Lohwand: Mustering the Tharkallan Legions - Part 1

 

Tharkalla Musters for war!

Today I set out a partial muster of my Tharkallan forces, as accumulated to date. I also have some cavalry and one box of scorpio bolt throwers, but none of those are assembled yet so I didn't bother with a picture. Also missing are any form of "High Command". These are 60mm Imperial Roman figures manufactured by Expeditionary Force (XForce). 

This muster shows three cohorts of Legio I Jharkor Corneolus [Carnelian] (#1 thru 3), three cohorts (1 partial) of Auxiliary infantry (#4 to 6), and some spares (#7). Also, in the foreground, are the four patterns of auxiliary shields XForce provides. Not shown are the bow arms and quivers, a few of which are included in each auxiliary box.

Each cohort is organized in the manner of a maniple as I think Peter Connolly described: Centurion, front rank, first file; Signifer in the middle of the front rank; Optio in the rear; I have placed the cornicen with the Optio; and lastly, front rank, last file is the Tesserarius. The latter I have given the officers helmet, though perhaps I shouldn't have. 

XForce provides two poses for officers and one for standard bearer and musician. I determined this because the latter two have their hands full and there is only one body pose with a sheathed sword on the correct side. There are two poses with sword drawn, one with the senior rank discs and one without.

XForce also provides bearskin helmet covers and capes for the standard bearer and musician. There are four of these in each command box and so I have been able to fully equip all six of the cohorts shown.

I need more, however, as my plan is to recreate an auxiliary cohort depicted in WRG's excellent "Armies and Enemies of Imperial Rome." On page 68 there is an illustration of the unit I mean, reproduced below:

Illustration of a Roman Auxiliary, 

by Ian Heath

So, to build them I will need to accumulate eighteen more bearskin-covered heads; the entire cohort will wear the bearskin covered helmets, the command figures will all get bearskin capes. At least that is the current plan.

XForce provides four patterns of auxiliary shields so I will try and build three other auxiliary cohorts. By the time I have done that I will have hopefully accumulated enough archer arm pairs and quivers to equip a cohort of auxiliary archers as well.

I would like to boost my Legio I strength to six cohorts, and also build a second legion; I don't know which pattern that would be. XForce sells three or four other styles, including the Praetorian Guard.

Lastly, there are "spares" shown in the muster above (#7). These are spare officer bodies, in chain and w/o the medallions. I am considering that by the time I have finished I may have enough "spares" to outfit another cohort. Perhaps an elite unit of some form, palace guard maybe, or perhaps a unit for some other nation if given the appropriate helmet...

Lohwand: The Tharkallan Emperors List - Part 2

 

The Tharkallan Emperors differ slightly from those of the Lunar Empire (of Glorantha), from which I have drawn my inspiration. In Glorantha the Emperor is the son of the Red Goddess, and is known as Moonson as a result. I'm not sure this is the case in my Lohwand campaign. In Glorantha the Red Goddess becomes a Goddess and, taking a part of the earth with her, rises into the sky as the Red Moon, the place where she took the earth becoming The Crater, a mystical, magical place. The new Red Moon remains above the crater, Glorantha being a lozenge rather than a planet; it's all part of the make-up of Glorantha and its basis in myth. 

I think Lohwand is more like a boring old planet. I think there may be a Red Goddess, and she is claimed as the mother of the emperor, so he might be called Moonson, but she is a celestial entity being associated with a bright new star that appeared in the heavens.

Also, in the source material the first emperor is the only one who returns. That said, I believe each iteration of the emperor is a reincarnation of the same entity. So the current emperor is the same as the first emperor, only a reincarnation of the same. But with a different personality or focus, hence the different names, which reflect the character of the current emperor.

In Lohwand each emperor is still a reincarnation of the same entity, and each emperor might return, sometimes multiple times. Lastly, some incarnations of the emperor are female. 

The Tharkallan Emperors

Dates are "AF" or "After the Founding" of the Empire.

The Emperor Takanegi, the First Emperor, united the Tharkallan tribes of Jharkor and Darjiin into one nation, Thark, and founded the city of the same name. Ruled for thirty-four years, until assassinated by a rival chieftain. Returned and slew his murderer. Ruled another twenty-four years (34-58 AF) during which the Dharijor tribes joined the confederation. Slain by spells cast by the shaman Sheng Seleris, leader of an invading nomad army. 

Sheng Seleris (58-71) ruled the Thark Confederation as part of a larger nomad empire for thirteen years. The second return of Takanegi sparks a Thark rebellion. The Emperor meets Sheng Seleris in battle, slaying him in single combat. The nomad army disperses, their empire breaking up as they withdraw.

Takanegi ruled for twenty-one more years (71-92) and then mysteriously disappeared. His reincarnation appeared the next day, emerging from his private quarters as if nothing had happened. This incarnation had a difference appearance but none doubted he was the emperor returned anew; this has been the case with all subsequent reincarnations.

This second incarnation was the Emperor Magnificus. He ruled for forty-six years (92-138) and died of old age, being of apparent middle age when he incarnated. His reign was largely peaceful and marked by prosperity throughout the confederation. Doblian joined the confederation. 

The third incarnation was the Emperor Artifex. He ruled for sixteen years from AF 138 to AF 154, during which time Thark prospered and grew into a civilized nation. He was slain in a Dart Competition.

"Dart Competition" - an euphemism for the private wars engaged in by the Noble Houses. Tolerated, though technically illegal. I'll have to do a separate post on this practice.

The Emperor Voracius was the fourth incarnation. He ruled for seven years (154-161) and lived up to his title in every manner. Assassinated by a Lord whose wife he had stolen (by means of Imperial Decree).

