The Eye Of Lost Hope
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Then came together all the men of those fair times, from north and west
and south, and rode they in a great host with their bronze spears gleaming
and their armour polished, throwing back the sun. Men called them
the Bright Host, and marvelled at their passing. And with
them rode the folk of the Last Citadel, who were of the Elven kindred, though
few there were still remaining of that kind who had not passed on to Solace.
Against them, the Dark Ones caused there to come forth a great army from
out of the mountains of Leng. For under the iron rule of the Servants of
the Dark were the seven great tribes of orcs united into one foul army.
And with them marched rock trolls and mountain trolls, taller than
horses, and there were great spiders, brood of Shera-Taal
and fell wolves from out of the eastlands were their steeds. Men
that saw them march called them the Scourge, or the Host Sans Pitie,
and few who warred against them would speak of it after.
And on the third day of the third month, the Bright Host met the Scourge
in the Valley of Artag. The orcish Whisperers blotted out the sun and
that great army of evil marched in the noonday beneath a sky dark as
pitch. But the Bright Host stood firm and the strength of the Dark
was broken. The Scourge was shattered and its remnants
routed far to the east, though less than half escaped that day of ruin.
But many fair men were also laid low - Sir Ector, the Knight of the
Fair city, and Eoberis his brother, who would have been King after him,
and with them many lords. Among the fey was also much mourning
for the Lord Protector Thelagund - whom the Elves called 'Ben Estel',
meaning 'Lost Hope' - was struck down by many fell shafts. And it is said
that some scavenger or vermin of the battlefield stole Maeghen Ruin,
that coral gem he bore in place of his left eye, for it was not in the
socket of his head when his
kinsfolk came upon his body. But that great
red stone, which held much of his power, vanished from the field
ere the fell clouds fled before the touch of the clean sun."
- The Book Of The Red Launds, Chapter LXXXVI.
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ABOUT THIS GAME
It is the day after the battle of Artag. Your army has scattered and
fled. Now a handful of orc survivors are huddled in a small, ruined
cottage, just over the west lip of the valley. There, they are
watching a Head Taker - one of the vicious warriors of the Orcish vanguard
- shudder out the last of his life, blood and breath departing
into the soil as the great Hatred which animated him finally wanes.
These orcs are cut off, far behind enemy lines and with the burning
Sun about to rise. And clutched in that Head-Taker's claw is a
pulsing red stone, shimmering with an eldritch fire....
What will become of them? What will they do with The Eye Of Lost Hope...?
ABOUT THE BURNING WHEEL
The Burning Wheel is written by Luke Crane. It has the following
appealing features:
- Dice-pool based system, using D6s.
- A lifepath based character generation system; choose paths to
create your character's history and create his traits and skills
en route.
- A universal conflict resolution system where one roll can
determine the results of any conflict.
- Complex, tactically rewarding systems for martial combat,
ranged combat and social conflict. These systems reward both
character ability and player skill.
- A dangerous, bloody edge which pushes the tension level up.
- Strong player plug-in to the direction of the story.
Characters are defined by Beliefs, Instincts and Traits, which
shape the course of the narrative.
- Metagame mechanics: Players earn Artha points for playing
to their characters' BITs and can spend these to influence
the rolls that need to count.
- A great, creative take on Orcs, Elves, Dwarves and many
other staples of Tolkien fantasy. I really have never seen
fantasy races with so much fidelity to the source.
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