Registered Member #1593
Joined: 12:25:12 pm GMT 06/30/10
Posts: 418
((Copied from Alanonas' original post in the rumors thread. This thread is for any who wish to post regarding ongoing RP surrounding the Hammersong and Underdark conflict.))
Smoke rises from the Halls of Hammersong as the forges ring with the din and crash of arms and armor being made ready for war.
Word spreads across the isle: an alliance of the denizens of the Underdark have breached the lower halls of the dwarven stronghold and push upon the stalwart lines of the dwarves.
The dwarves of Hammersong have yet to issue a request of aid to the other kingdoms of the land, but several bands of adventurers have been seen descending into the halls to fight side by side with the dwarves....
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(( OOC ))
There is a new battlefield in the Hammersong Lower Halls. It is considered an open PvP zone, and any player who enters said zone is agreeing to abide by the open PvP and Team PvP guidlines.
A few reminders:
I. No mid-battle resurrections unless you are a cleric who can cast the spell. If you are a cleric, please do not abuse greater sanctuary to this end; that is to say, do not make yourself ethereal just so you can heal and resurrect allies with impunity. (Note that this only applies when PvP is going on- if you're with a party and just killing one side or the other with no PCs opposing, feel free to rez as much as you like).
II. No consumable golden items in PVP unless you have discussed it first. Some are very game-breaking and others can cause terrible lag.
III. Be mindful of spells like Storm of Vengeance (cleric and druid spell) as it causes major lag. Please also observe that many lingering AoE spells such as stinking cloud, incendiary cloud, death cloud etc may also cause lag, but not nearly to the same extent as SoV.
IV. No mass released summons. There are scripts in place to provide each side with soldiers.
V. No neutral parties. The battlefield is an active, well, battlefield. If you are in area or near the battlefield, even if you are just healing mobs or singing songs, you may be targeted. Please bear that in mind.
Keep things fun and enjoy the content, and as always, feel free to reach out to anyone on staf fif you encounter any issues.
Registered Member #24916
Joined: 2:58:00 pm GMT 01/23/19
Posts: 604
"They breached the lower halls? Why are we still standing here?!"
Lily was quick to find her spot in the Lower halls of Hammersong. She stands with the dwarfs, watching the small rubble covered field that used to be a lovely hall, ready to rush the incoming enemy before they could reach too many of the dwarfs. She quickly found the lower ranked dwarfs to fall if their line was breached, and she was experienced in chaotic combat. Not to mention it would catch the enemy off-guard to suddenly have someone charge from behind a blockade.
There were still too many casualties on their side, more than she had wanted to see. It is but a fraction compared to their enemy, but fallen is still fallen. Once the field had calmed with each enemy wave, Lily gathered the fallen and brought them upstairs. The dead lined up, and it was not long before there was a huge row of Hammer Guards. Said row would only keep growing as Lily thought back to just a week ago, when she had joined in repairing a boulder. She saw how few were touched by the stones, and as she watched the slain bodies, she pondered who it would be too late for, and who would be saved by the stones. The clerics were few, and had their hands full, and she was needed at the battlefield.
A battlefield that remained busy. A new wave, a new struggle. A new struggle, more dead to bring upstairs.. but she kept at it. Surely there would be stealth units and intelligence working day and night to map out their enemy locations and supply lines. If they were lucky, they would even find their leaders. But for that to really matter, she needs to hold the line.
Registered Member #1593
Joined: 12:25:12 pm GMT 06/30/10
Posts: 418
Incident Report 4820
The war continues.
As of this point, we've killed one of the seeming three commanders of the Underdark invasion into the 'Song, a demon-blooded exile dwarf by the name of Haig'lan. It seemed to be attached to some power connected to Davenshire. From what we can tell, it's now dead and a catastrophic negative energy explosion averted.
That leaves two more. A renegade drow attached to a finished drow house and Gul'ver, a duergar commander.
Where their camps are, we've yet to find but they continue their push to free their "Underking," a shadow dragon of some ancient power.
