Alia Silveroak's Records of Arelith History
This account was written by Alia Silveroak in the year of AR 96 to highlight the happenings of the Crown of Horns Crisis, the fall of Kohlingen and many other historical happenings in Arelith's history.
Disclaimer: It is suspected that the Crown of Horns the writer refers to may be the same as the Crown of Thorns crisis.
This work was transcribed by Catalina Del Valle in the year of 156 for the preservation of history and knowledge.
Undead Invasion, Arcane Tower
For months now the Island of Arelith has been occupied by numerous undead creatures. The population on the island is up in arms combating this growning and persistent threat. Not only do these undead pose a health hazard, but they have taken away most, if not all the wildlife across the land. The under lying cause to this mayhem is to be centered around an ancient artifact, 'The Crown of Horns.'
It is still unknown how it came about, but it was rumored to have come to the isle by a forgein Lord who was on a voyage to destroy the artifact. Unfortunately, the Lord's ship was ambushed by a band of pirates and the Crown was stolen. The location of the artifact is not known at this moment but it is believed to have immense power over the undead.
This information comes from top experts in Divine, Necromancy, and Arcanism at the Arcane Tower, north of Cordor. The search is, very much, a priority for the Tower, and it's destruction a must. But due to the political upheaval within the Tower's Archmagistries, little has been put forth on stopping this invasion. After attempts on the lives of a few Archmages, the Tower has been tense.
A meeting amongst the two political powers, Archmage Abel and Head Archmage Verankht, was scheduled for Month 7 Day 20 at Midnight. Both parties' supporters attended but the side of Abel was much larger.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
Undead Invasion, Arcane Tower, part 2
The meeting was to take a vote to keep the Head Archmage in power, and another was to determine the banishment of another Archmage, Sincra, who is rumored to have conspired an assassination attempt on Archmage Abel's life.
Also, shortly after the attempt, Archmage Sincra was poisoned and fell ill which was rumored to have come from the hands of Archmage Abel himself. All is still unclear of either event. By the early hours of the morning, the meeting was adjourned and the votes counted.
The Head Archmage's position was to shift over to Archmage Sharran of the Archmage Abel Party, and the incumbent harshly banished from the Tower along with manny of his supporters. One of which confronted Archmage Abel asking him, 'How long do you think this is going to last? It w Should prove awfully fun, eh?
The other vote has decided that Archmage Sincra may stay within the Tower and not be banished. Now that the new party is in power, it has been made clear that classes will resume and the search for the Crown will continue.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
Everything Bendir Vol. I
THE FOUNDING OF FORT BENDIR
Fort Bendir was founded by refugees from the nearby monestary after it was successfully seized by Morguun the Black. Families and servants, children and surviving monks were evacuated under the leadership of Drum of the Hin Fist, as well as his student (and adopted son) Mallis Silverfist.
It became the seat of government for the region as well as a home to a great many hin seeking a alternative to life in Cordor. Further residents came after the fall of Kohlingen, where the surviving hin of Minmir looked to the Dale as a safe haven.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
Geography of Arelith, Vol. II
...
Yet, despite this, the people of Arelith have been able to muster a few settlements throughout the years. Cordor, the port city of the south. Kohlingen, an ancient outpost, now holy sanctuary in the north. Wharftown, a small fishing village along the Bitter Coast. And Guldorand, more of a logging settlement than anything else, located halfway up the Skull Crags.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 1, The Lost Realm of Kohlingen
Before Benwick stood Kohlingen as gleaming bastion of all that is right and good. Morally virtuous, Duke Darius Tristram stewarded the island from his Kohlingen Castle stronghold North of Minmir through the Council of Earls beneath him.
The Triadic state is thought to have been founded between 10 and 20 BR, was its peak between 5 BR and 2 AR, and vanished beneath the sea in 2 or 3 AR. It was a state larger than present day Pax Cordoria. Minmir Manor was the seat of one Earldom. A large estate in itself, this hints at the vastness of the entire Kohlingen Duchy.
Under the Duke, Earls Manfried and Marnstead at least followed pursuits less knightly in their Kohlingen Society of the Occult. Following instructions gleaned from an ancient and evil text borne to Minmir by a dark rider, their attempt to create a rift to the negative plane saw the ritual recreate those two as ghoul and demilich.
