TheDuncanMorgan

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

OK exams are finished so I should have the intro for the next round up by next week. Therefore if you have anything you want done before the party you may want to get on with now before I post my next IC post

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

So given things are a bit quiet IC wise at the moment I thought I would give a update;

As most people know I won't be free to do any IC content until after the 17th so the IC will continue to be a bit slow until then
Independent Mage and Mightyquiff plan to have their character sheets up soon.
Also Jais and Randy have a collab in the workings that should be up soon as well (of course all four are also currently in the middle of exam season at the moment).
Someone else has also expressed interest in joining after their exams conclude on the 10th

I thank everyone for their patience. Once exams conclude I promise I will be able to dedicate full time to the RP again

Formaroth: Battle for the Throne

END OF PART 1:
LINK TO PART 2 HERE: roleplayerguild.com/topics/170010-for…
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Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

Just to let everyone know:
Exam session will be starting soon and I may not have as much time to dedicate to the RP site as I do normally. So if I seem very quiet till the 16th of may that will be the reason why. However now that I have go the intro posts done it should give everyone plenty to work with till my exam's finish.

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

The Mercenary and the Warrior

It had only been a day since the last high council meeting but once again Alasdair found himself in the cramped and dreary council chambers. Unlike last time however, the only council member present with him was his military advisor Alice Rallar. Alice had only just entered the room and was currently standing across from Alasdair who was sitting at his usual place; pretending to read a scroll placed in front of him. After a short while of silence Alice spoke

“You sent for me your grace” though she tried to hide it there was clear annoyance in her voice. Despite him asking that she report to the council chamber immediately he didn’t seem to be in any particular hurry. Of course it was a nothing more than a show of power, a way of letting her know that he could keep her waiting for as long as he wanted.

“Indeed” Alasdair said as he continued to look down on the scroll “As I stated yesterday, the war with the Mandarass Alliance is over. As such I thought this would be a good time to establish your resignation”. Alice, quite rightly was taken aback. While she had previously told Alasdair that she planned on stepping down as advisor of war sometime after the war, she didn’t mean immediately after the war had literally just ended. Furthermore when a advisor resigned there was normally a ceremony celebrating their achievements during their time on the council. Not...this

“Your grace…” Alice stammered, still unsure if Alasdair meant what he was saying

“Arrangements have already been made for your departure. Along with your reward of a large sum of coins for all your years of service” While Alasdair’s face remained deadpan as he finally looked up from the scroll. Despite his outward expressions, inside he was enjoying every moment of this. During his entire time on the High Council Alice had looked down on him, even going as far as opposing his appointment to head advisor and openly expressing her distrust of him and his family to King John. Even during his time as king Alice had served him with reluctance. Now that he had no use for her he could finally disgrace her the same way she had attempted to disgrace the De Reimer name for years. Dismissing her so offhandedly with nothing more than a bag of coins for her years of service would damage her reputation greatly.

“Your grace, you cannot just dismiss me like this” she growled through her teeth, trying her best not to let her anger get the better of her. She had known Alasdair for years, and while she knew he disliked her immensely she didn’t think he would dishonour her like this simply due to spite.”A successor hasn’t even been chosen yet”

“And that is where you would be wrong” Alasdair replied cordially, he knew that retaining a calm demeanour would further vex her. Upon this moment there was a knock on the door, Alasdair smilled “Perfect timing, I believe that is him now”.

The first thing visible through the doorway was a sturdy leather glove softened with wear, following was the plate armoured arm of none other than Claus Rotstein, whom entered with zero introduction and closed the door behind him. Still lingering was the unmistakable smell of war and battles, since he had had little time to freshen up. Just the usual oiling of the armour so at least that one was shining. Albeit being violently banged and worse for wear.
Pausing to finally look at those present he saw the high king, he remembered his face from the party. And some person he’d never met. Probably someone who was in a meeting before him. With sort of a boastful pose Claus then introduced himself.
-”Mornin’ liege. I am here now.”

Alice identified him immediately; Claus Rotstein, captain of the steel fist mercenary company

“This is who you will have replace me” erupted Alice as she pointed towards the mercenary, no longer trying to hide her anger “A mercenary, a man who’s only loyalty is to his own purse”.

