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 Taking the Throne and Holding it Down (2E 480 - 2E 493) The Raj-nassa of Stormhold plucked a morsel from the remains of her lunch. With one claw she poked the now-cooled meat several times, breaking it up into tiny pieces in the palm of her hand. From her lounger Kud-Mere cast the handful into the pond beyond the porch, causing the geckos to scurry from their rocks in a flurry of chirping and splashing. She smiled at the chaos and looked to the forestline. The sun was nearly touching the top of the tallest tree and still no sign of her husband or his hunting party. She sighed. Kud-Mere hoped he would be back soon, much later and they’d have to stay the night at the hunting lodge, with its scratchy bedding and too few pillows. She would have argued for staying back in the city, but she knew she was needed here. Not to hunt, thankfully. Her father had tried to get her into that a few times, but she had eventually placated him by dedicating herself to war studies and he had left her alone. To the young Kud-Mere there was no place more important to be than in a hammock or with her back to a tree. If she had to read a dusty tome on mixed unit tactics to do so she considered it a fair trade. Pacheeva Wihju had even once referred to her affectionately as his “little general”. She chuckled to herself, it was a nice memory. Better than most she had of her father, a drunken fool whose only talent had been surviving battle. So long as he came back, more or less in one piece, there was always some merchant or shady character willing to extend him a little more credit. But the day came when a Dunmer sword found his chest and before word of his passing had even reached her the moneylenders were at the door. Their door. With him dead there was no chance of him coming back with enough war booty to pay them, so they took the house, along with the little garden out back with the hammock and the perfect amount of shade. When her father brought her to court she’d always received interested looks. Had her father lived she might have married the first or second son of some kaal, a pretty little thing to help keep the realm running smoothly. But without a family or wealth to her name the only men to show an interest were far below her standards. Whatever else she might lose, she always held on to a good opinion of herself and she wasn’t going to settle for a toothless old sap speaker in a mud hut. Barely 17 years old and homeless, Kud-Mere would’ve had a hard time on her own if she hadn’t learned to be clever early on. For years she’d skimmed from her father’s coin purse, hoarding a little bit at a time in a hollow stump by the river. It hadn’t been hard, he was often passed out drunk and had no sense for his money. It was enough to live on, but not in Thorn. Her father’s debt collectors would’ve found out and come for her. So she ended up in Stormhold, a city recently taken over by a tribe of ideological fanatics. The innkeeping had been hard work, but the patrons came to see her and she made enough to live in some comfort. Ukara had introduced her to Kankeeus one night. She’d recognized him the first time he came to the Elf’s Ear, but hadn’t said anything. The Raj-kaal had been a married man and dabbling with powerful, married men had seemed like too great a risk. But she liked Ukara, she’d been one of Kud-Mere’s first friends when she arrived in Stormhold. So she gave him a chance, talked with him once the bar was empty enough for an assistant to take over. Between her looks and years as a bartender Kud-Mere had become quite a talent at getting to know people, but the raj was a wary one and kept his distance. They met a few times over 3 months, on the eighth she finally got through. He wept in front of her, talking about his beloved twin brother and his conviction that he had never been fully prepared to take his place as heir. She realized then that under all of his ambition and energy he was a nervous wreck, in many ways her exact opposite. Kud-Mere decided to support him after that night. She was not entirely unmotivated by a desire for wealth and status, of course. The mistress of the lord of Stormhold was a position which would allow her to access luxuries she had only ever dreamed of. But she was also moved by his pragmatic dedication to the Amber Path. She’d never been much for ideological discussion or study, but she knew Black Marsh. She knew about the raids and counter-raids, the endless wars with the Dunmer and the torrents of blood which had kept her father employed. Kankeeus was a snake, Ukara herself had said as much, but his ambitions for a stable and secure realm were genuine. The sap speakers had a lot of justifications and parables, but it all boiled down to centralization and stability being essential to a strong realm. A realm in which men like her father wouldn’t be needed. A horn sounded announcing the party’s return and soon the first riders appeared from the timberline. Kud-Mere stood from her reclined position and smoothed out her dress. Now she would play the part of the dazzling wife and hostess, she would wow the assembled nobles and plant a single seed in their thoughts. With time that seed would bear fruit and they would come to the conclusion, seemingly of their own deliberation, that Kankeeus was the right fit for the throne of Shadowfen.     In the year 481 of the Second Era the Raj-kaal of Stormhold began a campaign to convince the lords of Shadowfen to support him as rightful king. As the largest vassal in the realm he had access to wealth which his liege lord did not. These were spent on feasts, hunts and bards, who traveled the kingdom spreading tales of Kankeeus the Shrewd among the peasants and nobles alike.   This met with some success, the kaal of Haj-Ei and a number of lesser nobles came to support Kankeeus. But the staunchly conservative nassa of Alten Corimont was quick to declare her utmost support for King Iaza.   The King himself recognized the precarity of his position and the need to rally more conservative saxhleel to his cause in order to keep the Amber Hist movement in check. With this in mind he departed on a pilgrimage in Xeech of 482 to Murkwood, the geographical and ideological heart of Black Marsh. It proved to be a disastrous mistake. Moving quickly, Raj-kaal Kankeeus and his supporters hastened to his court to demand the king’s council name a proper caretaker for the throne until Iaza returned. It was a flimsy excuse, the council would face an immediate siege if they did anything other than name Kankeeus caretaker of the throne. If they did so he would simply take the king’s wife, heirs and primary supporters into his “care”, with the expectation that, upon his return, Iaza would grant the crown to his trustworthy caretaker in return for their safety. With their lord gone most of the king’s council was swayed to give the raj-kaal what he demanded, although the ever-faithful Nassa Neer of Alten Corimont was able to slip away. She returned to her port city and readied to support Iaza, would he declare war upon Stormhold.    This would not prove to be the case. Despite rampant rumors of the king returning with an army of ten thousand holy warriors to reclaim his throne from the degenerates of the Amber Sap movement, Iaza had no moves left to make. Upon his return he acknowledged Kankeeus as the rightful king of Shadowfen. But before handing over his crown he granted Haj-Ei and his own lands to Nassa Neer, effectively splitting Shadowfen into an Amber Hist west and a traditionalist east. With Iaza disgraced by his surrender, Neer quickly formed a coalition in support of his mother, the former queen Omeeta. Kankeeus thus gained the throne, but would not hold it securely until Neer was dealt with.    A final showdown was brewing, both sides busied themselves in shoring up their support. Kankeeus formed alliances with lords within and beyond his realm, though much of his attention was still dedicated to his beloved wife. Iaza busied himself with visits to Murkwood, where he gathered the support of conservative sap speakers in the forms of coin, warriors and promises of aid in the conflict to come.    In mid-Summer of 485 Iaza at last felt strong enough to declare war. Declaring that the deposition of Queen Omeeta had been unjust and citing claims that the king was a cannibal and a murderer, Iaza made oaths to the Hist that she would see the queen returned to her rightful place upon the throne of Shadowfen. A great host of warriors from throughout central Black marsh rallied to her banner and made to march upon Stormhold. The hosts of Shadowfen were raised, nearly 3,000 saxhleel and Kothringi, with an additional 1,500 dunmer mercenaries hired from among the Cantemiric Velothi of the lands bordering Thorn. The two forces met near Alten Corimont, where Iaza’s army was not yet fully organized. Taking advantage of the chaos, the dunmer Captain Veren was able to surprise a force of 1,500 volunteers on the road to the city. The smaller force was forced to flee after losing a third of its number. But the main body of Iaza’s army soon found Veren and the saxhleel proved the more able commander. The march on Alten Corimont proved to be a wash, with boat sides losing around 1,000 warriors and neither achieving complete dominance of the region.   A few months of stalemate were the result, with both armies forced to regroup during the Autumn and Winter seasons. Queen Kud-mere, returning to the education she had undergone in her youth, was tasked with helping to organize the war effort. Iaza, meanwhile, busied herself in Alten Corimont with the fabrication and spreading of the most fantastical lies about her liege. In one screed, distributed to the town criers throughout Black Marsh, she made claim that he regularly dined on salted and spiced cutlets of man and mer flesh!   In the Spring of 487 Iaza took her army south to raid the Kothringi lands of Shadowfen. She hoped to gain loot to pay for her ongoing war and encourage the Nedes in the Shadowfen army to desert and return home to protect their farms and villages. She had assumed that Veren would again march straight east to besiege Alten Corimont. Instead, the Shadowfen army pursued and cornered her near Sul in mid-Summer. Among the forces of Iaza were a band of Horwalli skirmishers, vassals of a conservative saxhleel who contributed them to Iaza’s cause. During the battle Prince Seed-Maht, the second child of the king and queen, led the king’s kagouti riders in a charge against the left flank of Iaza’s infantry line. Unbeknownst to Seed-Maht or Commander Veren, the Horwalli had been kept in reserve nearby, hiding amongst tall reeds. The skirmishers got three good volleys off on the riders, before they were able to wheel around and chase them off. Dozens of riders fell, including the prince. The riders rallied from the loss, wheeling around once more to turn the left flank as originally intended. Seed-maht’s death was avenged and Iaza was forced to retreat north, into Thorn.   To King Kankeeus the victory was not worth the loss of a son. In the midst of a difficult war, where funds were vital to keeping his army in the field, the king once more engaged in frivolous spending sprees. He buried his sorrow in baubles and ordered Veren to siege Alten Corimont, rather than pursue Iaza. The town fell in Summer of 488 and a number of Iaza’s family were taken captive. But the rebel force was given time to regroup in Thorn and gather supporters from that kingdom.   