The Kingdom of Venithyr (Ven-ith-ear)

"Sometimes, people need to be united by a common goal or cause. At the end of the day, most of us are merchants with some degree of political savvy, but to unite us, it takes a true diplomat. Someone with a silver tongue who can juggle the interests of all. This is why being appointed High King is both a difficult task, but also comes with significant power. Anyone able to convince the majority of the Great Families that they should rule them all is surely one who can hold together a nation." Matriarch Saayla D'voris of House Halagast

Overview

The Kingdom of Venithyr, or 'The Kingdom Between Rivers' to the elves. A sprawling country home to a vast array of races, creeds, and peoples. All united under a few common ideals. These people use the rivers for trade, such as the River Cormyr or the River Felmourn. The people settled these lands along the rivers long ago, connecting them to the ocean and providing them a bountiful harvest, both from the crop of the fields, and the abundant fish in the water. This land has always provided for its people, and its people for it. To outsiders, it is mostly known as The River Kingdoms. In fact, it is known as such to many of its people as well. They are usually lead a king, elected by the many great families of the land who hold sway, coming together and choosing an individual to serve as their High King for the rest of their life. Of course, sometimes The Kingdom of Venithyr seems to disappear for a while, being kingless and the Patriarchs and Matriarchs ruling over their individual land until they either have need of a unified land, or when they finally come to someone that most of them can agree is fit to rule. After all, the High King is the lawmaker and final arbiter of all disagreements between the houses.

Structure

The Kingdom of Venithyr follows a very loose yet overtly strict hierarchy. There is nothing set in stone that determines where one might fall save a few distinctive and easily recognizable roles, such as High King. However, there is a lot of expectation for you to know your place and who you should defer to and who you should exert control or force over, and not knowing your place can quickly lead to your downfall.
At the very top of the food chain lies The High King who is responsible for overseeing the entirety of the land. The High King has a vast pool of resources at their disposal through various contracts and agreements with the numerous families that dot the land and control trade, resources, and armies within their own right. While some might prefer to just give the royal treasury a lump sum of gold, others might prefer to lend more military might and keep more of their money to themselves. The High King is the ultimate lawmaker, and arbiter of all disputes between the great families. If they cannot come to a common ground themselves, they will take it to the royal court to be judged.
Below the High King lies the Great Families. This is a group of the most prestigious and powerful of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs that control vast swathes of land and resources. There is no signifiers for what 'families' hold this rank, but it is expected that you know and acknowledge which ones do, failure to do so could cause a quick reprimand or worse. These families ebb and flow as the time goes by, sometimes there are many Great Families, sometimes, only a handful.
Then there lies the Minor Families. These are the families that ultimately pay heed to the will of The Great Families. They have minor swathes of land, weak militaries, or lack resources. They often are in contract with Great Families and provide them with what they have in exchange for what they need. Oftentimes, a Minor Family will simply allow The Great Family it is under contract to make many of the decisions for it so that they can focus on growing. This is partially why The Great Families often hold the biggest sway when electing a High King.
Near the bottom of the food chain lies the individual Guilds. These are organized forces of laborers or artisans that work under the families. These are individuals who are oftentimes commissioned for work or simply operate the day to day operations and pay some form of tithe to those above them to either keep the land and equipment they work with, or simply for protection and a more standardized form of living, so that they don't live in squalor. It is generally considered good practice to join a guild as individual artisans, merchants, or tradesmen are often looked upon with disdain as they are seen as more out for themselves than attempting to better the lives of those around them.

