Arthwys the Eternal King
King of Carfref, Prince of Powyar and all the Gwerins Arthwys ap Geraint Aedan (a.k.a. Brenin Tradegddol (The Eternal King)
The legendary High King of the Gwerins, Arthwys is considered the founder of many noble Gwerin lineages, of many Gwerin petty kingdoms, and is supposedly said to have wielded Llafnor, the sword of the hero Gydwïyr who led the final battle against the Giants. Arthwys is a figure of great respect and the subject of dozens of tales about his life and his supposed slumber beneath Mount Anywedd, waiting to rise and lead the Gwerins in the final battle of mankind.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Described as fair of body, robust, and vigorous in battle. Arthwys is given all the noble characteristics of a martial Gwerin king and his utter flawlessness as a paragon king was an example used by the Gwerin petty kings and later Halsat monarchs.
Apparel & Accessories
The emblem of the red lion on a field of gold was the emblem of King Arthwys and a common motif in the heraldry of future Gwerin kings and princes.
Specialized Equipment
Arthwys wielded the sword Llafnor, said to have been crafted and enchanted by the ancient giants, smelted by dragon fire, and a weapon surpassing all others. Llafnor was previously wielded by Gydwïyr who led mankind in the final war against the giants before falling in its final battle. Llafnor's enchantments prevent its wielder from being harmed so long as they held the sword's handle in their hand. Whenever unsheathed, colorful, vibrant flames rise and dance around the wielder. Arthwys' death was due to his dropping of the sword in favor of his son Ederyn's.
However, in legends, Arthyws wielded other weapons of note, he supposedly sometimes fought with an enchanted mace called Crynwr or "Quaker" which when prayed over, could strike the ground and create earthquakes, thought this was rarely used.
Arthwys comes into contact and in some tellings, possession of, "The Immortal Crown" sometimes called "The Stellar Crown", the shimmering crown was made up of twelve flaming stars seen in a vision inside the cave of Fynedfa. This crown is a common motif in cultures across the world. The crown is said to grant divine wisdom, eternal life and heralds the wearer as the favored mortal of the gods while also bringing about the apocalypse.
However, in legends, Arthyws wielded other weapons of note, he supposedly sometimes fought with an enchanted mace called Crynwr or "Quaker" which when prayed over, could strike the ground and create earthquakes, thought this was rarely used.
Arthwys comes into contact and in some tellings, possession of, "The Immortal Crown" sometimes called "The Stellar Crown", the shimmering crown was made up of twelve flaming stars seen in a vision inside the cave of Fynedfa. This crown is a common motif in cultures across the world. The crown is said to grant divine wisdom, eternal life and heralds the wearer as the favored mortal of the gods while also bringing about the apocalypse.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
The prodigal son of King Geraint the Little Flame, and his lover Lyn O'r Byn, the life and times of Arthwys are foundational to the identity of the Gwerin people. Arthwys' story is first told in the work "Cylch y Brenin", a work supposed to have been written by a friend of Arthwys, Bedwyr Tafod Aur or Bedwyr the Golden Tongued. While Arthwys' life is considered to be ahistorical, he is largely thought to have been either a conglomeration of several figures or an exaggeration of a real-life figure from around the time of the Dykairos.
Arthwys' story begins in the calamitous years of the Dykairos, a period that saw drastic reshuffling of the world order as the Rasennan Empire was destroyed, the Hasdinian kingdoms followed in order, and generally, warlords and petty rulers provided the most structure in this chaotic time. Born sometime in the early 1st-century A.E, Arthwys is said to have been born in the keep of Mons Badon, Mount Badon was said to be the home of the Gwerin Carfref kings. Arthwys' father Geraint was a man known for commanding admiration and respect yet was unable to do much as king but fight his neighbor and rival Uthyr, father of his sister-in-law Vanore who was wed to his older brother and predecessor Ewain the Dragon. Arthwys is said to have been born under "fiery moonlight" as if the moonlight was that of the sun. The figure who delivered Arthwys, Melion Wyllt, is a key figure in Arthwys' early life, as is his military trainer Ceidwad. Both Melion and Ceidwad are often a comedic duo in tales with the dour and serious Ceidwad being brought into trouble by the mad and erratic Melion. Also around Arthwys during this time is his cousin Eniaun, son of Ewain the Dragon.