With a rested and re-equipped force Iaza slipped around Veren’s army and dispersed raider groups throughout the Kothringi lands, while the main force seized a number of key strongholds before Veren could retake them in 290. With Veren busy retaking the south, Iaza marched north, taking Stormhold and much of the Shadowfen royal court, including Queen Kud-Mere. Her mother-in-law Martul managed to escape, but the road proved too much for the ailing queen mother’s health and she passed at age 75.    The war went back and forth, with no clear victor in sight. Kankeeus’ army won in most battles, but Iaza was always able to find a few hundred more volunteers to refill her ranks. But in the Spring of 291 a turning point was at last reached. Veren marched north, retaking Stormhold and defeating Iaza in two battles. Once again she was able to slink away, but not with her queen this time. As she fled the battlefield with her personal guard they were separated from the army by charging cavalry and set upon by Kothringi spearmen. The former queen was struck in the throat and fell on the field of battle. Iaza declared that she would fight on, for the alternative was her death. But the lords and sap speakers of Black marsh had grown tired of pouring resources into Iaza’s war with nothing to show for it. Without her figurehead they saw her project as effectively finished and withdrew support.   In late Winter of 492 the final battle of the conflict occurred in Murkwater. After seven years of war and numerous defeats, Iaza’s army was falling apart. Payment and supplies were increasingly rare and her soldiers were close to mutiny. Desperate to resupply, she took her forces towards the south a third time, hoping for a repeat of the successful raids among the Kothringi tribes she had carried out in 290. Word of her approach spread quickly through the region and an unusually long Winter season slowed Iaza’s progress. The Kothringi prepared for her forces and met raiding parties with stiff resistance, little was gained before the Shadowfen army caught up to her. The resulting battle was a slaughter, with more than half of the remaining rebel army killed and Iaza herself captured.   After 2 years in captivity the queen of Shadowfen was reunited with her husband. Iaza, for her crimes, was executed and cremated, her soul trapped in an urn and unable to return to the Hist for reincarnation. Her supporters, those few who remained, scattered throughout Black Marsh to spread tales of the cannibal king. Not a year would go by without some ascetic lunatic or landless warrior declaring their intent to rally the righteous saxhleel to reclaim Shadowfen from the heretics.   But these declarations would mostly amount to nothing. With Iaza dead and the power of Alten Corimont broken, no serious internal threats remained to the Rantee dynasty and the Amber Path. After 5 decades of conflict the kingdom was united under one house and one ideology. Still to Come: State of Tamriel, Voting
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Feb 20, 2023 16:58
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 State of Tamriel (2E 493) In the 31st year of his reign King Kankeeus Rantee of Shadowfen commissioned a report from his minister of diplomacy and foreign affairs on the state of the regions of Tamriel. Given the widespread conflicts, centuries of under-investment in infrastructure and decline in trade following the closure of the mouth of the Niben to boat travel, the information which was collected is hardly up to today's standards. But despite these issues the brief report is, for the most part, an excellent overview of Tamriel at the close of the 5th century of the Second Era. They have been archived for use in the Imperial Archive, with annotations by the historian Fortis Brolus, known by his name “Fortis of Skingrad”. In his time as archivist in the Imperial Archive brother Fortis was an expert on diplomacy in the Interregnum and contributed many volumes on the subject.      Rajni-Raj-Kaal of Shadowfen, this one has sought far and wide for the most current news from the eight corners of Kronkassa. I ask your patience and understanding, for information has grown costly in recent days and my ei are not so many. I can speak only few words on Raj-vos, the land of the man-mer. Long ago the Direnni leel ruled over the mahleel of Raj-vos, but they warred for many years with the Reman leel and their god-speakers and the mahleel took their freedom. On their island the Direnni schemed and prepared, long-lived are they and their grudges moreso. Ah, such shunatei! Now the empire of Reman is truly xul and the mer have sallied forth, aided by volunteers from the islands of the raj-mer. They have taken a great swathe of land in the central peninsula and the mahleel rajni who remain independent number only four. The Direnni campaigns to reclaim High Rock during this era served as a major safety valve for Alinor. Restless young Altmer looking to prove themselves or earn a sizable wage, as well as political dissidents, were sent across the sea by the ceremonarchy to Balfiera. It was a highly successful program for both kingdoms, the Direnni took control of much of High Rock and many of their volunteer soldiers became magistrates and landlords in the newly conquered regions. Summerset, meanwhile, enjoyed a long period of internal stability. -Fortis of Skingrad    To the east are the lands of the vastei mer, who have long been without uxith on the face of Kronkassa. They prosper in these times of xulunaht, for their xal-raj has love only for reel-ka. Greatest of these easterly kingdoms is the leel of the Winterborn, mahleel of the hills who worship the xal-raj of their greenskinned neighbors. Because of their tribal government structures only scant information is available for this period on the Reachmen and Orsimer kingdoms which came to dominate the western Reach. -Fortis of Skingrad     Continuing further, beyond the Reach, the frozen lands of the Nord mahleel remain sundered. The Cursebraid and Frost-Voice leel both lay claim to the throne of the north, but neither has the strength to keep even half of it together. The western kingdom has lost control of a rich central valley and half-orc mahleel now rule Falcrenth. The forests of the Rift have fallen from the grasp of the eastern kingdom and much of the north coast has been taken by greel invaders, grayskin nomads of the ashen vos who travel in ships of thota chitin, for their lands are bare of all fek. While it is true that Ashlander tribes will use bonemold for their canoes and ships, there is little to suggest that it is due to a lack of usable trees. Netch leather is a sturdy, watertight and flexible material which can be shaped with ease. And unlike trees, netch grow to maturity in only a few years. -Fortis of Skingrad    In warmer lands the Redguard mahleel are mostly united under the mighty Hegathe leel and their subjects enjoy a level of peace unseen in mainland Tamriel. I hear whispers, though, of brewing discontent among the Forebear over a difference in faith with their conservative rulers.    In central Tamriel the dragon is truly broken. The kaal Attrebus slew the potentate and took command of the empire, but his rule was brief. The merchants and priests who had orchestrated his rise demanded repayment and a greater role for the Elder Council. When he refused their reel-ka chased him from the city and what slim authority the council retained ran out. Though a new puppet was found, her authority means nothing beyond the shores of the Imperial Uxith. Warlords are many, though two dominate. The Colovian Kvinchal leel and the Nibenese Cuptor leel. The warlord era of Cyrodiliic history was terribly destructive. The slow decay of Reman-era infrastructure under the Potentate had pushed communities into relying upon local production for food production. This had been possible in large part because the mild climate and plentiful water of the central province was well suited to grain production .But the predation of warlord armies destroyed the ample surpluses of many regions and starvation, once unheard of in Cyrodiil, wiped out as much as a third of the population in some areas. -Fortis of Skingrad    Beyond the city of Leyawiin, the Mane of Pellitine has unified the jungle cats and pacified the nomads of the great desert. But the Kingdom of Dune in the dry plains of the north defy his rule, as do the mahleel of Rimmen and Altadoon. The city state of Orcrest is nominally a vassal of the Mane, but sitting atop an impregnable plateau and commanding trade in the thtachal-thatith, they are mostly independent. So long as taxes are not late, of course.      Kronka-fek is, as ever, unchanging and ever-changing. The branches of the Camoran fek are numerous beyond measure, yet for all their jostling none can find dominance over kronka leel. The mahleel rule the half fek, half thtachal thatith which sit in the border between the cats and deek elves. Though their empire is xul, the merchant lords of southpoint retain their hold on trade in the Abecean Sea. The Tsoko Elves have yet to see fit to deal with these mahleel, but their years are numbered in hundreds and they take their time with all they do. I predict it will only be a matter of time.   If the Auriel leel does not undertake their removal I am certain a vassal will. The leel of Cloudrest, far from their vos uxith, have taken on such a project off the coast of Kronka-fek. In the islands of Rictus they now rule over the Tsoko Elves, who pay tribute in tropical bird feathers, fish and salt. It is understandable why the Auriel leel is content to allow its vassals freedom to act upon the outside world. Alinor enjoys peace and prosperity, her merchants enjoy less competition with the Cyrodilics in chaos. The young Rajni-Raj-Nassa of the islands is content to send volunteers and funds to her busy kinsmen in Balfiera. Unlike most areas of Tamriel during the interregnum, ample records exist for Alinor. Indeed the Altmer are some of the most careful and dedicated record keepers on Nirn. Unfortunately, the Summerset government strictly limits who can and cannot view said archives. Imperial historians almost never receive permission to visit the islands, let alone view records of High Elven history. The few who have received such honors have had to wait a lengthy review process and I have heard mention of at least one researcher who was granted permission a full ten years after his death. -Fortis of Skingrad       It is my displeasure to report on the vahat greel last of all. The tzilnech Kota Elves in their great houses jostle for power, as ever, for they are an ojel leel fit only for xul and ka. They lurk like thux and any sign of weakness is an invitation to their scheming. Their xal-raj, that vahat trinity, has been distant for some time, making no moves to command or control their followers. Currently the balance of power holds, though the greel Dres leel is weaker than in any previous age. They have waged ka twice in the past 50 years, each time against the kingdom of Thorn to reclaim the southern reaches of Tearmarsh. The figure of Madesi the Great, Kaj-beeko to all who seek freedom, looms large in that land. His victories against the Dres are now wutulm throughout Kronka-thatith. As readers will no doubt be able to tell, this humble archivist’s command of Jel, the Argonian language, is far from complete. I have made strides to translate what I can and believe most of this shall be legible to the average citizen. However, my lack of knowledge in terms of Argonian swear words means that this segment on Morrowind is especially incomplete, in regards to translation. Suffice it to say, the original author thought poorly of the Dark Elves.
