Rikhardt Schmied, a mad cartographer from the Border Princes town of Aldium, penned this map of Malko in 2430 IC. It states, "It rested many a year in the Lord's [unreadable] in the fortress-town of Malko, and many men died to bring it to the civilized lands of the Empire."[1b]
Malko is a fortified city of the Border Princes. It is a large settlement by the standards of the Border Princes, and relatively prosperous. Its prosperity is largely the result of its location in an especially fertile area within the region, so that a few agricultural towns can be found surrounding and feeding the fortified city. In addition, Malko is also located near the Silk Road, which provides it with access to a great deal of commercial activity.[1a]
Because not all the land in the Border Princes is suitable for agriculture, many of the local lords turn their gaze to this prosperous city, surrounded by rich farms, and it is frequently attacked by looters. Although the palisade that surrounds the city appears improvised and does not receive much maintenance, it has repelled the attacks of many would-be conquerors.[1a]
Like most towns in the Border Princes, Malko is small if compared with the average Imperial settlement, but it is well-defended. Despite its tall walls and plentiful militia, the town was besieged and ransacked many times in the 23rd century IC.[2]
History[]
The Greenskin tide that struck the Border Princes during the Tomb King Settra's invasion of 2276 IC was a relentless onslaught of Orcs and Goblins that clashed with Settra's Undead forces in the region and the Human inhabitants.[3b]
In 2276 IC a rider from High Spear reached the settlement of Malko with news of an approaching Greenskin Waaagh!. Unlike most of the Border Princes, the lands surrounding Malko were rich and fertile, making it one of the largest producers of crops in the region -- a perfect place for the Goblin Warboss Kiknik to resupply before continuing his pillaging to the north. The mayor of Malko dispatched riders of his own to neighbouring towns with a plea for aid, hoping reinforcements would arrive before the approaching horde descended upon his city.[3a]
Kiknik struck hard and fast upon his arrival at Malko, his riders spreading out to sow disorder and anarchy amongst the populace. Panic set in for those closest to the advancing Waaagh!, as commoners fled their homes and farms, hoping to find safety behind Malko’s fortified walls and the blades of its well-trained garrison. As refugees flooded into Malko, the mayor bolstered the ranks of his standing force by creating an ad hoc militia, arming anyone who was able to fight to protect the farms and fields that they depended upon so greatly.[3a]
Throughout the farmlands of Malko stood a vast network of storehouses and barns in which produce could be kept safe from the elements before being moved to market. Though the large storage sheds had not been left undefended, their small garrisons had been quickly swept aside by Kiknik and his riders. With the defenders slain, the Orcs and Goblins had stuffed sacks full of loot and loaded their chariots with as much plunder as they could carry, before torching the empty buildings and charging off to the next storehouse.[3a]
Those within the walls of Malko wept as the countryside burned, their homes set ablaze whilst the fruits of their labours were snatched away. Many begged the mayor for the chance to strike back at the marauding Orcs and Goblins, hoping that a show of force would send them scurrying back to wherever they came from. Though the mayor had preferred to await reinforcements, none had yet come and his people's desperation grew with each passing day. With seemingly little choice, the mayor sent a challenge to Kiknik in the hopes of baiting the warboss into meeting him in battle.[3a]
Being a cunning Goblin, Kiknik was not one to rush into battle. Instead, he continued his methodical looting spree through undefended farmlands, avoiding direct confrontation. While this cautious approach left some of his more aggressive warband members eager for battle, Kiknik kept them satisfied with the spoils from the looted food stores and promises of future skirmishes.[3a]
The mayor of Malko grew increasingly frustrated with the Goblin warboss' reluctance to engage in battle. Determined to stop the raiders, the mayor ordered soldiers and militia to pursue Kiknik's mounted warhost, hoping to catch them during a stop to unload their stolen goods. However, this decision proved to be fatal. The mayor's force, mostly comprised of lightly armored and inexperienced militia, became dangerously overextended and vulnerable to being encircled by Kiknik's riders.[3a]
