The Kearan Empire

A Rise to Greatness
In the early years of Al’Dor many humans journeyed across the Emerald Sea to the continent of Falador. For centuries these humans mixed with the high elves of Nolmë creating a new culture of half-elves, also known as Ahanei. These people inhabited the northern region of Falador, specifically around Titan’s Bay. Over the years, many towns and cities formed around the Grand Lake of Falador. These city states were all very different in organization, however because they were all of similar background, they developed much of the same culture. Elstaer Galeheart was born the first daughter of Mikhael and Keara Galeheart, leaders of Gale, a city in central Falador. When she was fourteen years of age, her city was raided by a rivaling army and she and her people were enslaved. For over two years, her mother sacrificed everything to assure the survival of her daughter. After her mother dies, Elstaer started a rebellion in the prison she was captive in. At the age of 18 Elstaer Galeheart raised a ruthless army and marched south, conquering the many towns and cities in her path, killing hundreds. After she laid siege to the city of Ryrehold in 206 her empire was complete. Empress Elstaer the Conqueror went on to lead her empire in peace, promoting education, and the study of magic. The great wizards of Elstaer’s court studied lost telepathic magic, that even the most intelligent and gifted mages have been unable to rediscover. The Er’yra Tûr, elvish for the Elstaer Order, was the name of the faction of wizards that traveled the empire establishing schools to study magic. One of Elstaer’s greatest companions, a high elf named Orion Silvenar, cousin of Beriion Silvenar, was put in charge of the order and was given the title of First Wizard or Inga Magna. Orion helped construct two major colleges, The Kearan Academy in the Imperial City in the northern part of the Empire and The College of Ryrehold in the south. After her campaign ended, Elstaer married to Veryan Helféin, an intelligent noble from the south, uniting her Empire under the both of them. Their first child, Melida, was born in 233 and her younger brother Airion, named after Orion Silvenar was born in 237.

In the year 261 their daughter Melida took the throne at age 28 and began ruling the Empire with her mother and father as advisors. Under her rule the empire existed in peace, continuing to make numerous advancements in magic, constructing new cities, and become incredibly wealthy. In the year 263 Elstaer Galeheart died of old age after refusing to allow magic to extend her life. Melida’s father died two years later in 265. Airion took the death of his father very harshly as they were very close and disappeared for ten years. After the death of her father, Melida went against his wishes and began an invasion of Agrule. The newly wealthy Dwarven realm had not been prepared for an invasion and instead of fight the powerful Kearan Empire, the Dwarven people allowed the realm to be occupied by Empress Melida. Enacting heavy taxes, the Kearan Empire claimed much of the wealth and materials being produced by the dwarves. While these taxes left much of the dwarven and halfling population in extreme poverty, the Empire did successfully protect the Realm of Agrule from bandits and many mercenaries looking for the same riches. In addition the Empire assisted in the construction of some of the largest dwarven cities and structures including City Name.

Unable to gather forces to now fight off the Empire, the dwarves once the daema appeared

The Empress Melida also married to a nobleman from the south, Naestar Ilke, however they never had any success in conceiving a child. After many failed attempts and the death of her husband, Melida called together the greatests wizards to try and help them conceive an heir. Using what many thought to be dark, unnatural magic, in the year 273, Melida had a son Neis. A few years later, in 275 Airion returned, furious with his sister’s actions taken to procure an heir. Many people knew of his anger and even rallied behind him, saying he should be Emperor.

The Daemar Invasion
After the Empress Melida mysteriously died in 286, many people blamed her brother, however no evidence was ever found. Airion was crowned Regent Emperor, because her son was only 13, not yet of age. When he was only 16 he became very ill. The greatest healers in the Empire gathered around his bed and watched him die, unable to do anything to help him. With no remaining heirs, Airion became the full Emperor. While a large portion of the empire was outraged, believing Airion had killed both his sister and her son, people were also against the use of the Demonic Arts, which seemed to be the case with Melida. Many people believed Airion had saved them from an even greater evil and a darker future. With the past behind him, Airion went on to lead a peaceful Keara for many years. Airion’s vision was a Kearan Empire with the strongest army ever seen. Airion also lessened the heavy taxes on the neighboring Agrule, gaining the support of some dwarves. During the first few years of his reign he focused on spending much of the Empire’s wealth on expanding the current army. Although his predecessors did believe in a strong military, his vision was even greater. Enacting a draft on the people of the Empire, he tripled the army's size in only four years. However it was still not enough for what was to come.

In 290 a ship from Nolmë arrived with a letter from Beriion Silvenar, requesting aid in his battle against Visalth the dragon lord. As per his request, Airion allowed his mentor Orion to go help his cousin and sent along with him several hundred legionaries.

In the year 298 a gate to The Infernal Plane opened on the outskirts of the Kearan Empire and the Daema began pouring through. They began to establish an army  to invade the Kearan Empire, learning and growing in the process. They did not make their aggressive intentions known until the year 302 when they attacked Kearan ships returning from Nolmë, killing First Wizard Orion. After his death Emperor Airion renamed the Kearan Academy to the Orion Academy in his memory.

