Thrane

**Thrane** is one of the original Five Nations that formed the Kingdom of Galifar before The Last War. It is the only nation out of the Five Nations that has replaced its monarchy with a theocracy. Unlike the other nations which largely worship the Sovereign Host religion, Thrane's state religion is the Church of the Silver Flame.

## Geography

Thrane is located in central Khorvaire, sharing its western border with Aundair and its southern one by Breland. It also shares a small land border with The Mournland in the south-east though is largely separated by Scions Sound. Thrane occupies a rich territory of fertile farmland and large forests. With natural waterways demarcating most of its boundaries, Thrane was the only nation not to lose territory due to the Treaty of Thronehold. Thrane also shares the closest proximity to Thronehold.

## Society

The Tranish people are overwhelmingly honest and passionate about their state religion The Church of Silver Flame. Thranish are conversative people and they are devoted to religion, family, work, and puritanical ideals. Many civillians exhibit fanatical behaviors time to time. Thranish people are hard working. Once accepting a task they devote themselves to its completion, the Tranish also tend to lead abstinent lives. Gambling, carousing, and similar hedonistic activities are frowned upon.

## Culture

Thranish art embraces and expresses the tenets of the Silver Flame. The most popular style of art in Thrane is Kree-Flamic, a stylized form of rendering that uses cubes and triangles to create all shapes and images. A counterculture has emerged within Thrane's art world known as Pre-Kingdom style and though still small it is growing. Their architecture seems to be bland at first, but each brick is accurate placed to be symmetrical as possible. In addition, nearly all windows of every establishment are made of stained glass, often colored for an abstract glow.

Most foreigners tend to think that the theocracy stifles secular life in Thrane however, Thranish cuisine is surprisingly good. During a diplomatic visit Princess Wroya of Breland once said "It is like a breath of fire in the cold of a dark winter's night" after partaking in the Feast of the Silver Flame.

Thranish cuisine utilizes thrakel spices cooked in thick sauces. Thrane cuisine tends to be heavy, filling and spicy. Renowned Thranish dishes are thrakel-seared beef in red sauce, three-thrakel fish stew and silvered vegetable skewers. Desserts are also popular and are used to counteract the spicy nature of the main meal. The desserts are often sweet and served cold the most famous of which is silverfruit pie topped with beesh-berry sorbet.

## Religion

Despite common belief, the majority of Thrane are not zealots and tolerate other belief systems because most of them are aware that Tira Miron herself started as a paladin of Dol Arrah. The Thranish understand that The Silver Flame demands its followers only destroy evil incarnate in the forms of the undead, fiends and other abominations. If a paladin sensed the evil within a person they would council them back to the light and as a rule would not attempt to execute them. However on some extreme occasions this has been too hard a set of ideals to follow. However, there are people who behave otherwise and see other beliefs as lesser religions.

## History

#### Galifar

One night in Olarune of 299 YK, the settlers and farmers of Thrane saw dark clouds gathering over the Tamor Hills. A ruddy glow rose from a fissure in the hills. Those who explored the chasm did not return. As months passed, fi ends and bloodthirsty beasts crawled out of the fi ssure and threatened the land. The Year of Blood and Fire was a time of great terror, but it was also a time of inspiration. The holy warrior Tira Miron gathered priests and soldiers to fi ght against the darkness. Armed with a singular vision, she ultimately confronted the evil forces within the Tamor Gap, binding their fiendish lord and transforming its dark fl ame to a font of silver light. Through her sacrifice, she became a spiritual vessel for the Silver Flame, a conduit through which it could touch the souls of others.

