The Darokinian dippy has further informed us of the situation regarding Hule and Sind. We had a number of questions prepared for him, although, unfortunately, he was unable to answer all.
The priests of Bozdogan have been seen to cast numerous spells, although Darokinian observations were primarily made on the battlefield. To summarise, they cast spells that enhance the abilities of warriors, they use curses (liberally), employ charms, cast divinations (with impunity), are known to use various protection spells, have some form of weather control spells, and, of course, healing spells. They also use, fortunately rarely, some co-operative area defence spells.
It wouldn’t surprise me if they also had some kind of mind-reading spells. It would seem exceptionally appropriate.
In general, the Darokinians know little of Hule, this primarily due to a lack of historical ties. Darokin never expected Hule to be a threat, and so never bothered to investigate it; this they are certainly now regretting. It is known that Hule (prior to Sind) had little coastal access (and that near the baronies). It’s quite possible that a reason for invading Sind was to gain further access to the sea: their invasion certainly seemed to place priority on capturing the coastal Sindhi baronies.
In terms of supply lines, and routes into Sind, there is only one that is used. It is the road that passes through the northern part of the Sind Desert (a little to the south of the Plain of Fire, which are inhabited by hostile humanoids and monsters). The road heads virtually directly west, starting at Gola Keep, a well fortified location that I’ve had the dubious privilege of having been stationed at previously. Gola Keep is well manned, with a couple of thousand troops stationed there; presumably there is a similar keep at the other end of the road. In fact, calling it a road is somewhat misleading: it’s simply the path in the sand that is the shortest means of crossing a harsh desert. The troops at the keeps are necessary to maintain the security of the road, especially from the humanoids of the Plain of Fire, and also from the so-called nomads inhabiting the Sind Desert.
They cannot possibly guard all of the road at all times. This is a weakness. We can easily raid passing caravans: their alternatives involve directly attempting to destroy us, or redirecting further troops to Gola Keep from elsewhere.
We have been provided with a map of Sind. It includes Darokins best knowledge of the deployment of Hule’s military. There are some mildly disturbing aspects, of which I will note later in this entry.
Darokin has described, to the best of their ability, what they know of each of the Sindhi baronies. Each barony, of course, has a single raja. In all baronies but one, the raja is a Himaya (one of the warrior caste). There are eleven baronies.
Baratkand: Baratpur is the only notable city here. Baratkand is fairly inhospitable, as it borders the Plain of Fire. As protection from the monsters in the Plain, there is Gunga Keep, occupied by an estimated 1000 troops. Raja Radhas rules here: he is a traitor, as he was obviously prepared to assist the Hulean invasion.
Jhengal: The terrain here is mostly worthless, being either desert or salt swamp. Raja Nandin probably provided the most resistance against the Hule invasion, but clearly had not the resources. He remains the ruler of Jhengal. Here is where Gola Keep is. It is also where my contact in the resistance is.
Sindrastan: This barony includes the capital of Sind. Rajadhiraja Chandra Ul Nervi is the ruler (in name) of Sind, bother before and after the invasion, barring the fact he was deposed by his not so loyal brother: the brother was incompetent, so Hule reinstated Chandra Ul Nervi. It is unclear what the Rajadhiraja’s attitude is toward the Hulean occupation. Sindrastan has much fertile area: it is said that many years ago, many priests gathered and prayed to the pantheon, and in return for their devotion, the pantheon created fertile springs in the area of the now capital.
Nagpuri: Raja Kalkiin, a Jadugeryas (mage caste), rules this place. He is apparently loyal to Hule. This barony provides access to Darokin. It used to be one of Sind’s richest agricultural lands, but was devastated by battle and magic during the invasion of Darokin. The original ruler was apparently killed in battle against Darokin.
Gunjab: Gunjab lies just to the north of Nagpuri. It is mountainous terrain, so there is little arable land here. It is unknown what the loyalties of the ruler are. It is known that Hule uses Gunjab as a rest and relaxation place: this includes treating it as a whorehouse, and using inhabitants for bloodsport.
Peshmir: This place is located just near the Glantrian border. Perhaps due to its proximity with Glantri, or perhaps due to its distance from the rest of Sind, the Peshmir people are slightly different to the rest of Sind; it has, in a sense, a relaxed class system. Basically, its peasant caste is not so poor as it is in the rest of Sind. It is unclear what the loyalties of this barony are.
Shajarkand: Not much to be said of this barony, except that it has some forest, and is known for good tiger hunting. The ruler here capitulated almost immediately, opting for a single token battle before surrendering. By the time Hule got here, it was somewhat academic anyway. Consequently, Darokin has little idea of the true attitude this barony.
