Timeline of Aldernord

Baltha Sturmdottir, Jarl of the Volsangan Clan Vattenkrig, lands at the site of what will later be called Trolfjord. Her clan settle the area, and begin a campaign of conquest of the nearby land.

Queen Erastes Tideborn dies after several months of ill health. Her daughter, Pyronike, ascends to the throne.

The dragonborn of Clan Kepeshkamolik rebel against the hegemonic rulership of the Five Great Dragons of Mandragore. Though they find some allies in Aldernord under Queen Margaretha II Erastes and win a number of victories against their overlords, they are ultimately defeated. Many of the dragonborn settle in the Dragonmarch of northern Aldernord.

Princess Chrysomatea Erastes, the heir to the Alderni monarchy, renounces her claim to the throne in favour of Hildegard Ysern, much to the consternation of many members of the High Nobility.

Alderni forces are ambushed whilst crossing Skinweaver Marsh as they attempt to flank the Mandragori army besieging Fort Briani. They suffer a resounding defeat, in which Queen Emelia I Ysern perishes.

Civil war in Aldernord following the disappearance of Queen Hildegard III Ysern within a portal linking Ket Azel and Ket Brezi.

A series of territorial conflicts between Aldernord and Corlindale, resulting in the annexation of all lands west of the river Nyel by the Alderni.

Following an unusually warm and rainy spring in 1112AK, an outbreak of Lyskan Fever spreads throughout Aldernord. Many members of the High Nobility isolate themselves away from the lower orders while the peasantry bear the brunt of the plague.

Twelve Baltho-Alderni barons swear an oath that they will rise up against the High Houses and reclaim the land that they consider rightfully theirs from Alderni rule.

Queen Ekaterina Mettvergen assassinated by Balthan separatists.

A cessation of hostilities between Aldernord and the Heirs of Baltha, ceding all lands east of the river Kiska to the control of the newly-founded Grand Jarldoms of Balthas. Universally unpopular, this treaty was violated frequently on a small scale until hostilities resumed in 1178 AK.

Queen Margaretha III Bheuren of Aldernord dies after a short period of illness. It is widely rumoured that she was poisoned by a political opponent, or by the Heirs of Baltha, or perhaps even by the office of the Queensknife.

Balthan agents infiltrate the tower of Vasilika with the aid of mercenary mages trained at Ira's Flame, and successfully capture the arcane citadel. The Alderni attempt to retake the tower, and a bloody battle ensues; Queen Altea IV Bheuren is killed in battle whilst leading the Aerial Lance, and the Alderni forces retreat in disarray.

The forces of Beatrix Bheuren, one of the three claimants to the throne of Aldernord, seize control of Ysberinge and take her niece Ekaterina, porphyrogenitus daughter of Queen Altea IV Bheuren, into "protective custody". She rules as regent for several months, before the 14-year old Princess Ekaterina dies (allegedly having succumbed to a fever, but most likely murdered on her aunt's orders), before declaring herself Queen Beatrix II Bheuren.

The Balthan Clan Vattenkrig, claiming themselves the true successors of Baltha Sturmdottir, lead the advance into Aldernord, retaking the town of Trolfjord and the surrounding land. By the end of 1196, all land south of the Alu is under their control.

The forces of Agnetha Bheuren, one of the two surviving claimants to the throne of Aldernord, clash with those of her aunt Queen Beatrix II Bheuren. Agnetha dies in the battle, and her army routs. Her claim now broadly unopposed, Beatrix pardons those of Agnetha's supporters who surrender, and makes examples of those who do not.

Queen Beatrix II Bheuren of Aldernord declares war on the elves of Lith Tarsen and Lith Neygil, accusing them of being in league with the elements of House Ysern that had plotted against her. In response, the elves enter into an alliance with the Grand Jarldoms of Balthas.

Queen Beatrix II Bheuren of Aldernord collapses and dies during a banquet in honour of her daughter Rosemund's eighteenth nameday. A second inheritance war is feared, but does not come to pass, as Rosemund publically acknowledges the porphyrogene claim of her younger sister Mathilda to the throne. Rosemund acts as her sister's regent until she comes of age, before stepping down to allow Queen Mathilda II Bheuren to reign in her own right. Years later on her deathbed, Rosemund admits to having poisoned her mother in order to end her reign of terror.

