Carthus, the Holy City
"Largest city in the Wyrmtail, and one of the three deemed "Holy" by the Faith. Was the birthplace of Saint Mariana, who was sent into exile by the Elder Dragon Kur Morax. It is currently ruled by the Archbishop Laurence, and is under the protection of Saint Ulfrin's Templar Order."
Old Belrand
In the First Age the lands of Belrand were one of the last to come under the yolk of the Dragons. For centuries Humans who sailed across the Lir in search of fertile lands made their home here. An ancient kingdom whose name has been long forgotten existed there prior to the arrival of Kur Morax. The Elder Dragon would quickly set up a domain that encompassed all of Eastern Belrand, as well as the area that would become the Great Forest of Ulfrin.
Toward the end of the First Age, a girl was born in a small fishing hamlet on the coast of the Aegir. From an early age this girl was able to perform Miracles, and had visions that would come true. When Kur Morax learned of this girl, he quickly took her into his service. Over the next several years he would study her abilities, and attempt to replicate them himself. Unfortunately he could not seem to decipher the nature of her power, and overtime was simply content to have her as an advisor. As the girls parents had died early in her life, he had become a surrogate parent to her. He gave her the name Marina, the Wyrmtongue word for joy. This relationship was not to last, as the girls visions became more frequent, and they continued to predict the fall of the Dragons. When word got out that Kul Morax's Mortal daughter had predicted the death of the All-Mother, the Elder Dragon was forced to make a choice. Kill the girl, or face the wrath of Cridhe Bheithir. Rather than kill the Mortal he had come to care for, he decided to banish her from his land, with followers to aide her in exile. Saint Marina would never return to Belrand, and instead died as the First Archbishop of Bran Bal at the holy age of 333. Seven centuries after her death, the Dragon Crusades would finally retake Belrand, and the site of her birth would be transformed into the Holy City of Carthus.
Belrand's current rulers can trace their lineage to Saint Ulfrin of Lormarc, and Prince Olberon Gancanagh. These two heroes of Men and Elves were the leaders of the Crusaders who chose to continue Westward after conquering the Lower Wyrmheart. Together they would slay Kul Morax in the Everjade Forest, which would be renamed the Great Forest of Ulfrin after the hero. Unfortunately, Saint Ulfrin would give his life to slay the Elder Dragon, and the job of ruling Belrand would go to his sister Lady Adela, who had accompanied the Crusade as a healer. After losing her brother, Adela ensured that Prince Olberon would survive the wounds he suffered from the final battle. While healing the Prince the two fell in love, a fact that caused some controversy as the Prince was already married to an elvish maiden. Olberon would leave his family, but not before ensuring they received the lands of Elfame in return for their service. He would marry Adela, who became Queen of Belrand, and founder of House Bismarc. As Mortals were able to procreate with one another, the two would sire many children, all Human due to mixed children always taking after the mother. Prince Olberon would not survive long into the Second Age, as he would perish during the reign of his Great-Grandson Ulfrin II, while fighting Beastmen in the Mandragora Wilds. Despite his death, the line of rulers he started would survive 1000 years. Before being brought to near extinction by the Belrand Civil War.
During the reign of Annette IX, the House of Bismarc had grown weary of the Faith. Traditionally House Bismarc's mandate of rule was tied directly to the church, as Ulfrin and Adela had been born to peasants. Only through the Grace of the Three Divine, were they deemed fit to be rulers of Mankind. The Sovereign of Belrand's rule was not officially established until they were crowned by the Archbishop in the Holy City. However, after centuries of uninterrupted rule the Kings and Queens of Belrand had begun to chafe at this stipulation.
This tension came to the forefront when Annette's coronation was held hostage from her by Archbishop Laurence. The Faith demanded that Annette use her authority as Crown Princess to outlaw the practice of sorcery within Belrand. This was after Annette's father had already allowed several laws to pass, limiting the practice of Sorcery within the Kingdom. The soon-to-be Sovereign had watched for years as her father was pushed around by the faith and nobles who deemed themselves equal to the Great House of Bismarc. She refused to allow her reign to begin with herself at the mercy of these people who had no right to deny her anything. With indignation in her heart, she gathered several of the oldest families loyal House Bismarc to Attindore. Through the power of the assembled nobility, she had herself crowned Queen of Belrand, and cutoff her bloodlines dependence on the Faith.
