Merging CM1 and M2 wars: a unified timeline for the War of the Crown of Norwold
by LoZompatoreWhat follows is my own interpretation of the events of the War of the Crown of Norwold, as detailed in CM1 and M2 modules.
Also added details on the relationship between the War of the Crown and M1 module events, and a suggestion for a possible connection with M4 module.
First of all, it is my opinion that the war described at the end of both modules is actually the same conflict, as seen from two slightly different perspectives: the one related to king Norlan of Qeodhar's (and Alphaks') treachery in M2 and the one related to Thyatis versus Alphatia conflict in CM1, with M2 providing a broader frame in which the events of CM1 may be set.
Notice also that most units of CM1 and M2 army roosters are identical and that the Thyatian battle plan is very similar in both modules. It is also feasible to merge CM1 Encounter 5 (the Crones of Krystakk) and the incipit of the War of the Crown in CM1 within the longer timeline of events of M2 module.
In my opinion there is also a canonical ending of the War of the Crown, selected among the possible endings of M2 module (page 23), which explains the status of Norwold after WotI. In fact, by comparing the description of the royal court, of the married conditions of king Ericall and of the number of available military units of CM1 with the status of the same things in the subsequent products (DotE, PWAs and the Joshuan Almanac) I believe that all differences fit with the M2 ending where the 155th Alphatian expeditionary Division is sent to Norwold and occupies Alpha (see below on the article for details).
A note about the Alphatian prince in the petty nobles' fleet:
M2 page 20 states as follows (potential capture of the Alphatian nobles can also be performed by Thyatis, not only by the PCs):
Within the baron’s troops that conduct the first raids are 12 young Alphatian nobles, one of whom is the youngest son of the empress. His presence is unknown to all but Baron Norlan and Thincol the Brave. Each time the baron loses a battle, 1d4 nobles may be captured by the PCs’ forces. The imperial prince will be among the prisoners with a score of 1 on 1d12.
According to DotE the youngest son of Eriadna is Tredorian, but DotE itself (page 26 of DM's manual) states that Tredorian was captured by Alphatian agents during a pub-crawl in Alpha (in AC 998 or AC 999) while he was visiting his brother Ericall with the hope of gaining a dominion in Norwold. The agents were later executed by Emperor Thincol because they acted without orders and put the crown of Thyatis under embarassment.
Another possibility is that the prince mentioned in M2 is Farian, as per DotE page 74:
When his younger half-brother Farian was visiting Norwold, a Thyatian raiding expedition captured and carried off the young man - and Farian remains in Thyatis still, much to Ericall's embarrassment.
This event mentions a Thyatian raiding party so it is more in tune with the capture of Alphatian nobles by Thyatian attack forces described in M2. Of course we need to interpret the sentence 'visiting Norwold' in a rather aggressive way, as the prince was actually raiding Norwold settlements. Notice also that, as per DotE information, Tredorian is a full brother of Ericall (not his half-brother), so Farian should be a different person.
If Farian is identified with the Alphatian prince of M2 then, as per M2, he is another son of Empress Eriadna, younger than Tredorian (who is only 17 years old in AC 1000). The fact that Farian was travelling in secret and that his identity is known only to high-ranking people (king Norlan and Emperor Thincol) lets me think that this prince was someway disowned by Empress Eriadna and forced to live a very low-profile life - or, maybe, he is just a foolish teenager. In both cases, his secret presence in the Alphatian fleet could be an act of insubordination and rebellion to his mother.
In the following I assume that the Alphatian prince is Farian, that he is actually captured by Thyatian forces during M2 events, that Thincol tries to use him as trade goods to prevent Alphatian intervention in Norwold and that, to the Emperor's dismay, Empress Eriadna does not cede to Thyatian requests and lets him into Thyatian hands.
King Norlan's strategy:
As stated in M2 (page 2 and page 20) king Norlan's official position is to loot Norwold main settlements as retribution for Norwold’s increasing acts of independence and declining tax revenues to Alphatia.
Even if his actions are not officailly sanctioned by the Alphatian Council or by the Empress, king Norlan enlisted the aid of 12 petty Alphatian nobles who will be entitled with a large share of the loot (M2 page 20). Moreover, prince Zandor of Alphatia lent his flying castle to aid in the operations against his despised half-brother Ericall.
