“…but there
they lay, sprawled across the field, craved far more by the vultures than by
wives.”
― The Iliad
― The Iliad
 |
| ...but there they lay |
448 CY
Ivid I of House Naelax brought pressure on
the southern princes to fall into line, but the outrages committed by the new
herzog of South Province, which included seizing Lordship vessels anchored in
Prymp Town, drove the lords of the isles to declare independence along with the
other states. The prince of the Isles joined the Iron League in 448 CY,
providing naval support and conveyance for traffic between Irongate, Onnwal,
and their allies in Nyrond. In so doing, the lord of Diren was forced to deal
more plainly with his fellow lords on the other islands, sharing additional
power and ceding more local autonomy to them over the ensuing years. [LGG - 71]
The isles of the Sea Barons had
always been given a degree of autonomy not enjoyed by the Baronies of the
mainland. They had been tasked by Overking Manshen in 102 CY to pacify the
seas, to contain the Barbarians in the north, and to stamp out piracy in the
south. They required freedom to do so, they said. They could not accomplish
these tasks were they to account for each and every action, they said, citing
the impossibility of their fleets to communicate with their home ports when at
sea for months at a time. Rauxes agreed, reluctantly; but the crown made it
clear that the Barony’s continued autonomy was contingent on results. To which
the Sea Barons agreed.
They never truly succeeded in
containing the Barbarians, but in 168 CY, they finally defeated the fleets of
Duxchan, all but eliminating piracy in the south. But the Barony and the
Overking had grown accustomed to reaping the spoils of captured pirate ships,
thus the Crown bestowed writs of privateer to those ships sailing the Azure Sea
against those vessels of the Iron League.
The captains of the fleet were
accustomed to keeping their own council as to who the foes of the Kingdom were,
and long voyages without the oversight of the throne strengthened that sense of
independence. Asea, and then in their home ports.
In time, the authority over the
seas was divided between the Sea Barons and the Lordships of the Isles. Never
friendly, the two provinces became heated rivals, vying for control of trade
routes. The Lordship were given the writs of privateer, and preyed upon
merchant fleets, while the Sea Barons weathered the far more vicious conflict
with the savage Barbarians during the raiding season.
All that changed with the
continued dissolution of the Great Kingdom.
In 448 CY, the Sea
Barons suddenly gained sole authority over naval pursuits in the eastern Great Kingdom, following the
affiliation of the Lordship of the Isles with the Iron League. Overnight, the
prince of Sulward and the baron of Asperdi became nemeses instead of rivals,
with the Aerdi Sea as their field of battle. [LGG - 100]
449 CY
Rel
Deven suffered greatly during the Turmoil. Rauxes would not, could not,
tolerate its influence, however fleeting that its might be by then. Should
those Houses that resisted Ivid’s claim to the throne band together, what
better place to rally than one of the Cities of Enlightenment? It had happened
once already, those disloyal in the north flocking to Rel Mord’s call to arms. Rel
Deven could become such a rallying point in the west. House of Darmen put an
end to such concerns when it backed House Naelex’s bid for the throne and sacked
Rel Deven.
Rel Astra had been dubbed the
first of three nearly equidistant "Cities of Enlightenment" founded
by the Aerdi to span their empire, eventually including Rel Deven and Rel Mord
in the west. Control of the [Rel Astra] remained with House Garasteth, which
ruled it as a principality, a fief subject directly to the crown. For centuries
it continued to grow, remaining the grandest city in the Great Kingdom, if no
longer its most prestigious as the focus of the empire moved west. [LGG - 93]
Alliances shifted during the
war, but the decisive event was the decree of the House of Darmen in CY 449 to
back Ivid's suit wholeheartedly. This wealthy and pragmatic house
believed Ivid was coming out ahead, so the house sprang a surprise with the
sack of Rel Deven in Harvester of that year and a series of brilliant lightning
strikes aimed at securing provisioning for the coming winter.
