Black Powder Rebels

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> Black Powder Rebels
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> Information
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> ### Also known as
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> Black Powder Revolution, Black Powder Revolutionaries
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> ### Leader
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> Unknown
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> ### Capital city
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> Khamsin
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> ### Member races
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> Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Golems, Trolls, High Elves, Centaurs
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> ### Date of origin
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> 419 Tz
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> ### Zones of influence
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> Khamsin, Northlands, Nepharus Mons, Wolfsgate, Caero
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> ### Subfactions
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> The Bloody Thorns, Northlanders, Forgemasters
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> "It ain’t fair, saying that guns require no discipline. There’s more to it than load, point and shoot. For instance, you have to know who to point it at in the first place. That ain’t always so easy as it sounds..."
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> - Fickett Townley
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The Black Powder Rebels have been given the role of the great equalizers by history. Originally formed a multiracial coalition with the laudable goal of empowering oppressed kingdoms to throw off the heavy yoke of the Guild, after centuries of persecution by a domineering magocracy, the Revolutionaries have found a way to even the score. With the new republics of Khamsin and the Northlands having carved out their own territories from the Atlantean Empire, now the real fight begins to maintain their hard-won freedom and to put an end to the tyranny of the Empire once and for all.

## History

> "The genie has been released from the bottle. There will be no forcing it back now."
> *-* Maleficius
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In 419 Tz, it took only one bullet and an eagle-eyed Revolutionary named Snow to begin a new era in the history of The Land. The assassination of the Atlantis Guild’s leading wizard, Prophet-Magus Karrudan, signaled the rise of a new power in the Land. The years of war and chaos that followed that first gunshot do not exactly tip the scales in their favor. While frequent, bloody battles between the Guild and the free folk of Khamsin have marked the courage and determination of an entire generation of warriors, the first signs are showing that the fight led by Blackwyn, Sarah Ythlim and other Black Powder Revolutionary warlords may well be having a permanent and undeniable effect on the struggling Empire.

In the Revolution's early years, a lack of magical talent was felt most severely in the areas of battlefield healing. A few Mending Priestesses came over from the League or were otherwise persuaded to help, but most troops lacked magical doctoring. Relief came from the common medics of the Land: herbalists, midwives, alchemists, barbers - those who dealth with natural remedies rather of magic.

Just recently, with Khamsin having survived destruction at the hands of the combined Atlantean and High Elven armies, and the Northlands secured under the auspice of Warlord Blackwyn’s well-trained Northlander armies, a new era begins for the fighters of the Revolution. With the Council of Merchants solidly in control of Khamsin, and the five-hundred mile front connecting the Rebel territories of Khamsin, the Grange Valley, the Northlands and the Amazon homeland of Nepharus Mons, for the first time the Revolutionaries have a solid base to work from in their war against the other factions – but are going to have to fight like the devil to keep it.

The sudden surge of the Dark Crusade to the east and the bizarre arrangement between the free-willed Galeshi and Kzar Nabar has many Revolutionaries worried about the battles to come. Adding to that, Darq the Corrupt's incredible conquering of the Galeshi desert territories leaves many of the Revolutionary leaders worried. While the Council of Merchants in Khamsin warned the Galeshi against their plan to make deals with the Orcs – and were ultimately unable to send aid to the Galeshi due to the siege of the Revolutionary capitol – many Galeshi have a bone to pick with their "so-called allies" in Khamsin and the Northlands. Only time will tell if this opening mark of freedom will stand, or fall once again to the tyranny of Atlantis or one of the larger factions.

The twin failures for Atlantis to capture the critical river-city of Wolfsgate, and the failure to conquer the Revolutionary capitol of Khamsin before the recall order came has allowed the Revolution to be recognized as a full faction rather than just a gang of freedom-crazy upstarts. With the victory at Khamsin over the High Elven army, the Black Powder Revolutionaries are the strongest that they have been in fifteen years of battle. While controlling a sizable swath of territory, the various warbands loyal to the cause of freedom must now struggle with internal strife and struggle even in their moment of victory.

Duke Skala's victory in the Grange Valley – which connected the Northlander and Amazon territories with his native land of Khamsin – stands as a turning point of the war. However, few people even suspect that Skala's victory over Captain Sarjhet – only recently executed on the Bloody Square of Khamsin – was actually brought about through a secret deal that Skala made with a mysterious agent of the Solonavi.

The Drakona's awakening, and recent invasion of the Kuttar Depths cuts off the supply of raw black powder to Sarah Ythlim's secret base in Varsfield. While black powder supplies will continue to make their way to waiting Revolutionary agents, the Drakona incursion into the heart of Revolutionary territory may ultimately have an effect on the war effort against the Atlantean tyrants.

The Black Powder Rebellion believed it had been the first to discover the secret of gunpowder - until Spiritbane was recovered from the sunken ruins of an ancient city.

## Organization

The tactics of both the Revels and the Revolution are largely the same – utilizing small, mobile, well-equipped forces to win battles against heavily armed forces. Their steam power and guns are certainly worthy rivals to Guild-dominated technomagery. And, for better or worse, the stalemate that stagnated the Land for so many decades is now broken. Yet whether they will ultimately be cast as heroes or villains remains to be seen.

Versatility and flexibility are the two cornerstones that support the foundation of the Black Powder Rebels. Although the multirace alliance may have begun as a political necessity, to better develop the rebels’ secret weapons of steam power and guns and give them a much-needed infusion of manpower, this coalition also boasts a variety of abilities and philosophies of battle that allow the rebels to withstand any of the three major magic-using factions. Their tactical importance has been recognized by many warlords, making rebel warriors a much-valued part of their warhosts.

### Army

Most of the hired swords in the Rebellion were loudly proud of their abilities at killing people. A few of the men who worked on Eginhard’s more criminal enterprises were true cutthroats. Anything they did for the cause of the Rebellion was strictly for their own profit. It either dropped silver into their own pouches or weakened the ability of the Empire to enforce the law. Other swords for hire followed war as a trade, practicing their skills, unwilling or unable to find a more peaceable way of life. Some, like Tulwar, seemed to have heard too many hero sagas as children - they rode the Land with a ready sword and a thirst for adventure. And some, like poor Jorj, became Rebels out of sheer desperation, determined to change the world or die trying, and like Jorj, many of that sort of Rebel died.

## In tabletop

The Black Powder Rebels are an alliance of various racial groups who are using steam power and gunpowder to usurp the three major magic-using guilds (Atlantis, Elemental and Necropolis). Each rebel race brings its own skill set to the table. Black Powder’s Dwarves have the anti-Atlantis Magic Immunity ability. The Amazons bring multiple slots of Weapon Mastery and exceptional speed, which make them a good match against Elementals toughness and healing. And finally, the Men bring strong ranged attacks: the perfect foil to Necropolis’ close quarter expertise. Black Powder’s racial power-sharing theme is mirrored perfectly by their two unique leaders: the Dwarven Jarl and Amazon Queen. Both cost 77 points, but play very differently.

*****Black Powder Rebels*****
 Major characters

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1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20010816030017/http://www.mageknight.com/article.htm?cid=19039
2. ↑ https://www.mageknight.net/wp-content/uploads/Mage-Knight-2.0-Card-Set-Relics.pdf
3. ↑ Rebel Thunder, Chapter 14 (Bill McCay)
4. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20021005020502/http://www.wizkidsgames.com/mageknight/figures\_landing.htm?cat=rebels