Unbeknownst to Alphatia, king Norlan has already betrayed the Alphatians and signed a secret alliance with Thyatis. Norlan already 'kidnapped' Mariella, the yougest daughter of Empress Eriadna (DotE, M1) to marry her against the will of her mother (*). Fearing retaliation, he ensured protection by the Empire of Thyatis in case of an Alphatian invasion of Qeodhar (see M1 module, page 2) but, in turn, king Norlan must work for Thyatis by easing the Thyatian invasion of Norwold. Norlan's plan is to conquer as many major coastal settlements of Norwold as possible and then to hand them to the approaching Thyatian expeditionary forces.
In truth, in all of this, king Norlan is just following the wicked suggestions of the Immortal Alphaks, who wishes to cause a major war between the two empires to destroy the hated Alphatians.
Starting date for the War of the Crown:
As per both CM1 and M2 descriptions, the war of the Crown starts in early spring, with earlier events (Chapters 1-3 of M2 module and Encounter 5 of CM1) happening during late winter.
Based on other references in canon (see here for details) a suitable moment of the year for the events to start is during the first months of AC 999, possibly during month 3 (Thaumont).
Placement of M1 Events in relationship with CM1 and M2:
(*) Mariella's kidnapping just happened at the prelude of M1 module: while en route to Farend for a retaliatory expedition (due to false proof provided by Alphaks that the poisonous grey fogs shrouding Norwold since the previous month are an attack by the kingdom of Qeodhar) the combined four fleets of Norwold and Oceansed may meet the 10 ships of Norlan's merchant fleet returning from the Alphatian continent, with king Norlan in command and princess Mariella hidden in Norlan's ship under the false identity of Hyldeborg (see M1 pages 5 and 6). As per M1 this encounter is set in summer, with icebergs already floating north of the Great Bay (page 5), so it must be late summer.
Notice that, at the end of M1 (page 29, first column) when the PCs accomplish their final mission in Alphaks' Volcano, the Immortal Vanya sends them back in time before the beginning of the module but in an alternate reality where the grey fogs from Alphaks' Volcano never happened and the retaliatory fleets never sailed to Qeodhar.
The stranded PCs are collected by king Norlan's merchant fleet while en route to meet Empress Eriadna in Alphatia (and kidnap princess Mariella). King Norlan - who still does not know the PCs - leaves them in a Norwold port of their choice before sailing to Alphatia. While on board the PCs have the opportunity to persuade Norland to return to Qeodhar, but the official ending (as per DotE and M2) is that Norlan does not listen to them.
Now, the kidnapping of Mariella is the origin of king Norlan's secret request for protection to Thyatis (and, in turn, of Thyatis' request to Norlan to help the Empire to take Norwold) and, from M2, we know that Norlan started looking for allies in conquering Norwold settlements at least six months before the beginning of M2 (which starts in month 3 of AC 999) as per 'week 2' entry in timeline below.
In conclusion, I guess that a suitable date for the beginning (and the end) of M1 events should be late summer of AC 998: month 8 could be a good choice, approx. shortly after the marriage between king Ericall and Christina Marie Alanira described in CM1.
Said so, see below my best version of how the events should unfold.
I guess this timeline might be useful as a background of the events in Norwold where the PCs are not directly involved.
Timeline of the events:
Note: In my list below 'Week 1' corresponds to week 1 events of Chapter 4 of M2 module (i.e. Norlan surprise attack of Oceansend).
Week -3: Chapter 1 of M2: The crones of Krystakk send five dreams to the PCs predicting an incoming war which will involve the kingdom of Qeodhar and the Empire of Thyatis, treason by supposedly allied forces, quarrels with a neighbour (possibly Cogier de Mory) which are set aside against a greater menace, and raids of the Alphatian flying castle over Norwold. Shortly after the dreams there is an attack of an army of rogue fire giants and two red dragons (all under the influence of Alphaks) to a PC's dominion or to a friendly NPC's dominon at the settlemnt of Dawn Rising. The wandering cleric Lambert Bohn offers his help to the PCs in locating the fire giants' main camp and also the supposed fire giants' overlord, the caotic cleric Cogier de Mory. During the battle, Alphaks removes the Girdle of De'Rah, a powerful artifact, from Lambert Bohn's possessions and moves it to the main castle of the attacked dominion. The new location of the artifact is immediately known to Cogier, who will try to seize it with his own party of fire giants. When faced by the PCs, Cogier will try to negotiate with them and, if negotiation fails, he will flee to his lair. Lambert Bohn leaves as soon as he is back in possession of the Girdle of De'Rah and the fire giants attacking the dominion are routed.