A group of us combated a wave of undead, duergar and drow exiles as they made a strong push into the lower halls of the 'Song a week or so after. A drider necromancer with some apparent talent for voidcalling led the assault. Many dwarves died in the defense of their home, but we were able to push the aberration and its minions back into the mines. We made contact with the dwarves there and reignited some of their smelting equipment which then banished the area of the darkness lurking in its floor and corners. (Cost me a Harp of Hellball, but here's to hoping it remains lit).
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Unfortunately, one of the leading priest's of Hammersong's temple, Pelden Strongheart, was cursed in the drider's death throes. Whether we will be able to break this curse has yet to be seen.
Registered Member #24916
Joined: 2:58:00 pm GMT 01/23/19
Posts: 604
Fliers popped up in Hamley, Steinkreis, the Landing, Sandburrow and Greenvale.
Hammersong needs your aid!
War is still raging on, and many are still trapped in the mines below. The guard have their hands full, so they need our help. Anyone who is a friend, or just like their booze, please aid in their retrieval.
We set out when the moon reaches its fullest. - Lily Afein
Registered Member #1050
Joined: 7:35:50 am GMT 05/11/07
Posts: 409
Poisoning the dwarfs water supply was easy, it was an interconnection of dwarven mastery of course, each section divided into subsections broken into further subsections to prevent such an occurrence. But, if you knew the right combinations you could use their genius against them and let the system poison itself beyond repair. Nothing to kill mind you, just enough to make them sick and weaken them, poor resolve and miserable attitudes have killed many an army before a battle was even fought.
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Vincent Hoped it would be enough to help Dethir with his plans, after all the Underking being freed would be a boon too good to miss…. If it could ever be pulled off that is.
Registered Member #25414
Joined: 5:49:38 am GMT 02/06/20
Posts: 173
A Bloody Entrance
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At the gates of Hammersong the Blooded rise to the horns of war wailing from the depths. The foul creatures previously locked in the dark elven city had risen to assault the dwarven hold alongside the Underking and his darkness.
A flaming spear is ripped from a Drow’s body who had attempted to pierce the Chaplain’s armor as she looks over the many fallen from Hammersong. She calls on her holy symbol as she tries to heal the deeper wounds many suffered from the blades and witchcraft called on by the spawns of twilight.
The chaplain’s eye glances across the bodies of drow and dwarf alike, across the battlefield to the burrows used to enter the vaults, before she turns to look over poisoned men from drow blades. If they would be able to enter the darkness beyond, if the nest of the Driders could be found – the failure would be corrected, and the forces of the Underking could be grinded into the stone. One infestation handled at a time would see this war won, so long as they avoided the gaze of the Illithid hunting for minds to corrupt…
The chaplain penned for aid from her brothers and sisters to see this assault held back before a push could made against these creatures. The Blood Guard had previously struck a deep cut into the Underking’s ranks by disrupting the stone fey who held control over the Bulette’s raised to carve tunnels into the vaults but sitting idle too long after such an assault would allow the enemy a chance to rally further monsters to aid the Underking. This assault would see the Underking left with but a fraction of the crazed cultists he rallied to his banner.
Registered Member #25414
Joined: 5:49:38 am GMT 02/06/20
Posts: 173
Bloody Tactics
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Near a campfire beyond the gates of Steinkreis, a dwarf waits for the red hood of the Chaplain to pass by. He offers to share the fire and have a conversation regarding the war within the lower halls of Hammersong. He looks to her eye, and he speaks a name.
“Commander Gul’ver”
A Duergar with “honor”, whatever that could mean for a creature of darkness and hatred from the caverns below the surface of Thain. He motions a request for his head, making claims that he is a champion of the Underking’s army. Soon, the General Retyid would challenge this “Gul’ver” to honorable combat to settle their five-decade long bout between life and death. During such a challenge, a request was placed to see the Blooded aiding Hammersong halt the duel and slay the commander before he should have a chance to kill the general. Such an act to break an honor bound duel would see the Blood Guard’s reputation in ruin throughout Hammersong, the man warned Celestine. Should they fail, or should the soldiers turn on the Blooded during such a moment, the dwarf insisted he would know nothing of what the Blooded were doing, or why the Blooded would interrupt such a duel. In the Blood’s desire, this creature would perish and the Blooded shall not fail. The denizens of Hammersong would be free to grow hatred in the safety of their own walls after the war had ended, and they were safe yet again.
