The Last War

The Great Convocation of War

The Advent of War

Lasting just over 100 years, The Last War is what defines the Khorvaire of today. The war was originally set off by a succession crisis; following tradition, King Jarot-the last king of a unified Galifer-gave the crown to princess Mishaan of Cyre, his firstborn child. Mishaan was not the most politically adept of her siblings, the strongest, or smartest, indeed there were many questions about how Mishaan would govern as head of state-yet it was still tradition to follow the lead of the king. King Jarot also took additional precautions, Prince Wrogar of Aundair swore an oath to defend Mishaan and her right to rule to the king on his deathbed, believing the prospect of crossing swords with any two of their siblings would stop the other claimants to the throne. In this he was wrong. Mishaan's siblings-most notably Thalin of Thrane who spoke the loudest and most often about how unfit he believed she was and how The Silver Flame had guaranteed his right to the throne-did not accept her ascension. Talks of possible peace, led by Aundairian diplomats trying to remain impartial, were sabotaged by Kaius I of Karrnath who seemed to desire to test his new armies. Thus began the greatest conflict in modern history for Khorvaire.

The Claimants Fall

Mishaan, rightfully proclaimed queen of the kingdom, was the first to fall, assassinated a few years into what should've been her reign by zealots of the new Karrnathi order of elite knights-The Emerald Claw. Kaius I fell soon after in battle-his body destroyed in the fierce fighting he so wished to cultivate. Thalin died next, paving the way for Thrane to become the theocracy of the Silver Flame. Their other siblings, Wrogar of Aundair and Wroann of Breland, fell shortly after. Despite dying relatively young no foul play is suspected to have occurred in their deaths-the belief is that despair took them and quickly ended their lives in a small mercy so they no longer needed to live in this world on fire. Khorvaire would receive no such mercy.
Even as the old guard fell and a new-hopefully better-generation rose to the forefront, peace did not come. Truly, it was not even attempted to begin with. Perhaps too much blood had already been spilt for there to be consideration of mercy? Perhaps the people truly did desire war? Several generations would die in the dirt and trenches of the war before peace would ever be talked about again.

Karrnath

In a war defined by the mass suffering of the entire continent, Karrnath especially suffered a long and slow decline. Struck by no less than four deadly plagues, and many more bouts of famine, that massively culled the civilian and military population, Karrnath suffered extensively in the early period of the war. Running out of food, soldiers, and time, Kaius I made perhaps the only choice he really had and brought the Blood of Vol into preeminence in Karrnath in 910 YK. the Blood and its seekers (what followers of the Blood of Vol are called) were useful in many ways, they provided food, water, and medical care to the suffering citizens of the nation. Yet beyond that, their approach to, and widespread approval of, necromancy and the application of the deceased gave Karrnath a fighting chance. After all, the one resource they weren't lacking in was dead bodies. Karrnath thus became noted for its use of undead forces in the war, and the repurposing of fallen enemy bodies. This engendered much disgust toward the Karrnathi, and a widespread slogan among those at the frontline: "if you've gotta die, be decent and don't come back." While this embrace of the Blood of Vol would allow Karrnath to overcome its early devastation, and would serve it well over the course of the war, it manifested one thorn in the side of Khorvaire that exists to this day: The Emerald Claw. This terrorist organization of Seeker fanatics were Karrnath's well practiced hit squad, and have several confirmed royal deaths to their names, and even more suspected beyond that. Cut loose near the end of the war-when Karrnath was no longer in such dire straits-the organization has continued in its fanatical actions to this day. While Karrnath has since exiled the Blood of Vol, it remains popular among the populace (now making a comeback following so much death in the war). Karrnath has also kept up its ways of necromancy to reinforce its flesh and blood military-so much so they have become marked by the names of several forts within the nations, the largest being Fort Bones and Fort Zombie. Karrnath, now under the rule of King Kaius III, has been a great patron for peace within the last few years, with the king being a driving force for peace and continued existence under the Thronehold Treaty. They have even shown much desire to apprehend Emerald Claw agents, perhaps they feel they owe the world for the monster they unleashed upon it?

