Namadarine (Na-ma-da-reen)
The First Age
Alina The Resistor
In the Mythic ages the elven Empire of Eldenkros marched across the Seal, they were the first civilisation that evolved into an organised Kingdom and they swept across the continent vassalizing every tribe and city state they came into contact with. Where our records begin Eldenkros had conquered most of the Seal, enslaving and putting to work all who stood in their way, it was as they were approaching the north west corner of the Seal. that the history as we know it changed forever. Forewarned with visions from the goddess Starlina Chief Alina knew of the Elven onslaught approaching and called a moot of the 12 great Chieftains west of the Sylvan Mountains and north of the Aden river. These Chieftains shared no love for each other, indeed they often fought between themselves over the simplest disagreements, yet they were all united in fear of Eldenkros. After a Moot that is said to have lasted 14 days and 14 night Chief Alina Namadar united the 12 tribes under her banner and together they repelled the van of Eldenkros. It was a small victory but it united clans together as one fighting force. The clans would go on to fight seven more battles against Eldenkros under her banner before, in a Moot the following year, swearing fealty to her and her descendants from then to the breaking of the world. This oath was taken at the seat of her clan, the stone circle of Namadar. It is testament to the significance of the event that of those first twelve clans nine still keep a record of that oath, passed down the generations and seven are still prominent noble families in Nochi. We quote here from the translated record of House Tarvan (once Clan Targvarg).
Here at the Stones of Namadar I swear this oath, an oath that binds not just me but all of my blood who will come after. I swear to serve you, oh mighty Resistor of Eldenkros. To be your spear and your bow, your hunter and your farmhand. I swear to call forth the knights (written here as Knites) of my colour at your command. I swear this to you and all who come after, from now to the breaking of the world.So it was that at the circle of Namadar Alina the Resistor united the Clans into a united realm under her, the High Chieftan. This, for all intents and purposes was the Kingdom of Namadarine, and her the queen though the realm would be called neither Namadarine nor a kingdom until the reign of her grandson. The following spring Alinas realm resisted the elves once more and pushed them back beyond the Aden river. Doing so it became clear to Eldenkros that this collection of tribes was not so easily defeated, soon the empires every whim would be bent on destroying her.
At this time elves lived until they were slain, unhindered by old age, and humans lived for around 200 years. In the early decades of the realm High Chieftan Alina of became known as Alina the Resistor. Over her 150 year reign, Alina kept records of her life and the events that transpired across the Seal. With the great archives of Eldenkros lost beyond memory and the lack of any major texts predating the Clan Moot the forming of Namadarine and Alians records mark the start of our recorded history. When she died she was buried along with her records in the Longship Down on grey lake, there would be laid to rest every Monarch of her line.
A Time Of Expansion
The first age was a time of war for the Seal, battle raged across the continent, a back and forth between Namadarine and Eldenkros. In 1A 332 King Vindhelm I ascended the position of High Chieftan, he was the Grandson of Queen Alina and like his mother and grandmother took oaths in the circle of Namadar. This Ascension was different however, Vindhelm had been a mighty chief in his youth, he had won many victory's against Eldenkros and was a proud and arrogant boy. He demanded not only that the other chieftains swear fealty but that they call him their King, a word that is believed to be derived from the god of rule. Not only this but Vindhelm also demand that all the chiefs present him with silver so that he might forge for himself a helm (or cron) that would shine in the sun. His third act at his ascension was that the united realm would be renamed to the Kingdom of Namadarine, after the clan who ruled it. This was met with a mixed response from the Chieftains. Some had grown up hearing stories of their sires great acts of service to Alina and her daughter, others were resentful that it was not to them that the oaths were sworn. After much scheming and debate between the chieftains it was agreed to put their High Chiefs demands to the vote. The vote passed by a single Chief as six voted in favour and five against. So it was that High Cheif Vindhelm became King Vindhelm I of Namadarine.
