The Western War

The Western War of 1428 was one the most important and defining events in shaping the contemporary landscape of the Magnia Peninsula. The war pitted King Florence II of Vichin against the Kingdom of Corveaux under King Louis XIV and an alliance of rebelling Vichinian protectorates, primarily within the Westerlands. The war initially caught Vichin off guard, allowing Louis to plough through the Westerlands with little resistance, while the Vichinians were still gathering their forces. The was concluded at the Battle of Bull's Run, which ended in a bloody stalemate. 
== Prelude ==
With the conclusion of the Golden War of 1409-1421, the war torn Westerlands fell entirely under the sovereignty of Vichin. New borders were drawn up, creating seven Vichinian protectorates, seemingly with no regard for local politics, cultures or the historical borders of the realms. King Florence II appointed a Duke or Duchess of Vichinian ancestry to rule over each and command the local lords, while he named his brother Stan Barcley-de-Tolly as Grand Duke and protector of the West. 
The Kingdom of Vichin became the greatest and most powerful realm in all of Magnia, holding dominion over the Westerlands in its entirety, as well as the Kingdom of Thyssen, ruled by King Eyke III, who had been forced to bend the knee as punishment for allying himself with the Golden Horde during the war. The marriage alliance between King Florence II, originally a young Prince of Carinthia, and Hedwig Martel, the last of the royal line of Vichin, which ended the Vichin Civil War, also resulted in the complete annexation of the Principality of Carinthia, meaning Vichin ruled all of Central Magnia and the West. For the Kingdom of Corveaux, this was a worrying development. They were now surrounded by Vichinian provinces all along their southern and eastern borders, backed into a corner of Magnia. To the Corvians, it seemed inevitable that they would be swallowed up, should Vichin attempt an annexation. The King of Corveaux, a young Louis XIV, having just successfully consolidated his rule and united the Corvian realm in the Great Feudal War, had become widely celebrated for his political and strategic brilliance. After their unification, the Corvians saw a surge of national pride. The war had also made many hardened soldiers and led to several new inventions of warfare, including the trebuchet. In its aftermath, King Louis continued to pursue internal consolidation of his realm, while slowly preparing for the inevitable conflict with Vichin. He knew, victory would only be possible, if he was first to strike. 
== Initial Conflict ==
Vichinian hold on the Westerlands proved to be an uneasy one. Their disregard for local culture and historical borders led to several small conflicts and skirmishes throughout the 1420's and royal attempts at subduing the new protectorates put a heavy economic toll on the kingdom. In 1427, in an attempt to solidify his own position after the death of his young wife, and to avoid the crown's immense debt to the Cister Cartian Church, King Florence was swayed into declaring Cister Carta state religion, making heresy punishable by death. This greatly angered several Westerland provinces, most of whom still kept to the Menkhu faith or were otherwise predominately atheist. In October of 1427, a coalition of three Vaskajan barons under Ludovic of Goors openly opposed this declaration and removed their liege, Duke Artain Prospero, usurping power as Lord Regent for Artain's infant daughter Mia. King Florence ordered Ludovic excommunicated and dispatched a small force of 5.000 men from a neighbouring province to subdue his insurrection. Fearing little resistance from the weak province, the Vichinians were unexpectedly met with an army over twice its strength. The Vaskajan forces had been bolstered by a last minute supply of troops from Corveaux under Lord Berric Bedaux. The Vichinian force capitulated before battle was met and retreated east. 
Following the incident, King Louis XIV declared he would "support the freedom of religious expression and independence from tyranny for all the Vichinian provinces and protectorates." He ordered his vassals to muster their forces and awaited Vichin's response. It was his intention to avoid initiating a direct war with Vichin for fear of being labelled an aggressor, which might incur the nations of Metina or Valona to support Vichin. Instead, he attempted to further destabilize the Vichinian realm by appearing to support religious freedom, engaging only in small skirmish warfare while turning the angered provinces against their ruler one by one. This plan, however, soon went awry.
