[Forum Game] Agorath and the Age of Crowns

[BlackBishop]

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Table of Contents
The Seeing Stone
Mid-Spring, 20 AoC
Early Summer, 20 AoC
Mid-Summer, 20 AoC
Early Autumn, 20 AoC
Mid-Autumn, 20 AoC
Early-Winter, 21 AoC
Mid-Winter, 21 AoC
Early Spring, 21 AoC
Mid-Spring, 21 AoC​

Lore
Agorath and the Maegi Prophecy
The Nomadic Drow of the Ashlands
The Eight Tribes of Ordivantes
Further Reading on the Pyrit People and Ostermark
Sign of the Thaanosian Way of Weapons
Lore of the Kingdom in Exile
Armas Coamenel, Prince of the Elves
The History of Ecclestius
The Emirate of Shiek: The Guiding Hand of Rule
Bloodrings: The Northern Art of Single Combat
Wargs of Goi'Orka
Lizard Cavalry of the Drow
Shiek:Muthaqaf
Life by the River: Green Chasm in the New Age
The Administration of the Cult of Birch
The City of Thaanos
Mutikabir in the New Age
The Shiek Army
Emirate of Shiek: The Six Houses
The Eastern Gate of Hroniden: Herasnia in 20 AoC
The Army of Damasiz
Commentaries on the Holy Doctrine of Light
Vol I
The History of Goi'Orka
The History of Goi'Orka Vol II
​

Starring
In order of appearance
~ * ~
Aedan as Nasala Veariment, Regent of Karmont
Dutch Guy as Bathror Greybeard, Underking of Kogansunan
Keinwyn as Ayasún Eymür, Lady of Akkum
Ironhide as Nolan Holdfast, Lord of Great Hold
Tapscott as Belegûr Arvandu, King of Dreagar
Iisbroke as Einir Tudonii, High Chief of Ordivantis
DragonOfAtlantis as Kristoff Muller, Mercenary Captain
BlackBishop as Narien Krestarii, Princess of Ecclestius
Plutonium as Nienna Coamenel, Queen of Galadriel
DeMarchese as Ioron Elhadôn, Prince of Vahamil
Dadarian as Mo'yokj Gro'ijk, Chief of the Mo' Tribe
GreatSlayer as Eylinn Mindrilla, Therain of Green Chasm
Mikkel Glahder as Salah Al-Azia Nasir Fatumid, Emir of Damasiz
Endovelicus as Wyna Aingael, Queen of Thaanos
Terraferma as Hasam Khandurus Sabir, Padishah of Shiek
Oxfordroyale as Bethod the Bloodless, King of Stronghelm
Noco as Loghain Deftspear, King of Ghullkazid
Corman as Thrunrul Moonbreaker, King of Norvegr
King as Drethaund Jhuune, Pirate Lord of the Island of Bone
Jcucc as Harma Twice-Hanged, Tyrant of the Twin Isles
Jako as Katrina Godmin, Voivode of Ostermark
Duke Dan as Gunthar Gustafson, Jarl of Ethelbor
Baboush as Oruk, King of Goi'Orka and Urdnot
Deaghaidh as Deagrin Benthorn, High King of Highathar
Galren as Zaahir Rostani, Shah of Herasnia
Sneakyflaps as Varian Krestarii, King of Ecclestius
Fingon as Wilhelm von Saxon, Duke of Saxonia
Alexander as Agmar Numerian, War Chief of Triberi and Numerian Clans
Korona as Araxia de Autois, Countess of Erendor​

​

​

Ages ago mortals usurped the power of magic from the Gods. The Light One, the creator, retreated from His fallen world. The Dark One's wrath would follow mortal-kind for thousands of years. Now, finally free following a devastating war, and magic fading from the world, new kingdoms emerge from the ashes of empire and the Dark. Rulers bent on establishing their mark on this new chapter of history.

This is their story.

Welcome to Agorath and the Age of Crowns. This is a roleplaying game that put's your character as a ruler of a faction in a high fantasy medieval world. Men, Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, and Drow populate the world, largely divided into the Light worshiping east, and Dark worshiping west. With the absence of the Dark One, the west now looks to carve their own path, while powerful kingdoms have emerged from the fallen Golden Empire and look to exert their influence.

Tapp and I approach each player when ready for your orders - you get two by the way. Order outcomes are pm'ed back with general rumours posted in the thread eluding to what's going on in the world. Stats are kept secret, along with the order outcomes - known only to the respective players. Rumors are only the tip of the iceberg, and there is always more then meets the eye.

Spoiler: Stats

Income

Taxes - Pretty self explanatory. The realms that have more population will naturally gain more income in taxes while the underpopulated will earn less. Of course you can always squeeze more taxes out of your populace, but they won't like it. All realms begin at a fair tax rate.

Tariffs - A special tax levied against trade goods imported into your realm. More trade oriented realms will get more, with a special bonus to any realm that maintains control over a sea zone. Realms rich in precious metals will earn more in trade.

Tribute - A seasonal boom of gold payed to a foreign power, often paid to maintain peace between two realms.

Estate - Your character's personal income from their various holdings. Resource rich realms tend to gain more the poorer ones.

Expenses

Administration - The cost attributed to maintaining your realm. Generally the larger your realm, the more expensive it is to maintain.

Infrastructure - The cost of maintaining your settlement, roads, caste and other fortifications. Players holding cities will generally pay more, with this cost reduced for those rich in lumber and stone.

Appanage - An allowance gifted to dynasty members and heirs to maintain the household and prestige. Those with larger dynasties and higher positions will generally pay more.

Resources

Indentured - The number of subjects pledged by loyal households within your realm. This number also represents your levy pool and can be raised in times of war and trained into professional soldiers. This number is finite and replenishes slowly (barring a successful order) so use them wisely. Players rich in food tend to have a greater number of indentured.

Food - The measure of wealth in food, such as game, fishing and farmland. Conflict in your realm tends to endanger your food provisions, so beware.

Lumber - Lumber is used to arm archers, build ships and settlements as well as light fortifications and siege engines.

Stone - Used to build settlements, fortifications and siege engines.

Iron - Used to equip infantry and cavalry.

Army/Navy

Levy - Your peasant levy. Poorly equipped and easily killed, but cheap to march onto the field.

Archer - Ranged footmen, generally lightly armoured bowmen. Cheap to maintain if abundant in lumber.

Infantry - Professional foot soldier, typically with medium armour. Cheap to maintain if rich in iron.

Cavalry - Horsed soldiers and knights, Expensive to maintain though access to iron can soften the expense.

Warship - A light or heavy vessel able to protect sea trade and invade sea zones, as well as transport troops. Expensive to maintain but cheaper given access to lumber.

Spoiler: Map

Spoiler: Calendar

Calendar of Agorath

Sun's Shadow
Named for the ecliptic alignment that takes place the third week of this month, Sun's Shadow is the beginning of the new year and often a time for drunken revelry across Agorath. This month is typically cold in the lands across agorath, even in parts of Hroniden.

Snowfall
The winter month of Snowfall is aptly named for the heavy snows that often occur. The northern Rill River becomes impassable by ship and all of Norseland, Galadriel and Highathar are typically snow covered for the entirety of the month. Ecclestius is often snowy in the north and cool and rainy in the south. Hroniden experiences some of its coldest nights this month.

Serpentine
The revered month of Serpentine is named for the mating season of Flamehead snakes in Hroniden, who emerge from their burrows in droves to find mating partners. Religious festivals and rituals mark this month in Hroniden to celebrate the Creator and His creations.

Snowsmelt
The winter snows generally recede in this month and most mountain passes in Highathar open once again. Riverlands often flood in this month and many northern beasts emerge from hibernation.

First Seed
The month of first seed begins the crop season for farmers in Agorath. Unlike southern Ecclestius most of Agorath relies on a shorter growing season and marks the beginning of the planting season.

Monsoon
Heavy rains tend to plague Agorath in this month, but the heavy precipitation does have its advantages as it is attributed to the growth of crops planted in the previous month.

First Harvest
Warmer, drier weather in First Harvest make this month an ideal time to reap the crops planted two months before. Plentiful food usually leads to many festivals in this month as well a great beast migration from southern Ecclestius to the North.

Dragoon
The month of Dragoon, named for the emergence of dragons across the land, is a time of festivals and hunting. Though traditions dictate lords hunt dragons this month, most settle for boar, and understandably so!

Last Seed
Autumn is beginning to turn the land and growing season is dwindling to an end for most of Agorath. Farmers use this time to plant one more crop before winter. Weather generally begins to cool and days begin to shorten.

Hallows
This month marks the anniversary of the great battle that saw the Dark One banished from the realm. People of the land take time to remember the great war, their ancestors and heroes and celebrate the Light. Shorter and cooler days are often filled with revelry this month.

Last Harvest
Autumn is in full swing this month and it is the last chance for a final crop before winter comes upon the land. Feasts to celebrate the bounty of the growing season are typical in households across Agorath. Days are short and the nights often cold.

Lights End
Eluded not only to the shortest days of the year, but also the time when magic disappeared from the world. The occasion is commemorated more often than not, by firework displays in town squares from Hroniden to Norseland. Snows often fall this month in northern Agorath and heavy rains in the south.

I ask that all players please post their sign ups in this thread for easy reference.

 

[BlackBishop]

Agorath​

((WIP))​

Regions of Agorath
and its Lords​

Ecclestius
Named after the first emperor of the Golden Empire, Ecclesus, Ecclestius is in fact comprised of several smaller regions, all of which encompassed the cosmopolitan heartland of the empire.

Azeratti Peninsula
Named after the Azer people that settled the peninsula centuries before the formation of the empire, the Azeratti Peninsula is a rocky region with fertile farmland lining the coast. The peninsula is also home to the city Azeratti, seat of the Krestarii great house for generations. Since the fall of the Golden City, Azeratti is the largest city in Agorath and a prosperous hub of trade and craft.

Wolf's Wood
A densely wooded region infamously known for the direwolves that once populated the region. Wolfkeep is the ancient fortress and seat of House Wolfen. A region rich with game and lumber and the many streams and villages that dot the landscape, and under the absolute dominion of King Krestarii.

Saxon
A varied region the encompasses much of the upper Great Rill River and its tributaries. Sparse woodlands, fertile river valleys and rocky highlands contribute to the serene landscape of Saxon, once a dominant power in the region before the empire. House Saxon, an ancient and storied house rule Saxon to this day, though their power in the region is mostly nominal, King Krestarii in Azeratti exerting his dominion over the region.

Reputed realm of Kristoff Muller, Mercenary Captain. (Dragon)

Wallachia
A land rich in stone and mining that once fueled the economy of the empire. Today the region is under the direct rule of King Krestarii and contributes greatly to the prosperity of Azeratti. The mountainous region is sparsely populated with mining and coastal villages with plenty of natural defenses to deter any besieger.

Westmarch
Bountiful farmland wrapped around the coasts of Jacob's Bay and the Southron Sea, stretching up to rocky highlands along it's western borders, Westmarch was largely considered a bread basket of the empire. Besieged during the War of Darkness and subsequent unrest and revolt from the rest of Ecclestius has left the region less populated then recent generations with prosperity only recently returning.

Realm of Nolan Holdfast, Lord of Great Hold. (Ironhide)

Realm of Wyna Aingael, First Queen of Thaanos, Firstborn of the Twins, Aingaels Fire. (Endo)

Norseland
A cold and inhospitable peninsula cut across the Shivering Sea. Known for it’s icy clime and colder people, Norseland is variable with barren tundra spread across its northern coast, and boreal forests along the south reaching up to the expansive Vale Mountains. Fishing villages dot the southern coast along with formidable holdfasts.

A large mountain range expands across central Norseland called the Vale Mountains. Passes intertwine through the mountains bridging north and south Norseland but are impassable during winter months. Though rich in iron and stone, the mountains are home to barbaric norse clans that are hostile even by norse standards. During the War of Darkness, the mountain clans launched an invasion of greater Norseland, led by Ulfrik the Wolf King. Though initially successful, the death of Ulfrik a short time later condemned the kingdom to fall back into feuding fiefs and most of the clans retreated back into the mountains.

Realm of Bethod the Bloodless, King of Stronghelm, Jarl of Evynn and the Dagger Coast, Keeper of the Mountain Passes. (Oxford)

Realm of Thrunrul Moonbreaker, King of Norvegr, Chief of the Frost Blade Clan. (Corman)

Realm of Harma Twice Hanged, King-Killer, Foe-Eater, Warchief of the Ice Breaker Tribes, Tyrant of the Twin Isles. (Jcucc)

Realm of Gunthar Gustafson, Jarl of Ethelbor, Lord and Jarl of the Skagarene Coast. (Dan the Man)

Galadriel
A near mystical land regarded for it’s connection to the Light. Once, walking it’s picturesque glades and groves, one couldn’t help but feel the aurora of Light that surrounds it. Unfortunately the forest was ravaged by the forces of Darkness during the war, and much of the spiritual connection that was once felt is gone. Galadriel is ruled by House Coamenel, from their seat in the forest city of Coael. Lumber, game and farming all contribute to the kingdom’s prosperity, but they lack stone and iron for armaments and fortifications. Galadriel is well situated for trade, being a desirable destination for merchants passing between Highathar and Ecclestius. This, however, has made them a target of Norse raiders, who threaten Galadriel waters nearly every summer.

Realm of Nienna Coamenel, Queen of the Elves, Lady of the Forest, and Lord of the Light. (Pluto)

Realm of Eylinn 'The Redeemer' Krestarii of House Mindrilla, Queen Dowager of Ecclestius, and Therain of the Green Chasm. (Great Slayer)

Highathar
The Dwarves and the rugged mountain men of Highathar have long been a bulwark against the forces of Darkness and the barbarians of the Wilds. Sprawling underground cities have been carved out of the seven mountainhomes of the Dwarves, though most are abandoned after generations of war. The kingdom is largely divided, with the dwarven High King ruling from High Mountain, the men of Ordivantes claiming independence, over their dejure liege at High Mountain, the Ostermark exiles establishing a hold within sight of High Mountains, and the Orc kingdom of Goi'Orka. While the mountainhome of Yurdeast claimed loyalty to the forces of Darkness during the war and remains a realm of contention for the High King. Source of strong iron, precious metals, fungal farms, and stone as well as the masters of interesting technology in the form of toys and trinkets, make the dwarves popular trade partners.

Realm of Deagrin Benthorn, High King of the Dwarves, High King Under The Mountains, Heir of Deabrok the Elder King. (Deag)

Realm of Bathror Greybeard, Underking of Kogansunan. (DutchGuy)

Realm of Oruk, King of Goi'Orka. (Bab)

Realm of Einir Tudonii, High Chief of Ordivantes, (Iisbroke)

Realm of Narien Krestarii, Banner Captain. (BlackBishop)

Realm of Voyevodess Katarina Godmin, Voivode of the Ostermark and Zarechneya. (Jako)

Hroniden
The desert kingdom of Hroniden is home to the Amenra River, a great fertile river valley that brings life to the otherwise barren and inhospitable desert. During the dry season, however, the Amenra shrinks, and the farmland withers away beneath the unforgiving sun, putting reliance on the trade of gold and crafts to stay fed. Hroniden suffered greatly during the War of Darkness, inflicted by corpus disease and waves of invaders. House Ayyubid succumbed to infighting and unrest in the years that followed, and Hroniden is now divided in bickering emirates, allowing the recent incursion of elves along their border to settle largely unnoticed.

