| The Bloodcrown Rebellion | |||
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| Conflict: Legacy of Arathor | |||
| Date: 17th of June, Year 41 K.C. - Ongoing | |||
| Place: Stromgarde, Arathi Highlands | |||
| Outcome: (Ongoing) | |||
| Belligerents: | |||
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Marran Loyalists |
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The Ashen Banner (Formerly The Valiants) |
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(Ongoing) |
(Ongoing) |
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The Bloodcrown Rebellion is a civil conflict that erupted within the restored kingdom of Stromgarde, ignited by a faction known as The Ashen Banner former elite soldiers and noble vowed their loyalty to the Lady Marran Trollbane. Their uprising is driven by the belief that Danath Trollbane, though respected in the eyes of the Alliance, has betrayed the true legacy of the Trollbane bloodline and forfeited Stromgarde's honor through political compromise.
To the Ashen Banner, Stromgarde must be ruled by blood, not by diplomacy.
The rebellion’s name—Bloodcrown—symbolizes both the end of the reigns of Trollbane Men and the blood they are willing to spill to reclaim the throne for his legacy. It is as much a philosophy as it is a war: the belief that honor, glory, and power must be seized, not negotiated.
Prelude[]
After the events of Legacy of Arathor, Danath Trollbane solidifies his claims on Stromgarde with Alliance support. However, many loyalists—especially veterans and nobles who once followed Lady Marran Trollbane, the idealistic and uncompromising niece of Danath—grew disillusioned by Danath’s increasing political compromises, particularly his non-aggression stance with the Horde presence in the Arathi Highlands and his failure to restore Stromgarde’s full sovereignty and nobility.
While Danath focused on diplomacy, modernization, and defensive pragmatism, Marran’s vision was a Stromgarde reborn in steel and fire, purged of enemies and restored to its legacy of militant honor.
Though Marran was defeated in a skirmish with the Horde remnants and Danath Loyalists. Her titles stripped but her vision lived on. Her followers, and once an elite regiment called The Valiants, turned their grief and honor into rebellion.
Grand Marshal Marcus Kilbrook, The now former Grand Marshal of the Valiants, led the schism. When Danath signed the Tirisfall Accord—a treaty tolerating Horde presence south of Galen’s Fall—Kilbrook branded him a coward and traitor to the bloodline of Thoradin.
With dozens of bannermen, veterans, and defectors, Kilbrook founded the Ashen Banner, operating in secrecy and growing into a militant paramilitary resistance in the Highlands. They believe Stromgarde’s glory can only return through absolute dominance, complete expulsion of the Horde, and a restoration of monarchy with Marran’s ideals at the core.
The First Blow: The Tithe Reclaimed[]
Operation “Tithe Reclaimed”[]
The band of Ashen Banner outriders led by High War-Captain Elra Thorne slipped into the pine-choked passes of Northwood Crossing. It was here that Stromgarde’s weekly tax and supply caravans made their return journey from the farmlands—laden with grain sacks, coin coffers, and ration crates collected from the struggling homesteads of eastern Arathi.
Grand Marshal Marcus Kilbrook, operating from Bearweald, had issued his first formal command:
“Let the king’s hunger starve his rule. Feed the people. And leave the guards breathing, so their silence rots into shame.”
At dusk, three caravans were quietly surrounded—not with bloodlust, but with discipline. Red Reclaim warriors, cloaked in bark-dyed reds and thorns, disarmed and dismounted the guards with swift but non-lethal force.
The drivers were given water and blankets. The guards were left unharmed, their weapons returned after the raid.
The Ashen Banner Propaganda Flyers appear across farming towns.
Stromgarde Guard (unnerved):
“They could’ve killed us. Didn’t even knock us out. Just… stared. Like they pitied us.”
Village Elder:
“Danath’s gold kept our roofs. Kilbrook’s grain kept our children breathing. You tell me who the traitor is.”
Grand Marshal Kilbrook (via intercepted missive):
“Stromgarde Keep can build walls and hoard coin. We will build allegiance—brick by starving brick.”
(Ongoing)[]
(WIP - Ongoing conflict)