Castle Kreiglitz.[1a]
The Kreiglitz family castle (more of a fortified mansion really) has been occupied by Greenskins for years. They have defiled every corner, made their own ramshackle ‘improvements’, set fires in the bedchambers, flooded the halls, and left it with a terrible stink that refuses to wash away. The tiny goblinoids known as snotlings still infest the attics and sewer pipes, despite the humans’ attempts to eradicate them. The artillery barrage that pounded the castle during the battle has left many walls demolished and great breaches in those that still stand. It would be barely defendable should more orcs return to counter-attack. Indeed, since word of the victory first arrived back in the lands of Averland, there has been no further news. Messengers have not returned and locals mutter that Castle Kreiglitz may be back in the hands of the greenskins. Of the Baron and his army, there has been no sign.[1a]
Baron Otto Kreiglitz[]
Baron Otto Kreiglitz is a noble without a domain, his family land having been lost to orcs two generations earlier. Bitter at the loss of his birthright, he has become determined to recover his family seat. Kreiglitz has spent the last of his wealth, borrowed large sums, called in favours and promised much in order to recruit the sizeable army that he now leads. He is a proud and determined man, but he has risked everything on this venture.[1a]
The Retaking of Castle Kreiglitz[]
From Noble Families of Averland, a History, by Ludo Maus.[1a]
The army of Baron Kreiglitz marched east in the summer of 2520. Their goal was to recapture the Baron’s family castle in the foothills of the Black Mountains, which had been lost fifty years earlier to an orc invasion. The rampaging horde had been halted, but Castle Kreiglitz was never reclaimed, becoming a nest and stronghold for the greenskins. The Baron’s army had been hired for the occasion, a gathering of the best mercenaries and sellswords that Kreiglitz could afford: crossbowmen from Tilea, huntsmen from Stirland, veteran beastfighters from the Drakwald, guild exiles from Marienburg, grizzled ex-state troops from Reikland, some dispossessed and disgraced Bretonnian knights, and even a small regiment of ogres. There were also two regiments of Averland state troops and an impressive artillery train of cannons, assigned to Kreiglitz by the Elector Count in exchange for a large ‘donation’. Kreiglitz halted his army on the approach up to the castle, and ordered the artillery to commence a barrage, hoping to secure an easy victory by driving the occupiers out of the buildings and away into the mountains. This tactic was partially successful. The punishing cannon fire certainly brought the orcs from out of the castle to see what all the commotion was about, but they then proceeded to charge straight towards the human lines. While the various mercenary bands were experienced battle veterans, there was a distinct lack of coordination between them, for there were no senior officers other than Kreiglitz himself. Each regiment set about fighting the way they knew best: the crossbowmen formed a static, defensive line, the beast-hunters attempted a countercharge, the state regiments waited for orders, while the ogres waded into the midst of the greenskins, doing plenty of damage but ruining the sight-lines of the huntsmen. The cannon batteries were too slow to load grapeshot, and were nearly overrun by vicious goblins, before the Bretonnians swept them away with a lance charge. Eventually, Kreiglitz gained some control over his army. Most of the orcs had gleefully joined in the brutal melee with the ogres, giving raucous cheers and howls every time they managed to hack one of them down. Instead of sending in support, the Baron pulled his battle-line back. When the last ogre fell and the battered orcs turned to face the humans, they were met with a thunderous fusillade from the artillery, volleys from the missile troops and then a massed charge from the remaining regiments, led from the front by Kreiglitz. The few greenskins still standing turned tail and fled for the mountains, and before the day was out, the Baron had raised his family crest above the highest tower.[1a]