The Broken Gates

[Macavity116]

Reject the plot.


Reclaim your narrative.


Kill the Storyteller.​

THE BROKEN GATES
Written by Macavity116
​

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Table of Contents
Hyperlinks will be added as new updates are posted.

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Part 1: Exposition Lore: Fairies Lore: The Kingdom of Ireland Lore: The Petty Kingdom of Ulster Lore: Main Protagonists Lore: Minor Protagonists Prologue: The Arrival Chapter 1: Friend of the Fairy Fort Chapter 2: Ulster Castle Chapter 3: Enemies at the Gates Chapter 4: The Chronicler's Apprentice Chapter 5: Minamar Specialized Industries Chapter 6: Ride of the Valkyries Chapter 7: Power Overwhelming​	Part 2: Inciting Incident Episode 1 Episode 2 Episode 3 Episode 4 Episode 5 Episode 6​	Part 3: Rising Action​
Part 4: Midpoint​	Part 5: Climax​	Part 6: Falling Action​
	Part 7: Resolution​	​

​

 

[Midnite Duke]

What is this @Macavity116 deserting the incestuous realms of space for the very incestuous shores of newbie isle? Welcome to CK land! Thanks for the new offering and I will travel along.

 

[Chac1]

Apologies if our comments are cluttering up the design of the new AAR. However, a lot of hints and clues tell me there will be chaos here soon enough, so this untidiness shouldn't matter. Not sure if this storyline is going to actually unfold as it appears here. (Some of us know about The Broken Gates.) But as long as this narrative sticks around, of course, I have a lot of interest in High Chieftess Ylva, the invading jarl.

 

[CBR JGWRR]

Subscribed.

 

[Macavity116]

Introductions: The Tuatha Dé Danann​

Long ago, before men brought Christianity to Ireland, there was the Tribe of the Gods. Sometimes known as the Tuath Dé, these people possessed knowledge and wisdom beyond that of men. The Tuatha Dé Danann were immune to the ravages of time, knew of incredible magic, commanded the weather, and could change their shape at will. They were deities walking upon the earth.

Then, at some point still in the distant past, the Milesius invaded Ireland. The Milesius were a warrior tribe, thought to have originated in faraway Iberia. There was a terrible war. The Tuatha Dé Danann were defeated and the Milesius became the new rulers of Ireland. Over countless generations, they became the forerunners of those people who now call themselves “Irish.”

Although defeated, the Tuatha Dé Danann were not gone. Using their magic, the tribe went into hiding, scattered throughout the wilderness of Ireland. Taking up residence in places with strong connections to the Otherworld, the Tuath Dé became fiercely defensive of their homes, using their magic to deter interlopers.

Irish people learned to give these domains a wide berth. They began to call the magical inhabitants “Sidhe” or fairies. Irish folk grew to understand that disturbing the homes of the Sidhe would result in misfortune. Bad luck, illness, even death were all possible punishments for disturbing Fairy Trees or Fairy Forts. When Christianity was brought to Ireland, the clergy sought to sever the Irish people from the Sidhe even further. Any place that had a connection to the Otherworld was deemed an entrance to Hell, and the common folk were urged to keep away.

Fairies, the Sidhe, do not live in perpetual isolation. They will regularly emerge from hiding to interact with the world around them and the people in it. Some fairies have gone as far as to live among the Irish, working and feasting as the Irish do.

Some fairies rose to great prominence in Ireland. In the days before the arrival of Christendom, a King would gain legitimacy from the Sidhe. His right to rule could be established by an encounter with an “otherworldly goddess of the land” and ritual marriage to her. After the arrival of the church, a few fairies became Saints while others were condemned for “witchcraft,” triggering magical retaliation.

In the year 1117 the people of Ireland know, for the most part, to treat fairies as “good neighbors.” The Sidhe must be respected and their homes left undisturbed.

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Chosenpai: So, a whole race of magical people living in secret, but the secret is also out at the same time?

Macavity116: Well, the fairies just want their homes to be left alone. They're not hiding who or what they are.

Chosenpai: Okay, sure. I get that.

