Identity
| WML ID | 23_Epilogue |
|---|---|
| Next scenario | null |
| Map | Reuses 21_The_Plan.map, 22 × 12 hexes |
| Turns | 1 |
| Theme / schedule | Cutscene_Minimal, afternoon |
| Team identity | Wesnothians |
| Archetype | Funeral, settlement council, and dynastic epilogue |
|---|---|
| Story importance | Conclusive |
| WML complexity | Moderate conditional dialogue |
| Combat | None |
| Campaign function | Names and founds Wesnoth |
Map reuse and memorial staging
The same 22 × 12 clearing used to plan Aethyr’s sacrifice becomes his funeral site. prestart changes hex 10,5 to road terrain and places items/flower2.png there as a memorial. The reuse gives the location a before-and-after meaning: first resolve, then remembrance.
Haldric is stored with kill=yes, fake-moved into the ceremony using his current advancement type, restored at 11,7, and the temporary haldric_s variable is cleared.
Funeral and the secret
Minister Edren conducts Aethyr’s funeral. Haldric credits the sacrifice with the victory and remembers Eldaric, Addroran, and the many dead. If any optional long-term companion remains—Edren, Burin, Ruddry, or Ladoc—Haldric asks for an oath of secrecy and reveals that the elves never received the Ruby.
| Companion | Future role |
|---|---|
| Burin | Returns to the dwarves, promotes settlement through the underways, and seeks distant dwarven peoples. |
| Minister Edren | Preserves learning and plans a new order of magi. |
| Sir Ruddry or Sir Ladoc | Plans a new order of knights under the new Crown. |
Ruby and political aftermath
Jessene confirms that the Ruby remains hidden in the Troll Hole. Haldric decides to aid the elves against the orcs who failed to escape, partly to honor the pact and partly because the refugees depend on elven support during their first winter.
The artifact is not restored to Haldric’s attack list in the epilogue. The campaign closes with the Ruby concealed rather than returned to active use.
Settlement plan
| Decision | Long-term purpose |
|---|---|
| Build towns throughout the granted regions | Convert a refugee encampment into a permanent society. |
| Move the capital inland | Reduce vulnerability to another maritime invasion. |
| Help the elves against remaining orcs | Preserve the alliance and the first winter’s support. |
| Fuse the Green Isle peoples | Create one political community from Haldric’s and Jessene’s followers. |
Naming Wesnoth
Jessene derives the kingdom’s name from the old language:
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
Wesfolk | People of the West |
| Elven description | People of the west-north |
Wes Noth | The old-language form proposed for the new kingdom |
| Final name | Wesnoth |
Haldric accepts the title of first King of Wesnoth. He asks Jessene to remain beside him; she accepts, and the epilogue describes their descendants as mingling the two refugee ancestries.
Legend versus remembered history
The narration distinguishes the public epic, “The Breaking of the Pact,” from the fuller history shown by the campaign. Later generations remember Haldric’s betrayal of the elves but not all of the elves’ private intentions or the refugees’ desperation. The final narrator frames the campaign as the preserved true story of the kingdom’s rise.
Lessons for campaign authors
| Pattern | Reuse lesson |
|---|---|
| Reuse the planning map for a funeral | Return to a location after the consequence of the decision made there. |
| Condition companion futures on survival | Give optional long-lived units individual conclusions without requiring separate epilogues. |
| Let mechanics remain unresolved when the story demands it | The Ruby attack stays removed because the artifact remains hidden. |
| Close personal, political, and historiographic arcs together | The marriage, kingdom, institutions, and later legend all emerge from prior scenario state. |