(WELCOME TEXT)
Welcome, fellow fighter. What brings you to our humble fort?
WHO ARE YOU?
I am Alfonso Malo, or, as my friends refer to me, "Saint" Malo, Grand General of the Conquistadors and former vassal of a once mighty kingdom of the old world. I run this branch of sell-swords, so if you are considering a long-term deal, or require massive support from us hastily, I'm the one you seek.
TELL ME ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE CONQUISTADORS.
This may sound surprising at first, but my kin are not from Calradia, but from a distant continent. Before settling here, I was Admiral of the XIII Regiment of the 4th Army of His Majesty, King Calveraz of the Kingdom of Vesapnia. As our homeland was decimated by horrific plagues and our coffers emptied due to constant war with our neighbors, my king sealed a trade pact with the Eastern Emperor in a desperate attempt to fill the royal treasury and revitalize the army. A fleet of 10 galleons manned by reliable soldiers armed to the teeth set sail with a king’s fortune of trade goods unknown to the East.
Alas, our journey was far from pleasant. While we decided to take a short break on a larger island which lies far north of the Calradian coast, we realized that we weren't alone; a second force, namely the Imperial Legion built a staging point on the northwestern part of the isle, and as soon as they realized our presence, they attacked without warning. Our regiments fought bravely but we had little chance to counter their overwhelming numbers, especially in the lush forest where we had too little space to form up correctly. Soon, we were forced to retreat. Luckily, they couldn't pursue us on the water, but our trials didn't end there, as afterwards, we were caught in a massive storm, and my vessel was separated from the main fleet, and eventually shipwrecked at the Calradian coast, north of the city of Rivacheg.
We tried to cut wood from the local forest, but soon our presence was discovered by the Vaegirs. Well, at least they were more civilized and allowed me to explain our situation to their ruler, King Yaroglek. He agreed to help us rebuild our ship, but we would have had to pay for the materials, for which he set ridiculously high prices. And, as it turned out, our ship carried the least trade goods in the whole fleet. But on the other hand, it had the greatest number of soldiers. I believe you can figure out the rest, my friend. As we couldn't pay with gold, we offered our services instead.
That was over a year ago, and, as you may see, we're still here. Ironically, by the time we had enough Denars, I realized that many of my men have taken local wives and are now fathers. They came to call Calradia their home, and I can understand why, for many of them joined the expedition to escape from poverty, religious persecutions, and the strict social order of Vesapnia, so they had little, if any, homesickness. Also, while waging our battles here, our company accepted many locals into its ranks, passing down our traditions of warfare, unique to these lands. As I'm a leader who cares for his men, I agreed to stay here and lead them, for I feel responsible for their very future.
However, I'm also feeling a growing urge to warn the inhabitants of this land of a grave danger, for our encounter with the Imperial Legion on that forsaken island revealed a sinister plan. When inspecting the imperial outpost, my scouts overheard a talk between a couple of enemy leaders, mentioning a future invasion aimed at Calradia, with a force nearly infinite in numbers. You may find my speech laughable, but I am a man of faith and honor, and I never lie. My men are trustworthy, and mark my words, in due time, the Imperial Legion WILL come. Since I have little hope to find influential allies among the Calradian empires given by my current position, I can't help but expand the company and prepare for the dark times ahead...
WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT THE CONQUISTADORS?
The specialty of our company is discipline and battlefield mobility above all else. Well-rounded swordsmen and pikemen provide the backbone of the company, supported by crossbowmen, and lancers acting as a small but elite cavalry force. Man-on-man, they can appear as if being in a disadvantage, but in the hands of a talented strategist, they are more than capable of dealing with even outnumbering forces. Our shields are unique and crafted specifically for close combat and are pikemen specialize in using their long range and hitting their target, even between the sword and buckler troops. We may not have the greatest manpower in the land, but I can assure you, my men are some of the most trained troops you will ever encounter, and our equipment is of high quality.
TELL ME MORE ABOUT THE GUILD TROOPS, I WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THE...
FOOTMEN
Footmen are promising fresh recruits who received a decent basic training in melee combat but have yet to flesh out their skills and capabilities. Traditionally, they are given bucklers, swords and fine steel helmets, but only light armor. As they grew more experienced, the Footmen will join either the swordsmen or pikemen branch of the company depending on their abilities.
SWORDSMEN/ RODELEROS
Swordsmen are versatile troops with a good balance of speed, armor and attack strength. Better equipped and skilled than the Footmen, they excel in close combat, and although their small shields provide little cover against ranged attacks, they are mobile and skilled enough to get into range even in a rain of arrows. When considered experienced enough, Swordsmen are promoted to well-armored Rodeleros, soldiers who mastered this form of fighting.
PIKEMEN / TERCIO PIKEMEN
We rely on Pikemen to counter enemy riders, which is necessary, as mounted soldiers seem to be dominant in this land. However, unlike most polearm-wielding soldiers, our Pikemen don't use shields due to the sheer length and weight of their powerful pikes, but what they lack in defense they make up in talent and damage. After proving their skills in several battles, they can rise to the rank of Tercio Pikemen, who are given further training and stronger equipment.
