King Kaius III Comes of Age in Karrnath

Political event

King Kaius III took over rulership of Karrnath from his Regent Moranna in 991 YK. The great-grandson of Kaius I, son of King Jarot and first king of Karrnath after the collapse of Galifar, Kaius III has now held the crown for less than a decade. He ascended the throne upon his twentieth birthday, taking over from his aunt, the regent Moranna ir'Wynarn, who had been ruling since the unexpected death of his father, King Jaron, shortly after Kaius III was born. Karrnath suffered heavy losses during the course of the Last War. For all its military and naval might, widespread famine and rampant disease might have ended Karrnath's bid for power over Galifar before the third decade of the war was over. Thanks to its necromancers and corpse collectors, however, Karrnath was able to field a powerful army of skeletons and zombies even when its living forces became depleted. The Karrn royal family has weathered a number of setbacks and threats to the Crown over the years, always coming through with the support and confidence of most of the nobles and vassal lords. As for the people of Karrnath, they might not have loved all of their rulers, but they always feared and respected them. A fierce patriotism, flamed by slogans and a constant call to arms, kept the people focused on winning the war despite the hardships and suffering they had to endure. Descendants of King Galifar I, the royal family of Kaius ir'Wynarn still rules Karrnath. The blood of Kaius I flows through a powerful extended family that oversees all government and military functions. The next tier in status, the Karrn nobles, have become warlords over the course of the last century, serving the Karrn Crown as generals and admirals, as well as overseeing the land their noble titles grant them. Since the time of King Kaius II, the warlords have been kept in line through harsh treatment and the use of force. The new king, Kaius III, began to make overtures to change this practice, though he displayed a remarkable ability to perform whatever action is necessary to maintain control and keep his plans on track. While he hopes to keep the trust of his nobles and receive their support willingly, he uses force when such action is required to demonstrate the power and position of the Crown. Though Kaius III has shown some desire to transform his kingdom along more progressive lines, it remains essentially a military dictatorship ruled by hereditary monarchs of Wynarn blood. Royal mayors govern towns and cities. Royal ministers oversee executive departments that handle all aspects of government and foreign affairs. Laws and regulations promote a society where might makes right, and while the progressive Galifar Code of Justice provides the basis for civil rights in Karrnath, the draconian Code of Kaius that developed from it is more rigid and far less forgiving. Indeed, the nation has labored under martial law since the earliest days of the Last War. King Kaius III keeps a closely guarded secret. He is not who or what he appears to be. Only a handful of people in the inner sanctum of Kaius' court have even the slightest inkling that something is not quite right, and even fewer know the truth of the situation. What is that truth? It is a long, strange tale that boils down to a simple fact: Kaius III is actually Kaius I. When the Last War was in full swing, Kaius I was approached by priests of the Blood of Vol. These priests promised to aid Karrnath against its enemies, provided Kaius agreed to a few “minor” considerations. With Cyre and Thrane pounding on his borders, and a breakdown in diplomatic relations that left Karrnath temporarily without allies, Kaius agreed to whatever terms the priests had—so long as he was provided with the means to repel the invaders. First, the Vol priests and necromancers worked with Kaius' own court wizards to perfect the process for creating specially enhanced zombie and skeleton troops to bolster Karrnath's forces. With the addition of armor and weapons, as well as a slight increase in power, these undead were stronger and more formidable than the average mindless walking corpse. Second, the priests provided an elite fighting force dedicated to both Vol and Kaius—the knights of the Order of the Emerald Claw. “The Order will help you here and in distant lands, where its agents will foster unrest and revolution in the homes of your enemies,” the priests explained. Both of these gifts gave an immediate boost to Karrnath's beleaguered forces, and the order took credit for internal strife in Cyre, Breland, and Aundair. When Vol, the ancient elven half-dragon lich at the heart of the Blood of Vol cult, appeared before Kaius to collect her “considerations” for the aid her priests provided him, he had no choice but to submit. In addition to allowing the cult to establish temples and bases throughout Karrnath, Vol demanded that Kaius partake in the Vol cult's Sacrament of Blood. Instead of the usual ceremony, the Lich Queen invoked an ancient Qabalrin incantation that turned Kaius into a vampire lord. Instead of becoming a compliant undead thrall, however, Kaius fought to keep his independence. Furious that the royal vampire refused to be humbled, Vol eventually forced the issue by triggering Kaius' blood lust (something he had been struggling to control). When the crimson haze cleared, Kaius discovered that he had killed his beloved wife. Now, after eighty years of hiding and secretly working to break all ties with the Blood of Vol, Kaius has returned to govern his nation once more. He has taken the place of his great-grandson, pretending to be Kaius III. The real Kaius III was unjustly imprisoned by his undead ancestor in Dreadhold, where this anonymous convict in the hands of the dwarves of House Kundarak who run the infamous prison has been placed in a magical mask that keeps his features and true identity hidden. With the aid of various magic items and abilities, Kaius I hides his vampiric nature and masks his appearance to look like his younger great-grandson. A burning desire to rebuild his shattered kingdom drives Kaius forward, making him one of the most troubled and dedicated rulers in all Khorvaire. Kaius retained the services of his “aunt,” the Regent Moranna, as his chief adviser and minister of internal affairs. Moranna, who was actually Kaius' granddaughter rather than his aunt, is secretly a vampire like her king, having been transformed into one of Kaius I's vampire spawn soon after he revealed that he was still alive to Moranna and asked for her help in creating his ruse so that they could save Karrnath from the ravages of the Last War and the machinations of the Lich Queen Vol. Queen Etrigani met Kaius when she appeared before his court on behalf of the government of Aerenal during a diplomatic tour of the Five Nations. An intense courtship followed, and the two were married in 993 YK, on the second anniversary of Kaius' ascension to the throne. The queen has taken an active interest in the affairs of her adopted nation, and Kaius regularly sends her as an emissary to foreign courts. (Etrigani knows of her husband's true nature and has fought to overcome her elven cultural bias against undead.) Moranna continues to serve as regent of Karrnath, a post that has been transformed from one of rulership to an advisory position. She never ventures far from the royal court or from Kaius' side, except when he sends her out in his name to handle crises near and far. Moranna, a large, strong woman, has a commanding manner and a no-nonsense approach that leaves most of her underlings shaking in her wake. The king keeps a harem, but not for the reason that most people think. All of the members of the royal harem are followers of the Blood of Vol who have given their allegiance to Kaius. The young men and women in the harem voluntarily give themselves to Kaius so that the king can feed. He never takes more blood than an individual can safely give, and he never goes to the same individual more than once in any two-week period. The harem is kept secluded in its own wing of Crownhome, Kaius' family castle in Korth, and its members are forbidden to speak with anyone besides the king, queen or regent.