3. *'War of the White Dragon' -Defender Meeting*

*'War of the White Dragon' -Defender Meeting*


  • I have discussed a plan with Dwin to take Norwick from the east, the south, or both. Combining his plan with the invasion by the Featherflights will make it much more effective. I think that plan is a bit more fleshed out, sounds a bit more manageable, and should be used in lieu of "heating the pan".

    I would add one more element to our overall plans, which is that we should try to intercept enemy messengers with our own sneaks positioned at certain strategic chokepoints, especially in the underdark. It is actually not difficult to travel quietly and safely through the underdark, if we're lucky, if we hold the chokepoints against runners, and keep our force as far east of the lake as possible, moving quickly.

    The elemental force cannot be summoned quickly, it will take days to build it up. It will have to be raised either around Oscura and brought through the underdark; in Saurial lands; or someplace else–perhaps the Featherflight lands, if they'll allow it. That's something that needs to be looked into seriously.

    I doubt we can stop them from getting resources in the Rawlins. It's just too big and too spread out. Also, the goblins and orcs apparently aren't trading much with each other. I would rather move into Norwick quickly and hold the gates before they can muster reinforcements than hitting them anywhere in the Rawlins and thus alerting them to our attack before we secure the towns.

  • M

    "Jerr, flight into the Featherflight camp can be arranged.

    "Lyte, if this affects your plan at all, druid scouting trips have revealed that there are normally around 100 bugbear, 300 goblins, and a few orcs and giants in Norwick. They patrol the area to the southeast of town the least, though orc runners have been seen that way."


  • Dwin listens to Lytes plan with a concerned look on his face.

    The Rawlins is THEIR limitless resource base now. Not just food, wood, ore… but manpower... We need to have some kind of force that will hit them hard in the Rawlins during an attack such sas this, or we will face wave after wave of greenskin and bugbear.

    For decades, if not centuries, the forest has been kept in check by settlements. Now they own it all and travel freely throughout.

    We cannot let this supply chain go unchecked... we need to cause a major diversion south of Jiyyd and Norwick in order for a plan such as this to work.


  • Sudoc stands on his seat and exclaims

    I like Dentin's idea! Let's just blow them all up.


  • Jerr calls out form the back . . .

    Cera has said that the Rom will house any evacuees we bring to the camp. Once behind the defences we can open camp them or send them past the Hobbies with a small strike force to place them inside gypsy boundaries.

    We can send limited drum calls to the Featherflights to help coordinate but more complex messages will need a person to fly there, avoiding the traps. Beorn should be consulted and briefed in detail for the full extent of this.

    He then sits back down and continues to listen taking in all around him with a quiet (for him) gaze

    Jerr

  • G

    General Lyte has been listening intently to each report, and several times takes some notes down on one thing or another. After Colonel Dwin, Captain Genzir, the Peltarch officer, Dentin, the member of the Sentinels, Aelthas the young Captain of the Gypsy Camp, and others have offered reports and information she again steps forward.

    _"Thank you all for your timely information. Great thanks to Peltarch and General Lavindo for sending us more companys for helping hold Sam's Hill and patrol the supply road north…two critical areas that will spell our deaths, should they fall into the enemies hands.

    Much of our future existence depends heavily on each of our respective forces working efficently together, and sharing intelligence. Too often, a commander falls into the trap of keeping his or her plans to himself, which then requires them to personally supervise the timing and objectives of an assault or of all defenses him or herself alone.

    We need to firstly trust one another.

    I will not be keeping back plans. The leaders of every faction for the defense is present here today, which is a rare occasion.

    There are some who would council secrecy, but it is my thought that here we face an enemy composed of evil frost giants, orcs, bugbears and goblinkind.

    If we cannot believe the Captains gathered here as trustworthy, I feel we do not deserve to survive. So, I will be sharing with you what plans and strategic ideas I have to ensure our eventual victory.

    I trust each of you will be careful with this information, sharing it only with those you trust most, who need to know."_

    Lyte smiles slightly, she is calm and her actions, like her words, seem confident, yet, somehow pleasant to watch and listen to.

    _"The most important single thing for all commanders to keep in mind in this war is that we are outnumbered. The enemy is not just more numerous than us, they are also stronger.

