History of the Skraelings 120-150PC

In 135PC, with the High Elves of the Mellvelon blocking all access to the sea via the Cenebrae River the Jarls of the Skaeling tribes unanimously agreed they needed to conquer the lands to the East of the Kaalroen Empire and besiege the fortress of Eternal Dawn. Lacking a ruler the Jarls of the Skraelings convened to appoint a leader, 8 contenders emerged. With the council descending into a farce as each contender claimed to be King of the Skraelings, the Skalds of the tribes declared as one that the Norse Gods would only accept the new King if they agreed to a battle to the death to the decide who wore the crown. The Norse needed no further encouragement and after a bloody contest Jarl Uhtrik Rasmusson was victorious and crowned King of the Skraelings. His first act being to demand the Skraelings amass their forces.

Ignoring Lord Traegen’s demands to attack south the Skraelings went East, initially having little trouble subduing the small tribes bordering the Kaalroen Empire. In 140PC, 2 years into the campaign at the urging of Skald Horek, King Uhtrik made the mistake of splitting his forces leaving a significant force to guard the Skalds while they investigated the arcane ruins at Hermannsverk in the Branmeren hills, the rest of the army continued its conquest East.

What they didn’t know was that the Skaven from Boiling peak had their own interest in the ruins and a large war party descended on the Skald attacking the Skraeling camp and achieving near total surprise, the casualties were high on both sides, the norse warriors carving through the Skaven wherever they fought them but the Skaven magic slaughtering the Skraeling elite and most of their leaders early in the battle and the Skaven Grey seer’s magic destroying or mutating the infantry guarding Skald Horek. Isolated on the left flank with only a few men left to protect him Skald Horek attempted to flee rather than face the clanrats in honourable combat, angered by his cowardice the capricious gods of chaos withdrew their protection allowing the Grey Seer to turn the cowardly Skald into a clanrat, now unfettered the Skaven mage then managed to turn the battle into a Skaven victory.

The death of many of the Skraelings warriors and they foremost magicians at Hermannsverk encouraged many of the conquered peoples of East Skraeland to rebel, forcing Uhtrik to spend 2 years consolidating his hold over the land. However by now the elves of Mellvellon had learned of the Norse campaign, but with their armies still weakened from their defeat by the lords of Phallucia they turned to the wood elves of Arnar for aid.

The forest was awakened and marched to war winning the narrowest of victories on the banks of the river Cenebrae, the loss stunting but not stopping the advance east. From this battle also emerged a new spiritual leader for the tribe High Skald Jori showing the foresight and courage so lacking in his predecessor by forcing the wood elves out of their defensive positions with mighty comets summoned by the gods and then leading ordinary Skraeling Carls to break through the elven right flank.