Shattered Empire

'Shattered Empire' was the series of events followed the Coming Storm campaign (see 2. Quest for Power), which ended with the Forces of Evil emerging victorious. It was also a direct continuation of said campaign, although this time the warring sides were fighting over control of Imperial lands instead of artifacts.

Act I: New Beginnings

Starchild, Awaken!

Interlude: Starchild, Awaken!

The Imperial forces have lost many great generals and genious minds, including Karl von Bragstein, one of the figureheads of the Engineer Guild. Unbeknownst to the inhabitants of Medivo, Karl was just one of the many clones of the prime von Bragstein, that were scattered around the universe and served as sleeper agents, gathering data and technology for their master. Seeing that his original copy has been destroyed and subsequently reassembled into the abomination known as Ezra von Bragstein, a second clone, Ferdinand was dispatched. His mission was to continue the work of Karl with the Imperials, and also to dispatch of his failed predecessor. Luckily, his arrival coincided with a celestial event predicted by Imperial scholars, which helped him greatly to blend in.

Assault on Dawnport

Battle: Assault on Dawnport

The Forces of Evil took no rest after their victory, and kept attacking Imperial settlements such as the coastal town of Dawnport. Dawnport at the time was visited by Liana Crowclaw, daughter of Niol and squire of the runic order, to inspect the town's defenses. Liana, with the aid of a local adventurer Guillaume, a Norse warrior called Bjarn, and the town guard manage to defend Dawnport from not only the invading orkish raiders, but also from an opportunistic gang of pirates, led by Captain Illustrious.

Battle near Drakhelm

Battle: Battle near Drakhelm

Even though Liana and her allies emerged victorious, Dawnport's defenses significantly weakened after that assault. With Imperial troops spread thin already, Liana had no choice but to contact the Drakhirri and enlist some of their mercenaries. The Drakhirri were despised since they have sided with the Forces of Evil in the ultimate battle for the artefacts, but they were still masterful fighters. The party found the Drakhirri lord locked in a conflict between undead and imperial forces: he offered that if they could help him reach safely to their territories, he would offer some of his warriors in exchange, free of charge. Liana and her allies managed to escort the lord while aiding the Imperials in holding back the undead: they have once again emerged victorius, although barely.

Return to Dawnport - Rise of the Destroyer

Interlude: Return to Dawnport - Rise of the Destroyer

The party's actions turned out to be in vain though: by the time they have returned to Dawnport, the town was razed and its citizens have been slaughtered, much to the horror of Guillaume. A dying town guard told Liana that the townsfolk turned against them, followed by an explosion and the appearance of a mysterious individual referring to himself as 'The Destroyer'. As the sole surviving member of the guard, the guardsman tried to defend against him, only to be mortally wounded so that he could tell the tale Destroyer's arrival with his dying breath. After a brief but futile search for survivors, the party was approached by a small Imperial regiment, sent by Ursar Nikodim to reinforce Dawnport. Liana briefly explained what happened, then they all returned to Ursa Hold to inform Nikodim.

Act II: The Heart of Darkness

Outbreak!

Battle: Outbreak!

Even though many great heroes have fallen, some still survived the onslaught of Warhead: Apollyon, Arthel and Blaze successfully escaped the jaws of death, only to be stranded deep behind enemy territory. After much hiding, they have managed to secure an orkish transport vehicle, with which they could safely get back to the Empire. However, they have also found a map that lead to an orkish slave camp. Being the noble heroes they were, instead of opting for the easy way out, they chose to visit this camp first.

The orks did not expect a sudden ambush, which allowed the heroes to successfully free the imperial prisoners inside the camp, and then leave before they would have been overwhelmed by reinforcements.

Uneasy Alliances

Interlude: Uneasy Alliances

The heroes' victory was short-lived however, as they were soon facing a force they considered their friends: the elves of Evergreen Woods. A small strike team, led by Valeera Silverleaf, was dispatched to track down Apollyon. Apollyon was found and mended by the elves when he sacrificed himself to defeat an undead army in a previous battle. He also got appointed to be their military leader, the Gawain, by the vision of the Fey Enchantress. However, as Gawain Apollyon had sworn to protect the Enchantress with his very own life; an oath he had failed to keep since the Enchantress was killed by Warhead. The elves were naturally upset about Apollyon and wished to take him away so that he could face trial for his sins. Apollyon, to avoid conflict between the elves and the ragtag prisoners they have rescued, surrendered and left with the elves as their captive, much to the dismay of Arthel and Blaze.

