Battle of the Bell

The Battle of the Bell was a engagement between the allied towns of Stellcida and Domaroda against the city of Vauroda in 207 AG. It resulted in a narrow victory for the allied forces.

Background

After the events of The Collapse of Castle 5 in 199 AG, king Elias Onyxson of Vauroda went in exile to Ponrada. Here, he planned to retake the city with the help of his son Fabio Onyxson and a corrupt secret organization called the Touched Souls. Eventually, Elias the Exalted and his son Fabio would have a falling out over his affiliation with the Touched Souls. He would later join the town of Domaroda, founded by people fleeing Vauroda in fear of the return of Elias the Exalted.   However, the close ties between Elias the Exalted and the Touched Souls did not go unnoticed. Solaster the Wise, ruler of Stellcida, personally traveled to Vauroda to confirm his suspicions on the matter. Wanting to prevent Domaroda from falling into the hands of the corrupted king, he negotiated an alliance with the town and promised to march his army to their aid. Elias the Exalted had suspected he would do this, so in turn he made an alliance with the town of Foratorra, a longtime rival of Stellcida. However, the battle that followed, known as the Battle of the Thorn Forest, proved to be a disaster for Foratorra, resulting in their formal withdrawal from the war. Furthermore, it failed to keep the forces of Stellcida from reinforcing their ally. Elias the Exalted was now facing not only the peasant militia of Domaroda, but also the feared Soulbound Phalanx, famed for their iron resolve and discipline.  

Battle

When Elias the Exalted heard of the disastrous outcome of the Battle of the Thorn Forest and the arrival of the Soulbound Phalanx to Domaroda, he attempted to regain the initiative by striking at his enemies first. The allied forces, still working on the town's defences, were caught by surprise soldiers from Vauroda showed up before sunrise. They were the Onyx Order, the personal army of the House of Onyx, dressed in all black and 600 strong. The Soulbound Phalanx would line up opposite to them, between the river and the town. The peasant militia of Domaroda would be tasked with the defense of the town, to prevent a flanking maneuver through the streets. However, the first light of dawn revealed a shabby, ill equipped force standing across them, looking nothing like the illustrious warriors Solaster the Wise was told about. Elias the Exalted had assembled a peasant force roughly the equal size of his Onyx Order, and instructed them to paint their armour black. The trick had worked, once the Stellcida scouts had found the dummy force, they had not bothered to look further. This allowed the Onyx Order to move unseen, and attack the Domaroda directly from the east, facing the much weaker peasants and threatening the flank of the Soulbound Phalanx. Realizing his mistake, Solaster the Wise quickly marched his army back to the town, only leaving a small force at the edge to guard their rear in case the Vauroda peasant militia attacked.   Meanwhile, the town's militia was taken by surprise, when they encountered the Onyx Order under command of Arton Falarr. Fabio Onyxson, commander of the Domaroda forces, quickly send a rider to the Soulbound Phalanx informing them of the ambush:

Ride your horse into the ground if you have to, but tell Solaster the Wise we're fighting the entire Onyx Order!
- Fabio Onyxson, to his personal messenger

He hastily ordered his soldiers into a defensive formation, fighting a skilled retreat through the streets of Domaroda. Even though the Onyx Order inflicted heavy casualties on the peasant militia, the commanding aura of Fabio Onyxson kept his forces from completely routing.   The tides turned when the fighting reached the town center, next to the famous bell tower of Domaroda, as it was now time for Fabio Onyxson to spring his trap. The bell tower itself was not a very impressive structure, but the golden bell it supported was of great value and a symbol of defiance against Vauroda. The bell, named the Echo of the Fallen, had caused the tower to tilt when it was installed. Although ringing the bell was possible, it was forbidden, as the risk of collapse was too great. However, Fabio now saw a great opportunity in the dangerous position he had lured the Onyx Order into, who were too focused on their relentless advance. The Echo of the Fallen would ring one more time in the defense of the city. The bell tolled three times, before the tower started to tilt. The mechanism holding the bell snapped, and the bell was released into a free fall. Fabio, still holding the rope connected to the bell, was propelled upwards along the falling tower. The tower came crushing down on the Onyx Order, right in the middle of their formation. To complete the chaos, Fabio, who stood on the tower when it was falling and now found himself in surrounded by enemies, fought with such ferociousness that Arton Falarr panicked and made the fatal mistake to pull back his army. While the retreat was mostly in good order, many could not follow as they were caught between the rubble of the tower and the peasant militia.   The outcome of the battle could still have gone both ways after the collapse of the bell tower. However, Arton's decision to pull back his forces cost him valuable time that he did not have. Solaster this Wise, having received the message of Fabio Onyxson, was alerted to the enemy position due to the ringing of the bell. Had Arton Falarr commited to his attack, he could have probably routed the peasant milita, and turn to face the Soulbound Phalanx. Now, he found himself dangerously exposed on two sides. He opted to fall back to a more defensible position, moving in a shield wall formation. However, the Soulbound Phalanx was able to push at a much higher speed than the retreat of the Onyx Order due to their extreme discipline, creating gaps in the shield wall that were exploited to great effect. When Arton Falarr tried to order a counterpush with his shield wall in order to break the pikes, the incredible cohesion of the Soulbound Phalanx did not allow the enemy soldiers to come close enough to pose a threat. The counterattack was poorly coordinated, resulting in chaos and a general rout followed.  

Aftermath

Although the allied forces had won the battle, it was at a great cost. The forces of Stellcida, arriving relatively late to the battle, only suffered minor casualties. In contrast, over half of the peasant militia of Domaroda was wiped out. While the Onyx Order suffered many casualties as well, they remain a formidable fighting force till this day. Their defeat at the hands of Fabio Onyxson did give rise to a faction that wishes to serve under Fabio Onyxson instead. It is unclear if the Onyx Order will remain loyal enough to strike at Domaroda for a second time.   The charge up the bell tower of Fabio Onyxson would be mythicized by the people of Domaroda, which would ultimately result in Fabio being crowned as their king. He is currently overseeing the development of Domaroda, including the reconstruction of the bell tower.