So, just checking, do all of the Dragonborn go to the Halls of the Dead, regardless of how good or bad they were when they were alive?
Marked by Ashes - DnD Succession Quest
- Thread starter Alucard Vampiry
- Start date
- Fantasy
- Location
- Castlevania
Somewhat, if you shamed your clan and made no effort to fix whatever mistake you did, then you don't go to the Halls of your ancestors to party with them for all of eternity, you go to the Halls of The Forgotten, where you are tossed in the cold dark realm to be forgotten by both the living and the dead your shameless actions forever haunting you and with added benefit that if you had tried to be better to fix your mistake you wouldn't be there and you are fully aware of that fact.
Of course, this only applies to Dragonborns that didn't pledge allegiance to some kind of higher power that could send them to another afterlife.
Name: Ghesh Lakoderon
Date of Birth / Age at Ascension: 1468 DR / 1486 DR
Relationship with Previous Ruler: Lakoderon loved his father. He was always there to answer silly, childish questions that his mother lacked patience to deal with. Drinnar teached him things he would need once it was his time to ascend the throne. Ever so caring, ever so loving. But now he is gone, and everything tastes like ash.
Personality:
"No, we won't fight. There must be a way that can see us go through this situation without any risk. And I will smack you both if you don't follow this way"
"Do you really think you can do this? Really? No, you can't and you know this. Let me take care of it"
"Keremma, you misbegotten buffon, you don't do this like that. You will hurt yourself. If you do all things in this manner, better do not do things at all"
"I will do this, so no one else have to. I don't need any help, especially from you. Trust me, I know you"
"Father would weep if he saw you like that Keremma. Now, again, the sword goes... No, try again, and be less moronic while doing it"
Bio: Since Childhood, Lakoderon always knew exactly what he would do. And how. And when. Born leader some might say. Tyrant by others. First born of Drinaar was above all caring. Caring for others, for himself. Expecially for his one half-elven sibling, Keremma, although she would say something different about it. Yet this caring often takes dark turns and twists, especially after the death of his father. At coronation he just wanted to die, to bury himself somewhere where no one would seek him. He thought that his coronation would be glory and splendour incarnate. And for anyone else, it was. Yet, he didn't expected it to be soon after his 18th birthday. No one could. His father died as hero of the Land, yet Lakoderon could not, would not accept that he couldn't do anything about it. He couldn't safe him, nor even try to do something remotely useful. What is he even if he isn't useful to others? Nothing, thats what. But now, he will not be helpless. And he knows exactly what to do for everyone to have their happy endings.
Style of Governance: If he could, he would do everything himself. When he can't, he tries to manage everyone as much as he can. He considers hands off approach as an insult to everything that is godly and decent. As a filthy wyrm collects baubles, he collects power, and he won't be denied.
Core Goal: Tribal system is too backwards and unreliable. Lets become a feudal nation with a hereditary king, and the ruling dynasty. Of course, Ghesh clan is the only one with enough pedigree to become kingly house.
Secondary Goals: Conquest of the lands between River of Swords and Ash Lake, called Greenlands. Just anything could invade us from these plains, and they are too fertile to be left alone. Funding a school of wizardry and other shazaam with the help of the Imaskari mages, with a special regard for abjuration.
Minor Goals: Encourage the cult of Ghesh in the Tymanther. Change the official name of the nation from "Gnash" to the, only proper, Tymanchebar. Establish trade links with the Shining Lands after conquering Greenlands.
Ps. This will propably be the longest ruling king, but of course he can always roll 1+1 on longevity roll.
Last edited:
Good, reasonable and useful. But I lacked the spark. Some small character trait that complements the image.
For example, if he so wants to control everything and everyone, why not create a Secret Guard from his brothers and sisters, spying on other clans, possibly other states.
Or to supplement the personality with envy of the magic of relatives, as a pretext for starting the creation of a school of magic.