==== The Doom of Deepwater ====
The spring of 1428 was a tumultuous time for Vichin. Vaskaja remained in open rebellion and indecisiveness from King Florence and his brother Stan, unsure of how to react to the Corvian declaration, meant two other provinces were already in following them in direct opposition. King Louis' plan seemed fruitful until one of his vassals, Lord Gean Dampierre defied his king's instructions and hastily moved his newly gathered army into the Westerlands to capture his ancestral home, now the Vichinian barony of Sonder. He was met with close to no resistance and setted in Dun Tynne Castle. However, the very next day, only kilometres away, a mysterious incident known as the Doom of Deepwater occurred. The town of Deepwater Motte was decimated. Hundreds died and as the first fleeing survivors arrived on the Isle of Pyor, and word reached the courts of Magnia, it became clear that a terrible magical event had taken place. The Chapter of Wizards, suspecting it was an accident involving a local mage, decided to officially blame Gean Dampierre's army in order to cover up their own involvement. Since the use of magic in warfare was expressly forbidden by the Treaty of Lastoria of 842, this incident became the casus belli that forced Vichin to act. Florence II, still hesitant, was pressured by his angered vassals to declare war, forcing King Louis to rush into warfare on a much larger scale than anticipated, before Vichin could muster a sufficient force. And thus, the Western War had begun.
== Incursion into the Westerlands ==
In late august 1428, Louis XIV entered the West through Vaskaja, leading an army of around 30.000 soldiers which included 8.000 Westerland mercenaries, while his cousin Luciana led another contingent through the Skorantine Steps and into Thyssen. Arriving in Bon Ard, the seat of the infant duchess Mia Prospero, King Louis was received cordially. Here, he waited to allow the word of his arrival to reach the surrounding provinces, hoping his presence would turn more of them against Vichin. In the meantime, King Florence was working hard to delay the Corvian advance by hiring mercenary commanders from Valona and inside the Westerlands, while Vichinian forces were still gathering. He also sent his brother, Robert Barcley-de-Tolly and Landon Byways, the Duke of Greater Vichin, to Nazgorod with the objective of bolstering the region, making it impossible for King Louis to march without risking an attack from the rear. Any further resistance from the loyalist Westerlands were however delayed by the sudden tragic death of their liege lord Stan Barcley-de-Tolly, who died during a tourney in Pyor. 
=== Thyssen Declaration of Independence ===
Meanwhile, in the north, King Louis' cousin arrived in Thyssen by the Skorantine Steps, and marched on Wrymouth, expecting an army to await her there. However, once Luciana neared the city, she received a message from the Thyssen capital of Kastamir. Prince Eyke III of Thyssen had died suddenly, falling from the walls of the royal castle, and his 13-year-old son, Esterad Ambrose declared that he would allow the Corvians to pass through his lands if they would recognize him as King of Thyssen. As this would only serve to weaken Vichin further and ensure their forward campaign, Corveaux agreed and were allowed to pass into the Principality of Carinthia, where Luciana laid siege to the capital of Norshka. The loss of Thyssen was a massive economic blow to Vichin. Esterad Ambrose's ascension also marked the beginning of War of Thyssen Succession, when his uncle Lancel opposed Esterad's claim, instead favouring his own son Rickard Ambrose. 
=== The Sack of Sobina ===
The Corvian and Vichinian forces in the West fought multiple skirmish battles throughout September and October while in Sobina, the seat of the province of Sodden, the court of Duchess Elierena Harwick was unravelling. With the recent loss of her liege lord, Grand Duke Stan Barcley-de-Tolly, she had been hesitant at first to respond to the Corvian declaration of support, but following the Doom of Deepwater, Elierena declared her continued loyalty to the Vichinian crown. In response, two of her vassals, Jurij Nenadov and Hadrian Vyachlaw, turned against their liege and rode home, Nenadov to the city of Oswietzim and Vyachlaw to his castle at Orovoy. A fortnight later, Jurij Nenadov declared himself king of Sodden with his friend's support. In response, King Florence sent Duke John Cleight of Stokengrad from the south to overthrow the rebel lord's garrisons. A failed attempt at crossing the Tyan River led to the occupation of Mireem, when the city was discovered to be secretly supplying the rebel armies. But three days later, Beric Bedeaux with 3.000 Corvian troops and a coalition of Westerland militias, marched on Labusa, forcing John Cleight to retreat, with Bedeaux giving chase.
