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House Staedmon found its origins in Rustam the Great, who split from his brother Igor Svellinski and took the majority of the family's territory by force.

He saw opportunity that was being neglected in the lowlands, a predominantly sheep-farming area and invested in industry. Iron mines opened, lumber was felled in large quantities. Within a short amount of time Stalderheim went from being a poor and laughed at region of Iltensk, to its own kingdom with a fast rising economy.

Within three decades, Stalderheim was thriving. Rustam had ambitions, and turned his eyes back to Iltensk. Rallying his military, he began his devastating campaign. The southern city of Breganova was sacked, and the Iltensk diplomats surrendered with little struggle beyond that. Their military had could never withstand the Stalders, and they valued their cities and knew that they could never win.

They turned next to Gwylleth. Gwylleth fought hard and bravely, but they were being attacked from land which was not where their strengths lay. They fell in a period of six months.

Stalderheim then rallied their troups to Ba'althos. The campaign of Ba'althos resulted in many dead and a long siege of a terrain they understood little of. But when the army reached Tanakh, the city and castle itself only took a number of days to conquer. Though fierce, the people of Tanakh did not have the military might to match. Next, Rustam and his sons turned to Marsan. The fight for Marsan was short, but it cost the life of Rustam's eldest son and heir Branko Staedmon, who was poisoned in his sleep by Marsan assassins. Although they had no soldiers, the Marsan people had caught wind of the bloody campaign of Rustam, and had prepared skilled archers and assassins at the borders and drove Stalder soldiers into their dark swamps. Many of the Stalder camps became ridden with paranoia. But on the fifth week of siege, the Phyres came forward to announce a truce, saying they would bow down Staedmon to avoid the loss of more life. They were a young kingdom and did not see the point in war so soon into their history. Chineye Marsan knew that after the death of his son, King Rustam would keep a wide berth of Marsan, even if he did conquer it.

Next, was the snow covered kingdom of Valendor which lay to the northwest edge of the realm. Many of Rustam's generals considered it an unworthy territory. A white wasteland, the Stalder weren't even sure the kingdom had rulers beyond simple village folk who they pillaged with ease when the found them few and far between.

The conquest of Valendor took the longest, and many soldiers died from exposure to the elements. When the Stalder finally came upon Valendor forces, they were met with some of the most fearsome warriors they'd seen. But it was the conditions that took the lives of most, because although the Valendor had a fierce army, their numbers were swamped by Stalderheim's, who had begun conscription from their conquered kingdoms. Eventually, after nigh on a year, Valendor fell.

The conquest of Dür was not so successful. For three years the Stalder attempted to gain ground, to conquer its borders, but they were unsuccessful. It was a miserable battle, and after the first year of failure the conquest fizzled to mediocrity. It was clear Dür posed no threat for invasion themselves, so it was only glory that kept the greedy Rustam going. Three weeks before his death, an old and war torn man, Rustam called off the attacks, declaring the Wildlands unconquerable and undesirable. Relatives of Rustam have since tried to honour his name by attempting to complete the conquest or Dür, but none have had any traction. Dür was left unmoulded by tyrants' hands. And so the Staedmons, who had taken the emblem of the barred ram as the symbol of the Stalder people, became rulers of the united realm.

Centuries past since the conquest, and the kingdoms long forgot the days of the old world. The villainy of the Staedmons subsided, and the houses of the realm fought petty wars forged sinister histories for themselves. Trade routes opened, and the Staedmons, who pronounced themselves patriarchs of the realm, promoted the favourable and proud houses (often the former rulers of their kingdom to 'High Houses', who would rule over each Kingdom as guardian under Staedmon's watch.

