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Blackpoint (red, stronghold, Gurnison) def злой_романтик (blue, Dungeon, Shakty, Kreg-Heg) 136 2sm4d(3)
As usual, the sun, high in the sky, was radiating a considerable amount of heat. Flies buzzed around incessantly, and the heat beat down mercilessly on my head and back. The air was filled with the disgusting smell of smoke, burnt wood, and rotting flesh. I stood on a small hill, high enough to see everything beyond the partially burnt palisade surrounding what was once a thriving village. The sight was truly appalling. The charred remains of the villagers' homes and barns. A small tower of mages, miraculously still standing, was partially collapsed, as if a giant ram had been used against it. The Temple of Valhalla had somehow remained untouched, although its walls were blackened from the numerous fireballs that had struck it during the attack. And of course, the crimson color of the earth, stained with blood, and the corpses, corpses, corpses...
- These are Dungeon creatures, my lord. There are witnesses. We are also receiving reports from scouts about the looting of two Dwarf banks. Each bank had 100 Dwarf guards, and they were all killed. This village was burned down relatively recently. The battle took place at night, and our forces were caught off guard. These creatures are particularly effective in the dark...
My adjutant looked dejected, his face expressing universal sorrow for the fallen. I patted him encouragingly on the shoulder. "We will definitely avenge them, I swear," I said.
We needed to act quickly. The creatures from the Dungeon are formidable opponents. They emerge unexpectedly from caves, sweep through the night like a hurricane, destroying everything in their path, looting and killing. Then they retreat back into the labyrinth of caves, where they can be searched for endlessly. The only way to lure them out is to deceive them, trap them above ground until dawn, and then give them a good thrashing. They seem to have forgotten the lesson we taught them 20 years ago, when we defeated countless hordes of troglodytes, captured a couple of their underground cities, and destroyed or sealed with spells the underground tunnels leading to us. However, Heroes are appearing in their ranks again, leading them, and war is looming once more.
- Summon the centurion! Also, order the soldiers to dig a mass grave and bury the bodies of all the villagers. The remaining livestock should be slaughtered and given to the soldiers as rations. The ruins should be covered with earth.
The adjutant, clattering with his boots, rushed off to carry out the orders. I headed towards my tent, which was located a little further from the main camp. I needed to wait for the centurion and together develop a plan for the upcoming actions. I spread a map on the table, placed stones on the edges, and began to examine it. It's interesting... We might not have to expect a direct confrontation in the coming days. The nearest exit from the giant cave is guarded by rusty dragons, very dangerous creatures, to say the least. It's unlikely that the enemy will risk venturing out through them in the next two weeks. To the south-southeast, there are settlements of goblins and wolf riders. I should send messengers to them, I thought. Additional troops would be helpful. What else...
The adjutant burst into the tent. He handed me intelligence data, gathered by scouts flying on Rukh birds, surveying the area for potential enemies. Aerial reconnaissance reports some interesting news. The landscape beyond the nearby mountains is similar to this area, possibly indicating the presence of a Barbarian bastion. And what's this? Ah... there is also a passage to the caves, very interesting information. - May I speak? - Centurion, of course, come in, listen carefully to the following orders...
And so, the fierce Barbarian forces went into battle, sometimes with outstretched fingers, sometimes gathering in attack formations, we stormed into the neighboring territory of the mountains, capturing their capital. The enemy forces, which at the time were without the blue flag, foolishly attacked us, were stopped at the very edge of the mountains, repulsed, and crushed by the power of a ram attack on the flank. At that time, a strike force of their thunderbirds, raiders, and hobgoblins was assembled. Assaults were carried out on griffin and utopia dragon conservatories. Just as I was about to order the start of a frontal assault through the dragons, the vanguard of my forces clashed head-on with the forces of the Dungeon creatures. There were frankly few of them, most likely this is some kind of reconnaissance unit, and not a full-fledged regular army. After a brief skirmish, their hero fled, leaving the army to me...
A small victory, for now, everything is going well, and only a small thought torments me - this is not the end, not the end, not the end...