Realm of Salah Al-Aziz Nasir Fatumid, Emir of Damasiz. (Mikkel)

Realm of Hasam Khanduras Sabir, Padishah of Shiek. (Terra)

Realm of Ioron Elhadôn, The Exiled Prince, Arahael. (Demarchese)

The Haunted Forest
Whereas Galadriel seemed connected with Light, the Haunted Forest is bound to Dark. While the oppressive shadow that loomed over the forest is gone, hints of the old shroud yet remain. Beasts and ethereal forms still lurk under the canopy of ash and gnarled pine. Once the stronghold of Dreagon, the Vampire Lord, the Dwarves of Ghullkazid are the dominant power in the region. Game, lumber and farmland abound in this realm, but stone and iron are preciously sought outside the far flung Dwarven mountainhome.

Realm of Loghain Deftspear, King of Ghullkazid. (Noco)

The Ashlands
Once under a constant canopy of ash spewed forth from Dreagar Isle, the island volcanoes have ceased their rumblings after the war and sun once again penetrates this barren landscape. This has allowed fertile regions to form along the coastlines, prompting some of the nomadic Dark Elves of the Ashlands to begin settling and farming. Malarx Tower and the cult of Birch are a prominent power in the region, yet the land is far from unified. Game, stone and precious metals are plentiful enough, but the region lacks a meaningful source of lumber and other food.

Realm of Nasala Veariment, Arbiter of the Void, Earthly Regent of Karmont, Guardian of Malarx, and Birch's Chosen. (Aedan)

Realm of Ayasún Eymür, Lady of Akkum. (Keinwyn)

Realm of Mo'yokj Gro'ijk 'The Last', Chief of the Mo' Tribe. (Dadarian)

Dreagar Isle
Home of the Jagged Spire, a magically infused tower that served as the seat of power for the Dark One’s generals for thousands of years. A city of His fanatic followers has sprung up over the millennia and it remains the last bastion of power of the Dark One and his followers. Over the past two decades, Dreagar has suffered from internal strife and civil war. The exile of their God having a disastrous effect on the ruling order of the kingdom. Following the rise of Belegûr Arvandu , and his union with the Maegi, the High Priestess proclaimed Arvandu king of Dreagar and they both subsequently crushed their opposition, unifying the island under their combined rule. Precious metals, stone and iron are found in plenty, but the kingdom lacks sources of food and lumber.

Realm of Belegûr Arvandu, King of Dreagar, Consort of the Maegi. (Tapp)

Realm of Drethaund Jhuune, Pirate Lord of the Island of Bone, Demon of the Southron Sea. (King5000)

 

[aedan777]

Nasala Veariment
Race: Human/Birchian
Age: 34
Title: Arbiter of the Void, Earthly Regent of Karmont, Guardian of Malarx, Birch's Chosen
Specialty: Intrigue
Bio: Nasala Veariment and her twin sister, Jetilla Veariment, was one of the many warriors who was called up for Birch's final army that marched on the Golden City. The long war against the tyranny of the Light had taken the lives of much of Karmont's fighting population, so the final army was one of the young and the old, in a desperate effort to gather a force to match the overpopulated and decadent east. Despite her young age, she and her sister served ably in the final battle, and both were among the few survivors after the Dark One betrayed Birch, and left his followers to the merciless Light forces. In the aftermath of the massacre, Teagan Amell took the lead amongst those who still held loyalty to God-Emperor Birch. He had always been Birch's right hand man, and he had managed to retrieve the Birch family ancestral sword, Aerondight, from the Light Ward. He claimed that their master still lived on, within the sword, and Birch spoke to him, telling him not to give up hope, to rebuild the army of the Dark, to finally achieve vengeance over the Light. The sword crackled with lightning, as if to underscore the point. Inspired by the miraculous survival of their master, the gathered warriors, Nasala and her sister included, declared that they would never turn their back on Birch, and proclaimed the creation of the Cult of Birch, with Amell as its head.

When the cult returned to Karmont and Malarx, they swiftly gained the support of the population which had known only the Birch family as their overlords for all their lives. But none in the remaining Dark lands would give even passing support for what they now saw as broken fanatics. Karmont had been greatly reduced in population from the war, so they needed more. Amell began to lead the most able warriors on raids against those who did not heed the words of Birch. Those who resisted were slain, their coffers looted to support the cause of the God-Emperor, and the impressionable abducted to be indoctrinated as followers of Birch. For 14 years this carried on, until during one raid, the Birchians found themselves being counterattacked by an armed force that was expecting them. Amell was surrounded by a group of warriors, and though he fell upon them with Aerondight, killing many, a lucky archer struck him in the eye, and gave the warriors a chance to slay him. Nasala and Jetilla were nearby, trying to save Amell, when they saw him fall. Driven into a rage at the prospect of their master falling into the hands of unbelievers, Jetilla stormed forward, cutting through all in her way. Nasala tried to support her charge, but struggled to keep up.

Jetilla soon reached the body of Amell, and fought off the remaining warriors who had gathered around him. The survivors held back warily, terrified at the prospect of facing another battle hardened Birchian. Then the same archer who had felled Amell struck again, putting an arrow in Jetilla's left arm. Nasala arrived at her sister's side at this point, and quickly determined that the archer needed to die. She rushed towards him, her twin daggers slashing at anyone in her way. The archer tried to ready another arrow before she could reach him, but she threw one of her daggers at him, striking him in the throat. Before she had time to celebrate, a terrible cry came from her sister. A hulking armour knight had overtaken her while she was distracted finishing off the other warriors, and pushed a giant blade through her chest. Her broken shell of a body slowly slide off the blade as the knight rounded on Nasala, each the only one left of their side in the fight. Nasala refused to back down, even though her odds of victory were slim, she couldn't let her sister's killer walk away victorious. She rushed forward, dodging the monster's blade to then reach up and grab his helm, giving her purchase to stab through his eye slit. He refused to cooperate and threw her off as she grabbed his helm, sending her and the helm sprawling next to the dead body of Amell and Jetilla. Nasala had lost her remaining dagger, and her left arm was broken in the fall, but she formed a plan to win. As the monster attempted to finish her off, she grabbed Aerondight, and with a flash of lightning, she slashed at his exposed head, then shocked his body until it fell lifeless. With the blade of Birch now in her hands, she knew the true meaning of being Birch's Chosen.

As Nasala returned from this disastrous raid, she declared that she was the new leader of the Birchians, and the new Arbiter of the Void. As she held the miraculous sword, she was not opposed. Under her rule, the mindless raids have decreased, and instead the Birchians have become more subtle, killing in secret, and abducting without warning. Her left arm never healed entirely properly, so she has refrained from taking to the field, even in the few times the Birchians have raided in full. A more careful and meticulous ruler was needed, to truly oversee the grand plans that Birch desired. Vengeance would come, but only when it was fully prepared, only when victory was assured.

Spoiler: The True History of the War of the Prophecy

Many lies have been spread about the war that ended twenty years ago. The victors think they can rewrite what has happened to serve their own whims.

The Birch family had been planning vengeance upon the decadent east for centuries. Upon the resurgence of Dark forces, Balthar Birch quickly assumed the role of chief strategist and spymaster for the Dark forces. The Death of Dreagon and betrayal of Ra'Gru merely turned Balthar from De Facto leader to De jure. Birch's plans overran Hrondrian, ravaged Azeritii, and weakened the colossal horde of Light rabble. His plans for the final assault that overran Hrondrian and Highather resulted in the campaign ending with-in a few months. In the final battle Birch personally lead the main dark Army to crush the outer light army, personally slaying Saladin, Ulfrik, and the traitor Koldun with his unstoppable wrath and magic. As he stormed the Golden city with his legions, he implemented a plan that had been laid down years earlier. He would use the power of the Light to banish the Dark One after he had crushed the Light, and used Blood Magic to maintain his magical power. Had this plan succeeded, Birch would've been the unquestioned Supreme-Emperor of Agorath. However the betrayal of Kalare, and the last minute defection of Zephfer led to a long and hard fought battle. Birch personally slew many Lords of light, such as Owain, Quicksilver, Balfour, and the traitorous Zephfer. Their numbers and strength waned, victory was at hand, but alas, at the last second, moments after Birch crippled Ra'Gru, and had the surviving lords at his mercy, the Dark One arrived, and slew the most glorious God-Emperor at his moment of triumph. The Dark One sealed his fate then, giving Jacob enough time to complete the ritual, and saved the decadent lives of the Easterlings. Birches followers withdrew, betrayed by all, with no more strength. Now they watch as the world decays once more, but they are not without hope. For by the magic of the ritual, and sheer force of will, Balthar Birch's spirit was not destroyed, but instead imbued within his sword, Aerondight. Since the flight from the Capital, the sword has become a symbol of great reverence, and is wielded by the only one worthy, the first among the Birchians, holding the title 'Arbiter of the Void'.

Spoiler: Full Title of Balthar Birch

God-General Balthar Birch the Magnificent, Supreme Emperor of The Dark, King of Ecclestius, Highather, Ashlands, Haunted Forest, Galadrial, Nordland and Hroniden, Duke of Karmont, Shadow of the Golden City, Slayer of the Usurpers, Conqueror of the East, Banisher of the Light, Ravager of the Sands, Master of Magic, Tactician Extraordinaire, Vanguard of Immortality, Nemesis of the Lords of Light, Holiest Among Men, and Our Lord and Savior

The Cult of Birch

Leader: Arbiter of the Void Nasala Vearimont
Territory:

Spoiler: Map

Form of Government: Theocracy
Capital: Malarx
Population: Humans predominantly, though there are substantial minorities of Drow and Orcs
​

Religious Policy: Birchism is the state religion, and those who do not follow Birchism are oppressed and face harsh taxation. Those who attempt to convince others that Birch is not in fact a God are sentenced to death.
Racial Policy: Humans are considered the superior race, though Dwarves, Orcs, and Drow are accepted as sentient races. Regular Elves are held to be an abomination against mankind, and require cleansing. Racial mixing is considered an affront to Birch, and the presence of any non-human blood in an individual makes that person non-human. All Humans are not considered equal either, with Men of the West and Ecclestians held above the Norse and the Wildmen, who are held above the Hronidenese.
Gender Policy: Men and women are held in equal regard, with neither having preeminence over the other.
Foreign Policy: All non-Birchian states (read: all states) are considered inferior and potentially hostile states. Specifically-

• Hroniden is considered a long term enemy of the Cult of Birch, and numerous raids have been conducted against them. The civil war in Hroniden is considered a great opportunity by the Birchians.
• The Elves of the Vahamil Steppe are considered a direct and unacceptable threat to the Cult of Birch. Plans are already under way to destroy them.
• The smaller tribes and groups in the Ashlands are vaguely tolerated, but the Birchians consider the whole Ashlands to be theirs by right, and often pressure the tribes, unsuccessfully, to accept Birchism.
• The Kingdom of Ghullkazid is the state on friendliest terms with the Birchians, which is to say the Cult has not actively call for Ghullkazid's end as a state. As the only Dark Lord who didn't betray Birch, a certain respect is held for Loghain Deftspear, though his loyalty to the Dark One over Birch is a sticking point for most Birchians.
• The Kingdom on Dreagar Isle is considered something of a rival of the Cult of Birch, as they retain loyalty to the Dark One, Birch's greatest and final enemy.
• The Dwarves of Highather are considered another enemy of the Birchians for their support for the Light, but they hold no special place in the Birchian catalogue of enemies.
• The Wildmen of Orivantes are another of the enemy states, though their lack of unity with the other Light realms, and general hostile culture earns a certain amount of respect from the Birchians.
• The Orcs of Goi'Orka are yet another of the Birchian's enemies, with special hatred directed at them for being the original home of the hated Ra'Gru "The Betrayer".
• The Men of Westmarch are considered just another of the Light Lords who deserve death.
• The Republic of Kalar is viewed with bemusement by the Cult. It rejects the evils of the east, monarchy and worship of the Light. They may not recognize His Holiness Balthar Birch as a God, but it respects religious freedom. Some are considering attempting to create a temple in the Republic, to spread the word of Birch to the east.
• The Kingdom of Ecclestius is seen as the most dangerous of the eastern realms, with a large population suffering under its orcish tyrant. One day the Ecclestians will see the light and overthrow their tyrant, accepting the righteous of His Holiness Balthar Birch
• The Norselands are viewed as a chaotic collection of savages, with little concern given to them
• Galadriel is the greatest of the enemies of the Birchians. The home of the hated Elves, the total destruction of Galadriel and its forests is the final goal of the Birchians. Only once this is accomplished will Balthar Birch return to his mortal form and bring about the Final Judgment.

 

[AzagalTheGreat]

Name : The Most esteemed house of Bathror, represented by Bathror Greybeard, son of Bathror Waraxe, of that most noble and ancient line
Race : Dwarf
Age : 130
Title : Underking of Kogansunan
Specialty - Diplomacy : This dwarf is old, and while his body is now slowly but surely failing him, his mind is as sharp as ever, and his tongue still twists in many ways.. In his hall, even though no longer a worthy match on the battlefield, his voice still holds much sway..
Biography : Born many years ago in Kogansunan, when it was still at its height of power. His family, clan Bathror, had ruled the Mountain since time immemorial and had always been loyal vassals to the Kings under the Mountains. It was however not to last, for the city became a refuge, then a temporary capital, and eventually was sacked and destroyed by the evil that ravaged the lands. Old Bathror Greybeard and his extensive family fled with the young Crown Prince out of the mountain, proving themselves to be noble and strong warriors. At that time, he had been healthy yet. Now however, has age started to take a toll on his health, and while he stays sharp and intelligent, no longer is he the great warrior he once was.

Now however, as he progressively starts to get older, his grandchildren have increasingly started fighting over his favour so they may be Underking after him. Often when he catches such sentiments, he would defer them as petty and childish, and truly they are , for most of his grandchildren are yet to be 50 years old. He personally wishes to have his second son, Bathror Bluebeard, a most cunning man of 77 years of age , succeed him. It is with his seven sons and two dozen grandchildren he marched not a decade ago to his ancestral home in the name of the King under the Mountains, and reclaimed it.For the first time in many years, a member of clan Brathor ruled in Kogunsunan since the exile of the King under the Mountains to Kogunsunan. Now, under his care, and soon, under that of his heir, it shall be slowly but surely rebuild..

 

[Keinwyn]

​

Ayasún Eymür
Lady of Akkum

Race: Drow
Speciality: Inexorable Charm​

Ayasún was born at least half a century ago and spent her life as many of her kind did: wandering the ashlands with her kin group, eeking out an existence from the barren wastes, and killing intruders on sight. She found a mate, had a child, and continued to live as her forbears had for generations. When the Dark One arose, she was pregnant with her second child and had little to do with the ensuing war. Some of her kin went to join the dark armies, some returned.

As the ash settled, so too did Aya and her kin, after discovering a network of caverns in a near sheer cliff-face overlooking the ocean they set up their homes there and started farming in the ash rich land on the clifftop. As farming quickly produced a food surplus, many turned to other trades and, over the years a small town - Akkum, meaning white sands - has emerged that holds sway over much of the surrounding farmlands. Whilst not a fort as such, by virtue of being built into a cliff-face it is highly defensible.

