The Second Great Orc War
The Second Orc War began in the early spring of 146 AF during the reign of King Lothar am Maxalli of Imesse. It consisted of a multi-clan horde of more than 26,000 Orcs, Trolls and Ogres that invaded the country from the western frontier.
The war lasted nearly four years, and was only actually concluded with the extermination of 80% of the invasion horde. It was a horrific war that cost the lives of thousands of soldiers and tens of thousands of civilians and resulted in the near total destruction of huge tracts of land in the western half of northern Imesse.
The initial invasion took the horde east from the border as far as Stonehold, in a line from Wesston all the way to Dunrick, in as little as four days. Any resistance met was surrounded by the horde and devoured while the advance continued. Attacks east of the Wesston branch of the Morloth River slowed the horde there significantly, but in the south the advance was nearly as fast as the orcs could run.
First Dunrick, then Stonehold, then Coldhome and Wessridge were attacked by the horde. Local lords and knights simply couldn't move fast enough to make a difference until the orcs were beating on the wallls of Wessridge and within sight of the bluffs at Cyell.
By the end of the fall of 146 AF, King Lothar had cobbled together an army estimated to be about 12,000 men, mostly foot but with (possibly) as many as 2,500 mounted knights. His first push was to relieve the forces at Wessridge, so he divided his forces into two sections, and gave command to the southern force to his brother, Maklar am Maxalli, while he commanded the northern group that would push towards Cyell and Coldhome.
By the spring of 147, Wessridge had been saved from destruction and the orcs stopped on their southern advance. Fighting around Coldhome remained fierce for the summer, but all orcs that had been advancing towards Cyell had been stopped and destroyed. Lothar had managed to continue to build his forces during the winter, while the coherence of the orc horde had begun to breakdown, with smaller and smaller bands of orcs breaking off of the main force to pillage and burn as they saw fit. In October of that year, the Baron of Hekmo had collected forces from the far north of Imesse and marched them west and south to the still smoking city of Wesston, where they routed the remaining orcs and trolls and advanced towards Stonehold with the first snows beginning to fall.
Coldhome was "liberated" in January of 148, and by March of that year, Lothar, Tovar and Maklar had all pushed their armies towards Dunrick, where the last sizable force of the horde was sheltering in the city's ruins. The fighting at Dunrick lasted all season, and more than 5,000 Imessian soldiers died fighting the horde, while the orcs lost twice that many.
March of 149 AF saw the last 9,000 of the horde still sheltering within the ruins of Stonehold. Maklar rode forward and challanged the horde's war chief to single combat. In a legendary fight, Maklar killed the orc warlord, taking off its head and using it as a banner to rally his army and rush the ruined gates of the city one more time. With the grizzly trophy leading the charge, the remaining orcs began to fall back out of the city and run towards the west. The rest of the season was spent hunting down roving bands of orcs and trolls and killing them where ever they were found.
The Conflict
Prelude
The fall of 145 AF in the far western frontiers of Imesse was unusually quiet, without a single sighting of a wandering hunting party of orcs from the west. No significant body of invading orcs has been encountered for more than 80 years.
Deployment
Sometime around early February 146 AF, a horde of more than 20,000 orcs began to emass about 60 miles west of the established western border of Imesse. The orcs were supported by roughly 5,000 trolls and 1,000 ogres. Once sufficiently gathered, the first waves of the invaders were sent forth east to the border.
Outcome
Utter devestation to the region. Nearly every structure encountered by the horde was destroyed, fields were ruined, bridges burnt and populations killed or driven off.
Aftermath
Decades of rebuilding and resettlement were required to counter the devestation that was brought on by the horde's advance.
Historical Significance
Legacy
The attack is still spoken of in hushed and awed tones, and the heroes of the war are reverred in song and story to this day.
Conflict Type
War
Start Date
February 26, 146 AF
Ending Date
September 13, 150 AF
Conflict Result
After four years of fighting, all orcs were killed or driven out of Imesse.
