Clash of Kings, an ASOIAF Game (The End)
       |           

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?
March 29, 2024, 03:34:31 AM
News: Election Simulator 2.0 Released. Senate/Gubernatorial maps, proportional electoral votes, and more - Read more

  Talk Elections
  Forum Community
  Election and History Games (Moderator: Dereich)
  Clash of Kings, an ASOIAF Game (The End)
« previous next »
Pages: 1 ... 18 19 20 21 22 [23] 24 25
Author Topic: Clash of Kings, an ASOIAF Game (The End)  (Read 85347 times)
Antonio the Sixth
Antonio V
Atlas Institution
*****
Posts: 57,964
United States


Political Matrix
E: -7.87, S: -3.83

P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #550 on: August 25, 2014, 04:15:36 PM »

(considering I don't wish to change the outcome of what already happened)

Guess what, I don't wish so either. Tongue
Logged
Chancellor Tanterterg
Mr. X
Moderators
Atlas Star
*****
Posts: 26,203
United States


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #551 on: August 25, 2014, 04:23:15 PM »
« Edited: August 26, 2014, 01:39:42 PM by The Roose is Loose »

BTW, Mr. X and I are working on an additional scene portraying the trial, with a slight alteration. We're not changing the outcome, but Roose wants to ask for a trial by combat in the end, so it turns out I killed him in the fight rather than in the usual execution ceremony. Still the practical consequences would be the same. Would that work?

...Besides, X does deserve some type of award/prize for his hard work on the game...

I will now accept my accolades Grin

(considering I don't wish to change the outcome of what already happened)

Guess what, I don't wish so either. Tongue

I bet Tongue

Edit: I mean, we both know GameRobb would be a dead man walking if I got retconned back to life Wink
Logged
Cranberry
TheCranberry
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,501
Austria


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #552 on: August 28, 2014, 02:45:04 AM »

In the name of Prince Trystane of the House Martell, The First of His Name, The Prince of Dorne, I hereby announce the marriage of his sister, Princess Arianne of the House Martell, with King Daemon, The King of the Protectorate and The Lord Protector of the Commonwealth. The marriage will be conducted in King's Landing, admit the First High Council of Westeros
x Prince Oberyn Martell, in the name of Prince Trystane Martell, The First of His Name, The Prince of Dorne

In the name of Prince Trystane of the House Martell, The First of His Name, The Prince of Dorne, I hereby announce that I, Prince Oberyn Martell, The Prince Regent of Dorne, will represent the Kingdom of Dorne at the First High Council of Westeros. The Lords Yronwood, Fowler, Qorgyle, Uller, Dayne and Allyrion will be accompanying myself, and Prince Trystane, The Prince of Dorne, Princess Sansa, The Princess Consort of Dorne, and Princess Arianne, for the marriage ceremony of Princess Arianne.
x Prince Oberyn Martell, in the name of Prince Trystane Martell, The First of His Name, The Prince of Dorne

In the name of Prince Trystane of the House Martell, The First of His Name, The Prince of Dorne, I hereby announce that the office of "The Prince's First Minister of Dorne" or "The First Minister" is hereby created, a perennial office presiding the High Council of Dorne, replacing the office of the Prince's Hand and the Prince Regent. I, Prince Oberyn Martell, am to be created The First Minister by royal decree.
x Prince Oberyn Martell, The First Minister of Dorne, in the name of Prince Trystane Martell, The First of His Name, The Prince of Dorne
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #553 on: August 28, 2014, 05:28:05 PM »

Excellent, Cranberry, First Minister does sound a bit strange, but it would fit nicely if Westeros were to enter the Renaissance (and I think it will considering how the Ending is coming).

So far I have six or seven pages (in Word) with the abridged version of "The War of the Ten Kings", by Archmaester Samwell Tarly. I will add the finishing touches and write the remaining POV's (Oberyn Martell or Tyrion Lannister in King's Landing, Catelyn Stark in Winterfell and Asha Greyjoy in Astapor, with Jon Snow or Bran as an option) and I will post the endgame between Friday and Sunday depending on how long it takes.

Any requests?

PS: I have Galbert Glover and Oberyn Martell as envoys, and NPC's will send Jason Mallister, Tyrion Lannister, Baelor Hightower/Mathis Rowan and Davos Seaworth, so I will need the Vale envoy from Gustaf as well.
Logged
Antonio the Sixth
Antonio V
Atlas Institution
*****
Posts: 57,964
United States


Political Matrix
E: -7.87, S: -3.83

P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #554 on: August 28, 2014, 05:35:23 PM »

Excellent, Cranberry, First Minister does sound a bit strange, but it would fit nicely if Westeros were to enter the Renaissance (and I think it will considering how the Ending is coming).

So far I have six or seven pages (in Word) with the abridged version of "The War of the Ten Kings", by Archmaester Samwell Tarly. I will add the finishing touches and write the remaining POV's (Oberyn Martell or Tyrion Lannister in King's Landing, Catelyn Stark in Winterfell and Asha Greyjoy in Astapor, with Jon Snow or Bran as an option) and I will post the endgame between Friday and Sunday depending on how long it takes.

Any requests?

Can't wait for all this great stuff! Cheesy

And please go ahead with the Bran/Jon POV! The more northern narration I get, the happier I am. Wink
Logged
Chancellor Tanterterg
Mr. X
Moderators
Atlas Star
*****
Posts: 26,203
United States


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #555 on: August 28, 2014, 07:10:34 PM »

Excellent, Cranberry, First Minister does sound a bit strange, but it would fit nicely if Westeros were to enter the Renaissance (and I think it will considering how the Ending is coming).

So far I have six or seven pages (in Word) with the abridged version of "The War of the Ten Kings", by Archmaester Samwell Tarly. I will add the finishing touches and write the remaining POV's (Oberyn Martell or Tyrion Lannister in King's Landing, Catelyn Stark in Winterfell and Asha Greyjoy in Astapor, with Jon Snow or Bran as an option) and I will post the endgame between Friday and Sunday depending on how long it takes.

Any requests?

Can't wait for all this great stuff! Cheesy

And please go ahead with the Bran/Jon POV! The more northern narration I get, the happier I am. Wink

After the epilogue, I shall reveal every single plot GameTywin or GameRoose had a hand in.  In other words a good 2/3s to 3/4 of the stuff will be revealed.
Logged
Cranberry
TheCranberry
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,501
Austria


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #556 on: August 29, 2014, 02:45:47 AM »

Please make an Oberyn POV! Wink

Yes, that's the reason behind the naming of the First Minister... It's only natural that Dorne would adopt reforms as first Tongue
If the game was going on, I'd have the lords to move to the Water Gardens, of which I make my beautiful castle with large gardens Wink
Logged
Gustaf
Moderators
Atlas Star
*****
Posts: 29,770


Political Matrix
E: 0.39, S: -0.70

Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #557 on: August 29, 2014, 04:16:44 AM »

I guess I'll have my son be my envoy!
Logged
Dereich
Moderator
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,893


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #558 on: August 29, 2014, 02:29:51 PM »

I guess I'll send Gerrick Kingsblood as an observer.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #559 on: August 31, 2014, 08:10:51 PM »
« Edited: August 31, 2014, 08:14:17 PM by Senator Lumine »

Alright, I still have a lot to write, but here are the first three POV chapters: Tyrion, Oberyn and Asha. "The War of the Ten Kings" still needs a couple more pages and I need to fix some details with the Jon and Bran, but let the grand finale begin!

Grand Finale, Part I:

TYRION:

“I don’t like being back in King’s Landing, uncle.” Myrcella said, with a hint of sadness in her voice.
“Neither do I, I hate this city. But this council of Lords is something Westeros hasn’t seen in decades, and I don’t want to miss the royal wedding after all I’ve done for the Lord Protector.”
“I know that, uncle, but why did you bring me here?”
“It’s about time your reputation is improved, Myrcella. You’re a Lannister now, and I will not tolerate those sanctimonious Lords japing about it. No, I want you to go out there with your smile and impress the court by the time the wedding starts.”
“I wish I could, but Sansa and Arianne, sorry, the Queen, will probably attract all the looks.”
“Could be, but you won’t know unless you try, don’t you think? You should go to bed now.”
“Good night, uncle.”

