Updated description of Kuhl:
Bordes are locked down tight. This was true before the finale (most major engagements of the war) but now it's even moreso. Nothing seems to come in or out. This includes trade, news as much as it includes people. As far as anyone can tell, comers in and out of Kuhl has stopped completely. Except for a few stragglers, their forces have all returned within the boarders of the kingdom. To reiterate from the earlier post: Do not enter the physical area of Kuhl without the accompaniment of a GM. If you are uncertain what that encompass please ask. If you have done so following the end of the war, treat it as an OOC experience and do not speak of it as an actual IC Happening.
[LIST=1]
- Q: I know the way to Rofi ruins is closed now.
A: Due to Kuhl being locked up, yes.
Q: Is it possible to still go in there?
A: RPly, no. The borders are closed down tight. Kuhl should not be entered without GM supervision. Nith and Miritrix are not in Kuhl.
- Q: Fort of Last Hope, I see all of the destruction and Drachs, are we allowed to pass through? rest in that area?
A: You can pass through and around. RPly, you need to recognize that it's occupied by the Siphe Garra, so it's a military "base" basically. Soon that destruction will be repaired (mechanically), to reflect Siphe cleaning the place up.
- Q: As for Hilm Castle, is it safewise as in do Kuhl troops lurk around there?
A: Cult troops have fully retreated to Kuhl's borders. Any stragglers there would be swiftly dealt with by whoever came upon them in Hilm. Hilm is also in "clean-up" mode...getting structures and fields and things back in order after the battles there. That refers to the castle and the protectorate as a whole. There is a tremendous amount of damage in that kingdom/territory so there is a LOT of work being done. Soldiers doing farm work (though many were farmers I'm sure), construction, etc.
Q: So rebuilding process basically after a massive war/fighting?
A: Yes, in a continual state of high alert, of course. There are still some forces from places other than Hilm in the various places where battles took place, but they are more assistive at this point, and their numbers are greatly reduced from what they were.
- Q: The Cult only holds territory now in Kuhl, yes?
A: Correct. While there may be a few stragglers here and there...maybe an outpost or two...the Cult has no real footholds or conquered territory despite their early successes.
- Q: Whats the apparent state of the Cult's military power after the war came to this interlude?
A: They suffered losses like everyone else, especially with a significant chunk of the Drach Garra defecting with Jaedon Siphe. However, they still have formidable numbers as far as anyone can see. The borders are heavily patrolled and should be considered 'solid'...meaning GM involvement is needed to enter Kuhl.
- Q: Do we know if the current stable of Myr'Drachs need more plague to keep them fed so to speak?
A: No. There is nothing on that that you know of with any certainty.
- Q: Have the borders to Kuhl been surrounded by Hilm and reinforced by Hilm forces i.e. guard posts and armies?
A: Yes... and no. They are not as surrounded as they are on Kuhl's side. Hilm has the usual border crossings and patrols and scouts and things. Recall that Hilm was guarding the boarders of all kingdoms at one point. It is definitely scaled back from that and only the usual posts are manned at this time, as Dorg says. There is a lot of rebuilding to do even at those locations so... There's not some massive DMZ though on Hilm's side. They're watching, of course, and trying to keep an eye on things from strategic vantage points.
- Q: So if Khul decided to mount another invasion it would be noticed by the forces at the border?
A: Yes, because one does not amass an army overnight, nor does an army move quickly.
- Q: Is there any point in Kuhl's border that appears least defended by Kuhl forces?
A: In general? No. If you want to find out more, that's CDQ territory. I used this example in the prior session... Think about when the Iron Curtain was in eastern Europe. Granted, there were ways in and out...border crossings and checkpoints and all, but really, if they wanted...they could have closed those too. And the Cult -has- closed those crossings.
- Q: Is Kuhl self sufficient or are they in need of supplies from the outside?
A: There's no trade in or out at the moment, so make whatever conclusions you can from that.
- Q: I would like to go back to the Iron Curtain metaphor. I cannot play with the people in this league, but can I assume that there are more eyes then just those of the Hlim border guards fixed on Khul?
A: Not sure what you mean about not playing with people in this league...but as far as eyes on Kuhl goes, probably. I can think of several factions who would want to keep eyes on Kuhl for various reasons.
