BIG HITS EXCLUSIVE: GM Stormcrow Weighs In on Han’s Attempt To Use Magic To Repel a Stark Siege

Jon Snow flailed through a thicket of brambles and tumbled out onto the north-south Almenly road in terror. Behind him, the enchanted echoes of the spirits of cursed elven warriors of generations past called out for his blood. The forest around him — one of the most spectacular in the Broken Lands — seemed to blight and decay around him into sweeping darkness. His only chance to escape this wickedness was to flee back to his city of Winterfell. Perhaps there, he thought, behind its massive wall and protected by the city’s mages, would he be free of this curse.

Bloodied from his terror-filled tear through the woods, he limped as quickly as he could until he came to a fork in the road. To the right, the road would continue northward, taking him back to where his siege army had just attempted to storm the gates at Evilbanking7’s city of M3. Meeting only token resistance at first, all had gone wrong once he and his storm force crossed the threshold into the city square, and the spirits of the disquieted elven dead seeped from the city’s dark shadows, enveloping he and his troops in a terrifying, mystical fear. “Never will I look upon that city again,” he whispered to himself. “And perhaps never upon this accursed region of Almenly, for that matter.”

At the fork in the road, a makeshift sign for Winterfell pointed down the western leg of the highway. Up ahead, the rotten, petrified forest seemed to give way to pastels, sun-lit glades, and safety. “That’s the way!” Jon reassured himself. “This is the surely the way out of this nightmare.”

As he took his first step toward the western route, a firm hand grasped his shoulder. “Jon? What the hell are you doing? What the hell are you all doing?”

It was Phoenix, his commander, who looked upon his face in bewilderment. “Do you not know, commander?” he asked, perplexed. “Have you not seen the elven spirits? They are coming for our blood!”

At once, Phoenix recognized that Jon and the others he had seen pouring out of the forest along the north-south were under the effects of a powerful spell. “Pull yourself together, man!” he intoned, slapping Phoenix at full force. “These elven spirits are folly! They are the work of elven magic.”

Jon Snow was incredulous that his eyes could have so profoundly deceived him. “Sir . . . no. You were not there, sir. You did not see what I saw. What we all saw . . . ”

“The spirits of the elves — we all know that they do not linger when they are parted from their bodies in this world,” said Phoenix, taking a softer, more reassuring tone. “The city had no defenses left, Jon. All they had left was their magic. We have to go back.”

Snow began to weep. His commander spoke with earnestness, but the fear in his heart was still palpable. And yet he knew that he’d have to enter M3 again, this time confronting not the defender’s spear, but the greatest fear he had ever beheld in this life. “We have to go back, Jon!” Phoenix insisted, shaking his officer out of his din. “We must assemble who we have left and finish this!”

Snow wiped his eyes and composed himself, nodding to the ground in agreement though every fiber of his being conflicted that sentiment.

“Let’s spread out along the road,” said Phoenix. “We’ll collect all who is left, and rendezvous at the siege site in six hours. And take heart, Jon — this grand victory is still in hand. This victory will staunch your fear.”

Snow and Phoenix mustered all who they could find — they numbered less than 300, including the 4 idle catapults left in the field. But it was enough to take M3 that afternoon — the city fell without bloodshed, as there were no soldiers left to fight. Stark forces scattered the remaining townfolk and razed the city. It was Snow himself who torched the mage tower.

Yet in spite of the victory, the destruction of that city’s mage tower, and Phoenixfire’s promises, that fear never left Jon Snow, and 30 years later, as an old man resting in front of his hearth on an early winter night, he still thought he could feel the cold, dead fingers of the elven spirits upon his shoulders.

Han Uses Magic To Delay Stark Siege; City Still Falls

Evilbanking7 pictured casting the Ward of Insanity.

In a bizarre twist of sieging, storming, and magic, Shu-Han reportedly managed to temporarily delay House Stark’s siege at Evilbanking7’s city of M3 using rune magic before the city was razed by Phoenixfire some six hours after the spell had been successfully used.

According to battle reports provided by Shu-Han leadership, close to midnight server time last evening, Phoenixfire attempted to storm M3, after Stark siege engines had reduced the city’s population earlier in the evening. PF had cleared the city of troops, save for a few that were still being queued, and Han reinforcements sent to break the siege were still hours away from reaching the siege camp.

In spite of the siege army having reduced M3’s population enough to storm the city, the camp had been decimated by earlier attacks and only had 264 units left to storm with.

The highest rune EvilBanking7 purportedly had researched in the city was the Ward of Insanity, which is capable of driving away up to 300 units if the spell is successful.

Thanks to Han’s last attack on the Stark siege camp, they were able to note the 264 units remaining in PF’s siege camp.

[Updated] Han Siege At Winterfell Broken; Stark Siege on M3 Still Firing

Han’s first siege against House Stark capital Winterfell has been broken. The siege break comes less than a day after it was initiated as part of the first round of a fresh war in the Broken Lands region of Almenly.