As Myrcella left the balcony to go to bed Tyrion could not help but to feel a bit melancholic. He had hated Cersei and his father with a passion and he hadn’t mourned their loss as much as he should have, but the loss of Jaime was still hurting him every single time he thought about it. Who had killed him he did not know, but it was hard for him not to blame the northerners. Fair is fair, he also thought, my nephew beheaded Ned Stark and they probably felt in the obligation of avenging his death. But why Jaime? Why not Joffrey himself? He failed his family the day in which the Baratheons stormed the city, and he had failed to protect Tommen from his mother. But not anymore. He would not fail Myrcella, regardless of what would happen. He would train her, teach her how to play the game and only when she was ready he would send her to become the Queen of the Vale. And if Lord Royce failed in turning the Arryn boy into a proper gentleman he would personally burn the whole place to the ground and make the little boy fly. If Lysa Arryn still lived he would have never considered the chance of an alliance with the Vale, but Royce was a reasonable man and the Lannisters would need new allies. That also meant he had to marry soon, but finding the proper lady would also take a lot of time. After all, he was a King, the richest man in Westeros and a friend to the Lord Protector – a strange thing, considering they hadn’t shared that much time together - , so he would have to find someone. Shae now lived in Duskendale as the mistress of the local liege, and he had learnt enough of his family history to know better than to tempt fate by bringing a whore to Casterly Rock. No, he would have to find a proper wife.

“Your Grace.” Ser Addam had returned along with Ser Kevan. “The Lord Protector is ready to start the first session of the Council.”
“Good. Tell Bronn to keep an eye on Myrcella just to be on the safe side. Shall we go, uncle?”
“Yes, it’s best not to keep the Lord Protector waiting.”

Every one of the Kings was supposed to name a representative on the High Council, but several of the Kings had come to the capitol for the wedding, so they would be present in the first meeting along with the appointed Lords. Besides Tyrion – who still had problems to get used to the fact that he was a King – the High Council would welcome King Baelor and King Edmure, and First Minister Oberyn along Lord Regent Davos Seaworth as well. It was going to be an interesting meeting, that was beyond dispute. As the Kings and Lords entered the old Small Council chambers of the Red Keep and took a seat on the massive circular table that the Lord Protector had installed to account for the number of participants, Tyrion counted fourteen people including himself, quite a bit more than he had expected. The new Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, Ser Tristan Rivers, proceeded to read the names aloud to start the meeting.

 “From the Kingdom of the Reach, King Baelor Hightower and Lord Mathis Rowan. From the Kingdom of the Rock, King Tyrion Lannister and his uncle, Ser Kevan Lannister. From the Principality of Dorne, First Minister Oberyn Martell. From the Kingdom of the Riverlands, King Edmure Tully and Lord Jason Mallister. From the Kingdom of the Vale, Ser Andar Royce. From the Kingdom of the Stormlands, Lord Regent Davos Seaworth and Lord Ronnet Connington. From the Kingdom of the North, Lord Galbert Glover. In representation of King Mance Rayder and the freefolk, Gerrick Kingsblood.  And finally, from the Kingdom of the Dragonlands, Lord Protector Daemon Blackfyre and Grand Maester Erryk.” As Rivers spoke Daemon smiled, looking  incredibly satisfied with himself while the rest of the Kings and Lords just watched.

The meeting went along pretty well, especially considering the dangers involved and the differences in character of those involved. Lord Protector Daemon could be rash at times, but he was also very diplomatic and, ironically, an expert in exploiting the differences amongst the Lords. He wasn’t as good as Littlefinger and Varys were in politicking, which was a good thing, but he was not an innocent King by any measure. The debate was long and it took them several hours before they could close the first meeting, but they managed to cover a lot of ground and vote on several proposals that – Tyrion suspected – would probably shape Westeros for the months to come. It was argued that it wasn’t worth declaring war against Queen Asha and the Ironborn due to the winter and the fact that it was almost impossible to continue having the armies in a war mode, and it was also recognized that due to the freefolk manning the wall it was ludicrous to have the Night’s Watch revived. Most of the Lords distrusted Gerrick Kingsblood despite his almost Southerner look, but he was at least able to win that concession. Discussions over the Faith were left for later, but many were worried over the rhetoric of the new septon, jokingly referred as the “High Sparrow”. And, despite the pleas of King Edmure, it was decided that any aid in money to the Kingdoms would have to wait until the debts were paid, with Tyrion conceding that the Iron Bank of Braavos had the priority over his House. Tired and sleepy, all of them left when the hour came, they had to prepare for the wedding that would come tomorrow.

“I think that went surprisingly well.”
“I think so too.” Ser Kevan replied. “It’s the first time since Aerys’s early reign that Westeros has a competent leader.”
“We have to hope that he won’t become Aerys III…”
“He doesn’t have as nearly as much power, I wouldn’t worry.”
“Perhaps you’re right… I wonder what my father would say right now. I am a King, but I suspect he would still find a way of telling me that I wasn’t his son. I can actually hear him saying it right now.”
“As much as I admired Tywin, I must admit he was wrong.”
“Was he?”
“You’re not only his son, Tyrion. You are better than him.” Ser Kevan gave him a weak smile and then went to his chambers.

Tyrion stood right there for quite a while, not knowing what to say. He dedicated one more thought to Jaime and those he had learned to trust, took a deep breath and left the scene, feeling as if he finally stood as tall as a true King."
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #560 on: August 31, 2014, 08:12:42 PM »
« Edited: September 01, 2014, 10:10:39 AM by Senator Lumine »

OBERYN:

"As her niece walked through the Sept in order to reach the Lord Protector and the High Sparrow, Oberyn felt a sense of unease. The maesters had told him that history often repeated itself, but it was only now that he could feel the true weight and the implications of that idea. The last time he had been on the capitol was… twenty or thirty years ago, when the last Dragon had married Elia. She looked as bright as the sun, and there were no words to make justice to Rhaegar Targaryen. And it had ended badly, it had ended in a way too horrible to even suspect for those who had attended the wedding of the Targaryen crown prince. He had managed to get his revenge after the Imp had delivered Ser Gregor to him, especially after he had defeating him in a trail by combat, but that wouldn’t bring Elia, Aegon and Rhaenys back. And now, yet another Dornish Princess would marry another of the Dragons, and Oberyn feared for a moment that they could end up in the same way. Arianne looked stronger than Elia, but did she really have the iron will of the only woman capable of challenging the Mad King? And Daemon, while not as beautiful as Rhaegar, looked like a man who knew exactly what he was doing, a point in favor when compared to the Prince whose actions led to the deaths of thousands, including Elia and her children. No, he thought, it won’t end in the same way. I will not allow it. And if the Lord Protector dared to follow Rhaegar’s example there would be no mercy for him, not even the gods could protect him from the wrath of the Dornish Prince.

“But so far, so good.” He spoke aloud.
“What, my love?” Ellaria asked.
“Nothing, I’m just thinking about things…”
“Shhhh… Uncle, the High Septon is about to start!” Trystane hissed, making Sansa smile.

Oberyn had to admit the High Sparrow was an impressive man. He was ugly and dressed like a peasant, but he had the eyes of a lion. That man would stop at nothing to reform the faith, and Oberyn found himself wondering how the Septon would react if he saw the things he did with Ellaria and the boys in the brothels. Not that it mattered, but it was clear that he was not a man to be underestimated. He was not going to be Daemon’s puppet, and only the gods knew what the Lord Protector had to promise him to be crowned and then wed to Arianne. To the surprise of most of the court, the High Sparrow held a very short and simple ceremony, and soon after the Dragon King had cloaked Arianne and put her under his protection… at least in a nominal way, since the Princess was evidently no blushing maid, at least not in the way Sansa appeared to be. Then the feast came, and for the first time in history the Red Keep had to host no less than six Kings, Queens or Princes. Quite a record, or so the Prince thought. King Edmure and Queen Jeyne were not an impressive couple by any means, the Imp was uglier than the High Sparrow, and less said about Queen Shireen the better, which meant that the only ones who looked the part of a King were Daemon and Baelor Hightower.

