The Count of Castle Rock

Foreword

There isn't a man, woman, or child that has not heard the name Castle Rock whispered in reverent fear. Castle Rock, breaker of armies. Castle Rock, destroyer of the Steel Armada. Castle Rock, dismantler of The Third House. The Ten Days of Darkness is arguably the most important moment in modern history. The rising of Castle Rock is widely considered the end of the middle ages and the beginning of our golden age. In that respect, Castle Rock is less the doom and more so a boon. Yet that blessing heralded decades of famine, the crumbling of society, and the death of our faith. Quite the prolific place, Castle Rock.

There are a multitude of books dedicated to the rise of Castle Rock and subsequent devastation visited upon the land. Theologians, philosophers, and historians study and speculate over the cause, but even the most noted tomes and histories show only a small portion of the vast, multi-layered tapestry. Contrary to what my contemporaries attest, Heathson's sacking of The Black City is not the beginning of The Castle Rock tragedy, but only a pivotal move in a much larger game. To truly comprehend, one must go further back and examine that game's many pieces. Starting with its opening moves: The First Goblin War and The War of Succession. Even these historic events merely scratch the surface. We have to backtrack even further still.

My intention is not to regurgitate what has already been written. What historical writings we've been able to recover from that time period only provide the bare facts; numbers and names. But these don't touch on the human factor.

This work relies heavily on first hand recollections, second hand sources, the military reports of the northern lords, the songs of Lian of Dalluve, and the obscure writings of Anessa The Sage. All of this to expand on the story we all know, and provide a unique examination of the lives of the people who contributed to The rise of Castle Rock. Perhaps, from these truths, we can gain a better understanding of the past, and avoid committing the sins of our ancestors once more. In pursuit of this truth, I begin with those that set things in motion.

-Marcus Howl Lemure, Historian and Bard