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03-28-2008, 12:32 AM #1
So how does the Gorgon spend an Afternoon?
Given the location of the Crown, it would have been a very nice local for Keeping tabs on most of Cerilia during the days of the Empire. What if the Crown was an Imperial region, colonized by Anuire and full of legions and resources to deploy into Rjurik, Brectur, and Khinasi when the local garrisons needed help? It could be full of infratructure of a military nature, good roads, fortresses, bridges, and barracks, but originally supplied by imperial coin, not by a local populace (though veterans would be settled there in Roman style colonies). Perhaps its when the Gorgon kills Micheal that he siezes this imperial sub-capital in anticipcation of siezing the whole empire, but is unable to do so.
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03-28-2008, 12:56 AM #2
So how does the Gorgon spend an Afternoon?
I'd say a bit of torture, perhaps some rape, and if the weather is particularly fine, a little public terror.
-Sorry, but the title was too good to let it slide.
[edit: On a more serious note, the Imperial muster-area described by kgauck is a really neat idea. It fits neatly with how I've portrayed the Crow in my games - with good roads and an advanced infra structure.]Last edited by The Swordgaunt; 03-28-2008 at 01:00 AM.
-Harald
Today, we were kidnapped by hill folk never to be seen again. It was the best day ever.
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03-28-2008, 02:59 AM #3
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So for the first thousand years after Deismaar, the Gorgon would have been a wanderer, commanding armies here and there as he could array them about himself? That could be interesting.
I think the Crown is big enough, however, to allow the deeper mountains to have been the Gorgon's fortress, more of a no-mans-land than a real and constant threat during the height of the Empire. The southern provinces could have been part of this imperial muster, in addition to Markazor and Kiergaard.
That way, the Gorgon has a realm of his own, perhaps even extending into the Giantdowns or farther northwest still. But for much of the Empire, he was not powerful enough to rampage often, but rather was contained.
I think the Gorgon was one of the key schemers and factors behind the downfall of the Empire. Anuire's decline spanned several hundred years, and during that time the Gorgon grew in strength, taking more land and gathering tribes and malcontents to him--even engineering the fall of Mur-Kilad to his reign, something that probably required several hundred years of campaigns to manage.
All this could explain the Gorgon's limited lands for most of the Empire, and then a resurgence and growth to current extent. Michael Roele may even have broken much of his power with his assault, preventing the Gorgon from overrunning even a weakened and fractured Anuire.
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03-28-2008, 06:23 AM #4
In my campaign history I had the Gorgon wander for some time after Deismaar, before setting up shop in a remote valley deep in the Crown. He built up a kingdom of sorts and an army of course, before launching a surprise attack on Anuire during the 7th century HC. These were the Golden Years of the Anuirean Empire, so what military might the Anuireans had were either deployed away from the heartlands of the Empire or not very alert.
The assault did much damage and the Gorgon got to within sight of the City of Anuire, but once the element of surprise began to subside he didn't have much of a chance. His army was destroyed, he fled back to the Crown and was besieged. But is castle did not fall and after years of maintaining a costly siege in the mountains, a smaller watch was retained to keep an eye on him. And so the Gorgon was defeated and humiliated, but not killed.
In the years before Michael became Emperor, the Gorgon had begun to cause trouble again, raiding surrounding lands, but nothing on the scale of launching any full-fledged attacks on Anuire. He knew he had not the might...but when foolish Michael came to see HIM...he was more than mighty enough to end the line of Roele.
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03-28-2008, 03:35 PM #5
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03-28-2008, 04:00 PM #6
The two storylines could be combined to fill in all the empty pages between Deismar and the fall of Michael. I believe I'll incorporate both into my mythos this very hour.
-Harald
Today, we were kidnapped by hill folk never to be seen again. It was the best day ever.
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03-29-2008, 06:11 PM #7
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His sinister master plan of the past century or so is nearing completion...
...soon, he will unleash his greatist horror on all of Cerilia: Cable television!
