Europa Barbarorum 2 Sweboz AAR- First among Men

I'm guessing your question is, how the hell is there a EB 2 AAR? It hasn't been released! (Furiously checks)

Well you are correct, it hasn't been released. However this AAR will function as a Prologue and I will name my character later so he will already be in game.

This will be a story of a warriors rise to the top of Germanic society and quest for vengeance.

Feedback welcome :yes:

Prologue


Shhhhhh…

The wind blowing softly across the grass…

Thud….Thud…

My heart beating slowly….

Scratch… Scratch

A stag drags a hoof across the icy ground….

Swish….

An arrow flies…

The moment drags…

The stag explodes with motion, leaping forward, faster even than my heart and darts out of thicket, crashing through hazel and brambles in its haste. Thump…

Silence…

Even the aspo have stopped shivering…

I stand up cautiously; wincing as feeling comes back to my legs after twenty minutes motionless. I drop my bow, and take my spear into my hands. I walk forward slowly, taking my time. I push aside the crushed branches and look down at the prone deer. It was still alive, weakly kicking, its eyes glazed over with pain.
I laid my spear point over its heart, “I thank you, and the Gods, for this gift”, and thrust home.
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After gutting the deer, I laid out its heart in the crux of an aiks, an oak tree, dedicating its heart to Wodanaz. “Lord of all the Gods, I wish to earn my shield and a place in the tribe in battle. Grant me this favour, Lord.” I turned around and cut a sapling to allow me to carry the stag. I turned back only to see two ravens feasting on the heart. “He heard…” I whispered and turned my back for home.

The weight of the deer lay heavily on my shoulders but the sense of achievement made my burden light. A deer this early in spring would make a big difference to our bellies, with stores running low. I lugged the weight through the forest, hide shoes gently rustling the newly emerging plant growth. The canopy above blocked out most of the sunlight, leaving me in a leafy gloom. My feet led me on to the familiar path, leading to the trackway across the marshes.

“Mînôn faderz môder milkiþi kôw.” An unfamiliar voice broke out, a thick accent disguising the words.

“Your grandmother milks the cows, more like you milk your grandmother, she pays for your excesses all the bloody time, keeping the chief happy.” A second voice rang out, haranguing the first.

“No, she doesn't, I wish you wouldn’t say that,” the first voice said again petulantly.

“That’s because it’s true!” Laughter rang out in front of me, concealed by a thin line of shrubs.

“Shut the hell up, for the love of Wodanaz, do you want to tell everybody we are here?!” A third voice hissed.
I’d heard enough, their accents betrayed them. These were Cherusci, our enemies from the west, people much like us, but enemies all the same. There was only one reason they could be here: Raiding.

I laid down the deer gently on the forest floor and crept slowly forward, wanting to see how many warriors they had brought. My heart beat in my chest like a drum, every crackle of twigs, a crack of thunder. I peered through the thin layer of foliage, keeping my face in the shadows. They were just under fifty , all with shields and spears, a few with Leather Armour and one with a sword and a helmet.

Almost without thought, I drew an arrow from my quiver and laid it on my bow. I gripped the string and arrow with three fingers, one above, two below and drew. I fixed my eyes on his head, picking out a single ginger freckle. My fingers just brushed my cheekbone and I released. Suddenly I was running, fast and faster. I ran north towards the marsh, with the howls of rage and anger coming from behind me. I stumbled out of the forest but quickly found my bearings and ran into the marshlands. I splashed through the fetid water and risked a look behind, the Cherusci were emerging out of the forest and saw me, whooping.

“Kill the impudent pup!”