After months of skirmishing with the Vichin forces near Nazgorod, King Louis turned his attention towards Elierena Harwick and the city of Sobina. Leaving a sizeable garrison at Bon Ard, Louis marched south with the bulk of his army and a siege train, intentionally exposing his rear to Nazgorod. The young king had correctly surmised that despite their imposing presence, the Vichinian force was nowhere near large enough to pose a threat. On October 19th, King Louis besieged the fortified city of Sobina. After Elierena Harwick refused to surrender, the city was bombarded by trebuchets, taken by the Corvian forces, and both the population and the defenders were massacred. 
The fall of Sobina came as a great shock to the rest of Magnia. Never before had a walled town fallen so easily and many, yet unaware of the Corvian's impressive siege technology, suspected the involvement of magic. The brutal sack of the city was a calculated strategy by the Corvian king, wanting to plough through the Westerlands by making examples of what would happen to resistance and to frighten his foes, a tactic later named 'the Corvian Fury' by the Vichinians. 
=== Occupation of Nazgorod ===
On the 21st of October, the Vaskajan Lord Protector Ludovic of Goors died of an unknown illness. The two remaining barons of the Vaskajan coalition quarrelled until one, Gean Galasso was expelled and marched to Straed, where he claimed the title of Duke. Soon after, he gained the support of Robert Barcley-de-Tolly after reaffirming his allegiance to Vichin. Once King Louis had helped Jurij Nenadov sufficiently secure his claim to Sodden, he began a slow march north towards Nazgorod to pressure the Vichinian military effort in the city. Duke Madas Kolte remained close allies with Robert Barcley-de-Tolly and Landon Byways, but the people were sympathetic to the Corvians, owing the fact many citizens had business in Corveaux, and Kolte's grip on power was shaky. Louis traversed the marshes until he reached Nazgorod. The formidable fortress, a former stronghold of the Golden Horde, could likely withstand the Corvian army and their artillery for months, if not years. Looking for a more vulnerable objective, Louis took his siege equipment to Straed. The city was conquered and destroyed, killing Gean Galasso and Louis continued to lay waste to other towns surrounding the region with the sole objective of terrorising the three noblemen in Nazgorod. The looming danger of looting and the violence of the Corvian army heightened the resentment of most citizens against the Vichians. Duke Madas Kolte, having taken new counsel, went to meet the king to negotiate, and was forced surrender the cities of Bhaal, Skanesh, and Sotzek, saving the King much time he would have otherwise spent besieging the fortresses. 
When he returned to Nazgorod on the 8th of November, Kolte was forced to flee from his citizens who accused him of a cowardly and servile attitude. Before Robert Barcley-de-Tolly and Landon Byways could seize control, the citizens facilitated the invasion of King Louis, who entered the city on the 17th of November and was hailed as a liberator from Vichinian oppression. The two Vichin noblemen were taken prisoner and King Louis quickly stipulated an agreement with the remaining nobility, keeping the region's cities until the end of his campaign. In return, Corveaux would subsidize the region 120.000 Florrints, showing everyone that King Louis was not only a brutal enemy, but a fair and generous ally. With winter fast approaching, King Louis encamped his army here to wait out the snows. 
== The Siege of Oswietzim ==
Immediately following the Sack of Sobina, the fleeing Vichinian Duke John Cleight, still pursued by Beric Bedeaux, suddently decided to make a stand. The brutal sack and the death of Elierena Harwick, beloved by many, had reinvigorated the loyalist forces. This sudden change took the Corvian army completely unaware and Cleight swiftly defeated and routed their forces. In an attempt to retain their new-gained momentum, Cleight retook the city of Mireem on the 1st of November before marching on Lower Tyania, where he finally managed to cross the Tyan River through Mezrich. Here, he divied up his forces, with a third of his army under Baron Edmund Bedegar besieging Hadrian Vyachlaw in Orovoy, before he could aid his king, while Cleight moved with his remaining army to Oswietzim to reach Jurij Nenadov. Here, John Cleight was met with astounding resistance from local militias, often employing guerilla tactics and striking his flanks. Eventually, Cleight resorted to burning down the forests as he went. 
On the 13th of November, he won a decisive victory over Nenadov's men at the Battle of the Camp, when the two armies clashed at a refugee camp near Oswietzim. Arriving at the city, he encamped his army outside the walls and began to plan an attack. Here, he allied himself with the infamous Vargo Sixfins, a local pirate lord of the Gulf of Gabal, who supplied Cleight with a small fleet of ten ships. On the 23rd of November, the Battle of Oswieztim was fought, resulting in a decisive Vichinian victory. Jurij Nenadov was killed in the fighting and the city was yielded to John Cleight. 
