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Yeah I voted already, I'm just posting to advertise Mykx.
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Jun 4, 2023 17:34
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If we're gonna go evil, we should go all the way evil. That's Aelnar.
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Jun 4, 2023 18:04
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Chronometry posted:Yo-ho, all together, hoist the colours high...
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Jun 4, 2023 19:45
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Ibblebibble posted:Yeah I voted already, I'm just posting to advertise Mykx. Same. Vote Mykx!
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Jun 4, 2023 22:56
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I went with New Shire, because if we take the interpretation that Hobbits represent the pastoral English upper-middle class in it's idealized form, then the bad guy version of that is Brexit.
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Jun 5, 2023 00:30
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I wanna see the vampires. 
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Jun 5, 2023 00:37
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GunnerJ posted:I wanna see the vampires. Me too, buddy. Me too.
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Jun 5, 2023 00:40
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Yes, but I also want to see swarms of tiny cannibals who use the table scraps as fertilizer.
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Jun 5, 2023 00:59
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As cool as the vamps and psycho halflings might be, gnolls need more representation in media  Seriously though, every time I see gnolls in games and such they're always depicted as henchmen and cannon fodder; the doggos deserve a break.
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Jun 5, 2023 03:21
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Smh, can't believe goons are passing up the opportunity to become the Holy Roman Vamperor of the Holy Roman Vampire. Shameful, really.  
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Jun 5, 2023 05:05
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Let's Degrow and Rewild with Newshire
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Jun 5, 2023 08:03
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Slightly Lions posted:Smh, can't believe goons are passing up the opportunity to become the Holy Roman Vamperor of the Holy Roman Vampire. Shameful, really. Wouldn't that be the Holy Roman Vempire?
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Jun 5, 2023 10:58
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wiegieman posted:If we're gonna go evil, we should go all the way evil. That's Aelnar. This!
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Jun 6, 2023 06:32
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Friends don't let friends play elves.
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Jun 6, 2023 06:47
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McGavin posted:Friends don't let friends play elves.
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Jun 6, 2023 06:55
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McGavin posted:Friends don't let friends play elves.
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Jun 6, 2023 08:43
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McGavin posted:Friends don't let friends play elves. May Surael's Light Burn You!
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Jun 6, 2023 11:42
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Poil posted:That we are superior to men is an established fact. Heh. Perhaps there's something you wish to confess? From the Dwarven perspective, this is absolutely true! You can stack 33% more elves in a mass grave than humans. Very efficient!
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Jun 7, 2023 01:01
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Vote Results With a comfortable lead, Mykx has won the poll. We will soon be setting sail to plunder and ravage the world! The first update should be up this weekend at the latest.
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Jun 7, 2023 14:02
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Presumably so will a thread title change
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Jun 8, 2023 11:34
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Xelkelvos posted:Presumably so will a thread title change AnbennARRRRRRRR
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Jun 8, 2023 13:58
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Autisanal Cheese posted:AnbennARRRRRRRR
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Jun 8, 2023 15:57
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Autisanal Cheese posted:AnbennARRRRRRRR
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Jun 8, 2023 17:58
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Having recently abandoned a Mykx run, I would very much recommend playing normal difficulty
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Jun 8, 2023 21:05
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Anbennar: Hyenas on the High Seas
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Jun 8, 2023 22:41
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The Yeens of Penzance
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Jun 8, 2023 22:47
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Firebatgyro posted:Having recently abandoned a Mykx run, I would very much recommend playing normal difficulty I'm not masochistic, the game is staying at normal, and Mythic Conquerors are staying disabled.
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Jun 8, 2023 23:01
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I can't wait to see how differently Anbennar pirates play compared to vanilla
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Jun 9, 2023 01:01
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theblastizard posted:I can't wait to see how differently Anbennar pirates play compared to vanilla What if they had demon-empowered cannons?
