Chapter 4, The Pre-Aerdy Period: The Rise and Fall of Tuerny the Merciless

Flan Priestess of Hextor
in Bellport
Melanie Liburd in Game of Thrones

While no one is sure of the exact year of Tuerny’s birth in all likelihood it was  around -320 CY(1), to a minor Cranden noble family in service to Fasstal Amalfrid of the Zelrad of Ehlissa. The names of his parents are unknown and almost nothing is known about his mother other than she was a witch of the ruling caste of the Lathu Flan, who had been taken as a war-captive by Tuerney's father. Before being driven out of the northern part of the land between the Flanmi, Harp, and Thelly Rivers, the nascent Cranden Principality had been in an almost constant state of war with the Lathu. The status of Tuerny’s mother is unknown; whether she was legal wife, concubine, or slave. Regardless, as the child grew, Tuerny was initiated by his mother into the arcane arts practiced by her people, most likely despite the wishes or knowledge of his father. One history relates that when the father discovered this upon the young Tuerny’s thirteenth birthday, he strangled the boy’s mother in front of him, and then cast him out. But this was written over a century after the fact and many conflicting tales had sprung up by then.

Tuerny the Merciless
Mahesh Jadu in Marco Polo 

What is known is that in -297 CY, Tuerny was declared an outlaw(2) in Ehlissa for practicing forbidden magic. By this time he was around 23 years old, and found refuge in the Kingdom of Thalland(3). Within three years he had joined the royal court as a wizard, although in a relatively minor position. He progressed in power and soon gained the trust of the king, all the while practicing demonology in secret, perfecting that craft. Using his foul arts, Tuerny began plaguing the king with bouts of increasingly more severe illness. By the time he poisoned the king in -279 CY, Tuerny was the chancellor and effectively running the kingdom(4). As chancellor, Tuerny had begun secretly subverting those around him, winning over the kingdom’s nobles. It was child’s play to lay the blame for the king’s sickness and death on a concubine, making it appear she had killed him out of jealousy. The concubine was put to death, an innocent sacrifice to Tuerny’s quest for power. With the support of the Queen and the nobles it was agreed Tuerny should act as regent and protector of the young heir. Another version of the story says he killed the entire royal family in their sleep and enchanted the army through magic, but this is extremely unlikely and also contradicts the majority of accounts of this time(5).

Some Thellari nobles did not trust him though, and fled to neighboring lands. Among these was a prominent champion of Thalland’s conquests, Syfos Banzanne, who sought refuge in the Medegian Bladelands. Through marrying his recently widowed daughter, Ysmiralda to a prominent Medegi noble, Syfos found a new home and base of support. Ysmiralda already had a five year old son, Ferrante, from her first husband and within a year she had borne a son for her new husband, a boy they named Kahabros.

Other of these dissident houses only went as far as the Principalities of the Rax, Darmen, and Cranden, which were tributary states of Thalland. Tuerny, bent on consolidating his power did not worry himself much with these exiles until -274 CY when they had convinced the Aerdi princes hosting them to throw off the Thellari yoke and refuse further tribute. The savagery with which Tuerny put down this rebellion shocked the neighboring states which became sanctuaries for the fleeing Aerdi princes. Tuerny fully annexed the three rebellious Aerdi principalities and handed out their lands liberally to his strongest noble supporters in Thalland, deepening their loyalty.

The next year he turned his attention to his mother’s folk, conquering the Lathu and bringing them into the expanding Thellari state. In -272 CY it was the turn of Ehlissa, which had finally ended its series of civil wars and united under Queen Ehlissa XI. Tuerny’s invasion lasted two years, steadily pushing the Ehlissans all the way west to the Ruksi River and placing over half the country under his iron heel. Ehlissa XI was killed in the war’s last action near the town of Brynhableth (now Richmond). Tuerny forced her heir, Ehlissa XII to accept the disgraceful status of a tributary monarch, while relinquishing her claim to the lands Tuerny had captured. These were again used to reward his supporters and the majority of the dispossessed Zelrad went into exile in the lands of their kin to the south. Seeing the fate of Ehlissa, the petty Oeridian lords of Sunndi submitted to pay Tuerny tribute without a fight, and the elves of the Rieuwood and the dwarves of the Glorioles retreated to the fastness of their realms.