“If that doesn’t prove the songs wrong, I don’t know what will.” He said to Ellaria and Sansa, looking directly at Tyrion. “I know the Lannisters are facing hardships, but don’t you think having half-a-king is going too far?”
“Don’t be so cruel, Prince Oberyn.” Sansa laughed. “At least he is a bit more decent than the rest of his family.”
“What’s left of it, anyway…” Ellaria pointed out. “Do you really want to stay here during the entire feast, my love?”
“Not really, but I can’t leave Sansa alone, can I?”
“Don’t worry, I plan to ask Ser Loras to a dance.” Sansa said, looking at the miserable and pitiful knight. “He does need some company, and he was the one who saved me after all.”
“I suppose so. But after the Mad Rose I wouldn’t be sure that any of the Tyrells are sane right now…”

Oberyn and Ellaria finally left Sansa so she could ask her favorite knight for a dance, and Oberyn made sure that both Trystane and Arianne looked satisfied before leaving. And since her nephew danced with Myrcella and the new Queen did not left her husband’s side for a moment, he figured both of them would be fine. Not that he trusted that joke of a Lord Commander and his ridiculous knights to keep anybody safe, but somehow he knew that they would be fine. As they were close to reaching their own chambers, Ellaria broke the silence while she watched him with a worried look.

“Is something wrong, my love?”
“I was thinking.”
“Again? About what?”
“We really should have a son.”

And no other words could increase the size of the smile he got as a reply."

ASHA:

“I assume yer satisfied, your Grace.” Tristifer japed, coughing at the smoke.
“Mayhaps, Tristifer. But I still have to burn Meereen.”

Yunkai used to be bright and active city, a port where thousands of ships could meet and thousands of bed slaves would be traded. That is, until Asha Greyjoy and the Iron Fleet had arrived. She knew she needed a campaign in order to earn the respect of her men, but invading another zone of Westeros would most likely end in a bad way now that King Daemon had two of the dragons. On the other hand, it was a very long trip to the Slaver’s Bay, but it was unexpected, daring and she had earned a lot of respect with the sack of the slave city. The original plan called for the sack of Astapor, but since they had the unsullied Asha chose to strike at Yunkai instead, knowing their army was too weak for the Ironborn sailors. And now the city burned as hundreds of slaves were sent to the captured ships, most of them to be sold on the trip back home and a few to serve as the new slaves of the Iron Island. With the Tyrell gold still stored inside Pyke and the money they were going to make with the sack of Slaver’s Bay, Asha would have more than enough to rebuild the Iron Islands. There would be some resistance, but those unable to move forward would learn the price of indiscipline. No, she and her uncle Rodrik would build castles, roads, longer and stronger ships and they would make the Iron Islands far stronger that when Harren the Black had led them. And someday, she would return to Westeros.

“You father would be proud.” Qarl the Maid observed.
“I hope so. It’s not precisely easy to lead the Ironborn all the way to Slaver’s Bay. Especially when many of them still behave like children.”
“And yet we have won.” Tristifer smiled, looking at the bodies currently in the water.
“Aye, but it wasn’t easy.”

Taking over the crown had it’s own challenges, but to Euron’s merit he had killed virtually all the possible claimants and rivals, leaving only her and her uncle to lead the Ironborn. And since her uncle didn’t like the crown, the duty fell to her. Some complained at the beginning, but after she had the Qarth warlocks and Euron’s most loyal men killed in a public display in Pyke most of them had decided to shut up and acknowledge her orders. The problem would come when she was married, since her future husband would probably feel like the Iron King. She knew she had to continue the family line for the sake of House Greyjoy, but she wasn’t thrilled about it, and she was at a loss to choose a husband. Blacktyde could have been a contender, but since his head was on a pike on Braavos that was not an option, and any Greenlander was a non-starter. Qarl the Maid was an interesting choice, but she knew that was impossible. Tristifer bored her, and Ser Harras Harlaw, although a great warrior, was technically her cousin.

“I will need a husband once we return.” She said to no one.
“I am not going to ask you again.” Tristifer replied, almost in a bitter way.
“How many times do I have to tell you we’re not children anymore?”
“A lot more, it seems.” Qarl joked.
“Well, at least I have time to decide. And a city to sack as well.”
“Shall we sail for Meereen then?”
“Aye. We shall.” She smiled. "This campaign is far from over."

After all, it didn’t really matter that she was the last Greyjoy. As the Ironborn fleet started the short trip to Meereen and the men started to gamble on how many enemies they would kill, Asha knew she was there to stay, and knew that the Iron Islands would begin to change from now on.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #561 on: August 31, 2014, 08:45:33 PM »

OOC: I know the ending for ASOIAF will be bittersweet and in this timeline we have a dark winter with many losses, but I suppose I can't help but to give a "happy ending" to most characters. I toyed with the idea of giving Jon a depressive one or even having him die, but to hell with that!

JON:

Had he made the right choice? Jon found himself wondering about it right after he could not see Winterfell in the horizon, and the hours hadn’t diminished his concerns. He had spent the last months back in his home, helping Samwell to write, training with Pyp, Green and the other survivors, and spending as much time as he could with Bran and Arya. After his time in the Wall he felt a genuine sense of joy by returning to Winterfell, but his mind was not at ease. The Night’s Watch had left a deep impression in him, and somehow he felt that to stay there without doing anything important was disrespectful to the memory of the Old Bear, Maester Aemon and those who had died as Castle Black. He didn’t hate King Mance or the wildlings, he knew why they were running, and he had hoped Ser Alliser could have made a deal with them. Instead, Alliser Thorne had chosen to fight and the Night’s Watch was all but destroyed. The doubt consumed him every single day, the fight in his heart over his real duty, and he was at a loss, even when trying to consider what would his father or uncle Benjen do in his situation. And the looks Lady Catelyn gave him didn’t help, even if the rest of his brothers welcomed him and asked him not to leave. In the end, the answer came via raven, a raven that Samwell Tarly read while trembling to his friends.

“And so, by a decree of the High Council of the Commonwealth of the Free Kingdoms of Westeros, we declare the Night’s Watch dissolved and the remaining members released from their respective oaths. If any sworn brother has no place to go, they will be welcomed in King’s Landing by the Lord Protector. Signed, Daemon Blackfyre…” Samwell was pale. “It seems it’s over.”
“And what, leave the wall to the wildlings?” Green asked.
“Why not?” Jon said. “After all, they are manning the wall, and they are a much larger army. They have decided not to attack and to settle in the Gift, and nobody in his sane mind would march with an army with this winter.”
“It just feels strange. I mean, some of us don’t have anywhere to go…” Pyp was worried.

In the end most of the men left for King’s Landing, trusting the Lord Protector to take them into his service. Grenn, Edd and Pyp chose to stay in Winterfell after Robb made them an offer to save him, and Samwell and Gilly decided to march to Oldtown so Sam could become a Maester. Most of them assumed Jon would stay with them as well, but knowing that he was released of his oath and that he was free to do what he wanted to do with his life was enough to force him to a decision. It had been a long goodbye and it had taken some time to explain it to his friends and his family, but in the end none of them could force him to stay in Winterfell. Arya was the most persistent, but in the end even she had relented, just like Bran and Robb. He waited until Sam and Gilly left for South and then he proceeded to talk all of those he would miss. And with the exception of Lady Stark, they were all quite sorry of his departure. But he had to live his own life, under his own term. Thus, he had started to ride deep into the North.

“All of the sudden this doesn’t seem like such a great idea…” He was talking to the wind. “After all, I could get shot by an arrow and it would be the end.”

He eventually decided that it was worth the risk, so he entered the wildling lands, asking everybody he met about her. He felt a surge of joy when he found out that she lived, and an even bigger one when told she hadn’t taken a man. He rode for days amongst the enormous wildling host, dressed as them and talking as one of them, just as he had learned to do while living for such a long time amongst them. And then he found her. She was sitting near a lake, practicing with the bow and easily bringing down the targets she had improvised. Something told him he was going to meet a gruesome end with an arrow to the chest, but in the end he couldn’t bring himself to leave after such a long journey.

“Ygritte.”

As soon as she saw him she did shoot an arrow that Jon almost saw passing through his head as he threw himself to the ground, but seeing himself as unharmed he felt the relief of knowing she had missed on purpose. And on the ground he was when the wildling reached him, still aiming at him with the long bow.

