Back...

Prologue

The winds of change are blowing. The last of the great human empires in the East have fallen to the orcs, now free to rampage unchecked through the countryside. In the West, the many feuding kingdoms and duchies at long last decided to put aside their differences and assemble a great army together. Under the command of Lord Visinbale, this crusader army marched east with a single purpose – reclaiming the East once more for the race of men.

After many weeks of marching across the Great Barrens, the crusaders finally encountered the orcish field armies amidst the ruined human cities of the East. The orcs were a menacing sight with captured imperial banners fluttering in the breeze behind their forces, and the heads of at least three human emperors impaled on their spears. Still, the crusaders charged ahead at the sound of trumpets and with a deafening roar battle was joined.

When the dust settled, the crusader army was no more. Those few that survived, including Lord Visinbale himself, fled west in a mad panic and did not stop until they had reached the safety of their citadels and castles. The kings and lords were told of the great disaster that had befallen their army, and the decision was made to construct a huge wall to shield the West from the onslaught of the orcs which was sure to come. Lord Visinbale oversaw the construction of the wall that would come to bear his name along the line he deemed most defensible, stretching from the Sea of Daggers in the south to Lake Vespith to the north.

Just outside this colossal fortification lies the city of Arinox. The city's unfortunate inhabitants found themselves on the wrong side of the line Lord Visinbale drew on his map and have been abandoned to their fates. Those that have the means bribe their way past the wall's corrupt guards who have standing orders not to open the gate for anyone – orc or human. Many have stayed, either because they had no choice or because of a stubborn refusal to abandon their homes even in the face of certain death. Now at last the first of the orc armies to cross the Great Barrens have arrived after finishing their plunder of the East. They have made camp not far from Arinox, but for reasons unknown have not yet attacked.

A lone traveler, whose critical role in the upcoming events no one could have foreseen, has just arrived outside Arinox. Trapped between a wall of stone to the west and a sea of orcs to the east, the future looks grim indeed. Many speak of an eternal darkness settling in over the human lands, but there are those who still dare hope for the coming of another dawn…