“I would watch your tone, I am still your king and you no longer hold the authority to speak to me in such a manner” Alasdair replied firmly “Besides Claus has proven his military capabilities at both battles of Telmarion as well as the siege of Clarm. I believe he will be a great asset to the concord”.

-”Name’s Claus, seems someone knows who i am. Pleased to learn that i am recognized, sadly, can’t say the same about you.” Claus said with a grinning smirk while offering his hand to Alice for a handshake. The king didn’t like her so it would probably turn out fine. Before she had time to answer Claus added.
-”Oh, and one thing you got wrong there, i ain’t loyal to my purse, i’m loyal to the purse that pays me. Which is the De’Reimer’s.” Across his face was a broad grinning smile. He liked messing with people, especially if he could get away with it.

“You and your mercenary company are frauds” She said as she swiveled to face Claus, her attention and anger now focused on him “Oh yes I know of your mercenary thugs and despite your self proclaimed elitism, you are no different than the others. You only care about lining your own pockets, why else would you arrive so late to the second battle of Telmarion? Had not been for the potential reward of house Mandarass’s supplies I doubt you would have even of let the safety of Clarm”.

Seeing she went on the offensive and began to insult him he didn’t expect an answer, ignoring her he turned to the king and asked.
-”So m’liege, who is this lovely ‘lady’, friend of yours?”

“This was my advisor of war on the high council, Alice Rallar. She has recently stepped down from her position to be replaced by yourself” Alice turned to face the king to protest, however she stopped herself and fell silent, knowing that Alasdair wanted her to say or do something that could get her forcibly removed from the keep or even imprisoned.

-”Former advisor of war, fancy. Well honestly i guess i expected someone less important to act like that, reminds me of myself. So, m’liege, want help to get her leave, free of charge, see it as a bonus.” Claus smirk was there as ever.

“If you value your life, you wouldn’t dare touch me” Alice hissed “I will not not stand by and watch as everything I have achieved over the past decade be striped away and given to a lowlife such as yourself. I challenge you to a duel, do you accept” Alice was putting her hopes into Claus accepting her duel. If he accepted then Alice would be given the chance to regain her dignity in front of the people of Nyhem. If she won then she could have her revenge on Alasdair by killing his replacement.

Visibly surprised and almost taken aback from the proposition, Claus soon regained his calm demeanour and telltale smirk.
-”A duel? Ever full of surprises, alright, but me being challenged choose the form, it’s customary after all.” Claus was faking pondering with obviously non earnest chin stroking while Alice frown was closing on surreal depth before he settled on what to say.
-”It wouldn’t be much of a match to see who could bed the most in a day, seeing i’m far more handsome than you, so the only proper form would be drinking contest. Orog wine, who can drink the most.” He held out his hand for a handshake with a massive grin on his face even though one who was more perceptive could see a hint of annoyance..

Alice was fuming, visibly reddened face and with a grunt she backhanded away Claus hand with force and yelled.
-”You dare mock me lowlife scum!” She stepped in a step closer and stared him square in the eyes.
-”So you are a coward, not even daring to face me in combat. But what did i expect, i read about you in the archives, about your Beilokias ’campaign’, more like sitting around being scared. Craven fools all of you, how you pretended to get lost for several weeks to avoid a siege, how you snuck out before the final battle and of course how you rats perfected the art of arriving late in the battle of hymns, just so you could take their supplies. Cowardly thieving...”
Before she could finish Claus interrupted, he had gotten much more than annoyed with this little spiel and when she mentioned the battle of hymns, he got angry.
He ended her rant with a spit in the face before speaking.
-”Alright you royal sucker-up whore, that does it, you know NOTHING about the battle of hymns.” Claus was angrily pointing at her face while forcing her back until she almost fell over the kings desk, the one keeping her from falling was Claus holding a firm grip at her collar.
-”But you want your damn duel, FINE. I can see you won’t settle with first blood either. To the death then. Since you can’t live without the possibility to lick his ass.” Claus angrily referred to the king.
Here she had had enough, she aimed a knee-kick at his crotch, the angle and her weird pose made it a bit less forceful than she wished for, plus his armour helped protect which resulted in a noisy rattle and a light thud to which Claus grunted heavily and took a step back.

Alasdair was having none of this. He called out to his guards and within seconds Alenius followed by half a dozen Cawanor soldiers rushed in and restrained the two of them.

