Koreth – The Golden Fist Senator
If younger readers wondered in recent years why so many citizens of Peltarch viewed the crusading forces of the Silver Host with such grave suspicions, you shall find your answer in this entry. When he first arrived in Narfell, Koreth was well known as “The Crusader”, and many towns that supposedly housed “great evils” had burned under his steely gaze, purportedly in the name of Tyr.
Ahead of his arrival in Peltarch, his servants lavished gifts upon the populace, parades were held where paid bards recounted his many glorious deeds, expensive gifts arrived for Senators and Magistrates alike and the Jewel awaited his coming with bated breath.
When he arrived in Peltarch clad head to toe in his immaculate golden armour, he and his supporters quickly brought to justice those responsible for a series of murders, and he requested the Senate of Peltarch grant him special powers to continue to impose Order on the rougher areas of the Jewel. This first request, proposed by Senator Bravickus (whose daughter Koreth had been dutifully wooing), the Senate declined with a vote of 5-2 against.
It should be noted Senator Sten, a priest of Tyr, had opposed Koreth from the beginning despite their apparent shared faiths. His first effort at acquiring power thwarted, Koreth instead bided his time, until it came that Captain Troth, the original commander and creator of the Black Dragon Knights was finally declared missing in action by General Telan, and the Senate considered his replacement. Many found it suspicious that Troth had vanished just before Koreth arrived.
In a tight vote of 5-4 in favour, Koreth was granted command of the Black Dragon Knights. Captain Koreth immediately set to filling the ranks with his own personal guard, elite soldiers who had crusaded with him for twenty long years. In addition, he also instituted a system whereby the most skilled and talented members of all other Defender branches could be recruited into the Black Dragon Knights. He also took great pains to secure the loyalties of some of Narfell’s more infamously capable combatants, such as the warriors Uthger and Maya, both of whom were quickly seen in the colours of the Black Dragons. Soon, the small taskforce Troth had once commanded had grown into a highly effective elite wing of the Defenders, with most loyal only to their Captain. Koreth had a private army at his back.
Koreth’s time as Captain was rife with controversies, especially after the appearance of the blackguard responsible for the deaths of Senators Makere and Je’laan. Many citizens and even luminaries of the Jewel were dragged off in the night by Black Dragon Knights under suspicion of being in league with the forces of the Archdevil. Most accusations were baseless, such as those against celebrated songstress and Cerulean Knight, Demi Arkania Rei Can’dii. On multiple occasions, Captain Koreth pressed for the declaration of Martial Law, but was turned down by a wary Senate, divided by those who supported and those who opposed his excesses.
A victory for those who opposed Koreth came when an investigation exposed the severe excesses such as the example listed above, and the Black Dragon Knights were formally disbanded. The victory was short lived however, as Koreth was elected to the Senate of Peltarch soon afterwards, and it later emerged that Koreth had disbanded the Black Dragon Knights on paper only.
Things came to a head at a meeting of the Senate called due to the disappearance of General Devin Telan. The lack of leadership in the armed forces had created severe tensions within the Jewel, and the Senate met with soldiers occupying various parts of the city in a tense stand-off between the various Captains. During this meeting, Koreth entered the chambers flanked by armed Black Dragon Knights, and uttered the famous words that began the Peltarch Civil War, also called Koreth’s War: “This government is suspended.”
Silence, and then the chamber exploded into chaos. Black Dragon Knights began cutting down those who resisted arrest, some Senators lucky enough to have Advisors with arcane skills winked out of sight and fled for their lives. Explosions rocked the city, as the stand-off devolved into open warfare. Months later, Koreth’s brief reign had been toppled, and he had fled to Highhold with the other traitor Captains. Years later, it was claimed his head was returned to Peltarch, but this was never verified. His ultimate fate remains a mystery.
If interested in Koreth's War, I strongly encourage you to read the works of Zephlin Re’cual or Sir Roland Brynmor, both of whom have recounted the events in sombre, stirring detail in their written works.
Sir Roland Brynmor – The Woodbine Senator
A great warrior, a skilled detective, a pious knight, and a lifelong friend to the less fortunate, these are but a few things one might say about Sir Roland Brynmor, even before his election to the Senate of Peltarch.
The Brynmor family has a long history of service; service to Peltarch, service to Helm, service even to the Fisher King himself. Sir Roland Brynmor more than upheld that lofty legacy in his tenure serving the Jewel and her people. Together with Kaster Lavindo, one of Roland’s most memorable accomplishments was achieving victory over the renegade forces led by the traitor, Koreth.