Their armies allied with
those of Naelax to secure the central lands of the Great Kingdom, and the war
was won. [Ivid - 4]
 |
| Erasing History |
The sack of the University of
Rauxes destroyed all imperial records of the war. Likewise, Duke Astrin's
considerable library at Eastfair went out in rucksacks and up in flames during
the final imperial campaign. Though some fairly complete histories survived in
the monasteries of Medegia, they are heavily tinged with the Holy Censor's
degenerate philosophies. Their accuracy is highly questionable, especially
concerning their main topic: the battles between Rauxes and Medegia. [Wars - 4]
The Royal Guild has held a
monopoly over nearly all trade in the Great Kingdom lands since the Turmoil
been Crowns over 150 years ago, when House Darmen cast its lot with House
Naelax (Ivid I). House Darmen was then given the authority to license and
regulate all trade and crafts guilds in the Great Kingdom, and it formed the
Royal Guild to oversee its immense operations. The guild is not evil in the
main, and it is heavily backed by license and the Ahhsan priesthood of Zikchus.
However, the Royal Guild is wealthy beyond the wildest dreams of the guilds in
Greyhawk, and it has huge land holdings in Ahlissa. [TAB - 102]
450 CY
Dunstan
I of Nyrond realized that once The Great Kingdom stabilized, he would need
allies. His borders must be secure. But mostly, he would need others to come to
his aid in his time of need, should that time come, and who else would stand by
him than those that had also recently seceded for the Malachite Throne’s fierce
rule.
He called the Great Council of
Rel Mord, and representatives from Almor, the Iron League, the Duchy of Urnst,
and Greyhawk arrived to treat with him. There was a cost. He need withdraw
Nyrondal troops from the Pale and the County of Urnst, for those who would ally
with him would not do so if he too occupied lands not his, for they would not
throw off the yoke of one Overking only to treat with another. They came to an
accord, and roundly condemned the Great Kingdom.
By 450 CY, Aerdy had
survived two distinct civil wars. Ivid and his court had defeated their enemies
in the aristocracy, and had entrenched themselves in the empire's political
machine. With a stabilized foe, Dunstan realized in his old age that he still
needed willing allies, should Aerdy take the offensive. In Harvester, he called
the Great Council of Rel Mord. Delegates from every Nyrondal principality and
subject state attended, as did representatives from Almor, the Iron League, the
Duchy of Urnst, and even Greyhawk. After a month and a half of negotiation, Dunstan
the Crafty withdrew Nyrondal troops from the Pale and the County of Urnst, and realigned
the internal borders of his subject lands. Furthermore, he publicly threw his considerable
support behind the Iron League, and rebuked the Great Kingdom of Aerdy as a
"corpulent reanimated corpse, spreading contagion and sorrow to all that
it touches." [LGG - 77,78]
The war ran its course, it
waned, and in time, the bloodletting stopped, for it had little left to spill.
House Naelax held the throne, and the Great Kingdom stabilized, somewhat; if
what remained could ever again be considered stable. But at such a cost. The
Kingdom had split, its power decentralized, its lands riven by fear, suspicion,
and deviltry.
All houses agreed to accept
Ivid as overking, and their leading princes paid homage along the Great Way in
the Parade of Crowns. The House of Naelax was triumphant. Ivid may have won a
kingdom, but he paid a high price. The South and North Provinces, and Medegia,
became in effect semiautonomous provinces of the Great Kingdom. Consensus of
opinion holds that all of the Overkings who have ruled since the House of
Naelax ascended to the Malachite throne are insane, demon-ridden or both. [Ivid - 4]
The House of Naelax changed
Aerdy forever. The five overkings it produced, and most of its noblemen and
women, were dangerously insane and "fiend-seeing." Dangerously insane
because the typically paranoid form their madness took did not take any toll of
their intellect; they were usually smart, piercingly observant, especially with
fiendish aid, and utterly ruthless.
The title
"fiend-seeing" ascribed so often to them is, nowadays, not such an
unusual aspect of Aerdi. Many rulers traffic with fiends, have fiends in their
armies, or are themselves undead. However, at the time, the House of Naelax
assumed dominance by being very unusual and pre-eminent in such fell dealings,
and it gave them a decisive edge. [Ivid - 4]
Of all the provinces, the See of
Medegia became the most independent.
The faith of Hextor became
the most prominent in the realm, and it laid claim to the See of Medegia,
wresting it from the Zilchans who had held it for nearly two centuries after
they had supplanted the Pholtans. [LGG - 24]
This fief of the Great
Kingdom became so strong as to be virtually independent when the Malachite
Throne went into decline. The Holy Censor still remains one of the chief
advisors of the Overking. [Folio - 12]
Ivid had to accept the
[autonomy] as part of the bargain for accepting his ascension to the throne.