Week -2: Chapter 2 of M2: Continuation of Chapter 1 of M2 if negotiations with Cogier fail. The PCs reach Cogier's Lair and try to storm it. Notice that Cogier keeps several prisoners to be used as human sacrifices to his Immortal patron, so the PCs might find difficult to ally with him later on. When faced in his lair, Cogier attempts again a negotiation, this time offering an army of fire giants to support the PCs in case of war in Norwold. Six months before this event Cogier had a meeting with king Norlan of Qeodhar who tried to recruit him as an ally in a raid to Oceansend and other Norwold locations, but negotiations were unsuccessful. Cogier knows of - and has taken notes about - a rendezvous point of King Norlan's allies close to Oceansend where they are expected to meet in the following 2 weeks. The PCs have the opportunity to warn king Yarrvik of Oceansend of the impending attack on his city if they manage to reach Oceansend at least three days before king Norlan's forces disembark on the rendezvous point.
Week -2 (end) to week 0: Chapter 3 of M2: A few days after Chapters 1 and 2, the dominion of each PC is hit by a disaster (the murder of a PC's favourite henchman - whose body is then moved to the Alphatian flying castle for a ransom, see below; an usurper metamorph posing as the PC; raiders from a nearby NPC dominion led by false information spread by Alphaks; an earthquake caused by Earthquake Beetles). As per M2 module the murder of the henchman happens at week -1 (two months and a half before combat week 9) and a ransom for the body is asked to the PC by a mujina, who can be captured to learn about the location where the ransom will be collected. For the dominion hit by the earthquake, at least a week of direct PCs interventions (possibly the whole of week 0) is necessary to prevent looting and excessive damage to the local economy. During this week the PCs have the opportunity to find and enter the underground system of tunnels of the Earthquake Beetles and defeat them (by solving several puzzles prepared by Alphaks) before the Beetles can move and create havoc to another location.
Week 1: Chapter 4 of M2: Two weeks after the events of Chapter 2, King Norlan of Qeodhar and his allies (a fleet of petty Alphatian nobles and Thonian horsemen raiders embarked on a transport fleet from Minrotahd) sailing from the east try a surprise attack on Oceansend by disembarking at the rendezvous point close to the city (see Week -2 entry above). Traitors in Oceansed try to open the gates of the city and to have the leaders of the defenders drugged at the moment of the surprise attack. The traitors' plan is foiled if the PCs manages to reach Oceansend and warn king Yarrvik at least three days before Norlan disembarks. As soon as the surprise attack fails, Norlan remains to siege the city with the Thonian raiders (and the transport fleet from Minrothad at hand) for five more weeks, while sending the petty Alphatian nobles' fleet to siege Landfall. Notice that, so far, the kingdom of Norwold is still not involved in the war and the whole event appears as an attempt by a group of independent Alphatian forces and mercenaries to seize the city of Oceansend.
Week 2 (mid): Chapter 4 of M2: The flying castle of Zandor (allied with Norlan) reaches the coast of Norwold north of the mouth of the Landsplit river. It is flying at full speed (96 miles /day) towards its inital attack position on the southern coast of the Great Bay, west of the peninsula of Alpha. The castle's crew does its best to avoid detection by flying high among the clouds, and the castle does not descend nor attack until the initial position is reached some 10 days later.
Week 4: Chapter 4 of M2: A fleet of pirates of Minaea (allied with Norlan) sailing from the south attempts to capture Landfall, joined by the petty Alphatian nobles' fleet which left Oceansend three weeks before. The Alphatian flying castle reaches the inital attack position (see entry above) and raids for the following 4 weeks the dominions of Norwold most loyal to king Ericall. In this phase the flying castle favors surprise attacks on the supply lines of the dominions, landing near villages to loot and take hostages and then flying away. The castle is led by a lich with a nightwalker (follower of Alphaks) as helmsman. Again, by this time the kingdom of Norwold appears to be under attack by pirates and raiders put together by king Norlan and by some Alphatian nobles in an independent act of retaliation on behalf of the Alphatian Empire. Nor Thyatis nor the Alphatian Crown itself are still involved in the conflict.
