Tarvam

"I do hope Fyo is alright...then again, twelve-thousand mina is a paltry sum. That is chump change for Fyo; he should be able to pay off his own ransom and not burden the house so!"

By public bill, a notice is nailed to the walls of Kvaz, letting all of its denizens know. "Deep within the Crow's Nest, the Crowsmoot adjourned to name its Patriarch and Paramount. By a near unanimous vote, the Lord Patriarch of House Carrion was dubbed Tuvya I Sigismundovic Carrion. He shall resume his duties and act as bearer of the boyar cap, keeper of Carrion relics, and fatherly figure to all Carrions. The Karovic, or Crow's Eye, was named Siguine Barrow, son of Ostromir the First, by the Lord Patriarch Tuvya I Sigismundovic Carrion. By a gripping one vote lead, the Lord Paramount of the Raevir peoples was dubbed Stephen I Sigismundovic Carrion. When members of the delegation clamored for a count including absentee votes, the lead shifted to seven votes in favor of Stephen versus five votes in favor of the strongest rival claimant, Fyodor IV. With a Patriarch and Paramount claimant firmly dubbed to represent our interests, we can hope for reconciliation and reunification upon the horizon with the Empire of Man." OOC: To those curious, the non-absentee votes. These are not revealed IC

"Where is the seal of the House Patriarch, Tuvya Carrion? I hope Fyo is not playing one of his tricks again..." Later, Sig notices Tuvya's seal. "Ah. Well, the high elves are intellectuals and hold vast tracts of knowledge. To let that go to Orcish plunder would go to waste. I will not fight, but I trust Tuvya to do what is right."

A herald in Vekaro square informs the denizens of Oren of recent happenings. "Hear ye, Hear ye! Of the 27th of Malin's Welcome, the Decterum has pledged to the cause of House Carrion! May their union be prosperous and true!"

A notice is sent throughout the human realm "As of the 1st of Malin's Welcome, a ceasefire has been declared between the Lord Patriarch of House Carrion and Lord Paramount of Mount Augustus, Tuvya I Carrion, and His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Peter Chivay in proceedings determined at the court of His Imperial Majesty on the 1st of Malin's Welcome. For one elven week there shall be no conflict between those sworn to the Empire of Man and various loyalists groups spearheaded by Lord Tuvya. This ceasefire shall be established in order to further talks and relations between these respective groups in hopes of reconciliation and eventual reunification. Written at the hand of Siguine Barrow, Scribe to Lord Tuvya I Carrion. "

As they say... [tinfoiling intensifies]

Seated from the battlements of Vekaro, the young Sig watched the long battle from afar. While Mt. Augustus stood as a testament to the Raevir people, never faltering, with each passing hour the besiegers thinned and thinned to lines of partisans and split commands from various Zion leaders. Siguine never condoned bloodshed, but as his lordly uncle "The Goldcrow" led the charge and liberated the city of Vekaro from besiegers hands to end the conflict, he could only chant the old folk tune in awe of his people's resistance. "Carry on, Carrion Till the war is nearly won!"

Siguine plans to attend. He prepares rations for his second pilgrimage to the holy sites of Anthos.

"For what purpose do we hold such vendettas upon another? The Lucienists were god-fearing men who warded off heretical interests in Oren; the Carrions were reformists who dealt away with the bloat of bureaucracy and the fractures in humanity and kept the balance of crown, nobility, and commoners in harmony. Together and united, it made Oren a strong nation, a feared nation. If there were issues or corruptions that weakened this delicate balance, then they should have been made known instead of tucked away for some Casus Belli to butcher a king and slander his lineage. Now we live in a country where four men hold a fourth of a crown, none with the ultimate power I feel Oren desires. It is too early to judge this new government, but it is also too early to judge the remainder of the Raevir people and butcher them for their loyalty towards their champions. "

"Madness...all this bickering is simple divide and conquer strategy instituted by foreign kings for foreign interest. William Horen naturally still preserves a strong claim to our kingdom. He was its ruler only a few decades ago. However, just because one has the blood of exalted "divines" curdling in their veins does not grant them the mandate to rule. Then every son of Sigismund, Owyn, Horen I, and Godfrey would hold strong claims; altogether that may encompass over half the nobility, and a good deal of commoners! Rather, we should look to the mandates of our exalted, or divine mandates of succession. It has been human tradition since the days of Horen the First for our monarchy to pass through blood in a designated matter based on succession laws. Every exalted has practiced this tradition and to ignore it is to ignore their teachings. A king may abdicate but never should succession be withheld from a rightful legal heir. I understand some may lack confidence in his reign, but let him rule and I believe our realm shall bear witness to justice and peace. If not, war and turmoil. Two sides of a coin."

