A few thoughts on Pavis and Prax circa 1625-1626. As we all know, New Pavis now has a king – Argrath Whitebull – who is backed up by the White Bull cult, a new Pavis Royal Guard, and many Sartarite and Wolf Pirate adventurers and mercenaries. The new king’s main source of wealth is the treasure he took from the Lunars when he took the city from them (who in turn took much of it from the Rubble).
Think of this as Samarkand or Balkh, with a ruler backed by the nomadic tribes. Of course this changes the nomadic dynamic as well – as New Pavis is now a source of prestige goods for the nomadic khans. Orlanth, Storm Bull, and Waha are in ascendancy as are the Bison and Impala Tribe, while the Sable Tribe have much to prove to the fellow nomads.
The next generation will be an era of much change for the Praxians. Many Praxians will fight for the White Bull in Dragon Pass and Peloria, and many will never return to Prax. New cults appear, some old cults will decline (at least comparatively) and others will gain a new ascendancy. Praxian khans will serve as companions and advisors to an Orlanthi Prince, and the Lightbringers and the Praxians become associated to an extent not seen since the First Age.
Argrath’s right to the title of “King” likely rests on
- Acclamation by the Orlanth cult as “Rex”
- Acknowledgement by the Pavis cult
- Descent from Sartar (and thus distant kinship with Dorasar)
- And of course, by right of taking New Pavis from the Lunar Empire.
Argrath’s motivation for liberating Pavis is a combination of:
- It was his home for many years and he has allies and friends there,
- He needed to take Pavis to cement the support of the Praxian tribes,
- He couldn’t leave a Lunar stronghold in his rear,
- It makes a good springboard for Dragon Pass.
If his main source of wealth is loot from the Lunars, that’s not an ongoing source of wealth. And looting the Rubble is a very unreliable one. such is the nature of conquests. But it is likely that the Lunar treasury (especially given that it was hoarded by the impecunious Halcyon) was more than enough to reward Argrath’s followers.