In early 1246 HK, the Dekàli Empire had achieved the zenith of its military power. Its armies had marched across three continents, its flags flew atop castles from eastern Vulmùra to the Eylfāe marches of the Central Vale, and its navies controlled ports from southern Tassèrus to the Iron Coast of Teréðor. Among all of these achievements, the Acèntyryr were most concerned with the elusive but devastating Orgàdragùlor.

The High King’s three dragul-ships were renown throughout the seas as the deadliest vessels afloat. The Alliance’s hope was to find one or more of the dreadnoughts in port, where they would be most vulnerable. The difficulty was that the ships were rarely found at port, their reputation in-part being related to their ability for long-distance travel and time-at-sea. With Vorádryr aboard, the Orgàdragùlor could stay at sea for years on end. So it was with some consternation that the Acèntyra-Eylfāe Alliance found only one ship during all of the Heart Campaign. A second ship was located in 5 DR and destroyed off the Kændàli coast, during the Time of Occupation. To this day, more than 650 years following the war, the third Orgàdragùl has not been sunk. This is not to say it has not been seen.

Sulyel

The Sulyel was discovered and destroyed in Lanàdus harbor. Unable to leave the docks, the great dreadnought instead became the site of a “land”-battle along the military wharf. Securely docked, the Sulyel was unable to direct its cannons by turning despite splintering the starboard mooring pier with a port volley. After determining the Sulyel’s restricted firing-angles, Acèntyri frigates amassed in the harbor and bombarded the ship with balls of pitch, fire, and eldritch bolts. When these proved ineffective, land units disembarked along the wharf and began setting fire to unlaunched ships. When they reached the Sulyel, the warship disgorged a battalion of armed soldiers.

The perimeter deck became the site of the Battle of Sulyel, one of the few “land”-battles fought in Lanádus. After a watch of sword-on-sword, the crew retreated into the ship and secured all hatches. Eylfāe infantry perforated the plated exterior with burrowing arrows while Acèntyri magicians began heating the Sulyel’s armor. Soon the screams of the Dekàli soldiers and crewman rose from the bowels of the armored ship. Rings and knockings against the heated plates testfied to the struggles of those within, though none escaped the seige. As the knockings lessened, bubbles boiled around the ship’s draught. Released depth-charges demolished piers, wharfs, and seawalls as a Lurdùrun rose from the Lanàdi harbor. The great Sulyel was consumed in light and fire alongside hundreds of Acèntyryr soldiers.

In Old Empire Lanàdus, Hero of Sulyel is an award granted posthumously to those who gave their lives in defense of the state or Empire. The award commemorates the Battle of Sulyel, not the hero which the ship was named after.

Terrud

The Terrud was discovered and destroyed off the coast of Kændal on the 16th of Vulūne in 5 DR. The ship was spotted several miles from shore, running north to south along the coast. Eylfāe ships launched from Kændal to intercept the vessel. An Aqōlàhqbāri submarine persued the craft for two days. Though the sea-Eylfāe were not members of the Alliance, many combed the Mar Dekàli in search of the ships’ bounty. On 18th of Vulūne, the Aqōlàhqbāri turned away, having suffered damage from Dragàmyri depth-charges. That evening, the Terrud was met by five Eylfāe and three Acèntyri ships. The nimble Terrud stopped, turned, and unleashed a devastating cannonade on the blockade. As the Alliance ships reeled and reassembled, the pyramidal Terrud pivoted to another side and unleashed a second volley of charged cannonballs. Three ships were engulfed with emerald fire before the first black tendrils reached the Dekàli vessel. The journal of Acèntyri Captain Fārágram described what happened next.

“The low sun made shadows from everything that was not burning in green flame. Men leapt from the decks of our sister ships, only to burn like bright torches sinking into the black abyss. As horrifying as drown-burning might be, every sailor on the ship knew about the Dekàli magics. No one was prepared for the weapons of the Eylfāe. While balls of green flame arched through the dark sky with every turn of the Terrud, the remaining Immortal ships spat threads of black-liquid at the dread pyramid. At the end of each thread was a creature bred from nightmare, which clung to the ship’s armored shell and began tearing the plates from its frame as storms pulls thatch from a farmhouse. Fear crept into the faces of my crew as we drew nearer to the Terrud. None of my men had ever encountered the monsters, but everyone knew what they were. These were the denizens of nightmare, the predators of Nightsdeep that sought the dreaming minds of frightened youth. The Eylfāe attacked the Dekàlyr with Grū. For many years, we’d rallied against the inexorable Empire, believing that their Dragul-loving kings and armies needed to be removed from the world. But now, we wondered which monsters were worse.”

The Orgàdragùl Terrud was breached and disabled. The ship continued south-by-southeast for two more days before it drifted to a stop. Eylfāe boarded the vessel and were observed emerging with large numbers of sick or dead Eylfāe. Once the Eylfāe were done, the Acèntyryr were permitted to board but none agreed for fear of remaining Grū. The Yrūnyr also challenged their ally’s plan to tow the craft back to port, fearing that the infestation might spread ashore. The Eylfāe relented and the Terrud was set torched without any Dekàli sailors ever emerging from the craft. The ship burned for a night and two watches, producing the most spectacular pyrotechnics ever witnessed by the Alliance crews. While the spectacle filled the sky with color and lights, each ship watched the horizons warily, for somewhere out there, a third ship waited.

Āúla

The Āúla was never caught. The dreadnought appeared in a number of maritime battles between 1246 HK and 15 DR, but after delivering devastating salvoes of cannon-fire, the ship remained elusive. The Āúla is recorded in Eylfāe histories as the machine responsible for the most Eylfāe deaths. There once surfaced reports that a ship of the Āúla’s dimensions lay on the submarine slopes of Uralū Sazularyū, but investigations never found the vessel.