Kopoborus

"Shogun" Colgo-colgo CE 984

**Kopoborus** or ***Bumurrah*** is the Goodfellow shogun of the 2nd Legion of the Hornet, with his enclave in Bastria being one of the strongest Olivian fortifications in history. Originally the *gensu* of the 8th Legion of the Crab, his enclave was vanquished in CE 966. Kopoborus gained notoriety as a *ronin* searching for another 8th Legion outpost and systematically eliminating those responsible for the death of his master.

In CE 979, Kopoborus allied with the 2nd Legion of the Hornet to kill the last of his targets, an esteemed Auber general. The Hornet *gensu* and shogun had been killed in battle, and the help of the *ronin* saved the enclave from being enveloped by the Auber. Appealing to his dignity and honor as a former *gensu*, Kopoborus joined the 2nd Legion. Breaking typical protocol, he was also unanimously appointed as shogun, imbibing upon the 15th Law.

Kopoborus wields a magical blade called Takai, the "flame tongue." Its distinctive crimson color is iconic, and is engulfed in flames when the blade is drawn. Its origins are mostly unknown, with speculation as being a blade carved from the bone of a great dragon.

Kopoborus is one of the few Goodfellows to ever move from one legion to another, and one of four in recorded history to become a shogun of a legion he was not born into.

## Life

### As a daimyo

Much of the early life of Kopoborus is unknown, as would be expected for a member of the Olivian Army. Most of the 8th Legion in the mid-Fourteenth Era were confined to fortresses in Cascadia, whose dominion was shrinking rapidly with increased Auber military presence and perseverance. It would have been likely that Kopoborus, having survived these tumultuous times, distinguished himself among his peers and protected the fief of his *ogo* (hereditary clan). Such an honor would have made him the preferred candidate to succeed the daimyo when he turned fourteen.

Little else is known about his time in the years between CE 954 and CE 966, in which he would have controlled the fief. Based on Auber record-keeping, the marches of his fief in Encoro, *Gelatia*, were eroded slowly, isolating a few fortresses occupying the coast. He was named *gensu* during this time, successor the the shogun.

### Senpico

#### Prelude

A cambinoid settlement a few miles inland of Encoro, the riverside village of Senpico, relied on the 8th Legion for safety for over eight centuries. Historically, it was a frequent target for the Auber but the fortresses and quick response time of the 8th Legion made its capture difficult. Consistent garrisons also ensured it could not be invaded without causing alarm. It was not an especially wealthy village, but was a crucial defensive foothold for moving north into Gantelusia. It was built upon a mesa and had been fortified over several hundred years, to the point that it was even able to resist Falian invasion.

Having consolidated power elsewhere, imperial orders dictated that the borderlands between Gantelusia and Cascadia be integrated and the 8th Legion's presence be removed. The Auber provincial governor Talgon had his generals Urak and Belgog formulate a strategy to raze Encoro and capture Senpico once and for all. Both of the generals had earned their positions through a combination of examination and service, and thus were considered the best in the province. Belgog, in fact, was a carryover from the nieghboring province of *Phrygia.*

Many obstacles prevented Encoro and thus Senpico from being assimilated in centuries prior. First, the fortresses of Encoro were impregnable and even mortar shots could not penetrate its walls. Second, any attempt to take Senpico was almost always foiled by its advantageous position. And third, the discipline of the Olivian Army is unmatched in practically any modern unit, especially the often green soldiers that made the base of the Auber military unit. At any one time, *Gelatia* had a standing army of about 5,000; this was roughly the total number of Goodfellows in Encoro.

#### Strategy

The simplest explanation of the Auber strategy was a bait-and-switch, leading to an ambush and then a successful siege. Urak fortified an army of over 2,400 heavy infantry on the opposite side of the mesa of Senpico in June CE 966, alarming the local garrison. The 8th Legion sent about one-third of its total forces (1,200 men) to Senpico to engage Urak's army. The commander of the four battalions moved three opposite of the river in sight of Urak's camp, and one battalion to secure Senpico.

Urak put pressure on the camp with mortar shots to force skirmishes between his heavy infantry and the mixed battalions of the 8th Legion. Urak's goal was to lure the 8th Legion into making an attempt to cut off his supply lines. The open plains made the 8th Legion confident that they could not be ambushed, and thus this strategy became the obvious path.

Meanwhile, Belgog's strategy was much more complex. First, Belgog hired a Cagot caravan that usually traded with the 8th Legion, promising the fortress as a fief for the successful completion of their task. They were given "lime-fire," a recent innovation on part of Auber alchemists, and were instructed to arrive days before the attack to trade with the 8th Legion. Their job was to simply give precise locations of all the ventilation shafts in Encoro to their companions on its outskirts, who lowered the "lime-fire" into various ventilation shafts.