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Feb 25, 2023 18:46
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My experience with the Elder Scrolls series is limited to fumbling around with a borrowed copy of the PS3 port of Oblivion for a day and picking up Skyrim for a few months every other year. There was also that Breton/High Rock playthrough on the CK2 version of this mod. Anyway, what I am trying to get at is that this LP feels like an excellent view into the TES universe and I really enjoy it.
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Feb 25, 2023 20:35
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Iceblocks posted:My experience with the Elder Scrolls series is limited to fumbling around with a borrowed copy of the PS3 port of Oblivion for a day and picking up Skyrim for a few months every other year. There was also that Breton/High Rock playthrough on the CK2 version of this mod. I'm really glad you are enjoying it, I am doing my best to keep it about 90% in line with the lore, only filling in gaps or making small leaps here and there. Jel, for example, only has a handful of words translated, but new compound words can be made from what is available.
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Feb 26, 2023 04:24
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 In Stormhold there are Ayleid ruins which date back to the first era. The Aedra worshiping Barsaebics fled to western Black Marsh following their defeat in the era-spanning religious wars which so weakened their foes. But the Cyrodilics were not content with wresting the heartlands from the elven grasp and the Alessian Order, in its religious fury, pursued the Ayleids to every corner of Nirn. In a war which drew in Argonian and Dunmer forces they razed Stormhold, which the Ayleids called Silyanorn, and slew most of its inhabitants. All that is left standing on the ground are a number of graceful, vaulted arches, which somehow defy gravity and the ages. But while these whitestone ghosts stand alone and empty, the constructions of the Ayleids remain relatively intact below ground. Aranesilyasel, which means “King’s Library Hall” in old Ayleidoon, sits atop and within a squat and stony hill which overlooks the city. A Hist tree long ago took root atop the exterior building, but the halls which extend below are labyrinthian and have served as a stronghold for Argonian, Dunmer and Nedic rulers ever since. In a grand chamber, lit by ancient welkynd stones, the Rajni-Raj-Kaal of Shadowfen has gathered his wisest and most influential subjects to hear their council. The civil war is ended and his power over the realm is unchallenged, now the realm turns its eye outwards, into the world. A general focus for Shadowfen must be chosen, an overall direction which shall help guide the king and his servants in the years to come.     One path forward is suggested by Suhlak of the Spear, a Kothringi warrior and tribal noble. She speaks of the few weak and disunited tribes of Kothringi and other Nedes which live to the south and argues that they should be subjugated. There also remains a single pocket of Ayleids in the south to be dealt with. Suhlak is a member of the nascent pan-nedic movement, humans of Black Marsh, mostly Kothringi currently, who hope for a united province of Nedes within the slowly centralizing Shadowfen.    Tsutvaeem of Stormhold, a sap speaker, has another idea. Central Black Marsh is home to the most conservative and insular tribes of the region. It was from here that the traitor Iaza drew coin and recruits to wage her long, destructive war against the king. If the Amber Path is to be taken seriously by the sap speakers of Black Marsh and not seen as a nascent movement to be squashed, then a policy of expansion south, towards the holy heart of Murkmire, is the best option.  [/img]   Pad-Julan is an impetuous, but skilled, young warrior in the king’s employ. He believes that to gain the respect of all Argonians the kingdom must strike north, against the hated Dunmer. It is a tall order, the houses of Hlaalu and Dres have powerful armies and deadly magics at their disposal and their governments are far more organized for war than the tribal bands of Black Marsh. But Pad-Julan insists that opportunities will present themselves, so long as the realm is ready to seize them.    Otumi-Ra the Burned is a veteran warrior and raider, a famously amoral looter who led numerous forays into eastern Shadowfen during the recent civil war. His promotion to reel-ka in service to the king is equal parts a reward for his service and a prevention of him seeking employment from a neighboring ruler. He is of the opinion that the surest way for the kingdom to prosper is to march east and unify the northern Hleel under one king. “Hleel” is the Jel word for “people”. Over a thousand years of border raids, wars, slave revolts, slave escapes and the formation of innumerable runaway villages along the border with Morrowind has led to the formation of hybrid culture. The name Hleel refers to the fact that the north of Black Marsh is culturally very mixed, deriving its customs from every part of the region. The Hleel are now divided in their allegiance, the eastern Hleel are loyal to the daughter of Madesi the Great, while most of the western Hleel are now under the rule of Rajni-Raj-Kaal Kankeeus. A focus on the east would ultimately mean war with the battle-tested armies of Thornmarsh. This is a tough prospect, but perhaps not impossible.    Tsona-Ei of the Bitter Leaf is a modest alchemist who has gained fame and honor through long decades of hard work and diligence. She favors a cautious approach and reminds those in attendance that the Amber Path is foremost an ideology of centralization and reform. Compared to the Dunmer to the north and the Cyrodiils to the west Shadowfen is still little more than a tribe squatting in Ayleid ruins. She argues that the realm must focus on internal improvements, financed through wise investments and opportunistic plundering. While not adverse to conquest when it can be done quickly and cheaply, she argues against any wars of major expansion until the realm has achieved a level of centralization comparable to its neighbors. Please choose one of the following options. A. Suhlak of the Spear is right, the Nedic men of Black Marsh shall have a new protector and lord! B. Tsutvaeem of Stormhold sees the path forward, Shadowfen shall expand into the dark heart of the marsh! C. Pad-Julan speaks truth, bold as it may be! Down with the Dunmer, strike true for liberty! D. Otumi-Ra the Burned is shrewd and his path leads us to war and unity. The Hleel, united, shall make all the world tremble! E. Tsona-Ei of the Bitter Leaf knows wisdom and speaks it now. A new Black Marsh for a new era!
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Feb 26, 2023 04:26
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E
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Feb 26, 2023 04:58
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A, because gently caress the Ayleids.
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Feb 26, 2023 05:30
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E. Best not get left behind, now.
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Feb 26, 2023 05:43
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E is probably best, leading into D if possible.
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Feb 26, 2023 05:45
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BraveLittleToaster posted:E. Best not get left behind, now.
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Feb 26, 2023 10:10
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Feb 26, 2023 10:51
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Feb 26, 2023 16:03
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E. We wish to spread our ideology, and as a wise Saxhleel once said, "the best sermon is a good example." We can incorporate more holdings once we have something worth incorporating them into, so as to not just be yet another big tribal agglomeration of provinces to be raided and seized by any greedy ambitious jackal we happen to border.
