Anuirean Journal - Issue 27 ( Deismir / 573 MR)



Written and edited by Stephanie Vaumel, from her Imperial City offices.
12 Coin Street, Market District, Anuire City.

Reporters: Various Merchants, Travellers, and Nobles
Printing By: Royal College of Sorcery
Archive Site: http://www.box.net.au/~hoss/birth.html



Haelynir - Deismir 573 MR

HEADLINES:

(12/4) - Ghoere announces alliance with Osoerde.
(24/4) - Regent of Cariele hands over control to Guildmistress.
(4/5) - War between Ariya and Zikala enters its 7th month.
(18/6) - Alamie flees Tournen advance.
(30/6) - Wedding announced between Laela Flaertes, Duchess of Tuornen
and
Rhobher Nichalier, High Priest to the Western Imperial Temple of Haelyn.



North West Anuire:
Includes: Boeruine, Tournen, Alamie, Talinie, and the Elf's Domain.

(13/4 - Boeruine) The guilder Gaelin Thuried has sold his interests in
Boeruine's guilds to Arien Borthein of the Boeruine trading guild. This
unusual deal involved a large sum of gold which was payed to Gaelin
Thuried
for his warehouses, shops, and other businesses inside Boeruine. Guilder
Thuried was reportable very happy with the deal and has now headed back
north to his holdings in Thurazor and Dhoesone to concentrate on those
holdings.

Arien Borthein has also announced that his holdings in the five peaks
will
now be known as the Five Peaks Providers and supply any travellers in
the
region as well as purchase ores and gems of the humanoid tribes in the
Five
Peaks.

(17/4 - Talinie) The guilder Storm Holtson has been executed in Talinie
for
his crimes against that kingdom. A statement was released by Marcus Dern
stating the guilders crimes and why he was being put to death. The
statement also proclaimed Cowan the Sword the national hero of Talinie.

I, Marcus Dern decree that Cowan the Sword is a national hero of
Talinie.
As a reward for his actions he will be given the run of the new castle
in
Freestead as well as the title of General of the Northern Army. Haelyn
has
blessed this man and seen fit to send him to our aid in time of need. In
Freestead Cowan will protect our fine kingdom from the goblins to the
north
and the bandits to the east. May Cowan stand strong for years to come in
the light of Haelyn's grace.

The mercenary has now set up a new base of his organisation somewhere in
Talinie to assist the Thane in any activities that may require his
expertise.

(18/6 - Alamie/Tournen) The Duke of Alamie has withdrawn his forces from
Tournen in the face of a massive counter offensive from Tournen/WIT. The
Western Imperial Temple of Haelyn has hired large numbers of troops for
the
counter offensive and there have even been reports of a mage summoning
Ogre's from the Five Peaks to serve in Tournen's army. The Duke of
Alamie
and his generals saw the advancing forces and withdrew from the siege of
Haesrien to the relative safety of the Alamie province of Deseirain.
Tournen forces are now massing in Haesrien province for a counter
offensive
against Alamie.

(30/6 - Tournen) A wedding has been announced between Laela Flaertes,
Duchess of Tuornen and Rhobher Nichalier, High Priest to the Western
Imperial Temple of Haelyn. All rulers and important officials have been
invited to the ceremony which is to take place in the southern city of
Tour's Hold far away from the current war. Already Prince Avan and Baron
Tael of Ghoere have announced that they will be attending, and it is
hoped
that other regents from nearby and distant lands will be able to attend.
The ceremony will be held in the Sehnir, although the exact date has not
yet been decided.



South West Anuire:
Includes: Avanil, City of Anuire, Taeghas, Broesengae, and Mieres

(27/4 - Mieres) A large number of soldiers from Mieres have embarked on
ships from Meires and Diemed and set sail for Diemed. They are to join
an
army in Cilinie province in Diemed, although what they will be doing
there
is unknown. Arron Vaumel has announced a recruiting drive to replace
troops
now in Diemed with a new army based in Mieres to protect the colony.
This
new army, consisting mainly of mounted units and archers is already
being
outfitted with weapons and trained and should be ready to take up their
posts within a month or two.

Also on Meires the Impregnable Heart of Haelyn which recently expanded
into
the colony has announced that the church will be building a new
fortified
cathedral in Seaward province. According to a spokesman this new
cathedral
will bring the worship of Haelyn to the unenlightened people of Meires
and
enrich all of their lives.

(17/5 - Avanil/Taeghas) Avanil has sent one of its generals and a unit
of
soldiers to Taeghas recently to boost its forces in that kingdom.
Archduke
Boeruine has express concern about this recent buildup of troops in
Taeghas
and warned that his kingdom can resist any invasion from Avanil and it
would be foolish if the Prince was to attempt to take Boeruine again.
Prince Darien Avan has claimed that the troops are not in Taeghas to
invade
Boeruine and are there for other reasons.