He returned immediately and the Lord (and wife) were forced to flee to Umbar. His second return ruled from AF 161 to AF 173, some twelve years before also being assassinated, this time by a faction of disgruntled Noble Houses exasperated by his excesses.

The sixth incarnation was the return of Artifex, only in this instance the emperor returned as female. The Empress Artifex calmed the Noble Houses, thrilled the people, and brought unity to the land once more. She ruled for seventeen years (173-190) before being killed in a sea battle with the Cirith Ungol pirates. She was mourned for a period of seventeen days before the next incarnation appeared.

To the noble's shock it was the Emperor Voracius once more. The captain of the Palace Guard threatened to assassinate him immediately but was restrained. For his part the emperor appeared meek and apologetic, and indeed seemed to moderate his urges, at least for the first part of the reign. He reigned for fifteen years (190-205) before again being assassinated, this time by the Umbarite Ambassador, whom he had insulted during a feast. 

The next incarnation proved to be the Emperor Voracius again, in his third return. In this incarnation he proved himself a masterful manipulator and turned his eye outwards, incorporating the neighbouring kingdom of Dorel and declaring the Tharkallan Empire. He ruled for twenty-one years, from AF 205 to AF 226. During this time his excesses were moderated by the able Seneschal Hewl and were redirected into setting up a highly efficient spy system and secret police, spanning the Empire and the lands beyond. He was eventually assassinated - poisoned, despite his food tasters; they not being effected, having secretly been given the antidote. 

The next incarnation was the Emperor Robustus, who ruled for twelve years, from AF 226 to AF 238. He ruled well and the Empire prospered during his reign. The emperor was assassinated as he addressed the Senate, the assassin a black-clad, masked figure armed with a Vorpal Blade. They dueled but the blade went "snicker-snack" leaving the emperor dead. The Emperor's first reincarnation returned immediately, on the Senate floor behind the assassin.  Wresting the blade away, the Emperor slew his assassin with his own blade. The assassin's body crumbled to a black powder which the emperor ordered collected and later had interred in a lead jar. 

The Vorpal Blade was set on display in the Senate as a reminder of the consequences of betrayal. There it remained for many years. Two other people met their death from the blade: the first a servant attempting to clean the blade, who died as soon as he touched it, and the other a hapless Ambassador from Umbar who touched it despite being warned not to. This latter incident almost sparked a war, but the Umbarites were mollified when it was pointed out that he had been warned. Nevertheless it remained a sore point between the two nations. I will do a separate post about the Vorpal Blade, and Vorpal Swords in general, at a later date.

The first return of the Emperor Robustus ruled as ably as before, ruling from AF 238 to AF 263. After a quarter century of prosperity he was again assassinated, this time by unknown assailants, who made good their escape.

The Emperor Robustus returned for a second time and wasted no time ordering a search for his assassins. This eventually proved fruitless and he ruled for three years (263-266) before being assassinated a third time, this time by a concubine who died herself by the poison on her lips. 

In the Emperor's fifteenth reincarnation, he returned once more as the Emperor Robustus (AF 266) but was slain again, on the evening of his Ascension, at the hands of the captain of his guard. His fourth return (or fifth incarnation) immediately, overseeing the execution of his treacherous captain, purging the guard and scouring all levels of government looking for malcontents and rebels.

This last incarnation of the Emperor Robustus went on to rule for twenty-one years, from AF 266 to AF 287 before dying of a virulent plague that swept through the empire.  

The seventeenth Emperor was known as the Emperor Reclusus. He ruled for thirty-six long years (287-323), much of it in seclusion at the Palace, or in one of his many estates. A scientist and philosopher who also dabbled with thaumaturgy, was responsible for the Imperial Proxies. 

The first was the Silver Proxy, which was created shortly after the Emperor's ascension and which took his seat in the High Court, acting in all ways as if it was the Emperor himself. The Silver Proxy remained in that court the entire duration of his reign, and indeed, remains there still, dispensing justice on behalf of the sitting Emperor.

Second was the Bronze Proxy, created in response to barbarian invasions from the West. This proxy lead the armies and threw back the invaders. When the emperor died this proxy returned to the capital and placed itself at the top of the stairs leading to the palace. It has not moved from that post and remains, untarnished, on guard; popular legends state it will act to defend the palace should it be attacked.

The third proxy was the Brass Proxy, which spent its time in either one of the Imperial Laboratories, or the Imperial Library, or, on occasion, the Grand Library in Arolanit. This proxy was essentially a way for the Emperor to increase his research productivity. 

The last was the Bone Proxy, created by the Emperor to take his place in his tomb. The Emperor oversaw the burial ceremony himself, which involved the usual procession and much public display of grief. The next day he was assassinated in a mysterious explosion that left no trace of body.

The Emperor Reclusus was followed by the Empress Celestinus, also called the Warrior Empress. She ruled for sixteen years, from AF 323 to AF 339. She expanded the Empire, conquering Bisset in AF 330. She was killed in battle against the Kostaddi nine years later.

In the next incarnation the Emperor Voracius returned for a fourth time. His rule was possibly less extreme than previous, or perhaps the legends had exaggerated his debauchery. This incarnation ruled for nineteen years, from AF 339 to AF 358. During that time he consolidated the gains of his predecessor and continued the civil works begun by the Emperor Robustus, including much expanding the network of Imperial Roads. Despite being generally well liked and respected, possibly for the first time in his long list of reincarnations, he was slain in a Dart Competition, possibly by accident. 

When the Emperor Voracius returned yet again, for his sixth and final incarnation, he ordered his killer freed and took no action against neither he nor his House. The Emperor ruled for a further twenty-six years, from AF 358 to AF 384, in much the same manner as he had demonstrated with his last incarnation. The Empire prospered and sincerely mourned his passing when he was assassinated at a state occasion honouring the Ambassador of Pan Tang. No connection with the Ambassador was ever proven, despite a thorough investigation led by the Brass Proxy.

