Chapter #1184
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+ THE ADVENTURERS +
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+ Epic VI +
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+ Many of the locations, non-player characters, spells, and other +
+ terms used in these stories are the property of Wizards of the Coast +
+ which has in no way endorsed or authorized their use. Any such +
+ property contained within these stories are not representative of +
+ Wizards of the Coast in any fashion. +
+ The player characters depicted in these stories are copyright +
+ 1991-2025 by Thomas A. Miller. Any resemblance to any persons +
+ or characters either real or fictional is utterly coincidental. +
+ Copying and/or distribution of these stories is permissible under +
+ the sole condition that no money is made in the process. In that +
+ case, I hope you enjoy them! +
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+ KEY LEADERS OF THE TWIN ARMIES +
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+ Mongo 20th level dwarven fighter +
+ Gorgo 10th level dwarven berserker +
+ Gorin 13th level dwarven fighter +
+ Yod Ironbeard 21st level dwarven fighter +
+ gigantic armored war-lizard (ridden during battle) +
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+ ASSISTANCE FROM THE BRIGHT LANDS +
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+ Parekh 18th level female human wizard, innovator +
+ Drak 15th level human barbarian +
+ Wu 18th level human wizard, transmuter +
+ 6 elite ogre magi +
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+ Date: 1/6/587 C.Y. (Common Year) +
+ Time: morning +
+ Place: the Stark Mounds, between Sterich and Geoff +
+ Climate: cold and windy +
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+ "What do we do?" +
+ "Only one thing we can...we go to war." +
+ - from _The Punisher_ (1989) +
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MCLXXXIV. March of the Twin Armies
On the morning of the third day since departing Istivin, the combined
armies arrived at the hilly region known as the Stark Mounds. They could
have been here the previous night, but Mongo and Yod had deliberately
slowed the marching pace so that the force would reach the hills on a full
night's rest, and with the morning sun in full effect - for their advance
scouts had indicated that the first foes would likely be found here, and
indeed through the entire span of the hills, all the way north to Gorna.
The Stark Mounds were the old, weathered remains of former mountains, and
divided Sterich from Geoff; the gnomes and dwarves who used to inhabit the
highlands had been driven out years ago during the early stages of the
invasion from the Crystalmists. Utterly devoid of any natural resources,
the Stark Mounds now held only hostiles...scattered giants and humanoids
who would represent the first resistance encountered by the allied force
from the south.
Mongo: (to Parekh) Your magic will be key to letting us know what waits
ahead, and in what numbers.
Parekh: (concentrating) It shouldn't be long until I have some answers
about that. I've sent four eye spies into the hills, spread out across
a wide area. They're aerial and invisible, and possess keen vision...
so they'll find anything that lies ahead.
Drak: It helps a lot to know that the lands behind us are secure. (he
frowns) I wonder if they'll ever raise their own army there, after all
this is done.
Mongo: That's up to the former ruler of Sterich. Rebuilding isn't my
problem - I just don't have time for things like that. (he hefts his
warhammer) The business of the day now is battle, plain and simple.
(he looks around from atop his mount, a sturdy armored warhorse, and
surveys the mighty force ahead and around him)
The commanders of the armies - and their prominent allies, like Parekh
and Drak - rode well back in the ranks, far from the front lines. Any
high-level orders would be given by Mongo and relayed by trumpeters to
the troops further away. While Belphanior and his team were elsewhere
on a side mission, Wu and his ogre magi retinue had taken to the sky and
now soared far above (and ahead of) the two armies. That group was also
invisible, so that they could remain unseen by foes until it was time to
attack...and they would have a critical role in that.
The first ground troops entered the hilly terrain, in a formation over
two thousand feet wide. That meant two hundred warriors, spaced about
ten feet apart; the purpose of this was to spread them out to avoid any
potential large-scale harm if they were to be attacked by giant hurled
rocks or other missiles - or spells. While these troops knew that foes
waited somewhere ahead, they also knew that their leaders had powerful
magic on their side and would employ it both for attack and defense - and
that meant a lot to the average warrior on the ground. These men largely
fell into two categories: either they had been part of Mongo's previous
assault on Sterich and had already witnessed (or at least heard of, from
others in the force) the magical might that his Bright Alliance wizards
brought to the battlefield...or they were dwarves under Yod Ironbeard, in
which case their morale was near-unbreakable anyway, and if their general
assured them their backs were covered, they believed it and had no fear.
The cavalry under Mongo's command rode back and to both sides, ready to
charge if an opportunity presented itself.
