Ghmúrr-Vašðóg

Ghmúrr-Vašðóg was the commander, or Hvýomað-Yoži, of the second 'segment' (Yoži) of the Maðúšýï Tribe, during the First Varhoŋïan War of 24986 AYM. As one of Úvremk's most trusted subordinates, he would fight in numerous engagements during the First and Second Phases of the War, including the Battle of Vërðïm-Ŋüž, Battle of Lómóhüd, Ŋökmahat Campaigns, and the Battle of Ŋökmahat. He and substantial parts of his Yoži would be killed when the tribe of Varhoŋïð-Khalúš overran them during the Third Phase. For many years after his death, he was mostly known for mentoring Úvremk's successor Ökkúš, who was a part of his Yoži and had escaped and warned the other segments in advance when Vašðóg himself was killed.

Biography

Early Life

Of the many Hvýomað-Yoži, Ghmúrr-Vašðóg is one of the most well-known. His fame is derived most from his relationship with Ökkúš, who spoke glowingly of him during his own reign. Nonetheless, like most of the other Hvýomað-Yoži, the early life of Ghmúrr-Vašðóg (henceforth abbreviated Vašðóg) is unknown. It is unknown which of the 12 families he was a part of; his name does not appear on any of the surviving familial genealogies, or Žötó-Ïdhatón. Nowadays, most historians assert that he was either a part of the Ažukhald or Khólteð families, the latter if true placing him with all certainty in the Fýr-Hŋýtor subcategory due to his double-barrelled name. The problem with the Fýr-Hŋýtor is that this group was so ostracized and stigmatized, having been relegated to the Krëšŋ-Ðórr and Khëlër-Ðórr, that an escape from the tribe would be near-impossible save for some highly singular event like a breach of the tribal walls.

It is known that he stayed in the Ïlýrhonid Tribe until 25032 AYM, leaving in the Hayïdic Expedition. His name is discussed in the annals of the oficial tribal records (Gaðërïŋ-Hýša) concerning the much-later Khýnýšic Expedition of 25025 AYM and Úrïsic Expedition of 25019-17 AYM, both of whom concern at least in part the Maðúšýï of whom Vašðóg was a distinguished member. Although there is no direct evidence that Vašðóg had not taken a different route in a different time, perhaps through the Hýyo-Wýðúr, his later appointment as a Hvýomað-Yoži, a position meant only for the most loyal tribal members, does provide strong evidence for it.

As a Hvýomað-Yoži

Aside from these fragmentary documents of the Gaðërïŋ-Hýša, the only locations where Vašðóg's name occurs with absolute certainty are in Maðúšýïan documents, namely the Gaðërïŋ-Yoži and the personal writings and speeches of Ökkúš. The former, which is a large stone obelisk on which are inscribed the names of all the Hvýomað-Yoži, lists his name second from the top on the south side (this side being reserved for commanders of the second Yoži), right below his predecessor Ëðröhášt. It is not known when Vašðóg became the Hvýomað-Yoži, but most historians place this somewhere between 24999 and 24995 AYM, with the rationale that, if Vašðóg was already one of the most trusted individuals in the entire Maðúšýïan army by the time of the First Varhoŋïan War in 24986 AYM, he must have been there for a substantial amount of time. Although alternate theories extend the bounds of the hypothetical time period to account for the probability that Vašðóg had been a close friend of Úvremk, the Hyvamto-Maðúšýï at the time, Ökkúš's records generally make it clear that Vašðóg had earned the admiration and trust of a wide swath of generals, army members, and laymen alike in addition to Úvremk himself, making the possibility of nepotism slim to none.

Vašðóg would serve as the second Yoži's leader for around 9 - 13 years (based on the estimates of the time range above). During that time, he led his troops in at least 20 different raids on the Varhoŋïð-Khalúš and the Hýyo-Wýðúr. In terms of temperament, Ökkúš described him as 'cold and stern, but one who nonetheless dedicated himself to the passion of the Maðúšýïan cause with grim determination'. At times he was ruthless, driving his men to the point of exhaustion in order to achieve his desired effect. 'I have never seen him do so', posited Ökkúš, 'but I would suspect that Vašðóg would personally slaughter his entire force if it meant the permanent subjugation of Maðúšýï's enemies'.

