Adventure! RPG: Warlords of Tellus - Tellus Gazetteer

[ProfPotts]

It was early afternoon and the crowds were light at the Four Points Inn and Tavern. Nubile slave girls of all races swerved gracefully between the tables, making sure to keep the patrons well stocked with the best food, drink… and company… the establishment could offer. D’drazzir R’vanni, the Inn’s roguish Feline proprietor, purred quietly as his Obsidian masseuse (one of his wisest purchases, if he did say so himself) worked the kinks out of the tense muscles along his spine: no one appreciated the effort which went in to running the finest drinking hall in four kingdoms. Now the lunchtime crowds were drifting away, and the evening drinkers were yet to arrive – and D’drazzir did so hate these little periods where his profits started to dip. Still, it gave him the opportunity to try out the new storyteller who’d inquired about working at the Inn, without much risk of alienating his regulars if the robed stranger proved to be an uninspired bore. Settling back into the stacked silk cushions of his private alcove D’drazzir waved the Ophidian girl away and turned his attentions across the main room to where the storyteller was standing in preparation for regaling the small crowd with one of his tales…

'The Basilisk Rebellion and The Massacre at the Dar-Ajum Rocks,' announced the storyteller.

D’drazzir rolled his eyes and gestured for his masseuse to return – personally he preferred tales with a little more sensual content, besides, this was one story he already knew well… still, a glance around the room told him that the patrons seemed intrigued, and at the end of the day that was what mattered. Closing his eyes D’drazzir once more purred as skilled hands returned to kneading his back, and the storyteller’s words filled the hall…

'In the one-hundred and second year of the reign of our Glorious and Immortal Emperor K’reed, a rebellion sprang up in the Kajin-da-Um Desert. Though it started with the Green Belly Tribe, it quickly spread from there until almost the entire desert was aflame with talk of secession, even open war. The most militant arm of this rebellion was led by one Miun-Sho, better known as “Jade Fang”, who had by that time become the leader of the Green Bellies. Because the rebellion began with the Green Bellies, and because of their shocking number of early victories over Imperial sorties sent to deal with them, it soon earned the title of “The Basilisk Rebellion”.'

'The Emperor called upon the aid of the King of Sornia (a distant cousin of the Emperor’s who’s kingdom was directly north of the Kajin-da-Um) bestowing upon him the honor of crushing the rebellion there. King Lerrus Ontin dispatched all three of his own legions, along with two Imperial legions placed under his command for the sole purpose of wiping out the Basilisks. In addition he hired the services of the feared, some might say loathed (but nonetheless respected) Obsidian Legion, comprised of four-thousand two-hundred of the finest Stoneman warriors.'

'Now, as many of you will undoubtedly know, the Saurian Tribes of the deep Central Deserts are notoriously hard to keep track of. This makes any attempt at accurately recording their numbers, locations, or settlements an exercise in utmost futility. This, combined with poor intelligence and a deplorable lack of understanding regarding the conditions of the desert directly south of his kingdom, lead King Ontin to the decision that a full frontal attack would be best. Thus he led his legions directly into the Kajin-da-Um with the goal of crushing any resistance they met.'

'Meanwhile, the Basilisks had expanded their ranks until they numbered an estimated hundred and fifty thousand or more fighting Saurians, all of whom were natives of the desert they were fighting in, and who were led by the admittedly brilliant Jade Fang. Observing the foolhardy movements of the Imperial Forces, Jade Fang sent nearly half his forces north to circle around the Imperials and trail them from behind while he led his remaining forces in a series of daring “hit and run” raids, luring the Imperial forces further south. Meanwhile, the Basilisk forces to the north trailed in ghostly silence, ambushing any supply convoys or messengers that attempted to leave or reach King Ontin’s forces. Frustrated at his forces’ inability to meet the enemy head on, and harried by the steady loss of supplies and constant raiding by the desert nomads, King Ontin lead his forces in a headlong rush deep into the equatorial regions… and to their ultimate doom.'

'So it came to pass that by the time the Imperial Forces under King Ontin had reached the place of their final battle, over eight thousand of his own forces, and over three thousand of the Imperial legionnaires had been lost from a combination of desert heat, sandstorms, Basilisk raiding parties, and lack of supplies. The Stonemen of the Obsidian Legion, tough even by the standards of their own race, and hailing from the massive shield volcano known locally as “Black Mountain”, were much better suited to the hardships of the desert and thus they lost only slightly more than nine hundred soldiers on the march. This left just over thirteen thousand infantrymen to fight in the final battle, mostly comprised of the surviving Imperial and Obsidian legionnaires.'