(3/6 - Broesengae) Following the launch of the most recent vessel in the
Broesengae fleet the Duchess said that this vessel and others in the
fleet
would now be used to patrol the coastline of the Duchy searching for any
pirate activate. She has declared that piracy is illegal inside
Broesengae
waters and anyone caught engaging in these illegal activities would be
executed and their valuables would be forfeit to the state.

Southern Anuire:
Includes: Diemed, Medoere, Roesone, Ilien, Aerenwe, and the Spiderfell.

(14/4 - Medoere/Roesone) The sceptre stolen from the Caercas temple of
Rournil several months ago has now been recovered by a combined
Roesone/Medoere operation. It seems that a priest for a yet unknown
religion had arranged the left to weaken the Rournil Temple and expand
the
influence of his own temple. This has not been successful however and
the
sceptre is now resting back in its rightfully place above the alter in
the
Caercas temple.

(8/5 - Diemed) The Baron of Diemed has announced that the famous
merchant
captain Droene Quartez as the new commander of the Diemed navy. The old
captain is one of the most experienced sailors in the region, although
there have been rumours about his involvement with criminal elements.

Also in Diemed there seems to have been a large increase in the number
of
troops in Ciliene province in recent weeks. The arrival of a small force
of
Ghoere troops, and a large army from Meires means that over 3,000
soldiers
are now based in that province.

(20/6 - Aerenwe) There has been trouble on the island province of Ynis
Craven in recent weeks. The Spider River Traders have moved against the
holdings of the Church of Storm's Height and that temple attempted to
move
soldiers onto the island to prevent their activities. The King of
Aerenwe
whose troops were already in the province prevented this move and the
CSH
forces were forced to turn back by the Aerenwe navy which was patrolling
in
the area. The King has also prevent further work on a fortress that the
CSH
was building in Ynis Craven.

Also in Aerenwe King Landen has begun construction on a new religious
university in Calrie province to provide teaching facilities to the new
cathedral of Nesiere that the Eastern Temple has started work on in the
same province. With this new university and cathedral Cariele will now
be
the large centre for the worship of Nesiere in all of Cerilia.



Central Anuire:
Includes: Endier, Ghoere, Mhoried, Elinie, and the Gorgon's Realms.

(12/4 - Ghoere) A festival has been held in Ghoere to celebrate the
completion of the new Ghoere - Osoerde alliance. The alliance was
announced
a week ago during a visit by Baron Tael to Osoerde. Already Ghoere
maintains a small navy in the Osoerde province of Gulfport, but the new
alliance will combine the armies of the two kingdoms to assist in the
defence of both realms.

Baron Tael has announced that anyone daring to attack his kingdom will
now
face the full might of the combined Ghoere/Osoerde armies and the same
will
occur if any enemy crosses the borders of Osoerde. He also said that
this
alliance was in response to recent instability in the region and would
work
towards peace in all of Anuire. There has been no response yet from
other
nearby kingdoms to the Baron's announcement.

(7/5 - Mhoried) The Mhor has moved against Haelyn's Aegis and as a
result
the rogue temple has been ejected from Mhoried. The government has
issued a
statement saying that the temple was removed due to its recent actions
in
Ghoere. He said that Mhoried did not want such a violent, and
unpredictable
religion inside Mhoried and until a new leader of the Temple was elected
it
would be banned from Mhoried.



Northern Anuire:
Includes: The Five Peaks, Thurazor, Cariele, Dhoesone, Tuarhievel,and
other
Northern Lands.

(19/4 - Thurazor) The Goblins of Thurazor have held a celebration
recently.
It is not known what the celebration was for but it involved a drinking
contest and a Dwarf Throwing contest. Dwarven rulers has called on
Thurazor
to outlaw this evil practice and to release all captive Dwarves back
into
the wild where they can return to their native habitats.

(24/4 - Cariele) In a shock move this week the ruler of Cariele, Entier
Gladanil has handed over control of his kingdom to the guilder Mheallie
Bireon. The Northern Reformed Church of Sarimie who performed the hand
over
ceremony reported that regent Gladanil was not forced into the ceremony
and
was there of his own free will. After the ceremony Entier Gladanil said
that he was looking forward to retirement and hoped that his very good
friend Mheallie Bireon would take good care of his kingdom.

The new regent has not yet made any new laws or changed the way Cariele
is
run, but is expected to do so soon. The Church of Sarimie has called on
the
people of Cariele to support the new ruler and not destabilise the
leadership in face of the many enemies that Cariele bordered with.



Eastern Anuire:
Includes: Osoerde, Coeranys, Iron Hills, Sielwode, and Baruk-Azhik.

(12/4 - Osoerde) Several provinces in Osoerde have reported an increase
in
the population over recent months. It seems that many people have come
south to flee the conflicts of the northern and central realms. The most
popular province for these immigrants has been Gulfport where many have
found work in the new port expansion protect which is being financed by
the
Church of Storm's Height.

Also in Osoerde an alliance has been announced between Ghoere and
Osoerde.
The alliance was announced during the recent visit of Baron Tael.

