Declaration of War

[Silence Sei]

The Ixian Knights, upon realizing that the in-fighting in Corone has caused too much distraught for the people, are officially declaring war on the country. It has come to the realization of Sei Orlouge that the threat the Knights were supposed to protect Corone from was its own turmoil. As such, this is an official declaration.

Who's with me?!

[orphans]

Are the Ixian Knights fighting the Rangers or the Empire? Or both?

[Silence Sei]

The Ixians are engaging anybody who will not cease the senseless fighting.

Its for their own good.

[Revenant]

So I'm guessing that the first target would be the Emipre leaders in Radasanth first since its closer. Or would the preferred target be the Rangers' HQ in Gisela since they are less consolidated in power?

[Silence Sei]

The plan currently is to divide and conquer. By attacking the empire first, head on, we should be able to draw the Rangers out of Gisela, making them think we're allies. Then we offer them the choice to lay down their arms, or continue the fight with a new, unknown enemy.

[The Phoenix]

If no one else is willing to stand up to this tyrant, Phoenix Ascendant shall lead the way. Consider the Ixian Knights opposed by the Phoenix.

[Silence Sei]

Tyranny? I am shocked and in awe.

We are in no way attempting to be tyrants, but to simply end the civil war by uniting Corone against a common threat. The country has weakened itself so thoroughly with all of its in-fighting, it requires someone to step in and stop the ceaseless bickering. We need to end the strife and mayhem the Empire and Rangers are causing and work on rebuilding what they have destroyed.

[Revenant]

"Life is cyclical," William mused. It was an adage that he'd heard before but had never really put any stock in. The demonic warrior wasn't really the type to put stock in any sort of philosophy. But after hearing Sei's proclamation, however, he had to admit that those stodgy old men with nothing better to do than discuss the meaning of life might be onto something.

A power-hungry mage with a rebel army and delusions of grandeur had already ruined his life once, and if life truly was cyclical, he wasn't about to let it happen again. Packing up what meager possessions he cared to take with him, William departed Ixian Castle without looking back. He'd been meaning to make a trip anyway, and now was as good a time as any.

William Arcus has departed the Ixian Knights in order to avoid having another power-hungry mage with a rebel army and delusions of grandeur ruin his life again. Them's the breaks.

[Arden]

Arden will stay with you to fight, on the premise that the end of the war, and indeed the Empire in Corone will greatly benefit the coffers of the Scourge.

Their interference with Valeena's Court, and the heavy taxation they are levelling on the island to support their cause is making a bid for independence implausible.

[Sagequeen]

Erissa will fight under the banner of the Ixian Knights in this war, but not because she agrees with the reasons for it being waged.

Her only hope is that she can guard innocent lives who will be caught in the line of fire.

[The Phoenix]

A circle of candles surrounded Elisdrasil, arrayed on the cold wood floor. They, along with the sticks of incense filling the room with the soft scent of wormwood, weren’t exactly necessary for divination, but the y certainly helped set the mood. That was the thing about divination; getting into the right mindset was the most important thing about tracing the pathways of the future. Then again, Elisdrasil thought, the people who had taught him that lesson had all died at the hands of the one their divinations had been wrong about. That was the other thing about divination; the pathways of the future were incredibly murky and very easy to misinterpret.

That is, until recently.

The water of time had grown calmer in recent months, clearer and more defined. Events were becoming so stable, that even a novice of Elisdrasil’s power was able to see along the path of what would be, not what may be. It had its benefits, to be sure, but more so it was worrying to the Raiaeran. And so he sat, surrounded only by candles and incense, preparing to cast his mind as far as it would go. To see whatever it was that his Future Sight could see. Elisdrasil closed his eyes and relaxed, allowing his mind to slip free from his body and settle upon the rolling waves of the future.

He drifted along the currents of time for a while, seeing flashes of faces and locations that he didn’t know, and would likely never see again. But instead of reaching the rapids in the river where he had always encountered them, the point where there were too many choices, too many paths, Elisdrasil’s mind began to pick up speed. The shores closed in upon him, a certainty rather than a supposition. Everything around him moved by faster and faster, possibilities dissipating the second he turned his attention towards them. In time he was moving too fast to stop, carried by a single thought, a single idea towards the end place. He was in a future where there was no probability, only fact.

