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The far realm of Verahim has a longstanding tradition of its military leadership being split between four great Generals, all of which are handpicked by the Queen. Each General is assigned a cardinal direction of the compass rose, and given the title of Sacred Defender. As far as the general public is concerned this amounts to little more than a fancy title and a designated theater of war for each commander in the event of an enemy invasion; but officially, it entails something much more specific. For the cardinal directions do not just correspond to the four corners of the kingdom, they also correspond to the four great gates of its capital city: Anapest. The only sworn duty of a Sacred Defender is to hold their respective gate against foreign invaders, at all cost, until either they are ordered to stand down by the Queen, or they die with their sword in their hand underneath the great stone archways. Such is the oath of a Sacred Defender, and has been since time immemorial.
However, it has been several hundred years since a General last fell in the line of duty. Though Verahim has fought many wars and had to endure the marching of foreign legions across its soil, there has been no need to call upon the sacred oath in centuries. Truth be told, even the Generals themselves consider their sacred titles somewhat ceremonial, and are far more concerned with protecting the nation as a whole rather than just the city of Anapest. The current Generals are Wilhelm Stormwind, Mariana Amaranth, Ash of the Southern Vale, and Luther Rainborn.
Wilhelm, Defender of the North, is the youngest of the four: he has distinguished himself as the greatest solo combatant in all of Verahim, and has proven himself a quick learner when it comes to field tactics and strategy. Blessed with good looks alongside his martial prowess, he is considered the most desirable bachelor in all of Verahim. His relative lack of experience puts him on a slightly lower pedestal compared to the other Generals, but everyone (including Wilhelm himself) seems confident that he will blossom into a military mastermind if simply given enough time. Though he is not a warmonger, Wilhelm is eager for a chance to see how far he has come, and favors interventionism when it comes to international affairs.
In many ways Mariana, Defender of the East, paralleled Wilhelm in her youth: an incredible fighter with a bright future ahead of her, she distinguished herself in the Battle of Shattered Shields some 35 years ago. Tragically, her victory in that battle came at the expense of a grievous injury to her spine, and she has been unfit for combat ever since. Trading her sword for a walking staff she transitioned into the role of court strategist, and was ultimately appointed as one of the Sacred Defenders, although many (including Wilhelm) feel this appointment was made not so much out of consideration for traditional criteria but rather out of pity for a loyal knight who had shown so much potential that was now tragically cut short.
The Defender of the South is something of an enigma. In their own words, "Nothing stands to be gained from giving people the impression that they understand me." Ash is the first Sacred Defender in recorded history not to be natively born in Verahim, but it's hard to argue with the facts: they have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat more than any other General, and they are a first class smooth-talking diplomat to boot. The worst kept secret in Verahim politics is that the other Generals tend to defer to Ash when it comes to peace-talks, and if there is such a thing as a supreme commander of the military then Ash is probably it. Fortunately they are either blissfully ignorant of this, or otherwise too busy to let it go to their heads, as Ash remains largely humble in spite of their status.
Finally, there is Luther as the long-standing Defender of the West. Having served as captain of the Queen's guard for over a decade before his appointment as General, Luther is what most people think of when they think of a Sacred Defender: wise, powerful, and loyal beyond words. Despite being almost as old as Mariana he remains an incredible force to be reckoned with, particularly seeing as only eight people have ever bested him in one-on-one combat (the most recent of which being Wilhelm). His skill with the longbow remains unequaled, however, and he is still the public face of the four Generals and of the Verahim military as a whole. He is also the most technologically inclined of the four, spearheading the development of new armors, battleships, and engines of war.
Together these four guarded the realm of Verahim for many years without incident, until the outbreak of the War of the Betrothed. This war drove Verahim to the very brink of annihilation, and despite the Generals' best efforts their forces were narrowly defeated time and again until they were driven back all the way to Anapest. The enemy surrounded the city and laid siege to it, and though their numbers had been greatly reduced due to the Generals' valiant efforts, the situation was still awfully dire. There were not enough troops left in the city to man and defend all four of the great gates: spreading them out would result in a splintered and insufficient defense which the enemy would break in due time, but the only way to fix this would be to completely withdraw all troops from one of the gates, which was tantamount to suicide. Which is precisely why everyone was so shocked when Mariana volunteered to do just that, and why they were even more astonished when the Queen agreed.
