5001-HârnWorld/3rd Edition/43

In the west of Hârn, several states rose and fell in the wake of Lothrim’s empire but none achieved any degree of permanence until the fertile Thard Valley gave birth to the Corani Empire. The region’s heart was inhabited by the Corani tribes who, just more than four centuries ago, were united under a warrior king called Corthir. His new kingdom extended barely 20 leagues east and west of Coranan and was confined to the north bank of the Thard.

At first, the empire faced only relatively barbaric tribes in its drive to expand. Kings Kusem and Lobir awarded land to trusted relatives and faced more of a threat from home grown assassins than from the barbarians. Only the Merdi, the federated tribes west of the River Gomisen, were able to halt the Corani armies. By the time of Lobir’s death, the kingdom’s western border was at the Gomisen, its eastern was near Telen, and it held some lands south of the Thard.

The Hefiosa Campaign
The fourth Corani king, Raelan, mounted a major campaign against the Hefiosa region where the natives, augmented by brigands, had long been troublesome. The early winter of 365 trapped Raelan’s army deep within the mountains and, by spring, its much depleted ranks were no match for the locals. The canny barbarian leader, Adjak, harassed the Corani army with nightly raids; Raelan’s retreat turned into a rout and he was killed.

Arosta the Conqueror
The disaster might have proved fatal to the kingdom were it not for Raelan’s young son, Arosta. The tribes of Hefiosa flocked to the banners of the victorious Adjak, who led them from the mountains intent on laying waste to Coranan itself. The tribesmen were unstoppable and it was only their delays to loot that gave Arosta the time to raise a new army. At the battle of Osten in 367, Arosta inflicted a crushing defeat on Adjak. For the next two years, the tribes were subjected to a bloody series of campaigns, culminating in their near total extinction by 369. Adjak disappeared without trace and Hefiosa was annexed.

His northern flank secure, Arosta advanced up the Thard to the shores of Lake Benath into the region inhabited by the Shira, who were easily defeated at the Battle of the Source in 372. A similar fate befell the Komii and, by 373, Arosta had better than doubled the size of his realm. After a few years consolidation, Arosta completed his conquest of the Thard Valley by defeating the Merdi in 377.

Arosta’s son, Malian, concentrated on consolidation. He was the first Corani ruler to take the title of “emperor” and founded the cities of Merethos (now named Golotha) and Shiran. Malian is also credited with the creation of the Corani civil service, an organization that had no rival in sophistication or complexity.

Kobar succeeded his father at the age of 23. He expanded the empire south to the River Eryn but attempts to conquer Peran were less successful. A trail was blazed north and a fort was built at Kustan in 414. Several defeats were inflicted on the wild tribes of Peran but still they rose in repeated and bloody rebellions, earning the name “the Scarlet Ribbon” for the trail that led to Kustan. Peran would prove to be an immense drain on the empire’s resources. Despite this, internal economic development was dramatic. A population explosion brought new lands under cultivation and trade prospered.

The Kingdom of Aleathia
During the rise of Corani power, a rival kingdom developed south of the River Eryn in southwest Hârn. Around 356, the Aleta tribes were unified to build their own kingdom, named after its capital city of Aleath. The Kingdom of Aleathia was able to resist Corani expansions southwards for almost a century.

The Corani Succession Crisis
When the eighth Corani emperor, Laketta, died heirless after an ignoble reign, a complex power struggle ensued. The current king of Aleathia, an ambitious and impetuous ruler called Xuaka, sought to take advantage of Corani weakness. Xuaka had spent 14 years expanding Aleathia along the disputed west coast and saw himself as a man of destiny. In 443, he invaded the southern domains of the Corani and seized Heroth. The invasion was the catalyst needed to solve the problem of the Corani succession. The empire’s pragmatic nobility promptly chose a soldier called Mejenes for the throne.

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