 

[Macavity116]

What is this @Macavity116 deserting the incestuous realms of space for the very incestuous shores of newbie isle? Welcome to CK land! Thanks for the new offering and I will travel along.

Thanks for the welcome, and it's great to see you again!

as long as this narrative sticks around, of course, I have a lot of interest in High Chieftess Ylva, the invading jarl.

Why is it always the antagonists who get the reader's interest so quickly?

Subscribed.

Welcome aboard!

 

[Idhrendur]

I've fallen behind on all AARs, but subscribed in the hopes of one day catching up.

 

[Midnite Duke]

Chosenpai, is this CK being told in a Stellaris universe? Thank you wee fairy.

 

[Macavity116]

I've fallen behind on all AARs, but subscribed in the hopes of one day catching up.

There's no shame in taking a long time to catch up. I know a dude from Belgium who has spent the past 4 and a half years slowly making his way through all of my stories. Take as much time as you need.

Chosenpai, is this CK being told in a Stellaris universe? Thank you wee fairy.

Technically, yes. For the past six months or so, I've been loudly telegraphing my intentions to write a Fourth Wall-breaking metafiction story... and this is it.

Macavity116 has become a character in the story, and any text you see in the "Times New Roman" font should be considered part of the story proper.



Chosenpai's not a fairy, she my Beta Reader! Imagine an editor with less power, less responsibilities, and no pay.

 

[Chac1]

There's no shame in taking a long time to catch up. I know a dude from Belgium who has spent the past 4 and a half years slowly making his way through all of my stories. Take as much time as you need.


Technically, yes. For the past six months or so, I've been loudly telegraphing my intentions to write a Fourth Wall-breaking metafiction story... and this is it.

Macavity116 has become a character in the story, and any text you see in the "Times New Roman" font should be considered part of the story proper.



Chosenpai's not a fairy, she my Beta Reader! Imagine an editor with less power, less responsibilities, and no pay.

Oh, I see the storm clouds of chaos growing. Excellent interweaving of realities so far. Like the fairy stories too. Plus the new signature to your account: well done.

 

[Macavity116]

Oh, I see the storm clouds of chaos growing. Excellent interweaving of realities so far.

Oh, we've barely started here. The main conflict isn't going to be kicked off by Macavity116 refusing to pay Chosenpai for her services.

Like the fairy stories too.

Thanks. Nearly all of the details about the Sidhe (pronounced Shee) are pulled directly from real-life Irish folklore. Most of my family is descended from Irish immigrants so I had plenty of resources closeby to use. (Including a very badly beaten-up copy of The Dreamstone by C.J. Cherryh)

Plus the new signature to your account: well done.

My sig, plus my self-removal from the bAAR, should be warning signs that I've gone all-in on this project now.

 

[CBR JGWRR]

My sig, plus my self-removal from the bAAR, should be warning signs that I've gone all-in on this project now.

Well that escalated quickly!

 

[HistoryDude]

Even if I didn't know about The Broken Gates, I would still follow this. I love Irish Mythology.

Speaking of which... how many of the original Tuatha/Sidhe remain? Will we see figures like the Dagda or the Morrigan?

Also, I know that Ylva is a threat, but I'm more worried about this southern threat? Who are they? If this was CK2, I'd suspect that they were the Aztecs, but I don't know of a Sunset Invasion mod for CK3...

 

[Rensslaer]

<sighs> I was VERY excited to see that @Macavity116 had started a NEW story in a NEW universe where I could start off from scratch without having to catch up and without having to know the backstory... But it was not to be.

Okay, so I will TREAT this as a new story, and will endeavour to keep caught up on it, even as I try to catch up on the others. I'm in the first 1/3 of War of Hell, and haven't even gotten to Song of Soulitaire yet. But I AM working on the series and will get caught up eventually.

Meantime, it appears that you have a young man and young woman (who may or may not actually be from this world) who will establish their claim on an inherited petty kingdom. All the while there's an absentee landlord who claims he is the ultimate king over all petty kingdoms, and who presumably must be fought. AND there's a badass-sounding Jarless coming in from the north, who presumably must be fought. AND there is an unknown (?) threat in the far south that presumably must be fought, but that maybe (?) is so far away who really cares about them in the present.