The other Generals called her mad, but Mariana simply recited their sacred oath and dared any of them to call it into question. None could bring themselves to do it, foolhardy though they thought her to be, and so it came to pass that Mariana's troops were divided between Wilhelm, Ash and Luther, and charged with protecting the North, South, and West gates. But to the East gate went only Mariana, the Queen, and Elvira Dragonslayer - the captain of the Queen's guard, who refused to leave her Majesty's side. The battle that followed remains as the hardest-fought in the history of Verahim. Wilhelm's sword shed blood beyond measure, Luther's bow sang until there was not a single arrow left in all of Anapest, and even Ash's twin axes made an appearance: a rare sight indeed. But most extraordinary of all was the lance of Elvira: for after the battle had come to an end, the lance's blade was found to be perfectly clean. The captain of the Queen's guard had not raised her weapon even once... because Mariana held the gate.
No one knows how --only Elvira and the Queen were there to witness it, and they have refused to say a single word on the matter-- but somehow, miraculously, Mariana held the gate. Despite coming out with nothing more than her General's attire and her humble staff, an entire legion lay dead before the East gate - many with horrific injuries the likes of which it is hard to imagine any human being could inflict, let alone one as old and crippled as Mariana. Now anytime someone works up the courage to ask her what happened that day, she gives no answer save for a small mischievous grin. The Queen has not awarded Mariana any special honors or titles in light of these events but there is an unspoken understanding among the other Generals that she is now held in the court's highest regards, and understandably so. Wilhelm can still scarcely believe it, Ash finds the matter most intriguing, and Luther seems slightly nervous now anytime Mariana enters the room. It is a modern-day myth of Verahim: a legend that fascinates its people and terrifies its enemies. And yet in spite of all this, there is only one outwardly visible sign that it ever happened: when Elvira is summoned by the Queen, she bows her head and presses her hand to her heart - but when she is summoned by Mariana, she bows her head, presses her hand to her heart, and sinks to one knee. Nobody dares tell her to stop. Not even the Queen.
A somewhat longer piece of lore this time around. I actually have a fair few more notes expanding on this, including the full list of people who've defeated Luther as well as the canonical version of how Mariana did what she did, but I like leaving these lore entries somewhat open-ended so that people can tailor them to the needs of their own worlds/campaigns. This was a lot of fun though, so we might come back to this setting sometime.
You are free to use this lore in your home campaigns, but outside of that specific context no part of this may be copied, distributed, used or sold without my explicit permission. Also, your soul belongs to me.
However, it has been several hundred years since a General last fell in the line of duty. Though Verahim has fought many wars and had to endure the marching of foreign legions across its soil, there has been no need to call upon the sacred oath in centuries. Truth be told, even the Generals themselves consider their sacred titles somewhat ceremonial, and are far more concerned with protecting the nation as a whole rather than just the city of Anapest. The current Generals are Wilhelm Stormwind, Mariana Amaranth, Ash of the Southern Vale, and Luther Rainborn.
Wilhelm, Defender of the North, is the youngest of the four: he has distinguished himself as the greatest solo combatant in all of Verahim, and has proven himself a quick learner when it comes to field tactics and strategy. Blessed with good looks alongside his martial prowess, he is considered the most desirable bachelor in all of Verahim. His relative lack of experience puts him on a slightly lower pedestal compared to the other Generals, but everyone (including Wilhelm himself) seems confident that he will blossom into a military mastermind if simply given enough time. Though he is not a warmonger, Wilhelm is eager for a chance to see how far he has come, and favors interventionism when it comes to international affairs.
In many ways Mariana, Defender of the East, paralleled Wilhelm in her youth: an incredible fighter with a bright future ahead of her, she distinguished herself in the Battle of Shattered Shields some 35 years ago. Tragically, her victory in that battle came at the expense of a grievous injury to her spine, and she has been unfit for combat ever since. Trading her sword for a walking staff she transitioned into the role of court strategist, and was ultimately appointed as one of the Sacred Defenders, although many (including Wilhelm) feel this appointment was made not so much out of consideration for traditional criteria but rather out of pity for a loyal knight who had shown so much potential that was now tragically cut short.
The Defender of the South is something of an enigma. In their own words, "Nothing stands to be gained from giving people the impression that they understand me." Ash is the first Sacred Defender in recorded history not to be natively born in Verahim, but it's hard to argue with the facts: they have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat more than any other General, and they are a first class smooth-talking diplomat to boot. The worst kept secret in Verahim politics is that the other Generals tend to defer to Ash when it comes to peace-talks, and if there is such a thing as a supreme commander of the military then Ash is probably it. Fortunately they are either blissfully ignorant of this, or otherwise too busy to let it go to their heads, as Ash remains largely humble in spite of their status.