Despite having been driven out of the city, which the rebels then secured and fortified, Sir Roland led efforts to rally the remaining loyalist forces at the southern watchtower, assembling then a War Council composed of loyalist defenders, powerful civilian groups such as Spellweaver Keep, and military allies such as the Legion and Norwick. Turning a war council of such varied and discordant members into the successful, multi-pronged counter-attack that followed was a feat of leadership and military legerdemain rarely seen. This author feels it is safe to say that without the co-ordination, courage and resolve displayed by Sir Roland, the myriad groups involved in retaking the Jewel would never had had the cohesion to succeed in driving the traitors from the land.
Sir Roland also had a keen eye on the future. Alongside Senator Mildsilver, he was a critical force for ensuring actual useful legislation was passed in the period after the Civil War, when only five Senators held office, called the Long Senate. Sir Roland’s close collaboration with Wesley Hardin also led to his enthusiastic backing of several Senate candidates whose causes he supported, donating generously to their campaigns in both gold and public endorsements. Ultimately however, partisan strife grew greater, as did the war footing of the Eastlanders, and Sir Roland joined Senator Mildsilver in passing a declaration of war against the old foe.
As before, Roland was a key actor in the war, particularly in gaining support from the old allies he knew were reliable from the Civil War, bringing them together for the common good of all Narfell once more.
While this war was winding down, elections were finally held, and once more Sir Roland’s foresight in backing several key progressive, Wavebreaker candidates, paved the way for the ultimate breakdown of the stranglehold Vaster Ashald had by then established over the Jewel of the Icelace.
Evendur Mildsilver – The Senator’s Senator
A faithful of Azuth with a wholehearted commitment to best practices in all walks of life, Evendur Mildsilver had previously served as Clerk of the Senate and Acting Magistrate prior to his election to the ranks of the Senate of Peltarch.
His dry, insightful and typically methodical approach to problem solving made him a valued addition to the ranks of the Senate, and indeed his dispassionate impartiality ensured the Senate was able to continue to at least do some business as the era of the Long Senate dawned after the Civil War and partisan divisions grew more and more problematic.
Those who remember Senator Mildsilver often recall a bookish man, of an unsmiling, austere disposition robed in a grey that seemingly mirrored his outlook on life. As one who knew him well, this author recalls differently; a man possessed of a deep, oft-hidden passion for public service, for his faith and for his people.
Senator Mildsilver’s vote was critical in the Senate decision to declare war upon the Eastlander Bandits, finally giving General Lavindo the orders to take the fight to the enemy’s homelands until their fighting forces were exterminated. Evendur’s outward appearance did not suggest to the casual observer the steely resolve the Senator maintained against the enemies of Peltarch, and where it came to matters of security his voting pattern is as resolute as that of Elnerick Dunderstone from decades before.
As a former Magistrate, the Senator was also a key advocate of the judicial reforms that led us to our current three-magistrate system that we have to this day, and his academic writings are still housed in any libraries concerning the arcane. He served throughout a long illness, until he was ultimately forced to step down to preserve his health, but by then he had a long and dutiful record of service to his name, which stands to this day.
Tidus Clodpin – The False Senator
After the Long Senate has run its course, Vaster Ashald gathered a number of pieces into play and then ordered his catspaw Senators, Torin Bravickus and Rath Ashald, to press their fellow Senators hard to call new elections. His intention was to quickly see a number of his preferred candidates elected, who he had primed and ready to leap into a quick three-month campaign he knew his opponents were woefully underprepared for. Tidus Clodpin was one such specially crafted, prepared candidate.
A fortunate side effect of the declaration of the Eastlander War by the Long Senate, is that it served to delay the election as political efforts moved to support the war efforts of General Lavindo. The war also offered several non-Seafarer candidates opportunity to gain glory which would serve them well at the ballot box, but more on that later, for Tidus Clodpin most assuredly failed to distinguish himself in the war effort.
Claimed by his backers to be a legitimate descendent of the Fisher King, also named Tidus, Clodpin was raised up as a ham-fisted effort to link Vaster and the Seafarers Guild with Peltarch’s romantic, mythical past. Needless to say, the ruse of Clodpin’s actual links to the King of legend were dispelled to any who had the misfortune of hearing him open his entitled, snobbish, self-deluded mouth. This author has had the pleasure of working with many Senators, as town crier, Advisor and Senator, so it should be taken as quite a slight when I say Tidus Clodpin was by far the stupidest man ever to sit at the Senate table.