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Jun 9, 2023 01:32
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Oh yeah, by the way, in the latest dev versions they've added something because playing dwarfs was too easy. A whole new, incredibly bad disaster! Basically, a religious revival of the old dwarvern pantheon, abandoned in the flight from the depths in favour of ancestor worship starts. And unless they rebalanced it since I last played it makes the hoardcurse look like a joke in terms of horrible, horrible rebellions everywhere.
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Jun 9, 2023 03:13
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NewMars posted:Oh yeah, by the way, in the latest dev versions they've added something because playing dwarfs was too easy. A whole new, incredibly bad disaster! Basically, a religious revival of the old dwarvern pantheon, abandoned in the flight from the depths in favour of ancestor worship starts. And unless they rebalanced it since I last played it makes the hoardcurse look like a joke in terms of horrible, horrible rebellions everywhere. That's really stupid. I blame modders assuming everyone interested in playing knows how to do a World Conquest starting as Ulm and tune the difficulty from there.
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Jun 9, 2023 03:55
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That one is optional though, if you keep Ancestor Worship you avoid the entire disaster iirc.
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Jun 9, 2023 05:58
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I couldn't see a way to keep ancestor worship myself, although with all the placeholder stuff that was in because I was playing the github version I probably just missed the option.
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Jun 9, 2023 09:15
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Plutonis posted:That one is optional though, if you keep Ancestor Worship you avoid the entire disaster iirc. Looks like gonna be one of those things that most people playing the game just have always off, like the Aztec invasion in CK2. A shame they had to ruin Dwarves like this.
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Jun 9, 2023 09:24
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Dwarven Pantheon gets even better. Ancestor Worship uses the holy sites mechanic, which relies on the holy sites being both the right religion and held by a nation of that religion. So if the wrong dwarves convert, wave goodbye to all those religious buffs you've got. (On the flipside, if the finalised Dwarven Pantheon turns out to be as good as a fully-buffed Ancestor Worship, it may be worth enduring Yet Another Stupid Disaster. I've always preferred "active" religious mechanics over "passive" ones.)
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Jun 9, 2023 16:18
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Autisanal Cheese posted:Looks like gonna be one of those things that most people playing the game just have always off, like the Aztec invasion in CK2. Playing Dwarves was always the "hit your own dick with a hammer a hundred times" of Anbennar so the average dwarf player probably welcomes the challenge. Even more fun if you have this, Hoardcurse, Serpent Rot and Obsidian Invasion at the same time. And maybe the Krakhundavor disaster.
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Jun 9, 2023 16:54
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Plutonis posted:Playing Dwarves was always the "hit your own dick with a hammer a hundred times" of Anbennar so the average dwarf player probably welcomes the challenge. Even more fun if you have this, Hoardcurse, Serpent Rot and Obsidian Invasion at the same time. And maybe the Krakhundavor disaster. So the only correct way to play SerpentSpine is to splash paint remover on everything as the Road Warriors, got it.
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Jun 9, 2023 17:13
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SirPhoebos posted:So the only correct way to play SerpentSpine is to splash paint remover on everything as the Road Warriors, got it. Probably because the design documents for the new Goblin Kinstrife makes it look worse than the previous
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Jun 9, 2023 17:16
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Eh, it almost has to be better than the Daxugos-specific disaster. That one's micromanagement hell and can utterly destroy your run if you don't read far enough ahead in the missions.