This sent ripples throughout the Human world, as Belrand had been one of the bastions of the Faith for thousands of years. Archbishop Augustine of Bran Bal even saw fit to send a small force of the Templar Order to Carthus. The warning was clear, the Faith would not be ignored by any King or Queen. This threat only enflamed the Queen, who decided to bring in the Sorcerers from all around Belrand under her protection. If the Faith was so threatened by them, then she would have their power protected. After a large Conclave of Magic was held in Attindore, the Sorcerers of Belrand decided to form the Keepers of Arcana. This order effectively dissolved the laws passed by the Faith that restricted magical study, and formed an organization where the Sorcerers could police themselves.
This slap in the face in the authority of the Archbishop was the last straw for many. The Archbishop began to meet with nobles who hadn't agreed with Annette's choices, and had suffered for their perceived lack of loyalty to House Bismarc. The leader of this group of nobles was Duke Henri Lautrec, who wasn't the most pious man, but held a grudge against the Queen. Long ago, the Duke had attempted to court the Crown Princess only to lose her favor to Sir Seltkirk, a lesser noble from a Knightly House. The Duke became the greatest ally to the Archbishop, and through ignoble means arranged for the Queen to be assassinated.
At the turn of the 1100th year, Queen Annette's carriage was attacked by a group of bandits, while traveling to her son's estate in Eastern Belrand. In truth these had been mercenary's hired by Duke Lautrec. They had planned to kill both the Queen and her Prince Consort, but Sir Seltkirk had been held back by a forest fire on his family's lands. Had they managed to kill Seltkirk the war that would ensue could have been averted. Unfortunately Seltkirk survived, and upon finding his wife's body unceremoniously thrown to the roadside, he immediately called the banners in his son's name.
The Belrand Civil War had begun.
Attindore, the Royal Palace
"As the Belrand Civil War escalated, King Sigurd IV chose to retreat from Attindore rather than risk it getting destroyed. This decision would allow the future Grand Duke to take the ancestral seat of House Bismarc as his own." The Grand Duchy
Despite some early victories, the Belrand Civil War began to turn against the Kingsmen as the Faith brought more forces from around Nastrondir to support the Godsmen. The conflict had turned into a Religious War, and despite having superior leaders, the commanders serving King Sigurd IV found themselves increasingly outnumbered. Historians agree that the war began to turn against Sigurd when his father, Sir Seltkirk was ambushed around the town of Churneau. The King's father had been in the process of training another army on the Western Front, when he found himself surrounded by the Godsmen Army from the South, and the Knights of Blackwater from the North. The battle that followed was a slaughter, but it is said that Sir Seltkirk managed to cutdown several veteran Wyrmslayers before dying in combat.
With the Western Front completely in Duke Leutrec's controlled, he pushed the Kingsmen back East. This advantage would continue with the Battle of the Westmark, where despite losing many soldiers, he managed to break Sigurd's army. The King knew Attindore wouldn't be defensible, having been constructed in the Elvish style in honor of his ancestor. So he continued to march East to the Ivory Gates. There he spent the next 10 years besieged, and kept out of the more populated portions of his Kingdom.
While the King was contained at the Ivory Gates, Duke Leutrec was able to move his forces back around to pacify any of the King's supporters in the heart of Belrand. He would then march back to Carthus, where the Archbishop gave him the title of Savior of Belrand, and Champion of the Faith. At the end of several days of celebration, Leutrec was rechristened the Grand Duke, and was crowned in the ceremony that had been withheld from Queen Annette decades ago. With this act the Kingdom of Belrand was dissolved, and the Grand Duchy of Belrand was created.
The Grand Duchy controls Western Belrand, which has a larger population, and more resources than Eastern Belrand. It is supported by the Faith as the legitimate government of Belrand, and that Eastern Belrand is in open rebellion. It has completely outlawed the use of Arcane Magic, and any Sorcerer caught by the Godsmen are put on trial and usually executed. The Nobility have been granted far more powers in the Grand Duchy than they ever enjoyed under House Bismarc. Currently the Court of the Grand Duchy is supported by 3 major houses, and several new houses that were uplifted by the Grand Duke after the war.
