History of Elluria

The nations of Tollor, Elluria, Emil, Sevule, and El-Ekki do not use the Arangothian Calendar. The great Ellurian hero Kel Ellure decreed that dates would be reckoned from the year of Gitaro's revelation to Polar. Dates before this year are usually noted as BG, or "Before Gitaro's Revelation." Tagran founded the city of Tagrana in Arangoth in the year 530 by Ellurian reckoning. The year 470 in Arangoth was the year 1000 in the Southlands. For clarity, dates given are by the Arangothian calendar, with Ellurian dates in parentheses.

The Beginnings

2280 BT - 755 BT (1750 BG - 225 BG in Ellurian Reckoning)

What is known today as the Southland Peninsula was at first inhabited by numerous tribes of barbaric peoples. These peoples lived in mud huts and lived from hunting and fishing until the city of Dol was erected around 2280 BT (1750 BG) in the valley of the Rainbow River near the site where Lueril (which would later be renamed Kelsville) would be built in 245 BT (285 AG). The people of Dol were called Dolluthians, and they built several cities around the Rainbow River valley, which were governed as independent city-states.

The Dolluthians lived a relatively peaceful life until a mass migration by a people known as the Loquites around 1915 BT (1385 BG). The Loquites overran the Dolluthian cities, but were promptly driven out. The Dolluthians conquered the Loquites after several years of bloody warfare, and subjected them to slavery and servitude. The Dolluthians led a peaceful life once again until 1023 BG, when they were conquered by the Harons, a barbaric people from what is now Emil, who had somehow managed to develop the processing of iron ore. The Harons destroyed much of the Dolluthian civilization.

The Haron Empire lasted only until 1540 BT (1010 BG), and it crumbled into several small kingdoms with a variety of Dolluthian influence. The Dolluthians managed to rebel against the Harons and destroy them after a very bloody war in 1512 BT (982 BG), but the survivors were too few in number to rebuild their civilization, and they scattered to various other places, possibly to what is now Sevule and El-Ekki. The region went through a dark age until 1005 BT (475 BG), when the Teldanari settled in a city called Jorafel. The Teldanari traded with the barbarian descendants of the Dolluthians and Loquites, whom they named the Tollor peoples. These Tollor peoples rose up against their Teldanari neighbors in 938 BT (408 BG) and drove them out of Jorafel, which they renamed Tollor. The city of Tollor thrived peacefully until 755 bt (225 BG), when the Aslarian Empire conquered all of the Southlands.

Under the Aslarian Empire

755 BT - 198 BT (225 BG - 332 AG)

The Aslarians introduced the Tollorians--as well as some of the undeveloped peoples of the Southland Peninsula including the J'Lontz and the Emilians--to the methods large scale agriculture and used their city of Tollor (which they renamed New Rispith) as an outpost for trading the region's vast wealth of grain and lumber. They built the cities of Norlin and Garusk in 658 BT (128 BG) and 645 BT (115 BG) as trading centers to the far away lands of Arangoth and Vallaria. The port city of Pearl (which was later renamed Ellure) was established in 475 BT (55 BG), and thrived as not only a port for Aslarian trade, but a cultural and artistic shrine of the area. The Aslarians taught the Tollorians the use of their alphabet with their Tollorian language instead of the archaic Teldanari hieroglyphs they had been using. The Aslarians also made sure to keep the various tribes of the region separate. In the year 530 BT (1 AG), a poor farmer named Polar had a vision that led him to the island of El-Ekki to receive a revelation from the gods, which was the origin of El-Ekki's importance as a sacred place to the Tollorians.

While the Aslarians had ruled with a relatively light hand for centuries, their policies began to change under the influence of a new cabal of Viziers that took power in the 204 BT (326 AG). They enacted policies to mandate the use of the Aslarian language for all public business and commerce, and suppress the native religion in favor of Munism. These policies were deeply unpopular and sparked an uprising. The Aslarians were finally overthrown by the Tollorian people led by the legendary Kel Ellure in 198 BT (332 AG). Tollorians commemorate their liberation on the 21st day of Second Seed, the day that Kel Ellure's army captured the Tollorian capital.