Iron Flask of Tuerny
the Merciless
Iron Flask by Benvenuto Cellini,
16th century, Italian

   In -270 CY Tuerny accomplished the feat for which he would be most well known. Commissioning the greatest artisans of the Dwur Kingdom of the Iron Hills, which had maintained their traditional neutrality and aloofness to all the events happening around them, Tuerny had them craft a small iron urn, covered with mystical sigils, glyphs and runes. Enchanting the item consumed a large part of his magical powers, but once it was finished the container was capable of imprisoning very potent supernatural beings. Using his extensive knowledge of demonology, Tuerny was able to summon the demon prince, Graz’zt and confine him within the flask. But in the act of his binding, the demon was able to work a curse on the Flask, allowing him an increasing chance to turn the tables on the arch-wizard with each time he was summoned from his prison(6). With Graz’zt at his beck and call, Tuerny was through pretending. The Queen was by this time entirely under his spell and would do anything for him, even to the point of denouncing her own son as a bastard. Tuerny so utterly controlled his lands that no one raised an objection to him imprisoning the boy in the dungeons of Rel Deven. Marrying the Queen, he declared himself, Tuerny I, King of Thalland, Prince of Cranden, Rax, and Darmen, Fasstal of the Zelred, Overlord of Ehlissa, and Tyrant of all the Eastern Lands.

The Medegian Bladelands suspected that they were next and they were not wrong. In -269 CY Tuerny attacked them with three armies. The northern army, under the command of a renegade Darmen named Sarno, crossed the Mikar River from the former lands of that clan, marching eastward along the edge of the Grandwood and intent on knocking the Naelax out of the fight and then turning south toward Mentrey.  The central army, the larger force, commanded by Tuerny’s most trusted Thallari lieutenant, Paganos, crossed the Mikar at the castle of Spiral, pushing southeastward directly toward the Medegi capital. The southern army, led by the tyrant himself crossed at the confluence of the Flanmi and Mikar at Pardue, driving toward Pontylver.

The central army advanced quickly toward Mentrey, even with the Medegi having had time to prepare their defenses. The bulk of the defending Medegian army retreated inside the walls of Dornelen to await a siege. Paganos surprised them by leaving half his host to keep them contained and marched on toward Mentrey with the rest.

The northern army drew up within a day of marching to see the Naelax army arrayed against it in a fortified position. Sarno ordered his troops to make camp and prepare for battle on the morn. Unfortunately for them, the Naelax had struck a deal with the Garastheth who realized that the defeat of the Bladelands would mean they were next. That house had over the years put itself on somewhat friendly terms with the wood elves of the Grandwood, and persuaded their chiefs to guide the Garastheth army through the forest and come out behind Sarno’s camp. It was a moonless night, and almost before the sentries were aware of their presence, the Garasteth were charging into the camp, surprising the unprepared soldiers. At the same time, the cavalry of the Naelax, which had been waiting for the noises of conflict as their signal, charged in from the east, slaying all in their path. Of the few soldiers of Sarno who managed to escape most fled into the forest where they were soon hunted down by the elves. Sarno’s head was taken by a young Garastheth knight named Pendri, nephew of the prince of that house. One knight managed to get away south and stealing a boat make it to Spiral to warn his fellows.

The Demon Prince Graz’zt
unknown artist 

Tuerny had timed his attack during Richfest, and when word arrived in Pontylver of the advancing southern army, the pilgrims filling the city rushed out, fleeing toward the meeting of the eastern and southern roads. These masses of humanity impeded the Medegian forces which had gathered upon hearing of the oncoming foe, and were intent on meeting the Thellari army before it reached the crossroads. This was not to be and the armies met at that exact spot. There Tuerny unveiled his new weapon, unleashing Graz’zt. The demon prince summoned a pair of mariliths, and ordered them to the attack. If he could not harm his hated captor, he would content himself with venting his spleen on the mass of mortals in front of him, and so he waded into the Medegian soldiers alongside his demon servitors, cleaving about him with his greatsword, Flame of Sorrow. Many in Tuerny’s army were stunned at the revelation of their master being a demon-summoner, but few hesitated when he ordered them into battle behind their fiendish allies. The panicked Medegian army split in two, with part fleeing back toward Pontylver and the rest toward Mentry.