Many in Thrane see the Year of Blood and Fire as a turning point. Inspired by Tira’s sacrifice and guided by her spirit, Thranes destroyed or drove off the remaining fi ends. The common folk turned to the new church in droves, and the citadel of Flamekeep was soon established. The Church of the Silver Flame spread across Khorvaire, but Thrane remained its heart. The good people of Thrane had seen the horror of unrestrained evil, and they were determined to stand against that darkness. At times, this missionary zeal spun out of control. Queen Joliana’s fervor for the Flame nearly shattered the kingdom of Galifar centuries before the death of Jarot. However, most of the followers of the Flame have shown tolerance toward those who pursue other faiths, saving their strength to battle inhuman and supernatural evil. If the Year of Blood and Fire was the fi rst major turning point in the history of Thrane, the second was surely the death of King Thalin. The Council of Cardinals had grown in power and infl uence, and Thalin’s heir, Prince Daslin, was seen as weak. Above all, the nation was at war. It took little effort on the part of the cardinals to convince the people to raise the church above the throne, and Daslin himself acceded to the demand without a struggle. In 914 YK, Thrane offi cially embraced the Church of the Silver Flame as its ruling body, becoming the first true theocracy in Khorvaire.

#### Last War

As the struggle for the crown that caused the Last War escalated, Thrane broke from the kingdom and declared itself an independent monarchy under the rule of King Thalin. Thalin, like many of the Thrane-based ir’Wynarns, was a devoted follower of the Silver Flame. He broke with tradition in order to exercise what he saw as his divine right to the Galifar crown. With the kingdom under his control, he could elevate the Silver Flame to it proper position as the one true religion of the land and the people. In many ways, it was Thalin’s zealous faith that led to the next stage in Thrane’s history. Thrane remained a monarchy until 914 YK, when it became a theocracy governed by the Church of the Silver Flame. At that time, temporal and spiritual power fell to the Council of Cardinals and the Keeper of the Flame. Although the Wynarn line in Thrane continues to appoint blood regents (eldest scions of the royal family), these scions are merely figureheads without any temporal power. Thrane was the second nation to sign in the Treaty of the Thronehold. They were surrounded by long time enemies and were in-debt with many of them. Imagine being surrounded on all sides by angry, resentful neighbors, and you can begin to understand how the common Thrane feels. Thrane shares borders with all four of its longtime enemies, and Thrane alone abandoned the royal bloodline of Galifar in favor of a theocracy. Moreover, Thrane seized parcels of land from Aundair and Breland—territory that Queen Aurala and King Boranel would like returned. Thrane has also been duly chastised for its cruelty. It demonstrated a startling lack of compassion when it denied Cyran refugees a new home after the destruction of their homeland, and vengeful Karrns resent Thrane for the ruthless bombardment of their capital—an audacious attack that left the imperious Karrnathi citizens feeling vulnerable and defenseless. Surrounded by such resentment, Thranes can ill afford to lead carefree lives. However, they take great comfort in the Silver Flame, for it has never broken their trust or led them astray

#### The Yannashur's Uprising

When the Yannashur rose from the Mournland, Thrane quickly acted. They were originally one of the first few nations to be taken out. Thanks to the Crown Knights and the power of the Silver Flame and Levi's connection to the Silver Flame, the Yannashur was barred out from Thrane. Levi and his casters summoned a wall of fire east of their border, forcing them to march around and clash with Breland. They created a choke point which discouraged the Yannashur from continuing forward.

Thrane acted mostly to support the other nations during the war, which strengthened their relationship with the western nations.

## Dragonmark Houses

There are very few dragonmark house influence in Thrane due to the church's legislation. **House Orien** is the only dragonmark house with a significant establishment for necessity. There is however only one maintenance depot and it is found in Flamekeep. Other than that, it's mostly lightning rail stations.

## Power Groups

* Church of the Silver Flame
* The Galifar Loyalists
* Crown Knights
* The Silver Torches

## Notable Characters

* Flame Keeper Levi Daran
* Cardinal Barabas
* Reverend Mother Margaret
* Rodwick
* High Inquisitor Shari

## Locations

≛ Angwar Keep
◘ Areskul
✸ Aruldusk
◘ Askelios
◘ Athandra | ≛ Auxylgard
⦾ Avaroth
✸ Thaliost
⦾ Danthaven
◘ Daskaran
≛ Fort Light | ▥ Face of Tira
✪ Flamekeep
◘ Lessyk
◘ Nathyrr
≛ Morning Crest
⦾ Olath | ◘ Rellekor
◬ Shadukar
◘ Shavaracion
✸ Sigilstar
◘ Silvercliff Castle
◘ Siyar | ⦾ Tellyn
⦾ Traelyn