“You’re back.”
“Aye.”
“You’re alive.”
“Aye.”

The silence was overwhelming, and Jon almost thought he had made the wrong choice, at least until she dropped the bow.

“And still a crow.”
“No more, Ygritte. The Watch was disbanded; I am free now.”
“Free? You really know nothing, Jon Snow.”

He didn’t care anymore about her real mother or about the Watch, and he didn’t care about being a bastard.  Because as they kissed, Jon knew he had made the right choice.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #562 on: August 31, 2014, 11:23:47 PM »

BRAN:

Another day of flying.

It was hard to believe the dreams could be right, but in the end that was precisely the case. He was a dragon now, free to fly through the skies for a time. Sadly, he would never have the level of mastery of his dragon that the Targaryen riders had achieved, and that was because controlling Torrhen meant that the spirit of the dragon would enter his body, forcing Hodor and Maester Luwin to put him to sleep so he would harm anybody while Bran flied. It was uncomfortable and not very practical, but Bran suspected that Robb was unable to deny him the chance to be free through the skies, even if it meant building a giant lair for the dragon and essentially risking Winterfell. Her mother was opposed to the mere thought, but Robb was the Lord of Winterfell, and not even her could break the will of the Stark brothers.

“Don’t you think we should be going North, Bran?” Jojen asked, looking at the horizon as if sitting on a dragon was a mere formality.
“North, Jojen? I know the raved told you to do so, but it’s filled with the white walkers.” Meera looked at him with a serious look.
“So? Bran is a dragon now, and if he trains hard enough we could fly all the way beyond the wall.”
“With the winter? Sure, it’s not as if a dragon would have problems handling the cold… You now Torrhen is not growing too strong as we speak, do you?”
“We must go North.” He insisted.

Bran had wondered about it for a long time. Something was calling him to go North, that was certain, but he wasn’t willing to do so. If they had been forced to escape when Lord Bolton had sieged the castle he might have been willing to do so, but now that he had the dragon and his family he was quite unwilling to risk his life to march across a land filled with the others. What could the raven offer him now, given that he could fly? To walk again would have convinced him, but he knew that, somehow, that was impossible to achieve. No. He would train, he would bond with Torrhen, and someday he would be able to ride the dragon instead of warging him, a perfect union instead of what he had now. Not many knew he was the dragon, but those who did looked at him in a different way. He was pleased when he knew they had previously took pity on him, but the looks he had received from time to time from Maester Luwin and his own mother had hurt him. Jon was the most comprehensive of all of them, and he had left for the Wall quite a while ago… Speaking of which, they had flown for quite a while now, and it was time for dinner in the castle. After leaving Torrhen in his lair as secured and warm as possible, Bran returned to his body.

“So, how was it?” Arya asked, looking at him while she sharpened Needle.
“Great.” He replied, at a loss about what else to say.
“Hodor!” She called the stable boy. “Time for dinner!”

The giant entered the room to carry Bran to the main hall, pushing him back to reality. The main hall of Winterfell was filled with people due to the imminent birth of Robb and Roslin’s son, and many of Robb vassals along with a large contingent of Freys were there. Bran was glad of seeing the ones he liked, like Lord Manderly or the Umbers, although he was a bit unsure about the Freys. They had been loyal to Robb, fought and bled for him, and many of them held prominent positions in the Riverlands and the North, but it was hard to like them for some reason. Robb welcomed all of them with the usual courtesy, although his mind was obviously set on the birth of his son. It was hard for Bran to feel like an uncle knowing how young he still was, but considering Rickon’s age he was fortunate. It was a pity Sansa couldn’t be there since he hadn’t saw her ever since she left for King’s Landing three years ago, but most of the Starks were there after all. They all ate feeling a bit nervous, knowing full well that at any moment Maester Luwin would come to give the news. And when Robb left the room to see his wife the expectation grew, meaning that Lord Manderly was the only one that continued to eat. Finally, Ser Rodrik and his wife, Lady Hornwood, entered the room with a smile on their faces.

“It’s a healthy boy! The North has a Crown Prince!”

The hall erupted in applause and cheers, and it was time for all of them to celebrate.

“Long live Prince Eddard!”

The following morning Bran asked Hodor and Maester Luwin to take care of his body, but he chose not to bring Jojen and Meera along. For some reason, he needed some time along. He warged Torrhen and rode him over the dawn, thriving as he extended his wings and expulsed his breath of fire. The morning had dawned clear and cold, with a crispness that hinted at a winter that was about to grow colder and harder. It was the first year of Winter, and the eleventh of Bran’s life.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #563 on: September 01, 2014, 12:09:42 AM »

Grand Finale, Part II:

The War of the Ten Kings,

Being A History of the Causes, Origins, Battles, and Betrayals
of that Most Tragic Carnage Known as the War of the Ten Kings,
as set down by Archmaester Samwell of the Citadel of Oldtown.

(Abridged version, and note that since Samwell doesn’t know everything the public perception of some events is different from reality)

BOOK ONE: 298 AL:

With the limited amount of documents and information we have on the real motivations of most of the players in the later years of Robert Baratheon’s reign it becomes hard to pinpoint the actual causes of the war, or the point of no return. Let us not forget that the entire Small Council that served the late King died during the war or shortly before the actual start, and the constant battles and political intrigue in King’s Landing did not help to ensure that key information would survive. As a result, it is a very hard task to try to learn what really happened, and we maesters can only suppose what may have really happened during the armed conflict. Of course, there is also the fact that many view this conflict as a part of a larger legend, interpretation which is always suited to manipulation. For an increasing number of Northerners (led by Prince Eddard and Lord Rickon among others) it’s the revenge for the Targaryen invasion and Torrhen Stark’s surrender. For the Blackfyre Dynasty is the Sixth War of Reconquest (for the younger maesters: it was custom for the late Targaryen Dynasty refer to the wars involving the Blackfyres as the Blackfyre Rebellions), some of the Baratheon vassals consider it the Great Rebellion and maintain the legality of Robert Baratheon, and it has been rumored that Old King Mance has renamed it the War of the Wall as well. Different motives, different agendas, and moves that make little to no sense. That is, for me, the spirit of the War of the Ten Kings, the moment in which Westeros descended into true madness. For all the progress made over the last years, it can’t be denied that the scars of the war are far too visible, and it’s only now that the realms of the Commonwealth have recovered, just as new events appear on the horizon.

If we accept the view of Jon Arryn’s death as the turning point that made war inevitable (with the forgiveness of those who believe Lord Stark’s coup to be the true cause), we must accept the view that the court of King Robert was bitterly divided among two bands at the start of 298 AL, each one supporting the King or his consort, Queen Cersei. It has been commonly accepted that the Baratheon Brothers and Lord Baelish were the heart of the Kingsmen and Ser Jaime Lannister with most of the Kingsguard, Lord Varys, Commander Slynt and Grand Maester Pycelle were the Queensmen, leaving Lord Commander Selmy as a neutral force of little to no influence. It was in the middle of the struggle to succeed Lord Arryn as hand and the seemingly inevitable naming of Lord Tywin Lannister as the next hand that King Robert shocked the Lannisters at court by choosing to travel all the way to Winterfell, asking Lord Stark to accept the Handship on behalf of the realm.  Thus, Lord Stark’s arrival in King’s Landing would have been the perfect chance for the Kingsmen to retake control of the court and put the balance of power against the Lannisters, especially in light of Sansa Stark’s betrothal to Prince Joffrey. And yet, all of them showed remarkable disunity during the period, with Stannis Baratheon leaving for Dragonstone before the arrival of the Northerners and Lord Stark’s supposedly investigating Lord Arryn’s death, but most likely seeking a way of weakening the Lannister hold on the court.

We have no real way of knowing what did Lord Stark do, but it seems to have been enough to push Ser Jaime Lannister over the edge and then launch the famous assault on Stark’s men, wounding the Hand and forcing a chain of events that would become in the early stages of the actual war. As many know, Lady Catelyn Stark chose to kidnap Tyrion Lannister, thus forcing a major incident in the Vale (which led to the death of Ser Vardis Egen and the all too familiar song: “The Imp and the Stone Giant”), which in turn forced Lord Tywin Lannister to leave his retirement to fight back. The Lannister men rode into the Riverlands led by Ser Gregor Clegane, the Mountain, setting almost the region on fire in an act that would have terrible consequences later on. As it stands, King Robert died in the worst possible moment, suffering a terrible hunting accident that would lead to a couple of days of chaos in King’s Landing.