Something is missing. (Just my thoughts)
He sees bigger picture, therefore reform of the political system is more desirable for him, and he loves his siblings enough to not put them under guard all the time. He doesn't care about things that he doesn't care about. Magic is just something he heard of from his aunties, and decided is needed. He got too good upbringing to be that much of a freak I'm afraid ; /
- Location
- Castlevania
I'm not going to lie this is giving me ideas.
What? Imaskari have some special flavor of magic or something?
With my sleepy eyes, I first read this passage and thought: "Wow, he and Keremma quarreled so much that Keremma pulled out a sword and wanted to kill Lacoderon, who just doesn't care, he knows what's best. Doesn't take Keremma seriously."
Such an interesting read. Sorry wrong.
- Location
- Castlevania
No, its mostly about the school of magic that you choose to be the main focus.
This might be canon tbh, they really have THE relationship.
What about the extracted dragon heads? Do we, like the Targaryens, have them all located in the throne room?
- Location
- Castlevania
Yes, Drinaar was very clear with that decision.
So our left hand rests on an ancient red dragon, our right hand on an ancient green dragon, and a little less than ten more are hung in the hall? Our throne room is worthy of the Empire we must become.😎
- Location
- Castlevania
Correction to your left and right sit TWO of Tiamat's chosen heralds in the mortal world. Those two were not normal ancient dragons (even if that sounds absurd), and yes a few dozen adult dragon skulls hang around the throne room.
It really does enchant the view, especially when people who don't know who the two massive skulls belong to find the information.
Back in the day when magic was cool before Karsus ruined it for everyone, they were Isekai'ing ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians en mass.
As for appropriate Dragonborn magic stuff, Abeirians often used the corpses of dead Primordials when they wanted to make cool stuff.
Unfortunately, the biggest source of that sort of thing was on Returned Abeir, which got Sundered, and I doubt the likes of Grumbar or Kossuth are going to volunteer to become corpses for our crafting projects.
3. Ghesh Lakoderon "The Young King"
- Location
- Castlevania
"My Father died a great man, I don't seek to surpass him, I seek to keep and improve the Kingdom he and grandfather built for me"
Longevity roll: 18+10= 28 Years Old by time of death
Marriages roll: 66
Number of Children: 10
– Child #1 Daughter
– Child #2 Daughter
– Child #3 Son
– Child #4 Son
– Child #5 Daughter
– Child #6 Daughter
– Child #7 Son
– Child #8 Daughter
– Child #9 Daughter
– Child #10 Daughter
Marriages roll: 66
Number of Children: 10
– Child #1 Daughter
– Child #2 Daughter
– Child #3 Son
– Child #4 Son
– Child #5 Daughter
– Child #6 Daughter
– Child #7 Son
– Child #8 Daughter
– Child #9 Daughter
– Child #10 Daughter
Early Reign
A New System: 1d100= 52 Success
New Lands: 1d100= 42 Minor Success
School of Magi: 1d100= 89 Great Success
New Lands: 1d100= 42 Minor Success
School of Magi: 1d100= 89 Great Success
Ghesh Lakoredon reign in 1486, Lakoredon was said to have been a bright young Dragonborn before the time of his coronation unusually bright and optimistic about the future, and also close to his father very close his father and siblings, especially his half-elven sister Keremna, however Lakoredon after the news of his father's death reached is said to have changed.
Optimism was replaced by a deep cynicism and records shown that the young heir now turned young tribal king developed suicidal thoughts born of extreme depression of his father's death, through he never acted them.
In terms of physical qualities, Lakoredon's scales were of light shade of black as well as possessing a deformity, much like his father before him, in this case wings.
The reign of Lakoredon began just after the funeral of King Drinaar, as there were matters of importance that needed to be immediately dealt with. Such as the fate of Unther, while there were some records that point out how the recently crowned Dragonborn wanted to exterminate the returned old empire, he relented and single handedly drafted the parchment that would become the first official document that would seal the fate of returned Unther.
The document was devastating to Unther and received the full support of the other members of the Alliance and effectively any imperialistic dream that the returned old empire had. The document stated that Unther would not be allowed to maintain a large army, the worship of Gilgeam and Enlil was strictly banned, there would be joint occupation force comprised of soldiers of both High Imaskar, Akanûl, as well the Ghesh Kingdom, and any king of Unther would have to listen to a set of ambassadors hailing from the Alliance who would carry the will of the Alliance's leaders.