Siguine bites his lip; it seems this answer has stung for the young teenager. Another back and forth stemming from the hubris of youth. "Humanity has consorted with the heathenry in the past of course, a heathen is not inherently an evil being, merely misguided in belief. But never has it been acceptable in what we define as the noble art of warfare to ally with pagans to slaughter god-fearing men in a war of conquest. And this notion being propagated by an order sworn to protect those faithful and unyielding to our God almighty? The Grand Master of the Order of St. Lucien repelled an invasion known as the Tarus Invasion akin to the one you claim is brewing in your keeps before when the Order was but a fledgling band of Adunians; tis scribed in the account of Battle of Post-Exodus Anthos: Volume I. Yet, when Jack Rovin is in the boots of the Tarus, it becomes acceptable solely due to the will of Zion. A holy order that does not recognize the fellow dignity of man is a holy order doomed to fail. The betrayal of Oren will only result in an eternal tempest of chaos and warfare, push and pull, with the smallfolk receiving the worst end of it. Put the god fearing working class to the sword for their supposed crime in following their king by law. Sully the name of my father's house, but tell me where were you when the same family liberated Kaedrini soil from Adunia and united the five kingdoms. Sully my words based upon my youth, but this boy has elicited two responses from yourself; clearly I have piqued your interest and provided some valid platform of contention. "

A short notice is sent in response. "But if the supposed "greater" party rides on the curtails of a foreign legion hell-bent on ending Oren hegemony in the world sphere, are they truly greater? It would be difficult to reform any semblance of Horen's traditions when every citizen would know its nation was born on the backs of pagan Orcs whom butchered countless in their conquest of Salvus, heretical dwarves whom aspired to plant a half-elven king to our throne, and elves of heathenry whom the valiant Rose of old spent decades warring. And further to dub it a theocracy? Ludicrous, for it betrays the very nature of the faith to consort with infidels. To claim the unification of heathenry who would cheer in delight at the end of human strength with holy orders whom back out of united pagan invasions upon mankind is the Creator's Will... Alas, your answer has been unsatisfactory, stranger. I hope your brothers-at-arms can present a true case for their cause or hopefully expel these rumors as falsehoods. Humanity has only just begun to recover from the atrocity which is the Exodus; for what purpose would we undo the reconstruction? It seems not that, if this is to be so, that the Lucienists are acting by the will of God, but rather by the will of Zion whom give them the support they need in exchange for betraying their mother kingdom whom granted them shelter and resources in their fledgling days. Ambition is a deadly thing and on some fateful nights I revel in my bastardy as never will I indulge in the madness which is the pursuit of crowns and thrones." ((Cracker plays on Exodus now Temp. He says he misses you and you should stop being an LotC Apologist. You guys did an exodus, remember?))

