The Kingdom of Theris

## A Conquered Kingdom

In ages past, the Kingdom of Theris was a beacon of industry and chivalry - its shipwrights constructed the first triremes to sail the seas of Kharos, which were quickly adopted by the other nations, and its knights served with honour and distinction in both war and peacetime, many captaining their own ships. Sailors from Theris were the first to map the boundaries of the Mists surrounding the shard, and the doors of the dwarfholds of Mornzak were closed to all for generations until Therisian knights rode to their aid in a time of crisis. A nation steeped in honour and tradition, few in Theris could have predicted that their great nation would fall to its current state.

Three years ago, a young Therisian knight eloped with the son and heir of a prominent Governor in Nardoven. At the time, both the knight and the heir were betrothed to powerful families within their own nations: the knight, a blood relative to the Queen, was engaged to the son of a duke along the Nardoven border, while the Nardovan heir was promised to the youngest daughter of Rex Thamar himself. Wary of losing territory through issues of inheritance, and stinging with wounded pride, the response from Nardoven was swift: a royal entreaty to the monarch of Theris, Queen Fera Rhane, demanding the marriage be annulled. Queen Rhane, ignoring the counsel of her advisers, considered Nardoven’s bluster to be inconsequential, too enamored of her niece to spoil her happiness, and rejected three such missives from Rex Thamar himself, the final one delivered in her throne room by the Nardovan ambassador in full black plate armour.

When the war came, it came like a bursting dam, without prelude or warning. Having made a secret alliance with the spurned Therisian duke, Rex Tytus Thamar II led his armies from the front, rapidly conquering castles and cities, until after only six weeks he was at the gates of Thytis, the coastal capital city of Theris. Thamar’s attack came by two fronts, by land and sea, and the Therisian navy was smashed to splinters. It is said that no Therisian survived the storming of the palace, including Queen Rhane and two of her grown sons: Tymon, her eldest, and Jaero, her third-born. Her second son, Lysiros, managed to escape eastwards while Thytis burned behind him, rallying the remaining soldiers of Theris upon the steep banks of the Redwine River, where the Nardovan advance was finally halted after a battle lasting three days. His momentum lost, Rex Thamar sued for peace, claiming everything west of the Redwine for Nardoven.

## Ruler

Lysiros, the Uncrowned King of Theris, now rules over less than half of its former territory. Indeed, in the years since the war has ended, what remains of Theris has descended into near-lawlessness. The remaining populace has become embittered against the knights that were once so universally admired, many of whom have cast aside their banners and now seek to disappear into obscurity. Bandits, brigands, deserters, and other monsters run rampant through the land, sometimes led by former knights or robber barons. Lysiros himself has been forced to flee to Veliri in an attempt to garner support for a campaign to retake his homeland - as well as to escape the occasional assassin from Nardoven or treacherous nobles who believe they would serve better on the throne. Mornzak, an old ally of Theris, continues to offer what aid they can, but even their good will has limits. They see Theris as a nation on the verge of total collapse, and consider it only a matter of time before Nardoven comes in to sweep up the rest.

For those Therisians who now live under the rule of Nardoven, things couldn’t be more different. Cities and castles have been rebuilt, and the famous shipyards are once more at work, only the ships they make now fly the Nardovan flag. Little now remains as a reminder of the old kingdom, with statues, landmarks, and artwork having been destroyed and replaced with the icons of Nardoven. Resistance to Nardovan rule is brutally suppressed, and there are few who remain in open defiance. Some Therisian patriots have fled across the Redwine, the foothills of Mornzak, or even made it to Veliri, but their number dwindles with every day that passes and the old throne sits unclaimed. Even so, for every former Therisian who drinks secret toasts to Old Theris, there are two who have come to accept their new rulers and now consider themselves to be Nardovan.

## Playing a character from Theris

The primary race in Theris is human, though Dwarves are not particularly uncommon. There are two different areas of Theris. One area has been completely taken over by the Nardovens and is in good shape. Most Therisians in this area have accepted their new lives as Nardoven, but some are still bitter about the invasion. Those that rebel do so quietly, due to the quick and heavy hammer of Nardovan justice. Therisians living in the remaining section of their now significantly weakened kingdom tend to be resilient but jaded thanks to their now more difficult lives. Often older Therisians will speak about the days of knights and chivalry while younger Therisians scoff at the same things. After all, wasn’t it a knight who got them into this mess? These Therisians are often firm in their choices and may be willing to make choices that others may find morally difficult. The most prominent thing about Therisians are that they are survivors.