Dauler the Great

Defender of Mankind

Founder of the Daulerim Empire

"The irony of history is that the greatest savior of humanity was partially an elf": Noritë

Early Life

Dauler was born as the illegitimate child of the King of Illangar and an elven sorceress, making him a Half-Elf. Accounts of his early life are often conflicting and mixed with folk legends of his origins. One suggests that his father did not have any other children and Dauler was chosen to lead. Another legend says that his mother was actually exiled by the King and that Dauler would have returned after his father's and brother's death.
These stories have one thing in common however. Dauler was never considered the first heir. Some speculate that he was in fact an usurper and he and his mother were exiled by the King. One of his half-brothers took the throne after their father's death. Yet Dauler decided that he was more fit to rule and went to Illangar to depose of his half-brother. Before becoming King, he lived with his mother, likely among other elven sorcerers. There he became well versed in the magical arts.

King and Emperor of Illangar

King of Illangar

The exact date when he became King varies in the stories on his life. He did become King sometime between the age of 25 and 30. His early reign was marked by conflict, another reason to assume that he was in fact an usurper. He was very much at odds with the established elite of the Kingdom, while himself desiring to create a new Kingdom in the image of his vision. His vision was primarly influenced by his impression of elven societies at the time and their alleged history of peace and prosperity. There mages ruled over the rest. A meritocratic system in which the most powerful magic users guided the nations. The idea of the elven nations struck him as much more progressive than the aristocratic nature of feudal human kingdoms.

War against Corruption

In the following years and opportunity and a challenge arose. The Shatun had been in conflict with the human kingdoms of quite some time. Colloquially they were known as Dark-Elves and the force behind them as Corruption. The Shatun were once one of the elven nations too, but they had allied with the Second God, leading to a terrible war, which devastated the elven nations in ancient times.
Even after the war, the Shatun were never fully eradicated and lingered on in the hidden corners of the world. In time of crisis they rose and attacked their age old enemy, hoping to regain the favor of the Second God and to strengthen its grip on the world. During the reign of Dauler they were already well established again and frequently raided human kingdoms. They took thousands as slaves. Many of these were even corrupted themself and turned into nightmarish half-human beings. By the time of Dauler's reign the situation had become very dire. The human kingdoms seemed to be too weak to actively resists, while being slowly drained of their manpower and ressources by the dark-elves.
Dauler used the chance to build up an alliance to counter the forces of Corruption. In the scenario most commonly told he rallied the human kingdoms together to end the apocalyptic treat. Those who did not follow him were seen as corrupted themself and enemies of humankind. In this war he not only united human kingdoms, but also made powerful allies among the elves and dwarves. His own half-elven descend helped him to bridge the divide between them. The Shatun were elves too, but they had fallen to Corruption, becoming utterly unrecognisable, parodies of their former self.
The final confrontation of the war was during the Battle of Illangar, when the alliance took down the largest army of the Shatun and their slaves. From now on humanity was on the offensive. Dauler waged a literal crusade against the forces of Corruption, determined to rip them from his world. Perhaps moreso than the elavated legendary War against Corruption was his effort to unite humanity.

Designing an Empire

Perhaps more important than the following wars against the forces of Corruption were his efforts to unite humanity into a single Empire. This realm would come to be known as the Daulerim Empire. He never managed to truly fulfill his vision of a united humanity, yet the foundation of his Empire remains a considerable feat.
The Empire's official foundation date is the year 33, when the capital was moved from Illangar to Malaral ](settlement). The move was designed to keep the populous delta region of the Nostire river in check. It also showed the already considerable authority of Dauler over his subjects. After his victories, other kingdoms obliged to let him have his way. In this way he redesigned the human kingdoms into a single realm. It is unclear how much authority he had over all his tributaries. It can be inferred that many vassalised realms remained somewhat independent. The official narrative was different. Dauler united the kingdoms, pacified the barbarians and opened trade. Those who succeeded Dauler failed to reclaim his Empire because they mistook this narrative for reality. Despite wanting something different, his Empire was feudal in some regards still.
The idea of a human empire was unprecedented. Dauler was the first to try this experiment on such a scale. The titles he chose were exclusively from the Emat. He called himself by the title Kartën, a mere title for lord, yet it was different from the titles of most human kings. His Empire was called Talimë Kartoosh the "Empire of Humanity". His simple title of Kartën was later expanded to be Jayan Kartën "The Good King" or Kasak Kartën "King of the noble fight". The title Kartën sha Kartën "King of Kings" was only applied to him after his death. The name "Daulerim Empire" or Karrush Daulerim in the Daulerim language and Taoler Kartoosh in Emat, only gained popularity a century after his death. It was clear that he wanted to establish an Empire for all humanity and not just one for a dynasty founded by him. Nonetheless is his legacy this Empire, precisely most well known to have been founded by him.

Later Reign and Death

Dauler died in the year 172 at the age of 205 due to old age. As someone well versed in the magical arts he was able to prolong his life considerably. This practice was common among elves and indeed his lifespan would have been considered very short any elf of comparable status.
The world enjoyed many decades of peace during this period. Humanity did not face any external threats and most internal conflicts were quickly resolved. Dauler established a united military for the Empire, which was able to quickly pacify both external and internal conflicts. Trade flourished during this time and the Daulerim made efforts to connect themself with other human realms outside of what constituted their known world. The development and schooling of mages was officially advanced promoted. Dauler invited many elven mages into his realm to teach those among his subjects, who possessed the Gift of Magic. Before that, human sorcerers used to be a rarity. Most human mages were druids, shamans and witches instead.
Elven traditions became more prevalent in the life of humans. Many elves who joined Dauler in his fight soon integrated and assimilated into human society. This resulted in a large population of Half-Elves especially in the urban areas of the realm. Finally in 172, Dauler was succeeded by his grandson Astalan Dauler. Astalan continued the Golden Age, which had been initiated by his grandfather.

Myth vs Reality

The figure of Dauler the Savior of Humanity has gained much popularity troughout history. The historical details of his person are often overshadows by the myths around him. Many deeds attributed to him can be considered pure fiction. In many parts of the Empire, Dauler is treated as religious figure and people revere him as savior of humanity. Shrines are erected for him and his grandson. The rule of the two Emperors of the Golden Age is widely celebrated. So of these Daulerene cults also feature Irian Dauler as sort of reformator of the Empire. One of the most popular religious themes around Dauler is that of his heavenly journey following his death. After death he ascended trough the ten layers of heaven and fullfilled heroic deeds in each sphere. In the end he ascended to the highest sphere to forever guard humanity. His grandson Astalan on the other hand is celebrated as old and wise Emperor. Instead of ascending to heaven after death, he wandered into the Tonad-Qhoor, to live within the Qhoor-ne-Termikin until he would be needed again.

Abilities

Dauler was known as a great mage and warrior. Albeit he was a sorcerer, his magical abilities were mostly martial. It is said that he always carried a great warhammer into battle. He was said to have been tall and handsome, a warrior of legend through and through. He lived up to the age of 205, as he like many mages sought to prolong his life. Unlike most other elven mages, he did not spent considerable time in meditation and didn't chose to live to up extraordinary length.

Species

Half-Elves

Ethnicity

Daulerim

Honorary & Occupational Titles

Emperor

Professions

• Mages
• Sorcerer

Life

33 172 205 years old

Gender

Male

Eyes

Blue

Hair

Blond

Height

1.9 meter

Aligned Organization

Daulerim Empire