Week 5 (early): Chapter 4 of M2: Landfall is captured by Norlan forces, with the fleet of pirates of Minaea remaining to occupy the city, while the petty Alphatian nobles' fleet - after looting the city - moves to Helskir for repair and resupply (they reach Helskir in 10 days). Landfall’s surviving forces (including Lernal the Swill) surrender and remain in the city under king Norlan's control. The flying castle performs for 4 more weeks further raids on king Ericall's allied barons and supply routes, then it moves to a specific location in Norwold to collect a large ransom supposed to be paid by a PC to the mujina involved in the events of week -2 (see also the events of Week 9 below).
Week 6 (early): Chapter 4 of M2: King Norlan and the Thonian raiders fail to conquer Oceansend; they embark on the Minrothad transport fleet and move to Helskir for repair and resupply. They reach Helskir in 3 days.
Week 6 (mid): Chapter 4 of M2: King Norlan reaches Helskir with his Thonian raiders, the Minrothad fleet and the petty Alphatian nobles' fleet, the latter reacing Helskir at the same time of Norlan's forces. They all stay in Helskir for a full week. At the same time half of the Minaean force of pirates set sail from Landfall to Alpha. Between week 6 and week 10 the only menaces to the kingdom of Norwold are the occupation of Landfall by a reduced force of Minaean pirates and the raids of the flying castle.
Week 7 (mid): Chapter 4 of M2: King Norlan forces in Helskir (Thonian raiders, Minrothad fleet and petty Alphatian nobles' fleet) set sail to Alpha. Possibly by this time king Ericall gives the order to the PCs to intercept and stop the raids of the flying castle. At the same time king Ericall may give order to the Royal Fleet of Norwold under admiral Dolnarys to set sail to Landfall to liberate the city. This would explain why Norlan forces manage to reach Alpha by sea unopposed during week 10. The Royal Fleet of Norwold will reach Landfall from Alpha in 4 weeks.
Week 9: Chapter 4 of M2: The PCs have the opportunity to storm the flying castle when it lands close to a specific village of Norwold - possibly not far from a PCs' dominion - where it is expected to collect the ransom for the body of the PC's henchman murdered during week -2. The PCs may learn of this location during week -2, when a mujina asks the ransom to the PC who rules the dominion. The PCs cannot reasonably control the castle for a long time (not more than a few hours anyway) due to the large energy drain required to master it. As the flying castle is still in Zandor's possession in DotE (see page 51 of DM's Manual) then the most likely outcome is that the PCs are at best able to temporarily stop the castle by damaging (but not destroying) it during their attack.
Week 9 (end): Encounter 5 of CM1: Immediately after the attack on the flying castle (or during this week anyway) the PCs receive another set of dreams (up to six) from the Crones of Krystakk, this time with hints about the identities of the three crones and of the black fortress in which they reside. The Crones are trying to invite the PCs to their lair to test them and, if proven worthy, to advise them on the impending war. The PCs begin their journey to the remote black fortress of the Crones, where they will arrive in 5 weeks (this travelling time is not canon but it is necessary to prevent the PCs from being available to the king and to independently learn of the unfolding war during the events of weeks 10-14).
Week 10: Chapter 4 of M2: King Norlan's Thonian raiders (transported by the Minrothad support fleet) and the petty Alphatian nobles' fleet, pretty much unopposed on the sea, reach the city of Alpha in a surprise attack. They are joined by the half of Minaean pirates' fleet which set sail from Landfall during mid of week 6. This fleet reaches Alpha at the same time of the rest of Norlan's forces and takes part to the attack. If available, the flying castle is also present: the castle's tactics this time is to clear large areas quickly with artillery from the sky, to provide cover for a conventional attacking force (and possibly, ease the landing of embarked troops). The PCs should be on their way to the fortress of the Crones and they should not be aware of the surprise attack. The surprise attack ends in failure within a few days and king Norlan starts a three weeks' siege of Alpha.
