The Rise of the Empire

Birth of Valkorian the Great - 30 BRF

Born to a family of nomadic herders, Valkorian spent most of his youth travelling to avoid skirmishes or raids from other groups should their hidden campsites be discovered.. While settlements have been recorded to exist at the time, most were led by regional warlords or tribes that constantly warred for resources. Valkorian lost his father to a raid at the age of 8, which inspired him to build a home for his family and keep them safe. 

Dawn of the Seven Companions - 8 BRF

Julius Granduul swears his allegiance to the first Valkorian, marking the beginning of the era of the Seven Companions. It’s speculated at this point that Valkorian’s warband had managed a string of ambush style victories, after Julius joined their tactics would change towards coordinated direct combat as he trained them from vengeful shepherds to disciplined soldiers.

The Seven Assembled - 7 BRF

Following a string of victories against Aldegar the Vengeful, Galina Duran is convinced to join the companions, she is the final member of the group. At this stage a coalition of enemies is beginning to emerge against Valkorian’s intrepid warband, which would become known as the Three Warlord Pact.

The Founding of The Rhodiesian Empire - 0 PRF

While the founding of the empire wasn’t a specific day, the commonly agreed upon date of the era change is the coronation of Valkorian the first, also known as Valkorian the Great, or Valkorian the Uniter. That was a day of great celebration as it marked the end of over 14 years of military campaigns against warlords, barbaric tribes, and if records are to be believed even bone raiders. While the empire would still grow after this date, it now had its heartland and further expansion would be at a much slower, more stable pace with greatly reduced military casualties.

The Iron-Gold Mandate - 1 PRF

Following a period of restructuring and consolidating his power after the defeat of the Three Warlord Pact, Valkorian issues the Iron-Gold Mandate. This decree authorized the creation of the Great Houses and ennobled the Seven Companions, assigning them lands and titles while also charging their house with their duties to the empire.

The Fall of the Empire

The Great Schism - 1267 to 1281 PRF

It’s not hard to find ruins from the old Rhodesian Empire. At their height this mighty civilization spanned the majority of the old world, and rumors persist of their potential habitation of the new world long before our modern day discovery. So what exactly caused the fall of the empire?

It’s a subject of some debate, but it’s widely agreed that the appearance of the first Lorresian prophet in 1267 PRF was a catalyst to some of the issues that plagued the empire. He proclaimed the corruption of the church and noble houses by magic users far and wide, but was largely ignored by the noble houses and church themselves until it was too late. The leaders of the Velucan church seized the prophet and had him burned at the stake, unaware they had just made him a martyr.

The outraged masses of his followers rioted, causing widespread damage and inciting a great rebellion. It was about this time the first rot-plague epidemic broke out, with both religions claiming it a sign of their gods anger at the other side’s heretical beliefs. As tensions began to reach a critical point, tragedy struck. The current emperor Valkorian was struck by rot-plague, and would never recover. When the news broke out, religious extremists stormed the palace, seizing the emperor and executing him for being a heretic. It’s unknown if the extremists were Lorresian or Velucan believers as the palace was burnt to the ground, along with all records inside. What is known is that moderates from both sides accused the other of the act and used the occasion to declare formal crusades upon one another.

The new Emperor Valkorian was only a young boy of 14, and was a weak ruler at best before he disappeared during another riot caused by the rot-plague in 1278 PRF. Without an emperor to unite them, the great houses fell to infighting, and the empire dissolved not long after in 1281 PRF.

The Modern Era

The Discovery of the New World - 1532 PRF

It’s common knowledge that explorer Constantin Corsino of House Vincelli discovered the new world, but it’s only due to the fact his ship was crewed by men from House Duran that the new world itself became common knowledge. While Corsino intended to keep its location secret in order to explore and catalog the new world undisturbed, House Duran sold its location to those who could afford its fees.

Naturally this led to House Gautier being the first to purchase it, and their new exotic wares were questioned at length by magistrates of both empires, leading them to purchase the location as well. When they sent the first wave of settlers out, the colonists were shocked to see Harbian settlers had made landfall as well, which most scholars agree marks the start of the Harbian Tsardom’s power projection and expansionism agenda that continues to the present day.

The Vitan Rebellion - 1549 PRF

In the first wave of expansion, the best of each major nation’s settlers and technology were sent to the new world, building great walled cities and emplacements to protect against threats from competing settlements, raiders, or native creatures. No expense was spared, and from the ruins of the old empire's long dormant technology was repurposed by each nation to truly make assault on their new settlements unfeasible.

This arms race of sorts ended abruptly as the newly established settlements all came together to proclaim independence from their nations, forming a federation of settlements governed by a radical new concept of self determination free of kings, ministers, high priests, or emperors. Due to a complete lack of military forces loyal to them in the new world, the founding nations were forced to back down and begin planning new colonies that would be led by soldiers, not settlers.

The Modern Day - 1550 to Present

While much happened between the Great Schism and now that I don’t dare to try and cover in this book, we reach the modern day. I will attempt to cover the nations of Patrocia as thoroughly and neutrally as an old historian can, but there is a great deal I cannot catalogue in detail due to time constraints. I encourage any inquisitive reader to seek out knowledge of their own and explore this wonderful world of ours.