Rhovanion
Rhovanion is a confederation of seven baronies which control the Rhovanion Hinterlands. While officially a part of the Quorel'hrim Kingdom, the confederation's isolated location allows the baronies to operate autonomously outside the King Regent's authority.
Structure
The confederation is led by the seven Lords (or Ladies) of the Hinterlands, each one the ruler of one of the seven baronies that make up the confederation.
History
Historical Rhovanion was an elven kingdom ruled by House Rhovashal, a High Elf house that traced its lineage to one of the few Eladrin families who escaped the Retribution. Unbeknown to the rest of elvenkind, House Rhovashal had attempted to side with the faeries prior to the Retribution and fled when it became apparent that their house would not be spared the genocide. Their foreknowledge of the fairy invasion of the Feywild ensured that their entire family line escaped the slaughter; moreover, they were able to take much of their wealth with them, allowing them to quickly establish a new seat of power on Divostra.
For centuries, Rhovanion was seen as the only elven kingdom throughout the whole of Divostra, as other Eladrin refugees settled into disparate city-states scattered across the plane. Rhovanion established diplomatic ties to the neighboring Dwarven and Gnomish kingdoms and conscripted a free-standing army to defend its borders from increasingly common attacks from the Iredrak Confederacy to the north. These armies fought alongside the other mortal races during the Dracomachy, and Rhovanion played a pivotal role in the destruction of the onyx Dragon Soul of Ereshkigal.
Rhovanion was initially welcoming to their elven kin following the Great Feywild Exodus, offering support to the smaller kingdoms that popped up throughout the Shandalar penninsula, whom they saw as valuable trading partners or potential vassals. When these kingdoms unified under the banner of the elven hero Corellon, the then-king of Rhovanion viewed the newly formed Quorel'hrim Kingdom, whose lands stretched from one end of the penninsula to the other, as a threat to their influence and power. While they retained trade relationships and peaceful borders with the Quorel'hrim Kingdom, Rhovanion diplomats would seek to undermine the unified kingdom's standing with other nations and city-states.
This undercurrent of hostility would boil over in the decades leading up to the fall of House Larethian. Rhovanion secretely lent aid to the rebellion that was growing within the Quorel'hrim Kingdom, allowing the followers of Lolth to set up bases of operation within Rhovanion lands and providing them with armaments, magical supplies, and military training. Fearing the drow posed a threat to his family's continued rule over the kingdom, Arendt Rhovashal formed a pact with Lolth herself, swearing his bloodline's fealty to the Spider Queen in exchange for Rhovanion being spared from her wrath in the upcoming conflict.
Type
Political, Confederation
Government System
Monarchy, Crowned Republic
Power Structure
Confederation
Economic System
Mixed economy
Legislative Body
Rhovanion Council of Lords
Parent Organization
Location
Related Ranks & Titles
Controlled Territories
Neighboring Nations
Comments