In what would come to be known as The Hundred Year War,  the Daemon Army invaded Keara with full force. These new daema seemed to be a new highly evolved type of Daema, different than those seen  in the First Era. They were more intelligent and even had developed a culture of their own. In the following years the Kearan Legions would be put to the test by the forces of the Infernal Plane. In the year 306, Airion was forced to pull remaining forces out of Agrule leaving them vulnerable to the daema. 

Unlike his mother before him, Airion chose to extend his life using magic to live much longer than nature would allow, initially living without a wife and heir. However when the Daemon army marched closer and closer to the gates of the Imperial City, having an heir became more of a priority. Unlike his predecessors who married for political strength, Airion chose to marry a pretty young northern noble, insulting the south, who quickly gave him two sons, Castion and Tûrin.

The End of an Era
When the Daemon army finally laid siege to the Imperial City and killed Airion the Kearan Emperor, the Emperor’s eldest son Castion was not prepared to continue fighting. After a lengthy and bloody war, the last of the Kearan Empire surrendered to the Daemon King in 415 splitting what was left of the Empire into the Northern and Southern Imperium. After the Kearan soldiers scattered across Falador, General Ambrose insisted on marching his army south back to his home, where he was Lord of Ryrehold, through daema territory. The south had been prone to daema raids as it is very far from the Capital and was cut off from what was left of the Empire. Other southern lords also insisted that General Ambrose return home with what was left of his army. Emperor Castion Helféin took offense to this notion and threw Lord General Ambrose in prison. A small portion of the army who was either from the south or more loyal to Ambrose helped free him from prison and escorted him through the large stretch of land between the Northern and Southern Imperium, which now belonged to the new country Daemar. Although the beginning of the journey was completed safely, the small army was soon noticed and pursued. The lords of the Southern Imperium gathered a small group of soldiers and sent them north to meet The Lord General Ambrose and bring him home safely. When all three armies met at the Gray River on the border of Daemar and Keara, an inevitable. With the help of the southern reinforcements and Ambrose’s masterful tactical knowledge, the small Kearan army was able to defeat the daema and make it safely into the Southern Imperium of Keara.

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The Northern Imperium, attempted time after time to send troops to enforce rule in the Southern Imperium and pursue General Ambrose, they were continually attacked by the Daemon army. Free from northern troops and rule, General Ambrose met with The Lords of the South, to discuss their independence from Keara. While most of the lords supported this notion, it was obvious that with such a small army, they would be unable to defend themselves from the continuous daema raids. The lords decided it would be best to remain in what was left of the Empire. The southern lords even re-imprisoned Ambrose and sent him back north, hoping the north would forgive them and send aid. One of Ambrose’s best friends Nadir Kane and commanders betrayed his lord and sided with the rest of the southern lords, leading the mission to bring a defeated Ambrose back north and being named new Lord of Ryrehold. Avoiding travel through Daemar, the caravan carrying Ambrose took the long treacherous route through the Eastern Lands. Not long after the caravan was ambushed by a pack of daema. However members of The Divine End, who throughout history were sworn enemies of the Daema, rushed to their rescue. Following a bloody encounter, Nadir revealed himself to Ambrose as a member of The Divine End and told him their plan to receive reinforcements from numerous Ythari City States to defeat the Daemar. However mere moments later, a dark figure quickly appeared behind Ambrose, taking his life and disappearing into the thin air.

Not knowing who the true assassin was, Nadir was forced to believe that the Daemar had done it. Kane returned to The Southern Imperium and explained to the Lords that Ambrose was killed by the daemons and convinced them that his death needed to be avenged.

After revealing that the Ythari would send troops to aid The Southern Imperium, he convinced the council to allow him to follow through with his plan to contact the dwarves for additional support. Since the Kearan Empire pulled their troops from Agrule during the invasion, the dwarves had become a force to reckon with. Kane was confident that the dwarves would help them to defeat their common enemy. The newly named General Kane took a small group of soldiers and set off to meet with the Dwarven Council of The Realm.

The Falador Alliance
After the empire pulled their troops from Agrule in 306, The Dwarves were later able to amass an army of automatons and push back the daema invaders reclaiming their land and forcing the daema to focus their attack on Keara. General Kane believed that the dwarves would help, however when he met with the council he gained the support of only two Dwarven King who promised to send their armies. 

On the other side of the Daemon Nation, The Northern Imperium, led by Tûrin Helféin after his brother was slain in battle, planned to take back the major city of Gale, which was now in Daemar territory. Kane’s plan would be completed with he sent word to Tûrin notifying him of their alliance with the Ythari and the Dwarves. Kane wrote, promising to help attack Daemar from the south with full force if The Southern Imperium was allowed to secede from the Empire. The Northern Imperium quickly agreed to this and the Falador Alliance was formed. The Northern and Southern Imperium, the dwarven kings, the Ythari Citystates, and even members of The Divine End began preparing for a counter assault on Daemar.

