A look at the reward cards!

The Pieces of Eight are an infamous crew of pirates led by Captain Corin Drace, who commands eight fleets totaling nearly seven-hundred ships. They are the bane of the three seas of Praetoria, sailing its coasts and raiding the merchant and trading ships that carry goods from one port to another.

And things have only gotten worse since they aligned themselves with the Chaos Empire. Not only do the Pieces of Eight control the seas, but their pirates can be found in practically every port, where they take what they want from the ships in the harbor before heading to a local tavern to have a good time—namely, getting falling-down drunk and riding roughshod over the locals.

To earn their stripes, a pirate of the Pieces of Eight—the notorious fleet led by Captain Corin Drace—must demonstrate mastery of their maritime craft, including navigation, watchkeeping, blockades, raiding and boarding merchant vessels, impenitence in murder and mayhem, and other virtues of an accomplished pirate.

Once they've proven themselves, they receive the title of seadog and all the privileges that go along with it—namely respect and first dibs at plunder and revelry while those junior are relegated to the crow's nest or guard duty.

The Argarux are a tribe of onyx orcs whose settlements span the western foothills of the Daigenloft Mountains and stretch into the caverns of the Upper Daigendark. They are fiercely territorial and often at war with other splinters that encroach upon their borders in both the Deep and Fenmoor Basin. And if war doesn't find them, they expand their borders until they find it themselves. Theirs is a culture of conflict and bloodshed, for the Argarux believe there is no greater honor than to fight and die in battle.

The magi of the tribe are no exception. They often stand near the front lines and unleash wild bursts of magic, each fallen foe fueling their furor. They are known to fight to victory or to the death; to the Argarux, it amounts to the same.

However, while these onyx orcs value combat's ultimate honor, they draw a clear line between valiant sacrifice and reckless self-destruction, and to incite the ire of the Chaos Empire is tantamount to the latter. Consequently, the Argarux have submitted to the empire's edicts, instead waging wars that keep their honor intact.

In the Northeast Coastal Steppes of the Wild Northeast is a dynamic confederation of seven nomadic tribes known as Panopia. These tribes came to Praetoria from Azmare, and at first, they thrived on an abundance of natural resources.

However, all that changed when the Chaos Empire arrived. Caught in the clutches of its tyranny, the tribes of Panopia were taxed in coin and conscripts, with the strongest of their braves enlisted in compulsory service to the legions of Chaos.

Rosa Ombros is a prophet and tribal leader among the bluehair minotaur of the Ujurak Tribe. Not long ago, she received a vision: that a path to ending the Chaos Empire's reign of terror lies to the south, somewhere in the bleak expanse of the Drybone Badlands.

Now, Prophet Rosa prepares to embark on a perilous pilgrimage and a journey of faith to free the tribes of Panopia.

Elandrial is the only child of a prominent noble family of the House of Morth'lana. She was educated in the arcane arts from a young age and has since grown into a prodigious sorceress.

Elandrial is acutely aware of the threat posed by Mount Redwyrm's dragons and the Chaos Empire's looming shadow over the Kingdom of Thanaloria. While the Lord of Thanalor has assumed a policy of isolation, Elandrial advocates for the high elves to bolster their oppressed neighbors and forge alliances with any who would stand against the empire.

So far, however, her counsel has fallen on deaf ears.

They say she is the most infamous pirate to have ever raised the Jolly Roger and sailed the seas. They say she was impervious to the blight that swept across Praetoria. They say she put paid to Queen Mycelia's brood. That she single-handedly liberated Kainek and other towns like it from the shackles of tyranny. That she summoned the Riftwatchers and trained them in the art of runemancy. That even the Undying are no match for her fellblade. And that, should the citizens of Praetoria rise against their oppressors, she will emerge from the shadows to lead them against the Chaos Empire and bring its Ascendency to their knees.

It has been five years since the legions of Chaos conquered the Splinterlands, and every day that passes, the legend of Captain Felblade continues to grow—both in size and scale. The truth is…

well, the truth doesn't matter, now, does it? What matters is that the stories of Captain Fellblade will live on, as will the hope of those that believe in them.

Endura Brune, daughter of the Drybone Sultan, Eternan Brune, embodies the brutal ethos of her father's reign. She seeks neither approval nor recognition but follows her anarchic values with absolute devotion.

To Endura, the Chaos Empire is nothing but background noise. She walks her own path, a reflection of her father's lawless legacy, indifferent to the alliances and power plays around her.

Daarg Deadblast fought his way up the ranks of the Drybone Anarchists to become the chief advisor to their Sultan, Eternan Brune. His cunning, relentlessness, and predatory instincts make him both highly valued and highly suspect by even the Sultan himself.

Under the governance of the Chaos Empire, Daarg finds both opportunities and risks, and he subtly navigates them to further his own ambitions.

Cryptic Darkenmage joined the legions of Chaos in search of loot and glory. He clawed his way up the ranks to captain and was given command of a company of legionnaires. He dreamed of rising higher, perhaps one day serving in the Ascendency at Silus of the Rift’s right hand.

Instead, he found himself assigned to the armpit of Praetoria, Stonetown in the Drybone Badlands, where he and his legionnaires were tasked with enforcing the empire’s will among the Drybone Anarchists. Taxes, logistics, administration. It wasn’t what he signed up for.

Sick of the destruction wrought by the Chaos Empire—sick of obeying the orders of those lesser than him—Cryptic listens as whispers of rebellion sweep through Stonetown. In the streets and taverns, he hears the rumors. And he waits for his opportunity to turn against the empire and teach them a lesson.

The Riftwatcher cadre trained many of the Kingdom of Mar Toren's citizens in the use of irregular warfare against the Chaos Empire. Prunda Undervesch's prowess and passion proved a cut above, wherefore the Riftwatchers offered her membership in their ranks. She accepted without hesitation and, in time, she grew to become a powerful runemancer, skilled in the arts of water and life.

Now, Prunda trains her kin and orchestrates the resistance in the depths of the Colossus Ocean and in settlements along the coast of the Wild Northeast.

Baron Fyatt has imposed a 50% tax on the citizens of the Chaos Empire, and the henchling enforcers are his muscle charged with exacting it.

From the lowliest of hovels to the grandest of castles, these pint-size provocateurs go door to door, making sure the price is paid. And when their bags are filled and their wagons can hold no more, they return to the capital of Tovingor, where native coins are melted down and reminted as Chaos marks.

The pay is good, and henchlings have a proclivity for celebrating their wages at local taverns. But for some reason, it takes more and more marks to buy a mug of ale these days.