Whatever really happened during those days it’s impossible to know following the deaths of all the key players besides Sansa and Arya Stark and Ser Sandor Clegane, but it’s safe to assume Lord Stark decided to move once and for all in a political move that might have rivaled with Tywin Lannister’s campaign against House Reyne, the Mad Rose’s Massacre and Tyrion Lannister’s later assault on the Red Keep had it been successful: taking full control of the capitol and the new King itself. The existing records are very confused when it comes to precise dates, but what we know for certain is that the coup failed after Commander Slynt and the Gold Cloaks chose uphold their oath to King Joffrey, forcing Renly Baratheon to withdraw to Highgarden, Lord Baelish to join the Queensmen and Eddard Stark’s imprisonment and then surprising execution just as his son Robb marched on the Riverlands at the head of a fierce army of Northerners. The news of the execution would shock Westeros and anger many noblemen who had fought along Lord Stark during the War of Stags and Dragons, but with many Lords unsure about going to war and the lack of prestige that Robb Stark had then meant that only the Riverlands joined his cause against House Lannister.

On the other hand, the Queensmen held such a tight control over King’s Landing that for all purposes the Westerlands and the Crownlands were the same region, and the battle lines were already drawn for Lannisters and Starks to fight each other while the other bands prepared for war.  As we know, Robb Stark marched on the Riverlands just as Ser Jaime Lannister crushed the Riverlords before Riverrun, and it was then when the Stark Lord showed his military skill by defeating and capturing Ser Jaime while forcing Lord Tywin to withdraw to Harrenhal, a series of military victories that earned him the name “Young Wolf”. It was then that the situation turned ghastly for the Lannisters once the news arrived that Lord Renly Baratheon was crowned King in Highgarden and was now recognized as the King in the Reach and the Stormlands, having married Lady Margaery Tyrell to secure the alliance with Lord Mace. Meanwhile, Stannis Baratheon had also proclaimed himself King in the Narrow Sea while trying to convince all of Westeros that King Joffrey was both a bastard and a usurper, and to complicate things even further Balon Greyjoy led the Ironborn to rebel against the Iron Throne and declare the independence of the Iron Islands. It was only fitting for the Northerners to follow suit and declare Robb Stark the King in the North and the Riverlands by the end of 298 AL, and the stage was set for the real war: a war that would last two complete years.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #564 on: September 01, 2014, 12:11:01 AM »

BOOK TWO: 299 AL:

Of course, the first to react as 299 AL started was the new acting Hand of the King, Tyrion Lannister (who had been sent to replace Lord Tywin, appointed Hand by his grandson), moving onto King’s Landing to correct the mistakes that Queen Cersei and the Queensmen had committed while serving as regents for King Joffrey. Earning the hate of the population, Lord Tyrion eventually became the symbol of Baratheon/Lannister rule over the capitol, but he proved to be as ruthless and capable as his father was. Janos Slynt was sent to the Wall and stripped of his new holding of Harrenhall and all the defenses were prepared for a potential Baratheon attack. Dorne and the Vale remained as neutral as possible despite their links to some of the claimants and the dissent of many Lords, but Stannis Baratheon had his massive fleet block Blackwater Bay and the Tyrells marched to close the Gold Road, an almost perfect act of coordination (which was interpreted by some as a clue to the Tyrell’s true allegiance). The Lannisters and the Starks were still locked in a stalemate across the Riverlands, which was not solved by the Battle of the Red Fork and forced Robb Stark to send an invading force to enter the Westerlands. Things were not improving for King Robb once the Ironborn decided to raid the West Coast of the North in search for an easy victory, a difficulty that was added to the disastrous sack of the Riverlands by Lannister forces and the complicated issue of having Ser Jaime Lannister and Theon Greyjoy as hostages. To make things worse for the Northerners, both men died in mysterious circumstances (most likely killed by disaffected Stark men that were concerned with King Robb’s excessive kindness).

Yet, the war was known for the famous changes of allegiance that occurred in short periods of time, and instead of trying to burn the entire North in revenge for the death of Prince Theon King Balon decided to withdraw from most of the North and prepare for a different campaign. It was certainly not the most impressive change of the year, since shortly after that Renly and Stannis Baratheon agreed to parley at Storm’s End. To the shock of all the Baratheon vassals and House Tyrell, Renly decided to submit to Stannis and join forces against the Lannisters, thus mortally offending the Tyrells and forcing the pregnant Lady Margaery to relinquish her crown. Once again, it’s impossible for us to know about Renly Baratheon’s true motivations at the moment, but some believe the news of the Lannister sellsword army coming to Westeros may have worried him to a certain degree. It’s not a satisfying explanation, but nonetheless the Baratheons were able to join forces and field the largest army and fleet of the states at war along with their allies in the Reach and the Narrow Sea. In what became of the most crushing blows ever suffered by one of the alliances during the war, most of the Kings moved against Tywin Lannister and Joffrey Baratheon, forcing an impressive number of defeats on their armies. The Tyrells flooded the south of the Westerlands and they tricked Lord Tywin into destroying a substantial part of his army on an ambush in Stokeworth, the Starks retook Harrenhal and captured the Golden Tooth and the Ironborn abandoned the North only to sack and invade the coast of the Westerlands, bringing misery across the land. The Lannister sellswords managed to reach Westeros under the command of Ser Harys Swift, but it seemed as if the end of House Lannister was at hand.

As Tywin Lannister prepared to react with his usual vengeful style, a new claimant appeared on the horizon. Daenerys Targaryen had fought for her live during the past few years, losing her brother Viserys (the last male Targaryen), her husband and her son during her stay with the Dothraki hordes of the Great Grass Sea but winning someone far more valuable: the dragons Viserion/Bittersteel, Rhaegal/Torrhen and Drogon/Blackflame. After a series of trips around the Free Cities, Queen Daenerys arrived in Pentos to receive the backing of the remnants of the Targaryen loyalists, including Magister Illyrio Mopatis, Ser Barristan Selmy, Ser Jorah Mormont and the mighty Golden Company. After a sudden marriage to her first suitor, Prince Quentyn Martell of Dorne, Daenerys Targaryen sent a proclaim to Westeros to raise support for her cause and prepared to sail, forcing the Baratheons to react by increasing their family number by legitimizing the royal bastards Edric and Mya Baratheon. And not only the Stags reacted, Queen Daenerys’s proclaim had the effect of forcing Dorne and the Vale to mobilize and prepare their armies for battle, with the Knights of the Vale leaving for Darry without an announced target after the arrival of Lord Baelish to the Eyrie and the Dornishmen marching under Prince Oberyn to invade the Stormlands and finally join with Queen Daenerys’s army, securing great amounts of land for the Targaryen cause that were increase shortly after that with Ser Jorah Mormont’s surprising invasion of the North. The Tyrells and the Lannisters were at each other’s throats in the push to secure King’s Landing and the Westerlands, engaging in the battles of Rosby and Crakehall and allowing Lord Tywin to march on King’s Landing at the last second. It is said the fall of the Reach from prominence started that very same day with the death of Mace Tyrell at the hands of assassins sent by Lord Tywin (an act later acknowledged by Ser Harys Swift on his unsuccessful Faith Trial).

With the Stormlands filled with Targaryen soldiers and Lord Tywin racing towards King’s Landing it was now or never for the Baratheon Alliance, and so both Baratheon brothers launched an all-out assault to force the victory they needed. The Battle of the Blackwater would be immortalized by the singer Marillion and “The Ballad of the Fire King”), and after a bloody and violent battle involving both naval and land forces and amounts of wildfire not seen before in Westeros, Lord Tyrion Lannister and the capital defenses were beaten before Lord Tywin could arrive. The “Crimson Night” brought the deaths of King Joffrey Baratheon, Queen Dowager Cersei, Prince Tommen and several Lannister loyalists, along with the imprisonment of Lord Tyrion and Princess Myrcella and the disappearance of Sansa Stark and Lord Varys from the city. Stannis and Renly Baratheon were the new rulers of King’s Landing, but their armies were weakened, the Stormlands were under siege by the Targaryens and Tywin Lannister carefully prepared the siege of the city while openly threatening to flay his enemies once they were on sight, knowing full well that the Stags were the ones in trouble now.