After becoming the Grand Duke, Henri Leutrec returned to the battlefield to end the Bismarc bloodline once, and for all. He nearly succeeded, when he bribed some of the soldiers to turn on the King at the Ivory Gate. These men stabbed Sigurd and all but one of his sons in their sleep, then threw open the gates for the Grand Duke's army.
Upon marching into Eastern Belrand, Leutrec expected an easy victory, but found his forces constantly at odds with the locals. Eastern Belrand had been used to being ignored by the Western half, and didn't take kindly to the nobility ransacking the countryside. Seeing a chance to protect King Sigmund's last son, Sir Maxwell began organizing these peasants into guerilla fighters. They harassed the Grand Duke's army for months, but eventually were cornered at Dunland.
With victory in sight, and the scion of House Bismarc in sight, the Grand Duke ordered a foolish attack on the old fortress town. For seven days he attempted to take the walls, and for seven days he was pushed back. As his forced dwindled, and even his own nobles began to quit the field, Luetrec sent a message to the Faith for aide. Unfortunately, the Archbishop had already sent his additional forces back to the Wyrmheart. He even admonished Leutrec for wasting such a massive advantage, and that he should be able to clear out a nest of rats. Had things continued as they were, the Grand Duke may have well succeeded. But then the Last Miracle of House Bismarc occurred.
On a night where a storm from the East managed to break on to the Lir, another army entered the field on the flank of Leutrec's siege. Leutrec believed his prayers had been answered, as it could be no other army than a force of Templar Knights from the Holy City. Unfortunately for him this was not so, and an army of Elves from Elfame had arrived instead. They had come to relieve the siege, under the pretense of aiding their distant cousin of House Bismarc. As rain began to fall, the Leutrec's army was wiped out to a man by Elven soldiers who hadn't marched since the Age of Fire. Even the Grand Duke himself was slain, his head brought to the boy King Roland I, by Prince Lucien Gancanagh.
Afterwards, the forces of Sir Maxwell and Prince Lucien marched West together. Unaware of the Grand Dukes defeat, the defenders were completely caught off guard by this new army. The Ivory Gates were back in the hands of the Kingsmen, and with their new Elvish allies it would likely not fall again.
Back in Carthus the Archbishop was furious, made to look like a fool for the entire world. Unlike with the first war, the other Bishops were unwilling to lend their support after such a massive defeat. Nor were they willing to fight the Elves, as relations within the Wyrmheart between Man and Elf had begun to cool. Should the Wyrmheart Kingdoms be seen as fighting the Elves, it could lead to more conflicts flaring around Nastrondir.
Thus the Archbishop simply devoted enough forces to hold the lands around the Ivory Gate to prevent an invasion from the East. He had Leutrec's only daughter (his sons having died with their father) crowned the Grand Duchess at 15. A girl who is clever and resourceful, but isn't truly prepared for such responsibilities.
Since Leutrec's defeat the Grand Duchy has been in constant civil unrest. Atrocities from the nobility continue to mount, and word from the East that King Roland is making lives better for the previously impoverished Easterners isn't helping. The Archbishop himself has become increasingly unfavored by the Faith as a whole, and many are now plotting to unseat him. Despite being the wealthiest and most fertile part of Belrand, recovery from the Civil War has been slow.
Many believe another war is on the horizon.