Meanwhile, in the Fortress of Evil, the Warlock sensed an immensely powerful entity roaming the lands. Using his powers he summoned him to his court, who turned out to be the enigmatic being called 'The Destroyer'. After a brief interrogation, the Warlock realized that the being's and his ambitions are the same, thus he negotiated that they should work together. The Destroyer accepted the Warlock's offer, albeit somewhat reluctantly. With a new and powerful ally by his side, the Warlock ordered Ezra to gather forces, and make a major push by attacking Ursa Hold.

The Siege of Ursa Hold

Battle: The Siege of Ursa Hold

Liana and her party successfully reached Ursa Hold, where they were joined by a new member: Zuleika, the half-orc spy from Imperial Intelligence. She was to escort them back to Imperial City so that they could contact King Mondaine and Majisto about the mysterious Destroyer. Unfortunately, the Forces of Evil, aided by the Destroyer itself, have already gathered around the fort, and were ready to besiege it.

Ursar Nikodim's forces were vastly outnumbered; even though they valiantly held the line and borrowed time for the party to escape, eventually they were crushed and Urza Hold has fallen into the hands of evil. The Destroyer was not content with Liana and her allies escaping though, so he set out to hunt them down.

Act III: The Fist Clenches

The Dark Rider of Westeron

Interlude: The Dark Rider of Westeron

As the war has been escalating, a new visitor arrived on Northeros. A rogue knight named Xalen, hailing from the distant land of Westeron has arrived in search for power to his own agenda. Unfortunately, the first locals Xalen encountered were Captain Illustrious and his mateys who were in the middle of celebrating the acquistion of their newly-plundered cannon. As expected, drunken pirates don't make the best welcoming guests, as they opened fire on Xalen. This turned out to be a huge mistake and they were all cut down by the dark knight, save for Captain Illustrious, who was forced to guide Xalen to the north of the land.

Of Steam and Magic

Battle: Of Steam and Magic

After a prolonged stalemate between the Forces of Evil and the Empire, both sides clashed at an abandoned settlement. The Imperial army managed to gain some strength with the return of Arthel and the arrival of Ferdinand, thus they attempted to make a breakthrough and lead a counterattack against Urza Hold. Ezra von Bragstein was dispatched to halt their attack. Even though they were unevenly matched, the tides of war turned in the favor of the Imperials with the arrival of Majisto and his newfound ally, the red dragon Gallikronn.

The undead were defeated: Ferdinand on the other hand, failed to carry out his personal mission of killing Ezra, as he was rescued by the Warlock in the very last minute. The sudden arrival of Majisto was welcomed but unexpected by the generals. In truth, the wizard only left the capital city to search for Liana and her party as they still have not arrived at that time, much to the shock of everyone.

Depths of Peril

Battle: Depths of Peril

Liana and her party encountered Xalen and Illustrious on their way to Majisto. They offered to aid the knight in his quest as she believed Majisto could help him as well. However they were interrupted by the vengeful Destroyer. Xalen attempted to make quick work of him; much to his surprise though, the Destroyer managed to turn Xalen's powers against him. This resulted in a huge explosion that sundered the ground beneath the party, causing them to plummet underground.

The party found themselves in a subterranean cavern along with none other than Blaze Ironbreaker and a few dwarves. Blaze was trapped after a failed mission to find a lost mining team. The team dug up a mysterious crystal (to much interest for Xalen), which has driven mad their leader, Modru. The insane dwarf accidentally summoned a giant rock wyrm which threatened to collapse the entire cave. Since Liana and Gil were unconscious from the fall, it was up to Xalen, Bjarn, Illustrious and Blaze to stop both Modru and the menace he unleashed.

