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Aedilred
2015-11-18, 11:16 PM
History and Prehistory of Arandi

This is a thread for players of the Empire! game specifically. IC thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?447257-EMPIRE-2-IC-Thread)

I thought it would be worthwhile to have a thread to collate the history of the world as it's established through writeups. As yet not a lot is known about much history before 100 and almost nothing from before the start of the current calendar, so this thread can also form a venue for discussing its development and coming up with ideas and theories that span multiple countries.

I have taken some of the dates scattered throughout people's Lands posts and IC posts and assembled the following rough timelines. They are not completely comprehensive by any means, but I'll do my best to keep them updated (at least the bits before 100; recording all the stuff that happens during gameplay might get a bit much.

Currently all "prehistoric" dates are given as "BP" (before present) since we have no dating system for before the start of the common calendar and most such dates are, as such, somewhat vague.

Prehistory
c.1000 BP – Dhuda Loka arrive in the Besina
c.1000 BP - Ardashir I is crowned as the first king of all Nand
c.500 BP - Alleged documented history of the Grand Church of Daen begins
c.317 BP - The "Nimtor Empire" completes the conquest of Nand
c.300 BP – Humans and Whansis in Aneth agree a truce
c.200 BP – An attempt by the Nevarri Council to depose Lugal Sidur leads to a civil war between the Council and the Lugal.

