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Thread: Outskirts of an Empire IV

  1. #1

    Default Outskirts of an Empire IV

    Outskirts of an Empire IV-Treachery

    "I have loved justice and hated iniquity: therefore I die in exile."- Pope Gregory VII

    It is 1
    130. Emperor Heinrich has been dead for almost 10 years now though his legacy has not yet been forgotten. Men like Ruprecht the Merciless (or once the Brave) were still alive, defending the wide borders of the Reich, the wide borders that encompassed Timbuktu, Novgorod and Cairo. An Empire that still had unfinished business, busy with maintaining its trade, wealth, diplomacy and military expansion across the world. He may have died but Emperor Heinrich’s spirit was not dead yet. His successor, Emperor Dieter was an old man, succeeding his thrown at the ripe old age of 55 and it was no surprise to the German aristocracy that he died within 5 years of his reign, apparently peacefully. The young 18-year-old Thorsten would succeed him, a mere lad, who had neither experience in fighting, nor controlling his own subjects and his own men. Nevertheless, he was determined to prove his strength and lead an entire exhibition across the deadly Sahara capturing all the settlements in the hellish landscape by his 23rd birthday. It is at this time where the Reich sets its hungry eyes, on its Byzantine “Allies.” Thorsten sends his cardinals to convert the populace to the light of God while dispatching spies to locate the key enemy positions and the Byzantines, realising what would happen in the near future, prepared for war. Thorsten sends the brilliant young commander, Wikerus von Holstein to take Adrianople on the way to the great city of Constantinople and it is here, on the Outskirts of an Empire that once again the world is plunged into war. As the bloody mouth of the Reich opens, the fate of a nation holds in the balance.

    Unto the breach, dear friends, once more;/ Or close the wall up with our English dead” (Shakespeare, Henry V, III, I)

    Wikerus von Holstein was said to have been drilled, caned, smacked and lectured constantly in his childhood (not that he cared) and as a result, he refused to be *soft* and rarely indulged himself, keep a strict, healthy diet, constantly training himself and of course utterly refusing to ride into battle on a horse, preferring to be like his men and engaging in bloody combat on ground. He was known as the drillmaster of the Reich and he was the perfect choice to use against the Byzantines’ Voulgariotes of Potholinos, regarded as one of the finest generals in what was left of the ailing decadent Byzantine Empire, an empire that had run out of energy. And so, having gathered the strongest army in the Reich, comprised of Feudal, Imperial and even Gothic Knights on foot, 2 groups of Gothic Knights on horse back, a few squads of Pavise Crossbowman and “Mr Happy” and “Mr Smashy” [just joking] his trebuchets, the drill master set off to siege the fortified town of Adrianople.

    It was a hot evening. The German Army was barely prepared for the aggravating heat in the area. They had just reached the city which would be their first target before reaching the great City of Constantinople. Von Holstein was not a man of words. “Get in line MEN! We’re going to siege this town and remove this scum from this world!” shouted the general in his typical drilling style. Even the brave men scurried to their positions. “But sir, wouldn’t it be wiser to maintain the siege? We’ve just arrived here sir!” murmured a very very brave man. “If God wanted us to sit down like little maidens on the nice green paddocks he’d GIVE US A SIGN! NOW GET BACK INTO LINE!” The man (not Wikerus) backed down.



    Preparations

    Meanwhile Voulgariotes of Potholinos was anxious. Never had he seen the full might of the Reich enter his own lands in the 24 years of his life, crushing the Turks and slaughtering the Hungarians. Nevertheless he was prepared to defend his city with the 2200 men he had at hand. “Men. We are going to either die here or CRUSH here! It is up to YOU to decide!” The battle lines were in place. As the barrage commenced, the siege had begun.



    "Commence the Barrage!"


  2. #2
    Hex Khan's Avatar Oooooh Yeeeaah!!
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    Default Re: Outskirts of an Empire IV



    Yay!



    keep them coming Ippius
    Historical Reenactor and Proud of it
    Winner of Best AAR Writer Award 2007

  3. #3

    Default Re: Outskirts of an Empire IV

    Very nice, Ippius. I love the crazy effects on that second picture. Good to see you're putting some quotes in your AAR. I loved Henry V (the play, not the man, even though he was pretty cool).

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