Razing of the North

Military action

Northern Pelagus is attacked by a large Dead Sea Collective army. Several cities and towns are sacked before the army of raiders were defeated by The Cobalt Order .

The warlords Haraldr Svennirson and Magnar Ninefingers allied in the year 1869. They were among the more powerful of the warlords of the Dead Sea Collective. They held the allegiance of other warlords and captains, and could mobilize as many as seven War Arks. During the winter 1869 - 70 they began gathering a large army, promising booty and glory in a great invasion they were to launch. Exact numbers are uncertain, but it is believed that something like 10.000 warriors joined the army the two great warlords were gathering.   The army struck near the northern tip of Pelagus in summer of 1870. It demanded tribute from all the towns along the coast, using the arks and longships to intimidate the towns there. All submitted. The army then moved inland towards Sinford. This fortified city was under the protection of the Cobalt Order, but the garrison was not large. Even so the siege consumed most of the campaigning season of 1870. The city fell in autumn. The citizens were either killed or sold into slavery. The city then served as the winter camp of the ravaging army. Most of the northern countryside suffered heavily during the siege, as raiding party ventured wide and far to loot supplies for the besieging army. The fleet kept up its raids along the coast in the meantime.   The Cobalt Order had in the meantime been gathering its forces. This proved difficult as many of the Order's knights were in Haru dealing with a minor surge of undead, or otherwise busy protecting the Order's interests elsewhere. Only around 5.000 soldiers could be gathered, and only a few hundred knights among them. The Order's general was Sir Henry of Jornford. He elected to shadow the ravaging army, and attack it at an opportune time.   As the spring of 1871 set in the Collective army began roaming the countryside, raiding liberally and sacking every village and town in their path. The Cobalt army did not confront them, instead staying at a distance and only confronted smaller raiding parties which got to far from the main army. Confident that the Cobalt Order would not challenge them Haraldr and Magnar set out for Arcanstille. This finally forced the Cobalt Army to make a stand. They lined up for battle on the road leading to the city, between the river and a swamp. The two armies did not come to battle. The Collective backed off after a tense standoff. They retreated back to Sinford where they wintered.   The year 1872 saw the raiding army move east toward Galenest. The Cobalt army followed at a distance. Galenest fell by midsummer. Here the army found vast stores of valuables, far more than expected. This inflamed already existing tensions within the army. Many captains begun to leave figuring that they'd already gotten rich. The army diminished in size over the weeks following the capture of the city. A dispute then arose between Haraldr and Magnar over whom should get the credit for the capture of the city, and thus the lion's share of the loot. The dispute ended with Magnar taking several thousand warriors and leaving the city. Henry and his army capitalized on this at once. They confronted Magnar's army near a small castle called Blorgia and defeated it. They then moved toward Galenest where Haraldr moved out to meet them. The battle of Galenest saw heavy fighting throughout the day. It ended only when Haraldr's army broke its shield wall to attack the fleeing infantry of Henry, and were subsequently attacked by Henry's small contingent of knights. A rout followed, and in it Haraldr and his warriors were killed to a man.   The Razing of the North saw the Collective gather its largest ever land army, and the second largest fleet (after that which fought at the battle of Defiance Bay). The defeat of this army led to a decline in raids for the next decade, as the death of a generation of warriors had a major impact on the Collective. The war enhanced the reputation of the Cobalt Order as the protectors of northern Pelagus. The region would not recover for a long time from the deprivations of the raiders.