History and Current Affairs
1Adrax Awaria is first united by Frescobaldi
5Frescobaldi is assassinated
10The government of Adrax Awaria comes under frequent attack from secessionist rebels
15 Adrax Awaria degenerates into civil war between the north (Adrax) and the south (Awaria).
40 Awarian Rebels overpower the Adraxians. The remaining Adraxians flee to the beach, where they can hide underground. Pralkemiri joins the council of Dhuda Besina
50Serafim Rosenbaum becomes decasage of the Tillwell
60The Adraxians recommence the civil war in Adrax Awaria, starting by reconquering the beach.
c.70Otgonbayar becomes boqorka of the Shafar.
73Vinariun joins the council of Dhuda Besina
80The Adraxians conquer the north side of the great wall in Adrax Awaria.
85Derris Asker, heir to Ambrose, is betrothed to Belinda Drivas.
c.85Otgonbayar unifies the Dhulciran of Shafarstan under his rule.
87Knight Protector Raymond Binari falls in battle and is succeeded (initially under regency) by his son Alistair.
89Queen Eraneh of Nand dies suddenly, believed by many to have been assassinated.
90Adrax Awaria is reunited as a single country
91Isfandir III of Nand dies and is succeeded by his daughter Aiman III.
99 The four courts of the Aeldir pledge to end their warring, cooperate and seek unity. Mirzahib Kaid Al-Riku dies and is succeeded by his son Shou. Oshenvar joins the council of Dhuda Besina
100 Jack XII orders the great wall in Adrax Awaria demolished to ensure peace. Letters of invitation are sent out to all nations seen and suspected by the Aeldir Courts and Fantastigoria to the Fantastic Masquerade to be held in the Autumnal Courtlands in the Autumn months of Year 101. In Xeroas people claim a Green Zaj has fled south with a small cult of followers and is practicing ancient rites to grant him sorcerous abilities! A farmer in Western Aladar, home of the Wandering Clan, reports to his local dwarven Architect a frightful tale from the north-eastern border! A band of men claiming allegiance to ‘K’juuda the Ravager’ raided and robbed the man’s farm before retreating back into the unknown north! The farmer pleads with his local Architect that something be done! Cochradice Primus dies and is succeeded by her daughter Roethye. Lord Drustan of the Summer Court orders his noble brothers to gather their foresters and rangers into organized bands of soldiers whose purpose stands to serve the Four Courts themselves under the direction of the Rose Contract. In Nifhel, Oglaf Shieldbreaker of the Clan Asgerstan, in a fit of drunken hubris, has challenged and defeated the Horseman War in a duel! The Nifelic people are quite shocked, as the previous horsemen Fjendal Alfsson was said to be as tall as a mountain. Though the Shieldbreaker family is pleased to have the prestige of counting a Horsemen amongst their kin, such a financial burden threatens to sink them under. It is whispered that some of the more thirst-stricken Fiid are drinking the blood of the dead. Surely this can only be a vile rumour? The coronation of Ganbataar is held in Shafarstan.
101 At the Fantastic Masquerade, Aeldir guards shoot Matteric Salarinni, a Tannan guest, causing a major diplomatic incident. In Primus, Melani Aske convicted of murdering her wife challenges her judge and executioner Lady Alis Perle for her noble title. Aske is victorious, sparing Perle and locking her away until the Queen can confirm her honorable victory and rightful title as Lady of the Realm. Lady Aske is granted the noble title she desires and cleared of all charges, as is custom to an honor duel, and High Queen Roethye has even granted her several extra servants and the modest estate of her accuser. However, it is rumored that Princess Tusameia Primus has maneuvered to keep her from ever wedding a woman again, and further rumors that Roethye is planning on challenging her honor at the slightest offense. In Tannan scattered reports across the region speak to a large number of citizens hearing the quaking voice of the Sky Father, central deity in the Church of Daen, instructing them to find the Sky Father’s sacred temple. An impromptu organization of explorers assembles to request permission to travel north from the Vincehin. An Ambrosan boxer named Igor Barberis wins ten bouts in a row and earns the nickname "Ironskull". The words "DUST, DUST, ONLY DUST" have been carved on the wall of Lady Mham Drahid's citadel, in Kaib. The perpetrator is unknown, as is the meaning of the message. Drahid soldiers are investigating. La Duksae Gallinarius sponsors a controversial production of the Classic play “The Noble Savage”. Rather then simply portraying foreign visitors in a positive light, it mock and shames Fantastigorian rude arrogance while conducting themselves as guests in foreign lands. The production has had a noticeable impact on people's concept of proper conduct regarding “naked-faced” outsiders.
102 The Drimma and men sent by the Architect to track down Kj'uuda accompany the wagon train heading into the northeast. The investigators easily see that K'juuda must have made his base here in the region as the people are beaten and fearful of the wagon train, suspecting another bout of attacks. When the locals are calmed and it is clear the explorers are not a threat they tell the drimma of The Ravager and his horde having headed further north a few months prior to the arrival of the wagon train after stealing away many people to serve as either comfort or recruits within the barbaric band of killers. According to the locals K'juuda's force numbered near three thousand and he had taken nearly a thousand more in young men from the region during his stay and retreat. Religious explorers from Hess Tannan who wished to travel north agitate beneath the denial of their wishes by the Vincehin and a riot breaks out in the city. Though quelled the captain of the guard who helped put down the rebels noted that among their number were members of the Copper Vault and purportedly some of their recently recruited “Negotiators." A number of these identified men and women remain unaccounted for. In the Kingdom of Berrium, a chapter of Dandric Knights declare local lord Rufio Oleric tyrannical and overthrow him. Knight Commander Fredric Roper declares himself lord in his stead. Roper offers his sincere vassalage to the Binari, insisting Oleric was cruel and in need of deposition. Oleric, with the support of some local lords petitions the king to put down the upstart knight commander and restore his lands. Prince Silvanus Primus and his retinue from the Primus Imperium, sent to explore westwards, return to their homeland at death’s door. Ragged to the bone, the Prince alternates between whispering and shouting hoarsely about a “Moonlit Tower” and “the Key of Skulls.” On his person, maps and journals explain the party found a great desert across the mountains and intended to leave it after a quick survey. When they entered the desert, however, they felt drawn and compelled to travel deeper than they were likely to survive. A civil war in Shafarstan is narrowly averted after Asugbal, leader of the Kibirka, embraces the view that the Shafar are to blame for the unusual weather. What could have erupted into civil war ends with a tense stand-off between five of the seven most powerful clans in Shafarstan.
103 A massive vein of Dyhhkamene is struck in Chornostrav by an overeager miner seeking to make his fortune and the resulting explosion of pressure destroyed a local village killing hundreds. People petition the Tsar to restrict mining to properly authorized and trained miners. Sailors off the northern coast of Melrakki-ey report sightings of a mist shrouded island that wasn't there before. A ship headed by an overeager merchant captain sailed towards the island but did not return. A Tannan juggler accidentally decapitates himself before the leader of the Nannerallo Family while juggling nine razor sharp swords. The entertainer in question has been known to juggle up to twelve swords in the past, but it is generally agreed that he should not have partaken so greatly in the provided punch bowl at the party. Needless to say he has died a laughing stock for his troubles. The Prophetess Council has identified the next High Queen! Six year old Aris Morningsworn has been brought to Keya's Rest for training and tutoring. Lord Rufio Oleric and Knight Commander Fredric Roper settle their dispute with an honorable duel held in the Royal Arena. The Knight Commander, with an edge over the Lord due to his martial ability from years serving in the field proves himself the winner, though his victory is somewhat disputed. Garnering only one solid hit in the pair's three bouts but suffering no hits himself the duel is concluded in his favor and he is named lord in Oleric's place. The displaced lord seems quite distraught by the results and is heard muttering blame to the king for forcing him to face a trained soldier in combat to secure his natural birth right. Oleric heads west into exile with his family and a small contingent of loyal followers.
104 The Princessate of Hakebar’s collapse leads to a military coup! Now led by Lady Commander Swahi the region’s military seeks to aggressively expand into region 138 to destroy any opposition! The military junta offers to join its holdings with any commander strong enough to prove themselves as an ally! The people of Region 138 offer their own submission to any power willing to defend them! Aesthetics of the Doctrine of the Nine Candles discuss the violence practiced by the Fiid in their aggressive proselytization with varying opinions. Many are deeply offended and find the practice in direct violation of the Virtues and general peaceableness of the Doctrine while others argue it to be an act intended to further enlightenment abroad. Prince Isfandir son of Kouros has been appointed as ambassador to Krozna. The young man, only sixteen and with no real experience of diplomacy, seems a surprising choice to many. The armies of the Primus Imperium through a careful plan and advancement are able to establish a quasi-concrete amount of control in the desert. At least for the first year. After that however supplies begin to run low and the relentless sun beats down on the warrior women of the east. If the Imperium expects to hold this empty region it will need to be supplied with food, metal, and some form of hydration. The armies report they can hold for a little longer but soon they will be forced to retreat if resources aren’t sent. A great tower is marked at the center of the region but remains a mystery. While a small expeditionary force is sent to survey the mysterious black tower this team doesn’t return and further exploration is halted until orders and supplies to carry out such a mission come from the High Queen herself.
105 In Fan'Gourmet people begin dying in a strange and awful way! After going to bed it is said they are discovered in the morning gaunt and pale as a long-dead corpse, their flesh dry and sunken into their bones! The doors to the victims' homes are found unlocked as if whatever caused their deaths were invited in rather than having broken in! They appear, for all intents and purposes, to have been drained of their blood with the only seeming explanation begin two puncture wounds on the side of the victims' necks! The mysterious island spotted two years ago near Melrakki-ey is sighted again, this time further to the south-west. The Spring Court sends an expedition to investigate, which does not return to port. No further signs of the island are accounted for in the months to follow. As months turn into years it seems conclusive that the expedition will not be returning any time soon. War breaks out between the Summer and Winter Courts and the Geshemafar and their allies, Kings Hersh and Yrondil, with the Aeldir capturing two regions from the brothers. Adrax Awaria answers the call for aid from the populace of Region 138, seeking to relieve their region through an attack on the Hakeber capital. Lady Commander Swahi, head of the newly formed Military Junta, turns her attention away from 138 to the south and to the defense of her capital, leaving a subservient general to deal with the southern region. It would prove to be too little however, as the Adrax Awarian forces had already established an advantageous position in Hakeber and as the armies under Swahi returned they were forced to fight a losing battle. Swahi was captured and all her forces killed or taken captive by the victorious Adrax Awarian army. In the southern region the armies under Swahi's general are confronted with a tactically far superior commander and despite their best efforts are soundly defeated. Unfortunately for the region and the commander the ploy employed was reliant on sacrificing a number of local troops to inflict defeat on the larger force and the commander was captured by the fleeing forces. It was desperately hoped this would lead him back to an occupied Hakeber and release to Adrax Awaria. When the beaten and retreating forces under Swahi's general return north and find Swahi captured and their homeland occupied they surrender rather than fight again or attempt to flee, tired from the long march. The troops pledge themselves to Adrax Awaria and release Lord Eridus to Jack to do with as he will. The Maestro of Fantastigoria, mask and all, disappears! His ship arrived back in Fantastigora unaware their leader was even absent and no one seems to know where the Maestro has disappeared to! It seems clear he will not be able to run his country in these coming years be he alive or dead!
106 Of the investigators sent to find whatever man or beast has been committing the heinous murders of Fan’Gourmet only one lives to tell a tale. Though overcome with fear and shaking to his bones the man reports to the Duksae tasked with completing the investigation of "A glass eyed man, fangs of glowing steel, and a terrible appetite for blood.” Six days after returning this man disappears from where he was recovering. No one knows how he escaped or where he could have gone. The Lerr buck under the Fiid occupation. Political marriages often end in the death of one or both partners, squires taken from the Lerr and put under Fiid kill their knight so often it has become a macabre joke to refer to any murder as a Squiring. The marriage between the High Tirk and House Jahim is shockingly accepted by the Lerr family but many suspect this simply to be a plot to end the High Tirk within his own bedchambers. K’juuda’s efforts to contain rebellion prove successful with the meeker silver miners of the west but the horselords from whom K’juuda is descended still buck at his attempts to curtail their rights and force them into subservience beneath him Finding allies in the dissatisfied clans beneath the Shafar and willing to offer marriages and alliances with these dissatisfied and armed subjects of the boqorka the people of Mabonde Ya Kijani strain under foreign rule and attempts by the Shafar to expand their influence meets resistance at every turn. With unstable support from the other clans it seems unclear if the Shafar can capably expand their influence outside their homelands! A travelling carnival under the name “Dr. Dranzel’s Spectacular Travelling Troupe” has made waves with the common folk of the Preeminence of Hortis and the Wandering Clan. It is said that the half-monkey half-lizard sideshow is of extreme interest and worth the copper, but the witch offering blessings to individuals is the real show stealer. From fixing a broken leg, to curing gout, and according to one especially outlandish and inebriated story, granting the power of flight are all well within the witch's power. The carnival is currently set down along the border between Conlarbores and Western Aladar.
107 After the failure of investigation by Fantastigoria the murders of Fan’Gourmet only increase in occurrence. A death once every two weeks becomes the norm, the scenes all identical in form of death, but the pattern of victim and geography unclear. At one end of the region for one incident and then the other by the next, a distance unwalkable by any mortal. The people of Fan’Gourmet live in a dreadful fear, the cultural reorganization seemingly ineffective. Even now with every citizen refusing to open their doors after dusk the murders continues to happen in homes without any signs of forced entry. The people plead for an end to this death though some fear the disappearance of the Maestro bodes doom for them all the region remains stable, for now. Tiramisu becomes a popular dessert choice in Hess Tannan. Competitions between confectioners reach such intensities that local magistrates begin to impose heavy taxes on the production of coffee driving the small industry out of business and ending the vicious competition.

