The Battle of la Maisontaal

The Battle of La Maisontaal, fought in the year 2491, ended in a spectacular victory for the Bretonnian forces of Duc Tancred.

Although at first the Skaven and Heinrich Kemmler's Undead forces fought together, this unholy alliance soon broke down when the treacherous Skaven unleashed a number of hellish Warpfire Throwers into the ranks of Zombies in an effort to destroy the Lichemaster. The Necromancer walked unscathed through the green flames, and turned his forces against his deceitful allies. Allowing the Skaven and Undead to engage each other, Duc Tancred held his forces back for a single heroic charge, which smashed the forces of the Skaven, splitting them. Despite this the rat-men fought on in desperation, attacked on two sides.

While Throt the Unclean directed his utated creations against the Undead and Bretonnian forces, Grey Seer Gnawdoom hurtled over the battlefield, borne aloft by the power of his magic. Accompanied by a small group of black-clad Gutter Runners, he managed to fight his way inside the temple of Taal and recover the Black Ark. The High Priest of Taal, Bagrian, was killed in this attack, stabbed countless times by the poisoned blades of an assassin. Many say that Bagrian brought this end upon himself, and that his interest in warpstone reeked of the taint of Chaos.

Once Gnawdoom had this sacred item within his grasp he fled the battlefield, leaving the other Skaven to be slaughtered. Throt escaped the battle, his warpstone enhanced constitution keeping him alive despite horrendous wounds. It was rumoured that after the battle he hired the services of Clan Eshin to exact revenge on the treacherous Gnawdoom.

The Bretonnians took heavy casualties from the relentless press of Undead, for Kemmler kept raising those that fell using the devastating power of his magic and his sheer force of will. Eventually the Lichemaster tired of the battle, realising that the Skaven Grey Seer had already fled with his prize. He slipped into the shadows and was gone.

The monks of Taal praised their god for their survival and the Bretonnians returned to their lands with honour. Duc Tancred devoted the remainder of his life to seeking the downfall of the Lichemaster, tragically bringing about his own doom at the Battle of Montfort Bridge. Some rumours whisper that he walks the world still, cursed to undeath by the foul Necromancer.

The Reign of Louen Leoncouer

The present king of Bretonnia is Louen 'Leoncoeur' meaning 'The Lion-Hearted'. Already Louen has proved himself worthy of his forbears in several battles and earned himself the title of Lionhearted through his courage, valour and sheer ferocity!

The new king knows well that Bretonnia is surrounded by enemies ready to strike at any time. To the east the Undead hordes of the Lichemaster lurk in the Grey Mountains. To the south there are rumours of Skaven infiltrating Brionne and Bordeleaux. Mousillon, ruined, infested and unclean, remains to be dealt with. The king expects war at any time.

It is the king's policy to encourage even more jousting and tournaments throughout the land than his predecessors to make sure that all Knights hone their skills ready for war. Four times a year the king himself holds magnificent tournaments which go on for several weeks. He also makes a royal progress through the various dukedoms and on the occasion of his visit the duke will hold a banquet and tournament in his honour. Thus the calendar of Bretonnia has become a succession of tournaments!

In addition to all this, the king has revived the old custom of jousting between whole regiments of Knights in a huge tournament field marked out for the purpose. The royal tournaments have also become occasions for the investiture of many Knights Errant as Knights of the Realm and the setting of tasks for others. All this means that Bretonnian armies are now as powerful as they ever were if not more so!