The Tale of Dredan Vorthal

The land of Heletria will forever recall the reign of Dredan Vorthal, in one way or another. Time heals all wounds, so they say. But there are those in Heletria who remember Vorthal differently than others. His common name is largely lost to the average peasant, but his titles are not. To some, he's the Dark Sun. To others, he's the Visionary.

3000 years ago, Dredan Vorthal rose from peasantry when he gained a level of power so great that it was thought by many to be impossible for a mortal to possess. Kings bowed down to Vorthal, and he quickly became the Emperor of Heletria.

Vorthal would not be satisfied, however. After 250 years of rule, Vortal set his sights beyond the material plane and into the great beyond. Beings of great power took issue with this, and assembled a coalition. It became known as the Divine Chorus, and each god sent their greatest warriors to destroy Dredan Vorthal. Many were lost in the years to come, as the Celestials sent all they could muster to destroy Vorthal. The gods, not wanting to place their own lives at risk, decided to seek other means of dethroning a now vengeful Vorthal.

J'ran, a sort of black sheep of the Heletrian pantheon and the god of trickery, was the only one willing to stand before Vorthal. As J'ran entered Vorthal's palace, the egotistical emperor was flattered that a god, a true celestial, finally stood before him. To Vorthal, this was an acknowledgement of his true power. And as a result, Vorthal agreed to J'ran's strange request: to play a game of Dragonchess with him. J'ran played into Vorthal's hubris. He allowed Vorthal to take key pieces in such a way that was convincing as a genuine misstep. But as he took Vorthal's pieces, he placed a subtle curse each time. With each fallen ivory Dragonchess piece, Vorthal surrendered a fragment of his power.

In the game itself, Draden Vorthal was the victor. He stood proudly from the table. And just as he felt the weakness within him, J'ran thrust a celestial dagger into his chest, killing him instantly.

J'ran would return to the Divine Chorus a hero, and was welcomed into the fold. The people of Heletria, however, were left without a king. In the years that followed, new nations formed and fell, and leaders of all sorts would attempt to fill the vacuum. Many of those leaders would devote a vast amount of time and resources into the study of Dredan Vorthal and how he came upon such power. In doing so, the Dragonchess pieces used by J'ran were rediscovered, and found to still contain the fractured pieces of Vorthal himself.

A new power struggle came as a result of this discovery, as enchanters attempted to harness this power for the kingdoms they served (or for themselves).

Since that time, those reconfigured artifacts became known as the Relics of the Vissionary. How many there are in total is unknown, but many can be accounted for in the hands, vaults, and treasure rooms of the kingdoms of Heletria and beyond. The Illuminary, a guild of mages and researchers devoted to the preservation of knowledge, have many times offered to collect and hold them as a neutral party. Such requests have gone unacknowledged or laughed at.

Today, Heletria exists as we know it because of the rule of Dredan Vorthal. The scars of his time as emperor will never truly fade.