Kethira-720TR-Harn-Chybisa

Chybisa (kingdom)

From “A History of the Chybisan Region”, by Harien of Guinas, unpublished:

Chybisa is the name of the small kingdom along the wide bend in the Ulmerien River. It is centered on Burzyn, the royal keep. To the east, it is bounded by the Anadel hills; to the south, it is bounded by Horadir. Precise boundaries to the north and west are a matter of historical dispute. Founded in 163TR, its’ original northern borders extended well beyond the Ulmerien River to encompass much of the Upper Osel valley. The incursions of the Pagaelin during the Migration Wars effectively shrank the kingdom so that the Ulmerien River has largely become the northern border.

There is a well-defended portion just north of Burzyn that extends for about three leagues north of the river, and a group of ruined manors throughout the woods across the river to the north and east. The destruction of these ruined manors typically dates back to one of the wars that have raged around the region. Several of them date back to the Migration Wars. The woods themselves are considered Chybisan territory, although it is not well patrolled and Pagaelin tribes often hunt there.

Besides the Pagaelin to the north and west, Chybisa touches on the tribal lands of the Hodiri to the south, and the Bujoc to the east. The Bujoc presence is rather unfortunate, since their territories near Chybisa are disputed with the Pagaelin. In most confrontations, the Bujoc, shy in manner and few in number, either attack from hiding or lose.

However, all three nations remain on reasonably peaceful terms with Chybisa itself. Trade with Chybisa clearly benefits the tribes, and even among the Pagaelin those tribes staying near Chybisa have become comparatively wealthy by selling trade goods to other tribes.

This does not mean that Chybisa is a placid, peaceful place. The kingdom is politically very similar to Melderyn or Kaldor; it has owed both of them fealty at various points.

Chybisa exists for two reasons: The first and most important is that the area is extremely fertile and grows remarkable crops on small plots of land. Fresh soil seems to wash out of the Anadel hills in ways I have not found elsewhere. Chybisa exports food at a rate out of proportion to its’ size.

The second reason is that the only bridge across the Ulmerien River is at Burzyn. Traveling up the northern bank to the headwaters and back to the fertile valley floor on the southern bank of the bend would be a journey of some 60 leagues. Burzyn draws a great deal of wealth from bridge tolls and caravan traffic.

As a result, both nations have an interest in the kingdom. Currently, relations with both Kaldor and Melderyn are peaceful but somewhat strained; trade flows freely through Burzyn and visitors from both nations are fairly common.

The area is largely mixed woodland and forest, with extensive tracts of cropland and pasture. The Ulmerien valley has been continuously occupied since at least 1200BT, when it was settled by Jarin. Sindarin occupation previous to that was frequent but not continuous.

When the Sindarin abandoned the Anadel, Solora and Horadir regions after the Battle of Sorrows, most of the Jarin left the area as well. Those remaining were assimilated into the culture of the Lythian newcomers. Over the next few centuries, various settlements grew and spread throughout the region. Minor kingdoms rose and fell, as did many small tribal nations. Most of these cultures seem to have been fairly peaceful, and the period was generally prosperous. There appears to have been little warfare, since the area supplied their needs and there was little encroachment from outside cultures.

In 160TR, this idyllic isolation ended. Shobald, a knight of Melderyn, arrived. In short order, he unified the tribes and kingdoms, began an influx of immigration from Melderyn, proclaimed the Kingdom of Chybisa, and proclaimed himself the King. Many of the immigrants became major figures in the new kingdom, with its’ seat at the settlement on the north bank of the Ulmerien, across from the current-day site of Burzyn. It is not surprising that Shobald spent most of his reign securing the realm. This new kingdom had troubles early on. In 180-183, the Pagaelin attacked from the north, during the Migration Wars. The effect on Chybisa was traumatic, particularly since Shobald himself led a mission against the Pagaelin – and disappeared.

His successor, Verlid I, was an able general and kept all of the tribes at bay throughout his reign. His son, Verlid II, dramatically improved the defenses of the realm, particularly by constructing Burzyn Keep on the south bank of the Ulmerien. Soon after, as the Bujoc and Hodiri attacked in waves, Burzyn became the principal rallying point for the kingdom and was instrumental in Chybisa’s survival. Indeed, in 227, the Hodiri were defeated right at the gates to the keep. There has not been a serious tribal threat to the nation since.

Later kings of the House of Shosel showed little interest in expanding the tiny kingdom. Manors were built both north and south of the Ulmerien, but the period from about 230TR through 380TR was generally marked by static borders and peaceful prosperity. Verlid V fought on the side of Aidrik II during the Kaldoric Civil War of 362-377, and later gave sanctuary to Aidrik’s son. Late in the reign of Uthred the Usurper in Kaldor (362-406) Verlid VI favored the restoration of Aidrik III to the Kaldoric throne despite the considerable resentment this gained him from Uthred. It should be noted that this support was instrumental in restoring the House of Artane to the Kaldoric throne.

When Verlid VI died without an heir in 409, the succession council was faced with a difficult choice. The Pagaelin and the Hodiri were becoming increasingly aggressive, and no solid generalship was available after so many years of peace. The council offered the crown to Imadain I, then King of Melderyn. Shortly after Imadain accepted the throne of Chybisa, tribal hostility faded and ceased. From 409 through 475, a succession of Chybisan barons ruled in the name of the Melderyni kings. Melderyn royalty rarely visited Chybisa and seems to have taken little interest in the area.

In 458TR, an outcast Khuzan mason named Hazmaral of Orinain, arrived in the area and was quickly contracted to upgrade the fortifications of Burzyn. Over the next several decades, he dramatically improved modern Burzyn castle, using Khuzan techniques. His insistence on these techniques made Burzyn an extremely durable structure, but they were apparently too difficult for local masons and greatly delayed the project.

Melderyn has rather ambiguous succession laws. In 475, Erebir V of Melderyn was succeeded by Arabar II, a bastard son of his. The Chybisans immediately declared themselves outraged, and in an unusually-direct visit to the royal seat at Cherafir they seceded from Melderyn.

Arabar’s response still intrigues and confuses historians. Although such an action is a profound insult, he seems to have taken little notice. He did issue a proclamation denying their right to secede, but otherwise seems to have ignored the matter. This document forms one of the two bases of the continuing Melderyni claim of sovereignty over the area.

The Chybisan barons elected their most powerful member, Sharat of Lerenil, as their new king. This was an unfortunate choice, as he turned out to be corrupt and greedy, ignoring matters of state and the defense of the realm in order to line his own pockets with silver. His heirs followed suit, bringing Chybisa to unfamiliar depths and rendering many royal records untrustworthy.

In 529, Hazmaral abandoned the rebuilding of Burzyn castle and left Chybisa, apparently disgusted with the greed of his employers. By this time, the bulk of the project was finished with the exception of one tower and the connecting walls of the outer bailey. The remaining tower was built in the human fashion with a square design. It remains quite possibly the most impressive fortification in the human areas of Hârn.

In 559, King Lonabar and much of his family died of the Red Death. This massive epidemic of a spotted fever rampaged across Hârn for two years, concentrating in Tharda where it followed a series of floods that had already devastated the area. As a result of the Red Death, the throne went to Lonabar’s fourth child, Sabalyne. She became the first queen of Chybisa, ruling from 559 to 590. She gained the love of her subjects with her caring governance, but failed to erase the corruption in the government.

Her son, Gebral, ruled from 590-627. As the third son, he did not expect to inherit the throne. His eldest brother died in a hunting accident in 588, and the second son had chosen to become a Laranian cleric back in 581. Although not trained to rule, he proved to be a competent administrator. He was not, however, able to stem the graft throughout his bureaucracy.

In 627, Gebral was succeeded by his only daughter, Udine I. This was a remarkable woman, fair of face and an extremely competent administrator. She ruled for 34 years with compassion and wisdom, and was finally able to clear the rampant corruption from the royal government. This was not a reign unmarked by tragedy; in 648, she had to banish her husband, Kerepel of Harden, for infidelity. He retained little money and no honor, and ended up living in Tashal. In 660, a lesser branch of the family was massacred; evidence suggests a gargun swarm was responsible. A year later, Udine I died; the story persists that she died of a broken heart. The Chybisan people were united in their grief, and she remains one of the most-loved of Chybisan rulers. Soon after her death, Kerepel of Harden, by then a derelict, was killed by a knife attack in an alley; the attacker was never caught.

Udine I was succeeded by her only child, Udine II. She is recognized as Chybisa’s most unfortunate ruler. Clubfooted and hunchbacked, she was forced onto the throne by willful and unscrupulous barons, when she preferred only seclusion. One of their most compelling arguments was the promise of a quick marriage. Balesir of Geledoth was primary among these barons, although he is conceded to have been under the lifelong influence of his mother, Larane Horsaid.

Cunning, devious, and pitiless, Larane’s detractors have (correctly, I think) characterized her as the most evil woman to influence Chybisan policy. She has posthumously been accused of various charges ranging from murdering her son’s first wife to conspiracy in making the deaths of much of clan Burzada appear to be a gargun swarm. In part because of her, a marriage was not arranged for three years.

In 664, a Kaldoric knight, Sir Denil of Uberma, came to Burzyn to meet his intended bride for the first time. Upon seeing her, he publicly rejected the match. Udine II withdrew to her chambers and killed herself.

Her suicide left the throne vacant. It was subsequently offered to Balesir Geledoth, the Baron of Onden, who could claim descent from Gebral’s younger sister. Corruption soon followed. In 675, the Sword of Calsten was stolen from Kaldor, starting the Treasure War. Torastra, King of Kaldor, believed the sword was in Chybisa and came to reclaim it with a sizable army. After so many years of peace and decades of endemic corruption, Balesir’s army was no match for the Kaldoric knights. Following a hard-fought but futile battle north of the Ulmerien, Balesir found himself inside Burzyn and under siege.

The Khuzan rebuilding proved impenetrable to the Kaldoric knights, and the siege continued for three years. In 678, with disease and rebellion rampant, and the Baron of Geda (Sliris Wasal) swearing fealty to Torastra and lending his troops as assistance to Kaldor, Balesir finally surrendered. Receiving the honors of war, he and his loyal vassals became exiles in Melderyn.

This surrender is the basis for Kaldoric claims of sovereignty over Chybisa.

It did not last long. In 687, Balesir swore fealty to King Chunel of Melderyn and raised an army to take back his kingdom. He succeeded at the Battle of Geda and immediately after proclaiming himself again King of Chybisa, broke his promise of fealty to Melderyn.

Chunel is said to have received this news with laughter. He has since denounced this act of treachery and has not given up his claim to Chybisa, but has taken few steps to actively enforce his claim. This is the second basis for Melderyni claims of sovereignty over Chybisa.

Balesir, King of Chybisa, died of stomach cramps in 691 and was succeeded by his son, Verlid VII, the current King of Chybisa.

Verlid was 17 at the time. He has proven a competent monarch, if nervous. He has reason to be nervous, with two powerful kingdoms both having a claim upon his throne. In addition, Balesir ran up huge debts with usurers in Thay to pay for his army; those debts have not yet been paid. Reports of ulcers and a weak heart seem reliable, and believable.

However, Verlid VII has done much to improve Chybisa’s defenses. He encouraged much of the recent expansion by Baron Rythal north of the Ulmerien, and in confirming the granting of Geda to an Orbaalese warrior, Kjal Forsetha, (following a lost drunken wager by the previous baron), he has greatly strengthened the military situation in the southeast. There are persistent rumors that he has quietly been reclaiming several of the ruined manors in the western woods, but I have not been able to confirm this.

Verlid continues a policy of careful – VERY careful – diplomacy with both Kaldor and Chybisa, hoping that so long as they are willing to talk to his ambassadors they will not attack. He does seem to fear Melderyn more than Kaldor, and spends far more time dealing with the realm to the south.