While North Province was ruled by the House of Naelax, Medegia in particular
became increasingly independent and often failed to support the more aggressive
schemes of later overkings. But the independence of these sub-states could only
delay the final fate of the Aerdi. [Ivid - 4]
455 CY
County of
Sunndi joined the Iron League.
The County of Sunndi was once a fief
within a fief, being granted to a loyal peer of the Overking's Herzog of the
South Province of the Great Kingdom. After a long period of oppressive taxation, maltreatment by
royal troops and those of the Herzog as well, the nobles of human and non-human
folk in the area joined the general uprising against Aerdian rule, and became a
part of the Iron League. [Folio - 16]
Within a decade of the
formation of the Iron League, human, dwarf, elf, and other nobles of the
Pawluck Valley, Hestmark Highlands, Rieuwood, and Glorioles Mountains rose up
against the occupiers, liberating Sunndi in a short but brutal uprising still
remembered with bitterness in Ahlissa. In 455 CY, Sunndi officially joined the
Iron League.
With the Aerdy nobility dead,
fled, or in revolt against the overking, the people of Sunndi turned to the
gray elves of the forests for guidance. Turentel Esparithen, a count under the
occupied government and a hero in the fighting against the Aerdi, established a
government based upon mutual respect for all peoples. [LGG - 110]
456 CY
Ivid was ever a paranoid despot, but aren’t
they all? He distrusted any and all civil servants that were not in his debt or
thrall. But how to remove them and not incite the people and provinces to open
rebellion?
Under the rule of Naelax, the
session judges were subverted to the interests of the overking. The most
infamous instance is the slaying of the prime, the "Chief Justice"
appointed by the overking. This individual was usually the patriarch of Pholtus
in Rauxes, but sometimes the man was a leading patriarch of great wisdom from
another city.
Ivid I had Prime Remmanen
secretly assassinated and replaced by a doppelganger in his service. When the
doppelganger was unmasked, Ivid feigned outrage and immediately replaced the
prime by appointing three judges—a patriarch of Pholtus, one of Zilchus, and
one of Hextor. [Ivid - 15]
467 CY The question must be asked: when did Ivid
plunge into the depths of insanity? It
is impossible to pinpoint the exact moment, but one must question why he
decreed that paupers’ remains become the possession of the crown. We know why,
but when did he decide that an army of undead was superior to one of the
living? Did he believe it was cheaper to maintain?
By an imperial decree [ ...], Ivid I
ruled that the bodies of who died within Rauxes became the possession of the
crown unless a fee of 100 gp could be paid for the purpose of burial at Oltary
Park. This ensured a supply of pauper bodies which could be used for the
purposes of animating dead by evil priests. [Ivid - 32]
486 CY
Ivid wished to secure is borders. He had
enemies everywhere, after all. But he needed money to do it, so he introduced a
tax on Castles and Keeps. Were there enough castles and keeps to raise the
funds he required? Maybe, but one can never have enough income, so even more
clever taxes were devised. Ivid declared a tax on windows. It was noted that
there was a decline in revenue raised by the tax due to windows being blocked
up. It was also observed that new houses were being built with fewer windows.
Outside of
"strategic" areas bordering on other states, a tax on stone castles
and keeps was introduced. The tax was justified as a way of paying for new
castles in North Province, where it could be claimed that they were needed to
protect the electrum mines of Bellport from humanoid attacks. Of course, such
castles were built in lands mostly owned by Naelax nobles. [Ivid - 18]
489 CY
What of the Tilvanot Peninsula? It had been
quiet of late. One would be wrong to believe so, for in truth, the Kingdom of
Shar was not so quiet as patient, distrustful, and reclusive. Paranoid.
Cautious. And scheming. They had fled the Flanaess, but they were not cowering
upon their barren and rocky plateau; they were biding their time.
 |
| Shar Comes to Call |
Those
arts of war were about to change, and that change would bring about the
collapse of the old order. It all began when a portal opened on the
Tilvanot Plateau.
 |
| Strangers |
Slaver forces sent against
them were driven back in disarray. Many of the upper classes committed suicide
for shame, or failed to respond at all. The slaves on the estates sensed
weakness and revolted. The tottering structure erected by the first colonists
collapsed.
