MM History question

[Kareeah Indaga]

And, as I mentioned, the Nethergods info seemed to imply it was late 1164, but feel free to nail down a more specific date. On the travel times though…

"Erathia is out of even Town Portal's long range. That continent is a full six week 's worth of sea travel away. There are a lot of islands and sub-continents between here and there, all of them filled with petty kingdoms and tribes looking to rob travelers of their valuables, their freedom, or their lives."

Yes, there’s another blurb that says three.

"Although no shipping companies are currently offering the service, Erathia, homeland of Queen Catherine Ironfist, can be reached in a voyage of three weeks or so, depending on the season. Ain't never been there, but they tell me it's nice."

A few possibilities for that:

1.) Error. Distance was changed and no one went back and fixed it.

2.) The seasonal difference mentioned in blurb #2.

3.) Second one wasn’t talking about normal sea travel. Air ship, perhaps? Magically assisted?

4.) One is to the country, one is to the continent of Antagarich and the people of Enroth just don’t differentiate.

And there are probably other options that don’t immediately come to mind.

[Ribannah]

Certainly. It could be 6 weeks travelling east, and 3 weeks travelling west, or vice versa.

[Avonu]

First east/west travel.

I don't think there are western trade routes between Enroth and Antagarich. Why? Two reasons:
- "is difficult to travel to [Hermit's Isle] because of the turbulent waters south of Enroth"
- no harbours/seaports on western coast of Enroth (no one in Paradise Valley or in Sweet Water, not even road leading futher to west).

Now about three/six weeks travel.
Text about three weeks said sailor and carthographer and about six weeks water master. But I think all these persons were right. Why? Regnan Islands between Enroth and Antagarich. If you sail straight (past Regnan Islands) then journey takes three weeks but you also have a great chance to meet Regnan and "pay taxes'. If you avoid they territory (and sail near Jadame and Ravenshore) then journey takes six weeks and you have much smaller chance to "pay taxes" (also you sail near erathian outposts on Endless Ocean - AB Christian's campaign).

Well, that is only my theory.

[Kareeah Indaga]

Ooo, here's a thought: trade winds.

And more dates, retrieved via the MM Viewer:

Igraine "Lord Solomon Stone had this ring commissioned during his tenure as High Priest of the Path in 1018. It gives a huge boost to a user's ability in clerical magic, as well as access to a good deal of magical energy. (Special Powers: +25 Spell Points and 'of Body, Mind, and Spirit Magic')"


Arthur "In their endless quest to create the perfect Priest-King, the priests of the Church of the Sun created Arthur and imbued it with the power to heighten the wearer's personal abilities, as well as confer more magical energy. It worked, heightening their King's natural abilities--and his pride. In 1073, Leopold VII started a holy war against the rival Church of the Moon, grinding both organizations into poverty and ultimately resulting in their demise. (Special Powers: 'of the Gods' and +25 Spell Points)"

Percival "Percival was enchanted by the Archer's Guild in 912 A.S. as the prototype in an enchantment process they were developing at the time. Unfortunately, a suspicious fire broke out at the guild hall, ruining the development plans and destroying the exotic materials needed to create more Percivals. The guild never recovered from their losses, and sold Percival to the Elves in 918 A.S.. It has since changed hands many times. (Special Powers: Swiftness and Carnage)"


Thor "The origins of Thor are lost in time, but this mighty barbarian weapon is well remembered by military historians. The weapon has been used in battles by many owners for centuries, although its last appearance was at the battle of Shimengard in 902 A.S.. The force of a blow from this hammer is so powerful that it can knock foes several feet back away from the wielder. (Special Powers: Force)"


Rings such as this one were worn by the Witch's guild to signify membership during their heyday between 550-800 A.S.

An extremely high quality longsword, this weapon is one of no more than one thousand of its kind forged by master weaponsmith Mekorig the Blind circa 780-800."

One of less than a hundred such blades, Mage daggers were carried and forged by members of the Alchemical Alliance roughly 300 years ago in the fires beneath Castle Alamos. It is no longer possible to make a finer blade than a Mage dagger."


Witches "The Witches' Assembly of 638 was the greatest gathering of sorcerers and alchemists ever. Since then, the popularity of the magical arts has declined, and persecution of groups like ours…er, theirs– has grown quite a bit. It really is quite awful."

"It isn't wise to laugh off prophecies, even if, admittedly, most don't come true. The most important one of our age is the one by Apius Silanus made on his deathbed 800 years ago when he said the dark brother would rise again in the shadow of the light brother's sunset. That sounds an awful lot like our King Roland and his wicked brother Archibald, doesn't it?"

I grabbed most of the stuff with dates, leaving out the bits you already have and stuff that didn’t look very important (if you really want the number of years since Eric Von Stromgard first won the archery competition and suchlike, though, just ask).