By the sixth century Namadarine had outgrown the 12 Chieftains. In response after much internal debate King Vindhelm III divided the Kingdom into Earldoms, large regions ruled by Earls who in turn split their Earldoms into Clans ruled by Chiefs. First was the capital built in 1A 620-701 from which the Monarch Ruled over the vast kingdom and the Earl of Silmar ruled over the central lands, west of Silmar was established the Earldom of Namagana. These first two Earls were selected from the descendants of the first 12 Chiefs.
In 1A 775 Namadarine expanded north to secure the northern mountain gap, there was established the Earldom of Notmar and the city of Aldulor. King Vindhelm III daughter, princess Stela, now of age, was made Earl of Notmar, princess of the north. This began a tradition that the first in line to the throne would be appointed the Earl of Notmar. Princess Stelar would remain the princess of the north until her father was slain in the second battle of the Saints gap when she was crowned Queen. Queen Stelar would begin her reign with the southern expansion.
Queen Stela advanced southwards finding fertile lands full of enslaved humans and elven Slavemasters, she freed the land and the Earldom of Idmar was established in the Id valley. Avrana, a freed slave who had lead an uprising as the queen approached, was made the Earl of Idmar. She was the first Earl selected from outside the first 12 Clans, this changed when after breaking of Aldulor in 1341 the Earldom was split in half and Chieftn Alina Frerider of Gorlindale was made Earl of Ridria.
An Age Of War
The first age was an unending war boarder lines pushed east and west. The most fought over regions was the gap of saints, a break between the Manduwar mountain range and the outer mountains as well as the central lowlands west of Namadarine.
Merlin and Magic
Born in 1A 6621 Merlin was the eldest prince of the Namadar royal family, he sat as Earl of Notmar and from his throne in Aldulor he lead many successful campaigns even pushing into the Briar woods until in 1A 7429 his mother Queen Freya the brave was killed defending the central planes and he ascended to the throne, Merlin lived a surprisingly long life. In his time on the Throne established the Elkguard, a wall guarding the Idric valleys from another Elven conquest, established complete control over the Central and Northern regions of the Seal, and ruled over the longest period of near peace in the westerlands.
By this time Merlin stayed mostly in Namadana using it as is base of power to rule the Kingdom, sometimes going forth to battle and to tour the kingdom. In 1A 7515 an Eldenkros assault reached Elkguard and laid siege to it. The siege lasted ten years and was broken in 1A 7525 in the battle of the Elkflood as coordinated cavalry assaults from behind the gate and the surrounding hills smashed though the Elven lines and broke the siege. In this mighty battle Empress Elruviel, the second empress of Eldenkros, was slain without an heir and great celebrations were had across Namadarine. In the aftermath of the battle Eldenkros fell into disarray as warlords vied with each other for the imperial laurel. Without strong leadership the lines of Eldenkros fell back under a swift Namadarini assault. In this time the army's of Namadarine pushed deeper into Eldenkros then ever before. Around the year 7775 an Eldenkrosi Warlord by the name Elwindale lead a military coup crowing herself Empress the following year. After consolidating power Empress Elwindale enacted her master plan, in 1A 7780 Eldenkros launched a shock campaign across the Seal. More deadly then any before, the assault featured three fast moving prongs. The first through the Saints Gap, laying a brief siege of Aldulor aimed at keeping them at bay as the main army pushed south to the capital. The second through the central lowlands curving north and laying siege to Namadarine. The third and final assault pushed west to the Elkguard to prevent reinforcements coming out of the southern Earldoms. Under the new command of Empress Elwindale the Legions reached for the first time the gates of Namadana and laid siege to her walls in 1A 7801.
As Merlin looked desperately for a way to break the siege he was visited by an aspect of Anbor, goddess of war, who offered to teach him how to harness the magic of the world. Merlin eagerly accepted and 7 great towers were raised out of the bones of the Seal each channelling a different school of magic, this was done under the terms that once the siege was broken Merlin would guard the central tower of Evocation.