A spear flew wide of me by a hands breadth to be swallowed by the marsh and another came close, but they were almost out of range now. I squelched onwards, taking the quickest route to the village, a quicker path than the trackway. Hopefully I would get there first…
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My ragged breath cut at my chest, feeling like claws being dragged down my windpipe. I staggered onwards and reached the edge of the village. The fields surrounding my village were empty and brown, a confused patchwork around the outskirts. The village itself was small; the longhouse in the centre surrounded by a number of smaller dwellings of wood and thatch. I tried to shout, my breath too spent to utter a word. I arrived in the village and ran, or dragged myself into the longhouse, bursting inside. Some of my father’s warriors were lounging around on the long tables playing dice and my father was sitting with the steward, taking stock of our grain stores. He saw me, covered in mud and breathless, and turned,

“What happened?!”

“The Cherusci are here,” I said, pausing to heave in more air, “They are on the other side of the trackway and they saw me.”
My father stood and shouted to his warriors, “Get UP!” The warriors of our household, sleeping along the side of the longhouse, woke and started scratching at their eyes and holding their heads. “The Cherusci are here! Get up and get your weapons NOW!” Suddenly the warriors held more urgency and moved with vigour, grabbing weapons and shields from the walls. “Haderic, raise the men of village and tell them to arm themselves.” My father said to his most trusted man, who nodded and ran outside to the main square to start the muster. To another he said “Take my horse and ride to nearest villages, tell them of this attack and ask them to come.”

“Yes, Lord,” he turned and ran out of the building.

He turned again to me “How many of them did you see?”

“Around fifty,” I said, as aware as my father that we had only forty men of fighting age.

He nodded gravely, “Well I suppose that means we will need every spear we can get.” He turned and went to his room, extending from the longhouse and brought out two shields and his spear. “From this moment onwards, you are a man of the theutha, sworn to protect it until your dying breath and hold all the rights and responsibilities of a frijo, a freeman of the tribe.” He passed me the shield and said, “This shield is a symbol of freedom, look after it always and stand strong before the theutha, the tribe.”

He turned to his warriors, “They are coming across the marshes on the trackway, we will meet them on it, so they cannot outflank us.”

My father and I went outside, followed by the warriors, some still struggling with their trousers. The levy was beginning to take shape, me with shields, spears and javelins in the main, a few with bows and fewer still with slings. Women looked on anxiously with young children staring with wide eyes. Fathers stood side by side with sons, cousins and brothers, all ready to defend their homes.

The warriors and I joined the mass of men, while my father stood in front.

“The Cherusci are here. They come to plunder our homes and take our wives, now we show them what it means to attack the Sweboz!”

“HOOO, HOOO!!” The men shouted back and slammed their spear butts into the ground.

“They are crossing the marsh and only know the trackway; we will meet them there, so they can taste our steel!”

“HOOO, HOOOO, HOOO!!”
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We stared across at them. The thin strip of planking lay across the marshland, providing the only certain access to our village from the south. They advanced across the trackway, shields locked and spears glistening with dew.

We stood silent, my father in the first rank, me behind. “Battle is more terrible than you can imagine, stay behind me.” He had said on the short run to the trackway.

We waited spears level. They were hesitant but aware we must have called for aid, and time was short if they wished to escape. Our archers and slingers began firing, further encouraging them to attack.

Thirty metres away.

They started shouting insults trying to unman us.

“Your mother was a whore!”

“How about you stop shouting and come here and die!” My father bellowed.

A growl came from their lines and they began to advance slowly, with their chief in the centre visible with his helmet. Javelins started to rain down and I raised my shield over both my head and my fathers in the front. THUMP! A javelin impacted, pushing my arm downwards. Now my vision was limited to my peaking behind my father’s head and shoulders.

They started to jog, building up speed to break us in one charge.

“BRACE!”

“HOLD FIRM!”

My left foot went forward; spear held in my armpit projecting beyond the shield wall and leaned forward waiting for the impact. CRASH!! My father’s spear jerked backwards as it impacted a warrior’s shield to thud harmlessly into my own. I saw an open gap and jabbed my spear forward into a foot. Blood covered my spear point and the man went down to take a spear in the throat from my father. The pressure on my arm was enormous and men clustered around me, shoulder to shoulder. A man to my left took a spear to thrust to the shield that pierced it, and blood ran down the inside of his shield. I jabbed rapidly through the small gap between my father’s shield and the next, driving my spear into the enemies shields.

