Pian en Luries/Lurian Civil War

Lurian Civil War
Date September 1010-December 1010 Result Complete Pian en Luries victory, destruction of the realm of Giask Territorial changes Giask duchy re-annexed by Pian en Luries
Combatants
Pian en Luries	Giask Grand Duchy of Fissoa
Commanders
Alanna Anaris Amaury Capet Koli Bedwyr Antonine Octavius	Loathin Phantom Dene Munzer Shin Shenron Mordaunt Lefanis Phonos Decimus Mkhai Rai
Armed Forces
ca. 5,000 men	ca. 4,500 men ca. 500 men
Major Battles
Casualties
ca. 1,500 killed or wounded	ca. 4,000 killed or wounded ca. 300 killed or wounded

Summary

The Lurian Civil War was a conflict fought in South-East Dwilight, between the Kingdom of Pian en Luries, and the rebel Kingdom of Giask and their Fissoan allies. Spanning the better part of three months, it was the single most devastating war fought in the South since the colonization of Dwilight first began. The battles alone claimed the lives of almost 5,000 soldiers on both sides, and civilian casualties from looting and famine are thought to have been as high as 125,000, most of these in the city of Giask which was hit by massive starvation. The conflict started after tensions between Queen Alanna and the duchy of Giask reached a critical point, and the Queen forced the entire duchy into secession to quash a brewing rebellion against her rule. Giask became a realm of its own and war was declared almost immediately. Apart from a few small battles in Pian en Luries, the brunt of the fighting was done on Giasken soil. Pian en Luries succeeded in driving back the rebels one region at a time after winning several decisive battles. The final blow was struck in the Giasken capital, when the Lurian Silver Hammers and Imperial Border Guard launched a surprise amphibious assault on the city while most of the rebel army was away. The battle was won, and the Giasken resistance was broken. Many rebel nobles fled the region and the last pockets of resistance were swiftly mopped up, after which the city of Giask and its outlying provinces were taken back by the Lurians.

Prelude to war

Pian en Luries had always been a realm divided. From its founding days, under the teenage king Kaennji, various factions have vied for power, influence and wealth. More often than not the lines between the factions could be drawn over the ducal borders. The most prominent of the dissidents could usually be found in the duchy of Giask. But while in the past, most disputes were 'resolved' when one of the dukes left the realm for various reasons, the tensions kept growing more severe every time. This proved to be fertile soil for the seeds of rebellion to grow. After the dissident Zile Zeric and his puppet Duke of Giask, Chris Hsieh, had been forced out of the realm, Loathin Phantom was chosen to be the new Duke of Giask, in hopes that there would finally be unity between the duchies. At first, this seemed to have worked, but it was not before long that tensions began mounting once more, between the staunchly royalist Duke of Askileon, Amaury Capet, and the Dukes of Giask and Poryatown, Loathin and Brom Silverfire.

Poryatown revolt

Queen Alanna had been wanting to rid herself of Brom for some time, as she believed he was unfit for his duties as Duke and Royal Treasurer. Amaury, who sought to remain in the Queen's favor, began questioning Brom's worth at every opportunity, and ultimately began hoarding his duchy's food in Askileon, out of sight of the duchies of Poryatown and Giask, which faced a constant looming threat of starvation. Poryatown was hit hard, losing some 20,000 people to constant famine, while Askileon had thousands of bushels stockpiled in its warehouses. Ultimately, the people of Poryatown revolted against their Duke, and declared their independence, an act which became the catalyst for more civil strife within the Lurian Empire.

Political tensions

Alanna and Amaury, backed by the whole of Askileon, leveled accusations of utter incompetence against Brom, placing the blame for the revolt squarely on him. Amaury organized protests against him, Brom, backed by the duchy of Giask, accused the Queen of tyrannical behavior and Amaury of being nothing but a lapdog to the Crown. This sparked massive arguments, with more and more nobles drawn into the arguing every day. Rumours began spreading throughout the realm that certain nobles in Giask had started planning a rebellion against the Queen, with some of them openly challenging her rule. Insults flew back and forth, and soon there began appearing tangible evidence that a rebellion was indeed in the works. Seeking to nip this in the bud, ordered the new Treasurer, Taronis Thurdan, to impose massive wealth and property taxes upon the nobles of the realm, which cost the nobles of Giask a staggering 4,000 gold in a single day. Infuriated by what they considered the ultimate proof of Alanna's tyranny, the nobles of Giask began massing their troops in the capital. Grand Imperator Denze Munzer, a Lord in the duchy of Giask, used his authority as general to disband all militia in Askileon, some 300 men in total. It was all the evidence needed for the royalists to openly accuse the Giasken of treason and rebellion.

Forced secession of Giask

Alanna's hand was more or less forced now. She could either face the rebellion, hoping that Amaury could lead his duchy to defeat the rebels, or she could prevent it from happening altogether. Not willing to risk her throne, she did the latter, and openly declared the entire duchy of Giask to be no longer part of the Empire. The city was forcibly seceded from Pian en Luries, and Alanna swiftly declared war. The Lurian Civil War had begun.