02 - Iron Kingdoms W.. - Captain Spud Is Amazing

108.1.141.197
Every kingdom has its own standing army (despite
the treaties between the Protectorate and Cygnar
signed at great expense. It is one thing to hand out
swords to a volunteer militia and point them in the
right direction, but when equipping troops for war
it is a waste of good equipment if a soldier does not
know how to use his
weapons effectively.
Things are just the
same for mercenary
companies—those with
a decent reputation
typically ensure that
their green recruits
do not go anywhere
near the front line
until they have been
adequately schooled in
the arts of war.
Of course, armies
prefer to commission
people who are already
experienced if they
can. If they are looking
to fill a quota, they will
invite great numbers along for trials and weed out the
worst of the applicants straight away. However, that
may not always be practical. It is often weeks before
a trainee gets his hands on a real weapon. Training
typically consists of marching exercises, drills with
wooden weapons, and simulated scenarios. This may
be dull, but the soldiers see the point the first time
they are put on maneuvers. Equipped with dummy
weapons and given some futile task (“Grab that flag!”),
they are pitted against each other, or in some cases,
against hired mercenaries or adventurers. All of a
sudden they realize that with the adrenaline flowing,
step and thrust and step and thrust again is pretty
much all one can handle.
Unless full-scale war is in progress, a trainee
undergoes months of basic training, endlessly
repeating the cycle of drill, practice, and maneuver
each time with a new piece of armor or a different
kind of weapon. Once they have mastered the basics, a
drill sergeant takes them out to perform some simple
duty in a real conflict situation—escorting casualties to
the hospital or bringing up supplies to the front line. If
all goes well they graduate; if not, the trainees can look
forward to more drilling. Then there is specialization.
It takes a lot of resources and a big, open location
for someone to learn how to be a cannoneer, a ‘jack
marshal, or a Stormblade. The equipment is fancier
than traditional armaments, but the process is the
Table 2–5: Major MiliTary aCadeMies and/or Training grounds of The
iron KingdoMs
Kingdom Land Forces (Location) Navies (Location)
Cygnar
Khador
Fort Balton (near Ceryl); Stonebridge (near
Bainsmarket); Strategic Academy (Caspia and Point
Bourne)
Druzhina (elite military academy, Korsk); Assorted
schools (various outposts; headquarters in
Volningrad)
same: drill, practice, maneuver, and then on to the
real thing.
Winds of War
after the hard Campaigns of 605 ar, the human nations of
Western immoren are doing everything possible to reCruit
neW soldiers. threatened on three fronts, the Cygnaran
military—already spread thin before the khadoran invasion of
llael—is under inCredible strain simply attempting to maintain
the saftey of its Citizens. road Wardens have been drafted into
full-time military serviCe, and able-bodied men and Women are
asked to serve their Country. khador, the proteCtorate, and
Cryx are not so aCComodating. in khador, Criminals have been
ConsCripted into the army and young men and Women are being
drafted early into serviCe in the Winter guard. even those
Who have already “done their time” are being reCalled to
aCtive serviCe in the name of the motherland. meanWhile,
hierarCh voyle has Called for menites aCross the Continent
to make the pilgrimage to the proteCtorate to join in the
great Crusade. While all of this is going on, Cryxian forCes
Continue to reCruit the fallen that litter the ground of the
kingdoms, and their forCes groW in leaps and bounds as they
reap the harvest of death left from the battles fought by the
human nations.
Sentinel Point Naval Fortress
(near Caspia); University of
Mercir; Westwatch
Admiralty College
(Skrovenberg)
World Guide 113
Llael Thorn’s Academy (Redwall and Merywyn) N/A
Ord Auldscomb Military College of Hearthstone
Trident School “The Trident”
(Berck)
Protectorate
of Menoth
Forces trained secretly at the Holy See (Imer) N/A