Insurrection of the Merchants

The Rebellion began with a planned simultaneous assault against three of Misty Run's most prominent noble families, of whom the majority were killed in the first attack. The Emperor quickly received word of these occurrences and deployed his then-secret police force to seek out the leaders of the insurrection, known in the modern day as the Watchers.

When the first major leader of the insurrection was publicly slain in a fireball (alongside a few dozen citizens), farmers in the Outer Boundaries took up arms despite being unaffected by the seizure of land.

The battlefield encompassed primarily the northern side of the city. Watchers generally patrolled in small squadrons of six soldiers per group, while the rebels primarily engaged in guerilla tactics. A number of non-belligerents were killed in the crossfire, which resulted in a U5 investigation following the cessation of combat.

As the Watchers weren't fully prepared for combat during the first four months of the rebellion, it seemed as if the rebels had a chance at defeating the Frostburn Dynasty. However, once it became warm in Lone Moon of CY 1170, the Dynasty recruited the then-Modern Master of Evocation who was instructing magic at The Academy of Ancient Studies to dispose of rebels en masse. As students are wont to do, a large swath of students at the Academy engaged in peaceful protest against the university administration (though this appears to have been almost entirely ineffective at reaching the Emperor).

The Dynasty was victorious, resulting in a police state that lasted until the death of Hadrian Frostburn at the end of the Temporan Genocide in CY 1286. With the exception of one, all leaders of the insurrection were summarily executed (the last one - a noble's daughter named Tethys Commoda - was - was Feebleminded as an example).

Emperor Hadrian then chose to build walls to segregate the districts of Misty Run, creating the ringed system that still exists today. While the class division prior was nowhere near as clear as it is in the modern day, the walls established a definitive hierarchy of class and caste. Until the abdication of Empress Orion Ermendrud after her seven-day reign in CY 1619 to establish a social democracy, the walls would henceforth restrict movement by virtue of Watchers stationed at every gate.