From the Journal of one Wigmar Heck, pt 42 (Much to do on the home front)

7 Sigmarzeit 2499 (Wellentag), Übersreik

I have not written in some time. I take up the pen again today. It's Wellentag - Work Day - so it's only fitting I should be working on my journal. 

I'm sitting in the study of my Übersreik townhouse. The place has come a long way since I inherited it. Though I must say it could use some more work - it compares rather poorly against my newly acquired house in Nuln. But for a provincial city like Übersreik it will do just fine.

Life at home is pleasurable, but it is not an adventure. Neither does it in fact allow much time for writing. The life of a landed lord is not an easy one, I assure you. There are more creature comforts, but the duties never end...

I get up no later than noon, often closer to ten. After breakfast and attending my duties as a husband, I have meetings with this or that adviser, a merchant, some official from the city. So many faces, so many names. I look at the books (we have a dwarf accountant now), I ride the fields (wishing I had more), visit the village (how many years until it's a town?), and so much more. Then supper and more homely duties. It's often midnight before I hit the feather mattress - and that's when there are other duties to attend to (not with the wife, she I do during the daytime, like Ankh requires).

Summer draws closer with every day. The fields have been plowed and planted. The plague has not touched us (and I aim to keep it that way). My lands have increased substantially and I've been promised a baronial title in Reikland to go with the one from Wissenland. The first battalion and many of the headquarter troops are fully armed and operational (more or less), with more battalions on the way.

In all, life treats me well. This is what it feels like to walk in the light of the righteous sun, rather than slum around in the gutter with the northern gods. It's not like everything is just fine. The orcs are still out there, in the mountains, and in great numbers. But therein lies not only danger, but opportunity.

Matters of family

My Isolde gave birth to twins on Marktag - market day - the 3rd day of Ulriczeit 2498. She must haven gotten pregnant sooner than anyone realized. Perhaps even the first time we were together. Our first wedding night at the latest.

No one knew she was carrying twins. A boy and a girl as it were. They were joined at the hip when they were born. Herr Halmstad didn't go into further details, but it must have been grim indeed. Isolde very nearly died. As for the children they were... healed. My friend the wizard used the magic of the red stone and all his skill to separate the babies. They both live and are healthy, with no sign of deformity. We have called them Dagmar (after my Liberungen ancestors) and Talima (after some woman in Isolde's family).

Emmaretta has presumably also given birth. Hard to sure since she ran away back to the hills that spawned her. Damn that woman. And damn my entire hoshold for not stopping her and not having the balls to inform me. It would only have been a bastard. But bastards have their uses.

Matters of magic

My dear Anna remains apprenticed to Master Jürgen Halmstad (technically ex-master, since he's retired from the colleges). There was talk of sending her to Altdorf for advanced training, but Herr Halmstad feels she could benefit from some more basic tutelage. Perhaps next year she will be ready for advanced tuition. I think I would nather she didn't go at all. Better she study under Halmstad than learn necromancy - sorry, amethyst magic - in the stinking pit that is Altdorf.

I have not seen Anna since my return. She remains at the Tower with Hugg, keeping watch over its secrets while Halmstadt is with me. I will go to her as soon as can be arranged. I long for her sweet embrace and clever tongue. Hell, I been gone long enough that even her talk of women's rights will not bore me!

Annika is here in Übersreik with me. At this very moment she's sleeping in the next room. It got late and the eiswein flowed freely yesterday. She's apprenticed to Nacht still (I'm not sure they like each other but they seem to at least offer each other some respect) and now that the Imperial Envoy has returned to the city Annika has followed her bald mistress.

It is a good thing that I'm here to help take her mind of things. Her husband, Walter Müller, has... fallen ill and is currently being cared for in the Tower. No, what rubbish is this? Lying to my own journal? He is ill of sorts, but its no ordinary disease. According to Halmstad the man in a "sin-eater," a person with the ability to take upon himself the sins and corruption of another, absolving them. He was there when the children were born and he drew the poison from their bodies. And now he is... not well. Not well at all. 

I do not profess to understand how such a thing is possible. Even Herr Halmstad had only read about such things, never thought them possible. I must go to the Tower to see Walter. See what state he is in - and determine what his fate will be.

The ring I wear is a Jade Ring of Cathay. It protects against magic. It can suck in magical energies - up to an unspecified limit - thus rendering the wearer immune to many direct-effect spells. I think it served me well in the battle against Hertzen. A wizard can use the stored energy to cast spells of his own. I cannot. I can only wait for the ring to explode if it consumes too much. For now I've had Ankh drain it. It's a powerful talisman, but I must be careful with it or it'll be my death.