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Jun 9, 2023 18:43
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| # ? May 31, 2024 08:05 |
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Enough Dwarfchat, it's Gnoll time! Chapter One: The Corsair Kingdom 1444-1450 The galley Fleshcarver, somewhere on the Divenhal Sea A pigeon, lean and well-travelled, swept down upon the galley. Hungry eyes stared up as it descended, just a little of reach, sweeping around the stowed sails and coming to rest upon a perch on the aft castle. There, a Gnoll was waiting for it, a mountain of fur and muscle with a wicked blade strapped to his belt and the scent of blood on his breath. Kazz stood tall and looked out over the lower deck. Human slaves slumped over their oars, while Gnolls mostly lazed around in the midday sun. The crew was exhausted, the smoke rising from just beyond the horizon, proof of their victory, a coastal village plundered for all that was it worth. They couldn't rest long. Whatever the message, it was sure to be more work. He reached out for the bird, a treat in his hand. It gingerly poked at the food, and Kazz took the chance to grab it. With one claw he slipped the message off its leg, and then stuffed the pigeon into his mouth. The fishermen from the night before had been pretty lean on meat, he needed the snack. Chewing and picking bones and feathers out of his teeth, he descended into the captain's cabin. On a galley so small she was the only one who had her own, and even then, there was barely enough room for a desk and bedding. She sat at her desk, eyes closed, lost in thought. "Captain, message," he grunted. She didn't respond to him. Captain Mrynzu was larger than he was, more than capable of beating any other Gnoll in the pack in a fight, but she had always been more of a thinker than a fighter. Of course, when it was time for a raid she was just as much in the thick of combat as any other. After a few moments, she clacked her claws together. From a corner of the room her personal slave, a Human girl half her height, emerged from the darkness and held out a hand. The girl was in a better state than the oar-slaves outside, even her shackles were cushioned. A bit of a luxury, Kazz thought as he handed the message over to the girl to read on behalf of the illiterate Gnolls. "The Corsair King," the girl said, choking for a moment as she spoke her best attempt at Gnollish, "the Scourge-of-all-seas, the Great Viakkoc, calls for all captains and chieftains to muster to him, before the year ends." Mrynzu opened her eyes, deep black like the deepest ocean depths. "We will attend," she said, "Kazz, prepare the oars." He grunted an acknowledgment and departed. "And you," Mrynzu said, pointing to her slave. The girl turned to her master and bowed. A very useful prize she had been. During a most daring raid past the Damesneck, Mrynzu had burned down one of the temples the Humans had raised to their pitiful gods, and found this literate girl among the slaves they had taken. Too thin to eat, too weak to labour, she was saved from becoming a sacrifice by her skills. She had stood up among the other cowering slaves and held out a book she had written as proof of what she could offer. That had taken bravery enough, and bought her a place under the captain's protection. "I want to continue my journal, take notes," Mrynzu ordered. Excerpts from the journal of Captain Mrynzu the Salt-Blade  There is something in the air. The scent of distant battle, real battle. The demons haven't spoken to me for months, drawn far away by some distant conflict seeking blood and flesh. Our most recently-taken slaves have spoken of a great war in the land they call 'Escann'. Perhaps the greatest champions of the war have clashed, perhaps oceans of blood are being spilt as you write. It does not affect us though. We corsairs of the open sea have our own concerns. The lands ruled by our Corsair King are but a part of the Sarhal. The Human lands on our borders fortify themselves against our terror, Kheterata struggles with its civil war, and the puny navies of the Divenhal cower at the sound of our oars. We will be playing on the 1.35 compatible development version of Anbennar. This has a nice little addition to the selection screen showing an image of your race, an icon representing that Viakkoc has a spawnable nation (who we are really aiming for) and an icon that would appear if the nation has a unique mission tree (which Viakkoc does not).  My mother was one of those who took up the call of Viakkoc X as he led our people away from the Gnollakaz fury, was one of those who willingly took to the water to fulfil his dreams of the Divenhal and the Dameshead paying tribute to him, and was one of those who participated in the devastation of Khasa, earning glory and wealth for our family. His son, Viakkoc XI, has sworn to take up his dream. Yet, I find myself concerned.  