Azdagal: Azdagal was once part of Jhengal, but it gained independence two centuries ago. It is a rich place: here is where Sind’s mines are located, and it is also a major crop centre to boot. This barony put up a reasonable fight, but the loyalty of its ruler is not known.
Jalamar: A costal barony, the location of a major Sindhi port. The ruler here welcomed Hule with arms widespread: by this stage, it was inevitable that Hule would conquer. Nonetheless, it would appear the ruler is traitorous. The royal elephant breeding grounds are here.
Putrabad: Jahore, the Jewel of Putrabad, is the capital: it is a dive. The people here are essentially pirates. Moreover, they have never gotten along well with those of Jalawar, especially when you consider they steal goods from Jalawar ships, then sell it back to them later. Putrabad did not resist Hule.
Kadesh: Returning back to northwest Sind is the barony called Kadesh. Darokin has heard good reports from those of Kadesh: apparently the resistance is very active here. The inhabitants are strong-willed and independent: the inhabitants are the resistance. They have a wellearned reputation for ferocity. It matches the tough, mountainous terrain. Apparently a Darokinian agent was sent there, in an attempt to organise them (no doubt with Darokin pulling the strings), but he was not well received. I’ve met a number of the Kadesh people, and I expect the Darokinian, apart from being a foreigner, probably just went about it the wrong way. I imagine the Kadesh would be far more willing to at least listen to me, especially since I am, after all, a fellow Sindhi. In their own way, the people of Kadesh are certainly loyal to Sind.
That is a brief run down of each of the Sindhi baronies. In large, I think we’ll mostly have to rely on the inherent loyalty of the Sindhi priesthood, and the resistance. We haven’t yet decided upon any large-scale military course of action.
Darokin informs us that the resistance is arranged in cells typically involving ten to twenty people; these people are usually peasant caste lead by Rishiyas (priest caste). Whilst there is no formal oppression of the Sindhi priesthood, the fact that the priesthood is largely responsible for the resistance leads to a sort of natural oppression. Hule has to take its frustrations out on someone, after all.
We asked if Darokin has any knowledge of the locations of humanoids within Hule, and troop recruitment locations, but alas they know naught.
Of the locations of fortifications within Sind, there are really only two significant areas: near the Darokin border, where there are significant fortifications, and on the western border of Sind, at Gola Keep and Gunga Keep.
Unfortunately, Darokin is unable to provide us with area maps.
Regarding Hule’s military presence in Sind, there are perhaps 19000 occupying troops. On paper, they look exceptionally nasty. They’re usually organised into divisions of 1000 troops, commanded by a colonel. Here’s an approximate example of the makeup of a light cavalry division:
The different types of divisions simply include small variations in makeup, and a variation in role or purpose. For example, an infantry division would include more infantry, and fewer light cavalries.
Fortunately, the divisions are not well organised. Nonetheless, the presence of trolls and hill-giants is exceptionally unpleasant. It is something that requires serious consideration before we begin any serious military assault against any target that has such divisions. Perhaps hiring Alphatian mercenaries is for the best: at least they can cast spells such as magic missile against trolls.
I have no qualms about slaying most of the humanoid prisoners we may one day end up taking. I have no doubt that they have performed crimes that require such just punishment. The humanoids are evil.
There are two other military points to note: there is a company of priests, and two flying ships, occupied by archers. How one deals with a whole company of priests I have no idea, and it worries me. I believe we can deal with the flying ships; some ooze bombs purchased from Serraine may well be enough to do the trick, although we really need to know whether the ship itself is magical, or whether a device such as the Alphatians use is being employed. If the latter, further measures may be required.
It was then that Lani and I proposed an idea for organising the resistance with minimal risk of compromise. The idea is thanks mostly to Lani. The idea is fairly simple at heart, although I’m happy to say that I think we’ve included a number of aspects that further strengthens our approach.
Imagine a small case, where there are five resistance cells spread out over a small region of Sind. At present, these cells do not communicate with or even know about the other cells (although in reality there are often exceptions). Hence, they cannot co-ordinate their activities. The reason they are like this is that they fear that if Hule captures one cell, then it is easy for Hule to interrogate and discover the identities of all other cells. In the end, all cells could be compromised, and the resistance is finished.
Our suggestion works on the basis that only a single member of each cell is aware of how to communicate with two (and perhaps in some circumstances three) other individuals, each from distinct cells. With our small case of five cells, there will be five people responsible for communicating with each other, but they are only able to communicate with an immediately ``adjacent’’ cell; messages will take time to propagate. Now the five cells can communicate and coordinate (albeit a bit clumsily) amongst themselves, allowing for a more effective resistance. If Hule manages to capture a cell, then they must successfully capture the member responsible for communication, from which they must then extract the necessary information about the other cells. With care, Hule should have minimal success with this approach.
