Posts from The History of Chedian Auto-translated

Chronology
The calendar is dated from the Great Cataclysm, when Verhoffin cast a spell that destroyed the old Ursanian Empire. Dates are followed by AC — after the cataclysm, or BC — before the cataclysm.
History of Chedianne
Era of the Dyan Clan (500BC — 0BC)

At the beginning of this era, the expeditionary forces of the Ursanian Empire encountered the Chedians for the first time. Only a few brief reports remain of clashes from that period with groups of half-orcs in the northern region known as Chedianne. This was likely a poor transcription of the orcish word “Cheh'dian”, meaning “Land of the Dyan Clan”. However, the name stuck.
Sadly, the traditions and history of the Chedian half-orc settlers are lost in the mists of time, as all the lore-keepers died in the year of the Great Cataclysm.
The Great Cataclysm (Year Zero)
Before year zero, Rish — the continent where the Chedianne region is located — was very different from its modern state. The Ursanian Empire owned almost its entire territory. Its power was great, but its ambitions were greater. The Ursanian emperors suffered from suspicion and mistrust.
Shortly before 200BC, a wizard appeared in a province near the center of the empire and built a great Tower. He took the name Verhoffin and declared the province independent from the empire. Unwilling to tolerate the emergence of a hostile enclave near the capital, Emperor Ralfor and his successors conducted several unsuccessful Campaigns against Verhoffin.
Approximately in the 10th year before the Great Cataclysm, Emperor Trandis hired an assassin named Nazrim to eliminate Verhoffin. After preparations that took Nazrim 10 years (spending most of the time collecting the necessary magical artifacts), the assassin attacked the wizard. And he failed. In response, Verhoffin ascended to the top of his Tower and cast a spell that devastated half of the Ursanian Empire. The wizard brought chaos and destruction for thousands of miles around. A vast area of land surrounding the Tower was swept away, forming what we now call the Verhoffin Sea. Most residents of the Ursanian Empire lost either their home, their family, or their lives. And although the empire persisted for another 13 years, the date of this catastrophe is considered the date of its fall.
New Settlers (0 — present day)
Among all the regions affected by the Great Cataclysm, Chedianne suffered the least. The Chedians managed to adapt to the changes in climate and landscape. In other areas, survival became a major problem, and food was scarce. Only in the fertile lands of Chedianne did the population grow rapidly, including through new settlers. At first, the half-orcs found it difficult to get along with the new residents, but times were tough, and every pair of capable hands was welcome.
Modern Chedianne
Modern Chedianne is divided into six main Clans, each ruled by its own leader. Each leader (jarl) is independent. Despite this, trade between the Clans is quite brisk. The basis of the economy of modern Chedianne (especially in Thjorgard) is trade, the chemical industry (refining), and the use of new metals (primarily the Thjorgard element). The Thjorgard element is very easy to process. Through alloying, it is possible to create alloys with various properties. Many of the most powerful magical items created over the last 500 years are made specifically from the Thjorgard element.
Taking into account the remarkable properties of the new metal, one can only marvel at how few wars were fought over its possession. Over the last 500 years, only a dozen armed conflicts occurred, collectively known as the Thjorgard Wars. The last of them ended approximately 100 years ago. Usually (with the exception of the Sturmford and Drangheim Clans), the jarls managed to smooth over differences during negotiations held every summer at a festival called “The Thing”.
But the Chedians cannot be called peaceful inhabitants. Most of them divide the year into two seasons: the “farming season” and the “raiding season”. Many cities grew on the shores of the Verhoffin Sea, and it is not uncommon to see ships packed with warriors heading toward the wealthy southern shores.

Starting with the discovery of the Thiergard element (around 100AC), several wars broke out over the possession of the sources of this valuable resource. The last one occurred in 418AC between the Thiergard and Thronheim clans.
About the Thiergard Element
The Thiergard element is a metal that is easy to process and alloy. It is very heavy. Its only known deposit is the Miners' Gorge in Thiergard. It is likely that there are other deposits in the Fenn mountains (Fenn is a mountain range surrounding the Sea of Ferhoven), but the cost of establishing and developing them deters potential entrepreneurs.
Early Wars (112AC — 200AC)
The first four Thiergard Wars took place between settlements located in the modern Thiergard region. In the end, one faction emerged victorious, led by a chief known as Bjarnus the Mighty. He not only unified the entire region but also founded the city of Thiergard (named after the ore). His troops conquered all other Thiergard clans and brought the entire ore-bearing district under the control of a single clan. After Bjarnus's death, Thiergard enjoyed peace for nearly 40 years — until 238AC.
Middle Wars (240AC — 310AC)
In 238, Hridmir Strawlands, the Jarl of Thiergard, traveled to Thronheim for the first meeting with his fiancée. During a game of stones, Hridmir's opponent happened to be the bride's older brother, Hafgrim, and an argument broke out between them. Hridmir strangled Hafgrim right on the game board and left for home. Dain Fasoltssen, Hafgrim's father, was infuriated. He demanded that Hridmir pay a wergild of 2000 pounds of the Thiergard element. Hridmir refused, and Dain invaded Thiergard.
The siege of Thiergard lasted 30 years; eventually, Dain breached the walls, but Hridmir escaped. Dain's army plundered Thiergard. Houses burned, all shops were looted, and the residents trembled in fear. The looting lasted two days. Then Hridmir's sister, Oda, arrived with a fresh army and drove Dain's army away from Thiergard. She pursued them all the way to Thronheim and eventually besieged Thronheim. However, Dain managed to buy his way out from Oda, and she lifted the siege.
Later, three more wars occurred between the neighbors — Thiergard and Thronheim, and during this time, Thronheim was plundered at least twice. But eventually Leip, Dain's grandson, forced Thiergard to sign a peace treaty, which was honored until 404AC.
Late Wars (350AC — 400AC)
Thronheim was not the only one who wanted to seize the valuable ores. In 350AC, troops from the Frosgard clan invaded Thiergard. They were led by Jarl Olaf the Fat. His goal was to unify all of Chedian with an iron fist, and he believed that nothing could stop him as long as he held his magic sword, Jorhgamesh. However, during the march, Olaf became separated from his army and fell into an ambush by mountaineers. They killed him and stole the sword. Without a leader, the Frosgard army collapsed the very next day. Most of the soldiers were taken prisoner. Their descendants still live in Thiergard today.
A few years after the death of Olaf the Fat, a warrior from Sturmford gathered an army to invade Thiergard. He claimed to be the grandson of Sven Bloodaxe, the legendary invincible warrior. He attempted to land a force from the sea several times, but eventually, his fleet was caught in a storm, and he drowned along with his ship.
Not all wars were won on the battlefields. The wealthy merchants of Thiergard were also keen to buy the jarlship for themselves. One of the merchant-jarls, Roderik the Stout, was generally considered a fat miser. He was more interested in filling his purse than in governing the people.
A certain Ragnar, another merchant, used his savings to bribe people close to Roderik. Unfortunately for Ragnar, one of Roderik's associates betrayed him to his master, and Ragnar, instead of becoming jarl, found himself dangling from a noose.
The Last War
Under the terms of the peace treaty imposed on Thiergard by Leip, Thiergard paid the Jarl of Thronheim 1000 pounds of the Thiergard element annually. But in 400AC, Thiergard's industry was hit by a crisis, and almost the entire annual ore production was sent to Thronheim. By 404AC, the patience of the Thiergardians was exhausted.
The Thiergardians, under the leadership of Geitlif Strongpick, overthrew their jarl. Geitlif became the new jarl and immediately denounced the peace treaty with Thronheim. Thronheim responded by sending an army to besiege Thiergard, but Geitlif secretly led his detachment through tunnels in the mountain gorge and attacked the Thronheim army from an ambush. One skirmish did not decide the fate of the war, but after a year of grueling clashes with Geitlif's army, which used guerrilla methods unfamiliar to the northerners, the Thronheimers left Thiergard.
The war between Thiergard and Thronheim did not end there.
It lasted another 13 years, and then, for some unknown reason, ended in 418AC. Rumor has it that the mountain pass between Thiergard and Thronheim mysteriously closed. For a hundred years since then, there have been neighborly relations between Thiergard and Thronheim. Several Jarls of Thronheim married women from the families of Thiergard's jarls, and vice versa. And both clans see no threats to peace in the future.

Elven Names
Before the Great Cataclysm, there were 13 elven Clans in Chedian. Each Clan was divided into parts, called Sil. Names were formed as follows:
(Given name) de (Mother's name) A'(Clan name) a'(Sil name)
For example, the official or true name of Ete, daughter of Forblight from the Black Beak Sil of the Dorad Clan, was:
Ete de Forblight A'Dorad a'Black Beak.
Note that the Sil name is written with a lowercase letter. However, true names were only used in official ceremonies. Usually, they were shortened to the given name plus the Clan name (Ete A'Dorad).
Despite the disappearance of both the Clans and the Sils, the elves continue to adhere to the tradition of compound names. Only "advanced" elves, living in large cities, adopted the naming system of humans and dwarves (first name, patronymic, and surname).
Elven Clans
Before the Great Cataclysm, the elves kept themselves separate from the other races and asserted their sovereignty in every way, although they paid tribute to the Ursanian Empire. The elves were one of the few groups that the Ursanians never managed to assimilate. However, there is also evidence that the elves themselves asked to become part of the empire.
Most of the elven scrolls were written on special Cuni paper, made from the now-extinct Kundis tree. Many scrolls were kept in the capital of the elven lands, known as At'rann, which translates as "place of light" or "place of blessing," these words being homonyms in the elven language.
According to ancient maps, At'rann was located 400 leagues south of the Ferhoven Tower. Today, this area lies at the bottom of the Ferhoven Sea.
With the city that disappeared into the sea, most of the Cuni scrolls were lost. At least, no historical scroll has been found. However, some believe that the city was protected from the Great Cataclysm and was moved unharmed under the waters of the Ferhoven Sea.
Some also believe in the existence of a complete historical scroll – the Cuni Scroll. It is said to contain the history not only of all 13 Clans but also of the mystical, lost fourteenth Clan, A'Rikdun. Many historians have gone on expeditions in search of the Cuni Scroll, but all have returned empty-handed.
Today, we know elven history only through rare contacts between elves and other cultures, which have been recorded in the chronicles of other peoples. In particular, it is known that the elven leader Thrata A'Dorad offered the empire to place an imperial garrison in the elven city of Etendar. The reasons that prompted him to do so are unknown.
Apart from such fragmentary information, one can only rely on the oral traditions of the elves. Most of them are myths about elven heroes. But let's hope that one of the expeditions will find at least fragments of the Cuni Scroll