(7/5 - Coeranys) A statement has been released by the Duchess of
Coeranys
to explain recent actions against the Haelyn's Aegis temple in her
lands.

"The recent brutal actions of the temple of Haelyn's Aegis against the
temple of the Life and Protection of Avanalae in Ghoere resulted in the
destruction of the temples, the looting of temple property, and the
murder
of both priests and lay followers alike. These actions have caused me to
fear that the carnage would be carried by Haelyn's Aegis to this land.
In
order to ensure that such actions will not happen in our beautiful land,
and to ensure that our friend in the Life and Protection of Avanalae
know
that we will not let such horrors pass by unnoticed, I have taken action
to
remove the temple of Haelyn's Aegis from the Coeranys. Please be assured
that this action is aimed at the hierarchy of Haelyn's Aegis only, who
are
no longer welcome in our land. The people of the Coeranys will be
allowed
to continue to worship as they please, and continued worship of Haelyn
by
the people of the Coeranys will not be prohibited in any way."

(9/6 - Iron Hills) The Gates of Lyssan, a massive fortification blocking
the only pass through the high mountains on the Rhormarch - Coeranys
road
has now been completed. The fortress has been built by King Finn to
protect
travellers and also to help in the collection of tariffs on travellers.
As
it blocks the only east-west road in the region all travellers must pass
through the fortress. The King however has not been charging a tariff on
travellers as originally planned, rather he has stopped taxation of the
people of the Iron Hills, making the kingdom one of only two lands that
do
not collect taxes from its people. This decree applies to all of the
Iron
Hills. People are reported to be very happy about the King's actions.

In other news from the Iron Hills a new bridge is currently being build
across the Khurinbym river to join up with the main Iron Hills road.
This
new stone bridge is being built by the Mur-Kilad refugees, who also
rebuilt
the Gates of Lyssan. Expected to be completed in the next few weeks the
bridge will provide transport across the river, while still allowing
smaller ships and river boats passage up the river.



Khinasi:
Includes: Rhormarch, Coullabhie, The Burrows, Ariya, Binsada, The
Sphinx,
Aftane, Sendoure, The Tarvan Waste, Zikala, and Mesire.

(23/4 - Rhormarch) The northern Rhormarch army has been placed on a high
state of alert following a recent incident in Kiergard involving the
rescue
of a large number of Rhormarch slaves from that evil kingdom. The King
also
announced at the same time an increase to taxation in Rhormarch to pay
for
the northern fortresses and wall that he is building to protect the land
from further invasions from the Gorgon's realms. This increase in
taxation
will also effect merchants and sailors as a tariff has been applied to
river traffic on the Khurinbym river and to traffic on the kings roads.

The construction of the new fortresses and wall is proceeding slowly
after
Dwarven mason hired to oversee the project demanded that workers started
rebuild some sections that they deemed were unstable. Work is expected
to
proceed at a rapid pace after the construction of two new quarries to
supply the necessary stone is completed.

(4/5 - Ariya) Our agent in Ariya has sent in another report on the war
between Zikala and Ariya. No-one has been able to get into Zikala by
ship
for some months now as the kingdom is being blockaded by the Ariya
fleet.
The war has also prevented us getting through to the capital of Zikala
but
we hope to have a reporter in the city in time for the next issue.

As the army of Zikala and the soldiers of the Zikalan temple remained
within the walls of the coastal cities, the Swords of Avani descended on
the outlying provinces. Ariyan cavalry stationed in Alhazir swept north
and
liberated the provinces of Azada, Houran, and Deired. The Ariyans also
landed cavalry in the west and those horsemen proceeded to liberate
Ghada
and Tuared. What opposition existed fled to the south. The soldiers
immediately saw to the destruction of the small Zikalan temples and the
border posts of the Zikalan army.

Two great armies still face each other in the plains outside the city of
Zikala yet no battle has been fought. The Lord Paladin, Prince Gerad ibn
Farid el-Arrasi rides with the Swords of Avani while the Grand Vizier of
Zikala and the High Priestess Shandare remain with their forces in the
city. Large numbers of infantry, cavalry, archers and even pikemen,
trained
in the Anuirean fashion, are gathered on each side. The Golden Fleet of
Ariya can be seen patrolling off shore. A decisive battle will surely be
fought in the weeks to come.

(13/6 - The Burrows) It seems that the Dwarves of Baruk-Azhik and the
Iron
Hills have been in demand of late as Dwarven Masons have also been
employed
by the Halflings of the burrows to build a new Bridge crossing the
Asarwe
River at Farpoint Gorge a very ambitious project to be undertaking. The
new
bridge when completed will provide the first route over the dangerous
stretch of river and allow caravans and other traffic passage into
Rheulgard. The new bridge is being financed by one of the two main
guilds
of the Burrows, and the same guild is also beginning construction on a
new
fortress near the Farpoint Bridge. This new fortress will overlook the
bridge and river and provide defence against any attackers.