It is the year 1350. A terrible plague was born from the bloated belly of Asia... The Black Death emerged in the Genovese cities of Crimea, crawling on to Istanbul, and finally reaching Italy aboard merchant ships. After wreaking devastation upon Germany, France and England, it turned East, flooding into the Baltic lands, and soon reaching the borders of Russia... On the vast lands lying between Krakow and the golden domes of Moscow, the plague gathered its last rotting harvest and vanished into dense forests of Russia. There, on the outskirts of Europe, lie the lands of Russia and Poland, destined to bring down the tyranny of the Golden Horde and the chivalric orders, to fight for freedom and independence, and survive the deadly struggle for dominance which spreads from sea to sea. The dice of fate have been cast. The new empire shall carve its path to greatness, and reign over the conflict of nations.