The terms were quickly accepted by all members of the Alliance with only Unther raising some method of alarm, and even a few rebellions and attacks against occupying forces, they would not be successful and would even see repercussions against the people of unther for their acts causing them to not have a large support base.
After this, Lakoderon focused on governance, and is said to have been particularly zealous about it, even refusing help several times and spending little time sleeping, which did not do wonders for his health, and had to be several times convinced by several members of his family to go to sleep and trying to stop him from killing himself. After the passing of his uncles in the next year the task fell to his many mothers and siblings. It did little to stop him however.
The second year of his reign saw the continuation of the Second Sundering, the effects was the great disappearance of various Earthmotes from the sky as they returned back to Abeir, thought many more remained in the sky, whether they were natural such as the ones that came with the Genasi or artificial ones created by powerful arcane spells such as the ones present in High Imaskar.
This was also not only what happened as there were a surge of powerful earthquakes and volcanic eruptions through the entirety of Toril, though the Ghesh and their allies suffered little. In Akanûl the most powerful and skilled Genasi worked overtime to handle the after effects, reducing them enough that their people suffered little beyond just some shaking.
The Imaskari also suffered little, with their first Emperor returning once again to help his descendants preventing suffering in both High and Deep Imaskar, he did all of this single handedly in an act that many considered to be divine before he vanished once again, through some sources say that he talked with Baatar the current strongest mage of the Imaskari without the First Emperor.
In the Tribal Kingdom however a true divine act happened, as when the earth started to shake it then started to grow unnaturally still, all agreed that this was an act of Ghesh himself who had domain over the earth, specially the earth that his descendants ruled over.
Marriage & Children
King Lakoderon would marry in 1488 DR, two years after his coronation, to Myalmial Sopatys renamed Ghesh Sopatys, hailing from a prestigious clan of merchants, their marriage is said to not have lacked the sparks of true love, and Lady Ghesh Sopatys is said to have been among the ones who could convince the young king to rest and recover.
Their clutch of eggs would hatch in 1489 DR giving them a total of ten children, of which is said to have warmed the king's heart every time he saw them. Personal accounts from his immediate family say that Lakoderon started looking and acting much like old self before his father's death after the birth of his children.
The birth of the young princes and princesses also marked the end of the Second Sundering, with Toril now returned mostly to what it was before the Spellplague, though many parts of Abeir still remained in place such as the Dragonborn and Genasi.
The Great Changes of Lakoderon
The Great of Changes of Lakoderon are a dual set of events that focused on change, and while there is an argument to be said that the invasion of the Green Fields could be made part of it as it did not affect the greater kingdom as much it is not, anyhow the first of the Great Changes was the establishment of hereditary monarchy upon the kingdom with all Ghesh Clan members being part of the succession line ─ through the most immediate family members of the King or Queen, such as children ranked higher ─ as well as the renaming of the kingdom to Tymanchebar, paying homage to the ones who first rose their weapons against their masters in the name of freedom.
There was neither greater push against said change in the system of governance as well nor great acclaim. The change of the realm's name to Tymanchebar certainly helped in preventing any type of rebellion against the young king's decision.
However the next one certainly brought more eyes to the Young King, as he was being called, the next decision without a doubt impacted the Dragonborn as he made his decision known to create a school of magic with the help of their Imaskari allies.
The art of magic was not unknown to the Dragonborn, King Drinaar had shown an interest in the arcane art, and even in Abeir magic was considered to be a mysterious force under the cruel claws of the Wyrms.
Lakoderon hoped to create a powerful sect of mages that could help improve his nation with the wonders of the Arcane. The project however would take four long years to complete and needed help from High Imaskar who graciously accepted, and even brought along Deep Imaskar mages to help with the task.