Olly one element of the old
order survived the impact. Irith Van, the head of the Scarlet Brotherhood, sent
out scouts to investigate and met secretly with certain elements among the
strangers. It developed that these folk had entered the plateau via a magic
portal, created by a great mage to allow them to escape enemies yet more
powerful than themselves. […] The portal closed behind them, and they had no
way to return. Irith Van noted the strange but effective skills of the
intruders, whom he called “monks” because of their ascetic doctrines. He
proposed an alliance. […]
[The’ Scarlet Brotherhood was
hammered into a new form. The alliance with the monks was secret to all but
those of the highest circle, [and soon those skills were taught to the newest
disciples.] [WG8 The Fate of Istus]
The entire episode of the
foreign intrusion has since been expunged from history, and the existence of
the descendants of the monks [became] a carefully maintained secret. [WG8]
c. 490’s CY
The
Suel had always believed in their manifest destiny. They were destined to rise
up above all the peoples of the Oerth, and rule as they were intended to. Some
believed in that destiny more than others. Some believed that the others needed
a little convincing. Huro, of the Scarlet Brotherhood, was one such, and in
doing so, he wrote "Millennial Prophecies," the manifesto that he
believed would bring about that destiny. Did Huro believe his own prophecy, or
was it just propaganda? Either way, Huro wrote that the Brotherhood had been
reborn, a sign that it was time for the Suel to rise to their rightful place.
The Millenialists believe in a prophesy by a Brotherhood member maned
Hero, who wrote […] that “at the millennium of the Foundation a great miracle
will occur, which will be the beginning of a purified and strengthened Scarlet
Brotherhood.”
[It was] assumed that the Foundation
referred to the inception of the Brotherhood in 5091 SD, and thus the
millennium date would be 6091 SD, or 576 CY. [SB - 17]
492 CY
The
Brotherhood had been reborn, and Hesuel Ilshar was raised to commemorate its
new order.
 |
| Hesual Ilshar |
[Its purpose? To] produce a
newer and “purer” Suel race, trained in all the deadliest arts, fit to conquer
a continent. [WG8 - 105]
Hesuel Ilshar is a grim and
martial city. While its inhabitants regard it as the epitome of Suel culture,
it has been heavily influenced by the monks with whom Irith Van formed his
alliance. Ironically, the vigorous and rejuvenated expression of Suel
“superiority” is a hybrid. [WG8 - 105]
494 CY
Ivid I had set the stage for what was to come.
Was he entirely to blame? No. The Great Kingdom had slip into uncertainty long
before; indeed, the Great Kingdom had never been the equal to its predecessor,
Aerdy. Its only claim was its breadth. But the soul of the Great Kingdom was
Aerdy’s: selfish and self-serving ambition.
Ivid ruled for 48 years and,
though he never regained control of his lost provinces, he bound the rest of
Aerdi to him through fear and debauched reward. His son, Ivid II, survived only
three years on the fiend-seeing throne. Unstable before his coronation, Ivid II
quickly lapsed into raving dementia upon assuming the full regalia of office.
Madness did not bring Ivid II’s fall, however: he was slain by a son who
desired the crown. [Wars - 5]
If there was one thing that Ivid
II had inherited from his father, it was suspicion and paranoia.
Rifter is a truly imposing
structure. It was built by Ivid II at a time when he felt the need for an
impregnable "bunker" retreat if he was ever faced with the need to
evacuate Rauxes. This was at a time when the overking was especially paranoid,
even by Naelax standards. This keep is manned by 200 elite soldiers of Imperial
Regulars and a detachment of 20 Companion Guard, with 15 fiendknights
protecting the dungeons below the keep should Ivid ever have to retreat there.
It is whispered that a sphere of annihilation controllable only by Ivid himself
is kept as an ultimate weapon within these dungeons. [Ivid - 42]
Rifter takes its name from
its construction within a half-mile of a narrow […] rift in the earth which
appears to descend for miles, although it is always smoke-filled and magical
scrying does not reveal what lies below. A permanent prismatic sphere has been
placed above it to prevent anything emerging. One might wonder why anyone
should wish to build a keep so close to such a hazard. The answer is that with
hallucinatory terrain to disguise it, and spells such as telekinesis to propel
siege engines and people into it should Rifter be besieged, was deemed a very
useful feature by the magearchitect who advised Ivid [II] on the best site to
construct this place. [Ivid - 42]
497 CY
The apple does not fall far from the tree.
