send for you please come to the house. We will all gear up and fight as a family. Also avoid using the ring until you have some instruction on it because you do not quite have the knack of it."


Broadcast to all Traveler Rings

"Attention everyone this is Cassandra. Kylterran is under attack from a barbarian army from the north. There are at least forty thousand troops including supernatural forces and apparently some of the Wild Lord deities. They are only hours away from the outer edge of the Mythal. Smokey arrived back just recently with a deific curse and the body of one of the dead Wild Lords. Anthony confirmed the deific nature of the corpse. It has been quiet a good long while but it looks like it is time to get to work."

Deep underground far beneath all the known sublevels of the massive Teleport and Military Command Complex a broad shouldered bull of an older man is hunched over a large map table reviewing reports.  All around him men and women in various colors and styles of robes are arguing with each other and also with those dressed in military attire. Everyone there is arguing with the few politicians in the fine tailored silks. The large room is a geodesic sphere comprised of flat black metallic panels. A pale glow emanates from the seams between all the triangular panels softly illuminating the room. An invisible floor spans the center of sphere. The table is the only piece of furniture present and it looks as if floating in midair. Currently five of the large scrying panels are glowing brightly showing live images of the outside world. The images are from varying angles and heights but they all show the same thing, barbarians steadily marching forward.
Highton looks up something in the others conversation catching his ear,

“Deploy the skunks?” there is a noticeable silence. “Sir that is one of Gelkirks pet projects I think he finds the idea of giant armored skunks spraying everywhere amusing. The truth is General we have a wealth of options both magic and conventional. The Biomancers have came up with various blends of oils from plants native and alien that can do everything to the enemy from paralyze their nervous system to causing their lungs to fill with blood choking them to death. They are natural agents and we have developed a chemical process to convert them into an aerosol that can be sprayed over large swaths of the enemy. My favorite is a blend of poison oak, ivy, and concentrate of the world’s hottest peppers…

Highton cuts the rambling mage off with a raised hand.

  “Yes, Yes of course. I have read the reports. I know many of you are chomping at the bit to try all your toys and fancy magic shit. The fact of the matter is we have a huge enemy force approaching and soon they will be out in the open, able to spread out their forces and organize their battle lines. Worse the majority of the enemy seems to be under some sort of spell. All of these intimidation tactics or less than lethal options are wasting precious time and while I realize we have been getting everything set up for defense it is starting to feel like we are sitting on our hands. The Travelers are out there talking about gods and giant barbarian kings and we still have little idea what is going on. Gelkirk keeps telling me to wait and defer to whatever is happening behind the scenes but that is not why I accepted this position. Attack is imminent and I am declaring a military emergency. Immediate curfew is in effect and cease all non-essential functions.

 We need to hit them now while their line is stretched out. I want to cut them in half at the entrance to that dried up river they are marching through and dump as much liquid on that area as you can. I want to see how many we can drown so flood that gorge. I want strike teams deployed all along both sides of that ridge. If they are going to give us some high ground we will use it. Shoot and scoot, guerilla tactics only for now. Sebastian and his heavy cavalry are staged so have them report upstairs so we can open a rift and put them in play. His orders are a full echelon charge at that choke point then continue to wheel and engage giving the Warlocks time to flood the gorge. Then egress back through the rift.
The Meetings of the North are officially suspended. Inform the delegates they have one hour to report to the Military Command Center to be evacuated back to their points of origin. If they don’t want to be teleported they can exit any of the gates. Their final option is to report to the wall and prepare to defend but if they stay they will fight with us. Except those Western Empire cunts if they give you any trouble remove them forcibly.

I know Gelkirk is going to be pissed but remind him to read the law regarding use of authority during a Military Emergency. He probably wrote the law so he should be familiar. We need to deploy Psi-Ops teams and at least two Elite Squads to oversee the evacuation of delegates in case of any surprises. For that matter I want all the psychics we have split up among the Elite Squads patrolling the streets and searching out any potential threats of attack from within. Apparently there is a god at the head of this army. We should test this theory with some heavy bombardment soon.”
This message was last edited by the player at 14:08, Sat 23 Sept 2017.

(4 hrs 20 mins until Xy wakes up)

Shortly after Seth broadcast his thoughts to everyone Cassandra sends a call to Torate, Turil and Geld through her ring. She intentionally omits Turgoz and Kel for obvious reasons and Wildeye because fuck Wildeye he isn't a real Traveler anyway.

