Orsinium and its King (EK AAR)

[KolyFrog]

The Interregnum...

After the assassination of the last Akaviri potentate, the whole of Nirn stumbled into chaos.

Petty kingdoms rise and fall as various nobles fight each other for dominance all over Tamriel.

This is the world we live in... and it is a time perfect for my people.

​

The city of Orsinium is once again established and, with the refugees coming from Hammerfell, our numbers are growing. After the destruction of the first Orsinium during the First Era, most of the kingdom has been divided among the chiefdoms of Grimrock, Koegria, and Wrothgaria. Meanwhile, other parts of the kingdom has been taken over by breton nobles. Namely, Kambria and Shieldwall. Rebuilding a city is easy but, rebuilding the kingdom is a whole other matter. As of now, the petty kings of Daggerfall, Wayrest, Northpoint, and Evermore are too busy expanding their control over their region. If I want to rebuild the kingdom we once lost then, the time is now. While High Rock has no true king.



I am Moghakh, the leader of the Bulfim clan, and I am the king of Orsinium.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Conquest of Kambria:

[post=17095650]Part 1: The Countess of Kambria[/post]
[post=17096254]Part 2: The Battle of Kambria[/post]
[post=17106816]Part 3: The Retaliation of Kambria[/post]
[post=17111938]Part 4: The Siege of Kambria[/post]
[post=17122831]Part 5: The Taking of Kambria[/post]

A King's Life:

[post=17136545]Part 6: A King's Folly[/post]
[post=17143612]Part 7: A King's Dream[/post]
[post=17156877]Part 8: A King's Son[/post]

The War for Kambrian Independence:

[post=17168373]Part 9: The Siege That Lasted Four Years[/post]

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 1: The Countess of Kambria

King Moghakh:

Years ago, I married Ulumpha the sister of Yashnarz, the chief of Grimrock and the leader of clan Borbog. In exchange, he gave his support to my coronation as the king of Orsinium. "I see many battles in our future, brother. And with you as its king, Orsinium would never fall again." he told me.

Now, years later, is the proper time to retake our lost lands. Kambria lies south of Grimrock and it is alone and independent from the control of any king in High Rock.



It is ruled by Countess Ursanne Beanique, a young weak lady.

I must send her a proper declaration of my right to be her liege as the king of Orsinium and, if she wouldn't agree to recognize my right, I will use force to ensure it.
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Korba uz-Muckmuir:



The king has summoned me for the first time ever since I was appointed as the marshal of Orsinium. I wore my armor and held my ax to show the king that I am ready for war when I meet him. Finally, after running away from the redguards, I can now prove once again that I am a warrior.

"Korba, there you are?" says King Moghakh. I saluted in response. He is wearing fine clothing like the ones bretons wear in their feasts. In his hand he has a quill instead of a sword or an ax. He is drawing something on the paper on his table. A bunch of circles and lines. He talked to me while seated and without looking away from the paper.

"Countess Ursanne refused my offer to be her liege." I could not help but smile with this news. I knew this would happen of course. There is no way a breton noble would ever kneel before an orc king. I'll correct that, there is no way anyone would ever kneel before an orc king. Unless, in defeat. This king, however, won his crown through his brother-in-law and not by his own strength and it is hard to follow orders from a king that is not a warrior.

King Moghakh looked at me and saw the smile on my face. He smiled back then said, "Gather whoever wants to prove themselves in battle and show the Countess of Kambria the strength of Orsinium!"

He may not be a warrior but, he did rebuilt a city from ruins. All I can do now is to carry out his wishes and see whether or not he is the right king for the orcs.

"I will not fail you ... my king." I replied.

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Countess Ursanne Beanique:



My life has been ... horrible. To say the least. My brother died without an heir and now all his responsibility belongs to me. I was not raised to be a ruler! I was destined to marry a handsome prince or an old king and have many sons but, never to rule. After being named the Countess of Kambria, countless suitors flocked at my door. Hoping to inherit my lands and riches but, as advised by my chancellor, I declined. "You must not marry anyone that doesn't agree to a matrilineal marriage." he always say.

One day, a letter arrived demanding that I recognize the King of Orsinium as my liege lord and serve him as one of his vassals. I asked my chancellor for advice. "My lady, it is not wise to accept such request from heathens and savages. I advice that you turn it down. The orcs are way too unorganized and barbaric to cause a dent on our army."