Stupidity was far from the worst of his crimes however. You may ask, how could a man so obviuosly lying about his heritage, so obviously devoid of any discernable talent or qualities, have been elected to the Senate of Peltarch? Well, these questions were asked most furtively by the populace at large after his election, for indeed almost nobody DID vote for the man.
In an investigation spearheaded by Senator Roland Brynmor and Herald Thril, a massive electoral fraud was discovered in which the ballots cast for Mister Clodpin were found to have been falsified and fraudulent. The bumbling buffoon was stripped of Senatorial office by the Magistrates, and his election deemed null and void. Instead, the seat was awarded to the candidate who had received the next largest amount of legitimate votes, Eowiel Senella. Though Clodpin fled Peltarch into exile, the conspirators in his fraud survived a fair while longer, and indeed one of them still serves in high office to this day.
Sir Mariston Thel – The Righteous Senator
It was during the Civil War that many citizens of Peltarch first met Sir Mariston Thel. Note I do not say “first heard of”, I literally mean that they personally met him, for it was he alongside High Priestess Daisy Millern, who organised the refugee camp immediately after the initial chaos broke out.
The young paladin’s quick actions and rigid dedication and organisation despite the madness enveloping the Jewel surely saved lives beyond counting that day, and his valour would not be forgotten in times to come.
As the Eastlander War broke out, Sir Mariston once more proved his valour and courage on the battlefield, fighting alongside his fellows from the Order of the Divine Shield to expunge the Eastlander threat from the Nars Pass forever. He left no doubts as to his credentials as a knight empowered with the strength and might of Torm the True, as he braved a battle with the dread ancient dragon, Rass, in single combat! He fought the scurrilous enemy of Narfell for long enough that the Defender’s ballistae battalions could finally fill the skies with bolts, causing the old red to flee the field. A feat unlikely to be repeated even in this author’s lifetime.
Returning from war, Sir Mariston was well rewarded by a grateful populace, in whose hearts he had himself well endeared, and won election to the Senate backed by the Wavebreaker Guild. As a Senator, he worked tirelessly for the poor, the infirm, the elderly and the sick. Together with the other successful Wavebreaker candidates, and Sir Roland Byrnmor, the vice-grip on the reigns of power Vaster Ashald and his cronies had long held was finally broken. Crimes long unpunished were punished, wrongs long unrighted were righted.
During Sir Mariston’s tenure on the Senate, some of his many accomplishments included personally financing and overseeing the construction of the Western Watchtower, the expansion of housing for Peltarch’s growing population (putting an end to the odious conditions in the Tent City that emerged after the population surged) and joining with Senators Brynmor and Senella in confirming the banning of worshippers of the Black Hand from Peltarch.
By the time Sir Mariston had departed from the Senate table, Vaster Ashald was long since exiled, the City was secure as never before, and the population was thriving instead of starving. In all this, his unending effort was a driving force.
Aaron Ashald – The Silverware Senator
A noble born scion of the Ashald family, like his brethren, Lord Aaron was born with a silver spoon firmly in his mouth. Prior to his election to the Senate of Peltarch, Aaron found employment with the City Guard, an unsurprising career choice given the close ties between then General Vick Dunderstone and the Seafarers Guild.
Aaron acquitted himself admirably during the Eastlander War, and flush with the valour of victories well won, returned to campaign vigourously in the elections, backed by the Seafarers Guild. Throughout the campaign, the would-be Senator contended that his uncle, Vaster Ashald, and the guild he helmed had only brought prosperity and wealth to the people of Peltarch.
Despite the author’s best efforts to the contrary during the same campaign, enough people were convinced and Lord Aaron Ashald joined the Senate table. His time on the Senate came during some of the most stonewall partisanship the Senate had seen, with three distinct Senators firmly supporting the Seafarers and Wavebreakers Guilds, and many votes occurred solely along these lines.
Despite this, Aaron certainly did not suffer from being as trenchant and uncompromising as say, Senator Bravickus, and did manage to see reason in his voting for a number of progressive items of legislation during his tenure. He was also known for having a wider range of Advisors than the usual sycophants his colleagues were known for, giving valuable political experience to the next generation. He resigned from the Senate after a respectable career, avoiding the disgraces or assassinations his fellow Seafarers careers ended in.
Eowiel Senella – The Five Star Senator
Third in the line of bards turned Senator, following the spirit of Myrie Makere, the moon elf Senella was also originally an adventurer. However, her entry into public service in the Jewel began early after attaining her citizenship, with her appointment as Town Crier.
