Thursday, 3 April 2014

The Battle of Imeryds Run (19th March - 2nd April 2014)



The Battle of Imeryds Run - Moonday 15th Quinquember 963 (started just before sunrise)

This is an account of the Battle of Imeryds Run that took place in the early hours of Moonday 15th Quinquember in the year 963 of the Cantwaran Era.

It came about because of the resurgence of The Temple dedicated to the worship of the demon queen of moulds and rot, Zuggtmoy, after a ten year hiatus. Bandit raids had increased and strange disappearances kept happening in the area around the town of Castleford.

A small band of adventurers got to the bottom of the plot when they destroyed an old outpost of the Temple that had been put back into use by a powerful cleric sworn to his mistress’s service. The cleric escaped the destruction of his fortified base of operations and took refuge in the run-down village of Nulb. The adventurers were able to track down his whereabouts and also how the Temple’s new recruits were hired and shipped to strategic positions.

The local Thuringian lords, under the command of the baron Tancred and his vizier the lady Mathilde worked together with the party to bring about the destruction of this racket and thus aid in the final destruction of the Temple.

This is the story of how the battle panned out whilst the adventurers nullified the high priest Lareth.

How it was done

The main battle was run using cut down AD&D combat rules. All To Hit rolls and Armour Classes etc. were standardised to make things easier. I think this would have played brilliantly if I had wargaming miniatures to hand but I had to make do with paper and cardboard counters (maybe I can re-run the battle using some commercial rules to see how it pans out?)

The entire battle was run outside of the gaming club and as luck would have it the combat within the Waterside Hostel lasted almost as long as the battle anyway making the end result the same due to minimal interference by the party (the only part extra was the defeat of the zombies and the capture of Lareth).

The Attacking Forces

The Defending Forces
From the south-east:
Baron Tancred
30 Knights
30 Medium Infantry

Boatmen’s Tavern/rest of village:
Skole
2 lieutenants
22 brigands
Across the Bridge:
Lieutenant
30 Medium Infantry
30 Archers

Waterside Hostel/rest of village:
Dick Rentsch
2 lieutenants
19 brigands
Support:
Lady Mathilde, Lord Ralph
5 clerics of Sol Invictus
30 Light Infantry (leather armour, shield, spear)
30 Archers
30 Auxilliary Troops
2 Trebuchets

Pirate ship:
Grud Squinteye
6 boatswains/mates
18 pirates
The Party
Lareth the Beautiful
2 Ogres
3 Bugbears
4 Gnolls
13 Zombies
1 Lieutenant
3 Sergeants
18 Temple men-at-arms
Neutral?
Smith
3 sergeants
27 village militia


Trebuchets at Dawn


1.      Trebuchets open fire. First salvo is fireballs – one hits the pirate ship at first attempt!
2.      Thuringian troops advance. Fire damage on ship. Nulbians awake and raise the alarms
a.       30 archers to the shore and bridge
b.      30 medium infantry to the bridge
c.       30 archers, 30 light infantry defend the trebuchets and Mathilde
d.      30 medium infantry from the south move into the village
e.       30 knights hold position to cover the medium infantry south of the village
f.       2 lances patrol as lookouts for escapees
3.      Pirates return fire at the trebuchets with their now ready ballistae. One trebuchet hit and damaged
4.      Thuringians make it onto the bridge under cover of their archers. Dick Rentsch’s brigands join combat with the Thuringian troops on the bridge. Archers stop firing as they don’t wish to hit their own men and turn their attention to pirate ship instead. Trebuchet hits the pirate ship again (but only with rocks this time)
5.      All pirates on ship working to put the fires out, get the boat moving and return fire on the trebuchets
6.      Combat joined in the east of Nulb, Skole’s brigands versus Thuringian infantry (knights held in reserve). Smith and the villagers stand their ground apart from the combat


Battle results so far:
a.       Pirate ship starts to slip away but only by force of river current (15 crew left)
b.      Bridge
                                                       i.            Thuringians lose 8 archers and 6 medium infantry
                                                     ii.            Rentsch loses 8 brigands
c.       Eastern fields
                                                       i.            Thuringians lose 20 medium infantry
                                                     ii.            Skole loses 9 brigands
d.      Waterside Hostel
                                                       i.            Party lose Ulf
                                                     ii.            Lareth loses all support except zombies


Battle results so far:
a.       Pirate ship out of range of trebuchets
b.      Bridge
                                                       i.            Thuringians – win melee due to arrival of baron Tancred and knights
                                                     ii.            Rentsch loses his entire war band on the bridge
c.       Eastern fields
                                                       i.            Thuringian heavy cavalry scattered Skole’s brigands and the men-at-arms corral the remainder (7) as prisoners
                                                     ii.            Knights charge up to the bridge
d.      Waterside Hostel
                                                       i.            Party defeat Lareth and the zombies
                                                     ii.            Lareth knocked unconscious and captured by Thuringian knights



Aftermath – what the Thuringians do:

Morning
·         Round up all the enemies involved in the combat, chain them together and march them to Castleford
·         Magically bind Lareth and return him to Castleford under the eye of lord Ralph
·         Break down the trebuchets and send them back to Castleford
·         Collect and dress casualties and return them to Castleford
·         Send all surplus troops back to Castleford
·         The party are thanked and rewarded for their part in the battle
·         Start to build a fortification at the highest point in the village
·         Build a funeral pyre close to the fenlands to dispose of the enemy corpses
·         Burn down the Boatmen’s Tavern and associated buildings

Afternoon
·         The motte begins to take shape and palisade started
·         The party heal up and bury their comrade Ulf in a prominent place

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