    That is the reason for carefully placed, extremely heavily baracaded defenses. If we cannot beat the enemy toe to toe, we need to whittle him down over time, bit by bit, while still surviving ourselves.

    Each day that we live, the enemy is a little bit weaker.

    Now, the enemy, as we have seen, isnt going to be content to attack carefully finished defenses that we are crouching behind. They will try to lure us to one area, and strike elswhere where defenses are incomplete, or where we are weakest.

    Taking this tendency into account, which they have used to great success taking Norwick, we should be able to use feints and surprises to lure them into committing armies into traps which they cannot quickly reinforce.

    We may even be able to retake Norwick using such a plan, but, it seems to me striking them directly is much less likely to succeed.

    Before unveiling a plan of battles designed to take the hills near Norwick, I would like to touch on what we cannot allow to happen, and our general defensive status, for any unaware of the outer fringes of this vast battlefield."_

    Lyte flips a map

    http://www.pixhost.com/pixd/dukstuf/supply.jpg

    _"An army can only fight when it is in supply. A town that is cut off from outlying farms and other towns can be starved out.

    The city of Peltarch itself, which we think of as unassailable and huge with it's massive walls, has to eat. Much of the regions produce….wheat, corn, fruit and vegetables, comes from the region in which we live.

    With Norwick taken, we can fight on. But if Jiyyd should also fall, what then?

    Jiyyd's situation, her survival, depends heavily, perhaps absolutely, upon the supply the long road, which leads to the crossroads and hence the Gypsy Camp and Peltarch.

    As you can see, losing the crossroads is not a viable military situation. We could perhaps lose either Jiyyd or Norwick and still win a war, eventually, against these armies assembled against us.

    But, we cannnot let the crossroads fall against such formidable foes, if either town's economys are to survive.

    These things....bugbear blackguards, frost giant berserkers, orc elite warriors, would completely halt all traffic on the road, permanately. Jiyyd would starve, no matter how strong her defenses.

    So, our fundamental rule to survival is to hold the crossroads, via the Sam's Hill position, which has excellent ground, is anchored by the Wolve's den in the west, and the Jiyyd western defenses in the east.

    The defenses west of Jiyyd are now complete, and quite formidable in that they force the enemy to proceed through narrow gates flanked on both sides and the front by raised positions. Jiyyd's Command Headquarters is located on the eastern most cliff, accessed through a seperate gate near Jiyyd.

    Jiyyd itself has been baracaded off as best we can secure it. Our traditional southern gate and wall is now butressed with a tall, very thickly briared cliffs courtesy of Wolf. The old well is heavily blocked. The swamp entrance is iron gated, as is the well inside the batcave. A trail inside the Silver Valley is baracaded. The eastern road, out of Jiyyd, in the farmlands, forms our combined far eastern flank.

    We collapsed the worg caves, sealing them off with Wolf's aid, to deter an orcish assembly from this quarter. We have dug great pits, covered them with planks and sod, which will support people's weight but not giants, and we have also some other surprises out there, and a fire wielding catapult team standing by to discourage any separate giant excursions.

    Defensively we hold a wide, sweeping front. At Sam's Hill, we are still building, and are at our weakest. We should expect attacks from this quarter, if the enemy is smart.

    Colonel Dwin wishes to secure the area immediately in front of Norwick for an assault on the town, to retake it. We should look to securing back Norwick in steps, realizing that this first assault, on the highest available ground, will be very difficult.

    The first exploratory skirmishes have proven harsh, with hordes of bugbear and goblish archers on the hills holding the narrow approaches into Norwick.

    The ground here is very poor for us, as attackers.

    Unless some other solution in the way of aid from another quarter presents itself, we may need to think of other ways of approaching and cutting off these hills to take the entrance to the town.

    The enemy surely knows of the underdark methods of travel. This makes using the goblin caves to access the enemy rear tricky.

    I have a plan to unveil to you, worked out by Legion staff officers. It calls for careful preparation, a series of carefully timed battles, that, if successful, will give us back the intiative and leave us in a position to retake Norwick.

    After we look at these plans, I'd like to hear your thoughts and suggestions about the operation, before we close the meeting with some discussion of the enemies goals in this war."_

    *Lyte passes out some black binders with the words 'Operation Buttered Pancakes' in gold letters on the covers.