“Remove her from the keep at once, Ser Alice is no longer welcome here” with this the guards struggled to drag her from the room, but not before she shouted out

“We will fight tomorrow at the grand arena, so the whole city will know that your ‘skill’ is nothing more than talk” As she was removed from the room she could still be heard from down the hallway “We shall see if you are worth your mettle!”

Shortly after the soldiers let go off Claus after Alasdair waved his hand, the captain was still visibly angry but soon gathered his cool, especially when he noticed Alenius was there.
-”Tsk, tomorrow ey? Not a long time to prepare, but i’ll manage.” He cracked his knuckles and neck and kept on.
-”So, have time for dinner? I know a good place.” Claus smirked and was obviously flirting with Alenius, something she initially met with a sigh before she turned to face Alasdair

“Was there anything else you needed your grace” she asked. In response Alasdair shook his head. She bowed before taking a quick glance at Claus and then exited the room.

“I apologise to you sir” Alasdair said as he turned his attention back to Claus “It would seem you are now in more danger here in Nyhem then you ever were during the war”

-”More dangerous than the war? How so, i’ve been in fights before. With and without onlookers.” Claus followed Alenius with his vision as she left while he spoke to the king.

“It seems you don’t know of Alice’s skill with a blade. She is one of the most skilled fighters in Formaroth, one of the many reasons John elected her as his war advisor. Perhaps it would be for the best that we cover this incident up. I have people who could, ‘deal’ with Alice meaning you won’t have to risk your life over something so trivial” there had been a reason Alice decided the duel take place tomorrow, the longer she waited, the more than Alasdair had to have her assassinated. Afterall he wasn’t about to loose his new war advisor.

Clearly surprised with this, Claus tried to recall her but couldn’t.
-”So one of ‘ol Roddy’s people? Never heard of her, besides. I myself happen to be second best so i think i’ll manage if i keep my head in the game.” He spoke with his usual carefree attitude.
-”As for covering it up, i’m not that kind of guy m’liege. I’m gonna fight her, and i’ll win.” His tone got slightly more serious but he finished off with one of his usual smirks.

Alasdair paused for a moment as he considered “Very well, you can have it your way” it wouldn’t matter, Alasdair already had a plan to ensure the odds were in Claus’s favour.

By
@TheDuncanMorgan @Klomster

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

And so the first post for the rp is up. Now everybody can get started. The next round of posts will be set in between the meeting and the party, which will be a one month interval, giving everyone ample time to set up their character and get them ready to attend the party.

Everyone who's character is currently part of the RP has been sent an invitation to the party.

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

Throne of Lies

“And so the Mandarass Alliance has finally been defeated” Alasdair said, smiling smugly as he finished reading the letter he had been holding. The letter was from his brother and had arrived only yesterday. While he already knew its contents this was the first time he had announced the news to his advisors. Six people were present in room, all sat at a long rectangular table at which Alasdair was the head. Despite the importance the council’s decisions had on Formaroth, the room in which they were made was somewhat unimpressive. Besides from the table and chairs the room was barren with nothing more than a few candlestick holders to light the room during the night. Two windows were on the far side of the small room, allowing ample light to enter. A fireplace burnt quietly in the corner; the first time it had been lit in near six months, so as to ward away the first chills of autumn. On Alasdair’s left sat his sister and economic advisor; Isabel De Reimer, a tall thin woman with beautiful long dark brown hair. Next to her sat the advisor of law; Alexander, a tall thin and gangly man with a mess of brown hair. Finally next to him sat Magister Lanaya Dionisa; Magisterial advisor to Alasdair and a powerful mage. She was a slim woman with pale skin, green eyes and straight copper red hair. On his right sat Marchioness Cerlina Tuania, head advisor of the high council. She had recently only just returned to the capital to discover her younger brother had died during the war against house Mandarass. As such she was wearing a long sleeved black dress with matching black gloves and veil, to which her bright blonde hair and green eyes stood out in contrast; a way to let others know that she was in mourning. Next to her sat Alice Rallar, advisor of war. In comparison to the others surrounding the table she was a giant of a woman, taller and larger than most men with short ginger hair and narrow piercing eyes.

“So the war is over then my king?” Alex said “the Imperial Concord is victorious?”