But, yeah, that sounds like alot of fighting likely in the next few pages. But we all know @Macavity116 is good at that sort of writing, so I'm invested.

Plus, you have supernatural threats/(allies??) in the form of the Fairies. And sci-fi threats/(allies??) in the form of visitors from Stellaris... Hmm...

It promises to be VERY interesting!

I've fallen behind on all AARs, but subscribed in the hopes of one day catching up.

@Idhrendur this is my perpetual condition, these days, I'm afraid, even with my favorite authors. I just finished one of @Lord Durham's print stories yesterday. I'm current on 2 of @The Kingmaker's stories (because they are languishing) and trying to catch up on Omentide. I'm caught up on @coz1's War of the Roses, catching up on @Chac1's Lost Seasons (and now I see he's started ANOTHER!).... There are others I'm trying to catch up on. And my progress through @Macavity116's stories is as described above. I/we will get there eventually.

Rensslaer

 

[The Kingmaker]

<sighs> I was VERY excited to see that @Macavity116 had started a NEW story in a NEW universe where I could start off from scratch without having to catch up and without having to know the backstory... But it was not to be.

Okay, so I will TREAT this as a new story, and will endeavour to keep caught up on it, even as I try to catch up on the others. I'm in the first 1/3 of War of Hell, and haven't even gotten to Song of Soulitaire yet. But I AM working on the series and will get caught up eventually.

Meantime, it appears that you have a young man and young woman (who may or may not actually be from this world) who will establish their claim on an inherited petty kingdom. All the while there's an absentee landlord who claims he is the ultimate king over all petty kingdoms, and who presumably must be fought. AND there's a badass-sounding Jarless coming in from the north, who presumably must be fought. AND there is an unknown (?) threat in the far south that presumably must be fought, but that maybe (?) is so far away who really cares about them in the present.

But, yeah, that sounds like alot of fighting likely in the next few pages. But we all know @Macavity116 is good at that sort of writing, so I'm invested.

Plus, you have supernatural threats/(allies??) in the form of the Fairies. And sci-fi threats/(allies??) in the form of visitors from Stellaris... Hmm...

It promises to be VERY interesting!



@Idhrendur this is my perpetual condition, these days, I'm afraid, even with my favorite authors. I just finished one of @Lord Durham's print stories yesterday. I'm current on 2 of @The Kingmaker's stories (because they are languishing) and trying to catch up on Omentide. I'm caught up on @coz1's War of the Roses, catching up on @Chac1's Lost Seasons (and now I see he's started ANOTHER!).... There are others I'm trying to catch up on. And my progress through @Macavity116's stories is as described above. I/we will get there eventually.

Rensslaer

Just juggling work and RL stress. There will be less languishing once I ride out the rough patch.

@Macavity116: A very interesting start! Consider me onboard!

 

[coz1]

Great start @Macavity116 and since you have seemingly ventured outside of Stellaris, I am much more likely to keep current on this one.

 

[Chac1]

Thanks for the clarifications @Macavity116 . Looking forward to where this goes.

Also, I know that Ylva is a threat, but I'm more worried about this southern threat? Who are they? If this was CK2, I'd suspect that they were the Aztecs, but I don't know of a Sunset Invasion mod for CK3...

From my experience @HistoryDude is great at sussing out plotlines far ahead of when they drop. Yes, the description in the first chapter is very much like the description CK2 uses for the arrival of the Aztecs. But following along from Song of the Solitaire, my guess is these folks represent the incursion from Stellaris.

this is my perpetual condition, these days, I'm afraid, even with my favorite authors. I just finished one of @Lord Durham's print stories yesterday. I'm current on 2 of @The Kingmaker's stories (because they are languishing) and trying to catch up on Omentide. I'm caught up on @coz1's War of the Roses, catching up on @Chac1's Lost Seasons (and now I see he's started ANOTHER!).... There are others I'm trying to catch up on. And my progress through @Macavity116's stories is as described above. I/we will get there eventually.