The sedentary lifestyle brought many changes for her kind; with owned land and disposable property came disputes and theft, unaccustomed to living in proximity to each other kin groups came into conflict. Since childhood Aya had possessed a certain brand of inexorable magnetism, an appeal that many whispered was born of the arcane - though her allure shows no sign of diminishing as the magic powers fade across Agorath. As the need for governance became apparent, Aya’s judgements became accepted and followed, first amongst those closest to her, and then by the community at large. She holds no title, demands no homage, yet is undisputed as ruler of Akkum.

Her own mate came into conflict over a trivial matter with an individual from another kin-group which escalated into murder and he requested protection from their vengeance. Having little patience for someone who was too weak to finish what he started, Aya informed him to pay the price demanded by the other party (his life). He fled, but was hunted, caught, and Aya personally cut his heart out.

She has developed a great appetite for life and its many pleasures.

Offspring: Sirin & Malamir

Spoiler

Malamir

Sirin

The Nomadic Drow of the Ashlands
Akkum
Lizard Cavalry
The Unfortunates
A Wrathful Sibling​

 

[Ironhide G1]

Lord Nolan Holdfast

Race: Human

Age: 45

Title: Lord of the Hold

Spoiler: Claim

Castle of Great Hold, town of Holdfast and surrounding fields

Specialty: Defensive Combat

Bio: The line of the Holdfast is an ancient one. They trace their line to from before the Golden Empire even existed. They have seen Emperors rise and fall, wars of darkness, and have yet remained through it all. They somehow survived. The answer is not so difficult. The location and caution of the House has kept it quietly in power while the world constantly changes.

The Great Hold, a castle built over a cliff overlooking the sea, with very formidable defenses, but very small and old, is the seat of the house, and is rumored that the founder of the house was the one who built it, giving the house the name Holdfast. Around the small Holdfast peninsula, the land is fertile and the tiny province of Holdfast's population is based of off farming and fishing. Not a rich province, but not a poor province, making it stable but not lucrative enough for power mongers. It has lots of food, but not very much iron or lumber. The stone itself for the Great Hold is said to be imported from Highgathar. The population of the province is mostly farmers, while a couple of small towns dot the landscape, the biggest being the town of Holdfast, a big fishing community and trade hub of the province, a few miles from the castle. In the Hold life seems to go on the same. A traveler from the a distant land would not have noticed too many differences from the Empire to know. In a troubled world, it is one place where peace and prosperity exist, at least for now. There is little adventure to be had, but great stability.

House Holdfast has been known to be very cautious, tending to side with whoever would be advantageous to their survival. The House has been known for its lack of ambition, and so its members can generally be relied upon to be loyal retainers. They willingly joined the Empire, and enjoyed peace and prosperity. One Emperor gave a set of magnificent purple and gold armor to Harlon Holdfast for his loyal service to the crown, and has been a precious heirloom ever since, worn on special occasions and into battle. Another precious heirloom is one said to date back to the first Holdfast, a giant waraxe of Dwarven make called the "Dignity". All males in the House are trained to fight in both (with alternatives with the weight and feel of both). This gives the Lords of the Hold a reputation for looking stern and regal, as well as that most Holdfasts are tall and have a serious disposition, and all male Holdfasts have blonde hair. Many people have interpreted the lack of ambition to be easy targets. Not so. The Holdfasts, as their name suggest, do not give up easily, and while the numbers of their men might be small, they are hardy fighters and will defend their land to the last breath.

Lord Nolan is no exception to this rule. Trained to be a Holdfast through and through, he became one. Stern, serious, with a keen sense of duty and justice, he became the stereotypical Holdfast, and took over after his father died at age 24. As a child he was always serious, fixated on his duty as a Holdfast, and his demeanor had always seemed stiff and aloof. However, during this time the great War of Darkness began again, and Nolan set out to war. He thought about what the consequences would be, and weighed eventually to stick to the light side. He was in no means a major player, just a commander in charge of a small force for the light. The war was bloody, but Nolan survived, and preformed many small valiant deeds no bards will ever sing, no authors will ever commemorate. He and his men gained no recognition for what they endured, and Nolan doesn't mind because that is not as important as doing good is in and of itself.

However, the war seemed to make him more reserved then he already was. Also, due to the threatening of other lords, he very grudgingly participated, but still as little as possible, not sending troops in the rebellion, but grudgingly going along as so not to provoke hostility from the nobles who threatened him into the rebellion.Now his estate is mostly independent, though he longs to become under the Empire again, as all he wants for his family and people is peace and quiet. He does not want a kingdom, nor an Empire. He wants stability, and to have the people in the Hold in safety in the turbulent world, and keep the Hold as the sanctuary it is.

While still a capable ruler, he remains aloof around most people, except privately with his wife and a few close friends. Few remember his valiant service in the war, but he does not mind. He does not wish to be showered with praise. He wishes to do his duty, to rule his people with justice and prudence, and the world to return to peace. But whatever comes, as the saying goes, there has always been a Holdfast ruling the Hold, and the Holdfasts will always rule the Hold.

Spoiler: Family

Lady Sonia, Age 44

Lady Sonia is the wife of Lord Nolan, and they have been married for 27 years, with three children.The marriage was arranged, as she is a distant member of some minor nobility. At first Nolan and Sonia had trouble understanding one another. She is shy by nature, and very quiet and serious, seemingly aloof. However she is kindhearted and gentle, and the birth of the first child, Devon, would help to bring them together. Since then the relationship has blossomed. During her husband's absence during the war, she showed her administration skills, and is a quite capable ruler. During this time she also established herself as a go to arbitrator for any problems, a role she still carries on to this day.

Lord Devon, age 24

Devon is the oldest child of Nolan and Sonia. Devon from a young age was yet another quintessential Holdfast- serious, noble, and dutiful. However, besides training to carry on the family's armor and Dignity, he also is an expert horse rider, and has been obsessed with horses from an early age. His favorite horse's name is Retainer, and his primary friend. He enjoys fighting, so is quite skilled in variety of combats, from horseback combat to sword combat to the family's defensive style of combat. He is already married to a loving minor noblewoman named Lady Natalie, and has two children with her. Sonia is the older, age 3, and the younger, Walter, aged 1 year old.

Lord Milton, age 21

The second son of Lord Nolan, he is the archer of the family. The second son, he has always been in the shadow of his older brother. He, like most males of the Holdfast line, have the same seriousness and the blonde hair. However his strength lay elsewhere other than arms. He training to wield the axe "Dignity" failed, but he did not want to shame the family. When he told his father, his father presented him with an Elven Bow someone had given to him during the War of Darkness. He began to learn to be an archer, and proved to be quite proficient at the skill. Married, no children.

Lady Clarine, age 19

The female line of house Holdfast is an interesting study. While the men are serious and dutiful, with blonde hair, the females are generally a wild card. Clarine is the wild card in any sense of the word. Her blue hair makes her stand out easily from the others. She is bright, bubbly, cheerful and naive. Very unlike her two brothers, she wanted to be independent and free when she was younger. Now she has calmed down, but has yet to marry.

Lady Natalie, age 22

You will rarely ever meet a person as nice as Lady Natalie. With her youth, charm, and smile, her kindhearted and giving nature stands her out to everyone that she knows. She loves Lord Devon very deeply. She brings a smile to the face of virtually anyone she meets, and has even managed to make Lord Nolan and Lady Sonia laugh before!

The Great Hold

The terrain of the Westmarch is mostly grasslands. The small region of the Hold is no different. However, on the coast there is a long cliff, called the Storm's Fury, off of which a giant spire of rock juts out of the sea. This cliff is known for being terrible for ships, and even on calm days waves crash against the cliff. Several miles away are the fishing centers that feed into the town of Holdfast; meanwhile fishers avoid the dangerous cliffs of Storm's fury, fishermen know to stay far away. The rock spire is well known, but no one had been able to reach it. That would change with the arrival of a blonde haired and serious man named Gerald, later known as Gerald Holdfast. A loyal noble, and a brilliant engineer falsely banished from his Kingdom, he was looking for a place to settle. The quiet region appealed to him, and he chose this place to build his fortress, due to the inaccessibility via water and positioning

He still had his family's vast fortune, and began work on designing a fortress. He hired Dwarven builders and harvested stone from nearby on the cliff. He began construction of the bridge, connecting the edge of the cliff to the rock spire, a causeway about 900 yards. Later, at the end of the causeway a retractable steel extension of about 30 yards was added for further protection, using Dwarf assistance(this is not in the picture, use your imagination). Once the spire of rock was reached, he built the foundation, connecting the various smaller spires on the rock wall. In the foundation he built passageways few know about. After this he ordered the construction of five towers and two gatehouses, one on each end of the bridge. Both gates were reinforced and made out of Dwarven steel, and very strong. After completing the towers, he oversaw the construction of the outer wall, with a colonnade wrapping around with bunting easily accessible in case of attack. Windows for rooms ring the outer wall but also served the double purpose archers could fire out of.

Inside of the inner wall is the courtyard. Narrow, it wraps around the keep and inside the inner wall. In the courtyard, built into the inner walls are the quarters for any soldiers living in the fortress, as well as armories to supply any soldier. In the keep live the household guard, the family, any guests, and the servants that live to help around the fort. Other rooms are built in the inner part of the foundation, stretching deep into the rock. There are rooms below in which many peasants can live in case of an invasion. Many storerooms lie there.

Spoiler: IC

TBD

 

[Tapscott]

Belegûr Arvandu
Age Unknown
King of Dreagar, Consort of the Maegi
Insidious Demagogue

Proclaimed King of Dreagar by the Maegi Belegûr Arvandu’s reign has seen the Black Island unite and prosper. Demonstrating impressive oratory talent as well as political acumen, King Belegûr has repressed all dissident factions in his domain and has finally turned his gaze outwards towards the rest of Agorath.

Persuasive and brutal in equal measures, the Drow King has earned a far-reaching reputation as being a monarch of power and talent. Those who enter his presence should beware, as there are whispers that his natural skill as a firebrand is augmented by mystical means that cloud the mind and pervert the thoughts of all who hear him.


************************************************************************

Cacame Mindrilla
Born on the First Year of the New Era
Heir-Apparent of Mirrorwater
Foppish Princeling

Family:
Father - Garhold Quicksilver, Underking of Yurdaest (†)

Mother - Evhana Mindrilla, Therain of Mirrorwater

Brother – Garhold Elu, Underking of Yurdaest (†)

Step-Father – Elessar Coamenel, Prince of Galadriel, Therain-Consort of Mirrorwater


Born the second son of Evhana Mindrilla and her unfortunate husband Garhold Quicksilver, Cacame never knew his father whom perished whilst slaying the Dark Lord Balthar Birch in the final battle in the Golden City. This left Cacame to be raised by his mother, who doted on him heavily as was the fashion of the deeply devoted Deep-Elves, and his distant step-father.

Having seen his 19th nameday only recently Cacame has grown up into a rather effeminate and naïve princeling. Eager to please and trusting to fault, the heir to Mirrorwater has proven to be quite the socialite despite the unusual habits developed by his mother’s insistence of his adherence to personal safety, such as the inclusion of mild poisons in every meal to help build up his tolerance.


************************************************************************

Zarah Shalhoub
Born on the Fifth-Last Year of the Golden Era
Courtier in the Jagged Spire
Resourceful Agent
​

Few facts are known about Zarah Shalhoub other than that she was born and raised in the westernmost lands of Hrondien where her father ran a merchant caravan that often dealt with the various wandering tribes of the Ashlands. Sometime during her late teens her father's caravan was ransacked by a party of wandering Orc tribals who looted whatever they felt was valuable and tied up all who survived to be sold.

After being moved from place to place throughout the west the angry Zarah eventually came into the hands of a corpulent Dark Elf noble of the Black Island, Dreagar, who sought to use her as a means to advance his position in court by earning the favour of the King. While Zarah was taken by the King of the Drow, she was told it was not to be as a concubine. What role the King of Dreagar has for her is unknown.

************************************************************************


List of IC
The Garden Path
Featuring Cacame and Eylinn

Hymn of the Faithful
Featuring a Prisoner of the Jagged Spire

A New Direction Part I of II
Featuring Cacame, Evhana, and Elessar

A New Direction Part II of II
Featuring Cacame, Evhana, and Elessar

The New Master
Featuring Belegûr and Zarah

A Lesson on History
Featuring Belegûr and Zarah

Nightmares
Featuring Cacame

To be a Dancer
Featuring Belegûr and Zarah

Orders and Flames
Featuring Belegûr and Zarah

The Young Lord
Featuring Zarah and Cacame

Back Home
Featuring Belegûr and Zarah

Talk of Marriage
Featuring Cacame and Evhana​

​

 

[iisbroke]

High Chief Einir Tudonii of Ordivantes

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Race: Human/ Wilder culture group
Age: 19
Speciality: War
Titles: Duke of Ordivantes

Spoiler: Biography

Einir Tudonii is a bastard, literally. He was conceived out of wed-lock. His mother is Johanna von Saxon and Owain Tudonii. They were meant to marry but Owain died in the final battle, yet no one ever told him how or why. He spent much of his life being raised by his uncle Gwynfar, alongside his cousin Aelhaern.

They were raised to both be leaders of Ordivantes. Owain and Gwynfar were never raised to lead as they had three elder brothers. When the Tudonii civil war killed those three it left a gap in succession. Owain who was only good at fighting not strategizing, and Gwynfar who was forced to learn how to be an administrator in the middle of a crisis. This also lead to the reinstatement of the Tanist system, with Aelhaern as the Tanist heir to Einir. The leaders of the 8 major tribes of Ordivantes could vote for a new relative as tanist but Aelhaern is the best option as of now.

Einir has been molded to be the leader Gwynfar and other influential chiefs think he should be. Someone with a strong ancestral claims, and political support from powerful neighbors like Galadriel. He never had much of a childhood, often being beaten harshly for mistakes. He was taught all manners of warfare and made to learn the older traditions of his people.

Behind the scenes people spread rumors about his father's death being the result of him breaking the oath. This was to both encourage usurpation and independence from Azeratti. The schemers were eventually found out and beheaded, their skulls hung as trophies above the tribal seat in Dracona. The irony is that not long after this Einir received word that with the loss of Westmarch his friend/friendly acquaintance King Varian Krestarii released Ordivantes from fealty, due to it being a logistical nightmare to try and keep it in the Azeratti sphere of influence.

From his great hall Einir often spends hours viewing the map of the world carved into the floor for signs of weakness. Playing out various scenarios in his head to be prepared for anything. His mind often wanders to the rebirth of Bleddyn the Vile's great kingdom of Wilderana, modern day northern Wild Lands. Also to vengeance against the dwarves of Ghulkazid, and Yurdeast.

Lately Gwynfar has worried his hope for a strong wilder ruler is distracted by his latest guest. Narian Mindrilla, daughter to Eylinn Mindrilla and King Ares Krestarii. (Actually Eylinn and Jacob Eccleson but my characters don't know that.) Einir and Narian had always been oddly drawn to each other, despite Gwynfar ensuring Einir remained segregated from the Eastern lords as much as possible. Also Eylinn Mindrilla claimed Owain died because she forced him into a position where he had to break the blood oath. While Einir doesn't know this Gwynfar certainly hinted to him that he should never trust the Mindrilla family.