“So it would seem” Alasdair replied smugly “and now that we have control of Uzgob, Coruneon and Ralda the concord has easily become the most powerful faction in Formaroth”

Though it should’ve been a happy moment, Lana’s face was marred by a faint scowl as Alasdair spoke. In her eyes, he was too eager to revel in this costly victory. When silence fell, she spoke up quickly, before the others could turn this meeting into unending self congratulating. There was a certain venom in her voice, but tempered by the unfortunate truth that she spoke.

“And yet, my King, the Land is still fractured. As the ruler of the majority of Formaroth, and no longer at war, you cannot afford to ignore the madness of the Johannian Heresy any longer. The Church is clearly not equipped to handle this without you taking charge.”

Alasdair’s disapproving gaze fell on Lanaya. It was clear she was bitter after what had happened during the riot, not that he expected anything else.

“She is right your grace” Alice said “the riot proves that the heretical threat must be addressed immediately”. Alasdair internally sighed; he had always hated the church and all the superstitious nonsense it preached to it’s followers. Before, all he had to do was pay off its leaders to stay out of the political affairs and keep the peasantry blindly loyal to whatever monarch happened to be on the throne. But now both Lycaon and Johannia were tearing Formaroth apart over differing ideology based on fairy stories and both continued to undermine his authority.

“The Heretics have been driven from Nyhem, Lycaon has seen to that” Alasdair said as he reflected back to the brutal and violent manner than Lycaon and his knights had put down the heretics “Furthermore I have outlawed the heretical teachings of Johannia. Anyone found worshiping will be imprisoned until they recant, while preachers will be tortured and later executed, the method of which shall be decided by the church”.

“If I may your grace I do not believe that will suffice” Cerlina said, this was the first time she had spoken during the meeting. It was likely she had been too busy thinking about her brother to engage until now “Even if outlawed we have no way of enforcing the law. Perhaps if we set up some sort of an inquisition with the sole purpose of rooting out the heretics”?

“Perhaps, though such an order would likely have to operate through the church and I am loathed to give Lycaon anymore power than he already has.”

As bitter as Lanaya was about Alasdair at the moment, she couldn’t help but agree with him.

“I agree with the King. Lycaon has accumulated a great deal of power already, and giving him the opportunity to command an inquisition may let him turn even the nobility to his cause, for fear of being accused a heretic. Do we want to risk him becoming a more serious threat than Johannia?”

Lanaya was close to suggesting her own organisation be given the right, but after highlighting how corrupt an inquisition could be she thought better of such a blatant power grab.

“Exactly, but if we don’t do something soon Lycaon will root out the heretics on his own, and if his actions during the riot are anything to go by, he will be brutal and belligerent. What we need is an organisation that we directly oversee, a faction within the church that acts on our best interests. Not only will we have a way to stop the heretics but we could use it to curb Lycaon’s power”. Many of the council members nodded in agreement

“That could work” Alexander replied “If we control the inquisition then we will have have direct oversight to prevent anything from getting too chaotic like they did during the riot”.

Lanaya looked around at the other Council members, weighing it in her head. As far as she could tell, their interests were probably diverse enough that they wouldn’t be able to direct such a faction in one particular direction, other than its intended one. That was, if they could all maintain control over it. She thought for a moment, then spoke up.

“You make a good argument your majesty. If we maintain control, we should be able to avoid having the inquisition turned to political ends. Very well, I support this initiative.”

“Excellent. We will have to find someone capable of leading such a organisation, or at least someone who can control Lycaon should he become inquisitor, and more importantly someone we can trust. Alexander-” upon hearing his name Alexander straightened “-make a list of possible candidates for me to review over”.

“Yes your grace” Alexander said with a slight bow of his head.

“Very good. Also to celebrate the concord’s victory over the alliance we will be hosting a party here in the keep. The party will be take place a month from now, that should give the guests time to get here. Hopefully it will give the peasantry something to talk about instead of the riot. We will dispense free food and drink to the city to keep them placated.”

“I’m sure the peasants will appreciate his Majesty’s generosity.” Lanaya said drolly, before taking on a slightly more serious tone. “House Dionisa will increase see to creating a stockpile for the event.”

While she was technically only here for the sake of magical advice, Lanaya would never pass up the opportunity to secure a political advantage. In this case, to have the king rely on her noble house for this grand event instead of one of the others.

