Emperor Nero Thrax II
Emperor Nero Erseverys Madovar Thrax
Emperor Nero Thrax II is the incumbent emperor of the Thraxan Empire.
He ascended to take the rank of Emperor in 1830, at the age of 30, after the death of his father, Emperor Batur Thrax I. He is the great, great, great-grandson of Lord Madovar Thrax and the great, great grandson of the first emperor, his namesake, Emperor Nero Thrax I.
He has presided over the Empire for the last four years, and by most accounts seems to be quite popular amongst his people. He has made strides in even quite a short time in supporting the industries of Bandoor, and promoting prosperity of his Empire above and beyond profits.
He rules alongside his wife, Empress Elofer Thrax.
Tenets of Faith
Nero, as the Emperor, is the second most important religious figure in the Empire second only to the Hierophant. Worship of Paladine is widespread in the Empire, and although Nero shares this faith he is not often vocal about it. He was crowned, as is custom, by the leader of the Imperial Church, currently Hierophant Macavus.
Physical Description
Identifying Characteristics
The most obvious of his identifing features is his left eye - completely white with a large scar - a remnant of a training accident at 15 years old. Many rumour that the white eye is glass and has magical properties - allowing him limited vision.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Emperor Nero Thrax II was born in High Bastion in 1800. The Surdonian War had ended in 1784, and two emperors had died in the conflict - Emperor Gunivar Thrax I, and Emperor Madovar Thrax II. His father, Batur Thrax I, took over in 1780 (four years before the wars end) when he was only one year old.
Despite this, Nero's father was intensively trained in statecraft and diplomacy throughout his young life - such that by the time of his birth the Empire had gained a modicum of stability, despite the heavy toll that the Surdonian war had taken on the them as a whole.
By the time Nero was born, his father had lived his young life through the aftermath of a brutal war, and a birth into rulership of an Empire - as a result he was a hard man who appeared to make every effort to impart his own harsh lessons on his son, just as he had lived through them himself. Batur thought, probably fairly, of himself as a highly effective and efficient post-war ruler. Nero saw, however, his heavy reliance on the High Elves who were ever present in the court. He saw their influence on his father throughout his young life, and grew to resent it as he believed his father to be a servent to them, rather than a ruler.
His young life was dominated by preparation to rule, as all emperors before him. At five years of age his sister and only sibling, Aruna Thrax was born.
In 1818, at the age of 18, Nero married Lady Elofer Batur, a noble lady and member of the Batur family, with whom Lord Madovar Thrax allied to begin The Rise of the Thraxan Empire over 180 years prior. Unlike many arranged political marriages, many commented on how the young prince and his princess seemed to truly develop a deep love for each other.
At 30 years old, in the year 1830, his father Emperor Batur Thrax died suddenly following a short and swift illness. He was surrounded by Elven healers in this time, despite Nero insisting that Imperial apothecaries and clerics be allowed in too, which his father repeatedly denied. His father's death did not appear to affect him much - through Nero's life he had been rarely present, and when present he was at best neglectful and at worst cruel towards Nero and Aruna.
Nero was crowned Emperor the following day. He immediately set to work in gradually replacing the numerous high elves in political positions in his court, deigning to replace them when possible with Bandoori imperial humans.
He also, unexpectedly, appointed an ambassador to The Haradi Republic and invited the republic to send a delegate to fill this position. They refused the offer however, and it was an unpopular move with both the Imperial and Elven elements of his court.
He also spent time improving production in the continent, and heavily invested in training woodworkers and craftsfolk, creating a thriving culture of builders. As a result, trade increased with almost all nations in the world as Bandoori crafsmanship - of everything from jewellry to furniture - became highly sought after. He was also the first Emperor to open communication in the form of an envoy to Haradasi Draconis, a move apparently very popular with High Saurus Balsar Hass.
Under his direction, prohibition in worship of Lunitari was also relaxed, although not fully legalised. In a similar vein, he has worked hard through his years in power to re-vitilise the College of Jarem in an attempt to promote wizardry in human culture.
At 1831, he had his first child, Princess Mena Thrax. It is currently believed that Elofer Thrax is pregnant again.
Education
As all emperors before him, his days were filled with lessons in statecraft, military tactics, swordplay, and academia - all with his father's harsh twists. He was known to use non-blunted swords during combat training so that his wounds would be real for example.
One such wound, when Nero was 15 years old, caused one of his elven swordplay tutors to inadvertently cut his eye open. Said tutor was highly placed in Elven society and was on a boat back to Alvas before Emperor Batur was able to exact his punishment on the tutor. The event further deepened Nero's animosity toward Elves.
While building the young prince into a formidable force, these harsh lessons also built in him and his sister a healthy resentment of his father and the elves he surrounded himself with.
Mental Trauma
The loss of his left eye as a result of his fathers insistance on using real swords in training was definitely a defining moment in the young prince's life - he never saw his father again as an ally or confidant.
Intellectual Characteristics
Nero is known by those close to him as thoughtful and careful, and an avid reader of both philosophy and poetry. He is slow to anger, and takes slights on the chin which might provoke other leaders to start handing out executions.
Morality & Philosophy
Nero appears to value the happiness of his subjects above most else, and would rather work towards peace rather than glorious conquest and war. He seems to value freedom more than those before him - evidenced by his easing on religious persecution. He is, however, not afraid to use absolute authority when he feels that it is needed - although not before careful consideration.
Current Location
Church/Cult
Date of Birth
12th of Januras, 1800
Year of Birth
1800 TC
34 Years old
Children
Eyes
One brown, one white
Hair
Auburn
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
White
Aligned Organization
Comments