imported_Song
27-07-2007, 01:27 AM
The elf scanned the landscape, perched high amongst the rocks looking over the plains of Ettenmoors. Uruks and orcs swarmed across the landscape, constructing war machines and laying waste to the land around them. Trolls patrolled the ancient keeps, guarding the last bastions of hope amongst the free peoples of Middle Earth.
'So what d'ye see', the dwarf Guardian, Kraggax, squawked in his slightly shrill voice, the product of an unfortunate incident with a horse and cart he claimed but his companions reckoned they'd finally found the existence of dwarven females.
'Hush your noise', hissed Song from his perch above, 'the orc patrols are right below us and I sense Wargs closeby too'
Kicking his feet in frustration the dwarf returned to their small camp tucked away in the hills.
'So what news?' inquired Kellie looking up from her charts and maps laid out over the makeshift table.
'The damn elf won't tell me a thing' muttered Kraggax, 'no doubt he'll be here in a moment with tales of wonder and myth not to mention a plan to save the day'
Kellie smirked, deep down she knew that Kraggax would lay his life on the line for any of them, but in the company of his peers he was the epitome of a dwarf, all bar the slightly high pitched voice.
Opaline and Eilella appeared from the shadows, sweat slicking their heads and breathing hard.
'Wargs' panted the hobbit, Opaline, 'lots of wargs'
Eilella licked the ichor from her blade with a grin 'Lots of dead wargs', she winked slyly.
'Good work' said Kellie, and before she could continue Song returned from his lookout.
'Don't tell me', muttered Kraggax 'you spy orcs in the east'
'Actually west but thats neither here nor there sweet dwarf', grinned Song.
'What news then elf?', questioned Skaggi, twin to Kraggax though with a much lower timbre to his voice, apparently due to him avoiding the aforementioned horse and cart.
'Well, theres alot of them, and I mean alot', the elf paused for effect, 'But no more than we can handle I imagine given the time to prepare fully'
At that moment the sounds of hooves rang out through the silence of the sheltered valley.
'A rider approaches from the north', Song winked at Kraggax
Rolling his eyes the dwarf grumbled, 'Your powers of observation are legendary'
The rider pulled up and hopped off his horse panting.
'Another dwarf!' exclaimed Song, 'They're breeding!'
'Greetings friends, I ride from Coldfells with urgent news', the dwarf looked out of breath.
Kellie motioned for him to take a seat by the fire and Skaggi poured him a brew to quench his thirst.
'Thanks, needed that. Me names Urgan and I've ridden hard from Coldfells, the camp of Free People south of the bridge and east of the lumber camp is under heavy attack from Uruk and Warg, even some spiders have been spotted. I beg of you to come to their aid'
'How large is their force?' questioned Kraggax, 'for ye see we're not large in number'
'Their number is large but, if you'd be willing, I'd gladly lend my blade to you'
'Well, overwhelming numbers, poor chance of survival, what say you friends?' Kellie scanned the faces of her companions.
As one they cried 'THE POWER OF THREE'
'Three?' questioned Urgan
'Don't ask' whispered Song, 'we'd be here all night'
They broke camp under the cover of darkness and rode hard through the night, avoiding patrols as they went. They arrived in the morning and were greeted by the Coldfell Seargent, his armor was battered and bloodstained and he had a huge scar across his chin running down before disappearing underneath his tunic.
'Greetings, am I glad to see you! Where are the others?' he asked
'Others?' Kraggax smiled, 'This is it friend, we're all you're getting'
'Heh then welcome friends, any blade is welcome here. We rest for the moment but the Uruks will be back. Come take a seat you must be tired.'
'On the contrary, we'd rather set about our defences and spill some blood before we feast' grinned Nicoras, stepping forward.
'Speak for yourself' said Song, 'Lead the way Seargent...'
'Dawson, Clement Dawson' he said, 'come this way we'll get you some food'
'Splendid' Song grinned clapping his hands he turned back to his companions 'Well you heard Nicoras, hop to it and set up those defences'
As one they all rolled their eyes but set off to check out the lay of the land.
They returned several hours later as the sun began cresting the horizon.
'We're set are you ready elf?' Kraggax poked the elf with the butt of his axe.
'Aye I am set, shall we?'
And so that morning they lined up, twelve hardy companions bound by duty supported by the meagre forces of the Coldfells outpost.
Soon the howls and grunts of the advance Uruk patrol reached their ears.
'They come' said Song
'More displays of that legendary elf observation' grunted Kraggax, 'Come Skaggi, Urgan, we're the bait.' he winked at the other two dwarves.
The three of them made their way into the slight depression, a small valley that cut through the forest giving a clear space in which they'd set up their killing field.
Almost instantly three wargs sprang out of the shadows, gnashing and slashing with claws and teeth at the three dwarves.
Urgan and Skaggi fought back to back their blades a whir, whilst Kraggax defended heroically crying his battle cries and throwing his axe into the fray.
The wargs, bloodied already retreated quickly to the shadows of the forest howling in fear.
