The First Valdrean Empire was Proclaimed on the first day of Aval in the Year 500 by Valder, King of the Almati, when he established supremacy amongst the warring tribes in the area. He was a SARAN-worshipper, and his Clerics dedicated the lakeside hilltop where he made the Proclamation as a Temple of SARAN. In the Consecration ceremony, it is said that SARAN Herself placed the great Artefact of the Sun Diamond in the Temple, to mark the heart of Her new Empire.
The Emperor Valder I (as he now was) established his Citadel around the new Temple of the Sun Diamond on the Sacred Hill, and his capital, the City of Valdra (as it was known in Old Valdrean) grew up around it. At this time SARAN and ALTIS were in Their First Alliance, and the Alignments of Law and Evil flourished in the First Empire. There was no law against being of Good or Chaotic Alignment in those days, but such people were routinely persecuted, driving worship of the Good and Chaotic Gods underground. The Emperorship (referred to as "The Lion Throne" after Valder's grandiose golden throne with lions for armrests) was hereditary, though the succession was not always smooth.
The Western Provinces of the Empire were under a particularly strong Evil influence, helped by their proximity to the Bandit Kingdom. They were always a source of unrest, which was not helped by "rationalisation" measures enacted in Valdra. In effect their taxes were being increased to finance the increase of centralized government. In the Year 932 troops were sent in to enforce the collection of the Autumn Levy. There had been a poor harvest, and the tax collectors were taking the last straw. Several major provinces broke out in open revolt, killing the Soldiers of the Emperor. A punitive expedition was quickly organised to put down the rebellion, which was spreading like wildfire in the West. The rebels approached the Bandit King for aid, and found his troops were already on the way to assist them! A short and savage, but inconclusive, campaign known as "The Grain War" followed, which was stopped by the winter and by the embarrassed SARAN and ALTIS.
Negotiations failed to break the deadlock, and the Empire mobilised for a spring offensive in 933. But, fired as they were by righteous outrage, the men of the decadent Central and Eastern Empire, with their effete and inexperienced leadership, were no match for the hardy men of the West and the Badlands. The Imperial Army was smashed at the two great battles of Hoseck and the Dafrack.
Following this disaster a compromise was agreed, whereby SARAN handed over the Divine leadership of the Western Provinces to LOFIR, and the Bandit Army withdrew from the Empire. LOFIR appointed the leader of the rebels, Canar, Duke of Arlo, Her Under-Emperor - but both of Them still owed fealty to SARAN and the Emperor respectively. The uneasy peace that followed was short-lived.
The amount of Tribute payable by the Western Provinces became as contentious as the Levies that it had replaced, and Canar disputed all attempts to control him, or his people, from Valdra. There was a Palace Revolution in his Capital of Torel in Destri 935. Canar was killed, and his brother-in-law Gierus, Marquis of Torel, was recognised by the Emperor as Under-Emperor. LOFIR kept silent. But this was not popular with the people, who supported Canar's son Ralan, Duke of Arlo. The Bandit King invaded in support of Ralan, and the Imperial Army moved in to support Gierus and the Army of the Western Provinces. The latter were far from happy about fighting with their former enemies against their former allies, and they mutinied. Gierus was killed, and the Emperor withdrew his troops. The memory of Hoseck and the Dafrack was still strong.
The Bandit / Western Armies advanced to secure a defensive line along the Greenwoods and hills of the Western Plains, and Ralan was declared Western Emperor, under LOFIR and independent of SARAN. But in practice they fell heavily under the influence of ALTIS and the Bandit King, who did not withdraw his armies this time, claiming they were needed for the defence of the Western Empire.
Thee were repercussions in Valdra: in Tekrim 935 the Emperor Decus IV disappeared, and was succeeded by his brother, Leo II, who released the Empress Harina from prison (where Decus had confined her in 929 for adultery with Leo, which had resulted in a son, Marcus) and married her on Empire Day 935, legitimising Marcus as heir apparent. SARAN had never recognised the independence of the Western Empire, which Leo invaded the following Spring, 936, to re-establish Her (and his) control. He prosecuted the war slowly and carefully, mindful of the disaster caused by Decus' swift advances of 935 and of the limitations of his troops, who needed experience in battle. It was an uneasy war too because the forces of Law and Evil were still in nominal Alliance. So the war dragged on, with Leo slowly advancing.