With next to no hesitation the Chaplain nods and accepts to the request, only asking for a single exchange in return. She wished the location and name of that which controlled the Drider’s burrowing and nesting outside of the depths of Hammersong. She was told for accepting such a task that the creature’s name was “Daiglas Dethir”, they could gain the information of his nest before the Commander Gul’ver was slain so long as they could force such from his lips quickly enough. They must succeed to see the Driders destroyed, and the Underking's army further purged.
Down and down into the depths of the earth, the man went. He was a lone figure, garbed in the clothing of a common mercenary, with nothing standing out to identify his name or reputation. He had a singular goal in mind and moved like a man possessed. The long way. So as to avoid being seen by random travelers along roads.
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Before he would reach his destination, he needed to gather a missing component. Fortunately for him, it was on the way. The planeshift crystals were useful things. They could serve all manner of purposes, whether to distort one’s presence, act as conjuring components, or, and for the reason of gathering them, act as a hole for entities to pierce through the veil of reality.
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After gathering the needed crystals, the man retreated to a solemn cave. There, he found a small piece of rock, which acted as a make-shift table. Chanting echoed forth as he began imbuing crystal with Far Realm energies, to produce 5 summoning gems. When he was finished, 5 summoning gems, 5 planeshift crystals, 5 voidstones, and a singular hyper-focused crystal of summoning was laid out onto the rock.
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Then from a small bag at his side, he brought out a tiny pouch filled with ordinary sand. Each gem was placed within the pouch carefully, so as not to set them off. The sand acted as a buffer to prevent mistakenly triggering the whole lot of them from the friction caused by so many in such a small, confined place. In effect, enough crushing force would likely set them off like a bomb of planar energy, which was every bit his hope.
Carefully, he picked the pouch up and then left the cave towards his final destination.
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If many of those of the surface knew what it was, that he was doing, it would have been problematic for him. Such was the reason for his going alone. Though, his reasons for his actions would have been difficult to understand for many. He was an agent of chaos, after all. While his motives and actions were not without judgment, to those of rational mind, it was often considered fringe at best.
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He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. The Beast of the Pit was something which had long intrigued him, ever since he stumbled across its dwelling over a decade prior. An enigmatic creature of unknown origin and scope of power. Yet it was a nagging curiosity, that in his later years, only caused it to grow. The duergar of Chudrak-dûm were right to fear such an entity. He himself had nothing short of reverence for its power. Though, he was not there to combat the thing. No. Instead, he was there to try and loosen the bars on its cage, to give it sudden growth, and hopefully … let it free to feed upon the impending battlefield. He glanced to the pouch of gems he carried. Each one inside served its own purpose. The sand they were nestled within ensured that the pouch would not burst, unless exposed to immense pressure … which the beast would surely provide when it attempted to vice-grip the container to crush and feed. In his mind, he hoped that the summoning gems would provide ample life force as the creatures were released, that the planeshift and voidstones would offer a surge large enough to create a dimensional window to pierce through, and finally … a hope that the all-powerful summoning gem, when released, would cause a blast of planar energy large enough, that would energize the beast to act.
He only needed to get its attention …
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…
…
…
He had thrown the package into the pit, shortly after the beast appeared. It was a narrowly avoided fate of death, but he found his footing at the last moment. There was no telling when the package would go off, whether sooner or later, or even what it might do, if anything.
As he quickly departed the area, he left a final thing behind. It was a simple note, plastered to the wall of the entrance to the old ruins; a warning written in Dwarvern:
The Stone Knight sends his regards to Chudrak-dûm. He hopes that this kindness will be returned with diplomatic acknowledgement with the nobles of your city for clout.
As a surfacer, he has no interest in your Underking, but the people of Chudrak-dûm are a different story, exiled or not. As allies, it should be noted that an attack soon looms upon this area, in search of a Commander, like the dead red pig. Let the Commander’s men know that honor will be his downfall, so decree the dwarves of Hammersong. Be warned. Treachery is afoot. Do not trust the dwarves or their allies to have honor in this matter.
He understands there is no requirement to take advice, but there may be some validation in falling back to these ruins for defense in the coming days. Given that the people of the surface world tend to be a superstitious lot, it is probable that they would strike forward with such clear purpose, as with other more generic cave-like locations.