History

Reign of High King Egalis Casconne

King Egalis Casconne was crowned on Beylari 24, A7 1683. He was a man with a silver tongue and a steely determination, loved by the people throughout the land for his contributions. Upon being coronated and then blessed by the High Priest of Jaclyn, Queen of the Heavens. High Priest Sydonnis He'la was the one who sanctified the coronation, blessing the new High King and his rule with the might of the gods. People cheered and many houses sent representatives, if not attended themselves, having a large festival in Port Tah'mal in his honor.
Some of the strongest and greatest houses of the time supported his rule and claims to power, such as the mercantile trade family House Whiteshore, the militaristic defenders of Dawnbreak, House Xarandria. Even the wealthy dwarven smiths of Clan Hammerfist. There are many individuals who saw Egalis as a patron of all that The River Kingdoms embodies.
The land prospered under his rule, new trade deals were signed, mines opened within The Border Mountains, among numerous other achievements that lent to the growth of the land. Most notably, he has signed an agreement with Archmage Na'tal Lunamaris of the Academy of Three Moons, a famous high elven magic academy located along the eastern coast of The River Kingdoms.
Of course, his reign did not end as peacefully as many had hoped, with every monarch who brings prosperity to a region, whose name becomes the stuff of legend, idolized for the ages to come for their accomplishments, many become jealous of such power. Those who supported them at the beginning may feel they overstepped their bounds or perhaps feel they are overshadowing them, and not allowing for the jealous individual to shine. Or perhaps, it is simply for personal greed, perhaps to simply throw a nation of peace into turmoil. What is known about the murder of High King Egalis Casconne is that a member of the The Whitewater Legion, the elite unit of bodyguards that serve only the High King, and are branded as the most loyal military organization in the region. This, of course, caused a good deal of paranoia, though the traitor was killed soon afterwards. The High King's death is marked on Lunar Tenants 1, A7 1713.

War of the Five Houses

After the unfortunate death of their High King, the people of the Kingdom of Venithyr were in turmoil, many across the lands lamenting and grieving the loss of Egalis Casconne, and it also caused many of the Great Families to become very paranoid. After all, if a member of the elite bodyguard of the High King cannot be trusted, and assassinated the one they were swore to protect, then who may be next? This, of course, tarnished the reputation of The Whitewater Legion, causing them to do a thorough investigation into their own ranks. This investigation lead to the hanging of three oathsworn and the banishment of a dozen more from the organization.
Unfortunately, this did drive many Great Families towards isolation, watching each other, as no one really knows the culprits behind the death of their beloved High King. Some suspect a religious cult, while others might suspect another family did it. This of course caused a rift between the families, and with Egalis Casconne having produced no heir during his tenure as monarch, there was no obvious successor either. This drove the families even further apart, with a man by the name of Voroux Feldis claiming to be Egalis Casconne's heir and bastard son, rallying the people of Port Tah'mal to his cause.
However, this did not sit well with many of the other Great Families. While many in the central region and the port capital itself were willing to show some level of favor towards this supposed heir of their late High King, many outside of that area looked upon them with suspicion. Or, perhaps, they are just greedy or looking out for their own agenda, unable to rally together under this individual who they had only even known the name of recently.
One of the biggest opponents, though only marginally, to Egalis Casconne II is House Whiteshore lead by Patriarch Quintex Whiteshore to the east. Many of the trade families rallied with him in his own bid for kingship, despite their lack of military, they do have quite the sizable navy. Unfortunately, a navy does little when most of the territory is on land. None-the-less, they banded together and formed the Eastern Trade Company, hoping to use their control of the sea and shipping lanes as well as trade to push for the coronation of Quintex.
To the north, House de Valen also was rallying support, and upon Egalis Casconne II's declaration of being the bastard son of the late Egalis Casconne, they rallied the houses of the north together, quickly gaining the support of House Xarandria, one of the most important and influential in the region. They are pushing to gain support for their own Matriarch, Griselda de Valen, who is said to have sat with The Raven Court and foretold a future where she was High King and peace and prosperity was brought to the land.
Perhaps in response to Egalis Casconne II's attempted 'theft' of the late High King's legacy, and attempting to use it as a rallying point to get himself crowned High King, or perhaps simply as part of a larger religious movement, to the west, from their capital of Achio, where Grand Cathedral of Her Holy Radiance lies, dedicated to Jaclyn, Queen of the Heavens a new organization arises. This is a group of religious figures, and otherwise zealous houses that settled into the region, paying heed to High Priestess Xanthia, and answering her summons to end this petty squabble. She refused to take upon the title of Matriarch as she has no interest in the crown herself, instead she seems to desire to put the 'rightful' High King on the throne.
Meanwhile, to the south the Dwarves who migrated to the region so long ago seem to be stirring in their guildhalls and settlements. A mysterious, yet well-known name beginning to be heard... Lord Volnus. A name not well-known save for those in the south, yet for those who do know him, he is a military strongman who has been pushing for the Dwarves to finally return home to The Sundered Peaks. While there are some southern families who do not agree with his goal, being surrounded by families and clans who support him, they find they have little choice than to join his cause lest their lands and resources be swept out from under them. Given Lord Volnus' position, support, and power, he boasts the strongest land army between all the factions, but seems to have a total lack of interest in the crown.
Of course, while tensions were rising, there was still a level of peace in the land. Farmers between these semi-autonomous nation-states could still travel and sell goods to their neighbors or any town in the land so long as they did not stir up trouble or make it too well-known who they supported for the crown or in other endeavors. This all changed when there was a meeting of the families called in Port Tah'mal, at an old council house near the The Whitewater Palace, and many, many families attended. Even The Kingseekers sent a small group of representative to hopefully find a peaceful solution to the political situation. Unfortunately, in the middle of the meeting several masked individuals broke into the overhead windows, landed in the center of the room and with daggers and hand crossbows, filling the room with smoke and cutting down many of the representatives or fatally wounding others. Some, mysteriously, were spared their wrath, most notably the representatives from House Whiteshore and the representative of Patriarch Egalis Casconne II, leaving many to be highly suspicious of them, believing them to be the ones behind the plot, or perhaps just the supposed 'false king' himself.
With representatives from houses and organizations all over murdered in the council house many gazes drew to Venithyr, the central region claimed by Egalis Casconne II. Those especially from House de Valen from the north, decided that this 'false king' was indeed responsible for the death of their representatives and so Matriarch Griselda de Valen started skirmishing the borders, breaking out into all out war and declaring her own faction, Zenithyr, in an all-out conflict with Egalis Casconne II's own faction of Venithyr. Just as well, seeing it as a even more surefire sign of blasphemy from Egalis, High Priestess Xanthia and her Kingseekers also march to war against them.
House Whiteshore did not quite see it in the same light, both believing that Patriarch Egalis Casconne II is not the one who did it, but also believing that even if he was, it must be a sign that their representatives were spared. While they are watching Venithyr closely, The Eastern Trade Company has allowed trade to continue passing upriver to the capital and in turn allowed the capital to trade with the ports along the eastern sea. Patriarch Quintex Whiteshore seems to believe that a nefarious cult such as The Twisted Path or perhaps even The Vaemyri.