In AF 384 the Emperor Militaris ascended to the throne. His long rule of fifty-two years was marked by much warfare; he led punitive expeditions against the western barbarians and, in 400 AF, the conquest of Voria. He also established the Bossonian Marches as a bulwark on the Empire's northern flank. He was slain there in AF 436, fighting the Wenelian Forest tribes.

The Emperor Militaris was reincarnated in his military camp in the Bossonian Marches. He immediately led his army to avenge his predecessor, inflicting a crushing defeat on the tribal coalition. He ruled from AF 436 until AF 464 - a period of twenty-eight years - before being slain again in battle against the Kostaddi. 

The Empress Militaris returned and rallied her army but it was not until AF 480 that the Kostaddi were finally subdued and taken into the empire. The Empress Militaris ruled for twenty-one years, fighting on many fronts, before being slain during the final conquest of Karasal in AF 485.

The Emperor Venerabilis, who followed after left her generals to complete the conquest and consolidation. Thereafter followed a long period of calm throughout the empire. The Long Peace, as it is known, lasted for sixty years, from AF 485 until 545. The Emperor Venerabilis died in his sleep in AF 545, a much-loved Emperor; possibly the most popular emperor the empire had yet known.

The Emperor Ignifer followed and immediately set about annexing Nemedia (AF 545) on the Empire's eastern border. The annexation was not a peaceful one and the remnants of the defeated Nemedian nobles retreated north to Imther where they set themselves up as the Exiles, in the shadow of Mount Wintertop. The Emperor Ignifer ruled for thirteen years, from AF 545 to AF 558, before falling to a Nemedian assassin's blade.

The Emperor Ignifer returned again and ruled for nine turbulent years from AF 558 until AF 567 when he was slain in battle against the Exiles.

He was followed by the Empress Celestinus returned again, this time for a period of eighteen years. A warrior as her previous incarnation had been, she fought many wars and put down many rebellions but did not expand the Empire's borders any further. The Empress Celestinus reigned from AF 567 to AF 585 before being killed storming pirate citadel on Cirith Ungol. 

The Twenty-Seventh, and current, Emperor is the Emperor Argenteus. He ascended to the throne in AF 585 and has ruled ably for the twenty years, until the present time (AF 605). He purposely left the pirates of Cirith Ungol to themselves, turned his gaze westward instead. In AF 590 Filkhar was subdued and added to the Empire. Five years later, in AF 595 he led his armies across the Londros Passage to invade Granbreton. That conquest was complete by AF 598 with the submission of the last Outlaw Queen. Two years later, in AF 600, he turned his attention southwards with the invasion and conquest of Arolanit. 

The last five years have been spent consolidating these gains and planning further expansion. With the conquest of Arolanit the Emperor Argenteus has expanded the College of Magic and embodied several magical regiments, most notably the Crater Makers. 

The Tharkallan Empire, circa AF 605

(the present day)

Lohwand: the Dara Happan Emperors List - Part 1

 

List of Dara Happan Emperors, 

from the First Sunrise to the Present.

(To see full size, click on the image, then

 right click, and open the image in its own tab. 

It should allow you to magnify the image.)

Following on from my Tharkallan Emperors list based on Greg Stafford's Lunar Empire material from The Fortunate Succession, a Glorantha supplement, the fantasy world he created. This list is from information on the Dara Happan Empire from the same supplement. I've changed some stuff, of course, to make it fit my campaign. The main thing is that The Fortunate Succession provides a useful source of names and little tidbits of background.

I still have to go back and do Part 2 of the Tharkallan Emperors list, where I flesh out the listings with better descriptions but I wanted to make a start on Dara Happa, another name I borrowed as a nation in my campaign. 

So today I worked on the Dara Happan Emperors list. This list goes back to the First Sunrise, when Yelm* the Sun God first rose in the sky. By Dara Happan reckoning that is 112,289 years ago. Now obviously a large part of that is some mythic "Godtime", but even so Dara Happa is a long-lived empire. 

*this is more Gloranthan material! I'm a fan!

Today it is but a shadow of its former self. It used to span almost the entire Northlands and much of the Southlands. But that was in the Godtime and since then much has changed. Still, for much of its history Dara Happa, the Solar Empire, was a mighty force. Many of my other nations, such as Umbar, the Isles of the Purple Towns and Carmania were former colonies of the Solar Empire at its height.

As a reminder, here is my main map again:

This Dara Happan Emperor list also mentions other nations on the above map, that either used to be a part of the Solar Empire or were in conflict with it. These include Carmania, Turan and Saird.

Its my intent to draft a comprehensive timeline combining the Dara Happan list with the Tharkallan list and adding others such as a Keoland (Great Kingdom) list.

So, why bother with all this? I thought this was a wargame campaign. Well, for a number of reasons:

1) It's background. I believe it will help me flesh out my Noble Houses as I detail the nations in the campaign. Remember, this is following in the footsteps of Tony Bath's Hyboria campaign and so I need Rulers, and Noble families, Generals, Stewards, Priests and the like. Many noble houses will trace their ancestry back to particular Emperors or Heroes of the past. 

2) I think it provides scenarios, and inspires ideas for conflicts, past and present, that I can potentially wargame. Just compiling these lists from The Fortunate Succession I've had dozens ideas about how this links to that, and how things might work together. 

3) And the Dara Happan list not only helps with the Solar Empire, and Carmania, Turan and Saird - as mentioned above - but also eastern nations such as Oin and Yu (Golden Dragon), and the sorcerous island of Pan Tang (The Monster Army.)

