Gondegal Gondegal ( also known as the Usurper King and the Lost King ) was a king who , in 1352 DR ( the Year of the Dragon ) , attempted to establish a kingdom centered in the city of Arabel in northern Cormyr . He was overthrown after only eight days in power by the standing army of Cormyr , the Purple Dragons , led by king Azoun IV . Appearance . Gondegal is described a tall man , with grey hair . His coat of arms was a grey wolf ' s head , face on , with red eyes . Gondegalk was the owner of a number of image altering rings . Each one changed his appearance . Background . Initial Success . Using Arabel as his base of operations , Gondegal recruited mercenaries from throughout Cormyr and from what are now known as the Goblin Marches and the Stonelands . In return for military service , Gondegal promised his soldiers any loot they could lay hands on . To his commanders he promised noble titles and land concessions . Gondegal conducted guerrilla style raids throughout Cormyr and rapidly gained control of most of northern Cormyr . Gondegal ' s forces carried his banner as far north as the Desertsedge Mountains , east past Wyvernwater to the Vast Swamp ( capturing Immersea , Hultail , Thunderstone , and Wheloon ) , west to farms around Eveningstar ( though Eveningstar itself withstood Gondegal ' s siege ) , and northeast to Tilver ' s Gap . Gondegal managed to establish a throne at Arabel . But this reign lasted only eight days , and Gondegal was only actually in Arabel for five days as ruler of his impromptu kingdom . Reaction , Retreat and Collapse . After a brief period of regrouping by the Purple Dragons and diplomacy by Azoun IV , who enlisted the support of Sembia , Daggerdale , Tilverton , and other dales , a combined allied force marched on Gondegal . Simultaneous advances began out of High Horn , the High Dale , Thunder Gap , and Tilverton ( its surviving forces had quickly retaken their city after Gondegal captured it ) . Many of Gondegal ' s troops retreated in the face of the advancing allied army , pillaging as they left . A substantial portion of Gondegal ' s troops , however , having depleted local food supplies , merely surrendered and offered to join the Purple Dragons in return for food and shelter . Throughout the allied advance , there were no major battles ; with no battle lasting more than an hour or costing more than 100 lives . Most of the renegade troops decided to fight only because they saw no other option , choosing to die in battle rather than return to their homes in disgrace . The Purple Dragons , led personally by King Azoun IV , marched on Arabel expecting a pitched battle or a long siege at Gondegal ' s stronghold . Instead , the Purple Dragons met no resistance whatsoever . Gondegal had fled , most likely during the night or perhaps even a day or two before , leaving his troops to their own devices . Gondegal ' s mercenary troops had no reason to fight for Arabel on their own . They fought for gold alone , and the source of that gold had fled Arabel . The Purple Dragons reoccupied Arabel without spilling a drop of blood . Myrmeen Lhal was subsequently installed as Lord of Arabel . Analysis of Failure . Gondegal was initially able to quickly capture large tracts of land because his mercenary forces were more agile than Cormyr ' s resident forces , the Purple Dragons , and because Cormyr had been prepared for an attack from outside , not for an enemy within . With much of the military stationed in High Horn at the time , there was considerable difficulty in rapidly assembling enough troops to challenge Gondegal on the field . Gondegal failed in his bid for power for a number of interrelated reasons . First , the widespread looting that resulted from the promise of booty left captured towns depleted and therefore useless as points of supply for further attacks . In addition , despite long standing anti - Suzail sentiments within Arabel and in the surrounding countryside , the pillaging , rape and murder of civilians carried out by mercenary troops , meant that Gondegal was unsuccessful in capturing the hearts and minds of average Cormyrians . Perhaps more importantly , however , Gondegal upset the balance of power relations in the region . As a result , Sembia , Daggerdale , Tilverton , and other dales were willing to aid Suzail in putting down the renegade . Effects on Cormyr . Although Gondegal ' s kingdom was shortlived , historians agree that it played a significant role in the consolidation of the Kingdom of Cormyr . One of the early faults of the young King Azoun IV was his reluctance to attend to matters outside Suzail , the capital city . But with the armed rebellion , Azoun IV was forced to take action to consolidate the administration of central and northern Cormyr . In fact , in the wake of the Gondegal insurgency , Azoun IV took to personally and anonymously touring his realms . His personal leadership of the Purple Dragons during the counterinsurgency projected the image of a man of action , cementing his reputation among both the Purple Dragons and the common folk of Cormyr . The insurgency also led to the redeployment of the Purple Dragons to cities and towns within Cormyr and a tightening of licensing restrictions on adventurer groups of 5 or more persons . Gondegal himself was never captured , and his condition and whereabouts are unknown in the Realms . He is rumored to lead a group of bandits under an assumed name in the Goblin Marches or the Stonelands . His name arises in taverns whenever caravans disappear or bandit activity increases . Gondegal ' s Fate . Gondegal ' s ultimate fate , however , was a very different one from what the people believed . Stepping between two mist - shrouded standing stones in the desert of Anauroch , he ended up on the Demiplane of Dread . After a sojourn in the realm of Falkovnia , to which he was initially attracted due to its ruler ' s adherence to military discipline , he eventually realized the corruption of evil in the lands and ultimately became a righteous , honorable champion of the oppressed , a Knight of the Shadows .