Leon's Roar/Issue v1i3

Cost: 7 silver

Volume I Issue III

Editor: Lazlo Lemont II

News Articles

News Briefs

November 1st - Silnaria stamped out peasant opposition in Beleriel, reclaiming the region for their own. November 2nd - Rieleston exerted control over Lower Tell, summarily executing the peasant revolutionaries. November 3rd - Darkan forces repelled the combined might of Tara, Strombran, and the Cagilan Empire in Melias. November 4th - The Darkan armies asserted themselves in an offensive against Tara, Strombran, and the Cagilan Empire, emerging victorious in Melias. - Later that day, the Taran, Strombran, and Cagilan Empire armies rallied and defeated the Darkan regiments which had been running roughshod over them the prior two battles. November 5th - Lyonesse declared war against Carelia on this day. November 6th - Silnarian and Minas Leon forces met in Lyton, with Minas Leon taking the field. - Suville joined Lyonesse in declaring war on Carelia. November 8th - Caergoth declared war on Suville, joining the rapidly growing conflict. November 9th - Minas Leon forces invaded Corniel once again, successfully taking the field from the paltry Silnarian guards and reclaiming their old defenses. November 10th - Silnarian forces rushed to their doom in an effort to reinforce Corniel. The Minas Leon Legion made quick work of them. - Both Minas Leon and Silnaria continued to flood Corniel with troops, with Minas Leon once again coming out victorious from the latest sortie. November 11th - The shattered Silnarian army continued to be utterly ransacked by the burgeoning Minas Leon forces in Corniel. - Suville and Carelia met on the field of battle in Lurgrod for what appears to be the opening movements of their war. Suville came out victorious. - Minas Leon continued her domination over Silnarian forces in Corniel, mounting a successful attack against their lines. - The tide of battle turned against Suville in Lurgrod as Caergoth and Taran forces reinforced the Carelian lines, turning back the Suville armies. November 12th - The paltry remnants of the Silnarian army were quickly surrounded by the Minas Leon forces in Corniel. November 13th - Our righteous generals led the Leonian Legions into Beleriel, successful smashing the Silnarian garrisons stationed there. November 14th - The forces of Minas Leon continued their decimation of their Silnarian foe in Beleriel, successfully taking the field. - The Silnarian army arrived in Beleriel to find only a small portion of the Minas Leon army, which quickly defeated the Silnarian vanguard and went back to work rejoining the main force. November 15th - In an effort to further stall the Silnarian horde, a brave contingent of the Minas Leon Legion remained in Beleriel to attack the Silnarian march. The Minas Leon forces were overrun by the massive numbers, marking one of the few occasions Silnaria has taken the field in this war. - The allied forces of Caergoth and Carelia emerged victorious over the Suville armies in Chasnoff. November 16th - Darka took over the region of Wistir. November 17th - A dark day, indeed- after successfully completing their campaign goals and preparing to make their way back to home, Silnaria emerged from the shadows to once again strike against the slower, easier members of the Legion in Elroth. Setting the deck so deeply in their favor, Silnaria scored their biggest victory in the war. - Rieleston has regained control of Lower Tell, following a brief insurgency. November 18th - In an effort to prevent another tragedy as had befallen our troops the day prior, the Prince Justiciar Richard II rode against the Silnarian horde in Elroth, effectively distracting them. In the process of this action, the Prince Justiciar was surrounded and captured. Within four hours the brave Prince Justiciar escaped custody and returned to Minas Leon. - Darka has taken control of Tertul. - Silnaria exerted their crushing iron fist over the people of Beleriel, undoing much of the good work done by our courageous Legion soldiers. November 21st - Silnaria completed their domination over Liberty by executing the women and children in Elroth. - In a move which should strike fear into the hearts of absolutely no one, Silnaria and Lyonesse declared themselves in a Federation. - Unsatisfied with the Home Guard, Baroness Lisa Seraphen of Yule and Baron Lazlo Lemont II of Upper Tell co-founded the "Northern Defense Initiative," an alternative unit dedicated to addressing Minas Leon's domestic issues. November 23rd - Suville struck back successfully against Caergoth, decimating the forces in Rustton. November 25th - Silnaria has exerted their dominion over Corniel. November 27th - Carelia has taken over the region of Tarkhog. November 28th - Silnaria clenched their iron fist over the poor peasantry of Elroth. November 29th - The Siege of Shanandoah began in earnest on this day, with Silnaria earning two pyrrhic victories and holding the walls against two waves of Minas Leon troops.