Lohwand - the Tharkallan Emperors List - Part 1

 

List of Tharkallan Emperors, 

from year of Founding to Present.

Here I am borrowing heavily from Greg Stafford's Glorantha, modifying his Red Emperor list from The Fortunate Succession as the basis for my Tharkallan Emperors. This because I'm patterning my Tharkalla both on the Roman Empire and the Lunar Empire of Glorantha, though it is not the same as either.

So, I am also incorporating the notion that the Emperors can be reborn, though the how's and the why's of this will remain a mystery, at least for now. That is why the above list shows "First Incarnation", "First Rebirth", etc. 

The Emperor Argenteus is the presiding ruler, the current year being 605 AF. As you can see he has embarked on a campaign of expansion, with conquests in the west and to the south. 

Before Takenagi there are only tribal kings, Doskalos - also borrowed from The Fortunate Succession - being the last.  

Still a lot to work out. Like incorporating Sheng Seleris, another of Greg Stafford's creations. I think the story will follow along more or less like the Gloranthan original and hopefully will allow me to tie in my horse nomads. 

The life of an Emperor is a dangerous one, as the Roman Emperors certainly well knew! Dart competitions are also a Lunar Empire tradition, one I happen to quite like; they are clandestine wars between the Great Houses of the Empire. In a way the machinations of the Great Houses in the Dune novels is similar. I suppose the feuding between rival Samurai clans is also similar in many respects. 

In part 2 I'll try and expand upon the various Emperors. 

I might mention that my Dara Happa is also a Greg Stafford inspiration and I intend to use his Dara Happan Emperors List as well to flesh out my little campaign. I'm planning on linking my noble characters to the list, each family claiming descent from some mythic hero or emperor.

Edit: I noticed that I left out an Emperor from the list, and as I liked the name, I went back and mixed things up a bit so I could add him back in. And even as I type that I am now thinking: why did I assume that they are all male? And I'm thinking: Not! (I mean as the original Red Emperor in a Gloranthan context it made sense, but they are no longer in a Gloranthan context in this instance.) 

I'll fix this in part 2. :-)

Lohwand: Back to Bases

 

Litko "Rune Battles" basing set

GMT268

3mm Plywood

Demonstrating the effectiveness 

of my magnetic basing system...

Formed Unit bases

5" x 4" custom from Warbases

So far, so good!

Made a small leap forward over the last week, my slow progress with base-making gradually taking shape. As I think I mentioned previously, I have decided that "regulars" should be based in even numbers, and "irregulars" in odd numbers. In addition, "formed" will get bases with 90-degree corners, while "unformed", i.e. "warbands", will get irregularly shaped bases.

As we have a stock of surplus biscuit tins saved up over a number of years, and I have a stock of off-cuts from sign shop magnetic sheeting, I decided to make my bases so that I can swap the troops on and off the bases as needed. Theoretically, by doing this I should only need a limited number of bases; enough to field two typical armies without caring which armies they are. 

By happy chance the Expeditionary Force 60mm Ancients that are providing the bulk of my armies have integral plastic bases with a hollow underneath. The hollow is roughly egg-shaped and, with slight variations, about the depth of the magnetic stripping - another stroke of luck! In some instances the depth is slightly deeper, requiring a card insert to make sure the magnet is flush with the base edges. Some others are slightly shallower. It just seems to depend on the particular pose and presumably how the sculptor made that particular base, or perhaps how the production die was cut. 

Anyway, it is "So far, so good". I have finally produced ten or so "formed" bases and have started on the "irregular" bases. As I mentioned before I have decided on 5" x 4" x 3mm thick bases as my main base type, for "formed" troops such as Roman cohort or hoplite phalanx. For Macedonian pike phalanx I might turn the base on end so the narrow face is the front, with three ranks of two. I don't currently have any pike-armed figures though, so I am unable to experiment.

For warbands and hordes, the first picture above shows a possible warband arrangement. It shows nine figures on the central base, and then perhaps seven on each side base, with horn blowers and priests behind on single bases. That gives 23+ figures, about the size of one of my cohorts (20 figs.)

The Litko "Rune Battles, Terrain Tile Set GMT268" contains two of the large bases, the two medium bases shown and the four small bases. So I can make larger warbands by using more from each set per warband. I can also alter the warband size by swopping around how the bases are aligned. Litko also make an even larger irregular base: tree bases I think they are called. They are about 10.5" x 7" give-or-take. Warbases also makes irregularly shaped "Pond Bases" which look like they would hold three of my figures. So, lots of options!

The above photos also show how the magnets, though not super strong, are strong enough to hold the figures more-or-less in place. Certainly good enough for gaming though I probably wouldn't try running with the figures on, at least NOT after I've got everything painted!

Lastly, if I am lucky, the remaining biscuit tins will be deep enough to store the figures in, and the magnets will do a fine job holding them in place there. So far I have only cut up a single tin, and I am only about halfway through the metal from that, so I should have plenty of tins left over for storage. (Plus we are liable to accumulate a few more this Christmas!) ;-)

Lohwand: Umbar in Detail - Part 1

 

Hannibal

from Mommsen's "Römische Geschichte"

(as found on Wikipedia)

I've started to think in detail about Umbar, my proxy Carthage. Not just historical Carthage, of course, but also Tolkien's Corsairs of Umbar, and Moorcock's Sea Kings of the Purple Towns. Both the Isles of the Purple Towns and Umbar were founded by Dara Happa during its "Golden Age" but have long since won their independence. The Sea Kings of Menii are not actually subject to Umbar, but are more like close cousins.