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Feb 26, 2023 16:12
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We shall Emerge as a new kind of Argonian realm.
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Feb 26, 2023 22:38
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E after decades of civil war a unified realm will be exhausted to some level. Low on funds, behind on research and infrastructure. There's not hte time to be playing whack a mole with revolts.
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Feb 27, 2023 00:51
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 The Raider Queen and the Turbulent Priest (2E 493 - 2E 516) Neeta-Meemaj had never resented her stepmother, although few would have blamed her. It was widely rumored that her own mother’s death had been a plot by her father to eliminate her so that he could marry Kud-Mere, the beautiful young tactician. He was certainly capable of it, the hleel spent his every waking hour plotting some intricate scheme and usually he was successful. In his years of rule he had seen to the ruination of his liege’s family and his own coronation as king. But these schemes had landed her here, in a fishing village along the Oliis Bay, watching fisherhleel go out and come in with nets fat with trout. Her marriage to Owai-Leem had been a political move, her father had needed the kaal’s reel-ka in his war to take the throne of Shadowfen, and she didn’t resent him for it. Few marriages among the nobility were for love and Owai-Leem was a decent enough sort, an amiable gardener more interested in his raspberry fields than statecraft. He made few demands of her, which meant that Neeta-Meemaj was consumed with ennui. She had never resented Kud-Mere, but had always found her contentment with passivity and sloth infuriating. As a girl she had been forced to beg the listless beauty to teach her the art of war, pleading with her for hours as she tried to enjoy her favorite hammock or bench in the gardens. Kud-Mere would always cave, eventually, lecturing her unwanted pupil for an hour or two before shooing her away. Neeta-Meemaj had worn down her husband in much the same way. After months of discussion he had at last relented and given her authority over Ajeek’s modest garrison. Owai-Leem’s marshall, a fat drunk with little in the way of ambitions, was content to leave her to her projects so long as he maintained his position and pay. From her desk overlooking the bay she traced the coastline on a map, noting likely coves with a quill. If she had to live in this backwater she would not do so in idleness, she would whip the town guard into shape and eradicate every pirate hideout, necromancer’s cave and vampire den up and down the coast. - - - Schiavas grunted in frustration as the lamp began to flicker, a telltale sign that the oil in the clay container was nearly gone. It was too late to get a servant to refill it, but there was much he still needed to read. The hours of the day never seemed to offer enough light for all there was to accomplish. He leaned back in his chair, the many reeds of its construction crinkling in response, and closed his cyan eyes. There was so much to do for the good of the Path and he was only one hleel. It had been simpler in the days of Suka-Tel, the great teacher. He had been a wise and pious hleel, ruling over a small tribe of forward-thinking hillfolk. His daughter had been likewise devoted to the Path and her place in it. But then came her son, Kankeeus, a hleel ruled by his appetites. His appetite for power had launched Shadowfen into a decades-long civil war, his appetite for flesh had resulted in the murder of his first wife and his appetite for, well, flesh was a widely held and scandalous rumor. A rumor that Schiavas knew to be quite true. The Rantee dynasty had fallen into degeneracy and impiety, they could no longer be trusted to lead the movement. The Amber Hist needed a leader of piety and zeal, a bold and unwavering vision for the future. The white scaled heel opened his eyes and returned to work, getting what he could from the last minutes of lamplight. It would not do to stop now, these reports from his agent in Ajeek were of immediate importance. If he was to save the movement and lead it down the right path he would need to manage the king.    A council of the foremost thinkers, sap speakers, warriors and kaals of Shadowfen was gathered in Stormhold at Aranesilyasel in 2E 493 to debate the future of the realm and the Amber Path. After days of discussion the reformist faction, headed by Tsona-Ei of the Bitter Leaf, came to dominate the debate. After long years of strife the realm needed time to heal, not further bloodshed. Development, reform and centralization were the waters which would nurture the Amber Hist. Rajni-Raj-Kaal Kankeeus concurred, though neither he nor his talented wife were of much use in realm management. Many of the programs undertaken in this new direction were supervised by Nassa Beekaw of Alten Corimont, a skilled planner known for infrequent bouts of madness.    She may have been under one such spell when she agreed to sell salvage rights to Bosmeri treasure hunter who requested access to a ruined xanmeer east of Stormhold. The “archaeologist” soon returned with reports of mummified hleel, animated by some ancient curse. Unfortunately the plunderer also reported this to the patrons of a roadside inn and a vile necromancer took up residence before the ruin could be resealed.   The Rajni-Raj-Kaal failed to recognize the danger this sorcerer posed, believing that the xanmeer possessed only a few dozen bodies which the necromancer Dakee-Hahtsei could make use of. The issue was handed over to the realm’s head sap singer, an ambitious hleel whose bright white scales and striking cyan eyes made him stand out when he lectured in the Stormhold market square. Kankeeus was more focused on his planned campaign against the remaining Ayleids in the narrow valley of Arlis. The reformists demanded investments in drainage, canals and agriculture, all of which required drakes. The elves were flush with money and a nuisance regardless.   But only days after his declaration of war against the elves the Rajni-Raj-Kaal received word that an undead horde numbering in the thousands was ravaging the countryside around Stormhold. Dakee-Hahtsei had apparently found quite the intricate series of tombs, well stocked with pre-Duskfall mummies. To make matters worse, the Ayleids soon hired a sizable force of mercenaries to hold the narrow pass into their valley.   Rather than assault the fortified position and likely lose his army, Kankeeus’ marshal left the Veki Bloodscales to drain the elves of their meager supplies and funds and turned north. Battle with the necromancer’s army was joined in late Dooka, as the sorcerer was preparing to besiege Stormhold. The number of corpses the lich Dakee-Hahtsei had been able to scrape together had been a surprise, but in battle they performed about as well as a shambling mass of dry bones and tanned flesh might be expected to. The undead were put to rest and Dakee-Hahtsei executed for his crimes against nature.   The Ayleids, meanwhile, were struggling to control their sellswords. The Veki Bloodscales were restless without battles to fight, as many of the hleel relied upon plunder to make up a portion of their pay. As such bands of mercenaries frequently snuck away from their camp near the valley entrance to enjoy the “hospitality” of the locals. Countless farmsteads up and down the valley were imposed upon, with those who refused being murdered and their homes burned to the ground. To avoid further incidents the Arlissian commander abandoned his fortified position and engaged in raiding southern Shadowfen, lands which had previously belonged to the Ayleids. When the forces of Shadowfen returned the mer and their hired swords were caught in an open plain, far from their fortified positions near the Arlis Valley. A slaughter ensued, with the surviving Arlissian forces retreating back to their valley. The Shadowfen forces pursued and the last of the elven military were slaughtered in Hist-Deek of 497. After a minor siege the Ayleid nobility surrendered and the last independent hold of the Barsaebic Ayleids was snuffed out.     2E 497 brought both victory and sorrow. Kud-Mere, the beloved wife of the Rajni-Raj-Kaal and a devoted servant of the realm, passed away at the age of 61. A month of mourning was declared in Stormhold and a place of honor in the Crescent Garden was chosen for her xul-vaat. Kankeeus declared that he would never love another, but the demands of the state were such that he could not go without a spouse for long. Witseidutsei Teocal was not chosen for her beauty, personality or the prestige of her house. The Hapsleet hleel was picked by Kankeeus because of her talent for statecraft and in the remaining years of his reign she was instrumental in overseeing the reforms demanded by the dominant faction in the kingdom. She also did much to turn the Crescent Garden of Stormhold into a site of beauty and reflection. She had paths of black dacite laid out for meditants to walk and old, rotten xul-vaats were encased in stone columns, so that visitors could be inspired by martyrs and wise teachers from the past. Her work in this capacity earned her the sobriquet “the gardener”.    Despite the advanced age of both husband and wife, the pair also produced a single son. In 2E 500, to the surprise of the realm, Rajni-Raj-Nassa Witseidutsei laid an egg, which hatched in due course. It was a joyous event for the Rantee dynasty, in a year which would prove very difficult. Agents in the employ of an unknown figure in the court of Stormhold revealed evidence proving that Kankeeus’ heir Neeta-Meemaj had engaged in sexual relations with her brother, Ah-Malz, for several years prior to her marriage to the kaal of Ajeek. Worse, the deceased Owai-Leem was widely believed to not have been the father of his heir Ahaht-Ei. The child was almost certainly the product of illicit incest. The accusation rocked the court of Stormhold and the now-widowed Neeta-Meemaj was recalled from Ajeek to meet with her father. Despite calls from many sap speakers in the realm he did not disinherit his eldest daughter, but she was thereafter forbidden from leaving the castle grounds.   