Tuerny continued on toward Pontylver on the heels of the former. At the gates he was met by a peace delegation made up of the high priestesses of Stern Alia. They negotiated what Tuerny himself promised would be a peaceful occupation. Instead, when the gates were thrown up, an orgy of rapine, slaughter and plundering took place that would shock the eastern Flanaess and be heard of with horror even in faraway Keoland.

Meanwhile, at the crossroads of the Dornelan-Pontylver roads, word had reached Paganos of Sarno’s utter defeat, and of the combined Naelax-Garasteth army marching south to relieve Dornelan. Scouts also reported the small, defeated army from the direction of Pontylver coming from the south. While the latter would not prove much of a threat, another army was approaching from Mentry. If they came to battle he was confident he could defeat them, but if they retreated to Mentry he would face a long siege and risk being cut off with another army at his back. Cursing the inevitable and dreading the wrath of his master, he regretfully ordered his army to retreat back to Spiral, collecting the besiegers of Dornelan as they went.

The Medegian prince, Balzana, leading his army from Mentry, arrived at the deserted crossroads having heard of the Naelax-Garasteth victory and their combined army’s march toward Dornelan. There he met advance scouts from the army that had been defeated outside Pontylver. Splitting his force he sent a third toward Dornelan in pursuit of Paganos and marched with the rest toward Pontylver. Aware of the demon prince at Tuerny’s command he formed a vanguard of those knights with magic swords, as well as the court wizards, spell-using priests, Hextoran blackguards and exiled Heironean paladins. Adding to their numbers the members of the retreating Pontylver army met on the road they continued southwest.

The Sack of Pontylver
Burning Palace in Rome by
Pierre-Jacques Antoine Volaire,
before 1769

As they neared Pontylver they smelled and saw the smoke of a great fire, and when they arrived they found the holy city had been burned to the ground. Tuerny had withdrawn his army after sacking it and the inhabitants were either dead or fled into the countryside. Fires still smoked and burned. Dogs ate from the corpses of the slain in the streets. Of the other outrages committed upon the citizenry this history will not tell. The worst was visited upon the persons of the virgin priestesses of Stern Alia. Suffice it to say that when Medegian forces entered the burned grounds of the goddess’s Temple, even the hardened hearts of the Hextoran knights of the Medegi were struck with shock and sorrow. In mockery of the sacred Sheaf of Seven Arrows, the decapitated bodies of the seven high priestesses were stacked before the altar; their heads lined up on top of it. Of the holy relic no trace was found. Well did the Medegi recognize the dire work of their god’s bitter foe, Erythul the Lord of Slaughter. Not in that Tuerny was known to worship that old war god of   the Oeridians, but purposefully or not he paid tribute to that deity. As for why Tuerny did what he did, none can say. Was it just the act of an evil man? Madness? The urge of a tyrant to show his cruelty so as to crush the spirits of those he would dominate? Regardless, it was an act with little forethought as to what reaction it would provoke.

Upon hearing of the act a fire of rage and vengeance was kindled in the hearts of all nearby Oeridian states at the desecration of their most holy place. From the Kingdom of Nehron in the north to the collection of petty Oeridian-Suel states in Sunndi to the south, plans were made to confront the tyrant.