    She pauses while everyone reads the contents, whilst she eats an apple.*

    Operation Buttered Pancakes

    OBP is designed with a threefold purpose in mind.

    1.) To wrest away the initiative from the enemy, letting us choose the time and place of attacks.

    2.) To rescue the Featherlight women and children trapped and surrounded in Featherlight lands.

    3.) To cut off the forces guarding the gateway to Norwick from the balance of the enemy inside the town, and then destroy the guards quickly from front and rear, taking the hills and quickly baracading them from the enemy, before they can react.

    The Operation will be performed with a series of strikes, designed to keep the enemy off balance.

    1. A strong strike out from the Jiyyd western defenses towards the Featherlight camp, with Featherlight archer support. This extraction will be called "Lighting the Oven"

    Ostentiably, we will be rescuing the Featherlight women and children, with our force seeming to simply bring them back to our defenses with us, angering the orcs and giants, probably into a considerable assault upon our walls.

    We hope this might also pull some troops away from the southern Norwick area, towards Jiyyd.

    In fact, we will secretly leave a small but powerful troop of mostly our mages INSIDE the Featherlight Camp, with their warriors, and the warriors of the neighboring tribes who are already present.

    This is the force, combined Featherlight and strike force, will secretly make their way into the Norwick cemetary under cover, using a very secret trail, as the intial assault is ended.

    Reasonable defensive forces will be left at Jiyyd's western defense, and the rest will gather under Colonel Dwin to ready for what appears to be a reckless frontal assault on Norwick's hills.

    Colonel Dwin will ready a hidden force of engineers and builders behind his strike team, who will follow the warriors on a prearranged second signal.

    Signal number one, a flare, will alert the Featherlight troop that Dwin is setting off. Colonel Dwin's charge will be a feint, to draw out the close by guards of bugbear archers deep into the hills surrounding Norwick's gates.

    2. Colonel Dwin's assault will be code named "Heating the pan". He will try to inflict some casualties, then move his force to nearby cover.

    Upon seeing Colonel Dwin's flare, the secret troop inside the cemetery will move. The mages will cast elementals helpers, and cover the force with illusions that all appear to be orcish mages.

    Using this ruse and good magish orc language skills, Captain Genzir will lead his team brazenly into Norwick, under apparent Sharn orders to wipe out the stupid "humies and beardies" who are sending a silly little assault force against the hills.

    Their real purpose will be to get between the defenders out on the cliffs, and the gates accessing Norwick.

    3. Colonel Dwin will wait a specific, prearranged time, fire a second flare, and begin his second, true assault, code named "Pouring the batter", upon the now limited, cut off enemy, followed by his engineers and builders at some distance.

    The featherlight team, fronted with elementals and supported by wizards, will hold the gates, and kill whomever approaches from either direction, until the hill is taken.

    Barriers will be quickly erected, as the forces join together to hold the gate.

    Upon completion of the mission, the words "Buttered Pancakes Served" will be sent back to Headquarters to acknowledge a successful mission.

    Preparational work:

    1. Contact the featherlights to get their cooperation in this Operation.

    2. Perform an intelligence flyby to acertain the condition of forces in the Norwick cemetery, means of egress to the front gates and hills defending Norwick, and numbers and quality of troops obviously in the town.

    3. Seed the enemy troops wth rumors of new orc mage with elemental helpers. -(completed)

    4. Gather enough barracades on wagons for the job, (building more are needed), and finding volunteers to set up the defenses while the fighters hold.

    5. Gather equipment to help perpetrate the "orc mage" ruse.

    6. Have a plan for the featherlight evacuees.

    7. Ensure that all possible forces are available for the planned battles.

    This will be a tricky, dangerous undertaking.

    Surprise is not just hoped for…it is essential to success.

    This plan requires extreme precision in timing, and should be attempted soon, before the enemy has time to put into effect their next offensive operation.


  • Keira pads over to William and Genzir (and other scout commanders) in turn offering her expertise in scouting, if desired.

    // Usually available early evening EST - can be later by arrangement.


  • Mark calmly steps forward to speak, seeing as no one else is, right now

    I bear good news, and I bring bad news, today.

    As you have no doubt noticed, part of my division is already present at the Norwick refugee camp.

    They will remain there for the time being, with the protection of the civilians as their priority.