Then, Belgog had a small navy disembark north of Encoro and outfitted 600 light cavalry. This force rode south to give the appearance that it was an attempt to cut off access to water to the three battalions. This would force the commander to engage the enemy before the cavalry could flank them.

The plan worked as thus: Urak's forces retreated in an orderly fashion, drawing out the Goodfellow battalions with the belief that they were routing Urak. The cavalry rode to Encoro rather than follow the army, and ignited the "lime-fire"; this created horrific burning gas that enveloped one of the fortresses, who were routed to a neighboring one. During this process, the exposed soldiers were assaulted with more "lime-fire" which spread rapidly on their armor, bodies, and into the fortresses in which they were retreating. Not knowing what the substance was, the remaining Goodfellow soldiers attempted to close off their entrances; however, this insulated them for the ignition of the remaining "lime-fire" which gassed the enclosed space, killing or burning the survivors. Among these was the shogun.

The 900 or so men engaging Urak were able to drive off Urak into the highlands, but as they attempted to return, an ambush was organized with a second force of 1,000 heavy cavalry that slew the returning Goodfellow forces to a man. Despite the superior discipline of the Goodfellow forces, they were easily encircled and devastated by heavy cavalry at range.

#### Resolution

The survivors in Senpico charged the heavy cavalry outfit, laid to waste and encouraging Senpico to finally surrender after two days. The one survivor of this conflict was Kopoborus; as he burned, he was one of the few that charged towards the water instead of the fortress. However, unlike his comrades who went to the shoreline, Kopoborus made it far out enough that he was out of range for the Auber to pick him off.

Legends persist that Kopoborus hid in an undersea cave where we he went delirious; though this is not confirmed, the method of his survival remains unclear.

Much to their chagrin, the Cagots who inherited Encoro could not inhabit it, as it was scorched, full of bodies, and gassed by "lime-fire." Thus, the fortress remained uninhabited.

### Ronin and the Bloody Winter

#### Searching for the 8th Legion

For four years, it is assumed that Kopoborus searched the Cascadian and Gantelusian coast for another enclave of the 8th Legion; however, as he was not yet made shogun, he did not know where other enclaves were placed exactly. Descriptions of a "Goodfellow in blackened garb, whose smell was that of char and who held a bowed disposition" have been found in Gantelusia, where the 9th Legion of the Tiger informed him that the Crab occupied Cascadia exclusively; any enclaves in Gantelusia were of the 9th Legion.

Disappointed but not discouraged, Kopoborus ventured back into Cascadia in CE 969. Sometime during this period, he found or smithed the blade *Kakai*, which he wields to this day.

#### Summary of the Bloody Winter

Almost all of the information from the period between CE 970 and CE 971 is rooted in weak observed records from a period of turmoil in Auber history. The following people were dead by the end of the winter CE 970:

* The 2,400 infantry and 600 cavalry that participated in the massacre;
* Talgon, the provincial governer;
* Korgoth, the regent for the Auber emperor;
* Belgog, the general who organized the razing of Encoro;
* And, allegedly, the entire Cagot caravan that betrayed the 8th Legion.

#### Gelatian killings and first inquiries

On 3 October CE 970, records from the governor's office were stolen. This went unreported for fear of punishment. Then, preceding March CE 971, the mostly rural region of *Gelatia* lodged a complaint with the governor Talgon regarding "bandits" that had been active in the area, sweeping through towns and killing many new fathers and returning veterans. The families were not robbed however, and no one else was murdered except for the patriarchs of the family.

Because of the similarities, it was believed that this was not a string of bandit attacks, but signs of a revolt; Talgon thus did not investigate the issue for fear of retribution by the emperor regent. Talgon himself would be found murdered on 19 August CE 972, having been dead for two days. There were no signs of a struggle, though the room was darkened as if there had been a fire.

#### Murder of Kargoth

When news of the murder reached the emperor regent Kargoth a few days later, he sent several bureaucrats to investigate why Talgon would have been assassinated, and to find a suitable replacement. Kargoth was informed of the "bandit" attacks and the death of Talgon. A calculation determined that over the course of a few months, 1,000 veterans had been killed - approximately 1% of the entire population of *Gelatia*, and 3.5% of all men over the age of fourteen. Kargoth ruled that *Gelatia* was in upheaval, though could not establish any one faction to be the cause. Then, on 22 December CE 972, Kargoth was found dead in his quarters, having been sliced clean in half and scorched to cinders.

His cousin and the emperor's uncle Telgoth had many forces close routes from White Harbor into greater Cascadia, as well as had the emperor and several high-ranking bureaucrats kept in the palace on lockdown. Telgoth launched further inquiries and stationed garrisons in every fief across Cascadia; however, from this point onward, no other murders would take place; the state of emergency was lifted two years later. Several hundred people were executed for their perceived role in the killings, though it is obvious today that none of them were related to the "Bloody Winter."