== The Death of King Florence II ==
In early November, the Sultana of Chorene Elria II Yazi arrived in Kurnow on the invitation of King Florence. It was diplomatic arrangement made with the intention of forming new economic and military alliances between the two major powers. However, upon arriving in the city, the newly established Faith Militant of the orthodox branch of Cister Carta, which Florence had been manipulated into officially sanctioning, arrested the Sultana on accusations of adultery and homosexuality. Four days later, the Sultana was executed on the steps of the White Marble Plaza. The death of Elyria Yazi directly led to the Dissolution War in Chorene and, failing to prevent the execution, Florence was forced to flee from his rioting population before being besieged in the Bloody Keep by the church. Tensions had been rising for months between the citizens and nobility of Kurnow after several controversial new taxation laws, drawn up to fund the ongoing war efforts in the West. Seeing the King actively oppose the Church proved too much for the angered population. The siege lasted for months and ended in early January when the Pontiff of the church promised Florence free passage out of the country. However, when the King left his keep, he was publicly executed and the pontiff placed nine-year-old son of Florence his late wife Hedwig Martel, Vladislav V, on the throne. 
The death of Florence made political ripples throughout Vichin and the West, with several lords preparing to support Corveaux instead of the Kingdom of Vichin, which to many seemed increasingly like a sinking ship. Duke John Cleight, learning of the death of his King and the subsequent usurpation of the Pontiff, decided to abandon his efforts in the West and instead marched for Kurnow in early March of 1429. He left only a small garrison in Oswietzim, which would eventually fall in 1430 to the rising power of the new King Hadrian Vyachlaw. 
== Invasion of Galanti and Astholm ==
In late January of 1429, the Corvian army left Nazgorod and reached the northern border of the Province of Astholm, throwing the provincial seat of Olgimskaya into chaos. The two biggest rivals of Duke Aroya of Astholm; Baroness Askyenna Orsin of Bardiov and Baroness Juliana Calona of Dubrikin sided with the Corvians under the pretence of deposing the corrupt Pontiff. The defence lines set up near Karpova quickly crumbled and the city revolted against Aroya's control, while the main bulk of King Louis' armies advanced on the city of Olgimskaya. A number of nobles and mercenary commanders defected to the Corvian side and the local population rioted, while the Ferneck family, allies of Askyenna Orsin, occupied the nearby fort of Trioya, making it impossible to maintain the defences of the city. Duke Aroya was allowed to flee to Brudavord while King Louis entered Olgimskaya on the 4th of February. 
After a month in the city, King Louis continued into the Province of Galanti, where he expected stronger resistance than he had experienced until then. However, the province was in a state of complete confusion. After hearing the accounts of Aroya, Duke Demervent of Galanti had abdicated in favour of his son and fled to Stokengrad with the duchy's treasury. Most of the local barons flocked to the Corvian army, while the local population greeted the Corvians as saviours. The few cases of local resistance were brutally bombarded and executed. 
Demervent's son held Brudavord with his last 10.000 men and moved half of them, primarily consisting of mercenary soldiers, to Benviento to prepare for battle. However, the city rebelled and the mercenaries delivered it to King Louis, entering their service and causing the scattering of the Duke's army. Demervent's son, having been outmanoeuvred, and having lost support from everyone, escaped with his court to Petra and at the same time, King Louis entered Brudavord on the 22nd of March 1429, with little resistance from the forces left behind. 
== Formation of the League of Vichin ==
In just seven months, the Corvian King had traversed the Westerlands nearly unopposed and any resistance against him had been pulverised. It was a political earthquake for the region, which shocked and scared the sorrounding states and would have lasting effects on the Magnian peninsula. 