    Peltarch is already of a mind to send aid to evacuate the Norwickians north.

    Captain Talgrath and his Talon Guard will be joining us to bolster our defenses around the crossroads in a few days time.

    The bad news, however, are the ogres and hobgoblins on the road making travel difficult.
    As you may have notcied, of my division, only fifteen men made it through. Few have fallen, but after their skirmish with the ogres, most had to retreat to the city for healing.

    I believe they will also be making travel difficult for Talgrath, Aghila and Headpriestess Daisy.

    I ask if there are any willing and can spare the time and men to help keep te roads clear. I myself will be attending any and all expeditions with this purpose, as my officers are quite capable of leading my men at the Hill.


  • Dentin stands up and makes his way to the front, hanging up a few maps and sketches.

    "Firstly, the Sentinels and the Legion engineers have made good progress regarding the siege equipment we need. By next tenday, we should have six working catapults and eight or so ballistas. Together with the heavy equipment from the dwarven hold, that should be enough to cover the Jiyyd defenses, the Norwick fortifications and the secondary position at Sam's Hill. What we need now, is people to operate the catapults and ballistae. Preferably, three men or women per catapult and two per ballistae. Though we will not be able to make experts out of anyone in such a short period of time, myself and Sudoc will train volunteers and those assigned to the siege equipment enough that they can generally hit things on the right side.

    Secondly, myself and Elridith have been looking into defenses against the dragon, and we have come up with two things. Firstly is a set of special ballista bolts, that split in flight to fold out a barbed chain. We hope that we can snare the dragon as it flies by and force it to the ground. Secondly, I have managed to convince the Chessentan chapter of the Sentinels to.. loan.. me a battery of, what is known in laymen's terms as, shard rockets.
    I will save the history of that Invention for another time, but most of you will be familiar with gnomish fireworks. This is similar, but instead of a pattern of colours, the rockets explode in clouds of seering iron shards and nails. The whole contraption is only useful when the dragon is higher up, out of reach of the ballistae, and I doubt the shards will kill it. We hope, however, that covering the air it is flying trough with stinging and hot metal, we can force the dragon to fly lower, and into the range of our ballistae, or to abandon its attack altogether.
    We have three carts loaded with the launchers, and enough rockets for each launcher to fire up to three volleys of 25 rockets. The crew for these installations has also joined us here, so we will not need to train anyone in its rather complex use.

    The problem that the occupation of Norwick has presented us with is coverage. The three carts are meant to be positioned in a triangle pattern to ensure a good .. screening.. of the air above. However, the rockets will be far less effective if we spread the carts along the entire line. It is a question of covering a small area well, or covering a large area poorly.
    I will defer to the Legion and Militia's decision on this, though it should not be made lightly.

    Finally, Elredith has been working on creating a capable group to deal with the dragon in the event that we do manage to force it to the ground. We both agree that we cannot expect people on the line to fight both the orcs, bugbears and giants, as well as a dragon, so we would rather have a dedicated group whose sole purpose it is to handle the dragon. I will leave Elredith to speak more on this, should she wish to.

    All in all, we have prepared as well as we could, though we must not forget what we are facing. A dragon in itself is a powerful and dangerous adversary, and now we are facing both it, and an army of beastmen. The rockets may have no effect. The chains may fail to snare the dragon. Fog may eliminate visibility. No matter how well we prepare, everyone should be ready to adapt and improvise at a moment's notice.

    Thank you.
    He then moves to stand besides Dwin and Lyte to answer any questions.

  • N

    Ad Breezes in with an apologetic 'sorry I'm late' smile and quickly locates Tala

    A hushed "Have I missed much ?" conversation follows between the two with much nodding on Ad's part, as they await the next speaker.
    On hearing of the camps overcrowding Ad quickly hisses to her " What about opening the Den ? It's the most defensible area in the southern pass and we have water aplenty, food for that many would be the only issue. Aye it's a dead end canyon and that might work against us if the crossroads fall but we've got enough high ground to give us plenty warning of any advance in that direction. I'll leave you to mull it over and suggest it if you think it fair"

    With that he settles down to await the next speaker


  • Aelthas pushes off the wall, clearing his throat to get everyones attention.