Across this whole period there were terrible things happening in the North, although many Lords chose to ignore this situation due to the war. The Night’s Watch, undermanned and poorer every day had lost several men to the wildling forces of Mance Rayder and the growing rumors of the Others having returned, rumors that Lord Commander Mormont did not believe until he was attacked by one of the undead. Recognizing the danger, Lord Mormont took most of the Watch to go North and see the situation for himself, leading to a major disaster in the Fist of the First Men after being attacked by an army made of the Others. Lord Mormont would eventually die in the following weeks, killed by his own men at the Mutiny in Craster’s Keep and turning the Great Ranging into one of the biggest disasters of the history of the Night’s Watch. Very few survivors returned to a Wall now open to an attack by Mance Rayder (including Jon Snow and myself), and it was left to Maester Aemon to send ravens to all of the Lords and Kings of Westeros. Very few replied, and by the time the wildling army reached the Wall only the Stark men leaded by the Glovers had arrived. Mance Rayder took the Wall in the Battle of Castle Black, which ended up with the deaths of Maester Aemon, Janos Slynt and Acting Commander Alliser Thorne. It was the end of the Night’s Watch, after hundreds of years of existence. And thus, the wildlings who were trying to escape the others took over the Wall. King Mance sent a proclaim to the rest of the Kings, stating that they would not march further South, but that the Wall and the Gift belonged to them from now on.

Willas Tyrell, the Mad Rose, was the next player to enter the so called game. By all previous accounts a shy and thoughtful man, it seems the news of his father’s assassination were enough to force the Tyrell Lord to slowly lose his grip on sanity, although this would become apparent until too late. In the meantime, and having her sister safe on Highgarden Lord Willas declared that House Tyrell would not fight for House Baratheon anymore, and he proceeded to declare for Daenerys Targaryen as the legitimate Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.  Before he retreated his army from the Crownlands he offered a feast to his Lords and… he proceeded to have Lord Randyll Tarly and many of his men in the famous “Mad Rose’s Massacre”, one of the most cowardly acts ever enacted on Westeros. Lord Willas blamed Lord Tarly over the death of Lord Willas, but as it was confessed later by Lord Swift during his trial, this deception was probably also the act of Tywin Lannister. My father was not the most famous man to die in that fateful month, though, since King’s Landing had to face another catastrophe. King Stannis had become isolated, weary and paranoid, which meant that only Queen Selyse, Lady Melisandre of Asshai (a Red Priesstess) and the followers of R’hllor could enter the Red Keep, to the anger of the Stormlanders and Lord Renly. It was then that the Lady Melisandre tried to use Lord Pyromance Hallyne and his other to create wildfire for the use of her misguided faith, causing a major accident that would end up burning a good part of the capital, a repetition of the Tragedy of Summerhall. Queen Selyse, Melisandre and Lord Hallyne perished on the fire and as Lord Renly and his men stormed the Red Keep to confront their liege they found that King Stannis Baratheon had been killed and nailed to the Iron Throne. The Fire King was dead after a brief rule of no more than three months, and after the events of that day Renly Baratheon would become the last of the Baratheon Kings, nicknamed “Twice Crowned”.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #565 on: September 01, 2014, 12:12:03 AM »

BOOK THREE: 299 AL (2)Sad

King Renly applied himself to the task of saving House Baratheon by proclaiming his full support for the Faith and quickly appointing a Small Council formed by the most important Stormlanders and his most loyal follower, the new Hand of the King Loras Tyrell, who was married to Princess Mya Baratheon while the Stormlands were made a part of the Crownlands and House Florent declared for his cause. Alas, he was not the only one receiving more allies, as Queen Daenerys managed to win the support of Lord Velaryon and the Lords of the Narrow Sea while she left Prince Oberyn to conquer the Stormlands to march on King’s Landing. She lost her fleet in the process thanks to the strength of the Baratheon Royal Fleet, but she managed to win the support of Lord Roose Bolton. House Bolton proceeded to betray the Stark forces of the North and join forces with Ser Jorah Mormont to hold White Harbor while proceeding to siege Winterfell, an act with the potential of delivering a crippling blow to House Stark. Knowing he had to act quickly, King Robb moved with the support of the Vale Army of Lyn Corbray to ignore King’s Landing and march on the Tyrell Army of the Mad Rose, fighting a battle that looked winnable until the Knights of the Vale were given the order to attack the Starks. The disaster of Tumbleton would be a Targaryen victory and a crushing blow to the cause of the North, but the Vale would react in anger to the orders of Lysa Arryn. To make things more confusing across the Kingdoms, the Ironborn left most of the captured land on the Westerlands to attack the undefended Reach, with Lord Victarion Greyjoy smashing through the Southern Fleet in the Mander to sack Highgarden and force the Tyrells and the newborn Prince Steffon Baratheon to leave the city, humiliating the Mad Rose despite his earlier success in the field.

Lord Tywin Lannister finally decided that it was time to destroy the Baratheons, and he staged a massive assault on the city with the help of his massive army of sellswords. The battle would end up as a costly stalemate and it would end just after the news of Daenerys Targaryen’s arrival and the defeat of the Starks arrived to both commanders. We will never know which messages were sent among the camps of the former allies in the War of Stags and Dragons, but we do know for certain that King Renly, King Robb and Lord Tywin recognized that Daenerys Targaryen and her dragons were a much greater threat to them, and thus formed the most unlikely alliance just to use their last chance of defeating the Queen before she reached the capital. Of course, they were not the only ones to change sides, as the Houses of the North quickly reacted against Lord Bolton and declared their loyalty to King Robb while Ser Jorah Mormont was murdered by a Stark loyalist, and Lord Yohn Royce led the remaining Lords of the Vale to march against Lysa Arryn and siege the Eyrie. It has been reported that Lady Arryn was quite unstable at the time, and the news of the revolt may have been enough to push her over the edge. Either way, she fell to her death by jumping off the castle walls, following her father Lord Hoster in death by a few weeks, and leaving Lord Royce as the new regent of the Vale to rule until Lord Robert came of age.

Yet another player entered the scene with the sudden return of Lord Euron Greyjoy, who had been exiled by his brother a few years ago. Crafting a clever and risky plan to take the power he wanted, Lord Greyjoy kidnapped a good number of warlocks from the eastern city of Qarth, murdered his rival Lord Blacktyde in Braavos to take over his fleet, and managed to win an interview with Queen Daenerys before she marched on King’s Landing. In what came to be known as the key blow to the destruction of the remnants of House Targaryen, Euron used a magic horn to bind the dragons to him, successfully stealing them and forcing the humiliation of Queen Daenerys. It was shortly after that when the unlikely alliance of Stags, Wolves and Lions charged at the forces of the Queen, forcing the largest and greatest battle ever seen in Westeros, dwarfing the Battle of the Trident when it came to the commanders and the troops involved. The arrival of Tyrell reinforcements under the command of the Mad Rose and Lord Hightower could have saved the day, but the Vale Army changed sides again after killing Ser Lyn Corbray, marching through the rearguard of the Targaryen loyalists and winning the day after the death of Ser Barristan Selmy. Queen Daenerys, broken and reduced to a shell of her former self, retreated to Summerhall along with King Quentyn, where both lovers would kill themselves in the Second Tragedy of Summerhall. After a couple of months of being the future Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, Daenerys Targaryen was dead. While the Targaryen loyalists scrambled and tried to disengage from the Stormlands and Lord Bolton and the Golden Company tried to fought back the new sellsword Lannister army that had arrived in the North, Lord Euron took full advantage of his dragons to murder his brothers Victarion and Balon, forcing the Iron Islands to crown him Iron King under the threat of his dragons. The year of 299 AL was finished, but the war was far from over.
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #566 on: September 01, 2014, 12:12:52 AM »
« Edited: September 01, 2014, 09:54:08 AM by Senator Lumine »

BOOK FOUR: 300-301 AL:

It seems the claimants to the thrones acknowledged Euron Greyjoy as the man to defeat, and they wasted no time in sending assassin after assassin against the Iron King. Most of them were captured by the Qarth warlocks and executed, but just as the new King launched the Iron Fleet to sack Casterly Rock once and for all, he was murdered in his sleep by one of the countless assassins sent against him. While we have no records of the history of the Iron Islands for key moments like this one, we do know that Euron’s dragons disappeared and that it fell to Asha Greyjoy to bring the fleet back and be crowned Iron Queen after House Harlaw threw her might behind her. But Euron Greyjoy was not the only death that caused most Westerosi to breath in relief, for Lord Tywin Lannister woke up death after his massive victory in the Kingswood. The blame fell on the Starks, but with the attempt looking as an evident way of blaming them the real mastermind behind the death of Lord Tywin remains free until this day. The Starks also had the satisfaction of Lord Bolton’s surrender after realizing he could not win, but King Robb’s forgiveness of Lord Bolton would taint his legacy and the goodwill he had for some time to come, and it almost cost him his life. Meanwhile, in Essos, the Targaryen loyalists managed to find a remaining member of the House Blackfyre by the name of Daemon Blackfyre (it was rumored there were descendants from Prince Brightflame, but they couldn’t be found), who declared his claim to the crown in the city of Pentos, immediately winning over Capitan General Tristan Rivers and the remnants of the Golden Company, along with a sellsword army to join him on his march to Westeros.

By this time Westeros had seen almost two years of political instability and war, and it seemed the Lords were having enough. This led to Prince Doran’s declaration of independence for Dorne, something that was emulated by Lord Royce and the Vale, who declared Robert Arryn as their new King. Both sides chose to join the alliance led by the Starks, and their attention fell not on Renly, but in the Mad Rose. While the Reach had isolated after the disaster with the Targaryens to focus on their internal rebellions with House Tarly and House Florent, the Mad Rose had finally lost any sense of sanity, and he gave a command that not even the Mad King would have dared to try: to infect the enemy lands with greyscale, trying to spread the disease to Westeros in order to win a war of attrition. Outraged by the insane command, Lord Baelor Hightower and many Reach Lords rose in rebellion, staging an assault on Highgarden that took the lives of the Mad Rose and his brother Ser Garlan, forcing the Tyrell remnants to flee to King’s Landing and back to Renly Baratheon once most Houses declared for the Hightowers and their coalition. Renly also had some luck by apparently bringing Lord Baelish back to his cause, with the Gold Cloaks and Lord Baelish working together in the capital under they managed to free Lady Sansa and kill the missing Lord Varys as he tried to escape to Pentos, presumably to join King Daemon. Of course, Lord Baelish adapted to the situation very quickly, helping Lady Sansa to escape and rejoin her family and leaving King Renly without his last triumph card. It wouldn’t be the last key event in King’s Landing, since the growing number of Sparrows entering the city would force the election of the so called “High Sparrow” for the office of High Septon, an event that would eventually have massive consequences for the Faith.

As King Daemon won the backing of the Dornishmen and marched through the Stormlands with his combined armies, it seemed it was the time for the last Baratheon King and the last of the Blackfyres to fight in the last major battle of the war. Alas, it was not to be, as King Renly was ambushed and murdered in an ambush that remains shrouded in mystery. Lord Tyrion Lannister took the chance that was being offered to him, reacting in a way that mimicked Lord Tywin’s skill and boldness with Lord Tyrion’s own brand of efficiency instead of cruelty. The Lannister Army took over the weakened capitol and imprisoned the remaining Baratheons and Tyrells, putting an end to any attempts to continue the war. King Daemon entered King’s Landing without having to fight a single major battle, and was acclaimed by the crowds as the Savior of Westeros. The alliance between Tyrion Lannister and Daemon Blackfyre proved to be an efficient one, and for the months they spent together in the capital they managed to find an end to the war in a way that would earn them the admiration of many people. The Baratheons and the Tyrells were forgiven and Lady Shireen made Queen of the Stormlands, but due to Baelor Hightower’s crowning as the King of the Reach the Tyrells were forced to remain in the capital. Needless to say, this act of clemency forced Dragonstone and the last Baratheon loyalists to surrender, ending the feud between the Stags and the Dragons.

To solve the independence conflict (which now had Edmure Tully as another king, this time the King of the Riverlands) King Daemon came up with a solution never seen in Westeros. Despite having recaptured two of Daenerys Targaryen’s dragons (with the third one going to Brandon Stark, King Robb’s brother and an expert in mysterious types of sorcery), King Daemon understood very well that the harsh winter would made another war impossible, and the Commonwealth of the Free Kingdoms was created. King Daemon was made King of the Dragonlands and Lord Protector as the nominal ruler of Westeros, but with the increased independence of the new Kings (with the sole exception of Queen Asha Greyjoy, who refused to join the Commonwealth) it became evident that another tyranny in the style of Aerys II Targaryen was virtually impossible. Thanks to the skill of the new court the Kings were won over rather quickly, and soon all of them would sign the historic document, opening the door to a new era.  

The final events in the chain that ended the War of the Ten Kings are far too known for me to comment on them, but it should be mentioned that the alliance system was secured by a series of marriages: Sansa Stark to Trystane Martell, Myrcella Lannister to Robert Arryn, Jeyne Westerling to Edmure Tully and Arianne Martell to Daemon Blackfyre. The final task left to the Kings was to destroy the loose ends left for the war, and while the reaction of some Lords ended up in the tragic death of Doran Martell and the short Manderly-Bolton war, these events came to a swift end with the trial by combat between Robb Stark and Roose Bolton and Lord Baelish’s assassinatons on the grounds of being guilty of the assassination in Sunspear, thus ending the hectic year of 300 AL. The war would be officially over by the start of 301 AL, just as winter raged across Westeros. Many of the Kings and their representatives went to King’s Landing for the first meeting of the High Council and the wedding of Lord Protector Daemon, the first peaceful event in living memory.

Now, looking back at the war after twenty years it’s easy to see the impact of the conflict in today’s Westeros, especially as many believe the Kingdoms to have recovered from the consequences of both major wars. After two large winters it is the time for summer again, and needless to say Westeros faces major challenges with the reform of the Faith, the race for the exploration of the new continent, the recent surge of the New Valyrian Empire and the reported reappearance of the Others beyond the Wall. A new generation takes over Westeros, and time will have to tell if they are up to the task of keeping the peace and preserving the balance of power left by Daemon Blackfyre the Great, the first Lord Protector.

THE END.
Logged
Cranberry
TheCranberry
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,501
Austria


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #567 on: September 01, 2014, 07:42:49 AM »

This was just as brilliant as it could have been, coming from you, Lumine. This whole game was incredibly fun, and I hope we will have a similar one to come sometime, maybe setting off after the actions of this one - exploration of Sothoryos, new Valyrian Empire, Others, Reform of the Faith... This all seems like a good point to start with next turn (though, to be fair, Sothoryos is a jungle continent far from Westeros... More logically would be the exploration of the New western continent, as found by the lords of the lonely light (see AFOC Kingsmoot and Lord Farwynd's promises), just as a nitpick)
Thank you for all you have done, Lumine, you have been amazing, and this is just the perfect way to end this. I can only congratulate you, Chapeau!
Logged
Chancellor Tanterterg
Mr. X
Moderators
Atlas Star
*****
Posts: 26,203
United States


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #568 on: September 01, 2014, 08:05:04 AM »

This was just as brilliant as it could have been, coming from you, Lumine. This whole game was incredibly fun, and I hope we will have a similar one to come sometime, maybe setting off after the actions of this one - exploration of Sothoryos, new Valyrian Empire, Others, Reform of the Faith... This all seems like a good point to start with next turn (though, to be fair, Sothoryos is a jungle continent far from Westeros... More logically would be the exploration of the New western continent, as found by the lords of the lonely light (see AFOC Kingsmoot and Lord Farwynd's promises), just as a nitpick)
Thank you for all you have done, Lumine, you have been amazing, and this is just the perfect way to end this. I can only congratulate you, Chapeau!