The chancellor's words gave me some relief so, I sent a letter to the orc king denying his request. The orc king replied with a declaration of war. Do the Eight divines hate me so much? I took a deep breath and remembered what my chancellor said about the orcs.

"My lady, a suitor has come to see you." says one of my servants.

"Who is it this time?" I asked.

"He is Prince Hannibal Maul, the heir to the kingdom of Northpoint." My eyes widened when I heard that title. Has the Divines sent a mighty prince to save me from the orcs?

"Let him in!" I commanded cheerfully.

The prince came along with my chancellor, whose face looked like it has seen a ghost or something. "I apologize for my intrusion, my lady." he said humbly. I feel the blood rush through my body. He is tall, strong and the light that bounces off his steel armor makes it seems like he's sparkling.



"A prince is more than welcome to come into my house." I managed to say. He gave me a smile and I believe my heart just melted. But, his expression suddenly turned grim.

"Not to spoil your mood, my lady. The news of the impending orc attack on your domain is known throughout High Rock and my spies have gathered that the orcs have formed an army much larger and much stronger than yours." he said all with a grim tone in his voice.

"That can't be true. The orcs are way too uncivilized to form an actual army." I said in disbelief. I looked at my chancellor for some confirmation. All he did was shake his pale and sweaty face.

"That could be true for other orc tribes but, this one is different. It appears that the King of Orsinium managed to unite the tribes in Grimrock and the refugees from Hammerfell to form an actual orc city-state on the ruins of Orsinium. What I'm trying to say is, these orcs are not uncivilized. According to my spies." says Prince Hannibal.

The stress that came with this new information almost made me faint. But then the prince said, "Luckily, my generous father sent me here to give you an offer."

"What is it?" I said still weak from the last news.

"Give me your hand in marriage and I shall defend your domain from the orcs. Reinforcements are now marching down from Northpoint and together with your soldiers here we would outnumber the army of Orsinium, two-to-one. Decline and I shall ride back north with all my men." he said with a smile that shows all of his teeth.

I looked at my chancellor, whose face is suddenly bright and sweat free, to get some advice. "Accept this offer, my lady, or we won't survive." he responded. And with that, I'm married to a handsome prince. But, the threat of the orcs still loomed inside my head. I only got one night together with my husband before he got called to lead my soldiers against the invading orcs. Hopefully, the Eight Divines truly sent Prince Hannibal to defend my lands. Hopefully.

 

[OAM]

Excellent, another EK AAR! Looks good so far, and I must say, an interesting choice. It looks like a very hard start, which makes it tempting, but also something probably not selected often on the balance. You should definitely seek to tap into the EK community for any advice they might have. I can sadly not offer anything specific.

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 2: The Battle of Kambria

Korba uz-Muckmuir:

"MARCH!" Yelled by one of my officers. Now I have officers. Back in my tribe in the Dragontail Mountains, I have brothers and sisters to assist me in pillaging and raiding. But, thanks to the redguards they are all dead. I am not mad, however, they all died in battle and with great honor. I killed as many redguards as all of them combined yet, Malacath didn't grant me the honor of dying in the battlefield.

A redguard king who calls himself Dovah said to me, "You have fought fiercely and bravely but, now your kin are dead. We still have our numbers and you are all alone. So, how about this? In exchange for the courage that you displayed here today, I will grant you your life." With that, he rode off with his men leaving me behind with all the corpses. Enough with the past, back to the present!

This is supposedly an easy campaign according to King Moghakh. "The Countess of Kambria does not have any allies and she also does not a sizable army. Our army should be able to crush theirs and then siege the castle." he said. Our army is composed of almost five hundred people and, according to out scouts, theirs are barely over four hundred. But, they seem to be waiting for reinforcements based on their overall attitude. It makes me wonder.

Do they have allies?
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Prince Hannibal Maul:

I hate father for sending me here to ask this countess for marriage. What use is she to us as allies? She can't even protect her own lands. Even if my son did inherit Kambria, what use is it to us? We are too far up north. Nonetheless, he is the king and I am the prince and, a prince must always obey the king. "MY LORD! MY LORD!" Someone is shouting out in the halls.

"What is it?" I asked messenger.

"Pardon me, my lord. But, a scout returned with urgent news. The orcs ... The orcs are here." The messenger said while revealing how much of a craven he is.