Legends circulated that it was not a revolt, but a single man who had slain the men: it was the soul of a dead Goodfellow who cursed all of those responsible for the death of his fellow soldiers. The image of a soldier in armor blackened by fire was called *Bumurrah*, the "Bitter Fire Spirit." These legends came to be associated with Kopoborus when he resurfaced again in CE 979.

### The 2nd Legion of the Hornet

#### Background

Urak as a general was evasive as well as resourceful. When the Auber emperor regent was murdered, Urak fled to *Nazaria* and offered his services as a general to the Nazari in return for safety from the vengeful *Bumurrah*. His new identity far and away from Cascadia, Urak served for between five and ten years without incident, until he began to besiege a Goodfellow encampment in Whitehood, fortified by the 2nd Legion.

Kopoborus had followed stories of a former Auber general now serving the Nazari, and arrived in Whitehood on 6 July CE 979. He was an imposing figure that immediately caught the attention of the 2nd Legion, who had in turn heard of the Bloody Winter and of *Bumurrah*.

Though his personal *hanzonorri* philosophy was opposite of that of the Hornet (initiative versus duty), Kopoborus was considered a godsend for the 2nd Legion. Their supply lines and frequent caravans had rerouted due to increased Nazari influence, and the fortified Whitehood fortress was especially valuable considering it was built similar to the style of Encoro. This made it impregnable and with constant sources of water, but food was harder to come by. In addition, their shogun and most of their daimyos had been slain by the Nazari, who were expert assassins. Without leadership in place or constant supplies, most Goodfellow enclaves collapse.

#### Strategy

Kopoborus organized the 2nd Legion to be impervious to assassination tactics he had himself learned in his years as a *ronin*. Recognizing their tactics, he proposed a war of attrition that would deplete the Nazari of their most skilled assassins. Kopoborus also helped to funnel food and supplies into Whitehood by having a false "shogun" negotiate for supplies while they deliberated - a tactic that earned them additional time to organize and prepare a plan.

During this time, Urak remarked to a Nazari chieftain that there must be a "Dark Hand" in charge of the 2nd Legion at the time, reforming them and helping them aspire to superiority in siegecraft. This title would remain with Kopoborus by the Nazari.

Using the false "shogun" and several soldiers disguised as daimyos as bait, Kopoborus had the group agree to a negotiation outside of their territory - almost certainly a trap. Kopoborus was among the soldiers, and they descended from Whitehood into Crotalusia. Instead of meeting in the agreed upon location, however, the party traveled an additional ten miles south in the cover of night and stormed a scholar's compound, where they slaughtered the Nazari academics who were mostly defenseless. Because of the value of a Nazari scholar, this effectively crippled their presence in the region and made for a devastating loss. One of the only survivors, Colgo-colgo, describes the scene in a letter to his masters:

> Just before dawn, as the servants were preparing for our morning meal and the bell had yet to be rung, bitumen was flung into our quarters and billowed smoke down our throats. We believed the chambers had caught fire and ran out into the courtyard, only to meet our doom. Between ten and fifteen men, who were expected to the north and must had slipped out of custody in the darkness of the new moon, cut us down by the dozens as we tried to pry escape past them. We were cut down, indeed [...] I watched among the crowd of soldiers in white, a dark figure emerge. The Dark Hand, so he was named by Eric [Urak]. He lifted me to my feet, dusted soil and wiped smeared blood from my clothes, and sat me down. As if he had not massacred my brothers, he was polite and courteous, if his voice was not gravelly and hoarse. I answered all of his questions. They all pertained to Eric.
>
>

As news spread of the massacre, Urak made an attempt to flee once again into Bastria. However, in a rather anticlimactic fashion, the Auber general died of exposure near Whitehood. The legend of the "Dark Hand" spread throughout the Nazari territory. A Sagatae general named Olaf Bearskin ordered the siege be lifted, fearing that *Bumurrah* was indeed real having heard similar tales from Cascadia.

## Policy

Militarily, Kopoborus changed the way war is conducted by the Olivian Army and the 2nd Legion of the Hornet. He introduced chemical and alchemical warfare to the repertoire of the 2nd Legion. He also began importing saltpeter and lead
 for manufacturing gunpowder and fire-arms respectively, while also
manufacturing artillery based on Cascadian designs. The typical "flying battery" style of Olivian warfare was also integrated into more artillery movements.
Kopoborus also initiated policies for civil administration, which
included currency regulations, construction of roads and bridges for southern Bastria and northern Crotalusia. This
included setting standards for the road widths and planting trees along
roadsides. This was to ease the transport of soldiers and war material
in addition to commerce.