Iron Kingdoms Roleplay - Session Ten

For those of you who haven't been keeping up you can find earlier sessions and background material in here. The stats of the player characters can be found here should you be interested and the rest of the 'Brotherhood of the Rail' mercenary companies NPC's backgrounds can be found here.

This weeks attendees would be Martin's Warrior Priestess Danika Jansen, the Mechanik Bragg Halvard (Harry's character), Bradick Davalos (Andrew's character), My Ogrun 'Bosh' Skullsplitter with Captain Sebastian LaCroix (Toms character) temporarily moved to NPC status as he'll be GMing for the next few sessions. Steve was unable to attend due to work commitments so Lieutenant Rafaldo Scorgiani (Steve's character) will be conveniently absent...

Note - Tom was GMing and obviously had notes and intro bits written down so I've just pasted them into this article directly so they'll be in a 'reading to the group' style. This'll save me a lot of time writing out again things he'd already got written and hopefully wont effect your reading enjoyment too much bouncing between the two styles of writing.

Mission Nine - 'Traitors...'
After the encounter with the Skorne the Brotherhood have much to do...

Introduction.
The atmosphere in the fort is tense after the skirmish with the Skorne forces. Sebastian calls a meeting to plan to bolster the defences and organise resupply. 

Rafaldo is chosen to make the trip back to Rail Company HQ in Corvis to explain events and request additional support.  Bragg and the other engineers are tasked with repairing the damaged door and shoring up the rest of the fort. Dankia and Bosh are given control over the current “ground” forces putting them through drills and ensuring they are ready for any further attack. Meanwhile Sebastian leads the ranged forces in targeting drills and orders range markers be placed on the approach to the fort. Bradick moves to the newly finished armoury to begin preparing alchemical defences for use in a siege, having impressed Sebastian with his use of his alchemical knowledge. 

A number of days into preparation Sebastian calls the officers (including the newly promoted Bradick) to a council that has been arranged with the local Steelhead's Division. 

The officers gather in the Innowt Inn to meet the Steelhead delegation. 

Editors Note - It's possible that Sebastian actually has an office...but I doubt he knows where it is...all meetings are therefore in the 'Inn' as that's where the booze is...

Act One - 'A Somewhat Shaky Alliance...'

The leader of this particular Chapterhouse of the Steelhead Mercenary Company was the infamous Stannis Brocker so some measure of diplomacy was needed in the debate not to mention the fact that the men under his command numbered some four hundred mercenaries including a significant number of cavalry as well as highly trained Halberdiers and Riflemen. Though if truth be told many of these men were on long range patrols and committed elsewhere so significantly fewer were currently available for military action. Stannis offered to make a selection of his troops available as a rapid response force for the bargain price of three hundred gold crowns...a week...

Though the reputation of Stannis was respected by most of the Brotherhood his chief Lieutenants condescending attitude had already managed to irritate Bosh considerably and his occasional uninvited political opinions had also failed to endear him with either Danika or Sebastian. After asking for a moment alone to discuss the offer it was decided that with funds in short supply and the Steelheads being unwilling to accept the usual promissory notes used by the Transcontinental Rail Company they would use some of the dubious 'gold' they had access to via the 'Old Thorn' and just plead ignorance should the subterfuge be noticed later. Without access to ready cash and unwilling to use their own personal resources it was the only solution...though obviously was a dangerous strategy indeed...

Editors Note - After blowing our funds on fancy weapons recently 'Bosh' and 'Sebastian' only had ten gold crowns between them so the others would have had to use their own money and try to recoup the funds from their employer later. They decided they didn't want to...sometimes greed get's you into trouble...If your confused by the 'gold' reference then you need to read this mission here.

After coming to an agreement with the Steelheads the mood in the fort eases a little. Reports come in from all over Immoren of escalating war. The clash in the Thornwood is the most bloody as conflict still rages over the border. However reports of a growing tide of the less civilised nations of Immoren to the north add even more fear to the wait.

Preparations were discussed in order to give the fort the best chance of surviving a more sustained assault. Amongst the measures decided upon were the stationing of a Trollkin with each artillery piece in order to enable them to be moved rapidly should they face attack from multiple directions and the teams were further divided in order to enable both Chain Guns, all three Deck Guns and their two newly salvaged Light Cannons to be utilised simultaneously. Bradick went to the fortresses workshop to make some bombs as he could manufacture such improvised items quickly whereas grenades would require housings built and then set himself to work on some interesting poisons for the coating of weapons.