    Several people have been working on some defences for the pass, in case a retreat is needed farther than the crossroads. We can hope it does not come to that, but it may, so best to be prepared.

    I will send copies to all the Commanders of the respective forces once I am done with them, they will be a rough plan of what to get ready, feel free to tell me any ideas you may have.

    He pauses a moment and looks around, before speaking again

    Also, I am saddened to tell you this, but the camp will no longer be able to accept any refugees. The amount of refugees we have, is the current limit that will be able to be supported by the Romani.

    I regret having to pull out the aid when it is so needed, but if we start taking more, they will simply starve.

    I would suggest, if the city of peltarch doesn't mind. That we setup a refugee camp in the only safe place in the Pass at the moment, near the Watchtower.

    If a Peltarch representative would bring this to the attention of the Senate, it would be appreciated. If I must, I will write a letter, with my duties at the Crossroads I don't have much time to travel.

    We need to get these people off the battlefield.

    He just leans back, talking to Raver quietly.


  • The enemy has obviously split itself…giants and orcs in the Plains, and the greenskin and bugbears in Norwick. We know that they travel freely in the mountain passes between the Rawlinswood and the plains, I do not think that ascertaining their communication methods should be that difficult.

    Dwin stands and walks towards the front of the room and the easel, where he points to the various areas as he speaks.

    We are building defenses north of Norwick near the Kelemvorite temple and along the road to the Keep. We are also fortifying Sam's Hill. We have the dwarves of the Hold to thank for their tireless efforts in masonry–without their assistance and their seige weapons we would be in a much worse place right now. Right now the enemies seem to be content in Norwick. I can only imagine that they are fortifying themselves and procreating--time is of the essence.

    I have no doubt that we can take Norwick back if we have enough seasoned forces. The Bugbear archers control the high ground near the northern gate, so we will need to dispatch them first before we can make a run at their gate. We have some ideas already.

    The biggest problem we face is that BOTH armies, the orcs and the bugbears, have the near limitless expanse of the Rawlins resources at their disposals. They also control the best known paths for getting to the Rawlins. Dwin points to the southern portion of the map.

    Strategic strikes from small groups, operating in stealth, could be of great use. One group could attack the bugbear camp. Another, the Goblin Hold. Well-placed explosives could keep them busy enough that we can at least slow their progress. The problem is getting the folks there, and getting them back. The underdark is the only good option, and we know the perils one would face using that way. I don't want this to be a suicide mission.

    Years ago I was attacked by ogres in the far west Rawlins that had come down through the cold caves and the Spider Valley, and assumedly over the hills that house the Goblin hold. _Dwin points to the lower, left hand side of the map._I have never been able to locate their path, but it must be there. Perhaps some of the Romani could help in this regard. Dwin nods to the Romani table.

    I need to move our Norwick residents out of the crossroads area. Norwickians are hardened, tough folks, and they do not want to leave their realm, nor do they want to believe that they will not be back within a ten-day. Lucid and I will be speaking to them shortly. One thing we don't need is a bunch of civilians in the same area as a large scale battle, nor do we want them carried off by the hobgoblins and ogres that have been scouring the pass.

    Our defenses should be ready within a few days. I would like to ask any able bodied warriors to assist in retaking the town, just as we have assisted many times in the last months in the defense of the Long Road.

    I can promise a well-planned strategy. I can promise a good battle. I can promise as much healing as we can provide. I will be in charge of this offensive, and my officers will be assisting me. We welcome any bow, spellbook, blade … or spear... to assist. However, if you cannot follow directions or accept authority, I must ask you not to come. One thing we cannot risk is confusion and the chaos that follows from lone-warriors acting on their own accord.

    Colonel Dolvak steps to the side near Lyte and awaits any questions or comments.


  • I need some basic information about the orcs' communications with the goblins and bugbears. We need to know how they send messages back and forth. I suggest we get all the scouts together who are willing to help with this. I need this information within the next ten-day, if possible.

  • J

    Call walks into the meeting as Genzir is giving his report, sits himself down beside Jerr, he listens silently


  • Based on our work flying over the central plains and surrounding areas, before Norwick was taken, I made the following estimates:

    I estimated about 1000 orcs on the plains, not including the fortress, one out of ever fifteen or so was a spellcaster, most of them were peons and warriors. I also counted 200 frost giants, also mostly warriors.