The enemy were fighting hard but we had the advantage and already several foes lay dead, bleeding into the mud. The ground was slick with blood and gore, but we were already too tired to scream insults, grunting at the enemy over our shield rims. The enemy had closed to sword range with the first two ranks now able to stab and kill. The Cherusci chieftain swung a heavy overhand blow at my father. He lifted his shield to take the blow, but a spear thrust under the shield dug into his thigh. Grunting in pain, he thrust his spear forward into the chieftain’s guts. The leather armour did not save him, the razor sharp spear head cutting into his bowels. He dropped downwards towards the earth but his warriors grabbed him and dragged him to safety. But the fight was already lost, our men saw him fall and pushed harder, while the enemy began to falter, taking slow steps backwards only to be pushed back further and faster. My father swayed but remained standing. Our shouts increased in intensity as the enemy weakened and, finally turned and ran. The blood lust seized us and seeing their turned backs ran after them. The fear of the battle being turned into bloody rage and we stabbed, hacked and killed. I came to my senses a hundred metres further on, a trail of dead Cherusci behind me and whooping men chasing the remaining further into the marsh to drown.

I walked back to the battle lines, totally drained to see my father lying on the mud and wood planks. I ran to him, falling beside him. The spear thrust had cut into his inner thigh and his life’s blood had drained away. His eyes were open and I gently closed them. I looked upon his face and thought back on my prayer to Wodanaz, “There is always a price…” I whispered. The sky was dark and it began to rain, cleaning the ground and my father’s wounds. Water ran down my cheeks and I was certain they were tears.
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I stood and stared at the sky, with ravens already gathering to feast on the flesh of the dead. My father’s warriors, no my warriors, had come back and were staring at the devastation.

“I swear vengeance on the Cherusci and death to every last one!” I screamed in anger at the sky.

The year was 272 BC and the world was on fire.

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Note: Aspo means Aspen, hopefully it was clear based on context, if not, that’s what this note is for.

http://www.angelfire.com/ga3/arkan/pgmnlex.html
http://www.furorteutonicus.eu/german...o-germanic.pdf

These two websites are where I got the majority of the Proto-Germanic from and EB1 also.

Finally this thread might need to moved, not too sure.

Thanks for reading this far.

Keep it coming. I for one will read it.

Thank you for that, wasn't too sure what response I would get.

I really enjoyed, excelent writing skills, keep going on :2thumbsup:

Can't wait for more!

Continuing the Prologue (Kinda..)

Three months later….

Sumroz

The tribe had a crop in the ground. Barley and oats filled the fields, with small apple orchards dangling on the edge of the village. The timber houses newly thatched with reeds from the marsh stood tall and strong with smoke rising lazily from the roofs. The summer heat was muggy and thick with mosquitoes rising from the marsh, with a sense of rain in the distance. The mosquitoes buzzed and hovered, getting on our nerves, as if we needed getting wound up any more.

“We need an agreement now, we can’t sit here with no decision, if we wait any longer, the Cherusci will return!” I said, trying to convince Geirulfr, one of the elders.

“We have a right to the vengeance I suppose,” he said, stroking his bristly white chin.

“You might have gained respect for your defence of the village but we must not endanger the tribe for your own personal vendetta.”

“We must tread a careful course; any loss of men would offer us up as a juicy target for more raiders.”

Geirulfr was once a great warrior, having fought in numerous skirmishes and the great army of the King. He had grown old and given up his place in the shield wall to younger men, but remained a formidable figure. He was also my Grandfather. He was my mother’s father and had once hated my father with a passion for courting his daughter, but had come to respect him in time.

“I feel your father’s loss too, boy.” He put his face in his hands. “We must put it to the Thenxoz, the Thing ourselves to see what may come of it and whether we should attack the Cherusci.”

He stood. ”The people must decide.”

