Tyrants Fall

You can't kill me! I am invincible! The prophesized ruler! Once your pathetic dream is burned to ashes, I will be unstoppable! My reign will last ten thousand years! You lot kill me? I AM A GOD!!!

— last words of Emperor Gordian

On the fields of Andar, an ancient prophecy was fulfilled. On the fields of Andar, a monster was slain. At least if you believe the Feran priest's tales. Fact is that on a day in Iunis of the year 3229 DA, the last Emperor of Tarquinnia fell. Gordian the Tyrant, the man that held all Vardania in his iron grip died at the hands of the Young Falcon.
Although his death is a mere 5 years past, the story is told a thousand different ways. From purely factual to absolutely fantastical, every man, woman or child seems to tell a different tale. Even among those present doubt swells as to what really happened that day on a field of corpses. The bloody end Gordian received was quite fitting for the life of a man many consider to be the epitome of evil.

Summary

...And on that day two armies met on the plain of Andar, the number of men as uncountable as the grains of sand within a desert. The air was filled with fire and blood, the cries of anger, fear, and anguish ringing toward the skies...
...On the seventh day of battle, the tide had turned against the Empire. Anis Moaranon, the Black Stag, had declared for Feranar, his knights crashing into the imperial flank and cutting through the mass of cultists like a knife. The enemy wavered and many among the faithful felt hope rise in their chest...

...But then the ocean of men parted revealing a sight that had put fear into the hearts of men for millennia. The Legions of Tarquinnia, stone-faced iron-clad warriors, leading them a figure in black armor, his face hidden by a demonic mask. The Tyrant marched ready to break the Falcon once and for all...
...As the knights of the stag clashed with the sons of the wolf, the Tyrant charged the Falcon. Alone he fought the fifteen of the Veil, shrugging of blow after blow, a monster of power and rage. Modrek, shrewd and quick, fell before his blade. Aladra the kind soul that held the group together, cut in half with a single swing. Tolran the Tall, a giant in height and strength, crushed under his boot. Dozens of knights, tossed aside like dolls as they charged to defend their future...
...Hour after hour the battle raged. Arrows began to pierce his armor. Axe, mace, and sword tasting his blood. Slowing down, tumbling, he screamed at Henrik to stop his cowardice. To fight him alone. The fated duel that would determine Vardanias future for ages to come. But the Falcon did not heed his challenge, knowing his strength in numbers and tactics...
...The Tyrant fell to his knees, his body broken and battered by hundreds of strikes. Henrik stepped forward, kicked his sword away and slowly removed the Emperors mask. A young face, not unlike his own, contorted in a vicious snarl, green eyes glinting with insanity...
...The Tyrant was dead, the Falcons sword in his chest. His army shattered, his cult bled dry, the head of the snake cut off. In time his empire would follow him. But for now, as the sun broke through the oppressive shroud of clouds, the shadow at the heart of the continent seemed lifted...

Fall of the Tyrant, Saga of the Tyrants War -

Historical Basis

All this madness...it all started with that damn prophecy.....Gods why didn't I listen to you Megran?... Forgive me old friend....

— Adeon Vargan

An exception among myths and legends, the fall of Gordian is surrounded by more rumours than most century-old tales, despite being barely 5 years old. Fact is that during late Calidan (Warm Time) of 3329 DA the Hegemony tried to force a decisive battle to halt the advancing Feran armies. Accurate numbers are hard to come by but one can say with certainty that more than half a million men fought, bled and died that day.
Much like most of Gordians actions, his final attack can be attributed to his crippling fear of his own demise. The Prophecy of Kandak, written over 1400 years prior, hung like a shadow over his mind. The tale of a Final War between Feranar and Tarquinnia, the duel of the Tyrant and the Falcon and the death of the Vardanian ruler. Over the centuries several rulers had fit the legends description in one way or another, but none quite like Gordian. From the circumstances of his birth, his life, looks and behaviour, the changes and conflicts that surrounded him and his family, every minor detail matched the prophecy.
Members of his court, those that survived the purges, tell that as he grew older his mind became clouded by his apparent fate. The already, as some would whisper, unstable youth grew obsessed with the prophecy. A fact that, in combination with the appearance and toxic whispers of the Odium Cult, proved fatal.
The disastrous Southern Campaign, which began the Tyrants War. The Battle of Kaurava, which broke the myth of imperial invincibility. The burning of city after city, excesses of the cult and terror against Ferans and Vardanians alike. The war that killed uncountable people. All of it in a manic desire to erase the prophecy.
All talk of prophecy aside, fact is Gordian XIII. Artanus died on the 21st of Iunis 3329 DA on the fields of Andar, leaving his realm and cult leaderless, his line extinct. The realm his forefathers had built over the course of 400 years followed nine months later, at the Battle of Chaironea.

You really think that farmboy would have ever traded his pitchfork for a sword if his home hadn´t been attacked?

— Adeon Vargan

Remembrance

If you were to look for any indicator on how hated Gordian had been, look no further than Falcon Day. Across the continent, across ethnic divides, religions and cultures the 21st of Iunis is a time of celebration. Millions take to the streets, to marvel at the great parades that traverse the cities, to enjoy the various stands that turn every street into a fair, to see the skies set agleam in every colour imaginable by fireworks. In every city, village and town people honour Henrik Andrael, the young man that, as the bards so eloquently put, lifted the shroud that chocked every soul on the continent.
If there are any who mourn the dead ruler, none would do so openly, the stigma of insanity being the lightest of consequences.

Date of Setting

21.07.3329 DA

Related People

• Gordian the XIII. Artanus

Related Organizations

• High Kingdom of Feranar
• Tarquinnian Hegemony

Tyrants War 3329 DA

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Hegemony or Empire?
One noticeable oddity when studying Feran literature is the use of the title Empire, when in all other cultures it is simply referred to as Hegemony. It does not refer to form of government as the Hegemony is understood as The supreme power on the continent, be it an Ochlocracy or Absolute Monarchy. Empire is a propaganda term as the various hegemonies, especially the four Tarquinnian incarnations, are seen as the ultimate enemy of the Feran people. Its easier to paint this millennia-old conflict as the Evil Empire oppressing the noble Feran people afterall.

Excerpt from Relion, Master of Words

Tsk. Successful he was. Bastard did more damage to this land in a decade than all wars of the last thousand years combined.

— Adeon Vargan

Field of Corpses
Following the battle, the fields of Andar are said to have been covered by a layer of corpses seven feet high. It took months to build the pyres, the fires seen for hundreds of miles across the Heartlands. Even today one may find fields covered in bones and chards of armor, ponds and creeks filled with redish water and undergrowth made of discarded weapons.

Kandaks Tome
A tome of 600 pages, containing 83 prophecies written down by the wandering priest Kandak in the 19th century DA. Ranging from obscure or mundane to era changing, the events foretold in this book have always come to pass. 47 are known to have occurred already. Often written in vague language they may not always play out as envisioned by the reader. The most infamous prophecy is that of The Falcon Knight, which reportedly drove Gordian to madness.