Rajni Kankeeus was able to defy the sap speakers and the religious faction in large part because of his widespread support among the reformist faction. His efforts to reclaim land for saltrice fields throughout Shadowfen began to show real results in the early 500’s, allowing Stormhold to support both a larger population and garrison. This growing military force required a larger bureaucracy and Neeta-Meemaj, though still under the watchful eyes of her minders, was allowed to offer her considerable expertise in service to the realm.   The first test for Shadowfen’s expanded military was intended to be a short war with the kaal of Alten Tormont. The reclusive Kaal Jesh-Minko had, for reasons still not clear to historians, publicly converted to the Tribunal faith of the Dunmer. To Rajni Kankeeus he appeared to be an easy target and one which would earn him some favor with the religious faction.  But this was not to be. Having steered a fledgling ideological movement through uncertain years of strife and having come out the other side a powerful rajni, Yankees Rantee passed away at age 61. The ornate pillar erected to protect his xul-vaat in the Crescent Garden of Stormhold became a site of pilgrimage for the faithful. Its inscriptions recounted the bravery and wisdom of the mighty king, who avenged his mother’s deposal and shepherded the children of the Amber Path into the future. His cannibalism and assassination campaigns, however, were not recorded. Memory, like the wood of a xul-vaat, softens and fades with time and the hard edges are the first to go.   Shadowfen passed into the hands of Rajni-Raj-Nassa Neeta-Meemaj. The eldest daughter of Kankeeus and his first wife, Neeta-Meemaj was educated in the arts of war by her father’s second wife Kud-Mere. This was undoubtedly an awkward situation, as her father’s court buzzed with rumors that he had murdered Neeta-Meemaj’s mother so that he could marry the lustrous Kud-Mere.Still, by all accounts she respected her guardian and profited from the education. In Ajeek she had used her great talent in the martial arts to reorganize her husband's coastal patrol reel-ka into a formidable force. The eastern coast of Oliis Bay was cleared of pirate bases thanks to her work as a young hleel. At age 40 her skills were only sharper and would have served the realm well in the war she had inherited from her father. But Neeta-Meemaj was unable to lead from the front for some months, as she was expecting an egg.    Her leadership proved unnecessary, however. The miniscule army of Alten Tormont was supplemented by a sizable force of Dunmer mercenaries at the start of the war. The mercenaries thereafter hijacked the army and took it on a raiding campaign of northeastern Black Marsh. Meanwhile, Shadowfen forces besieged the tribal hold of Jesh-Minko. The kaal, who was a prisoner in all but name to the mercenary army he had hired, had to make extraordinary promises to the Dunmer to convince them to march west and lift the siege. When the few hundred Argonians and two thousand Dunmer warriors reached Alten Tormont, they found it garrisoned by the Shadowfen army and well prepared for a siege. Without his hold Jesh-Minko could not hope to make good on any of the promises he had made to the sellsword captain. Rather than risk their lives in battle against a well-entrenched enemy of superior size the Dunmer took the loot they had gathered, along with everything in Jesh-Minko’s baggage train, and returned to Morrowind. The war ended without a battle. Note: No really, the county fell a few days before there would’ve been a battle and it gave me 100% warscore.    In Thitithil of 504 Neeta-Meemaj’s egg hatched. The hatchling was noted as being very healthy, but more importantly he was conceived after the rajni’s return from Ajeek, placing the infant above suspicion of being the product of incest. The rajni’s first son and heir, Bimee-Kas, was not so fortunate. A likely product of a shameful coupling and culturally a Hapsleet, he had few friends or allies in the court. Following a prolonged campaign by Sap Speaker Schiavas and the religious faction, Bimee-Kas was convinced to renounce his birthright, citing his desire to enter the clergy. Despite her control of the realm’s armed forces, Neeta-Meemaj found herself limited in her influence over the court in Stormhold.    The high sap speaker Schiavas was at the height of his power and influence in the early years of Neeta-Meemaj’s rule. Without the support among the reformists her father had enjoyed, she was forced to placate the priest and his faction.    But even the most sordid of pasts can be buried with enough gold and glory. Beginning in 2E 508 Neeta-Meemaj began a long and wildly successful series of raiding campaigns throughout northern and central Black Marsh. The plundered wealth from these campaigns was invested into development of Stormhold and the surrounding lands. This, along with sumptuous feasts and sizable gifts, endeared her to her father’s old allies among the reformists. Note: The raider focus tree can be a great way of making tons of gold, piety and prestige in the early game.   Resistance among the religious faction within Stormhold eventually coalesced into a campaign against Neeta-Meemaj’s heir Vureiem. This eldest daughter was, like her older brother Bimee-Kas, likely a product of incest and a bastard as well. To make matters worse, she had no talent for statecraft and had adopted the social and ideological culture of Ajeek, where she had been born and raised. After a few years of pressure the Rajni caved and disinherited her daughter in favor of her second son Schiavas. Schiavas was almost the polar opposite of his mother. Born in the month of Hist-Dooka, he had never been one for conflict or the counting of coins. From an early age the serene boy had been singularly devoted to studying and understanding the ways of the Hist. His passions were well known and respected by the priestly faction and the fact that the Hist had named him Schiavas, like the head priest, likely helped as well.    With the endorsement of the realm’s sap speakers, Neeta-Meemaj continued to engage in lightning raids throughout Black Marsh. These funds were poured into developing Stormhold, including the construction of a proper shrine at Crescent Garden. There pilgrims could come to pay tribute to the martyrs and heroes of the movement.    Not all of these pilgrims returned home. Some were drawn to a life of service to the Path. Derkeethus Olinaru was granted the township of Nielsol as a headquarters for The Fists of the Amber Path, a martial organization for reel-ka devoted to the Path.    Resistance to the rajni’s rule among the tribal kaal’s and nassa’s, who resented attempts by the reform faction to limit their privileges and install an autocracy. One leading member of this group was Nassa Hidja of Hajta-Mehthux, who was well known for her vicious rages. At a feast hosted in Stormhold by Neeta-Meemaj in 515 she slit the throat of Rajni-Raj-Kaal Gin-Rajul, slaying her sovereign's husband before a crowd of horrified vassals. The inciting incident was a comment made in jest by the king pertaining to some new tax on salt, apparently. The murderer was immediately arrested and had her titles stripped from her.     This was the end of all real opposition to the ongoing reform program. At her wedding the following year the assembled tribal vassals were not allowed to wear their ceremonial daggers or tusiks. When their Rajni stood before them and proclaimed that a new era was dawning for Shadowfen she invited any who opposed her plans to step forward and speak their mind. None did. Note: I had no idea this event existed. Had I known it could pop up during a feast I would’ve been doing feasts every year, rather than spending all my time on development. Oh well, saved me maybe 20 years waiting for a high enough crown authority to trigger it manually.  Five hundred and sixteen years had passed since the signing of the Cervant Truce, which ceded all of Tearmarsh to the Dunmer. In all those years of raids, wars, uprisings and struggles the Saxhleel had always remained a collection of disparate tribes. Time and again these tribes came together for short-term gain against their enemy, only to fall apart like ocean waves against stone cliffs. But the Amber Path was a new and energetic movement which saw a new path forward. It would be a path dyed in blood and none was more equipped to walk it than the raider queen of Stormhold. Clayren fucked around with this message at 16:01 on Mar 11, 2023 |
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Mar 11, 2023 15:56
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I also had no idea that event existed, but that's because I haven't played CK3 all that much and never got around to playing a tribal government.
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Mar 12, 2023 11:39
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drat, that's an incredibly lucky event roll. When I did a Black Marsh play through, I had to diddle around forever to finally swap over. But yes, great update as usual! Your writing is great at making this feel strange as anything set in Black Marsh would, and with so relatively little to go on lore-wise.
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Mar 13, 2023 07:10
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Iceblocks posted:I also had no idea that event existed, but that's because I haven't played CK3 all that much and never got around to playing a tribal government. I don't think that's a CK3 vanilla event. I've poured way too many hours into that game and I've never seen it.