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This is gonna be a short one, I'm going to put up some more in the next week (fingers crossed), and a lot longer.

Enjoy

I'm really looking forward to this story! Keep it up!

Maybe one of the Moderators would be so kind to move this thread to the newly opened AAR-Subforum. It would be a worthy first AAR there! :yes:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Antigonos Karchedonios

I'm really looking forward to this story! Keep it up!

Maybe one of the Moderators would be so kind to move this thread to the newly opened AAR-Subforum. It would be a worthy first AAR there! :yes:

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I completely agree!

Thanks for moving it, at the time of creation it didn't exist otherwise I might have put it there.

Gypsy your awesome dude you inspired me to write my own AAR as well man. Please post the next chapter so we can see how the young warchief fares.

The stars stood still, the moon echoing above us in the vast sky, home to mighty Thunraz. We stood outside the hall, torches rising into the night, held by members of the crowd. Geirulfr stepped out in front of the crowd and spoke. His voice rang out, fading away into the darkening night.

“We stand here to decide what to do about the Cherusci, men who have attacked us and tried to defile our land.” A growl emanated from the crowd at this but Geirulfr stood taller and raised his hand.

“I feel much as you do, but we must proceed carefully, they are a stronger tribe than us. Enough of this, may Wodanaz guide your decision. Begin the Thenxoz.”

At this the torches were extinguished and the men filed inside the main hall, the fire in the central hearth providing dancing light to the faces of the village.
“May I speak?” I said, striding to the front of the crowd that had entered the hall.

“Have you dipped received the shield and spear? Have you faced the enemies of the tribe with courage?” Geirulfr said, saying the ritual words slowly.

“I have.”

“Then speak before us.” Geirulfr stepped aside and I was left alone, standing before the people.

I knew these people, friends, cousins, fathers, grandfathers and uncles. These were my people.

“We have bled.” I paused, talking slowly and quietly, drawing them in.

“We have all lost friends to the Cherusci, I have lost a father, and we have lost a leader.”

“But the Cherusci have bled more, they have lost tens where we have lost ones. They have bled hard, but…” I paused again. “This was only a taste of what they had planned for us, they wanted it all.”

“Wives, children, families, land, hope and love!” My voice rising as I went further. “They wanted it all.”

I paused, “I wish to lead a war party against the Cherusci, to see their homes burned for what they wanted from us.”

“But that is far ahead, we must first defeat them. I would call a vote upon this issue.” I turned and walked back to the group.
“Well spoken boy,” a voice murmured from somewhere in the crowd.

Geirulfr stepped forward again, “Would anyone else speak?”

My father’s bondsman, Haderic came forward, “This boy is now a man, and he speaks well. I, for one, say we attack the Cherusci. I will support this motion."


"If that is all, let the vote begin.”

“All in favour of the plan raise your hands.” More than half of the hands rose into the air, I drooped with relief, hardly realising how nervous I was until that moment.

“So it is decided, we are at war.”

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This is hardly longer than the last one, but I've got essays raining down on my head like hail. But on the positive side I have finished most of them, so more writing. Woo!!

Hope you enjoy!

Three days later

The march had taken two days and having decided that we could not be away from the village for more than a week, we had only one day to conduct the attack, assuming we took wounded during the attack.

Thanks to my speaking at the Thing I was somehow assumed to be in charge, with Haderic deferring to me and me not sure of how to respond. He organised most of the preparations for the expedition, but truly little needed to be done with the men organising their own food and weapons.

We arrived in the morning, with dew dripping from the leaves and the wet smell of forest in our nostrils. The Cherusci village was nearby but based on the smoke it may have been 4 km away. The area surrounding the village was open forest, with oak, beech and pine rising into the canopy, but with denser areas of hazel as well. Summoning my courage I spoke to Saiwaz, so called because he was the only one among us travelled enough to have seen the sea. He was also the best hunter in the village and had fed us in times of trouble many times. I spoke to him, “We need to scout the village and see what is there. Could you do it?”