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03-29-2008, 09:41 PM #8
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03-29-2008, 11:15 PM #9
History:
I'd figure that for the first few decades after Deismaar the Gorgon was pretty much on the run - he led a rebel Anuirean army against his brothers so he was probably public enemy #1 anywhere near Anuire making fleeing necessary - and given the rapid expansion of the empire he has to run a long way which can't have boosted his ego much.
Then there is the personal aspect of the loss at Deismaar - compared to his brothers gains. His little brother Haelyn became a god, his baby brother Roele rapidly forged first a nation and then the greatest empire that Cerilia has ever known - that has to be a real confidence crusher for the elder brother whose notable claim to fame is leading one of th elosing armies at Deismaar and watching his god die. (Me, I do ok, lead a tough band of mercenaries - looting, pillaging - a man's life! Oh you wanted to talk about my brothers, yeah - everybody want to talk about them...)
Tribes of the Heartless wastes says that when Roele attacked Vosgaard that Belinik and Kreisha forced the awnsheghlien to defend the Vos - which means that awnsheghlien has formed within 40 years or so of Deismaar, and that if the Gorgon was around he probably got shanghaied by Kreisha and forced to dance at her whim. I see him as a little put out by this - possibly enough to leave Vosgaard.
In my view becoming an awnsheghlien - particularly one of the first awnsheghlien - must be a seriously disturbing experience. Raesene was certainly very arrogant (he led an army against his brothers in order to take the throne himself) and thus was probably also quite vain. He also almost certainly saw goblins and beastmen as inferior given that the Andu had been waging genocide against both to carve out their home in Cerilia. To both lose his looks and become a hideous beast-man himself probably destroyed his image amongst residual followers (he was clearly cursed by the gods) and to himself.
As a result I see him as spending the first few decades fleeing the expanding empire; then as he became an Awnsheghlien he fled to the only place left to call home - the ancestral home of all monsters, Aduria. This conveniently moves him out of the way for the first few decades/centuries of the empire. Of course when he gets over himself and grows in personal might he comes back, seizes Kal Saitharak from Raizhadik, and then plots to destroy the empire...
Nowadays I see the Gorgon's afternoon as spent:
1. Pondering the infinite / ascension to godhood / the wrongs done to him all his life
2. Plotting against his foes (Belinik, Kreisha, Haelyn, the Lost, the Dark Horseman)
3. Tending to his garden (encouraging this family or that to mix to a point that their children are worthy of bloodtheft)
4. Holding court. I wonder about his realm's stability; goblins, orogs, ogres, dark dwarves, outlaw humans - not exactly a peaceable bunch! He'd probably ignore the continuous low grade violence and corruption but without his personal attention it would probably degenerate rapidly - Kiergaard may be mayhem compared to the rest of Brechtur but it's probably one of the more stable areas of the Gorgon's realm - bested only by Mur Kilad and Kal Saitharak itself.
5. Religion. He probably also has some religious role in the temples - come worship the living god and all that.
6. Greatheart indicates that the Gorgon still as sexual lust so he may retain an ogress harem or suchlike (humans and goblins would be too fragile barring polymorph magic).
7. Hobbies. These could include could include hunting - wyverns are a little big for his wrist, eagles too small, but some other aerial predator could work, as might hounds; other traditional hobbies include tourneys - don't expect blunted lances when the Gorgon commands entertainment but imagine the glory is you beat his champion! Music (can music soothe the savage beast?) Foolery (unlike the traditional court jester I don't think that the Gorgon's fool would tease the king much), Gaming (do you play to win or to lose I wonder?) and so on - I see his court as a perverted version of the old imperial courts with the underlying system of honour being based more on might than on right.
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03-30-2008, 03:31 PM #10
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6. Greatheart indicates that the Gorgon still as sexual lust so he may retain an ogress harem or suchlike (humans and goblins would be too fragile barring polymorph magic).
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