I wore my armor, sheathed my sword and brought my shield. A quick prayer to the Eight Divines and a quick goodbye to my new wife. Then, I'm off to war. This soldiers, if you can call them that, are nothing more than peasants who barely knew how to wield a sword. There are a few actual men-at-arms though but, they are not enough. There isn't even a single battle-mage in our ranks. Our only hope now is to thin the orc ranks enough so they wouldn't be able to properly pull off a siege and wait 'till my father's army arrives.

After an hour or so, the army of the orcs arrived. They do not outnumber us greatly but, an orc lives to fight and my men lives to ... to live. We will not win this battle but, I'm not going to show them that. They need to see a leader that is not afraid of the enemy or else we'll break before the enemy gets close enough to shoot us with an arrow.

That leader should be me, the future king of Northpoint.
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Korba uz-Muckmuir:

I ordered my officers to get into formation. The ones armored in steel in the front-line, the ones armored in hide and fur in the flanks and the hunters who came with their longbows will remain hidden in the woods waiting for my signal. I lead in the front-line on the place where the battle is thickest. Warriors would fight better with a leader that they can follow into battle not with a leader that orders them into battle.

We marched steadily towards the enemy, staying in our formation. When we were near enough, I hear their general shout, "SHIELDWALL!" and they raised all their shield. In response, I lead the charge.

"CHARGE!" Yelled my officers as they join me in my wild charge. Waves of orcs slammed into their shieldwall and their weight is enough to make opening. These are not warriors. These are just armed farmers.

"Cut them down! Show them no mercy!" I yelled to the light armored warriors protecting the flanks. At my command, they rushed into battle effectively encircling the other army. Trapping them for easy killing.

Their general, a young man armored from head to toe with steel armor, rallies his army. "Fallback! Fallback!" he yells. His army hears and started run to the woods. I signaled the hunters who are currently hiding there to fire-at-will. They killed several of the enemy but, the enemy also managed to kill some of them as they were running on that direction.

The battle has been won! They took a beating but, I've lost half my men. I have greatly underestimated them.

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 3: The Retaliation of Kambria

King Moghakh:

KNOCK! KNOCK! "Come in!" I said as politely as I can. I have been working all night and to be woken up this early in the morning just makes me less pleasant as usual. This better not be about another of my son's tantrums.

The messenger enters my chambers. He is carrying a letter with the seal of Grimrock. "What is it about?" I asked him.

"The chief of Grimrock, Yashnarz, warns that an army of four hundred people from Northpoint has been found marching down to Kambria. It will only be a few weeks before they reach the our army." The messenger answered. The countess of Kambria is not as dumb as I thought. She managed to secure an alliance with someone that can actually offer a challenge. At this time, Korba's army had already faced Kambria's army. His forces would be too weak to withstand the army Northpoint. There's only one way to counter this.

"Messenger, tell my steward, Shadbak, that she must hire all the mercenaries we can with the money with have." We are not a rich kingdom but, we do have some gold hidden away. I just hope it's enough to get enough men to fight in our behalf. Hopefully Korba isn't dead yet.

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Prince Hannibal Maul:

"RUN, DAMN YOU!" I told the soldier struggling in front of me. There's no other choice but to run north. My father's army are probably just a few days away from us.

"Sir, the orcs did not pursue us this time." said one of my lieutenants. "They must have went back to Kambria. What are we going to do now?"

"HALT!" I ordered the men to stop running. "We are not going to be able to do anything with our current condition. My father's army must be near us by now. We will put up camp here until they arrive." I notice the moral of my soldiers are wavering. Hell, they already lost hope. But, just a few more days. In a few more days my father's army would be here and we would be able to annihilate these orcs.

A few days has passed and I woke up after hearing the shaking of the earth as the Northpoint army marches at our direction. "Prince Hannibal, we apologize for being late. Coming down the Wrothgarian Mountains cost us a lot of valuable time." Reported by the young lady in charge of the army.

"I understand, those mountains are tricky if you are not careful but, there is no more time for delay. Right now, the orcish army is camped in Kambria. We must attack them now while they are still weak!" They saluted at my command and began to march southward back to Kambria along with my newly-spirited Kambrian army.

A few days of marching later, I see them. The orcs that fought us. Just waiting to be slaughtered. I turned to my men and said, "KILL THEM ALL!"

 

[KolyFrog]

Excellent, another EK AAR! Looks good so far, and I must say, an interesting choice. It looks like a very hard start, which makes it tempting, but also something probably not selected often on the balance. You should definitely seek to tap into the EK community for any advice they might have. I can sadly not offer anything specific.