Soon after, the elven crier took a shine to Senator Shana Je’laan, and secured employment as her Advisor. She would later credit Je’laan with inspiring her own decision to run for the Senate of Peltarch. Senella was much aggrieved when Senators Je’laan and Makere were assassinated on the same day, and joined the city in mourning. Not long afterwards, she regained her position as Advisor, this time for Senator Rath Ashald.
Throughout this period, the elf also joined the ranks of the Knights of the Cerulean Stars under then Commander Anakore, which saw her serving on the frontlines of both the Civil War, the Eastlander War and the N’Jast War. She later came out of combat-retirement to play a minor role in the Nexus War as well. At the time of her election she was a Five Star Cerulean, and with Anakore’s departure, the Acting Captain of the Knights.
During the era of the Long Senate, between the Civil and Eastlander Wars, Senella was primarily concerned with her duties as a leader among the Cerulean Knights, and consequently played a larger role in the Eastlander War than she had had a chance to in the previous one. A memorable contribution was her duel with an Eastlander Archmage, successfully counterspelling his lethal magics deep within the deadly catacombs guarding the passage to the Eastlander home town.
The tail end of the Eastlander War coincided with the Senate elections, and she ran an extremely partisan campaign vilifying the Seafarers Guild, the Ashalds, and all Seafarer candidates, claiming they had taken bread from the mouths of children with their grain price-gouging policies, and that they had abandoned Peltarch in her hour of need during the Civil War. As noted above, she was elected once the electoral irregularities of Tidus Clodpin were exposed.
Her tenure on the Senate of Peltarch was marked by vigourously pursuing her stated goals of undoing the noose around commerce Vaster Ashald had carefully tied, whilst also pursuing personal vendettae against (in her view) corrupt officials such as guard General Vick Dunderstone. Long an ally of Senators Thel, Brynmor and Mildsilver, she gradually lost her rapport with her colleagues after the successful ouster of Vaster Ashald, and resigned an isolated figure, though with her main goals accomplished if nothing else. The open-armed collegial approach of her erstwhile mentor Shana Je’laan ultimately eluded her, though it may be said she left the city she loved better off than she found it.
Ryan Fisher – The Yellowliver Senator
Like his predecessor, Holcomb Fisher, Ryan hailed from the noble Fisher family and his election to the Senate was long predicted due to his amassing of support from most of the population in the Civic District.
As a Senator, he served much the same role as Holcomb did, at first. However, as time and voting patterns wore on, it eventually became clear that Fisher was bereft of any ideals of his own, and his vote invariably went to whatever the most popular move of the moment turned out to be, even if it contradicted his previous voting patterns.
Known for adopting a gentlemanly, grandfatherly persona, his populist tactics paid off and he was a generally well liked Senator, though those paying closer attention to political affairs than the average citizen tended to hold him in low regard.
Ultimately, the Senators penchant for the quick and easy path to maintaining his position led him to fall under the sway of forces malevolent, and like Torin Bravickus he was forced to cut short his career due to exposure of these ties. Unlike Bravickus however, Fisher’s exit from the public stage was more gracefully managed by his family, for their members filled the roles of so many bureaucrats and clerks in City Hall that a complete downfall of their affairs would have been quite disastrous for the normal functioning of the city. Indeed, even today many clerks in City Hall can quietly share the royal claim of their new masters in the throne room, and one wonders if many of them feel cheated the Church of Siamorphe did not turn the hand of fate in their direction instead.
Kaster Lavindo – The Unflinching Senator
Unlike many in this record, whose stories are by now little known and remembered only in libraries, Kaster Lavindo is a name that lives on in the common memory of Peltarch, immortal and revered.
House Lavindo, not quite a noble house, but a solid “Defender Family”, has an old history in Peltarch, and Kaster’s background fits their mould precisely. Raised to join the Defenders, he did just that, rising through their ranks with the same determination and passion as his father and grandfather before him. Unlike both men however, Kaster surpassed them in rank with his appointment to the Captaincy by Devin Telan, not long after the conclusion of the Third Giant War.
As a Defender Captain, Kaster distinguished himself by commanding a disciplined company. During the tensions that led to the Civil War, Lavindo was initially stationed guarding the Icelace Beach, but wisely drew his men back to Peltarch to ensure none of the more ruthless Captains could get an advantage over him.