[Ribannah]

GHOULSBANE (MM7)

(Undead slaying, Immunity to paralysis, 3-18 fire damage) Ghoulsbane was commissioned by the Church of the Sun more than 150 years ago as part of their effort to destroy the ever growing population of undead created by the Church of the Moon. Though powerful, it is only one weapon, and the undead are legion. The Church of the Sun fell in 1083 A.S.

TALEDON'S HELM (MM7)

(Of Light Magic, Personality +15, Might +15, Luck -40, Good)Owned by Taledon, Divine High Priest and High Holy Conduit of the Church of the Sun from 870 A.S., this powerful helm probably contributed to his untimely death in 881. It is said that an object may take so much enchantment -- try to put too much in, and something negative squeezes out. In this case, the negative made the wearer profoundly unlucky. Taledon, arguably the most powerful figure of his time, veteran diplomat,
soldier, and priest, was crushed beneath the wheels of a runaway peasant's wagon while crossing the street in Steadwick.

NOBLE CHAIN MAIL
Armor: +18
Value: 900

Cavalry officer's chain mail from the reign of Taledon V of Karigor,
Divine High Priest and High Holy Conduit of the Church of the Sun,
circa 870 A.S. The armor is high quality chain, enchanted to lighten
and strengthen the metal.

CARDINAL CLOAK
Armor: +7
Value: 450

A cloak formerly worn by high officials of the Church of the Sun of
Karigor prior to the dissolution of the Church in 1083 A.S. Nearly
all these cloaks were enchanted in one way or another.

DOOM'S DAY CLOAK
Armor: +9
Value: 750

A cloak formerly worn by high officials of the Church of the Moon
of Karigor prior to the dissolution of the Church in 1083 A.S.
Nearly all these cloaks were enchanted in one way or another.

(Editor's note: the superior quality of their cloaks apparently
did not save the Church of the Moon of being dissolved at the
same time their rival church was.)

ELVEN LONGBOW

Etched initials at the base of the bow indicate this bow was made by master bowyer Ivan Selving's workshop during the Timber

Wars of the late 600's.

EMERALD STAFF
Attack: +3
Damage: 2d4+3 (5-11)
Value: 250

Magically light hard, this staff is made of a rare wood stripped from the
Elves during the Timber War in 600 A.S. The emerald at the end of it is real, and probably serves as a magical reservoir from which the staff
draws its strength.

OLYMPIAN SHIELD
Armor: +19
Value: 800

These shields were forged by the Phynaxian empire during its brief rise
to power on the steppes of southern Erathia (790-864). They are made of stalt, a metal that takes well to enchantment, and contributed heavily to Phynaxian military might. Unfortunately, very little of the metal could be mined, and Phynaxia fell in 864 A.S. to an Elvish offensive.

IMPERIAL LEATHER
Armor: +24
Value: 1150

An extremely rare suit of leather armor created during the
conflicts between the Church of the Moon and the Church of the
Sun roughly 80 years ago. These suits provide the finest
protection available with leather armor.

MORDRED (artifact)
Attack: +8
Damage: 2d3+8 (10-14)
Value: 20000
Location: Dragoons' Keep, Free Haven

One of nine such blades in the world, Mordred was made by the
Brotherhood in 428 A.S. as part of their first experiments in the
development of Dark Magic. Their hope was to find a way to extend
one person's life at the expense of another's, but instead of
reversing ages, they merely fond a way to steal health. (Special
Powers: Vampiric)

ASTRAL SHIELD
Armor: +18
Value: 600 (unverified)

These rare shields were turned out by the hundreds with the aid of the
Heavenly Forges to combat rebel forces in the endless string of
skirmishes and supply raids that tested (and finally overcame) the
Governor's forces in the first century A.S. As with all such equipment,
it is light, tough, and is capable of holding the most powerful
enchantments.

[Avonu]

ca. 428 AS The Brotherhood develops Dark Magic

MORDRED (artifact)
Attack: +8
Damage: 2d3+8 (10-14)
Value: 20000
Location: Dragoons' Keep, Free Haven

One of nine such blades in the world, Mordred was made by the
Brotherhood in 428 A.S. as part of their first experiments in the
development of Dark Magic. Their hope was to find a way to extend
one person's life at the expense of another's, but instead of
reversing ages, they merely fond a way to steal health. (Special
Powers: Vampiric)

"Terrax was Enroth's first arch mage, and a sorcerer of incredible power. He developed the foundations for elemental magic, and made the first basic discoveries into light and dark magic. His crystal is said to hold some of the highest magical secrets."

