One year ago, Stormwind City, Stormwind Army Training Grounds.
It was late afternoon, the sun casting long shadows across the dusty parade ground where two Lieutenants, Ralvyn and Selda sat on a low stone wall near the officer’s quarters. Both had the same grim, thoughtful look on their faces, the weight of their conversation hanging heavily in the air.
“Did you hear the news?” Ralvyn asked, his voice a quiet rumble of concern as he glanced at his younger counterpart.
“About D-Company getting reinstated?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at him before nodding. “Hard to ignore the buzz. The men are talking about it already.”
“More than just the men,” Ralvyn muttered. “The brass has been tight-lipped about this for weeks. But it’s true. D-Company’s coming back under the 82nd, and they’ve already assigned a new captain.”
Selda shifted slightly, her hands folded in her lap. “A new captain? That’s bold. D-Company was… legendary in their own right. How does anyone even step into those boots?”
Ralvyn chuckled lowly, having pondered the same question himself. “That’s the question, isn’t it? The company hasn’t been active for over six years. Their old commanding officer’s death was the last chapter in their story. And now this? They’ve given the reins to a Captain Parker.”
“Parker?” Selda asked, her voice thoughtful as she scanned her memory of the officers she knew. “I’ve heard of him. He’s a got a bit of a reputation, doesn’t he?”
“That’s an understatement,” Ralvyn replied. “He’s smart, aggressive, been through hell before even becoming an officer. Though not without issues. He’s not like many of the rest of us.” He paused, looking off into the distance as a group of soldiers passed, their voices rising in pitch as they argued amongst themselves. “But he’s never commanded a company like this before. And he’s got big boots to fill — D-Company boots.”
Selda nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. “The old D-Company was named the Hounds for a reason.”
Ralvyn exhaled slowly. “And that’s the problem. The old captain, was more than a commander. He was a symbol. A father to his men. D-Company thrived on that loyalty, that unshakable bond. Parker’s a good officer, but can he inspire that kind of devotion? I’m not sure.”
“I’ve heard the men whispering about it,” Selda said quietly. “They’re excited, but there’s a lot of scepticism, he’ll almost be starting from scratch with a lot to live up to. And brass? They remember the old D-Company. They’re not going to settle for anything less, it’s like they’re setting him up to fail.”
The two fell silent for a moment, eyes averting out over the training grounds nearby as the unmistakeable squeal of a Sergeant could be heard, berating the incompetence of the soldiers beneath him.
“Exactly,” Ralvyn said after a short while, his voice tinged with both admiration and concern. “Parker’s going to have to do more than give orders. He’ll need to earn their trust, prove he’s worthy of leading a company this type of unit. If he doesn’t, it could break them before it even gets started.”
Selda looked out at the parade ground, where the new recruits were drilling under the harsh eye of their instructors. “I suppose we’ll see soon enough. The company’s reinstatement is going to be a trial by fire for him. Maybe it’ll break him, or maybe it’ll forge him into the leader they need.”
Ralvyn leaned back, his gaze distant. “I hope for his sake that it’s the latter. For all our sakes.”
They fell silent, both lost in thought, the weight of history and expectation pressing down on them. The Stormwind Army was no stranger to hard battles, but this one - this would be different. And as much as they had their doubts, they couldn’t help but wonder if Parker could, in the end, live up to the legacy of the so called:
“Hounds of Wrynn”
The last thread died by accident a few months ago, so here comes the revamp and reupload.
We are so back!
Having taken a month long break over the holidays to stop ourselves from falling victims to burnout and disinterest, to enjoy time with families and loved ones, I am here yet again to tell you all that the Hounds of Wrynn are alive and well.
We have had an incredible year since we first started with friends made, fantastic storylines within our own guild and in tandem with others, adventures a plenty and many, many nights spent in the brigg for some soldiers.
Now our eyes are turning to 2025 and what the new year brings, what are we going to do? While last year focused on building the foundations IC, ironing out any issues and finding balance, this year will focus even more on where the Company is going forward. The storylines and overarching narratives will unfold as we go, but will be heavily tied down in the history of not just D-Company, but the Stormwind Army and the shoulders upon which our characters stand.
If you want to be a part of that, you are more than welcome to join us!
The “Hounds of Wrynn” - or “D-Company” - which is its official designation, is a soon to be one year old guild hoping to focus on adventure and storytelling within a military setting.
Revived out of the ashes of hundreds upon hundreds of units previously shut down, the decision to revitalize and bring this old unit back from the dead has been made as part of an effort to keep the Alliance military strong and active following a long period of relative peace.
The men and women of D-Company often referred to as “Dog Company” were quickly branded as the “Hounds of Wrynn” during the First War for their unwavering loyalty, dedication and prowess in the field - a moniker which they hope shall be one of glory once more.
