War of the Triumvirat

You really think that there will be anything left once this is over? That all will go back to normal? Not even you could be so naive as to believe this, Adeon. The world as we know it is dead.

— Emelia Valerian to Adeon Valerian

Vardania is caught in an endless nightmare. Peace, always so close. Always a mere fingers width away. Only to be flushed away as another power monger rises to make the Hegemony his own. Seron Valerian, the Kinslayer, is only the latest in a long line of usurpers. Once again, armies march across the continent. And once again, the people of Vardania will suffer for it.

Call of the Kinslayer

At first glance, this war seemed just like the last one. But Seron was not Vespasian. He did not claim the Hegemony as his own, nor did he declare himself Emperor. Instead, another message hailed from Velaris.
- excerpt from Seron's Declaration, 5th of Ianuaris 2221 DA
Vardania is diseased. A body suffocating under its own weight. Its stinking flesh is drenched in corruption and greed, putrid liquids oozing from a hundred fowling wounds. Wounds that need to be burned out. A land that will be brought to order, with fire and sword if necessary! The filth that abused the torment of this nation will be brought to justice! Law and order will be restored! And anyone standing against me shall be assured, as they will get what they deserve.
To some these words rang more than hollow, considering Seron's own power grab and continued employment of Dhion Hi. To those having suffered under years of corruption and abuse, however, it was a rallying call. Seron was brutal. A monster. A kinslayer. But he seemed the only one willing to upset the status quo. The only one willing to carve out the black heart beating inside the monstrous frame of the Hegemony. Thousands of volunteers, minor warlords, entire cities raised his banner in answer.

Second Coalition

by Greg Rutkowski

In response, a new coalition was forming. All those formerly loyal to Empress Miera now united under the banner of Amelian "the Elder". Following Emperor Metachares's death at the hands of Seron, Amelian had become the rightful heir to the throne and many governors and generals wished to garner favour by supporting the "true" Emperor. Across the Divide, the last of the Princes joined the conflict. Ilia Valerian, Princess of Hekari, and Majorian Valerian, the Prince of Illigara, previously occupied with restoring order in the colonies, officially joined Amelian's side. Their plan was similar. Stopp Seron's momentum and crush him under their numerically superior armies. Seron, however, had other plans...

Seron Strikes Back

Scetia Falls

The new Usurper wasted no time. A mere two weeks after burning Velaris, he crossed the Divide and landed in Scetia. Ilia was caught completely off guard, the fleet she had been assembling was destroyed off the coast. With lightning speed Seron moved across Scetia, smashing army after army. Both coalition forces and separatists came under assault. As the year reached its midpoint, Scetia was pacified. Illia had fallen victim to an assassination, her successor unable to offer any resistance. Majorian had lasted a little longer, finally falling in the Battle of Heskis, on the 9th of Iunis.

Stalemate in the East

The Western Provinces were once again a battlefield, as Seron's generals, most infamous among them Dhion Hi, began their own campaigns. The Atheryan and his lightning-fast cavalry force constantly harassed the numerically superior, but far slower coalition armies. While this front saw some success, Honorian, who had been made general after serving Seron dutifully in previous campaigns, taking the heavily fortified port city of Nikoris on the 21st of Martius, neither side was able to gain a real advantage.

Surrounded On All Fronts

Even after Seron returned in late Iunis, the war remained in a strange vacuum, as neither side seemed willing to conduct anything but lite raiding. This phase lasted several months and only in late Septem, did the two armies march from their respective bases. Almost a million soldiers were moving across Vardanias western plains, ready to fight and die for their cause. Late 2221 would see the banks of the river Sirryn drenched in blood as Seron and Amelian clashed over a dozen times along its banks.
As costly as they were indecisive, these massacres only served to bleed the already damaged Legions white, robbing the warlords of veteran forces. Amelian was increasingly forced to implement forced conscription to fill his ranks, a decision many resented him for. Regions previously spared by the war now found themselves in the middle of this maelstrom. Thousands died of starvation and plague and many more simply left with anything they could scrap together, heading for safer areas in the north and east.
As the year turned, both sides seemed caught in a stalemate, but in reality Seron was winning. He knew that Amelian needed to prove his legitimacy by crushing him and remained on the defensive for the most part. Luring the coalition armies into costly battles, he simply let Amelian do his work for him, grinding his armies down with increasingly desperate offensive actions. In late Apris, he crushed a coalition army near Velaris, killing or capturing over 100.000 soldiers. Ready to go on the offensive, he was stopped by a letter from the east.