In most tales, Eniaun becomes the first of Arthwys' companions and follows him to battle. Other friends are introduced during Arthwys' childhood, among them Dindrane the warrior Queen of the Viluthsi, and Amhar, a son of the King of Hrusting who was a longtime enemy of King Geraint. Arthwys succeeds his father when Geraint dies at the hands of Cawn, the father of his friend Amhar. According to the telling, a fifteen-year-old Arthwys musters his army and meets Cawn in Battle at Fleyl where Amhar slays his father and promptly disappears for years, traveling as penance for his kinslaying.
After Fleyl, Arthwys is confronted by his mother, Lady Lyn, and told of her dream, a dream which saw Arthwys pull the sword Llafnor from the mud and rise to rule the world. While Arthwys is troubled by this dream, his mother continues and tells him that to remain worthy of such a sword, Arthwys must remain chaste and without desire in his heart. Quizzically, Arthwys ponders where he will find Llafnor to which a mysterious figure enters his court and bids the King to give him an audience. This figure's name is Gweledydd and he boasts that he has captured something of Arthwys that he has not even known he possessed. Arthwys' reply questions Gweledydd about what he could possibly steal that Arthwys is unaware he owns. It is then that the sage reveals that he has stolen Lady Maitemma, daughter of one of Arthwys' elder champions Riothamus. The man claims that he placed the captive Maitemma in an underground cave called Fynedfa. Riothamus by this time was notably subdued, presiding over the court in a chair and speaking very little. When Riothamus hears of his daughter's abduction he leaps from his chair and rushes at Gweledydd to which the shrouded figure kills the man with his own sword. Gweledydd promptly disappears amidst the chaos of Arthwys' court with many scrambling over the body of the slain knight in shock of how a man so skilled could be killed by such a stranger.
The king summons his champions and rallies them to retrieve lady Maitemma and the band sets out for the entrance to Fynedfa. Upon arriving at the entrance of the cave, none in the entourage of the king are confident of their chances of success as Fynedfa is dreaded as haunted and an entrance to a house of demons. Arthwys nevertheless enters and is followed by Dindrane his best warrior, Bedwyr his scribe, Dyrcel his half brother, and Dramor his standard bearer. Once below ground, the group becomes separated with the king entering a dark chamber with a small body of water before him. Above the water floats a brightly adorned laurel crown shining with the light of stars. The stars, which made up the crown, danced and shifted every so often. Before Arthwys reached out for the crown, Gweledydd appears atop a marble pillar high in the air, and where he asks Arthwys a series of questions. These questions delve into the nature of a king with the figure asking Arthwys his opinions on the nature of ruling, seeming to gauge whether Arthwys has the temperament for rulership. After the final question, Gweledydd congratulates Arthwys before revealing Lady Maitemma who remains unconscience but holds a glimmering sword in her hands, the sword Llafnor. Gweledydd tells Arthwys that the one who wields Llafnor cannot be killed, scratched, bleed, or be harmed in any way so long as he holds the scabbard that sheaths it. With Lady Maitemma in hand and Llafnor in the other, Arthwys bids Gweledydd farewell as he gathers his followers and they escape Fynedfa to return home.
Arthwys gathers friends and allies as he marches around southern Areul. It is this time that a large percentage of tales of Arthwys come from and can be seen as an episodic portion of his story. It is during this time that he first meets Carineas, said to be a heathen giant that has been captured and nearly burned alive by village folk. Despite pleas from his friends, Arthwys speaks on the giant's behalf and arranges his freedom, to which Carineas promptly challenges Arthwys to duel him. Shockingly Arthwys is victorious against the giant who begrudgingly joins Arthwys' retinue and according to ecclesial accounts, converts to the Mundana. With a cavalcade of characters in his esteemed court at Carfref, Arthwys rules so justly, so generously, that he is immediately revered by his people who shout his praises outside his window during the mornings. Arthwys is called "Cyfiawn ael Onig Brenin Gwerin" or "The Just and Only King of the Folk". The justness and generosity of Arthwys attract the envy and jealousy of nearby rulers who band together to bring down the great court of Carfref.
This begins an era of wars with the Hasdinians, the Haklans, the Stracians, and the Kantyrans, all of whom are said to have fallen to the High King. This period is told via the twelve battles supposedly fought by Arthwys and his army against the combined armies of his enemies. Twelve battles and twelve victories, King Arthwys' vast realm is said to have stretched from the coast of the western sea all the way to the shore of the Rhor, from the cliffs of Kantyra to the highlands of Haklan, and through into Hasdulia. A territory like this would have encompassed most of the western Empire of the Rasenna and would have made Arthwys an Emperor in power alone. With this power, the seat of Arthwys' power, Carfref came to be a place of splendid learning, understanding, and of chivalric virtue as the High King brought together the greatest warriors, scholars, builders, and minds of his time transforming the lands of Powyar into the wisest in the world.