Population | 20 Million, with 2 Million living in Carthus, 95% Humans |
Government | Grand Duchess Elizabeth Leutrec (Age: 28), is advised by a counsel of Nobles who exert great power over her, as well as Archbishop Laurence who holds the authority to Veto many of her decisions. |
Problems | Noble Lords exert a lot of power, and abuse the peasantry. They hoard vast amounts of wealth that could go into repairing the wartorn nation. The Faith also has become more draconic, seeing heresy where there isn't any. Archbishop Laurence attempts to consolidate his power through force, while clergy beneath him plot to take his place. |
Concepts | Belrand is roughly (super rough) based on the Carolingian Empire, with the western portion resembling France, and the Eastern portion resembling Germany. Carthus is based on the Papal States. Naming conventions the West lean toward French sounding names. Players attempting to impersonate a person from this region will keep that in mind. The poor are in a much worse situation here than the East, but the nobility live far more lavish lives. Think masque balls, "let them eat cake", and lots of wine. |
Dunland, Capital of the Exiled King
"Once a minor fortress city on the Lir, it became a rallying point for the Kingsmen pushed out of Western Belrand. It is here that Sir Maxwell crowned the child Prince Roland as the rightful King of Belrand." The Kingdom
With the Western Border secured, Sir Maxwell knew it was time to return to Dunland. Prince Lucien had already told him that he would not support an invasion of West Belrand without a larger army. The collection of Kingsmen, shepherds, and fisherman Sir Maxwell had managed to cobble together could barely even be called levies. No, King Roland would need time to gather forces, forge alliances, and prepare weapons of war. On the ramparts of the Ivory Gates, Sir Maxwell vowed that he would return with the rightful King one day.
Eastern Belrand had always been different from it's Western side. Unlike the West, the East was not fertile, made of rocky highlands broken by the strange black spikes common on the Wyrmstail. Unlike the coast of the Wyrmheart, ships attempting to dock from the Lir onto Eastern Belrand would likely find their ship smashed on a rock. The few safe docks were forced to use strange rope elevators to unload cargo from ships hundreds of feet below.
Without trade or fertile land, many peasants took up shepherding as their profession, with a handful of fishing hamlets plying their trade on Loc Tana. These people were simple, hardworking, and pragmatic. They had little need for the intrigue of the West, and even less need for nobility. The Lords in the East were few in number, many of them simply second sons and daughters who had inherited small estates in the highlands. When the Civil War began they had largely stayed neutral due to their obscurity.
When the Kingsmen came retreating from the Ivory Gates, the people of Eastern Belrand at first heckled the defeated army. They had dared to fight against the Faith? Some were sympathetic though, as they remembered Queen Annette had provided aide to the Easterners when a blight had caused them to lose their stocked supplies. She had also championed increased trade with the Elves, allowing goods to flow free of taxes if they flowed into Elfame. These sympathetic hearts helped Sir Maxwell sneak young Prince Roland to Dunland.
Even before the Last Miracle of House Bismarc, the people of East Belrand had largely changed their opinions. The armies of the Grand Duke had stolen goods, conscripted sons, and even took wives and daughters as camp slaves as they marched to slay the Prince. As Grand Duke Lautrec refused to bring his army to heel, the Easterners grew more and more discontent until they began openly attacking the invading army. Upon seeing this anger, Sir Maxwell found his chance to forge an alliance with the locals.
It was these men, along with the most loyal Kingsmen that held Dunland until the Elves came to save them. Afterwards they easily pushed back the Grand Duke's forces. The Easterners weren't warriors, but they did know the land better than anyone, and even the haughty Elves came to respect them as they marched West. With the Ivory Gates secured, a force of Elves and Kingsmen remained, while the Easterners and Sir Maxwell returned to Dunland.
There King Roland I was crowned the rightful King of Belrand. At first many wanted Maxwell to take the title, but ever faithful the great Knight refused to be anything other than Roland's Regent until the boy came of age. For this Maxwell was named Lord of Dunland, and he spent the next several years governing what he called the True Kingdom of Belrand.
The Kingdom of Belrand controls the Eastern Portion of Belrand, and considers it's capitol the Fortress City of Dunland. Dunland had originally been built to fight Beastmen who had begun to travel south from the Bladestone Mountains to eat sheep. After a thousand years these attacks had decreased to the point of it being an unnecessary expense on the Kingdom. Thus it had fallen into disrepair and had simply become a trading post, one of many in Eastern Belrand. The difference being that Dunland had been built during Belrand's golden age, and had received crafters from both Elves and Dwarves to create it's walls. These walls were built to last, and even when it became outnumbers 1 to 20 by the Grand Duke's Army, it still managed repel the attack.
