Vosti Civil War

Claiming the war was as big and influential an event as the Collision is overstating it, but it has certainly shaped all of our lives in some way, even though few of us lived through it.

— Lani Koshidan, former Telziado royal historian

The Vosti Civil War was a civil war in the Vosti Empire, fought between the years of 330 and 336 AC, between two rival claimants to the Vosti throne. It ended with the northern half of the empire seceding to become the Kingdom of Telziad, and the ceding of much of the Empire's island territories to Republic of Skarhu.

Background

The Vosti Empire had been the supreme power on the continent of Abravost for hundreds of years, though events like the Collision had reversed some of its expanse. Its northern reaches were, for most of this time, well treated by the imperial seat in the south. This was particularly true under Empress Ila, who reversed a number of unpopular policies and attempted to seek peace with the other countries of Abravost.
However, Empress Ila, alongside large swaths of her family and court, were lost during the Separation, which left them stranded on the other side of portals that had brought them to another world for a summit.
This threw the Empire into a brief succession crisis as nobles and generals scrambled to figure out who her heir was. Eventually the heir was identified to be Marchioness Askila of Ilnon, who ascended to the throne with the help of her recently-acquired military husband, Colonel Treveon Yedan. Unlike Ila before them, the two were not pacifistic, and sought to punish whoever they deemed responsible for the Separation.
This blame fell on Waal Zaimyatl, a predominantly-elven republic in the east, as they had erected many of the portals throughout the continent. This infuriated the republic, as well as the sympathetic northerners, who had historically turned to Waal Zaimyatl as a reliable trading partner.
In 330 AC, the Duke of Sinofis, Dravulean, brought a petition to the Imperial Palace on behalf of many of the northern nobles and prominent families, demanding the reversal of many of the policies enacted by Askila III and her husband. These demands were not met.

Included Conflicts

• Wenzi War

Start Date

330 AC

Ending Date

336 AC

Conflict Result

North secedes to become Telziad, islands ceded to Skarhu, territory loss to Waal Zaimyatl

Belligerents

Northern Rebels

Kingdom of Telziad
Waal Zaimyatl

Leaders

Duke Dravulean
Duke Garen

Vosti Empire

The Vosti Empire

Leaders

Empress Askila III
Emperor Treveon I

Abravost

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The War

Begin

After their requests were denied, the northern nobles rallied together to force the empire's hand - either they would accept the petition, or the north would seize the throne and enact it themselves. They announced their revolt by seizing the land of an imperial-aligned noble. Immediately following this, a handful of other nobles folded and joined the cause, leading to a large chunk of the north becoming functionally independent almost overnight.
This move had been partially anticipated by Treveon and Askila, who mobilised the Imperial Army to march north. The two forces met in many clashes as the rebels advanced south, battling over major cities and supplies.

Wenzi War

While the Civil War got underway in earnest, the southern Wenz Archipelago attempted to remain neutral, despite being a Vosti territory. To do this, they sought the aid of the Republic of Skarhu, asking the republic to use the withholding of trade as a motivator for the empire. Diplomatic talks between the two countries broke down, especially as news broke that the northerners had reached out in search of an alliance.
This began the short lived Wenzi War, lasting from late 330 to mid 331 AC, with Skarhu swiftly taking control of the strait between the archipelago and the mainland, and blockading the Vosti Navy in the bay around their capital city. Unable to receive supplies from the then-neutral Waal Zaimyatl, the Empire caved in order to save the northern war, and granted Skarhu dominion over all of the Empire's island holdings in exchange for formal neutrality.

Northern Advance and Retreat

While the south of the empire was occupied with the Wenzi War, the northern rebels were able to advance quite far, crossing the River Glan and taking the major city of Robardon. This was especially possible with a newly minted alliance with Waal Zaimyatl, who the rebels promised portions of northern territory in exchange for their aid. When that small war concluded, the push back against their holdings was fierce and often did not last, with many towns changing hands several times during this period.
A turning point came during the Siege of Robardon in 333 AC, where the rebel leader, Duke Dravulean of Sinofis, was killed during the retreat. Demoralised and somewhat directionless, the rebels lost a lot of ground in the ensuing months, being forced back across the River. Even once the duke's son Garen began to emerge as a competent leader despite his youth and rallied a great deal of support, the line only stabilised, rather than tipping back into the rebel's favour.

Southern Collapse

The Vosti Empire was unable to truly capitalise on the rebel's moments of weakness, and a number of attacks from Waal Zaimyatl far closer to their capital caused a number of strategic retreats in the north to ensure the eastern border did not fall. This coincided with the rebels deciding on a change of strategy - rather than trying to seize the imperial throne, they would aim for an independent northern state.
This change in cause resulted in a number of towns in the north to rebel against the empire independently, being more motivated by independence than a simple change in emperor. These pockets of resistance were mostly snuffed out, but weakened large parts of the northern front, allowing the rebels to advance back across the river Glan and towards New Fovenis, a major city in the centre of the Empire. This they were able to conquer with the help of Waal Zaimyalkee reinforcements and a simultaneous strike on the eastern border by a larger force, splitting the empire's attention.

Stalemate

Though the rebel and Waal Zaimyatl alliance was fierce, the Vosti Imperial Army took the defence of the capital very seriously, and was able to prevent the northerners from crossing the Medura River and the easterners from crossing too far past the Krenar Mountains. This they partially managed through supplies from "neutral" Skarhu, which ensured they could build and man vast walls and scout towers along both borders.
Despite many attempts from both sides to push further, late 335 and 336 were spent in deadlock.

Peace

After many months of damaging fights that changed nothing, a truce was sought between the rebels and the imperials. The man most credited for arranging this was Duke Garen of Sinofis, the barely-an-adult son of Dravulean, who brought the two sides together on Lake Fovenis for a peace conference.
This conference lasted many weeks itself, as all parties involved argued over borders, tributes, names, and so on. The eventual hard-fought conclusion was that the rebels would control 'all territory north of the Medura River' and a handful of cities and fields in the south would be ceded to Waal Zaimyatl. The previous arrangements the Empire had made with Skarhu following the Wenzi War remained in place, with the northerners separately brokering an agreement with the western republic to reaffirm their ownership of the northern archipelago.
In exchange for this, Garen privately agreed to a regular 'tithe' to the Empire in the form of a portion of its harvests, as a way of sweetening the deal for the south and giving them less of a reason to advance into their territory.
With the close of the conference, the north became the independent Kingdom of Telziad under Garen, now King Dravulean I. The many countries involved settled down, figuring out their new relationships and forging a lasting uneasy peace.
Until the Second Vosti Civil War.