Aedilred
2015-11-18, 11:32 PM
To keep the first post largely referential, I'll start the discussion here.

General questions

How long has it been since the dawn of civilisation?
For dates prior to the start of the "new age", should we use a BC/AD-style system, counting backwards from "year 0" (or year 1 as the case may be) or an age-based system in which years before that are counted forward from a previous landmark date (and if so, what date(s) should be chosen?)?


Thoughts relating me directly

The Nanda arriving in their current regions record the "Twilight Men" living there, whom they displaced. I haven't yet settled on the identity of these "Twilight Men", so am curious whether anyone has any ideas. Current possibilities occurring to me:
Luskans. Luskans call themselves "people of twilight" so that would fit nicely, but they also record themselves as having arrived from the east.
The Wormwood/Bladesmire natives.
Humans akin to those now resident in Ambrose or Aneth.
Aeldir.
Prevaz or Whansis.
People yet to be discovered (although nearby space to discover them is running out).
A people now completely extinct, whether human or otherwise.
They never existed and it's just a myth.

My history also records the existence of an empire which at one point in relatively recent history subjugated Nand, probably the same empire which established the Krozna colony (and that is certainly my intention OOC). I've been working on the principle this empire collapsed about a hundred years ago, but there is a fair bit of wiggle room in that. What was this empire? Where did it originate? How long did it last? What caused it to fall?

HalfTangible
2015-11-19, 04:09 AM
I've been building up a war for my general area. The general idea is that the Highback mountains and the general area around it were once held by a mighty empire, specifically as their eastern fringe. That Empire eventually collapsed (as all Empires do) through a civil war (#NotAllEmpires do this, on the other hand) >.>

Tertius held out thanks to its many bunkers, and overall its lack of strategic importance (i presume that the empire had access to steel elsewhere). Secundus was on the other side of the mountains and the desert i presume is there, so they stayed out of the fighting. Quartus was basically irrelevant (as you'll soon see) since it was so resource-poor. (And one detail i plan to put in didn't show up until the modern era)

Primus got hit hardest by the Old Empire, destroying almost all of their knowledge and their civilization. Moonsilver was something too valuable to leave in the hands of rebels, so they went after the stuff with all the ferocity of a rabid dog, throwing the region into chaos. That chaos lasted longer than their attempts to sieze control of the region (in part due to their many proxies and ill-timed backstabs, but also because it was taking too many resources to keep crossing that desert) and even past the Empire's fall. The Time Before is a period after this fall that Primus refuses to speak of because it's just that horrible and disgusting (to the degree I don't want to put details on the forums) but it lasted until Cochradice wrestled stability back and founded the Imperium, bringing as many families as she could under one united banner.

...

I place the dawn of most of these civilizations within the last hundred years or so, though aside from Primus it's pretty irrelevant to their overall stories. I kinda messed up with Secundus, but with Tertius and Quartus I tried to give them newly emerging problems to tackle rather than, say, old blood feuds.

The Aeldir have apparently been at war for centuries, so it could easily have been longer

Silverbit
2015-11-19, 10:02 AM
I've written some Fiid stuff. Generally:

The distant past: Fiid were only in Fiid, worshipping the Sun God and fighting each other in disorganised tribes.

The slightly-less distant past: the Fiid surged out of their region, conquering others to the west of them. I imagine an Alexander-the-Great type empire, only existing for a brief period of time but leaving lots of Successor States and Fiid behind.

The recorded past: an empire incorporates the Fiid. Some serve as auxiliary troops.

The recent past, not living memory: the empire falls, leaving ruins.

That's what the Fiid think happened, but it's possible they're wrong about some parts of it.
I'm not sure about specific dates: when are we dating the fall of the Last Big Empire (LBE?)? The one that left the last major crop of ruins and colonialism. What is year 0? Are these two things connected?

QuintonBeck
2015-11-19, 10:17 AM
The Aenic Calendar which is used in round openers could be a lot of things as I've had a few ideas on what it is but none of them are "canon" and I leave it up to the majority of the players to decide what they want it to be.

My original thought was that it was the calendar of the Grand Church of Daen with the year starting from 0 being the beginning of a new era by their records for whatever reason. Be it the fall of the last Empire that followed Daen, a religious event that occurred, or something else entirely.

The other thought I've had is that it is the calendar of an "Aenic Empire" which may have been the 'last' empire of recent history marked at it's founding at year 0 and though it collapsed sometime between 0 and 100 the calendar is still used, it being a remnant of the last large spanning power that was able to influence lots of people.

Silverbit
2015-11-19, 10:40 AM
I can see that last idea working. Maybe there was a long series of empires in the past, some very large indeed, and the last was rather smaller and a bit pathetic. They designate their founding year as year 0 (or 1) in an attempt to gain legitimacy, then rapidly fall. The date sticks, and thus we have a unified date system without a recent global empire. I'm not sure where the capital of all these empires would be; it was probably an island that sank or something. That kind of stuff happens when empires falls.

Aedilred
2015-11-19, 02:11 PM
Another option, I suppose, would be that the year 0/whatever marks the effective fall of the last empire that actively oppressed the church of Daen, and thus marks the start of a era of hope and prosperity for the faithful. That wouldn't preclude small successor states of that empire surviving afterwards, but it could have some symbolic significance for the church.



In the case of the Nanda, there are four traditional preceding dynasties to the current one (which began around the start of the current calendar). Assuming a rough average of 200-250 years per dynasty and no interdynastic periods, that would place the arrival of the Nanda in the region about 900-1100 years before present. That can obviously be extended pretty much as far as necessary, however, or shortened a little, although a period of at least several hundred years is probably necessary.