Thrane

Thrane, while it has always been closely tied to the Church of the Silver Flame and the Church has always had a profound influence within the nation, took on a new dimension during the war. Following the death of Thalin of Thrane, hopeful to the throne of Galifer and the prime stoker of the conflict, there was much debate over who should succeed him. Thalin had no direct heir, there was a nephew who presented himself as the prime heir but he was not an obvious choice for the role. In the midst of the chaos the Keeper of the Flame, head official of the Church, came forward with a vision, he saw that the rest of Khorvaire was to see and experience the Silver Flame in their hearts, and he was given a mandate to expand. Mandate from the divine to bring war, useful isn't it? Thrane was engulfed in a religious fervor, as autocratic paladins and war mongering clerics of the flame sprouted up all over the country. The previous royal family was kicked out, ironically the only ones who would take them would be the Cyran branch of their family, and the Keeper of the Flame became the official head of state of Thrane, and the Diet of Cardinals its governing body. This is also when you see a change in language, campaigns become Crusades, occupying becomes converting, war goods become tithes to the Church. Thrane would attempt to convert all of its occupied lands to the Silver Flame during the war, and you would see shades of the Lycanthropic Purge taken out on those who did not accept conversion-although it should be noted only 142 instances of burning at the stake have been officially noted and documented. Thrane would fall out of its period of religious invasion and spreading upon the death of the Keeper Serrain about halfway through the war and the Ascension of Keeper Lavira Tagor. Yet by this point the damage was done, Thrane attempted to be more conciliatory toward the other nations, but trust was hard to come by at this point of the conflict. Thrane is still plagued by this sort of religious autocracy, several cardinals in the diet today rose to preeminence because of it. The current Keeper of the Flame, 11 year old Jaela Daran, is another preeminent voice for peace in the continent today. However she has little actual political power, most of that is wielded by the leader of the Diet-Cardinal Krozan.

Cyre

No one can be said to have lost more than Cyre. Despite having most likely the least claim to being the cause of the conflict, Cyre has undoubtedly lost the most. Throughout the first half of the war Cyre would routinely find its head of state murdered-most often by the Emerald Claw. This led to many disputes over the passing of power, and a few small civil war besides. While this would result in a far more empowered intelligence service in order to try and protect their leaders, it also led to much civil strife. Civil strife that could be exploited. The Valaes Tairn exploited them in order to make a claim to ancient land-resulting in the nation of Valenar today. Haruuc was able to band together enough of his goblin allies to take control of the lands of what is now Darguun, and then actually hold it despite elf and Cyran attempts. Yet there is one thing that dominates Cyran history in the War: The Mourning. 95% of the Cyran population-gone. Wiped from land. Yet no one knows why, and now Cyrans are left to try and rebuild. Their former home-now called the Mournland-is a desolate wasteland prowled by strange creatures wrought by the Mourning and the followers of the Lord of Blades. What can be called the new Cyran home-New Cyre in East Breland-is frighteningly small, a place where people are trying to put the pieces back together. What could be called the New Cyran government can now be found in one man-Berkut ir'Wynarn, someone who was 32nd in line for the throne before the Mourning and who no one had any great vision for. To his credit, he is trying to make the world better for his now scattered and despairing people, but his inexperience in politics on a grand scale shows.

Aundair

Aundair mainly suffered losses to pride and land. Sporting a military and well trained leaders that could fight Karrnathi military leaders to a draw, Aundair was a ready, if not fully willing, participant for war. Yet as the war dragged on-years into decades-they had to focus more and more on the borders that were under military threat, and less and less to the periphery. Thus began conflicts within the Eldeen Reaches between the peoples there and the government of Aundair. These would eventually manifest in the dispute for independence within the Eldeen from Aundair. This would result in a great loss of territory from Aundair, and when they tried to bring the Eldeen back into the fold, they were bested by a force of druids many multiples less than their number. Several other military defeats-most often to Karrnathi undead forces, additionally humiliated them. Aundair, most closely located to Thrane and Karrnath, had much land between the three of them change hands-something that remains a point of contention to this day. Queen Aurela ir'Wynarn is the monarch of Aundair today, and while outwardly supportive of the peace agreement she has done nothing to support it in terms of meaningful commitments.