- Q: Is Kuhl licking their wounds and planning a fresh assault?
A: Since the events of the finale, there haven't been any attacks by corrupted dragons or Myr'Drach or anything. Really no one knows what's going on inside Kuhl, but from what can be seen from outside the borders, the borders are locked... though there doesn't seem to be any sort of massing of forces within view of the borders either, so take that however you will.
- Q: It's my understanding that sections of the Deep may underlie many parts of the world. I even thought that perhaps Rael was using it to move troops--as in Steel's little problem with them. Could Kuhl be exploring that as a useful way of hiding and moving?
A: It's within the realm of possibility, but there's currently no evidence to support or refute that possibility.
- Q: Was the Molten Isle ever attacked?
A: While there was definitely some activity on the Isle, there was no observed or rumored attacks there. The activity seemed to be volcanic in nature and very dramatic but that is all.
- Q: Are the waters west of Belinara still as safe as usual to sail?
A: Safe 'as usual' yeah. Thus far. That area is still highly trafficked by pirates and such. There have been dragon attacks out there as well but very few survivors to describe the events. There've been no -reported- dragon attacks in that area since the swatting of the Cult in Hilm etc. Dragon attacks were happening out at sea west of Belinara (and not associated with the WL quest attacks or the attacks indicated by Dezza that happened later).
It's a little confusing because there is dragon activity associated with Row's WL quest series and there have been dragon attacks associated with something else that Dezza is running, but they aren't related to Kuhl bid for expansion of power. None of the attacks after the war's end were by corrupted/controlled dragons. Clearly, run with whatever you hear via rumors posted in relation, and if you are unsure ask the GM posting them.
- Q: Is the war council still intact and planning to take out Kuhl or are they satisfied with what they got?
A: There has been a period of regrouping, but the Council has not been disbanded nor uninvited from Trelania's power seat. Many of the nations have been seeing to their own and dealing with the tremendous losses of late. There are still efforts going on around the world but mostly fortification and replenishment type things.
- Q: So the war council wants to invade Kuhl?
A: No decisions on that front have been announced or apparently discussed (based on any rumors floating out of Blackford). Again, all efforts have been going toward replenishment of kingdoms, burying of the dead, coping with the aftershocks of losing so many people, seeing that their own kingdoms do not rebel etc.
- Q: If an invasion was to take place who would lead, it Hilm?
A: Nothing of that nature has been decided.
- Q: What was that large mass of armor and weapons for? What war was Fisterion amassing for?(Discovered during a quest event with Dezza, inside Pyrtechon's Temple)
A: That would (unless Dezza had something separate going on) be appropriate reflection of the WL Quest series that is currently on hold. I can double check with Dezza but I'm pretty sure that's related to my series. DMs will reflect the current events of other DM material when possible.
There are three open factions on Molten Island. While Fisterion is linked to Pyrtechon's temple, Fisterion is actually regarded as a separate faction from the temple and Pyrtechon himself. Just an fyi.
- Q: What is the status of Ractrafieroz, is he still in Siphe's camp or moved on?
A: As far as is known, he's still stationed in the hold claimed by Siphe.
- Q: What word do we have of Storan's return inside Kuhl?
A: There is pretty much no information coming out of Kuhl at this time.
- Q: Is there a synopsis/FAQ/write-up of the campaign, telling of actions and reasons behind it all, but dealing with fact and not any rumours please?
A: There will be a posting of the timeline on the Timeline of Layonara on LORE, most likely. Because many pieces are in play, 'reasons' for what has happened at each point may not necessarily be revealed. We have a working timeline of events in the works already and at some point will be updating LORE with that information.
- Q: You mentioned before the costs the kingdoms and factions had to pay for this war, and the effects that come from that. Could you elaborate on that a bit or should I ask more specific?
A: To put things quickly in perspective, the entire population of the planet is measured in hundreds of thousands, rather than the billions we generally tend to think of in our own RL settings. If you look here
http://forums.layonara.com/dragon-storm-campaign/282546-logistics-armies-against-kuhl.html you can see the numbers of generally known committed forces by various factions. I believe there are even more committed forces than that and it may need some updating but generally it is correct.
