Celdun is a kingdom made up of a series of baronies. It was ruled by the Creed Dynasty until the generation before and during the *Heart of Darkness* campaign. It use to be enemies with Volchar, a nation to the north, a feud that was constantly stoked by the monarchs of both nations, generation after generation, though often the common people were confused as to the purpose of the conflict. Long ago, this ancient blood feud brought armies together, not for the first time or the last, in Galduun, a pacifist nation between the two. An unexplained magical phenomena was triggered by the mages fighting at Mount Galindre in the center of Galduun, and half of Galduun was destroyed. In the centuries since, the Galduun Wastes became barren, life dying off and mutating erratically. And over time, things have begun to come back from that, heal, and adapt. A generation prior to the *Heart of Darkness* campaign, a coup occurred in Celdun, a power grab by Baron Slevsky. The King and Queen were assassinated, and their young son imprisoned in a dark cell. Most of the country thought him dead. The monarchy broken, the Barons each took over autonomous governorship of their own lands. Thirty years later, Garyth Creed was freed from his dungeon and the Royalist movement crowned him king, and in the process, slew Baron Slevsky and stopped the Archmage Temer. Temer was using the political discord to cover his wildly illegal magical experimentation, attempting to find a way to open a rift to the Far Realm large enough to bring Cthulhu into the Material. The first Warforged of Aithar were created as a byproduct of Temer’s research into the combination of magic and technology. Generations have passed since those events. The original baronies of Celdun have consolidated into [[Slevsky Barony]] and [[Harding Barony]] alone. Eventually, the tensions with Volchar to the north became too much, and the two nations went to war, armies crossing the Galduun wastes to engage. Celdun won, and this time, occupied Volchar, splitting it into two baronies ([[East Volchar Barony]] and [[West Volchar Barony]]) and instantiating a fifth, the [[Galduun Barony]], to begin to repopulate the wastelands. Currently, the baronies are at peace with each other, and Celdun is at peace with the outside world. It is a time of relative prosperity. Celdun is, in this era, a melting pot of cultures, having opened its borders when Garyth Creed became the monarch. There is a healthy technology movement in the country, as well as multiple organized guilds of mages and craftsmen beyond the city level. [[Harreton|Harreton]], the capital city, sits within the Slevsky Barony. The city is a thriving center for local commerce and production, although rumors have been wafting around for the last two decades about possibly shifting the capital to West Volchar - the Iron City. ## The Last Temerian Uprising + State Religion Change + Unification - **TA1514** - Drake Creed ascends the throne at 17 when older brother Calvin dies at 19. - **TA1522** - The Temerian Revolution occurs, with the descendant organization of Temer the Archmage resurging again, funded and armed by the nation of Volchar to the north. The revolution is put down, but Drake Creed dies in the fighting at 25 with no children. - **TA1522** - Yara Creed III, the last sibling of three, ascends the throne (at 16). - She makes a vow to the Barons of Celdun and the heads of the noble houses that she will end the Temerian threat, once and for all. - Yara III took up the worship of the Light as the official religion of the crown when she became queen. Before then, the church was growing in popularity among the citizens of Celdun, and, interestingly, was the predominant faith in Volchar. Historians conjecture that it may have been a political move rather than one of faith. - She spends the next decade and a half consolidating power, and backing two of the barons to supplant the others. It was all maneuvering in preparation for the Final North Campaign, after which she intended to add three baronies to the kingdom. - **TA1538** - Felix, the only child of Yara III, is born. - **TA1539** - Once her heir has been born and survives infanthood, Yara Creed III launches and personally leads the Final North Campaign, with the intent to eradicate the Volchar enemy to the north once and for all, and assimilate the lands of Galduun and Volchar into the kingdom. - **TA1546** - The Kingdom of Celdun has taken decisive control over the entirety of Galduun and Volchar and split the latter in two. - The baronies of Celdun are now as follow: Harding, Slevsky, Galduun, West Volchar, East Volchar. - Yara III's religious affiliation broke with countless centuries of closeness with the celestials of Mount Celestia, but the internal conflict between the barons followed by her heroism in the Final North Campaign cleared any lingering doubts about her and her choices among her people. - Additionally, the economic trade boost to West Volchar and the initial swell of aid and support given to East Volchar eased the hostility there, though aid and reconstruction efforts in East Volchar were largely abandoned in years to come.