Not expecting Corveaux to put so many resources into the campaign, and weakened from internal conflicts with the Pontiff of Cister Carta, Vichin was in a worrisome position. While the Dukes and Duchesses of Vichin were still gathering their armies, John Cleight had laid siege to the capital to wrest it free of the Pontiff's control. They had lost the Westerlands and Thyssen, and King Louis' cousin was still besieging Carinthia, greatly threatening the Isle of Pyor and the remaining Vichinian banks on Turokh's Eye. In the spring of 1429, the League of Vichin was formed, a temporary coalition between the Duchies of Masuria and Zymir, as well as the Duchy of Greater Vichin, under the son of Landon Byways, to maintain the resistance against Corveaux despite the conflict in Kurnow and the lack of a true royal authority. Due to this conflict neither the Duchy of Kurnow, nor the John Cleight's Duchy of Volynia participated in the League, which sparked lasting internal resentment within the kingdom. John Cleight held that they could not continue the war without internal consolidation while the League thought that the growing threat of King Louis, just beyond the Wrynova River was more pressing. Gathering at Thusham, the members of the League of Vichin encamped here and awaited any movement of the Corvian army. 
=== Retreat from Carinthia ===
In the meantime, Louis' cousin, Luciana, was no closer to a victory at Norshka. With the death of King Florence, the Carinthian princes had lost their ties of allegiance to Vichin, but stubbornly remained in defiance of the Corvian invaders, continually refusing to treat with Luciana all year, or even receive her dignitaries. Winter had hit the siege hard and come January, Luciana had suffered greatly from casualties and desertion, and a third of the cavalrymen had eaten their horses. Worried about being trapped in the region, with the Thyssen War of Succession was raging to the west, Luciana decided to join up with her King, abandoning her siege effort. On the 20th of May, while attempting to pass the city of Rook, she defeated a small force sent to screen her, before conquering the city with a force of 7.000. She then attempted to cross the Thane River, but was blocked by a small Vichinian fleet from Pyor and forced to retreat to Rook, where she was besieged. 
=== Stagnation of the Corvian army ===
King Louis was at an impasse. So long as he remained here, the League of Vichin would not dare move to attack him, but his only hope of crossing the great Wrynova River into Vichin was through the city of Thusham, where the army of the League was encamped 45.000 strong. If he returned to Corveaux now, the West would not be strong enough to defend itself and his campaign would likely have been a failure. Far to the West, the Province of Attalan had established a train of supplies to Petra in support of the son of the former Duke Demervent of Galanti and threatened to march north to block Hadrian Vyachlaw in Sodden, should he ride for Oswietzim. Hadrian had recently been acknowledged as successor to the deceased Jurij Nenadov, but was stuck in Orovoy, unable to attack Vichinian controlled Mezrich and Oswietzim. Demervent's son could prove a minor threat to King Louis or any garrison he might leave in Brudavord, should he choose to march north. He sent a small army to the city accompanied by an exiled lord of Galanti with the hopes of starting a rebellion there, to no avail. 
== The Siege of Kurnow ==
After having camped at his seat of Stokengrad for a month, having fallen ill in May, Duke John Cleight set out for the Vichinian capital of Kurnow. He crushed a small army in the city of Engvar, attempting to block his approach and on the 11th of June, he laid siege to Kurnow. However, he soon discovered a growing political confusion and disarray within his army. Some of his vassals were not onboard with the aggression against their own capital, while others saw it as an affront to God to dare oppose the Pontiff. Cleight learned how Adam Brunnow, the baron of Gors Arang kept the Pontiff informed every day of everything that was being done in Cleight's camp. In addition, Cleight's own brother Marco was accused of double game by Baron Reynard of Cassow during a council of war, which resulted in a fighting between the two barons. Cleight now had to struggle to keep his own army unified, while continuing his siege efforts. Inside, Kurnow was suffering from a severe financial crisis and plague was rampant in the streets, there was no money to pay for the army, and the people threatened revolt. 
== Invasion of Vichin ==
=== Arrangement with the Valonian League ===
After two months of waiting at Brudavord, Louis was suddenly approached by a representative of the Valonian magnates, who offered to ferry his army across the Wrynova River if he agreed to spare Valona. This was an unexpected turn, which took the Vichinians unaware, since the Valonian League had thus far remained neutral in the conflict. King Louis decided to divvy up his forces, sending a small army into the undefended Duchy of Volynia with the intention to conquer the region, while the rest of his force moved along the Vislink towards Kurnow. A panicking League of Vichin rushed into action, hastily marching from Thusham to try and block King Louis. 
