Ethros and Her Islands

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### Founded/Built

Early Arrivals were around 5,000 BSE. But the modern Ethros was not founded until 0 BSE

## Other Information

### Summary

Ethros was an island to the far south and east of Ennaire. Once having a clan-based government, the Sterling Conquests brought feudalism to Ethros.

### Inhabitants

Humans, Leercans, Warbears, Horsewolves, and a single Dragon

### Spoken Languages

Ethrosian, Leercan

Ethros is an island to the far south and east of Ennaire. Once having a clan-based government, the Sterling Conquests brought feudalism to Ethros.

## **Time Measurements**

Ethrosian time measurements are recorded in BSE (Before Sterling Era) and SE (Sterling Era). Coincidentally, the BSE/SE timeline is almost parallel with the BBB/ABB timeline.

## **History**

### **Early Arrival (~5,000 BSE)**

The main island of Ethros was originally discovered and inhabited by Leercans and Stormclans. However, common Ethrosians were led under a man by the name of Eth (translated from Old Ethrosian as East) from a far, eastern land. After this, the island was given its name: Ethros (translated as Eastland, Eth: East, Ros: Land), after Eth.

### **Eth's Journeys and Attempted Kingdom (~4,980 BSE)**

Eth then began traveling around the island, searching for magical beings and relics. On his journeys, he discovered dragons (which he called Flying Terrors, for their great height, dangerousness, and stature), (unnaturally large bears), and Horsewolves (wolves the size of horses).

After seeing all of this, people began to treat Eth as a god. This movement came to be known as the Followers of Eth, and they followed Eth without question. Eth attempted to set up a kingdom and put everyone under his rule, but the Ethrosian clans revolted and drove Eth into hiding. Then, the Followers of Eth began to condemn the clans, and say that the only way to reach Paradise in the afterlife was to do good deeds in repentance of their disobedience to Eth.

### **Sterling Conquests (4-0 BSE/SE)**

After thousands of years of clan struggle, the Ethrosian clans grew weary. However, one clan remained dominant: Clan Sterr. In 4 BSE, a new leader of Clan Sterr came to power: Brandon Sterr. To make his clan name more modern, he changed it to Sterling, and went on a rampage of conquest. In a little under six months, all of mainland Ethros was under Brandon's rule. Thus, Brandon set up his capital on the most eastern tip of the island. This city was named Eastlaw.

Wanting to control more lands, Brandon conquered the Stormtwins, a land of rivers and deserts to the west. After two years of fighting, Brandon took the Stormtiwns. After this, Brandon named the two islands a united piece of his kingdom: Stormway. Then, he conquered Leerca, a land of lush forests and mountains to the south. In 0 SE, Brandon took Leerca, but at the cost of his life. Ethros was united and at peace when Brandon's son, Ned, took the throne as King Ned Sterling.

### **The Outlaw of Magic (85 SE)**

During the reign of Brandon III, the Followers of Eth had come under a reformation. After numerous scandals about the misuse of magic among the Followers' hierarchy, the Followers of Eth condemned magic among their ranks. Due to the massive influence the Followers of Eth had on the Crown, Brandon III was pressured into outlawing magic throughout Ethros. Caving in, Brandon III did so, causing a purge of magic users and relics.

### **The Great War (100-117 SE)**

After years of peace and prosperity for Ethros, several Houses of nobility saw the weakness of the king, Brandon IV. They also despised how Brandon IV's father, Brandon III, outlawed the use of magic, because the priests of Ethros's religion, the Followers of Eth, believed it to be a wrongdoing. Thus, to end this political weakness, they decided to wage war against the Crown. The war lasted for seventeen years, where men on both sides fought mercilessly against their brothers. The war ended at the Great Salt Tragedy, where both sides met for battle at a fishing town known as Great Salt. There, Brandon IV, and the rebel king known as Erin the Conqueror, led their armies into battle. They both flew Flying Terrors, and when the battle was over, and when the smoke had cleared, neither side had won. Brandon IV and Erin the Conqueror had both been killed, along with their Flying Terrors. Great Salt was destroyed, and both armies were wounded. However, Brandon IV's son, Robert Sterling, led more men towards Great Salt, destroyed any remains of the rebel army. The battle, and war, had ended in a victory for the Ethrosian Crown.

### **The Reign of Queen Celstia (125-130 SE)**

By the death of King Robert Sterling in 125 SE, there was conflict on who would rule. He didn't have a male heir. The nobility pushed for his nephew, Stephen, to be king, but the Followers of Eth crowned Robert's daughter, Celstia, the first Queen of Ethros. This angered many of the nobles.

Queen Celstia's rule was mostly marked with her putting down small rebellions of nobles. They couldn't tolerate the rule of a woman in Ethros. What was especially remarkable about these uprisings, however, is that Queen Celstia gained the respect of her soldiers by leading them into battle, and winning every time.

However, in secret, she caught wind of a section of Leerca called the Valorian Woods. She heard that it was highly populated with magic, and she, being a strong Follower of Eth, intended to stop it. She led thousands of warrior-monks of the Followers of Eth - called the Knights Purify - to "cleanse" the region. Afterwards, she set up a stronghold called Celstia's Tower - a stronghold kept by a few hundred Knights Purify - to put down any more magic in that region.

When Celstia returned to Eastlaw, however, she saw that the Ethrosian nobility had falsely charged her with adultery against her husband/cousin, Stephen, and got the Followers of Eth to believe it. She was then executed and Stephen was crowned king.

### **The War & Baron of Leerca (350-385 SE)**

Peace had reigned over Ethros for hundreds of years. However, in the reign of King Jeffry II, Leercans had begun to revolt. They drove most of the Ethrosian nobles out of Leerca, except in one port city called Perth. King Jeffry II had amassed thousands of Stormriders, Ethrosians, and Knights Purify to fight off the revolt. Perth and its surrounding land were quickly put back under Ethrosian rule.

Jeffry II continued to reconquer his lands, until he was shot by a Leercan archer in 353 SE. Then, Jeffry's son, fifteen-year-old Jeffry III Sterling, was crowned. Jeffry III soon earned the nickname Jeffry the Lion, for his bravery on the battlefield.

Although the Ethrosians were gaining their land back, it cost them tons of troops. The Leercans used magic to their will, which caused numerous casualties for the Ethrosians. This caused Jeffry the Lion to simply sail fleets of ships to the southern parts of Leerca, and conquer on all sides. Jeffry also used newly-hatched Flying Terrors to burn the Leercan soldiers.

Tragedy struck when in 377 SE, Jeffry the Lion was captured by the Leercans and burned alive. Then came Ethros's new king: King Robert III. Robert III rode in and swept through Leerca. In 385 SE, he had fully reconquered Leerca when Leercan chieftains signed a peace treaty with Robert III in Celstia's Tower. The 35-year-long war had ended, which set up a new political position: the Baron of Leerca.

In the peace treaty, the Leercans agreed to become part of Ethros again, and the ruler of Leerca would be the heir to the Ethrosian throne, who would now have the title of Baron or Baroness of Leerca.

### **Political Instability (385-Present SE)**

Since the War of Leerca, Ethros had been thrown into poverty and weakness. The proud warriors of Ethros had been reduced to a few thousand soldiers. However, the Followers of Eth and the Knights Purify prospered, because they now forced the conversion of every follower of the Ethrosian Crown. The Stormway and Leercan religions were no more, and the Followers of Eth and the Knights Purify kept the nation together.