Decus IV was restored as the rightful Emperor in the Year 950, following his rescue from exile on the Secret Isle, and Marcus was confirmed as his heir by marriage to Decus' daughter, Julietta.
The war with the Bandits over the Western Empire continued on and off until the Year 1000, when SARAN was Betrayed by ALTIS, and the First Alliance ended. This was the high point of Bandit advances, when the City of Valdra fell to the Bandit King Hector following the death of the Emperor Tarsus III in the Battle of Gytro. The City was sacked and burned, but was eventually relieved by the advance of Zarak of Aven, who had rallied the remaining Imperial forces around his banner whilst the rampaging Bandits and Westerners fell into disarray. On entering the city Zarak challenged Hector to a duel, to avoid further bloodshed. Hector could not refuse the challenge, and in the contest held on 24 Weven 1000 Zarak emerged the victor, and proclaimed the Second Valdrean Empire as he held up Hector's head.
The formal Proclamation of the Second Empire instituted a number of legal reforms. On the same day, SARAN joined the new Alliance of the Gods of Heaven. Evil and Chaos were outlawed in the Empire, as was Demon Summoning, and the Inquisition into Demon Summoning was founded. The rebuilt City of Valdra was renamed Valdran (as it was already known in the common tongue that now became the official language). Zarak was smitten with the idea of the Duel, and made most public offices subject to formal Duel - notably including the Emperorship itself. 24 Weven was declared Empire Day; a public holiday and time for Games in the Circus. Aven was the first of the Noble Houses of Valdrea, which gradually became established as a feeder system for formal Duelling. A number of Houses rose and fell over the next 1000 years.
The Bandits retreated in confusion and infighting following the death of King Hector, and in the following years' campaigning Zarak I was able to re-establish control over the Western Empire. Evil took longer to eradicate, and now went underground, much as Good had in the First Empire.
The next 500 years was a time of growth and prosperity for the Empire. The Western Provinces were gradually re-integrated (most people worshipping SARAN anyway, and the Evils converting), the tax burden was lower and spread fairly across the Empire, and the Army mostly contented itself with keeping the peace, though from time to time an ambitious General would embark upon a foray against the Bandits in the Western Mountains or against one of the Empire's other neighbours.
On Empire Day, 24 Weven, in the Year 1500 SARAN Herself Demarcated a strict 1000 mile radius Boundary of the Empire from the Temple of the Sun Diamond. The Boundary was scored in fire, and was subsequently fortified by a ditch and rampart, known as the Dyke of SARAN, except in the ocean and high mountains. The Demarcation approximated to the frontiers of the Empire at the time. The Imperial Army no longer sought to extend the Empire's dominion beyond the Boundary, and a prolonged peace ensued - notably with the Bandits.
On 1 Aval 2000 Decus XX of Aven won the Lion Throne in a Duel from his uncle Decus XIX of Aven. A few weeks later Decus XXI of Mastrin succeeded Decus XX of Aven as Emperor. According to the history books, he slew him in a formal Duel for the Lion Throne. However, rumours persist of a titanic struggle between Law (represented by Decus of Aven) and Chaos (represented, if the rumours are to be believed, by Decus of Mastrin), from which Chaos is said to have emerged triumphant. Other stories say that Decus XXI simply re-established the Balance between Law and Chaos, also defeating the so-called ArchChaosMaster Namaja, who in 1997 had led the so-called Great Riot in Valdran of Chaotic rebels, who were subsequently slaughtered by Decus XIX's Imperial Guard in the Massacre of Lake Zarak.