Finally, there is Luther as the long-standing Defender of the West. Having served as captain of the Queen's guard for over a decade before his appointment as General, Luther is what most people think of when they think of a Sacred Defender: wise, powerful, and loyal beyond words. Despite being almost as old as Mariana he remains an incredible force to be reckoned with, particularly seeing as only eight people have ever bested him in one-on-one combat (the most recent of which being Wilhelm). His skill with the longbow remains unequaled, however, and he is still the public face of the four Generals and of the Verahim military as a whole. He is also the most technologically inclined of the four, spearheading the development of new armors, battleships, and engines of war.
Together these four guarded the realm of Verahim for many years without incident, until the outbreak of the War of the Betrothed. This war drove Verahim to the very brink of annihilation, and despite the Generals' best efforts their forces were narrowly defeated time and again until they were driven back all the way to Anapest. The enemy surrounded the city and laid siege to it, and though their numbers had been greatly reduced due to the Generals' valiant efforts, the situation was still awfully dire. There were not enough troops left in the city to man and defend all four of the great gates: spreading them out would result in a splintered and insufficient defense which the enemy would break in due time, but the only way to fix this would be to completely withdraw all troops from one of the gates, which was tantamount to suicide. Which is precisely why everyone was so shocked when Mariana volunteered to do just that, and why they were even more astonished when the Queen agreed.
The other Generals called her mad, but Mariana simply recited their sacred oath and dared any of them to call it into question. None could bring themselves to do it, foolhardy though they thought her to be, and so it came to pass that Mariana's troops were divided between Wilhelm, Ash and Luther, and charged with protecting the North, South, and West gates. But to the East gate went only Mariana, the Queen, and Elvira Dragonslayer - the captain of the Queen's guard, who refused to leave her Majesty's side. The battle that followed remains as the hardest-fought in the history of Verahim. Wilhelm's sword shed blood beyond measure, Luther's bow sang until there was not a single arrow left in all of Anapest, and even Ash's twin axes made an appearance: a rare sight indeed. But most extraordinary of all was the lance of Elvira: for after the battle had come to an end, the lance's blade was found to be perfectly clean. The captain of the Queen's guard had not raised her weapon even once... because Mariana held the gate.
No one knows how --only Elvira and the Queen were there to witness it, and they have refused to say a single word on the matter-- but somehow, miraculously, Mariana held the gate. Despite coming out with nothing more than her General's attire and her humble staff, an entire legion lay dead before the East gate - many with horrific injuries the likes of which it is hard to imagine any human being could inflict, let alone one as old and crippled as Mariana. Now anytime someone works up the courage to ask her what happened that day, she gives no answer save for a small mischievous grin. The Queen has not awarded Mariana any special honors or titles in light of these events but there is an unspoken understanding among the other Generals that she is now held in the court's highest regards, and understandably so. Wilhelm can still scarcely believe it, Ash finds the matter most intriguing, and Luther seems slightly nervous now anytime Mariana enters the room. It is a modern-day myth of Verahim: a legend that fascinates its people and terrifies its enemies. And yet in spite of all this, there is only one outwardly visible sign that it ever happened: when Elvira is summoned by the Queen, she bows her head and presses her hand to her heart - but when she is summoned by Mariana, she bows her head, presses her hand to her heart, and sinks to one knee. Nobody dares tell her to stop. Not even the Queen.
A somewhat longer piece of lore this time around. I actually have a fair few more notes expanding on this, including the full list of people who've defeated Luther as well as the canonical version of how Mariana did what she did, but I like leaving these lore entries somewhat open-ended so that people can tailor them to the needs of their own worlds/campaigns. This was a lot of fun though, so we might come back to this setting sometime.
You are free to use this lore in your home campaigns, but outside of that specific context no part of this may be copied, distributed, used or sold without my explicit permission. Also, your soul belongs to me.
Category Story / Fantasy
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 120 x 87px
File Size 29.2 kB
it should be noted, that even when I first read your description of Mariana, well before the actual act of heroism she completed, I thought to myself that she was my favourite. the others look down on her and pity her because of her injury, but she herself knew that she didn't earn it out of pity, but rather out of capability.
and then you wrote about how she proved that. and I just.... like, I already could tell, and then you wrote her prove it. and not just prove it, but absolutely legendary epic prove it.
that was amazing. that is the stuff that heroes are made of. that's inspirational.
and then you wrote about how she proved that. and I just.... like, I already could tell, and then you wrote her prove it. and not just prove it, but absolutely legendary epic prove it.
that was amazing. that is the stuff that heroes are made of. that's inspirational.
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