The Reign of Kel Ellure

196 BT - 135 BT (334 - 395 AG)

Kel Ellure was crowned Queen of Tollor in 196 BT (334), and became an icon of the Tollorian people. She declared that the Tollorian Kingdom's boundaries were to the sea at the west and south, to the mountains at the east, and to the Northland forest to the north. Kel Ellure was a spiritual leader as well as military leader to her people, and dated the new Tollorian calendar from the year of Gitaro's revelation to Polar rather than the year of her birth or coronation. She declared nine days of thanksgiving to the gods following her coronation and made a pilgrimage to the island of El-Ekki, which became the foundations of the Del-Ot festival. Kel Ellure was not only a female ruler in a patriarchal society, but a legendary figure loved by the entire nation. Many traditional proverbs and popular songs were attributed to Kel Ellure's authorship. The neighboring Allarian people so loved the Great Kel Ellure that they soon were known as 'Ellurians', and their cities of Lueril and Pearl were renamed Kelsville and Ellure respectively. Her reign was a peaceful one, with only a brief border dispute with the Kingdom of Emil in 143 BT (387 AG). There was a massive funeral in Tollor City upon her death in 135 BT (395 AG). Stories of her adventures are still told in many different lands to this day.

The Reign of Jeon Ellure

135 BT - 118 BT (395 - 412 AG)

Jeon Ellure was the only child of Kel Ellure and was crowned king after her death. He was by no means a great leader like his mother. His poor diplomatic policies lead to a war with Emil from 126 BT (404 AG) to 123 BT (407 AG). Tollor was forced to surrender after many costly battles, and Emil took control of the city of Garusk. Jeon was always overshadowed by the memory of his great mother, and eventually he committed suicide by hanging himself with his bed sheets in 118 BT (412 AG).

The Golden Age

118 BT - 82 AR(412 - 612 AG)

Jeon Ellure left three sons and one daughter after his death, and the eldest son Dachard I became the new king of Tollor. The reigns of Lucus, Dachard I, his son Alvin, and his grandson Dachard II were peaceful and prosperous. Following Dachard II was the boy king Regari Ellure who was crowned in the year 82 (612 AG), but several days later he was thrown from the palace tower.

The Rise of the House of Vilgren and the Elluria Campaign

82 - 91 (612-621 AG)

The Vilgren Family of Norlin, led by Lord Treshire Vilgren, claimed the Tollorian throne after the death of King Regari, who left no heirs. The Sor Family of Ellure disputed this openly, and the provinces of East and West Elluria declared themselves an independent kingdom in 86 (616 AG). The Vilgren's army attempted to seize Elluria and take it back into Tollorian control, but the Ellurians, aided by the Emilians, fought back, and a very bloody war raged through the Southland until the Tollorian army's final triumph in the year 91 (621 AG). The Tollorians reclaimed the city of Garusk as their own.

The Reign of Treshire Vilgren I and the "Dark Age"

91 - 147 (621-677 AG)

After the victory over the Ellurians and Emilians, King Treshire I instated the Rules of Conduct, a list of elaborate laws and protocol. The purpose behind these laws was to control the people, and it gave unrestricted power to the throne. King Treshire I also dissolved the High Council, which he claimed to be against the word of the god Nyl. The High Council fled to the Northland Province and remained under the protection of the J'Lontz giants. King Treshire I was infuriated, and he sent his Royal Guard to find the Council members, but none of the guards returned. Treshire I responded by ordering a siege of the Northland forest, thus preventing food and supplies from reaching the people of the Northland.

The Emilians decided that this would be an opportune time to retake Garusk in 115 (645 AG). This resulted in another bloody conflict called the Rat War, which eventually ended with an Emilian surrender in 116 (646 AG). King Treshire I declared any "anti-Tollorian" peoples to be enemies of the state, and that any Ellurian, Emilian, and J'Lontz that infringed upon any of the Rules of Conduct be put to death. This resulted in the execution of thousands of people between the years between 116 and 147 (646 and 677 AG).

The Reign of Winthorpe Vilgren I

147 - 199 (677 - 729 AG)