Extra defences such as spike filled pits and the like were also started but it was debatable whether they would be completed in time if an attack happened within the next few days though the Trebuchet that Bragg was working on would more than likely be operational...if somewhat short of significant ammunition...

Three weeks after the initial skirmish with the Skorne Empire the newly trained Troll scouts return from a routine mission with dire news. A vast host of strange creatures are advancing out of the Blood Marches. Their banners indicate them to be Skorne but many of the creatures under their employ are alien to the terrified Trolls.

After a steadying drink of Troll ale and some surprisingly reassuring words from Bosh the scouts managed to give a somewhat better description of the opposing forces though surprisingly the smallest was actually holding up the best and gave the most useful descriptions. Though 'something as big as a Dire Troll but with armour and some had guns' and 'like a big Bison but scarier' weren't exactly precise they at least gave some indicator of scale. The approximate numbers were also (if accurate) representative of a force that they couldn't possibly defeat or even slow down for more than a few days.

The relatively reliable Troll (well Pygmy Troll to be exact) also stated that most seemed to be heading North toward the place they knew as the Castle of Keys and that a much more human force seems to be making camp on the edge of the wastes. Sebastian's favoured Gobber messenger 'Geoff' was sent to relay this knowledge to their 'allies' the Steelhead Company. These preparations were interrupted however by the arrival of an unexpected guest...

Act Two - 'The Traitor'
A warning is called by the scouts on the walls, a lone figure approaches. He is heavily armoured and carries a large two handed sword and his appearance is ragged. Under one arm he carries a box.

“Hail Brotherhood. I come to parley. I would much rather do so in the comfort of your fine fort, I am sorely parched and some fresh water would be a gift from Morrow himself.”

The human members of the Brotherhood were well aware of the identity of the approaching man though even the others had heard of him by reputation alone. Bradick vocally expressed his opinion that he should not be allowed into the fortress but was overruled by his Captain. Bosh and Sebastian went out to meet him and allowed him access on the condition that he powered down his armour and left his weapons with the guards at the entrance. Surprisingly the man seemed to have no more difficulty moving in the armour even without power flowing through it. The visitor was escorted to the Inn that serves as office and meeting room for the Brotherhood more often than not.

“A fine fortress you have here, built on the old Cygnaran design, sturdy a good choice.” He seems distracted as is lost in thought, “And fine water I thank you for it”

He looks around intently at the gathered officers, “Many of you know who I am and I shall keep it a secret no longer, I am Asheth Magnus, commander of the armies of Vinter Raelthorne, true king of Cygnar and emperor of the Skorne. I have been tasked with acquiring the services of your company as well as the stronghold in which we now stand.” He sips “It seems our allies underestimated your strength, something which I will not do.”

He reaches down beside him and pulls up the box he was carrying, Curiously it appears to be wax sealed, he slides it over the table.

With no-one being in any particular hurry to open the container Bosh reaches over and breaks the seal reasoning that anything that would harm them would also harm their guest so he was unlikely to have bought a bomb or the like with him as well as pre-empting the inevitable "Bosh open that box" order. Somewhat surprisingly inside the box is the decomposing head of the human 'diplomat' sent to negotiate with the Brotherhood before the Skorne attack.

Magnus smiles to himself, “As you can see, Both King Vinter and myself take failure seriously especially from those of our number a little too dedicated to the Skorne. We present this as an apology. We ask you to consider our offer” He pulls a folded piece of paper from his jacket. “There will be no negotiation on this, our offer is final and given only once. We value your strength and believe it could be an asset when we move on Western Immoren. Think on it. I will be awaiting your reply”

At this point he slid a pair of alchemists flares over to Bradick each a different colour with a label on each one....green for yes...red for no...

The offer was equivalent pay for all members of the Brotherhood, plus a raise of ten gold a week said raise to be paid as a retainer until they were required though how they would be paid this on a weekly basis was not mentioned. They would remain autonomous until a time of calling where the company will be tasked with infiltrating Western Immoren and beginning a guerilla campaign to take and hold a chosen city dependent on Magnus and Vinter's requirements at the time. Also at this time there will be a hundred crowns bonus per man should the city be taken. Ranking positions in Vinters administration will be offered to those in Brotherhood command positions.

The importance of this decision could not be underestimated. Refusal would result in a battle against Magnus's forces that they had little hope of prevailing against especially with those forces being led by a Warcaster of his power and skill though agreement also had significant consequences too.

Editors Note - The in character discussion that followed lasted about forty minutes of real time though some of this was out of character explanations to me about background material of which I was unaware having an appalling lack of Warmahordes knowledge compared to the rest of our group. It would be impossible for me to relay every back and forth of the debate so I'll just list the core arguments of each persons character below. It's also worth mentioning that we're arguing from the points of view of what our characters know (Or think they know) rather than what might necessarily actually be fact from the point of view of the current canon. I really wish I'd have recorded the conversation now as it included some sterling bits of role-play...

Sebastian and Danika being both former inhabitants of Llael were of the opinion that such a disaster would not have happened under the previous administration and that should their homeland ever to be freed from Khadoran oppression then a strong Cygnar was most likely to accomplish it. Danika also put forward the opinion that Vintner had been accepting of all religions so her own church would not necessarily be effected by his return to power and a promised ranking position in his administration could help her consolidate some of that power in the right place. Though not specifically stated out loud it was obvious that Sebastian wouldn't turn down a position of power should it be offered as long as the position didn't involve any actual work.

Bosh and Bragg had few opinions on what human should rule what kingdom as few showed any real regard for their none human subjects though Bragg having witnessed the savagery of the Skorne expressed a modicum of concern about how that brutality might be inflicted upon a civilian populace. Bosh on the other hand had no sympathy for those unable to defend themselves and had been tasked with defending the train, this fortress and the brotherhood to varying degrees and a pact with Magnus and his master would accomplish all these things. His only real issue was that his Ogrun code of honour would prevent him from acting against certain targets due to promises made and the terms of their Mercenary Charter. Of course without knowing their potential targets that is an issue that could be dealt with at the time.

Bradick was the only one who had significant objections to the arrangement and argued that any one allied with Skorne was dubious, the rightful ruler was the rightful ruler and shouldn't be deposed on a whim and that Magnus had shown himself to be untrustworthy on multiple occasions. There was also the risk to innocent lives should they be tasked with targeting a heavily populated area and a myriad of other issues ranging from variations of those already listed to other relatively trivial ones. He also claimed that he had had many political discussions with Rafaldo and firmly believed that should he be here he would also vote no,

As the arguments began to become somewhat circular it was decided that a secret ballot would be conducted...rather unsurprisingly the result was four to two even with Rafaldo's vote proxied as a 'No'...the decision was made...

Editors Note - If there's ever an RPG equivalent of the Oscars then the 'commitment to character' award would be going to Andrew...you'll see what I mean shortly...

Sebastian slid the green flare over to the alchemist Bradick and asked him to launch it indicating their response to Magnus's offer and he seemingly left to follow the given order. After some thought the Captain also sent Bosh to ensure that the task was indeed carried out...perhaps he should have done so immediately rather than delayed...

Quickly examining what equipment he had in his portable alchemy kit Bradick tried to find anything that could be used to alter the colour of the chemical in the flare from green to red but the closest he could discover was the vaguely orange hue of the chemicals used to create his rust grenades and he set to work. Mixing chemicals on the move with improvised ingredients was a near impossible task but somehow he managed to come up with a workable mixture and altered the flares contents from a green to a somewhat orangey red and launched the doctored flare into the sky. The sense of satisfaction of a task well done was somewhat ruined by the sudden emergence of three foot of Warcleaver from the centre of his chest...

Editors Note - PC's killing each other is generally considered a no-no in RPG circles but this was a special case...it was also an exemplary bit of role-playing by every-one involved...

We had an out of character discussion before this pivotal moment where I pointed out that traitors were generally executed and that from a character point of view 'Bosh' would realistically kill 'Bradick' on the spot as soon as the flare was launched. Andrew agreed that this was an entirely reasonable viewpoint but was 100% committed to his characters actions. With this decided we continued with the traitor (or hero...depending on your pint of view)'s dramatic demise...

Act Three - 'Whose Side Are We On Again?'

As Bradicks body slid from the blade of the cleaver Bosh quickly realised that they were only minutes away from a disaster from which they were unlikely to survive and quick action was required. Taking inspiration from Magnus himself he came up with a plan...

The sudden commotion from outside in the courtyard bought every-one to their feet though there passage outside was blocked by the emerging form of the Ogrun Bosh carrying the severed head of what appeared to be their alchemist Bradick Davalos. Every-one then immediately leapt to exactly the correct conclusion about what had occurred outside. "I'm going to need that box" he said pointing at the container that was currently the home of the decapitated head of the Skorne's human ambassador...

Moving as fast as he could Bosh ran from the fortress in an attempt to catch up with Magnus before he reached his army and reported that the offer had been refused. If Magnus was surprised by the sight of an Ogrun carrying the box he'd previously delivered to the fortress he showed no sign of it.

"Yes?"

Bosh explained as briefly and succinctly as possible that their collective opinion had been subverted by a traitor in their midst and that the situation had been resolved permanently. He then offered the traitors head to Magnus in the hope that he would take this as a sign of their good faith as if he didn't Bosh was about to have an extremely short and one-sided battle against an army of Skorne that were currently waiting their commanders order to attack.

Fortunately the gesture was suitably well received and the Brotherhoods confirmation of the terms was accepted albeit in not quite the method originally intended. Unfortunately as one disaster was averted another was about to take it's place...

A large contingent of the Steelhead Merceneries had apparently come to certain conclusions of their own and had decided that the Brotherhood were now their enemies and had launched a pre-emptive attack on the recently repaired fortress. Bosh barely made it back from his impromptu meeting before artillery fire began to pound their current homes western wall. It seemed that the Steelheads were far better equipped for siege warfare than the earlier Skorne force had been.

Brotherhood artillery weapons were quickly relocated and engaged the charging enemy with rapid fire bullets, cannon rounds and shells supported by massed rifle fire felling many before an enemy shell tore a chunk out of the wall forcing some of them to relocate and incapacitating several others as the battlements crumbled beneath them. Artillery fire was again exchanged between the two forces as well as other ranged weapons as they grew closer with a second and third shell widening the breach in the wall even further with this causing several more of the walls defenders to be incapacitated and perhaps even killed as there was no time at the moment to check through the rubble for survivors.

Bosh and his fellow Ogrun Men at Arms formed up ready to defend the breach from assault while Danika yet again managed to get her favourite beast of burden 'Gerty' to accept her as a rider and awaited the moment to charge. The recently trained Trollkin ranked up ready to support the others in any manner they could. Bragg commanded his 'jack to pick up it's trusty improvised spear and joined them also. Danika then yet again used her priestly magics to enhance the hardiness of the defenders and those who had experienced the effect from their experience with the Skorne were once again grateful. With their own troops to close to the fortress to risk catching with 'friendly fire' the enemies long range artillery ceased fire so Sebastian and the other close range weapon users moved onto what was left of the wall to give covering fire. Deciding to prevent their foes from entering through the now gaping hole in the outer wall Bosh, his fellow Men at Arms and Danika charged through.

'Gerty' soon gathered considerable momentum but as such mounts were never intended for human riders Danika could only hang on and hope for the best as the now unstoppable creature crashed into a wall of Stellhead Halberdiers killing over a dozen though unfortunately the impact was so great that Gerty was now fatally skewered on a myriad of blades. Danika barely managed to leap aside but was now alone in the midst of the remaining force...

The enemy cavalry had lost a considerable of their number to uncannily accurate artillery fire and a few more to the various pit-traps and other precautions around the fort, It seemed that the decision to make the Brotherhoods artillery mobile was a fortuitous one as it now allowed the survivors of the attack on the wall to relocate and renew their onslaught against the attackers.

Seeing the danger that their priestess now found herself in the Ogrun redirected their charge to allow her time to leap behind them to relative safety and rather than attack herself Danika instead cast another blessing that rather than assisting all the defenders generally enhanced Bosh's skills specifically. With this additional boost Bosh seemingly couldn't miss and each uncannily accurate blow cleaved an opponent into pieces, His fellow Ogrun were also reaping a terrible toll in enemy lives.

Editors Note - The rather useful spell is called Solovins Boon and allows you to roll an additional die to hit and to damage before picking one to remove thus making the chance of a terrible dice total a lot less likely...of course it does still happen sometimes...

Seeing that the attack was now faltering Bragg moved his 'jack through the breach before the gap was plugged by a wall of Brotherhood troops and Trollkin support both covered ably by gunfire from the battlements directed by Captain LaCroix. The newly configured machine (Whom Bragg had taken to calling 'Ruby' for some reason) carved through cavalry with it's spear while un-horsing other riders with his free hand with Bragg occasionally emerging from the cover it provided to kill any targets of opportunity. With Danika's considerable abilities making the Brotherhood forces far more difficult to hurt than their level of armour would indicate, the unexpected appearance of a warjack and with the attack spearheaded by a wall of blood-stained Ogrun shock troops who seemingly killed with every strike the opposing infantry began to falter. The Brotherhood's leadership had gained considerable experience in utilising their respective abilities to create something greater than the some of it's parts and had passed these skills onto their rank and file admirably. Realising that this would be where the battle would be decided the leader of the attack gathered together his remaining cavalry and charged into their midst.