I imagine that before the start of the Neskan dynasty they probably dated things either from the supposed crowning of the first king or started over with each dynasty. During the Neskan period they'd have used whichever calendar was used by their parent empire, and probably got into the habit of using foreign calendars thereafter.

lt_murgen
2015-11-19, 02:17 PM
Not many folks have written their lands with significant ruins, as far as I know. That sort of precludes an empire that collapsed.

It could be a cosmological event. Perhaps a comet on a steady 200 year cycle passed by 100 years ago. Everyone has their individual calendars, but a common cross-dating is that event. So while the Geshem may believe it is year 4387, they recognize the 'common' date of comet +100 years.

Aedilred
2015-11-19, 02:37 PM
Not many folks have written their lands with significant ruins, as far as I know. That sort of precludes an empire that collapsed.

That depends. That people haven't mentioned ruins in their writeups doesn't necessarily mean that none exist. It is also likely that a lot of things built by former empires are still in use. Even after the fall of Rome in the west, people continued to live in the same buildings, make use of the same bridges and roads, etc, to the extent that there probably weren't a great number of significant "ruins" that one would be minded to mention in a writeup. Many of the buildings that were destroyed would just be built on, or around. Or maybe the empire in question built mostly in wood, and it's all burned down or rotted away to the point it's no longer visible, or it was on the coast and has been flooded, or near a volcano and got buried in ash, and so on.

There are a few mentions around the place too that the cities people live in are older than the civilisation currently occupying them, such as Krozna.


It could be a cosmological event. Perhaps a comet on a steady 200 year cycle passed by 100 years ago. Everyone has their individual calendars, but a common cross-dating is that event. So while the Geshem may believe it is year 4387, they recognize the 'common' date of comet +100 years.
That is another possibility (although it would probably have to be something signifcant to cross hemispheres!).

Mary_Sue
2015-11-19, 06:08 PM
I have stated that my people, fair haired humans, have migrated from the far north, after splintering on a philosophical disagreement, so if there is anyone up there who would like to collaborate with me on that, that would be great.

Tychris1
2015-11-19, 10:05 PM
Well, I'm about as far north as you can get when it comes to players.

Mary_Sue
2015-11-20, 12:12 PM
Well, I'm about as far north as you can get when it comes to players.

Alright, maybe we can work it out! I understand your people are "metal", but since mine fractured off to be ruled by the women, I would say that tamed their metal-ness a bit. :smallwink:

lt_murgen
2015-11-20, 03:12 PM
That is another possibility (although it would probably have to be something signifcant to cross hemispheres!).

It could be that it is visible in hemisphere A on its incoming leg and hemisphere B on its outgoing leg, with both being in the same year.

Or perhaps our planet has rings as well as moon/moons. Once every 200 years, there is a rare alignment between the moon, the rings, and the sun. During the vernal and autumnal equinox, there are significant meteor showers and the pull of the moon shakes up the planetary rings. This would be visible from both hemispheres.

Reggiejam
2015-11-23, 12:32 PM
First, a disclaimer. None of this has yet been discussed amongst the other Aeldir and is purely Reggie's speculation/ideas. The other members are welcome to hop in with additional details or point out where something doesn't work with what we envisioned here or in private.

That out of the way. I imagine the Aeldir and Tir Amser have been a mysterious people and place for much of recent history. With their long debatably immortal lives the Aeldir's conflict between the Rose Courts dating back three or four generations is probably at least 3-4 hundred years if not significantly longer. However, calling it a war isn't quite accurate since an Aeldir spilling another Aeldir's blood is considered an unforgivable crime. Instead the Courts have been up until the start of the game and the working of the Rose Contract been attempting to gain dominance and get an edge over their fellow Courts. Whether through trying to charm non-Aeldir kingdoms to fight for one of the Courts against the other or through attempting to gain more power from land beyond Tir Amser the ways of the Aeldir war did not keep the Courts locked in a bloody conflict but instead in a much more Cold War esque state of friction and proxy wars.

The scattered Aeldir colonies that have been found have a variety of possible explanations, the Dhuda Besina could have fled near the start of the Courts' conflict which may have been up to 1,000 years ago, desiring unity or some other cause. The colony on Tir Gwydr may have been sent by the Spring Court to find some sort of advantageous resource for the Spring Court to fight with or to make contact with a foreign kingdom. The Wild Lord on Tir Xungla may have been a warrior seeking to put an end to an Aeldir plot to recruit allies (it could be the intelligent beasts of Tir Xungla were a people turned into such by Aeldir magic seeking non-Aeldir stealthy warriors to infiltrate the other Courts)

Essentially however the large bulk of the Aeldir have remained on Tir Amser and whatever Court they belonged to the sanctity of the island as one solely for Aeldir to inhabit was something respected and enforced against outsiders. So while fairy tales (pun intended) of the island or of the 'colonies' may have sprung up the Aeldir themselves have remained largely removed from the politics of Empires by recent reckoning. A "here there be fairies" on imperial maps often avoided except in Homeric epics where the hero must seek something on the forbidden island and with some places that had contact with Aeldir explorers/others developing tales of these strange and alien fair folk who lived in a small section of the region.

Dracolon
2015-11-24, 06:15 AM
My people are a fairly young race/culture in contrast to the majority of regions it seems. They haven't had a nationally defining event to base their own calendar off of yet, so they have just been using the common calendar learned of in early trading.

Written records are rare as of now, and most of the history is past down in bardic style. The songs of the nation have a few epics that might help date their ascendance from loose family units to a unified society, but the exact dates are near impossible to determine. One tale I have been looking for a good opportunity to tell IC is the initial meeting of a young Sharpclaw boy and the demons of the treeless hill, which may well be the first great story of the nation, perhaps embellished a little by time.

I think the first songs probably originate from around 100BP to 50BP before which Hortis had no true government or nation just families of the two races living in whatever areas they could control with their family’s strength. It took a series of major changes to bring the nation together as a whole and prove the right of the Tuft Eared to rule them. Conflicts in arguments ending only after the winters of 84 and 85 which hit the area particularly hard and forced the people to come together to survive, the Tuft Eared’s close relationship to the ceratogaulus solidified their power and made their holdings a safe haven in those hard times.

With a solid seat of power formed in Conlarbores it isn’t a far stretch to think the Tuft-eared rulers would want to continue uniting the scattered families and small settlements of their kind in to a combined nation greater than the sum of its parts. Their expansionist desire reaching beyond their known lands into the nearby regions where some hope to find their kind that may have fled from the cold and starvation or adapted to permanently survive in the mountains, or other people to strengthen their position.

The early tales are used to empower the populace to be bold and try new ideas. It was after all the Sharpclaw’s that braved the treeless hill where their family changed the course of nitent’oculis history. More recent songs are on the developing chivalric code of the area and recent major religious events like the Run and the Grove. Some tales of other nations and far off ports have added new spice to the lineup as well.

Aedilred
2015-12-26, 06:34 PM
Nandan History

Dating System

The Nanda use dynastic dating, with the start of each era dated from the coronation of that dynasty's first monarch. The precise correlation with the Aenic calendar is debatable (see below) and records of earlier kings may be at least partly mythical in any case. Although it is near-certain that the kings of the Nandan dynasty existed, the degree to which they held real power is unclear, and there is no first-hand scholarship from that period, making any history rather unreliable and fragmented.

