House Royce

**House Royce**is the ruling dynasty of the Kingdom of Tovaria, a Norrish state of The Winterlands.

While they were once upheld as one of the most reliable and honest houses of the empire, some of their later decisions brought the Royces infamy in the central states, albeit they still managed to uphold positive relations with the northern subnations and subjects.

## History

### Royce 'the Fox'

The Tovaro-Frost War exposed fragility and the dependence of the theoctratic state. To maintain their close relationship with the Winters dynasty, the Tovarian Order invited the male members of the family to celebrate their victory, for a little over two weeks, each evening the clergy honored another branch, this would later be known as "The Fifteen Feasts", as there was Fifteen branches present.

Needless to say, the drunken, celebrated members did end up leaving many Tovarian women pregnant with Winters bastards. Although these newborns wouldn't posses any authority or birthrights, they did enjoy special privileges, such as the absolute freedom to move, or easier access to higher ranked professions. One of these children was Royce, who joined the Frostmen, and eventually used his special status to be elect as the Grand-Commander of the faction.

The locals often noted him as a just leader, however it might have simply been the result of Royce being the first Tovarian to reach the rank. The clergy was satisfied with him, as he often discouraged the people to rebel, while having a close relationship with the Bosothists. This precision on the commander quickly changed once he proclaimed himself the duke of Tovaria, the imperial army became occupied with southern conflicts. Fortunately for him, with the exception of the clergy and loyalist members of the faction, Royce met very little opposition.

Numerous Valendorian divisions were sent back up north upon hearing about this "Second Tovaro-Frost War" led by Prince Karles Winters, but by the time they reached Tovaria, it was fully occupied by Royce and his supporters. Against the advice of his generals, Karles refused to compromise, and spearheaded into the Tovarian territory. The Valendorians managed to make rapid advancements at first, but the further they pushed, the harder it became; the camps would very often be raided, they were often harassed by Tovarian flanks and skirmishes, and eventually ended up encircled in the cold plains of Tovaria, being cut off from every resources, including food. The morale decreased quickly, which resulted in the eventual surrender.

The duchy of Tovaria was officially recognized and Royce took ownership over the Frostmen, swore to protect the Bosothist faith and the clergy and he did grant them a cathedral near the mountain, as well as local autonomy around the given area.

Albeit Royce was often depicted owning pet white foxes, native to Tovaria, it was actually his cunning tactics in these battles that granted him the nick name, 'the Fox'. The emperor became very furious with self-proclaimed duke of Tovaria, but he recognized Tovaria as a duchy in exchange for the captives, including his son. Royce tainted his relations with the Winters, so legitimization was no longer possible for him, thus he founded his own house.

He designed his crest himself, being a white fox, on an azure chape argent. The fox obviously representing himself, and the chape was already used to represent Tovaria and The White Reach especially, the colors were simply the same ones as used on the Winters' coat of arms, as a way to pay homage to his origins. He never really made a motto, it was picked by his grandchildren to the advice of the clergy.

### Later Royces

The descendants of Royce, stayed more dormant compared to the founder, just like other Winterlander subnations. Over the centuries they have extended an old Frostmen fort into a their royal seat, the Royhold. Eventually vassalizing Proshland through diplomacy.

The other subnations usually had very mixed opinions of the Royces, apart from the Norrish subnations who always had a good relations with them, due to their common origin. Some seen them in a positive light as they were protecting the Bosothist seat, while others considered them to be an illegitimate subnation.

One of their main goals was to reclaim their lost southern provinces which were annexed into Valendoria and grow into a kingdom. After numerous failed negotiations, it was Emperor Markas who offered to return the provinces, but only if the Royces renounce their external claims, as they were violating an agreement with The Lauch Empire. While Duke Vermond Royce wasn't to fond of letting go of their foreign rights, he was open to discuss the matter. Ironically the meeting was delayed due to The White War breaking out, thus halting all political decisions.

Albeit Tovarians didn't fight as many battles with the Lauchmen, mainly because they served as defense and relief forces, the Royces quickly grew a hatred for the Gaubert dynasty and the southerners. The loathing only escalated after the death of Markas, whom Vermond considered a close friend.