'HAHA!' cried Urgan
'When you want us to chip in just let us know' yelled Song across the clearing.
Almost immediately a horde of orcs burst through the cover of the treeline and battle ensued. The three dwarves held of the initial charge and called for their companions to enter the fray, Skaggi blowing on his horn in between dodging a blade that almost cleaved his head clear off.
Nicoras and Srren charged in their blades like quicksilver, slicing and carving their way to the centre. Kellie, resplendent in her armor, yelled encouragement to her companions whilst her footman, the portly Neko, struggled to keep up. The minstrels Kaywyn, Song and Marmawise sang songs of joy and fervour and the battle began in earnest.
Several times wargs would appear from the very air itself, trying to cut down the minstrels and the bearded loremaster, Helegdir. Every time they were thwarted by the burglars, Eilella, Opaline and Ragrin, hamstringing the wargs and cutting them down one by one. Soon bodies of wargs lay strewn at the feet of the minstrels.
'Hah, we'll make a nice rug of these' , winked Song, Kaywyn just sighed theatrically and continued her performance.
Meanwhile the centre of the once lush green valley was now like a charnel house, blood and viscera covered almost the entire length of the battlefield, and in the middle the companions battled on, hacking and slashing, their lives dependant on each other.
Finally the last orc fell amidst his dread companions, a cacophony of howls erupted from the forest and faded away into the distance.
'Well that was fun' laughed Kraggax, gobbets of flesh hung from his armor and he was bathed head to toe in blood, 'A dunk in the river for us to clean this stench off'
'Hah! good fighting indeed my friends' cried Urgan
The Coldfells Seargent ran up, 'That...was...' words failed him as an arrow flew out the forest and lodged deep in his neck killing him instantly.
'Ack!' cried Skaggi as he caught the man on the way down, 'A good man, is there nothing you can do Elf?'
'I'm afraid not friend, his wounds are beyond even my skill', Song sighed, 'Come lets take him from here and lay him to rest'
And so they trudged off from the field of battle, a victory won but at the cost of an innocent.
Later that night around the campfire they sat in silence.
'I know what, lets go take back out Keeps?' said Song
'Bad odds, high chance of death..... ' grinned Kraggax
'WE'RE IN!', they all cried out....
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Had alot of fun over the weekend in Ettenmoors, two memorable battles, the first when we were sorely outnumbered near that Coldfells camp.
We took our fair share of kills that morning.
The second, and probably more fun, was last night with 12 people, apologies I forgot most of the names hehe 6/7 of my kin and assorted others, we decided to go take the Keeps. Was a hoot, killed lots of wargs and spiders and orcses.
Much fun all round, we'll see you on the battlefield again!
Oh and Grylda, let me mine in peace damnit!! Beryls are hard to come by
'So what d'ye see', the dwarf Guardian, Kraggax, squawked in his slightly shrill voice, the product of an unfortunate incident with a horse and cart he claimed but his companions reckoned they'd finally found the existence of dwarven females.
'Hush your noise', hissed Song from his perch above, 'the orc patrols are right below us and I sense Wargs closeby too'
Kicking his feet in frustration the dwarf returned to their small camp tucked away in the hills.
'So what news?' inquired Kellie looking up from her charts and maps laid out over the makeshift table.
'The damn elf won't tell me a thing' muttered Kraggax, 'no doubt he'll be here in a moment with tales of wonder and myth not to mention a plan to save the day'
Kellie smirked, deep down she knew that Kraggax would lay his life on the line for any of them, but in the company of his peers he was the epitome of a dwarf, all bar the slightly high pitched voice.
Opaline and Eilella appeared from the shadows, sweat slicking their heads and breathing hard.
'Wargs' panted the hobbit, Opaline, 'lots of wargs'
Eilella licked the ichor from her blade with a grin 'Lots of dead wargs', she winked slyly.
'Good work' said Kellie, and before she could continue Song returned from his lookout.
'Don't tell me', muttered Kraggax 'you spy orcs in the east'
'Actually west but thats neither here nor there sweet dwarf', grinned Song.
'What news then elf?', questioned Skaggi, twin to Kraggax though with a much lower timbre to his voice, apparently due to him avoiding the aforementioned horse and cart.
'Well, theres alot of them, and I mean alot', the elf paused for effect, 'But no more than we can handle I imagine given the time to prepare fully'
At that moment the sounds of hooves rang out through the silence of the sheltered valley.
'A rider approaches from the north', Song winked at Kraggax
Rolling his eyes the dwarf grumbled, 'Your powers of observation are legendary'
The rider pulled up and hopped off his horse panting.
'Another dwarf!' exclaimed Song, 'They're breeding!'
'Greetings friends, I ride from Coldfells with urgent news', the dwarf looked out of breath.
Kellie motioned for him to take a seat by the fire and Skaggi poured him a brew to quench his thirst.