We have of course enhanced the approach. Individuals should not communicate in person. Ideally, they won’t even have a physical description of those they communicate with. Communication can be achieved by leaving and collecting messages at prearranged (and varying) locations. But messages can be faked: for this, we suggest a codebook that varies between the cells. This codebook can be written in an ink that quickly disperses when submerged in water. If the individual responsible for communication is aware that the cell is being compromised, then he or she simply dumps the book in water. Now, even if Hule captures the cell, they cannot communicate with the other cells.
Messages can be intercepted, if divinations are performed. Messages, although encoded, could be deciphered by appropriate magic, such as divination: the use of fake messages, such as ``Nice weather today Raj’’, should make using such magic wasteful.
If Hule does manage to capture the individual who communicates, and charms them, then hopefully even this can be assisted. Communicators (as I now refer to them) will know that they are not even to trust their most favoured ally with respect to where they leave messages and such. Further communicator training can surely be used to help the integrity of the system. I recall the fellow we charmed in the Hollow World, then one who wished to bring about darkness to the whole world. Although we had him charmed, he still would not tell us important information, since he was under strict rules that he had to obey. Charms are not the be all and end all. Moreover, communicators should hopefully be fanatical, so that even under torture, they may not break and give up valuable information. It’s expected that the communicators will be priests, since they can read and write.
We can even attempt to determine when a cell is compromised. If a cell goes on a mission, then another cell can be ordered to observe. If matters go poorly, then the other cell, which never directly participates, can propagate this information. Visual identities should not be compromised, as one expects cells to perform operations in disguise, or with features obscured.
Moreover, there is always more than one direction information can be sent. Occasional ``tester’’ messages can be propagated in both directions along a ring of cells: if messages eventually reach a trusted cell (such as us) that differs in content, then it is known that something is wrong.
We also have to worry about fake cells. A clear way of testing for a fake cell is to ensure it is put on ``loyalty testing’’ operations. It is also worth noting how often they present useful information that can be acted upon. If a cell never performs up to standards, then it doesn’t hurt to sever them from the organisation: after all, if they aren’t performing well, why bother trying to use them?
If a cell is suspected of being compromised, then a request can be sent for a divination to be performed, to determine whether a cell is or is not compromised.
No doubt we’ll end up coming up with more security measures.
Perhaps the most difficult part of this structuring of the resistance is actually building up connections. The initialisation phase. We believe, as do the Darokinians, that this can be achieved given sufficient time. Visually, I expect we’ll end up with a ring of cells on a per (small) region basis, with rings being interconnected between regions (for example, a ring of regions of cells). We, the party, plus (to a lesser extent) the Darokinians, and other relatively high ranking priests, will form the upper hierarchy of the resistance. We get to pull the strings, although we also hope the resistance will be able to function on a pseudo-independent basis.
Obviously organising the resistance in any way will increase risk to the cells. However, the gain is immense: accurate troop movement details, target of opportunity details, supply details, and no doubt more.
Fortunately, it isn’t just us who thinks it’s a good idea. The Darokinians agree it’s a good idea. It simply has to be proposed to the cells, and implementation begun.
Moreover, as a further enhancement, Lani has decided to work on some PABX thing. Sounds like it’ll involve getting a series of hand-held communication devices that allow one to talk to other communication devices. Should be pretty useful. It’ll certainly speed up communication. However, it does require her developing it from scratch. To this end, she’ll probably decide to work exclusively on it soon, so I expect we won’t be hearing from her very much in a little while.
The meeting wrapped up pretty quickly after this. Kalemi suggested a worthwhile tactic would be to capture a city and, when forces had accumulated to retake the city, simply give it up and go to capture a different city. This is an approach that given the soldiers to capture cities should be quite effective.
Zim asked Leo for the name of the person in the known world who knows much about Hule, but is not loyal to and is not helping Hule. The answer is a fellow by the name Jenarl. I don’t expect this will prove useful, but who knows. The Darokinians are going to pursue this angle.
There was also some talk about turning me into a hero, to act as a figurehead for the Sindhi people. I sincerely doubt this approach. It’s not like I’m a charismatic speaker. Hmm. Admittedly though, I do see their point; I shouldn’t discard this idea.
Unfortunately, Xenith the ruby dragon has informed me that he is the only dragon that I will be able to call upon for aid.