A rise in the Tollorian population led to famine and plague, and as Winthorpe I took the throne, the peasants were already restless. Winthorpe I devised a plan to keep their hatred focused otherwise. He separated the Ellurian and Tollorian villages and circulated rumors that one people were trying to overthrow the other. This was the beginning of a hatred that would last over two hundred years. Winthorpe I did, however, sign a peace treaty with the J'Lontz in 179 (709 AG) which stated that he would cease the violence against the J'Lontz tribe if they would resume paying taxes to the Tollorian government. This turned out to be more than the essentially poor J'Lontz could pay, and the Tollorian Army attacked the J'Lontzek stronghold in 181 (711 AG). The battle lasted for 17 days, and a horrifying number of J'Lontz civilians were slaughtered. The Tollorians marched into J'Lontzek to find it empty. The puzzled army marched back toward Tollor City, and they were annihilated along the J'Lontzek Trail. This was a day to live in infamy as far as the Tollorians were concerned, and it was later known as the Massacre at the J'Lontzek Trail. However, the number of women and children killed during the previous battle outnumbered those Tollorian soldiers lost in the 'massacre' five to one. Winthorpe I caught a terrible case of Leturian fever in 199 (729 AG) and became incapacitated. His 17-year-old wife (and cousin) Talya took over his duties as ruler of Tollor.

The Reign of Talya Vilgren and the Penede War

199 - 270 (729-800 AG)

When Talya Vilgren was crowned Queen of Tollor, she was its first woman ruler since Kel Ellure, and the people suddenly became optimistic. Talya was, however, still a Vilgren, and she kept Winthorpe I's policy of dividing the Tollorian and Ellurian peoples. Some argue that she was the most progress-oriented Vilgren leader. She oversaw the building of many roads and bridges throughout Tollor, almost all of which are still around to this day. The Emilians came to see the exceptionally long rule of a woman on the throne as a weakness of the Tollorian people, however, and they attacked the city of Garusk in the year 270 (800 AG). They were repelled by the Tollorians who, along with the support of the Kingdom of Tyranor, descended upon Emil and seized the city of Locand. The Emilians surrendered after 3 months of war. Queen Talya never knew about the Tollorian victory, however. She died in her sleep the morning of the Emilian surrender.

The Silver Age

270 - 309 (800 - 839 AG)

With the Emilian Kingdom defeated, King Treshire II married a Tyranori princess to reinforce the alliance between the two kingdoms. The Tollorians and Tyranori had the south seas to themselves. King Treshire II ordered the building of naval bases in Sevule and El-Ekki in 273 (803 AG) which was used by the two kingdoms to guard their trading routes against pirates. Business boomed in Green Hills and Tollor City. "Half the world's grain is grown in but a portion of this small kingdom," wrote a visiting ambassador. The times were not as grand for the Ellurian and Sevulian peoples, who depended on fishing as the staple of their economy. The new safety of the southern waters promoted over-fishing, and soon there was no fish to be found. The Sevulians revolted in 307 (837 AG). There was a series of battles in which both sides took heavy losses, and the Tollorians finally withdrew from Y'Kiomi in 309 (839 AG).

The Reign of Treshire III

309 - 314 (839-844 AG)

Of all the Vilgren rulers King Treshire III was the most well-liked by the Tollorian peasantry. He was a charismatic, adventurous man and an excellent public speaker. His addresses to the Tollorian people were legendary, and his contributions to charity were unmatched. He granted El-Ekki its independence in 313 (843 AG) When Brackish invaders attacked Norlin, Treshire III insisted that he fight against them, despite the advice of his royal court. He was killed in battle in 314 (844).

The Brackish War

314 - 319 (844-849 AG)

No one really knew who the Bracks really were, aside from the fact that they were migrant barbarians that had come across the south sea by ship. They viciously attacked the port city of Norlin, paying no attention to the etiquette of warfare. They seized control of the city in 315 (845 AG), and took Kelsville in 316 (846 AG). They were driven out of Kelsville in the same year, however, and expelled from Norlin in 318 (848 AG). By 319 (849 AG), the Tollorian and Tyranori navy, though weakened considerably, had driven away the Brackish savages.

Recent History

In the year 374 (904 AG), the J'Lontz giants of the Northland declared their independence from Tollor. The Tollorian crown did not recognize their independence, but made little effort to exert control over the territory.

In the year 462 (992 AG), Winthorpe Vilgren was crowned King Winthorpe II of Tollor. In 466 (996 AG), Tollor and Emil again battle each other in a conflict called the War of the Hordes. This short and indecisive conflict further inflames the tensions between the Tollorian northern provinces and Ellurian southern provinces.

