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Armies
Though the land of Ourissa is currently in a time of peace, skirmishes between tribes and cities still occur, and standing armies are maintained by all of the lands political powers, large and small. Armies and their organization and equipment are always of interest to a historian, as well as an adventurer, who might have more interaction with them than he may want.

In case the RPG ever calls for a massive battle between powers, I have made army lists for use in the Field of Glory ancient battles ruleset. The armies are listed here, though I do not expect RPG players to understand them, so descriptions of the way these rules work are listed on the forums. You do not need to actually know the FoG ruleset for the game, it is just for your own curiosity. RPG Statistics of individual soldiers one might find on their travels are also found on the forums.


Armies of the Cities
City armies are characterized by a front line of foot troops, generally armored reasonably well and armed with spear and sword. They will fight in formation, using spears to resist a charge and then swords to fight in melee, and rely on unit cohesion and discipline to hold back their enemies. Their mounted contingents will be relatively small, though they are there, and a cities mounted wing will be especially deadly, formally trained and heavily armored.

Varans army is the largest and considered to be the strongest, though it is also the most spread out, having to simultaniously defend Varans, Tanja and Gujar from attack by many different foes. The Ayotyan Army is by comparison smaller, but much better organized and deployed. It can take time for Varans to organize a full army and assault an enemy, but Ayotyas is lightning fast, capable of reaching any part of the western kingdom in a single day.

The independent cities of Medya, Thirim and Jadesh maintain their own forces, though these are weaker in size and status to the two great cities, and would not stand up to a concentrated assault by Varans or Ayotya. However, they are effective in defending against bandits and tribes who wish to encroach too far.


The Varanian Army is split into two distinct forces, that of organized town militias and that of the Legion. There is said to be a sharp contrast between the two, in terms of skill, training and equipment, and this is visible when watching the two work in tandem. The Varanian militia looks very similar to the ill-armed soldiers of Medya and Thirim, simply organized into units and sent along their way. The Legion however, is another matter. Covered to the brim in finely polished metal armor, their blue shields each carrying the emblem of the Varanian Swan, the Legionarres move, think and fight as a single cohesive body, and they are truly a splendor to behold.

The Legions military leadership is governed by the Varanian council, and the slow and steady deliberations of the council have at times cost the Legion a battle, as the councilmen were slow to give an order to attack or defend. However, once the Legion is deployed, it will make short work of any opposition, its standard soldiers as tough as another armies veterans.

The Legions infantry is heavily armored, carrying large shields and a seven foot spear, and trained to fight as a unit. They will cover each other with their shields and spears, back ranks holding shields high in the sky to block enemy missiles. Their units can quickly turn on command, the back rank becoming the front without missing a beat. They prefer to fight with their spears at range, keeping enemy swordsmen and axemen at bay, but they carry shortswords and are trained to fight with them as necessary. The Legion also maintains a small cadre of mages from the Academy, who will support the Legionarres from the back ranks, imbuing their weaponry and firing magical bolts of energy over their heads. Additionally, some Legionarres are organized into more flexible units called the River Guard, who are trained to fight on ships with long sword instead of spear.

The Legion also maintains its own skirmishers and Cavalry, foot and mounted scouts moving ahead of the main forces and armed with bows, while regiments of mounted Cavaliers move on flanks and form a rear guard, armored with plate mail and armed with spear, shield and saber. The best of the Legion Cavalry are organized into a single cohesive unit 120 strong called the Swan Knights, a unit of heavy cavalry armed with long spears, full plate armor and greathelms. The Swan Knights are perhaps the strongest warriors in all of Ourissa, their only possible contenders the Pegasus Kings personal bodyguard.

Finally, Tanja maintains its own militia, unhappy with its governance and protection by Varans. Tanjan soldiers fight in war much as they work in peace, with large two handed axes. However, these soldiers are not simple woodcutters, Tanjas men trained by constant aggression from the warlike Yaksas.