The midday sun was swollen to bursting, bloated with the sickly red light which poured out of it. There were holes in the world, not tunnels or openings carved with pick and shovel, but vile, unhealthy tears in the fabric of reality. And pouring from those holes was a horde of awful, shapeless masses, creatures without any shape or form and completely inimical to existence as Elisdrasil knew it. Everything they touched dissolved. The living, the dead, the land and sea, even the very fabric of magic dissipated as the creatures poured from the blasphemous environment that had birthed them.

And then the vision faded as Elisdrasil was pulled back through the river of time. He watched the possibilities reconvene and the shores expand as he moved backwards. But always, drifting at the end of the river’s relentless progress, was that horrible scene which had unfolded in Elisdrasil’s future sight.

The Raiaeran gasped as his thoughts returned to his mind. He had never seen so much, been so far, and it had left him weak and disoriented. But though the journey left his body frail, his mind retained the full weight of the sights he had seen. He had seen it, and everything leading up to it. There was a chain of events stretching unbroken from now towards that one horrible point in time. Destiny, he knew, was like anything else in that the more momentum it built up the harder it was to stop.

The Phoenix had foreseen the return of Xem’Xund but had failed to take action in time and had perished. Now, he realized, if he failed to take action in time everything on Althanas would perish. Destiny needed to be derailed, needed someone to fight against the binding chains which pulled all of time unerringly towards it. But to fight against something so established, something with so much momentum would require more than just one lone elf. Elisdrasil would have to assemble heroes. And if there were no heroes to be found, Elisdrasil would create them.

Closing his eyes, Elisdrasil skimmed the surface of the stream around him. There was a man, a mystic, Sei Orlouge. He had declared war on Corone’s rulers in an attempt to fulfill a prophecy, and in doing so bring Althanas one step closer to a cruel and grisly fate. Elisdrasil would gather others to his cause under the guise of stopping a would-be tyrant. But destiny was a difficult thing to change, and there was a very real possibility that Elisdrasil wouldn’t be able to stop the mystic. He only hoped that if that was the case, he could at least set others up on the hero’s path to saving Althanas.

[The Phoenix]

Good job on the first round everyone, hope you all had a good time.

I'd like to personally thank all the judges who volunteered to take on the monumental task of judging our epicness.

Time to retreat, lick our wounds, and prepare for Round 2.

[The Phoenix]

Corone won't fall so easily to these rabble!

Prepare for Round 2 allies of Corone, we're still fighting an uphill battle.

[Silence Sei]

First time the Ixian Knights I believe have been referred to as 'Rabble'. Also love how you employ more chaotic/evil characters for these fights than us and yet -we're- the bad guys.

Anywho, well done. Knights, prepare for Round 2, I don't want any sloppiness this round, let's annihilate this group of drunk retards and their pets.

[The Phoenix]

Strong accusations from a man who decided to bring war to a nation with his personal army, the very same army that protects demon spawn and genocidal murderers. I would rather spend my time enjoying friendship and adventure than sullying my hands with blood while proclaiming my glory to the heavens. So pardon me and mine, 'savior', when we choose to do what we must to protect the innocents around us than sacrifice our values to pretend we are part of something great.

[Silence Sei]

Strong words, considering I was saving this country when you were still a youngling sucking on mama elf's teet. You'd rather choose a war your familiar with, one that will drag on for years and years with no clear winner. My way will once and for all resolve the dispute of Ranger or Imperial by eliminating the need for either. Your way sees that the people continue to suffer. However, I can clearly see that your people love Corone as much as I do, which is why we've extened an invitation to you if we do find ourselves victorious.

As far as your friendly questing, whatsay you and I engage in such an activity after this silly and needless fighting?

[Letho]

Just an observation, but did anyone notice how as far as being a war for Corone, the first round of battling had basically nothing to do with Corone, but rather just with two groups of people going at it for some arbitrary reason? I mean, ICly, what kind of advantage does either group gains for beating the other in some shitty little village, and how does such a victory translate to control over the entirety of Corone? No strategic advantage was gained in the first round, no important targets eliminated, and yet once the fighting is done, one of these groups will rise as not only a prominent force in the region, but indeed the governing force in the region. Gotta say, whoever thought that was a good idea didn't really think this stuff through, at least from the IC standpoint.