'Thanks, needed that. Me names Urgan and I've ridden hard from Coldfells, the camp of Free People south of the bridge and east of the lumber camp is under heavy attack from Uruk and Warg, even some spiders have been spotted. I beg of you to come to their aid'
'How large is their force?' questioned Kraggax, 'for ye see we're not large in number'
'Their number is large but, if you'd be willing, I'd gladly lend my blade to you'
'Well, overwhelming numbers, poor chance of survival, what say you friends?' Kellie scanned the faces of her companions.
As one they cried 'THE POWER OF THREE'
'Three?' questioned Urgan
'Don't ask' whispered Song, 'we'd be here all night'
They broke camp under the cover of darkness and rode hard through the night, avoiding patrols as they went. They arrived in the morning and were greeted by the Coldfell Seargent, his armor was battered and bloodstained and he had a huge scar across his chin running down before disappearing underneath his tunic.
'Greetings, am I glad to see you! Where are the others?' he asked
'Others?' Kraggax smiled, 'This is it friend, we're all you're getting'
'Heh then welcome friends, any blade is welcome here. We rest for the moment but the Uruks will be back. Come take a seat you must be tired.'
'On the contrary, we'd rather set about our defences and spill some blood before we feast' grinned Nicoras, stepping forward.
'Speak for yourself' said Song, 'Lead the way Seargent...'
'Dawson, Clement Dawson' he said, 'come this way we'll get you some food'
'Splendid' Song grinned clapping his hands he turned back to his companions 'Well you heard Nicoras, hop to it and set up those defences'
As one they all rolled their eyes but set off to check out the lay of the land.
They returned several hours later as the sun began cresting the horizon.
'We're set are you ready elf?' Kraggax poked the elf with the butt of his axe.
'Aye I am set, shall we?'
And so that morning they lined up, twelve hardy companions bound by duty supported by the meagre forces of the Coldfells outpost.
Soon the howls and grunts of the advance Uruk patrol reached their ears.
'They come' said Song
'More displays of that legendary elf observation' grunted Kraggax, 'Come Skaggi, Urgan, we're the bait.' he winked at the other two dwarves.
The three of them made their way into the slight depression, a small valley that cut through the forest giving a clear space in which they'd set up their killing field.
Almost instantly three wargs sprang out of the shadows, gnashing and slashing with claws and teeth at the three dwarves.
Urgan and Skaggi fought back to back their blades a whir, whilst Kraggax defended heroically crying his battle cries and throwing his axe into the fray.
The wargs, bloodied already retreated quickly to the shadows of the forest howling in fear.
'HAHA!' cried Urgan
'When you want us to chip in just let us know' yelled Song across the clearing.
Almost immediately a horde of orcs burst through the cover of the treeline and battle ensued. The three dwarves held of the initial charge and called for their companions to enter the fray, Skaggi blowing on his horn in between dodging a blade that almost cleaved his head clear off.
Nicoras and Srren charged in their blades like quicksilver, slicing and carving their way to the centre. Kellie, resplendent in her armor, yelled encouragement to her companions whilst her footman, the portly Neko, struggled to keep up. The minstrels Kaywyn, Song and Marmawise sang songs of joy and fervour and the battle began in earnest.
Several times wargs would appear from the very air itself, trying to cut down the minstrels and the bearded loremaster, Helegdir. Every time they were thwarted by the burglars, Eilella, Opaline and Ragrin, hamstringing the wargs and cutting them down one by one. Soon bodies of wargs lay strewn at the feet of the minstrels.
'Hah, we'll make a nice rug of these' , winked Song, Kaywyn just sighed theatrically and continued her performance.
Meanwhile the centre of the once lush green valley was now like a charnel house, blood and viscera covered almost the entire length of the battlefield, and in the middle the companions battled on, hacking and slashing, their lives dependant on each other.
Finally the last orc fell amidst his dread companions, a cacophony of howls erupted from the forest and faded away into the distance.
'Well that was fun' laughed Kraggax, gobbets of flesh hung from his armor and he was bathed head to toe in blood, 'A dunk in the river for us to clean this stench off'
'Hah! good fighting indeed my friends' cried Urgan
The Coldfells Seargent ran up, 'That...was...' words failed him as an arrow flew out the forest and lodged deep in his neck killing him instantly.
'Ack!' cried Skaggi as he caught the man on the way down, 'A good man, is there nothing you can do Elf?'
'I'm afraid not friend, his wounds are beyond even my skill', Song sighed, 'Come lets take him from here and lay him to rest'
And so they trudged off from the field of battle, a victory won but at the cost of an innocent.
Later that night around the campfire they sat in silence.
'I know what, lets go take back out Keeps?' said Song
'Bad odds, high chance of death..... ' grinned Kraggax
'WE'RE IN!', they all cried out....
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Had alot of fun over the weekend in Ettenmoors, two memorable battles, the first when we were sorely outnumbered near that Coldfells camp.
We took our fair share of kills that morning.
The second, and probably more fun, was last night with 12 people, apologies I forgot most of the names hehe 6/7 of my kin and assorted others, we decided to go take the Keeps. Was a hoot, killed lots of wargs and spiders and orcses.
Much fun all round, we'll see you on the battlefield again!
Oh and Grylda, let me mine in peace damnit!! Beryls are hard to come by