Week 12 (early): Chapter 4 or M2 (inferred): The Royal Fleet of Norwold reaches Landfall and engages the Minaean pirates' half-fleet in the waters of the Bay of Landfall. Pirates' ships outnumber the Royal Flett ships 2 to 1 but they and their crews are of far lower quality. Pirates' tactics is to buy time and avoid a direct confrontation as long as possible for the other half of the fleet to join them.
Week 13: Chapter 4 of M2: The siege of Alpha by king Norlan is lifted and his forces in the area leave for the Beachhead north of Oceansend Marshes, which they reach in 11 days.
Week 15: Chapter 4 of M2: King Norlan's forces from the siege of Alpha reach the Beachhead and start fortifying it, with defensive positions facing land. The flying castle, if available, will start attacking the rear of any unit loyal to king Ericall sent towards the Beachhead. (Encounter 5 of CM1 and Chapter 4 of M2:) The Thyatian Advance Force is now close to Landfall, with the Thyatian War Squadron naval unit possibly engaging the Royal Fleet of Norwold in the bay of Landfall. Thyatian ships and crews of this squadron are worse than even the Minaean pirates, but now the Royal Fleet of Norwold is outnumbered 4 to 1. All pirates of Minaea still occupying the city of Landfall prepare to leave as quick as possible on the eve of Thyatian occupation of the city.
Week 16: Chapter 4 of M2: King Norlan shows his true colours and signals the Empire of Thyatis to take Landfall and the Bridgehead. The Thyatian Advance Force lands in Landfall, burning and plundering the surroundings, while all pirates of Minaea in the city flee by the sea and abandon the war. It is possible that 1d4 petty Alphatian nobles remained in Landfall since week 5; in this case they are captured by the Thyatian Advance Force and taken as hostages. (War of the Crown of CM1 and Chapter 4 of M2:) While the main Thyatian Expeditionary force (1st and 2nd Colonial Divisions plus their transport fleets combined) lands at the Beachhead, the Minaean pirates here follow their comrades of Landfall and flee to their homeland. Thonian raiders agree to fight under Thyatis' banner and remain at the Beachhead, while the transport fleet from Minrothad arranges with Thyatian authorities a safe passage back to Minrothad. Free passage to the Alphatian homeland is granted also to the petty Alphatian nobles' fleet, even if the Alphatian prince Farian and 1d4-1 more nobles are captured by the Thyatians and taken as hostages. Notice that the hostages may also include king Norlan (M2 page 21, first column) who is now without any unit personally loyal to him and is in a very difficult position as the Thyatian now consider it just as useful trade goods while both the Alphatians and the people of Norwold wants him dead. As in DotE and in PWAs Norlan is still listed as the king of Qeodhar, canonical ending of the event of week 16 should be that Norlan managed to flee the Beachhead hidden in a Minaean pirate ship.
Encounter 5 of CM1: The PCs reach Krystakk and are tested by the three Crones. If the PCs pass the test, the Crones provide them with three visions of what is happening at the moment: the landing of the Thyatian Advance Force to Landfall; the betrayal of one of the traitor barons - and his preparations to attack one of the PCs dominon; the approach of the Thyatian main expeditionary fleet to the Beachhead, with the warning by the Crones that this fleet soon will attack Alpha. NOTE: it is very likely that, after the meeting with the Crones, the PCs are quickly brought back to their dominions flying at 144 miles/day thanks to aerial servants summoned by the three Crones; without this help it is very likely that the PCs cannot take part to the war and defend their dominions in time.
Note: By week 16 'Norlan's phase' of the War of the Crown is completed and the rest of the operations are led by the Emperor of Thyatis Thincol.
Week 16 (mid): Chapter 4 of M2: The lich commanding the flying castle (if the castle is still available) realizes the treachery of king Norlan and returns to Alphatia, abandoning the conflict. By this time three barons of Norwold (Alak Dool, Longtooh, Max the First) have betrayed king Ericall, while other six barons (Trent the White, Bardeen Longwalker, Winnifred of the Lake, Adik de Chevas, Lucci Dhay, Delsel Oaktree) declare their neutrality on the eve of Thyatis' invasion. Three NPCs barons (Ernest Day, Rutger Dag, Allisia Patrician) immediately side with king Ericall. If the PCs managed to ally with Cogier de Mory during week -2, they have his unit of fire giants fighting on king Ericall's side.