[The Phoenix]

Out of character here:

Letho, I assume that the first round was a snapshot of the beginning of the war. Each "battle" was in some way the alliance attempting to sabotage the efforts of the Ixian Knights, while Sei's forces are attempting to establish a foothold. As far as "strategic advantage" is concerned, unless we are all playing out Gisela-style army battles then it also doesn't make sense for control of major points to be contested solely by a small group of opposing individuals. As for the one army battle that we had in the first round, it was centered around contesting control of the City of Gisela, a MAJOR point for control of southern Corone. I assume that there are other battles going on all over the country but unfortunately we can't focus on all of them with the format given. Does that make this ill thought out? Not in my view. Think of it as an abridged version of the Ixian Knight's war for Corone.

[Silence Sei]

Just an observation, but did anyone notice how as far as being a war for Corone, the first round of battling had basically nothing to do with Corone, but rather just with two groups of people going at it for some arbitrary reason? I mean, ICly, what kind of advantage does either group gains for beating the other in some shitty little village, and how does such a victory translate to control over the entirety of Corone? No strategic advantage was gained in the first round, no important targets eliminated, and yet once the fighting is done, one of these groups will rise as not only a prominent force in the region, but indeed the governing force in the region. Gotta say, whoever thought that was a good idea didn't really think this stuff through, at least from the IC standpoint.

Let me put this a bit in perspective, my friend.

My party in the multi-battle was saying specifically that the 'village' was actually Radasanth (because I agree, there is in no way the Ixians would -ever- attack a normal village for no particular reason, and I think the village setting was just there to villify us).

Zerith and Margaret both brought soldiers, which they used in their battles, considering we are an army (once again, sent to a simple village that would hold no strategic advantage in the war), and got docked for actually using their -soldiers-, in a -war-, in that battle.

TB and Christoph battled over Gisela, in a Gisela style match-up.

Play Back and Rehtul battled the 2 Duffy alts along a small supply caravan heading towards Radasanth, which turns out was just a decoy so Sei could relay his supplies into Radasanth via Sei's Tomb.

The actual settings were there and established (indeed, while Paul stated the setting was a village, Poison simply wrote they were in a Church during the start of the Church setting, which I elaborated to being a church in Radasanth. I also made sure to point out that 'City Hall' was in Radasanth as well, and I can't remember if Dirks or Jess did, but I'm fairly sure Logan and Bellator had).

Invading Radasanth directly would have made more sense from my characters perspective. Gisela made sense since it's where the Rangers are based, the caravan made sense because there has to be a supply line running towards Radasanth in some way, but the 'village' setting would have made no lick of sense for -any- character of the Ixian Knights to attack. It actually seems more the type of place that Homunculous would come in for Night of Debauchery Part 2. If anything, we were saving villagers from having their organs farmed by the beast.

I at least hope that Round 2 will take place in areas that would make sense for the PA -and- th IK, instead of just one faction.

[Enigmatic Immortal]

I will now perform ritual Suicide for my failures....

[Silence Sei]

*hands over crappy sword he bought at flea market to make death that much more unbearable and not forthcoming.*

[Duffy]

Save your petty trash talk for Round 2 gentlemen.

[The Phoenix]

[Redacted]

[Letho]

Let me put this a bit in perspective, my friend.

My party in the multi-battle was saying specifically that the 'village' was actually Radasanth (because I agree, there is in no way the Ixians would -ever- attack a normal village for no particular reason, and I think the village setting was just there to villify us).

Zerith and Margaret both brought soldiers, which they used in their battles, considering we are an army (once again, sent to a simple village that would hold no strategic advantage in the war), and got docked for actually using their -soldiers-, in a -war-, in that battle.

TB and Christoph battled over Gisela, in a Gisela style match-up.

Play Back and Rehtul battled the 2 Duffy alts along a small supply caravan heading towards Radasanth, which turns out was just a decoy so Sei could relay his supplies into Radasanth via Sei's Tomb.

The actual settings were there and established (indeed, while Paul stated the setting was a village, Poison simply wrote they were in a Church during the start of the Church setting, which I elaborated to being a church in Radasanth. I also made sure to point out that 'City Hall' was in Radasanth as well, and I can't remember if Dirks or Jess did, but I'm fairly sure Logan and Bellator had).

Invading Radasanth directly would have made more sense from my characters perspective. Gisela made sense since it's where the Rangers are based, the caravan made sense because there has to be a supply line running towards Radasanth in some way, but the 'village' setting would have made no lick of sense for -any- character of the Ixian Knights to attack. It actually seems more the type of place that Homunculous would come in for Night of Debauchery Part 2. If anything, we were saving villagers from having their organs farmed by the beast.

