The Daqan Lords

## The Council of Barons

### History:

Following the Coronation of King Daqan and the founding of Terrinoth, the King relocated the capital from Tamalir to the great citadel of Archaut, thus creating the first of the Free Cities. Shortly thereafter, in the Spring of 495, the first Council of Barons was held, including the newly appointed 13th Baron, Waiqir. It was hoped that this meeting would be the herald a new age of stability and prosperity following the disastrous reign of the Penacor Kings and the scars of the First Darkness. Unfortunately, this period would last less than 20 years, when the King was ambushed and murdered while attempting to mediate a border dispute.

The death of the King led to the Second Darkness, as the Council acted swiftly to violently censure the one responsible, Baron Herongate, without realizing he was only a catspaw of the true engineer of the King's death, Waiqir himself who immediately struck out at his erstwhile friend, Timmoran. Fortunately, Timmoran was able to deny Waiqir his true goal, the Orb of Timmoran, and was able to send an apprentice to warn the Barons before it was too late. The Second Darkness had begun.

The Barons begin mobilizing to contain Waiqir's Forces, but soon found themselves fighting a war on two fronts. While much of the Barons' forces were amassed on the borders of the Mistlands, Waiqir had sent his agent, the elf Zarihell to establish underground Death Cults dedicated to Waiqir across the country. The Barons attempted to combat them, but no sooner had they sprung up than they would vanish, only to reappear somewhere else. The Barons' resources were stretched thin and they would almost certainly have succumbed to inevitable attrition until the appearance of a mysterious holy man, Kellos, and his retinue, known as the Seraphic Mantle.

The Seraphic Mantle harried the Death Cults and re-established alliances with the Latari and the Dunwarr, allowing the Barons to focus on Waiqir's forces, breaking their blockades and driving them, in full retreat, back to the Mistlands. Thus was the Second Darkness ended.

There followed almost half a century of prosperity, fueled by the sorcerous miracles made possible by the Stars of Timmoran. This period ended, however, when the Barons fell to squabbling and warring amongst themselves. In 941, this was ended when Baron Cedric Soulstone was able to dominate his fellow Barons and assumed the Throne. During this time, the powers of the Barons was dramatically reduced as that of the Free Cities and the various Guilds grew. The King continued with the practice of holding an annual Baronial Council in Archaut, but this was seen as more of an advisory council than anything else.

In the following decades, The Soulstone Monarchs became famous for their use of The Stars of Timmoran in grand and spectacular fashion, as when Queen Eleanor II used the powers of the Stars, in addition to her own martial prowess to put down a major goblin uprising in 997. Unfortunately, such open use of grand and powerful magics attracted the attention of the Dragon Kings heralding a massive invasion as hordes of dragons swept over the length and breadth of Terrinoth. Alas, not even the might of the Stars of Timmoran was sufficient, as the Arch-Dragon Margath led his forces on a lightning raid on Tamalir, seizing a vast cache of stars and ending the Soulstone lineage.

In the wake of this, a New Alliance was forged as the Barons of Terrinoth joined forces not only with the Latari and Dunwarr, but with the Empire or Lorimar and even the Orcs of the Ru Steppes. This alliance managed many victories against the Dragons, but the final blow would come when the Dragon Queen Shaarina acted decisively against the rebel forces. Caught between the hammer and anvil of the Alliance and their own people, the Dragons withdrew, ending The Third Darkness.

Following the Third Darkness, Terrinoth lay in ruins. The Council of Barons was reinstated, but before they could even begin the long, arduous task of rebuilding, they found themselves having to deal with plagues of bandits, goblins and outlaw gangs. Centuries passed as the Council, their forces weakened and their defenses in tatters, did what they could to restore what they could.

Such restoration has been difficult, without the Stars of Timmoran to perform great wonders, and in the absence of a King, Baronial conflict has raised its head frequently. The various Guilds have managed to seize increasing amounts of power, as has the Church of Kellos, which is increasingly involved in politics from their seat in the Free city of Vynelvale. Baronial alliances and schisms have risen and fallen, most recently with the overthrow of Baroness Georgiana Delacroux of Frest by a peasant militia led by Baroness Harriet the Willful and the murder of Baroness Katrin Sephone, allegedly at the hands of her wife, Lady Bellia.

The Council of Barons is a shadow of what it once was, but it's all Terrinoth has, so it will have to do.

### Current Membership:

* **Baroness Hariett** the Willful, of Frest
* (Former) **Baroness Sephone**, her likely successor Lord Valcum Sephone (Heir apparent of Allerfeldt).
* **Baron Rault**, of Trast
* **Baron Trevalyan**, of Otrin
* **Baroness Magrit Khalrif**, of Dhernas
* **Baron Fredric**, of Kell
* **Baroness Pryor**, of Pelgate
* **Baron Gilliam Xarles**, of Cailn
* **Baron Echard** of Telor
* **Baron Zachareth**, of Carthridge
* **Baron Greigory**, of Rhynn
* **Baroness Adelynn**, of Forthynn