Ravage of Elthondu
| Conflict | War of Light and Death |
| Date | Broken Realms |
| Location | Elthondu, Ymetrica, Hysh |
| Outcome | Elthondu sacked |
| | |
|---|---|
 Mortis Praetorians  Vertigon Court
|
 Local forces
|
| | |
| Xaramos Varshorn
|
Unknown |
The Ravage of Elthondu was a show of force by the Ossiarch Bonereapers during the War of Light and Death.[1a]
Background
The river port of Elthondu in Ymetrica had a proud history of repelling Chaos attacks, so the strategists among the armies of Arkhan the Black during his invasion of Hysh determined that a successful attack on the city would be a powerful psychological blow against the Lumineth. Xaramos, the Mortisan Boneshaper in charge of the Mortis Praetorian contingent in the Bonereaper army, and Varshorn, an Abhorrant Ghoul King of the army's local Vertigon Court allies, are ordered to attack the port.[1a]
Opening Moves
Varshorn's ghouls, more familiar with local conditions (as well as less valuable to the Bonereapers), take up scouting duties. As the army approaches Elthondu, Varshorn reports that his scouts have discovered that the locals honour the colossal pachyderms that wander the Great Daixo River as sages. He assembles a force of beast-hunters and sets off to find the creatures as Xaramos considers how to use the information.[1a]
A Plan Enacted
To Xaramos' surprise, Varshorn and his hunting party return with several complete corpses of the creatures; the Boneshaper had not expected the mordants to be able to restrain their appetites in the face of such an amount of meat. Using his magic, he manipulates the giant skeletons to create hollows within the corpses. Elite troops from both armies are secreted in these hollows, and then the corpses are set to drifting down the river for Elthondu river patrols to find.[1a]
The Trap is Sprung
Upon encountering the corpses of their honoured river-sages, the Lumineth bring them into the city for appropriate rituals and cremation. Once inside the city, the ambushers burst out of their hiding places and attack. The remainder of the army uses the distraction to sail across the river and join the battle, overwhelming the defenders of the city. The population is butchered and Elthondu burns.[1a]
Sources
- 1: White Dwarf February 2021
- 1a: Flashpoint Broken Realms: The Tome Celestial: The Charnel Kingdom, pg. 16-23
