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The Monarchy of Claudius Gildenmark
The country of Kildermilsh is a landlocked kingdom ruled by the Monarch, Claudius Gildenmark. Claudius was the Prince of the Gildenmark Monarchy to the North. In his youth he took half of his father's army and waged war upon the original Monarchy of Kildermilsh; the Kron Monarchy. This Monarchy was ruled by a Fomorian named Helderpin who ruled over an army of faithful Cyclops. The beginning of the war was truly harsh, as Claudius wasted no time with his invasion and began his attack with a full-frontal assault, in an attempt to overwhelm Kron. The recklessness of his frontal attack placed his troops in a compromising position, leaving him wide open for an unexpected assault from the Western Marshes by the Cyclops 'Slayers Guild'. In a matter of minutes, Claudius lost a third of his troops. He was forced to retreat, himself enduring an injury that lost him his hand.
A 'magical hand' that ended up serving as Claudius' replacement, turned out to be the hand of an old Lich (though no one seemed aware of this fact). In an odd twist of fate, the cursed hand guided him to power that allowed him to usurp the Kron monarchy. In whispered mutters heard now and then throughout the taverns and dark alleys of the modern Kildermilsh countryside, the people now refer to Claudius endearingly as, 'old Bone Fist', though it is not common knowledge that his hand is that of a Lich's.
Shortly after taking the kingdom, a strange influence from the Lich hand began to take hold of Claudius' mind and some nights he was seen wailing from his balcony to the night sky to some unknown god. No one dared ask questions about Claudius, fearing the punishments of meddling with royal business. In the mean time, the Cyclops prisoners were being tortured for pleasure in more hideous ways than anyone could have expected, even for Claudius and his men. It was during this time that Claudius became known for ripping the tongues out of the Cyclops' mouths with his new bone hand. The Cyclops were rowdy and fearless even in captivity and Claudius thought they talked too much. He thought his punishment was a fitting one for those who took his original hand. The Cyclops were labeled the anti-thesis of the empire and most of them were brutally killed; only a few managed to escape - they swore revenge! The symbol for the new Gildenmark Monarchy was a bone fist squeezing a squirming tongue tightly, as if to strangle its words. This symbol became the banner that heralded the new monarchy in Kildermilsh.
The soldiers and followers of Claudius were paid handsomely with the riches they procured from successfully sacking Kildermilsh. The riches that the soldiers were paid were far greater than any payment they had ever seen serving under the North Gildenmark territory. An unnatural greed took over the soldiers that provoked them to stay with Claudius, who of course promised many more riches for their allegiance. All ties to the North were cut by Claudius, who had now stolen half his father's army.
Citizens in the North Gildenmark territory learned of the happenings in Kildermilsh and also of the generosity that Claudius bestowed upon his followers. Many citizens began leaving the North territory for Kildermilsh in hopes to rid themselves of their current troubles in the North Gildenmark Monarchy. Turmoil ensued when the soldiers of North Gildenmark were ordered to stop citizens from leaving and a peasant's revolt erupted soon afterwards.
... this is only what I have so far, more will be written before I finally submit this to the contest ...