War of the Crown of CM1: If the PCs managed to ally with Barkal the Red (Encounter 4 of CM1) or with the dwarves of Stormhaven (Encounter 3 of CM1) their units side with king Ericall as well.
M1 ending if Vanya scores a win: If the events of M1 led to a victory of the Immortal Vanya over Alphaks and Koryis then every PC who took part to the adventure may summon only once a mighty force of 50 dragons from the Wyrmsteeth Range which will fight on the PC's side in a single battle.
Week 17 (early): War of the Crown of CM1: By this time the units of the three traitorous baronies of Norwold have each reached a nearby loyalist dominion and are making preparations to attack them. King Ericall asks four loyal barons close to Oceansend to send their units to this city to assess its allegiance status and to intercept any hostile force that may come from there. If the total force of the barons does not reach 2000 troops, the king will provide the missing people from his personal troops.
Week 17 (mid): Chapter 4 of M2: The Emperor of Thyatis orders all Thyatian units at the Beachhead to board their transport ships and set sail to Alpha. The Thyatian Advance Force and the Thyatian War Squadron are in Landfall, too far to provide support, and they are ordered to hold the current positions. Remnants the Royal Fleet of Norwold may try to rush from Landfall back to Alpha, but they are too far to provide any relief to the city in time.
Week 19 (early): Chapter 4 of M2: The Emperor of Thyatis orders the Thonian raiders and the units of the three traitorous barons to disengage from previous operations and to attack Oceansend, while the bulk of the Thyatian army lands at Alpha and attempts to take the city. King Ericall asks all available units from loyal barons to reach Alpha and help breaking the siege.
Week 19 (end): War of the Crown of CM1: Possible showdown at Oceansend between the loyalist army of Norwold and the secondary units allied with Thyatis (Thonian raiders and traitorous barons' units). King Yarrvik will meet with his army the loyalists of Norwold out of the city. If a parlay can be arranged then Oceansend will declare its neutrality and the loyalists are asked to leave. As soon as the Thyatian allies reach the city of Oceansend, king Yarrvik will immediately attack them. Canon ending of this battle would be a total defeat of the Thyatian allies, possibly already weakened by the initial attack on Oceansend of week 1 (for the Thonian raiders) and by warfare with neighbouring dominions of weeks 16-19 (for the three traitorous barons).
Week 20 (end): Chapter 4 of M2: The Thyatians hold as hostages less than 6 Alphatian nobles: Norlan is not among the Alphatian hostages (see week 16 events), while Farian - contrary to M2 statement on page 21 that the imperial prince counts as 4 nobles - is disowned by the Empress and just counts as a single noble. For this reason Emperor Thincol is not able to negotiate the Alphatian non-intervention in the war. This in turn leads to the Alphatians sending the 155th expeditionary Division to Norwold through a magical gate. This mighty units exits the magical gate just north of Regent's Pass, ready to attack the Thyatians that are busy in the siege of Alpha.
Weeks 21+: Chapter 4 of M2: The Thyatians lift the siege of Alpha and withdraw their forces (including Landfall as well). The Alphatian 155th Division occupies the city of Alpha, destroying any opposing Norwold or Thyatian unit. King Ericall can keep his throne, but he must sign a treaty making Norwold a permanent colony of Alphatia, under full control of the empress. Madiera the Counselor is substituted by an adviser from Alphatia, that will remain in the Royal Palace to advise the king on the proper conducts of his realm. A strong Alphatian garrison, the strength of the Alphatian interventionist force, remains within the city for some time. The Queen's Guard - protector of Norwold's capital - is disbanded and the principal commanders of the Royal Army (and Navy) of Norwold are replaced with more trusted Alphatian officers. Fate of Queen Christina Marie Alanira remains unknown (possibly she rebels to the Alphatian interventionist force and is killed or exiled, that's why her personal unit is disbanded and she does not appear anymore in further official supplements).
