Tenh, Duchy of

Ruled by His Radiance, Duke Ehyeh III of Tenh (contested) vs. forces from Iuz, the Pale, and Stonehold

The war-ravaged lands between the Griff Mountains and the Artonsamay River, north of the Yol, hold the remains of the former duchy of Tenh. The Greyhawk Wars that destroyed this country have not yet ended here; Tenh, the first victim of the wars, seems destined to be its last. Duke Ehyeh III, scion of an ancient Flan lineage, attempts to reclaim his homeland with meager assistance from the County of Urnst. He has other supporters, of course, including the mage Nystul of the Circle of Eight, but few followers, troops, and resources are available to him. His once-great reputation as a leader was destroyed along with his nation, leaving him little more than a noble title and moderate riches. The duke himself has not set foot on his native soil in nearly a decade, a fact that is reflected in the uncertain morale of his troops in Tenh.
The Palish have a much stronger force in Tenh, in the form of a zealot army. Many Tenha exiles were converted over time to the worship of Pholtus, as practiced in the Pale, and organized into an army known as the Faithful Flan. A fighting force utterly loyal to the theocrat, two contingents of the "Faithful Flan" have crossed the Yol into Tenh. The larger contingent entered at Atherstone, which they now occupy, and the smaller passed through the Phostwood. Some of Duke Ehyeh's troops have defected to the Faithful Flan, who are better fed and supplied in addition to having a larger army.
Two former allies, Iuz and the Fists of Stonehold, are now at each other's throat. The Fists occupy a strong defensive position in the cities of Nevond Nevnend and Calbut across the Zumkend River, guarding Rockegg Pass through the Griffs against all other groups in Tenh. Iuz has sent troops across the Zumker River from the town of Rookroost in the Bandit Kingdoms, in an attempt to occupy the abandoned territories. Currently, the forces loyal to Duke Ehyeh hold Redspan, where they are supplied via the Artonsamay River. The Palish armies control southern and eastern Tenh, from the edge of the Phostwood to the town of Oxton, making frequent attacks on the troops of Iuz that move through the no-man's land of central Tenh. Iuz controls both banks of the Zumker to within sight of Nevond Nevnend, though his soldiers avoid corning within bowshot of the city's walls.