The Varanian fleet is the finest in all of Ourissa, maintaining more ships than any other power, better crews and better guns. Cannons are a new invention in these lands, the blueprints brought by the Sea Peoples from the great city of Mu south of the great storm. While Cannons are still too immobile to use in a land army for anything but defending fortifications, they are used on ships, and Varanian cannons are the best.

Varans also maintains several forts in the southern Archipelago, with cannons facing the waters in an attempt to deter pirates. For while Varanian crews are excellent and their ships are the largest in Ourissa, a veteran pirate vessel will still beat a Varanian one in open waters, for the pirates of Himal are seasoned and only the most talented of them survive very long. These forts block the main paths through the Archipelago into Varans, preventing larger vessels from assaulting Pirae directly, and allowing the Varanian navy to focus on defense of Yernia and Gujar.


Ayotyas armed forces are a machine oiled and season by ceaseless wars with the Centaur. The Pegasus Kings to the north and west are always on the march, for warfare is their culture, and raiding is their economy. In order to survive in the hostile land they call home the people of the double walled cities have created an impressive array of horsemen, infantry and fortifications, that have successfully held back both the centaur, and the rare war with Varans.

Ayotyas army is not as large as Varans, and its standard troops cannot quite match the efficiency and discipline of the Legionarres, but they make up for this with vastly superior commanders. Ayotyan tacticians are the best in Ourissa, their armies capable of forced marching at a moments notice, their use of terrain and ambushes incredible. Furthermore, Ayotya has the best defensive fortifications in all of Ourissa, the border forts high walls and well placed cannons excellent at stopping Centaur aggression.

The walled cities infantry is made up into two divisions, the better armored Primary Corps and the less equipped Secondary Corps. They fight with spear and sword, though while the Varanian Legion prefers the spear as their main weapon, the Ayotyan footsoldiers prefer the sword. They will throw their spears moments before the melee begins, fighting with sword and shield aggressively and in formation. Secondary Infantry are not as well trained or equipped as other units, and are mostly kept in reserve for support and fortification defense. The walled cities soldiers wear bright red cloaks and bronze helms, symbols of their city. They do not put much weight in bronze however, the armor under their cloaks good and strong steel.

But their standing infantry units are not where the Ayotyan army shines, rather it is in their skirmishers and their cavalry. Ayotyas Peltast skirmishers are excellent, running alongside horsemen and armed with javelins and shield. They make the most of the surrounding terrain, and are trained to organize ambushes in the hills and rocks that make up the Ayotyan hinterland. Veteran peltasts are organized into thicker and better equipped units called Dailami, who excel at flushing enemy skirmishers out of entrenched positions.

Ayotyas Cavalry at face value is similarly equipped and trained in comparison to the Varanian Legions Cavalry, fighting with sword and spear and heavily armored. However, Ayotya maintains a much larger cavalry contingent, and relies on it to deliver crushing blows to the enemy and chase them down in pursuit. The Primary Cavalry is split into seperate bow and spear armed units, and fights with the spearmen in the center and the bowmen on the wings. Those veterans who have served long enough in both regiments are formed into a special unit called the Outriders, who carry both bow and spear and are the pride of the walled city.

Finally, Ayotya maintains a small unit of its own centaur, from families who have long since been absorbed into Ayotyan culture. There aren't many centaur in Ayotya, and the majority population looks down upon them, but in combat they are a terrible sight to behold, able to carry much larger and heavier spears than a normal Cavalier.

The Ayotyan Navy is smaller than that of Varans, though still slightly larger than that of the free city of Medya. It is not used for much, for pirates generally prefer to pick on the Varanians or raid away from Ayotyan shores, which are normally rocky and ripe with danger. The combination of the cliffy terrain on the Ayotyan coast and the treacherous waters that make up the great kelp forest south of the city make a navy less of a necessity here. However, one is still maintained, and at times it is used to explore to the west, watching for centaur movements that may creep up upon the city.


