So quite some time ago I posted here about my first storygame in development, a Game of Thrones alternate story. However, I then forgot all about it. Nevertheless, I've recently continued where I left off and was wondering what you guys would think of it. I'm way too lazy to look for my original post so I'll instead put it here for all to see. The first "scene", titled "The War Council" is an optional choice in the beginning of the story which then takes you the following info dump, intended as a way for the player to learn more about the story and some of the important events, houses and characters. The second one, titled "Nightfall", is the opening for the first battle described in the story. The next pages I'll be posting later will be the continuations and possible outcomes of this battle. Anyway, feel free to comment on anything you feel the need to and add in any suggestions, criticisms or vulgar insults. Cheers.
The War Council
Before you and all standing around an improvised table made using a large log is your father's War Council, a collection of powerful and influential lords, knights, commanders and allies that over the years have earned your father's trust, gratitude, or at least haven't managed to completely piss him off. Some of them are vassals of House Purell such as the Bryants and the Hardwoods, though others are equal allies of your family, either through ancient treaty or through marriage as is the case of House Spearbright, the maiden house of your mother, Greta Purell.
At the head of the Council is Lord Garret Purell of Highrise, head of House Purell and the man you call father even though he actually isn't. Even now you don't know the full story, but apparently when your mother was promised to him, she had already given birth to a child from a mysterious lover. Through intelligence, wit and the right friendships she managed to keep her motherhood hidden from common knowledge, but fearing the dishonor such an act would bring her and her family she begged to her new husband to claim the infant girl was his own, conceived before their union was made official. This would not remove your bastard status as you would still have technically been conceived outside of marriage, but it would split the blame evenly between both families, thus ensuring that neither would decide to call off the marriage. Your father must have really loved his bride because not only did he promise to do so, he also swore that he would love you as if you were his own even if you did not share his blood. And now, almost twenty years later, he hasn't gone back on his promise.
At either sides of your father stand your brothers, Dan and Eddard, named after your father's friend and Warden of the North, Eddard Stark, with whom he fought side-by-side during Robert Baratheon’s rebellion against the Targaryen rule. Dan is the oldest of the Purell children and only one year younger than you, making him heir of Highrise and future head of House Purell. He is everything a lord would want as his heir; tall, handsome, charismatic, fearsome in battle, wise when making decisions and utterly devoted to his family. You and Dan have always been close and he probably sees you as another brother and treats you as such, as opposed to the attentions and cares he gives to your younger sister Nerissa, for example. His strong relationship with you is only strengthened by the strained relationship you both have with your younger brother.
Eddard, or Ned as he is often called is quite the polar opposite of Dan; He is reckless, rebellious, disappointing with both blade and bow and worst of all, he is always trying to "prove" himself to your father and those around him which generally involves a lot of unpleasantness that is unfortunately often directed at you. You've never quite understood why he hates you so much but he does despite the fact that you've been nothing but loyal and helpful to him. He is very vocal about his disdain with insults, crude remarks and by constantly reminding you and others of your bastard status, openly disregarding you as an equal. Still, he keeps most of his attacks on the verbal side knowing full well that you could easily hurt him badly should things get physical. The few times the two of you have come to blows have ended with you having to be yanked away from your cowering brother which has only fueled his dislike of you. Still, growing up you have learned to control yourself on such situations and to pay little attention to Ned. You’d wish things could be different between the two of you, but knowing Ned that is likely never going to happen.
Aside from his own children, the man your father trusts the most is without a doubt Ser Ronwald Foster, a knight sworn to the Purells and master-at-arms of Highrise. Born as a commoner, he was fielded as a soldier to fight in Robert’s Rebellion against the Mad King when your House followed the rulers of the Riverlands, House Tully, in supporting Robert Baratheon’s efforts to end the Targaryen rule. He quickly distinguished himself above the rank and file of the soldiers and thus was given command over a small part of the Purell cavalry by your grandfather Artemis Purell, who was Lord of Highrise at the time. Needless to say, he excelled in his wartime duties and forged a close bond with your father at the same time. Once the rebellion ended Artemis Purell knighted Ronwald in recognition of his service, who wasted no time in swearing himself to the service of the Purells. Now, many years later, his loyalty to your House and it’s members has not dwindled. In fact, it was Ser Ronwald who first suggested to your family that you be trained in the ways of combat when you began showing an interest. He then proceeded to actually train you along with your father once your parents were convinced and thus most of what you know you learned from him.
