House Aelfhiem

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The royal family of Beldin, the Aeflhiem family is one of the founding families of Beldin. Because of the treaty which Beldin has with the elven kingdom of Siluvan, an elven princess marries the crown prince every four or five generations. As a result, the Aelfhiems have elven blood (hence their name).

History

Aelfwine, the first king of Beldin, was just a humble merchant from Waterdeep, who, seeking to lift his fortunes, decided to take a fleet of ships up to Icewind Dale, to trade for scrimshaw, which was all the rage in Waterdeep at the time. He managed to find ten other like-minded merchants, and they set off for the north in the late spring, hoping for good weather and a profitable voyage.

Unfortunately, Tymora did not smile on them that voyage. First they ran into bad weather, which threw them off their course, and then they were attacked by Luskan pirates when they were only half way to Icewind Dale. Seeking to escape the pirates, they sailed into a fog bank, and by some sudden stroke of luck, Neil Greycastle got them through it to the other side of the shifting fog and sandbanks.

They decided to stay there for a time in order to repair the ships (since some leaks had sprung during the storm, and one or two of the ships had run aground), and set up a small camp. After about a month, they were ready to set forth once more. But the night before they were to depart, the camp was attacked by orcs, and some of the ships torched. Aelfwine led the defense against the attackers, and in the end, they were beaten off. But this necessitated yet more delays.

They soon discovered that while the climate in the place they had landed was fairly temperate – even as the year waned on – they were not the only ones enjoying these benefits. The valley had become home to all sorts of destructive creatures, and they were forced to fight off goblin and orc raids with increasing frequency. No sooner would they have the ships repaired and ready to go, it seemed, than there would be more damage. Finally, the ships were completely destroyed in one particularly nasty attack, and it became clear that they would have to build themselves a more permanent settlement, fortify it, and build new ships. By this point, it was too late in the year to think of sailing the north seas as it was, since the fair weather which they found in their settlement by the Karen River–as they called it–could hardly be expected to extend outside of the valley.

It was not until a full two years after they had first landed at the mouth of the Karen (so called because of its crystal clear water), that they managed to launch a few ships again. They were captained by Captain Carrick Fearthegn, one of the best of the seamen they had. He was accompanied by Captain Rider Tanghilt, and Captain Londsdale Lester, who apparently went for the sole purpose of keeping an eye on Captain Tanghilt. They had many adventurers, but that is neither here nor there.

By that point, those left on shore had actually become rather comfortable with their existence in the valley, and elected to stay. Some had already married into the local Uthgardt population, whom they had begun to trade with after the first year. They appointed Captain Aelfwine the ruler of their little settlement, and so Beldin was established in the year 974.

The next spring Captain Fearthegn returned, with only a very modest profit, since the scrimshaw craze had died down. He did bring a few adventurers with him, who were curious about these new lands, potentially filled with lots of treasure. These adventurers set off north at once, and returned about a month later with tales of miles of plains, lots of orcs, and a vast forest filled with elves who they were quite sure were out to get them. They had been chased off by arrows, usually fired by invisible attackers, and were filled with delusions about being followed. It turned out that they had been followed, and it was not long before an envoy from Siluvan showed up at the village of Beldin, wanting to know why they were there, and what they wanted of the Kingdom of Siluvan that they were sending spies. Captain Aelfwine managed the situation very well, and managed to convince the elves to concede that they had no real use for the shoreline, and to agree to a peace treaty. To seal this treaty, it was agreed that “King” Aelfwine would marry the daughter of the lord of Siluvan, and that the treaty would be renewed every few generations in order to keep the peace. And so it was that Aelfwine I married Revana Jadys’Varine.

Aelfwine’s reign was fairly peaceful, compared to other subsequent kings, and died at the age of 61. He was succeeded by his son, Aelfric, known as the Half-Elven, and the Dragonslayer. He reigned during the Dracorage, and lost his wife, Devona Lester, and his youngest son to one of the dragons which terrorized the valley during the year 1018. He went out with Aranas Jadys’Varine, Grayson Lester, and a few other brave souls to face the dragons. He killed one, and then was forced to flee while Aranas sacrificed himself to kill the greatest of them. It was under Aelfric that the family first took the name Aelfhiem.

He was succeeded by his son Aelfred I, who had a rather unremarkable reign. Aelfred had only daughters, and so he was succeeded by his grandson, Cedric, the second son of Aelfred’s eldest daughter and Hale Greenwood. Their eldest son had gone out to battle the new Malarite cult which had arisen in the valley, and had been killed. Cedric avenged his death sevenfold, and hence was always known as the hunter.

Cedric was succeeded by his son Aelfric, who ruled during the Great Plague, which swept up and down the Sword Coast. Aelfric, like many others in Beldin, caught the plague, but survived it. He was horribly scarred, however, and so was always known as the Maimed. He lost three of his brothers to the plague, and his first wife died in child-birth, and so his life was filled with tragedy.

He was succeeded by his son, Aelfric, known as the Young because of the relatively young age at which he was crowned (25). Aelfric had been raised in Siluvan, in order to avoid the plague and its aftermath, and married Elandania Jadys’Varine as part of the renewing of the peace treaty between Beldin and Siluvan. His reign was a peaceful and happy one.

Aelfwine succeeded his father in the year 1229. He is known as the Elf-friend, because of the usually friendly relations which existed between Siluvan and Beldin during his reign. He married Lynne Fearthegn, who was renowned through Beldin as one of the sweetest and gentle women around. He reigned during the great orc invasion of 1235, when hoards of orcs came pouring out of the Spine of the World. He lost both his brother, Atamar, and his son, the crown prince Aelfred in the battle. He also had the ill fortune to reign during the Year of Pain, where the Loviataran cult of the Telmaths was discovered in Beldin, after having killed Maida Nightshade-Aelfhiem, and her son. Elandania never has forgiven the Nightshades for the death of her grandson, Elandan, who she feels was not properly protected by them.

Aelfwine was succeeded by his son, Ernol, known as the Wise, in 1292. Ernol reign for only eight years, and married Brynna Ferret.

Aelfred II succeeded his father in 1300. He was married to Audra Lester, and ruled during the Second Winter War (recorded elsewhere). For latter part of his reign, he was bedridden, and his wife and young son ruled the kingdom. It was revealed after his death that this was to cover for his frequent outings with the adventurers of Beldin, disguised as the famous half-orc Narc the Nauseous.

Avery succeeded his father half way through the Siege of Astrid in 1342. He spent the first few years of his reign overseeing the siege, and became known for his wisdom and tactical sense. He had a long reign, and brought Beldin through the Third Winter War, and the beginning of the Fourth. He died of old age in 1383, despite the brave efforts of adventurers to save his life.

Avery was succeeded by his son Aelfric, whose rise to power can only be described as rocky. Aelfric IV was kidnapped by the Black Stilleto’s at the trial of Feyrin Ravontalon, and only rescued because of the brave efforts of Sir Mith’Kaldaka Ischarri, Ronin Eininfar, and Zilvra Vrinn. He married Iris Jadys’Varine the same year, but was not crowned for several months because of the refusal of many of the noble houses to swear fealty. He was hard pressed to find a majority who would swear loyalty, and he was not officially crowned until 1384. In 1385, his first born, the Princess Aelvira was born.