The
Army of Tomorrow first appeared in the first edition of Hero Wars
published in 2000 as a Hero Band. My version is a smaller and less
powerful organisation, less well established in Dragon Pass and more
desperate for work. The Army is an irruption of the equivalent of the
Earthly 14th century into a Bronze or Iron Age cultural
milieu, an alien and sorcerous blot on the tribal landscape.
Who are they?
The Army
of Tomorrow turned up in Rhigos in Esrolia about five years ago. They
are a band of mercenaries originally from Loskalm in the far
north-west of the continent, a country about which the inhabitants of
Dragon Pass know next to nothing. They do know that they have many
sorcerers and few gods, and that makes them figures of deep
suspicion.
The Army
has sort of prospered however. They provide decent soldiers at a very
reasonable price and they are ideal for disputes where Heortling
chiefs, Esrolian grandmothers and Lunar officials do not want to risk
their own troops and calling in the Humakti or Yelmalios looks like
expensive overkill. The Army has found itself doing all the really
crap military jobs in the area – patrolling the Praxian marches and
caravan routes, hunting down those bands of undead that make it past
the Ducks, dealing with plagues of starving trollkin. evicting
refugee squatters displaced by Lunar conquests – stuff no
honourable Humakti and many Lunar troops would want to do.
These are
all reasonable earners, but they do nothing for the military
reputation of the Army; jumped up garrison troops sniff the Lunar
officers, a pack of stickpickers who can march in a line scoff the
Sartarite thegns.
Sir Malain
the Slayer, the leader of the Army's outpost at the Monastery
of the Rock in Rhigos knows better. Back in the west Army troops have
fought Wolf Pirates, meeping chaos horrors from the Dilis swamps and
have seen service against the fearsome trolls of Guhan. He needs one big
glorious victory to make his name and his units reputation known in
Maniria, and then perhaps he will start getting some real money in,
and some better quality recruits. The Army brought a hard core of
veterans from their various outposts in the west and have been
following their practice of local recruitment in the Holy Country,
but there is only so much good old Fronelan drill and discipline can
do with the motley tribal outlaws and urban proles who have been
signing up.
The Army
is entirely ecumenical, they take anyone of any religion and do not
proselytise, or try not to, though they do rather obviously favour
fellow monotheists as sergeants and captains and the colonels are all
followers of the Church of the Futurist. If they have a real
prejudice it is against non-human sentients, Krjalki as they call
them. Back in Fronela and Seshnela these beings are few and far
between and they find it disturbing to see humans happily associating
with such horrors as trolls, ducks and merfolk. However the teachings
of St Dadivic are open to all, and some chaplains are coming round
the idea that these monsters might have souls and might even be able
to experience Solace and Joy.
Organisation
The Army
is organised into Columns, as they call their companies, each with a
different role. Each column has a Colonel, a Chaplain and two
Captains and ideally has eight 12 man squads.
First and
Second : Basic infantry units equipped with spear and shield or pikes with
falchion/shortsword for close up fighting, 20% of the unit will be
crossbowmen.
Third:
Galleys, where seamen receive training in Seamanship and marines use crossbows, boarding
pikes and axes
Fourth:
Light cavalry – spear and shield, light crossbow. This unit is
somewhat under strength after a series of disastrous encounters with
Grazelander raiders.
Fifth:
Heavy cavalry using lance and shield. The traditional juggernauts of
western warfare, but this column is way under strength due to lack of
suitable recruits and decent warhorses.
Sixth:
Sappers and Siegers; A bit of a novelty for this part of central
Genertela, where sieges tend to be drawn out affairs occasionally
livened up by magical assaults and flying Orlanthi fanatics. They
have yet to see action, but Sir Malain and their colonel Sir
Willebord are confident that they could knock over one the silly
little hill forts they have in these parts in no time. A quarter of
the troops have pavises and heavy crossbows, the rest are trained in
building a few basic bits of siege equipment like battering rams,
galleries and siege towers and they have carts with the great sinew
springs needed for onagers and ballistas and plenty of woodworking
tools. Sir Willebord also knows how to tunnel and undermine, but
doubts the flimsy forts of Dragon Pass will need it.
Religion
Sergeants
must follow a Malkioni Religion. The Army has sergeants from a number
of sects but all the Chaplains are members of the Order of St
Dadivic. The Army follows the western practice of the Chain of
Veneration, where lay members give magical power and support to a
Liturgist who then casts spells that benefit the whole congregation,
as long as they bear a sanctified holy symbol.
The
Captains of the columns are all members of the Order of St Dadivic
and their Chaplain-General Lostar Spellster is a former adept of
the Order of Bardan's Book, which gives him a number of useful
battlefield spells.
The Order
of Saint Dadivic, also known as the Church of the Futurist,
originated in southern Loskalm during the Syndics Ban when the whole
of Fronela and the Janube Valley was cut into isolated units by
magical barriers of mist. The Order is open to anyone who worships
the Invisible God, though all the major sects of the west regard it
as heretical to some degree. The Hrestoli Idealists regard them as
worshipping the Demiurge as they cleave to the Abiding Book, Hrestoli
Orthodox decry them as Progressives and Feminists, who make a mockery
of ancient Caste Law, and the Rokari dislike their Hrestolism and
belief in Joy of the Heart.
Nonetheless
the Army includes members all these sects and more. Monotheists are a
mistrusted minority in the Holy Country and Dragon Pass and in the
Army's view they have to put aside their theological squabbles and
stick together in the face of rampant paganism, and even welcome some
pagans into their ranks as tools to serve the Futurist.
The
doctrines of the Great Futurist involve a great deal of optimism
about the World to Come, which will finally realise the plans of the
Invisible God and see the Perfection of Man, but recognises that
along the way there is going to be a bit of an Armageddon to get
through. The Army of Tomorrow will lead humanity through that great
war and set an example of honourable action, perseverance and
tolerance. St Dadivic left a collection of poetic prophesies, called
The Glimpses, which the Chaplains consult whenever the path forward
seems unclear. One such prophecy rather unequivocally pointed at
Dragon Pass as a place the Order ought to take an interest in, but
now they are here no one seems to know what to do next nor fully
understand the mix of contending factions. Some doubt that the
Armageddon is going to happen here at all, just a petty squabble
between two gangs of stupid pagans, and want to go back to Loskalm to
fight the Kingdom of War.
Special Blessings from the Grimoire 'Glimpses of the Future'
Heal
Futurist
Heals 1 HP
per 15% of the casters Grimoire skill, plus 1 HP per 15% of the
recipients Grimoire skill. Cannot heal serious or major wounds.
Steadfast
into the Future
Adds the
1/10 of the recipients Grimoire (Glimpses of the Future) skill to
their Persistence and Resilience, an affects one target per 10% of
the casters skill. Extra targets can be added by Manipulation as
usual.
The Ship
of Life
Acts as a
Mobility spell for an entire galley, plus one movement rate per 25%
Grimoire skill.
The Future
is Ours
Acts as a
mass Fate spell, adding 1/5 the targets Grimoire (Glimpses of the
Future) skill to their next skill roll and affecting 1 target per 5%
of the casters Grimoire skill. Extra targets can be added by
Manipulation as usual.
No comments:
Post a Comment