I think I may be cheating since I decided to write this AAR after playing the hell out of it first. I am currently at my fourth character and I must say it isn't as hard as it looked. It reminds me a lot of my play-through as the duke of Munster in the vanilla game.

Spoiler

The warlord casus belli really helped. Since I didn't need to fabricate claims I just declared war on the ones that are currently in one and losing or the ones that just got their asses handed to them.

 

[OAM]

Heh, I dunno, at least of the people I've talked to playing ahead isn't that uncommon. For example, I too am on my fourth ruler, despite still being deep within the reign of the first ruler posting wise.

As for difficulty, I wouldn't worry so much about it for AAR purposes as the entertainment value. You have a style here that isn't as common, and especially not among the other EK AARs, so people will keep coming for that, if anything. While it's true the difficulty is something that makes playing an Orc interesting, there's always a few other things you can fall back on, etc.

In fact, in some ways, too much difficulty can be a bad thing. For instance, I'm always afraid I report too much on uninteresting things because not enough expansion is occurring, but if you're having success, that isn't something you have to worry about thankfully.

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 4: The Siege of Kambria

Korba uz-Muckmuir:

They came out of nowhere. They killed most of my warriors. I barely escaped. If my officers didn't drag me out of the battle, I would be one of the dead. A lot of fine warriors sacrificed themselves to give us an opening. This is a shameful display.

"Korba, around six hundred men marches at our direction!" a scout told me. Is it another force sent by the enemy?

"Group up! If they are enemies then we fight them 'till we die!" A loud cheer followed.

Moments later two messengers came, a breton messenger and a cyrodilic messenger. "Calm down people we're not the enemy." said the breton.

"Who sent you?"

"We're your rescue, your king paid a handsome price for our help." said the cyrodilic. "I work with the Blackhand Pirates, my name is Galba."

"And I am Balduan, I work for the Red Sabres." Interjected the breton.

"You're fine with killing other bretons?" I asked Balduan.

"Gold is gold and the contract has been signed. I've killed bretons for other kings before." He laughed. "As long as I'm paid well I'll continue killing bretons."

A man that fights for gold. There is no honor in that but, I have no choice but to accept these sell-swords. "Alright, gather your men. We march back to Kambria at daybreak."

The sooner this war is finished the sooner these men would be out of my sight.

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Countess Ursanne Beanique:

My husband came back home after months of being away fighting the orcs. Meanwhile, I gave birth to my first son. I named him Duncan. He is going to be the heir to his father's kingdom and to Kambria, if we actually win this war. My husband said that the orcs already scurried back to their home in the mountains. They would never recover after being defeated so severely he said. On top of that, the army of Northpoint is staying in Kambria until the orc king sues for peace. For some reason I just don't believe anything that he is saying.

"Husband! Have you met your son, yet?" I asked him when I saw him walk by. He seemed to be in a hurry to leave again.

"I will see our son after this whole affair is over." he replied.

"Are you leaving again? I ... thought the orcs are defeated."

"They are but, the scouts are saying, a huge army is heading to Kambria. I must confirm this information."

Suddenly, the castle bells are ringing. "What is that?" I asked frantically. "Is it the orcs?"

My husband looked out the window. "Oh no..." Then he bolted out to the courtyard.

The bells kept on ringing and the men kept on running around the castle. All I did was hide under a table while holding on to Duncan.

It turns out, the orcs returned with a mercenary army and utterly crushed the Northpoint army. Now, they are at my gates. We are in a siege.

My husband insists that we shouldn't surrender. That his father will send another army to defeat this one, just like the last one. But, I can't take it any longer. It has been weeks since the start of the siege. Our attempts to weaken our enemies failed. They have all the time in the world while we are slowly starving to death inside the castle walls. Most of all, Duncan is sick. I must surrender. What is the use of staying free if my baby is dead?

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 5: The Taking of Kambria

King Moghakh:

My steward, Shadbak, reported the total cost of the mercenary army I just hired. We are nearly bankrupt, she said. We would have to start saving money from now on.

It is a great thing that the countess surrendered before the mercenaries took all the gold in the treasury. Korba has sent a messenger to tell me that Kambria has been entirely conquered and the countess is now willing to recognize my sovereignty over her lands and me as her king.

I went to Kambria to see the countess personally yield her lands to me.