He initially spent his time hunting down great beasts and sending them as trophies to Narien, even having beheaded a bandit and bringing the head to her. She didn't approve of it which left him ignoring her for a few months, focusing on military reforms. Then one night she went to speak to him alone in his bed chambers and now they spend a lot more time together and openly act as old friends. She still lives in Dracona, in the Tudonii manor actually, and keeps in contact with her family through messengers. In fact King Varian sent a loyal Ecclestian Noble, Richard of Garmon, to help keep an eye on her, which Einir allowed as Varian was a friend. Narien is a welcome guest as Einir never had many friends beyond Aelhaern, as Gwynfar wanted. To ensure Einir would stay strong and objective in dealings with his more regal neighbors.

Relations: (Hopefully I will be able to update this every few turns as events unfold)
The chaos of the dark war and the reconstruction afterwards have left a very bitter taste in the mouths of the Wilder. They seem to have changed from wanting to be more eastern, to more western. Most likely brought on by the inclusion of more Wilder tribes, and their fealty to Azeratti that was meant to protect them from the Dakr Forces only left them without any troops to defend their land.

Azeratti/Ecclestius- Fealty was initially sworn to this mighty kingdom out of necessity during the Dark One's second coming. Eventually those sentiments waned over time as Dracona was sacked, with its forces instead being used to protect Ecclestian land. There was also distance in culture and geography. After the loss of Westmaarch the King of Azeratti, once all Ecclestius, sent a note to Ordivantes in fancy words saying they were on their own. It was a mixed blessing. The wilder were free once more, but now alone and Ordivantes scrambled to gain allies and improve relations.

Galadriel - Ordivantes has good relations with this realm. This is almost entirely due to the work of its queen Nienna Coamenel who formed a fast friendship with the late High Chief Owain Tudonii.

Highather - there is a severe amount of dislike amongst the men of Ordivantes and this place. Mainly due to the forces of Yurdeast having been an accomplice in the "rape of Ordivantes." There is a huge push to avenge this slight. Being a subject of the current High King, Deagrin, it causes multiple issues. If Yurdeast wasn't a vassal there would be not ill will towards the rest of Highathar. Which is a shame as many of the non-Tudonii tribes trade freely with the rest of the dwarven kingdom.

Thaanos - this small city state is well liked trade partner. Both cultures have similar customs and mannerisms which create a great deal of warmth and kinship.

Goi'orka - There are admirable feelings between Ordivantes and the orcs of Goi'orka. During the reconstruction period they worked together to an extent forming a pseudo-defensive pact. Right now though they have a minor rivalry as both wish to expand into the Wilds.

Ghulkazid - the most hated of all the former dark lords resides here. It was these dwarves that lead the forces which decimated Ordivantes. The Wilder want nothing more than to return the favor, and burn Ghulkazid to the ground. This has caused a recent war to erupt from some of the Wilder chieftains killing a peaceful envoy of the dwarves.

Nordlands - the wilder have mixed feelings on the nords. They both respect the nords for being a warrior culture and dislike them for being more arrogant than Imperials, in general.

Hroniden - both wilder and hronidens rarely deal with one another leaving no interactions to cause like or dislike.

Ashlands - most of the ashlands fought for the forces of darkness in the last war and are in a position to take Wild Lands territory which Ordivantes desires.

Spoiler: ICs

History of Tudonii Chieftains
8 Families
Orlegníð Part 1
Orlegníð Part 2
Orlegníð Part 3

Spoiler: The Land

Landscape:
Ordivantes is the most northern part of Highathar, and is sandwiched between the Haunted Forest and Galadriel. The region is filled with numerous valleys and fjords each separated by mountain terrain. The northern coast is nearly none existent with the Shattered Banks, a series of closely knit jagged rock out cropping with mountain sides and cliffs for the shore. The eastern half is a large fertile valley surrounded by the Ordivante mountains. The only way into this sub region is through the Forked Pass, north from the port of Gwain’s Fall or east from the Helvita Valley. The Helvita valley comprises the southern and western portions of Ordivantes. This area is too flanked by mountains on all sides, but with a pass leading north to the castle port of Dyfheim through the much wider Ordivante fjord and east past the cliffs of Or’Mara. Both lead straight to the Wild Lands. Helvita is much lower in elevation than Tudonii and the Or’ Mara cliffs emphasize this by acting as a towering wall on the northern part of the valley. The far western part is a recent acquisition made by four other Wilder tribes joining out of necessity of survival. This portion, called Greater Ordivantes, has far more plains than the more mountainous eastern portion of the realm.

Agriculture:
While many rivers flow from the Ordivantes into Galadriel there are no large rivers inside the land itself. This limits the people to dry farming were their most common crops are winter wheat, hops, berry fields, and orchards (mainly in Helvita). They also farm large amounts of carrots, turnips, radishes and potatoes; being underground keeps them from being destroyed by wild land raids.

In terms of livestock the people of the Ordivatnes province use sheep (wool for clothing), pigs (meat and leather), cows (dairy products and meat occasionally), goats (milk and meat), oxen (work animals), donkeys (used to help protect flocks), dogs (hunting, war and herd protection) and finally mussels in canaries near the Shattered Banks. The people here also don’t herd one animal at a time but multiple ones. They keep livestock in one herd because many of them eat different types of plants and grasses so they can peacefully graze together, the numbers help ward off predators and some of them like the pack hounds trained to protect the herd and donkeys fight off predators that do show.

Industry:
The majority of manufacturing is done at home, but there are a few big manufactures in the larger towns like Helvitan’s water powered grain mill, Helgoland’s bee farms, Dyfheim’s fish canaries and Dracona’s Windmill and brewery.

Economy:
The province isn’t the wealthiest to be sur. Ordivantes province makes an adequate amount of money from taxes, and does very thorough censuses every two years. The valleys in the province mean they can grow crops such as wheat, berries, honey and apples were most neighboring mountain provinces cannot. The province also controls the Forked Pass which is an essential point of access for traders in the region being the quickest and safest route from Coamenel to the inner mountain ranges. A good amount of money is accumulated from adventurers seeking dangers in the Wild Lands who often have to go through the Ordivantes. Dyfheim is also the last port of sanctuary before the darker lands so elves hoping to survey the haunted forests, to research making it a forests of light, must stop in Dyfheim before venturing on.

Ordivantes was sacked and pillaged during the dark war leaving it in a weak condition. This lead to many resurgences of older practices in both religion, creed, society, politics, and economics.

Spoiler: Long Post on Culture

Culture of Wilderana

The people of Ordivantes and the northern Wild Lands, Wilder as they are often called, are imperial humans dating back to the first dark war. Though they are only imperial in name, as they differ from their fellow imperials so much because while their southern brethren evolved varied cultures, built sprawling cities and all an encompassing empire, the Wilder stayed relatively the same. Now do not assume that these people are all the exact same, for they are built into several different wilder tribes of their own similar cultures, but these will simply be the most common traits shared by all of them.

Names
At first one would assume a Wilder names to be a hybridization of an Imperial and Saxon-Deutsch name, but that is quite the contrary. The Saxon-Deutsch first names have changed little from the wilder names like Hans, Albertch, Gunther, Maximillion and Gretel being common in both cultures. As a sense of place became more important than surnames the Saxon-Deutsch dropped them and began to simply say where they were from. The southern imperials, mixed with the people of the southern lands combining their names together but keeping the same style of surname. With names flowing in a relaxed style ending often in vowels with double “I’s” the most popular form. Guess which surname is Wilder or Southern Imperial, Almorii or Germana, the answer is both. For Wilderana family and tribe are the same, and with first names often being widely varied especially with nicknames being common they use their tribe as a surname.

Appearance
Due to a combination of militaristic lifestyle, high levels of protein year round and interbreeding with the more barbaric human tribes to the west, the Wilder look slightly different from their Imperial cousins. Their hair ranges from hues of blond, red and brown, with medium length hair and beards being the dominant style. The most common eye colors are gray and green. Having less sun year round in their latitude means they have paler skin than other imperials. The men’s chests are more barreled on average, with the woman being more buxum in general. They are the tallest of Imperials; men averaging 5’ 11’’ and women averaging at 5’7’’. The people of Wilderana also tend to be leaner and muscular due to their harsher lifestyle.

Clothing

Generally men wear long-sleeved shirts or tunics, and long trousers, Clothes are made of wool or linen, with some silk being used by the rich, due to trade sustained by their allegiance to Azeratti. Cloaks are worn in the winter. Brooches and armlets are used, but the most famous item of jewelry is the torc, a neck collar of metal, sometimes gold. Women's clothes use the same materials and jewelry, but often focus on modest dresses with perhaps a veil, or long skirts and a blouse. Other common clothing are tartans of plaid design, while any color combination can be found they originally stood for the tribe. Maroon and forest green for Turonii, and Gold and navy blue for Helvatii. These patterns are often used for cloaks and loose trousers as well. Due to the lack of wealth disparity within their society all social classes dress the same with only ornaments as a possible indicator of wealth.

Cuisine
For these people food is often a social event in urban areas they invite neighbors over to share meals with them regularly, and in rural areas the community gathers in force around a large stew pot throwing their best produce into it, once a month. The average diet in Wilder is milk or berry juice, eggs and bread for breakfast. Lunch is cheese, with smoked sausage (or another form of meat). Supper consists of cooked vegetables (usually potatoes and carrots), meat (sausage, ham or game meat) and a beer to wash it down.

Gender Relations
The Wilders are a patriarch society like the other. Women are viewed in a positive light with kindness, compassion, cunning and virtue being the traits they are supposed to aspire to. In Ordivantite society women are allowed to hold offices, businesses and land freely. They can’t inherit land unless they are the only surviving family member though. Women also play a more dominant role in public office than men, because offices require cunning. Military jobs and landholders tend to be a male dominated trade. With business holding and labor jobs (primarily farming as serfs) are relatively equal in numbers. This doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of female warriors or male merchants its just that their ratios in these field favor one gender far more than the other.

Ideology
Much like all Imperials there is a strong sense of honor, especially in warfare. The Wilder have an unwritten code of ethics that should be adhered too. 1) Don't harm the infirmed (those under the ages of 5, too sick to raise a weapon, and too old to fight), 2) Don’t bring battle onto consecrated grounds (cemeteries, shrines, and temples), 3) Don’t attack during a cease fire, 4) no poisoning of water sources, 5) refrain from cannibalism and 6) keep your oaths.

This is what leads to many considering the Wilder to be barbaric and brutal in war. As there is no official code held throughout the tribes, just a general feeling of social norms and taboos. Even if followed strictly the code would allow numerous war crimes without being considered amoral by the Wilder.

The concept of mortality intrigues the Wilders. They symbolically show this through festivals (or carnivals as they call them), huge eccentric displays in which whole communities party. The four festivals are the Spring (beginning of life), Summer (first half of life), Autumn (the latter half of life) and Winter (the end of life).

Oathkeeping is incredibly important. It is also what caused the Tudonii civil war. The Tudonii used to lease themselves as mercenaries, yet after a battle in Nordland before the empire fell Tudonii forces hired by opposing sides clashed. It caused the deaths of the Tudonii leader of the time Albertch VII, and many of his heirs. The last leader of the Tudonii was Owain Tudonii, who in order to survive the Dark made the ancient Blood Oath pact. This caused problems later on in his and his son's reign.

Writing

This writing is rather different from all others though it is speculated to be runic in nature. It reads vertically from top to bottom and left to right. The most notable feature is how there is always a line running through each phonetic of this script. This can be the most confusing part, for people not already familiar with it. Many characters are defined by which way the lines go through them. Luckily one can discern when a word begins or ends based on the spacing of a set of characters. Sentences also often end with a circle. In this form there are few other punctuation marks.

Religion
Currently the Wilder Religion is torn. The initial imperial religion was brought to Ordivantes to make them more complacent and "civilize" them. The decentralized nature of the people though caused many heretical forms of the religion to sprout instead. Lately though, with the great calamity of the Dark One himself passing through their lands, there has been a massive resurgence of the old ways, known as Spirit Worship. This religion has always existed and influenced the ideas of the heresies of the Imperial religion of the Four Divines, but now it is worshipped more fully.

Spirit Worship​

Religion - Fðremæ ealdorgedál; direct translation [Renown Divorce from Life] the vast majority of Wilder are animists. Meaning they worship the aspects of nature so just like the people themselves their religion is quite decentralized. Still there are many similarities and shared traits amongst them. One thing to be Noted is their huge belief in spirits. Everything has a spirit to it a; spirit of nature, or the soul of a dead human. In their minds once one dies they enter another plane of existence which we in life are unable to see or interact with directly. Spirits also are unable to directly interact with us yet they can still aid or hinder through indirect methods depending on how powerful said spirit is.

1.Ancestor Stone (A boulder with the history of the tribe carved into it.) Placed on top of hills and meant to be out in the open as an austere shrine to the dead. The biggest misconception about the Wilder religion is that they worship their ancestors at these shrines. While they worship spirits that is done anywhere the individual believes the nature spirit is powerful, groves, sacred places, sites of great events, and etcetera. The ancestor stones are an example of reverence for ones ancestors which is quite different, though few outsiders make the distinction.

2.Afterlife - There is one after life where spirits go. Ancestor spirits help protect the tribe, while enemy ancestor spirits try to harm it. This creates an afterlife filled with constant immortal battles between the ancestors of rival tribes, but there is a level of fairness to the afterlife. The most virtuous people in life will end up being reborn in death as a powerful spirit, for instance a heroic warrior king will remain a king in death, but a craven king will be placed at the same level as a craven serf.

3.[Virtues] (Sins) - these are intricate facets of any culture/religion, what is right and what is wrong. Most of the time many of these sins and virtues overlap as they are work best for the majority of any society. Still not every culture is the same so there are some variants these twelve virtues and sins are those of the Wilders.

Five Prime Virtues

• Diligence - hard work for the tribe
• Just - fairness in life breathes fairness in death
• Honor - to die fighting for the tribe is the ultimate selfless sacrifice
• Respect - respect those below you and above you shall receive like treatment at the end
• Bravery - facing fearful situations on behalf of the tribe

Five Deadly Sins

• Sloth - how can the lazy benefit others)
• Arbitrary - the afterlife will be fair even if you were not)
• Deceitful - if honesty is the best policy what would that make its opposite
• Contempt - to utterly hate is to forgo any respect
• Craven - fleeing from their duties as a tribesmen

4.Shæmann (shaman) tend the shrines, and ask ancestors for divinations or to curse enemy tribes.
-Sacrifices are used to appease the spirits during holidays or before battles. Sacrifices are food, animals, and depending on the tribe a thrall.

Spoiler: Hierarchy of Spirits

-Godhád - divine nature, the spirits of nature. Being an animist religion there are many spirits of nature that the Wilder worship. Still there are actually a sort of pantheon amongst these spirits that fall underneath certain elements. These elements can be literal manifestations of nature such as fire, or a means of using these elements such as woodworking. Still they also consider less tangible things as aspects of nature such as the nature of conflict and wisdom. This might be due to their firm belief in spirits being all around them in some unseen touchable realm. There are more aspects of nature, or spirits of nature, worshipped amongst the various tribes but the below are all those that are shared amongst the vast majority.