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Mar 14, 2023 07:00
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 The Conqueror and Fate’s Cruel Design (2E 516 - 2E 541) The 6th Century in Argonia is often referred to as the Age of Autocracy, which is only partly true. While autocratic government forms were present in some cases, namely Shadowfen, Ambermarsh and Soulrest, most states remained thoroughly tribal. Historians of the period have often erred in assuming that large, stable states with a degree of centralization were automatically autocracies. But states such as Lilmoth, Thornmarsh and Zainat lacked formal structures to regulate relations between monarchs and vassals. Tax and levy duties were negotiated on a yearly basis and subject to change based on the perceived strength of the monarch and the likelihood of inter-state conflict in the upcoming year. This is a markedly different situation than what we find in Shadowfen, where even tribal subjects had fixed tax and levy contracts with their liege. A surviving account from the Kothringi tribe of Sul records that the tribe was to provide: In Xeech by day 20th of thee least, any and all shall be broughte to the docks at Stormhold barring these circumstances: I.It shall be a tyme of war and, travel not being safe from enemie plunder, thee taxes shall be stored until such tyme as the lanes made safe II.It shall be a tyme of pestilence and the mahleel, beeing our poor brothers and susceptible to malady, cannot safely travel, thee taxes shall be stored until such tyme as the malady hast passed III.Some unforetold tragedy hast befallen and there is hunger or shortage, and thee elder has made notice of this by at least Vakka thee 21st, then all duties may be held until thee Rajni-Raj hast rendered verdict These stores as owed are as followes: Three hundred and thirty bushels of saltrice, their weight not to be less than 45 pounde each Two hundred and ten bushels of rice, their weight not to be less than 40 pounde each Fifty and three fully grown mule slugs living, if this being a season of malady for livestock then acceptable provisions may be made, these being I.Thirty pounde of slug meat, salted or smoked, and 2 gallon slug acid for one live mule slug II.Ten and Five bushels saltrice for one live mule slug III.Ten and Eight bushels rice for one living mule slug Ten barrels Theilul While this document is fragmentary, the references to numerous caveats and procedures for notifying the crown of a delay in payment implies that this was a contract negotiated and re-negotiated several times. That the results of these negotiations were codified means that the state functioned on some level of bureaucracy beyond just relationships between rulers.  By the early 5th century of the Second Era the former imperial province of Argonia had undergone significant political and social change. Even in the Reman Golden Age the actual level of control the Cyrodiils had over the region had never extended far beyond the major coastal garrisons in Soulrest, Lilmoth and Archon. During the long decline under the Potentate this control dwindled to nearly nothing and the provincial governor in Lilmoth faced frequent rebellions. After the complete collapse of imperial authority the Lilmothiit reclaimed Lilmoth and established a unified kingdom under the Dyaan dynasty.  During the long years of the Potentate War the Tharn dynasty which ruled Leyawiin began construction on a series of bridges and port facilities. By the end of Attrebus Sosildor’s short rule they were complete. Unlike the old swinging bridges, which had long allowed for ocean-going vessels to sail up the Niben and trade with Bravil and the Imperial City, these were fixed stone. The Tharns laid claim to all trade between the Topal Bay and central Cyrodiil, cementing Leyawiin’s influence and power in the Trans-Niben for centuries. One of the earliest states to fall under Leyawiin’s influence was the Yespest tribal confederation. By 2E 500 the Kingdom of Soulrest was a fully autocratic state in the mold of Leyawiin.  While coastal and border regions of Black Marsh centralized in the face of external pressures, Inner Argonia and the Padomaic Coast remained mired in tribal warfare and isolationism. In Murkwood, the bastion of conservative Hist thought, the failure of the Clutch of Nisswo to contain the Amber Path ideology had undermined the authority of that body. Heretical thought ran rampant and the lords of Murkwood, in their desperation, accepted aid from reactionary ideologues in suppressing nascent groups inspired by the Amber Path. These extremists varied widely in their beliefs, but many held revisionist views of pre-Duskfall Argonia. Since the Day of Reunion, when Jaraleet the Mender reconnected the Saxhleel with the Hist, the orthodox view had been that pre-Duskfall Argonia had been spiritually bankrupt. An advanced civilization which obsessed itself with death and the past, whose people lived in constant fear and toil. But heretical Nisswo cults argued that a return to the “elden ways” would lead to the restoration of Raj-kronka-thatith, a mostly mythical idea of a “Greater Argonia” encompassing the Trans-Niben, Tearmarsh and the Deshaan Plains. What the Hist thought of these developments is unknown to historians, but there is evidence that the trees were capable of disagreeing amongst themselves. As such, it is reasonable to think that at least one approved of and assisted in this movement.  The return of Ixtaxh-thtithil-meht thought to Black Marsh was a strange and alarming development to many Saxhleel. So too was the growing power of the Zainat tribe of Catemiric Dunmer. The Catemiric Sect had been present in Black Marsh for a long time, having fled Morrowind when the Great Houses abandoned the teachings of the Prophet Veloth. A clannish and esoteric people, the Catemiri belief system was confusing to both Saxhleel and their fellow Dunmer in Morrowind. They believed in the pursuit of the Psijic Endeavor as taught by Veloth and furthermore that the Hist were beings which had succeeded in this pursuit, yet remained behind to teach others the path to True Freedom. This meant that the Catemiri venerated the Hist, practicing their own rituals which were wildly different from those of the Saxhleel and even ingesting Hist sap, which is often unpredictable, if not deadly, to non-Argonians. During the Fifth Century of the Second Era these tribes formed a confederation which increasingly absorbed and intermarried with the Nedes of the Padomaic coast. By 2E 500 the Zainat were a major power in Black Marsh.  Thornmarsh was the creation of a singular figure. Madesi the Great was one of those rare figures in history who was irreplaceable, a military and political genius who liberated Thornmarsh from House Dres and went on to unify much of northeastern Black Marsh under a single king. His rule was long and illustrious, but the centrifugal tendencies of tribal states meant that Thornmarsh weakened with every new ruler. Thornmarsh was fortunate to have a string of mostly competent rulers following Madesi, but constant wars with Dres and slave raids along the coast by the Padomaic Slaver Guild drained the wealth and governing capacity of the realm during this period. By the dawn of the 6th Century the heirs of Madesi were struggling to preserve Thornmarsh in the face of internal rebellions and external invasions.    Shadowfen under the rule of Neeta-Meemaj was in a process of rapid reform during the 6th Century. The literal and symbolic seat of power in the realm was the Throne of Silver Friendship, a throne built by artisans under the direction of Rajni-raj-kaal Tikaasi for his wife. A squat, lilypad shape, as was common of Saxhleel chairs during the interregnum, the throne frame was fashioned from deeply golden yew wood with carved inlays. Deep black ebonthread was used to cushion the seat and back. Silver thread was used on the back cushion to depict a scene of a Saxhleel rajni grasping the arm of a Kothringi chieftain in a gesture of honor and friendship. This scene was both a depiction of Neeta-Meemaj’s friendship with her vassal Kaal Vlillilik of Sul and a recognition of the important role the Kothringi played in the growing kingdom. Even as more and more Saxhleel tribes fell under the crown’s control, the Kothringi continued to enjoy positions in the court of Stormhold, often as court wizards or battlemages. Like other Nedic cultures in the Topal Bay, the Kothringi had a long tradition of using magic in war, dating back to the 1st Era wars with the Ayleids. The use of magic in combat was not unknown to the Saxhleel, but its application on a strategic level was mostly absent.    Dunmer sellmages were also frequently employed in times of war, such as when Neeta-Meemaj hired the Ruhn Morasi band in her war to reclaim portions of Alten Tormont which had passed out of her realm. Ruhn Morasi was a Catemiric Dunmer from Zainat, as were most of his warriors, though he employed a sizable minority of Nedes. But although the use of Dunmer hirelings was not unknown, their presence in the court was rare. Frequent border conflicts with houses Hlaalu and Dres meant that even the most liberal Saxhleel were distrustful of Dark Elves.    Neeta-Meemaj’s rulership was increasingly warlike from the 520’s onward. While the infamous plunderer had engaged in innumerable raids against her neighbors previously, she increasingly had her eye set on territorial expansion. A number of factors may have influenced this. Her decision to name Schiavas Rantee as her heir, as well as her military exploits and the funds she had put forward towards reforming the kingdom’s political and economic structure, had effectively nullified all major political factions within the court. Militant, reformist and spiritual-minded figures were all either supporters or in such a minority that they had to claim they were. With domestic affairs tidied up, the Rajni likely felt more secure in being away on campaign for years at a time. Thornmarsh, the largest and most likely threat to Shadowfen, was experiencing an extended period of internal and external conflict. Civil wars and border skirmishes with House Dres meant that the kingdom was unable to check Shadowfen’s expansion. This would ultimately have dire consequences for House Toteikhleel. But for other minor tribes in the region the choice was increasingly between annexation or recognition of Rantee hegemony.    