Following Tony Bath's ideas from his Hyboria Campaign, as detailed in "How to Set up a Wargame's Campaign", I am starting my detailing by setting up some Noble families. I haven't divided up Umbar's holdings into provinces as of yet, but I have the names of the cities from my map, shown again below:

Umbarite Provinces and Cities, in blue

The principal provinces and cities shown are:

1) Umbar;

2) The Isles of the Purple Towns;

3) Menii;

4) Milii;

5) Uqbara;

6) Shekar;

7) Zoat;

8) Zuzzbur;

9) Bazzur;

10) The Isles of the Green Gables;

11) Azbar (on the Island of Cirith Ungol);

12) Aza Island (the small island south-west of Cirith Ungol);

13) Bakaz Island (the small island south-east of Cirith Ungol);

14) Menaz Island (in the Straits of Blades).

For each of those I need to come up with noble families and a hierarchy of command. My Umbar is ruled by an elected King, who rules for his life time or until impeached by the High Council. The High Council of Nobles forms a senate-like body that makes laws and enacts the will of the King. Beneath the "Primarchs" of the High Council are the Provincial Governors (called "Boetharchs") and beneath them are the Chief Magistrates (known as "Suffetes"). 

The King of Umbar

x

The High Council of Nobles

[Primarchs]

x

Provincial Governors 

[Boetharchs]

x

Chief Magistrates

[Suffetes]

I haven't worked out all the details yet. What I have decided is that I need at least thirty family names, plus a table of given names, male and female, so that not all my characters are called "Hannibal"! This I have done, using Wikipedia, Tolkien and Moorcock as primary sources; also Chaosium's "Sea Kings of the Purple Towns" Stormbringer supplement; and finally just making some things up myself.

The following tables use a D66. That is, roll 1d6 followed by a second d6 to get a range between 1 and 36. Notice that there is only a 1 in 36 chance each of getting "Hannibal", "Hasdrubal", or "Barca"! ;-)

Table of Surnames (D66):

1/1) Gisgon;

1/2) Magon;

1/3) Barca;

1/4) Cabrala;

1/5) Barkeno;

1/6) Bagradas;

2/1) Gisco;

2/2) Machus;

2/3) Huss;

2/4) Bojador;

2/5) Mogador;

2/6) Kariss;

3/1) Karisan;

3/2) Edox;

3/3) Gestrani;

3/4) Lorkar;

3/5) Shascil;

3/6) Uthel;

4/1) Inkel;

4/2) Belrain;

4/3) Salkan;

4/4) Anguzz;

4/5) Kymar;

4/6) Killaraz;

5/1) Danit;

5/2) Telhak;

5/3) Temoraz;

5/4) Nazhan;

5/5) Agril-Maren;

5/6) Maren;

6/1) Zzar;

6/2) Telamar;

6/3) Bellaz;

6/4) Zorlas;

6/5) Zzolir;

6/6) Zork;

Table of First Names (Male) (D66):

1/1) Carthalo;

1/2) Melqar;

1/3) Adherbal;

1/4) Atarbas;

1/5) Gadir;

1/6) Mago;

2/1) Mattan;

2/2) Nolfo;

2/3) Fantar;

2/4) Penatar;

2/5) Hamilcar;

2/6) Hanno;

3/1) Gisgo;

3/2) Hasdrubal;

3/3) Hannibal;

3/4) Fazzur;

3/5) Khandive;

3/6) Manno;

4/1) Matho;

4/2) Bomilcar;

4/3) Navaras;

4/4) Suniatus;

4/5) Timoleon;

4/6) Gersakkun;

5/1) Himilco;

5/2) Phameas;

5/3) Marhabal;

5/4) Eldacar;

5/5) Castamir;

5/6) Calimentar;

6/1) Romendacil;

6/2) Orendil;

6/3) Zzabur;

6/4) Smiorgan;

6/5) Orgon;

6/6) Kargan;

Table of First Names (Female) (D66):

1/1) Dido; 

1/2) Alyssa;

1/3) Elissa; 

1/4) Della; 

1/5) Salammbo; 

1/6) Sophonisba;

2/1) Salome;

2/2) Sunna;

2/3) Menna;

2/4) Navia;

2/5) Mara;

2/6) Calla;

3/1) Dida;

3/2) Narisba;

3/3) Gada;

3/4) Gallas;

3/5) Gaya;

3/6) Hara;

4/1) Harissa;

4/2) Gayssa;

4/3) Galissa;

4/4) Harome;

4/5) Didara;

4/6) Kaya;

5/1) Kalissa;

5/2) Kalyssa;

5/3) Nayenna;

5/4) Nayella;

5/5) Nanba;

5/6) Islamora;

6/1) Berka;

6/2) Amaree;

6/3) Karina;

6/4) Makavee;

6/5) Osolly;

6/6) Samarda;

Nest Step: Work out those family trees!

Lohwand: The Merchant Princes of Umbar

 

Umbar (in blue)

Umbar is my proxy nation for Carthage and my geography roughly parallels the historic situation, though I have changed it a little. I don't have a "Sardinia", for example. And I've given Umbar more territories on the eastern borders of Tharkalla, which is my proxy Rome. 

My "Romans" are Early Imperial, with a dash of Late Imperial mixed in, so there is that difference as well. And I've got fantasy elements as well. More than Tony Bath had in his Hyboria campaign but things have move on from then a bit. :-)

Shem and Zingara are my Iberian proxies, Cirith Ungol is becoming a bit like Sicily, but is not under Tharkallan ("Roman") control. The Isles of the Green Gables are my Balearic Isles, sort of - they exist because a friend was mocking my wholesale stealing of names from a wide swathe of fantasy books and made some comment to the effect I was missing "Anne of the Green Gables", so I put them in!

The Tharkallan cities with the blue borders to the symbol are former Umbar possessions, just to give them a reason to fight. As if one were needed in a wargames campaign...!

