Once, the greatest kingdom in the North belonged to a king who genuinely cared for his people.

His enemies could not defeat what he had built. So they taught the world to hate him.

Now five kingdoms occupy his lands. His former subjects curse his name. His treasury is nearly empty.

And 183 warriors still refuse to abandon him.

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I / THE FALLEN NORTH
A kingdom does not die when its walls fall.

Vardheim once stretched from the western fjords to the inland mountain passes. Its granaries endured famine. Its harbors welcomed foreign merchants. Its roads connected clans that had spent generations killing one another.

King Eirik Halvardsson achieved what other rulers could not: prosperity without ruling through terror.

He listened to fishermen, respected his soldiers, kept his treaties, and treated his people as something more than subjects.

His greatest mistake was believing his neighbors would respect that.

II / FIVE CROWNS, ONE LIE
They could not make him a monster. So they made the world believe he was one.

Five neighboring kingdoms feared Vardheim's growing influence. Their rulers financed raids beneath stolen banners, forged royal commands, bribed witnesses, and paid storytellers to spread accusations of atrocities the king had never ordered.

Trade collapsed. Allies defected. Villages rebelled. Foreign armies crossed the borders promising liberation.

One by one, Vardheim's territories fell.

The people who once loved their king began celebrating his defeat.

And the truth became the most dangerous story anyone could tell.

III / THE LAST BANNER
183 warriors. Four settlements. One crown.

On the western coast stands Hrafnsund, a timber fortress overlooking the last harbor still flying Vardheim's banner.

Two fishing villages, Saltvik and Brunna, remain loyal. So does the mountain settlement of Keld.

The treasury is thin. The food stores are dwindling. Winter approaches.

Beyond these lands, five kingdoms occupy what was once Vardheim. Its old capital, Veyrholm, now flies an enemy banner.

Yet the surviving king still holds court, hears petitions, protects his people, and wears the same crown.

IV / THE FIVE KINGDOMS
The North has five rulers who would rather see one man dead.

HRAFNMARK — Occupies the old capital. Its king needs Eirik dead to legitimize his conquest.

ELDFJORD — Controls Vardheim's former ports and profits from its ruined trade network.

SKARNLAND — Rewards its nobles with confiscated farms and conquered territory.

VESTFOLD — Genuinely believes the accusations against Eirik. Its queen considers herself a liberator.

DUNMERE — A southern maritime power secretly financing the coalition to prevent another united North.

These kingdoms are not a single obedient alliance. Their nobles quarrel. Their treasuries empty. Their armies grow tired. Their rulers make mistakes.

V / CHOOSE YOUR BEGINNING
Three paths. One living world.

01 — THE KING
You are the rightful ruler of Vardheim. Your kingdom has been reduced to a handful of settlements and 183 loyal warriors. The crown is yours. So are the decisions.

02 — THE WARRIOR
You are one of the last soldiers serving King Eirik Halvardsson. Your loyalty may be unquestioned, but your future is not.

03 — YOUR OWN STORY
Be anyone. A foreign noble, wandering mercenary, merchant, farmer, refugee, spy, rival ruler, or an ordinary person trying to survive. Support the fallen king, oppose him, or follow an entirely different path.

VI / A WORLD THAT DOESN'T WAIT
There is no prophecy promising your victory.

Warriors must be recruited, trained, equipped, and fed. Sieges take time. Wounds persist. Winter kills. Villages need protection. Political rumors travel faster than the truth.

Enemy kingdoms pursue their own ambitions. Nobles betray one another. Merchants exploit shortages. Families remember old grievances. People can forgive, refuse, rebel, surrender, or simply try to live.

You can fight wars, rebuild settlements, investigate conspiracies, negotiate treaties, form friendships, govern a kingdom, or spend years living an entirely different life.

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THE KINGDOM WAS TAKEN.
THE CROWN WAS NOT.