With one brief but notable exception, the Lunar Army occupied much of Sartar for the better part of 23 years. This occupation of course impacted Sartarite society and left scars that are still felt.
I think of the occupation as having four distinct periods.
1. The initial period lasted from 1602-1605. This period was marked by the presence of the Red Emperor in Dragon Pass, and by the Lunar’s failed invasion of the Holy Country in 1604. The Orlanthi tribes were largely ignored and encouraged to fight among each other. There were likely some 25,000 or more soldiers in Dragon Pass at this time, concentrated in Furthest, Bagnot, Slavewall, Alda-Chur, Jonstown, Boldhome, and Wilmskirk. That’s a third of the empire’s military force – but the focus was not on petty tribal matters.
During this time, there were no doubt temples raised to the Seven Mothers, monuments built to the glory of the Red Emperor, etc. However, most of this activity was for the benefit of the Lunar occupiers – the occupied Sartarites were considered barbarians. Although the Red Emperor was only present in 1602 and 1604, he and his court were very much involved with affairs in Dragon Pass.
2. 1605-1613. After the Lunar Empire was defeated at Building Wall Battle in 1604, the Red Emperor returned to Glamour with most of his army (and was later murdered by Harrek the Berserk in 1607). His kinsman Euglyptus the Fat (a Yelm Imperator initiate from Raibanth) was appointed Provincial Governor and tasked with finding another route to the Sea.
Euglyptus ruled from 1605-1613 and sought to establish permanent Lunar strongholds in Sartar, and often took direct action against the strongholds of the Orlanth cult. During this period the Telmori destroyed the Maboder Tribe, and in return were defeated by the Lunar general Jomes Wulf. A small Lunar veteran colony was established in the former Maboder territory for Wulf’s veterans. In 1610, Lunar troops aided the Yelmalion Light Son Harvar Ironfist to defeat the Orlanthi Righteous Wind Rebellion, and Ironfist was recognized as an official Lunar ally.
The Lunar army used Dragon Pass as a staging ground for its invasions of Prax. An unsuccessful invasion of Prax was launched in 1608. A more successful invasion took place in 1610, with victories at Moonborth and Pavis. After these campaigns, most of the Lunar army returned to the Lunar Heartlands, although garrisons remained in the cities and other strongholds.
By 1613, Euglyptus believed that Sartar was sufficiently pacified to take decisive action against the Orlanth cult. This quickly resulted in a full-fledged rebellion by most of the tribes and was led by a “Sartar High Council”. All of the cities south of the Creek were taken by the rebellion and Euglyptus was murdered in Alda-Chur (where the Lunar remnants retreated to). Lunar temples and monuments were destroyed, and those Sartarites notably pro-Lunar fled or went into hiding with kin.
3. 1613-1621. A season later, a Tarshite general, Fazzur Wideread, raised a Provincial Army and quickly bottled the Sartarite rebels up in the hills northwest of Jonstown. Rather than confront the rebels in battle, Fazzur recognized a distant member of the House of Sartar as Prince, and made a treaty with him, providing him with protection and support. Most of the rebels abandoned the rebellion, and the remaining leaders were exiled by Fazzur. Fazzur was appointed Governor-General of Dragon Pass by the Red Emperor, and ruled from 1613-1621.
During that period, Fazzur and his chief of Barbarian Affairs, Gordius Silverus, worked hard to placate and pacify the tribes. Active rebellion was brutally crushed, as with the Fire Bull rebellion of 1615 or the Dundealos rebellion in 1618. But otherwise the tribes were allowed to largely manage their own affairs, and friendly tribes were richly rewarded. The Orlanth cult was tolerated as long as it did not interfere with imperial activities. Fazzur even patronized cults able to work pragmatically with the Empire, such as Chalana Arroy, Issaries, and Lhankor Mhy, and Fazzur notably served as the patron of the new Sartar prince, Temertain. Fazzur saw Temertain as a symbol of the continuity and cohesion of the Sartarite people and gained the Prince’s support for the Lunar Occupation.
Some Sartarites joined the Seven Mothers cult during Fazzur’s rule, and many people from the Lunar Heartlands came to Sartar seeking opportunities. Fazzur preferred a small Lunar occupation force, as it was cheaper and less likely to antagonize the tribes. However, in 1619, he was given command of some 20,000 Lunar soldiers to conquer the Holy Country. From 1619-1621, Fazzur was primarily focused on the conquest of Heortland and in supporting his allies in the other Sixths. Although the invasion was quick and successful, the city of Whitewall held out, defeating several assaults at great cost to the Lunar Army.
4. 1622-1625. Soon after the fall of Whitewall in late 1621, the Red Emperor dismissed Fazzur Wideread from his position and appointed Tatius the Bright (a kinsman of Euglyptus the Fat) as Governor-General of Dragon Pass. Although Tatius kept many of Fazzur’s (mainly Provincial) deputies, he appointed others from the Lunar Heartlands.
Tatius’ administration was focused on the war in the Holy Country and on building a new Temple to the Reaching Moon near Old Wind Temple. This would extend the Glowline over all of Dragon Pass and much of the Holy Country and Prax. Tatius brought in numerous crafters and settlers from the Heartlands to work on the new Lunar Temple. Tribal affairs were often neglected and Tatius had no patience and less tolerance for the Orlanth cult (which was anticipated to go into steep decline with the establishment of the new Lunar Temple). Prince Temertain was ignored, his patronage largely ended. Temertain was murdered in 1624, and few seemed to care.
