Canon:Red Dragonarmy
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The Red Dragonarmy was the largest and most powerful wing of the Dragonarmies during the War of the Lance. The army was originaly raised and lead by Ariakas, but he later handed control of it to one of his Dragon Highlords. The army was made up of red dragons, draconians, goblins, human mercenaries, hobgoblins, ogres and hill giants. The soldiers employed in the Red Dragonarmy were the highest paid and best equipped in all of the Dragonarmies.
The Red Dragonarmy was the first fully formed Dragonarmy and was raised by Ariakas. As the army grew in size and the other four wings were raised, it was determined that Ariakas would oversee all five of the armies and that the Red Dragonarmy would have its own Highlord. The first to be appointed was a warrior woman by the name of Phair Caron. She set about drilling the troops to make ready for war for five years until in 347 AC, it was determined to be ready for war.
348 AC[edit]
Under the orders of Arakas, the Red and Green Dragonarmies conquer the land of Nordmaar.
349 AC[edit]
Despite promises from Ariakas to the Silvanesti ruler Lorac Caladon that he would not invade their realm, in 349 AC the Red Dragonarmy is sent into Silvanesti. Led by Highlord Phair Caron and with aid from smaller units belonging to the Blue Wing, the Red Dragonarmy engage in devastating raids in northern Silvanesti. They pusher deeper into Silvanesti, almost reaching the gates of the capital Silvanost. Lorac Caladon attempts to use a Dragon Orb in his possession to drive away the invaders, but fell under the orbs sway, trapping Lorac in a nightmare which was unleashed upon the land. Highlord Phair Caron went mad and was killed by her own troops. The Dragonarmy forces then fled the now cursed land of Silvanesti.
350 AC[edit]
After their defeat in Silvanesti, the Red Dragonarmy returned to Neraka to regroup. A dark cleric of Takhisis by the name of Verminaard of Nidus was chosen by Ariakas to be the new Highlord of the Red Dragonarmy. Verminaard was given the mission of hunting down the Green Gemstone Man for Takhisis, as well as searching for true clerics and holy artifacts belonging to the Gods of Good. With a new Highlord at the helm, the Red Dragonarmy was rearmed and bolstered with new recruits, before setting out on a new campaign.
351 AC[edit]
The Red Wing launched an invasion of Solamnia, conquering Solanthus and Thelgaard, pushing the Solamnic Knights back towards Caergoth. By summer, the army split in two, with Highmaster Kansaldi Fire-Eyes continuing the fight against the Solamnians in southern Solamnia, while Verminaard led the remainder of the army across the New Sea and into Abanasinia. They conquered Solace, Qué-Shu, and a number of other Abanasinian lands, most importantly Pax Tharkas where Verminaard established the army's base of operations. Later in the year, a group of adventurers infiltrated Pax Tharkas and started a slave rebellion and killed Verminaard.
352 AC[edit]
After Verminaard's death, Ariakas once again assumed direct command of the Red Wing and recalled them to Neraka, where they would come to be entirely based. Ariakas also recalled the other four armies to Neraka to witness the return of the Dark Queen, but during the final ceremony, Ariakas was murdered by Tanis Half-Elven with help from Raistlin Majere. Under assault by Whitestone forces, the broken Red Dragonarmy escaped Neraka, led by the new Highlord Rugoheras, who attempted to succeed where Ariakas had failed in bringing forth the Dark Queen. He met the same end as his predecessor however, and the now leaderless army fell into internal fighting as several individuals struggled for the role of Highlord.
353-357 AC[edit]
The warrior Karalas would arise as the new Dragon Highlord of a once again unified Red Dragonarmy, after years of fighting rivals and being pursued by Whitestone forces. He led the Red Dragonarmy into Kern, where he made his base of operations and made a tenuous alliance with the ogres. The alliance did not last long however, and the Red Dragonarmy was ultimately destroyed by infighting, marauding ogres and attacks by the Whitestone forces.
References[edit]
- Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman, Jamie Chambers (2004). War of the Lance. (3.5e) Sovereign Press. ISBN 193156714X.
- Michael Williams, Teri Williams (April 1993). Before the Mask. (Novel) TSR. ISBN 1560765836.
- Nancy Varian Berberick (January 2000). Dalamar the Dark. (Novel) Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 078691565X.
- Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman (November 1984). Dragons of Autumn Twilight. (Novel) TSR. ISBN 0-88038-173-6.
- Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman (1985). Dragons of Winter Night. (Novel) TSR. ISBN 0-88038-174-4.
- Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman (1985). Dragons of Spring Dawning. (Novel) TSR. ISBN 0-88038-175-2.
- Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman (8 May 2007). Dragons of the Dwarven Depths. (Novel) Wizards of the Coast. ISBN 0786942614. pp. 9-10, 22, 105-114, 194, 269-279, 309, 345-349, 387, 453, 560, 564-574.
- Douglas Niles (December 1993). Emperor of Ansalon. (Novel) TSR. ISBN 1560766808.
- Harold Johnson, John Terra, J. Robert King, Wolfgang Baur, Colin McComb, Jean Rabe, Norm Ritchie, Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman, Jeff Grubb, Doug Niles, Michael Williams (1992). Tales of the Lance. (2e) TSR. ISBN 1-56076-338-8. World Book of Ansalon.
External links[edit]
- There is an article about the Red Dragonarmy at the Lexicon of Dragonlance Nexus.
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