A dark rider, one assumes, sent by The Twisted Rune. For it was under their mantle that came ghoulish Manfried to assault Kohlingen. And steal its light.
Day 8, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 2, The Twisted Rune
The Twisted Rune are a cabal of mages who?re all about necromancy. Most of them are either undead, part undead, or want to be undead? or part undead.
The cabal has cells spanning Faerun but their biggest powerbase is in Calimsham where they hold sway in the government.
Their grand achievement was the establishment of a network of portals that cover the mainland of Faerun. The thing about these portals is that they don?t transport people; just undead. But that still means that they can move their undead armies from one place to another thousands of miles away, in just a couple of heartbeats.
Their love of necromancy has led them to become fixated with an artifact called The Crown of Horns. Both The Crown and The Rune have strong associations with the island of Arelith.
Day 8, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 3, Twisted Rune Assault Kohlingen
The Benwick Light is well known. Seated in the Benwick Chapel access was regulated both by entry to the compound being granted only to those approved by Triadic Knights, and by passage through ?The Murder Arch? where the soul of any passing would be examined and those deemed tainted struck down. Connecting the prime directly to Celestia, the Benwick Light was once The Holy Light of Kohlingen.
Word reached Kohlingen that The Rune had discovered a means by which to corrupt the celestial light. And so came Manfried and his undead forces. Yet Kohlingen stood not idle. Townsfolk and farmers were evacuated. Knights (Tyrran Justicars) stood ready to defend as mages planned. Planned a ritual. As The Rune marched upon Kohlingen to corrupt the Blessed Light gathered the mages to enact their ritual to protect The Light.
The ritual enacted shattered earth and stone. It severed the island itself. Kohlingen was ripped from the island of Arelith and sunk with huge loss of life. We don?t know if the mages expected that. We don?t think so. Kohlingen was lost but The Light saved and Manfried deprived his prize.
Of the survivors, a man named Galahad led a pilgrimage to a small chapel in the woods. Once there he appealed to local druids for permission to expand. And so came Galahad The Builder, for the name of that small chapel was Benwick. Then came great Imperator bearing The Holy Light safely away from sunken Kohlingen lest The Rune delve beneath the waves.
Day 8, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 4, The Crown of Horns
The Crown of Horns is an artifact that was made during the height of the Netherese empire by a mage called something or other ?The Undying.? When Karsus did his thing in -339 DR and broke magic and all the flying cities fell down, The Crown was lost.
Ages after that, but sometime before The Time of Troubles in 1358, some adventurers found Crown. One of them was called Laeral Silverhand and she was the one who thought to try it on. But just as the Crown had magic, so did she. The two types of magic curled inside her and drove her mad.
Laeral was insane under the Crown until Khelben Arunsun, the famous ?Blackstaff? of Waterdeep, found her. He fixed her and shattered the crown and scattered its shards to the ends of Faerun. And Khelben and Laeral lived happily ever after.
But The Crown was an artifact of ancient evil, and that remained in its shards. During The Time of Troubles one of the other gods killed Myrkul. His last act was to move his life essence into those shards and reform The Crown of Horns as the incarnation of evil necromantic divinity.
Day 8, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 5, The Dead Weight
With the consciousness of a god in it The Crown of Horns moved around pretty much as it wanted.
Some Tethyran Knights got hold of it and in desperation decided to transport it to Evermeet since they thought there was someone there who might be able to do something with it. But the Calishite government had been worming their way into Tethyran state affairs and got wind of it. And we already know that The Twisted Rune have a big say in Calishite politics.
So during the Crown's voyage to the elven court the sloop was attacked by an armada of Nelanther pirate vessels known by the title of their flagship, the Dead Weight of Pirate Admiral Kiran Vargos. He?d been hired by the Twisted Rune to acquire the Crown while it was upon the open seas. The Crown of course was being taken to Evermeet because that?s what it wanted.
Vargos was meant to meet up with The Rune on Arelith to get paid and hand over the Crown. But it had persuaded him to put it on. And as soon as he?d done that he was lost. The strength of the ancient artifact bearing the consciousness of a dead god was too much for the pirate, and it took charge of his actions. The Crown didn?t need The Twisted Rune; it had an entire fleet of pirates to command.
