The ongoing conflict between the Red and Gold factions of the Imperial army within the Great Seal seems to have been fought to an uneasy stalemate. After early gains from the Red faction, the Gold faction has struck back with a series of carefully executed raids that have mostly evened the playing field. Hopes that this conflict could be resolved diplomatically, or at least quickly and decisively, have dwindled, leaving those within the Seal bracing for a civil war that may be long and drawn out. This conflict has already pulled in several major power players within the Seal, including the town of Sanctuary, with reports that the factions are actively attempting to pull in other movers and shakers to take their side (the Leaf Chronicle, the Oaken Bank, and the Verdant Couriers, of course, maintain a policy of strict neutrality). What once was an internal conflict between the Imperial army now threatens to engulf the entirety of the Great Seal.
–Marius of the Leaf