We spoke to a fellow Jose and Martin arranged for us. Unfortunately, he didn’t know as much about Hule as we were hoping. Hule is located mainly north of the Yazak steppe. It is a large country (far larger than all the baronies combined), cold, foresty, and hilly. Between the baronies and Hule are the humanoids, such as the goblin tribes, etc.
Hule is made up of different countries, including conquered countries. Perhaps half the population of Hule is humanoid. The Huleans fight some barbarians to the north of them.
We have had further information on this Jenarl fellow. The Darokinians have determined that he is a Glantrian mage that travelled extensively in Hule. Perhaps he could be useful.
In the meantime we have arranged to be taught Hulean by two people: one a Darokinian dippy in the making, the other a Taxeiran fellow. We decided we should have two people educating us so that our accent does not end up too horrible. We expect it to take perhaps five weeks before we are proficient in Hulean. Subsequent to this, Gurzurk and I will begin teaching the others Sindhi.
Otherwise, we have decided to cut our stay in Davania short, instead deciding to start analysing the Sind predicament. Our first destination is the Serpent Peninsula, where we hope to make contact with the tribesman who attempted to assist Sind.
We reached the edge of what we think is the Sind desert. From here we fly west, with the hope of finding the Serpent Peninsula.
The Darokinians have gained yet further information on Jenarl. He is currently captured and rotting in a Hule prison. He is in the (Hule) country named Monzag. I am now very interested in this Jenarl fellow. Unfortunately, the Darokinians are gaining no further information from divinations. They have decided to not expend any further resources on Hule, as it appears it is gaining them naught. It is up to the party now. Unfortunately our priests are unwilling to attempt divinations on Jenarl. Perhaps we shall resort to Leo, but Zim believes we should use other methods first, though what these other methods are, I really have no idea.
When I next meet my Sindhi priestly contact in the resistance, I’ll try to convince him to perform a divination for me. It is most certainly more in the interest of the Pantheon than it is of interest to the Darokinian deity.
Last night we saw some lights in the darkness, corresponding to a town. Some investigation today revealed that it is a place called Tyjaret, an independent port city.
The locals of Tyjaret speak Slaag, which appears to be a common tongue of sorts. There are a number of Sindhi-like people here, and I even spoke to some Sindhi caravan guards. Unfortunately, the Sindhi caravan guards, whilst unhappy with the occupation of Sind, view the situation as hopeless, and aren’t keen on anything so ``dangerous’’ are joining the resistance. Nonetheless, in case it may one day be useful, I’ve noted down their names and appearance.
Tyjaret’s business is unloading ships, and sending the cargo onwards in caravans. Slaag is the trade tongue (we are closer to the Baronies region here, after all).
It appears that there are simple little black fellows to the south, who do ride elephants. Apparently Hule sent an army down here, presumably to deal with them. Apparently Hule was mighty upset over something. Unfortunately for Hule, it appears most of their troops didn’t return. We shall have to try and find these little black men.
Apparently, beyond the primitives are some weird priests who can apparently see the future: seers.
We now follow the coast south.
The terrain has become jungle-like. We see no little people. I suspect they’re well hidden away. Sigh. Well, can only try to look.
Fudge. It’s soon going to be bad weather, according to the priests. We’ll have to head back north, and try to find some decent landing sites. Hopefully we’ll avoid the storm entirely. Blasted monsoon season.
I decided to see (in person) my contact in the resistance. He agreed to perform a divination about Jenarl for me, in particular what his appearance is, but unfortunately it failed, even with the 1000 gold piece donation, which fortunately the Pantheon chose to not take. I gave the priest the 1000 gold for the purposes of the resistance anyway.
Indeed, he’ll find it useful since I discussed te organisation of the resistance with him. He too thought it a good plan, and has indicated he will start arranging matters. Using the existing priestly hierarchy is the present plan, although not members of the priesthood that are too highly ranked: they are carefully watched. He agreed that it makes sense for me to essentially be at the top of the resistance: the amulet that I wear, the protection from divinations one, is quite handy. It should hamper Hulean divination attempts.
We also spoke about this new deity Garath, the one who believes in protection by the gods, but non-interference of the gods. Apparently a priest of Garath, the female prophet Sitara Rohini, used her staff to heal the dying daughter of a Rajah, on the day of Dread no less. Since I know that relics and artefacts still functioned in the absence of magic, her staff must be a relic.
My priestly contact now includes Garath as part of the Pantheon. I shall follow suit. Garath will now feature in my morning and evening prayers.
My contact believes that organising the resistance will require perhaps three months. Since winter is almost upon us, we may need to take a break. Hopefully by the end of winter, the resistance will be organised, and we can start doing some serious work.
Came across a patch of Savannah today. We’re going to head west then north.