Despite receiving vague and often unhelpful reports from his wolf-riding scouts (Goblins being notorious for focusing on trivial details while on watch or scouting), Kiknik was able to discern the attackers' vulnerable position. He swiftly dispatched his Wolf Rider packs to flank and ambush the mayor's forces. Meanwhile, his other fighters, including Orc Boar Boyz and ramshackle chariots, set fire to nearby fields, creating thick, black smoke that obscured the majority of his warriors.[3a]
In the final stage of his plan, a small group of Orcs and Goblins continued loading stolen supplies into carts from a large storehouse, unknowingly becoming bait in Kiknik's trap. This elaborate scheme demonstrated Kiknik's strategic prowess and his knack for turning seemingly mundane activities into tactical advantages on the battlefield.[3a]
As the mayor's force closed in on the raiders at the storehouse, curses rang out from those who had tended the now-burning fields. The more experienced town guards advanced cautiously, but tempers flared among the undisciplined militia ranks. Witnessing their homes defiled and goods stolen, many common folk broke ranks and charged recklessly at the raiders.[3a]
Peering through the thick smoke, Kiknik observed the enemy rushing over the open ground, their determination evident. Once the militia moved out of reach of the heavily armored veterans, Kiknik's ferocious mount let out a long, eerie howl -- echoed by the encircling Wolf Riders. The chorus of baying and barking halted the militia in their tracks, their realisation of being surrounded sinking in as they stood far from Malko's protective walls.[3a]
With the commoners' courage waning, Kiknik and his warriors burst from cover, charging through the smoke with wild shouts. The farmhands turned and fled as the Boar Boyz and chariots thundered forward. The massive boar mounts trampled those in their path, while Orc riders swung choppas and heavy-bladed spears to devastating effect. Those who managed to dodge the tusks or wheels were quickly cut down in droves by the relentless onslaught of the Orc warriors. The chaotic melee unfolded amidst the billowing smoke and panicked cries of the militia, sealing their fate against Kiknik's ruthless raiding party.[3a]
As the fleeing militia were mercilessly cut down by the bloodthirsty Orcs, the veteran Human troops rallied at their mayor's command. Amidst the echoing howls of Giant Wolves, they formed a tight defensive ring with shields locked and spears pointed outward, presenting no vulnerable flanks to the encircling mounted horde. The mayor quickly realised that they were vastly outnumbered and too far from Malko to expect reinforcements.[3a]
Kiknik, instead of swiftly finishing off the encircled Human veterans, opted for a more cruel and calculated approach. Over the ensuing hours, the Wolf Riders repeatedly surged forward, just close enough to unleash volleys of arrows through any gaps in the Malko militia's shieldwall, then retreating safely out of reach. As time wore on, the defenders slowly succumbed to the relentless assault of the Goblins, with the dead piling up around them like a gruesome barrier. Amidst the carnage, the surviving veterans of Malko came to a grim realisation -- whether they stood and fought or fled, their fate was sealed. One by one, they would meet their end.[3a]
As daylight faded, Kiknik's adversaries were too depleted and weary to withstand a final charge from his Boar Boyz. With the warboss' wolf Chompa's ominous howl reverberating across the scorched farmland, Kiknik's riders thundered forward and clashed with the exhausted veterans. Unlike the heroic tales of other last stands common across the Old World, this was no such story -- the warriors of Malko, drained and overwhelmed, were swiftly cut down by the rampaging Greenskin horde, meeting their end in a brutal and unforgiving manner.[3a]
Shortly after Kiknik's warriors had finished looting the corpses of the fallen, warhorns sounded from the south and northeast, signaling the arrival of sizable mercenary companies from nearby Border Princes settlements. Malko, known as the breadbasket of the Border Princes, was vital to the region's trade, and its allies were quick to respond to its defence. Recognising the danger posed by larger and more experienced forces, Kiknik saw this as his cue to retreat from the Border Princes and continue his raiding further to the northwest.[3a]