“That would save house De Reimer from having to pay for everything for once” Isabel replied, she had taken the letter from Alasdair and had been quietly reading it to herself. Her eyes remained fixed on the letter as she spoke “Tell me brother will House Blackwell, Staghain and Sutharlan be invited”?

“Invites have been dispatched, whether they arrive or not is another matter. However it is likely house Blackwell will attend, afterall Patrick and Naomi are to be wed soon”. At this Isabel made a noise of disgust.

“To think our family would have to muddy our blood by marrying into a family of elevated peasants” Isabel scoffed while Cerlina nodded in agreement. Alice Alexander looked offended however, as both of them had originated from the peasantry.

“Maybe so but they are the Concords true rivals right now, and as such it is a good idea to have them on our side” Alasdair paused for a moment before adding “at least for now”.

Lanaya remained quiet as house Blackwell was mentioned. She was the architect of this rivalry, in a way, having negotiated the treaty that let the House officially form their own Kingdom. Naturally, it was, in truth, even more complicated than that. Regardless, she had nothing to contribute to the meeting on the subject.

***

“And with that I believe the meeting is concluded” Alexander announced waiting for his kings approval

“Very well, in which case everyone is dismissed” At this the advisors stood up before heading towards the door. Before Lanaya could leave Alasdair called out to her “Lady Lanaya, I should like to speak with you”.

Lanaya, who had already stood in her eagerness to leave, gracefully sat back down, scowling somewhat. She was not expecting this to go particularly well, whatever it was, after their exchange atop the castle during the riot. Some extremely barbed words were thrown, and Alasdair had punched her rather unexpectedly. Though the bruise was already healing, she waved one hand over her the side of her face, dispelling the illusion that had concealed it far more effectively than any makeup could’ve. Saying nothing, she let the ugly reminder of what he had done speak for her.

Alasdair noticed Lanaya dispel the illusion, it was already clear that she knew what he wanted to talk about. Alasdair stood up before looking straight at Lanaya

“As you undoubtedly remember, during the riot harsh words and insults were passed between us. Furthermore in my rage I struck you and for that I apologize. It was...unbecoming of a king and I should not have allowed my emotions to have gotten the better of me” In truth Alasdair felt somewhat guilty over what had happened. While he had no personal attachments to Lanaya she had served both the concord and in turn House De Reimer well. However more importantly she was far too valuable an asset for them to remain on poor terms. People perform their duties best when they are satisfied under those they serve, a simple fact Alasdair had tried to teach his siblings time and time again.

Lanaya looked at Alasdair for a moment, unspeaking. For just a moment, there was a spark of rage deep inside her, but she was able to quash it before it turned into a flame. “Apology accepted.” She said in an even tone. She would never forget what he had done, and likely never truly forgive him, but in politics one could not afford to hold petty grudges.

“I apologise for my own words as well. It was a trying day.” She left it at that, once again keeping a cool, even tone. Naturally she was far from sincere, but she hadn’t gotten this far by letting little things like truth get in the way of politics.

“Very good, in which case we will resume our duties, and not let what transpired impact on our duty to serve the concord”. While Alasdair sensed neither her apology nor forgiveness to be genuine, he didn’t need them to be, so long as she continued to serve the concord as dutifully she had done before. “Have you any recommendation on whom should be invited to this event?”

Lanaya absently passed her hand over the side of her face, recasting the illusion that concealed the bruise. With her point made she preferred to maintain her usual radiant beauty.

“Perhaps the Elven Trader, Dyril, should be invited. It will let her know she and her goods are welcome in Formaroth, and that this Kingdoms grandeur is undimmed despite the times.”

Alasdair paused for a moment as he considered Lanaya’s recommendation. While it wouldn’t even of crossed his mind to invite her, he saw no reason why not to. Lanaya’s reasoning seemed fair enough. “Very well I shall bear her in mind”

“Is that all your Majesty?” Lanaya inquired. Alasdair nodded, and she stood, walking to the door. She quickly half bowed in his direction, then left the Council chamber.

By
@TheDuncanMorgan @Sundered Echo

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

@ZB1996 Just to keep you updated me and Echo are working on a collab to kick off the RP. We will try to get it done by next week when hopefully the new players have their character sheets done.

