Slaughter of Preacher's Bay

"When I arrived upon Preacher's Bay -- I was astounded. I saw men wearing the chalice of Aine and bringing nothing but unjust slaughter. I saw nothing but malice. Spite. Cruelty. Luckily, there is one thing that my father, and his father before him, recited, learned, and understood...time and time again."

The Battle of Preacher's Bay; also sometimes called the Butcher of the Bay, was a brief skirmish between Verres Belrose's Vank army and The Faith Keepers. Some call the battle divine judgement wrought upon an organization mad with power, hiding beneath divine providence. Others called it a simple slaughter.

"Evil. Speaks only the language of cruelty."

The Conflict

Prelude

It first began when the The Faith Keepers captured Morrigan Belrose; The current Queen of the Vanks. Shortly after Morrigan's capture, the crusaders persecuted her and the Devilbindersunder her service, along with several Elves that were rallied into Hunter's Reef.
The Vanks were always somewhat sympathetic towards the Elves during the Crusades, finding the Church's unfair persecution unjust and unfair. Such things lead to the Faith Keeper's legitimacy being denounced on multiple occasions, which caused inner turmoil rolling throughout the three kingdoms of Tregaron.
In hopes of offering Elves safe passage and freedom from persecution, the Vanks guided the Elven people westward and helped safeguard their passage to Hunter's Reef, where they were to be safely taken overseas. 
Morrigan was entrusted with helping in lead the Elves to freedom, unfortunately, her unit was ambushed and routed upon arrival to Hunter's reef, leading to a swift slaughter. Believing the Vanks to be willing in rallying behind them if they ousted their King and Queen as traitors, they were sorely mistaken when, not too long after, Verres and his army marched on Hunter's Reef.

Battlefield

Hunter's Reef was a much smaller city at the time, and was known as Preacher's Bay during the crusades. lacked the walls it had at the time, which allowed Verres and his men to storm the township with little to no resistance outside of the few guards stationed at the outskirts.
The city still provided a lot of obstacles in the form of buildings, though the size of Verres' army dissuaded any commoner from interfering with the attack. Most of those that stayed outside of the battle were safe, as the target was solely the crusaders occupied the city.

Conditions

The Faith Keepers occupying the city were mostly prepared for battle, but they were also unaware of the attack being lead upon them, which lead to most of their men being found isolated from their unit.
Given the fact that they were separated and mostly focused on carrying out their persecution of their captured prisoners, the Faith Keepers were far too disorganized to stop the full force of the Vank army.

The Engagement

Ill-prepared for a battle, the crusaders of the Faith Keepers were swiftly dispatched due to the force brought by Verres and his cavalry charge. They intended to bring a crushing, swift defeat, and succeeded in doing so. The crusaders were not prepared for the horsemen storming the township.

Outcome

After their defeat, the Faith Keepers were driven out of Hunter's Reef. This lead to a series of battles across Mordencrast, lead by the Vanks and the few surviving loyalists of Tomas Volteroy in driving the Faith Keepers out of Mordencrast as a whole. With them being soundly defeated and suffering great losses, the Faith Keepers chose to isolate themselves from Tregaron.

I lined every last crusader I could find. My men aimed to cripple, not kill, for that would be far too merciful for the sins they've committed. When I captured them, I took them to the public masses to look upon the liberated Elves, Vanks, and most importantly, my beloved's scarred face. I started with the fleshy parts first. Soft rolls of fat, carved and shorn from their bodies. The joints were only dealt with after I sliced off what I could from them. They begged to lose a limb, for they knew that the second they did, their suffering would end. I didn't cut to kill a single man there. I left them languishing in their wounds until they bled.

Like the pigs they were.

Among the most infamous scenes within history was the butchering of the crusaders. Shortly after the Faith Keepers were defeated, all the survivors were rounded up and captured, lead towards a public stage for a brutal execution orchestrated by Verres himself. He was meticulous in his cuts, systematically dismembering every piece he could before they inevitably succumbed to their wounds.

Aftermath

The Faith Keepers no longer hold nearly as much sway as they used to with Tregaron; and while the Church is still respected in some nations, the Vanks still often hold animosity towards the Faith Keepers. 
These sentiments are shared, of course, with Vanks often being seen as outcasts amidst most human societies due to their hatred towards the Church, along with their acceptance of a vampiric lord.

Historical Significance

In Literature

Carver's Crusade: Is a musical that has a bit of duality. The lyrics change based upon the version, with the Vank version often placing Verres in a much more positive light, seen as a savior to liberating both his beloved, and the victims that were captured by the villainous Church.
The more common version, on the other hand, makes certain to delve into his cruelty and harsh methods, claiming his horses came galloping in to slaughter any and all who opposed his path. Detail is also placed in his infamous execution of the Crusaders.

Technological Advancement

The technology used throughout the battle was premodern, though the primary use was cavalry against footmen. Verres and his men came in riding on horses, which quickly stampeded their way through the crusaders and any bystanders that stood within their wake.
All in all, most of the fight was fought with nothing but steel; pikes, swords, bows, and armour, nothing more.

Conflict Type

Battle

Battlefield Type

Urban

Conflict Result

Crushing defeat to the Church.

Location

Tregaron

Belligerents

The Faith Keepers

• The Faith Keepers

The Vank Army

Strength

Decently trained fighters, but unable to compete with the trained cavalry of the Vanks.

Roughly 4,000 Men on horseback

Casualties

Many. The entire unit was routed, with only a few survivors left managing to flee the scene.

A negligible amount.

Objectives

To persecute, execute, or imprison Elves hiding within Hunter's Reef, along with any sympathizers.

To route the crusaders and liberate the Elves from the Faith Keepers