While the academy was being built many Dragonborn were already being selected for training to become proper mages, or as the Imaskari insisted, Wizards. Helping was Baatar the greatest mage of the Imaskari in generations who helped write much of the books that would be stored in the future grand library of the Academy.
Even before the Academies completion there were already studies done by dozens of initiative Dragonborn spellcasters under the watchful gaze of their Imaskari teachers who demanded intense discipline and focus on their students. Many of said teachers have records saying how pleasantly surprised by the focus of the Dragonborn as well as lamenting how not all of their students back in their nation were the same.
The main focus of the studies however was to create Abjurers, though other schools of magic were also present, as per the wishes of King Lakoderon after he was explained the benefits of each school of magic.
A thing to note is that among said students were two members of the royal dynasty, the half-elven half-brothers of the King, Ghesh Herkrax and Yorkrax, who were twins, were said to have been extremely talented with the Arcane.
The Greenfields Invasion
The Greenfields Invasion was King Lakoderon's attempt to expand Tymanchebar borders to the Green Land, or Greenfields, region between the Ash Lake and The River of Swords as well as establish communications with the nations of the east. It began in 1492 DR.
The invasion was planned and the army fully ready to deal with the threats present in the Green Land, however in the end they only made small gains and did not manage to conquer the entirety of the Green Lands, especially not enough to secure a trade line between Tymanchebar and the east.
This was thanks to a set of problems that arose during the invasion, the native fauna, the Sphinxes, and the various bandit kingdoms that arose during the Spellplague, that proved to be surprisingly more than just a rabble that could be easily put down.
Progress was slow and after two years of effort with little gains, King Lakoderon declared a halt to the offensive, much as he wanted the entire fertile region under his command there was little he could do now. According to his companions the King started to prepare for a future invasion into the Green Lands to fulfill his objective of expanding his Kingdom's influence into the east.
Even then the lands that were taken were immediately put to use with influential Clans of farmers sending their members to the region once they heard about its potential bounty. The pieces of land taken would prove to be an incredible breadbasket of all sorts of crops improving the realms of agriculture by leaps and bounds.
Seeing this it was very clear that among his most powerful and influential lords there was no short of support for a more extensive control into the Green Lands as the various Clan-Masters knew that their people could improve very much.
However this would not happen as the Kingdom was soon rocked by something that they could never suffered before.
The Cult of Ghesh
Spreading the good message:1d100=99! Critical Success
The next step of the King of Tymanchebar, was without a doubt a predictable one, that being the spreading of the worship of his Ancestor God Ghesh. The tale of the Great Ancestor turned God is said to have spread relatively quickly with many clans unsure what to do with said fact.
King Lakoderon addressed such issues, in a way that satisfied all clans, he said that Ghesh by managing to triumph against the Untheric Gods and saving the second chance of the Dragonborn, he gained the respect and rulership of all Ancestors. Ghesh was above the other Ancestors much in the way that a King was, but in a good way, Ghesh listened to their worries, gathered their descendants to be reunited with them, and protected their spirits and resting bodies.
This explanation made all Clan-Masters approve of the creations of statues and temples dedicated to Ghesh, those same statues were very present in tombs that the bodies of the Ancestors rested to protect them against thieves and necromancers seeking to defile their resting place.
Hundreds of thousands now prayed to the Ancestor God, seeking strength in battles or wisdom to conflicts in life. The grandest temple of the Ancestor God was present in the Capital of Djered Ghesh, which housed the fine statues, art, and the leadership of the clergy of the Ancestor God which was composed of Elders of the Ghesh Clan in the form of a council who communicated with their great Ancestor.
According to many they saw firsthand many different miracles, a clan of farmers that had a series of bad harvests now discovered that the soil was richer than before, a hunter who was about to die felt a surge of strength that he never felt before after making a final prayer to the Ancestor God. And many more, the clergy itself proved to be great warriors and leaders, embodying their God's domains of both Strength and War.
Spells born of divine magic were also present in the clergy, a favorite of theirs was those focused around the power of the storms. Many clerics and also members of the Ghesh Clan could feel that the Ancestor God had grown in strength thanks to mass worship of the nation.
