Progress of the Seleran Wars in Peloria[]
The outline of the Seleran Wars in Peloria is unsatisfactory from a narrative point of view in both our major sources - the Redline History and the Fortunate Succession.
- Sheng Seleris has been active in Pent since 1355 ST. The Lunars would have been aware of what was happening, especially since a great horde was drawing off warriors to invade Kralorela, and his generals were invading Teshnos, Wastelands and the Kingdom of Ignorance since 1363 ST.
- The Seleran Army makes its way as far as the City of Yuthuppa before a major battle occurs in 1376 ST even though the invasion started in the previous year. No mention is made of battles in Rinliddi even though Torang lies over 75 miles from Yuthuppa and important to the lunar religion. It isn't the case that other battles are ignored here for immediately after the battle, the Lunar Empire raises two more armies, one from Sylila, both of which are destroyed. Since Rinliddi was the home of the goddess, the laxity in defending it looks strange.
- After the destruction of the armies, the Lunar Empire concentrates its efforts on attacking the river people, which apparently takes 12 years until 1387 ST. Why didn't the Selerans interfere?
- Having invaded in 1375 ST and taken Yuthuppa in the next year, Sheng Seleris does nothing noteworthy for the next 13 years until he wrestles with the Emperor at Glamour. Presumably he's sacking what he can find but if the Emperor is really providing resistance, wouldn't Sheng show up at the gates of Glamour sooner rather than allow him to cause trouble?
- A more plausible set of events may be that the war began as far back as 1363 ST when Seleran Generals invaded Rinliddi in the fierce lunar opposition. They were successful but lacked the forces to take the rest of Peloria. An uneasy peace settled in as the Empire resigned themselves to the loss of their Holy City while the Selerans sent word back to Sheng who didn't arrived until 1375 with the main horde.
- After the destruction of the three lunar armies, the Emperor surrendered to Sheng and was allowed to keep the silver shadow sultanate. He then began uniting the disaffected Dara Happans and revenging himself upon the treacherous river people, while keeping a facade of utmost loyalty towards Sheng. But in 1387 ST, he went too far and destroyed the River People, angering Sheng who then beseiged Glamour to punish the Emperor for the loss of an ally.
- But since Glamour was too well fortified, Sheng decided to wrestle with the Emperor to learn his weakness and then kill him with a tailored curse.
- The status of Sylila and Carmania are curious. The destruction is described as being less around Sylila but after the destruction of the River People, they are sending pirate fleets upriver attacking the nomads. Carmania is described as repelling raids during the wane. Why if they were posing resistance did Sheng not muster an army to sort them out?
- Looking at Sylila specifically, it had been attacked by the Opili Tribe whom it defeated with the Tarshites in 1375 ST. So why didn't Sheng send another army after he had taken Yuthuppa?
- Presumably after the Red Emperor had surrendered (if he ever had), Sylila and Carmania too made independent submissions of their own rather than avoid further action. Sylila was still recovering from the destruction of the army it had sent northwards and Carmania simply saw no reason to for pointless defiance. The raids it proudly claims to have repelled were simply Seleran bandits seeking plunder rather than organized military actions from the Seleran Empire.
- After wrestling with the Emperor, Sheng supposedly steals the worship of Kostaddi but doesn't use it for the next 54 years. Is this plausible?
- After the destruction of the River People, the Sylilan refugees formed an army which reinforces Alkoth preventing a second sack of that city in the next year (1388 ST). They then began a campaign of river piracy. So why didn't Sheng send an army overland to punish them? Admittedly he was besieging Glamour at the time but it isn't until 1397 ST that he experiences his first defeats.
- An explanation might be that the river piracy campaign was conducted by the Sylilan refugees in Alkoth rather than the Sylilans themselves who remained under the Seleran yoke. Not until 1397 ST do the Sylians impregnable actually send armies in the field against Sheng.
- Alkoth is impregnable. Yet the Sylilans are preventing a second sack of the city?
- The first sacking may have been Sheng paying a visit and unleashing an orgy of violence for magical purposes after the Emperor's surrender. The Sylilan refugees simply may have been trying to prevent Sheng from repeating the event with the simple device of closing the city walls to him.
- So in the years 1388 until 1397, the only overt show of resistance is from the River Pirates operating out of Alkoth. They receive covert support from other cities on the river. Glamour although defiant is largely constrained as even the Redline History speaks about problems in travelling from the River to the City and back again.
- Matters change in 1397 with the release of Yara Aranis. She builds a temple outside Glamour to tempt the Selerans into sacking it. Once successful in capturing her first slave, she builds another at Good Shore which is an attempt to secure communication between Glamour and the River Pirates. In the same year, the Sylilans send an army north to Alkoth and Glamour sends an army south. Yet Sheng does not respond for another eight years?
- Sheng may have simply been out of the country at the time, reacting to problems elsewhere or casting a lengthy ritual for his own purposes. Another question is why the local Selerans didn't punish Sylila after it sent an army into Alkoth. Presumably the army was a furtive reinforcement of the River Pirates rather than an overt show of strength. Perhaps it could have been portrayed to the Seleran Rulers as a mass pilgrimage which fought off those that tried to loot it.
- In 1405 ST, Sheng attacks Yara Aranis at the Good Shore Temple, fails, and loses a quarter of his followers in 1406 ST. He's now in the country but doesn't do anything more until 1415 ST which is another nine years.
- He's described as sending away all the tribes who had been panicked by Yara Aranis and sends for their cousins and other people. He's also described as spending 'part of the year' in the sky. He had already fought the Emperor and Yara Aranis once so he's making thorough preparations.