Tollorian Civil War

(Also known as The Griffon War) 466-467 (996-997 AG)

The southern provinces of Tollor rebel under the harsh rule of Winthorpe II. Imperialists under King Winthorpe fight the Loyalists under Sir Charles Ruflin. Winthorpe enlists aid of Griffons from Griffon's Aerie, but is defeated at the battle of Potter's Hill. Winthorpe goes into exile on El-Ekki. The city renamed is Ruflin City, and becomes the new capital. Sir Ruflin is proclaimed as a hero of the kingdom, but he retires from public life after the war. A High Council of nobles rules briefly, but tensions between the Tollorian northern provinces and Ellurian southern provinces almost lead to another war. The Province of West Elluria threatens to secede, and the young Sir Eldryn Ruflin, adopted Son of Sir Charles, impresses many with his eloquent oratory and skillful mediation of the crisis. The High Council offers Sir Eldryn the crown, and he becomes Eldryn I, King of the Tollorian and Ellurian peoples. In Last Seed of 467 (997) King Eldrich of the nearby kingdom of Emil died, leaving his lands to his only child, the fourteen-year-old Laravel of Marland. Eldryn wed Laravel to join the Tollorian and Emilian kingdoms for the first time ever. The new Pan-Ellurian kingdom is known simply as Elluria.

The Tyranori War

467-468 (997-998 AG)

A military coup in Tyranor shifted the balance of power to the mad and occasionally demonic General Redsword, who immediately began to build his Dark Army. He attacked Teldanar, the long-time enemy of Tyranor, and took the Teldanari completely by suprise. Within a few days Queen Liesha Zionne was thrown into a prison in Yorklawn. The Dark Army then conquered Bahr, and sent an ultimatum to King Eldryn demanding that he surrender or be destroyed. In the end he is defeated by an Elluri-Teldanari alliance and sentenced to death. His last words before being hanged were an ominous vow to reuturn. Tyranor is divided up between the victorious countries. Those rebellous elements of the Tyranori who cannot stand the yoke of their conquerors flee, many to goblinoid Bahr.

468 (998) - King Eldryn drowns in the Rainbow River in a tragic accident. The Green Hills Plague erupts in Second Seed of 468 (998 AG), decimating the fertile farmlands of East Elluria. Without sufficient manpower to tend to the year's crop, there is a poor harvest. This leads to famine and riots in the autumn and winter months, which the young Queen Laravel is ill-equipped to deal with. She issues a plea to neighboring countries to come to the aid of her starving people, which some interpret as a sign of the Queen's weakness. Central authority in Elluria begins to unravel as nobles start setting themselves up as local warlords, especially in the northern parts of the kingdom that had been the base of the deposed Vilgren dynasty's Imperialist supporters. Some Tollorian nobles begin to refer to Laravel as the Dark Queen and resist efforts to re-assert royal authority.

The Southland War

468 (998)

King Eldryn drowns in the Rainbow River in a tragic accident. The Green Hills Plague erupts in Second Seed of 468 (998 AG), decimating the fertile farmlands of East Elluria. Without sufficient manpower to tend to the year's crop, there is a poor harvest. This leads to famine and riots in the autumn and winter months, which the young Queen Laravel is ill-equipped to deal with. She issues a plea to neighboring countries to come to the aid of her starving people, which some interpret as a sign of the Queen's weakness. Central authority in Elluria begins to unravel as nobles start setting themselves up as local warlords, especially in the northern parts of the kingdom that had been the base of the deposed Vilgren dynasty's Imperialist supporters. Some Tollorian nobles begin to refer to Laravel as the Dark Queen and resist efforts to re-assert royal authority.

469 (999 AG)

A Tollorian noble named Lord Ciroj attempts to destablize Queen Laravel's regime in order to make a bid for a throne. He sends ships flying the Ellurian royal colors to make an unprovoked attack by an the Aslarian port of Selrose Bay, burning much of the city to the ground. He also sends a unit of mercenaries to conduct raids along the Ellurian border with Aslar, falsely carrying Aslarian banners. Aslar declares war upon Elluria, and the Ellurian Royal Dragoons under the command of General Andros march north toward the Aslarian border. General Andros's forces are intercepted by a coalition of Tollorian nobles led by Sir Ekkelrin who believe that the threat of war is overblown, and fear that the army's true objective is to subdue the Tollorians. They refuse to grant the troops passage through their lands without concessions from the Queen. Neither side is eager to shed Ellurian blood however, and the two sides come to terms after Sir Ekkelrin is convinced of the Aslarian declaration of war. Drachean Dizzy 'Tashli' Longtongue, a kender, is still King of Aslar by lottery but is due to be sacrificed in a few months to make way for the randomly chosen successor. Aslar is considered the more powerful nation, but has not been at war for two centuries, while most Ellurians are well-blooded from several recent wars. Aslar makes extensive use of mercenaries in the early stages of the war while their slow and ponderous war machine mobilizes. The famous Aslarian scholar, artist, and author Dhakus Maribagh leads the Aslarian army as the King's Military Vizier. Arangoth, Teldanar and most other countries declare themselves neutral, but the Korthai Pirates join with Aslar and begin sinking Ellurian ships.