“A story for one is a story for all.”
Our core concept revolves around the stories that evolve through its members and the creativity of those involved through an adventuring, military setting.
Regardless of rank - whether you play a Captain, a Lieutenant, or a ‘lowly’ Footman; we want our ideas to flourish around the idea that everyone who plays a part will be a key and crucial player in what we hope will be a very intricate game of military chess.
Whether your aim is to play a slow burning game of a disgruntled Private, a fresh recruit struggling with their newfound lack of freedom or an ambitious veteran with logistical experience, both are key elements of RP that we want to foster and nourish.
There will be drama, there will be fighting, that’s the point of it all.
The road back to glory is not an easy one and as such we will progress our way from rags to revered in chapters; from the most basic of training to the company’s first daunting deployment, making sure that everyone who drags their boots through the dirt on this adventure will feel fully immersed and included. Through hardship, determination and sheer grit, no man will be left behind.
Ranks will remain simple and easy to distinguish from Recruit all the way to Captain, with one or two added ranks for auxiliary personnel. This however will of course be subject to change as we go along.
- Captain
- Lieutenant
- Sergeant
- Corporal
- Private First Class
- Private
- Recruit
Physician - Limited to 2 (Depending on size.)
The Physician(s) oversee all things medical within the company in coordination with every member of the company, responsible for teaching first aid and field medicine and making sure that every officer and soldier is healthy.
Mage - Limited to 3 (Depending on size.)
The mages of the company are few and are placed there to offer magical consultation to the commissioned officers and magical support in the field.
Priest, Chaplain - Limited to 1, possibly 2.
An idea I have been toying with for a long while is to have a priest attached to the company, not just to help with the healing of physical wounds when necessary but also the wounds of the mind, offering spiritual help to soldiers in the field and play a rather integral role in lifting spirits.
FAQ:
Where can you find us?
While our in-character home base is in Stormwind City, we only spent about a month in the city all in all during last year, our main goal has been and will always be to be on travelling foot and explore the world around us as much as possible.
While we return to the city on a regular basis, this is not always the norm. We spend our time where we feel like we want to be and where it makes sense and most definitely, where they are required IC.
Uniforms
The answer is of course yes. It’s the regular Stormwind Army uniform that very often just makes people confuse us for the Stormwind City Guard, even when they find us fighting undead in Northrend.
Character Concepts
Hounds of Wrynn is a regular footman guild, with some added elements for flavour. We are not a 7th Legion Guild, we are not the heroes that lead the charge in to the latest raid. At the very best, we are cannon fodder.
Our characters and the characters we bring in should reflect that, while we take in mages and priests, they are not supposed to be a cure-all save the day type character all the time, we like the struggle, the power levels of our characters should adhere to that.
This does not mean that we shut the door on everything that we don’t think is right straight away, if you have a character concept you think could fit, do not hesitate to reach out.
Races
As it stands, would we want to break it down to the nitpickiest of lore, the Stormwind Army only consists of humans from Stormwind. We would have a very hard time surviving if that was our only member base.
We therefore allow some Worgen and some Quel’dorei (and half-elves), in smaller amounts depending on their concepts, while running an IC “land rights from service scheme” for characters born outside Stormwind, provided that they are human.
Worgen and Elves will of course be treated differently, not necessarily badly, but their experience will be one that is steeped in a couple of generations of military tradition that is entirely revolved around humans only.
This means we do not take in Draenei, Dracthyr, Night Elves or even Gnomes and Dwarves.
Guild Cooperation
We firmly believe in helping other people and guilds elevate their RP, be it through our mere presence acting as background soldiers, the cavalry to come help you in your hour of need or the poor souls standing guard duty outside your village for a few days when it’s raining, I’m sure we can think of something that would be hilariously fun to do together.
All you need to do is reach out and we’ll cook it up.
Recruitment:
We don’t really believe in the approach and steal people approach at all times, we may reach out OOC and try and hook you in at times, but since military enlistment is usually done through enlistment officers, that’s the route we will usually go through IC.
GM:
Leopold Parker - Gnorfolus (OOC)
Discord: gnorfell
Officers:
Sgt. Derrick Moore - Derríck (OOC)
Sgt. Garrik Hale - Garrík (OOC)
Cpl. Graedon Payne - Graedon (OOC)
Cpl. Sarah McCreary - Saorisa (OOC)
You can contact any of the names above ingame, or me on Discord or apply through the ingame recruitment add. You can find a few of us lurking in the various Hub Discords, where we also have recruitment adds up in place in the Stormwind, Stromgarde and Gilneas discord servers.
Best of luck!