Awnsegh Alliances

[Osprey]

Would the Gorgon and Rhuobe Manslayer ever strike up an alliance?

The greatest weakness of the awnsegh seems to be the fact that they are always alone...

So why not make alliances, dividing up Anuire or other parts of Cerilia between them?

After all, the Gorgon never seems to win, so why not do something different the next time around? Why not make strong allies, especially with some other powers of Azrai who are equally interested in seeing the regents of Anuire conquered and overthrown?

What do the rest of you think? Is this a real possibility, or are there inherent blocks to such things ever happening?

I am interested in scenarios in which the villains have some real chance of success beyond offing a few regents. Scenarios in which the awnsegh might really win the big one, and thus pose a real threat to all of Anuire. Ideas?

[graham anderson]

Wasn't it implied in one of the books that the gorgon, magian and raven had some kind of recently formed alliance. I think it was but do not currently have the time to look threw the books.

[Green Knight]

Page 33 of Blood Enemies.



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graham anderson wrote:

Wasn`t it implied in one of the books that the gorgon, magian and

raven had some kind of recently formed alliance. I think it was but do

not currently have the time to look threw the books.



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[Fearless_Leader]

I've always played the Gorgon and Rhuobhe as hating one another. Most of the time this has little bearing on the action in the game or what the PCs are doing (in fact, most aren't really aware of their mutual hatred).
To Rhuobhe, the Gorgon is an example of everything wrong with humanity - driven mad in the jealous pursuit of power, corrupted by Azrai in the pursuit of said power, overly destructive, and perhaps worst of all - he uses humanoids in his armies. (And while Rhuobhe has sealed alliances with Orog tribes in the past, he probably rationalizes it as doing what must be done rather than seeing it as potential hypocracy). The Gorgon is also not likely to have any particular love for elves. Given the fact that Tuarhievel and Sielwode spend more time fighting the Gorgon than warring against the humans, they certainly have no reason to ally with him (or vice versa). I imagine that in some point in the past, prominent elves have tried to ally with the Gorgon and been burned in the end (and perhaps lured back to Battlewaite for some bloodthefting).
It's probably commonly accepted amongst the elves that if the Gorgon ever attained the Anuirean Iron Throne or godhood, the elves would suffer greatly.

As to the question why not do things differently? Because both Rhuobhe and the Gorgon are stubborn fanatics. Rhuobhe would never consent to dividing the continent with any non-elf, much less a corrupted human. As for the Gorgon, simple conquest of land is not his motive. The Gorgon is driven by ambition, tragic jealousy (of Roele and the new gods), and a lust for blood power all deriving from what he feels is a lack of recognition.
Thus the Gorgon has two main goals:
1) Bring to ruin everything Roele built. This has been partially accomplished with Michael Roele's death, yet the dream of Empire remains strong even today.
2) Challenge Haelyn and become the rightful king of the gods. Certainly harvesting bloodlines helps toward this end, but being invested as Emperor might put him over the top into apotheosis as well. It's also possible that if there were a Roele heir out there somewhere, the Gorgon could obtain godhood by killing him (campaign idea).

In order to threaten all Anuire, all the Gorgon really needs is patience. Simply wait for the warring houses to fall deeper into chaos and keep the pot boiling. Most of the time, little interferance is needed, though an occasional manipulation to stir the pot is warranted (such as in the Falcon and the Wolf). When its sufficiently distracted with itself, strike Anuire from multiple directions. Perhaps invade Dhoesone from across the Giantdowns. Strike Mhoried/ Elinie along the entire border. Send an armed force down into Rohrmarch, capture a port and send naval forces into the Gulf of Coeranys and the Straits of Aerele. If planned right, then Anuire will quickly collapse and the Gorgon and his armies will be parading through the Imperial City.

[Raesene Andu]

I've never really seen the Gorgon as someone who would strike up an alliance, even with beings like the Raven and the Magian, although if the stories are true all 3 are former lieutenants of Azrai, which would make an alliance a possibility, as Raesene appears to still be a follower of Azrai's (he has a church dedicated to the fallen god, which is more than most of the other regent's have).

In general, most of the Awnshegh do not appear to work together well. If fact, they are compeditors more than allies. Even Awnsheghlien states that border each other show no signs of working together.