SHADOW OF THE GREEN WOLF
NOTE: With BANNERLORD somewhere on the horizon, this mod idea will be pending
TO THE POINT
I like authentic medieval warfare as much as the next guy, but I also appreciate a good fantasy infusion, and what I have seen in mods like PoP, Floris, Diplomacy, and The Third Age inspired an idea that I would never be able to implement on my own.
THE GUTS OF THE IDEA
1) PC travels to a raw continent long after that area's civilization has crumbled to find work as a mercenary (or merchant, or cook, or whatever you want it to be). A Germanic fortress perched high on the cliffs, along the rocky shore of the sea, is the only sign of civilized life. But in the marshes below a large coven of witches have become agitated by the return of the Germanic knights whom they know are in pursuit of the goddess Holda and her army of disgruntled dead (or whatever).
2) Game allows the PC to try and rebuild the fallen faction with options to befriend several armies, such as Celt-like half-elven forest people, "white" witches, Amazon women, the evil mammoth-riding Nordic slaver lords to the east, or whatever people want these days, by completing quests and gaining influence. In addition, the PC will be able to help the invading knights establish walled villages and fortresses that are upgrade-able to towns.
3) Through diplomacy or warfare the PC can lord over any of these town options at the expense or gain of allies.
4) The evil baddie reveals himself /herself in time and suddenly all these new towns are under threat as huge armies of demons or "black" witches or undead sorcerers are marching around the walls. Time to gather your allies!
5) That's basically it. I want to somehow upgrade villages to towns over the span of game-years while the PC is having fun conquering and questing and finding hidden treasures.
IF YOU'RE STILL READING
Here are some things I wrote in my spare time for this possible community project:
[TITLE PENDING]
A Land Without a Name
The year is ___. At the southern edge of a churning sea that countless dead souls have rowed across, many falling prey to leviathans, or worse, begins a land whose name has long been forgotten. Here the dense marshes surround deciduous rainforest and flat savanna before the weathered green mountains that form a backbone for a harsh living landscape. Once the heart of a rich and powerful kingdom of white citadels, now the chambers lay haunted, forgotten and defiled, a ragged foundation to a menagerie of villages, covens, and wandering bands; a habitat for wild creatures both wonderful and deadly.
Your destination is simple: a Germanic outpost cradled high above the waves, ancient fortress of an ill-fated crusade which stands as the only trace of what you know as civilization: The coastal town of Einfühlung, now a Germanic trading center, where adventurous treasure hunters and heavily-armored conquistadors launch misguided campaigns into the wilds in search of gold, precious gemstones, enchanted artifacts, lost knowledge, potent magic, and death.
"Here, at the Throne of Holda, we will trample the dead army underfoot!"
--last recorded words of King Ælfgar, Master of the Order of the Midsummer Fire
[Picturing Castle Tomar, Portugal, with a town surrounding the fortress just outside the garden grounds of the court]
Looking out from the hilly meadows at what has been called The Throne of Holda, the descent of oak becomes forested marshland and home to various witch covens before touching the crystal clear Thanu River and then rising into the __ mountains. Heading north, the marshes become flood plains and then boreal forest. To the south, the marsh thickens and acquiesces before the might of a boreal rainforest known as Holda's Garden. Little is known about this place and it is said that magical creatures, former playthings of Titans, thought to have vanished long ago, hold sentinel in its thick shadows. At the threshold is where Holda was allegedly born and where she first envisioned her army of witches and disgruntled dead.
Siren Falls, just below Mount __ in the ____ Gorge is the home of the Council of the Owl, a rebel alliance of former heretics, knights, and outlaws.
The northwestern savannas display the raw beauty of Queen Thalestris and her last legion of fierce women warriors. A relic of former TYMORIA, they haul their mobile fortresses along the lakes and seas of their sultry homeland to repel invaders.
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NARRATOR says to PC:
"...Perhaps you are the one who can resurrect the lost kingdom and unite its faded, fractured parts; maybe you will see wisdom in preserving the nature that has reclaimed it; or maybe you will become just another stinking corpse--food for scavengers. The choice is yours as you venture into these forgotten lands to make a name for yourself; or to be forgotten."
Major FACTIONS:
Great Slave Rebellion
A large number of slaves have escaped their mammoth-riding lords at the foot of the savanna and have formed under the leadership of ___, who claims that a lost city of Titans can transform them into fierce warriors capable of defeating their former overlords.
Queendom of the Oiorpata
Fierce women warriors of the savannas serve their leader, Queen Thalestris, from mobile fortresses that accompany them on their cavalry raids. Largely composed of [Xena-type cavalry], lightly-armored berserker infantry troops, and apprentice archers with deadly accuracy, they have begun conquering the forest villages of their neighbors, the Druidic tribes of the Scordiscian Alliance, while continuing their perpetual assault on the Nordic slaver lords. Their patron goddess is Themiscyra.
The Slaver Lords
Mammoth riders of the northeastern savannas who utilize a vast pool of slaves from across a wide northern desert for labor, prostitution, and as sacrifices to their gods.
The Scordiscian Alliance
Druidic tribes of the forest have formed an alliance to combat the warmongering Oirpata and a new threat of demons flooding in from the south. Scordiscians are totemic animal-worshipers who ride large deer (elk) into battle. Their major god is Cernennos.
Coven of the Seers
"White" Witches of the swamps united together
The Ghost Titan [or whatever makes an evil badass horde faction]
EKIMMU the big badass resurrected Titan-god, evil spirits, "black" witches, Goddess Holda, undead sorcerers, disgruntled dead
Minor FACTIONS:
$ The Owl Creek Outcasts
$ Highwaymen
$ Mystical Creatures
$ Knighthoods
$ Adventurers
Knighthoods to include:
->Order of the Midsummer Fire
--based on the old tradition of lighting midsummer bonfires to combat witches and demons (mentioned in Frazer's The Golden Bough). Traditionally, they gathered on their hilltops to fight Holda's army of the dead. They linger in Einfühlung in hopes that the order will be restored so that they may continue their crusade against heresy and the forces of darkness.
->Frau Frau Foxes
--A knighthood comprised of heavily-armored cavalry women who wear fox helms and armored male foot knights with bear helms.
-> An order of your own making
Secret Society:
->Brotherhood of the Green Wolf
--Similarly found in Frazer's _The Golden Bough_ and is a secret society of scholars, merchants, craftsmen, and warriors who combat witchcraft and slavery.
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That's it for now but I'll keep working on it.
Hope to "see" everyone in BANNERLORD soon!