The heroes successfully tackled Modru and the rock wyrm, but captain Illustrious was mortally wounded by the beast. To make matters worse, the Destroyer have followed them underground. The battered and beaten heroes did their best to fight the mysterious assailant, although not without a price: sadly Bjarn had fallen before Blaze and Xalen could finally vanquish the Destroyer.

The party gathered their losses and buried their dead, Xalen took hold of Modru's crystal. Together with Blaze they finally reached the capital city and report to Majisto.

Raid on Tranquility Glade

Battle: Raid on Tranquility Glade

Meanwhile, Apollyon was being tried by the oak sage Mosshide, in the absence of a new Fey Enchantress. As he was about to face his sentence, they were assaulted by the undead, who came through a magic portal known as a 'death gate'. They were dispatched by the Warlock to destroy Mosshide and claim his heart. Outnumbered, Apollyon suggested that Valeera should go and call for further troops. Although Valeera had trouble trusting Apollyon alone with Mosshide, but she reluctantly agreed and freed him from his bounds to let him fight.

Apollyon and the elves managed to defeat the undead. Impressed by his actions and bravery, Mosshide and Valeera reconsidered their judgement about the runeknight. Apollyon as punishment for his failing was eternally banished from the Evergreen Woods. However he left bearing the message that the elves were ready to fight by the Empire's side against the Warlock. Apollyon was escorted out of the woods by Gallikronn, who disguised himself as an elven mage.

Act IV: Endgame

The Gathering

Interlude: The Gathering

The Warlock was focusing his armies around Urza hold. He wanted to attract the united Imperial forces to fight him here. He summoned his trumph card inside the hold: the necrotic amplifier. It was a dark device created by Ezra, which served to augment the Warlock's magic by a thousandfold. He needed this to recreate the 'Awakening', an immensely powerful necrotic chant only Malekim was able to successfully cast before. If timed right, it could cause the raising of legions of undead, which would utterly crush the Imperials and bring absolute victory for the Forces of Evil.

The Imperial army was gathering under Defiance Keep, a hastily built settlement not too far away. Thankfully Majisto knew how to counter the Warlock's design: their ace in the hole was Xalen, and the recently-discovered magical crystal, which could destroy the amplifier. With Apollyon back and support from dwarves, elves and even the Drakhrii, the Alliance of Northeros was ready to strike.

Shatterpoint

Battle: Shatterpoint

Both armies finally clashed: the Imperials needed to hurry before the Warlock was finished with empowering the amplifier. The Warlock was overconfident: no matter the outcome, his troops could buy him enough time to complete his grand spell. However, the combined assault of armies pushed through and took down everything the Forces of Evil threw at them. Not only that, even Ezra von Bragstein had a final change of heart: a sudden impact allowed his shattered psyche to be taken control of by what was left of his good side, turning against the Warlock as his last attempt to redeem himself. In the end, Xalen managed to reach the Warlock and use the mystical crystal to damage the amplifier.

The Warlock, bewildered but still feeling victorious, mocked Xalen for his actions, as the amplifier would unleash all the necrotic energy built up in it, wiping out everyone on the battlefield. Xalen had little time to act. Mustering all of his powers and pushing himself to his very limits, he warped the amplifer, the Warlock and himself from the battlefield to a place unknown, sparing the Allience from a certain cataclysm.

The battle ended with Imperial victory; it came with a price though. Xalen's magic still caused a considerable amount of feedback, which destroyed Urza Hold completely. Arthel Wolfsbane, hero of many battles has met his end as well: the last of the Wolfsbane family did not live to see the defeat of the forces that took nearly everything from him.

Despite these losses, the Alliance of Northeros achieved absolute victory over the Forces of Evil in the end. Without its leaders, the orks were left small in numbers and facing power struggles, whereas the undead were more or less completely defeated. Ferdinand finally managed to put his predecessor out of his misery. Majisto found and sealed away the Staff of the Underworld, which was buried beneath debris.

The events of Shatterpoint made the bonds between the Empire of Northeros and its allies stronger, as they were forged and tempered by conflict. Now the Empire was ready to take back all of its lost territories and rebuild.