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Countess Ursanne Beanique:

The king of Orsinium came to my castle to see me kneel before him in front of all my courtiers. He wants them to know who really is in control now, my husband said. He was very angry with me. Keeps on calling me a disgrace. Duncan lay sick in bed and we're running out of supplies. I did what I had to do.

Countess Beanique, it is pleasure to finally meet you. The orc king said upon meeting me. My husband stayed behind the pillars of the great hall.

He wore clothing unlike the other orcs that came. He wears fine clothes and has the mannerisms akin to a breton's. He also talks like one.

Not knowing what to do in his presence, I knelt down in front of him. I, Countess Ursanne of House Beanique, surrender my lands to you as my king and protector, I swore to him.

I, Moghakh of Clan Bulfim, King of Orsinium, accept your surrender, he replied. He then gestured for me to rise.

Now that the formalities are done, he said. I shall offer the guardianship of my son and heir, Sharkub, in good faith. He needs to learn a thing or two about breton customs if he ever want to succeed as a king in High Rock. I trust that you would accept this offer?

I will, my king. It would be my greatest honor, I replied.

A few days after the king left, Prince Sharkub comes into my household. He came with guards, a lot of them. The prince is eleven years old yet you can already see the cruelty in his eyes.

Later that night, my husband came to me. We should kill that boy, he told me.

I will not kill a boy, orc or otherwise, I replied.

You do know that he only sent that kid in here so he can spy on us, right?

It came to mind, yes, I answered. It will not change the fact that he is a child and I will not kill a child.

That child would be king of the orcs and when that happens MORE people will die.

I glared at him. I glared at him so hard that he finally got the point. He stopped talking.

I will leave for Northpoint tomorrow, he finally said.

And what about your son?

I will bring him with me, he answered. You can stay here with your orc king. I will not suffer the humiliation.

With that, he is gone with my son and I am left tutoring this orc child. The Eight truly does hate me...

 

[Henry v. Keiper]

Subscribing.

 

[WildPeacock]

Nice work!

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 6: A King's Folly

King Moghakh:

It has only been a few months since the taking of Kambria, our economy is slow at recovering. I decided to remove Shadbak from her position as my steward and instead have Urim uz-Muckmuir, Korba's kinsman. Then I sent him to collect extra taxes on the city to help us recover faster.

Just to see if my work could be harder, my wife came to me cursing both Malacath and the Eight.

I decided to get rid of Mor in my council. She is not from an affluent clan and she certainly don't have the power to make me regret this action. Besides I don't want my wife, whose brother is the sole reason I'm on the throne, to be mad at me. But, another problem arises.

The Countess of Kambria is unhappy with my rule. Despite the honors I have given her, the gifts and the guardianship of my son. I need to obligate this vassal and to do that I need a new spymaster to start scheming a plot to remind her of her duties.

While looking through the list of potential spymasters, I came across Shazgob. A recent refugee from the Dragontail Mountains. She is only nineteen years of age yet, a certain maturity is emitted by her prideful stance. Upon talking to her, she displayed a kind of ferocity that can only be displayed by someone so young. I gave her the job but, we kept on talking to each other until the sun went down.

It is so late already, she said. Can I stay here for the night?

It is without a doubt a request I could never turn down. I am... I am...

It was a moment that happens to kings big and small. It was the moment the common folk calls "A King's Folly" and they could never be so right.

 

[Henry v. Keiper]

Even orcs have problems with adulteries.

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 7: A King's Dream

Count Yashnarz of Grimrock:

No doubt you've heard of me before as the sole reason our king ascended to such a position but, that is only a small part of the story. Before he was a king, he was only an orc. An orc with a dream. Unlike most orcs who are just content on living their lives in small isolated holdings, this orc wanted to prove something. To build something so grand that no one would ever mistreat orcs again.

I am the chief, or count according to bretons, of Grimrock. Back when I first met King Moghakh, I was the new chief of Grimrock. I just recently succeeded my father's title and I'm feeling content just like any other orc in my position. A whole hold to my own and wives to give me comfort. Nothing ever happens in the Wrothgarian Mountains. It is safe here unlike other places where orcs are constantly on the run like, the Dragontail Mountains ever since the redguards took over. So, most of the time I am bored. Until I met our king...