Disbandment

While The Kingdom of Venithyr is still technically alive and well, due to the fractured nature of The River Kingdoms presently, many largely considered the kingdom disbanded until peace and unity is once again returned to the land. That is not to say that the kingdom will not return soon, but presently it is in a fractured and weakened state.

Territories

The Kingdom of Venithyr controls a vast array of territory that covers many of the major rivers that flow inland from the sea. There are a lot of notable and important regions and territory that spans the land of the High King. Some, however, only in name.
First among the territories within The River Kingdoms is the Ardenweald. A vast expanse of Golden Oak forests, it is a sacred ground for the wood elves who dwell within. However, they have made a pact with House Erannus, and House Mournstar that allow them to harvest so many Golden Oaks in a year, in exchange for their people being left alone and in peace.
Aside from the Ardenweald there is also The Bloodpines, a haunted woods to the north that is said to have been corrupted by some twisted ritual of old. Many who journey close to the misty woods tell tales of trees seeming to bend and reach towards them, of shadowy figures baring weapons following them, among other haunting imagery. The Bloodpines in general are considered to be very haunted and many commonfolk tend to stray away from it.
To the northern edge of the kingdom lies The Border Mountains, a craggy mountain range that seems to span coast to coast, being the natural barrier between The River Kingdoms and the Valnir beyond. There is one known path through The Border Mountains, guarded by the citadel of Dawnbreak, keeping the Orc and Goblin tribes contained and prevent them from pushing south.
Running throughout The River Kingdoms are numerous rivers, some very important for trade or transportation, others are simply there for fish and to provide fertile land for growing crops. The most important rivers are the River Cormyr which connects to Port Tah'mal, the capital of the Kingdom of Venithyr. However, further south you have the River Felmourn which is another major trade river, this one instead connecting to the city of Feirth, another major trade hub in the southern part of the kingdom.
To the west, and while presently the High King does lay claim to this land, it is technically neutral territory, lies The Sundered Peaks. Ancient dwarven land that once was the Azkor Grongi. While the ancient dwarven kingdom is no more, and the Kingdom of Venithyr lays claim to the peaks, there are still some dwarven holds in the mountains that have no fealty to the High King and live their own independent lives, the mountains often proving too harsh and dangerous for the people of The River Kingdoms to settle. Even then, there is a lot of mysticism and push-back from the dwarven guilds on any mere idea of attempting to settle their old homeland.