 

In the year 500, the Falador Alliance coordinated the first offensive move against Daemar. While the dwarven kings and General Kane attacked from the south, the Ythari took thirty ships and sailed north through the Great Sea and assisted The Northern Imperium in taking back Dale and pushing the Daema further back. However during this war Emperor Tûrin died leaving his two daughters to rule the empire. 

After seven years of war, it was now Daemar’s turn to surrender to The West Wield Coalition, agreeing to send the remainder of their army back to The Infernal Plane and closing the gate behind them. 

The Northern Imperium, under rule of The Twins, took advantage of the dwarven kings’  deaths and reclaimed all of their land from the Daemar. Once again sharing a border with The Southern Imperium, General Kane attempted to reclaim the nation as part of the Empire. The Twins secretly hired spies to gather information on The Southern Imperium and cause trouble. However as Tûrin had worried, duel emperorship did not work in The Northern Imperium and conflict soon arose. Tsarra and Osonia did not agree on many issues and worried about the future of the Empire. Their constant arguing caused the empire to split in two. With their own personal armies, the sisters had many battles that ruined the land and made life horrible for the citizens that they should have been protecting. The Kearan Empire was slowly falling into a state beyond repair and would soon fall into the hands of the mages of Er’yra Tur. 

As civil war ravaged the countryside of The Northern Imperium the mages of the Elstaer Order gathered in secret, devising a plan to rid the  nation of its twin leaders. When the citizens began to rise up against the twins, the Er’yra Tûr had their back, emerging from the shadows to help capture the Twins and bring their reign to an end.

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Gondor
After many years of dealing with the fighting Twin Empresses, the lost mages of the Er’yra Tûr helped to bring the Empire out of an age of darkness into an age of light. Literally translating to Land of Light, this new nation was named Gondor.

Wizards of the Orion Academy search for a child who is destined to be King or Queen. It is rumored that the wizards use an ancient magic to locate this child. The child is then forced to leave home and go train to become the ruler for many years until they come of age. It is a position of immense power, wealth, and nobility. The king or queen is allowed to marry, however their spouse does not gain any power, nor do their children.

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Alongside the king is a group of wizards that belong to the Orion Academy. This group of highly skilled apprentices learn under the Archmage of the academy. The apprentices are trained and one is selected by the Archmage to be their successor, while the rest become the next group of advisors to the king. The position of Archmage parallels the King’s. The pair lead Gondor, with the assistance of the wizards of the Er’yra Tûr.

A New Start
 The first child who was chosen to be King of Gondor came from a small town in the north. Haemir Byrn was saved by the wizards from his village that had been still been occupied by daemar long after the War For Falador had ended. He grew up witnessing the destruction the Twins brought to the empire and vowed to be a fair and just ruler. He took the throne in the year 554 and immediately exiled the Twins from the country along with many of their supporters who were against the Er’yra Tûr. Along with his mentor and partner the high elf Archmage Karliah Sunweaver they rid Gondor of their daemar rivals for good, protecting their borders as well as their people. They also believed that magic should be more widespread, and opened another small school of magic known as Gale School of Magics located in northern Gondor. Aside from minor conflicts with the daemar, the reign of Lord Byrn and Lord Sunweaver

 

The second king, Elithor Pander, was rebellious at a young age and possessed a sarcastic attitude which he kept his entire life. Known not as a people person, but as the people’s king as he made great reforms to help people of the lower class. Many of these reforms include, setting up schools of magic across the country for people of all wealth classes, lower taxes for the working man, and creating national holidays with festivals and celebrations. Many nobles would hound him for favors and leeway on taxes, but his shooed them away with a flick of his wrist. Always having the common people in mind, his policies led to a great rise in the education of the generations that followed his own. He also has a rad as fuck dragon that he tamed with his bare hands when he was like I don’t know 15.

In the first year of his reign, Elithor went to great lengths to re-establish a strong relationship with the dwarven kings. However, the old dwarves looked down upon Elithor and saw him as a weak and naive king who could be taken advantage of. Not taking any form of disrespect, Elithor walked out on the negotiations with the Dwarves, prompting them to threaten Gondor if they did not receive an apology. When Elithor responded with insults, A battle broke out between the dwarven automatons and the army of Gondor. Elithor led his people with him at the front lines, using magic to control the automatons with only a few casualties of their own. The dwarven leaders, recognizing this weakness, realized that the a war with Gondor would be long and destructive. The dwarves press to make peace with Elithor, recognizing his as a powerful king.

After the death of Elithor in the year 714, another king was not yet decided upon by the order. For ten years, not a single child was born that had the qualifications to be king. This led to civil unrest within the country, with the Archmage not having the authority to rule the entire country. This allowed the nobles of Gondor to gain power thanks to their wealth and influence. Using the state of confusion to their advantage, the nobles got rid of many of the taxation policies that were put into place by Elithor once again creating a rift between social classes. With the mages becoming less and less powerful against the wealthy lords, they plotted to revolt against the lords to regain power. A bloody civil war broke out between the hired armies of the noble lords and the powerful mages and citizens.