The crown is the Crown of Command. It lets the wearer compel those of weak will to do his bidding. It's uncertain how this is done, but Halmstad said practice is key. The big drawback here is that wearing a golden crown is treason. Not even the mad sorcerers of the Wittgenstein clan dared use it!

Matters of faith

Ankh is weaker now, but nowhere near as feeble as he was going to see von Liebwitz in the south. His cheeks are shrunken, he's got rings around his eyes, and his back is stooped. Yet for all that there is a clarity of mind and purpose that's rarely been present. He's focused and his talk is easy to follow, not filled with riddles and contradictions. Less talk of the old times and what has been. More about the now and the future. He's become studious too. Quite the little scholar. First the dwarf texts in Karak-Azgaraz, now everything that's in my library.

I think all that Ankh needs is power. And the Doomstones could be the key to that power. If he's allowed to feed off the Stone of Fire, who knows how powerful he could become? And what if we get hold of the Stone of Earth as well? What if he consumes them both? We're ridding the world of danger and giving life to the Ankh at the same time. What could go wrong?

For my own part I walk in the light and will continue to do so. The sun god has done more for me and my men in an year then all the gods of the Old World have in all my life time. It's not that I do not belive in them or do not honor them. It's more that I hold Ankh above all others and what I do I do in His light.

Matters of the land

Herzog Sigismund von Jungfreund has returned to Übersreik. His quarrel with the Emperor seems to be over - for now at least. He spent a letter inviting me to Übersreik. I had little choice but to go. It was either that or try to have the man removed. But in the end I decided to talk first.

I know little of why he fell out of favor. Something to do with political differences in the Reikland Diet I've been told by my peers. Disagreements over taxes (the Dragon wants even more gold) and legislation (there have been some strange edicts in the past, though none quite as colorful as the "specials" act). But I've also heard rumors of darker things: of corruption and armed revolt.

I know equally little about how he was able to get back into the Emperor's good graces. I can guess at gold. Black Rock is said to be rich. But if it's just the gold, why now and not before?

Speaking of gold: Sigismund has graciously covered all my bills when Nacht's credit dried up. Somewhere between four and six thousand crowns. Do we really spend that much? I guess we did. 

Even more importantly he's offered to pay for another battalion of troops. Pay for their mustering and pay for their upkeep. I accepted, of course. It's too good an offer to pass over. But it begs the question: what does he intend to use my troops for? War against the orcs? Something else? With Nacht it was simpler: the troops would watch the von Jungfreund's... but that's hardly on the table anymore. What if he has another falling out with the Emperor? I must remain ever vigilant.

Perhaps the old traitor sensed my reluctance. Maybe that's why he offered to treble my lands? I don't think it was my tales of fighting orcs in the mountains. I will be named Baron of the Grausee. The plague has taken the old rulers and brought new opportunities. All the farmlands along the Verfelfluss and the Grausee. Thick, black soil, level terrain. Cultivated for generations, well drained, picked free of the larger rocks. Well watered and sunny. These are the great grain fields that I have so few of. How can a Reikland boy say no to lands like that? Oh, and I get tax rights for both the Verfelfluss and the road south, and fishing rights for the Grausee.

Nowhere near enough to support full battalions of soldiers. That goes without saying. But should I ever tire of war my lands offer sufficient income for a baron and his family to live in comfort.

Matters of war and commerce

My brother's trade ventures continue to generate a modest income. There is room for further expansion in the future. For the time being, however, I've decided to invest my savings (some 15000, channeled through my contacts in Bögenhafen) in the grain and livestock trade, through my Adlerverein friends. If my hunch is correct, it'll be a great investment.

That hunch has to do with the orcs and what happens when the snows melt and the passes are open for travel. Karak-Azgaraz must be kept safe, as must Übersreik and my own lands, but I can scare be held responsible for protecting the entire Vorbergland. Orks will invade the Reikland, I'm sure, and when they do, Baron Wigmar and his men will be ready to defend the Empire (for a price) and ready to supply grain and livestock to those with coin.

Matters of vengeance

There is also the Purple Hand and the last of the Wittgensteins to consider. Middenheim is high on my list of places I need to go. But I cannot leave now, not with the greenskin threat looming and so many other things to attend to. As soon as can be managed is all I can say. But I have forgotten nothing and forgiven even less. By the Light, a reckoning is coming.

From the Journal of one Wigmar Heck, pt 41 (The Road Home)

14 Jahrdrug

The storm's over. Eight days it lasted. The world is covered by snowfall at least a meter deep, much more in places. The dwarfs are confident no more orc armies will appear. We are snowed in and so are the greenskins.

Well, nearly snowed in: we have the tunnel which leads to the Holdfast. From there it's possible to follow the snowy road down the valley to Blood Keep. It'll take time, but its possible.