The new Lunar Temple was to be the main magical and military Lunar stronghold in Sartar. The Dundealos valley was given to Lunar settlers.
All available military resources were tied up in the Holy Country, leaving only a few garrisons in Sartar. As a result, tribes found they could act without military reprisal, and many turned to open banditry and even rebellion. In 1624, the Lunar Army returned from its defeat in Dragon Pass, and there were nearly 15,000 soldiers in the theatre – mostly focused on the new Lunar Temple which was to become magically consecrated in Earth Season 1625. Attempted invasions of Dragon Pass from Heortland and Prax were defeated by the Lunar army and its magicians (and Chaotic allies).
For the Lunars in Sartar, this was a strange time of fear and expectation. Banditry was everywhere and small groups were often ambushed even along the royal roads. The Orlanth cult was in open revolt. And yet, most Lunars had absolute confidence that the rebellion would collapse upon the consecration of the Temple of the Reaching Moon, and that Tatius had shrewdly played for time.
Instead, the consecration of the new Lunar Temple was a disaster. Most of the Lunar army, Lunar initiates and priestesses, tribal loyalists, and visiting dignitaries were killed by the True Dragon that awakened beneath the temple. Sartarite rebels quickly overwhelmed the garrisons at Boldhome, and Sartar’s other cities, and a hasty attempt to stop the rebellion by the troops at the Far Place was defeated by the Sartarite militia at Dangerford. And with that, a new chapter in Sartar’s history began.
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If you think about how the occupation was administered, it was mostly military administration. Scribes (from the Irrippi Ontor cult of course) were part of the household of the governor or to that of the various regimental leaders. The various governors had full military and provincial command. They reported to the Provincial Overseer and to the household of the Red Emperor, and that is it.
Orders and communications would be given in New Pelorian, and few locals could read or even understand them. Temples were built to the Lunar gods but they were mainly for the governor and the army.
The Prince of Sartar 1613-1621 maintained the traditional Lhankor Mhy scribes and companions, but after Fazzur was dismissed, this diminished.
So imagine there are the following group involved in the occupation of Sartar:
1. A tiny number of elite officers, priestesses, magicians, etc, and their households. These are the commanders, captains, high and chief priests, and their households, deputies, scribes, etc. They all come from the Lunar Provinces and Heartlands. None are locally recruited.
2. The soldiers and settlers. This is the largest group by far. Many (most?) settlers are veteran soldiers receiving their “rewards” upon retirement. Like the first group, these come from the Lunar Provinces and Heartlands.
3. Locals who are willing to work with the Occupation. Most do it for pay, seeing that the Lunars have won the war and that they have the money to pay. Fewer embrace the Lunar Way, but some do. This includes labourers, crafter, mercenaries, and scribes.
Are the “Enstalos tribe” still a canon part of the history? They are organized as a “tribe” but that was to fit them into future plans for Sartar. They would have been the “tribe” of the New Lunar Temple. If I recall, most were Provincials, likely from Oraya or the West Reaches. I don’t think they are Tarshites at all.
Here’s the Dragon Pass entry:
Dundealos Valley
This dry but fertile valley is watered by rivers that meander through on their way to the arid chaparral of Prax. These rich farming and grasslands have long been the home of the Dundealos Tribe. The Lunar Empire expelled them in 1618 and settled the valley with immigrants from the Lunar Heartlands. These settlers were organized as a “tribe” to accomodate Sartarite culture and law, and was recognized by the Lunar Provincial Government. After the Dragonrise, the Dundealos reclaimed their homeland with the aid of their Pol-Joni allies.
Interestingly, Enstalos is actually a pretty common Sartarite name. No doubt it means something like “of the temple”.
This account does not mention the Great Winter. Is it no longer canon? The Great Winter is mentioned in Character Generation during the family/own history section of the RQG rulebook and the Lightbringers Book.
The Great Winter
After the fall of Whitewall (Darkness Season 1621), initiates of Orlanth and Ernalda throughout Dragon Pass, Holy Country, and Prax could not contact their deities (ie they could not use Rune Magic), nor did Orlanth’s Ring appear in the sky. The Lunars claimed that this was because “Orlanth was dead” – however, the priests and spirits of Orlanth claimed this was because Orlanth was in the underworld.
A few weeks later, the Sacred Time ceremonies throughout the area failed to complete. Winter did not end. Many turned to the other Lightbringers or Earth Goddesses for support, a few even looked to the Seven Mothers for aid.
This winter finally ended in Earth Season 1622, coinciding with the defeat of the Lunar Army by the Hendriki rebels at the Battle of the Auroch Hills. After that, initiates of Orlanth and Ernalda in area could again call upon their deities, although Orlanth’s Ring still did not appear in the sky until the Battle of Pennel Ford in 1625.
The main impact of the Great Winter on the Lunar Occupation is that it utterly and completely antagonised the Orlanth cult, which was in open revolt. Pragmatic toleration as during Fazzur Wideread was no longer seen as possible by Orlanth cult leaders.
Ernalda is neutral to the Seven Mothers. What is her relationship to the Red Goddess? Ernalda is neutral towards the Red Goddess.
In truth, unless the cult actively despoils the Earth (Thed, Pocharngo, Zorak Zoran, etc.), Ernalda is usually just Neutral towards it. Exceptions to this include Eurmal (to whom she is Hostile) and Hon-eel (who she hates).