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View Full Version : [WHFB Review] Iron Company - Chris Wraight



wittdooley
02-24-2010, 12:40 AM
Chris Wraight’s Iron Company marks the second entry in the Empire Army series and builds on the foundation established by Richard Williams in Reiksguard. Admittedly, I was a bit lukewarm towards Rieksguard; the narrative was a bit slow and uneven at times, there were a LOT of characters that were often hard to keep track of, and I had trouble getting a good sense of what Williams wanted the book to be (a political drama or a war story). However, Wraight takes a serviceable foundation set by Williams and improves upon it by leaps and bounds. Perhaps it’s the characters, perhaps it’s the narrative; whatever the reason, I found Iron Company to be a much more compelling and interesting read.

The Iron Company of the title’s namesake refers to the gunners and engineers of the Empire charged with firing and maintaining the lumbering artillery of the army. Here, the story focuses on Magnus Ironblood, a grizzled veteran, an alcoholic, a man on his last legs in the Empire army. Magnus is approached to lead the artillery of an Imperial force staked to overthrow a rogue margravine set to cause havoc in the Hochland countryside. Magnus begrudgingly accepts, gathering a small crew of engineers to help him lead the iron company to victory or ruin. Joined by Silvio Messina, a Tilean engineer with flair, Thorgad Grimgarsson, a dwarf with a secret motive, and his longtime friend Tobias Hildenbrandt, Ironblood sets of to siege the margravine’s mysterious citadel, Morgramgar. What follows is an excited and tense narrative involving all manners of siege warfare, something that is exciting and really unique to a fantasy setting.

The siege warfare is really what makes this book shine. Battles are exciting and tense, the manner in which they are conducted is quite believable, and it’s really a refreshing alternative to the open battlefield warfare of a lot of fantasy novels. Wraight does a fine job establishing Morgramgar as an entity unto itself, which really makes the sieges come to life.

And while the battles really do make the book great, it’s the characters that allow the story to flow and function well. Unlike Reiksguar, we are dealing with, essentially, four characters throughout the novel. There are auxiliary characters of course, a warrior priest here, the ubiquitous steely army general there, but the novel belongs to Magnus, Silvio, Hildenbrandt, and Thorgad. We’re introduced the characters early and they’re able to grow throughout the novel. We’re not subject to the convoluted character histories of Rieksguard, nor are we asked to juggle characters that aren’t easily discernable from each other. It makes the read a lot more enjoyable.

Additionally, Magnus Ironblood is a really good protagonist. He isn’t overly likeable. Despite his abilities as a master engineer, he has his character warts. But that’s what makes him a good character. We grow to really like Magnus as we’re allowed inside his head and privy to his history, despite those flaws, and that makes his triumphs all the more exciting.

And while Iron Company provides a great narrative, it isn’t without a flaw or two. Late in the novel we find out about a former rival of Ironblood’s that played a pivotal role in his decent into alcoholism and unlikeable nature, but it seems a bit contrived. I understand that Wraight probably felt that his protagonist needed a solid antagonist to oppose him, but I really think the struggles Ironblood had against himself, coupled with the seemingly impregnable Morgramgar ,would have served just as well as major conflict points.

Regardless, Iron Company is a really fun story that sets itself apart amidst a sea of similar literature by tackling siege warfare in an in depth way. Coincidentally, the most exciting parts of the Lord of the Rings movies are the citadel sieges, so it only makes sense that it would work in the Old World. Quite frankly, it makes me year for a siege supplement to the WHFB tabletop game. Chris Wraight hits on all cylinders with Iron Company, adding a much needed triple to Rieksguards weak infield hit and the Empire Army series.

The Good
+ Great siege battles really make the book shine
+ Small cast list keeps us interested and focused on their growth

The Bad
-- Ironblood’s rival seems like a forced attempt at a villain