The Coppermind

Difference between revisions of "War of Reckoning"

War of Reckoning (edit)

Revision as of 00:57, 18 August 2018

338 bytes added ,  5 years ago
Parshendi -> Listener, except when appropriate
(use Alethi term since the article is written mainly from the point of view of the Alethi)
(Parshendi -> Listener, except when appropriate)
{{event
|participants=[[AlethiAlethkar]] [[Highprince]]s, [[ParshendiListeners]]
|effects=Summoning of the [[Everstorm]]
|world=Roshar
|books=[[The Stormlight Archive]]
}}{{spoilers|book=sa3}}{{objective|date=2018-08|claim=skaa}}
The '''War of Reckoning''' was a conflict on [[Roshar]] between [[Alethkar]] and the [[ParshendiListeners]]. This name for the conflict was used by Brightness [[Hashal]]{{book ref|sa1|43}} in reference to the Alethi's goal of delivering justice upon the ParshendiListeners for their role in the assassination of the Alethi King [[Gavilar Kholin]].
 
== Background ==
While exploring a forest south of the [[Shattered Plains]], King Gavilar's brother [[Dalinar Kholin]] encountered a civilizationnation of [[parshmensingers]]-like beingswho called themselves [[Listeners]].{{book ref|sa1|28}} ThisNot similarityknowing towhat parshmenthey ledare, and seeing their similarity to [[parshmen]], Gavilar's stormwardens[[stormwarden]]s coiningcoined the term [['''Parshendi]]'''{{book ref|sa1|45}}, which roughly meant ''parshmen who can think''.{{book ref|sa1|prologue}} Diplomatic relations were established, and eventually a treaty between the Alethi and the Listeners (the so-called Parshendi) was made.
 
The king invited a Parshendi delegation to celebrate the signing of the treaty in [[Kholinar]].{{book ref|sa1|prologue}} That night, Gavilar revealed to a Parshendi interpreter named [[Eshonai]], a Listener interpreter, his secret intention to bring back the [[Fused|old Parshendisinger gods]] in order to also bring about the return of the [[Herald]]s. He mistakenly believed that the Parshendi would welcome this idea. In reality, the Parshendi ancestors of the Listeners had abandoned their gods in favor of freedom, and they did not want their gods to return.{{book ref|sa3|prologue}}
 
After hearing the news and fearing Gavilar's plans, the ParshendiListener leaders[[Council of Five]] decided to have the human king assassinated that very night.{{book ref|sa3|prologue}} They assigned this task to their newly-acquired slave, a [[Shin]] [[Truthless]] named [[Szeth]] who possessed [[Jezrien]]'s [[Honorblade]]. After an intense fight, the man who would later be called the '''Assassin in White''' succeeded in killing Gavilar.{{book ref|sa1|prologue}}
 
While the rest of the Parshendi delegation fled from Kholinar, three of their leaders remained to take credit for the assassination. The Alethi had the three hanged.{{book ref|sa2|prologue}}
[[File: {{map|Alethi warcamps}}|700px|center]]
 
=== ParshendiListeners ===
Unlike the Alethi, the ParshendiListeners had a single unified army. Their society was governed by the [[Council of Five]], whose members each represented one of whom,the namelyfive [[EshonaiSinger#Forms|singer forms]] that the Listeners used. The Council member who used [[Warform]], which is the singer form used by Listener warriors, served as the general of the army. At some point during the war, Eshonai became the Warform of the Council of Five.
 
When the war started, the ParshendiListeners moved to the ruins of [[Stormseat]], at the center of the Shattered Plains. They called this central place [[Narak]], which in their language meant ''Exile''.{{book ref|sa2|i|1}}
 
== History ==
=== Beginning of the Siege ===
In order to fulfill the Vengeance Pact as quickly as possible, the Alethi highprinces initially planned a full-scale attack on the Parshendi. However, they were unable to immediately locate the Parshendienemy's center of operation, and upon arriving at the Shattered Plains, the highprinces realizerealized that a full-scale attack on the plateau in the center of the Plains would present huge risks because of [[highstorm]]s.
 