Next to Ronwald is his own son James. A formidable fighter in his own right, he has always been a close friend of yours and is one of the few people who are friendly towards Ned. Appointed as Captain of the Guards by your father, he has always served your house loyally and has always shown a particular devotion towards you. In truth, for quite some time now he has harbored romantic feelings for you, and even if you can't return them you are still happy to call him your closest friend.
Nearest to you is Lord Desmond Bryant. The Bryants are loyal vassals of your house and have been so for centuries since their Lord at the time bent the knee to your house. They seat on the walled town of Saltcrest, and used to command a fairly good sized amount of ships until two days ago, when they were all but destroyed by the ironborn that now lay siege to their home. Lord Desmond was known as a fierce fighter back in his day, but old age has caught up to him and he now commands his small forces from safety. You have often heard your father praise his honor and wisdom, though you know the man very little.
Next to him is Lord Silas "The Tree Bark" Hardwood. Living up to both his nickname and his family's name, he has a reputation for being tough as wood and having sustained injuries that would have killed lesser men. None of these have held him back, though, and he leads his men from the front like every Lord Hardwood has done before him. In fact, for Hardwoods, a man who is still of proper age and doesn't fight among his men is considered the worst of cowards and extremely dishonorable.
The Hardwoods were once enemies of the Purells and a long, bloody war was fought between your houses when the Hardwoods, conflictive by nature, began a campaign of aggressive expansionism around their lands during which they completely destroyed and consumed several towns and small lordships, shortly before the crowning of the Mad King. A young Artemis Purell valiantly led the Purell men to victory, defeating the Hardwoods who, respecting honor and strength above all, were gracious in their defeat and bent the knee to your grandfather, becoming the most recent of your vassals. They respect your father since he used to lead his men from the front, like them, and understand that he can no longer do so because of his injuries. The same is true for Lord Desmond. The Tree Bark has a special admiration for both you and Dan, and has already sworn that when Dan becomes lord, he would follow him down through the Seven Hells and back. He, however, hasn't a shred of respect for Ned whom he has openly called a coward for his disappointing fighting skills and his tendency to hide behind the Purell men despite being physically fit. Despite your brother's complaints your father has always told him that if he is unwilling to fight then he must deal with the consequences that brings, the Tree Bark's disrespect included.
Your mother's twin brother, Lord Francis Spearbright stands with his eldest son Jowell. The late Lord Howard, your mother's father, was always cold towards you and rarely spoke to your mother after she gave birth to you. However, he was killed when defending his lands from ironborn-backed raiders and thus his sons and grandsons bear a deeper hatred for them than most other houses in the Riverlands. Fortunately, both Lord Francis and Jowell have always been friendly and caring towards you, and Francis is extremely close to his twin sister and thus to your house as a whole.
Also present is Lord Jaan Rüdiger, head of the feared Rüdigers and vassal to your house. The Rüdigers swore fealty to your house during the Hardwood’s aggression in order to enlist your help in driving out the invading Hardwoods. Jaan is a fearsome, calculating man who commands the hardened, ruthless Rüdiger troops, the only ones not to fall to the violent Hardwood expansion which is undoubtedly a testament to their strength. As a side effect of said events the Rüdigers have a very shaky relationship with the Hardwoods, although both Jaan and the Tree Bark at least respect each other. This old feud can sometimes turn simple word exchanges into messy altercations, though thankfully it's been a while since Rüdiger and Hardwood forces have come to blows with each other.
House Rüdiger is somewhat of a black sheep among the noble houses along Ironman's Bay. They are exceptionally militaristic and dictatorial, their smallfolk being little more than forced laborers. Most of their sustenance comes from the heavy work their peasants are pretty much forced to do in the iron mines which surround the Rüdiger's home, Hollow Point. Additionally, their soldiers are often of dubious origins, many of them being criminals who were offered the choice to either serve or lose their heads, most of them obviously taking the path which involved keeping all of their limbs. As such, Rüdiger troops in general lack any sort of moral compass and the honor and chivalry that is expected from a noble house's standing army. All of these traits are enough for most members of your small alliance to distrust Jaan's household, though they also recognize that the Rüdigers are nevertheless valuable allies for their vast resources and effective soldiers, thus making their acceptance a necessary evil.
Last but not least are the Buckshorns, the Purell's oldest allies led by the young Lord Martinus Buckshorn. Little Marty is only a kid, but is already shaping up to be a fine Lord. His mother, Beatrice Buckshorn rules as Lady Regent until he comes of age although for these kinds of situations the young Lord's uncle Dylan Buckshorn represents his kin and leads the Buckshorn men into battle. With the pass of the centuries, the exact terms and circumstances of the original pact of friendship between your houses have been lost to time. Regardless, your houses have remained allies ever since. By now though, your alliance is merely symbolical and thus the Buckshorns commit only a handful of men to a call-to-arms such as the one that has been issued to defend Saltcrest. Truth be told, the Buckshorns would much rather not have to get involved in the squabbles of your Houses, especially considering that Bloodwater Pass, the ancient home of the Buckshorns isn't even close to Ironman's Bay and is thus rarely threatened by ironborn. Nevertheless, bound by ancient treaty they have no choice but to comply for now.