“Guys what in the actual fuck is going on? Please give me details so I can make some decisions. Do we need to call everybody home?”
This message was last edited by the player at 14:15, Sat 23 Sept 2017.

In reply to Cassandra (msg # 6):

Replying back to Cassandra through the ring.

“Hey sexy lady. There is an army heading to Kylterran led by a God, but there is only currently one God so we have that going for us. I am not sure about the black arm guys once I can get the others healed up a bit I will see if they know more. I think we took out one of the leaders and he was a norse giant. I don’t know if there are more norse giants with them or not. If they are going to send out a response team please give me a heads up so I can get everyone out of the way. I am trying to talk Turil into going with me to pick a fight, but since they are marching on Kylterran the same time as the meeting is going on there could be more to this than meets the eye. We might want to watch the ambassadors that have come to Kylterran to make sure we don’t have any inside treachery. Keep being the MILF that you are & I will get back to you.”

4 hrs 11 mins until Xy awakes

Kylterran has in the neighborhood of three thousand heavy cavalry. Five hundred of them are fully trained paladins under the command of Sebastian Gimel. These are men who were born to war. They have spent their entire lives in the saddle and in training for their deadly profession. Alone they are fierce-some but as a unit they are a beautiful nightmare. Their discipline is complete and their precision would make a watchmaker weep. Their warhorses are magically bred and enhanced peak specimens. They are clad in lizard mage barding armor and sport magic horse shoes that enhance their speed, damage and allow them to travel over terrain not typically suitable for horses. Their standard compliment of weapons include an indestructible silver tipped horseman’s lance enchanted to shoot lightning and force blasts, three lizard mage javelins, sword and shield.

Currently Sebastian and his Knights of Kylterran are staged outside the Teleport Complex lined up five abreast and a hundred deep. The paladins in their jet black armor seem to meld right into the matching black barding armor on their immense war horses.  At the head of the column Sebastian sits atop a snow white Silvek Steed two hands taller than the largest warhorse. He is resplendent in his highly polished silver armor and is the embodiment of a Knight in appearance, word and deed. His rune covered footman’s Dragonlance is topped with a pennant of Kylterran. Leaning down in his saddle he speaks with a mage wearing one of the special variants of lizard mage armor. There are two more similarly clad mages and four warlocks in robes all standing by. Standing apart from the group of mages is a pimple faced teenage boy with his arms folded across his chest looking bored. Sebastian turns and looks at the long column stretched out behind him and raises a gauntleted fist in the air. In response the Knights all don their helmets in near perfect unison.
The mages start casting spells on each other and soon all seven spellcasters are floating in the air and invisible.

Sebastian gives pimple face a hand gesture and the kid just stands there scratching his chin. One of the invisible mages barks out, ”That means open the portal dipshit!” The kid stifles a yawn, shoots the defiant gesture in the general direction of the invisible mages and waves his other hand lazily towards the open field in front of them. A rift tears open 30ft tall and wide the edges crackling with blue magic energy. Sebastian snaps his faceplate down and his mount charges through the portal. The knights maintain their formation and file through behind him.

As they exit the rift the first two hundred knights wheel to the left and quickly form up into a loose box formation twenty across and ten deep. The other two hundred all armed with lances fan out to the right and create one long line as they ride into position. The remaining fifty, the most elite among the paladins, come straight ahead in a tight square formation coming to rest directly behind their commander. The entire maneuver through the portal took only few minutes.  About three-hundred yards away the long line of the barbarian horde stretches out into the distance as far as the eye can see. The mouth of the gorge leading into the ancient dried up river that hides Viseroth’s war camp is visible with barbarians still steadily marching out of it. The head of the line disappears into the forest at its other end on the way towards Kylterran. Only a small portion of the total enemy force is currently in this mostly open area but that number is still over five thousand outnumbering the Knights at least ten to one.