The shorthand for dynastic datings is as follows:
SN - Nandan Dynasty
SB - Baban Dynasty
SJ - Jangan Dynasty
SK - Neskan Dynasty
SS - Sasan Dynasty
AN - Aenic Calendar
BAN - Before Aenic Calendar (counted backwards)

The official year-numbering for the Sasan dynasty corresponds with that of the Aenic calendar.

While some chroniclers count the end of the Nandan era as coterminous with the start of the Baban era, most agree that there was a period of a number of years in between before the coronation of Isfandir I and the official beginning of Baban dating. The estimate of this period can be anything from two to fifteen years, depending on interpretation of some of the stories and texts from the era. While it is generally accepted that the Jangan era followed the Baban era with no gap in the calendar, similar arguments have also been made for the periods between the end of the Neskan dynasty and start of the Sasan, and the end of the Jangan and start of the Neskan (though there, some claim the two eras actually overlap). This is one of the features that makes precise dating of events in prehistoric Nand almost impossible. Dates given below therefore use Nanda year-numbering.


NameYear Start-Year EndNotesRelationship
Nandir-Pre-dynastic
Old Kingdom (Nandan Dynasty)
Ardashir I1-35
Kouros I35-46Son of Ardashir I
Ardashir II46-63Son of Kouros I
Kambuzir I46-61Son of Kouros I
Kouros II63-84Son of Ardashir II
Kambuzir II63-82Son of Ardashir II
Perzir I82-104Son of Kambuzir II
Kouros III104-125Son of Perzir I
Ardashir III105-131Son of Perzir I
Kouros IV125-136Son of Kouros III
Kambuzir III125-152Son of Kouros III
Nangir I131-136Son of Ardashir III
Kambuzir IV136-152Son of Nangir I
Kambuzir V152-181Son of Kambuzir IV
Ardashir IV181-190Son of Kambuzir V
Perzir II190-191Son of Kambuzir V
Perzir III190-197Son of Ardashir IV
Kouros V190-199Son of Ardashir IV
Daras I191-195Son of Perzir II
Ardashir V195-202Son of Daras I
Kouros VI197-202Son of Perzir III
Perzir IV199-211Son of Kouros V
Perzir V202-213Son of Kouros VI
Kambuzir VI211-216Son of Perzir IV
Kambuzir VII213-224Son of Perzir VII
Kambuzir VIII216-224Son of Kambuzir V
Baban Dynasty
Isfandir I1-13Great-grandson of Kambuzir V
Yazdagir I13-41Son of Isfandir I
Daras II41-78Founder of AmakiSon of Yazdagir I
Sarses I78-116Grandson of Daras II
Nangir II116-119Son of Sarses I
Azarmir119-145Last king at AmakiGreat-grandson of Daras II
Nimur I145-147Great-grandson of Daras II
Yazdagir II147-163Son of Nimur I
Juvanashir I163-168Son of Yazdagir II
Daras III168-184Son of Nimur I
Perzir VI184-191Son of Daras III
Juvanashir II191-193Son of Daras III
Sarses II193-197Son of Daras III
Perzir VII197-208Son of Daras III
Ardashir VII208-212Puppet king of Shanaz ISon of Perzir VII
Jangan Dynasty
Shanaz I1-16Former concubine of Perzir VII
Shanaz II16-52Daughter of Shanaz I
Sarses III52-74Son of Shanaz II
Shanaz III74-81Daughter of Shanaz II
Yazdagir III81-83Son of Shanaz II
Hannah I83-103Daughter of Yazdagir III
Sarses IV103-137Son of Hannah I
Shanaz IV137-151Daughter of Hannah I
Aiman I151-186Daughter of Shanaz IV
Hannah II186-189Daughter of Hannah I
Shanaz V189-197Daughter of Hannah II
Aiman II197-219Daughter of Shanaz V
Sarses V219-237Son of Aiman II
Imperial Era (Neskan Dynasty)
Bagratir1-12
Yavanir II12-27
Nina27-62
Zenyir I62-64
Tamara I64-71
Bagratir II71-80
Yehanir80-87
Tamara II87-91
Shuzir II92-130
Burandota I130-135
Bagratir III135-142
Zenyir II142-167
Burandota II167-187
Yavanir II187-217
Restoration Era (Sasan Dynasty)
Sarses VI1-12Descendant of Sarses V
Isfandir II12-46Son of Sarses VI
Nimur II46-88Son of Isfandir II
Eraneh I88-89Daughter of Nimur II
Isfandir III89-91Son of Isfandir II
Aiman III91-Daughter of Isfandir III



Family tree (http://familyecho.com/?p=GDSCQ&c=gpdjgahvsj&f=194738608122332846)

Nandan Era (c.900 BAN – c.650 BAN)

Perzir I
Perzir was the first king of all of Nand since Kouros I and reunited the kingdom after the death of his uncle Kouros II. His aim during his reign was to attempt to keep the kingdom together, and passed many laws to restore faith in the government. Although his second son would dispute the inheritance and carve out his own short-lived kingdom, Perzir was broadly successful in this endeavour and established a relatively stable succession which lasted for almost a century.

Ardashir IV
Ardashir was the last strong king of the Nandan dynasty. In later life he was increasingly challenged by his mightier subjects, and though he succeeded in maintaining his authority during his own reign, on his death the crown was disputed between both his surviving sons and his brother Perzir. The wars between them would destroy the kingdom.

Perzir V
The first true child king in Nand, he came to the throne as an infant after his father Kouros VI and cousin Ardashir I killed each other in battle. A sickly child, he spent his whole reign dominated by the setrapa and eventually died aged twelve. It is said that the last of the Siyanda died during his reign (although this claim is also made of several earlier kings).

Kambuzir VII
The last and one of the worst of the Nandan kings, he inherited the throne at the age of ten from his brother Perzir. Although a minor, he was keen to assert his authority as much as possible, and at the age of fourteen ordered the murder of his young cousin, Kambuzir VI, in an attempt to gain his lands. Upon reaching majority he ruled ruthlessly but without wisdom, as by this point the effective reach of royal authority was tiny, extending barely a day's ride from the capital. He died childless aged only 22, under circumstances which remain mysterious but which might have involved a palace coup.


Baban Era (c.650 BAN – c.440 BAN)

Juvanashir I
Considered to exemplify some of the worst excesses of the later Baban kings during his short reign, Juvanashir came to the throne aged only twelve and, having lived his whole life as a spoiled and privileged child, saw no need to moderate his behaviour upon reaching the age of majority. He spent lavishly on his palaces and concubines and allowed his favourites to raid the treasury at will, funding these extravagances with onerous taxes on both the nobility and the temples. According to legend, he stayed at the house of a noble while travelling, and while a guest in his house, took the opportunity to deflower all ten of the nobleman's daughters (some say in a single night). When the nobleman discovered what the king had done, he strangled him to death.