Ankh

He's weaker now. 

I know why: he's been feeding off the magical energies left by the stone of earth. That's interesting. Maybe if we get him to the stone of fire he could feed on it's energies? Maybe he won't die at all? Maybe he can live forever if he gets enough power?

Weaker or not: every morning he gets up and goes up on the mountain to greet the sun.

18 Jahrdrug

The dwarfs have gifted me a suit of armor. Nothing fancy, just high-quality dwarf steel. Suitable for wearing on travels or in battle. 

Nothing like my gromnil knight's armor. When I get it from Nuln I'll be well protected. Gromnil is indestructible. Or so I've heard.

Speaking of gromnil: the rune axe I got from the ogre is made of the material. Does that mean it can cut through anything? And what happens when a gromnil weapon strikes gromnil armor?

31 Jahrdrug

The 7th Nuln Guards, the first battalion to be fully equipped in the new manner, arrived today. We are already packed and ready to march. We shall leave in the morning.

33 Jahrdrug

We reached Drumstrang's Holdfast. The men put sleds on the cannon and the road has been cleared all the way down to the Keep.

3 Pflugzeit

We reached Blood Keep. Captain Grüber is still in charge of the place.

We will march on the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow is for celebrating our victories and honoring our dead.

5 Pflugzeit

We crossed the bridge into the Reikland.

A detachment of soldiers were camped on the other side, unwilling to cross into Wissenland uninvited. I bad them join the forces at Blood Keep. They complied.

7 Pflugzeit

We reached Dunkelberg.

There are patrols out, watching for signs of orcs. There's been a few raids which they have stopped, but no major attacks. I told them more orcs are coming. They seemed unconvinced.

10 Pflugzeit

We passed Stimmigen. 

Got invited to dine with the local lord. He set a fine table  and his wife had a nice cleavage, but took my orc warnings a little too lightly for my taste.

13 Pflugzeit

Weather is sometimes fair, sometimes not. Some nights are cold, others not. The cold nights are the best; it leaves the roads less muddy. The rainy days makes for hard going and miserable nights.

Marched past the village of Grausee on our way home. Some sort of winter plague had taken hold and the place was under Reiksguard quarantine. 

I left Sigrid with a troop of pistoliers to reinforce them. Don't want no plague on my lands.

A few hours later we were riding across Liberungen lands... finally!

From the Journal of one Wigmar Heck, pt 40 (Second Battle of Karak Azgaraz)

 

2 Jahrdrug 

It is clear that we will have to remain to defend the dwarfs. If we leave and the orcs come back it's game over for them. I've dispatched letters stressing the need for reinforcements. I've also taken the opportunity to write my Adler associates. If war comes to the Reikland and beyond we must be ready.

3 Jahrdrug 

Ankh's situation is much improved. He's no longer the lethargic man waiting to die. He's back to his old self and it pleases me greatly. It is strange though - he seemed so certain he would soon die and that we would meet again when he was reborn. And I believed him. I guess even Ankh cannot foresee everythig.

5 Jahrdrug

The orcs came in force today. A vast horde of orcs, black orcs, goblins, and wolves. They even brought some trolls. We fought them as they came up the causeway. In their hundred they rushed at us and we shot them dead. Even their black orc shield wall could not stand against ball and canister. The trolls caused some trouble but we dealt with them as well. Before the end of the day a thousand or more greenskins were added to the piles of dead. Surely we have slain more than two thousand by now, maybe more.

We suffered casualties, but again not more than we can handle. We are, however, running low on shot and powerder. We could repel another assault like this, maybe two. But if then thousand comes we will run out and be undone.

6 Jahrdrug

There is a blizzard. Strong winds, heavy snows. The dwarfs say it could last a day, two days - or ten. Impossible to tell. While the blizzard lasts no orc assault can take place. 

The Doomstones

I have spoken at length with Diirk's father, Faust Wife-stealer, the Runemaster. He's one of few elders to have survived the orc onslaught - the loremasters were all slaughtered in the Hall of the Ancestors.

From what I understand the Zul character wielded a powerful artifact of his own: the Stone of the Earth. The one I found is the Stone of Fire. Two more the dwarfs made in the elder days, before the War of the Beard, and together they grant master over the four elements. Each stone is powerful on its own - and also dangerous to the wielder - but when brought together their power grows even greater. If all four gems are united there is nothing their master cannot do. 

How or why the dwarfs of old made these stones - fit for use by wizards and sorcerers - no one could say. Seems the height of folly to me. Dwarfs probably figured that out too, because they split up the stones - now called the Doomstones - and scattered them far away from each other.