However, King Arthwys would never go any further due to a prophecy made during his youth, his realm would fall to ruin if he ever sired children. Arthwys however, by this time, is said to have had a number of children, namely Edeyrn Snowcloak, Gweir the Short, Derun Greathand, Gwydir, and Iaen the Black. Only Edeyrn would outlive his father as all of Arthwys' children would die in the coming strife. In some tellings of the King's story, the fall of Arthwys' realm comes because Iaen, the last of the King's children is actually the son of Arthwys and Dindrane, the Queen of the Viluthsi. Due to Arthwys' infidelity, his kingdom comes to ruin. The strife that would engulf Carfref would come in the form of the challenger Aligern, King of the Alymaens, the Gwerin name for the Salians. Aligern is an allegory for the Hasdinian invaders who helped destroy the Rasennan Empire. Despite by this time converting to the Ecclesia, Aligern is a vile and cruel conqueror who has "united the realms of the Jetiwa, Hisecs, and Eswtriads" these names corresponding to the Heskians, Tuscians, and Sturmares. In this way, Aligern is used as a negative depiction of the Hasdinian conqueror Radimane.
The cataclysmic war between these two powerful "empires" would eventually bring about the collapse of both with the final battle fought to be near a place called "Maes Gwaed" or "The Field of Blood" where the brave and stout Gwerins defended against Aligern and his vile hordes of eastern barbarians. Here, the weary and ragged King Arthwys, lord of his people and the most powerful figure since the last Rasennan Emperors to rule in Areul and beyond, died defending his son Edeyrn from the blade of King Aligern. Both kings are said to have killed one another, with Aligern piercing Arthwys' breastplate and Arthywys slicing the neck of the Alymaen king with the sword of his son. Due to his later descendants, Edeyrn would be the figure who cradled his dying father on the battlefield and who would supposedly bury him in a cave beneath Mount Anywedd, the tallest of the mountains in Powyar.
Despite his apocryphal life, King Arthwys is a figure of legend for the Gwerin people and beyond. His life details much of the feeling of the chaotic years of the Dykairos and the yearning for the strong leadership of centuries prior. Much is made in the writings of Arthwys' life comparing him to emperors with a common epithet of his being "Purple robed Arthius", Arthius being the Lakic version of his Arish name. To this day, Mount Anywedd remains the supposed location of Arthwys' body and host to the claim that come the end of days, the legendary king will emerge from the mountain, rally a host of Powyar's warriors and ride out to fight in the final battle of man. This legend lends itself to what Anywedd is often called, "Mynydd Brenin Tradegddol" or "The Mountain of the Eternal King".
Arthwys' story begins in the calamitous years of the Dykairos, a period that saw drastic reshuffling of the world order as the Rasennan Empire was destroyed, the Hasdinian kingdoms followed in order, and generally, warlords and petty rulers provided the most structure in this chaotic time. Born sometime in the early 1st-century A.E, Arthwys is said to have been born in the keep of Mons Badon, Mount Badon was said to be the home of the Gwerin Carfref kings. Arthwys' father Geraint was a man known for commanding admiration and respect yet was unable to do much as king but fight his neighbor and rival Uthyr, father of his sister-in-law Vanore who was wed to his older brother and predecessor Ewain the Dragon. Arthwys is said to have been born under "fiery moonlight" as if the moonlight was that of the sun. The figure who delivered Arthwys, Melion Wyllt, is a key figure in Arthwys' early life, as is his military trainer Ceidwad. Both Melion and Ceidwad are often a comedic duo in tales with the dour and serious Ceidwad being brought into trouble by the mad and erratic Melion. Also around Arthwys during this time is his cousin Eniaun, son of Ewain the Dragon.
In most tales, Eniaun becomes the first of Arthwys' companions and follows him to battle. Other friends are introduced during Arthwys' childhood, among them Dindrane the warrior Queen of the Viluthsi, and Amhar, a son of the King of Hrusting who was a longtime enemy of King Geraint. Arthwys succeeds his father when Geraint dies at the hands of Cawn, the father of his friend Amhar. According to the telling, a fifteen-year-old Arthwys musters his army and meets Cawn in Battle at Fleyl where Amhar slays his father and promptly disappears for years, traveling as penance for his kinslaying.