Merlin and the court were taught magic and with this advantage easily broke the seige and pushed thurther into Eldenkros. but humans were not the only ones able to harness magic and elves begain to practice druidcraft and soon as Merlin took his place in the Stone Telvar of Evocation and he was sucseeded by his son Arron Namdar the III, once again the war had ran to a standstill.
A Seal Broken
As King Arron III ajusted to the throne and the war ground back to a standstill, dark forces moved in the east. Down in the south eastern corner of the Seal, the Kingdom of Crescentar made plan to break there master free, lead by the Crescent knights they began to convince denizens of both Namadarine and Eldenkros that there was an eigth school of magic, a power over death. Many commoners and nobles from each side gave up there diffrences to build a tower to harness that eighth school. Notable of these were Cuthburt the Kings advisor and Princess Gwyn Earl of Idmar, without consulting the king, her brother she pldeged her Earldoms support to building and defending this tower.
Merlin watched this unfold growing wary and sent a message to King Aron bidding him tackle the issue post hast, he also sent a message to Empress Elwindale of Eldenkros, urging her to join Aron in dealing with the construction problem, Arron massed an army they prepared to march south, Elwindale however refused aid and prepared an army to march on Namadana when Arrons army marched forth. Earl Harrold Axemane-Namdar, husband of Princess Gwyn, made a request to King Arron, asking if he could lead the armys in the battle, King Arron obliged and Harrold and the Ridric rode east.
As Namadarine prepared to march the Crescent order was almost finished constructing the tower, which they named Heldar, the elven word for death. At an unknown point during this construction Princess Gwyn was put under some sort of dark enchantment and her mind was lost. In 1A 10126 the Namadarini armys lead by Earl Harrold and King Arron arived at Heldar to find a fully built tower and Princess Gwyns armys surrounding the base. Earl Harrold lead a cavalry charge towards the Crescent legion of Orcs, Elves and Humans.
As the battle raged bellow the Crescent Knights began a Ritural in Helden tower sacrificing Princess Gwyn to Crescentar, there patron who would be freed and give them the gift of Necromantic. As there ritural was almost completed Earl Harrold burst into tower, the Legions of Crescentar had no power against the Namadarine and Harrold had charged post haste into the tower. There he disrupted the Ritual but was killed by King Drakfam of Cresdos. So the Ritual was completed and the Seal was cracked.
The armys below felt the ground shake and the Seal cracked at the centre, cutting down to the centre of the world, down to the Abyss and into that crack fell the seal, the grand city of Namadana lost to the void, the vallys of the Id, crumbled away, whole mountain ranges were lost, rivers re written the topography of the Seal changed fore. Merlin had to use all his magic to keep the land his tower sat upon out of the crack, with great strain he stopped teh crack from splitting the Seal entirly, stopping it as it opend and sealing the bottom of the crack shut, but still the damage was done, hords of dark cretures emerged from the crack, crule chromatic dragons, hateful drow elves, demonic abominations and vial cretures who had before only delved in the dark beneath the Seal.
Not only was Namadana Shattered by the effects of the crack, but so too was the Eldenkros army marching west to Namadana. The effects of the desaster were catastrophic, almost half the army of Namadana and three quarters of the Eldenkros army were lost in the initial crack and next to come in Namadarines history was the Infernal war and the crisis of aging that would each devistate the Seal, but in the records of King Arron, a new age was upon the Seal and this would mark the decline of Namadarine from its former might.
The Second Age
The Infernal War
The Second age began as the Seal was cracked, post haste King Arron retreated with his army to Aldulor, en route he was ambushed many times by drow assailants, high in the skys metalic and chromatic dragons battled each other, aracocra and agraphal were sent down by the gods and still King Arron and his hoste rode day and night, almost without break, for almost three months they rode, till they came upon the gates of Aldulor.
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