Daras III
Daras was less antagonistic towards his subjects than his brother had been, but still a decadent and ineffective ruler. His principal preoccupation was the size of his harem, some of whose members he had inherited from his brother, and which he sought to expand as far as possible, both in terms of building extensions to those areas of his palaces and acquiring new members. Where some previous kings had boasted of roads built or enemies subdued, it is recorded that Daras III held a celebration when he reached the symbolic number of 300 concubines. Some have claimed that this number included his own sisters, possibly as a way of explaining the short lives of many of his descendants.

Sons of Daras III
His sons were even less effectual as rulers than Daras had been. Perzir VI had aspirations as a great military conqueror, but no talent in that area himself, nor an eye for it in others. Large sums were squandered on expensive military programmes which accomplished nothing. Juvanashir II was as obsessed as his father had been with his wives and concubines, and with begetting an heir. Everything in the kingdom was secondary to his attempts to father such a child, and it is rumoured that he suffocated under a heap of his own bed-slaves (although it is more likely he was smothered to death). Sarses II was a drunk, and his overindulgence in that respect is believed to have been the likeliest cause of his death.

Perzir VII seemed to combine many of the worst traits of his immediate predecessors, but combined with a weakness of will and a laziness which saw him fall completely under the thrall of his favourite concubine, a remarkable woman who came to be known as Shanaz.

Jangan Era (c.440 BAN – c.200 BAN)

Shanaz I

The origins of Nand's first sovereign queen are murky, as many chroniclers have interpreted or reported her story differently to reflect contemporary political mores. It is therefore not known if she was born to noble or common parents, or whether she was of noble bloodline but low caste, or vice versa. What is generally agreed is that she was taken, whether as a hostage or as a purchased slave, to be groomed for the royal household, most likely during the reign of Juvanashir II. She later became the favourite concubine of Perzir VII. He was a weak and indecisive king, who soon came to rely on her for guidance and counsel. By the end of his reign, Shanaz would sit in on his audiences, give her advice freely, and the king would almost invariably follow it. Fortunately for the kingdom, her counsel – particularly on military matters – was generally sound and wise, and she maintained close relationships with many of the king's senior military officers.

Despite Perzir's best efforts, he left behind him only one child, a boy named Ardashir. As the king weakened, factions began to form around Shanaz and the boy, with dynastic loyalists fearing that she would attempt to eliminate the child upon her husband's death. In fact she surprised and won over many of her opponents by supporting his cause and promoting his own accession to the throne, in exchange for being appointed regent.

During the reign of Ardashir VII she controlled the country even moreso than she had during the late king's tenure. Her opponents were won over or quietly disposed of, until after four years she felt able to dispense with the pretence of the situation and forced the young king – still only fourteen – to take vows in the order of Erinir and surrender his claim to the throne, after which she claimed the crown herself.

Much of the rest of her reign was spent suppressing the last remnants of opposition to her rule, as many of the crown's subjects had grown overmighty during the years of negligence and sought to challenge her authority. She crushed them all and left behind her a strong and unified kingdom.

Although equality between the sexes had been growing during the later Baban years, it was Shanaz who made this official, abolishing all remaining legal distinctions between men and women. She was also remarked for starting her own harem comprised of men (though it is persistently rumoured that it still contained some women, former concubines of Perzir, if there is any truth to this it is likely this was out of friendship or for administrative convenience as much as for any other purpose.)

She was succeeded by her daughter by one of her male companions, Shanaz II. It is a measure of her control over the kingdom that the younger Shanaz was born during the reign of Ardashir. Some claim that she was in fact Perzir's posthumous child, but this is generally considered unlikely. Soon after her death, Ardashir VII was strangled, presumably by her daughter to forestall any potential revived Baban claim to the throne.

Gengy
2015-12-26, 09:47 PM
First, a disclaimer. None of this has yet been discussed amongst the other Aeldir and is purely Reggie's speculation/ideas. The other members are welcome to hop in with additional details or point out where something doesn't work with what we envisioned here or in private.[snip]

I don't disagree with anything Reggie has said, but in my latest post, I did add a few more details, with approval from my fellow Rose Court players. I'm quoting the relevant information here.


Time was… flexible, in the eyes of Aeldir. It occurred, and they had been learning about the things called ‘years’ and ‘months’ that non-Aeldir used. It was quaint, in it’s own way. To Aeldir, however, everything was measured in Ages. There were eighteen of them. Three were called the Age of Spring. Three were the Age of Autumn. Four were the Age of Winter. Five were the Age of Summer. Each Age represented a time which that particular Aeldir Court had held the Rose Throne, and thus dominion over the others. But there were three others. The Age the Beginning, when all was right and perfect, and was the birth of the Rose Throne. The Age of Woe, which followed the Age of the Beginning when the great sadness occurred; this ended only when Lord Summer stepped forth to claim the Rose Throne, starting the first Age of Summer. It lasted for a time, until Lord Summer was defeated by Lord Winter, starting the first Age of Winter; and so on and on. This continued, each Court eventually besting another as time moved on. Decades went by; centuries! These are things that the Aeldir did not track. They only know this: the longest of the Ages was the most recent, and the fifteenth. They call it the Age of Conflict.

History is uncertain as to the exact cause of the Age. All Aeldir can agree upon is this: The fourth Age of Winter was the last Seasonal Age, and it ended with not the death of Lord Winter, but the death of that Age’s Lady Spring. A new Lady Spring arose, and the mystery of her rise is the unknown. She did… something… to Lord Winter, and removed him from the Rose Throne; but did not have the power to secure it for Spring. Lady Autumn and Lord Summer were able to muster enough guile and strength to create a near perfect balance, and cause the struggle for the Throne to begin in a whole new way.

With no one atop it – no claimant to decree they held dominion over all – the Age of Conflict began, and the battles were long. Some did not even look like battles. Lady Spring was clever enough to prevent grief from reaching Glaw Novo. Lord Summer was strong enough to forestall the idea of direct confrontation, and stronger still to win when visible battle was engaged. Lady Autumn, the beauty of all Aeldir, knew every law and every rule passed down through the Ages, and she wielded them with force at times more terrible then any sword held by Summer. And Lord Winter… known as the eldest of Aeldir, he was the holder of mysteries that not even the curious Spring Court could uncover or even fathom.

Deaths between Aeldir are rare things. There were battles; terrible things. When one occurred, it was more gruesome then the last, as each grudge, each rivalry, each vendetta; they all grew. Some Aeldir had personal enemies among the other courts, even to this day. During the Age of Conflict, these two Aeldir would seek each other out, ignoring any whom might get it their way, just to continue their personal bloody quarrel. These? These were the familiar wounds and old sores that almost every Aeldir whom fought in the Age of Conflict and lived thought about to this day.

And then? Then the Age of Conflict was suddenly… over. New Seasonal Leaders in all the Courts, except for Winter. Peace. The promise of it, at least. The Pledge. The ten years of working together, presenting a united front against the non-Aeldir. The discovery of other nations outside the Courts, and even, yes, even other Aeldir, thought to have been lost or completely unheard of.