After the war was over, Valendoria fell broke up and fell into anarchy, republicanism also started to spread, and neither rulers were open to negotiate, the duke decided to wait for the things to sort out in the central subnations. The opposite happened. Not only did the aggression in the now fragmented land of Valendoria, The Black Brotherhood rode up from the south rode north to sack their grand cathedral. Upon hearing about the Valendorians letting the brotherhood through, Vermond suffered a stroke and "instantly fell ill". His eldest son, Aiden Royce succeeded to the throne.

Aiden threatened war if the brotherhood were to cross their border, which they ignored, so he declared war on the mercenaries. His original strategy was to slow the sellswords down until Valendorian support arrives, which never did. In addition, republicanism spread from the north, and the Tovarian rebels rose up in the south-western parts of the duchy. Tovaria now having to split it's divisions against two enemies, was slowly losing more and more land, until Kendish and Kuvian troops entered the duchy to restore Royce authority.

Aiden was always a controversial political figure, and with him on the throne, the Royces would soon be seen as more of an aggressive force than a passive one. After the battle was won, the Bosothist order proclaimed the Royces the protectors of The Winterlands, granting them an imperial claim on the isle. Following this, instead of executing the remaining leaders of The Black Brotherhood, Aiden granted them the rebelling, republican land and vassalized them. Shortly after he declared war on the northern Valendorian states and forcefully took back the lost provinces, elevating Tovaria's status to that of a kingdom.

While Aiden is considered a strong leader in the north, the newly proclaimed fourth emperor is met with either indifference or hatred in the other parts of the island.

### The Froyce Branch

Sometime between 70 and 80 BD, the fourth born child of Duke Alfric Royce is arrested in the southern borders of Tovaria, after raising levies and marching towards Valendoria, her original motives remained unknown, however it was noted that they were waiting for a Kendish party and intended to march into Valendorian territory. Its impossible to determine if she aimed to recapture the lost Tovarian territories or to stage a coup. Her name was Ellyn Royce.

Fortunately for Ellyn, she was captured by a Tovarian defense army, not the Valendorian army. Alfric feared that House Winters would demand her execution and see her action as treason, the duke stripped her of her titles and exiled her to The Hales. Ellyn stayed in Greenfields, where she gained some influence from the locals. The Battle of Lord Lewis left Hallengard in anarchy and exposed for invaders. Some say that she was simply elected, as the new ruler, but others noted that she exploited Hallengard's chaotic state to take the leadership.

Ellyn named herself Queen of Hallengard and founded her own House, however she still paid the same tribute to Lauchette, as they did before, so the Gauberts didn't care to abolish her symbolic title. While the acting queen never declared an open war in her lifetime, her tactics were aggressive. Every opposition she faced was suppressed by a quick capture and public execution, even though she was a Bosothist, having people cliffed was her favorite method of punishment.

Despite her cruelty, the matriarch brought much needed stability to the nation, and she enjoyed fame and some adoration, she didn't seem to be as interested as she was in embracing absolutism. Once the her reputation reached The Winterlands, her father established new connections with her, and sent one of her older brothers, Aron Royce to her guidance. She eventually got assassinated, however her death remains a mystery as the killer was never found. Numerous people have taken credit for it, but neither of them were ever proven.

Ellyn only had one child, Elizabeth Froyce, who died without a heir, so that the dynasty didn't last longer than two generations. Despite this, the Royce dynasty still holds a claim on Hallengard. The Winters have tried to pressure them into denouement to establish a more stable relationship with The Lauch Empire, but to no avail. Duke Vermond Royce was the first ruler who was willing to negotiate trading the claim in exchange of their taken, south territories but the discussion never happened due to The White War. The Froyce title was used in the battles to encourage Hallengardians to join their cause.

While the Royces ultimately never denounced their claim, no effort was made to take the throne or to unite Tovaria with Hallengard.

## Trivia

* The motto has a dual meaning. It originates from Bosothist prayers, establishing their connection to the clergy, as well as honouring the Winters dynasty (which is why the 'W' is capital).
	+ The motto has became quite ironic in both senses, as the Winters dynasty went extinct, and nearly half of the clergy deserted Tovaria, as a result of King Aiden's militaristic decisions.