We have found the cousin to Tyjaret. It lies on almost opposite. This port city is quite similar to Tyjaret. This time, I decided to ask sensible and detailed questions. I sought out the harbourmaster, and asked him of the tribesman and seers.
To contact the tribesman, we should just park outside the jungle, then wander in. Shortly they will appear, most likely to tell us to leave. Apparently they enjoy their privacy. The fellow also told me that it was perhaps 10000 Hulean soldiers that headed south, after the same tribesman. 10000 sounds like a gross exaggeration given that only 19000 occupy all of Sind. Nonetheless, it is doubtlessly true that they sent a sizeable force south, a force that failed.
Perhaps 20 miles off the southern tip of the peninsula, in a cluster of islands, is Yvardom. This is the home of the seers.
First the little pigmy fellows, then the seers.
I don’t actually expect that meeting these people will prove helpful, but I hate to leave loose ends un-investigated. Besides, we are not yet rushed for time. Best to find out if there are potential allies before it is critical to know.
Whilst we’re in a town, and since Lani is so interested, we decided (successfully) to try and speak to the prophets of Garath. I did a sending to them and found out they were in a place called Palkat, where I had previously been when leaving Sind and heading toward Darokin. So, we cast some spells to alter our appearance: we all looked like locals, and I further changed my appearance, and then we teleported in. Myself, Zim, and Lani met them.
It is, almost predictably, a woman and a man who are the prophets. Presumably they’re a couple. The woman has the relic. They can speak, haltingly, Darokinian: there’s a young disciple from Darokin who sems to be in their presence often. Being paranoid, I assumed he might have been a Darokinian spy, so I asked that he be sent out. Besides, who wants to talk about private matters in front of strangers?
The prophets themselves seem like okay people. Serious, sincere, and of humble origins (farmers or something like that). Apparently, one day Garath came to them in a vision. The visions for the prophets were different. He spoke of how he was displeased with how the gods were treating mortals. Garath pledged to seek to protect the people of Mystara from the scheming of the gods.
One vision showed Himayeti fighting another god. Himayeti had one foot in Sind, the other in Alphatia. Where their feet trod, mortal armies warred and died. The prophets do not know who the other deity was. Himayeti is one of the most important deities in the Sind pantheon. Himayeti is also known as Ayazi and Aksyri. His spheres of influence vary significantly, and include creation, protection, destruction, and the sun. It is very interesting that his sphere is the sun. We are already aware that the blessed radiance played an important role in the god war, and that the sun may some how have been important to this. I shall have to consult my notes.
Garath also told them: ``I am Garath, returned from the vortex’’. An interesting thing to say. I wonder what the reference to the vortex is.
One of the prophets also had a vision of Bozdogan and the Master. They saw a man in deep robes (the Master), gesturing, and armies marched into Sind. Behind the man, in the sky, was a giant shadowy shape (Bozdogan), who sat among a group of shadowy figures. Clearly the vision depicts another example of the scheming of gods intruding upon the lives of us mortals.
I asked the woman of the relic she carries. Apparently obtained the staff from a dragon in a vision, although the dragon required a quest first.
They two prophets met when she freed him from the clutches of the Huleans.
This was all very interesting. Unfortunately, after only having spoken to them for about ten minutes, both Lani and Zim were keen on discussing the resistance with them. I really think they should be more paranoid. Do they not recall a time when we were to stop a civil war, but someone wagged their tongue, and the civil war just started sooner. Fortunately we were in disguise, but I really wish people would just be more tight-lipped! Is that too much to ask for?? There’s a hell of a lot at stake here.
Nonetheless, the prophets may well prove useful, if they are indeed genuine. Although they may not care whether Sind is occupied or not. I would like a more objective opinion of the prophets before dealing with them openly.
Either way, I am very interested in this Garath fellow. Hmm. I guess I should say: I am very interested in who you are, great Garath, He who Will protect me from the Schemes of the Gods, Oh Illustrious member of the Great Pantheon.
I went to the Cage, to see if the skull guy could figure out anything. All he could say was that those priests of Mystara for whom he has skulls used to be very interested in finding out about Garath.
Stopped flying where the jungle began today. Now we’re walking in, waiting for the pigmy guys to stop us.
Last night we met some of the tribesman. All they wanted to say was leave, they want nothing to do with the outside world. Another case of Emerondian disease I guess. They believe (and probably rightly) that the outside world can only cause harm to them.
They confirmed that Hule soldiers marched upon them, but the ``forest claimed them’’. Unfortunately, I feel there are no allies here.
We have left the jungle. We now fly in search of the islands where the seers are. First we head to the southern tip of the peninsula.
Time to look for some seers.