Breland

Breland suffered greatly in terms of numbers, and has seen much change because of the war. Breland, whose large area meant they bordered every other nation embroiled in the conflict, would see many invasions over the course of the war. While they would always reclaim them, places like Starilaskur would face prolonged sieges and battles within the city many times over the war. Breland also saw a change in leadership, the line of Wroann suffered during the war, until king Boranel ir'Wynarn rose to the throne. Boranel, undoubtedly the most influential leader of Breland during its short history, oversaw a move toward the congress of Breland becoming more powerful, saw the secession of Droaam, and the peace accords of the Last War. The conflict with Droaam was the only major loss of land the Brelish suffered, the conflict with the rising nation sapped their resources late in the war, forcing them to withdraw and cede the land to the uprising led by the Daughters of Sora Kel. This conflict-while currently in armistice-has not officially been concluded, and officially Droaam is a province of Breland in rebellion. Although how they intend to take it back, and whether doing so would be worth it, is another matter entirely. Breland additionally saw a rise in its production capabilities from the war-due to the necessity to feed, clothe, and arm their armies. Along with this came the rise of the senate in Brelish politics, Breland had been fiercely democratic for a long time but the war, and because King Boranel allowed them to, forced the senate to become a much more powerful force. Now senators were the makers of law and strategy, and not just advisors to the royals, and Breland also saw the rise of citizen senators as well-most often entrepreneurs from their home provinces. Breland, possibly due to this democratic influence, was the first to agree to sit down at the Thronehold treaty and king Boranel is considered key to getting the other leaders of the Five Nations at the table. King Boranel continues to be a vehement upholder of peace, even as he grows old and the senate begins to clamor for war to avenge perceived wrongs.

Peace

Finally ended in the Thronehold Accords, a largely comprehensive agreement that included every officially recognized nation as signatories. Droaam was invited to the Accords, however disagreements with Breland over territory they both claimed meant it was a nonstarter, and a decision was made to favor Breland over Droaam. Perhaps understandable, it might also be worth noting how uncomfortable the presence of a gnoll and gorgon reportedly made other diplomats feel. This has left Droaam with the noteworthy, but not desirable, position of being the only unofficial nation on Khorvaire, and scrambling for recognition from others.

After The War

The overall effects of the war are too numerous to count, and many are only just beginning to present themselves. some more noteworthy examples are the production of Warforged developed by Merrix d'Cannith. These living constructs were once primitive golem like machines that were little more than cannon fodder. Yet they began to advance quickly and were at the level of sentient intelligence in no time. These Warforged, the roughly human sized ones-the larger ones have never been noted as developing more intelligence than knowing how to follow orders-were granted the rights of sentient beings at the end of the war. However the creation forges that made them have also been shut down, a decision many Warforged disagree with yet are not sure how to oppose. The nations of Zilargo and the Mror Holds claiming their independence once there was no unified kingdom to force them to follow their many centuries old oaths. Additionally, the new developed countries-the battle and glory seeking Valenar elves, the goblinoid land of Darguun, and the monstrously inhabited cities, holds, and forests of Droaam, provide a new factor to contend with.
The Last War shaped the world of today, now how will it develop from there?

Conflict Type

War

The Last War?
The Last War is as much a statement of hope as it is a factual statement. Yet that hope is on weak foundations, the continent is rife with mistrust and suspicion, and the smallest incident could set off another war. Many especially cynical inviduals are taking bets on when the next war will begin. The House says 5 years is the most likely.

The Tragedy of Cyre
Many Cyrans are especially bitter about the war, they were going to be the home of a queen, and now their country is nothing more than a wasteland. This bitterness often causes survivors to either lash out at other citizens of the Five Nations, or to wander in empathy. While some are gathering under Berkut in New Cyre, some think more decisive action is needed and join extremist groups looking to make a new Cyre out of their old enemies.