The Kingdom of Novrus

The Kingdom of Novrus is one of the three major factions located on the continent of Draivros.

## History

#### **The Novrite Tribes**

During the era of the Royallian Kingdoms, there existed within the harsh northern lands several tribes and clans of varying sizes, united only in their religion, culture, and love for gold. Constantly raiding the southern Royallian Kingdoms, only the disunity and conflict between the people of the north prevented them from swarming and invading the south in great numbers. The term Novrite came from many of the local tribes, who deemed themselves as such, while the Royallians to the south called these tribes and clans Balbicans instead, viewing them as inferior and uncivilized.

#### **Refugees from the South**

In 250 BCE, the Royallian Kingdoms, shaken by the First Demon Invasion, saw many refugees flee to the north, where though the land was cold and untamed, offered at least some semblance of safety due to the low amount of demon gates there. Though many refugees died cold and hungry, the few that did survive eventually established permanent settlements there. These settlements, though in theory a part of the Alliance of Ordo, were for all intents and purposes independent of the Alliance.

#### **Era of Growth and Conflict**

As a result of the Royallian settlements within the north, conflict was inevitable with the local tribes that already inhabited the region. Much of the distress behind these conflicts had occurred due to the ever-expanding nation of the Royallian settlers, who often encroached onto tribal lands. Little focus was given by the Alliance of Ordo to these conflicts, as much of their attention was instead spent in defeating the demonic forces that had caused the First Demon Invasion.

In time, most of the tribes were either wiped out or assimilated into the Royallian culture, with the few that remained independent of the ever-expanding Royallian settlements fleeing into lands that were inhospitable to the Royallian way of life. Eventually, these Royallian settlements would embrace a northern Novrite culture that differed from their southern cousins.

#### **Curse of the Beacon**

In 100 BCE, the Novrite Royallian Settlements had grown strong due to the waning influence of the southern Royallian Kingdoms. Yet, they were not spared the wrath of the Curse of the Beacon when it struck. Much of the lands to the south-east and north-west sunk underneath the water as Draivros was split into 4, taking many lives with them.

#### **Second Demonic Invasion**

When the Second Demonic Invasion struck, the Novrite Royallian settlements did not suffer as much disaster as did their southern cousins, due to the demon's weakness to cold. Demonic armies that would have fared better down in Ordo found themselves weakened in the much chiller climate of the north, whereupon they were crushed by the Novrite armies. As such, many southern Royallian refugees fled north, settling into the Novrite settlements that would accept them, with those who had been rejected attempting to set up new settlements of their own. Rorus Gate would be one of these small settlements, established in 95 BCE over the remains of a Novrite town that had been destroyed during the Second Demonic Invasion.

#### **Establishment of the Kingdom**

Since the time of the Royallian Kingdoms, it had been tradition among the Novrite city-states to demand tribute from each other following a war. During one of these conflict between the opposing cities of Gororas and Stargorod, Pyotr Ivanov, the Duke of Stargorod, fell in battle. Pyotr, having been childless at the time of his death, caused a scramble for the throne of Stargorod. Most of the claimants to this throne however, were defeated by Hord, who at this time had been one of Pyotr's generals and thus a minor noble.

Rising to the throne of Stargorod through diplomacy and intrigue, Hord would eventually march his army to the city of Gororas. Through unknown means, the city of Gororas would soon fall to Hord, who instead of demanding tribute from the city's ruler, who at this time was Duke Vladimir Romanova, sought it fit to demand Vladimir daughter's hand in marriage instead. Due to Vladimir's vulnerable position with the occupation of Gororas by Hord, this offer was accepted. As such, Elizaveta Romanova, only daughter of Vladimir Romanova, was married to Hord Karling.

Vladimir Romanova would later die in 82 BCE by assassination from dissatisfied nobles, many of whom raised their armies against Vladimir's only heir, his daughter Elizaveta Romanova, in an attempt to claim the throne from the Romanova family. The conflict, which lasted 7 months, would end with the victory of Elizaveta Romanova, as her husband, Hord Karling, raised his armies and brutally suppressed the nobles of Gororas.

With the city of Gororas secure, Hord Karling called for a union between the two cities, where instead of being ruled by two separate Duchies, would instead be ruled by a singular Kingdom. With no one to contest this, the Kingdom of Novrus was officially established in 81 BCE, Hord having named his kingdom so in order to lay claim to the entirety of the north. With a stronger powerbase than that of his rivals, he would march his armies across much of modern-day Novrus, conquering many of the northern-citystates.