Not only Oeridians were moved to act against Tuerny. Almost immediately after the Desecration of Pontylver, an alliance of Ehlissans, both Flan and Suloise, and the petty Zelrad kingdoms of Ingmalt, Foelt, and Menst joined forces to drive the occupiers out of eastern Ehlissa. Most surprising of all, grim dwarven warriors from the Kingdom of the Iron Hills marched forth to add their strength. Perhaps this was amends for helping create the Iron Flask, or possibly just the realization of the dire threat the tyrant posed to everyone. Uniting near Hexpools, they advanced northeast and fought a great battle with Tuerny’s occupying army which came to meet them near Ilhazdruk. Brother fought brother as Zelrad and Ehlissan Flan fought their fellows who had gone over to Tuerny and sworn fealty to him. Defeated, his Thellari troops and their Ehlissan and Zelrad collaborators retreated to the west bank of the Thelly, opposite Rel Deven. Tuerny defending the eastern border along the Mikar and lower Flanmi from the Medegi, Nealex, and Garasteth advancing on Pardue and Spiral, sent what reinforcements he could spare to bolster what was left of his Ehlissan army and counterattack in what culminated in a second battle at Ilhazdruk. It was to no avail as his forces were again defeated and this time pushed across the river to the eastern bank. Tuerny himself rushed back to his capital to defend it. In the months ahead more forces would gather on all sides of his kingdom to threaten his rule.

To the south the Sunndi lords were joined by the gray elven king of the Rieuwood and the gnome and halfling clans of the Hollow Highlands who swore fealty to him. Likewise the gnomes and halflings of the lower slopes of the Glorioles joined their lord, the dwarven King of Glorvardum(7), who took part in this broad alliance despite his folks’ traditional distrust of the elves. Their armies massed on the southern banks of the Grayflood and Thelly, poised like twin spears at Kalstrand and Nulbish. In the north the Kingdom of Nehron’s armies advanced into the Lathu lands, pushing Tuerny’s occupying army across the Harp and Lyre Rivers. In turn, each of the forces threatening Tuerny tested him, advancing into territory he controlled. But each time Tuerny himself joined his threatened forces and with his enslaved demon prince was able to turn back the tide. It was a pattern that would be followed through the rest of -269 CY until the rains and cold of fall and winter put an end to the campaigning.

The spring of -268 CY opened with a united assault on Kalstrand between the Ehlissan and Sunndi alliances in combination with a thrust across the Thelly at Strand to block reinforcements from Rel Deven. It was initially successful with the outer walls of Kalstrand being breached. The primarily Zelrad army at Strand kept Tuerny occupied to the north. But the commanders had not counted on the old enmity between elves and dwarves. An argument between one of the numerous nephews of the King of the Iron Hills and an elf of the reclusive Etaini clan(8) of the Rieuwood resulted in the slaying of the latter. This erupted into open battle between the two sides in the camp outside the walls. With those forces occupied, Tuerny’s troops holed up in the citadel launched a sally into the city proper, forcing a retreat by the allies. The infighting in the allied camp ended with the elves and dwarves leaving for their own lands. Facing the prospect of assaulting the city a second time with a reduced force, and hearing of Tuerny’s approach after forcing the Zelrad to retreat at Strand, the Ehlissan and Sunndi lords chose to retreat back across the Thelly and Grayflood.

The next test to Tuerny was an invasion by an alliance of the Torquann, Naelax and Garasteth into the annexed lands of the Cranden, Darmen and Rax clans between the Flanmi and Mikar Rivers. The Torquann attacked from the north through the Grandwood and the Naelax and Garasteth across the Mikar. Tuerny’s rule was especially hated in those lands and the inhabitants rose spontaneously against the Thellari nobles who had been placed over them by the tyrant, cleaving to their exiled princes who accompanied the invading armies. Tuerny reached the main battle between all the assembled forces east of Torrich and as before unleashed Graz’zt. Unfortunately the demon prince was facing foes with two powerful sets of artifacts, the Mace and Talisman of Krevell, belonging to the Torquann, and the Helm and Wand of Lynerden the Spinner, belonging to the Garasteth(9). Defeated in battle, Graz’zt was forced to retreat to the Iron Flask. Shocked by the demon prince’s defeat, Tuerny led his army in retreat over the Flanmi and back into Thalland proper. Though a victory for those arrayed against Tuerny, the conflict led to a breach between the Naelax and Medegi, who had rebuffed entreaties to take part in the invasion in favor of a direct assault on Spiral. That would, they had hoped, let them claim land west of the Mikar. Feeling cheated, the Medegi blamed the Naelax prince, Golganus. In revenge their prince, Balzana broke the bethrothal of his daughter, Damenica to Golganus’s son, In response, Golganus formally withdrew the Naelax from the union of the Medegian Bladelands.