Ivid III was his grandfather’s son, as Ivid II could never be.
 |
| Ivid's Web |
Ivid III was very much his
grandfather’s son. He understood the value of intelligence. And the power of
fear.
[The Web:]
This simple and
unimaginative name is that given by Ivid III to a network of spies, agents, and
assassins in his service. [Ivid - 25]
Not all rulers are cut from the
same cloth. Those of the Duchy of Urnst were by no means like those of the
Great Kingdom. Nor their cousins in the Shar.
The dynasty of House Lorinar
began in 497, and has provided Urnst with a number of capable rulers. [LGG - 125]
498 CY
County of Urnst had not been independent for
long. It had gained its freedom from Nyrond in 450 CY, only to become
Palatinate under Duchy of Urnst a half-century later.
A half-century after the
Great Council of Rel Mord, the County of Urnst became a palatine state under
the protection of the richer and more powerful Duchy of Urnst, a political
situation that continues to this day. [LGG - 123]
The county is allied to and
under the protection of the Duchy of Urnst, but its ruler is by no means
subservient to the duke (who is seeking to marry his eldest son to the countess
and thus permanently unite the lands into one realm). [Folio - 18]
If the County of Urnst is
subservient to its southern cousin, it certainly doesn't act like it. The
ruling house of Urnst, the Gellors, has long displayed a well-deserved
reputation of determined individualism. [LGG - 123]
501 CY
Wastri the Hopping Prophet has always been a
bit of a mystery. Was he a madman who disappeared into the Great Swamp and
gained godhood to the amphibians and bullywugs there?
Or is he Iuz, sowing chaos and
strife in the sweltering swamps of the south, much as he has in the frigid and
windswept north? Their methods are similar, their prejudices and hatreds
identical, and their disappearances uncannily timely. (SD 6016)
Granted, Iuz was imprisoned by
Zagig in 505 CY, but seeing that Wastri lived in the depths of the Vast Swamp
and killed almost all who stumbled upon him, who can say when Wastri truly went
missing?
Strengthened by its new ties
[with the Suel tribes in the northern lands], the Kingdom of Shar prospered
over the [past] two centuries, complacent in its inevitable progression toward
domination of the Flanaess. Wastri’s disappearance in 6016 SD was interpreted
alternately as a positive sign (the demigod was harassing others elsewhere on
Oerth) and a negative one (he was mustering power to attack his southern
neighbours). When he did not reappear after a decade, concern declined, and the
Brotherhood turned its attention to the political turmoil in the Great Kingdom.
[SB - 4]
504 CY
Nyrond has always been a beacon of benevolence
within the Great Kingdom, even in its darkest hours. This is not to say that it
has not had aspirations. This is not to say that it has not always been a
shining light of justice and freedom either; but it had always stood head and
shoulders above the darkness that surrounded it. Not all Nyrondese are as high
minded, though. The Nyrondese are Aerdi, after all.
Rel Mord's mercenary
organization was formed in 1148 OR by a Nyrondese captain who had fought in the
expansionist campaigns. The captain called to arms all men who were willing to
serve as warriors for pay only, not for reason of ethics or nationalism. Scores
of fighters applied for membership, and the Iron Fist Guild was born. [WG8 - 17]
508 CY
Fire of Rel
Mord.
[Most of a] crowded section of
commoners' residences [was destroyed by fire] in 1152 OR. More than 500 persons
died in the smoke and flames. After the fire, clean-up crews complained of
hauntings and strange occurrences, and the area was abandoned. Since then it has
become overgrown with bushes and small trees. Half-burned sections of the buildings
still stand, though they are weak and dangerous. [WG8 - 16]
515 CY
Founding
of the annual Windmarch fair of King’s Justice.
An example of how merchants
have played a powerful role in Aerdy's growth is the Windmarch, the great
series of trade fairs which travel through Aerdy west to east from Planting
right through to Patchwall. The name comes from the old belief that the roads
and paths used by anyone traveling from one fair to the next followed the
prevailing wind, which usually comes from the west from late spring into late
summer.
These fairs stimulate trade
and barter and generate income and wealth for many—from tolls on major roads,
tavern taxes, hostelry bills, etc.
