Kardel Irongut

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Kardel, Grand King Kardel Irongut Grand King of Urguan Reign: 1547-1569 Predecessor: Rhewen Frostbeard Successor: Drynn Ireheart Spouse: Unknown Clan: Irongut Father: Heron Irongut Mother: Unknown Issue: Arundel Irongut, Bardel Irongut, Bofauk Irongut, Vardaz Irongut

Kardel Irongut (Dwarven: Kardel Khroruul, Dwinic Dwarven: Karadal Kroruli) was Grand King of Urguan and ruler of the dwarves from his election in 1547 to his abdication due to ill health in 1569. He is chiefly credited with enacting various bureaucratic legislation which ultimately led to the third reformation of the Grand Kingdom of Urguan into an autocratic, rather than oligarchic, state. Kardel's rule was marked by extensive infrastructural reform, the construction of the city of Kal'Ishtul, and a heavily isolationist policy centered around maintaining peace and internal stability. His extensive legislative actions and infrastructural work earned him the epithet "The Reformer."

Biography

Early Life

Kardel Irongut was born on the 6th of the Sun's Smile, of the year 1021 in Eastern Aegis to the known Arcanist and dwarven noble Heron Irongut, and to an unknown Cave Dwarven mother. Due to controversies surrounding his father, he was raised away from the rest of the Ironguts. He spent his first fifty years apprenticing under several blacksmiths. Kardel emerged a mediocre blacksmith and moved to Kal'Bryst to practice his trade, where he worked until the city's fall to the undead. Having lost his fortune in the city's destruction, Kardel returned to Kal'Urguan, hoping to find his clansmen and claim any inheritances to his name, but could not prove his identity as Heron's son and thus was not able to withdraw his father's estate. He then joined the Legion of Kal'Urguan, under which he served until the fall of Aegis.

Alchemy Career

Upon his arrival to Asulon, Kardel once again sought to claim his inheritance after having accumulated several documentations and family heirlooms to prove his identity, but his claim was dismissed by Tortek Silverfist as having too many discrepancies. In response, Kardel departed from Kal'Karik, discouraged, and purchased a home in the town of Somerset, where he apprenticed under a local herbalist. Proving quite gifted, Kardel opened a trade in Silva Insula, where he honed his alchemy skills before once more seeking his inheritance from his clan. Kardel's identity as Heron's son was recognized by Hiebe Irongut, and Kardel was subsequently granted part of his late father's estate, which he would later use to found alchemy enterprises in Urguan across Elysium and Kalos.

Kardel's reputation as a gifted alchemist led to his contracting by the contemporaneous Grand King Omithiel Strongbrow. Under subsidy of the Kingdom, Kardel founded the Dwarven Alchemy guild, which would prove instrumental in supplying the Legion with potions and balms throughout Anthos and the Fringe. Kardel's standing as a Guildmaster landed him a position on the King's Council as Ogradhad's Alchemist, jettisoning him into Urguani public life.

Political Career

Kardel served as Ogradhad's Alchemist to each successive monarch from Omithiel Strongbrow to Midgor Ireheart. Due to his service to the Kingdom, Kardel was briefly elected onto the Lord's Council by Grand King Midgor Ireheart in the Fringe before briefly disappearing from public life. Kardel reappeared in Vailor, where he initially aimed to restart his Alchemy Enterprise to aid the Kingdom during the Eighteen Years War, but decided to run for Grand King against Hieden Grandaxe on a ticket based on isolationism and nationalism. After a campaign marked by slander and populism, Kardel emerged victorious by a sizable margin.

Reign

Kardel Irongut's reign was one of the longest in Dwarven history, spanning 22 years from 1547 to 1569. It was marked by a long period of construction punctuated by a short period of panic and militarism, followed by a short period of stagnation during the king's illness.

Initial Controversy, Internal Struggle, and Reform

Upon assuming the crown, Kardel Irongut was immediately faced with controversy when Dunamisian soldiers brought a head thought to have belonged to the Holy Orenian Emperor John II to the court of Kal'Akash. Fearing another war, and knowing himself ill-prepared, Kardel dismissed the soldiers from the city, in the process of which they were attacked by Orenian soldiers. The brash actions of the king pleased the Emperor John Sigismund, whose decoy had been slain in his place, but destabilized relations between Urguan and their longstanding allies of Dunamis. The Grand King pursued a policy of appeasement toward Oren throughout his reign, although later came to regret his decisions.

Upon the conclusion of the diplomatic crisis, Grand Chancellor Azaghal Doomforged, a prominent politician and general famous for his successful efforts in halting the Imperial advance during the 18 Years War, is reported to have attempted to subvert power from Kardel, whom he perceived as weak. Kardel Irongut, already suspicious of Azaghal due to the general's role in deposing the previous monarch, had created a plan to oust the Chancellor, which he put into action as soon as Azaghal's intentions manifested. Brief civil struggle followed, and Azaghal was stripped of his rank and banished without bloodshed by Kardel and his contingent. Using the fear of usurpation generated by Azaghal's ploy, Kardel utilized his momentum and newly found gravitas to cement his power and to repress his opposition.

Kardel Irongut instigated a series of purges and laws which collapsed Urguani oligarchy and granted absolute autocratic power to the Grand King. Channeling public fear of another civil conflict, Kardel completely reworked the governmental system of Urguan, reforging the Articles of Urguan and creating the Third Grand Kingdom of Urguan. With newfound power, Kardel set to fulfilling his campaign promises of maintaining peace and reviving culture.

The Construction of Kal'Ishtul

In order to regain public trust, Kardel ordered the express construction of a new Dwarven capital based off of unused blueprints drafted by Grand King Balek Irongut. These blueprints called for the hollowing of a large space, which Dwarven architects achieved by collapsing the cave systems under Kal'Akash through alchemical and runic means. The construction of the city took approximately four years and cost a large number of dwarven lives due to the few safety precautions. It is rumored that due to the tight deadline of the project and the Grand King's insistence that it be finished quickly, slave labor was used. The end result was Kal'Ishtul, the City of the Abyss, a masterwork of dwarven carpentry and masonry.

Infrastructure, Economy, and Culture

After the construction of Kal'Ishtul, the Grand King focused on overhauling the outdated infrastructure of Urguan and reversing the land-scarring resultant from Dwarven defense efforts in the Eighteen Years War. After several years of work, most of the infrastructure projects initiated by Kardel's administration were finished, most notably the destruction of abandoned settlements, the reforestation of the Valley of Flowers, and the revival of Belka's Pools. Under contract with Seneschal Zahrer Irongrider, Urguan's navy was also doubled.

The construction of Kal'Ishtul and improvements in infrastructure led to an influx of trade and tax revenue. The Kingdom accumulated a very large number of funds, which facilitated construction projects and increased general quality of life. Upon the eruption of the Axis War, Dwarven smiths became the main suppliers of weapons to all sides of the conflict, resulting in large amounts of minas flooding into the Kingdom: to prevent inflation, the Balek Irongut, the Yemekar's Pick at the time, began taxing mining efforts.

Kardel's administration contracted various expeditionary corps to revive Urguani culture. The most famous of these expeditions was hosted by the Goldhand and Sons Joint Stock Venture, and resulted in the discovery of an ancient dwarven city. Dwarven culture was highly valued throughout Kardel's reign.