A letter appears to the Lucienist Hold; it bears a seal of pure white. "To the Poor Fellows of Horen, Soldiers of God and stalwarts of St. Lucien, Forgive me for my seal. I am but a bastard boy of the late Ostromir the First, a Barrow with no formal sigil; I cannot claim my lordly fathers and I would not sully a letter sent to pious men regarding the status of my mother. While my blood may be tainted with the stains of bastardy , my mind is as astute as any and I see an alarming threat in the division of our Church and State. More than my loyalties to my blood-kin, my Uncle King Franz I, my Oreni peoples, I am a man of God, who seeks to insure the safety of his chosen race whom were granted the blessings of the seven skies. And naturally, these tensions between the crown and the church have splintered to fine hairs and threatened the fabric which makes our cultures and traditions. I will not condone my Uncle's actions and as we are well aware he has issued a declaration of regret. He has once more accepted the righteous High Pontiff yet this seems not to have quelled any carnal rage between your Order and the men of Oren. I have only heard rumors and whispers in our capital in the Fringe; but rumors and whispers are all a man needs to hear before he spends sleepless nights with only truth as his sedative. "They have consorted with the Alliance! They march by the Deep Cold!" "They seek to overthrow our king, backed by the pagans whom slew Heinrik, God Rest His Soul!" "After all Oren has done for the Lucienists, pardoning their Adunians and granting them land, giving them recruits and soldiers, patronizing them...and this!" These are what I have heard on the streets of our capital. Whispers which dictate the Order of St. Lucien seeks to overthrow the King by law and assert themselves over our country. I am but a fresh man of fifteen years, but the mere thought of such travesty has brought nightmares of my youth all over again. As an aspirant of the Faith and servant of God, for what purpose would these betrayal suffice? If your claim is that he is a king not crowned by your High Pontiff, ergo, dubbing him illegitimate, then how can you consort with four other soverigns, King Syrio, Rex Urik, King Wulfgar, and Justicar Darius, all whom not only were never coronated under our righteous Castus, but are active defenders of paganry and heathenry! If it is retribution you seek, retribution for whatever sins you feel the crown has delivered upon your order than engage in conquest, butcher righteous followers of the Faith to appease your bloodlust, take Oren as you will, and play by the fiddle of foreign monarchs. You will only have divided humanity even further, severing the tie of Church and State. The earth will shake with the bones of our ancestors whom roll about in agony at the sight of a united Oren split once more between two distinct nations; one of nobility and one of clergy as few Orenians whom swear to King Franz I would serve a human nation which has violated mankind's tradition in governance, the monarchy and its feudalism. And this is all what I am sure that the Alliance plans, a coalition designated solely to cripple the power of Oren. In history, the only occasions were humanity lost its hegemony in world politics is when it was divided into separate kingdoms, whom would squabble while the uruk and dwarf drank and laughed. My uncle taught me well of the dangers of Asulon; Hanseti,Renatus, Salvus, Seventis, and more all squabbling amongst another as spring chickens. Surely you see this ploy, god-fearing soldiers, to divide our faith, our will, our resolve to stand together as Orenians and betray the Exalted's wishes of a united human peoples. For in the name of what is holy in this world, do not betray our lawful king for Alliance shills! Without reconciliation, humanity will be split asunder and the realm of man torn up once more in personal ambition and blind zealotry. With reverence, Siguine Barrow At the bottom of the parchment lays the return address if the Lucienists choose to send a response.

Siguine unfortunately misses the proclamation of his lordly father, however, he hears the Lucienist man muttering to himself and presents a point to debate with. "So then those supposed kings, dwarven, orcish, alrasian, elven, of the alliance whom your order consorts to overthrow my Uncle with are false kings, illegitimate in the eyes of your order, as well...so then why do you only lash out against King Franz while working with foreign fraudulent kings? I have only heard whispers, but to ally with similarly ill-crowned pagan kings to usurp a rightful, god-fearing king? He has rescinded his claims to the False Pontiff, begged forgiveness to the High Pontiff, and is still the blood successor to the Oreni throne. I sincerely worry that the zealotry of our clergy will lead them to proclaim war against our king by blood, and this war will bear no health end as the tempests of Alliance and Lucienist warmongering will bleed Oren as a butcher's cleaver upon a sow. This war is claimed to be of one which is to instill stability upon Oren; but how can stability be brought to the commonfolk through sword, blood, and fire? Disputing the succession of kings will only weaken Oren, and weakening the only sovereign which follows the faith will diminish the moral authority of Horen the First's Church. Being played on the strings of foreign kings to their tune will bear no fortune to us sons of Horen, friend."

"It seems Snow's Maiden has blessed Uncle Franjo with a crown. That'd be the first maiden to bless him with anything; but I do wonder if his rule shall be as his Pontificate or as his carrack deck."

Siguine prefaces his morning prayers with a solemn silence in reverence to his fallen cousin once removed. In his journals, he writes a small piece in honor of the warrior king. "A martyr of pagan invasions and a warrior whom melded the North traditions of Hansetia and Raev. I've only to know of your exploits through tale and text; a shame I did not meet the People's King, whom never bore his crown but always lead the charge. Rest now and indulge in the seven skies, free from the bondage of royalty."