After Fleyl, Arthwys is confronted by his mother, Lady Lyn, and told of her dream, a dream which saw Arthwys pull the sword Llafnor from the mud and rise to rule the world. While Arthwys is troubled by this dream, his mother continues and tells him that to remain worthy of such a sword, Arthwys must remain chaste and without desire in his heart. Quizzically, Arthwys ponders where he will find Llafnor to which a mysterious figure enters his court and bids the King to give him an audience. This figure's name is Gweledydd and he boasts that he has captured something of Arthwys that he has not even known he possessed. Arthwys' reply questions Gweledydd about what he could possibly steal that Arthwys is unaware he owns. It is then that the sage reveals that he has stolen Lady Maitemma, daughter of one of Arthwys' elder champions Riothamus. The man claims that he placed the captive Maitemma in an underground cave called Fynedfa. Riothamus by this time was notably subdued, presiding over the court in a chair and speaking very little. When Riothamus hears of his daughter's abduction he leaps from his chair and rushes at Gweledydd to which the shrouded figure kills the man with his own sword. Gweledydd promptly disappears amidst the chaos of Arthwys' court with many scrambling over the body of the slain knight in shock of how a man so skilled could be killed by such a stranger.
The king summons his champions and rallies them to retrieve lady Maitemma and the band sets out for the entrance to Fynedfa. Upon arriving at the entrance of the cave, none in the entourage of the king are confident of their chances of success as Fynedfa is dreaded as haunted and an entrance to a house of demons. Arthwys nevertheless enters and is followed by Dindrane his best warrior, Bedwyr his scribe, Dyrcel his half brother, and Dramor his standard bearer. Once below ground, the group becomes separated with the king entering a dark chamber with a small body of water before him. Above the water floats a brightly adorned laurel crown shining with the light of stars. The stars, which made up the crown, danced and shifted every so often. Before Arthwys reached out for the crown, Gweledydd appears atop a marble pillar high in the air, and where he asks Arthwys a series of questions. These questions delve into the nature of a king with the figure asking Arthwys his opinions on the nature of ruling, seeming to gauge whether Arthwys has the temperament for rulership. After the final question, Gweledydd congratulates Arthwys before revealing Lady Maitemma who remains unconscience but holds a glimmering sword in her hands, the sword Llafnor. Gweledydd tells Arthwys that the one who wields Llafnor cannot be killed, scratched, bleed, or be harmed in any way so long as he holds the scabbard that sheaths it. With Lady Maitemma in hand and Llafnor in the other, Arthwys bids Gweledydd farewell as he gathers his followers and they escape Fynedfa to return home.
Arthwys gathers friends and allies as he marches around southern Areul. It is this time that a large percentage of tales of Arthwys come from and can be seen as an episodic portion of his story. It is during this time that he first meets Carineas, said to be a heathen giant that has been captured and nearly burned alive by village folk. Despite pleas from his friends, Arthwys speaks on the giant's behalf and arranges his freedom, to which Carineas promptly challenges Arthwys to duel him. Shockingly Arthwys is victorious against the giant who begrudgingly joins Arthwys' retinue and according to ecclesial accounts, converts to the Mundana. With a cavalcade of characters in his esteemed court at Carfref, Arthwys rules so justly, so generously, that he is immediately revered by his people who shout his praises outside his window during the mornings. Arthwys is called "Cyfiawn ael Onig Brenin Gwerin" or "The Just and Only King of the Folk". The justness and generosity of Arthwys attract the envy and jealousy of nearby rulers who band together to bring down the great court of Carfref.
This begins an era of wars with the Hasdinians, the Haklans, the Stracians, and the Kantyrans, all of whom are said to have fallen to the High King. This period is told via the twelve battles supposedly fought by Arthwys and his army against the combined armies of his enemies. Twelve battles and twelve victories, King Arthwys' vast realm is said to have stretched from the coast of the western sea all the way to the shore of the Rhor, from the cliffs of Kantyra to the highlands of Haklan, and through into Hasdulia. A territory like this would have encompassed most of the western Empire of the Rasenna and would have made Arthwys an Emperor in power alone. With this power, the seat of Arthwys' power, Carfref came to be a place of splendid learning, understanding, and of chivalric virtue as the High King brought together the greatest warriors, scholars, builders, and minds of his time transforming the lands of Powyar into the wisest in the world.