Relationship with Ökkúš

One of the most famous aspects of Vašðóg's life, and indeed the focus of the only surviving information about him, deals with his relationship with Ökkúš, the 3rd Hyvamto-Maðúšýï. As the leader of his Yoži, Vašðóg acted as a civil in addition to military leader, as the Maðúšýï Tribe had oriented its lifestyle around the whole concept of raiding to such an extent that civil leaders were few and far between. In that situation, the army looked up to the Hvýomað-Yoži as the arbiters of discipline and role models in their own right. Through Vašðóg's strict and staunch personality, and his sincere belief in the Maðúšýïan cause, he effectively became the ideal Maðúšýïan to which all others were encouraged to strive towards.

As such, regarding his 'relationship' with Ökkúš as described in the latter's writings, it was in the role of a mentor or perhaps even that of a parent that Vašðóg all of his subordinates, but more accurately, a parent in the service of a larger, overarching cause to whom he must devote these children. In the words of Ökkúš himself,

'I saw him as one of the miners in the Hýhïd-Tëžem, who must wade through hills and hills of rock to find those with the best quality. Upon finding a stand-out piece, one never thinks about keeping it as a souvenir, no matter how lustrous the surface or how beautiful the colors, for his family is without food and shelter. His decision is never about whether to treasure it or use it, but what problem is more dire for his community, and what can this piece do for either of these problems.'

— Ökkúš

It is thus very likely that, from the point of view of Vašðóg, he saw Ökkúš as possessing a mindset or outlook that could very well serve the tribe in a leadership role, and built up these traits in the overall spirit of the Maðúšýïan cause. However, from the perspective of Ökkúš and many others, Vašðóg as transcendant in his wisdom, courage, and patriotism, and oft lauded as the personification of the Maðúšýï Tribe itself (in a fashion similar to the Žömëp-Fýtaŋ) after his death.

First Varhoŋïan War

First Phase

At the outbreak of the First Varhoŋïan War in 24986 AYM, Vašðóg and his section of the army was to serve under Úvremk in the defense of the city of Ožërhýŋ, which had become the focal point of conflicts between the Maðúšýï and Hýyó-Wýðúr. Vašðóg would serve in all Maðúšýïan battles of the First and Second Phases, and being one of Úvremk's closest and most trusted military figures, he would hold the unique distinction of being positioned right next to him during most of these battles. This includes the First Battle of Ožërhýŋ, where Úvremk and Vašðóg collectively worked to engage and delay the approaching Varonian Trade Coalition forces, as well as the Battles of Ïýëk, in which Úvremk's isolated and vulnerable segment was saved from complete destruction by the timely arrival of Vašðóg. By the time of the Second Phase, Vašðóg had already established himself as one of the Maðúšýï's most experienced and successful military commanders.

Second and Third Phases and Death

The Second Phase consisted of a large-scale siege of the Hýyó-Wýðúr with the intent of breaking down their alliances. This was the strategy formed by the neo-Tžý-Úvremk, the philosophical military ideas and strategies of Úvremk, which sought to achieve long-term longevity of the Maðúšýï as the ultimate goal of all military campaigns. Foremost among this was the separation of their enemies and the forced breakdown of any potential alliances thereof. Thus, the sieges of the Second Phase saw Úvremk position all of his sections between the cities of the Coalition, at such distances to make their presence invisible when an inhabitant of these cities looked out towards them, but to act with such ferocity as to totally defeat and destroy any means of communication between the cities. The combination thereof would, in the eyes of each of the Coalition members, seem to indicate a lack of interest by one's allies, thus straining the Coalition and contributing to the breakdown of relations. Vašðóg, himself highly committed to the Maðúšýïan cause and thus to the exacting of this plan, would be positioned alongside Úvremk between the two cities of Vërðïm and Lómóhüd, which between them held the greatest percentage of the scattered Coalition armies and represented the apex of the resistance movements.

