USH'S LORD OF THE RINGS GAME PART 4- The Hunt in the Hills
Eastern Arthedain, Autumn 1973 TA
It's getting chilly again already. At Fornost, the shutters are closed and the fires are on. Like last year, it promises to be a chilly winter. There is more life out in the fields, as the vital harvest is prepared.
It will need to be a good one, because Artheadin is arming. Arthedain fears Angmar, a mountain kingdom of evil men led by the mysterious Witch-King. These men make pacts with the foul Orcs and Goblins breeding out of the Misty Mountains and from there they threaten the whole of the north.
To Arthedain's east lies Rhudaur; once its sister kingdom ruled by the same line. But the human kingdoms fought amongst themselves and Rhudaur got the worst of it; it gave into pressure from Angmar and the line there was lost. Now it is full of Dunlendings- vicious hillmen who bear hostility to any other type of man. A great Dunlending Lord sits on the throne once meant for a Dunadan.
To the south lies Cardolan, also a sister kingdom. Cardolan resisted for longer but it too was weakened by struggle with its neighbours- and then by plague. In the end, Cardolan did not fall as much as rot; it has fallen into a disparate collection of local fiefdoms with no central authority.
The north of Cardolan is now almost toal chaos where the Dunlendings raid at will- some times with Orcs and Goblins from Angmar amongst them. The south still holds firm, but has little contact with anyone else.
Far, far to the south and east lies the mighty kingdom of Gondor. Once, Arnor was the greater kingdom,; now split i n three and with only one of those three still functioning, Gondor has the lead. The true line of Kings, though, and the power of man lies still in Arnor. They had hoped Gondor- victorious in recent war with the Wainriders from the east, though also weary and weakened by plague, would send aid to fight Angmar. But it is too far and the spiri too weak. After mighty efforts by Arthedain's vigorous and competent king, Arvedui, Gondor has sent some people to observe and some money and materials... but no army.
Arthedain must see to itself. A recent disaster- a huge orc raid to the north that destroyed a fortress near construction- has cost Arthedain dear and caused it to re-think its whole approach. New armies are being built. New strategies considered.
Refugees from Cardolan pour into its borders, and they are being armed and armoured. New men are being trained all the time- the reach goes for ever younger men to form armies against an unknown number of enemies. But what is to be done? To defend forever? That has done Arnor little good so far; two of three parts of it lost. But to invade Angmar seems lunacy. Arvedui has a different plan- hold out until a new alliance can be built against the threatening evil. He still hopes to get Gondor on his side. Even the Elves have been approached, but they are few in number and are tired of helping men- men who only destroy themselves in internal struggle regardless. But Arvedui's plan for now is more straightforward- he seeks union with Cardolan; to rebuild it into a strong new kingdom joined with Arthedain that can take back both Rhudaur and then end the threat from Angmar. They call Arvedui the 'Last King' due to a prophecy made at his birth that he would be the last king of Arthedain. He seeks to confound it- by then becoming the first king of something greater.
Since that great raid, the Orcs have been quiet- light-averse, they rarely move in the summer regardless. The Dunlendings have not threatened Arthedain, still taking pickings in Cardollan. Arthedain has had some time to prepare and reocver. Twi new armies have been built- the great one in the north, the most prestigious. And a smaller one in the east, to deal with the possible threat of Duneldnings and keep order.
But the new commander of the Eastern Army- the Lord Farael, of impure lineage but great strength of spirit- is not content to sit back with his men. He has become convinced that Orc raids within Arthedain over the past years have not come from over the border- but from a base within Arthedain itself. The eastern part of Arthedain is full of downs and hills, stretching down to the fallen fortress of Weathertop at the south-eastern border where the three parts of Arnor meet. Not only hillmen like the hills; Orcs and Goblins like to dwell in such places too. The hills are too large and awkward to be patroleld at all times and few live there. The enemy could be hiding within.
Farael has persuaded King Arvedui to expend supplies on a great expedition into the hills to seek out this theoretical orc base- and destroy it. Many think he is a fool to waste his time so; he is not to be dissuaded.
Some that agree with him are foreign travellers, many of who heeded Arvedui's call for a united front against Angmar. Whilst nations stay silent, individuals- Man, Dunadan, Hobbit, Dwarf and even Elf- have listened and many have come. Now they are travelling with his army into the hills- to seek the Orcs.
So, who is with him?
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Originally a prequel section to the next story, I have upgraded this to a larger- though still relatively short- story to get you all used to fighting in this system and get a bit of xp under your belt!