Tor Honarik

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The capital city of the Aurian Empire and the location of the Imperial Palace. It is the largest city with the largest population in all of Karandia. It has sometimes been claimed by an ambitious Emperor to be the capital of the continent.

## History

2500BE: Historians claim the most ancient buildings in the city such as the original parts of the great library called the Scroll of Honour are of elven design and believed to date from this era. The elven city was probably called Sellerendol.

900-800BE: During this time Sellerendol was retreated to by elves and dwarves under attack from human forces. Sometime prior to 800BE the city was taken by humans and most likely sacked. Very few original elven structures remain. The elves fled north to the city on the edge of the Golden Lake.

800BE: The city Tor Honarik or its direct forebear is made the seat of power by Leoric Honoursworn. The Lions of the Tor found a country based on the state.

460BE: The exodus of the so called Lion King and his court after the fall of Tor Honarik to the tribe later known as the Aurians. The Aurians appear to have always been in the area but had been river men and landsmen. Apparently they were very populous as the few records of the conflict say their forces were numberless and beyond counting. The Lion King and his court fled to the Alkan Plains and eventually to Errantlund.

400BE: By this date the Aurians, and the residents of Tor Armakan in the north, have succeeded in driving the elves from the local area. The Aurians declare the area around Tor Honarik a city state. The elves mostly withdraw into Quintox or Oakland as it is now called. The state governed from Tor Honarik is called Auria.

370-350BE: Aurians develop the reputation of great tradesmen and negotiators. They use these talents to stave off interest from the powerful states of Armakania and Kanlan. Auria supports and supplies all sides in the Cabal Conflict in Tor Armakan.

120BE: Auria supports the Kanlan military campaign to drive elven and dwarvern survivors from the ruins at Golden Lake.

55BE: Auria rises beyond its neighbouring city states. It is financially and organisationally superior to most of its cousins. It creates alliances with Armakania (signed in the Scroll of Honour) as well as other local states such as the River Folk and Helman.

10BE: Jomark a new enterprising young nobleman makes a name for himself by sealing the Helman Treaty and privately making a fortune on controlled gold reserves. Helman is considered the first real conquest of the pre-Aurian Empire.

9Be: Jomark is nominated as Head of Finance.

9-7BE: Jomark organises the Ro'Tier as a civil service for **Tor Honarik**. None of the other states have anything to compare to it and the financial might of Auria grows exceedingly. Tor Honarik becomes a financial centre for other states who base their own coinage off the Aurian Mark and seek first financial then political union. Several nations join the state making it clearly something more than just a city state. One of these states is the River Folk who lived on the Gold River and around the Golden Lake.

7-4BE: The First Commerce Wars – Tor Honarik invades its most dangerous neighbour state, Kanlan. It uses overwhelming numbers, treachery, a network of allies and surprise to take Tor Kalash and then offers excellent terms to the Kanlans for joining their growing prosperous country. As there were already plenty of pro-Aurian dissidents in the city the decision goes through without trouble. Jomark assigns a great Kanlan war hero as leader of all Aurian armies and recognises the Kanalan ruling class as Aurian nobles. Quickly, Tor Kalash begins to see itself as the second city of a growing very prosperous Empire rather than as a defeated rival.

5BE Jomark approaches the archmages of Tor Armakan directly promising them independent research opportunities and huge grants which open up their future prospects remarkably. This results in Tor Armakan joining the Aurian Monetary Union as a vassal state, which preempted the announcement of the Aurian Empire.

4BE: Vale Celer joins the Aurian Monetary Union when they adopt the Cellan as their common currency instead of the Mark.

0BE: Aurian Empire announced by Jomark. Tor Honarik is established as the capital but in an unprecedented move at the time he decentralises other key cultural and political assets to other cities. Tor Armakan to represent arcania and research, Tor Celer to represent religion, culture and the church and Tor Kalash to represent the military. This creates a bond between these four cities that has lasted millennia.

