Editing Autia (section)

==='''The War of Ice and Wrath'''===

''Niscenorean Strength''

King Terucca Heru "Stone Heart"

Mage Priest Talar Holacca

Lords Maya Forthencos, Erasma Tomadoya, Selvar Echantria, Tochla Motachla of their Respective Noble Houses

Sea Lord Magister of the Southern Seas Dendratha Maltia Urraca

The Seven Unnamed Masters of the Style of the Forbidden Golden Moon

750,000 Elven Militia

300,000 Elven Warriors

250,000 Ice Constructs

1,000 Ice Giants

3,000 Siege Mechanisms (Primarily Ballistas but some cannons and trebuchets as well)

100 Dragons

3,000 Drake-Knights

The Entire Niscenorean Royal Fleet

''Sartyrian Strength''

King Blessed Sacrement of the Freshly Formed Blade

Royal Champion Elfslayer, Destroyer of the Strong

Lords Masterwork Blade, Fair in Rule The Noblest of Nobles, A Kiss for the Departed Soul

300,000 Sartyrian Warriors

100,000 Militia

1,000,000+ Fire Constructs

100 Ancient World Dragons

1,000 Dragon-Spawn

Numerous Castles and their Defenses

The Niscenorean Fleet blew through the Sartyrian Armada on their way to Ignis. And it would be with good reason , while the Arks of the Niscenoreans were massive and powerful it was clear the Sartyrians wanted them to come.

The beaches near the city of Omartha would become the landing ground for the invasion force. The Niscenoreans would break down into several independent forces for easier control by their respective commanders each with their own integrated Drake units, while the force of Dragon-Riders would come under control of the King himself to act as a mobile reserve to plug gaps in the line. The Niscenoreans would first come in contact with Sartyrian ground forces of the City Lord Blinded Judgement of the city of Omartha, he would meet the vanguard of 50,000 Niscenorean Warriors outside the gates of the port with his own warriors and at least a hundred thousand fire-imps.

He positioned his elite Sword Lords and Spear Wardens on the flanks of his army with his constructs in the center to absorb the blows of the Niscenorean Warriors with a mass of bodies and flames.

In response to this move Lord Tochla Motachla positioned his Archers on the flanks to skirmish away at the most elite Sartyrian Infantry as well as his heavy Cavalry, his own Infantry would be used to hold the line long enough for reinforcements to arrive and for the elite but outnumbered Niscenorean Cavalry to defeat the Brazen Fire Cutters of the Sartyrian host.

Stag Knights and some elite Demi-Leopard Seal riders crashed into the Sartyrian lines after the Archer Corp had used up all of it's ammunition, the bulk of their mounts and their Spears breaking the Sartyrian formations but being far less devastating than was hoped. While the initial line of Sword Lords, including a Regiment of the dual greatsword wielding Order of the Cutting Arc, were pushed down by the mass of the charge many if the warriors soon returned to their feet, with the Spear Wardens behind them breaking their Shield wall and charging into the melee. Ice-enchanted blades met fire-blessed steel as the Knightly warriors tried to escape the melee, but by the time they managed to flee both sides had lost almost half their numbers.

The Niscenorean Cavalry were pursued away from the battlefield by hounds with fire in their eyes leading the Polar Elves at a significant disadvantage, it was far too late for them to run as the infantry engagement began.

A wild, ferocious mass of fire-men began pushing against the Niscenorean Shield Wall, belching fire into faces and setting elves alight. But the Niscenoreans didn't break, the Cavalry battle had significantly delayed the Sartyrian advance on the flanks allowing their formation to focus their fury on the constructs alone, with the Elven Spear and Halberds tearing them apart at a ferocious rate.

But it was not enough, there were far too many, and the first of the Sartyrian Warriors began the crush into the flanks and rears of the engaged Niscenoreans, cutting a swathe through their ormations as the back ranks of Niscenoreans turned to engage them, fury and millennia of practice met discipline and hardened hearts as the Ice Sworn held their ground.

Because their minds were clear, senses sharpened and they could hear the sounds of great wings flapping at speed towards them.

King Stone Heart was originally weary about committing his precious Dragons to the assault on Omartha, the city's defenses were strong and while his beasts were mighty mass ballista fire still could slay them, but he heeded Lord Motachla's request to keep several of his fastest Dragons nearby incase he required aid.