Ultimately when Koreth’s rebellion drove the loyalists out of Peltarch, it was Kaster Lavindo who assumed command as the new Peltarch General, a position in which he was joyously confirmed by the victors when the new Senate reconvened in the aftermath of Koreth’s ouster.
Lavindo quickly set to rebuilding the Defenders, and it is to his great credit as a General and leader, that he was able to prosecute a successful war against the Eastlanders some years later, a powerful and bitter foe who commanded greater numbers, powerful magics and the allegiance of the dreaded Red Dragon, Rass.
Lavindo’s defeat of the Eastlanders has left the Nars Pass relatively safe to travel to this very day, and cemented him as a living legend in the Jewel for the remainder of his life. On retiring from the Defenders, he was practically forced by his loyal troops into running for the Senate of Peltarch in the next elections, and the vote count he gathered was record breaking.
Kaster did not take easily to the life of Senator, however, for he was used to his word as general being final...while on the Senate table, too often “final” was not forthcoming. Nonetheless he legislated diligently for his City, particularly where it came to affairs concerning security or the Defenders, and though his skill at collaboration may not have been remarkable, his continued service to his City certainly was commendable. His statue still finds itself wreathed on the anniversaries of his birth and death each year to this day.
Wesley Hardin – The Patient Senator
Wesley Hardin, born in the docks, though not quite into poverty, he was still certainly no upper cruster. His family were hardworking, mostly for the Wavebreakers or Stonemasons Guilds. Wesley eventually through years of hard work and shrewd savings came to own a stake in the Wavebreakers Guild.
Fortunes were sinking for the Guild however, and Wesley soon found his fellow Wavebreakers were all too willing to sell their own stakes to make ends meet, and the Guild it seemed was steadily being reduced to drunken sailors in the Three-Legged Mule, singing sad songs about better times.
It was from this morass of nostalgia laden defeatism that Wesley Hardin dragged the Wavebreakers Guild (kicking and screaming many would say), back into the limelight of commerce and politics in Peltarch. It was he who carefully choose to back candidates he knew as Senators would be able to break the grip of Vaster Ashald on trade and power. It was he who gambled the little remaining Wavebreaker profits on backing their election campaigns. It was he who doggedly supported the many, many investigations that overturned fraudulent votes, exposed conspiracies, exposed treasons, and through years and years of hard, tireless work, expunged Vaster Ashald from the Jewel of the Icelace.
Only fitting then, that his resurgent Guild clamoured for his own candidacy, demanding he run for a seat and take his place among those he had sent before him. As a Senator, he was diligent in supporting free trade, even where it cost him political capital. His stance on an Oscuran trade deal won him little favour from either side of the debate, as he voted for open trade whilst also vilifying Oscura and saying that though he wanted trade to be free in all cases, he would personally bar the Wavebreakers from trading with slavers, contending it was a decision for each Guild to make.
Naturally, those more fully in favour of actually profiting from the open trade considered his lukewarm support to have been undercut by his open denunciation of Oscura, which was believed to have aided in the deal failing despite his own vote.
On the other side, his primary allies on the Senate, Sirs Roland Brynmor and Mariston Thel could not countenance trading with Oscura under any caveats, and Hardin’s vote for the trade deal was a point of contention between them.
Hardin remained a Senator for many years, until his retirement, having cemented his Guild’s fortunes politically and commercially, and many would argue, saved his City’s soul in the process.
Enenan Snydders – The Enduring Senator
What can one say about our current Master of Coin? Unlike the Senators listed above, Enenan’s deeds and details of his life are not a matter of public record. One assumes he holds a significant stake in the Seafarer’s Guild, like many patriarchs of the Snydders family before him did.
Is he, like Tarich Snydders was before him, a member of their ruling council? It would be a very solid bet, but once again like most aspects of Enenan’s life, we simply do not know for sure. Is he married? Does he have children? What magical research does he conduct atop the tower of the Snydders estates in the Civic district?
As a Senator, Snydders rarely debated and often abstained from votes. Most of his term was after Vaster Ashald had already been toppled, perhaps his political reticience was due to that? Was he cautious for fear of having some aspect of his own misdeeds exposed, like Bravickus, Fisher and Clodpin before him? Well, if so, his caution has paid off, for he still serves the Jewel faithfully today.
It is noteworthy that during the rigged election of Tidus Clodpin, one of the three returning officers was none other than Enenan Snydders. This author casts no aspersions, but will let the reader make up their own mind about the calibre of advice their so-called king currently chooses to listen to.
Bofaulk Faltek – The Stonetrust Senator
Readers will be forgiven for not recognising the name above, for this dwarven Senator was more popularly known simply as “Heffa”, and was a senior member of the Stonemasons Guild.
The dwares of the Stonemasons were devoted to their craft as only their kind can be, and throughout their centuries have been behind the designs, logistics and more complex work of any major Peltarchan building project, their expertise granting them an easy monopoly on such affairs. Due to this, they were able to remain largely above the internecine Guild conflicts that ran roughshod over Peltarch’s commercial and political history, something they keenly stayed out of.
This changed however, once Wesley Hardin’s Wavebreakers began to turn things around. The old tactic of keeping their heads down to maintain their standing did not seem necessary anymore, and the Stonemasons were one of the first independent guilds to realise this, and they reaped the political capital for their trouble.
Heffa’s candidacy therefore while novel, made a great deal of political sense to the keen observer. Essentially he was running on a combined platform of commerce and defence, two things that resonated across a broad spectrum of Peltarch’s citizens, and the Stonemastons cleverly used their involvement in every single defensive fortification ever erected by Peltarch to portray their longstanding patriotism. This was entirely accurate, but also extremely shrewd, and Heffa was duly elected.
As a member of the Senate of Peltarch, Heffa immediately caused controversy by the appointment of Dwin Dolvak, former Chancellor of Norwick, as his Advisor. Outsiders immediately suggested he had only appointed the polarising figure because he was a fellow dwarf; which was essentially true. However, for dwarves, that observation is not damning. Dwin’s allies in the Council of Moradin had invited the Stonemasons to conduct some works for them, and to be thus recognised by the representatives of the Moradinsamman in Narfell was a great honour for Heffa and his Guild, an honour that he was glad to repay.
Despite the controversial beginning, Heffa’s tenure saw him advance progressive legislation around trade, defence and even cultural matters, and his links to the south certainly did come in handy even if they cost him some respect from his peers around the table. Rumours suggest that at the end of his career he departed the Senate under suspicion of embezzlement, but this author having known the honourable nature of the Stonemasons in general and Heffa in particular, ridicules such suggestions as spurious efforts to mar yet another hardworking Senator’s reputation in order to better effect a vote in favour of its abolition.
Conclusion
Rath Ashald – The Everything Senator
Here ye folks, come one and all, of a great man this one sings.
Everyman should know his worth, and the good joy that he brings.
It’s time for every man and wife, each boy and girl be called,
So they can hear the greatness of a man named Rath Ashald.
Always true, always wise, his leadership is strong.
So listen clear, and know ye well, the subject of this song.
Never once has Peltarch seen a man so great as he:
Always helping those in need, such generosity!
Keep well the knowledge of this song, be always ye enthralled.
Everything is better when it’s done by Rath Ashald!
I need tell you no more of Rath Ashald than the lyrics above, for his full story demands its own record, but I will adopt his entry as my conclusion, for he was the last Elder Senator whose era I have suitable knowledge in. I would call upon bards and historians to complete my efforts with a follow up volume, documenting the downfall of the Senate of Peltarch to strife and monarchy. Having been the victim of a false claimant to the lineage of the Fisher King, as detailed in Tidus Clodpin’s entry, this author is naturally sceptical about the rise of ‘royalty’ in Peltarch.
Perhaps there may be poetry in it, if like the true Fisher King, this new one has risen up to save us from destruction at the hands of wicked masters such as Hoarsgate, or brutal tyrants such as the Fire Giants of Ignismons. That said, as the reader no doubt knows, Peltarch has indeed been assailed by many grave threats, and one questions whether our so-called King numbers among the scores of brave heroes that rose up to defend her.
This record pulls no punches; the Senate of Peltarch certainly harboured some mediocre men, on rare occasion even some villainous ones. But in every Senate, in every era, there sat the heroes of Peltarch. Even in the darkest times of Vaster Ashald’s avaricious grip on power, there were heroes sent by our people to our Senate. I also note Vaster Ashald never sat upon the Senate personally. If a villain, a monster, such as he existed today...from where would the heroes come to bring him low? Not from the throne room, in this author’s considered opinion.
One must also ask, what kind of men will occupy the Throne of Peltarch? Unlike the Senate, where heroism was ever a feature, a throne is a lonesome edifice, and does not lend itself to consistency. Of course, the reader must make up their own mind on this topic.
All this author asks you to do is to cast a cold eye on those who scorn the legends who haunt these pages. For weal or for woe, they once were the lifeblood of Peltarch.