Day 8, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 6, The Crown Crisis
The artifact guided the pirate. By the Crown?s own immense power aided by the sacrificial blood magic employed by Vargos, the depths of The Trackless Sea were dredged and up rose up great Kohlingen. This stronghold once Triadic and gleaming pure white stood now fortress to the centre of blight.
Such is the power and reach of the Crown that on Arelith all that died rose undead before the dawn. Animals? Undead. Goblins? Undead. Giants? Undead. Undead? Stronger undead. Arelith?s settlements were besieged and no trade route safe. Food on the island became scarce and with the seas patrolled by pirates both living and undead Amnian aid could not be assured. Were they to starve yet know not why?
The wise and the smart and the brave came to an understanding of this story told. The boats of Arelith became a fleet, Sea Leopard under Atlas among them. Bourne on this fleet were the heroes of Arelith to Kohlingen. They laid siege, made land, and battled their way to the roof of Castle Kohlingen where they set sight upon The Crown of Horns and its Pirate King.
When Vargos fell to his death and the Crown rolled across the ground it spoke. Spoke into every mind. To some it showed visions of a new world of Order, of loved ones happy in immortality, or of lost love returned. To the Greedy it whispered of Riches, to the Good the end of Bad, to the Fair the end of Injustice, to Tormish the end of Banites, Paladins the end of Undead. The Crown of Horns offered all things to all people. They need only don it, then Together they would do great things.
Day 8, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
K&CoH, 7, Resolution
The Crown spoke into every mind but one. Earlier, the Heroes of Arelith had deemed but one of themselves sufficiently strong of will to resist its influence. Amadeo Pneuma was guided to that roof in meditative state, and guided from it as Bearer of The Crown of Horns. The Heroes of Arelith headed back to their fleet relieved they were still themselves and not just a host slave to The Crown.
They were still in the village when a trio of Twisted Rune Demiliches showed up to make a speech about why they should get the Crown. Then Khelben Arunson himself. Then a delegation of mounted Evermeet Knights. They all wanted to take it away. The Rune?s deal was they?d take it and stay away. Evermeet wanted to guard it, and Blackstaff to destroy it.
Amadeo was aware of his surroundings by now. And the solution was his. He, Blackstaff, and Evermeet would leave Kohlingen for an undisclosed country and there destruction would be attempted. If he failed, or managed only to rend it into pieces, protection of it would fall to Evermeet. The Twisted Rune swore vengeance upon the entirety of Arelith. Arunson and Amadeo left with the Knights and the thread posed to the living by The Crown of Horns was neutralised.
The Rune managed to intimidate the remnants of the Dead Weight's armada into working for them. We're unsure whether the pirates, monster pirates, and undead pirates on Kohlingen are stranded there because they aren't enough boats for them to get back to wherever they came from, or if it's something else. Worth keeping an eye on anyway.
Day 9, Month 5 (Mirtul), 96 AR
Alia Silveroak
The Lost City of Kohligen by Nelehein, Ch. 1
The lost city of Kohligen is one of Arelith's greatest mysteries, and a source of many questions. Unfortunately, there are few answers. What answers there are, shall be found within after many years of research. I shall only try to highlight what is definite. There are many possibilities that I will only allude to.
What is known is that at least eighty years ago, Duke Tristam was a member of Galahad the Builder's court. He was a devout man of Triadic faith; zealous and righteous in his conduct. For whatever reason, Galahad the Builder was allowing ambiguous banners into his court. Duke Tristam was appalled by this act, and since he could not change Galahad's thoughts, he left.
With him, he took his loyal knights, retainers and followers and headed north, to a realm that existed beyond Minmir. He founded the great state of Kohligen. We know it to be a Triadic state, morally virtuous and a place of Light, more so than Light Keep. It was a feudal state, with Duke Tristam likely at its head, with a council of earls beneath him.
The Triadic state was its peak between 5 Before Reckoning (BR) and 2 Arelith Reckoning (AR). It was a state larger than present-day Cordor. Through the finding of Earl Manfried's diary, we know that his corrupted manor in Minmir was on the outskirts of Kohligen. His estate is large, only hinting at the vastness of the entire Kohligen realm.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
The Lost City of Kohligen by Nelehein, Ch. 1
The lost city of Kohligen is one of Arelith's greatest mysteries, and a source of many questions. Unfortunately, there are few answers. What answers there are, shall be found within after many years of research. I shall only try to highlight what is definite. There are many possibilities that I will only allude to.
What is known is that at least eighty years ago, Duke Tristam was a member of Galahad the Builder's court. He was a devout man of Triadic faith; zealous and righteous in his conduct. For whatever reason, Galahad the Builder was allowing ambiguous banners into his court. Duke Tristam was appalled by this act, and since he could not change Galahad's thoughts, he left.
With him, he took his loyal knights, retainers and followers and headed north, to a realm that existed beyond Minmir. He founded the great state of Kohligen. We know it to be a Triadic state, morally virtuous and a place of Light, more so than Light Keep. It was a feudal state, with Duke Tristam likely at its head, with a council of earls beneath him.
The Triadic state was its peak between 5 Before Reckoning (BR) and 2 Arelith Reckoning (AR). It was a state larger than present-day Cordor. Through the finding of Earl Manfried's diary, we know that his corrupted manor in Minmir was on the outskirts of Kohligen. His estate is large, only hinting at the vastness of the entire Kohligen realm.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
The Lost City of Kohligen by Nelehein, Ch. 2
Furthermore, we know there were at least two earls in Duke Tristam's court: Manfried and Montgomery. We predict there to be many more, and with an estate of similar size to Manfried. We can only imagine the sheer grandeur and size of Kohligen.
The Triadic state of Kohligen existed for what we theorize to be a decade. Simultaneously, Galahad the Builder had already built Light Keep, transforming the simple Benwickian castle into the now-called epitome of Light, Light Keep. Kohligen, however, still dwarfed it in size.
Most of the goodly folk left with Duke Tristam in his departure north around, an estimation between 20-10 BR. Unfortunately, we know Kohligen ended around 2-3 AR.
The mystery of the Lost City is a tragic one. All we know for certain is that one terrible night, Kohligen just fell into the sea. The only survivors of the apocalypse were Duke Tristam (we know that Kohligen never lasted more than a generation because of his survival) and a few of his loyal knights and followers. Almost all perished, swallowed up by the sea.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
The Lost City of Kohligen by Nelehein, Ch. 3
Duke Tristam and the last of the Kohligenites made their way back to Galahad the Builder, who accepted them with open arms in the years of 2-3 AR. The home Kohligenites blended back in with the Benwickians, and the great Triadic state was never spoke of again.
We can find no records, no statues, no cemeteries, and no sign of mourning of this great tragedy. With this, we have reason to believe the great Fall of Kohligen was a self-inflicted tragedy, or a partial failure on the Kohligenite's behalf.
What is interesting to note: we have counts saying that elves resided in the great state of Kohligen (further reinforcing the idea of an exalted and diverse state). What is interesting, is that the account claims Myon was founded shortly before the Fall of Kohligen. Could this have played a role?
We also have accounts claiming dwarves lived within Kohligen. We found no evidence of hinfolk or gnomes, however.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
The Lost City of Kohligen by Nelehein, Ch. 4
We refute any claim that the remaining Minmir Manor played a significant role into the Fall of Kohligen. Earl Manfried's diary suggests he lived before the catastrophe occurred, and the fact it exists still, mayhaps is only a coincidence. There is no evidence within his estate to suggest he was to blame for the Fall of Kohligen.
But, perhaps we could be mistaken. There are so many questions. Why did Kohligen fall? Why are there no records or statues commemorating this tragedy? Why does Light Keep not speak of it? Who did Galahad the Builder let into his court? Could they have been to blame? Were the elves protecting Kohligen somehow? How does an entire city simply fall into the city? Questions need answering.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak
Abriged History of Kohlingen by Ubaldo
The following lore has been gathered by different Knights of the Road, from different sources, and is in no way the complete history of Kohlingen. Anyone with more information on the subject is more than welcome to provide it.
Back in the early days of Benwick, rulled by King Galahad, there was some strife. Some put in check the ways of the royalty, fearing that their piety had been faltering.Thus, Duke Darius Tristram, who sought change, left the city and went North, past the Nexus Basin into Minmir.
There he founded a new city devoted to the triad, though its days were not long. Disaster struck, its origins unknown, and the city of Kohlingen sunk into the sea, its survivors returning to Benwick. It is said that it was at this time that the Order was officialy formed.
Day 7, Month 3 (Ches), 90 AR
Alia Silveroak