But now that was all over. What had been thought to be the dawning of a new Age - an unnamed Age, a thing that had not occurred for uncounted centuries – was forestalled.

TL;DR: Aeldir measure time in 'Ages'. The official Arandi calendar may not have exact correlating years, but the order of the Ages is something like this:


The Age of the Beginning
The Age of Woe
The First Age of Summer
The First Age of Winter
The Second Age of Summer
The First Age of Autumn
The First Age of Spring
The Second Age of Winter
The Second Age of Autumn
The Third Age of Summer
The Second Age of Spring
The Fourth Age of Summer
The Third Age of Winter
The Third Age of Autumn
The Fifth Age of Summer
The Third Age of Spring
The Fourth Age of Winter
The Age of Conflict
....??? (The Unnamed Age, but it starts as soon as the Federation is official)

HalfTangible
2016-02-29, 11:36 PM
This is how the people of Primus remember Cochradice the Unifier, and the original founding of the Imperium.

This was also posted in the IC thread a few rounds back, but it helps to keep things like this in one place.

The balance of power in Primus is a constantly shifting thing. Technically the Highback mountains were the domain of House Navus, but this only became the case in the last years of Roethye the Proud's reign. Before then, they were House Eventus lands. Primus proper is always under the eye of whichever house is next in line to receive proper lands.

Only one thing remained constant: the city of Valkyrie belonged to the Primus royal family. The Primus family held absolute power in the Imperium, and all knew that they were the reason the Time Before had ended. It was responsible for mediating any conflict between the houses, and managing the nation as a whole.

But it was not always so.

---

Royo wasn't all that different from the other noble houses. Matriarchal, war-like and far more proud than it honestly had any right to be (not that anyone would tell them that). However, it had made many territorial gains thanks to its usage of moonsilver arms and uncanny ability to survive when massively outnumbered. Their request for peace came as a surprise to the other houses, but it was a reprieve they could not afford to ignore.

Cochradice Royo had brought several of the largest houses together at a time when her own house had more than enough strength to wipe them all out. However, she did not. She proposed the idea of an Imperium stretching across the entire mountain range and into the desert, to become the undisputed masters of this land and beyond, with Primus at its center and master of all the world (At the time, no one knew of other world powers such as Berrium, the Courts or Ambrose). After generations of ceaseless war, however, her talks of peace and unity sounded hollow. Each Lady (and the two or three Lords) was certain that this was an attempt to spread her lands by tricking the other houses back into open war for a proper Casus Belli. Perhaps she intended some gambit to insert her blood into their own lines and press a claim on their lands.

So House Conferrus came prepared with an offer House Royo couldn't possibly accept: The Royo would be granted the power to hold this "Imperium" together if they agreed to limit their personal demense to one city: the city of Valkyrie, a true backwater. It wasn't valuable in and of itself, it was valuable because of how close it was to OTHER sources of value, and how easy it was to defend. But if you could only hold the city, it would take but a single misstep for the other Houses to starve you out. Only a complete idiot would take one city like that on the word of dozens of Houses that they wouldn't immediately swallow them up from a position of such strength.

And Cochradice said "Yes".

Every square centimeter of land other than Valkyrie was returned to the House that the Royo had taken them from.

It was a complete shock to the entire realm. A House as ancient and implacable as the Royo, so sick of war that they were willing to take the risk of utter annihilation when they had been poised to take all the world (again, no knowledge of foreign powers). What was more, she'd agreed to this deal on the condition that the other Houses' squabbles be hers to manage. And while the Primal people were many terrible things, they kept their promises.

And so House Royo became the Primal royal family, with Valkyrie as the nation's capital.

The Imperium had spread, swallowing many new lands and granting them to the other houses. Roethye the Proud had actually started the process of conquering that territory, but Cochradice was the true reason that such gains were possible in the first place. It was her that created the Imperium, and ended the Time Before.

And the royal bloodline - the Primus - would ensure it never came back.

Aedilred
2016-03-02, 07:20 PM
A Scholar’s History of the Fiid, an ancient and mysterious people.

Like most of the southerners, the Fiid do not look entirely human. They are shorter than other humans, and a little more stocky. Prominent brow ridges shadow deeply sunken eyes. Aside from their scalp, the Fiid are entirely hairless. The scalp hair is often worn loose and long, and cluttered with metal ornaments. Fiid skin is dry to the touch, and usually light brown in colour. Fiid hair is naturally black, but is sometimes bleached white with lime. Eyes are usually grey or brown. Fiid do not live as long as most humans, with even the oldest meeting death before their sixties.

The Time Before

“Where did the Fiid come from?” is a question asked by many a historian over the years. Legend and myth suggest the Fiid were born of the earth itself, or were the first children of elder gods, before the time of true men. There is something atavistic about them, and though Fiid rarely live to a great age it is hard not to be struck by a feeling of great antiquity when looking at one.

For all that, it is not clear whether they have always lived in the land now known by their name or whether they travelled from elsewhere. The most opaque of Fiid legends makes mention of snow and forests, features no longer found in their environment. But these may be adoptions from another people, and may not signify anything about the Fiid themselves.

What is known is that at one stage the Fiid were nomadic wanderers in more hospitable eastern areas of the desert, moving from oasis to oasis, fighting and killing for water. How long this persisted is not clear, but in time, the oases became the site of villages, then towns and eventually the cities, most of which remain today.


The Years of the Stones

What appears to be the oldest Fiid settlement, however, is by none of the oases as currently understood, but on the island of Beg. Cooler and more fertile than most of their roaming grounds, this place must have proved a welcome respite for them, and so it is unsurprising that here they built their first great gathering-place, a site now known simply as the Stones.

That the Stones are the work of Fiid is almost inarguable: despite the crude tools used to create the oldest structures there, there are still signs of the distinctive Fiid architecture, echoes of which can be seen in their current cities. As far as can be told, the Stones were part temple, part festival site. They seem to have had some astronomical significance, aligning with the sun at the winter solstice.

The most intriguing aspect of the Stones, however, is the inscriptions found upon them. This is one of the causes of greatest controversy among all Fiid historians, for the markings are crude and hard to decipher, and if there was a language associated with them its complexities are long lost. Although some details can be made out It appears, however, that they were made over a period of years, and that in some sense they mark off the passage of time. The most popular theory is that each mark signifies the passing of another solstice, and so form the first Fiid calendar.

What gives some pause in accepting this is the sheer number of markings. Over two thousand have been counted, and when accounting for damage, erosion and deliberate destruction, some estimates suggest the total could once have been over seven thousand. This has proven difficult for some to swallow, most notably the Grand Church of Daen, for whom the idea that the “savages” of the west could have had a documented history of their own going back not merely centuries but millennia before their own records begin is anathema. Some have suggested that the markings instead represent months, weeks, or even days (though the last seems highly unlikely!)