To my surprise, he nodded and replied “Aye, lord, I’ll see what they have hiding in that village of theirs.”

Lord, I thought, Lord. He called me lord….

Saiwaz disappeared through the trees and I said to the group, “Find shelter, and set up camp.” Turning to Haderic, I said “Get some men you can trust and set them as sentries.”

He nodded and went into the rapidly emerging camp.

Saiwaz came back a few hours later and spoke to me “They have a smaller village than us with three longhouses, but they have a palisade.”

“How many people did you see?”

“About a hundred and a lot fewer men than I expected”

“Not really surprising.” I said with a hint of pride.

“We attack tomorrow,” I said raising my voice so others nearby could hear me, “And then we take revenge for our fallen!”

A murmur of agreement rattled through the camp.
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We formed up at dawn.

Forty-five men stood in the wolf dawn with grey light seeping through the canopy, casting hideous shadows in the vague shapes of men. Our spears and shields were held high on fresh arms with newly whetted spear points gleaming dully. We had felled a tree the previous day and carved it into a rough battering ram. The strongest men carried it at the rear of our formation but everyone would take a spell at carrying it. The few men who had bows also had tinder and embers from our fire, to shoot fire arrows at the thatch of the village, to spread fear and panic.

We advanced quietly in the dim light, occasionally tripping on tree roots and unseen branches. We approached the palisade and took stock. The palisade was loose at its base having, been unmaintained for years and the oak had cracked and weathered.

“Forward men and break the wall.” I said in a hoarse whisper.

We advanced the last hundred paces before and shout rang out.

“Run! Charge! Kill them ALLL!” I screamed knowing we had been discovered. The men started screaming like dervishes and howling like wolves. The eerie sound was terrifying and screams of panic could already be heard inside the walls.

“Fire arrows, NOW!” I shouted and our archers aimed and fired, sending streaks of fire to land on houses and thatch. The flames quickly took hold but people inside began throwing on water almost immediately. Meanwhile we had battered down the walls and streamed into the settlement and streamed inside to begin the slaughter.

“Haderic, come with me.” I shouted, he turned and with a few of his loyal warriors followed me.

We went through the burning village with smoke stringing our eyes and almost having coughing fits and passed our warriors killing desperate clusters of Cherusci, defending to the last. However, we made it through the village to the main hall and charged inside.

We stopped and saw the Cherusci war chief lying in a pile of furs near the hearth. He lay there and turned to us weakly and I saw the great bandages covering his midriff where my father’s spear had laid open his guts. At once a rage filled me and I advanced towards him, my spear poised to kill.

“You killed my father! YOU PIG!!” I spat, almost incandescent with rage and loss, desperately holding back tears, his presence bringing back my father’s memory in full force.

“Now you DIE!” I raised my spear to deliver the final blow.

“Please stop! NOO!” I was almost floored by small child, a young girl of eleven who after diving on me, crouched protectively over her father.

The calm came on me again like being doused in cold water. What am I doing? This man has a family who love him just everyone else.

I lowered my spear, “Yield to me and swear fealty and you can save your village.”

He nodded wearily. “What is your name, so I may swear to you?”

“My name is Harjaz.” I said.

“Then, I, Adelwulf of the Cherusci, swear loyalty to you, Harjaz of the Sweboz and acknowledge you as my Lord.” He fell back on to the furs with this effort, panting.

“I too would call you Lord,” I turned and saw Haderic, coming to knell before me.

“Will you accept me as your bondsman and give me a place at your hearth?”

“I will.” I whispered, overcome by his offer.

“Your father was a great man, and I feel you will be better than him.”

“I nominate you as chief of the Theutha, tribe. Who here agrees with me?”

A loud cheer erupted as men who had started to file into the main hall, the inhabitants subdued, caught on.

Sumroz 272 BC

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This marks the beginning of the AAR proper (took a while) where I will play the game and let it make a few plot decisions. :yes: