The Dragonlord Crusade

[Havard]

By 3500 BC Blackmoor had over a dozen minor colonies from Evergrun through the Oltec lands. Little more than trading posts, these colonies paved the way for later invasions, both militarily and culturally. Blackmoor began colonising Brun wholesale, specifically in the southern "Dawn Territories", which were then known as New Thonia. The peoples of New Thonia enslaved the local Oltec population (who were not under the aegis of the Oltec Empire). United with the Dwarves of the Free Dwarven Principalities, the Thonian High Church began a genocidal crusade against the Beastmen of Draconia, invoking the wrath of the Draconian Empire (the First Beastmen Crusade, 3480 through 3420 BC). The Chromatic Dragons discovered during that war that they had been unwise to eschew the advancement of technology, as many of them died under the volleys of the Blackmoorian guns. In the end, the Chromatic Dragons were forced to make a treaty with the Kingdom of Blackmoor (The Treaty of Gandhar, 3420 BC) that not only forced them to renounce their alliance with the Beastmen, but also forced them to recognise the Free Dwarven Principalities and cede the lands to the south to Blackmoor. Rather than be slaughtered, many Draconian Beastmen fled to the north, where they joined their brethren in the "Borean Valley". Many of the functions formerly held by Beastmen in the Draconian Empire were thereafter performed by Human slaves bought from Blackmoor or the newly formed Azcan Empire (mostly Neathar and Oltecs).

This description details a time around the year 1500 in the Blackmoor Calendar (500 years into Blackmoor's future). Most likely this was also the time of the "First Dragonlord" mentioned in Thorarinn Gunnarson's novels. Blackmoorians at this time is at the late Renaissance/Early Colonial technology with some exceptional technology thrown into the mix.

How would this make for a fun setting to play in?

-Havard

[RobJN]

This would be freakin' fantastic to play in.

On Thorn's Mystara, this timeframe would have been when Blackmoor University's Operation Valkyrie truly shone. The shrikes and sirens, having cut their teeth in the Fourth Afridhi War about a hundred years before, had been further refined and even better equipped. A wing of sirens armed with kinetic lances was a very near match against a flight of dragons. And should the sirens bring the wyrms to the ground, the shrikes would be more than able to deal with the beasts by carefully coordinated timing and use of all five configurations of their Andahar's Edges.

Of course, the real enemy was the Beast Men, who had first taught the Afridhi the means of summoning demons. Beings of chaos and darkness themselves, a Beast Man playing host to a demon was a truly terrifying opponent on the field. It was rumored that the Draconian Empire did not willingly enter allegiance with the Beast Men, but were coerced or controlled somehow.

It could be up to the heroes to discover, unravel, and then shatter whatever hold the Beast Men had over the dragons, be it magical, mechanical, or cultural....

[Havard]

This would be freakin' fantastic to play in.

8)

On Thorn's Mystara, this timeframe would have been when Blackmoor University's Operation Valkyrie truly shone. The shrikes and sirens, having cut their teeth in the Fourth Afridhi War about a hundred years before, had been further refined and even better equipped. A wing of sirens armed with kinetic lances was a very near match against a flight of dragons. And should the sirens bring the wyrms to the ground, the shrikes would be more than able to deal with the beasts by carefully coordinated timing and use of all five configurations of their Andahar's Edges.

Cool ideas!

Of course, the real enemy was the Beast Men, who had first taught the Afridhi the means of summoning demons. Beings of chaos and darkness themselves, a Beast Man playing host to a demon was a truly terrifying opponent on the field. It was rumored that the Draconian Empire did not willingly enter allegiance with the Beast Men, but were coerced or controlled somehow.

My take is that the Draconian Empire served Hel, the Immortal who also created the Beastmen. The connection between the Afridhi and the Beastmen is interesting. We know that the Mountain that marks the border to the proper Afridhi Empire is called Goblin Kush. The first Beastmen seem to appear around 500 years prior to the Afridhi invasions, so there could definately be a connection there.

I might also be tempted to borrow a bit from the Last Fantasy Campaign, which introduced Balebourne as early members of the Beastmen. I would not have Beastmen or Balebourne as early as the reign of Robert of Geneva (BC5000), but probably 500 years later, around BC4500, at the time right after the destruction of the Temple of Id.

