Blackshade Civil War

The **Blackshade Civil War** was the conflict in which Seth Deathwalker's Rebellion fought to take down the Empire. It began in 1032 AC and ended in 1035 AC.

## **Prelude**

### **Coronation of the Empress**

Following the death of Emperor Rowan Pyredane, the Empire fell into a state of disarray for a week leading up to the proclamation that his daughter Ianthe Pyredane would be crowned Empress, the first time a woman would be in charge of the Empire. Upon her crowning, Imperial Inquisition forces were deployed en masse to keep the populace in check for the year that followed.

### **First Annual Empire Day**

The Empress declared a new holiday celebrating the might of the Empire: Empire Day. During the first-ever annual Empire Day celebrations, Ianthe Pyredane announced that the Empire had finally driven owlbears to extinction, and that the roads between settlements were now safer than ever before. She also revealed a new Imperial Coin planned to replace Gold Pieces. The adventuring party led by Seth Deathwalker watched on that day, disgusted by how proud the Empress seemed about the extinction of an entire species...

## **Early Skirmishes**

### **Duel at Imperial Tower**

An orc paladin named Meathook was given a paid assignment to steal the Golden Bow, owned by the Empress herself, by an anonymous client while staying at Candlehold. He snuck into Imperial Tower but was intercepted by the guards. Seth Deathwalker and his party spotted Meathook fighting on the tower's balcony and ran in to help. This led to a battle resulting in Meathook falling off the tower and dying, but also in aggravating Deathwalker's party, as their pet giant fly was also slain during the skirmish. This short but intense duel was the event that kickstarted the war.

### **Liberation of the Blackshade Labor Camp**

Seth Deathwalker's party decided to make the next move in the conflict, striking before the Empire knew what they were up against and put bounties on their heads. They entered the Blackshade Labour Camp pretending to be Imperial officers, and convinced the indentured workers to fight back against their slave owners. The battle was a resounding success for Deathwalker, as the liberated slaves wanted to do more to get back at the Empire, and the Rebellion was born.

## **Year One**

### **Recruiting Rebels**

Before the Rebellion were ready to start fighting openly against the Empire, they needed to recruit more people to their cause. They travelled in secret, enlisting help all around Blackshade. It didn't take long for rumours of Rebellion to spread far enough for the Imperial Inquisition to hear about it, and they began to make inquiries into the existence of the Rebellion and where it was based. Thankfully, the Rebels had anticipated this and at the time, didn't have a proper base of operations anywhere, making them impossible to track down and exterminate.

### **Takeover of Culcheth**

The Rebellion attacked the Imperial garrison at Culcheth, a village small enough that it was practically beneath the Empire's notice. They took it as a temporary headquarters, stationing their troops there and working with the local farmers to keep a ready supply of foodstuffs prepared at all times. After a month and a half, the rebel base was discovered by a trio of Inquisitors, and after a short fight, the Inquisitors escaped and Culcheth was compromised. The Rebellion swiftly retreated, taking much of Culcheth's local populace with them.

### **Declaration of War**

After the Takeover of Culcheth, Empress Ianthe Pyredane ruled that the Rebellion was a very real threat and would have to be eliminated promptly. She officially declared that Blackshade was now in a Civil War. However, in her official statement, she still stated that "this Rebel insurgency should be treated as nothing more than a disease; it will spread rampant until we find the cure, which will not take very long."

## **Year Two**

### **Attack on Waterfell**

The Rebellion prematurely believed themselves to have won the war, and attacked the Imperial capital of Waterfell, an invasion attempt that backfired and caused a devastating amount of rebel casualties. The only success to come out of the attack was that it lulled the Empire into a sense of victory.

### **Betrayal at the Arena**

Bob Turrnuroth, a dragonborn member of the Rebellion, helped the rebels obtain funds by entering the Arena and becoming its new champion. However, he was eventually discovered by the Empire to be a rebel agent, and instead of killing him, they made him a proposition: join them, and learn the truth about the fate of his dragon kin. He accepted the offer and revealed much about the rebels, but he was killed at the hands of his former ally Stevo Lightfoot.