The world is far larger than any of us know. He is thinking too small. The wind is turning, and the events in Escann may soon echo out across the seas and oceans to lands yet unknown. Another addition is the ability to switch off entire continents, to improve performance or have a more focused game. As you can imagine, this hasn't been fully balanced so a lot of weirdness can happen if you remove a region important to the overall game, like Cannor or Aelantir. I haven't removed any regions.  We row for port in Akasat, our holds filled with slaves for sacrifice and tributes for our king. The Kult has grown more coordinated in recent years, demanding a regular supply of sacrifices to satisfy demonic hunger and ensure that their wrath is directed against our enemies. The tribes will be gathering at the end of the year to re-affirm their loyalty to Viakkoc and allow for any of the chieftains to challenge his rule. I expect none of them will have the guts. Monstrous nations only have a single estate, the Monstrous Tribes. They have a few options for privileges that might be useful, but for now I just take one that boosts our demonic power. What is demonic power? Well…  I do not consider myself a truly zealous follower of the Kult. The demons speak to me true, as they do all Gnolls, yet I do not allow them to control me. The ocean is just as cruel as any demon, and to survive I have had to take a realistic approach. The bloodlust may only take me when I am ashore or boarding a vessel, slaughtering prey with my own blade. Let the landbound Kult throw themselves into a wild fury and destroy themselves. I will only give myself if a true Xhazobine arises. The Gnoll Xhazobkult uses Orthodox mechanics. As we gain demonic power, it gives scaling bonuses and maluses up to the values shown. It can be spent on invocations to give temporary buffs, some incredibly good, and I'll show these off when I use them.  We returned along the coast of Ekha. The humans cowered in their harbours and sent out boats carrying tribute of fish for our food stocks. Officially, they need not, as their contribution of money and sacrifices satisfies their obligation to the Corsair King. Given how restless they have been I would not fault them for buying off an enterprising raider looking for easy plunder against a rebellious subject. Each tributary also gives a small amount of demonic power in addition to the usual tribute.  The port of Akasat was bustling with raiders returning for the mustering. As we entered port among the mass of ships, I was struck with the difference that still lay between the humans and our own kind. Their fishing boats were far sturdier than the ramschackle galleys that we approached upon, even my precious Fleshcarver. We ought to ensure that we learn from what we loot, lest they gain an advantage over us. The Kult would advocate burning it all down and never letting our prey recover enough to overtake us, but this is a small corner of the world. Unless our king lives up to his title, there will be somewhere an enemy can develop in peace. We start behind in technology and lacking the Feudalism institution. Luckily, some provinces start with it, if only we had the money to embrace it…  I procured a fishing boat and sent Kazz to deliver our tribute, then immediately set out again rather than try and dock in the middle of that chaos. Let those fools in the port squabble and fight amongst themselves, trying to steal each other's gains. I know my ship, I know my crew, and I know we can complete another loop of the West Divenhal before the deadline. I will return with plunder beyond imagining, and Viakkoc will have to make me his admiral.  Kazz brought back news from the port before we left. The Gnolls to the east sought an alliance. The cat-worshippers are in the middle of a civil war, and so Brrtekuh wished to cease the raids between our two peoples so that they could devote the greater number of their pack to an invasion of the ailing humans. A cunning strategy, but the oversized kittens have managed to beat us back again and again over the years. I wish them good hunting, and look forward to sparring with their garrisons in future raids on that coast.  Most of the chieftains have already assembled in Kokerrat, where Viakkoc holds his court. What a coward, living in the mountains as far away from the water as possible. And yet he calls himself 'scourge-of-all-seas'. It's clear he still favours the tribes rather than the captains. When I return with a mighty treasure, he will have to change his tune. New unit models, fresh in the dev version. Aren't they cute little demon dogs!  The greatest plunder in all the seas, precious wine. The crew drank deeply last night as we rowed with haste away with the city of Wineport burning behind us. Half of their fleet was doused in their own wine and set alight, preventing us from chasing them. A few fools slipped overboard in their drunken stupor, and a couple got into a fatal brawl over some stupid grievance, but that's just the price of a good party. With a hold filled with wine, Viakkoc will surely bestow great favour upon me.  