I see the creation of the Beastmen as an Entropic response to the destruction of the Temple of Id, whose members followed Thanatos. As usual, we see the traditional rivalry between Thanatos and Hel, with Hel throwing her own forces into the mix once the forces of Thanatos are weakened.

The connection between the Afridhi and the Entropics is complex though, as Zugzul is an Immortal of Energy rather than Entropy. Still, we do know that the line between the Spheres of Energy and Entropy are not always as easily defined. Zugzul might also welcome an alliance with Hel due to his own rivalry with Odin. Odin (Odir) is the main champion of Blackmoor and both Hel and Zugzul would like to see his influence weakened.

It could be up to the heroes to discover, unravel, and then shatter whatever hold the Beast Men had over the dragons, be it magical, mechanical, or cultural....

One aspect I havent really explored too much in this discussion is the connection to the Dragon Rulers. More on this later.

-Havard

[RobJN]

We know that the Mountain that marks the border to the proper Afridhi Empire is called Goblin Kush. The first Beastmen seem to appear around 500 years prior to the Afridhi invasions, so there could definately be a connection there.

I see the creation of the Beastmen as an Entropic response to the destruction of the Temple of Id, whose members followed Thanatos. As usual, we see the traditional rivalry between Thanatos and Hel, with Hel throwing her own forces into the mix once the forces of Thanatos are weakened.

I wouldn't put it past Hel to've given the forces of Law some nudges along the way to their bringing down the Temple of Id...

[Havard]

I wouldn't put it past Hel to've given the forces of Law some nudges along the way to their bringing down the Temple of Id...

Definately :twisted:

So the Dragonlord Crusade scenario is basically as follows:

The Big Picture
Hel and the other Entropic Immortals are beginning to see the Rise of the Blackmoor Civilization as a threat to the position of Entropy on the planet. Odin and his allies are gaining too much power, and by now it looks like most rivals of Blackmoor on the continent of Skothar have been defeated or subjugated by the Blackmoorians.

The Enemy
The main force that Hel has is the Beastmen (Orcs, Goblins etc), as well as the Draconic Empire, a large realm on the western continent ruled by Chromatic Dragons. Other cultures, like the Azcans could also come into the picture.

One thing I am a little uncertain about is the Dragonlord himself. The second Dragonlord, as it was revelaed was actually a dragon himself, but was this true for the first Dragonlord? Could the first Dragonlord be an agent of Insellageth aiding Blackmoor against the forces of Hel, perhaps in cooperation with Watchworks?

-Havard

[RobJN]

I wouldn't put it past Hel to've given the forces of Law some nudges along the way to their bringing down the Temple of Id...

Definately :twisted:

So the Dragonlord Crusade scenario is basically as follows:

One thing I am a little uncertain about is the Dragonlord himself. The second Dragonlord, as it was revelaed was actually a dragon himself, but was this true for the first Dragonlord? Could the first Dragonlord be an agent of Insellageth aiding Blackmoor against the forces of Hel, perhaps in cooperation with Watchworks?

-Havard

Afraid I never finished the Dragonlord trilogy, so I'm missing out on that chunk of Mystara lore.

[Havard]

I wouldn't put it past Hel to've given the forces of Law some nudges along the way to their bringing down the Temple of Id...

Definately :twisted:

So the Dragonlord Crusade scenario is basically as follows:

One thing I am a little uncertain about is the Dragonlord himself. The second Dragonlord, as it was revelaed was actually a dragon himself, but was this true for the first Dragonlord? Could the first Dragonlord be an agent of Insellageth aiding Blackmoor against the forces of Hel, perhaps in cooperation with Watchworks?

-Havard

Afraid I never finished the Dragonlord trilogy, so I'm missing out on that chunk of Mystara lore.

Not a problem really Rob!
The Dragonlord Trilogy deals mostly with the second Dragonlord. However there are hints of the time of the first dragonlord and the equipment the second dragonlord (Thelvyn) inherits from his predecessor is armor and a sword of clear Blackmoor origins.

-Havard

[RobJN]

Havard, I'm batting ideas back and forth with John about BC 2300 Mystara over on the Piazza, and some of it seems to be tying back to this era we've been discussing here.

Care to take a look and maybe give us some Blackmoor sage perspective?

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/thepiazza/b ... 33#p102333

[Havard]

Care to take a look and maybe give us some Blackmoor sage perspective?

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/thepiazza/b ... 33#p102333

Thanks for posting this here Rob! I have indeed been following this thread with great interest

-Havard