The invasion of the Order of the Sword-Bearers on Yuryev has been repelled. Prince Yaroslav, entrusting the “Western Shield” of Rus’ to his son Alexander, leads his druzhina to Kiev to fight for the grand princely throne.
At the prince’s disposal is only a small group of loyal men and the Andreev Brigade — warriors for whom the oath matters more than life itself.
At the borders of the Yuryev principality, it is not merely knights roaming about — here the interests of crowns collide. Ambitious Swedes are already preparing their snekkjas to strike at Ladoga, while calculating Danes are strengthening castles, gnawing their way into Estonian lands.
While feasts thunder and swords ring out in disputes over power in Kiev, a rebuff to the European advance is being prepared on the northwestern frontiers.
Alexander must prove that his “small force” is enough to hold Yuryev and the western borders. While the grand prince is busy with high politics, the Andreev Brigade remains the only barrier capable of stopping the advance of the western neighbors deeper into Russian lands.