The armies of the trade cities Thirim and Medya are similar, and much smaller than that of the two major cities. Their Garrisons are enough to prevent against bandit attack, as well as stop any thought of careless expansion by Ayotya, Varans, or each other. However, they are not large enough to even think about expanding their territory, and take mostly a defensive role.

Thirims soldiers carry a standard of yellow, and the three yellow circles that make up the countries symbol adorns their shield. For Thirim is a trade city and a city of greed, and money is their chief idol. The free city of Medya on the other hand carries a standard of green, a symbol of their neutrality between the two great cities, and of their prosperous farmlands.

Both cities model their armies after that of Varans, believing as most people do that Varans is constantly at the forefront of all things. But even their best infantry does not compare with that of the Legion, though it is armed and armored in similar fashion. Their noble Cavalry, plate armored and armed with spear and sword, can compete with the Cavalries of Varans or Ayotya, but the trade cities are only able to maintain small cavalry contingents. The bulk of their forces is made up of militia spearmen and archers, who serve their purpose against bandits but would not last long against better trained troops.

In addition to its army, the free city of Medya maintains a small navy, similar in training and ship quality to Ayotyas, but in smaller number. Their Man O' Wars are slightly smaller than those of Ayotya and Varans, due to an inability to fund larger ships. The Medyans are under the most danger from the pirates of Himal, and do their best to defend trade convoys from pirate assault, but in the last generation they have had increasingly more and more trouble. With the creation of the pirate city of Coa and Lisa Rakashas organized pirate forces, Medyas navy has become almost wholly ineffective, able to do little other than defend an assault on the city itself.

Very recently Ayotya and Medya petitioned Varans to make a joint three party assault on Coa and eradicate it, but Varans refused for unknown reasons.


While the lake town of Jadesh is small, and mostly free from assault save by the rare encroachment by the Spirnis Centaur tribe, it does maintain a small garrison force to defend against monsters from the Ghat, bandits from the southern woods, and possibly aggression by Thirim. Occasionally a band of ravenous beasts will come from the Ghat and try to eat up a farmers livestock, and the Jadesh garrison will respond as fast as they can.

The standing garrison foot of the town is equipped more like Ayotyan foot than Varanian, with a short throwing spear and a long sword. However, they fight in looser units, adopting formations similar to Legion River Guard or Dailami than the Primary Spear. In addition, the men of the Jadeshi farmlands can be organized into a rough and poorly equipped militia if necessary, though this has not been needed for some time. Even Jadesh's standing garrison forces, while well armed, are not well dressed, and there is no formal Jadeshi military uniform, every man purchasing his equipment with his own money.

The pride of the lake towns garrison takes the form of its cavalry, who ride good Jadeshi horses and are equipped well. Most Jadeshi Cavalrymen are hunters from the Eastern farms, and due to their skill with a bow, they fight with bow and spear rather than spear and shield. This has the effect of making them perform much more similarly to Tribal Cavalry than that of the cities, skirmishing with their bows and only charging home when the enemy is in disarray.

If need arises, the Priests of Cecilias Temple are ready to defend their lands, and they weild powerful magics that are not to be taken lightly. However, the priests and priestesses of the temple like nothing but peace, and are unlikely to travel far from the lake town itself.


Mercernaries, Bandits and Pirates
While large battles with the outlaws of Ourissa are rare, the bandits of Outlaws Rest and the pirates of Himal can be formidable foes, lacking organized training but often very well equipped and with more experience than a standing army. Their units will be disorganized, with mixed weaponry and armor, but their leaders will be especially courageous, fighting in the front with their men and leading them on to death or glory.


There are many small and isolated groups of bandits that live along the merchants road, making camps in the woodlands or at the edge of the Tauny Hills. Their armor will be mixed, some with good chainmail but the majority with inferior leather or brigandine. They will fight mostly with one handed weaponry and shields, maces and axes and swords, though some will forego their shields to carry a compound bow and arrows. Bandit units fight excellently in an ambush, but unless they are particularly well armored they cannot stand a straight fight against organized city infantry.