1.éar - earth

• ár - ore
• stán - stone
• édelturf - native soil
• hærfestlic - harvest
• déor - wild animals
• orf - domestic animals

2.Lagu - water

• Fífelstréam - ocean/sea
• Wæterstréam - river
• Oferflédan - flooding
• Tad - tide
• Fisc - fish
• Sægéatas - seafaring
• Rén - rain

3.Fýr - fire

• Hætu - heat
• Fýrgearwung - cooking
• Mánbryne - destructive fire
• Asmiðian - to forge/metal smiting
• ád - funeral fire
• Sól - sun

4.Lyffc - air

• Byre - strong wind
• OroÞ - breath
• ýst - storm, tempest, hurricane, surge
• Lyft - sky, literal sense
• Rodor - the heavens, stars

5.Wudu - forest

• Tréowwyrhta - wood working/carpentry
• Smiþcræft - smith craft/ bow, shield, spear maker
• Tréowu - trees
• Bytlung - building
• Plantunga - plants and planting

6.Orlegníð - war and conflict

• Leódgewinn- strife
• Scanda - scandals
• Onforwyrd - destruction
• Hereræs - hostile raid/ harrassing
• Huntaþ - hunting/ the chase
• Mannsliht - manslaughter/homicide/murder
• Unsælð - misery/adversity/misfortune

7.Ænkou - Death

• þrymríce - heaven
• Ærdéaþ - premature death
• Drepe - slaying stroke/violent death
• Déaþstede - place of death/mssacre sights/battelfeilds
• Cððu - disease/pestilence
• Déaþscúa - shadow of death
• Déaþdenu - valley of death, where þrymríce resides
• Díeðung - putting to death/execution

8.Gesnyttro - Wisdom

• Lár - lore
• Rímcræft - arithmetic
• áþencan - invention
• Béc - books
• þéodisc - speech/language
• Wítegdóm - prophecy/ divination
• éadnes - inner peace

Spoiler: SPIRITS

Keeping in line with their spirit/nature worship is an aspect in Wilder culture of calling on the spirits of one's ancestors to assist in some way. There are two types of spirits, Ælfen and Cargást.

1.Ælfengást - kind spirit

• þéninggást - Spirit of justice
• Geornesgást - Spirit of diligence and zeal
• beóþgást - Spirit of pleasure
• Indryhtugást - Spirit of honor
• Ecgþræogást - Spirit of courage
• Ieohtumgást - Spirit of respectfulness

2.Cargást - Angry spirit

• Wráþgást - Spirit of Vengence
• Sænegást - Spirit of Sloth
• leódgewinngást - Spirit of pain, torment, and strife
• Unárgást - Spirit of dishonor
• Náwihtnesgást - Spirit of cowardice and worthlessness
• Forhogydnysgást - Spirit of disdain and contempt

Superstitions
In a world of magic and monstrous beings societies still form general phobias about their world and environment. One of the many superstitions amongst the people of the Wilderana province is that the sea is evil, the reasoning is due to their land focus in military matters. With only a handful of ports they see little use in a navy. The other is how drinking large amounts of sea water will cause dementia and eventually kidney failure in people. So while freshwater is considered life, saltwater is believed to be death.

They also hold cattle in higher regards than most cultures, while not sacred, cattle are often used as currency between villages and the friendlier barbarian tribes. This is because cows can be used to make multiple items and in larger quantity than other animals (due to their size), such as dairy products, dried dung for fire fuel, meat in harsh winters, intestines for sausages, leather and so on. So if a Wilder gives you a cow it would be the same as a dwarf giving you a chest of gold.

The final and most pervasive superstition in Wilderana, are spirits. Specifically spirits in objects, they believe that their weapons contain the souls of their ancestors. When a Wilder army marches they believe all previous wilder warriors march with them as well.

The same goes with shamans who will call on curses for you against your enemies, which asks for your own ancestors to strike out against your earthly foes. This is difficult because the targets' ancestors will fight to protect them. These beliefs have lead to many depictions of the Wilder afterlife being one of constant war. Still the worst act is for one to anger their own ancestors meaning that there would no longer be protection from the attacks of one's rivals' ancestral spirits.

All Wilders believe that an attack by these spirits is simply bad luck. It can go from stubbing one's tow to not being able to dodge a blow in combat. Perhaps the most extreme example is how the Tudonii's under the branch from Selwyn the Vile are now plagued by the western migratory people which is ravaging their kingdom.

Another major superstition is their belief in the soul being kept within the head of a person. They view it generally as a temporary prison on this world before the head deteriorates and the owners soul can ascend to their 'glorious afterlife'. Seeing how these Wilders hold firm that their opponents vengeful spirits may strike out at them they will often keep their foes' heads as trophies and even attempt to preserve them for as long as possible. The hope is that they hold that person's soul as captive to better stave off the wrath of the defeated's ancestors for a while longer, and to show one's power over that foe. Even orcs do not practice this and many of the Wilders' allies have viewed practices such as these in great horror and disgust.

Ancestor Stones
Ancestor stones are monolithic record holders for the Wilderana, though they put more emphasis on their importance. These stones are essentially used to mark the history of their ancestors, as primary sources. What is most confounding about them is not that these stones also have the Wilder ancestral writing scrawled over it as much as possible, but that they are set up in patterns. Often the stories are moved around in a line to be followed all throughout the stone's surface, and depict images accented by pigments. For all these stones' beauty they are difficult to understand which might be why those who own one take so much pride in these items, that and they are considered a direct link to one's ancestors.

Architecture

The first immediate aspect of Wilder architecture is the hill fort; which are fortified enclosures surrounded by ditches and walls. Inside there are circular stone dwellings with thatched roofs, laid out in neighborhoods and separated by streets and squares. Other longer buildings serve as places of reunion or worship, and some settlements even have steam baths. One of the most characteristic elements of the hill forts is their setting. They are usually located either on mountains, in elevated positions, or close to the coast. So that nature itself will provide them with defenses. These special locations mean that they also enjoy stunning views. Next are the duns which is a variation of hill fort. These forts are also found centered in large ponds or lakes, or more often an extremely wide man made moat connected to a nearby water source. The point of these settlements is the same as that of the mountain hill fort, which is simply to create a natural defense for the settlement's inhabitants.

The vast majority of Wilder buildings are simply rounded hovels with a conical thatched roof. Most often the walls of these building are wood with mud or plaster insulation combined with a wicker weave pattern in the assembly. Other times stone for the walls but the wicker weave insulation is still used to prevent freezing in winter. The conical roofs often have ventilation at the top to allow smoke from a central hearth to leave, and melt snow on the roof during winter. These hovels also have a secondary ring that surrounds the inner hearth area, acting as an added barrier from heat loss and dividing parts of the hovel into other rooms.

None circular buildings are, as previously stated, meant for none residential purposes. For instance the main place wear the chieftain and council meet is designed after the Nordic great hall, with just more space due to it not providing lodgings for the chieftain and wilder aesthetics. The temple of the ancestors is also designed differently, as well as that of the courthouse. What is most interesting is the focus on elevation. These three main buildings are often set in the general vicinity of one another, around public plaza. The great hall covers the most land but is shortest; the courthouse has no corners to show equality for the people inside and is taller than the hall to show even chief's answer to the law; and the temple is the highest because all must answer to the ancestors, or god(s).

Government
Their government is tribal and extremely decentralized, with each tribe acting with a severe level of autonomy. Naturally this leads to some differences from place to place in how powerful the governmental body of a tribe is but some items pervade the whole of Wilder culture. First is succession, rather than the agnatic-cognatic primogeniture style of most modern states these wilder use a cognatic tansitry system. Cognatic simply means that women can inherit on the same grounds as men. Tanistry means that someone related to the current chief must be elected by the tribe, making them the tanist. The best analogy would be a majority of the nobles in a kingdom saying they wanted their king's third cousin in charge next, and he would then be officially made crown prince. They tend to rule themselves through chieftains who keep a tribal council as advisors and administrators.

Next is the hierarchy of power. Wilderana uses a somewhat similar style to the feudal system so it has one large tribe, with smaller less powerful tribes under it, with weaker tribes underneath them. This is often referred to as the main tribe, major tribes, and minor tribes. To avoid elaborate, the Wilder treat tribe and family as the same thing so to them a small homestead is as much a tribe as a sprawling trade center. Whoever controls the main tribe and the others is called the Grand Chief, which is essentially a king; the major tribes behave as dukes and are called High Chiefs; while the minor tribe leaders are simply named Chiefs; in some cases there are smaller tribes underneath those which are proclaimed to be minor Chiefs. Within a tribe there are advisory positions.

They label these positions by the term seat. The seat of War is their marshal, this person often tends to be the tanist or champion of the chieftain. Seat of spirits is a clerical position where a notable priest is placed to ensure the chief doesn't offend the ancestors. The seat of goods is a mercantile position often acting as an ambassador of trade or tax collector. The seat of law is reserved for the highest ranking judge the tribe has, they are meant to keep track of all legal actions amongst their tribe. The seat of crops is given to someone who is particularly knowledgeable about food stuffs, an important thing when winters could kill many of the small tribes/families in Wilderana. Finally is the seat of subterfuge, this is a spymaster position; meant solely for an individual adept at intrigue.

Politics
Alliances between tribes are made in a few ways. The most common is marriage between close relatives of chieftains. The second is through the champion system. Younger sons of chieftains will be trained to be masters of combat and offered to be champions of another tribe, remember champions tend to represent the honor of a tribe and even act as marshal. This requires a lot of faith and trust so usually both tribes accept a champion from each other to balance out.

Third thing of note is trade. Trade is an important act in any culture and often opens doorways to the higher levels of interaction. Most tribes only have the resources to trade with a handful of others at a time but it does keep the economy moving.

Fourth are favors. Often times tribes ask favors of one another such as a loan of resources, help with a ceremony, or even a raid. There are customary amounts to give for most favors asked. Tribes tend to have an interweaving of favors owed to one another, and are expected to return the favor which can be anything reasonable asked of them. These in a way create fleeting alliances where one can trust a tribe will help with one small task.

Finally are the feuds. Wilders are said to have longer memories than elves when it comes to personal slights and insults. Being an honor culture they can be very good friends and allies, yet it also means every time they are slighted it is expected to return the injury. This can snowball into feuds quite easily. The most common way of dealing with them are Wergilds which is when a court decides who was harmed most and makes the other party pay compensation, if an entire side is killed then the surviving party pays the Chieftain.

Crime and Punishment
The Wilder law system is set up into three tiers, High judges (whose jurisdiction covers the whole province), Circuit Judges (whose courts are for local crimes), and Judgers (catches criminals and administers the sentences.) Most criminals are brought to the local circuit judge to be tried, with the high judges dealing with more serious crimes. Criminals can plead guilty and accept their punishment, or try to prove innocence. If they plead not guilty, they will perform an ordeal depending on the severity of the crime. Punishments for crimes are a) put them in the stocks, b) 30 lashes c) have the person crippled, d) hanged, e) castrated or f) impaled.

Ordeals are meant to allow the ancestors to decide the fate of a man; difficulty depends on the crime ordeal by cake for instance is often used for bread thieves (they eat a piece of cake, choke your guilty don’t and your innocent). The worst is ordeal by valor, an ordeal in which the one partaking in it must prove their valor in combat. They are thrown into an arena naked and without any weapons. After this they must fight wild animals, often cougars, or wolves, and any warrior who wishes to test their “valor” in battle. Very few throughout history have ever withstood this trial.

Army of the Ordivante

Extensive military training provides an unrivaled militia force capable of repelling most raids, which the vast majority of their warfare is. Their mobilized forces often fight with guerilla tactics, using smaller forces to distract or draw foes out of formation, before a larger force charges into the gaps. When forced to fight conventionally they form thick shield walls, in more confusing battles squads of soldiers form schiltrons, fighting back to back in a large circular formation. Each soldier carries a small sack around their back or waste, containing rations, medicine, whetstones and a miniature spade with a hatchet. The two tools are used to form trenches and wooden stakes, to surround their camps at night. These wilder armies have throughout history proven to be fierce and unafraid of death yet they've never been a cohesive force. Many units are formed around their different families (minor and major) so there is a lot of competition between units. This is a double edged sword because it increases their ferocity in battle to show one another up, yet it prevents these units from working together as a single entity. These wilder armies have often been beaten by internal rivalries first and external foes immediately afterwards

 

[DragonOfAtlantis]

Kristoff standing for a painting holding a ridiculously large model sword, with Glimmer in its sheath

Character: Kristoff Muller

Race: Human

Age: 50

Specialty - Strategy

Bio: A wandering mercenary strategist, he traveled around the land working as a tactician until sometime prior to the War of Darkness where he seemingly disappeared. He has only recently reappeared selling his services to the highest bidder. His band is composed of 50 cavalry of various quality, some are horsemen who grew up with Kristoff in Saxon, others are noble knights, fourth or fifth sons who had no chance of inheriting their parents' holdings. He is known to have an ancient sword that he had named Glimmer, due to it letting off light in the dark((no bonus to rolls unless we end up with a quest to uncover the blade's secrets or something)). He was last seen crossing east across the Vahamil Steppe.

Family:
Son, Reinhardt Muller
Age: 20
Daughter, El Muller
Age: 16

 

[BlackBishop]

Narien Krestarii-Mindrilla
20 years old
Banner Captain
Gifted Healer

Narien was born in Azeratti, in the months following the War of Darkness. Narien grew up hearing the heroic deeds of her mother and father, Eylinn Mindrilla and Ares Krestarii. As a result, she idolized her parents and followed in their footsteps to become a proven warrior, shunning her education and courtesies at court. Upon reaching adulthood, Narien left Azeratti and was married to a norse prince in Norseland. The marriage was short-lived, however, and following the murder of her husband, Narien went west to Dracona. There she has struck up a close friendship with Lord Einir of Dracona, and established her own banner of soldiers.

An adept fighter, Narien also has a gifted ability as a healer, able to heal the most dreadful wounds of her companions. Some of her close followers whisper that this is a magical ability, inherited through her lineage.

The Last Maegi
Age Unknown
High Priestess of Dreagar
Seeress

The Last Maegi was the architect of the Maegi Prophecy woven centuries ago that would bring about the return of the Dark One. Fiercely loyal to her master, and believing that mortal kind deserve retribution for their sins of the past, the Last Maegi was a leading force behind the Dark invasion twenty years ago. Upon travelling to Norseland to incite the Norse clans in revolt, the Maegi was captured by the forces of Light. She was subsequently released by Elu of Yurdaest and disappeared.

Years later the Maegi emerged in Dreagar Isle, taking up her position as High Priestess of the Jagged Spire, an ancient fortress of darkness. Contending with uprisings and revolts in the wake of her God's exile, the Maegi struggled to maintain order within her island kingdom. It wasn't until the rise of Belegûr Arvandu that the Maegi was finally able to quell the uprisings and establish order within the kingdom. For his efforts, Belegûr Arvandu was proclaimed king and together they ruled the Island.

Reports come scarcely to the east, if at all, but it is whispered that the Maegi is a seeress of terrible power, able to discern the future and wields powerful magic, though these are easily discounted as falsehoods.

Duncan of Westmarch
35 years old
High Mage of the Paladin Order of Light
Renown Warrior

Duncan of Westmarch was barely a man grown when his studies at the Tower of Light were interrupted by the Dark siege. The leadership of the Golden City enthralled by magic, Duncan and many other mages of the Order of Light went underground, mounting a guerrilla resistance alongside Deagrin Benthorn. It was the lowborn's first taste of bloodshed, and certainly not his last.