CROSSBOWMEN/ SEASONED CROSSBOWMEN
Crossbowmen are recruits who are too fearful to engage the enemy right in the thick of the fray, so they are given accurate crossbows to provide our company ranged support. They are usually less trained when compared to our other troops, but surpass most other crossbowmen in matters of starting weaponry. After a period of training, they become Seasoned Crossbowmen provided with reliable armor and take fencing lessons from our melee troops so they may protect themselves to a degree in close combat should the enemy get too close.
LANCERS
On an expedition across the ocean, there was little need or actual space for war steeds, but back then I insisted taking some horses with us, and now I'm glad I did. Our company has a small cavalry force, the Lancer division, but you make a grave mistake if you consider them inferior. With finely crafted lances and horses bred for battle, they can trample enemy infantry formations with ease and are equal in skill to any knight of Calradia. However, since our horses are a unique breed and considerably few men in the company are trained in mounted combat, I rarely let them be fielded by anyone, except if I know our partner is not only reliable, but a man that shares my morals. Even then, my business is war, and war is not cheap.
I HAVE A JOB FOR YOU...
(Assignment text goes here: raid, pillage, siege, hire individual units, etc.)
DO YOU HAVE ANY TASKS FOR ME TO PROVE MY FRIENDSHIP?
You... you really mean it? Well, friend, while I don't like to admit it, but the truth is, we can often use a helpful hand.
(DELIVER MESSAGE)
I have a letter that should be delivered to (random Vaegir lord) of the Kingdom of Vaegir. Though it is not of great priority, if you would deliver it I wouldn't have to send an escort group, and in a relatively small company like ours, every man matters. Of course, we don't ask you to do it for free.
(COLLECT DEBT)
One of the Vaegir lords, (random Vaegir lord) refused to pay for our services in a battle against the Swadians, and hasn't settled things with us ever since. However, due to political issues it wouldn't be good for us to openly protest against his actions, but an "outsider", like yourself, should have little problem asking him about it. Should he still refuse, you can still challenge him to a duel. If you defeat him fair and square, I'm fairly sure he'll pay the requested wage. Afterwards, bring the wage to our camp. I can offer a part of the owed money if you're willing to help, as well as our gratitude.
(BRING MATERIALS)
We, the Conquistadors use only first-grade materials to forge our equipment, but even after a decent period of service to the Kingdom of Vaegirs many merchants are still rather suspicious towards us and charge the price of their wares pretty high, and I'm growing tired of their unfair methods. Since you're probably more accustomed to the local conditions than me, the merchants are likely to sell their ware for less to you. So, getting to the point, if you would purchase (4-9) loads of pure Iron and bring it to our fort, we'd be willing to pay slightly more for it than the original price - both you and us would benefit from it. Fair trade, unlike theirs. So, are you interested?
(BRING RECRUITS)
When we were still with the fleet, our total manpower amounted to thousands, but right here and now, I have but a few hundred men under my command. If I intend to maintain the company on long terms - which I DO intend - then I have little choice but to employ men from the local populace. We already have some fresh Calradian blood among our ranks, but that won't be enough. Alas, in these troubled times I have little time to travel around the countryside to do the recruiting myself, but perhaps a wandering commander such as you could help. If you could round up and train a band of... let's say... (15-30) Vaegir Footmen/Swadian Militia/Nord Footmen... (random selection) and bring them to our fort, we would be most grateful.
(BRING HORSES)
While we managed to carry on our duty so far, our lack of cavalry is becoming a pressing issue. I was planning to expand the Lancer branch of the company, but I want only the best breeds in the land, and I don't trust the local stable masters too much, because they are just as suspicious towards us like the other merchants and might cheat us. I trust your eyes are better at judging the local steeds than mine, because due to some gossip, I'm particularly interested in a certain breed. If you could visit the stables and bring us 4 Courser /3 Hunter /2 War Horse /a Charger mount(s), we would be very thankful and eager to pay well for them.
(CATCH THE THIEF)
I'm beginning to feel that some are envious of our weaponry and armor, because a while ago a thief infiltrated our fortress and stole a few things from the blacksmith, including some blades and an old scripture that contains a secret forging method which makes our steel weapons extremely durable. However, it was written in our own mother language so I find the chances of the secret being revealed pretty low. Nevertheless, it would be good to have it back as soon as possible. I did a bit of research, and I figured out the thief is now somewhere around (random village), but sending out a party of our own might be misunderstood by the locals, and I don't wish to make things worse than they are. If you could seek out this criminal yourself and recover what we've lost, we'll reward you accordingly.
(KILL THE BASTARDS)
During one of our recent campaigns, my men were ambushed in their camp by a group of rogue mercenary soldiers while relaxing during the night. We've lost quite a few good comrades because of those cowardly foes. I believe they were employed by the Vaegirs in the past and sought a scapegoat for losing their jobs - so they attacked our company, trying to get rid of their new business rivals. When I sent a messenger to challenge them to a fair battle, they sent back the crippled, dead body on a horseback, with a message written on the horse's behind, saying: "Catch us first !". While we could defeat this honorless bunch face-to-face any day, I can't help but realize that unlike us, they have a fine amount of horses, and I won't waste my elite Lancers on this lowly band of sell-swords. Long story short, we have neither the time nor means to hunt them down. Still, if you share my morals, then I presume you agree that such impudence can't go unpunished. Should you come across them with your own band of warriors, make sure they will regret what they've done. I would reward you generously for this deed.