"Great news! I remember what you need to find! The Crystal of Terrax! Oh, you seem to have found it already. Well, perfect! I can train you to arch mage, then. The first arch mage, Terrax, used this Crystal to master the elements. Fire, earth, water, and air all formed together to make it, and from analyzing it he learned a great deal about elemental magic. In addition, its effect on light led him to his discoveries of light and dark magic. Since that time, the study of this crystal has guided every new arch mage. Let me show you the secrets of the crystal, arch magi. "

And you didn't mention about date of funding Celeste:

ca. 10 BS Day of Fire

May I ask from where you gain this date?
I never saw any mention about date of this event and I curious where you find this date.
I only know this:
The legends are unclear on the exact date of the Day of Fire, but they are clear on one thing—the date of the awful Silence that followed soon after A new calendar was formed to mark the dark occasion—a constant reminder of what happened 1,168 years ago.

[Kareeah Indaga]

Question, though; is “King Magnus II” == Gavin Magnus?

[Secret_Holder]

I think it's safe to assume that. As of course he's a mighty wizard and should be able to keep himself alive for 1000+ years.
Although in the MMVII intro, the soldiers who report back to him about their ambush of the goblins refer to him as "lord" IIRC.

[Ribannah]

ca. 10 BS Day of Fire

May I ask from where you gain this date?
I never saw any mention about date of this event and I curious where you find this date.
I only know this:
The legends are unclear on the exact date of the Day of Fire, but they are clear on one thing—the date of the awful Silence that followed soon after A new calendar was formed to mark the dark occasion—a constant reminder of what happened 1,168 years ago.

It is an estimate based on that quote from Tanni's tale.

[Kareeah Indaga]

The first time I beat the AB campaign it was with the ‘original’ AB version I’d borrowed from a friend. On that play through, in the second map (or rather, the one of the first two with Gelu in it since it seems they can be played in either order, but it was the second map for me on that run) I remember reading a text blurb about Gelu having a dream about AB destroying the world.

I didn't find any text about this dream first/second mission - maybe in next Gelu's scenario it is, but his first scenario last text are about Ciele, Fiur, Erdamon and some wound soldier - all informing about Xeron. There are no futher text in this mission (checked - pressing end turn button until 13-th month - and I have AB 2.1.0.0).

I think I forgot to thank you for checking this; thank you.

[Pol]

Such blurb was here, because I'm also remembering it. But no, I haven't AB for a few years now....

[Kareeah Indaga]

So I didn’t just imagine it then? Huh. I wonder what happened to it.

[ywhtptgtfo]

After reading the 5 pages, I am once again reminded that NWC's storyline for M&M universe is >>>>>>>>>>>>> than Nival's.

[arturchix]

Well, sure, but you can't really compare the history of the old world which unites 9 RPG games, 4 TBS games with expansions plus several others, with a history that connects with 3 games (H5, HoF and DM) up to date.

[ywhtptgtfo]

I am inclined to disagree.

The pessimism is drawn from the quality of writing and design rather than the quantity or length of the plot. The whole cosmology of Ashan, though lacks the sci fi and mysterious progenitor components, has a considerable amount of potential for good stories and themes. Instead, what we see from HoMM5 + HoF are heaps of childish dialogues and series of very poorly sewn together plots/events. I reserve a particular dislike for Findan's 'poetic' monologues.

I doubt this will improve in future generations of the series until Nival starts putting a less perfunctory effort in the literary component of the game and stops appointing people with abysmal writing skills to do the jobs.

P.S. I really hate the name "Holy Griffin Empire". It's one of the worst names one can name a fictional nation. My distaste for it has nothing to do with how it rips off the griffin symbolism from Erathia as well.

[Kareeah Indaga]

P.S. I really hate the name "Holy Griffin Empire". It's one of the worst names one can name a fictional nation.

Second that. -_-

[Ethric]

How about The People's Democratic Republic of the Holy Griffin?

[Kareeah Indaga]

Weeell, it’d either be an extreme misnomer, or it would make the main kingdom less of a blatant rip-off of Erathia. If the latter, then the plot would have been improved by the shifting of the story from a lobotomized and mutilated Restoration Wars redo to something more original, in which case the silly name would be made up for by a better campaign set. Of course this is Nival, so they’d probably screw it up anyway.

[Secret_Holder]

How about The People's Democratic Republic of the Holy Griffin?

Nival may just agree on that..

BTW, I've got a little MM history question: Did we hear anything from old Archibald after he was exiled to Clanker's Lab?

[Kareeah Indaga]

This is probably a bad day to answer this, but…

Not so far as I know. I’ve heard some rumors that he was supposed to have had a part in the original Armageddon’s Blade (it would make sense, since the Forge faction would have been headed up by his ex-advisors and he could have wanted to get back at them for kicking him out of the Pit), before some so-called “fans” sent death threats to 3DO, but I don’t know if they were based in fact or just rumors. But I don’t believe he appeared again in the timeline as it stands after MMVII (unless you want to count the guy that shared his name in MMVIII, Archibald Dawnsglow).