Merchants also have funded
much of the growth of cities, paying for bridges, docks and wharves, and
improvements which make trade easier. As a result, merchants who are not
princes still hold exalted positions in Aerdy society. For example, wealthy
merchants are the only men other than princes allowed to walk the central Great
Way in Rauxes. Certain clothes, such as silks and guild regalia, only can be
worn by merchants or guildmasters. For anyone else to wear them is a crime
which is heavily punished.
However, Aerdy merchants are
famously amoral. They have little in the way of principles, and they are
perfectly prepared to rob a vendor or customer blind if they think they can get
away with it.
This is less true when they
deal with people they know. However, merchants gain kudos by fleecing some
first time or ignorant buyer of his hard-earned gold, and there is little
principle to be found among these folk. Importantly, women play as active a
role in trade as men, which is somewhat unusual in Aerdy life.
Lastly, there is a powerful
class of "landed merchants." These are men who have bought, or taken
a very long lease upon, sizeable landholdings and who in return become almost
merchants in the service of their patron prince in exchange for the prince
paying for the militia, men-at-arms, and the like who protect the merchant's
land holdings.
In all respects, merchants
have a social standing which skilled workers and artisans do not have. This is
partly historical, because of the role of Zilchus's priesthood in the expansion
of Aerdy, and partly a rub-off from royalty, since the House of Darmen has so
many merchants among its number. Indeed, in addition to the "landed
merchant" one might take note of the "merchant princes" which
this house contains within its ranks. [Ivid - 13]
For some 70 years there has
been a Windmarch trade fair here during the third week of Harvester, shared
with the town of Darnagal. [Ivid - 56]
515 CY
Sinking of Duxchaner ship with a cargo of
pearls and ingots worth 40,000gp.
 |
| Sunken Treasure |
Pamdarn’s Admiral of the Squadrons, Yendrenn Harquil, is a dashing and
charismatic figure about town. His galleon, the Seawolf, bears Harquil’s own symbol (a seawolf, unsurprisingly) on its sails rather
than the sea serpent that almost all other Sea Barons' vessels display. With his sallow-faced mage Rhennen aboard to
give aid with airy water; telekinesis, and other such spells, Harquil
specializes in the discovery and looting of sunken wrecks, several of which lie
south of Fairisle and on the eastern seaboards of all the islands.
Harquil is always eager to
learn of such wrecks, if a diviner, bard, or sage knows of any—and Harquil
shares the booty recovered with his source. Though chaotic, he always keeps his
word in such dealings, and his recent recovery of nearly 40,000 gp worth of
pearls and ingots of precious metal from the hulk of a Duxchan ship sunk in 515
CY has brought him fame. [Dragon #206 - 38,40]
Pirates, barbarians, the
Duxchan fleets, and sahuagin are offshore menaces to the Sea Barons. However,
other races and creatures lurk in the waters around the coasts. Seawolves have
been reported some 50 miles north of Asperd Isle, though they have not yet
entered the coastal waters. They seem organized, or familial, since they are
always seen in groups of a half-dozen or so. Rumors say they are somehow bound
to the site of their sunken ship, said to have been bearing mages seeking
seabed sites akin to the Cauldron of Night. No one knows for sure, but several
old salts have noted that Harquil has not sought the wreck as he usually would
if hearing of such a lost vessel.
The Sea Barons almost never
encounter sea elves now. In the past, the adventurous members of sea-elf tribes
would sometimes trade and barter with the Barons on a fairly ad hoc basis, but they
have not appeared in Asperdi for several years. The elves are said to have
retreated to the waters around the transformed Lendore Isles. Lastly, there are
persistent tales of an aquatic race of brownie-like creatures or sea sprites,
not nixies or their kin, on the eastern shore of Oakenisle. These little folk
are extremely elusive, but seem to be spying on the island and sometimes acting
as sentinels or guards. What they are watching for, or watching over, is a
mystery. [Dragon #206 - 40]
523 CY
Grenell (His
Radiant Grace), Herzog of the North, is born.
Grenell
has been a survivor all his 62 years. [Ivid - 58]
c. 530 CY
Ivid III was of a mind that
he would not leave the Kingdom to a weakling, like his grandfather had.
Unfortunately for him, Ivid IV was cut from the same cloth as his father, and
his great-grandfather ascends to the Malachite throne.