There is a flurry of activity along the Kiridian’s marching line but surprisingly the majority of them just keep plodding along in a forward direction. Some of the few barbarians on horses seem to be directing those with pikes and long spears to rally into a defensive posture. They also start maneuvering some of their supply wagons into position to create as much of a barrier as they can against the heavy horse. Sebastian shakes his head not understanding the pitiful lack of response but decides to continue with the planned attack not seeing any reason to alter course. His Silvek Steed rears up on its hind legs his pennant topped lance raised high into the air. There is no battle cry or yell for a charge as his warhorse leaps forward and his lance drops into the ready position. Behind him men who until now have only engaged in small skirmishes with Coyle raiders and the like surge forward into their first full scale battle as a fighting unit. Though to be fair many of them are veterans of foreign wars, former Royal Timirian Lancers, Western Cavalrymen and Horse Lords from the Ophid’s Grasslands. The fifty elite Knights maintain their tight formation as they charge forward flaring slightly at the front creating a wedge with Sebastian at the vanguard.

The two-hundred that peeled right out of the portal move parallel with the barbarian line spreading out leaving twelve foot gaps between them as they edge towards the enemy like a slowly closing gate. The remaining two-hundred hold position in reserve.  The fifty gain speed thundering into a full charge. Those in the front lower their lances and the ones behind ready javelins. At close to a hundred yards from contact a huge Wall of Flame roars into life in front of the knights but almost immediately disappears and then a flurry of lightning bolts and fireballs rain down in the midst of the barbarians targeting the offending mage that cast the flaming wall. At seventy yards lightning erupts from the tips of the knights lances blasting into the barbarians rushing to set pikes against the charge followed quickly by two more blasts in rapid succession. Then the Lizard Mage javelins begin raining down skewering barbarians in a gruesome display as one-hundred and fifty of the armor piercing missiles are hurled in less than ten seconds. The initial ranged flurry is so successful that the area where Sebastian had planned on busting a hole through the Kiridian line is almost completely devastated.

Avoiding the urge to alter course and try to split the long spread out barbarian line up the middle like a zipper Sebastian sticks with the plan.  More lightning bolts, fiery balls of plasma and black spheres of explosive destruction strike sporadically among the enemy as the invisible mages take out the few magic users that were this far back among the barbarians. The fifty knights cut through a section of the Kiridian line like a scythe through wheat decimating those that remained standing in that area.  Then the mages go to work in the gap in the line. Three large walls of stone spring up out of the ground cutting off the larger part of the Kiridian force from back half most of which is still trying to charge out from the narrow gap in the canyon.  Sebastian and his paladins wheel in unison and level their lances at the barbarians emerging from the steep sided ravine. Hundreds of force blasts rip through the front ranks stopping the charge almost completely.

 One monstrous Ogre barbarian with two solid black arms charges through the forceblasts unfazed and seizes one of the knights by the lance and flings the armored man from his horse like a child throwing a toy. He knocks another Paladins horse down with his huge maul the stone head of the weapon disentegrates against the black barding armor. The Paladin manages to run his sword through the ogres gut but ignoring the wound the Ogre wrenches the Paladins helmet off tkaing his head with it in a fountain of blood. Three other knights hack him down with swords before he can do any more damage. The mages begin opening portals in front of the canyon opening and high powered blasts of water come roaring out. The warlocks that came call on the major water elementals with them and with their myriad of spells soon the amount of water rushing into the opening is quadrupled. Four more stone walls rise up sealing off the canyon opening. With the portals enclosed and still issuing forth a massive volume of water a hellacious flash flood rips through the canyon flowing back towards Viseroths camp.

Along the ridges of the canyon on both sides black armored soldiers emerge from magic concealment. They are spread out thirty yards and staggered on either side of the bank. There are a hundred of them all sitting in a position to maximize their shooting lane. They all have the new model of the repeating crossbow but now they more resemble a rifle with a lizard mage bayonet at the top. The special forces soldiers aim their weapons down into the gorge and as the flash flood waters sweeps barbarians along in its wrath they open fire with silent volleys of Lizard Mage arrows. They fire as fast they can thumb the magic symbol trigger on the side of the stock. The drowning barbarians are quickly pin cushioned with over ten thousand of the deadly arrows. The water is red with blood. The black armored warriors step back into the forest and disappear completely into the shadow.

Of the two thousand barbarians that became trapped in the gorge over eighteen-hundred drown or are killed in the violent water. The lucky few manage to pull themselves out somewhere along the line. With their mission finished the Paladins wheel their forces into an organized withdrawal and they pull back through a large rift. Behind them the raging waters continue to rush in sweeping the corpses along the ancient riverbed and past the ruined longhouse where Viseroth just met his demise.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:36, Sat 10 Aug 2019.