Kron: Master Of War Background story and army list by Matt Lyon The realm beyond the Ryft Gates is tenuous at best. Always shifting and changing it is not one dimension but many, overlapping realities barely kept separate by the pulsing walls of magical energy that form the Ryft. What exactly resides in these other-worlds can never be known. Some believe they are separate worlds populated by bizarre but none-the-less corporeal beings. Others believe they are merely bottomless pools of energy, populated only by the nightmares of those that peer into them. A growing number however believe them to be endless voids filled with the souls of the dead, heavens, hells and limbos ruled over by powerful gods that run the gambit from the merciful to the ruthless and the subtle to the bizarre. One man knows for certain. His name is Baaul. Baaul was once Karlos VonKersle, a Regency militia-man serving a small but proud company on the Kothenian border. Relations between Kothena and the Regency were the best they had been in years and when offered the chance to join up with a force marching south to repel an invading Chaos force, he jumped at the chance. The runes were cast and a Ryft gate was summoned. Karlos had never been through a Ryft before but hed heard about them and wasnt the least bit concerned about travelling through one. When the gate reached its full size, the combined forces marched in. Meanwhile, the forces of Lord Hshrakk battered against the walls of the Regencys southern-most outpost. Impatiently, the Noble Angston Macfeld paced back and forth in the courtyard. His chief wizard scryed pensively into a pool of glowing liquid. Macfeld demanded to know where his reinforcements were. The wizard could only say that the Ryft had been opened but of the army inside there was no trace. Macfelds spirit quickly rose when the Ryft suddenly opened before him but what emerged baffled him. Instead of an army, a lone figure came forth, drenched in blood, a torrent of which flowed from the gate itself, pooling all around them. Karlos VonKersle had emerged forever changed. What happened next can only be speculated but within an hour of VonKersles arrival, everyone inside the castle was dead. Bewildered by the sudden lack of resistance and endless screams from within the chaos forces had long since stopped their assault and waited for the curious events to unfold. Suddenly VonKersle appeared atop the castle gate, Macfelds severed head in his hand. He tossed it at Hshrakks feet and bade him submit to Kron or bear the same fate. Hshrakk refused and the two began a duel to the death that would last over three hours. In the end however, Hshrakk too would lose his head to VonKersle and the strange axe he now bore. VonKersle addressed the gathered horde and told them of his time beyond the Ryft. There he had spent what seemed like an eternity, trapped in endless struggle with the other warriors in the support army, who had all gone mad when the Ryft had closed in on them. He had fought them all and killed them all. As he lay exhausted and alone he heard a voice like a storm on the ocean command him to rise. Before him he saw a vast and powerful army. He rose wearily, convinced these creatures had been sent to finish him. He knew nothing now but death and welcomed the opportunity. To his surprise, the army knelt before him as one. The voice spoke again from somewhere behind (or perhaps beyond) the army before him. It named itself Kron and bade Karlos create for him an army of equal size in his own realm. As reward, Karlos could rule all of Genayria in his name. Karlos gladly accepted eager to both escape from the Ryft and to wreak vengeance on those who had seemingly abandoned him so easily. Kron gifted him with a powerful axe and increased his martial prowess yet further before sending him back to Genayria. The horde erupted. Blooders ran up through their ranks and immediately plead fealty to Kron. Other soon joined them, warriors, knights and monsters of all sizes. Those who would not join were slaughtered. In the years since, VonKersles horde has grown substantially and he himself has received many other dark blessings from his master, among them a gigantic beast which he rides into battle. He has taken the name of Baaul which in the tongue of the south means "Bloody Hand" for his is indeed the very hand of Kron made flesh. Copyright Notice