'Eventually, Jade Fang managed to lure Ontin and his surviving troops into the Dar-Kazum valley, and it was there that he sprung his trap. Now, the Dar-Kazum is surrounded on all sides by the Dar-Ajum Rocks: sheer and impassable, even for Stonemen or Felines. The Dar-Ajum surrounded the Dar-Kazum valley on all sides - save for a deceptively narrow pass at the northern end, and another at the southeast end of the valley. Once the Imperial forces had been successfully lured inside the valley, the northern Basilisk forces descended upon them from behind, in ambush, whilst the southern forces held the lower pass, thus pinning the weary Imperials between two lethal fronts. The “battle” that ensued was, according to reports, nothing short of a massacre.'

'Almost ten thousand of the Imperial forces were slaughtered in the first day of fighting, and another two thousand on the second. By the third day only the First and Third Companies from the seventh Imperial Battalion, the second and fifth Obsidian Regiments, and a platoon of men comprised mostly of the King’s personal guard and King Ontin himself, were left alive. In a last ditch effort of daring and sheer desperation these final eight hundred and fifty one warriors fought their way back to the northern pass of the Dar-Ajum Rocks, with both of the Imperial Companies and the fifth Obsidian Regiment leading the charge, and the second Obsidian Regiment bringing up the rear.'

'At the base of the northern pass, the Imperials were held up by the remnants of the northern Basilisk forces still within the pass itself, and the second regiment was forced to bear the combined assault of the surviving Basilisk forces until the pass was cleared. Once the pass was cleared the Imperial Companies and the fifth Regiment were able to move quickly, escorting the King and his platoon of guards, but the second Regiment, still guarding the rear, was held up and could only give ground slowly. The decision was made to sacrifice the second Regiment so that the rest could escape. Miraculously, the Imperial Companies and King Ontin’s Sornian forces managed to escape into the desert, and eventually reported back at the Imperial City. The fifth Obsidian Regiment escorted the Imperials until it was certain that they were (reasonably) safe, and then circled back to aid their fellow legionnaires… they were not heard from again until the Second Imperial Division and Battle Fleet was sent in to deal with the rebellion once and for all.'

[ProfPotts]

'Meanwhile, back at the Imperial City, Emperor K’reed wisely condemned King Ontin to death for his monumental failures, not the least of which were his cowardice and his shameful waste of good Imperial troops. That settled, the Emperor deployed most of the Second Imperial Division along with the Second Battle Fleet of Imperial skyships to deal with the bothersome rebellion once and for all. Before the season was out the Basilisk Rebellion had been utterly crushed, and Jade Fang was brought before the Emperor and sentenced to execution.'

'As for the last two Regiments of the Obsidian Legion: they were wiped out almost to a man when the Imperial forces arrived. Impressively, a significant portion of the second Regiment had survived their abandonment, and had continued their campaign against the Basilisks, using brutal and daring guerrilla tactics to survive: this despite their being outnumbered by more than two hundred to one. It is estimated that between the start of the campaign and the time the Second Division engaged the rebels, the Obsidians had managed to kill an estimated fifty thousand Basilisk troops. Over thirteen thousand were killed by the surviving two regiments after the massacre at the Dar-Ajum Rocks. Only an estimated two hundred Stonemen survived, and more than half of these had been captured by the Basilisks and made into slaves, sold to support their rebellion. The remaining eighty-four Obsidian Legionnaires were greatly honored for their personal sacrifices and great victory at the Imperial City itself, and were offered positions within the Imperial Army, though none accepted.'

'Most of the Obsidian Legionnaires who were sold into slavery were never accounted for, but about fifteen eventually appeared for sale at the Imperial markets. Once they were recognized for what they were, Imperial officers were quick to purchase each one and grant him or her the honor of competing as combatants in the Imperial arena for the entertainment of the Imperial court itself: an honor few slaves are ever given. As far as I am aware all but one have died honorably in combat on the arena floor…'

A sprinkling of applause marked the conclusion of the storyteller’s tale, along with more than a few questions about details of the recounted events and, especially, the lone Obsidian Legion gladiator… who was he? What happened to him? D’drazzir sighed – Gro-Khash was an old friend, so he hoped that he’d, somehow, find his way out of the arena alive, but… as the storyteller was explaining to his audience… that would be a tale for another day…

[The story is by Cottus Centimane - with a little reformatting & presentation by me.

Cottus's efforts have inspired me to start this thread: a place to post IC stories, histories, & other tales about the Tellus setting. Posts don't have to have anything to do with your character, & can be as fantastic as the setting allows - the aim is to allow people's creative juices to flow & to expand & enrich the setting as much as possible. We all have the occassional 'purple prose' moment - with this thread we've got a place to indulge.

Although I'm not going to promise to included eveything presented here in the game, good stuff has an excellent chance of become part of the 'official' Tellus setting. The Inn & the Cottus's story of the Obsidian Legion, for example, are going to be included in the game.

As for the mysterious robed 'storyteller' - well, he / she / it is there as an 'everyman' way to present stories - details of the storyteller him / her / itself should be left vague, so that everyone can use the character to help launch their own tales posted here.

Happy storytelling - & welcome to the wonderful world(s) of Tellus!]