Nothing is more sacred than one's homeland, and that includes any great empires or flying dragons that want to try to make your place their's. This battle features two warriors who know how to tell a royal conqueror to make tracks and go away. Stormcloaks, the rebels of Skyrim who fight to take back their independence from a decaying Empire and the nefarious Aldmeri Dominion! Dornishmen, the warriors of House Martell and the sands of Dorne that refused to bend the knee to Aegon the Conqueror or his dragons! The battle-hungry Nords face off with the desert vipers of Dorne, but when the snow and sand settle, only one gets to be...
THE DEADLIEST WARRIOR!!!
Stormcloaks[]
| “ | Skyrim is for the Nords!
— Average Stormcloak racist
|
” |
A rebellious faction of Nord civilians in Skyrim, the Stormcloaks began when their appointed leader, Ulfric Stormcloak, created a militia to aid the Jarl of the Reach in putting down an uprising of Reachmen. In return for his aid in retaking the city, the Jarl promised that Talos worship would be permitted in its hold, Markarth. However, when the Imperial Legion returned to protect the city, they renewed enforcement of the White-Gold Concordat that banned the worship of Talos. Ulfric and his men were briefly arrested for the worship of Talos, during which Ulfric's father died and he became Jarl. Furious at the Empire's betrayal and sensing an opportunity, Ulfric challenged Skyrim's king to a duel for the throne, killing him and plunging Skyrim into civil war.
The Stormcloaks took up residence in Windhelm, beginning a country-wide campaign against the Imperial occupiers while allowing racists to fester in their main city. The two factions remain at a stalemate until the Dragonborn, requiring the aid of Whiterun's Jarl, brings the two forces into a ceasefire while they deal with the return of Alduin. Once Alduin is killed, the two sides start fighting again, with the Dragonborn ultimately siding with the Imperial Legion. With the Dragonborn at their enemies' side, the Stormcloaks rapidly lose territory until the Legion marches on Windhelm itself. After a vicious day of fighting, the city is taken and Ulfric captured, where the Dragonborn personally executes him for treason.
Equipment:
- Primary - Steel Battleaxe: A double-headed battle axe made of steel. Despite its heavier nature, Stormcloak warriors wield their axes with speed just as much as strength.
- Sword - Steel Sword: A steel sword with rugged curves at the bottom of its blade and a fine wooden grip. A common weapon, good for slashing or stabing.
- Ranged - Long Bow: A longbow that shoots arrows fast but has a small draw weight. Every Stormcloak soldier is a skilled archer and has a longbow ready to use from a range.
- Armor - Stormcloak Cuirass: A set of armor that consists of a blue sash that wraps around the quilted armor underneath, with leather belts fastening around the torso. Underneath the quilted leather is a layer of chainmail for extra protection. The Stormcloaks also wear fur boots and gloves, and a metal face guard and leather.
Dornishmen[]
| “ | "Unbowed, unbent, unbroken." The words of House Martell. A promise to our enemies, and a challenge to our lovers.
— Chad Oberyn Martell
|
” |
Citizens of the deserts that compose the true south of Westeros, the Dornish are a kingdom of the Seven Kingdoms. Thanks to its geographic isolation provided by the deserts, the Dornish are an exotic people to the rest of Westeros, with its current leaders - the Martells - taking rulership after Queen Nymeria led her people from their homeland in Essos to Dorne. Nymeria allied with local Lord Mors Martell, and the pair conquered the rest of the peninsula under Nymeria's rule. Three hundred years later, when Aegon I Targaryen and his dragons attempted to do the same, the Dornish warriors held their ground, using the deserts and their mountains to force the Targaryens to a draw, retaining their freedom for centuries until King Daeron II arranged a marriage alliance with the Martells, finally introducing Dorne to the Seven Kingdoms.
Once a part of the Seven Kingdoms, Dorne and her soldiers proved loyal allies to the Targaryens, siding with them during Robert's Rebellion. Despite incumbent Prince Doran Martell's reluctance due to the Rhaegar Targaryen's treatment of his sister Elia, the Dornish sent 10,000 men to aid the Targaryens. In the aftermath of the war, when Elia and her children were brutally killed in the sack of King's Landing, Oberyn Martell attempted to raise a rebellion on behalf of the Targaryens, though this was quickly dismissed by Doran. With bruised egos and disdainful of King's Landing and its politics, the Dornish returned south, waiting for a chance at revenge.