The Shattered Plains{{map ref|Shattered Plains}} arecover an enormous area, and armies must cross chasms to get between plateaus, making a campaign to the center of the Shattered Planes center vulnerable to a highstorm while exposed on the plateaus.{{book devastatingref|sa1|43}} Therefore, the armieshighprinces decided upon a siege strategy.{{book ref|sa1|4315}}{{book ref|sa1|18}} As the Shattered Plains are only accessible from the leeward side, the plan assumed the Parshendi would leave their camp from hunger and face the Alethi.{{book ref|sa1|15}}
 
The highprinces decided upon a siege strategy.{{book ref|sa1|15}}{{book ref|sa1|18}} As the Shattered Plains are only accessible from the leeward side, the plan assumed the Parshendi would leave their camp from hunger and face the Alethi.{{book ref|sa1|15}}
 
=== The Impact of Gemhearts ===
Once the Alethi settled on the border of the Shattered Plains, they discovered that [[chasmfiend]]s live in the chasms between plateaus. Chasmfiends contain gemhearts which hold enormous amounts of [[stormlight]] for use in [[soulcasting]]. This enabled the armies to Soulcast metal for weapons, wood for bridges, barracks of stone and food for troops.{{book ref|sa1|15}}
 
The safest way to win a gemheart of a chasmfiend would be to wait for a chasmfiend to climb on a plateau, where it would pupate.{{book ref|sa1|15}} Once this happens, the chrysalis could be opened with a [[Shardblade]]{{book ref|sa1|26}} or more slowly with hammers and chisels.{{book ref|sa1|40}}▼
Both the Alethi and Parshendi used these gems to sustain their armies, prolonging the siege.
 
Both the Alethi and Listeners used these gems to sustain their armies, prolonging the siege and greatly extending the duration of the war. Whenever a chrysalis is spotted on a plateau, a race between the Listeners and Alethi highprinces would occur.{{book ref|sa1|15}} Whoever arrived first would have to retrieve the gemheart from the chrysalis before the opposing army arrives, otherwise a battle would occur.
=== Rivalry Between Highprinces ===▼
In order to cut the supplies of the Parshendi, the highprinces raced each other to the gemhearts before the Parshendi can claim them.
 
▲The safest way to win a gemheart of a chasmfiend would be to wait for a chasmfiend to climb on a plateau, where it would pupate.{{book ref|sa1|15}} Once this happens, the chrysalis could be opened with a [[Shardblade]]{{book ref|sa1|26}} or more slowly with hammers and chisels.{{book ref|sa1|40}}
 
▲=== RivalryLoss of Unity Between Highprinces ===
Whenever a chrysalis is spotted on a plateau, a race between the Parshendi and Alethi highprinces would occur.{{book ref|sa1|15}} Whoever arrived first--Alethi army or Parshendi--was usually attacked by the other. Since every highprince worked on his own, depending on where the chasmfiend was pupating, several Alethi armies could attempt to get to the chasmfiend first. Whenever an army arrived and another Alethi army was already there, the second army turned back home.{{book ref|sa1|17}} This led to rivalry between the highprinces because success in gaining gemhearts meant wealth and appreciation from King Elhokar.{{book ref|sa1|12}}
 
Over the years the result was that the Alethi army lost its original purpose—to fulfil the Vengeance Pact—and their unity. The ten armies fought on their own instead of fighting united against the Parshendi.
[[File:Battle of the Tower.jpg|thumb|right|150px|A map of the Battle of the Tower by [[Isaac Stewart]]]]
:''Main article:'' [[Battle of the Tower]]
The [[Tower|Tower Plateau]] is a very large plateau not far from the center of the Shattered Plains. Because of this, the ParshendiListeners always arrived first whenever a chasmfiend pupated on the Tower Plateau, and they usually had enough time to arrange themselves into battle formation and prepare their defense. Consequently, no Alethi army had ever won a battle at the Tower during the first six years of the war.
 