After returning we were intercepted by a few of the other captains led by a Gnoll named Rrikk. They wanted us to pool some of our gold and slaves and start assembling a new squadron of galleys. My treasure is mine and mine alone, so I fought for it. We blooded each other well, Rrikk and I, and fought each other to a stalemate where the only way to win would be to kill the other. With grace, I offered him a fraction of my plunder and a bottle of wine in honour of a good fight. Still, the Corsair King ought to be the one to paying for these new ships.  The muster took a strange turn. Viakkoc, in the presence of all of his chieftains and captains, announced that we would all be taking new oaths of loyalty to him and be granted titles in the Human styling. This was not what I had in mind when I said that we should learn from our enemies. Now I am the Baroness of some lovely coastal village, answering to the Count of whatever, but I much prefer the title of Captain and the freedom of the open water. The new obligations are just a formalised tribute. I have to provide a certain number of warriors and sacrifices to the Count, who passes them up the chain and no doubt takes his own cut. All the pillaging gave us more than enough money to embrace.  He also announced more formal organisation within the Kult. The disorganised minor cults among the tribes are to induct their patrons into the greater host of demons, so that any Gnoll of the Kult is able to call upon the power of any demon. Some outer packs protested, and Viakkoc and the Kult leaders beat them into the dirt leaving them snivelling apologies. Idiots. This is a clear power grab, but that is exactly the way of things. Return to your patron, beg, borrow and sacrifice to gain power, then return and strike down the Kult, if you can even manage that. The integration of cults in fully converted states gives a one-time boost to demonic power. It's a nice bonus for the early game, but we'll need other sources once everything is culted up.  I presented my gift of Lorentish wine to Viakkoc, hoping to gain my admiralty, or perhaps a chance to give him an heir, only to find that he had already taken one of my own fellow captains as his consort. Vea has a decent skill for combat, but is absolutely empty in the head in all other regards, so I have no idea how she managed to woo her way to his side. I almost challenged her for the position there and then, but thought better of it. For all the power and strong children he would give me, it would leave me stuck in that idiot's mountain fortress rather out on the sea where I belonged.  The tribes assembled in numbers larger than I had seen since I was child, and Viakkoc issued a call to arm and prepare for a great hunt. The treasures that we had brought from across the Divenhal was given out to the mightiest warriors who could prove themselves in front of the king. A torrent of blood descended on Kokerrat as they scrambled over themselves for a little bit of glory. Even I was not unaffected. So many Gnolls in one place and so much blood being spilt brought Xhaob's whispers back to my ears, and my blood boiled to go hunting once more. A generic mission, but a useful one to grab for the morale bonus in those early wars.  Across the sea, the Humans were unaware of the threat hungering for their flesh and wealth. One of the great cities on the Dameshead, Vertesk, had raised a paragon of demonic might. I had seen the city once before, the dark tower looming over the river estuary had caught my eye, and I had the urge to mount my flag upon it, but it was too well-guarded to raid. The Emperor soon rallied his armies and struck down the dark wizard. That's a very early War Against Evil. Appropriate too, as Vertesk is probably one of the evillest nations out there that doesn't involve crazy magic or monsters. Think 1984 for its citizens, while slaves are the most prominent trade good. The AI must have made some bad choices with its magic to piss off the Magisterium so quickly.  After returning to the coast, I started surveying my 'demesne'. Before I could return to the comfort of the Fleshcarver, a new order came through. A great sacrifice was to be held in Khasa, the capital of the Kingdom of Khasa that we had torn down. Arriving without any of my own would not do anything to improve my standing, so I took the time to select some prime candidates from my 'subjects'. My crew descended upon the village, dragging the strongest men out of their homes and engaging them in duels for their lives. None of them could defeat a Gnoll, of course, and those who survived were taken while those who died would keep the crew fed on the journey. Another way to build demonic power is to gather sacrifices. This can have a negative effect on province development, however.  The great pyre in Khasa was visible from miles away, a mountain of wood taken by stripping the hillsides above the city of their trees. Almost as many slaves died in its construction as would be sacrificed, and their blood and flesh would be added to the offering to Xhazob. It was the most impressive sight that I had seen, a testament to the power of uniting the Kult under a central leadership. My crew participated in the work, building up a scaled down mock-up of the Fleshcarver on a prominence of the pyre and imprisoning our sacrifices inside.  