Crashing waves and the spittle of sea-foam were all that the two barrow-borns knew as home. So when the calls of "Godani Jest Wielki; Abresi ahead!", "Land Hoy!", "At last, the motherland" rang from the countless sailors of Uncle Franz's retinue, gripping knots twisted and tightened in the young Siguine's stomach. Anton, on the other hand, could barely contain his joy at the distant flecks of greenery across the long sea. The carrack of Franz-Josef heading ashore, both barrows merely mouthed the word "motherland" as the ship embarked closer and closer to the ports of Oren and countless memories of their sea-faring adventures flooded in nostalgia. The two barrow-borns were not of Franz-Josef Carrion's stock as he loved to remind them. He was merely Uncle Franjo, a distant yet surrogate father figure whom was the closest thing to family the Barrows had. They knew their lineage quite well nonetheless. Siguine was the royal bastard; the baseborn boy of Ostromir the First of Name, progenitor of Carrion Absolutism and the first Vochnik to sit on the Renatian throne. His pedigree curried some favor with Uncle Franjo; Siguine's bastardy was overlooked in lieu of the royal blood which trickled in the blue inklings sprawled across his pale complexion and every sailor on deck knew his status above his counterpart. Anton was the Barrow's Barrow; the bastard of the legitimized bastard Diedrik Carrion the Second and one of his courtiers. Both were made fatherless only months after their births, and both were sold to Franz-Josef for a hefty sum; Siguine was purchased for two thousand coin while Anton for five thousand. Their formative years were spent nursed by a young sister of the Faith whom Franz-Josef deliberately chose as the milk mother; a woman who would not be tempted nor taken by the myriad of carnal desires which sailors at sea often had. The notion of these boys being fed on milk most holy only added to their mystique on the ship deck. While Siguine was given a strict and thorough education befitting a master theologian, Anton was more neglected. Franz never expected nor valued the boy to be worth his blood as Crow, but as if to put his uncle to shame, Anton quickly learned from the sailing crew the fine art of dueling; the sell-swords on deck from all across the world were in awe of the boy's grasp in combat. An exemplary swordsman and genius academic grew close despite their distant blood as they regarded another as bratya, brothers, with Uncle Franjo guiding them in their perilous voyages in pursuit of ancient Raevir heirlooms long gone. As the ship made dock and fanfare arose on Anthosian soil in return of Franz-Josef, two boys in fine garb were overshadowed by the prince's return. However, perhaps in time they would make a name for themselves, the twin Crows born of the barrows. OOC: Just a post introducing my character and World_Hopper's characters. Normally I would think there would be no need, but since we are related to the royal family I figure it would be good to write up a quick post. In conjecture with Esterlen's post of course.

A day of fasting and reflection was to be in order as Siguine Barrow holds vigil to mourn a needless loss under the altar of God. While pangs of doubt rippled through the youth's heart as he thought of a baby boy dying in its first breaths, unable to witness the joys of life, Siguine reaffirmed his faith by trusting God in his divine plan. Mayhaps the boy would distract his lordly father from committing fully to the war efforts of the realm ensuring countless more lives lost in needless tactical error, or the boy would grow to be wicked and most foul, a godless heathen or wasteful adulterer; Siguine did not know, but he remained steadfast all the same.