With the splintering of the Order of Light, Duncan found himself facing the prospect of being able to form his own religious order. He organized a small banner of mages, that like him, were keener with blade and bow then books and scrolls. Out of their insatiable hunger for combat, the Paladin Order of Light was born, a military order honour bound to serve the Light. The ranks of the Paladin Order swelled over the years, and campaigns in the west were fought with mixed success.

Five years ago, Duncan won fame after defeating a Drow warlord at the contested Light Basin, reestablishing it as a holy pilgrimage sight. Duncan has successfully held the ancient temple since, turning several attempted sieges over the years. Songs of his deeds are sung from peasant huts to lords halls, though much like most legends, the reality of the man and his persona are not one and the same.​

 

[Plutonium95]

Nienna Coamenel
“Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts.”

Race: Elven

Age: 39

Titles: Queen of the Elves, Lady of the Forest, and Lord of the Light

Specialty: Diplomacy

​

Spoiler: Biography

Nienna Coamenel, daughter of Armas and Larien, has ruled the province of Coamenel for twenty-three years, and has been Queen of Galadriel for twenty-two. In her youth, Nienna lived a life typical of the Elven nobility in the city of Coal, sheltered and provided with the best tutors, never wanting for anything. When the Assembly was called she traveled to the Golden City with her father, only to be shocked by its filth and the abundance of foul deeds conducted within its walls, not the least of which was slavery. This experience would stick with her, helping to shape her unshakable belief in the ideals of freedom and justice.
Nienna’s life remained largely the same as it always had been during her stay at the Coamenel estate in the Golden City, aside from the fact that she now took the occasional trip to watch the Assembly with her father. Other than that, the only thing truly of note during this time in her life was a brief engagement to Urist Brockhim, a dwarf lord from neighboring lands, which was called off under uncertain circumstances shortly after being announced.

The Archmage Qylan’s revelation that he was in league with the Dark One, and subsequent murder of Nienna’s father, thrust her into the position of Therain at the tender age of fifteen. The position would have traditionally passed to her brother, given his position as the male heir, but due to his dealings with Eylinn Mindrilla, Armas had made his wish for Nienna to succeed him clear. While her mother aided her in ruling the province and served as her regent until her sixteenth birthday, Nienna did have duties to attend to, including traveling to Azeratii for a conference among the Lords of the Light to deal with the threat of the rising darkness. It was here that she met many of the lords who would become lifelong friends and allies, most notably Eylinn Mindrilla who would be named Commander over the Light’s armies.

The next six months were filled with little more than studying and practicing etiquette as Nienna prepared to enter her seniority while her army and those of the rest of the lords fought the forces of the Dark One. During this time her mother, in her capacity as regent, would deal with many disputes that Nienna was scarcely even aware of, such as the reconquest of Mirrorwater. This pattern would continue throughout much of the early part of Nienna’s reign.

Following her defeat at the Battle of the Basin Eylinn returned to Coal where Nienna insisted on throwing a feast in her honor. It was during this time that Nienna briefly developed a crush on Eylinn, though it was quickly put aside and their friendship remained. Her coronation as Therain followed just weeks later while many lords of the light looked to retrieve an amulet from Wallachia which was said to hold the cure for the vampirism which afflicted Eylinn. The happiness of Nienna’s coronation faded quickly upon hearing of the quests failure and Eylinn’s supposed death. Of course this news was also what lead to Nienna being named queen of Galadriel only weeks later, something she had never expected to happen. While she missed her departed friend dearly, she swore to serve as a just and fair queen in her honor.

As the queen of Galadriel, Nienna quickly received many oaths of fealty, including that of Evhana Mindrilla, the younger sister of Eylinn. Despite being unsure around Evhana at first, if only because of how closely she resembled her sister, Nienna soon developed an attraction to the therain and within a year of her arrival at court the two had begun a secret affair that continues to this day.

The looming threat of the Dark One did not make Nienna’s first year as queen a simple one as many elven lords sought to resist swearing fealty for as long as possible. To secure the loyalty of those close to her Nienna established a variety of positions with the court, from spymaster to marshal, which she quickly distributed. Within months she had masterfully used diplomacy to bring the traditional provinces of Galadriel largely under her control. She also traveled the kingdom, secure the loyalty of the various clans that resided deep within the forests, many of which had even resisted her ancestor, Ëol, the first king of Galadriel. Her skills with diplomacy and simple charm won her many friends during this time and proved to be an example of her future reign.

It was Eylinn’s return from the dead that changed things in Galadriel as she came to lead the elven armies in the Hroniden campaign, in addition to forcing Evhana to marry the dwelf Quicksilver, who she had agreed to produce an heir with. Though furious and Eylinn, Nienna could not blame Evhana, providing her with the province of Mirrorwater as a wedding gift.

Nienna, realizing how little she knew of war, accompanied the campaign, during which time she met Owain Tudonii, Lord of Ordivantes, and land which she came to be fascinated by. While she developed many friendships during the campaign Nienna also found herself beset by forces of the Dark One, Koldun, a Necromancer, and Zephfer, a dark elf. Despite the fear they inflicted neither harmed her by more than a scar on her hand, and the forces of the Light proved to be victorious in their campaign.

At the end of the campaign Nienna joined a group of Lords, as well as Jacob, in an attempt to purify the Light Basin. Without Evhana to support her and fearing for her life Nienna sought comfort in the arms of her guard, Elu, becoming pregnant after their one night together. While she survived her mission to the Light Basin, Elu perished on his. Upon returning Coal and apologizing to Evhana, her lover insisted that the child must be legitimate, forging documents and finding ‘witnesses’, to a marriage between the two.

Her return did not last long before the forces of the Dark One threatened to overwhelm Galadriel, forcing Nienna to call for a mass exodus of the kingdom, urging her people to flee rather than stay and be slaughtered. With that decision her court fled to Azeratii, where months later she would give birth to her son, Armas.

During the final battle between the Light and the Dark in the Golden City Nienna used her skills as a diplomat to call for more men to aid the armies of the Light. All told she brought an additional five thousand Imperials and Nords to the final battle, sailing her flagship at the head of a fleet through the devastation of the Rill Delta to link of with the Light Forces in the Golden City. She helped lead the charge to escort Jacob to the inner sanctum where he would defeat the Dark One, banishing him once again.

With the Dark One banished and those once loyal to him dead or broken, Nienna lead the elven people back into Galadriel. She was the first to enter Coal, and the death and destruction caused by the armies of the Dark One left her haunted by nightmares for months afterwards. Despite this, she proved to be a good queen, and while she was the first to admit that she was not a talented accounted or skilled commander, she was more than willing to delegate the tasks while she focused on diplomacy and watching over her people, ushering in an era of peace that would persist for years.

​

​

 

[DeMarchese]

Character Name
Ioron Elhadôn (The Younger Faithful)

Race
Elf

Age
29

Title
-The Exiled Prince
-Arahael (The Noblest Sage)

Specialty
Charisma

Bio
Ioron was the youngest son of the Elhadôn, one of the greatest noble houses of Galadriel.
His story is just like those of many caught in the fires of war, victims of the predations of the Dark One and His servants. The last of his lineage due to the tragedy of those days, he is now the unwilling leader of many.

For it was his abnegation, his courage and his indomitable will that allowed him to overcome many of the dangers that haunted his path, to persevere despite all the sadness and the hardships. After the treason of the Archmage and the destruction of the sacred lands of Galadriel, he led the servants of his house into exile.

This exodus was soon followed by many other elves who sought to escape the misery of the ravaged lands. Peasants and nobles alike, great and small, the people gathered around this paragon of virtue, attracted by the promise of a new future… a better future.

Claim

Spoiler

VAHAMIL: THE KINGDOM-IN-EXILE

The Fair Folk




The people of Vahamil is known as “The Fair Folk” or simply “The Fae” and they are well known to be generous yet sober, honorable yet distrustful, kind yet solemn (someone might say that even a bit cold).

Many, if not all of them, have lost parents and friends in the war. None could bear the sadness caused by such losses and remain after that in the same land to rebuild what was destroyed.

Instead, they chose to seek another land to start anew.

Inspired by the example of Ioron, his rise to the rank of leader came as something natural for them, no other claim was presented to fill the need of a guide.
Despite being a splinter faction of the people of Galadriel, in time they have become their own society. They retain much of the customs, laws and beliefs from their birthplace, referred now as the “Ancient Land”.

The elves of Vahamil also believe themselves to be the true descendants of what they call “the ancient lineages” referring to the elves of Galadriel before the war. While they hold no grudge or harbor resentment towards their peers, they believe them responsible for the tragedies that befell on the realm, flawed and mired by obsolete beliefs.

The Land
The change from the deep forests of Galadriel to the plain and seemingly unending steppes of Vahamil have also changed them: They like to work more the stone instead the tree, they seek to gather in communities rather than freely wander across the woods and they tend to craft more iron than gold.

With the natural marvels of Galadriel far from their reach, they turn to horsemanship, dance and the craft of rich fabrics of silk or wool for their entertainment while their martial skills usually focus on the lance and the bow.

The driving forces behind the inner economy of Vahamil are the grazing of livestock, the breeding of horses and farming. These activities often reward them with items of superb quality but few in numbers due to the careful and hand-made nature of all them.

Given the conflictive origins of the population, isolation from the rest of the world is a common attitude and most elves are wary of foreigners regardless of their race or species.

Commerce is not something widely spread among the people of Vahamil although they place a great value on marble, their favorite material for building their new homes, giving Vahamil few (if any) trade routes.



Traits and curiosities

• Fashion changes every to mimic every current season with colors, jewels and even lacquered armor adapted to the colors more fitting for them.
• The elves of Vahamil being refugees of a self-imposed exile are few in number, therefore they tend to gather in fewer communities. Communal farms are also very usual.

• Marble is the most prized item of the land as more and more elves see it as a pure element that represents their noble lineage.

• Women are not permitted to bear arms unless their houses and their families are in danger. Those who must resort to such extremes are forever forbidden to leave the path of the warrior and they are placed on permanent duty to guard garrisons or posts. They are seen by their people as tragic figures.

• Social status is achieved by the lineage and the quality of the personal skills possessed by each individual.

• The horses are the most precious possession of any family, even more than silver or gold.

• In battle, the elves of these lands wear mostly leather armor reinforced with segmented plate armor.

• Although they use and accept currencies from other realms, they often resort to a fair bartering between them.

• Every craftsmen will refuse to sell an article of a quality lower than his own skills, making every product a treasure on itself… but painfully long to produce, making impossible for the Vahamil market to be of any use outside the borders of the Vahamil.

 

[Dadarian]

Mo'yokj Gro'ijk 'the Last', Chief of the Mo' Tribe
Orc | 73 | Tough old Shaman​

A wily old bat, Mo'yokj was born a long time ago in a cave far away. He was taken from his family when he was 3 when his natural primal magical energies manifested themselves. Capable of manipulating plants easily, he was taken by the tribe's shaman and trained in the ancient arts of Orkish magicks. He was the apprentice to this shaman until he died suddenly by a rock to the skull when Mo'yokj was 26. This was in support of a bid for power by a small clique of younger orcs, whom killed their elders in quick succession in order to secure power within the tribe. For his loyalty in dispatching the shaman, Mo'yokj inherited the position.

This left him to live in relative peace and tranquility for a number of years, until the Dark suddenly sought domination. One of the aftershocks of a nearby battle (so to speak) cast a disastrous pall over the tiny tribe, bringing down many of the elderly and older tribesmen. Although Mo'yokj did what he could, he couldn't save the vast majority of the tribesmen and -women who were dying, gutting both the tribe and the leadership.

Mo'yokj quickly called a gathering of the tribe, where he lamented the tragedy before them. Declaring that the trees had cast him a vision of a land where the water ends in the West, he calmly and casually installed himself as the new leader of the tribe via total fabrication and marched his tribe west. A journey that would surprise him in length and hardship.

This is due to two things. The first was the loss of his magic. Not only that, but the lack of any children displaying magicks being born. The second was the onset of an actual vision by the plants showing where they were going, a land of ash. This scared the living daylights out of Mo'yokj, who had his confidence incredibly shook. This would be a turning point for him, as he had what could only be defined as a holy moment. Realising his powers weren't simply toys in which to play with, and power wasn't simply a goal to achieve, he grew into an actual leader.

Now, after almost 20 years of slow, tedious travel, the tribe has made it to the coast. This land, covered in ash, is their new home. Furthermore, Mo'yokj's magic is nearly gone, confined to parlour tricks to entertain the young and the frightened during a storm. What is known, though, is that Mo'yokj is no longer the man he was, elderly and nearly magickless.

Family:

Son, Mo'pon Yokj'ijk
Age: 47

Grandson, Mo'nak Pon'ijk
Age: 3o

Great-Grandson, Mo'lo Nak'ijk
Age: 10

Great-Granddaughter, Mo'fakka Nak'ijka
Age: 3​

Grandson: Mo'lok Pon'ijk
Age: 26

Great-Grandson, Mo'luk Lok'ijk
Age: 7

Great-Granddaughter, Mo'lya Lok'ijka
Age: 3​

Son, Mo'grin Yokj'ijk
Age: 44

Grandson, Mo'ky Grin'ijk
Age: 25

Great-Grandson, Mo'kra Ky'ijk
Age: 5​

Granddaughter, Mo'dja Grin'ijka
Age: 14

Grandson, Mo'dj Grin'ijk
Age: 14​

 

[Keinwyn]

The Nomadic Drow of the Ashlands​

Known amongst themselves as Köçeri, simply ‘wanderers’ in their tongue, these Drow were left homeless at the end of the Age of Heroes and took to a life of roaming the desolate ash wastes. Magic held an important place in their understanding of religion and its diminishing left them with a sense of yearning that has endured the centuries. Much lore, however, was lost and what has been passed on orally is but a shadow of the knowledge once held.

For centuries Köçeri society centred around matrilineal kin groups who held rights over a particular territory. Family traditions and, to some degree, status is handed down through bloodlines. Each family unit would be considered part of a wider community composed of more distant, and some closer, relatives. Sons would be expected to prove themselves and find a mate either within the clan or in another. Unions were rarely a political affair, but when they happened between separate kin groups are cause for celebration as the two groups gain closer ties. Chastity prior to a union was not a requirement and liaisons between young Köçeri - prospective partners or not - were a common occurrence. In the event of pregnancy, it would be expected for a union to occur, though, ultimately, responsibility lay with the mother-to-be. Infidelity was discouraged, but there is no real concept of bastardry amongst Köçeri; as it was the matrilineal line that was considered important.

By tradition all the clans meet, descending in their thousands upon some valley or other, for a Kurultay in Dragoon. Originally meant as a council, over time it has morphed into an excuse to engage in games, competition, drinking, feasting, and casual fornication. Tuberous sweet-yams are the dish of choice, roasted in open fires and eaten alongside copious amounts of balözü, an alcohol made by fermenting milk with the juice of the kirmizi sapka mushroom. Disputes are still settled and grievances laid to rest, as well as more felicitous events such as unions between members of different clans.