#### **First Invasion of Ordo**

By 76 BCE, much of the north had been conquered by Hord, now known as Hord the Conqeuror, and as such he marched south towards the lands of the independent Citystates of Ordo, first conquering the citystate of Pechae, which before its capitulation managed to send a warning to the rest of Ordo, which would result in the First Federation of Ordo forming in 75 BCE.

This newly-founded Federation would be tested with the Battle of Marchae in 73 BCE, where the Novrite forces of Hord the Conqueror met against the united forces of the Ords. Here, the Novrite forces were pushed back and routed, crushing Hord's dreams of a united Draivros nation.

In 72 BCE, Hord the Conqueror died in his sleep, passing the crown of Novrus to his young son, Mord Karling. Though many suspect foul play was involved in Hord's death, as he was rather healthy and still had the ambitious dream of conquering all of Draivros by the time of his dream, no one knows entirely for sure the exact events of what occurred.

#### **The Blood Queen**

During the first few years of Mord's reign, his mother Elizaveta ruled as regent due to his young age. Signing a peace treaty with the Federation of Ordo, she became paranoid of the Novrite Nobility, believing that most of them were complicit in a conspiracy to murder her husband.

Reigning as the Queen Regent, she quickly purged much of the Novrite Nobility, giving out the land claimed from the purges to many of her followers. As a result of these purges, Elizaveta would become known as the Blood Queen. Elizaveta would die by 68 BCE from heart complications, though by this time her son Mord had come of age of adulthood in Novrus, and thus rose to the throne.

#### **Mord's Rule**

Unlike his father, the young Mord Karling was much more interested in stabilizing the Novrite realm rather than uniting all of Draivros under one banner. Having been taught by Ordo tutors, Mord was more progressive than most of the Novrus nobility, instating many reforms throughout his reign, which included but was not limited to: freeing many serfs from their contracts to nobility, the establishment of a taxing institution within the kingdom, and the establishment of a royal retinue paid for by the royal treasury.

Many of these reforms were highly unpopular with the nobility however, due to the nature of the reforms not directly benefiting them or even being to their detriment. As such, much the final years of Mord's reign consisted of rebellions by many of his mother's former followers, of which he either had to give concessions to or have to put to the sword. By 60 BCE, a group of assassins successfully murdered Mord Karling within the throne room, causing many within the kingdom to declare open revolt.

## Leaders

The Kingdom of Novrus has been led by a number  leaders.

* Hord the Conqueror (81 BCE to 72 BCE, 38 years old at death)
* Elizaveta Romanova (72 BCE to 68 BCE as regent, 39 years old at death)
* Mord Karling (68 BCE to 60 BCE, 28 years old at death)
* Gunnar the Red (led the Karling faction from 60 BCE to 53 BCE, officially ruled from 53 BCE to 5 BCE, 72 years old at death)
* Natalia Versatio Karling (4 BCE to Current, 24 years old at present)

## Government

The Kingdom of Novrus is the only one out of the three major Draivros factions to still use a feudalistic absolute monarchy. Though much of the current power within Novrus is concentrated around the Karling Royal Family, many lower-level lords mantain their own smaller private armies and realms.

## Military

The Kingdom of Novrus' military is filled with hardy men and women, many who are trained from youth to learn how to fight. The north-western regions of Draivros are cold and filled with dangerous wildlife, making a large military necessary for Novrus. They are known for their master Knights and Channelers, who often train in the bitter cold and Wyrm-laden mountains.

## Important Settlements

* Hordgorod - A city noted for it's cold-resistant crops. The central seat of power in Novrus.
* Gororas - A large farming and military town. Gororas is noted for it's heavy martial traditions.
* Ostrovoros - A large mining and fishing town. Subjects in Ostrovoros often practice pre-Novrus traditions.
* Pechae - A large farming and trading town. Located on the Novrus-Ordo Border.
* Rorus Gate - A small trading and military town. It is most notable for the inactive demon gate located nearby.

## Geography

   Novrus is only slightly larger than that of their neighbors to the south and east. Much of the land within Novrus is laden with cold ground and snow, with the only warm fertile farmland existing south of Rorus Gate and Gororas. Never the less, many of the subjects around Hordgorod make a simple living by hunting the local wildlife and making farms composed of cold-resistant crops.