=== Campaign in Volynia ===
Meanwhile, the Corvian invasion of Volynia, led by Elector Countess Marienne Gilot of Risseaux occupied the city of Cassow and went as far as Stokengrad. John Cleight's castellan Ludovic Moro hunkered down within the city and sent a plea for aid to his liege. John Cleight meditated on abandoning the capital to retake Stokengrad, but firm opposition from his wife Beatrice and some members of his council convinced him to stay to secure King Vladislav first. Not long after, Ludovic fell ill of a stroke and became paralytic, never leaving his bedroom and was rarely ever seen. In a state of emergency, the rule of Stokengrad was then handed to Esthera of House Cadagan, the old ruling house of Volynia. House Cadagan had been excommunicated by the church after the Battle of Dog's Field in 1407, but thanks to the deeds of Esthera's older brother Eyck Cadagan during the Battle of Oswietzim, the family had been given a royal pardon, facilitating her ascension. 
Unable to count on John Cleight, the young Esthera supervised the order of her forces and animated her captains to repel the Elector Countess. They made a decisive stand, leaving the city at night, taking the Corvian camp unawares and retreating back behind the city walls. Not before suffering major casualties however. Had the Elector Countess attempted to storm Stokengrad then, she would likely have taken the city, but Esthera's demonstration of strength was able to confuse Marienne Gilot, making her believe the defence much superior to what it actually was. She did not dare try her luck and retired to Cassow. This hesitation was fatal to her, allowing the Volynian forces to reorganize and surround her on the 28th of June.
=== The Battle of Bull's Run ===
On the 6th of July, while on his way to Kurnow, King Louis met the army of the League of Vichin in Battle of Bull's Run, 30 km southwest of the city of Lysa. The two armies camped on either side of the Bull's Run river and engaged in multiple skirmishes over the course of three days, when King Louis finally outmanoeuvred and attacked the Vichinian army. The battle ended in a brutal and bloody stalemate. Although the League of Vichin suffered immense casualties, Corveaux lost signifiant funds after their baggage train was raided and was unable to encroach any further. The Corvian King began a full retreat and retired to Corveaux through the Westerlands. 
A week later, on the 14th of July, the Pontiff was finally forced to cede the city of Kurnow to John Cleight. The city had been decimated by famine and epidemics and the population had turned on the Cister Cartian church, opening the gates to Cleight, who rode through the city to the Bloody Keep where he arrested the Pontiff. By the time the first forces of the League of Vichin reached the capital, King Vladislav V had accepted John Cleight as Lord Protector. 
== Aftermath ==
On October 9th, a frail ceasefire was struck between the Kingdoms of Corveaux and Vichin. The Vichinians had lost around 10.000 soldiers in the final battle, including many commanders, barons, and counts, and the son of Landon Byways. The end of the war ushered in complete economic and political chaos in the country as the armies of the League scattered, soldiers returned home without leave, and much of the land was left without rules, many of the lords and ladies still unaccounted for after the battle. The League of Vichin was disbanded. With the young Vladislav choosing John Cleight, and the destabilization of the duchies, the remaining Dukes and Duchesses were forced to accept him as royal lord protector, although reluctantly. Some secretly suspected him of manipulating the young King, while many others still bore deep resentment for not declaring his allegiance to the League of Vichin. This resentment began a rift in Vichinian politics between the north and the south; John Cleight maintaining that the League's defeat at the Bull's Run proved he was right in seeking consolidation before aggression, while the former members of the League held that the aid of John Cleight's forces would very likely have turned the battle and won the war. Remaining in the capital, Cleight thanked Esthera Cadagan for her leal service, but did not appoint her Duchess, instead retaining his own title and giving the position of castellan to his brother, who immediately tried to marry Esthera by force, before suddenly dying of an unknown cause.
The Kingdom of Corveaux, who at one point seemed poised to lay claim to all of the Westerlands, were forced to swiftly retreat, hoping to avoid a similar catastrophe to that of the Corvian Invasion of 1240. Though it could not be claimed he lost the battle, nor the war, King Louis had broken his strength on Vichin and the Westerlands were left to fend for themselves. Over ten new kings and queens emerged within the former Vichinian provinces and fighting persisted for years, before five independent realms were formed: The Principality of Attalan, The Kingdom of Edierne, the Kingdom of Magiore, The Bon Ard Confederation, and the state of Oyun.