    I have determined that most of their food comes from hunting animals in the woods. Most of their supplies come from raids on Jiyyd, Norwick or caravans.

    It is also now known that the approach to the central plains is guarded by a shallow moat, barricades, and traps on their side.

    The number of giants on the plains was only about 30 when they took the orc fortress, so that means they are likely getting reinforcements from the mountains, and without going through the cave, which is still closed. One assumes that the population there is finite, as well, but they are said to number in the "hundreds and hundreds," so they could probably bolster their ranks, somewhat, given time. That said, I imagine their appetite for untimely death is also finite, especially when their strongest elite troops have died in numbers–there were around half a dozen elite axers, as many spellcasters, and a dozen or more berserkers in the last attack, all dead.

    According to Mord, Norwick militia had orders to destroy any useful supplies if the town was in danger of falling, so Norwick should not be a windfall for them.


  • Leaving his panther to attend the meeting in his stead, Ezachiel quickly walks out of the hall, polymorphs into his usual eagle form, and takes off into the skies.


  • with the pouring in of folks… Lily slowly whispers to herself as she casts True sight. With Lyte's information she looks to Gen or Dwin to follow her lead. Though she's quite certain she'll be holding Sam's hill with whomever chooses to defend it. She listens to where best her healing touch might be utilized for the combined success of Norwick and Jiyyd.


  • Catching sight of her husband Will and Aelthas, Raver makes her way over to stand near them.
    As Lyte begins to speak, she look immensely relieved that at last, there will be an organized plan between the towns. Leaning her head towards Ael, she whispers quietly

    Me an' the fellas went south an' had a look….
    I'll ask ta speak a bit later, an' fill everybody in on what we saw.


  • Calendel, Legion Corporal and Advisor to Chancellor Lucidious, sits at the back of the room taking all the discussion in. He appears to be focused and listening but many know he has thoughts of his fellow Norwickians on his mind.

  • G

    //I'm playing this that we announced the meeting before the big attack, and that the meeting is being held as we settle into the new situation a day or so after the battle.

    It's Easter, so, let's run this thread for a day or two, so everyone can see it and respond as they like past the holiday, but assume it is taking place over the course of a single setting of several hours time.

    General Lyte steps up, after everyone is settled in and people seem ready to work.

    _"I've asked you all here today to discuss strategy and share intelligence so that we can all work together to overcome the overwhelming force that we face under the combined armies of the White Dragon Sharn.

    Until today, I have mostly met, written and spoke to separate towns, guilds, companies and communities. While we have cooperated together and everyone has given fully and of their utmost to this cause, there is nothing like comng together, to really interlace our strategy into a combined whole.

    I have been acting as a the head of this united host by simple reason of necessity. This war stretches out over a huge front, from the frosty mountains many leagues distant to Jiyyd's east, to the roads leading into Peltarch on the north, to the icy caverns under the Gypsy Camp to the west, and finally, to the bugbear warrens and goblin caverns south of Norwick.

    Coordinating who is doing what, seeing to defenses at various points, appointing troops and doling our resources is a difficult task on such a large scale.

    It has been my thought that each troop, be it shields from the legion, loosely aligned tribesmen of the nars, or gypsy archers, will always work best as separate and distinct units under the full control of their respective leaders.

    I have no wish, and no authority, to order anyone around.

    But, I think it is important that we all understand the need for a centralized point of organization. We need a place all leaders can send requests and messages, if help is needed to hold a strongpoint, if baracades or a catapult is desperately needed, and, I am willing to continue to act in this regard.

    I will be working out of Jiyyd's Western Defenses, just west of Jiyyd, on the eastern most cliff, until this war is over. We have taken great pains to baracade all access to this area, and this is our Headquarters where you can find me, and I will have an aide here on hand, always for messages, and a squad of couriers for for sending urgent communications.

    I would like us all to establish a simple system of communication via flares or bonfires, to keep in touch quickly. Let us discuss how best to get that working simply.

    Now then.

    The problems at hand.

    We face a foe much vaster their our own forces. The reason they have been able to take Norwick, for the time being, is due not to any lapses of trying, nor to any bad decisions from anyone.

    They are simply more numerous than us, and when they are able to focus on one area with great force, if we are not focused in that a particular spot with everything we have, it is difficult, if not impossible to hold without extremely strong defenses.

