"Whatever you worship I suggest you pray to it now"
"You are a cruel one, Hungry Wolf" Harrag Hoare king of the iron isles
"Sumbit or die; do we look like Reachmen". Unknown but said to be an Umber lord
The Andals invade
10000 years after the Pact, a new people made their way into Westeros. From the east ca,e the Andals driven by their septons and visions of a promised land. Westeros was already home to a thousand kingdoms and had they stood together; they might have been able to beat the Andals despite their superior Steel weaponry and armoured knights. But Westeros was never famous for its solidarity and to the first men the Andals were just another enemy if one with different costumes and deadlier weapons. Some even welcomed them, until the Andals began cutting down the sacred weirwoods . By then the first men realised the Andals weren't mere warlords but something far more dangerous; Fanatics.
The conquest of the Vale was long and bloody. Through warfare and marriage alliances the Andals and the seven pointed stars took root in the vale with House Arryn becoming the kings of the mountain from their impregnable seat in the Eyrie.
Thousands of refugees flooded the nearby Riverlands and North bringing with them tales of the war and of strange men with weapons that cut through the finest bronze, of the heart trees and grooves being mercilessly cut down and burned and of the massacre of the children.
These stories were treated with disbelief at first but then as the green men and children of the forest felt each tree being cut down and felt their kin going silent, worry began to spread. It was all but confirmed with the arrival of several surviving noble houses seeking refuge and the few children who managed to survive. They warned that this fate may yet befall the North.
The new crowned king Theon Stark was young and his gaunt physique gave him a rather sickly appearance. Many doubted that he would able to lead the North during such hard times, but fortunately he would soon prove them all wrong.
The Stark King's first move was to forge an alliance with the River kings, who while divided were unofficially ; were represented by the Mudd Kings the most powerful kingdom at the time .To cement the Alliance Theon married the the Mudd king's daughter and oversaw the joining of several houses from the Riverlands to his vassals, in order to bind the still rivalling kings to him. House Blackwood was one of the houses that benefited the most and would carve out a new kingdom in the Riverlands years later. For now with the alliance secured King Theon marched what might have the greatest army ever seen in Westeros at the time. Tens of Thousands of men and women marched under the Stark banner, wargs brought forth Direwolves, Shadow cats and swarms of ravens that darkened the skies. Bear island's infamous bear Calvary that could tear through scores of men rode alongside Giants atop their terrifying war mammoths. But the most deadly were the children; marching for revenge they could turn the very land and sky against the invaders .
With such an army the Riverlands became a battlefield in the war that would be called by many names but is widely known as the war of Iron and Ice. The war lasted for years and devastated the land. While the Starks were winning every battle they were no closer to winning. For While they managed to defend the Riverlands they couldn't be everywhere at once and as the other kingdoms fell more soliders joined the side of the invaders. While the Stormlands and Iron islands held; Dorne and the Westerlands fell. The Reach had simply thrown down their weapons and welcomed the Andals, forsaking their gods and the children. To this day many among the first men see them as cowards and traitors.
But the greatest battle for the Starks wasn't in the Riverlands but in their own home . Argos Sevenstar rallied thousands to his cause and launched an attack on the Eastern shores . The North was defenceless and they raided and killed with impunity. King Theon was forced to take most of his army and leave north, effectively abandoning the Riverlands. This would sour relationships between the two kingdoms for centuries to come (though they would remain somewhat loose allies).
While Argos was dealt with quickly, he had shown how bold the Andals were becoming. Argos would merely be the first among many who would try to carve his own kingdom here unless something was done about it. But no one perhaps even the geeenseers could have predicted Theon's next action.
The hungry wolf somehow managed to craft an alliance with the ironborn king Harrag Hoare and with their combined fleets launched what would become known as The Northern Crusade. The fleet compromised mainly of the armies of the North and Iron isles, but with thousands of warriors from every kingdom eager to avenge their defeats, sailed to Andalos the home of the Andals themselves and laid waste to it.
Villages and towns were sacked and burned, its inhabitants dying in varying but equally horrific ways from being buried alive to flaying and being fed to the various beasts used by the armies. No one was spared not even children or infants. The septons and septas suffered worse fates which i don't feel compelled to add here. Ironically the ironborn were much more merciful 'merely' taking thralls and salt wives. These would be the only survivors . It's estimated Theon had killed off at least 2 million people in the crusade, depopulating Andalos completely. The only those left alive were those who decided to stay and build a life there their kingdoms back home having been conquered. In a twist of fate it was first men who lived in Andalos now (its name remains unchanged as a cruel mockery).
Legend has it that Theon Stark found and defiled the legendary tomb of Hugor Hill and pilfered it's treasures. Some say he he kept the skull of Hugor as a drinking cup(or chamber pot as some say ) .Others claim that it forms the base of a throne made from the skulls of every septon or septa unfortunate enough to fall to Theon hands(though to this day no such throne was ever found).
However the faith militants weren't deterred , instead they were outraged at the atrocity and rallied by the septons, men from all of the other kingdoms marched on the Neck in a great army . The army was formed of over 80000 poor fellows and 25000 warriors sons , led by the High Septon himself " the Warring one ". Faith however was no match to the Neck's poison or its inhabitants , for the crannogmen weren't interested in open warfare, and instead hid in their marches and slowly withered down the army with their poison darts , or simply let the swamps themselves do the work for them. As the faith militiant marched it was hampered by disease , starvation and predators . Entire units were lost to the bogs. Fear began to spread and the high Septon promise that salvation was at hand, did nothing to lift the men's spirits.
When the broken army finally made it through the neck , they were met by King Theon himself returning from his Crusade at the head of his massive army . While the faith militiant had a larger force , most were peasants who had never tasted true battle before and armed with what amounted sharpened sticks and shovels . The sight of the Northern war beasts and giants was very demoralising to say the least and was not what they had in mind when they joined. But it was too late to retreat and battle was joined. It was one of the bloodiest battles in history, for the faith militant knowing they cannot escape and knowing tales of the hungry wolf's atrocities fought to their dying breath, inflicting heavy casualties, the high septon was no exception and fought as if possessed by the warrior and even managed to slay many of Theon's wolf guard trying to kill the monarch. Theon was impressed and granted the man a clean quick death, which is more than can be said of other septons than have faced his wrath. This battle was over in the north , but a war was only getting started in the south, one not fought with swords and axes.