One stone resides beneath Karaz-a-Karak, the great dwarf hold in the World's Edge Mountains. One was given to the elves for safekeeping. These are the stones of air and water, though there are no records of which is where. The stone of fire was sent to the far north - how it ended up in the Grey Mountains is not known. The stone of earth was carried to the west, perhaps to the Grey Mountains, to Karak Kulgan. It's now in Zul's possession I believe.

Zul is clearly trying to get to the rest of the stones. or the one that's accessible to him - the fire stone. A single wizard has no hope of breaching Karaz-a-Karak or making it to Ulthuan.

From the Journal of one Wigmar Heck, pt 39 (First Battle of Karak Azgaraz)

 

27 Nachhexen

After a night spent huddled in the dark we marched on, following rough tunnels that ran through the heart of the mountain. 

Only a few groups of greenskins opposed the relentless march of Reiklanders and Wissenlanders. None can stand against the might of the Empire united. 

Furak Stonesplitter led us to Karak-Azgaraz before the end of the second day, knowing exactly which way to take. 

I wonder how many such tunnels exist beneath the Grey Mountain? Diirk Thunderhammer said something about there being fewer than in the World's Edge Mountains. And also haunted by orcs and worse. This particular stretch should have been safe enough, but that was before the orc horde descended upon Karak Azgaraz.

The journey would easily have taken two or three times that long on the surface - in the summertime. In winter I'm not sure it can be done at all - the cannons and the wagons would have to be abandoned and that would turned my force into nothing more than dead men walking, rifles frozen, powder damp.

Strange. I am now closer to home than I have been for half a year. All that stands between me and my holdings is a grey wall of rock, covered in ice and snow, that reaches so high it touches the clouds. To reach human lands you must either go south to Blood Keep - a road rarely travelled anymore says the dwarfs - or north, to the Grey Lady Pass and from there to Bretonnia or Übersreik.

At long last we could see a little light in the distance and feel cold, fresh air flowing from outside. We extinguished all light and crept forward. The tunnel deposited us on a stone bridge spanning a gorge. On the other side a stout stone door of dwarf make. Not the main entrance to the dwarf city, but a lesser gate that Diirk called the Copper Door. 

We made ourselves known and were let inside.

There was no time to waste. To orcs had breached the gate and broken the defenders. Even as we rushed inside, the dwarfs were being slaughtered. We fought the greenskins tooth and nail, shot and steel. We met them in pitched battle in the airy Chamber of Welcomes, killed all we could and pushed the rest out through the main gates and onto the plaza. There we slaughtered the rest, set up cannon and muskets to guard against further incursions, and started the process of rooting out whatever orcs and goblins remained within Karak Azgaraz.

We were too late to save the their King, Zaladrin Blood-beard. We found the high lord surrounded by his guards and courtiers in the High Hall of the Kings. Many columns had shattered and great slabs of rock had fallen from the roof, crushing the king and those closest to him.

When the battle was over only five hundred dwarfs of fighting age remained, maybe twice that number of women, children, and the elderly. A grievous loss for the dwarfs, but as was pointed out by their war-leader Thuringar Orc-heawer, infinitely better than total annihilation.

30 Nachhexen

We have repulsed a few orc probes as they tried to send scouts to determine the situation within the Kaer. We are entrenching and will not be moved. Inside the mountain the last greenskins have been dealt with. Groups of my men, guided by dwarfs have proven effective at the task.

The is no new king as of yet: the dwarfs must elect one from among their number. I suggested Diirk, being young, dynamic and well versed in Reikspiel, but this was immediately rejected. He's at least a century too young and also an illegitimate child.

The orcs were led by a human wizard going by the name Zul. An eye witness described him as strange looking. Sounds like a Kislevite or some such to me. He had led the orc horde to Karak Azgaraz, he had broken the gates with magic - despite their warding runes. He had gone to the king and demanded a heart-shaped red gemstone. When then king could not comply - that stone is in Halmstad's handed - he had brought down the roof and stormed off...

On war

Muskets and bayonets are relatively well suited for tunnel fighting. Smoke becomes a problem after the first volleys are fired, but as long as the tunnel is straight you don't really need to see the enemy to kill him. Just keep firing and eventually the survivors - even orcs - will either flee or run onto bayonets.

Grenades can be highly effective but care must be taken when employing them underground. I knew that from the sewers of Nuln but the lesson has been relearned many times in the past few days.

It was a resounding victory of the Empire and my tactics. My own men suffered less than ten percent casualties, the men of Nuln two or three times that, but still acceptable. We hold the battlefield and I expect many of the wounded to recover. We have brought healers and medical supplies, and we know what to do to combat the filth the orcs cover their blades with.