When he reached advanced age,
however, Ivid III declared that his surviving child would succeed him. The
announcement unleashed a bloodbath of fratricide in his children’s velvet
prison. The sole survivor became Ivid IV. [Wars - 5]
 |
| A Strong Nation |
c. 534 CY
Bigby
is born.
Bigby hails from the Great
Kingdom, where he was born in the town of Oldridge nearly 58 years ago. His
features are Oeridian, with light brown hair and dark brown eyes. His skin is
pale, and his exceedingly picky diet has resulted in an almost unhealthy
gauntness.
Early in life, Bigby s
travels found him in the Wild Coast, where he eventually gained the notice of
Mordenkainen. Bigby is known to be a member of Aerdy's House Cranden, and
rumors have long placed Mordenkainen as a distant scion of the same bloodline.
For that reason, and because of their shared experiences and adventures, Bigby
and Mordenkainen share a friendship unique among the members of the Circle.
[LGJ #0 - 8]
Mid-550s CY
Far
be it from Ivid to not favour family. House Naelax thrived under his rule.
The Iron League became very
successful at keeping its enemies in the Great Kingdom at bay, using spies and
subterfuge to resist the efforts of all herzogs to reclaim it for more than a
century. In the mid-550s, cousins of the overking known as the Chelors were
awarded rulership of South Province, and for thirty years they ran an
aggressive campaign to win back these rich provinces, but to no avail. [LGG - 58]
555 CY
Midnight Darkness formed.
The organization is generally
thought to be in the service of Nerull, the Reaper. Indeed, priests of Nerull
are among their number. Since the cult is only believed to have been active for
30 years, and its killings only linked to it for many fewer, no man has been
able to collect a great deal of information about it. [Ivid - 24]
556 CY
Succession
had become a lethal endeavor in the Great Kingdom.
While Ivid IV dallied, his
someday successor, Ivid V, set to work. Second among the Overking’s sons, Ivid
V thought to simplify the appointment of an heir by exterminating his siblings.
Though Ivid V completed this task with skill and dispatch, his father still
refused to yield the throne to him. [Wars - 5]
Ivid IV had been a prolific
sire. Before his ascension could be assured, Ivid V had to dispose of 123
brothers and sisters. Though suckling babes proved easy prey, Ivid V's older
brother easily matched him. For many years the pair waged a war of
assassination and intrigue in their prison palace before Ivid V prevailed.
[Wars - 26]
His completion eliminated, Ivid
IV took the final step to gain the Malachite Throne.
Ivid V ascended to the
Malachite Throne in Rauxes in CY 556 by the traditional manner of murdering his
father and others who got in his way. This was accepted practice in many royal
houses in Aerdi. The moral degeneracy which the House of Naelax actively
encouraged had taken a firm rooting in Aerdi aristocracy. [Ivid - 4]
The heir apparent hired the
Overking's latest favorite to pour acid in the emperor's ear.
Ivid V's role in the affair
is doubtless: the new ruler boasted of the ruthless deed. Recognizing the
danger of keeping a treacherous concubine on hand, however, Ivid V sentenced
his accomplice to the Wheel of Pain. [Wars - 26]
Zelizar's House
This house of ill repute has
become debauched to an appalling degree. Its most notable resident, a
semipermanent guest, is Prince Ishainken of Naelax. A major landholder in the
lands north of the Imeda east of Rauxes, Ishainken is important because his
lands supply more than over half the food which keeps Rauxes from starvation
and utter collapse. Ishainken is a jaded, warped, half-deranged wretch who
barely cares whether he lives or dies; he's simply here to see the last act of
the tragedy of Naelax played out.
 |
| Zelizar's |
Ishainken's money, and that
of a handful of degenerate Rauxes merchants with some resources left, keeps
Zelizar's establishment going. Somehow, the proprietor manages to stock a good
supply of powerful liquor, addictive substances of various kinds, depraved and
mostly-diseased doxies, and wretches who fight to the death in the gladiatorial
pit in the cellars. From time to time, a polymorphed fiend might enjoy a little
voyeurism here, and a priest of Hextor or one of Rauxes's few remaining mages
could attend for some particular indulgence.