Death & Legacy
The death of King Lakoderon was without a doubt one of the most influential parts of Tymanchebar, because he did not die some glorious death in combat, nor did he die in peace in his bed. He was in fact assassinated.
It all happened in the second month of 1496 DR, the Young King went out to the Academy of Tymanchebar who had finished 1494 DR, to check on the progress of the mages in there, likely in order to see which one among them were ready to help him and his army during the second invasion of the Green Lands, but also likely to have been simple visit to his half-brothers as well as one of the Queen Mothers, Ghesh Neril, had become the headmistress of the Academy, mostly as well as insurance by the King that only his clan would have the greatest influence in the newly born haven of magic in Tymanchebar.
Whatever it was, it didn't change that during his travel, the King alongside those that were traveling with him, were ambushed by a coven of assassins, that according to survivors and later confirmation made by the Imaskari, were servants of the Goddess Tiamat.
One thing that must be understood is that the Young King did not fall to the skill of the assassins, he had been trained by Drinaar himself, no, what felled the King was poison, poison given by Tiamat herself, to end the son of the one who insulted her by killing two of her chosen.
The King is said to have died in mere seconds after the poison entered his body and started destroying it from the inside. However he was not the only one who is said to have suffered an assassination during that dark year.
Lord Morgul the Fire Steward of Akanûl died that same year, Baatar the Archmage of the Imaskari managed to survive though he would have to remain bedridden for years before recovering.
In short those who were also responsible for the death of Tiamat's chosen.
Many of their family members also suffered attacks. In Tymanchebar, Queen Mother Ghesh Erish alongside her son Ghesh Narkax would both perish. Lord Morgul's firstborn son would die after a timely ambush. And Baatar's principal student who he considered his own daughter and eventual successor would perish as well after a magical battle during an expedition in Deep Imaskar.
With those facts, security in the four nations of the Alliance tightened considerably, and a manhunt was declared against cultists of Tiamat responsible for this tragedy which was called the Month of The Long Knives.
In Tymanchebar the situation was particularly dangerous, as the heiress of the deceased King was still very young and so did not have the necessary wisdom to lead Tymanchebar. The law was clear in this case, both the old and the new one laid down by King Lakoderon, a council composed of the oldest members of the entire ruling clan were to be put in a council of five to rule the nation until the Crown Prince or Princess reaches their majority.
The funeral was a solemn affair, with security doubled across the entire capital, and paranoia reigning in both the Ghesh Clan members as well as their servant clans, the shining capital that King Drinaar was now a steel cage to prevent any more deaths from happening.
Despite this many talked of the legacy left behind by the deceased king, of the protection of the clerics of the Ancestor God Ghesh, of the arcane wonders being created in the great Academy of Magic, of the fertile farms in the Green Fields that our produced many of the most fertile farms of the mainland.
In the realm of the dead Lakoderon was guided by a great storm in the form of a Dragonborn to the halls of his ancestors, where he hugged his father, reunited with him at last. Also there was both Queen Mother Erish and his half-brother Narkax, being the first human and halfbreed to enter the halls of the descendants of Ghesh, proving that they truly became part of the Clan.
…..
POTENTIAL ISSUES
The King has died thanks to an assassination by the Cult of Tiamat utilizing a poison that killed him in seconds, worse more members of the royal family died in the capital itself, that they managed to pass all security put in place is undoubtedly a cause of concern.
Tiamat, said to be a Goddess of the Wyrms themselves, has seemingly declared war against Tymanchebar and her agents have dealt a great blow against the realm, rooting them out is without a doubt something important.
The Regents can without a doubt cause friction in the Kingdom even without trying to do so, as much as they can cause it to remain stable until the daughter of the King ascends to her throne.
While the vassal clans are now in full support of the ruling dynasty, this can easily change.
…..
State of the Realm (1496 DR) up next.