If you wish to contact him, you may do so, but ensure it is somewhere non-populated. Otherwise, he will have little choice but to enact his lawful duties of his station above.
Registered Member #25414
Joined: 5:49:38 am GMT 02/06/20
Posts: 173
A Conversation of Restoration
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The Blood chaplain enters the upper halls after nearly being cleaved in two by the minotaur assaulting the frontlines and finds herself in the temple of Hammersong. She walks through the crowds and conversations before finding her gaze settled on Pelden Strongheart.
“Master Strongheart… I see you are walking around the temple again. Rumors told of a curse weakening you that spawned from the creatures of the depths. Had you found a path through such a curse to find yourself healed?”
The two speak briefly back and forth regarding the circumstance that had fallen onto himself, before he informs her that he had been aided already. The chaplain often watched soldiers in pain require healing, and blessings – but this dwarf stood almost anxious even after he had been healed. He seemed unsure himself if he truly was cured of his cursed position, or if it was only a fever dream caused by the darkness below. He claimed his body healed but could not remember anything that had happened. The only foggy memory he held was of a pair who came by to visit him during his illness. He looked to Celestine with a furrowed brow, almost untrusting of his own memory. He claimed of all things that a maid had visited him on the day that he was healed but could not remember much beyond being told that he was healed.
The conversation ended as the chaplain wished him well through the rest of the war. She went to inquire with others of who brought healing to Master Strongheart's curse.
Registered Member #25414
Joined: 5:49:38 am GMT 02/06/20
Posts: 173
The Roar of the Darkness
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Three of the Blooded stand at the frontlines, holding off hoards of drow and duergar the best they can. Poisons fly from blades, as drow fall from the darkness above. Hammers and axes clash against Hammersong steel as the guard fend off the assault. A deep silence follows the clash as the chaplain tries to cleanse toxins from the warriors’ blood.
The hall shakes, a deep and echoing boom.
Thud… Thud… Thud…
The tempo of an assault.
Thud… Thud… Thud…
Creatures in unison.
Thud… Thud…
A path to the front line… The chaplain’s eye turns toward Garrik and Soterya – blessings free from her holy symbol as she braces herself for whatever my rise from the depths of the Underdark.
“ROOOOuuuAAAhhhGHHHH!”
An entire pack of beasts from the hells rise with duergar riding their backs. Minotaurs larger than any creature the chaplain had seen. A single soldier just shouts “Linebreakahs ‘ere, eh!? Show’m wort we got lads!” The force of frontline soldiers and Blood Guard try to fend off the horde of beasts for nearly twenty minutes as their massive axes cleave soldiers in half. A horn from the ramp to the Upper Halls echoes down into the battlefield as King Rugar Greathammer XV, his General Retyid, and Redcloak arrive to aid the defense. They find their stride in the battle but not fast enough as the minotaur’s grab dwarven bodies to throw at the reinforcements.
In only a single second, the chaplain glances around the battlefield, realizing this very well may be the end of the war. The end of her time as a shield of the island. A minotaur reaches for the woman and throws her body against a stone pillar of the lower halls. Agony surges through her body as she slides to the ground, glaring toward the creature as it raised the mighty axe it wields. She had moments before the light would leave her body, and her service would have ended…
The chamber erupted into a torrent of flame, the growl of something beyond understanding commands the fire from the center of it. A beast coated in red runes; a bear surrounded by fire. Scars across the fur, and claws sharper than any blade. The beast leaps, guiding the flames around itself and charges toward the minotaur raising its axe. A flurry of claw and maw rip through the fur of the beast and leave it nothing more than a corpse. The Firebear leaps from one minotaur to the next, leaving only piles of fur and hooves in the wake of this war path.
Celestine tries to steady her legs, and call on the island to push herself further, but struggles to persist or find any way to aid this bear as it slaughtered creatures coming from the darkness. The Fire Bear and King Rugar both dismantled the force of beasts, leaving bodies of both sides scattered. The surviving glance around, as the King motions over the Blooded. A conversation happens through the blood and broken bones they suffered.
[ The Island of Thain ]
The War Under the Mountain