Now when you lose that many troops (because there were heavy looses on both sides) it greatly affects other things that are imperative like harvest and other labor issues. Generally speaking I'm pretty sure you folks understand the basics of that, maybe only need a little nudging to think about it in that light.
So you have a lot of kingdoms who have lost tremendous amounts of labor and may be experiencing food insecurities, textile shortages, all sorts of things like this. -Most- places are not in panic proportions at this time. That doesn't mean there isn't civil unrest due to unhappiness with the war that the general populace doesn't necessarily understand. There are more panicked proportions of need in certain areas, but those are directly tied to Post-Campaign events, in particular Rowana's WL Quest series that is currently on hold.
- Q: Will there be any kind of overview of the aftermath of the war, especially how the various factions react to it?
A: In part that's what this is. How the various factions react to the state of the world in the aftermath will become apparent shortly. If there are unknowns you wish to pursue at some point in relation to any of this, then that would be CDQ territory. What we're discussing here is "common knowledge" stuff. Anything we're not disclosing may be fodder for an investigation through CDQ or other effort.
Because of how quickly in-game time passes, there's going to need to be a little suspension of "reality" in that respect. For example, it didn't take 7 years for the Cult's navy to sail to Mistone. The war didn't really take 60-ish years, etc, and when we get things going again it will be a matter of months, not years, since the end of hostilities. We'll make sure to orient everyone on this so there's (hopefully) no confusion on that point.
Also, we would suggest you pursue the Rumors section of the forums dating as far back as July of '11. I know that may be the most effective way for you to get a significant understanding of what's happened on that front.
- Q: Time frame wise...how far are we now after Briardusk victory?
A: That goes back to what I just mentioned about time and all that. Really, it'll have been just a few months (or should be) once things get started again....which should be soon.
- Q: Do any nations respect Molvaren's rule of Kuhl?
A: Most are taking something of a "wait and see" attitude there...or perhaps apathy so long as Molvaren doesn't go attacking them. Molvaren's rule is somewhat un-debatable at the moment, speaking in terms of use of force and the respect of the people. Sometimes those things take generations to officially recognize or refute. There are other kingdoms/realms who still see Queen Langovale as the rightful ruler of Kuhl and wish to see her back on the throne, but no one is (yet) posturing for a military solution to that end.
- Q: Ok, Molvaren and Cyn are both alive and in Kuhl now?
A: As far as anyone knows, yes.
- Q: Do we know what Rael thinks about Siphes land and power grab?
A: Rael hasn't made any public statements as of yet.
- Q: Will the GM team be initiating a quest series to take over Kuhl...or is the initiation of that solely up to character actions to start it?
A: At this time, that will depend on player initiatives. That may change over time, of course. We are continuing with the sandbox style of initiation here. That goes back to the factions announcement we made, and all of that stuff will be impacted by player efforts (good or bad). It depends in no small part how the various factions develop and react to various things.
- Q: So, if the war council is still in effect, then any player actions to retake Kuhl would have to go through them (ie Daniella and Lance)
A: No. You can try and raise your own army and such. Common sense would dictate you at least get Langovale's blessing though.
- Q: Curious about the involvement of the elven races in this conflict, especially that of the Gray Elves and Sun Elves.
A: Unlike the humans and dwarves of the lands, the elves did not make a huge racially focused effort in the war. There were elves (and generally all races) involved but as a focused effort the elves did not play a central part in the push back against the Cult's expansion attempts.
- Q: The A'zzatan army that went into the Deep during gelooo's WLDQ and came back preaching the world should prepare for a great darkness etc.. have the nations acknowledged the words of those battered survivors?
A: Ahh... Not openly if they have. (And for clarity, 'army' is a reference to numbers, not necessarily a tactical military unit.)
- Q: So in comparison to whats left of the Allied forces, who took the worst of it?
A: That depends on your perspective. The losses were truly great on all sides. Some would say the "allies" won, because the Cult didn't take any more territory, suffered the loss of the Broken One and retreated within their borders. Others might say the Cult "won" but chose to fortify itself within Kuhl's borders rather than make a larger press and potentially suffer more losses.
- Q: Please tell me who Cyn Chen is exactly?