In addition to the dubious
pleasure of meeting such folk, Ishainken is not without interest; he knows some
hidden secrets concerning the Naelax bloodline. Specifically, he has carefully
concealed at his home castle a text written by Xaene himself. It states that
Ivid V was not the biological son of Ivid IV, but rather the son of a union
between a tanar'ri and an enchantress. While the claim may be wholly false, the
individual who owned the other copy was pursued for years by Ivid's agents and
finally slain (Stankaster of Stankaster's Tower; see From The Ashes, Campaign
Book). Ivid is unaware that any other copy of this text exists. Ishainken isn't
sure what value it may prove to have, but he considers that if and when it is
the right time to back a claimant to the throne, this book might prove very
useful. [Ivid - 33]
Stankaster Tower
This fire-blasted ruin once
stood nearly a hundred and fifty feet high, the marbled home of the Invoker
Stankaster. What little reliable eyewitness evidence exists reports that a
great magical battle, with fire, acid, meteor storms, and earth elementals,
raged here for two days and a night in 581 CY, until the tower was breached.
What has become of Stankaster, and who his assailant was, is a mystery.
Two adventuring groups that
sought the answer did not return. Stankaster is known to have had two
apprentices, a resident alchemist, and a visiting 10th-level Invoker, Karposhnen
of Hardby, who was being trained when the attack came. Of all places reputed to
hold magical treasures, this may be the best bet. [FtAC - 30]
Momentous change beset the
Great Kingdom. Not until Ivid V ascended the Fiend-seeing Throne would the
Great Kingdom appear to increase in might again. This would take a century to
happen and also be ultimately a temporary hiccup in the terminal decline of
Aerdy. If all eyes were on the Great Kingdom for decades after Ivid's rise, it
would help explain why they missed seeing the rise of a new power far to the
west and north. [FtAA - 5]
 |
| Stirring Trouble |
In the madness and infighting following Ivid I’s death, the Scarlet Sign
infiltrated the Aerdi court to keep a close watch on things, but with the
crowning of Ivid V in [6072 SD] the Great Kingdom settled for a time. The new
Overking banished all foreign advisors from the courts of his nation, and the
Brotherhood lost its foothold in Suundi.
In 6074 SD, the Scarlet Brotherhood set out to stir trouble for the
Great Kingdom. In the Raker Mountain range, members whispered into the ears of
humanoid leaders, encouraging them to raid the Bone March. [SB - 5]
One must always give credit where credit is due. This History is made possible primarily by the Imaginings of Gary Gygax and his Old Guard, Lenard Lakofka among them, and the new old guards, Carl Sargant, James Ward, Roger E. Moore. And Erik Mona, Gary Holian, Sean Reynolds, Frederick Weining. The list is interminable. Thanks to Steven Wilson for his GREYCHRONDEX and to Keith Horsfield for his “Chronological History of Eastern Oerik.”
Special thanks to Jason Zavoda for his compiled index, “Greyhawkania,” an invaluable research tool.
The Art:
One-more-face-of-this-war by hellstern
Destroyed-library by mirojohannes
Viking-Hall by nele-diel
Monk by alessio-devoto
Troglodytes-prayer by bricksandstones
Dark-alley by martinnh
Destroyed-library by mirojohannes
Viking-Hall by nele-diel
Monk by alessio-devoto
Troglodytes-prayer by bricksandstones
Dark-alley by martinnh
Sources:
1015 World of Greyhawk Boxed
Set, 1983
1064 From the Ashes Boxed
Set, 1992
1068 Greyhawk Wars Boxed
Set, 1991
2011A Dungeon Masters Guide,
1st Ed., 1979
2023 Greyhawk Adventures Hardback,
1988
9025 World of Greyhawk
Folio, 1980
9253 WG8, Fate of Istus,
1989
9399 WGR 5, Iuz the Evil,
1993
9577 The Adventure Begins,
1998
9578 Player’s Guide to
Greyhawk, 1998
11374 The Scarlet
Brotherhood, 1999
11621 Slavers. 2000
11742 Gazetteer, 2000
11743 Living Greyhawk
Gazetteer, 2000
Ivid the Undying, 1998
Dragon Magazine 206
OJ Oerth Journal, appearing
on Greyhawk Online
LGJ et. al.
Greychrondex, Wilson, Steven
B.
Greyhawkania, Jason Zavoda
Anna
B. Meyer’s map
In 448 CY, the Lordship of the Isles allied with the Iron League. By 515, they were under the thumb of the Scarlet Brotherhood. But there's no mention of when they changed sides or why.
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