When Dalinar worked together with Sadeas, a chasmfied was spotted on the Tower.{{book ref|sa1|64}} According to their plan, Sadeas, whose armies were faster than Dalinar's, had to clear a space on the Tower for Dalinar's troops, who were better trained, to engage the Parshendi.{{book ref|sa1|64}} This worked as planned until Sadeas abandoned Dalinar, leaving no way to retreat for Dalinar.{{book ref|sa1|65}}
 
=== Stormform and the Failed Peace Talks ===
Eshonai, nowSeeing the generalsteady decline of theher Parshendi armypeople and abecoming memberwar-weary, ofEshonai the [[Council of Five]],was wantedeager to find a way out of the protracted war that was slowly killing off her people. She had been planning to approach Dalinar Kholin and sue for peace,. howeverHowever her sister, the scholar [[Venli]], did not believe such a plan would work. Instead, Venli argued that they should use a [[Singer#Forms_of_Power|Form of Power]] in order to defeat the Alethi.{{book ref|sa2|i|1}}
 
Secretly guided by the voidspren [[Ulim]]{{book ref|sa3|i|3}}, Venli had previously captured a [[stormspren]], a spren that granted [[Stormform]]. This Form of Power was believed to allow the summoning and control of storms.{{book ref|sa2|i|1}} Eshonai initially protested the idea due to the form's connection to [[Fused|their hated gods]]. However, after the other leaders sided with Venli, Eshonai ended up volunteering to experiment with Stormform to see what it does.{{book ref|sa2|i|4}}
 
Prior to bonding the stormspren, and with the help of Dalinar's son [[Adolin]]{{book ref|sa2|26}} and the ParshendiListener warrior [[Thude]], Eshonai was finally able to arrange a meeting with Dalinar to discuss a possible end to the war. The plan was for the meeting to happen in seven days. Having received confirmation of the arrangement, Eshonai went out to experiment with Stormform.{{book ref|sa2|i|5}}
 
Stormform gave Eshonai a different kind of armor and the ability to jump chasms more easily. She started attuning to a new set of [[Singer#Rhythms|Rhythms]] that were more aggressive.{{book ref|sa2|i|8}} More importantly, the new form changed Eshonai's personality, making her more arrogant and belligerent. She abandoned her plan to negotiate. Instead, she challenged the Alethi to try and destroy the ParshendiListeners if they could.{{book ref|sa2|51}} She planned to lure the whole Alethi army out far away from their warcamps and destroy them with a summoned highstorm.{{book ref|sa2|i|11}}
 
Along with Venli, Eshonai organized the adoption of Stormform for all of their people. A few of the ParshendiListeners did not agree to this plan and managed to escape.{{book ref|sa2|i|11}} [[Rlain]], a ParshendiListener spy who infiltrated the Alethi army and joined [[Bridge Four]], returned from his espionage mission and discovered the new Stormform army. He decided not to join them.{{book ref|sa2|78}}
 
=== The Battle of Narak ===
:''Main article:'' [[Battle of Narak]]
After negotiations with Eshonai fell through, Dalinar proposed a joint assault on the Parshendienemy camp in order to end the war and fulfill the Vengeance Pact once and for all.{{book ref|sa2|51}} Out of all the Alethi highprinces, only [[Aladar]], [[Roion]], and [[Sebarial]] joined him in the end. They set out near the start of the [[Weeping]], expecting no highstorm to impede their attack.{{book ref|sa2|76}} Along the way they met up with Rlain, who reported to Dalinar what had happened to his people.{{book ref|sa2|78}}
 
Upon the arrival of the Alethi armies in Narak, a large number of the Stormform ParshendiListeners initiated the ritual song to summon a storm, while the rest prepared to fight the invaders.{{book ref|sa2|81}}
 
The battle was fought on three plateaus. Aladar, Roion, Adolin each led soldiers on their own designated plateau while Dalinar gave orders from the command tent on another plateau. Sebarial's army reinforced Aladar's and Roion's, as Sebarial himself did not fight.{{book ref|sa2|81}}
 