A: There is a statue of what she is believed to look like within the meeting hall at Bydell Castle. Very little is known about her history, that is true. She is known to be highly regarded by Molvaren, and holds a significant amount of power within his forces. She's deadly and the rumors are rampant. Everything from her being an actual ghost (killing without having any regards for walls or other obsticals/barriers) to her being a man, to her being some sort of dragon blessed assassign are rampent whever she's actually known about. One thing everyone can agree on is "Cyn Chen" is deadly and not to be trifled with.
- Q: Are the Black Wizards our allies or enemies after all of this mess?
A: The answer to that is: Yes.
Q: So yes to which part?
A: Yes to both. It depends on your perspective. They did assist the allies, but does that make them friends or allies?
To most people, dealing with the Blacks is akin to making a deal with the devil. Even darkly aligned forces are hesitant to make such deals because, pretty much, the Blacks always get what they want or at least act like they have etc. What -is- known about the Black Wizards is that they have a very long history and much mystery surrounding them. Their motivations are unknown to any but those in their ranks. The Blacks, as an organization, are as legendary and mysterious as Milara, Selian, etc. They are also synonymous with Corath and death/torture/misery in general. Whether that's true or not is another matter, of course. They certainly seem to do little to dispel any negative rumors about them...or any rumors at all really.
- Q: Any word on Milara's involvement?
A: Mysterious as ever, no word beyond the usual wild rumors that no one can vouch for. (that may or may not be true in reality).
- Q: One general question I never understood...why didn't the dragons volunteer more to help...like pulling teeth to get them to go after the Dragon killer cult.
A: The most commonly stated reason was the risk of infection. That plague was contagious to them and literally a fate worse than death. It would have turned them into what the rest of the infected dragons were like and utterly at the control of the Cult. Picture Fisterion at the command of Molvaren for a moment...
- Q:You say the end of the Broken went the end of the plague (almost)...does that mean there are no more tainted dragons?
A: No, it means that the the source of the plague is destroyed. The tainted dragons are still tainted. Myr'Drach are still as they were..as far as anyone has seen.
- Q: But they cant make more Myr'Drachs?
A: That's the theory. But if Molvaren had any stockpiles of the plague, they just became far more valuable then they were.
- Q: So there could still be sporadic outbreaks of the plague then?
A: It's -possible-. No evidence you have indicate that it should be a likelihood but it cannot be ruled out (yet).
- Q: Did we ever conclude that Molvaren was making Myr'Drachs by applying the plague to human/elf/dwarf specimens through some ritual and the ins and outs of it?
A: Yes and no. Meaning, you concluded that yes, it was happening, but you did not ever retrieve the full data on said ritual. At some point there was a possibility of getting that information but it was cast aside by a handful of players that found it.
- Q: So does the cult still possess the power to taint poison more dragons after the "destruction" of the broken one?
A: You folks know, without a doubt, that the source of the taint is gone with your efforts. Does that mean there wasn't a stock pile somewhere you did not know about? It is possible that they have a limited amount somewhere. If it exists, it is extremely valuable and probably not to be used lightly. I say If. You have no idea and there's no rumors of any kind on the subject. Many people assume this is not a realistic possibility, for better or worse.
- Q: They could also probably infect another dragon with one other tainted ones in battle or by a sneak attack of some sort
A: The taint is believed to be communicable from dragon to dragon. So yes, there is a continued assumed danger.
- Q: But Molvaren doesn't have the capacity to create more from the limited amount he "may" have?
A: Right. That is confirmed.
- Q: Have the Druids in Horn changed their stance?
A: To my knowledge, no one has asked them.
- Q: Not long ago, Voltrex seemed to be coming apart at the seams. Is that continuing?
A: Voltrex had a period of extremely heightened customs for any entering or leaving the island continent. When the volcanic activity in the northern part happened, they shut the borders down again. Voltrex should be closed at the moment, though there's a possibility that is not mechanically enforced for some unknown reason.[/LIST] Related mostly to the OnHold WL Series:[LIST=1]
- Q: What effect did Andrew's food auctions and the Angels' offer of credit for food have on the economies of Tilmar and the Boyer Kingdom? Was it worth all that work and our continuing debt?
A: That is related to the OnHold WL Quest series and what affects that will occur are not yet known, but will be upon resumption.[/LIST]