In the Years which followed a number of Mastrin Emperors occupied the Lion Throne, Decus XXI to Decus XXV of Mastrin reigning in unbroken succession. But the House of Mastrin, both in and out of government, continued to be dogged by tales of its dabbling with Chaos until its fall in the Year 2436, when a Dungeon Expedition led by Decus XXXI of Mastrin, Champion of that House and Commander of Fort Venture, was lost without trace and the House officially disbanded by the Emperor, Narsus XIV of Aven. In place of the former House of Mastrin, the Emperor granted to Normeikl I of Bavenne, Director of the IDS, an Imperial Charter to form the new Noble House of Normeikl.
Chaotic rebellions continued periodically; notably in 2411, when there was a failed assassination attempt on the Emperor Vlador III of Carrilon by the Chaotic rebel Xudar.
On Empire Day, 24 Weven, in the Year 2500 an Orcish invasion of the Overworld targeting the Temple of Heaven on Earth Procession was halted at the Second Battle of Garf Lea, when FIDAR Herself stepped in to stop the fighting, and SARAN Herself was weakened after being badly wounded in the battle of the Gods that resulted in the Fall of Heaven. New Alliances were formed amongst the Gods, including the Temple of Peace on Earth (which SARAN pointedly did not join), and the Emperor Kostof 1 of Normeikl proclaimed the Third Valdrean Empire, taking the opportunity to rationalise some of the Laws of the Second Empire.
In Destri 2501 the Emperor Arril I of Tarm led a mission to hunt down and kill the Bandit King Corex, whose reign of Evil Chaos was spilling over into the Empire. Corex was killed, and the Valdreans seized the Citadel of Rockholme. Then on 19 Destri, to mark the recovery of SARAN, Arril Proclaimed the extension of the boundaries of the Third Empire beyond the Dyke of SARAN by the annexation of adjoining areas, including the Bandit Kingdom. The Imperial Army then invaded the Bandit Kingdom in support of the expeditionary force in Rockholme Citadel. The Kingdom of the North responded by itself annexing the land East of the River Garf. On 25 Destri a Second Temple of Peace on Earth was established in the Citadel of Rockholme in an effort by the Gods of Peace on Earth to halt the internecine fighting in the City.
By Sarm 2501 the Valdreans had reached the foot of Rockholme Mount; where they defeated the Bandit field armies (known as "Kavaleri") and laid siege to Rockholme, whilst the Bandits in town (known as "Bastolli") continued their Civil War. In Jerem the Imperial Army entered Rockholme, where Zergal (who had by now established himself as the leading contender amongst the Bastolli) narrowly escaped total defeat by using a force of Demon Summoned Balrogs. The Temple of Peace on Earth attempted to intervene with a Peacing of Rockholme, resulting in a Schism in which the Temples of KOROS, SHELDA and ESCUS disassociated themselves from the TPE and an attack upon Rockholme by the Gods of Heaven and Hell. This resulted in the death of ORIL, and the fall of the Rockholme TPE. The Angels of SARAN intervened on the Valdrean side, but Zergal was the eventual winner of the Battle of Rockholme, routing the Imperial Army on the Field of Blood and proclaiming himself Bandit King.
A time of crisis followed for the Empire. Zergal's Bandits drove the Imperial Army out of the Bandit Kingdom, and after defeating them again at the Battle of the Blasted Plains and at Fort Kostof, back across the Dyke of SARAN. Rebellion broke out in Valdrean Western Provinces, which were badly hit by famine following the widespread failure of the harvest due to the death of ORIL and perceived inequalities in food rationing Stirros III of Satril, Director of the IDS, brought impeachment proceedings against the Emperor Arril I and Privy Council, accusing them of constructive Demon Summoning over the use of Angels in the Battle of Rockholme, though they were subsequently acquitted, and Stirros outlawed following a failed assassination attempt. By Estender Gamart and West Post had fallen to Zergal's Kavaleri and the Western rebels, who renamed West Post as Ralania, after the old Western Emperor.
In Lastra Krell McAndar united the Badlander Clans, who were also suffering badly from the famine, and took advantage of perceived Valdrean disarray to lead them against the Northern Empire. Zergal's Kavaleri and rebels took Torel and Yarmena, and their scouts reached as far as Lake Zarak. But the tide mow turned again in favour of the Empire. Zergal was forced to retreat from Yarmena, as Arril approached with massive reinforcements raised in the Central and Eastern Empire, and then in Numist the Kavaleri and Western Rebels were stricken by a mysterious and deadly plague. Arril's cavalry force attacked Zergal outside Shoderon, and Zergal disbanded his plague-ridden and defeated army, who fled pursued by the Valdrean cavalry.