Lohwand: Some Preliminary Basing Ideas

Unit Bases (i.e. one figure = multiple persons)

OK, more-or-less final basing ideas:

1) Units get square or rectangular bases;

2) Single entities get round or oval bases;

3) Regular units are based with an even number of figures;

4) Irregular units are based with an odd number of figures;

5) My standard base is 4" x 5".

I have an idea that a phalanx sub-unit might be four bases, as above, but with the front edge being 4", not 5". So each base would be two figures wide by three deep, with the whole sub unit being four figures wide by six figures deep. Perhaps in this configuration it would have six bases instead of four, arrayed three wide by two deep. 

More later...

 

Lohwand: Keoland - The Great Kingdom

 

Keoland

The Great Kingdom

Borrowing names again, this time from Greyhawk, today's post looks back into the history of my northern kingdoms known as The Shield Lands: Furyondy, Jemmerdy, Valon, Olokand, Ulek,  and Vanch. Over 500 years ago these were part of Keoland, a mighty kingdom with a history going back another 300 years or more.

Keoland is sometimes called The Great Kingdom, but this only during the reign of the Hestolian Dynasty, the last great family to rule the united Kingdom. King Hestol I expanded the kingdom south into Toonol and Wenelia. Hestol II pushed into Vanch, and south through the Forest of Rist, starting construction of the Great South Road. That work was completed by Hestol III who expanded further south and established Imther and the Great East Road to Torrel. Hestol IV consolidated the southern domains. In his long reign Castle Blue and Lossang were established as colonies on the north shore of Lake Van. He expanded eastwards, extending the Great East Road to the Pavis oasis, turning a squalid village into a thriving city controlling the caravan route to Turan.

The greatest extent of the Keoish kingdom was not reached until the reign of Hestol V. Ascending the throne at a young age, he expanded Keoland southwards, not stopping until Keoish armies had reached the southern seas. He expanded the Great South Road and established the stronghold of Dol Amroth at the edge of the Evervast Sea. He ruled long and the kingdom prospered, and it was under his rule that Keoland was first styled "The Great Kingdom". There were further wars, of course, against Dara Happa and Turan, and the Tharkian tribes to the west, but the borders were not expanded any further. 

The end of the kingdom came after Hestol V had been on the throne for over forty years. According to the legends he came under the spell of a witch who ensorcelled the king and caused him to embark on a mad crusade against the sorcerous realm of Pan Tang. Taking ship with a large fleet the King sailed into the Unknown East and neither he nor any of his army were ever seen or heard from again.

After a period of years, and several expeditions had been sent, and failed to return, the High Steward whom the king had left in his place declared that he would continue to rule "as the king had wished, in His name". The High Steward passed on his duties to his son, and so the tradition continued for three generations which each subsequent steward taking more powers and behaving more and more like a king himself.  

At this point factions began to develop. Nobles and subject tribes rebelled, and within ten short years the entire southern part of the kingdom was lost. The Stewards were disposed and the Keoish kingdom ceased to exist. The southern cities lingered for a time but were all eventually sacked. Pavis survives, in a much lessened form. The Great Forest of Rist reclaimed what was rightfully its own, and the Great South Road became little more than a track known as the Old South Road. Imther carried on as an independent kingdom and the two enclaves of Khauran and Khoraja still survive, but have no contact with the Shield Lands. The colonies on the shore of Lake Van fell into disrepair and were overrun by the forest tribes.

After generations of conflict the borders of the present day Shield Lands were more-or-less established as shown on the Lohwand campaign map. Dol Amroth has grown into a independent fortress island, the domain of the Order of the Swan. The Margravate of Jemmerdy was established to protect the southern border of Furyondy and is now a semi-independent entity. 

Lohwand: The Legions of the Tharkallan Empire, Part 3

Roman Centurion Portrait 

by Andrea Mazzocchetti

I've been working out some more things about the Tharkallan Empire which, as you know, is my "Not Rome". I've been pulling a few things together that I'd already thought out, like naming the legions after gemstones and associating them with the provinces, and also the order in which the provinces were incorporated into the Empire. See my previous posts for all that.

Today I thought I'd try working out latin names for the various gemstones. I also looked up the Roman legions on wikipedia and learned about how they were named - which seems a bit of a muddle. Not that that is a bad thing, and in the end I have come up with my own muddle. 

One thing I learned was that Augustus disbanded many of the legions he inherited and renumbered the rest in numerical sequence. So this is how I started out. I decided to use the format:

Legio <number> <province of origin> <gemstone>

When I started looking up latin versions of the gemstones, I discovered that Sapphires and Rubies are different forms of the same stone (IIRC) and that made me turn those legions into sister legions from the same province.

Similarly I discovered that Carnelian had a darker version, Sard, and that gave me two legions associated with that province. 

What I did was keep the sequential numbers for the overall list and then add a second legion for those two provinces. So, Legio <number+1> etc. This gives me multiple Legio II's and IV's which I think nicely parallels the Real World. (You'll understand when you see the list.)

When I came to the end I realized I'd forgotten one: the Chromatic Legion, which is to be a sort of Praetorian Guard. I'd also decided to have a Diamond legion, so that added another, and not wanting to have an odd number of legions I added a third. These all I listed as under the capital: Thark.