This morning server time, the Times noted that the siege listing for Winterfell was dropped from the Herald. However, a review of the House Stark profile page revealed that the city was still intact and had not appeared to have lost any significant population, suggesting that the siege may have been broken prior to the beginning of bombardment.

The blockade on the city still appeared to be functional.

Meanwhile, over at the Stark siege of EvilBanking7’s city of M3, correspondents noted that the siege was still active and by this point was likely firing. However, in light of the fact that Stark has yet to establish a blockade at the siege site, the city appeared to be largely intact as well.

These two sieges are the first two in a war that flamed up yesterday between Han and Stark, with Han citing a broad spectrum of justifications, including Phoenixfire’s exit from the Stomps/claimers war, his dissolution of the Stark land claim, and an inherent rivalry between the two small BL alliances who are seeking to dominate Almenly.

[UPDATED 17:45 ST — According to a battle report sent to the Times, Phoenixfire broke the Han siege with a small attacking force. It appears that the siege army arrives ahead of reinforcements.]

The Times needs information on who broke the siege at Winterfell to update the war score card. Please send the battle report to us so that we can update!

[UPDATED] Han Declares War on Stark, Cites Insults, Betrayal, Peace With Stomps As Casus Belli

Cities involved in the Han/Stark war. Han is depicted in green, while Stark is in blue.

A third war theatre has opened up in the Broken Lands, this time between Almenly neighbors Shu-Han [Han] and House Stark [Stark]. In what appeared to be a loosely-structured war declaration posted in the diplomacy section of the BL Illyriad forums, Han’s alliance account laid out a rambling casus belli that was at times difficult to follow. However, what is clear is that at the center of Han’s war declaration is a longstanding grudge with Stark leader Phoenixfire and his recent controversial moves to downgrade his alliance’s land claim and make unilateral peace with Stomps without consultation of claimer alliance.

In the post, entitled “Phoenixfire The Traitor,” the Han press office reels off a visceral attack on PF, questioning his loyalty as an ally:

How much can you trust Phoenix? When will he flip again? Whose side is he really on? He is no ally to the LC coalition, and he is not abiding by his oath to Stomps. He is a liar. He is a manipulator. He is a coward and a traitor that will brought justice by Shu. If he wanted to get out of the war there was better ways of doing it. For example at the very least let the coalition know. It would have been a lot better if he had told anyone from the coalitions he was flipping instead of not saying anything. So this is my question to House Stark’s allies. Would you want to be an ally to someone who might just tuck his tail and run then leave you in the wind?

The rhetoric in the Han document heavily leverages PF’s recent decision to exit the Stomps/claimers war and significantly reduce his land claim footprint in the Broken Lands, opting instead of a so-called “claim free zone” that lacked specificity and underwent several changes after public criticism. Han sought to highlight PF’s apparent failure to remain consistent in his positions as an alliance leader in Illyriad:

Hours after negotiating peace with Stomps and dropping his LC, Phoenixfire stated “we will think about reinstating our original claim once we have fully settled our homeland. Once that has been done no one will be able to challenge our claim by settling.”. How can someone trust one who lies so blatantly? He has no honor to stick for even a day to his peace deal. Instead he instantly began conspiring against his oath to Stomps. . . Despite his attempts of breaking LC solidarity, PhoenixFire promised  “Stark won’t be making peace until everyone else has.” Shortly after this promise, PhoenixFire backed out of the war with Stomps and dropped his land claim. After LC alliances demanding answers, Phoenixfire simply replied “people were abusing land claims and we weren’t having fun anymore.”

“Hello, neighbor:” Han and Stark’s claim-free zones buttress right up against one another. Photo Credit: BL Land Claim Map

Han’s new military campaign to bring PF to what the alliance considers to be “justice” appears to have been persuasive enough to have elicited the sympathies of some in Trivium [TVM], as well as support from Broken Blades [B!B], who co-declared war, ostensibly more in solidarity with Han than as an apparent combatant, since B!B has not issued a statement as of yet.

Lord Moonpie, Praetor Diplomaticus of Trivium, elaborated on some previous dealings with Stark in support of Han’s accusations: “Stark previously declared war on Han and demanded that they leave Almenly. The matter was resolved diplomatically with the help of TVM and RE.” He also went on to outline a similar argument as Han in PF’s mishandling of Stark’s role in the current Stomps/claimers war: “Some people in the Land Claim movement are upset by this and feel betrayed by his actions.”

Noticeably absent from the war banter in the Illyriad forums has been Phoenixfire himself, who has yet to answer these accusations levied publicly by Han. However, in comments left on the Times, PF in part addressed his issues with Han. In an effort to explain his abrupt policy changes that went from stating “we will think about reinstating our original claim once we have fully settled our homeland — Once that has been done no one will be able to challenge our claim by settling” to his refutation of land claims altogether in the wake of negotiating for peace with Stomps, he admitted: “Yes I have said both of those. The first was said when we actually had a part in the war, and the second was said when i thought we would still have to fight Stomps in order to keep our DoH. When we realized the DoH was doing its job of helping us avoid conflict we realized it is doing what we wanted the land claim to.”