Rensslaer

A bounty of riches @Rensslaer .
Don't worry about my new one, Renss. As you say, it will languish quite a bit between installments. As @Bullfilter has dubbed it, that's the half-brother AAR to Lost Seasons.

 

[jak7139]

A very interesting set up to your tale @Macavity116! There are lots of threats to the Irish it seems. Looking forward to seeing how they handle it all!

 

[Macavity116]

Oh, my gosh, so many comments! I knew the CKIII AARLand was a busy place but I wasn't ready for this. Thanks for your interest, everyone. As always, I have no real expectations for these projects. I'm just out here to tell a tale and have fun along the way.

Well that escalated quickly!

We're still in the worldbuilding section. The story proper hasn't even started yet!

Will we see figures like the Dagda or the Morrigan?

Unlikely. The only named Sidhe in the cast right now is Aisling, though there is an unnamed fairy at Ulster Castle who will be playing a minor role.

Also, I know that Ylva is a threat, but I'm more worried about this southern threat? Who are they? If this was CK2, I'd suspect that they were the Aztecs, but I don't know of a Sunset Invasion mod for CK3...

Learning about the Sunset invasion has been a really wild ride. Just what on earth was CK2 smoking?

will endeavour to keep caught up on it, even as I try to catch up on the others. I'm in the first 1/3 of War of Hell

I know my stories tend to be longwinded. There's no shame in falling behind. With the obvious exception of Song of the Solitaire, I always try to keep my stories self-contained with neat and tidy conclusions so that falling behind is never as bad as it seems.

yeah, that sounds like alot of fighting likely in the next few pages.

Plenty of opportunities to try and surpass the action scenes from my older Stellaris stories.

juggling work and RL stress. There will be less languishing once I ride out the rough patch.

@Macavity116: A very interesting start! Consider me onboard!

Glad to have you along for the journey! Don't worry about us, we know that taking care of yourself in RL always takes precedence.

Great start @Macavity116 and since you have seemingly ventured outside of Stellaris, I am much more likely to keep current on this one.

Welcome aboard! I don't think my recent entry in Guess-the-Author counts, so I'll say 'Welcome to my first non-Stellaris story on the PDX forums!'

From my experience @HistoryDude is great at sussing out plotlines far ahead of when they drop.

Ahem.

Yes.

When @HistoryDude speaks on the topic of a Macavity116 story, one must be wary of prophecy.

A very interesting set up to your tale @Macavity116!

Thanks! Welcome aboard!

 

[Macavity116]

Introductions: The Kingdom of Ireland​

To start, let’s take a look at the Kingdom-Tier realm where this story will take place. We’ll examine the player realm: the Petty Kingdom of Ulster, in the next update.

Political Geography:

Ireland is an island in the Atlantic Ocean and second-largest landmass in the British Isles of north-western Europe. Its neighbors include the Kingdom of Scotland, the Duchy of Wales, and the heavily contested Kingdom of England. At the time of this story, England is in a state of civil war as a new ruling dynasty faces internal challenges caused by the Norman Conquest.

Iceland lies to the north, and it is the origin point of the current Norse invasion. Warriors under the command of Jarl Ylva Sigfossdottir landed in the Barony of Ailech before moving south into Mayo and Breifne.


Physical Geography:

Shrouded in copious amounts of rainfall and cloud cover, Ireland is comprised of low-lying coastal mountains surrounding a central plain. Summertime is cooler than most of the rest of Europe, and lush vegetation can be found throughout the island. During this time period, Ireland is densely forested. Large cities and towns are concentrated on the east and south coastlines, with smaller settlements further inland. The south and west of Ireland is rocky and mountainous.


Government:

Ireland is divided internally among five “Petty Kingdoms,” (alternatively referred to as "Duchies") each of whom is nominally subordinate to the High King of Ireland. The High King rules over the Duchy of Meath and is based in Dublin, on the east coast. Despite the presence of a “national ruler” Ireland is decentralized, with the petty kingdoms acting independently and occasionally making war amongst each other.