Formaroth: Battle for the Throne

OK Battle for the throne has officially concluded so now we are going full focus on throne of lies. The next couple of weeks will be focused on the following:

1) Transferring CS onto throne of lies
2) Getting current confirmed members to fill out their character sheets (there are two more to come)
3) Setting up recruitment page sometime next week (although this depends if you guys want more people outside of the 4 people I have already recruited?)
4) Planning out our character's story arcs and making sure they have some way of working into each other.

Link to new RP
roleplayerguild.com/topics/170010-for…

Formaroth Part 2: Throne of Lies

Part One Summary

Part One prologue

The reigning ruler of Formaroth, King John Remonnet passed away under suspicious circumstances, most whisper it was the cause of poisoning, others say it was natural causes, whatever the case it now left the throne open for grabs, as there are no living heirs to the throne to claim it for their own and continue on the royal lineage. Anyone was able to lay claim to the throne of Formaroth, and so the Battle for the Throne began. King John tried to right the ways of his brother's maniacal reign before him; a reign that ended in a civil war in which the tyrannical king was killed by the rebel Andris Mandarass. Under John's rule the empire began to blossom, there was peace to be had, and shared across the land; wealth bloomed, and kingdoms pledged allegiance to the mighty kingdom of the Sypius, where Nyhem, the sprawling citadel that holds sway over the land, working alongside one another in prosperity. With King John's queen dead three years prior to his own, there is no eligible heir to claim the throne; meaning anyone can stake a claim to the throne.

Part one: 'Battle for the throne'

Shortly after the death of High King John, each of the major houses sent a diplomat to Nyhem to discuss who should be the next ruler of Formaroth. Due to being the head advisor of the late king, Alasdair De Reimer was made the temporary De Facto ruler of Formaroth. As there was no other heir, Alasdair put himself forward as a candidate for High King, given the position was practically already his and he had most experience for ruling Formaroth. Despite not being tied to the throne by blood, Alasdair gained a lot of support from the central kingdoms of Cawanor, Sypius, Telmarion, Orog, Windermere and later Nash. However, many others saw this act as nothing more than a grab for power and denounced his claim as High King. The most outspoken of these was Andris Mandarass of Uzgob, who rallied the kingdoms of Glamrion, Ralda, Coruneon and later Akki to remove the De Reimer's from power and thus started the battle for the throne.

After the war broke out two other factions formed. The first being the Southern alliance, comprised of the Kingdoms of Thralreth and Raeldar. The major supporters of this alliance were the two noble houses of Sutharlan and Staghain who felt no loyalty to either Alasdair or Andris. Now that the Remmonnets had died out both houses wished for the south to be free from the crown, believing themselves to be more capable rulers than any northern lord would ever be. Throughout the war the Southern Alliance has remained neutral in the war and has not involved themselves in any major military or political events. The second faction was the newly formed House Blackwell that formed ten years prior during the Mandrass-Remmonnet civil war.

The war first started when Andris Mandarass denounced Alasdair De Reimer and declared war on the Imperial Concord. For House Mandarass, honour is of the highest Importance when it comes to ruling. In Andris’s eyes the De Reimer’s honour is non-existent and was a family that could not be trusted. As such Andris and his allies decided to remove Alasdair from the throne before he could do any harm to the kingdom of Formaroth. In return Alasdair and his allies formed the Imperial Concord to oppose the Mandarass usurper and return order and peace to Formaroth.

The Concord gained an early victory over the Mandarass Alliance when the combined armies of House Anjervine and House Greensworth invaded Ralda and wiped out the majority of the Mazeltof host. During the battle Godwyn Mazeltof was killed while Henry and Pearl were captured. Henry was later executed for treason by Alasdair. The concord advantage was further cemented when House Wulfrick of Nash joined the imperial concord.

Around this time House Blackwell tried to invade the Island kingdom of Akki but the plan ultimately failed once House Neptuna discovered their plans and sunk the Blackwell Navy at dock. To worsen the Blackwell position, House De Reimer used their Uzobian double agents to frame Andris Mandarass for an assassination attempt on the Blackwell family. While the assassination failed, Naomi Blackwell was seriously injured and house De Reimer successfully turned house Blackwell against the Mandarass Alliance. Lady Lanaya Dionisa was able to negotiate an alliance between the Imperial Concord and House Blackwell through various deals and arrangements (one deal being the arranged marriage of Patrick De Reimer and Naomi Blackwell).