And it looked like his forethought paid off as a score of the great Wyrms crashed into the host of Sartyr. While the Black Elves were supernaturally quick and easily avoided the charge of the beasts their Constructs were not so lucky as thousands were flattened under their massive bulk. Archers and halberdiers in their howdahs attop the massive beasts would also begin wracking up a mighty tally as the Dragons were committed to the center of the the Niscenorean lines.

Seeing the appearance of the beasts, and rapidly losing control over their Constructs as Pyromancers became pin cushions for arrows the Sartyrians began to throw themselves even harder at the Niscenorean lines, scores of Elven dead began to litter the ground with most of them wearing the noble livery of Niscenorea.

After several hours of melee the last Sartyrian fell and the battle was over at an immensely high price, seven out of every ten of Lord Motachla's warriors had fallen and the great Dragons Erranad and Osteo were both beheaded in battle.

With the majority of the garrison defeated Omartha fell easily, the city's inhabitants having already fled, and Arks and other much smaller vessels began to unload their cargoes of warriors and supplies there as the Niscenoreans prepared a much larger offensive.

When Omartha fell the Niscenorean host began it's invasion of Ignis in full force, grim faced Merchant captains began unloading supplies at the captured port as regiment upon regiment of elves began to assemble in formations at the nearby Tamrian plains.

The invasion of Ignis would follow a simple strategy, take control of the Southern ports, land the majority of the army and then taken Hakan by land and sea. Omartha was just the southernmost city along the Emerald Coast, an ancient city and one of the finest ones ever constructed by the race of elves, the nearest city was Terantha on the southwestern edge of the continent and past that was Eddo and the Eye, the Fortress of the King's Champion. Niscenorean forces would have to march quickly to take the two cities before they could be reinforced by troops from the Eye if not they would be trapped in Omartha and the fleet would have to make a suicidal mad dash to Hakan without the support of land forces. The majority of the Niscenorean host under direct command of the King marched to Terantha leaving behind only a token force to hold their newly taken port. He arrived there before the rest of his army, taken his Dragons ahead of the main body and began negotiating with the City Lord a Sartyrian known as No Need for Sight to See.

Terantha had always been a rebellious city, even after the Fire Curse, and long had the Lords of the city chafed under authority for the opportunity to interact with the world a new and leave their exile. So when King Stone Heart offered the city Lord an alliance to overthrow the current keeper of the First Throne he was only too happy to oblige him. Terantha opened it gates and ports to the Niscenoreans, just in time as well as the King's Champion had brought her host marching double hard from the Eye and intended to bring the Southerners to battle.

At the Gates of Terantha the King met the host of the Slayer of Elves and Kings in a hard pressed victory only won by the quick intervention. 

Sailors and Marines drawn from the Magister of the Seas, who had rightfully kept his fleet in harbor in preparation of an enemy march. It would be known as the Battle of Shadow, as it was fought under the shadow of the Zahra Mountains, would see the Sartyrians routed back to Eddo but King Terucca Heru slain in battle with the Royal Champion. The Niscenoreans would mourn their King greatly but would press forward to Eddo soon after with Prince Nova Novaratsu taking control of the King's Royal Guards.

Eddo had always been a jewel in the Sartyrian Crown and the shining Sword in it's Scabbard and it would not give in as easily as Terantha. It's military academies and Warrior orders had produced legends known all to all of the Elven race, and since the Curse and the shuttering of Ignis it's people had been training for centuries in the pursuit of warmaking.

Eddo's walls were well guarded by regiments of Warrior Born with emplacement of fire throwers and ballistas well entrenched along the outskirts of the city. The first Niscenorean assault on the walls would be repulsed fairly easily, even with Dragons they could not storm the defenses and get enough soldiers up on the walls to hold them, and the Elves would have to fall back to lay siege to it.

The Niscenoreans did have a trumpcard that reached Eddo a week after the city was put to siege, two regiments of Colonel Stazis' Besiegers , equipped with some of the largest cannons in the Belkan arsenal the mercenary soldiers were well practiced in the shattering of fortifications and had been paid handsomely to come to the cursed continent of Ignis.

Even with the city's defenders rapidly plugging the holes caused by the bombardment, often stealing bricks and stone from other structures in Eddo, the outer defenses would be taken in heavy fighting. For the first time in millennia Niscenorean warriors would be able to pay homage to the great city that many of their ancestors had been patrons of, with their

assault focusing on the Academy of the Four Sages lying in the center of the city. After two weeks of fighting the city fell, with the Academy tragically being lit aflame in the chaos spelling the end of six thousand years of Elven wisdom. A garrison was left behind to hold the city and to mobilize If any activity was detected from the Eye as the main body of the army marched north to Hakan.