Less than a league to the north - behind hilltops that were still out
of sight of the two armies - a large number of hill giants, ogres, and
hobgoblins waited. Their own scouts - the smallest and fastest of the
hobgoblins, possessed of sharp eyes and also experts in staying hidden
in the uneven terrain here - had gotten a rough count of the approaching
attackers, seen their wide skirmish line, and scuttled back to report
both. The hill giant chieftain tasked with the overall defense of the
Stark Mounds region - a hulking brute named Lurguz, who at twenty feet
in height was unusually large and powerful for his species - was pleased
to hear the news from his runners.
Lurguz: This is good. They can spread out as wide as they want, but it
won't help them against our rocks.
Lurguz was no genius, but he was aware of the recent happenings to the
south, in Sterich. He knew that an army would eventually come to Geoff,
and had also been told to beware of wizards among the foes' ranks. He'd
prepared for the first thing by sending numerous sentries to the southern
edges of the Stark Mounds, and beyond. He'd prepared for the second thing
by spreading out all twenty of his shamen across the hills, in a line that
as it turned out paralleled the ranks of the approaching force. This gave
the giants' force a measure of magical power along its entire length - not
that Lurguz was too worried. Aside from the score of his own spellcasting
priests, he also had two hundred hobgoblin archers at his disposal. These
humanoids, larger and stronger than goblins or orcs, were all armed with
powerful longbows and sharp arrows whose heads had been dipped in poison.
The other six hundred hobgoblins among his force were mere infantry, and
Lurguz considered them disposable if necessary, a first line of attack or
defense as needed...but the archers were another tactic he could employ
to deal with any troublesome wizards.
In addition to these eight hundred hobgoblins, Lurguz' forces also
included a good five hundred ogres and roughly two hundred hill giants.
The ogres were armed with everything from large, crude swords to spears
and primitive but effective maces; the giants tended to wield clubs, but
many of these had metal spikes driven into their business ends. About
one in every twenty of the giants was a sub-chief, and all of these bore
swords, axes, or halberds of higher quality. Similarly, a couple dozen
of the ogres were chieftains and were just a little bit smarter, larger
and better-armed than the rest. This overall force - fifteen hundred in
total - represented everyone that Lurguz had been able to being to bear.
He had pulled together virtually all of the giants and humanoids in the
hills, for it was his view that the attackers should be met and stopped
sooner than later, and he wanted to bring his full power to bear in that
battle. While the brutes under his command numbered far fewer than the
army that approached from the south, each of them was at least equal if
not greater in size and strength...and they had a potent means of attack
at their disposal. The entire line of hilltops that lay ahead of the
men and dwarves was well-stocked with piles of small boulders, and each
such hilltop - dozens in total - had a handful of giants ready to hurl
boulders into the ranks of the attackers. Even one such missile could
crush numerous foes - and the giants had plenty of rocks to throw. The
archers from the hobgoblin ranks were stationed not only atop these hills
with the giants but also on the lower ground between the hills, allowing
many sites from which to fire their deadly arrows. Also spread amidst
the hills' bottoms were the ogres, who would charge forth after boulders
and arrows had weakened the ranks of the enemies and finish the job.
Lurguz: (nods to himself, pleased with his planning and preparations)
Like practically everyone else currently occupying Geoff, the monstrous
hill giant chieftain had heard tales of the dwarf who had led his army to
victory in Sterich...the so-called "Killer of Giants" whose strength was
said to be so great that he could topple a foe - even a giant - with a
single blow. Lurguz had slain many dwarves, and many adventurers, in his
time and he wasn't worried about this one. In fact, somewhere deep within
the recesses of his primitive and savage mind, he secretly hoped that the
dwarf would survive the boulders and the arrows and could ultimately be
faced one-on-one. As he now sat on a pile of furs within the crude tent
that served as his command quarters out here in the field, Lurguz used a
whetstone and lovingly sharpened the edge of his massive war-axe. This
weapon was the size and weight of a boat anchor, had a large spike on its
back end, and was specially-enchanted to kill dwarves. That, plus the
fine chain mail armor that he wore - forged from the remains of a dozen
man-sized magical armors and able to turn back a wide variety of weapon-
blows and spells - emboldened the hill giant leader. He had fought and
triumphed in hundreds of battles, besting thousands of foes...and he was
certain that today would end in yet another bloody victory.
Lurguz: (checking the edge of his gigantic axe, he grins mercilessly)
Heh. They will have to think of a new name for the one...who kills the
Killer of Giants.
next: battle!
map: http://www.peldor.com/world/atlas/Bright-Desert_1156.jpg
www: http://www.peldor.com/download.html
homepage: http://www.peldor.com/
email: tmiller@peldor.com
released: 10/3/2025
notes: These events take place in the southwestern area of the
continent, and the exact map of that region is on the website here:
http://peldor.com/world/wog/map13.html
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