Sarbarve's Kingdom

Following the death of Dragan Ivar', Sarbarve found himself deep in hostile lands with a small army of troops at his command. Like many other leaders, he quickly figured out that to remain exposed to the full force of the Alcediner would invite destruction. However, unlike many of the Erleting troops, Sarbarve did not intend to flee east. Noting the rough terrain extended far south, he reasoned that by seizing and defending the pass of Tridunai. He might not be able to take the city itself, but he predicted the Alcediner would not be coordinated enough to attempt a major landing in another's city.

Sarbarve would then consolidate the south, seizing the inland town of Maylia from other Erleting remnants in 1959, an important logistical stop and the last before the southern hills would merge into the Alcediner mountains. By making this city the lynchpin of his defenses he was able to project power across southern Alcedina and threaten the cities of Tridunai, Ultarra, Pallanium, Pannilun, and Rovadium- exactly those that has been most devastated by Ivar's armies, with Sarbarve himself at the forefront of such destruction. The city also marked an important road crossing, ensuring that he could swiftly mobilize forces to any one threat and defeat it before another arose.

Sarbarve's plan sounds excellent on paper, but he severely underestimated the Alcediner resolve. With all the states aligning and beginning the Little Dennonian War, he soon came under attack in the pass of Tridunai, with forces landing in the south as well as pushing up from the city and from the west. Although the troops left to defend this were some of his best, they could not hold the pass and were pushed out into the mountains. Thus, Sarvarve's forces were split. However, forming alliances with a few key tribes, he was able to leave a garrison in the highlands overlooking Tridunai while quickly bringing the rest south, where they united with the rest of his army and prepared for battle. The Alcediner forces, now split, would only have the troops of Tridunai, Floren, and Ultarra fighting against him, unless Pallanium and Pannilun could bring theirs to bear.

Anticipating a move such as this, Sarvarve spread his forces out in a ring amongst the corpses of farmhouses from earlier wars, and when the Pallani and Pannili armies moves from their cities he struck them with a devastating blow, all while delaying the Tridunai, Floreni, and Ultarran troops with skirmishers and guerillas. This time, the plan worked, and Pallanium and Pannilun were sent scurrying back to their cities in shame, while Tridunai, Floren, and Ultarra were forced to fall back, leaving the borders in stalemate.

For the rest of the Dennonian wars, Sarbarve came under a few probing attacks, but his victories on the battlefield as well as his disciplined forces combined to cast a foreboding image of the man, and he came under little threat for the remainder. Therefore, by the end of the wars in 1974, Sarbarve's kingdom stood, holding the south as well as a tenuous road between the Tridunai highlands and his main stronghold in Maylia. For Sarbarve, the best thing that could happen was the wars' end, as his kingdom had numerous new issues emerging.

First, he had to deal with a huge refugee problem. Unlike most other states, which closed their borders to refugees and told them to find somewhere else to go, Sarbarve opened his doors to all. Especially notable were the people who soon would bear his name- half-Alcediner half-Erleting common after the wars. Born of violence on both sides, many of these men and women were very young upon the wars' conclusions, but some were just coming into adulthood and almost all were heavily persecuted. Combined with his governance and adoption of certain Alcediner cultural practices and technology, the new Sarbarvic have emerged as a transitory group between the Alcediner and Erleting and have powered the backbone of his kingdom since the 1970s.

The encouragement of a Sarbarvic culture also solved the second issue of his state, which was that most farms lay fallow or were totally understaffed. Many of the more profitable crops which once grew there, such as fine wines and orchards of oranges, had been hit hard by war and not cared for as they needed, and needed a huge amount of work to fix before they could once more produce a surplus again, which took well into the eighties. The farms, taken over by young immigrants, would once more become productive, especially as young couples began to have children and bring more hands into the fold.

The final problem facing Sarbarve was the maintenance of his northern holdings. Once vital to defend against the Tridunai, it had quickly become an important passage for the refugees and well as the limited trade which emerged from the ashes of the wars. Sarbarve felt he needed to defend the passage, and would send half his forces north in 1982 to force the neighboring tribes, his onetime allies, to surrender to him or be destroyed. This expedition would soon come into conflict with the emerging nation of Krvevestic, demanding more resources. The city of Rovadium would also emerge as a third factor in the conflict, seeking to take the hills around the city and forcing Sarbarve to pull back from his assault on Krvevestic. Unfortunately for Sarbarve, this would deadlock his forces and prevent them from taking back the Rovadine hills or finishing off the rump Krvevestic.

In 2000 SC, Sarbarve's kingdom is surrounded by enemies even as the man is aged, well into his sixties. His mind, still sharp, is focused on keeping the kingdom secure for his two sons, and working with any who will to form alliance blocs. At present, the kingdom has managed to form an uneasy alliance with Thrûdn, as well as commercial ties with many Telrai, who approve of his conciliatory attitude to the Sarbarvic, a stark contrast to the Alcediner approach and the isolationist Erleting. The northern Alcediner have been placated by this attitude, seeing Sarbarve as little threat to them but also not forming an alliance with him. In contrast, the southern cities still resent Sarbarve and would not hesitate to crush his nation if they get a chance, especially if succession becomes difficult.

Still, for now Sarbarve's kingdom is prospering, especially Maylia, which went from an important inland center of trade prewar to a smoking ruin, a cautiously rebuilt town, and under Sarbarve, a military fortress at the end of the Dennonian wars. Now, it has blossomed into a powerful stronghold, thriving market, and well-populated urban district, with its population rivalling the smaller Alcediner cities.