2-22PE: Unification Wars: Many cities are added to Tor Honarik's growing Empire. This necessitates the growth of the Ro'Tier as the political leadership, bureaucracy, financial support and negotiators of the Empire. The military grows and the financial power of Auria explodes as does its population.

PE6: The War of Thorns begins with the Bold Offensive. The longest war in which Tor Honarik engages, the most bloody and of all the wars fought in this period the least successful. it is expensive both politically, financially and in life.

34PE: End of the War of Thorns negotiated by Jomark personally.

39-86PE: Reign of Nicholas-Mark I

43-48PE: The Second Commerce Wars. Emperor Nicholas-Mark uses these wars as the opportunity to solidify Tor Honarik's position as the leader of the Empire. He formalises the use of wizards in the armies as a balance between Tor Kalash and Tor Armakan. he also mobilised clerics in large numbers for the first time in a hostile campaign. As well as being militarily sound, this is seen as a clever political move by later historians.

46-48PE: The Rak Danning Campaign. Rak Danning is the most important conquest since the early years of Tor Armakan and Tor Kalash. it is a huge trade and economic blessing for the Empire.

50PE: The failed Forked Offensive into Alkan and Saracan. In Tor Honarik members of the Ro'Tier cause the Emperor problems with Sarrif support over the failed attacks.

64PE: Kolaran creates a formal trade agreement with Auria and Yewdon. this opens Auria's sea going trade in a big way and allows Tor Honarik to impact and receive from the wider world.

86-92PE: Reign of Nicholas-Mark II.

115-123PE: Reign of Jonah I.

121-123PE: Border war with Torash. Tor Armakan was in support of the move and members of the Ro'Tier later accused the Sarrifs of manipulating the Emperor Jonah I.

129-147PE: reign of Emperor Solemnus.

137PE: Emperor Solemnus creates the position of Imperial Vizier. It seems this was created in part to give a civilian counselor equal or even superior weight to military and magical equivalents. However if this was the case, it backfired horribly as the clerics of Celer and the mages of Tor Armakan vie for the title from the moment it is created. The vast majority of all Imperial Viziers are either Sarrifs or Cellan priests.

147-159PE: The reign of Cartazian, sometimes called the Blue Emperor, however this title is unofficial, as in Tor Armakan it is considered disparaging, because it implies he favoured the Sarrifs. His reign is a golden season for Tor Armakan. Huge amounts of money and prestige flow into the city. There is a population boom and a vast increase in popularity, power and wealth.

147PE: Cartazian selects one of the Archmages, Whitefire as his Imperial Vizier.

155PE: After a lot of preparation Cartazian and Whitefire formalise the Sarrifs into a single guild: the Sapphire Wizards' Guild. Having created the guild they also create a leader for the guild called the Saffier. This individual has official political and military rank as well as being the leader of the only recognised wizards' guild in Auria. From this date all wizards on Aurian soil must register with the guild and if they want to be a part of any group of wizards such as colleges, research teams, the military units or guilds they have to be members of the guild. Whitefire is the first Saffier.

255PE: Whitefire the Saffier finally dies. This provokes a succession struggle between various archmages to take his place. Eventually three rise to prominence. One takes the role of Saffier, another the position of Imperial Vizier and the third, Crimsonsky, assigns himself to the military permanently.

258-264PE: Reign of Jonah III.

260-263PE: The Split Walls Secession War. Rak Danning and Wrennost go into revolt and attempt to secede from the Empire. Tor Honarik is forced to reply heavily on Tor Kalash and Tor Armakan to solve these rebels. In the end, the Imperial Vizier persuades the Emperor he must treat the secessionists as invading enemy states. After this declaration, the army move to crush Wrennost and two powerful wizards Tremorfist and Crimsonsky are instrumental in doing so as they bring down Wrennost's walls with an awesome display of arcane might. This enhances the role of Tor Armakan as a military force encroaching on Kalash's area of power and heightens tensions there. However the Sarrifs' reputation in the army is significantly improved.

