Cordrend

Cordrend is a walled town lying within a mile of the agreed boundary between Nyrond and the old North Province. The town was once home to 1,800 people. Now it is the base for that number of troops alone. A double stone wall is being built here, at a cost Nyrond can barely afford, but it has to be done. Utter anarchy faces Nyrond east of here, and this increasingly fortified army base, covering the foothills, is a key strategic location and must be secured.

Both Bone March humanoids and Aerdi soldiers, many of them orcish themselves, prowl the hills to the east. They raid into eastern Nyrond, and troops patrolling from Cordrend and watch-posts both west and north fight them off virtually daily.

There is no effective ruler in Innspa, the eastern town of the old North Province, and many rumors fly about the chaotic factions struggling for power there. What is for certain is that the once allied Aerdi and Bone March armies who fought Nyrond the length and breadth of the Flinty Hills are in a state of turmoil, fighting among themselves.

Fending off these raids is not excessively dangerous for the troops here, for they are well equipped. While outnumbered they have superior organization. However, the current problem is one of simple attrition. Replacing lost men and equipment is not easy for a virtually bankrupt nation, and the humanoids seem almost numberless and replace their losses with ease. Worse still, early spring brought the first attack of fiends. Three vrock attacked a watch-post north of Cordrend and wiped out over thirty men before they were destroyed. They had the advantage of surprise, and now Nyrond's men are prepared for such an attack, but the loss of good fighting men was sorely felt.

Cordrends garrison commander, is an intelligent and capable fighter. Captain-General Osmeran, a distant cousin of the Almorian war hero Osson, marshals and organizes troops well and is a powerful leader from the front. He is also a very independent leader, as his dealings with the Adri freemen show.