With the help of Elvish artisans, and a loan from Prince Lucien, Dunland was rebuilt even greater than it had been at the dawn of the Second Age. After this was done, Sir Maxwell focused on rebuilding the countryside that had been ruined by the Godsmen. With the Kingdom cutoff from the Heartlands in the West, it became increasingly obvious that the people who had sacrificed so much to protect Roland would have to suffer more through starvation. Luckily Prince Lucien once again stepped in, offering the full bounty of Elfame to the Kingdom of Belrand. Sir Maxwell though became suspicious of the Prince's charity, and quickly asked what the Grey Elf wanted in return.
Prince Lucien asked for Ringford, and a slice of land that stretched from Loc Tana to the Lir. This was unthinkable, as Ringford was the largest city in Eastern Belrand. What few goods the Shepherds of the Highlands managed to trade, relied on Ringford to distribute. Eastern Belrand was already nearly impoverished, if Maxwell gave up their largest trade port, he may find himself fighting the people he was working to save. Luckily Prince Lucien understood this, and gave him a solution.
Ringford would still be apart of the Kingdom Belrand. The only difference being that it's noble lord would now be Prince Lucien, and House Gancanagh would be recognized as member of Belrand's nobility. When King Roland I was returned to his rightful throne in Attindore, he would officially recognize Prince Lucien as one of his noble subjects, albeit one with far more rights. In hidden rooms located in Dunland, Maxwell and Lucien forged this new alliance. It was something that had never happened before, an Elf Prince submitting himself to a Human King. Prince Lucien frequently told his detractors that King Roland was his cousin, that had Roland been an Elf it was likely he and Lucien would have been milk brothers. This broad interpretation of familial bonds was scrutinized, but in the end accepted.
The Principality of Gancanagh was created, with Lucien turning Ringford into his capitol. After that, the bounty of Elfame flooded into Eastern Belrand, and soon the Easterners were singing praise for both Lord Maxwell and King Roland. The Elves created a canal that connected Loc Tana to the Lir, and soon the lake fisherman of Eastern Belrand became sailors on the sea.
Word began to spread to the Grand Duchy of the wealth spilling into the Kingdom. The Archbishop tried to stop all information from crossing the borders, but Lord Maxwell had begun training spies to sneak out of the Ivory Gates to spread news of the new golden age King Roland was brining to East Belrand. There were even rumors that they have begun open trade with the Dwarves of Gunzagrad, who have long stayed hidden in their rocky lands. Sorcerers in hiding in the Grand Duchy also get word that the Keepers of Arcana have grown tremendously in King Roland's court, and he even has Mages on his counsel.
As things begin to change for the better in the Kingdom of Belrand, the rest of Nastrondir begins to open it's eyes on the "new" Kingdom. The Archbishop of Bran Bal has begun to gather forces, preparing for the possibility of calling a new Crusade on these heretics. Rhiannon Rigan, Chieftain of the Grey Elves, wonders if she must take action against Prince Lucien. As rumors spread that he has despoiled Elfame in his pursuit of trinkets and baubles. Prospero, Archamge of the Fatebinders, see's a group of heretical magic users that must be crushed at all costs.
Population | 5 Million humans, 100k Elves |
Government | Roland Bismarc I (Age: 20) rules alone after coming of age several years ago, is wisely advised by Lord Maxwell, Prince Lucien, and a representative from the Keepers of Arcana. |
Problems | The Kingdom of Belrand is going through a lot of changes very quickly, and this is leading to some cultural issues. The Shepherds of the Highlands are becoming discontent as more and more young workers journey to Ringford to sail the seas, or join the growing Army of the King. The traditionalists from Elfame are also growing discontent as Prince Lucien continues to eschew their customs. Rumors say the East Coast of Elfame has become infested with Reavers. Finally while the Keepers of Arcana have been incredibly helpful to King Roland's court, their research has caused some issues with the Faithful who still live in East Belrand. |
Concepts | The Kingdom of Belrand is mostly Scottish highlands, mixed with the Prussian Military. Again names lean toward German sounding stuff, but there is a mixture, as it was still one nation a few decades ago. The Kingdoms population is more rural than West Belrand, but as Elvish and goods from the Lir begin to flood the market, the standard of living is rising quickly. The older generation is split on this, while the younger are energized and lusting for further change. |
Belrand Theme: Valkyrie March
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:43, Mon 16 Aug 2021.