Out-Of-Character Information The simplest section of the application! Simply answer these questions so we can get to know you a bit better. What’s your Minecraft Account Name?: - bobtarvam How old are you?: - 18 What time-zone do you live in?: - EST Have you ever roleplayed before - if you have, how?: - I've roleplayed for a while now. I started on CivRP, an old MC server and have dabbled with smaller ones. I took a long break but after talking to a friend I feel like LotC may a good thing to revisit. Have you been on any other roleplaying servers?: - As I said earlier, the main notable one was CivRP. The others I cant really recall the names. Have you applied to this server before? (Please link past applications): - No How did you hear about us?: - Referral from a friend What do you think the server will be like? - Dope and fun and friendly community. Have you read and agreed to the rules?: - Yup. What’s your favourite rule / the rule you agree with the most?: - No cybering; I'm not interested in that kind of roleplay and I'm glad the server isn't about it either. Definitions This is simply so that we can get an understanding of how much you know about roleplaying. Feel free to Google the answers, but make sure that you write the reply in your own words, not another website / person's! What is roleplaying?: - Roleplaying is assuming the role of a character in a medium and acting out as he would within his physical limitations. What’s metagaming?: - Metagaming is to use OOC information in IC in an abusive way; such as metagaming a location. What’s powergaming?: - Powergaming is when you act of your characters limitations by emoting or performing things that are impossible or doing unrealistic acts. In-Character Information Now you actually make your character - be creative but stay reasonable! Make sure they make sense and that they follow lore. Try to come up with a character that you actually want to play. What’s your character called?: - Siguine "Sigi" Barrow. What race are they (and sub-race)?: - Human What sex are they?: - Male How old are they?: - 15 Give us a brief description of their life - their story, childhood, family (Include server lore when writing): - Siguine was born out of wedlock; a poor woman's folly and a princeling's passion had culminated into a black-haired boy born with the particular stain of bastardy. While his mother, a castle wench of modest beginnings, would have been far better casting the young babe to the sea for the realm's minnow to nibble upon, her delusions of grandeur consumed her to believe that she would be rewarded for her fornication and her act as womb for a royal bastard. For two years, she toiled to tend to her babe, fatherless, and with only her meager source of income. She never chose to name the boy, surprisingly, rather waiting for the day that the prince would return and they'd come together to name it so. It was an arduous time for our love-struck sweeping girl, but alas, fate did chose to reward her for opening her legs to a wicked man's fancy. A cloaked figure whom went by the name of Sigi Reuven had stumbled upon her apartment in the capital with a proposal; 2,000 mina for the newly weaned boy. Flabbergasted by the royal sum, her materialistic desires damned her sense of motherhood, and alas the boy was sold. As the boy grew, Sigi Reuven became Uncle Franjo, a shrewd, calculating, mule of a man whom never took kindly to wastrels and vagabonds. An unflexing sense of justice was what he inherited in their long travels at sea along with the truth of his father and a passion for theology. The young Barrow became an enlightened scholar in tutelage with Uncle Franjo. They sailed across sea and ocean for a decade and three years, before porting back to Abresi. Making their way to the Fringe, the young Siguine eagerly awaits to serve his uncle and his nation as a stalwart scholar and intellectual. What are they like (personality)?: - Siguine holds a genuine love of mankind; while an intent Raeviphile, he is fascinated with both the morality and history of humanity overall. Patient, understanding, and clement, Sangus is a virtuous person; a neutral good alignment. However, he has become accustomed to violence in his time and is not afraid to wield a mace which doles in retribution to those of poor character; he has inherited some of his surrogate father's sense of duty and justice. What are their ambitions?: - Unyielding to God and fervent in his faith, he aims to adopt the clerical robes and serve his country with cross and quill as servant to the Creator. Do they have any special skills?: - Well-educated and well traveled, Siguine is a model scholar and adept at scribe work. He also is fairly confident and can act as an eloquent speaker. What are their weaknesses?: - Particularly young and idealistic, Siguine holds utopian ideals which may not reflect well with the grims of society. Often he becomes too stubborn to compromise with due to said attitude. Physically, Siguine was always a sickly child and it reflects in his meager physical form and poor health. Siguine also holds a particular inner-self loathing due to his bastardy and inferiority in sight of God. Furthermore, bastardy impacts most by instilling a deep-seated inferiority complex. Siguine is always reminded of his parents infidelity through his very birth, and his constant attempts to rise above it may result in dangerous ambitions. Give us a description of how they look (not a screenshot yet!)?: - Siguine is of middling stature of 5'7''. Comely and young, his face is almost radiant from piety and humility. He often dresses in garb befitting a man of wealth, yet he does not flaunt it unnecessarily; a tasteful touch of burgundy and velvet befitting a man more than a serf but less than a lord; a royal bastard. Anything else you want to say about them?: - Nope! Please give us a screenshot of your character’s skin: -