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The Siege of Sshamath

Posted: Sat May 26, 2012 10:17 am
by Darkshard
[ UNDREK VALANAR, CYCLE 1 ]

X'drasst of the Renor Tagnik'zun dispatches a missive to all of his commanders in the field as they prepare for the coming battle. The enemy is nearly upon them.
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Re: The Siege of Undrek Valanar

Posted: Sun May 27, 2012 8:56 am
by Darkshard
[ UNDREK VALANAR, CYCLE 2 ]

The Siege of Undrek Valanar takes place.

The bulk of the Alhoon's forces mount an amphibious assault across Misty Lake and crash against the high walls and fortifications. Numerous volunteers and mercenaries join up with the defenders there, including many members of the Seventh Circle. The strategic leadership of Commander X'drasst is supplemented by that of Legionnaire Alienor as the combined allied forces attempt to stand their ground and drive back the invaders.

The hoped-for outcome was never more than a Pyrrhic victory but, against all odds, the defenders hold out and the enemy commander, the Deathlord Tagmadus, is defeated.

The victory is short-lived, however, as word soon reaches the celebrating defenders that the Alhoon Tryaxaphelus himself has bypassed Undrek Valanar with a huge army and now marches on Sshamath, laying siege to Varalla's Passage.

Re: The Siege of Sshamath

Posted: Tue May 29, 2012 9:41 pm
by Darkshard
[ VARALLA'S PASSAGE, CYCLE 3 ]

The Battle of Varalla's Passage takes place.

Commander X'drasst leads the last defence of Sshamath, trying to hold out as long as possible to buy time for an elite group to seek and destroy the Alhoon's phylactery, making Tryaxaphelus vulnerable. The defenders are joined by numerous volunteers, members of the Baleful Maw, and contractors of the Hive Concordant.

Golems are positioned to block the passage as wave after wave of goblins, orogs and undead break against them. The formation struggles to hold as the enemy varies their tactics, drawing groups of defenders out into the tunnels. As their numbers dwindle, a handful of volunteers are sent to break out the isolated pockets of defenders in the tunnels, and the re=bolstered line withdraws almost to the Spire itself.

Numbers dwindle as the defenders fight desperately. They come a breath from defeat but they hold out long enough for the seekers to arrive bearing news of the phylactery's destruction. The passage falls quiet, though the battle is not yet over.

Re: The Siege of Sshamath

Posted: Tue May 29, 2012 10:06 pm
by Darkshard
[ THE PHYLACTERY PLANE, CYCLE 3 ]

While the Battle of Varalla's Passage rages, an elite group of seekers—including many Seventh Circle agents—are led by Kar'Myr "the chosen of Lloth" to the pocket plane where Tryaxaphelus keeps safe his phylactery. As long as it remained so, the Alhoon would remain invulnerable and Sshamath's defeat was assured.

It is with this burden upon their shoulders that the seekers fight their way toward the phylactery. Most formidable of its guardians are the council of six lesser illithilichs, none so godly in power as Tryaxaphelus himself, but each a terrible opponent nonetheless. The seekers are tested to the limit, but manage to defeat all of the guardians in their path and retrieve the phylactery, thereby collapsing the pocket plane.

Snatching victory from the jaws of defeat now seems a real possibility, but to whom would the victory truly belong? A showdown takes place at the altar of Lloth as interests vie for supremacy. The phylactery is destroyed in the chaos and, as thousands of Sshamathians look on in awe, the avatar of Lloth emerges, bound to the chosen one.

With the astounded seekers in her wake, the avatar makes for Varalla's Passage to battle the Alhoon.

Re: The Siege of Sshamath

Posted: Tue May 29, 2012 10:20 pm
by Darkshard
[ VARALLA'S PASSAGE, CYCLE 4 ]

The Coming of Lloth takes place.

In the early hours of the fourth cycle of battle, the avatar of Lloth arrives in Varalla's Passage, to the amazement of the besieged defenders. The Alhoon Tryaxaphelus also arrives behind his vanguard and the artefact weapon the defenders of Sshamath have long feared. His arcanists and assassins battle the defenders while the weapon charges and prepares to target the mythal of Sshamath, spelling sudden doom for the city.

At that moment, the avatar of Lloth comes forth just as the weapon fires, taking the full blast. With a horrific scream, the avatar is destroyed, but the crystalline weapon also shatters and explodes. Hundreds witness Lloth's sacrifice. Enraged, Tryaxaphelus comes forth to fight, and an epic battle ensues between the giant illithilich and the last defenders of the city. At great cost, he is defeated.

Sshamath is saved, but the same breath that spared her has also changed her irrevocably.