Lernal the Swill is also reinstated on his seat following Thyatis' withdrawal and the flying castle of Zandor, if damaged and stranded in Norwold, is repaired and sent back to Alphatia.
Aftermath:
Overall, the War of the Crown is a stalemate for both Empires, with Thyatis unable to fully exploit Norlan's treachery to seize Norwold, and with Alphatia losing influence in the region and being forced to replace most of the original ruling cadres of Norwold to avoid further unrest.
King Norlan suffers a major defeat as his plan to exact revenge on the Alphatian Empire by having the Crown losing Norwold and have Norwold's king in disgrace is foiled by the forces of Norwold and Alphatia. Moreover, Norlan is abandoned by all his allies as soon as the Thyatians show up, to the point that he becomes just a useful hostage to the eyes of the Thyatian Emperor. Norlan manages to flee back to Qeodhar before being captured by the Thyatians, but now the promised Thyatian protection of Qeodhar is shaking at best and the Alphatian Crown definitely wants him dead.
King Ericall also lost most of his power in Norwold: several barons betrayed him or declared independance, he lost the Queen's Guard and most of the Navy and he was forced to accept humiliating peace conditions (including the loss of the Royal Counselor Madiera and of Queen Christina Marie Alanira) in order to keep the throne. He also did not manage to bring Oceansend on his side, while Leeha definitely slipped out of his (token) control. Only some scattered baronies are still loyal to the Crown of Norwold and they most likely need years to recover from the damage sustained in the war. Real control of the land is but a shadow of the original Alphatian claim of AC 985.
Possible connection of the Aftermath with M4 module:
The aftermath of the War of the Crown can be possibly connected with M4 module in the following way:
After the occupation of Alpha by the 155th expeditionary Division the Alphatians build the fortress-town of Lighthall on the coast halfway between Oceansend and Landfall. Remeber that, until approx. AC 1008, Helskir is, by all means, a Thyatian ally, so the Alphatians may need a reliable counterweight in the area to prevent another invasion from the south by Thyatis.
Following this philosophy, Lighthall's position is strategic for the control of the strait of Helskir, as it is the equivalent location of Helskir but on the northern coast of the strait instead of the southern coast.
Notice that in M4 Sir Theobold Redbeard - the leader of Lighthall dominion - is a loyal, no-nonsense former senior officer of the Legions of Alphatia (see M4 page 20). He might have received this strategic dominion directly from the Alphatian Council following the occupation of Norwold and, lilkely, he is not subject to king Ericall. Moreover, almost all of Theobold's companions in M4 adventure (all except Prosper the thief) are old friends of him from past endeavours (i.e. possibly connected to Alphatian military campaigns).
It looks to me that Lighthall was colonized directly by Alphatian Military veterans and their families, as compensation for years of loyal service and to ensure that this strategic settlement is not lost to traitors.
Said so, we also have Durhan the Conqueror the main antagonist of M4.
He is a chaotic 36th level wizard who managed to become the leader of the floating island of Volde on the outer plane of Eloysia and, by the time of M4 events, he is planning the conquest of the floating island of Trann. What is interesting is that most of his powers (from an artifact known as the 'Shadow Belt of Orcus') are very recent: as per M4 (page 31) he created the magical storm on Volde only some months before the start of the adventure; moreover, even if most commoners of Volde left the island years before (M4 page 30) due to Durham's pillagings to create his armies, the emigration cannot be many years before: destituted inhabitants still inhabit the island (M4 page 31), Durhan's common soldiers never saw him (M4 page 28) and - albeit merciless - they are not so fond to fight for him (M4 page 28 'they aren’t any happier with Durhan than the armies of Trann are'). We must conclude that Durhan's troops belong to fairly new units, assembled not very long before the beginning of the adventure.
The fact that common Volde soldiers never saw Dhuran in person can be compared with the following sentence from Dhuran's background (M4 page 40) 'Durhan rose to power in the kingdom of Volde through a long sequence of brilliant military victories, ruthless backstabbings, and fearless (even foolhardy) experiments with the darkest forces of magic'. This long sequence of successes should not be very extended in time, otherwise all the inhabitants of Volde would know Dhuran's face and, possibly, they would be more loyal to him.
All of this to hint that, possibly, Dhuran is an outsider to Volde and that he might actually come from Mystara.