By Lazlo Lemont II

The Editor's Roar: A New Era in Minas Leon

Opinions & Editorials

This month saw the alteration in two major courses of Minas Leon history: First and foremost, the siege of Shanandoah began on November 29th with the Legion dismantling, bit by bit, the militia-slaves ordered by their Silnarian overlords to stand against our forces. No longer content to trounce the Silnarian bandits in the fields of Elroth and Beleriel, our Legion now marches against one of the greatest cities in our region - even if it is currently held by a mockery of nobility. Our Justiciar Richard II praised the valor and sacrifice given by our brave soldiers, hailing them for their gallant display against the majestic walls of Shanandoah. The cultural value of this city is to be briefly explored in the introduction to our new segment on the histories and cultures found in Minas Leon. The second alteration came in the formation of the Northern Defense Initiative, an alternative Domestic Army. Though I will endeavor to present the NDI's formation in as unbiased a way as possible later in the paper, please give me leave to exude a bit of personal feelings on the subject here. Neither myself, nor Baroness Lisa, doubt the hard work and dedication those members of the Home Guard have to Minas Leon - however, it is our firm belief that a realm the size of Minas Leon requires a more militant response to threats. To be sure there are growing pains - to my knowledge very few have attempted a Domestic Army which demands this much of its members. We are certainly going to be prone to discovering that some actions do not work out the way we expected; but our response to those discoveries and the willingness to take part in discovering them are what makes, in my opinion, the NDI and its volunteers so great. Please enjoy this month's edition of the paper, and as always, Roar.

By Lazlo Lemont II

Formation of a New Army and Badger Necromancy

State of the Realm

On October 21st, 1013, Baroness Lisa Seraphen and Baron Lazlo Lemont II formed the Northern Defense Initiative. Born out of a wish to develop a more militant alternative to the Home Guard, the Northern Defense Initiative (NDI) seeks to develop an active community devoted to maintaining Minas Leon's regions while the Legion is away. Currently Baron Lazlo is serving as the Marshal, with Baroness Lisa acting as Vice-Marshal. At the time of this writing, four other nobles have joined the NDI: Earl Tristan Stryfe of Melmoor, Earl The Eastern Puff of Uforth, Sir Demastes Carandeth of Upper Tell, and Sir Spade Seraphen of Yule. The NDI, as represented by Sir Spade and Earl Puff, tested its mettle during a particularly devastating incursion of beasts and skeletons in Uforth. It was with this editor's own eyes that the giant badgers were seen. Hulking, snarling beasts, the monstrous badgers had appeared first in Melmoor, savagely eating two peasants before making their way into Uforth. There, they continued their rampage- ripping apart no less than 54 peasants and gobbling up nine bushels of food. Led by their fearsome leader Silverclaw, the massive badgers cut their way through the first unit to attack them. Later, it was discovered that an undead army had been raised in Uforth. Numbering over eighty corpses, the existence of such a force clearly pointed to one thing: Silverclaw and his brood were Giant Badger Necromancers. The existence of such a force gave no fear to The Eastern Puff, Earl of Uforth, who gallantly charged his unit against the diabolic cete, and even managed to drive back Silverclaw before his own unit retreated from the field. Sir Spade led his NDI militia into Uforth to provide support for Earl Puff and successfully decimated the Undead remnants. Truly this promises a fortuitous beginning to what is a new era in the fight against Domestic Enemies.