Some attempts have been made to determine the truth - and the precise dating - of the dates marked there by comparing them with known astronomical events, for some of the surviving markings are, for instance, fairly unambiguously those for “eclipse” or certain star configurations. Unfortunately, with no definitive point of reference, the margin for error remains huge and as yet there are no accepted calculations.

Nevertheless, in line with the most popular theory, the markings are generally taken as “Years of the Stones” dated from the first visible marking and counted sequentially. Thus we can see, for instance, that a new priest was consecrated in YS440, and it appears that a hero of sorts defended the Stones against hostile incursion in YS682, although he may later have offended the priests, for his name has long since been deliberately scratched out.

The Years of the Tower

At some point, probably not long after the rise of the first cities in the area, it seems there was a major shift in the centre of religious focus from the Stones to a new site near one of the oases. Here the priests built a tower which, to all appearances, was a cause of great wonder to the Fiid and rapidly eclipsed the Stones in importance.

Again we are frustrated by a lack of detail. Some believe that the Tower was built by order of the same priests who manned the Stones, seeking to retain relevance by moving their religious centre closer to the people, who, once their nomadic lifestyle changed, would likely no longer make journeys so frequently to a remote location. Alternatively, some believe that the Tower was itself a manifestation of this loss of relevance: that it was built by a rival sect of priests usurping the power of those at the Stones, perhaps even a rival religion altogether.

No indication can be found at the Stones of the Tower’s construction, which all sides have seized on as support for their theories. Some believe that the Stones were abandoned as soon as the Tower was completed, while others (especially Daenists) tend to argue that the dating at the Stones continued unabated until the religious purges during the royal era which finally ended all activity there, and so the Years of the Stones overlap in their entirety with the Years of the Tower.

What is clear is that the Tower was the very centre of Fiid life. In one of the first reliable mentions of the Fiid from an outside source, it is referred to as the “Tower of the Fiid”, although it has been suggested that this translation should in fact read “Tower of Fiid” (the presence of a definite article in the language in question being ambiguous) and that the people ultimately took their name from the Tower.

So important was the Tower that it apparently became common for events to be dated with reference to its construction:


In the twenty-fifth year since the raising of the Tower of the Stars the great priest-king Shab ordered the construction of granaries for the people of the city.

In the one hundred-and-forty-eighth year of the mighty Tower that rises in the west, priest-king Aug made war on the rebels of Ged and utterly defeated them.

The Tower had stood watch for five hundred years when the priest-king Kresh took power.

Kresh was to prove a different man to his predecessors. Where previous priest-kings appear to have been priests first and exercised secular authority as a function of their religious role, Kresh reversed this and ruled primarily as a king, using the trappings of priesthood to cement his control. This may have been thanks to the influence of a new factor in Fiid society, the cult of the Divine Sun.

The Fiid had always been pagan, and doubtless their religion had always incorporated some degree of sun worship, but the Divine Sun cult took this to extremes, shunning all figures other than the Sun itself. It was, fundamentally, a monotheist cult - suggested cautiously perhaps even to have been a manifestation of the Daenist church in the west. It is not clear whether Kresh himself was a follower of the Divine Sun but the cult was growing in power and it seems the old faith was dwindling in relevance, meaning that he could not afford to give overt offence. This may account for the assumption of a largely secular authority by the king.

Any hope the priests might have had that things would return to normal upon Kresh’s death were soon dashed, for it was clear he had no intention of surrendering the kingship, and had his son Kal appointed as successor. Whatever his father’s beliefs, Kal was a fanatic of the Divine Sun, and wasted no time in stamping his authority on the land. The attacks on neighbouring settlements which had died down during the years of prosperity under the priest-kings were immediately resumed. But these were no longer raiders for water, but warbands and ultimately armies of occupation. Kal’s troops swept across the region, taking town after town until his army became an unstoppable juggernaut of conquest. Having captured the oases of the desert his armies turned south, bringing under the Fiid yoke lands never before populated by their people.

At the forefront of all was the banner of the Divine Sun, for Kal burned with the desire to spread his belief as far as possible. Inevitably, on returning home from one bout of conquest, he decided to put an end to the most visible symbol of the old paganism. As the royal chronicle, begun during Kal’s reign, has it, “and so, by decree of High King Kal the Conqueror, the Tower of the Stars, which had stood for six hundred years, was torn down.”

The Years of the Kings

By comparison with his son Hib, however, Kal was a moderate. Upon succeeding to his father’s empire, Hib began a systematic extermination of all pagans remaining in the land. At the Stones, an inscription - apparently a much later one than those marking the years and in a recognisable script - can be seen, indicating that “In the second year of his reign, King Hib the God-Given ordered these Stones scoured of life.” Any remaining priests or faithful remaining at the Stones were presumably driven away or killed. (The identity of the author of those words is still debated, for in the form of the language used, “God-given” has a secondary interpretation of “Accursed”. Whether it was a glorification by Hib’s troops, or a final defiance on the part of the pagans, must remain unknown).

The Stones were merely the most significant of the pagan centres eliminated. “By the seventh year of the reign of Hib,” the chronicle continues, “there was not one pagan remaining within the bounds of his empire”.

He did not limit his zeal to his own lands. The chronicle is full of blandly stated records of his attacks on neighbouring countries, or those he considered his vassals.


“In the sixth year of his reign, High King Hib went unto the land of Kush, which had defied him, and slew one score thousand of them and took twice that in prisoners… In the ninth year of his reign, the water-dwellers of Nog refused tribute, and so High King Hib made war upon them and placed his foot upon the neck of their leader… In the tenth year of his reign, High King Hib took the city of Tar and laid it waste, in payment for insult offered… In the twelfth year, High King Hib sailed to the land of Bess, where he reaped two dozen thousand souls and returned with eight thousand in captives and slaves… In the fourteenth year, High King Hib fought the Spotted King of Yagmar on the shores of the sea and slew him with his own hand...”

In total more than fifty wars are listed for Hib’s reign, all of them victorious. Even if more than half of these wars are wholly inventions of the chronicler, or Hib’s own propaganda, and those wars merely half as successful as claimed, he was still a prodigious warmonger.

Between the lines of Hib’s devastation of his corner of the world, however (a predilection which would gain him the posthumous sobriquet “Hib the Destroyer”) it is possible to see an empire in the throes of collapse. It seems the High King spent most of his reign racing from one border to another attempting to fend off invasion or put down rebellion. Having expanded rapidly under Kal, the empire took all of Hib’s energy to hold together.

Within two generations of Hib’s death, the empire was to be lost, collapsing almost as quickly as it had been assembled. Not only did they face trouble within their borders but a new force was sweeping the land, one against which the Fiid found they could put up little resistance. The last of Kresh’s line, High King Mag the Defiant, fought to the last city, but ultimately fell in defence of his crown. For the first time, the Fiid were conquered by a foreign people, falling under the dominion of the great empire of the west.



This takes us up to the start of the "Imperial period" under the southwestern empire which collapsed around the start of the Aenic calendar. Since information on that empire is thin and there are still a number of regions in that area to be defined I thought I'd leave the history there to give space to fit with whatever else gets decided later. - Ed