While Irish mythology suggests a long unbroken line of High Kings throughout history, protracted division among rival petty kingdoms is the more widely accepted reality. The current line of High Kings began with Murchad mac Diarmait, who was succeeded by his younger brother Cúanu, the current ruler. The High King’s authority is weaker outside the borders of his own Petty Kingdom of Meath, but his dominion is maintained by a series of strategic alliances and Vassal Contracts with the Petty Kings.

The current High King of Ireland is 49-year-old CÚANU MAC DIARMAIT, who took the throne after the death of his elder brother Murchad. Cúanu is a quiet and reserved man who prefers the seclusion of his library to his own Royal Court. High King Cúanu is a known fornicator, having betrayed his 20-year-old wife at least twice that she knows about.

Despite these flaws, Cúanu is an accomplished battlefield commander. While the Norse invasion has not been repulsed, the High King has been able to stop the enemy from gaining a long-term foothold in his realm. Enemy forces have resorted to living off the land without access to castles or towns.

Demographics:

Ireland is home to just under 700,000 people. While the vast majority of these people belong to the Gaelic culture, there is a substantial population of Norse in and around the city of Dublin, a stark reminder of previous invasions. Furthermore, the Sidhe are scattered throughout the island in far fewer numbers, possibly as low as 60,000.


Religion:

The dominant religion in Ireland is Roman Catholicism, a Christian religion established in the first century during the time of the Roman Empire. Over time, elements of local belief systems and Celtic traditions were infused with Catholicism, creating a local variation of Christianity sometimes referred to as Celtic Christianity or Insular Catholicism.

The High King and his vassals will usually include a representative of the Vatican on their personal councils.


Economy:

Most people of Ireland are engaged in agriculture and farming, although the coastal cities engage in trade with places as far away as the Baltic Sea and Straights of Gibraltar.


Timeline of Recent Irish History:

23 March 1015: Máel-Sechnaill mac Dunflaith becomes High King of Ireland.

2 September 1022: The High King title is destroyed. Ireland fractures.

19 July 1091: Murchad mac Diarmait re-creates the title High-King of Ireland after conquering the Petty Kingdom of Connacht.

30 April 1095: High King Murchad dies of natural causes at age 70. His younger brother Cúanu becomes High King.

8 June 1105: High King Cúanu marries Tailltiu nic Domnall. He has three children with her and two more with a lover. The secret was revealed during a feast.

26 January 1116: Jarl Ylva launches an invasion of Ireland.

3 February 1116: Duchess Conchenn, eldest daughter of Duke Cú-Caech “the Trickster” of Ulster, marries Duke Augustin of Austria.

9 September 1116: While attending a meeting of peers in Ailech, Dermot, son of Duke Cú-Caech “the Trickster” of Ulster, encounters and befriends a fairy named Aisling. (Aisling is pictured below)

14 December 1116: High King Cúanu receives the first report of strangers in the Kinsale Forest.

4 January 1117: Duke Cú-Caech “the Trickster” of Ulster is killed in battle against Norse invaders. His 15-year-old son Dermot inherits. Too young to rule, a regency is established by his mother, Princess Aileann nic Murchad. (pictured below)

2 February 1117: Princess Aileann betrothed Muadhnait, Duke Dermot’s sister and rival, to King William II of England. Muadhnait is 11 years old. King William II is 44. (pictured below)

1 March 1117: Norse invaders cut down Aisling’s Fairy Tree. (This is where the story will begin)

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Chosenpai: So how are you planning for the protags to keep up with news from the rest of Ireland?

Macavity116: Well, there’s going to be a steady stream of messengers from Dublin to Ulster. Mostly in relation to the “siege” plot we’re gonna do.

Chosenpai: <3 Oh, so Aisling and Dermot are gonna be trapped in a tiny stone castle for months on end with nothing to do but be with each other? (っ˘з(˘⌣˘ )

Macavity116: I swear… you could make a romance plot out of anything under the sun. We’re doing a siege!

Macavity116: Do you ever NOT think about romance?

Chosenpai: I once built a three-act High School AU romance in a cave with a box of scraps!

Macavity116: Iron Man?

Chosenpai: Damn right. (＾＾)ｂ