To turn the tide of the war Andris combined the armies of Mandarass, Lannistark and Humber and marched on the Kingdom of Telmarion, hoping to defeat House Tuania. In response Patrick De Reimer sent an army of mercenaries, led by the renown Claus Rotstein, to reinforce the Tuanian army. When the two armies clashed, Orland Tuania (commander of House Tuania’s forces) disobeyed Claus’s commands and led his troops into a tactical disaster. The battle was a clear victory for the Mandarass Alliance and had it not been for Claus’s battle experience, the Concord casualties would have been far greater.

Furthermore, House Neptuna of Akki decided to join the Mandarass Alliance, as the aggression shown from House Blackwell had caused them to become fearful of their neighbouring kingdom Alenius. To show their support House Neptuna sent their army to reinforce the Alliance in Telmarion.

His defeat caused Claus to retreat to House Tuania’s stronghold of Clarm, while Orland led the remaining Tuanian forces to regroup with the bulk of the Concord’s army. To gain a strong foothold in Telmarion, Andris besieged Clarm in the hopes he could take it before the Concord army showed up. However, Claus and his mercenaries proved to be more than a worthy adversary and after a month Andris was forced to abandon the siege to face the concord’s forces.

The concord had divided its forces into two armies; one, led by Aureus Wulfirck, consisted of the armies of House Greensworth and House Wulfrick. This force went north and retook the kingdom of Orog and captured the now undefended kingdom of Coruneon. The second, led by Patrick De Reimer, consisted of the armies of House De Reimer, Anjervine, Du Paraquette and Tuania. This force went to Telmarion to reinforce Telmarion and engage the Alliance forces. House Blackwell sent their army to bolster the Concordian forces with the entire Blackwell family (baring Naomi) joining the fight.

The second battle for Telmarion was the turning point of the war. The Mandarass Alliance suffered a major defeat at the hands of Patrick De Reimer and lost much of its army. Daeron Humber, Orland Tuania and Beatrice Blackwell were all killed during the battle while Serala Lanistark was captured.

After his defeat Andris retreated to Uzgob with the remains of his army, intending to make his final stand in the Uzgobian capital of Andromeda. However unbeknown to him, his most trusted advisor Nizaar had turned against him, believing that Andris was no longer the honourable man he once was and that Uzgob needed new leadership. Nizaar stopped the Mandarass army from entering the city and kept Andris’s family hostage.

While Andris was able to infiltrate the city and rescue his family, his arm was badly wounded by Nizaar and was forced to amputate. Eventually Andris had to flee Formaroth entirely using the Alliance’s fleet, exiling himself and his remaining supporters to the continent of Seikastsu.

With the Concord being victorious, Alasdair is now the undisputed High king with the concords power growing exponentially after gaining the kingdoms of Ralda, Coruneon and Uzgob. During the war House Blackwell power also grew significantly after gaining the kingdoms of Glarmion and Akki. While they are still allies with the concord this alliance is fragile and Alasdair has come to see Eli Blackwell as a new rival.

Imperial concord
House De Reimer of Cawaport (now also of Uzgob)
House Du Paraquette of Sypius
House Anjervine of Windermire
House Greensworth of Orog (now also of Ralda)
House Tuania of Telmarion
House Wulfrick of Nash (now also of Coruneon)

Mandarass Alliance
House Mandarass (now exiled)
House Mazeltof (now exiled)
House Lannistark (now exiled)
House Humber (now exiled)
House Neptuna (now exiled)

House Blackwell
House Blackwell rulers of Alenius (now also Glarmion and Akki)

Southern Alliance
House Sutharlan of Raeldar
House Staghain of Thralreth

Order of Saint Elenor

Lycaon, Grand Master of the Order of Saint Elenor, beloved by the people for his philanthropic work, has been gaining influence in the Church. After a long absence from royal life he attempted to ally himself with King Duncan by presenting to him a lavish gift and promising him the Church's support. This was part of Lycaon's attempt to strengthen the Church's waning influence on politics, a plan that was years in the making and would take years to carry out. Soon afterwards, Lycaon had the reigning Grand Cleric assassinated, as he found her insufficiently cooperative, and gained power in the Church from the ensuing power vacuum.