I at least hope that Round 2 will take place in areas that would make sense for the PA -and- th IK, instead of just one faction.No, the actual settings weren't there and established. The actual settings and initial goals should've been made clear from the beginning. When I was writing my first post, I practically had nothing to go on, and what information I could gather from other threads and posts (talking about the multi-battle) was conflicted at best. Nobody made the effort to make clear what exactly were we trying to accomplish, other than beating the other side. The fact that you had to lay it all out like that is enough evidence that this could've been done better. Hell, I don't know about other posts, but from those that concerned Victor, I didn't see much what would actually reflect any goal other than just beating the other person. So while there might've been some consideration about the greater scheme at the beginning, it failed to reflect in later posts (I'm talking again about the multi-battle, as I didn't read the rest).

And this isn't a shot at Paul. I reckon he did the best he could what with being pressed with time (needlessly pressed with time, if I might add, though by who is something I wouldn't want to get into). I'm just saying that things could've been done better, and should be done better in the next round. I see no reason why there wouldn't be a short synopsis before the threads, making it clear for everyone where it's taking place and what's going on.

EDIT: And don't even get me started on the lack of IC explanation on how a small group such as the Ixian Knights (and in the global scheme of things, with two large armies fighting they would be practically minute) could ever take over a capitol such as Radasanth and actually hold it long enough to make a difference and dictate the next government. I found no trace of evidence that would claim they have the numbers to pull this off, at least not in their registration thread, and found no trace of a plan on how they plan to achieve it by winning this war. Is this the part where we should turn a blind eye and just go along with it for the sake of activity?

[Amber Eyes]

Calm down boys! :) I never looked at the village as Radasanth, I just took it as an unnamed town that had been abandoned during the war. I agree with Letho that a small intro would be incredibly helpful to ensure everyone is on the same page. Obviously we all did what we wanted with the setting, and it hurt some scores. I think we've learned from it and can do better next round. I'm hopeful that now that we're all communicating a bit better we can write a really good battle instead of the diconnected mess that was the first multi-battle.

Also, please note that the IK did not come up with the war idea. People asked for a PG war and we delivered. We never asked for control of Corone, though we do have some ideas for what to do should we gain control. Yes this whole thing was rushed, no one had a solid plan going in, and overall most of round one was a big mess with dropouts and misunderstandings, but all we can do is try to improve for round two.

And Pheonix- imagine you create a character who only wants good things for people and then you are constantly pushed and prodded into making him do things you don't as a writer want him to do. Imagine for the last year you have given in and given in until honestly you don't even enjoy writing anymore because every other person you brought in to roleplay with you made him out to be some kind of terrible person. Then imagine you take part in a war because you are asked to do it simply because you have the most active PG, and once again your character is turned into a villian. I know Ed gets pissy sometimes, but it took everything I had in me to convince him not to leave the site over this war, so I'm begging you... please don't push it.

[Enigmatic Immortal]

I think the best thing we're getting out of this is communication. Now, as I lay here bleeding profusely with this rusty sword I was given, could we put it all behind us and look to the future of a better war torn land?

This website has issues...

[Rayse Valentino]

The multi-battle was fairly novel. I don't think we've ever had anything before that made use of multiple conflicting settings at once. The Cell is the closest example to many characters sharing the same setting, however the caveat there was that The Cell had a very clear setting laid out. The "first poster" was not inventing it. We knew almost nothing about the setting in the multi-battle other than the fact that it had a few landmarks. I assumed it was a village because the distance between things like City Hall and a Farm is not a simple matter of crossing the streets in a large city, but this was my own personal assumption based on my own logic. Other people could've thought the opposite from their own logic.

Therefore, this is all Paul's fault.

[Revenant]

Everybody should burn Paul in effigy.

[Paladin]

I agree Rev. Which one is Paul again?

[Revenant]

Paul is ....

He's ....

Uh ...

He's the one responsible for this whole mess! Right over there! Go get him!

[Slayer of the Rot]

You girls are lucky I've been gone again.

[Silence Sei]

Trust me, buddy, we would have absolutely loved to have had you.

After all, Dan -is- our front line.

[Revenant]

Slayer!

[Silence Sei]

Due to several factors, the primary one being that I wish not for the war to continue anymore, I am officially withdrawing the IK from the Corone War.

Have fun with your new PG, Phoenix Ascendant.

[The Phoenix]

Phoenix Ascendant graciously accepts your withdrawal and will immediately cease hostilities towards Ixian forces.