315-347PE:Reign of Garath the Warrior.

318PE: The city state of Yewdon is finally taken into the Empire, Garath founds the Imperial Navy.

325-329PE: Emperor Garath attempts to take the great woodland of Quintox. During the Battle of Immortal Blood, Prince Garth, his elite rangers and a band of Sarrifs scored a great victory over the elves. The campaign is named for the victory. However when Auria pressed further north into what the renamed Oakland the elves proved more challenging yet and the campaign had to be abandoned.

345-347PE: The failed invasion of Alkan. This was an unpopular war and turned into a disaster. Emperor Garath died whilst visiting Tor Armakan in 347PE mysteriously and some believe that the guild was part of the Emperor's death, but such a fact has never been proven.

347-362PE: The Behind the Throne disputes/conflicts. After Garath's deaths his children who had been raised to believe themselves conquerors struggled against Elygia, Alkan, Torash, Saracan and the isles but no wars were actually declared. However during this time there was a lot of background strife and the possibility that at least one of these Emperors was assassinated by his brother. This only ended when Wilhelm took the throne in 362PE and even then it only ended because the other sons were all dead by this point.

362-366PE: Reign of Wilhelm the Negotiator. Auria makes military alliances with Kolaran and Yewdon in addition to its previous trade alliances. Wilhelm is also credited with masterminding the Northport agreement and the Torash cessation of hostilities clause.

438-450PE: Reign of Thomas-Yulis. He oversees the Third Commerce Wars and taking the state of Tatrak.

493-512PE: Reign of Aluap the Organiser.

502PE: The Ro'Tier is officially ended and replaced with the Imperial Senate and the Audit Corporation. An interesting point (one that demonstrates what a powerful leader Aluap was) is that the Emperor used the reorganisation to create rules that banned Sarrifs from becoming Senators or being employed as part of the Audit Corporation, though he allowed them to be appointed as Viziers and elected as governors. He also imposed similar restraints on the church of Celer possibly to balance Tor Celer and Tor Armakan against each other. The Dome of Debate is planned.

505-507PE: The Wargak Invasion is turned back by Aurian Forces. Thanks to Aluap's organisational reforms the Sapphire Wizards' Guild working in combination with the legions and the first full battle mobilisation of the church turn the tide. It is a golden moment for the Empire under a powerful but wise leader. As a reward, Aluap organises the planning of the Blue Crystal Palace as a fitting guild house for the Sarrifs and organises the creation of the Cellestine Cathedral in Tor Celer to balance it.

512-530PE: Reign of Peter I covers several successful wars taking the city state Zeric, the Duchy of Tholis Mesa and the state of Cthol Tatrak. The building of monuments is a focus of this reign.

515: The Dome of Debate is completed for the Imperial Senate to meet in.

515PE: The Emperor organises the legions into the modern Protectorans. Official numbers are given for Sarrifs with each legion. This is determined at usually one a cohort (1:100). This brought Sarrifs into the military command structure in a way that had not been previously formalised.

650PE: The Protectoran Mutiny erupts into deadly killings and hostage situations all across the capital. The creation of the Knight Stalkers (there were unofficial assassins supporting the Emperors previously but the Emperor does this officially though without fanfare. This group are used to control internal threats in the Empire from this era onward.

659-676PE: Reign of Peter II.

662PE: Peter II publishes his life's memories and though this act sponsors the three Great Libraries: the Azure Library, the Tome and the Scroll of Honour.

685-689PE: Reign of Horus.

687PE: Horus' failed attempt to invade Saracan. Establishes the northern border.