This although my vote for the next one would be at some early point in Robert's rebellion (before all the alliances were cemented, if possible).  But yeah, excellent work Lumine! Smiley  Playing this game was easily one of my favorite experiences on this forum.  Honestly, I was considering leaving around the time this started, but I had so much fun with this, I think I will stick around.  So again, great job Lumine and thanks for all the hard work.  After my experiences with Atlasia, I was skeptical about forum games, but it was really a privilege to play this.  Btw, thanks to everyone else who played for helping make this so fun!  Sorry if I either directly or indirectly got you killed (sort of Wink ) and congrats to Antonio and unknown on killing me Tongue
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #569 on: September 01, 2014, 09:53:49 AM »

This was just as brilliant as it could have been, coming from you, Lumine. This whole game was incredibly fun, and I hope we will have a similar one to come sometime, maybe setting off after the actions of this one - exploration of Sothoryos, new Valyrian Empire, Others, Reform of the Faith... This all seems like a good point to start with next turn (though, to be fair, Sothoryos is a jungle continent far from Westeros... More logically would be the exploration of the New western continent, as found by the lords of the lonely light (see AFOC Kingsmoot and Lord Farwynd's promises), just as a nitpick)
Thank you for all you have done, Lumine, you have been amazing, and this is just the perfect way to end this. I can only congratulate you, Chapeau!

Thank you, Cranberry! I envisioned a Westeros living through the Renaissance for a potential next game, hence those ideas I posted. And of course, the western continent is a far more logical idea than Sothoryos, I will make the change right away.

This although my vote for the next one would be at some early point in Robert's rebellion (before all the alliances were cemented, if possible).  But yeah, excellent work Lumine! Smiley  Playing this game was easily one of my favorite experiences on this forum.  Honestly, I was considering leaving around the time this started, but I had so much fun with this, I think I will stick around.  So again, great job Lumine and thanks for all the hard work.  After my experiences with Atlasia, I was skeptical about forum games, but it was really a privilege to play this.  Btw, thanks to everyone else who played for helping make this so fun!  Sorry if I either directly or indirectly got you killed (sort of Wink ) and congrats to Antonio and unknown on killing me Tongue

Thank you very much, X, it's great to hear that you will stay in the forum! I had my doubts about games like this after my Rome one failed to have enough players, but I think between this and Balance of Power it has been proven that we can have large-scale games and that they can be a lot of fun, xD
Logged
Cranberry
TheCranberry
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,501
Austria


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #570 on: September 01, 2014, 10:22:02 AM »

This was just as brilliant as it could have been, coming from you, Lumine. This whole game was incredibly fun, and I hope we will have a similar one to come sometime, maybe setting off after the actions of this one - exploration of Sothoryos, new Valyrian Empire, Others, Reform of the Faith... This all seems like a good point to start with next turn (though, to be fair, Sothoryos is a jungle continent far from Westeros... More logically would be the exploration of the New western continent, as found by the lords of the lonely light (see AFOC Kingsmoot and Lord Farwynd's promises), just as a nitpick)
Thank you for all you have done, Lumine, you have been amazing, and this is just the perfect way to end this. I can only congratulate you, Chapeau!

Thank you, Cranberry! I envisioned a Westeros living through the Renaissance for a potential next game, hence those ideas I posted. And of course, the western continent is a far more logical idea than Sothoryos, I will make the change right away.

You basically outlined a gameplay idea for a new game to start - I guess the next innovation to come would be something of the likes of gunpowder, coming from Valyria or the Free Cities and throwing over the military order of Westeros. But anyways, I would love to see that game - I guess you don't want to do another one? Tongue
Logged
Lumine
LumineVonReuental
Moderators
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,610
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #571 on: September 01, 2014, 11:13:30 AM »

You basically outlined a gameplay idea for a new game to start - I guess the next innovation to come would be something of the likes of gunpowder, coming from Valyria or the Free Cities and throwing over the military order of Westeros. But anyways, I would love to see that game - I guess you don't want to do another one? Tongue

Something like that, I was incredibly tired yesterday while writing Samwell's work and yet I found mysef unable to stop writing about a potential scenario...

-A New Valyrian Empire in Volantis led by a descendant of Aerion Brightflame (kinda like the Konmenoi restoration of the Byzantine Empire, or even Justinian's campaigns for that matter)
-An Others invasion with a couple of twists
-A massive conflict due to the reformation of the Faith (With the Westerosi Martin Luther and such), including Harrenhal as a new seat for the High Septon and his Faith Militant army
-The exploration of a new world, just like with America
-A "War of the Roses" styled dynastic conflict in one of the Seven Kingdoms
-Oldtown as a massive cultural and religious center (in a way as a potential play on the Rome-Avignon conflict of the XIII Century)
-Gunpowder!
-The Iron Bank and Braavos on steroids thanks to a new ruling family (mimicking both Venice and the Borgia Family in a way)
-A couple of interesting natural disasters
-The new generation coming to power (most of them new characters, with a few coming back and others that didn't show up her staging their comebacks), and, of course, the new dragons...

I fear that a Robert's Rebellion scenario would end pretty quickly (all it takes is Tywin Lannister choosing a side early into the war and the usual obsession of the players with using Faceless men), and it has the issue of not having enough info on many details, thus forcing me to suppose things that could be incredibly wrong until the World of Ice and Fire is out by the end of October (and that is if I manage to find it on the internet). Thus, a made up scenario gives the players greater freedom and allows for a completely unpredictable story.

In regards to actually making another one... well, I enjoyed being a GM, but it's a hard task and it does take a lot of time away from college and the two novels I'm currently writing. I think I will do some work on the scenario or in a potential Robert's Rebellion one and see if they have some potential. Of course, should anybody else wish to make their own game I will be happy to collaborate and play it as well, xD
Logged
bullmoose88
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 14,515


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #572 on: September 01, 2014, 12:24:14 PM »

I enjoyed this greatly and look forward to another game if and when our excellent GM is ready.

I know he sort of did this but I would welcome his commentary/thoughts on how he saw the game and how bright or not plans were.
Logged
Cranberry
TheCranberry
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,501
Austria


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #573 on: September 01, 2014, 12:39:47 PM »

My god, this proposal is so interesting! I would so love to play this, please give it a try moderating it!
Additionally, what might evoke some tensions and certainly some plot as well, is the concentration of power, you know, where the power sits in one Kingdom, the struggle between centralism and absolutism on one side and regionalism and feudalism at the other, and to some extent, maybe parliamentarian on a third side...
If I may give some thoughts here, especially the Westerlands and the Crownlands, maybe also the Reach and Dorne would be countries that more and more would shift towards centralistic absolutism in my imagination, similar to OTL France... The Reach however, with its numerous houses descended from House Gardener, would be the perfect realm for War of the Roses... On the other hand, the North would likely hold on to the old ways, feudalistic structure, the longest; while the Vale, I don't know, maybe The Lords Declarant and so on is already a first showing of a developing parliamentarism...
You should include Braavos and Valyria in the next game then, maybe at the cost of some lesser important realms in Westeros, as it surely would be too many then... I don't know, combine Crownlands and Stormlands, and Riverlands and North or what...
What would be the main power colonising the new continent, by the way? I'd assume the Westerlands, maybe also the Reach?
This all however sounds so amazing, please make a new game! Smiley
Logged
Antonio the Sixth
Antonio V
Atlas Institution
*****
Posts: 57,964
United States


Political Matrix
E: -7.87, S: -3.83

P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #574 on: September 01, 2014, 12:58:42 PM »

Truly amazing job Lumine, I had a lot of fun playing this game throughout the summer and you gave it an ending that was really worthy of the passion you and us players put into this game throughout its length. Thanks a lot for your dedication, and if you ever find the time to moderate a new game (though I'd say you should wait a bit, maybe until December or so) I'll definitely consider playing again!

As a final note from Robb Stark, I should make it clear that the North will resist any attempt to impose a foreign faith over our ancestral tradition. The Northmen will remain faithful to the Old Gods, who have guided them through the millennia of their glorious, independent history.

BTW, do I win any cookie for being the only player to stay alive throughout the game? Tongue
Logged
Pages: 1 ... 18 19 20 21 22 [23] 24 25  
« previous next »
Jump to:  


Login with username, password and session length

Terms of Service - DMCA Agent and Policy - Privacy Policy and Cookies

Powered by SMF 1.1.21 | SMF © 2015, Simple Machines

Page created in 0.116 seconds with 12 queries.