Both males and females are active in society, with the greatest reverence usually reserved for family matriarchs, although it is more common for males to take an active leadership in war. Females are considered the equal of males making fine athletes and archers, taking their place in the hunt or on the battlefield, although rarely in close quarters fighting where the male’s stature gives him the advantage. Child raising is usually performed primarily by maternal grandparents, and often the child’s older siblings. Most likely this is to ensure that the healthiest workforce is able to hunt and serve the community as a whole.

Pregnancy for their kind is not a pleasant affair, with gestation lasting near ten months and the mother being left largely infertile for many years after; with the exception of twins, it is extremely rare for siblings to be born within a decade of each other. Twins are, however, unusually common amongst the Köçeri, with twin sets accounting for almost seven percent of pregnancies. Such pregnancies are especially debilitating for the mother, and death is not an unusual result.

 

[GreatSlayer]

Eylinn Mindrilla

"Gratification from death, to whomever it were bestowed, should be their undoing."

Title: Eylinn "The Redeemer" Krestarii of house Mindrilla, Queen Dowager of Ecclestius, Therain of the Green Chasm
Race: Elven
Province: Green Chasm
Trait: Acclaimed Commander and Swordfighter (Strategy)
Government: Patriarchal Feudal Monarchy
Prominent Demographic: Deep Elves, Southron Elves and Humans (Migrants and Refugees from the Golden City cataclysm)
Terrain: Canyon River

Issue: Princess Anwën (21), Princess Narien (20), Princess Lindarel (10) of Ecclestius and the Green Chasm

Bio:

Short Character Description​

Spoiler

Eylinn has ruled the chasm for 24 years, and as a veteran from the war of darkness, spent a great deal of her time either defending her realm from its presence, and repairing the ripples of its destructive wake. She has become a patient, meticulous ruler, but remain the unwavering compassionate and humble woman she was brought up to be. She never title herself, she curtsies frequently, and address men as "milord" to emphasize her stature in the Green Chasm's patriarchal atmosphere. The questions that used to surround her in her youth regarding her gender has wavered, however, from her participation in the war against the Dark, her affinity to the Light and the powers of Barumin's flame, her family's magic that brings the Mindrilla's blood slightly hotter and the fire, ice and thunder it hailed over the enemy when magic returned to the world.

Yet under her kind and joyous façade, lies a woman with a deeper melancholy. A stormy marriage, and a thorny gruesome past, has taken its toll on her psyche. There is only in battle and swordplay that she remain fully calm, an art she has demonstrated to be, to say the least, formidable at. Her dilligence, discipline, and knowledge in the art of war, as well as her tendency for appointing a chain of command on meritocratic terms, has all shown evidence of a brilliant tactician and warrior.
She is fiercely devoted to her family and kin, and dangerously protective of her children's well being, having been seen to go great lengths to protect them from even the possibility or faint chance of harm. Her belief in the goodness of all people has both led her to ruin, and to great victories in the past. It is the Maegi that gave her the title of "The Redeemer", however intended as an insult, is a nickname Eylinn would much encourage.

The Dark Wars Chronicle​

Spoiler

Eylinn ascended the throne of Luríen at the age of 16, being locked in by the nobles along with her sister Evhana awaiting the council's recognition. Her first venture to the Golden City was a trial for the young Mistress, not even daring to enter the great halls of the council. Still, she decided to follow on the quest to uproot the secrets surrounding the necromancer living in Highathar, coming into her first taste of real battle after being trained by the mercenary Alvon's masterful swordsman since the age of 10. The venture was a failure, bringing only minor intelligence of the necromancer's intent and weaknesses, costing the lives of several lords, a sight that would have profound impact on the unexperienced warrior she was.

Eylinn's seemingly endless compassion and vain naïvety would again clash with her duty as a ruler when during the coming councils the slave trade of the Elves was bartered over in terms to accomplish cohesion and peace. Her ingrained distain for this chattel drove her to much hopeless sorrow, and immeasurable fury. After ridding Galadriel of the Corpus together with Jarl Alfödr Frostsverd of the Pale and the Celestians, halting its spread to the east, she came under the influence of Qylan whom persuaded her to war over the matter of slavery for good. Following his lead, the now Therain of Green Chasm sieged Alameria and captured shah Asad, a member of the triumvirate that sought to seize the Golden City, whom she quickly released along with a score of Elven slaves. This act of mercy and benevolence would soon be her trademark, and inspired the shah to end slavery throughout his lands.

After Qylan had revealed himself as a thrall of the Dark One, Eylinn was distraught, having lost a fatherly figure where her own had so sorely been lacking. As the lords of Light gathered in Azeratii to council over the state of affairs, Eylinn nominated herself as commander over the Light Forces that would march against the Basin, after revealing to have seen the Dark One himself through the seeing stones the Lords had been bestowed, warning them to use the vile artifacts. She won the title, to as much to her own surprise as to many others, where women are rarely seen as leader of men, and more unlikely, lords. It was during these times that Eylinn bonded strongly with the coming queen of Elves, Nienna, and Lord Wilhelm Saxon, as well as betrothing Jarl Alfödr's son Freyr.

The forces of Light was, however, overwhelmed by the power of the Dark, unprepared for its horrors and its vast size. After the first battle, it would seem the now spectral Ra'Gru had been involuntary captured by her soldiers after the battle, and mocked her from his cell before vanishing with what was either a warning or a threat. During the battles of the Basin, Eylinn was later infected by Qylan, and doomed to die from his horrible discease. In a vain grasp of hope, she followed on a quest to Wallachia in order to retrieve an amulet from the mysterious count Vlad. There she would learn there was no cure, and she commanded her guardian to ensure her rest would be eternal when life had left her. On her death bed, the traitour Ra'Gru visited her for the second time and gave her the amulet he had taken from Vlad after murdering him before her eyes earlier that evening. Alvon, loyal to the bone, had refused her command, and left her with the amulet in the woods to rise from the dead.

Burdened by thirst and melancholy, Eylinn set out on a journey to find a cure, or the root of the evil which had taken her. During her darkest moment, however, the Light One approached her in disguise, and set her upon a path to first find herself and then her goal. She traveled to Dreagon's lands, and was set to find a weapon for his undoing. After a harrowing duel with the demi-God, Eylinn managed to plunge the dagger into his chest, and held his hand through his passing. With their final words, Dreagon forfeits the Dark veil and is allowed to pass through his unsullied Elven form.

After returning to the Light, and taking back the reins of the Chasm, Eylinn are again visited by Ra'Gru. Their relationship intensifies as Eylinn had foolowed on her promise, and taken wardship of his son Varian to protect the boy from the increasingly zealous Celestian's, which held Ra'Gru and his offspring in particularly high distain. Garhold Quicksilver is sent by him to guard the Eylinn and the child, an act she found curious considering her past accomplishments, but begins a warm friendship that surprises the considerably older Dwelf. After Eylinn's sister Evhana are impregnated by him, the marriage was seen as the only redeeming option for the circumstances, loitering the reputation of the Therain, and undoubtedly spurred rumours of her still being under the Dark One's curse afterall. Still, Eylinn decides to vouch for Ra'Gru as he returns from the Light, and announce their immediate betrothal, as she was desperate to hurry it before bearing his child would show.

However, the joys of betrothal would not last long, as Ra'Gru in a fickle of ambition travels to Azeratii to claim the kingdom of Ecclestius on behalf of his son, bestowed the title of crown prince. Eylinn now in lieu to be a princess of Men, is distraught and felt betrayed, seeking the comfort of Jacob, the Light Bringer, who had harboured great feelings for her ever since the cure of vampirism. Still, Eylinn was now able to lead the Light for a second time, and would not lose a battle from hereafter. The Light was able to liberate Hroniden, a small comfort as the Darkness encroached from seemingly every part of the realm. She gave birth to her first child, Anwën, in Mutikabir, the capitol of a man she had waged war 2 years earlier. In the remaining months before the cataclysm of the Golden City, Eylinn is plagued by depression as she discovers to have become queen after Asharian's sudden passing. The greed of gold seemed to have weighed higher for her husband than her, and from the scraps of sanity, she rides off to continue the campaign against the Dark as the situation would become even more hopeless.

While still trying to mend her frail psyche, in a suite of bad omens, she lose her guardian Alvon, and Deagrin Wrothiron who she had come to view as a paternal figure, to the Dark One, as well as having revealed for her the doom which will befall Jacob after he had sworn into her service, at nearly the same time. While having devoted to remain faithful to her husband, she was persuaded by Jacob to sire his child, and keep it in secrecy under guise of being Ra'Gru's, or else see the line of Ecclestiaties undone, and the world be perished if the Dark One would re-emerge.

At the battle of the Golden City, Eylinn relinquish her title as marshal of the Light, to stand equal in rank with all other lords upon the last battle to unleash Jacob's spell. She is assigned the flank of attacking the Serpent Gate, and after a bloody battle, is able to gain the Light a foothold by the waterside. Their was being surrounded, and the situation dire, yet the lords of Light was able to escort Jacob to the inner sanctum where he would lure the Dark One nigh and cast the spell. In the last battle between the Lords, Eylinn strikes down Kvothe Kalare, and breaks into tears as Jacob is ripped from life by the ward.

With the world now finally safe, Eylinn brace to spend her remaining days in Azeratii and rid of war, but not before escorting her people back home, which she had safely evacuated before the Dark One roared over Galadriel. Upon returning to the Chasm, Eylinn is struck with endless grief as she cradles her eldest daughter in her arms. It's then that the Light One approach her again revealing himself, now assuring her the pain has not been in vain, for such simple reasons as the newborn innocence she was harbouring in her embrace. After settling back in Luríen and replanting the great tree which had been her family's seat for hundreds of years, Eylinn planted the garden of Light, with a rose for every fallen soul and a tree for every fallen Lord, be them Light or Dark.

It was in this ritual, and burrowing the seeds of life deep into her peoples soil, that despite her burdens, sufferings, with the magic and talents she had cultivated in the means of destruction, that she finally sensed that she could really, truly, be free at last, and leave all death behind her and truly start living. And perhaps even find happiness in the end.

Evhana Mindrilla

"Little spider, up the string, you cannot hide how false you sing."

Title: Evhana Coamenel of house Mindrilla, Princess of Galadriel, Therain of Mirrorwater
Race: Elven
Province: Mirrorwater
Trait: Vast Network of Connections (Intrigue)
Government: Feudal Monarchy
Prominent Demographic: Mirrorwater Elves
Terrain: River and Coastal forest

Issue: Garhold Elu (†), Cacame Mindrilla
Spouse: Prince Elessar of house Coamenel

Bio:

Short Character Description​

Spoiler

Evhana is outwards a pleasant, frail, and gentle regent, said to be even more beautiful than her sister of renown. Her persistent smile, and courteous formal speech, and unarming intelligence, with her dilligent and unending work for her people and the realm has given her the nickname "The White Therain" by the common folk in Mirrorwater.

Under the surface, however, lies a cold, calculous mind, of unending sinister thought, rid of empathy and emotion. She is careful in her treating with her vast network of spies and contacts, ensuring that chain is maintained and remain strong, personally eliminating any possible threat to its integrity, and with no interrogation used without extensive, questionable, and gruesome torture. She is highly versed in poisons, knows of every weakness and sensitive joint in a person's anatomy, and her mind ever seek new ways to manipulate her enemies, and sometimes even friends.

While seemingly the very opposite of her sister, who are the only one alive that fully know the extent of Evhana's grim nature, she still share a few traits with Eylinn. First, she is fiercely devoted to her family, and to her secret lover the queen. To such an extent she is, that even the whisper of harm is a whisper Evhana will be quick to silence without remorse. Second, she is unambitious, and view pride as an enemy of the commoners, whom she toil to excruciating extents to serve.

The Dark Wars Chronicle​

Spoiler

Evhana's birth was shrouded in sorrow, as her mother passed shortly after from complications. Her father would always blame her for the mother's death, allowing the young girl to freely pursue the interests which peaked her curiosity. Deep delved into books and history, as well as cultivating the fine arts, Evhana's only guardian was her older sister, a person she would find herself dependent and needing to impress and support in return. But all the normal joys of childhood was lacking in her, something that drove her uneasy and resentful. Evhana never enjoyed playing, never enjoyed dancing, couldn't understand the humour of jokes and jests, or even understand what concepts such as "care" or "love" even mean. She viewed the people at court like a child would study a flock of ants, analysing their patterns, and analysing their thoughts. She knew herself that this wasn’t normal. She also knew that she didn’t care.

Evhana took over the reins of the Chasm when she was 14, as Eylinn was presumed dead from Qylan's curse. Even before this knowledge she used her impressive network of informants to keep the regency under her own control while her sister was out at war. But the longer Eylinn was away from home, the more time her vassals had to plot for her removal, and to fatten their own pockets with gold. In a last dire attempt to stop a coup, Evhana had the major vassal family of the Mindrillas, the Lóethmirs of the North Chasm, seized and subsequently murdered by her own hand.

In order to escape possible suspicion of the deed, Evhana fled to Coal to stay out of the courts reach, as well as assuring the newly crowned Nienna of the Chasms fealty to the new queen. Evhana felt a strange attraction to the young queen, one she would first confuse with the urge to destroy her. However, the murderous intent turned to an urge for passion, and in a year the two was becoming intimately acquainted. A secret affair, that has, with only one period of exception, been lasting ever since.

During her exiled reign, Evhana oversaw a number of successful policies and actions for the Chasm and Galadriel, soon earning her the title of "Nightshade" and responsible for the kingdom's intelligence. She uprooted the Elven genocide in the North, spotted the tracks of Zephfer for the Light armies, and contributed to the many sabotage missions and the "disappearance" of local agents from other realms in Coal, clearly proving to be a much more capable ruler than her sister.

After her sister's return from the dead, Evhana was distraught to find that Eylinn was returning to lead the Elven armies in the war yet again. Her logical conclusion was that her sister would soon perish, and that she herself wore the whole responsibility to ensure her family's survival. She allowed the Dwelf Garhold Quicksilver to court her, suggesting they should produce a child. Having no illusions of maintaining honour, Evhana didn’t care for asking for Eylinn's approval, whom surprisingly stressed the two should marry. After this, Evhana's focus shifted, determined to spread her dynasty to Yurdaest instead. With the marriage, and for her services to the realm, Evhana was appointed Therain of Mirrorwater by the queen to be upheld as a wedding gift.

Evhana encouraged her new husband to retake the castle from his father, careful to manipulate his mind in such a way that he would think her great concern for his well being was the source of her grieving him about taking caution, while she came up with a plan for him to claim it with the least possible risks.

However, Quicksilver was plagued with hauntings of the Dark One, and after being nearly killed by him, felt the first suite of true horror she had ever felt. She took all that blame upon herself, and projected it into not being good enough a spouse, and emulated as such the role of a truly subserviant wife. In the process, she gained strength, and from the shame she had brought upon her posture, she found her way back to claim power in the relationship. She urged Quicksilver to draw closer his many bastards to their family's fold, where she could hold a firm gaze over them, to ensure her own children would be safe in the line of succession to the mountain home.