Military

While The High King has the power and ability to pull on the military forces of all the families in The River Kingdoms, those are not the only forces available to him. Beyond the levies, men-at-arms, and other military power that he can pull on, there are some organizations that will always heed the call of the High King. There are some, however, that will only listen and pay heed to the order of the High King, and no one else.
The guardians of The Whitewater Palace and protectors of the High King themselves, The Whitewater Legion is an organized group of soldiers that protect the Palace and the High King himself. A unit of them always accompany the High King no matter where he ventures in the kingdom or out. The leader of this elite unit typically acts as the personal bodyguard to The High King and is an expert in melee combat. The unit itself favoring spears and swords, though being plenty capable with bows as well.
Most raised levies are simply the average people who were called upon to bear arms in the name of their ruler or lord, or sometimes even the High King themself. These are typically armed with leathers, maybe shields, and oftentimes spears or basic swords. Hardly the best gear to equip a military with, but with their lack of training they would not get the best weapons and armor either.
Above them, the men-at-arms are the retinue and standing armies of any merchant family or lord within the lands. These soldiers fight for a living and oftentimes double as guards, if a bit more crude. These men are typically armed with metal armors, usually chain mail and higher quality weapons, but being more skilled combatants to boot.
Meanwhile, knights or cavaliers are come often from families who rule some amount of land, training particularly skilled fighters and horsemen in court etiquette and different martial styles. Oftentimes, knights will ride into battle upon large warhorses, armed with plate and mail armor. Depending on their role on the battlefield they might be armed with lances, spears, or swords. While it is rare, some small units of cavaliers are known to be exceptionally good at horse archery as well, most notably those from House Brionne.

Laws

The laws of the land are determined and laid out by The High King, while the families can impose their own laws upon their land, none can supersede or overrule a law set forth by a High King. However, a High King can remove some of the laws set in place by former High Kings, save for some that have been written into law and then 'sanctified' by the High Kings of old.
The laws themselves are usually common to the office of any magistrate within the kingdom, as they are often the ones who many go to, to understand and review the laws if necessary. They also can function as a sort of settler of disputes by looking at the legal documents and examining them to see who might be correct in any dispute of land, property, or perhaps even a breach of contract.
However, when it comes down to it, the guards are the ones who enforce the laws. Guard captains, often with the assistance of a magistrate, are the ones who often do the sentencing and execution of punishment for any law written. Individuals of higher wealth or status, however, can sometimes instead take it to the court of a Great Family or even to the High King themselves. These are, of course, rarer situations, but still possible.
While the laws themselves are covered in a document called The Ordination of The Rivers, however, most can get by with a basic understand of common laws and a good deal of common sense and respect.
The most basic and common laws and punishments are:

1. Murder - 25 years prison
2. Theft - Fine equal to twice the item value, 5 years prison.
3. Vandalism - Fine equal to twice the value, three years prison
4. Trespassing - 200 gold fine, two years prison.
5. Obstructing Justice - 4 years prison
6. Forgery - Depends on what is being forged
7. Assault - 10 years prison
8. Bribery - 5 years prison
9. Defecting - Public Execution
10. Inciting Rebellion - Public Flogging, branding

DISBANDED/DISSOLVED

The Rivers Provide

No Idea - Teylari 12, A7 1716

Type

Geopolitical, Country

Alternative Names

The River Kingdoms

Successor Organizations

• Eastern Trade Company
• The Kingseekers
• The Mithril Hills
• Venithyr
• Zenithyr

Demonym

Venithyrian

Government System

Monarchy, Elective

Power Structure

Feudal state

Economic System

Mixed economy

Gazetteer

• The Border Mountains
• River Cormyr
• River Felmourn

Currency

• Gold Styx
• Silver Styx
• Copper Styx

Official State Religion

The River Kingdom's Pantheon

Subsidiary Organizations

• Clan Bronzehammer
• House Amantori
• House Andoros
• House Athraveil
• House Duchatii
• House Erannus
• House Faer'ah
• House Garfax
• House Inari
• House Mournstar
• House Nocturnus
• House Xarandria

Location

The River Kingdoms

Controlled Territories

• The River Kingdoms

Neighboring Nations

• Azkor Grongi