By Lazlo Lemont II

Scouts and Scribes are Prone to Mistakes

Foreign News Update

While it is clear to those of us at home and abroad that the war against the Silnarian menace is easily swinging in our favor, some may be shocked to learn a particular statistic uncovered by the stewards and scribes of The Leon's Roar. Since September the Silnarian Army has emerged victorious a whopping 22% of the time, taking the field eight times out of thirty-six engagements. Of those eight times, however, only one has been in what was possibly an intended engagement by both forces - September 27th, when an expedition led by our brave King deep into Silnarian territory was ambushed by the Silnarian Army. Every other loss has come on the heels of a movement by the Legion or a deviation in the orders given by the Grand Marshal. What this suggests is an alarming tendency for messengers and scouts to mistakenly lead their units astray, such as when one scout directed his unit to the walls of Shanandoah (alone) on October 12th, or when messengers delayed the relaying of information to their Noble benefactors and found their units attacked by a numerically superior Silnarian force on November 15th. At first it was the thought of this paper that something was to be said to the Nobles in question, but Field Marshal Ciryatan of Umbar had this clarification for our paper: I don't think that some nobles failed to keep up the pace, their scouts or scribes just didn't bring them fast enough the orders to move or led them to wrong directions (like those suidicial city assaults some had). I am all for chopping off the heads of those servants and well, the solution is to have better servants, I guess. – Field Marshal Ciryatan of Umbar A wise clarification from our Marshal Leader. If you are at a loss for how to handle your unruly scouts and messengers, the Leon's Roar offers some advice to a Troop Leader with a similar problem in its brand new Advice column following this article.

By Lazlo Lemont II

So You Need to Inspire Through Torture

Advice Column

Dear LR: Recently I have found myself marching through the day-old excrement of the Legion's cavalry, eternally behind the movements of the whole army. One day my rear guard even found the Scout I'd sent out earlier that day to blaze the trail for our unit behind us. I am just at a loss as to what to do; I've tried whipping, flaying, mud-dunking...nothing seems to work! Could you offer some advice about how to inspire my men to some semblance of respect? Sincerely, - Lost and in Need of Thumbscrews Dear Lost Ainot, The Leon's Roar is always willing to offer some advice on how to best inspire the men under our banner. While we certainly do not condone the use of barbaric tortures (we leave those to the inhuman torturers of Silnaria), we certainly believe that many troops could occasionally use some "physical encouragement." One might, for example, order their scouts to play various games. Perhaps the Scouts and Messengers are given a point for each time they do particularly well or deliver a message on time. First place is given a quality mug from the first tavern passed, and a free drink to the fellow in second place. Third place and below? Well, we here at the Leon's Roar have found that a sack of rocks leaves the least amount of bruising. Whatever you do, please ensure that your peasant is capable of performing their duties afterwards. It is of no use to you if the retainer in question is incapable of helping you- in fact, that may lead you into deeper trouble further down the road!

By Lazlo Lemont II

The Importance of Minas Leon Heritage

Minas Leon Heritage

Minas Leon, at present, stretches through the former borders of three lost realms: Norland, the Barony of Makar (well, almost lost anyways), and (of course) Minas Ithil. This patchwork of cultures and histories continues to have an impact upon the realm as we know it today, be it from the existence of the Way of the Hammer (an old Viking belief system rooted in Norland culture) in some of our northern regions, to the settlements begun by the Barony, to the martial heritage we take from Minas Ithil. At the bequest of the King I have endeavored to share some of the knowledge I've uncovered regarding these heritages in the pages of the Leon's Roar; but first, a disclaimer. I was but a young lad when my family lived in Minas Ithil- I was younger still when it and Norland fell. Numerous amounts of information have been passed on to me, but much of it has been tattered through time and glued together by my own faulty memory. As such, some of you may know me to be wrong- in that case, feel free to correct me or add into the discussion. Nonetheless, I do wish to open with a bit of note on the importance of the city we will soon be liberating from its capture by Silnarian brigands. Shanandoah was, upon a time, the capital of Minas Ithil - the realm from which Minas Leon was most directly birthed. A glorious citadel along the coastline of Minas Ithil, Shanandoah was a pinnacle of Minas Ithil engineering. As a bit of personal investment, it is also where I was born and raised- my father, Lazlo Lemont I, served as the steward to Vlad Vlakider, who was then Duke of Shanandoah. The city also served as the base for the Shanandoah Praetorians, a close runner for the finest military machine on the continent (falling ever so closely behind the Leohampton Legion, which I believe is the predecessor to Minas Leon's Legion). Shanandoah today is but a shadow of its former self- a den of riff-raff due to the machinations and questionable governing abilities of its Silnarian oppressors, it yearns to be reunited with the concept of civilization which Minas Leon will bring.

Ruler Updates

Cagilan Empire - Torsaan ka Habb Rieleston - Christofer II Kane Talerium - Aldarion Tezokian

Original Format Modified from Roxas Sypher's Excellent Work on the York Journal. The Leon's Roar is Printed by Lemont Printers & Co., Located in York Just Off the Market Road Past The Cage Pub.