Indeed, the betrothal between his bastard daughter Shem'Lah and prince Elessar of house Coamenel was something Evhana could not tolerate. To Evhana, the strength of such a union would have jeopardized her own sons inheritance should Shem'Lah had chosen to claim hers, and thus Evhana poisoned the half Orc, even as she was with child, and then convinced the Queen to have Elessar betrothed to her instead. After the Golden City had fell, and she had burnt the embarrassing will Quicksilver had left behind, her immediate action was to travel to Yurdaest to cement her son Elu's claim on Yurdaest with Deagrin Benthorn, who in his vulnerable position felt no choice but to agree to the controversial heir.

Spoiler: Map

IC
A New Age in the Chasm
Strong in Solitude
Additional Lore​

Barumin, and the Green Chasm
The Deep Elves
Courtship and Family Norms in Green Chasm

 

[Mikkel Glahder]

Salah Al-Aziz defeating his treacherous younger brother

Salah Al-Aziz Nasir Fatumid​

Age: 32

Dynasy: Fatumid

Family:
Father: Emir Omar Nasir Fatumid (Deceased, assasinated)
Mother: Emira Niesha Ayyubid (Deceased, believed poisioned)
Younger Brother: Muhammed (Deceased, Killed in battle)
Salah Al-Aziz had two other brothers whose names have been purged.

Wife: Emira Eshra
Children:
Sons: Aman Al-Omar Fatumid
Jamar Fatumid
Daughter(s): Niesha Fatumid

Title: Sultan of Hroniden (Claim) Emir of Damasiz

Spoiler: map

Red dot: Castle of Banias, Red outline: Emirate of Damasiz

Specialty - Brilliant Strategist/Commander

Bio: Salah Al-Aziz Nasir was born as oldest son to the prestigous Emir of Damasiz, and his wife from the family of Ayyubid. 20 years ago his father took to war against the Dark Lord and won many a victories under the banner of the Golden Emperor, leaving Salah Al-Aziz as de-facto ruler of Damasiz, not that he at all was old enough to rule until a couple of years later, when he himself took to war joining his father in the war council, learning much about war.
When the Dark One was defeated the two returned to a new Sultanate ruled by the Ayyubid family. This was not to last however as the dynasty fell apart and the emirates emerged. Before this however, Salah Al-Aziz father was murdered by his own sons, the three younger brothers to Salah. He managed to flee however and gathered an army. Two battles were fought in the blazing desert and the last and deciseve battle of Jarablus, the army of the three brothers were defeated and their fate was sealed and they were executed shortly after, with Salah Al-Azis becoming Emir of Damasiz, claiming to be rightful Sultan of Hroniden, due to his mothers family.

Banner:

Spoiler: ICs

Army of Damsiz
Message to Shah Rostani
At the court of Salah Al-Aziz

 

[Endovelicus]

First Queen of Thaanos, Wyna Aingeal​

Character: Wyna Aingael
Race: Human - Thaanosian
Age: 18
Title: By her people: First Queen of Thaanos, Firstborn of the Twins, Aingaels Fire.
Specialty - Aingael's Revenge; Strategy

Bio/History:

The history of Thaanos dates back to the age of Heroes, where the hero Thanarios Aingael settled together with his tribe after fighting the odds. There is not a lot known about Thanarios and his tribe, most of the information has been lost over time.

In the early age of Empires, during the war for Asger's Crown is where the Thaanosian people were showing their power in combat, Hendrik Aingael, also known as Hawkeye, led a band of mercenaries, showing Agorath the combat skills the Thaanosians had. One of their best traits was their natural talent for scouting. Hawkeye was well known for his pet hawk Aedler with which he scouted ahead for war parties, often giving his side the edge in combat, especially as an archer this was very convenient, knowing how and when to use the higher ground. Most of the money this Thaanosian mercenary band gathered flowed back to Thaanos, making it flourish, for a while.
Thaanos had been a land open to all, never looking to make enemies, a lot of this changed after Dendric Aingael came into power however. He would be the one to turn Thaanos into a hermit state, seperating most ties with the outside world, suspicious of most outsiders. He reigned for over fourty years, in which he made the sprawling town of Thaanos into his personal fortress. It was his suspicious nature that gave the City of Thaanos some of the tallest towers in Agorath, the five towers which some say on a clear day can be seen from the Great Rill, as well as some of the thickest and highest walls of any city. Because of the exhaust of resources and men however it only caused Thaanos to decline for a few decades even after his reign ended.

Balfour, last count of Thaanos, the first Duke of Thaanos, son to Kenneth Aingeal, who was one half of the twin sons of Dendric. His father prepared him for diplomacy by sending him to study in the Golden City, where he met Ares, the future King of Ecclestius. After his father died and Balfour became count Thaanos started flourishing once more, even in a time of great danger, as darkness was consuming Agorath. He would join the armies of the Light to save Agorath against the Darkness. He was one of the few survivors during the battle at the Golden City. He had been cursed however, not by the Dark one, but by a power that had leeched of Thaanosians unknowingly for centuries, Argetha, Balfours mother. When magic was still abundant she learned the dark powers of soul leeching, giving her youth as long as she had victims to leech from. Together with an unexpected ally he managed to defeat her. It however hadn't stopped his curse, eventually leading to his demise.

It is now however the age that will put Thaanos to the test, after their fathers death the twin sisters Wyna and Malisa would have to lead the Thaanosian people, young and unexperienced they will face difficult times. Because Wyna was the firstborn of the twins she was destined to become Duchess of Thaanos, in a newfound national pride after suspicions of Balfour being assassinated the people cried out for a Queen however. She would be crowned first Queen of Thaanos, a historical event. Her sister Malisa disagreed with her sister however, she did not want to see Thaanos fight for an unknown assassination, because of it she had been banished from the realm by her sister.
Wyna Aingael, First Queen of Thaanos, Firstborn of the Twins, a youth of only eighteen, fueled with a will for revenge is reshaping Thaanos' identity. A few whisper it resembles the dark times during Dendrics reign, however those whispers are quieter than the ones crying out for revenge. There is even talk over reintroducing the old Thaanosian religious believes, getting rid of the Ecclestian influence over the years.

Her sister hopes for peace for the Thaanosian people, in her exile she has been attempting to find the truth about her fathers death, to put her sisters mind to rest, stopping her madness. The continuous wars in Agorath have made it difficult for her however, the Westmarch wars caused it to be difficult to get to the east. She needs the truth.

The Exile Princess Malisa Aingeal​

Territory

Spoiler

 

[Terraferma]

Emirate: Shiek

Leader: Hasam Khanduras Sabir

Age: 31

Race: Human/Hroniden

Title: Padishah

Specialty: Trade/Economics


Bio: Hailing from the area now known as the Emirate of Shiek, Hasam Khanduras Sabir has become a rather unlikely leader, coming from a noble, yet minor, family the War of Darkness, plague and subsequent invasions have been just as unkind to them as the former Kingdom of Hroniden. The various catastrophes and wars have sapped the house of strength as well as numbers reducing them to an even lesser stance. The family faced utter obliteration, but fate had other plans. Hasam’s father Khalib rose up and carved out his own area of control establishing the Emirate, leading it as best he could for nearly two decades. Unfortunately the untimely death of his father as well as two older brothers propelled Hasam, whom at the time was a known scholar, to lead the teetering Emirate.

Rallying his people, Sabir has kept a tight grip on the Emirate allowing few foreigners into the area while keeping trade flowing without interruption. It is said that he blames foreigners for Hroniden’s woes hence his mistrust of them. However, he was acutely aware the former desert kingdom’s reliance on trade to survive during the harsh climate months hence the primary reason why he doesn’t seal the borderlands entirely. Marshaling the modest but well trained Rashidun forces he kept a vigilant eye on his people, guiding them to a better, safer future. When it comes to any dispute among the various Emirates, Sabir has made sure to maintain what he calls “Armed Neutrality” with lukewarm feelings towards a reunited Hroniden.

 

[oxfordroyale]

Name: Bethod the Bloodless
Race: Northman
Age: 30
Title: King of Stronghelm, Jarl of Evynn and the Dagger Coast, Keeper of the Mountain Passes
Specialty: Military Tactician

Appearance: An unusally tall and handsome man, Bethod has blue eyes and long blond hair that falls in curls about his shoulders. He is powerfully build with broad shoulders. He speaks with easy authority and has a charisma about him that men follow, or at least obey.

Bio: Bethod hails from a village called Evynn, a small settlement nestled in the forested foothills of the Norseland mountains. He was the son of the local chieftain, a kind but weak-willed ruler who frequently succumbed to pressure from neighbouring clans, often to the detriment of his people. Growing up, Bethod took these repeated humiliations as firm evidence that his father was not strong enough to lead. Whereas he favored the sword and axe and trained with them almost daily, aspiring to be like the heroes of old, his father held that diplomacy was the surest way to achieve peace and harmony with one's neighbors and abhorred bloodshed of any kind. Though Bethod dreamt of war, yearning to right the many wrongs inflicted upon his village with blood and iron, it seemed unlikely that he would ever see one so long as he remained where he was. And so after one too many arguments with his father Bethod left home at the age of eighteen - to fight, to prove himself and earn his Name, hoping to return home one day and put it to use.

Travelling the length and breadth of Norseland for several years Bethod gained notoriety through fighting in the blood rings, frequently besting older and stronger men through cunning stratagems and dirty tricks. But the fame and coin he earned as a prizefighter did not sate him, for even as a child Bethod had never been satisfied with what he had and this ambition only grew as he did. He wanted and needed more - more fame, more fortune, more women. More power, for what was greater? Without power, Bethod thought, men were little more than worms trapped beneath the sole of another’s boot.

When he was twenty-three Bethod returned to his village in secret to find his father ailing and in poor health. There was talk in the tavern that the warriors of the village had at last grown tired of this shameful “peace” and were plotting to kill their frail lord as he slept. Bethod did not move a finger to help or hinder their plan, and thus he was not surprised when that very night the Long Hall was set aflame. His father perished within, burned alive in his bed.

At dawn, with the embers of the fire still hot, the people of Evynn met in the village square to decide who would be their new ruler. The strongest warriors vowed to prove their strength in single combat while those with silver tongues picked them apart with quips and jests. It was then that Bethod strode from the crowd, throwing back his hood and proclaiming himself the new jarl. His father, he reminded them, had been murdered by those who now sought his seat - those who would set a sick, old man afire in his bed were not fit to rule. Only he, his father’s only son and a proven fighter in the blood rings deserved such a responsibility.

Most were shamed by his words and swore their loyalty, and those that did not were sharply and violently persuaded to do so by Bethod’s own hand. By midday he was unopposed in his candidacy and, naturally, was proclaimed jarl.

But that in itself was not enough. Not willing to be put through the same humiliations as his father, Bethod immediately began to defeat and subjugate the surrounding smaller clans in order to stop the bigger ones from squeezing him. As victory followed victory his notoriety grew, as did his enemies. When pure numbers seemed too little to win the day, Bethod would step into the Circle as his clan’s champion to accomplish in moments what might have otherwise taken several years and hundreds of corpses.

However, Bethod only truly ascended to the ranks of the most feared and respected rulers in Norseland with his victory at Stronghelm. In the summer of his twenty-sixth year, after uniting a good portion of land to the west of the ancient capital, the powerful Bloodknots of Stronghelm decided that they needed to teach this upstart a lesson in true power. They sweept down from their stronghold like a storm to rain red fury down on him and his growing host. They expected an easy, straightforward battle. They were sorely mistaken.

Bethod is a ruthless and remarkably skilled war-leader who delights in mounting feints and deceptions, tricking his enemy into unforeseen blunders, and sending sudden raids against unwary foes. In a single battle fought amidst heavy fog and dense pines, the Bloodknots were slaughtered almost to a man, ambushed and caught in a hundred pitfalls and traps befor. Bethod’s army, triumphant in their victory, pursued the routing force all the way back to their keep and promptly put it to siege. Bethod himself was the first over the walls during the Storming of Stronghelm, killing scores of men with his greatsword Heartblade, said to have been forged in death. When the battle was finished Bethod’s men looked upon him in horror for he was covered head-to-toe in slick red blood. They feared he had been gravely injured, but Bethod only smiled and told them that none of it was his. Thereafter he was known Bethod the Bloodless, for it was said no man could make him bleed.

The victory at Stronghelm marked the start of an unrelenting spree of conquests that lasted five years. At age thirty-two, Bethod, now calling himself the King of Stronghelm, controls the Stronghelm itself and large swathes of the surrounding land, his territory extending north to the mountains, west to the Dagger Inlet, south to jagged shores of Icevein Bay, and east almost to the upper branch of the Great Rill where fertile land abounds. Many jarls have sworn their fealty before him in the Iron Hall while day by day warriors from across Norseland come to join to his banner, seeking glory by fighting beside him. He has proclaimed his desire to unify all of Norseland and claim Asger’s Crown as the rightful king of the Nords.

Spoiler: Claim

 

[Noco19]

Loghain Deftspear
"As my Father and Grandfather swore before me, I swear that House Loghain shall be vindicated before those that once exiled us.
We shall rise higher, proving ourselves superior to the elites of Highathar and that our outcasting has only strengthened us.
All I do, I do for House Loghain."​

Race: Outcast Dwarf
Age: 94
Title: King of Ghullkazid
Specialty – Archeitect of the Loghain Ascendance (Diplomacy Bonus)
Biography:

As head of the Loghain clan and guardian over the outcast Dwarves of Ghullkazid, Loghain Deftspear bore the words of his ancestors well, enkindled with a burning desire to restore the status of his people. From this came alliance with the forces of Darkness, as the Dark One manipulated Deftspear, entering him into a vile compact that resulted in the death of his beloved daughter.

Deftspear would not allow such a sacrifice to be in vain, and so with his armies, bolstered by golems forged through a mythical anvil found in the depths of Ghullkazid, he would push east. When the great war was in its final hours, the Dwarves of Ghullkazid would be the only force loyal to the Dark One, not from zealotry, but from obligation, and so upon the being's destruction, Deftspear led his people back home, their contract fulfilled. By the war's end, Ghullkazid was much changed, the Haunted Forest relenting to Light, the industries burgeoning at home, and although his faction failed, in truth, Ghullkazid had greatly prospered, replete with an economic basis so strong that even during the war, those of the East bought crafts from Ghullkazid merchants.

Following the war, a proper Kingdom would be established, and although one could try to generalize the Outcast Dwarves as evil and backwards, in truth, in their lowly status, they developed as one of the most tolerant realms in the world, not bound by a petty nobility. Only Loghain stood as noble, and his greatest servants were those certainly not of noble stock, common folks. A unique government system was birthed from those, a form of absolute monarchy that relied moreso on bureacrats than nobles, one which relied likewise on formal laws and regulations, not arbitrary decrees founded on monarch long turned to bone.

But despite these facts, the Kingdom of Ghullkazid and its people are not without stigma, as their past affiliation with the Dark One, and their quarrels with their neighbors, have proven sticking opinions in the minds of the East, while in the West, the old adherents of the Dark One see the Loghain as turncoats from the will of their master. In the last twenty years, it has been an uphill battle of diplomacy, Loghain Deftspear spending his days penning letters and trying his best to convince the world that the Crown he labored for is no one of evil.

Kingdom of Ghullkazid​

Government form: Administrative Monarchy
Capital: Ghullkazid
Population: Outcast Dwarves, Dwarves of Ghullkazid
Terrain: Primarily woodlands, massive Ghullkazid mountain range
Sovereign: Loghain Deftspear (94)
Heir apparent: Loghain Yearnloud (60)​