1.4.5 Price of rebellion

Lets decide the fate of the Hammerfall Elves...

ideation: Elves want their freedom back basically
The Pact considers them a conquered people, slaves and prisoners of war. A war where they were victorious. They fear no elven reprisals.
Orks in particular would rather just kill them all and be done with it
Norse want to steal their secrets and technology and don't care much beyond that.
Guild / Chosen don't care, they are just interested in maintaining their positions.

This is different to modern warfare since there is no such things as human rights or warcrimes. As such genociding a race of people is completely reasonable. For this reason suicide bombing is less effective, basically suicide bombing is an issue when your society is trying to identify the terrorists from within a populace. But if you're willing to just slaughter the whole populace then it is not as much of a threat because you simply execute all elves, as opposed to having to determine the suicidal extremist elves at all.

The party can change this situation by directly supporting the elves however, since this would give pause to the Pact and force them to reconsider. This requires direct intervention however, otherwise they will assume people will be honorable to their race and reject the elves.

This power struggle will be played out by controlling the Elven Shallows region within the Shallows.
If the Pact controls all hexes, all the elves in Hammerfall are exterminated.
If the Elves control all region, the Pact forces are pushed back and they will come to the bargaining table.

The PCs may choose to support a faction, or do nothing.
Different hexes will be different encounter types, to try to make this fun and not a slog.

Opening Monologue

The air hangs heavy in the Elven Shallows, thick with smoke, fear, and the iron stench of blood. You stood amongst the elves at the Ember Chain, listening to Veylith Lorarion and elves' quiet desperation. The elves, once masters of magic and craft, now barely survive as prisoners in their own city—enslaved by a Pact that sees them as spoils of war.

You chose to stand with them.

You learned their words and their suffering. You agreed to carry their demands to the Pact—and perhaps, to risk everything in their defense.

But before your message could be delivered, the Pact made their own.

No sooner than you had time to prepare your list of demands, Pact soldiers - armed for war marched into the Distribution Centre. No parley. No discussion. Elves who resisted were cut down. Those who didn’t were shackled and dragged into the streets. Blood runs down the gutters. The air echoes with screams and incantations as elves desperately try to invoke the last of their magic. But it is futile. Having a hidden weapon loses its sharp edge when all elves are treated as the enemy, and the Pact does not discriminate; elderly, youthful or crippled you are the enemy - to this Pact.

This is not lawkeeping. This is extermination.

Now the Shallows burn. And if there is to be a future for the elves… it begins here within these four walls of the Ember Chain.

Scene 1

Finding the special elves

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Subscene Title

Elves saved: 3 + 12 + 2 + 11 + 4 + 3 + 15 + 1 + 5 (all rescued)

1. Aelion Varethil (“Memory of the Deep Root”) X - Washed up elven commander

2. Theren Silquar (“Crown of Quiet Song”) - Family are devoutly arcane

3. Vaelen Duskthorn (“Watcher Beneath the Branch”) - Strong Silaen Valar

Session Notes

War Map
Elves took H4 (PCs), failed to control H5 (7 on DC10 Fortune)
Pact took H6 & H10

Expansion rules
Pact spreads to all uncontrolled/uncontested adjacent spaces after a round Elves spreads to PCs Hex, if mission successful. Elves spread to uncontrolled/uncontested adjacent spaces after a round on a successful DC10 Fortune roll
Controlled spaces only flip if directly contested (Pact Commanders / PCs) PC's / Pact Leadership are never killed, simply withdrawn when defeated. Until final stands.