Equipment:
- Primary - Spear: Dornish warriors are renowned for their spearmanship, with the traditional Dornish spear featured a six-foot wooden shaft with a two-foot leaf-shaped spearhead narrowing to a spike.
- Sword - Scimitar: Many Dornish soldiers wielded scimitars as their primary sword, with a curved steel blade that allows easily for slashing but with a sharp enough tip to thrust as well.
- Ranged - Recurve Bow: Dornish archers wielded double-curved bows, and were known as respected archers that could fire on horseback as well as foot.
- Armor - Leather Tunic: Due to the intense heat of the Dornish deserts, the Dornish soldier typically wore a leather tunic, with hardened leather serving as chestpieces and shoulder guards as well as leather gauntlets. They were also known to use simple round metal shields.
X-Factors[]
X-Factor - Stormcloaks / Dornish
Experience - 80 / 50
The Stormcloak rebellion has been raging for over 20 years, with varying bouts of intensity until its conclusion. By that virtue, many of its members consist of both veteran warriors who fought alongside Ulfric even during the Markarth Incident, and younger soldiers made up of farmers and miners who joined within the year. The soldiers of Dorne remained neutral during the War of the Five Kings, ostensibly loyal to the Crown but keeping its warriors out the fighting. Thus, while their guards are well-rested and prepared, few have seen any heavy combat, save for veterans of Robert's Rebellions or those that have dealt with occasional bandits or pirates.
Training - 75 / 90
Thanks to the scattered nature of the Stormcloak rebellion, training amongst its soldiers is inconsistent. While every Nord is taught the basics of combat, those that join up have neither the resources nor the time to devote to any significant training before having to leap into action against the Imperial Legion, where experience becomes the teacher. The Dornish training regimes are overseen and run by Areo Hotah, one of the finest warriors in the Seven Kingdoms. His training matches that reputation, where every Dornish soldier is skilled in a variety of weapons of high skill such as bows, spears, and sabers.
Logistics - 65 / 80
The Stormcloak rebellion is supported by several Jarls in Skyrim, but given the vast size of the country that results in resources being spread thinly. Most Stormcloak soldiers are forced to bring their own weapons to the fight, using their family swords or axes and simple longbows better designed for hunting than combat. Dorne has sat out the War of the Five Kings and thus its soldiers are well-funded and armed for battle. They have the resources to sail their troops to Westeros during Robert's Rebellion with ease, while maintaining enough manpower to protect its lands and interests.
Notes[]
- Full votes require well-written edges with a minimum of seven complete sentences total OR a detailed explanation of at least ten complete sentences.
- Half-votes are the previously mentioned requirements sans the "well-written" requirement.
- Votes with little to no reason, bias, or irrelevant information will not count at all.
- All votes must contain proper grammar and spelling.
- All votes must clearly express a winner/tie to ensure proper tallying of votes.
- These requirements are abstract; I reserve the right to count or discount votes depending on their individual merit.
- My rebuttal policy is as follows; an initial valid rebuttal will reduce a vote to half, and a particularly outstanding rebuttal will reduce it to nothing. The first counter-argument, if adequate, will raise the vote back to full value. Going forward from there, all rebuttals and counter-arguments will only affect a vote if I believe it does so adequately.
- I reserve the right to be the sole judge of whether a rebuttal or counter-argument is adequate to effect a vote's value.
- I will communicate a vote's status primarily through Discord, or through commenting if you do not use Discord.
- Rebuttals will no longer be accepted on the final day of voting, unless the initial vote is completed one day before the deadline. Rebuttals for those votes are acceptable until the day after voting ends. Counter-arguments against these rebuttals will not be accepted after the official deadline unless that vote's status determines the winner.
- If a rebuttal only expresses a disagreement and does not point out an explicitly wrong or erroneous aspect of the vote, it will not reduce a vote's worth. I reserve the right to determine whether such a rebuttal meets that threshold.
- Voting ends at 11:59 PM EST on December 15, 2024.
- Late votes will be accepted if they are started prior to the final day and are finished within one hour of the deadline's passing.
The battle will be a standard six versus six match on a neutral travel route.
Battle[]
No battle written.
Expert's Opinion[]
Despite the rigorous and effective training of the Dornish soldiers, voters agreed that the Stormcloaks' experience in real battle - as opposed to the far more limited domestic security work of this era of Dornish warrior - was more than enough to tip the balance in their favor.