Úvremk and Vašðóg would fight side-by-side in such engagements like the Battle of Lómóhüd, Ŋökmahat Campaigns, and the Battle of Ŋökmahat, which represented the furthest extent of Coalition resistance. Some sources argue that Vašðóg and/or Úvremk was ill during these engagements, which would explain why the Maðúšýïan siege's grip over the towns looked so weak. However, the resistance was decisively shut down by the Battle of Eðta-Žömšu. That battle would become the penultimate one for Vašðóg and Úvremk, as following it, the Khalúšian entry into the war quickly saw their already-battered Yoži overrun, and both commanders were slaughtered side-by-side. Disparate survivors, including Ökkúš, fled to the other segments that resided to the northwest, and these segments (led by Ëržlód-Mrðalŋ and Kalhvöt) conducted an ultimately-successful retreat back to the Maðúšýï Tribe. As with Úvremk, Vašðóg's body was never brought back to the Maðúšýï Tribe, with the most probable fate being immolation at the hands of the Khalúšians.

Legacy

Vašðóg is one of the foremost figures in the Maðúšýï Tribe, and one of the few who achieved a lasting legacy without personally serving as the Hyvamto-Maðúšýï, the supreme political and military leader of the tribe. Instead, he would be raised to a pedestal beyond it by his subordinate and eventual Hyvamto-Maðúšýï Ökkúš, who both wrote and spoke extensively if him throughout his reign from 24976 to 24944 AYM. As such, the posthumous fame of Vašðóg grew immensely, elevating him from a mere part of the Maðúšýïan Tribe to the personification of the tribe itself, emblematic of its passion, courage, and ideology.

On a larger scale, this treatment of Vašðóg is reflective of a transition from the so-called Žömëp-Fýtaŋ (in which the members of a tribe are seen as essentially the tribe itself in a metaphysical way) into the celebrity-type leadership and persona that characterizes the late-age Heta-Alšewharžar and especially the Nota-Alšewharžar. Vašðóg's massive reputation exceeds even that of the previous Maðúšýïan rulers Gýbakk and Úvremk, who were grounded in the Žömëp-Fýtaŋ and thus seen not as the exemplar of the tribe but the tribe itself and identical in that respect to the populace. The 'ideal' tribesman and later the 'patriot' archetype, one who embodies and lives by the ideals of their group, would see its greatest usage in the personas of the megatribe Artal, namely Lúýžad and Aðö-Mëðha, where they were venerated. Vašðóg's 'in-between' stance is highly unique, and one of the most peculiar phenomena; while he was considered as an 'exemplar', he was a 'manageable exemplar', one whose celebrated qualities the populace could hope to attain. For decades and even centuries after Vašðóg's death, he would still be this 'manageable exemplar', a conspicuous anomaly in the historical record.

Finally, perhaps the biggest impact Vašðóg has had is in his status as one of the most celebrated military commanders in history. He is regarded by historians as representative of the stoic soldier and leader, both in a strategic and mental disposition, in a time when the overarching approach to war was one fueled by an overflow of hate and a clash of ideologies (see, for example, the Massacre of the Krëšŋ-Ðórr in the Crisis of 24982 AYM and Vörrügša and Ðaŋharkhö's various purges in the Hýyo-Wýðúr). It is likely that this stoic nature was born from Gýbakk's death in the Ambush of Šahr-Óðlýn and Öðma-Amakoð, and the stoic nature would become the status quo of the ideal soldier (much in the same 'manageable exemplar') that transcended tribal identity in ways that his other qualities did not. Born from him was thus the emotionally-impervious and efficient image of the soldier, which was used in armies as far away as Ökghaaŋðarr and Loðo.