War in the interregnum was not simply a matter of foreign affairs. The Imperial legion had effectively dissolved with the collapse of the Potentate and with it, the professional, meritocratic notions of the Cyrodiilic worldview. Reel-ka in Black Marsh were made up of vassals and noble-born warriors. The potential for loot and prestige meant that vassals generally expected or even demanded positions in command. The downside of this was that not all powerful vassals made for good commanders. But for Neeta-Meemaj it also meant that she spent many years campaigning with her vassals, leading them to one victory after another. This bought her a level of loyalty, which made further reforms to the government easier.      In 2E 516 House Dres found itself embroiled in a long conflict with House Hlaalu. A grand magnate of Dres’ son had married a daughter of Hlaalu several decades previously and a number of holy relics and enchanted items had passed to the husband when she died in childbirth. Accusations were made by Hlaalu that the death had been orchestrated by House Dres and the return of these items was demanded. The actual value of the items and the cause of the woman’s death are debated by historians, the general consensus is that the cause of war was economical, more than anything. Hlaalu had recently expanded into northeastern Cyrodiil, conquering a stretch of forest beyond the Valus Mountains. Lumber-bearing forests are fairly rare in Morrowind, with fungal forests predominating. Mixed tree and fungus forests existed in the rough terrain of Valus, but the ruggedness of the mountains make lumber operations unprofitable most of the time. Tearmarsh, however, was thick with trees which could easily be transported via waterways. House Dres therefore had a near monopoly on lumber, although this was not as lucrative as it might seem. The Dunmer have many alternatives to wood for the construction of buildings, ships and tools. But there are some uses for which wood is essential or preferable. It is probable that House Hlaalu was using the war to disrupt the business of Dres lumber merchants. While the fighting of the war raged through Deshaan and Tearmarsh, Hlaalu ports along the Inner Sea coast were never cut off from forestry operations in Cyrodiil. This war had been going on for 8 years by 2E 524, draining the levies of Tearmarsh and leaving the wealth of House Dres dangerously unprotected. A successful raid could bring prestige and respect to a leader, but among the Hleel nothing brought more respect than victory against the hated Dres. When Neeta-Meemaj led her forces on a grand plundering campaign, she cemented her reputation as a monarch of true worth. Not that prestige alone was the rajni’s reward. The Padomaic coastline of Tearmarsh was ripe for plunder and Neeta-Meemaj took home many valuable relics and hostages. Had the war with Hlaalu not ended and the full might of Dres returned she might well have looted Tear itself.    This external focus meant that the rajni was somewhat blind to the politics of her own court. While his mother was away raiding, Schiavas Rantee was able to work with his youngest brother Keem-Ja to convince the court that Daixth Rantee was an illegitimate child. Despite her accomplishments, Neeta-Meemaj’s affair with her brother at an early age meant that the heritage of her eldest children were all suspect. By the time she returned to Stormhold the court was in agreement; Daixth had no rightful claim to any inheritance. The rajni might have pushed back against these calls for his disinheritance, but her thoughts were seemingly only of war. Schiavas and Keem-Ja had their way and became the only heirs to the realm.    While Shadowfen grew in wealth and military power, the third decade of the fifth century drew to a close with Thornmarsh at its nadir. In 2E 529 Rajni-raj-nassa Neeta-Meemaj declared a war for the lands of Thornmarsh and called upon her son, the new ruler of Ajeek, to aid her in the conflict. She gave a speech, the contents of which were disseminated throughout northern Black Marsh, in which she accused members of House Toteikhleel of receiving bribes from the Padomaic Slave Guild. These claims have been analyzed in the years since and are considered flimsy by most. But the raider rajni had the prestige to make such claims and the army to back them up.   As she organized her army in Stormhold, Neeta-Meemaj purchased the services of the Deathwart’s Pond Warband, a company of Kothringi war mages and Saxhleel spearmen. Their leader, Captain Chirah, would later be hired by the rajni to oversee the training of the realm’s first unit of professional battlemages.   A Thornmarsh army was sent rapidly south, in hopes that Neeta-Meemaj would be forced to either march out of Stormhold with her forces only partially gathered or stay put and let the enemy forces plunder southern Shadowfen for gold that Rajni-raj-kaal Neetzara desperately needed. Unfortunately for the 2,000 souls in the Thornmarsh army, the raider queen was an expert at organizing campaigns and she was able to bring the full force of her realm down upon them at Xal Thak. The battle was a slaughter, with only 4 hleel managing to escape. It was an auspicious start to the war for Shadowfen.   In 530 the Zainat Dunmer joined the war, surging across Thornmarsh’s southern border to seize the region of Seafalls.   Thornmarsh struggled to mount a defense against both enemies. The appearance of a force of undead led by a lich in Shadowfen granted Neetzara a brief reprieve, as Neeta-Meemaj was forced to march back west and put the necromancer down.     But Neetzara’s longshot hope of besieging Stormhold while she was busy with the lich came to naught. In 534 the Shadowfen army caught up to Neetzara while his army was desperately trying to pack up its camp. Despite having half as many soldiers the Toteikhleel lord was able to retreat with only minor losses. Neeta-Meemaj pursued, forcing a battle at Stillrise the following year. The exhausted Thornmarsh army was battered by kagouti riders turning Neetzara’s left flank, but he once again managed to retreat in good order. But the pursuit kept his army always on the move, with almost no chances for resupply. Neetzara was forced to try and escape back to Thornmarsh, where he at least had hope of reinforcement. The crossing near Alten Tormont slowed him down just enough for Shadowfen forces to catch up. The third and final battle of the campaign was a disaster for Neetzara, his undersupplied skirmishers lost the initial phase of combat when they ran out of ammo. Pelted with arrows and fireballs, the Toteikhleel light infantry were forced to go on the offensive to avoid further casualties. As they charged they activated runes of cold energy laid by Kothringi battlemages the night before. Though capable of acclimation, Saxhleel are cold-blooded and such sudden temperature changes make them lethargic and confused. The charge became a stumble and the Rantee force counter-charged. The Thornmarsh army was slaughtered to a hleel, only the rajni escaped thanks to his loyal bodyguard.   Neetzara’s escape meant that Neeta-Meemaj was forced to spend another year besieging his capital of Marr to bring the war to a close. Thornmarsh, now missing sizable tracts of territory from rebellions and invasions, became Neeta-Meemaj’s.   The Hleel culture has a long and storied history in Black Marsh. The descendants of runaways, rebels and raiders, their proximity to Morrowind bred in them a strong dedication to the Hist and a talent for asymmetrical warfare. Never before had the north been united under one sovereign, though Madesi the Great had come close. With her new lands in the east united with the Amber Path homeland in the west, Neeta-Meemaj declared 2E 536 to be the dawn of a new era in northern Black Marsh. Shadowfen and Thornmarsh, old names for a bygone period, were discarded. The north would henceforth be known as Ambermarsh.      There was pushback, as Neeta-Meemaj undoubtedly knew there would be. Tribal hleel were angry about increased taxes and the loss of privileges they had enjoyed under decentralized government structures. Conservative hleel rejected the imposition of an Amber Path monarch. Much of the rajni’s 70’s were spent on the back of a kagouti, putting down small rebellions and conspiracies. But even as indomitable a figure as she could not hope to live forever.   In her late 70’s and nearing the end of her life. Neeta-Meemaj began preparing for the transition of power to her heir Schiavas. Further reforms to the inheritance laws of the kingdom were introduced and peaceful relations were established with the realm’s new neighbors in Zainat.    But the ways of fate are mysterious and the well laid plans of mortals carry little weight on the course of the future. On a warm day in Dooka of 540 the prince was traveling back to Stormhold from Sul, where he had attended the wedding feast of a Kothringi noble. The pilot of his ship misjudged the depth of the water on a turn in the river’s course, crashing the hull against a line of sturdy mangrove trees which split the ship nearly in half. The pilot fled, which was to his advantage as the river bank was a breeding ground for wamasus . The monsters electrocuted the prince and his guards as they tried to leave the wreckage, a retrieval party sent later found only blackened bones. The pilot himself turned up dead in a back alley of Stormhold, apparently killed by a mugger. With him died any apparent hope to uncover the truth, but rumors of assassination spread quickly. In his rise to the position of heir Schiavas had orchestrated the disinheritance of most of his siblings. One of them might well have orchestrated his death out of revenge. His sole inheriting sibling, Keem-Ja, might also have done it, fearing that Schiavas would see him disinherited as well. Schiavas was also widely known for his dedication to the Amber Way, a great many traditional Hist nobles had become vassals after Neeta-Meemaj conquered Thornmarsh and any one of them might have desired that he not become their next ruler. Neeta-Meemaj was devastated, all of her work undone. Her already flagging health took a turn for the worse and in less than a year's time she had passed. The great conqueror, unifier of the Hleel, returned to the Hist a defeated woman. Her grandson, the lone heir of Schiavas Rantee, took the throne at the young age of 26.