A month later another threat to northern Thalland materialized when a Nehron army attacked Chathold, but the arrival of Tuerny and his demonic slave broke their ranks and they were forced to retreat back across the Harp. This failure sparked rebellion among the Flan tribes who were not happy with the prospect of being under the heel of Oeridian lords, not matter who they were. That conflict would last for years, effectively knocking the Nehron out of the war against Tuerny, except for the occasional skirmish as one side or the other raided across the river.

This was the state of things for years, with Tuerny held at bay within the borders of Thalland, and his various enemies launching attacks as they could muster the strength to do so(10). The end result was always the attackers advancing for a day or two until Tuerny himself could reach the battlefield and unleash Graz’zt. None were able to repeat the success of the Torquann and Garasteth princes against the demon prince and any gains were quickly lost. The old feud between the Torquann and Cranden was mended with marriages between the two houses, much to the jealousy of the Garasteth. In -265 CY an unexpected attack came by sea from the Suloise Onnwi pirates, who sacked Chathold, burning Tuerny’s small naval force and occupying the city for a year before being driven out.

Dretch Demon
art by Brian 'Chippy' Dugan

In Planting of -262 CY the event Graz’zt had been waiting for finally occurred. The curse he had woven onto the Iron Flask at his imprisonment had done its work and with each summoning the demon prince felt the magic that bound him weakening. The Medegi, who had long concentrated their forces on Pardue forced a crossing of the river and captured the city, waiting for Tuerny to appear but he did not.  Cautiously the Bladelanders advanced on Bluelode, and where the river turns due west they encountered a large Thellari force. Preparing for battle they were alarmed to see a smaller force appear at their rear, pouring out of the hills to the north, with Tuerny at its head. The Medegians shifted their vanguard, placing their force of Hextoran blackguards facing Tuerny along with those knights who possessed magic weapons. Smiling in anticipation, Tuerny summoned Graz’zt from the Flask. Facing his former master, the demon prince smiled back, bound no longer. In a moment Tuerny found himself drawn into the mouth of the artifact and Graz’zt drove the stopper home. Then turning to the Medegians he and the Flask disappeared in a flash of light, gone back to his home in the Abyss(11). With their leader disappeared, Tuerny's army broke and fled.

Next Chapter -- The Pre-Aerdy Period: Thalland’s Restoration

Art Notes:

Flan Priestess of Hextor in Bellport No detailed description of Tuerny’s Lathu witch mother survives but many people of almost pure Eastern Flan extraction live in North Province, especially in the hill people of the northwestern part of the Principality of Bellport. This Hextoran priestess of Bellport is typical of that folk, having the lighter copper hue of the Eastern Flan as opposed to the deep brown complexions of the Ehlissans (surviving today only among the Headlanders of Onnwal), and other Western Flan people such as the inhabitants of Geoff and small groups in Keoland, Sterich, and the County of Ulek.

Tuerny the Merciless Surviving descriptions of Tuerny tell of a very handsome man, combining the best features of his Oeridian father and Flan mother. He was noted for never having shown any signs of aging, appearing as a man in his early 30s even though he would have been in his late 50s when he met his end. His image survives solely in a few coins struck during this period and shows the profile of a man with long hair, a closely trimmed beard, and fine aquiline nose.

Iron Flask of Tuerny the Merciless “This artifact is reported to be a small and heavy urn, easily carried in a pack or by hand despite its weight. The Flask is stoppered with a turnip-shaped plug, engraved and embossed with sigils, glyphs, and runes of power so as to contain the spirit therein.” – Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dungeonmaster’s Guide, 1^st edition, p. 158

The Demon Prince Graz’zt The Dark Prince; Prince of Shadows; Lord of Tyrants, Despots, Guile, Debauchery and Seducers; Dark Prince of Azzagrat; Monarch of the Triple Realm; Patron of Succubi and Lamias; King of the Harpies; Duke of the Chosen; Baron of Spies and Traitors; Black Eye of Knowledge; Master Porter of the Gates of Zelatar; Master of the Argent Palace; Warden of Adimarchus.