Elsewhere, turmoil reigned in the Church. The controversial theologian Johannia of Telmarion put forth a number of shocking doctrines, which included harsh criticism of the upper echelons of the Church, advocating the dissolution of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, harsh criticism of mages and magic, and the existence of a demiurge above the gods worshipped by the Church. For this she was tried of heresy and would have been executed by burning at the stake if not for a sympathetic bishop who orchestrated her escape to somewhere in Ralda. On her way there she was attacked and her patron bishop was killed, but with the aid of a lone bodyguard Johannia was able to escape. Now safely in hiding in Ralda, she now hides alongside her body and a friend of the bishop who aided her, who now serves as the chief propagandist who spreads her message among the literate.

Meanwhile Lycaon continues to consolidate power. He made a deal with King Duncan, promising to aid the King in his war effort if he would allow his holy order to raise a brigade. During the battle of Telmarion this brigade, made up of mere peasants, took heavy casualties. However, with Lycaon's funding they have the possibility to become well-equipped, and in the time that it takes for them to recover and reinforce from their casualties they have the time to become better trained and become a force to reckoned with. Meanwhile the heretics continue to gain strength. A conflict between those who supported the heretics and those who remained loyal to the Church, exacerbated by the squalor of city, proved to be the spark that ignited a riot that engulfed the entire city of Nyhem. Though the riot was put down, in no small part due to the Holy Order of Saint Elenor's wanton slaughter of the heretics under Lycaon's orders, it will now take much for the city of Nyhem to recover, and the worst may be yet to come.

Mage Collective

The Mages Collective is the brainchild of Duchess and Magister Lanaya Dionisa, a skilled mage and highly capable politician. Its fundamental goal is twofold. First and foremost, the Collective seeks to ensure Mages are free from prosecution of any sort all across Formaroth. The second, more radical aim of the organisation, however, is to put Mages in positions of power, ideally including placing a Mage on the throne. The second aim is kept relatively secret even within the Collective, for obvious reasons, but as the Collective grows, it has become harder to keep the more radical members quiet.

In order to further the goals of the Collective, Lanaya aligned the organisation with the Imperial Concord, reasoning that Alasdair De Reimer was the most likely to be sympathetic to her cause. She provided a number of mages to the Concord army, as well as attempting to convince her childhood friend High Magister Aurelia Vincetta to marry Alasdair. Later, she was sent by Alasdair to negotiate an alliance with house Blackwell, which she did reasonably successfully. However, she also fell in love with Eli Blackwell while there. In addition, she convinced High Magister Drevala Blackwell to join the Collective, and discovered Drevala’s ability to take the shape of a Dragon.

Upon returning to Nyhem, Lanaya discovered Aurelia Vyncetta had been murdered. Soon after, Alasdair offered her Aurelia’s place on the High Council, as magical advisor to the High King. This has greatly benefited the Collective, both in terms of raw power and legitimacy among the mages of Formaroth. In addition she was able to secure a tentative alliance with the Order of St. Elenor and recruit High Magister Barden to her cause.

Finally, she met with High Magister Alice Budwin, recruited her to the Collective and received a crimson gem filled with magical power to test. It empowers her spells, but seems to be having some side effects… When the riot broke out, she defended the Manor House she resided in before going to the King. Atop the battlements, they got into an argument and Alasdair struck her. Later, she massacred a crowd of anti-mage fanatics on the Nyhem docks with the help of a Summer Isles ships crew, before sending that crew to deliver news of the atrocities against mages to the Circle.

The Collective faces a time of great change. They have collected much power, but have yet to truly exercise it on a country-wide scale. Lanaya has risen from the representative of a minor noble house to a significant house leader and Council member, yet her already shaky relationship with Alasdair may not hold up while the Blackwell alternative remains; and all the while a new foe stalks her from the shadows… To make matters worse, the Collective has become a natural enemy of the Anti-mage religious schism, and the Circle, previously content to ignore the power games of one Magister, has begun to take notice of a power bloc involving three High Magisters with radical and risky ideas. Will Lanaya’s grand plan face adversity and emerge stronger for it? Or will they fracture under pressure, folding to the many threats they face?