Kingdom of Rovaskia

The **Kingdom of Rovaskia** is a native, northern kingdom of Aerothos. The Rovaski state has been divided and unified countless times throughout its history, but nevertheless has always proved to be one of the dominant military powers of Aerothos. Rovaskia is known primarily for its warrior culture.

## Name

The Kingdom is named for Rovas, the first human in the Rovaski faith.

## Culture and People

The Rovaski, commonly and mistakenly called *Rovaskians* by those of Halryian culture, are a native peoples of Aerothos. Their lands once stretched from Rovasgarde to Blackwall Keep, but during the Second Age their power diminished greatly. Now confined to their northern homeland, the Rovaski are known raiders, forced to seek the resources of others due to the inhospitable land upon which they live. Despite being known as aggressive warriors, the Rovaski have a rich trading culture, and exchange most notably with the Empire.

### Faith

The Rovaski believe that there were once two gods, Halsvyr, god of the land, and Norad, god of the sea. The First Kin, as called by the Rovaski, were giants made by the gods. The kin of Halsvyr became master smiths of arms and armor, while the kin of Norad became unparalleled shipbuilders and navigators. For thousands of years, the First Kin warred over who was the supreme race. In a cataclysmic battle, the two kin faced one another with all of their might behind their godly fathers. All were slain, including Haslvyr and Norad, who killed one another. As they lay dead on the battlefield, from the mixing of their blood was born Brondr, the Great God, lord of both the land and sea. From the steel of his sword he created the first Rovaski man, Rovas, and from the soil of the earth he created womankind. Though these new creations were smaller in size than their ancestors, they inherited all of their talents, such as Brondr had. The royal family of Rovaskia, House Rovason, claims lineage to Rovas, though only the High King himself takes the surname Rovason.

The Rovaski do not dismiss the existence of the other gods of Aerothos, but they believe that one day, Brondr will wage war against them for absolute dominance of the world. Warriors who fall in battle are believed to fill the ranks of Brondr's army, and for those who do not live and die by the sword, Brondr promises a heaven of green fields and eternal happiness. When Rovaski die, they may be led to Elsfyyg, Brondr's domain, by means of their ceremony. Those who are buried in the earth are led to Elsfyyg by the spirit of Halsvyr, and those who are sent adrift at sea are led by the spirit of Norad. If a Rovaski is burned, their soul is left to venture to Elsfyyg alone, but doing so may grant them greater honors at the table of Brondr.

## History

### The First Age

The Rovaski people were once a single great kingdom, but fell apart into various petty kingdoms that often warred with one another. Though divided, the Rovaski lands stretched throughout modern Rovaskia, Sorndir, and at one time even the eastern reaches of Galeria, across the Constian River, and into Orastus. But these exact borders are questionable, for there are no clear records.

### The Second Age

#### Ivar Rovason

In the year 86 2A, Ivar Rovason became the King of Rovaskia, which at the time only consisted of the northern half of modern Rovaskia. A young, ambitious leader, Ivar's first promise was to unite the Rovaski people under one banner and to wage war against Aerothos. By the year 95, Ivar had conquered all of the Rovaski petty kingdoms and Hruskaya, and the Kingdom of Rovaskia controlled all of what would eventually become the Kingdom of Sorndir. Now styled as the High King of Rovaskia, Ivar set his sights outside of his borders. He raided the lands of Armacia and Galeria as the borders shifted back and forth. Most notably, in 109, Ivar declared war against the Kingdom of Orastus, provoked by the construction of Blackwall Keep upon land which Ivar claimed to be his. In 111, Ivar sacked Verenan, the city which would later become known as Rionis. Later that year in the Dead Waste, outside of the city of Orastus, Ivar killed Prince Aland Verant in single combat, but soon after his army was routed by the Orastans and Ivar was forced to retreat back to his lands. The Orastans marched deep into Rovaski territory and forced a surrender under terms given by the Orastans, in which the Rovaski paid a large sum of money and surrendered the lands upon which Blackwall Keep was built.

After his failed war, Ivar slowly descended into madness and was constantly threatened by uprisings from his jarls. In 123, Ivar accused Magnus, his eldest son, of betrayal and imprisoned him. Despite Ivar's claims, all of his jarls knew of Magnus' innocence, and that the accusation was only due to Ivar's ever-growing paranoia. Ivar became severely ill afterward and from his death bed demanded the execution of Magnus. The jarls lied about having done so, and when Ivar passed away a day later, freed Magnus from the dungeons. Uncertain how to divide the massive kingdom, it was split traditionally by means of gavelkind between Magnus and his younger brothers, Haraldr and Sverre. Sverre was given the Kingdom of Halsvyg (named for the god and its isolation from the sea), Haraldr was given the Kingdom of Angfold, and Magnus claimed the throne of Rovaskia.

#### Wars Against the Union

In 223 2A, the Kingdom of Halsvyg was conquered by the Kingdom of Arathen, though these lands would be lost by the Arathenians in the coming years due to internal strife and give birth to the Kingdom of Sorndir. In 264, the Sorndirans conquered the Kingdom of Angfold, leaving the Rovaski with only their ancestral homeland. The Rovaski spent years preparing for war, mustering their strength and readying themselves for a war to regain all that they had lost. After a few years of raids and small-scale skirmishing, the Rovaski High King, Haraldr Rovason, declared war against the Kingdom of Sorndir. The war, though catastrophic for all involved, ended only with the Rovaski acquisition of the Isle of Mist.