Each Lord brings with him some trusted advisors who you don't know, and don't really want to know. What you know of each of these men you learned more out of necessity than curiosity. Still, your father always told you that after a sharp blade always came the sharpness of the mind, though you still don't know how storing all this stuff in your brain helps you fight or such.
Maybe you'll find out some day.
Nightfall
The darkness that the night brings now looms all around, only countered by the torches your men carry. You stand side to side with the Tree Bark with some thirty men standing in formation behind you. A few meters to your left is Lord Rüdiger with his men standing alongside Ser Ronwald, who notices your stare and confidently winks at you. You do likewise. In front of the foot soldiers lies the cavalry, made up from barely some twenty something mounted soldiers and led by your brother and cousin. You can barely hold your breath at the anticipation of the fight that is to come. It'll be the largest you've ever been in, for sure, but you still can't help but wonder what it would be like being in the thick of the Battle of the Trident, for example, where Robert Baratheon famously slayed Rhaegar Targaryen and tipped the tide of the war in his favor. You can only imagine: Rivermen, Northerners, Valemen, and the Storm Lords all fighting together against the Targaryens and their loyalists. You would give anything to have been born during that time. A voice suddenly breaks the silence that had prevailed for a couple hours now.
"Everything's ready my Lord."
"Then let's do this." Your father answers.
It's time. In a couple of seconds, steel will clash against steel and flesh. You turn to the Hardwood infantry under your command and begin addressing them.
"The assholes who now rest just outside this town have lived their entire lives following only one way of life; to take that which is not theirs. To raid, to murder, to pillage and to plunder lands that they hold no right over. Our lands! And today, we are here to show them that they can't take whatever the fuck they want! We are here to kill as many of these fuckers as we can, and send the rest on their asses back to their islands! Those cunts like to tell themselves that what's dead can't die. Well, I say that what is dead is already fucking dead, and we're just here to finish the job and send them down to meet their fucking God right where they belong: In the bottom of the ocean!"
The Hardwoods break into a series of cheers, clearly motivated by your little speech.
"Forever Tall, Forever Unbroken!" You shout the Harwood words, which they answer in unison. "Forever Tall, Forever Unbroken!"
You then follow with your House's own words. "From The Seas We Rose!"
The Hardwoods respond again as your father tells everyone to be at the ready and finally orders the gates to be opened by the few Bryants that survived the initial attack along with their Lord.
As soon as they do, however, you are all met by a rather unpleasant surprise. A recently and hastily assembled battering ram is standing just some steps away from the now opened gates with ironborn all around it, who look just as as confused as you. It would seem that they thought to covertly begin their assault on the main forstress on Saltcrest during the night and definitely weren't counting on the gates to open by themselves, and with an army of Rivermen behind them at that. You certainly weren't planning on them being here either, but in between the confusion your brother Dan takes the indicative.
"CHARGE!" He screams as the entirety of the cavalry follows his lead and begin impaling and running over the ironborn closest to the gates. You give your own battlecry and charge right behind the cavalry along with your men. You cleave your sword into one of the ironborn holding the battering ram, causing the others to loose their grip and sending the massive cylinder rolling downhill, taking both Rivermen and ironborn lives with it. You hadn't actually realized just how steep the hill that leads to the gates you came out from actually is, until you see several of your horses loose their footing after running down too fast on such an inclined surface, sending their riders into the dirt along with them where they become easy prey for the ironborn. You sprint down the hill to join the fighting in the camp, which is your objective in any matter. The ironborn in and around the camp were already armed and armored by the time your forces came out through the gates, no doubt preparing to sack Saltcrest with the cover of night. You and the Hardwoods begin helping the few mounted men who made it to the camp, including your cousin Jowell. He is doing pretty fine himself, easily fighting off several ironborn from atop his horse. You parry a swing from a sword and deliver an oblique kick to your opponent's leg as your blades are locked, causing something in his limb to snap and send him to the floor in a cry of pain where you proceed to finish him off by sticking him in the heart. Just as you pull your sword out, you hear a grunt from behind and turn just in time to see a particularly large ironborn with his sword up in the air ready to bring it down on you.