Stannis's obnoxious Lieutenant hurled his cavalry into the Ogrun and it was debatable whether it was the Ogrun themselves or the mounted officer who was most shocked that only one of the defenders fell to a vicious blow to the head. Bosh and the enemy leader met head on while all around them the fight had turned into a myriad of small combats though surprisingly it was the Brotherhood rather than the Steelheads who had maintained the best discipline. Seemingly a multitude of recent victories had poorly prepared the Steelheads for the possibility of defeat...

Despite Sebastian's casual attitude in many areas there was no doubt about his ability to command and inspire troops as he quickly restored order to the few pockets of chaos in his own lines and organised fire teams to pick off the now rapidly decreasing numbers of enemy infantry. The fact that he had yet to miss with a single shot of his own was motivating his pistoleers to greater and greater feats of their own.

With Danika now in the centre of the engagement her aura of protection covered nearly the entire of the defenders and the faint glow of the runes of magic glittering across many of the the troops around was helping moral considerably.

Bosh shrugged off the third and fourth strikes from the Lieutenants bodyguard with retaliatory strikes turning each one to ragged corpses and with his immediate guard dealt with could finally give the commander his full attention and promptly reduced his horse to two halves though a no doubt adrenaline boosted burst of speed prevented the rider from suffering the same fate from a second blow. However the third of his attacks was too much for even the veteran tearing through his armour and leaving him nearly dead. A second wave of his men attempted to drag him to safety...and paid for the attempt with their lives. At least their deaths spared them from witnessing the final brutal dismemberment of their leader at the hands of a disturbingly cheerful looking Ogrun,,.

Leaderless, demoralised and having suffered one of their worst defeats in recent years the remaining Steelheads attempted to escape with the Brotherhood in pursuit. The enemies artillery opened up again but unexpectedly the shells landed amongst their own retreating forces...it seemed their were consequences amongst the opposing mercenary company for what was subsequently discovered to be an unauthorised action...It seems the Brotherhood of the Rail was victorious once more...

Editors Note - I'm sorry if any of you are fans of the Steelhead Mercenary Company but they really, really picked the wrong people to mess with on this particular occasion, lol.

Aftermath.
As was surmised the attack had not been authorised by Stannis which was fortunate as had he been involved himself then the attack may have met with more success. It also looks like the fortress would need repairing...again...

Unfortunately some of the Brotherhoods casualties had passed on before medical attention could be given. Those with minor injuries had been given medical care by those with basic training though the more serious wounds had been treated by their resident medic Rosaleen. Several of the mercenaries thought beyond help had in fact been saved by the skilled surgeon including the fallen Ogrun Kuluk who now owed the good doctor his life twice over...

It was also with some considerable sadness that it was discovered that Sebastian's faithful Gobber assistant Geoff had been executed by this (apparently) rogue Steelheads element before their attack. Bradicks death on the other hand passed completely un-mourned though his equipment was saved should a less traitorous successor be discovered for him and the decapitated corpse of the traitor had been impaled on a spear alongside the entrance of the fortress in order to emphasise the fate of those who turned against the Brotherhood...It was also noted with some amusement that it was the shortest lasting promotion that any of the officers could recall...

Well at least nothing else could go wrong...

Back to Reality

Editors Note - As with last time this session overview comes courtesy of our GM for the session rather than me.

So this session was an odd one. I messaged the guys a few days before we began telling them to prepare for something out of the ordinary.

My original idea had been for a big climactic battle but once I’d done the skirmish with Skorne I realized any large scale combat would need miniatures and a map. At this point we may as well just play Warmachine. It also meant they guys had nothing to do in character other than constantly roll dice. After some problem solving and a lot of research I came up with the Magnus ultimatum. 

I really enjoyed running the session, even if it was a little more driven by my narration. The guys stuck to their character amazingly and while GMort has cut down the in character decision it was about forty minutes of pretty thought out debate and discussion of history and feelings.

The Steelhead engagement was thrown a little awry by Bradick but it was the ultimate in character act to end the discussion. It lead to combat being a bit messy and the last part of the session felt like a come down but it was still enjoyable.

As for experience anything less than three was an insult (one for showing up, one for team work and one for role-playing), Bradick (or whom ever he now is) got a little less due to the extreme lack of teamwork, but I’m sure we’ll throw a perk at his new guy.

I really like the Iron Kingdoms as a setting and look forward to my next GM stint.