Last Stand

by Yeji Hong

His brother Adeon, who had remained suspiciously silent for the past year and a half, was offering to join the war...on Seron's side. Adeon wished to end the conflict as a whole and was ready to support his brother if said man was willing to accept him as his co-ruler. Seron, to the astonishment of many of his followers, agreed. A week later, Adeon's armies started to invade Amelian's territory. The stubborn old general refused to give even one inch of land and forced the brothers to siege even the smallest of castles.
A hopeless act of defiance for the armies arrayed against him were too powerful. In early Sextil, he made his last stand. On the fields near the village of Kelenae, nearly half a million soldiers clashed. Seven days of bloodshed saw the last of Amelian's power vanish.
The old general managed to escape and flee south. His further plans or even if he had any are a mystery. Maybe he wished to seek support among the Feran lords on the Summer Coast? We will never know. A week after the Battle of Kelenae, Amelian "the Elder" was murdered by his own guard. His corpse was thrown into a well and later found by peasants from a nearby village. They buried it on a nameless field near their house, where it has remained ever since.
Without a leader, the coalition melted away and the majority of its remaining forces surrendered. The last member of the main Valerian family was dead. As the sun rose on the morning of the 21st of Sextil 2222 DA, Vardania belonged to Seron and Adeon.

So this is how the Hegemony ends. Ground down by traitors and fools. The personal playground of two imbeciles. Let them tear it apart. I can't bring myself to care anymore.

— Last words of Amelian "the Elder"

by Darkseid

Conflict Type

Military Campaign

Start Date

02.01.2221

Ending Date

21.08.2222

Conflict Result

Fall of Amelian the Elder. The Hegemony is divided between Seron and Adeon.

by li pan

The Scetian Princes
Out of all the Princes, these two are perhaps the least known. At least in Vardania. Ilia Valerian, daughter of Eugeron's younger brother Helian, inherited the province of Hekari in late 2208. Young, bright and energetic she made Hekari into one of the wealthiest provinces of the Hegemony. Her neutrality throughout most of the war made her lands an oasis of peace on a burning continent. Her downfall would come in the form of court intrigue and her province was subdued by Seron soon after.
Majorian was a member of a side branch of the Valerian Dynasty and since 2201, the Prince of Illigara. Having served many years under Anthiemus Gaderis, the overall commander of the Scetian Legions, he was known to be a capable, if incredibly ruthless commander. His name gained infamy when he killed every member of the Hene tribe down to the last child. His end came with the Battle of Heskis, where he fell victim to a stray arrow.
A Brothers Hesitation
Throughout the war, neither Adeon nor Seron seemed willing to outright fight the other. While their troops occasionally skirmished, neither brother had fought any larger battle against the other. Some historians even claim that they would wait for the other to leave a city before marching to besiege it.
Some suggest it was due to the strong familial bond, as their family was known to have a stronger connection than other Valerians. Filial loyalty seemed to run in the family, as their father Gerion had famously saved his older brother Eugeron from a bandit assault in late 2180. Despite being next in line for the throne, should Eugeron die, he fought against a force outnumbering his guard ten to one, enabling his brother to escape and gather aid.
Endless Unrest
There persists the false impression that the colonies remained peaceful after the first series of revolts in late 2210. This couldn't be further from the truth. War was a constant in these lands but lacked the large scale battles and sieges of the Vardanian theatre.
Warfare in Anidara and Scetia was one of small scale skirmishes, guerilla attacks and espionage. No matter how thoroughly the Legions had "pacified" a region, the moment they left it would rise once again. Vardanian reprisal, increasingly brutal as the war progressed, only served to fan the flames of rebellion further.

by Anton Zaporozhets