Consider, in fact, that - even if the connection between Lighthall and Trann is never explicitly detailed in the module - the PCs have the possiblity to open a portal to Eloysia in the altar of the devilfish temple in the depths of Lake Ashtagon in Norwold (M4 page 10), irrespective of the collections of the five coins created by the five ruling wizards of Trann.
My hypothesis is that some kind of link between the two Planes was established by Dhuran when he travelled from Norwold (and, more specifically, from Lighthall) and Eloysia, possibly through the altar of the devilfishes. We could also speculate taht the locations of the five coins (and notice that the first one is found in Lighthall) have something to do with the steps taken by Durhan when he opened his first portal to Eloysia.
Dhuran's further meddling with powerful magic in Eloysia created some side effects that travelled back across the link and affected the starting point of Dhuram's travel (i.e. the settlement of Lighthall), starting the events of M4.
Putting it all together, if Dhuran is a 36th wizard from Alphatia, it is easy to infer that he is a member of the Alphatian Coucil and, possibly, he is the couselor who substituted Madiera after the Alphatian occupation of Norwold.
While working in Alpha as king Ericall' advisor, he kept his personal tower in Lighthall and used it for his experiments. Lusting for power and Immortality (see M4 page 40) Dhuran found the location of the Shadow Belt of Orcus in the outer plane of Eloysia and opened a gate to this faraway place, abandoning his original mission in Norwold and the position asigned to him by the Alphatian Council.
Once in possess of the Shadow Belt, Dhuran became insane and his further actions led to the events of M4.
A final twist: at the end of M4 the city of Lighthall is restored to Mystara through the intervention of a Fire Elemental Ruler living in the Sun of Mystara's Solar System. As Lighthall is never heard of in further modules, we can say that the Fire Elemental moved the city to a different location, perhaps following Sir Theobold's wish for a quiet (and independent) place to settle, perhaps because the Fire Elemental does not want to appease too much the Alphatians who, after all, are still followers of the air.
Maybe Lighthall survived the sinking of Alphatia and the Heldannic invasion of Norwold and, as of AC 1014, the settlement is prospering somewhere on a faraway coast of Mystara.
For a time placement of M4 in the timeline above I would say that it happens (in summer, as per M4 page 3) some years after the War of the Crown (some years needed to build Lighthall plus some years needed to Dhuran after he leaves Norwold to become powerful in Eloyisa), but definitely before the Heldannic Knights invasion of Norwold of AC 1010. Moreover, with Lighthall in place, Thyatians and Heldannic Knights fleets may have trouble in protecting Helskir until AC 1008 (as per WotI), so I would say that the events of M4 happen before the war between Thyatis and Alphatia of WotI (AC 1005 for the declaration of war).
Maybe mid-summer of AC 1004 for M4 module (approx. 5 years after the end of the War of the Crown) could be a good placement in the overall timeline.
Idea about the numbering of the 155th expeditionary Division:
PWAs army roosters never mention Alphatian military units with numerals on them; moreover, units composition is pretty different from the Alphatian interventionist force of M2.
As per PWAII pages 87-88-89 the Alphatian Army from the mainland is organized in: the elite Imperial Alphatian Guard; in 15 + 3 Regular Divisions (one per each metropolitan kingom); and in 35 Reserve Divisions (scattered among the metropolitan kingdoms based on population and local military attitude).
So, the 155th Division is definitely an expeditionary force assembled from regiments of the units above for the specific task of occupying Alpha and Norwold.
To harmonize M2 and PWAs we can say that the '155th' numeral corresponds to the progressive number of the expeditionary force assembled by the Empire of Alphatia, i.e. this is the 155th army sent out of mainland Alphatia since Alphatia was founded on Mystara.
This, on average, would correspond to an expeditionary army sent out of Alphatia every 13 years over the whole history of the Empire, which is not too unreasonable in my opinion.
Moreover, a single expeditionary force may get more numerals at the same time, depending on how many armies are part of it.
For example, the Alphatian armies sent against Thyatis during the war of WotI may take several of the following numerals, as there are separate Alphatian armies from the mainland fighting in Helskir, in central and southern parts of the Isle of Dawn and, later on, in Ylaruam and Thyatis.
;)