    In taking the town, the enemy has gained a supply base and raw materials for a long campaign. However, this victory has not come cheaply to them.

    Shortly, I will ask Captain Genzir to share our intelligence with you on the enemy orc and giant numbers and strengths, and one thing seems very clear to me.

    In taking Norwick, the enemy bled a great deal of the frost giants elite numbers on Jiyyd's walls.

    Line upon line of their very finest elite fighters, shieldmaidens, and other casters fell trying to breach the Jiyyd defenses, and in keeping us occupied during the Norwick assault.

    I am not talking about a couple of giant mages and an elite warrior or two. Scores of their best giant berserker fighters, elite warriors and frostmaiden casters fell.

    Taken together with the hordes of orcs and giants that have been cast against Jiyyd's defenses, this adds up to very serious losses on the enemies side, so, while we grieve at the losses our friends in Norwick have suffered, we are not lost, and we will prevail yet, winning back the town in the end.

    I estimate the giants have lost some 30% of their force in total, and most of those killed make up their very best troops, leaving largely giant soldiers and crossbowmen left to deal with.

    I will also ask Commander Dwin to speak with us today on the status of his defenses being formed south of Sam's Hill, and what he needs from us all to see that it is strongly manned.

    If the two entrenched and defensible positions there, at the Spell Keep and the Temple can be held, this will form a future jumping off point to taking back Norwick.

    I think it would be wise to also reinforce Sam's Hill behind this position, which sits adjacent to the Jiyyd's defenses, in case the Keep or Temple positons are overun."_

    Lyte pauses, placing her palms down on the table in front of her

    _"Jiyyd will never forget that there were many Norwick miltia busy defending her gates when Norwick was attacked. The battle here as Norwick was assaulted was not a diversionary feint, and it was a very close thing, with elite giant troops breaking out into the open beyond our gates.

    Dwin, if you will give us a list of materials you need for these defenses, I will get on that at once.

    Following Captain Genzir's enemy intelligence report, and Commander Dwin's assessment of the situation near Norwick, I would also like to hear from our Siege Weapon team of Sir Dentin, Engineer Sudoc and our Dragon Lore Specialist Corporal Elridith.

    They have been working, respectively, on our siege weapon capabilities, and on a somewhat secret project to deal with the white dragon Sharn, should he appear during the battle.

    Before we start listening to these presentations, I would like to offer Jiyyd's sincere thanks to all who have come to her immediate aid. The city of Peltarch, though it is far off, has kindly sent most capable troops. Lyte nods slightly to those attending The Camp has provided many, many archers to defend our cliffs and towers. Norwick has bled much for us. The Helmites were among the first to defend the long road against the enemy. The Sisters has provided a hospital, workers and support in our endeavors. The Council of Moradin has offered their axes to the cause. The druids of the Glen have done huge amounts of work to bolster our defenses, with special thanks to Wolf, for his endless efforts.

    Great thanks to Dwin, to Z, and to the other crafters for providing much needed iron….and especially to Ginger, who seems tireless in this regard. Thanks go to her and Major Uchi for fine steel gates, wall reinforcement plates, iron points at the tops of walls, and the steel cap for Jiyyd' well.

    Special thanks to Captain Genzir, for his ideas for a cliff side defense.

    Many, many others have given their time to this cause, my apologies for lacking the time to name each indivdual. I know in my heart that such hard work will lead to our thrashing of this enemy, in time._

    Lyte draws attention to a covered easel,revealing a large map of the region between Jiyyd, the Camp, and Norwick. She uses a pointer, focusing on various details.

    http://www.pixhost.com/pixd/dukstuf/dragonwar.jpg

    _In order to understand the situation we face, I have prepared this map for your perusal. It shows the general distances to various places, and the vital link that the long road provides for supply from our allies to the north. Jiyyd's Western Defenses are marked in tan. Commander Dwin's proposed defenses that are now in the works are shown as well.

    Please carefully look over this map, as our speakers make their presentations.

    I will continue with some notes on some specific actions I see us needing to make, after Commander Dwin, Captain Genzir, and the others speak. Anyone with important specific projects being undertaken, are welcome to share them at this time._

    she nods to whomever is going to go first, and invites them up to speak.