The bandit city of Outlaws Rest has the highest concentration of thieves and scoundrels, and this is the only place where anything as large as a bandit army could be contrived. While most bandits cannot afford horses and reserve them for their leaders, Outlaws Rest could conceivably put forth bandit cavalry units, who would be heavily armed and armored, though disorganized. Their leader, the fire mage Talen Krane, is one of the better sorcerers in Ourissa, and could teach at the Academy if he wasn't obsessed with ruling the wildlands.

Varans has long wanted to eradicate Outlaws Rest, but the terrain of the area has prevented them from doing so. Not only is the rocky ground unfavorable to the tactics of the Legion, but Talens bandits have excellent knowledge of the gullies and hills of the wildlands, and can organize ambushes in the region that are impossible to predict.


The merchant caravans which travel between Tanja, Varans, Ayotya and Keral will often hire units of mercernary soldiers, which are little more than organized bandits who fight for the merchants rather than against them. Merchant bands cannot organize themselves in large numbers, but in times of war cities have been known to hire larger groups of them, using them as support or flank guards.


Much as how the mercernaries fight for the merchants against the bandits, the privateers fight against the pirates, defending them against pirate aggression when the navies of Medya and Varans are otherwise occupied. Normally a merchant convoy will hire bodyguards to occupy their own ships and resist boarding attacks by the pirates, though some privately owned Man O' Wars are in service by privateers, and these will be hired to escort larger convoys. Between the Privateers and the larger city navies the Pirates have been kept at bay, though since the creation of the pirate city at Coa, they have been having less and less luck.


Lisa Rakasha and her pirate hordes have captured Himal, and are well on their way to controlling the entire Middle Ocean. They have many ships, nearly with numbers equal to the entire Ayotyan Navy, and boast several stolen Man O' Wars in their ranks in addition to their smaller raiding ships. They know how the winds and tides flow about the land, and they know where and when a convoy will be. This tactical foresight allows them to attack when and where they have an advantage, running when organized forces arrive.

While their ships are smaller and weaker than those of the Varanian Navy, the pirate crews are much better, often seasoned with experience boarding and capturing ships. Veteran pirates will defeat the Legion River Guard when boarding a vessel, fighting in a ships rigging and ignoring the sloshing waves and moving hull.

Though normally a pirate vessel is smaller than that of a standard navies, this is not the case for the pirate flagship, honorably named Queen Rakashas Crown. A captured and fully functional Varanian Dreadnaught, she is equal to or greater than the mightiest city warship, and when manned by Rakashas own veteran pirates, she is the single most deadly thing on the Ourissan seas.


The Sea Peoples deal little with human wars, focusing on trade and not on meddling in their petty politics, but when one runs trading caravans for a living, one cannot entirely ignore the blockades that arise from political battles, or the dangers of raiders and pirates along the shore. Because of this, the Sea Peoples have organized the Manta Knight corps, who protect their property from pirates as well as from any monsters of the deep who might threaten their underwater cities.

The Manta Knights fight on great blue fin mantas, which are themselves the size of a longboat, and move extremely quickly both atop and under the water. Their peculiar shape makes them somewhat faster when skimming right at the waterline, though they can submerge to come up underneath an enemy and surprise them. Two Manta Knights will ride on each of the beasts, and they communicate through a beastly language, having no need for reigns or stirrups. This frees both of the knights hands, and they will carry throwing spears as well as twenty foot long, double handed pikes, that they use to skewer their enemies as the manta ride by. Their armor will be excellently crafted chainmail, though certain species of Sea Peoples have natural armor and no need for the external sort.

Should the need arise, water mages can accompany the Manta Knights into battle, and the Knights themselves can board enemy ships, using longswords with just as much proficiency as their spears. Their affinity with the water makes them excellent boarding parties, and they are unmatched in close combat on the waves, though cannons can be effective against their numbers at range.

The Manta Knights are rarely needed, as even the pirates of Himal do not dare attack Sea Peoples convoys. However, the Knights are watching Rakasha and her pirates closely, and it can be certain that the pirate queen is watching them as well.