753-761PE: The Conclave Dispute a group from within the eight archmages that make up the conclave attempt to remove the current Saffier. This is resisted and internally the guild has a cold civil war. This runs on for years with multiple factions vying for supremacy. In the end, it is outside intervention that ends the strife as the wizards' rivals the Senate, the military and the church start to take over the running of the country. The Sarrifs themselves turn on their own leadership and two old archmages come 'out of retirement'. The Conclave is disbanded and a new one called. There are eight different men who claim the title of Saffier during this period. Three of them simultaneously.

763-781PE: Reign of Renis the Pious. With the Sapphire Wizards' Guild weak from the Conclave Dispute these years see the rise of the Church of Celer. The Imperial Vizier 'chosen' by Renis is a powerful Cleric of Knowledge, one of the Theonists of Tor Celer. The church puts a lot of pressure and uses a weak emperor to allow them to form the Vormach as an independent state.

1050-1102PE: Peter IV The Seafarer.

1184-1193PE: Carlson The Waymaker.

1187PE: Under the reign of Carlson the Waymaker the Oakland Trail is planned and commissioned. It is the first road of the new imperial road network. This road links the vital central cities of Tor Honarik, Tor Kalash and Tor Armakan with Oakland, Yewdon and the Vormach.

1193-1221PE: Gerard The Waywalker.

1234-1271PE: Anarik The Warmaker.

1486-1495PE: Kavad The Bleeder.

1486-1491PE: The War of Vengeance causes a sharp decline in the male population of Tor Honarik which has a distinct impact on the city. It creates what became known as the Bachelors' Summer and the War Babies Era.

1495-1529PE: Spencer The Prince of War reigns.

1512-1514PE: First Dragon Army Invasion is turned back in great part due to the Aurian Empire. The now largest city in the world Tor Honarik contributed the most men of any city to the war effort. The prisons are emptied into the military as the so called Hanged Legion.

1641-1656PE: Royan I reigns.

1656-1678PE: Reign of Royan II.

1643-1677PE: New roads are built enhancing the Empire's trade links and specifically bringing into Tor Armakan goods from all over the world that previously had been unavailable. The wealth of the Empire soars again.

1761-1779PE: Viktor The Elfslayer.

1761-1779PE: The War of Ears leads to the founding of the Blood Coin Bounty Hunters' guild in Tor Honarik.

1893PE: The Reign of Anaius Venthron.

1898PE: Second Dragon Army Invasion

## Geography

Tor Honarik is built on a great hill to the south of Golden Lake. It originally benefited from being close to water, forest for timber ,marble quarries and gold mines however only the water remains as the appetite of the growing capital has expended all the other resources to exhaustion.

## Economy

Tor Honarik has run through almost all its own natural resources but has the most powerful economy of any city in the known world. Here alone common people use bank markers to represent gold.

## Demographics

Tor Honarik is like any capital taken to extremes. Everything must be bigger and better. The walls are high, the monuments doubly impressive, the amounts of money exchanged in market is ridiculously high and the price of lodging is exorbitant. There is a huge gap between rich and poor and this is shown between the huge differences in the various districts of the city. From the mad rushing merchants of the Gold Quarter to the plush palaces of Royal Estates, to the plain and yet staggeringly impressive monuments and buildings of the Imperial Hill, compared with the hovels and squalor of Dirt End.

Tor Honarik is a Great City in the truest sense with its population exceeding that of any other known city.

### Religion

Tor Honarik and the Aurian tribe that has inhabited it for centuries has always been faithful to the church of the Avatar of Knowledge, specifically his aspect as god of money, trade and innovation.

Today the capital includes many churches and shrines and some to each Avatar of the six. Yet the Temple of Knowledge is clearly the most visible and impressive.

## Politics and Government

This is the centre of government and leadership for all of Auria and every decision made here by its Senate or its imperial ruler affects all of Karandia. It is the centre of everything, commerce, the military, the magic, the law making, the Knighthood, the industry, the population etc. Or at least it likes to think so. But then again its residents have a reputation for unbelievable arrogance.

## Military

The Red Protectoran occupy Tor Honarik in force.