It was in the Year of our Lord . . . oh, when was it? Well it's not important anyway.
One day, it was the Middle Ages. Some place in northern England (though I can't recall the name of it just now) a powerful Baron (to protect both the guilty and the innocent, we shall call him Aelfric) decided that he was going to throw off the yoke of his overbearing and militant neighbor, the Earl of . . . oh, something-or-other.
Sitting in his drafty throne room in what we will refer to as Caer Aelfric, the baron realized this his somewhat-less-than- intimidating force of fifteen men-at-arms would never defeat the Earl's army of hundreds.
Thinking heavily on the question, Aelfric realized that since he had more money than sense, he could easily afford to hire a few mercenary companies. Among the three most prominent in his mind were the Black Falcons, the Company of the Mists, and Fflemedd. Since the Black Falcons had already taken out a contract with the King of Norway, the Baron Aelfric decided to pit the Company of the Mists and Fflemedd against one another in order to see whcih would be a better choice for his offense.
Offering both companies handsome contracts and arranging for them to meet "by accident" on the road, Aelfric sat back and watched.
So began the first Mercenary Wars . . .
Hear the first-hand account of the first Merecenary Wars
Prologue:
It has been a year since the first Mercenary Wars.
One year ago, Baron Aelfric ap Llew, hungry for land and power, hired the mercenary Company of the Mists after their defeat of the Fflemedd Company. So successful was the Company of the Mists that soon Baron Aelfric had seized all of the surrounding lands from the lesser, weaker lords.
In protest, the displaced lords turned to the presiding Eorls of the land and begged for justice.
The Council of Eorls decreed that Baron Aelfric must cease his aggression towards his weaker neighbors and return control of their lands to them. When Baron Aelfric refused, the nearest Eorl launched an attack upon Aelfric’s army. However, the Baron’s army, knowing the land and having much to fight for, drove away the larger force.
Furious, the Eorl spoke to his cousin, the King of Norway. King Harald (of Norway) not only sent several troops to help defeat the over-ambitoius Baron, but also recommonded the Black Falcon Mercenary Company.
Following along at the rear, the Black Falcons witnessed the eradication of the large force of the Norse Army. The last remnants of the Norse Army joined with the battle-hardened Black Falcons in hopes of defeating the Company of the Mists and the Baron’s personal guard. . .
And so began the second Mercenary Wars.
Basically, it was a lot like the first. This time, the Black Falcons won, and the tournaments were as follows:
Archery: Pretty much everybody participated in this tournament. Owen won this--how annoying. He never even practiced with his bow!
Night Battle
The night battle was a bit of a farce.
It should be noted that it was Owen's idea for the entire Company of the Mists to stay at camp and drink around the fire. As a result, the Black Falcons were the only ones who did any sneaking.
The Mercenary Wars ended with the Black Falcons victorious. What will future wars bring?
The next Mercenary Wars is set to take place in late June (Mehefin) of 1998.
There will certainly be prizes for the winners, and possibly prizes for the second-and-third-place winners.
As for a story, that will be revealed shortly. However, this Mercenary Wars is planned to last a whole weekend. The schedule idea is this:
Saturday early: Organizers arrive and set up tournament fields
Return to Maelgrim's Mercenary Tavern
Longsword: Most people fought in this tournament. It was tough and hard, but eventually won by Maelgrim (by use of a rather dirty--if legitimate--trick).
Broadsword: I'm fairly sure that Aldric won this tournament. I could be wrong.
Sword and Shield: This tournament didn't go far--it was more of a long practice session.
The Black Falcons, exercising extreme caution and commendable stealth, sneaked up on the far-distant Company of the Mists camp. It took a few hours of sneaking, but the group eventually reached
the camp completely undetected (despite the protestations of Isaac). The attack was swift--if not completely by surprise--and the Company of the Mists surrendered their sword to the Black Falcons.
Both sides had a great time.
The tournaments are planned as follows (although this is by no means final):
Longsword (one-handed)
Broadsword (two-handed)
Archery
All-weapon
Grand Melee
Saturday morning (probably about 10-11 AM): sign-up for tournaments. Campsites determined and camp set up by opposing companies.
Saturday afternoon (about 12-1): Lunch and beginning of tournaments. Archery tournament to be held at far end of the main camp. Another tournament (possibly longsword?) starts.
Saturday late afternoon (between 3-5): Another tournament--probably boradsword.
Saturday evening (after 5): Feast, feast cleanup. Resting time.
Saturday evening (after feast and resting): Bardic circle. Storytelling and songs (hopefully--last year wasn't bad).
Saturday night: Night battles
Sunday morning: Breakfast probably.
Sunday morning (after 10): Tournaments--all weapon and Grand Melee.
Sunday afternoon: Lunch and preparation for Hourglass Battle.
Sunday afternoon (about 1:00?): Hourglass battle.
Sunday afternoon (after HG Battle): Tallying of points, etc... Closing junk. Prizes handed out and winner announced.
Sunday afternoon (about 3:00): Pack up and go home.