The Sack of Pontylver This is one of the darkest acts to occur within the history of the Aerdy even compared to the sacking of several cities during the Turmoil Between Crowns of 446-450 CY. It is remembered in all nations of the Flanaess and has become a byword for an act of wanton  destruction and brutality. This painting by famed Keoish artist Enell Radd hangs in the palace of Luschan Sellark VII, Duke of Gradsul and Lord High Admiral of Keoland.

Dretch Demon Legend says that Graz’zt transformed Tuerny into a dretch, the lowest form of demon, and has tormented him over the centuries since, but none can say for sure what happened to the former tyrant.

End Notes:

1. Return of the Eight (RotE) p. 56 “He was born over nine hundred years ago in the region now called Ahlissa.”

2. Outlawry as a punishment was common to both the Oeridians and Suloise, although there is no memory of it in Ehlissan society. Nevertheless, the part of Ehlissa Tuerny lived in was virtually autonomous at the time, ruled by a Zelrad fasstal and subject to Suloise legal codes. He was doubtless judged and punished to be “lovyev es hent vatan” or “forbid fire and water” in the ancient code of the Suloise Empire, i.e. exiled from that territory along with having forfeited all property.

3. Book of Artifacts (BoA) p. 45 “Tuerny was a powerful mage who served as counselor to the king of a small country.”
During a wide-ranging discussion initiated by Rasgon on Canonfire! in 2006 and 2012, Thalland was whittled down to the best guess as to which kingdom Tuerny was serving in before becoming the tyrant he is remembered as.

4. RotE p. 56 “An archmage, fiend-summoner and conqueror, he slew his own king and founded a militant, expansionist tyranny.”

5. BoA p. 45 “Feeling that the king was a weak and foolish ruler, Tuerny and his agents murdered the royal family as they slept and he seized the crown for himself. Using his vast magical powers, Tuerny charmed or enslaved most of the army.”

6. BoA p. 45 “Curse. There is a cumulative 5% chance each time the Flask is used that the tanar'ri will be able to turn on the user. When this happens, the user is taken to the tanar'ri's home plane to serve as a dretch.”

7. Mysterious Places: Glorvardum “The north-eastern reaches of the Glorioles are claimed by the dwur of Glorvardum. Their realm is centred on the peaks and high places of Kilvangath and Bolwhurgirn. Both peaks are riddled with mines, holds and citadels and warded by strong fortifications – a legacy of the ancient dwur/giant wars.”

8. Oerth Journal (OJ) #17 “Gazetteer of the Flanaess - Cities of Aerdy: Kalstrand - City of Gold” p. 22 “Ilurien is an elf of few words. He rarely speaks, except to a few people he respects (generally fellow duelists or mastercraftsmen), and never on the subject of his past. Generally, he tries to avoid coming into contact with other elves, especially those of the Rieuwood. Ilurien is born of a reclusive grey elf clan called the Etaini. One of the central tenets of Etaini culture is that they are the Chosen of Corellon Larethian - as denoted by a red crescent birthmark on the right hand of each of the Etain. In his youth, as well as learning the art of bladeforging and sword play, Ilurien trained to become a lorekeeper - a position of high prestige within the clan.”

9. Ivid the Undying (IVID) p. 63 “The realities of power here center on two magical artifacts the Oeridians brought with them from their lands far to the west many centuries ago. One is the Mace and Talisman of Krevell, an evil priest of great might. The other is the Helm and Wand of Lynerden the Spinner, a mage of equal prowess to Krevell.”

10. BoA p. 45 “Meanwhile, news of Tuerny's atrocities reached neighboring kingdoms. They raised great armies to crush Tuerny and his foul minions. These devastating wars lasted years but resolved nothing.”

11. RotE p. 56 “During one battle, Graz’zt turned the tables and captured Tuerny in the Iron Flask. Tuerny was transformed to a minor demon known as a dretch and taken to the Abyss as a slave.”
BoA p. 45 “Finally Tuerny opened the bottle -- only to have the released creature grab him. A blood-curdling scream filled the air as Tuerny transformed into  foul and hideous monster and vanished, along with the flask and the creature.”