I was on a hunt that day. Running through woods and mountains and killing some animal are the only things that kept me occupied during those days. I usually just stay within Grimrock but, that day I decided to hunt on the haunted grounds of old Orsinium. My mother used to tell that this place is filled with the ghosts of the fallen. Orcs, bretons and redguards died here during the Siege of Orsinium too many years ago. After that people stayed away from this area believing that the entire land is cursed, doomed to be destroyed. Supported by the fact that the bretons, who orchestrated the thirty year long siege, didn't even want the land after capturing it. Instead, they just left it in ruins. I abandoned my hunt when I saw the ruins of my people's last civilization. I walked inside it. I think I was looking for something, treasure perhaps, I don't remember. Then I noticed I was not alone.

He was wearing clothes that bretons wear and has a long-sword sheathed on its scabbard on his belt. Naturally, at first I thought he was a breton but, by looking more closely I realized that he was an orc just like me. I readied my weapon, which is an ax, and approached him. You could never trust anyone you don't know, my mother told me that. I walked over his location carefully. As I was about to strike him, he saw me and told me to stop.

"I am not your enemy", he told me. "I am your friend, see?" Then he dropped his long-sword to the ground.

"An orc who refused to fight? Are you even an orc?" I asked him mockingly.

"Violence isn't my forte," he answered rather proudly as I recall.

"Then what is your forte?"

"Building things. Creating not destroying. That is my forte. I'm an architect, you see." He answered like a warrior who just slew a dragon.

I asked him what he was doing in the ruins and he answered, "I'm going to rebuild the city." I was surprised with what he said.

"Rebuild the city? This city?"

"Yes, and I'm going to give our people a homeland. I'm going to give our people hope," he said with such zeal. Hope? I thought. My world was only limited to the boundaries of Grimrock during that time. I have no idea idea what was going on with the orcs all over the world. The atrocities committed to our people outside of the Wrothgarian Mountains is appalling but, at the time I was living a comfortable life isolated from all the troubles in the world.

"A great change is happening at this moment," he continued. "The Empire is gone. Orcs everywhere are being persecuted like pests. The time is now to act."

Even at that moment I knew that this man would actually be able to fulfill the dream he has. A unified orcish homeland, a new Orsinium. Of course, I still have my doubts. As I asked him, "How are you going to rebuild a city alone?"

"I was hoping to find other like minded people to help me start it off," he jested. But, there is a seriousness in it too.

"How's that going for you?"

"Rather well," he answered. And then he said the words that I would remember forever, "I found you." That is the beginning of our friendship.

At last, something different has happened, I thought to myself. Indeed, I helped him to rebuild the city. He showed me the blue prints he drew and I supplied him with workers and other needed materials. After a while, news of a new Orsinium is spreading all across High Rock, Hammerfell and Skyrim. Orcs from various places, refugees most of them, flocked to the site. The additional man power helped reduce the building time and, in a couple more years, the city is nearly done.

"So, who would be the king?" I asked my friend, Moghakh.

"The king? You can be the king," he said.

"I'm not meant to be the king, I'm way too lazy," I told him. "Though, I know who is."

"Who?" He asked.

"You."

"Me?" He asked, unable to hide his surprise.

"Yes," I told him. "It is your idea to rebuild this city and it is your name the people chant went thanking Malacath for their new found home. The people already chose you as their king."

"I don't know what to say," he said.

"You can say yes to this," I jested. "As the king of Orsinium, you'll need a queen. It just so happens that my sister, Ulumpha, is still unmarried and I'm looking for a suitable husband for her."

As you know, he agreed to that proposal.

With my support, he became king. If anyone disagreed with the decision, they did not show it. Just an orc with a dream is how he described himself back then. I always tell him, "You were just an orc with a king's dream."

 

[Henry v. Keiper]

This new orc king is gonna stop the orc hatin' Go get 'em!

 

[iisbroke]

Pretty good so far.

 

[KolyFrog]

It turns out that if you have Sword of Islam installed your Cult of Malacath ruler would actually be able to marry three wives. I thought it was a bug, lol. Well, too late. I'm already 200 years into the game.

 

[hyme]

Sub

 

[KolyFrog]

Part 8: A King's Son

Sharkub gro-Moghakh:

Many months ago, my father told me that I have to go to Kambria and Urim won't be my guardian anymore. Instead, a breton lady named Ursanne would be my guardian from now on. I was raised to trust on my father's instincts so, I did as I was told with no questions asked. It turned out to be a very horrible idea. Ever since I got here, every single breton that saw me stared at me like I'm some sort of monster. They feel fear and disgust whenever their around me. I am no monster, at least that is what I used to say.