On the 21st day of Second Seed of 469 (999 AG), Aslarian forces conquer the Ellurian city of Dulsi on the anniversary of Kel Ellure's victory over the Aslarians six and a half centuries earlier. Lord Ciroj, the city's defender, is unaccounted for after the battle. It is not known whether he was slain during the sack of the city, or whether he fled into exile. The following month, Queen Laravel succumbs to the Green Hills plague and dies. The High Council elects Lord Cyran Eäril-Galindë of Borgeon as the new King of Elluria. The High Council of Emil orders the Ellurian banners taken down upon Laravel's death and instead elects the deceased Queen's kinsman, Prince Dankin of the House of Eber, as King of Emil. Prince Dankin sends a chest of gold to Aslar as tribute and concludes a separate peace with the Aslarians.

At the end of the year, Aslarian King Dizzy Longtongue, unsuccessful at stopping the war, is ritually executed and a new King is chosen by lottery: an Assi 'savage' from the Nie Valley. The new King concludes an alliance with the Assi, who begin harassing Arangoth's borders, and presumably begin aiding Aslar in its war effort, but the alliance comes to little and does not last past the year's term of the Assiman.

470 (1000)

The Southland War continues. By 470 (1000) the tide had turned seriously against the exhausted Ellurians. The Capital of Ruflin City falls to the Aslarians in Sun's Dawn, and General Andros is slain in battle. King Cyran was captured after the battle and sentenced to death, and conducted himself with dignity and bravery at his execution. Many Ellurians flee to El-Ekki, where the remnants of the Ellurian High Council creates a Government in exile. Aslar seizes large swaths of Ellurian territory and expels a great number of Ellurians from their land to and plunders captured cities to compensate their army. This creates a refugee crisis, and many Ellurians who are able to book passage on a ship are given refuge in Arangoth and on Myst, creating two new towns in AngelSinHorna and Vekkilmaril respectively. The Assi King of Aslar is executed and replaced with another astonishing candidate, a Zul Kiran orc.

The Alesian Imperium, a nation previously unknown in Veth, arrive in Elluria from far across the Southern Sea in Hearthfire. The Ellurian Government in Exile had sent out emissaries secretly to several countries in search of military aid, and contacted the Alesians through intermediaries in Bahija. These fierce and disciplined warriors are said to have burned their boats on arrival in the Southland, sending a message that they were here to stay. The Ellurians and Alesians are also aided by the privateering Black Sheep airship and its owner, Resque Maessen. Though it is not widely known, the far-ranging Maessen was the one who put the Ellurians in contact with their saviours.

471 (1001)

The Alesians, under the leadership of General Larold Vertonthen and Prince Etaudus Paralor, inflict a series of defeats on the Aslarians, pushing them back to the Aslarian fortress of Dashlirak. The Aslarians sue for peace, and negotiate a treaty that restores the boundaries of the two countries to their original positions before the war. The Treaty recreates the kingdom of Tollor from the former Tollorian province as a buffer state between Aslar and Alesian Elluria, and Treshire Vilgren, son of the deposed Winthorpe II, becomes King Treshire V of Tollor. The provinces of East Elluria, West Elluria, the former Tyranori territory, and the the Northland become the new Alesian protectorate of Elluria. The peace settlement also acknowledges Emil's independence, effectively undoing the unification of the late 460s. By this time, the Northland is firmly under the control of the Alesians as well, and is considered part of Elluria. The Alesians make overtures of friendship toward the J'Lontzek giants.

Aslarian troops mutiny when they hear of the terms of the peace treaty, and they capture and execute the Vizier who signed it. Dhakus Maribagh is recalled from retirement to lead troops to quell the mutiny. Upon meeting up with the mutineers, Maribagh's troops also mutiny and threaten to execute their commander if he does not join them. The mutineers seize the fortress of Dashlirak, and the Alesians lay siege to the mighty fortress that even Kel Ellure failed to conquer. Dhakus Maribagh leads a breakout and escapes with most of his forces, and the Alesians demand harsher peace terms. In the end, an uneasy truce remains, and no treaty is officially ratified by either side.