In the Southeastern part of the continent Mage Priest Holacca as well as Lords Forthencos and Tomadoya would lead the other half of the Niscenorean host in the capture of the eastern ports. The main targets of the campaign would be the ports of Sheldrana, Tacchi and Empiogas with the cities being known as the Three Pillars, as each one of them focused on a different aspect of the flame magic Ignis is known for.

The Three Pillars of Elven fire magic deal with fire creation, fire animation and the manifestation of plasma: an extremely deadly and powerful form of concentrated flame that is known to be extremely deadly to the user.

The Mage Priest however was skilled in the Art of the Golden Moon and had practiced for decades on the Art's primary draw:the extinguishment of flame, and his order would put their skills to use immediately in the campaign putting out Sheldranad flame before the master of it's School could lay waste to the Elven army. Sheldrana was taken by storm fairly easily as the Order of the Golden Moon was able to neutralize most of it's magical assaults but the Lords of the Life Flame in the city of Tacchi would prove to be a far greater threat.

Tacchi was at first attacked by storm, with ladders and towers being brought up to it's mighty walls with Monks of the Golden Moon supporting the mass of Elven citizen-soldiers. But the assault on the walls was beaten back by a joint attack of City Guards and fire golems, the Monks targeted by Sartyrian warriors before they could quell the Living Flames and the Niscenorean foot-soldiers overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of constructs summoned to face them.

The attackers soon settled down for a siege as they determined their options, messengers were dispatched to Prince Novaratsu to dispatch Dragons to aid in their conquering of the city as ballistas, trebuchets and cannons were entrenched to begin a bombardment of the city walls.

Slowly but surely the walls began to be chipped away by the Niscenorean bombardment even as strong forces of dark-aether were detected gathering inside the city and on the third day the walls fell...and a nightmare emerged from them.

A Demon is what they called it, but it was far greater than a simple Imp or Devil, no this was a being of pure Wrath, the embodiment of the World Flame given physical form and it began to reap a toll in the thousands on the Elven army. As much as the Order of Dark Moon could channel aether to disrupt flame the bindings of the Demon had been ritually enhanced, even as they tried to strip it of fire the flames would continue to surge back into life.

Luck was for the Niscenoreans because like all creations made of flames the Demon was not just fire, it had a physical body as well that was rapidly being chipped away by Elven artillery, forcing the beast back into the city.

With the Demon forced back into the city to regenerate it's power the host of Niscenorean Warriors surged through gaps in the walls to disrupt the ritual circles that were keeping aether bound to its body.

With the loss of fresh aether the Demon rapidly "starved", with no magic to sustain it's presence in the world leaving behind it's physical body which stood like a statue almost as tall as the city walls themselves.

The assaulting Niscenoreans let out a mighty cheer at the Demons defeat and poured into Tacchi through the gaps in it's walls. While the defenders were disheartened by the loss of what many thought was a walking arbiter of the World Flame it's defenses were still manned by several regiments of the Guards of the Consuming Breath, an elite force of Sartyrian warriors dedicated to the defense of the city and its school of magic, which met the Southern Elves in the streets and gardens of the city where chokepoints would be of most use to the defenders.

The Tyraia Home Guard regiments would bear the brunt of the fighting in Tacchi, it's inexperienced Spear-Elves learning their craft among the ash blasted towers and castles of the city, with Duke Ontos Mar'Ontos of Tyraia protesting the highly aggressive Niscenorean advance which saw her troops thrown against prepared positions with little to no support.

The Mage-Priest gave no reason to the city Lords for this bloodyminded assault, fearful to tell them how easy it would be for the City's Pyroclasts to summon another Demon of similar size and strength if given time to recover, only a quick advance could keep them on the backfoot.

The Monastery of the Second Pillar fell the next day with it's Flame Masters and all of their acolytes put to the sword by the Niscenoreans for their dogged defense of the city's interior. Even with the Demon destroyed lone mages were able to ambush columns of Snow Elves with Fire Golems and similar creations before slipping away into the urban sprawl, the Niscenoreans were on edge from constant attacks and demanded the city to bleed, with no thought being made to the importance of the city to the campaign.

The Tyraians abandoned the campaign following Tacchi's capture, claiming their oaths were made only to King Heru and with his death they were free from them, leaving the