The Stormform ParshendiListeners showed the ability to shoot red lightning, which they successfully weaponized against the Alethi. Adolin and Aladar managed well enough on their plateaus, but Roion's army was eventually defeated{{book ref|sa2|82}}, and Roion himself was killed by later in the battle by -[[Szeth]], laterwho inwas thethere battleon a mission to assassinate Dalinar.{{book ref|sa2|85}}
 
Having been warned by Rlain that the Stormforms' song will bring destruction, Dalinar instructed Adolin to stop the singers.{{book ref|sa2|81}} Adolin found a way to get to the singers and killed many of them, but Eshonai attacked before he could finish the task.{{book ref|sa2|83}} In the end, even though he defeated Eshonai, he was unable to prevent the song from being completed. The summoned storm turned out to be the [[Everstorm]], and it came towards them from the west, bringing red lightning.{{book ref|sa2|84}} In addition, the [[Stormfather]] sent an unexpected highstorm, coming from the east as highstorms usually do.{{book ref|sa2|86}}
[[Kaladin]] arrived in time to save Dalinar from Szeth, who had been sent there to assassinate the highprince.{{book ref|sa2|86}} [[Shallan Davar]] managed to find and activate the ancient Oathgate within the city, and the surviving Alethi army was safely transported to [[Urithiru]] before the combined Everstorm and highstorm destroyed the whole city of Narak.{{book ref|sa2|84}}{{book ref|sa2|86}}
 
The surviving remnants of the Stormform army eventually ended up as vessels or subjects of the [[Fused]], the immortal commanders of [[Odium]]'s army that returned through the Everstorm.{{book ref|sa3|i|6}} Aside from Rlain, it is currently unknown whether any of the ParshendiListeners who did not join the Stormform army survived.
 
== Warfare ==
 
=== The Use of Bridges Between Plateaus ===
While ParshendiWarform Listeners were able to jump the distance between plateaus, an Alethi army could only cross a chasm with a bridge from an adjacent plateau. There was no way to climb a plateau from a chasm. The bridges were made of wood.{{book ref|sa1|6}} ItPermanent wasbridges could only possiblebe to construct permanent bridgesconstructed next to the warcamps because any permanent bridge built further on the Plains, permanent bridgesplains were destroyed by ParshendiListener raids.{{book ref|sa1|17}}
 
During a race for a gemheart, mobile bridges were used by the Alethi armies. There were two main types of bridges.
:Bridges that functioned like siege-towers. Those were very heavy and needed to be pulled by chulls and thus were very slow. Their advantage was that they offered cover for the Alethi army until the bridge was lowered over the chasm.{{book ref|sa1|55}}{{book ref|sa1|28}}
;Light Portable Bridges
:These were only light in comparison to the bridge-towers. At least 25 men were needed to carry a bridge{{book ref|sa1|6}}. Their advantage was that they could be carried even running, so they were much faster than the bridge-towers. Instead of offering cover, the bridgemen were exposed to the ParshendiListener archers during the approach of the final plateau.
 
Sadeas was the first one to use the light bridges <!--- he was first? ---> and had much success with them because of their mobility. He also used the exposed bridgemen on purpose to attract enemy fire that would otherwise have centered on his own soldiers.{{book ref|sa1|6}}{{book ref|sa1|15}}{{book ref|sa1|32}} That is also why bridgemen were neither armored nor trained.{{book ref|sa1|15}}
 
=== Chasm Duty ===
During battles, Alethi soldiers and ParshendiListener warriors often fell into the chasms. The dead who were left after a battle were blown into the chasms during highstorms. At the bottom of the chasms, the dead were flooded to the leeward end of the chasms, where they stayed until another flood pulled them elsewhere.{{book ref|sa1|27}}
 
Soldiers or bridgemen were sent down into the chasms to gather weapons, armor, spheres or anything other of value from the dead. Chasm duty was dangerous because of the risk of another highstorm flooding the chasms and because of chasmfiends who could come upon a search-team.{{book ref|sa1|27}}
Skaa
Editors
1,032

edits

Retrieved from "https://coppermind.net/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/86117"