The city’s official ruler is Karl-Franz Emperor, Elector Count of the Reikland and Prince of Altdorf. From the strange creatures housed in the Imperial zoo, to the majestically solid, Dwarf-built walls, Altdorf is a city of great beauty and variety. The city is a centre for trade and learning its docks teem with merchants, its taverns with students. This will be referred to many times in the individual province sections.Īltdorf is the Imperial capital, the seat of Karl-Franz home to the Great Cathedral of Sigmar, the Colleges of Magic and the School of Engineers. Towards the end of this guide can be found a section detailing the major religions of The Empire – their symbols, regional popularities, and their degree of involvement in the cause of war. Famous generals, rich Burgomeisters, lesser nobility and even merchant-adventurers can and do lead armies. Thirdly, though there are but ten Elector Counts, there are many individuals who can fulfil the same roll on the battlefield. The wealthy Burgomeisters of the city states also maintain similar units. However, one should not believe these fearsome warriors to be restricted only to the Electors. Secondly, every Elector Count possesses a personal bodyguard of elite soldiers, wearing the best plate armour and armed with deadly greatswords. Nevertheless, some Counts favour the halberd more than others – indeed, some northern provinces can afford relatively few – and thus it should not be expected to see significant numbers of halberdiers in every state army. Thus the state army for each of the ten provinces contains soldiers armed with this iconically Imperial weapon. Firstly, by Imperial edict, every Elector Count must retain a standing force of halberdiers. Indeed, Altdorf, Middenheim and Talabheim are now little more than provincial capitals – in ages past they wielded far greater influence, but those days are now departed.īefore the main body of this guide begins, there are a few important points to be made. Again, this is not true in practice, for the city-states lack direct representation on the Electoral council. The four city-states, Altdorf, Middenheim, Nuln and Talabheim, are nominally independent entities of equal import to the provinces. Other towns band together into leagues, pooling their resources to fight common foes – for this reason relations between the Electors and the towns are often somewhat strained. Some towns, such as Kemperbad, possess an Imperial charter that makes them independent from provincial rule.
It is for this reason that The Empire has suffered under so many centuries of civil war.Īlong with the provincial armies, the larger towns are also capable of mustering significant forces. Any decree issued by the Emperor can simply be ignored by the Electors, and only the threat of arms can bring them in line. Though the provinces are theoretically subject to Imperial authority, in practice they are virtually independent nations. The provinces are the ten Electoral states each is ruled by an Elector Count with his own standing army. Along the way it will explore lesser towns and fortresses, sketch out places of interest, and recount tales of historic battles and ancient horrors.Įach province or city state will be given its own section, with the state colours and regional capital (where appropriate) as the first information given. For each of these, the predominate classes of soldiery and weaponry will be listed, allowing the military scholar to differentiate with ease between the armies of each province. This guide will therefore provide an overview of the ten provinces and four city-states of The Empire, compiled from the works of the greatest scholars, past and present (please see the bibliography section at the end of this work if you wish to study further). Such is the size of this great nation of ours that it would take a larger work than this to describe even a fraction of it in any detail. In the rich lands of the south, modern weapons of war, such as the cannon and the handgun, are put to great use in the cold north, soldiers rely on spears, bows and their faith in the mighty Ulric, god of battle.
Our glorious Empire is a diverse place, and its armies reflect that great variety. Without them, this guide would not exist. The editor would like to humbly thank General Helstrom, Benedictus, S.O.F., and the multifarious inhabitants of for their many valuable contributions and suggestions. Taken with permission from Starke's Almanac, 2522 edition, Averheim Press, by the Grace of Holy Sigmar Being a study of the likely dispositions of the armies of the various provinces and city-states of our most glorious Empire, the greatest nation of the Old World
0 kommentar(er)