PF went on to characterize his change of position simply as an evolution in his gaming ideologies: “So you are against people changing their mind on an issue over the course of weeks? You must be against everyone then, because if you haven’t noticed a lot of people change their minds on issues almost daily and most views on said issues are situational.”

The War For Almenly

While the motivations for the Han/Stark war remain convoluted at best, the prospect of two relatively similarly-sized military alliances next to one another in Almenly may make for balanced albeit lightweight war in the Broken Lands. And both alliances have been quick out of the gate to put military might behind their rhetoric. Phoenixfire initiated the first siege of the war, against EvilBanking7’s city of M3:

Player Being Sieged: EvilBanking7 [Han] City: M3 [-276|-2691] in Almenly Sieger: Phoenixfire [Stark] Date/Time: Mon 20 Jul 08:19

That siege was quickly answered by EvilBanking7, who set up a siege on PF’s city of Winterfell, the House Stark capital that also happens to be behind enemy lines in Han’s land claim:

Player Under Siege: Phoenixfire [Stark] City: 1. Winterfell [-279|-2655] in Almenly Sieger: EvilBanking7 [Han] Date/Time: Mon 20 Jul 19:0

As this is a new war, little is known about the composition of the armies or where the intense bitterness between Han and Stark will lead. The Times will continue to update the story as more information becomes available.

[UPDATED 7:42am, ST: The war declaration thread for this war appears to have been deleted on the Illyriad forum. For reference, we are reprinting Han’s entire declaration below.’

You all have seen this name. PhoenixFire, a  proclaimed hero of the Land Claiming (LC) Coalition. A figure cheered on by BL alliances and Elgeans alike as he resisted Stomps. A symbol of resistance that rivals that of Che, but like Che, our Phoenix is not pure of heart. Within this week Phoenixfire has made some movements. I’m sure everyone in the forums is aware of him flipping sides and leaving the LC coalition.
 
 
The reason he flipped is because a DoH fits House Starks ideal rules for claiming a piece of land or so he says. I believe differently as Phoenixfire has stated before he wants House Stark to get stronger before they make a Land Claim.  The reason I believe is he went to a DoH is because STOMP took a city from him and he knew he was a weaker link in the coalition.
 
This brings the question of honor to the table. How much can you trust Phoenix? When will he flip again? Whose side is he really on? He is no ally to the LC coalition, and he is not abiding by his oath to Stomps. He is a liar. He is a manipulator. He is a coward and a traitor that will brought justice by Shu. If he wanted to get out of the war there was better ways of doing it. For example at the very least let the coalition know. It would have been a lot better if he had told anyone from the coalitions he was flipping instead of not saying anything. So this is my question to House Stark’s allies.
 
Would you want to be an ally to someone who might just tuck his tail and run then leave you in the wind? I would think not. To House Starks allies I recommend you think  about your relationship with him. In war your honor is what counts. There is also ways to get out of war without turning your back on your allies.  Would you really want to side with him?
 
Another thing to think about is He cannot be trusted to stick to his deals. Hours after negotiating peace with Stomps and dropping his LC, Phoenixfire stated “we will think about reinstating our original claim once we have fully settled our homeland. Once that has been done no one will be able to challenge our claim by settling.”. How can someone trust one who lies so blatantly? He has no honor to stick for even a day to his peace deal. Instead he instantly began conspiring against his oath to Stomps.
 
We know PhoenixFire attacked BL alliances that did not rashly enter the war against Stomps. He declared himself a leader of a “true military alliance” as he gave Stomps their only raze due to his spread-out and unsupportable cities. He continued to persecute alliances that were prioritizing centralization while throwing himself into a war where most of his power lay on the complete other side of the world, the side that Stomps had control.
Despite his attempts of breaking LC solidarity, PhoenixFire promised  “Stark won’t be making peace until everyone else has.” Shortly after this promise, PhoenixFire backed out of the war with Stomps and dropped his land claim. After LC alliances demanding answers, Phoenixfire simply replied “people were abusing land claims and we weren’t having fun anymore”.
 
Perhaps a fair sentiment…if we skip over that House Stark under PhoenixFire’s direction forcibly removed a newb from his territory while he happily operated under his LC. A shining example of PhoenixFire clinging to moral superiority when he has none.
We’ve stated many things against Phoenixfire and this hopefully shows what type of player he really is. We have stated what he plans to do after the war is over. We hope this brings insight into why the Shu is doing what we are doing. We feel this was cowardly on Phoenix’s part and he should face justice. The overall part of this is Phoenix doesn’t want to fight for a Land Claim but he wants one. He wants to be able to force people out of his land without fighting for it. He is using everyone hoping STOMP/LCers finish each other off then post up a LC after all of it is said and done as stated above. Hopefully this shows his true colors.