Here's a quick history of the "Highlands" conflict from a half dozen or more mail messages over the last seven years....
Navroc MacCorval of Irongate is harboring Rhemba and, most likely, the Staff of Law. He dwells far to the North on the border of the Bone March. His abilities are a mystery, although he is rumored to be a wizard [try warlock!] using his magic to hold his ancestral homelands from humanoid invasion.
[Shortly afterward, Navroc was beaten by a party of heroes seeking the mad witch, Rhemba, and the artifact, the Staff of Law. The warlock-warlord-lord was left behind with most of his ribs broken in his castle, Irongate, now-bereft of defenders (read: freshly slain by the PCs). Navroc got better, joined Rhemba and tried to recover the Staff. I think it was Tetsuko or Rullo who tripped over his corpse as it swelled with three doses of giant scorpion venom in the Nereganti temple of Set. Tetsuko, seeing that he was the rightful-if-evil ruler of his homelands, as well as the only defender of the borders, had Navroc reincarnated. He came back as a 19 year old girl, incapable of being a witch.... The party forgot about the border....until Bannok fell...]
For those who do not know, the Highlands game is a series of low level adventures set in the North Province (a vague version of Scotland's Northern regions). The games revolves around the fact that humanoids from the North are now spilling over the borders [Navroc and his minions weren't around to defend them any more] and try to take the human lands for their own. The heroes struggle to win the war, or at least save as many human lives (including their own) as possible.
Since this game is basically the role-play of a war, it has some elements which are a little unique. The mortality rate is quite high— even higher than my nastiest campaign. One group set in this region was completely wiped out (Bannok will not be forgotten). In addition, there is a very strong emphasis on the heroes making the moves and calling the shots— there are no high level clerics/mages/druids, etc out there to save anyone's butt or restore them to life.
The current [at the time] situation is the six remaining characters have battled their way across 70 miles of army-created desolation. These 70 miles also happen to be the hills that for generations have served as the natural barrier against Northern invasion. The party escorted the survivors of the Northern city of Inverness to Bellport, a very large port city on the upper end of the North Province (Inverness was technically in the Bone March). Upon reaching Bellport, the party fought their way into the city at the cost of several companions, but now as dawn's light illuminates the battlefield, 19 women and children from the Inverness as well as the other inhabitants of the city are gearing up for a final confrontation with the hobgoblins who have laid siege to their city. Although far more powerful in both numbers and magical aid, the city-dwellers have little food remaining and little desire to risk their lives battling the humanoids. This is where the party comes in....
The current party consists of :
Palin -- 3rd lvl Mariner
Caernon -- 3rd lvl Mage
Coal -- 3rd lvl dwarven Fighter (who will not be able to join
melee)
Ian -- 2nd lvl Fighter
Donal -- 1st lvl Fighter
Edmund -- 3rd lvl Cleric of Angellus
[Not long after this, the party met up with a young woman named Arista. They battle across the Highlands for a year. Eventually the group picked up another party and retook Bannok -- only for it to fall again when no one held onto it.
Three years ago, the group, at Arista's request, traveled to Castle Irongate. There, she deserted and turned on the party, using them to get her past the castle's defenses. Once inside, she recovered her trove of potions and plotted to capture the party mage, Caernon.
Switching bodies with Caernon with the aid of some diabolic possessors, Navroc/Arista restored him/herself to his former body. The once-and-again Lord of Irongate retook his local lands through the use of all the black magic at his disposal (really ALOT!). He then worked with the party to retake the Highlands (he may be evil, but he's also lawful and wants what's best for his people).]
[A new group of adventurers attempted to penetrate the Great Kingdom lines to rescue their homeland. The group consisted of:
| Rowan MacLeod | fighter | seeking to save her Highland home |
| Colleen MacLeod | druid | ditto |
| Tarquin Drake | traveler | lowlander living upto his family's heroic traditions |
| Arafael Rosefoot | F / Th | Hobbit, along for the ride with his best buddy, Tarquin |
| Brina the Beautiful | fighter | now dog food |
| Angus the Bold | fighter | Highlander -- pushing up daisies |
| Angus the Brave | fighter | Highlander -- see Angus, above |
| Hamish MacAdhamh | fighter | Highlander -- got lost in a beer keg |
This group fought its way into the Highland region, in the process running afoul of Baron Marsir. The Baron was lord of the operation in the West. He followed the part eastward. Divine Providence got him in the end...(but that was a recent message)...
Before that, however, the party battled Scottish monsters and encountered remnants of the ancient Bakluns (read: proto-celts). They've played with ley-lines, been to other realities, met a sidhe (the original fay-folk of Anglo-Saxon legend) and tore-and-then-mended a rift between worlds (that's where are the weird monsters came from recently).
Since then they've hooked up with:
| Ian MacLeod | wizard | Highland scholar and mage |
| Caernon MacTavish | wizard | Highland mage -- magic missiled to swiss cheese |
| Terulius | fighter | older Bannok party, returned to life as Terulia |
| Ezra Twiceborn | fighter | Highland warrior -- died in battle |
Colleen, Ian MacLeod, Tarquin, Glenn, Rowan, Ian & Boodan, Ezra, and Arafael:
Greetings to the Highlands:
It seems that we seem to be in a bit of a predicament. We are nearly all at single digit hit points, are in the middle of a war zone, and there is a dragon and an angry dinosaur running amuck in the area. We also still have the chalice that needs to be destroyed, the sooner the better.
I agree that we are still facing thousands of Brits, and Navroc's request couldn't have come at a worse time... But I think that Rowan might be able to leave the troops if we work it right.
Colleen's perspective is... We committed to helping Navroc in order to get Tarquin and Ian back. So, her word was given as a MacLeod -- so she feels obligated to help Navroc.
In light of the fall of the British headquarters in Caliburn, plus the recent demise of Baron Marsir I think that it would be ok for Rowan to leave the front. However, I think that she should leave with the purpose of inspecting her troops on other portions of the front and she can bring the baron's head with her mounted on a lovely Scottish pike to boost morale.
However, while I think that she can leave the front for a few days -- I don't think that we can commit weeks and weeks to helping Navroc. I think we should help him for a week or two at most. And then Rowan and Colleen, at least, should return to the front.
By the way... what exactly have we committed to helping Navroc do? And will he take care of the dragon since we have taken care of Marsir?
Colleen does many prayers over the next few days to thank the Source (in the form of Angellus) for saving our butts.
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