Days pass by and under Lady Ursanne's tutelage, I began to understand the intricacies of breton law and the diplomatic protocol of High Rock. This is different from the things I learned when Urim was the one teaching me. He taught me how to fight like a warrior. I enjoyed that more. Lady Ursanne would permit me to join the other kids when the master-at-arms where training them to be proper soldiers but, they other kids just end up ganging up on me and the master-at-arms doesn't really care about me. Even my own guards don't intervene unless the kids doesn't stop for a significant amount of time. An orc child should be able to defend himself is what they tell me. What good are they?

Weeks after coming here, more and more kids torment me. They yell, "Monster! Monster! Die you monster!" It got so bad that Lady Ursanne ordered some of her household to protect me. They ended up to be a lot more useful than my actual guards. Though I could see in their eyes that they want to kill me too.

Apparently my father realized this as well because he sent his chancellor, Garakh, to Kambria to better the relationship with the locals.

She was tall and very humble. I liked her though her efforts didn't work. The bretons either see her as way too young or a monster like me. The kids still treated me like a monster.

Until one day, I sneaked pass my guards and Lady Ursanne's household guards to go into the river to fish. The one thing I like about Kambria are the fishes. Fishes are rare in Orsinium because they have to be brought there by traders. Kambria is near enough to Wayrest that freshly caught sea-fish are part of their daily meal. However, nothing beats the food that you caught yourself, my uncle Yashnarz taught me that. So, river-fishes would do. As I was fishing, one of the breton kids that are tormenting me saw me. He yelled, "Hey, look! It's that monster kid!" Soon thereafter, three more of them showed up.

The four of them came up to me. I dropped my fishing pole and ran to the forest. "Why are you running, monster kid?!" Yelled one of them. "Are you scared of us?!" Then they laughed while chasing after me. I ran as fast as I can until I tripped over a log. I stumbled to get but, when I found my footing, the bretons already surround me. Two to the north of me, one to the east and another to the south.

"Why do you hate me so much?!" I yelled at them. Their faces turned red with rage.

"My father was killed by an orc just like you," says one of the boys to the north. "Now, I'm going to kill you!" The others showed their agreement by clenching their fist and the boy who just talked threw himself at me. There is no time to be scared. I have to be brave. I remembered the lesson Urim taught me and dodged his attacks then I grabbed him with all my strength and slammed him against a tree. He fell flat to the floor. In the heat of the moment, I felt something surge through my body. As if my blood is burning. I felt so powerful. The other kid to the north of me swung his fist at my face. I grabbed his fist and broke his hands in return. Next is the kid to the east. He picked up a stick and used it to strike me. I pulled the stick of his hands and used it to bash his face. He cried. The kid to the south tackled me to the ground. During the tussle, I managed to grab hold of a rock. I broke the rock on the kid's face. He died. My first kill. The other kids ran away leaving me alone in the forest.

A day or two after, my guards found me walking on the outskirts of the forest covered in blood. Instead of taking me back to Lady Ursanne's house, my guards took me to a caravan. Garakh was in there. Upon seeing me she said, "We've been looking all over for you. This is not the greatest time to be missing, young prince." Then she saw my injuries and the blood on my clothes. "What happened?"

I didn't tell her what happened and I believe she understood why I didn't because she didn't bother to ask afterwards. She just told me to meet up with the court priest, Rugdumph us-Rotoc, so he can heal my wounds. I asked her why we were at a caravan and she told me, "The Countess Ursanne declared the independence of Kambria. We are at war with Kambria again. I'm taking you back home."

After I got healed back in Orsinium, my father asked me why I got so beat up. I told him the full story and he apologized afterwards. He told me to lay down and rest but, I woke in the middle of the night. I have to pee. As I walk down the hall, I heard voices in the office of my father. He is talking with the court priest. I sat next to the door listening to their conversation. "Two to the north, one to the east and one to the south. He defeated the ones to the north, made the one to the east cry and killed the one to the south. What does that mean?" My father asked the priest.

"I see, Malacath has already carved a path for your boy. A path filled with violence. The four bretons represent the four kingdoms that surround Orsinium. He shall defeat two kingdoms to the north, make the east cry in fear, and conquer the one to the south. And he shall be a better king than you are."

Then my father said, "A king's son should always be a better king than his father."

 

[Henry v. Keiper]

I say wipe those Bretons out - or, whatever peaceful way one might diminish their power Can cultures change in individual provinces over time in the EK mod?