However, King Arthwys would never go any further due to a prophecy made during his youth, his realm would fall to ruin if he ever sired children. Arthwys however, by this time, is said to have had a number of children, namely Edeyrn Snowcloak, Gweir the Short, Derun Greathand, Gwydir, and Iaen the Black. Only Edeyrn would outlive his father as all of Arthwys' children would die in the coming strife. In some tellings of the King's story, the fall of Arthwys' realm comes because Iaen, the last of the King's children is actually the son of Arthwys and Dindrane, the Queen of the Viluthsi. Due to Arthwys' infidelity, his kingdom comes to ruin. The strife that would engulf Carfref would come in the form of the challenger Aligern, King of the Alymaens, the Gwerin name for the Salians. Aligern is an allegory for the Hasdinian invaders who helped destroy the Rasennan Empire. Despite by this time converting to the Ecclesia, Aligern is a vile and cruel conqueror who has "united the realms of the Jetiwa, Hisecs, and Eswtriads" these names corresponding to the Heskians, Tuscians, and Sturmares. In this way, Aligern is used as a negative depiction of the Hasdinian conqueror Radimane.
The cataclysmic war between these two powerful "empires" would eventually bring about the collapse of both with the final battle fought to be near a place called "Maes Gwaed" or "The Field of Blood" where the brave and stout Gwerins defended against Aligern and his vile hordes of eastern barbarians. Here, the weary and ragged King Arthwys, lord of his people and the most powerful figure since the last Rasennan Emperors to rule in Areul and beyond, died defending his son Edeyrn from the blade of King Aligern. Both kings are said to have killed one another, with Aligern piercing Arthwys' breastplate and Arthywys slicing the neck of the Alymaen king with the sword of his son. Due to his later descendants, Edeyrn would be the figure who cradled his dying father on the battlefield and who would supposedly bury him in a cave beneath Mount Anywedd, the tallest of the mountains in Powyar.
Despite his apocryphal life, King Arthwys is a figure of legend for the Gwerin people and beyond. His life details much of the feeling of the chaotic years of the Dykairos and the yearning for the strong leadership of centuries prior. Much is made in the writings of Arthwys' life comparing him to emperors with a common epithet of his being "Purple robed Arthius", Arthius being the Lakic version of his Arish name. To this day, Mount Anywedd remains the supposed location of Arthwys' body and host to the claim that come the end of days, the legendary king will emerge from the mountain, rally a host of Powyar's warriors and ride out to fight in the final battle of man. This legend lends itself to what Anywedd is often called, "Mynydd Brenin Tradegddol" or "The Mountain of the Eternal King".
Education
Brought up and tutored by the duo Melion and Ceidwad. Melion taught Arthwys the nature of magic, of learning, and of his role in combating evil while Ceidwad taught the boy all of his martial and athletic skills required of a future king.
Employment
Prince of Carfref
King of Carfref and Prince of Powyar
King of Carfref and Prince of Powyar
Social
Family Ties
Son of King Geraint Aedan and Lyn O'r Byd
Nephew of Ewain the Dragon
Cousin of Eniaun
Husband of Maitemma fech Riothamus
Father of Edeyrn Clogyneira, Iaen the Black, Gweir the Short, Derun Greathand, and Gwydir
Grandfather of Meurig Danwyn, Morrigan the Dragon Slayer, and Urien Hael
Grandson of Aldwin and Veidr
Nephew of Ewain the Dragon
Cousin of Eniaun
Husband of Maitemma fech Riothamus
Father of Edeyrn Clogyneira, Iaen the Black, Gweir the Short, Derun Greathand, and Gwydir
Grandfather of Meurig Danwyn, Morrigan the Dragon Slayer, and Urien Hael
Grandson of Aldwin and Veidr
Relationships
Ethnicity
Circumstances of Birth
Son of King Geraint "Little Flame" and his wife Lyn O'r Byd
Circumstances of Death
Died in the field against the eastern King Aligern
Birthplace
Mons Badon, Carfref
Place of Death
Maes Gwaed, Unknown
Spouses
Maitemma Lwynau Cryf
(spouse)
Queen Dindrane
(spouse)
Siblings
Children
Gender
Male
Eyes
Small, Dark Brown
Hair
Long, Wavy, Blond
Quotes & Catchphrases
"We ride to defend what was, what ought to be and what can be once more." -End of Arthwys' speech before the Battle of the Field of Blood
Belief/Deity
Mundana Ecclesia
Other Affiliations
Character Prototype
King Arthur
(Arthwys unsheathes Llafnor before battle to the cheers of his men)
Love the use of the Bayeaux tapestry.