Recent events under Patriarch Karsan

Patriarch Karsan rose to power when his father died at sea unexpectedly. He was just sixteen, and had a dangerous hunger for power. He began taxing heavily, and set in firm punishments for deviance from laws. Not only did they execute any who were found to be engaging in homosexual behaviour, but outlawed magic. Magic was a rare gift that had old roots across the realm, and from Karsan's perspective represented the only real threat to his regency. His advisors warned him that magic could do no good for the realm, and he decreed that for the peoples' safety and stability of daily life, magic was to be outlawed. Not only did he ban the practise of it in all walks off life, but started a programme of vicious witch hunts. Those caught practising, be it in devious schemes of dark magic, to simply creating light for the inn at night, were slaughtered and tortured in terrifying ways. The first fifteen years of his rule were bloody, and by his thirties the realm had settled into one of quiet fear.

Throughout history, the primary vassals of the Staedmons had been House Stormfjell, the High House of Valendor. They forged a strong alliance with the Staedmons, and often served at the right hand of the Patriarch as staunch supporters. They were powerful and severe, an allegiance wrought in iron. Their seat, Nighthold, also has special relevance to religion, as the fabled place where the first gods touched the earth. Like the kingdom itself, the Stormfjells were known to have a strong magical bloodline passed through the ages.

To announce his pride for their relationship and the strength of the bond between Stalderheim and Valendor, Karsan toasted his good friend Lord Gunvald Stormfjell and his wife, and visited the Stormfjells for what he triumphantly proclaimed would be 'the greatest feast you Valendor have ever seen.'

Whilst the Stormfjells dined, their soldiers off duty, Karsan waved his hand and the massacre began. Every living body in the castle and it's lands who were not directly employed by Karsan himself, were ruthlessly slaughtered by the Staedmons' soldiers. Though the castle guards fought bravely, they stood no chance against the ready masses of the Staedmon forces. Karsan left in the morning with a proud grimace, boasting he had 'killed the thorn in his side with a single axe stroke.' War was politics, and politics was war.

Valendor was devastated by this loss. Most of the other houses attended the feast too, leaving only a handful of meagre lords and ladies too afraid and poor to take up the Stormfjells' mantle, which they were banned from doing by the Patriarch, who wanted to disempower any threat from them. They say the Stormfjell estate has been haunted ever since. Left desolate and empty, the castle stands a crumbling ruin. The lower halls flooded and became a darkened river way. All the bodies remain there, frozen in time with no funeral allowed to provide solace for the dead. If you venture inside you'll still find blood on the walls, and bones as food for wolves that pass by.

Karsan Staedmon may be a vicious brute, but he is devilishly clever. Now in his late 40s, and having ruled for over 30 years, he is still a handsome and charming man. He has much of the realm wrapped around his finger. Most were of course shocked at the massacre of Nighthold, but agreed it was a necessity for the stability of life, as the haughty Stormfjells were refusing to renounce their magical abilities.

Karsan has had four wives. They first is Lady Marja, who was executed for treason and conspiracy against the Patriarch. His second, Lady Mindred, died giving birth to his only surviving son Paetris. His third, Lady Sigrid died from an undiagnosed sickness after she failed repeatedly to produce an heir, and his fourth Lady Niara of Marsan was executed on homosexual charges, although on scant evidence. They say that Karsan, ever bored of his women, is searching for another and wants to use the Council of Hofescar to seek one out.

His son and heir Paetris has a lot of weight on his back, and feels the pressure of his inheritance. He is constantly fighting to earn his father's pride, but has always felt out of place in Trescar's keep.

Other recent pasts:

A number of years ago the Gwyllethi faced a terrible tsunami that washed their southern shores, devastating dozens of villages and towns. The Staedmons provided relief and the realm stood in solidarity. The trauma of this event still haunts Gwyllethi memory.

Ba'althos has also faced a number of famines over the years that have tested their resilience, making them renowned for being some of the most resourceful peoples.

Marsan have recently quelled a rebellion against the allegedly corrupt Phyre rule which has left a scar in their landscape. They have also opened up illegal trade routes into the beyond, which operate covertly via smugglers. They have spies everywhere, rumours say, and are always one step ahead of those in charge.

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NORTHBOUND
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