History

The fertile uplands between the Artonsamay River and the Griff Mountains provided a homeland to the Flan since before the Great Migrations, more than one thousand years past. The diverse groups of Flan who found shelter here learned new methods of warfare during their early conflicts with the Oerid and Suel invaders of the Flanaess. They organized their armies, and later their state, on the Oeridian model, forming the duchy of Tenh in the early years of Aerdi expansion in the eastern Flanaess.
The duchy joined in a short-lived alliance with the Nyrondal princes until the Battle of a Fortnight's Length. In the wake of that defeat, the duke of Tenh pledged fealty to the king of Aerdy, giving that monarch authority over the duke and his personal holdings in Tenh and the Cohens. Neither the Convocation of Knights and Marshals, nor any of the other nobles or landholders, ever endorsed the duke's pledge. They considered Tenh to be an independent realm, though they chose not to test the Great Kingdom's claim on the field of battle, effectively bowing to Aerdy for over four centuries.
Eventually, the Great Kingdom showed signs of decay. When the Nyrondal princes declared the end of their allegiance to the overking, the duke was persuaded to follow suit. The Battle of Redspan signaled the end of the duke's fealty to the overking of Aerdy. The Aerdy force was routed by the Tenha cavalry and pushed down the "Red Road to Rift Canyon" in an action made famous in the ballad of the same name. The army of the Great Kingdom was not actually swept into the Rift Canyon, as the ballad proclaims, but they were so thoroughly defeated that many of the Aerdi officers and soldiers chose exile in the Bandit Kingdoms over the punishments awaiting them at home.
Tenh's independence brought with it renewed challenges. The Bandit Kings across the Artonsamay and Zumker rivers pushed at the duchy's western borders, while the newly formed Theocracy of the Pale threatened their eastern border, the Rovers of the Barrens continued to raid, as always, and with greater effectiveness after their encounters with the Baklunish nomads. The duchy maintained its sovereignty in all its holdings until the rise of the outlaw Rover called Stonefist. This infamous warrior was a menace throughout the region for several years, finally choosing to build a settlement on the border of the Coltens Feodality. The Cohens were still vassals of the duke of Tenh, though their atamans had great latitude in determining their own affairs. The leaders of the Coltens were deceived and murdered by Stonefist under the guise of a parlay. The forces of Tenh, which had never been strong in the region, were unable to dislodge him.
The Hold of Stonefist remained a threat to Tenh for more than a century, and ultimately brought about its destruction. The first action of the Greyhawk Wars was an invasion of war bands from Stonehold, though this was unlike any previous attack. The Fists had new tactics, and demonic assistance, that overwhelmed the defenses of the city of Calbut, and soon thereafter, Nevond Nevnend. Had the duke been in the city at the time, perhaps he could have rallied his troops to stand; as it was, both citizens and soldiers gave way to panic—though in hindsight, many have suggested that this was demonically inspired fear. The duke and his family fled to the County of Urnst, leaving their nation to the Stoneholders, and the clerics and demons of Iuz.
For six years after the invasion, the Stoneholders held the Tenha enslaved. The evil of Iuz was present throughout the land as well, though never in plain sight. Perhaps this state of affairs would have persisted indefinitely had not an unnatural rage come upon the rhelt of Stonehold, during a meeting in the ruins of the duke's palace at Nevond Nevnend. In an astonishing turn of loyalty, he gave the command to put the clerics and agents of Iuz to the sword, also letting his warriors murder Tenha slaves out of hand. The Fists then withdrew from all but the northernmost part of Tenh, which they still hold.
Armies from the Pale and forces loyal to the exiled duke quickly crossed the borders, battling each other for possession of the southern and eastern regions of the duchy, including the Phostwood. The duke's forces fought a hard battle against bandits and surviving agents of Iuz in the city of Redspan, gaining the aid of Nystul of the Circle of Eight. They now control all of the old city. Its famous bridge has not yet been rebuilt, but its walls are restored, and it provides a strong base for further action in the duchy. Redspan's weak spot is its often-raided supply line, leading back to the County of Urnst along the east bank of the Artonsamay River.

Government: (formerly) Independent feudal monarchy whose royal and noble houses were strictly Flan; (now) court exile, lands fought over by several rival armies, who are the only effective authorities.
Capital: Nevond Nevnend
Major Towns: Calbut (pop. 14,500 [ruined, occupied by Stonehold]), Nevond Nevnend (pop. 25,200 [ruined, occupied by Stonehold]), Redspan (pop. 21,000 [ruined, occupied by Duke Ehyeh's forces]), Atherstone (pop. 4,500 [occupied by the Pale])
Provinces: Originally, a variety of eighteen noble fiefs, from counties to baronies, with confusing lines of authority deriving from ancient intratribal conflicts; provincial borders now gone and irrelevant
Resources: Foodstuffs, platinum (resources not currently developed or exported because of warfare)
Coinage: Magnus (pp), ducat (gp), marcher (ep), circle (sp), common (cp) [currently no new coins minted; old coins found in ruins are used]
Alignments: LN, N* NG
Population: (excluding invading forces) 195,000 — Human 78% (F), Halfling 9%, Elf 4%, Dwarf 3%, Gnome 2%, Half-elf 1%, Half-orc 1%, Other 2%
Languages: Common, Flan, Orc, Goblin, Dwarven
Religions: Iuz (Iuz's forces Pholtus (Pale's forces Erythnul (Stonehold's forces Allitur, Beory, Berei, St. Cuthbert, Pelor, Zodal, Obad-Hai (original religions old Wastrian temples
Allies: [of government in exile] County of Urnst (weak), Nyrond (weak)
Enemies: [of government in exile] Iuz (including Bandit Kingdoms), Stonehold, trolls from the Troll Fens, the Pale

  Location in the Flanaess