Slaughter of the Senate

The ghost of Bastion Ireheart watches as his Kingdom disintegrates only two days after his death.

The event that came to be known as the Slaughter of the Senate occurred in the gathering room of the Senate of Hammers in the capital city of Kal'Omith on the 13th of the Deep Cold, 1612. It was the start of the Throne War and the beginning of the period in Dwarven history known as the Unstable Years.

Background

After the Frostbeards had left the Grand Kingdom of Urguan to found their own hold of Jornheim up in the mountains above old St.Karlsburg, the city of Kal’Omith fell into disarray. Empty streets and abandoned houses became a daily sight, and it finally led to the current Grand King, Bastion Ireheart to commit suicide by jumping off the palace balcony. In those times of instability, Urguan’s only official was Grand Marshal Oyvind Frostbeard, with the bureaucratic body of the Senate backing him as reagent.

Oyvind's Journey

The Frostbeard and Senate forces clash, whilst Courlanders and Romstunites duke it out in the back.

With a large amount of dwarves leaving Urguan to Jornheim, Oyvind was forced to set out and attempt to reunite his clan with the Grand Kindom of Urguan. A meeting was held between Oyvind and other high ranking Frostbeards, including Kerwyr, Gorum, Barradin and Baldin Frostbeard-Grandaxe. In this meeting, Oyvind originally wished for the clan to back him as the King, but the others refused due to Oyvind’s distance from the clan. Oyvind then assured Kerwyr that if he came and took the throne by force, the other clans would stand by and that he would support him. The council agreed and the Frostbeards set out for Kal’Omith.

The Slaughter

Upon arrival, the Frostbeards moved through the empty city and up to the old Senate meeting room. It was full of dust and grim, having been unused for years. As the Senators trickled in, Kerwyr made his move and sat down upon the throne, flanked by Gorum and Barradin. At first there was confusion, and then a full out shouting match began. The Senators assembled on the left side of the room, while the Frostbeards gathered in the middle, around the throne. The shouting lasted an hour, during which time, reinforcements were called by both sides. The Knights of Courland came to the side of the Senators, whilst the fabled descendents of the Flays, the Romstuns, arrived to the Frostbeards aide.

In an attempt to bring a halt to the yelling and to allow cooler heads to prevail, Kerwyr stepped down from the throne and atop the table, where Grilthram Grandaxe stood, spouting various obscenities. He attempted to calm him down, but was soon rushed by Hogarth Irongut who slammed his hammer against Kerwyr’s shield. In this moment both sides charged one another. The fight was swiftly over and was a stunning victory for the Frostbeard side, losing not a single fighter, despite being outnumbered. The crucial error of the Senator side was the fumbled Courland alchemical fire, which exploded in the hands of a Courlandic grunt and led to the speedy deaths of himself and his allies. With the Romstuns dealing with the remaining Courlanders, the Frostbeards were able to fully focus the Senators who were pushed up against the wall and easily disarmed and killed by the veteran Frostbeard warriors.

Aftermath

Following the battle, there was mostly silence as those gathered felt the gravity of what had just happened. It was the first time the Dwarves had fought one another since the Frostbeard uprising, led by Verthaik Frostbeard, back in Vailor nearly one hundred years ago. The event, later named the Slaughter of the Senate would mark the begin of the period of time in Dwarven history known as the Unstable Years, and would mark the beginning of the Throne War.