The Badlanders crossed the Dyke of SARAN in Numist, whilst the Imperial Army laid siege to Ralania and a plague-stricken Torel, which soon capitulated. King Zergal was cured of plague by the Temple of FIDAR, on condition he sought peace with the Empire. By Garrack the plague was beginning to affect the Imperial Army, and on 8 Garrack Arril and Zergal agreed the Treaty of the Temple of FIDAR on Earth, by which the Empire abandoned its claim to the Rockholme Military Area, and Zergal agreed to withdraw his forces from the Empire and cease support for the rebels. The new frontier followed the Dyke from the North West Gap to the North West corner of Torel Province and then the crest of the mountains, and the Blasted Plains (West of Fort Kostof) were demilitarised. Ralania fell three days later, following the assassination of the rebel leader, Calan, by Valdrean adventurer teams. The city was razed to the ground and the surviving population enslaved to rebuild the war-torn Province. The Imperial Army now turned its attention to the Bandits, winning a pyrrhic victory over them at the Battle of Meldiron on 12 Garrack. McAndar escaped and his surviving Bandits retreated.
On Empire Day 2501 Arril I granted an Imperial Charter to the Men of Heaven (who had taken sanctuary in Valdran following the Fall of Heaven) to form a new Noble House of Heaven in reward for their service in the wars against the Bandits, Western rebels and Badlanders. Kyarlin of SARAN, the new Champion of Heaven, was granted by SARAN the restored Seventh Sword, Cumarel, now of Heaven but said to be the same Sword as Cumarel of Mastrin, lost in Decus XXXI of Mastrin's ill-fated Dungeon Expedition of 2436.
Following the ending of the Dark Time in Rockholme in Yarom 2501 Zergal agreed to permit worship of the former Gods of Heaven in Rockholme and the foundation of a Temple of SARAN. A more tolerant attitude to the worship of the Evil Lawful Gods also now prevailed in the Empire, especially in the West, though it remained technically illegal to be Evil.
In the Spring of 2503 Krell McAndar was again elected Warlord of the Badlander Clans at Horning Crags and led ten Clans against the Empire, in the company of the outlawed Stirros III of Satril. They pillaged Caldro Vale, were driven back by Arril near the Midro, and then started Chaotically appearing out of woods, from Greenwoods to Three Rivers Province in the South East. On 7 Jerem Martial Law was declared in the Empire, leading to riots on the Hapral waterfront, which the Imperial Army had to be sent in to suppress. The Thieves' Guild of Hapral also helped dispose of Chaotic troublemakers.
Over the next few months Badlander forces appeared all over the Empire and further afield. McAndar defeated a Valdrean force at the Battle of the Greenwoods, but was driven back in the Battle of Tharis. One Badlander force took Basren in High Yarmen Province. Another was defeated by High Elven riders in the Vale of Caladuin. They drove off Valdrean scouts in the forest to the West of West Post, then joined with Wolf Cultists to attack Gorreth in Southern Kyr. McAndar escaped Lord Marshal Tindral of Gytrasan in the Third Battle of Garf Lea
Meanwhile the notorious orc, Glersh the Dread, had reappeared in the North West Forest, and gathered a new army of orcs in the Upper Garf Valley, which he led against the Badlander homelands. The Badlanders were now fragmented, and the Empire took advantage of the situation to mount a retaliatory raid on the Badlands in Lastra and Numist 2503, in which they trialled their new Teleportal invasion capability. The Valdrean raiders defeated Glersh's orcs, and made peace with Ephraim McOmechar, who handed over the renegade Stirros III of Satril. McAndar’s surviving warband broke out of the Midro Gorge into the North Western Gap, but on 6 Garrack McAndar was killed in a last charge. Stirros was tried and executed for armed insurrection and constructive Demon Summoning.
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