A powerful spirit, later called the Knagger awakens in the southern parts of the Alterwald, taking the form of a gigantic turtle which is said to have been hundreds of feet in length. It proceeds to make its way out of the forest and down the Alu valley, crashing through the Balthan army encircling Bauslott and partially demolishing the tower itself - allowing the remnants of the Balthan forces to seize control of the tower. It continues its march down the valley, nigh-impervious to all attempts to stop it or get it to change its course, before swimming out to sea in when it reaches the coast. It is said that it is still out there somewhere, occasionally mistaken for an island by sailors blown off course. It leaves behind a great crater that became known as the Pits of Knagger.

Widespread flooding near Lak Zallen brings an outbreak of Lyskan Fever. The clerics of Zallenkirk find themselves unaccountably unable to cure the disease, which is said by some to be a punishment from the Daughters of Null for the loss of the Alumark and Kjelslund to the Grand Jarldoms of Balthas. Among those who perish are Queen Mathilda II Bheuren and her daughter, Crown Princess Altea Bheuren.

Alderni forces led by Queen Helena III Bheuren attempt to outflank a much larger Balthan army on the Lyskan plain, clashing on the north shore of Lak Doal only a few miles from where Queen Baltha Sturmdottir had fallen in battle centuries earlier. Anointed as the champion of all Nine of the Daughters of Null, Queen Helena leads the charge and routs the Balthan army, fighting on despite grievous injury until her victory is assured - at which point she collapses and dies, her wounds and sheer exhaustion finally catching up with her.

With Queen Hildegard VI Bheuren's behaviour becoming increasingly erratic, her daughter Mathilda, the Queensknife, attempts to persuade her to abdicate. The queen flies into a rage, and attempts to kill her daughter for the insubordination. The two magicians duel, Mathilda gaining the upper hand and subduing her mother, who dies shortly after, apparently of sheer exhaustion. Mathilda allows the throne to pass to her elder sister, Hildegard VII Bheuren.

Beset by famine, some of the clans of Balthas fall to infighting, especially in the region of Kjelslund which is particularly badly hit. The once powerful Clan Haraldsson is almost entirely destroyed by the ascendant Clan Hemskaber, who pillage their way across the Lyskan plain to feed their soldiers.

Balthan forces loyal to Clan Hexvarg cross the river Tuva, and continue to advance through the Hexenhugel. Their progress is slow, but by 1291AK they have seized Hexenholm and Innikfoss.

An army of Alderni soldiers, plus thousands of peasant levies, the entire city watch of Schwannenholt, and countless others besides, assembles at the edge of the city. Queen Margaretha IV Bheuren takes personal command of the army, telling the assembled troops that this was the day in which Aldernord lives or dies. She leads the charge against the larger Balthan force, and against all odds is victorious, routing the advancing army and driving them back towards the river Lyska - where the Alderni army that emerged from Ket Brezi is waiting for them, having marched more than two hundred miles over the ten preceding days. More than half the Balthan army surrenders when they realise that they are surrounded; the rest desperately attempt to break through and reach Haraldslott, and are slaughtered in their hundreds as they attempt to cross the Lyska.

Kjelslund once more plays host to a protracted and bloody conflict as over a course of more than a decade the Alderni armies retake the once-fertile duchy from the Balthan Jarls. Over the course of the campaign numerous villages and small towns are put to the flame, and tens of thousands of civilians are killed or displaced from the land.

As the Alderni armies are forced to retreat south of the River Posso, a ten-year ceasefire is agreed with The League of Savura. Aldernord does not give up its claim of sovereignty over the northern provinces, but negotiations begin on granting increased autonomy and other concessions to the northern provinces. These eventually break down in 1335 AK - in part due to the increasingly demagogic rhetoric of Dracomallion Anaximander di Sola di Triponzo - when the Savuran senate unanimously votes to uphold their independence from Aldernord, but to keep to the terms of the ceasefire in the hope of renegotiating a more lasting peace.

Ceasefire agreed between Savura and Aldernord