So here is my list:

1) Legio I Jharkor Corneolus [Carnelian]

2) Legio II Jharkor Sarx [Sard]

3) Legio II Dharjiin Obsidianus [Obsidian]

4) Legio III Dharijor Sapphirus [Sapphire]

5) Legio IV Dharijor Ruber [Ruby]

6) Legio IV Doblian Topazus [Topaz]

7) Legio V Dorel Esmaraldus [Emerald]

8) Legio VI Bisset Amethystos [Amethyst]

9) Legio VIII Voria Ambar [Amber]

10) Legio IX Kostaddi Turchesius [Turquoise]

11) Legio X Karasal Onyx [Onyx]

12) Legio XI Nemedia Beryllus [Beryl]

13) Legio XII Filkhar Gagates [Jet]

14) Legio XIII Granbreton Achates [Agate]

15) Legio XIV Arolanit Iaspis [Jasper]

16) Legio I Thark Chromaticus [Chromatic]

17) Legio II Thark Adamantem [Diamond]

18) Legio III Thark Basaltes [Basalt]

This is not to say this list is final, of course! And I'm not sure yet whether it includes Auxilia or not. Probably not...

The other thing I did today was start making other legion associations: protector gods and goddesses, symbolic and animal associations, etc. This came about quite easily based on the associations of the gemstones.

I still have to work on that so I won't show it just yet.

Edit: I've just realized that I've missed a number. When I reorganized the list, likely when moving Ruby to join Sapphire, I didn't renumber the others properly. So Legio VII is missing. A Lost Legion! 😎

Now I have to work out what that is all about...

Lohwand: Research...

 

Fantasia 1940

My head is swimming a bit from all the research I've been doing the last little while; the more so because today I unearthed yet more resources from my own collection that I'd forgotten about: issues of "Ancient Warfare" magazine, for example. Or "Kmt: a Modern Journal of Ancient Egypt". 

Also role-playing games: Cthulhu Invictus, along with the companion volume; Basic Role-Playing: Rome; Cthulhu Dark Ages. It's almost like I've been working on this project for years subconsciously!

And, just before lunch I stumbled upon the Maze & Minotaurs RPG site yet again. I'd downloaded everything in the past but I made sure to download it all again. (It's free!) Doing so reminded me that there might be a lot of relevant material within its rules and supplements.

The Lead Adventure Forum

Also this morning I posted a reply to a query about what figures I am planning to use. I quote it here:

I'm planning on using 60mm plastic figures where possible, 54mm (1/32nd scale) otherwise. I haven't gotten rid of my smaller scale force either so maybe at some point I'll use them as well.

For the Tharkallan Empire I've decided on Expeditionary Force (XForce) 60mm figures:

http://www.expeditionaryforce.com.sg/catalogue-c-9.html

In addition to the Early Imperial Roman range [i.e. Tharkallan Empire], they make Celtic Barbarians, Early Germans, Classical Greece, Ancient Macedonians and Ancient Persians.

They also have a range of Hundred Years War French and English.

Their future plans include Punic Wars, Ancient Egypt and Biblical Era, IIRC.

For immediate Enemies and Allies(?) of the Tharkallan Empire the western "Celtic" tribes are covered: Kost, Celtos, Teleos, Soleos, Brithos, Erin, and, possibly, Slontos. I will try and give them some sort of tribal identity. I don't mean collecting an army for each, but finding some way to swap them, either standards, or shields, or having detachable figures that can be switched around on the bases to make the unit look more like one tribe than the other.

The Early Germans will work as Wenelian barbarians, and also Toonolian Marsh tribes.

If XForce does come out with Ancient Spanish, then I will use them for Shem and Zingara.

Imther (and my Dunlendings) will be Ancient Thracians (part of the XForce Macedonian line).

For Amazons I am planning on using LOD figures which are also 60mm. Oronin, Oraya and Ologog comprise the Amazon Confederacy.

https://lodtoysoldiers.com/

They have a War of Troy range which also includes Greeks and Trojans.

The XForce Classical Greeks will supply: Ilmoria, Vilmir, Lormyr and Holay. Perhaps Sylila, but it just occurred to me that a non-Confederacy Amazon nation might be a good idea. Some Macedonians might find there way in as well.

Kos, Kroy, Ossary and Corlay will use LOD Greeks and Trojans.

Dara Happa, Saird and Turan will be a mix of Ancient Persians and Macedonians. Dara Happa being more Persian and Turan more Macedonian.

Deelguy and Eyagi are desert tribes, but otherwise I know nothing about them. The Hyrkanian Steppes and the Redlands have horse nomads. Erigia and Pent are still a bit nebulous as are the further Eastern nations, except Pan Tang, which I am intending to be very Chaotic, with Samurai as warriors, and many demons and monsters of various sorts.

The Shield Lands, comprising Furyondy, Jemmerdy, Valon, Olokand, Ulek and Vanch, I am planning on using the XForce Medieval range.  I think the character of the nations becomes more "Rus" as one goes eastward. Vanch is a frontier nation, mostly wilderness. The conflicts there will be small scale, between local Marcher Barons and the Forest Tribes.

Dol Amroth will also use Medieval figures. They are Swan Knights per Tolkien, but are NOT Elves or Half-elves*. I have already sourced the helmets that I think will work with the XFoce knights. They are my version of the Knights of St. John, only I am not using Christianity or Islam as religions. For religions I am doing something else. A blend of Glorantha and other sources. So, Humakt as premier War God.

* I don't want to use Elves and Dwarves, nor Orcs. At least not, the Tolkien, or D&D or GW versions. Trolls, along the line of Gloranthan Trolls, and half-trolls, like the Tusk Riders I like. I'm working on Tusk Rider conversions right now. I have some mounts, and am just waiting on suitable rider figures (in transit.) Sprites as found in the Thane Tostig saga, definitely, and Evil Dwarves as suggested in the Narnia stories, maybe. Beastmen, yes. Giants, yes. In Lohwand they are about 6" tall.

Shazar, Tarkesh, Haradwaith, Calormen and Carmania are the Turks. But they are not Islamic. They probably all worship a pantheon headed by Tash - see "A Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis.