An air of anger filled the celebrations, as our number were swelled by refugees from across the sea. The Humans of Busilar had launched an invasion of Gnollish territory in their hills, and from all the stories from the Gnolls fleeing on ramshackle craft were purging any Gnoll they found. Some Gnolls apparently were fleeing deeper into Human territory to the north, but I doubted that the Emperor would treat them any better.  Viakkoc himself lit the pyre, and the air was filled with smoke, the screams of the sacrifices and the hooting of the Gnolls as demonic power radiated. Under the heat and noise, Gnollish bodies twisted and grew stronger and battles broke out as they fought to drink in Xhazob's gift. Just as much Gnollish as Human blood covered the ground. As tempted as I was, I was not going to give myself over to the demons as they were. You need your wits about you at sea. When Kazz returned from the blood pits, a foot taller and far bulkier, I smacked him firmly on the snout and put him back in his place before he could get any funny ideas. The captaincy was still mine.  The cowards of Deshak had handed their crown over to Eborthíl in an effort to defend themselves against our invasion. With the tribes united and filled with demonic bloodlust, and the bolstered fleets guarding the straits, their efforts would be in vain. Bolstered fleets that should have been mine. Despite everything I had given to Viakkoc, he gave the title of admiral over to that bastard, Rrikk. As much as it grates to suffer under his command, I took the Fleshcarver out to battle.  The overconfident idiot brushed aside what he thought was the Deshaki fleet and began to pillage their coastline, but it had been a ruse. The greater part of the enemy linked up with reinforcement from their allies and sent us beaten back to safe harbours. At the very least he had a sense of naval strategy and did not get us all killed in a foolish charge of the enemy fleet. I lost good Gnolls and dozens of slaves from their cannon fire, and now the Fleshcarver will need months of repairs. All I can do is sit and stew while the war passes me by.  With the navy out of commission, Viakkoc sent orders for us to get the economy of Khasa back on track after we had trashed the city. Treating me like a common whip-holder makes my blood boil, but I at least have the satisfaction that Rrikk is alongside me doing the same menial tasks. It makes me wonder if he intends to turn the kingdom's economy away from pillage and towards production. So much for 'scourge-of-all-seas'.  I was not missing much in the larger war. Deshak fell quickly, and any attempt at landing was quickly rebuffed, but their fleet was too powerful for us to engage directly. Viakkoc was letting his troops roam the land and plunder their wealth while awaiting a surrender from the Deshaki nobles who had fled into hiding.  Brrtekuh's invasion of Kheterata had seen far greater success. Their entire western coastline had fallen, the Mother's Sorrow had split into petty kingdoms, and Kheterat itself was under siege by the Elves of Elizna who were attempting to claim the title and install their sun god over the Khetarchs.  Eventually the king of Eborthíl gave up trying to retake Deshak. The local nobility were gone, some fled across the sea to his court, others hidden in the mountains. Either way, the land was effectively ours. We took full control of the coastline and most importantly the shipyards.  But that was not before we stripped their lands for all they were worth, and took a significant portion of slaves back to for both work and sacrifice. Everyone's favourite OP mechanic is available for Gnolls, though we don't have Horde Unity to worry about.  As I walked through the piles of loot, I encountered some interesting items. There were several pieces of artwork of Humans, Elves, and smaller creatures that looked impressively real. Most weren't in good shape, such as paintings splattered with blood or statues with their limbs hacked off, but it did leave me to wonder whether the mighty cities of Cannor had more such cultural treasures to claim. There were also a variety of books. I had no idea what they were, so I just grabbed as many as I could without catching the notice of the local pack leader. I'll leave them for you to read to me, later. Perhaps there is something to be learned.  I mustn't rest on my paws. This war was a victory for the tribes, not the real seascourge. The Corsair Kingdom is not worthy of this name, and I am the only one who sees it. If I can strike down those humans who think themselves so safe on their island, I can avenge the humiliation that Rrikk put me through and make a name for myself as the true leader of this fleet. Then, we can really begin. To be continued…
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Jun 9, 2023 18:52
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