Last edited:
State of The Realm (1496 DR)
- Location
- Castlevania
(Again very rough map: Light Red is Akanûl, Yellow is High Imaskar, Light Tan is Unther, Light Green is what remains of Chessenta, and Grey is the Tymanchebar)
Form of Government: Feudal Monarchy
Ruling Dynasty: Ghesh
Succession Law: Absolute Primogeniture
Language of the People: Draconic
Culture of The People: Abeir Dragonborn
Religion: Ancestral Worship based around legendary clan members of the past.
Divine
Divine Power
How powerful is your nation's god?
[Quasi-Deity | Demigod | Lesser God |>> Intermediate God <<| Greater God | Overgod]
Numbers
How many gods are there in your nation?
[>> Monotheism <<| Dualism | Polytheism]
Societal
Prosperity
What is the state of the realm's economy and agriculture?
[Starvation | Famine | Stable | Prosperous |>> Robust <<| Miraculous Abundance]
Social Order
How do your subjects feel about your rule?
[Revolting | Discontent | Ambivalent | Content |>> Adoring Subjects<<]
Vassal Stability
How do the vassal clans feel about your rule?
[Revolutionary | Upset Lordlings | Hints of Discontent | Approving Lords |>> Devoted Subjects <<]
Governmental
Treasury
What funds are available to the government?
[Bankrupt | Mounting Debt | Balanced Books | Growing Surplus |>> Miracle of Wealth <<]
Military Quality
How effective is our soldiery?
[Useless Rabble | Scruffy Militia |>> Dutiful Soldiers <<| Fierce Warriors | Dragonslayers]
Naval Quality
How effective is the Navy?
[>> Fishermen <<| Tattered Sails | Competent Sailors | Powerful Fleet | Masters of The Sea]
Mage Quality
How great is your magical knowledge and power?
[ Nonexistent | Initiatives |>> Adepts <<| Grand Magus | Masters of The Arcane]
Noble Power
What is the balance of power between the Crown and Nobility?
[ Absolute Ruler |>> Brought to Heel <<| Clan Pact | Autonomous Vassals | Dominant]
Divine Power
How powerful is your nation's god?
[Quasi-Deity | Demigod | Lesser God |>> Intermediate God <<| Greater God | Overgod]
Numbers
How many gods are there in your nation?
[>> Monotheism <<| Dualism | Polytheism]
Societal
Prosperity
What is the state of the realm's economy and agriculture?
[Starvation | Famine | Stable | Prosperous |>> Robust <<| Miraculous Abundance]
Social Order
How do your subjects feel about your rule?
[Revolting | Discontent | Ambivalent | Content |>> Adoring Subjects<<]
Vassal Stability
How do the vassal clans feel about your rule?
[Revolutionary | Upset Lordlings | Hints of Discontent | Approving Lords |>> Devoted Subjects <<]
Governmental
Treasury
What funds are available to the government?
[Bankrupt | Mounting Debt | Balanced Books | Growing Surplus |>> Miracle of Wealth <<]
Military Quality
How effective is our soldiery?
[Useless Rabble | Scruffy Militia |>> Dutiful Soldiers <<| Fierce Warriors | Dragonslayers]
Naval Quality
How effective is the Navy?
[>> Fishermen <<| Tattered Sails | Competent Sailors | Powerful Fleet | Masters of The Sea]
Mage Quality
How great is your magical knowledge and power?
[ Nonexistent | Initiatives |>> Adepts <<| Grand Magus | Masters of The Arcane]
Noble Power
What is the balance of power between the Crown and Nobility?
[ Absolute Ruler |>> Brought to Heel <<| Clan Pact | Autonomous Vassals | Dominant]
- Location
- Castlevania
Luck favors fools.
Next time write about a hedonist who built a wine fountain in the capital. I guarantee it will live 100 years.
- Location
- Canada
Time to see what my perhaps Grandmother will be like (Assuming the Ghesh Clan remains on top for the next two generations)
LordPanther14
The Definition of Insanity
- Location
- Land of the Free
Can somebody say Inquisition? Because I think we're going to have an inquisition from this state of events.
This has aged like milk. What territory do the agents of Tiamat possess? Just trying to figure out what I have to invade for my turn.
Last edited: