THE WORLD OF CALDRITH
Rulers and Shines
THE WORLD OF CALDRITH
Rulers and Shines
Every kingdom has a ruler. Nearly every kingdom also has a Shine, its chief sorcerer, who holds a seat in the Conclave and answers to the High Archon rather than to any throne. Two kingdoms have no Shine at all, and both of them are poorer for it.
Evarra
- The High Archon Elaric Vahl rules Evarra and presides over the Conclave, which makes him the most powerful man in Caldrith and one of the least visible. His age is a matter of open argument.
- Matteo Vikkars (50s), Understudy to the High Archon. Small, bespectacled, precise, and unfailingly pleasant.
- Evarra has an almost never-ending supply of journeymen sorcerers. Sorcery is a desirable career in the mountain kingdom, and anyone with the least flicker of talent is found young and trained.
Brevos
- King Lenik (60s). Stocky, small and opinionated. Brevan monarchs take the name of their kingdom, so he is King Brevos as often as he is King Lenik.
- Shine Cant (70s), chief sorcerer of Brevos. Thin as a leper and twice as welcome.
Orvyn
- Tullis Ostan (60s). War Chief, Chief Bull and King of Orvyn. A barrel of a man.
- Shine Jolmir (60s), chief sorcerer of Orvyn. Presents as the least sorcerous man in his kingdom, and is more at home drinking and wrestling in daylight hours, but no one is more dedicated to Orvyn’s magical defence.
Quenhal
- Shine-Prince Aolar Futhanon (late 30s) is both ruler and Shine, and a bonded champion besides. The Stag Prince is known as courageous and noble, which in the Conclave makes him unusual.
Valnor
- Lady Ylva Isken (50s). One of the youngest chiefs her people have ever had, she inherited the throne when her father King Floki Isken was killed by an avalanche. They call her the Ice Queen, and not for the weather.
- Shine Osgud (early 50s), chief sorcerer of Valnor. Short, stout, and speaks the common tongue in halting pieces.
Dravendor
- Cora Dimou (mid 40s) heads the Council of Dravendor. Alone among the ten, Dravendor is held by a council and not a royal family.
- Shine Constantine (early 40s), chief sorcerer of Dravendor. Red-haired, quick-eyed, and carries no staff of office.
Thevric
- Mordun Viers, King of Thevric (60s). A man far older than his years, wracked by a lifetime of diseases and ailments. He can barely walk unaided and is wheeled everywhere in a carriage built to his frame.
- Ulian Caldis (70s), Shine of Thevric and Chief of the Healers. Grey-eyed, grey-haired and thin as a rake. He limits himself to two studies: the Flux, and healing magic.
Nevarrow
- Queen Saskia Sendak (20s). The youngest of all the rulers, and the one who most doubts herself. She is afflicted by strange dreams and visions.
- Counselor-Shine Fra Italan (80s), chief counsellor and Shine. A fierce matriarch who protects her queen at any cost.
Solwyn
- Queen Narifa (60s). Hard and iron-willed. She has been embroiled in tribal conflict for her whole reign, and has only lately won the full support of the elders.
- Solwyn has no Shine. The last was killed by a desert witch, and no Solwyn sorcerer has yet passed the challenges required to take the seat.
- Sorcerer Pa (40s) is the most influential tribal sorcerer in Solwyn, and could be Shine tomorrow if they wished it. They have refused, and retired into the deep desert instead. It is said they were once a great friend of the High Archon.
Galmar
- Harbormaster Lorcan Gul (60s), Chief of Galmar. On the Galmar coast the harbormaster is also the town chief, and may be removed by a vote of all the elders. In practice this happens about as often as the sun goes out.
- Galmar has no Shine and no natural sorcerers, and hires journeymen when it must. What it has instead is the Seamothers.