D&D General All About Cormyr

[dazzlerdal]

Moving on from the Men of the Basilisk to the Purple Dragons of Cormyr. I realise they arent exactly a clandestine secret organisation, but they are quite large and they are potentially an organisation that PCs can fight or join. So first thought / question. When were the purple dragons founded. I realise that there has been an armed forces in Cormyr for a long time, but has it always been called the Purple Dragons, and when did Cormyr first have a centralised army under the control of the Crown (typically feudal realms raise levies and require nobles to field an agreed number of soldiers from their household, its a big reason why a nation creates nobility). I have a few thoughts. It seems like King Duar fought Magrath the Minotaur with 20 companions that were known as the Purple Dragons. I reckon that name remained in history but was not applied to the military for many years after. In this time it is possible that the Crown had a permanent military force larger than most noble houses but only really big enough to guard Suzail and the Crown estates. Now by 900 DR, King Galaghard leads an army (known as the Glory of Cormyr) against the forces of the Witch King. This is a fight for survival on home soil and is the kind of driver necessary for the creation of a national army (nobles tend to automatically resist any attempts for the King to create a large military force under his direct control). The fact that the army has a special name says to me that it was a special creation to fight the Witch King and an achievement of note. After the war it would be easier to keep the army going and thus keep a permanent national army of considerable size. By the time of the Kingdom of Esparrin it seems clear that Cormyr has a national military that secures and patrols its territory, although its size is still up for debate. Then in 1286 DR we have King Salember the Red Dragon battling the forces of Crown Prince Rhigaerd which are known as the Purple Dragons, i'm assuming King Salember named his army the Red Dragons. I would peg this as the official date of the naming of the Purple Dragons as the armed forces of Cormyr. Anyone have any thoughts or firm dates regarding the Purple Dragons

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

A basilisk with black dragon blood is a dracolisk.

 

[dazzlerdal]

Thats a good point, i think the original idea for the Men of the Basilisk was written before dracolisks were a thing, and it does say that it only has black dragon ancestry so i'm not certain how much black dragon is in it or how much is needed to make a dracolisk but i will change it to be one anyway.

 

[dazzlerdal]

So, looking at the succession. Gorauna must have been some kind of evil witch, creating this purple throat plague that killed half the dynasty and killing nearly a score of kings and queens herself. Did anyone know she was murdering kings and queens that she didn't like for whatever reason. Also noted that prior to King Galaghard I, every king or queen was short lived (those that Gorauna didn't slay that is). Following Galaghard I (excluding Galaghard II and Draxius), all the kings live until they are over 80 with a few exceptions. Can longevity magically be passed on from parent to children, do they somehow persist in the body to be inherited by offspring, or was someone else trying to keep the obarskyrs alive as long as possible (while someone else tries to kill them, I'm aware that after Draxius is around the time the Xraunrarr appeared in Cormyr but they deliberately avoided the royal family to preserve their secrecy). Did Gorauna actually die, and why didn't she become a ghazneth. Perhaps she is still around as some kind of spirit.

 

[dazzlerdal]

Trawling through the sourcebooks page by page.

Havent yet come across a dividing region within the city of suzail except for the Court Precinct which obviously holds the royal court.

I'm thinking of having the docks, east side, west side, and the hub in the centre.

Came across a few things. The office of lord Chamberlain was created to combat vigilantes exploiting plague times and burning down plague houses and coming back later to sift through the ashes for gold.
The purple throat plague was during gorauna time and I figure after her death and the chaos of her meddling there would be a period of growth and the establishment of order. So I'm thinking the office of Lord Chamberlain is made during the reign of Thargreve the Greater.

Next up was the Hall of Heroes in the Royal Court that holds the pitchfork of a farmer that defended an early queen of suzail from orcs. I find that orcs and goblinoids are used interchangeably in older books and Hlundadim attacked cormyr during the reign of King Moriann so perhaps it was his queen the farmer defended. It doesnt say whether either the queen or the farmer survived, I'm inclined to think not.

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

Can longevity magically be passed on from parent to children, do they somehow persist in the body to be inherited by offspring, or was someone else trying to keep the Obarskyrs alive as long as possible (while someone else tries to kill them, I'm aware that after Draxius is around the time the Xraunrarr appeared in Cormyr but they deliberately avoided the royal family to preserve their secrecy).

Those are some good ideas.

Another to add: There may have been more than one Obarskyr employing longevity magic who simply took on the guise of an offspring after the offspring reached maturity.

The offspring may then have been spirited away by the Mage Royal of the time, there to found a line of Obarskyrs in secret, their ancestors ready to be called upon should the Royal line in Cormyr proper be snuffed out.

 

[dazzlerdal]

Those are some good ideas.

Another to add: There may have been more than one Obarskyr employing longevity magic who simply took on the guise of an offspring after the offspring reached maturity.

The offspring may then have been spirited away by the Mage Royal of the time, there to found a line of Obarskyrs in secret, their ancestors ready to be called upon should the Royal line in Cormyr proper be snuffed out.

Hmm, i'm not certain but i think Azoun and his brothers and daughters are cited as being the last living members of the House of Obarskyr. However, that doesnt mean that belief can't be incorrect.

I did just read somewhere that it is against the Royal Word to resurrect a reigning monarch, to do so is considered high treason. Those monarchs that have been restored to life are gelded and rendered magically sterile. Those that escape such fates are often hunted and killed. That doesn't mean however that at least one hasn't escaped.

I do wonder about Gorauna and why she didnt become a Ghazneth - she definitely betrayed the realm of Cormyr over and over again. Perhaps she did not die, or perhaps she remained somewhere between life and death

 

[dazzlerdal]

Up to the Purple Dragons.

I've noted that there are full time professional soldiers, and shorter term soldiers ("short swords" i believe they are called), and presumably part time members as well. Mixing this with information about the veteran companies and militias i've come up with the following.


When someone joins the Purple Dragons they are most often given the "Short Sword", a term of service lasting 3 years, with an option to extend to 5 years. During this time they serve as guards to non-essential locations (walls, gates, local lords, etc), engage in patrols (around the settled areas), and serve alongside veteran Purple Dragons (see below)

Those that serve with distinction and survive 4 or more combats are given the "Long Sword". At which point they become permanent members of the Purple Dragons. These members form the core of the Purple Dragons soldiery (some 4000 strong) and are given to guard essential locations (High Horn, Citadel of the Purple Dragon, Royal Court, Royal Palace), they also patrol the border regions where combat is likely (west reach, east reach, etc).

Lastly are the part time members (known as the "Wooden Swords) which form the militia. These serve a tenday a month, or 3 months continuous service in a year. When active they make up the majority of the Watch in a settlement (supported by Short Swords).

 

[Eyes of Nine]

So i'm working on compiling all the lore of Cormyr together in one place, and then adding little bits as i go along - a truly mammoth task.

Are you also considering putting this on the new (or maybe revived is a better term) EnWorld wikis?

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

I did just read somewhere that it is against the Royal Word to resurrect a reigning monarch, [snip]

These rules came about in 1188 DR, yes? Plenty of time for Royal blood to quietly travel into the wider Realms.

In response to one of my questions, Ed replied that Cormyr has experimented more than once with stasis magic. Who's to say they didn't lose (or rather, forget) a royal or two along the way?