'The Expedition to Sindya'

A Flintloque Background Article by Danny O'Hara

Follow the exploits of Captain Sir Artur Blenkinsorc as he braves deserts, dinosaurs, hostile lizardmen, and intrigue in the little know continent of Sindya...

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As recounted elsewhere (in the Gobliana Joonz scenario) the Hippyladen Mountains separate the Othari lands proper from their more contested holdings in the Valley of Nippl. This area is populated by a mixture of Othari and Goblins, who are a fairly lawless lot, and beyond the valley (and beyond even token Othari control) lies the Great Desert of Tamarind. An expanse of desolate terrain, with only the occasional Othari or Goblin bandit as population, there is a hazardous passage through the Desert, following a trail of unreliable oases, to the fabled Kingdom of Sindya.

Until recently, few outside the Tamarind tribesmen had travelled to Sindya, and little was known except for stories and legends. It was with this in mind that the HEVC decided to organise an expedition to investigate trading possibilities with Sindya. Placing this under the command of Captain Sir Artur Blenkinsorc, a small exploring party was assembled in the HEVC station at Utternomore, Nippl Valley. With Blenkinsorc went a company of Nippleze and an Othari tribesman from the Tamarind - Kemal Otterturk - who apparently knew the route. He spoke some of the Sindyan tongue, and described the inhabitants as "coloured lizards of different sizes - some riding larger lizards". He said that they were primitive, but fierce and numerous, with "riches beyond compare". With a well-stocked camel-train, the expedition set off into the Tamarind. After many incidents and mishaps, Blenkinsorc returned and made his report. The information given here is mainly from his diary:

The Tamarind Crossing

Many perils stand before the traveller attempting to cross the Great Tamarind Desert. Lack of water, lack of fodder for animals, sudden sandstorms which can strip flesh from bone, lack of permanent trails to follow, wells and oases which give water one day, and dust the next... Then, if you survive all of that, there are always the desert lions and Tamarindi nomads to contend with. The HEVC expedition was led through these by the competent, if surly, Kemal Otterturk, but within a day's march of Sindya they came upon a party of Othari nomads - apparently mortal enemies of Kemal - who shot him, stole a couple of camels, and rode off! There was nothing for it but to move on to Sindya, but they had lost their only guide.

Entering The Land of Sindya

The ragged and dejected party then found their way to the borders of Sindya, where they encountered a border-post manned by Lizardmen the size of Orcs. Fortunately, their officer spoke a dialect of Nippleze - with a hissing, sibilant quality - and Blenkinsorc was able to communicate with them. He told the officer that he was a representative of "The Great Green King" of Albion. The officer admitted that he knew nothing of Albion, and assumed that the party was here to offer tribute to the "Emperor of the Pterodactyl Throne", Aurangootan. Blenkinsorc diplomatically stated that he was an emissary of peace, rather than a supplicant - at this the officer commented that the best thing was to send these strangers to Djelli, and let the Emperor's staff decide for themselves. He organised an escort of sleek Lizardmen, riding larger lizards, and a guide who spoke Nippleze. The party set off into the unknown (for Blenkinsorc and the Nippleze) amongst chittering Lizardmen.

The country was hot, but humid after the desert. Several large rivers crossed the fertile plain through which they passed, and the land was green with lush vegetation. Soon, Blenkinsorc saw a sight which amazed him - a huge horned lizard, the size of a house, pulling palm-logs along the road under the direction of a small Lizardman driver. He was told that the creature was a Stegosaurus, a common beast of burden also used in war, and not a particularly impressive specimen. The guide was amused that Blenkinsorc had not seen such a creature before.

The party arrived at Djelli a few days later, and were quartered in a wing of one of the palaces - built in the unique style of Sindya - though there were guards on the doors to prevent them leaving. After a few more days of frustrating delay, Blenkinsorc was ushered into the presence of a large, heavily-built Lizardman with rich body colouration. This personage had a very patronising conversation (via an interpreter) with Blenkinsorc in which he told the Orc officer that the Emperor would be pleased to accept tribute from Albion, in return for not crushing the Orcs underfoot. Blenkinsorc replied that he was not here to offer tribute, but to negotiate trade agreements, and that Sindya could offer no real threat to Albion. With a hissing which Blenkinsorc took for laughter, the official stated that the Emperor would make it his business to find and defeat Albion if necessary, using the infinite resources at his disposal. At this, Blenkinsorc commented that His Monstrosity, King Gorge of Albion, had huge armies equipped with firearms, which could descend on Sindya and utterly destroy it, if he had a mind. Reaching an impasse, the two officers side-tracked a little.

The Lizardman stated that firearms were really just a gimmick weapon for low-life such as the Tamarindis, and what sort of firearm could destroy a majestic Stegosaurus? King Gorge's artillery could lay low castles, let alone Stegosaurs, replied Blenkinsorc. At this, the Orc was ushered out of the official's presence, and back to his quarters. Here, he found that his entire Nippleze company had been flayed alive in the courtyard! No-one would tell him why, but an officer met him later and explained that his insulting tone with the Lizardman official had demanded recompense, but that under Sindyan law a legal representative of a foreign power was not subject to direct reprimand in such cases - so his servants were punished instead. Blenkinsorc decided then and there that he had to leave Sindya quickly!

Flight Across Sindya

Gathering his belongings, and armed only with a pistol and sword, Blenkinsorc managed to climb out of a window and set about making his escape. Having served in Al-Garvey, he was familiar with riding lizards - and knew that the night was not a good time to use one! He also decided that the Lizardmen would most likely be inactive as well...

Luckily, he found his horse quite easily, then set out for the Tamarind Desert at full speed. He spent several days avoiding Lizardman patrols, stealing food, and generally living on his nerves. Almost captured on several occassions, and finding - almost fatally - that the lizardmen could smell him better than they could see him, Blenkinsorc finally found his way to the Tamarind Desert. Now he just had to cross that!

Filling several skins with water, he set out into the great desert, hoping to hit upon an oasis or well before long. But he had no idea where he was heading, nor even which direction he had left Sindya! After nearly a week, his horse collapsed and died, and only Orcish stamina and bloody-mindedness carried Blenkinsorc forwards. But when even this ran out, and with his water long finished, the officer lay down to die in the shifting sands...

But fate took a hand, and a party of Tamarindis found him. Knowing that there were Orcish agents in Nippl, and that they sometimes traded guns and ammunition with the tribesmen, they decided to take him and trade him, rather than just slit his throat. Thus Blenkinsorc arrived in the HEVC station at Nillygilly, tied across the back of a camel...

The HEVC now has to decide what to do about Sindya - do they ignore it, or send a stronger party to force trading agreements upon the Lizardmen? It looks like adventure and intrigue (as well as horrible deaths) await the next batch of Orcish adventurers!

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Webmaster's Notes

The above Flintloque background was originally published on Danny O'Hara's excellent Flintloque website, Weird Wars, way back on the 16th March 2000.

The scenario was first published on Orcs in the Webbe in November 2008. It was absent for several years due to a prior regeneration of the website not transferring everything over correctly. That wrong has now been righted and it returned in it's original form on the 3rd December 2024 as the third entry in that year's Advent Calendar and, of course, is part of Orcs in the Webbe's ongoing Flintloque Archive Project.

Danny passed away some years ago and I miss both him and his fantastic contributions to the world of Valon. 

Any comments in maroon in the article above have been added by me either to provide additional information or clarity. I may also have made small changes to grammar and layout but have not marked these.

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