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Mar 19, 2023 00:57
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Gotta say, I like the cut of these Zainat guys' jib. Yes I know they're Dunmer, but ethno-nationalism is stupid anyway. Besides, it's probably a good idea for us to have cordial relations with our southern neighbors in the future. Dres and Hlaalu to the North are gonna be spooked by a unified Ambermarsh and will be looking to tear it down by any means they can, we don't need enemies on two fronts.
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Mar 19, 2023 01:35
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I knew Elder Scrolls lore was a yawning abyss, but I remain fascinated by all the stuff in here. I also want to echo the catious appreciation for these Zainat guys. Hope they can be vassalized instead of purged.
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Mar 19, 2023 10:36
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Iceblocks posted:I knew Elder Scrolls lore was a yawning abyss, but I remain fascinated by all the stuff in here. Asterite34 posted:Gotta say, I like the cut of these Zainat guys' jib. Yes I know they're Dunmer, but ethno-nationalism is stupid anyway. ABCD Always Be Cilling Dunmer
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Mar 19, 2023 15:47
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Livewire42 posted:ABCD Oh we'll have plenty of opportunities for that in the future, I'm quite confident. But have you considered the possibility of killing Dunmer with... other Dunmer?
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Mar 19, 2023 16:25
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 Much has changed in Stormhold since Kankeeus Rantee took the city and made it his capital. Fifty years ago the city streets were bare mud criss-crossed with cart tracks and the rivers were crossed via scant pontoon bridges which were washed away every Spring. The buildings were a mixture of hide tents and thatched mud huts, which contrasted markedly with the elegant Ayleid arches of the ruins of Silyanorn. Now the major avenues are laid out in gravel and sturdy stone bridges cross rivers and streams. Buildings are made from a mixture of wood and stone, not the ostentatious white-gray stone which the Ayleids imported from Alabaster, but the gray-brown granite native to Shadowfen. Aranesilyasel overlooks the growing city from atop its perch and on days when the waters are clear pilgrims visiting the Crescent Garden can see the tower reflected in the waters below. The keep now extends above ground as much as does below, the original Ayleid walls on the bottom level have been reinforced with granite sections which are decorated in the modern fashion. Stone carving has long been an extinct art among the Saxhleel, but there is a growing number of artists who specialize in the medium. These carved panels are painted in vibrant reds, blues and greens, as are those on the higher levels. The five-story tower slopes up steeply, ending in a broad platform at the top from which a dozen archers keep watch over the city. Throughout the steep granite pyramid there are square holes from which the branches of a Hist tree extend into the sunlight. Near the top of this structure the tribal chiefs, settled counts and sap speakers of the realm have gathered. The new rajni-raj-kaal is a young hleel, only 26 years old and unmarried. It was not expected that he would rule for at least another decade, but the sudden assassination of his father, Schiavas, has thrust Kepanuu onto the throne. His grandmother, Neeta-Meemaj, was able to unify the various factions of the realm behind her and ruled by might. But Kepanuu has no such basis in the court of Stormhold and cannot hope to rule by dictate. He shall have to listen to his vassals and councilors as he outlines his vision for Ambermarsh.   There are many places in Black Marsh where those who subscribe to the Amber Path are made to feel unwelcome. The sap speaker’s of the Path preach patience and seek to convince nobles to be tolerant. Priests are hleel of peace, after all. But there are organizations with murky links to the priesthood who use less peaceful means in protecting the faithful. Vureiem of Thorn is one such agent and she brings a warning for her rajni. The lands of northern Thornmarsh which Neeta-Meemaj conquered are predominantly traditionalist, as are the nobles. If major work is not undertaken to root out sedition and convert lords to the Path, she predicts a decade of rebellions and plots. Vureiem proposes a major investment in diplomatic and… other missions to ensure the stability of the realm.    Peek-Tul is in a similar line of work as Vureiem, although he works directly for the crown. He argues that the time to prepare for an inevitable conflict with House Dres is now. Though the Dunmer military is too great for an immediate conflict, the groundwork can begin while we await the right opportunity to strike. A few well placed daggers can do wonders at softening an enemy up well before war is declared. In the meantime the realm might also target one of Dres’ most handy pawns, the slaver’s guild.     Gatulm Ironside is a veteran who fought at Rajni-Raj-Nassa Neeta-Meemaj’s side for several decades. Pointing at two spots on a map of Black marsh, he declares that the conquest of Thornmarsh is only half finished. Much of the south is in Dunmer hands and the city of Thorn itself was seized during the war a decade ago by a minor noble house. The Cantemiric Dunmer hold fast to the original teachings of Saint Veloth, having left Morrowind around the time of the formation of the great houses. Their ways are strange, but less odious than those of Morrowind. Gatulm offers no opinion on what should be done with them, should southern Thornmarsh be retaken. He suggests that it is a decision to be made later, after the deed is done.    Maheelius Caeglus, the refugee from Murkwood, brings dire news from the heart of Black Marsh. The Ixtaxh-thtithil-meht faith has come to dominate the central part of the province. Nisswo raj’s have rebuilt the xanmeer of their ancestors and engage in raids to seize captives for their blood sacrifices, meant to appease the hunger of the Egg-Cracker. Maheelius himself, despite being of noble blood, was chosen for just such a ceremony, but he fled to the court of Stormhold. He is a competent commander and logistician and was well liked by Neeta-Meemaj in her final years. The exiled noble has a proposal for the court. Up to now the Amber Path and House Rantee have been focused on the north. But the need for action in central Black Marsh is dire, Maheelius calls for a war to liberate Murkwood and cast the Nisswo back to the dustpan of history where they belong.    Fara of Leyawiin was one of a number of Bosmeri merchants who lived in Leyawiin. These shrewd traders walk a careful tightrope between faith and profit. Fara got her start exporting medicinal herbs and garments of cotton and linen from Cyrodiil to Valenwood. That these items were grown outside of the wood and harvested, processed and handled every step of the way by non-Bosmer meant she was just technically operating within the rules of the Green Pact. In recent decades she has operated out of Stormhold, where she does a profitable business shipping finished wood products to Southpoint. She has assisted the crown previously in efforts to support the development of new industries and more productive use of marginal land. Fara argues that the realms resources should be focused on further development, noting that all other proposals will require sizeable investments of coin. Please choose one of the following options. A. Vureiem of Thorn is wise to see the enemy within. Before anything else is done, these dissident elements must be persuaded, bought off or otherwise dealt with. B. Peek-Tul’s vision is far-seeing and clear. Our enemy is, was and shall ever be House Dres. Until Tear is taken and the millenia of slavery infrastructure which surrounds the city is heaped upon the pyre, there is no peace. We shall begin a clandestine war in preparation of a future conflict. C. Gatulm Ironside is a veteran whose advice we shall heed. All of Thornmarsh must be pacified. D. Maheelius Caeglus, the exiled prince, shal lead our forces to Murkwood. The reactionaries must be put down and the Amber Path taken to the heart of Black Marsh. E. Fara of Leyawiin speaks a truth more solid than glory, revenge or law. Gold is the axle upon which the wheel turns, we must make Ambermarsh the economic heart of the province, then all else will be possible.
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Mar 20, 2023 20:11
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Expansion should be followed by consolidation of new holdings. Turning our attention to either House Dres to the north OR Murkwood to the south means that our enemies can find willing allies in dissatisfied elements within our border who will turn into a dagger in our back. The enemies of Black Marsh have long taken advantage of internecine conflict to weaken their prey, and at the moment there are a number of people who would seek to reclaim their former glory and bring us low even if it meant serving a far more odious master. I vote A, we must pacify potential destabilizing elements, gain a sturdy foundation on which to stand before we turn our strength elsewhere.
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Mar 20, 2023 20:58
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Going with A Too many times has expansion faltered due to itnernal rebellion, or weakness that leads the enemy to attack while the armies are away. Our own house needs put in orders, perhaps infrastructure done. If we are attacked then we'll win. Otherwise, we'll be in a much better place to expand later.
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Mar 21, 2023 02:31
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Always kill a traitor before an enemy.
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Mar 21, 2023 03:44
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A. It wouldn't do for anybody to be having tricky thoughts.
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Mar 21, 2023 03:58
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A, D, and E are all tempting, but I think I will do as last time and vote for E
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Mar 21, 2023 06:07
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A, do be consolidating
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Mar 22, 2023 02:03
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