Umbar are a mix of Carthage and Corsairs, ala Tolkien.

Haida Pakala are also pirates or corsairs of even more irregular appearance.

The Chakan Forest area is veing populated by Chintoys Aztecs, Mayans and Incans.

Stygia is Ancient Egypt, of course. I have some figures for them from an old manufacturer and they are part of XForce's plans. The rest are a bit more muddled, and subject to change.

After posting my reply I had a flash. I've been thinking a lot about the Auxiliary cohorts of the Tharkallan Empire. In Roman times they were recruited in regions outside Italy (i.e. non-heartland regions) but they served away from their recruitment areas. So, in Lohwand, I might reasonably recruit Auxiliary cohorts from conquered areas like Granbretton or Filkhar, etc. And those contingents would be found serving elsewhere. 

And then I began thinking what do the Granbretton Auxiliaries look like? Do they have beast helms, for example? Or at least horns on their helms? 

Scanning an issue of Ancient Warfare magazine featuring articles about the army of the First Princeps (Vol XII, Issue 1), I found an illustration of a marble frieze (p14-15) dated to the 1st century AD and showing helmets with side feathers. The Legio V Alaudae, "The Larks", is suggested. And I know from the WRG book on the Armies and Enemies of Imperial Rome that the Romans were a lot less "uniform" that wargamers tend to portray them.

So perhaps I will make some embellishments to the basic figures.

Another flash of inspiration I had while typing my LAF reply was that one of my southern nations - Slontos - might be of "Celtic" origins. (This because of the similarity in spelling to the others.) It is on the north coast of the "Southlands" continent, essentially like the Vandals in North Africa. 

Downloading the Mazes and Minotaurs material all over again reminded me that there are Amazons in the game. And since I am still working out what to do about them I took a look; I might use some of the M&M ideas. One idea I did have about them otherwise was that they might be similar to the Alans (IIRC) in that they use their subject peoples as warriors. I'm still deciding about that option.

The Perfect Captain

Lastly, one of the things I found today was an issue of Medieval Warfare magazine which had articles about Ireland (Vol VI, Issue 4), and in that I found reference to "Strongbow". And that reminded me of the Perfect Captain rules of the same name.

And that reminded me that they had sent out an email saying their site would be disappearing sometime in October! i.e. Next week, perhaps! 😨

So, if you haven't seen their stuff, and you like good period rules, then I advise checking it out while you still can:

The Perfect Captain

You won't be disappointed! :-)

Lohwand: Come Together

The Beetles - Abbey Road

Things are starting to come together with my Lohwand campaign. I'm advancing on a wide front, what with tinkering with rules (see my Armatura posts), and pondering map scale, to doing research on the Roman World. All aspects of the Roman World. Lots of reading: books, lots of books, magazines and PHD papers from Academia.org not to mention the online sources: blogs, re-enactment sites, and the like. I'm going to have to set up an "Appendix N" page to highlight the sources.

As stated before, the Tharkallan Empire is my Rome. I even called them the "baddies". Sort of an evil empire, with the goal of World Conquest. That was probably a bit harsh. Lohwand certainly has other "Baddies" and to say that the Tharkallan Empire will turn out to be the worst of the lot is a bit pre-mature. It might not end up that way at all as the campaign plays out, for it is my intention for it to play out as it will, with only as minimal direction from myself as necessary.

Comparing Tharkalla to Rome, I see I've already got things backwards, giving them Britian (i.e. Granbretton, in my campaign) before they have Greece or Egypt or Spain. (The Lormyrian League region, Stygia and the region bordering Shem on my Lohwand maps.)

Lohwand

That is fine. It's a fantasy campaign after all, not a historical one. I'm afraid they aren't going to get to Aegyptus/Stygia for a little while yet as there is an internal revolt they have to suppress first, in the provinces of Voria and Bisset.

This is not my idea completely, but rather comes 1) from the Everway card results for those provinces and 2) the arrival of the comet, which I posted about earlier. The comet has quite innocently provided an interpretation of the Everway cards that might just fit!

More later...

Later...

The Heartland Provinces

The Western Heartland

Some more mapping, this time trying to detail a bit more the Heartland Provinces of the Tharkallan Empire. Borrowing names from popular works liberally here: Michael Moorcock's "Elric", Greg Stafford's Lunar empire (Glorantha), R.E. Howard's Conan stories, Tolkien, ERB's Barsoom.

The Tharkallan Heartland Provinces I listed previously: Jharkor, Dharijor, Dharjiin and Doblian. The Western Heartland consists of Kostaddi and Karasal, recognized only after they were conquered and incorporated into the Empire. The Heartland Legions are raised in these six provinces.

The other Tharkallan provinces, like Nemedia, Voria, and Bisset, do not have the same status; the legions raised there are the equivalent of Ancient Roman Auxiliary legions. They do not serve in the province they were raised, but are posted elsewhere in the Empire. 

Map Scale

I've decided two things, or at least am pretty sure about two things: 

1) I'm going to use kilometers as the unit of measure. I had toyed with using tsan (from Tekumel) but decided it was too much monkeying about and would needlessly complicate things. (A tsan is 1.333 km);

2) I think I've settled on how "big" Lohwand is, making 50 km roughly the width of the capital 'O' (Font: Book Antigua).

I've been playing around with making scale rules to show on the maps. I just have to come up with a way to ensure they remain consistent at the various zoom levels as I highlight one region or another. I think the key is to insert the scale into the region before I zoom in to do a screen-cap, move it about to a suitable spot where it isn't too much in the way, and then do the "print screen" to put the image on the clipboard. I didn't do that for the second map shown above. I just sort of fudged the scale "by eye".