Under the rule of the new allmage, the eight noble races and humans live in peace in the great kingdom. An orcish horde threatens the peace, marching towards the gates of the capital. Every able man is drafted to repel them. And so a simple farmer finds himself in the employ of the royal army, much to his dismay. He only has one goal: to get back to his farm and his parents alive, a task it's unsure he will manage.  Naturally, he finds himself at the bottom of the pecking order of the company, but for some reason the general has taken some interest in him. Does it have to do with the curse that haunts the farmer? ‘The cursed recruit’ is supposed to be the first instalment in the ‘Allmage’ saga and establishes a new mediaeval fantasy world, with eight different races which each have a unique magic. The focus lies on the struggles of a powerless farmer in such a world, that tries to cope with the unfairness with humour and cunning. This work can also be seen as a prologue to the saga, kicking off a well thought out story with world threatening happenings.