As the armies of Xeilias retreated, leaving the last remnants of the once great empire bare and unprotected, the humble churches of the Children of Mann became welcome refuge for those who had lost everything. Those who had never had anything and now had even less. For those who were hurt or lost or grieving. The Children saw none of them as any different than a friend, while the newly formed kingdoms surrounding the last of the broken empire saw them as enemies. Disgraced, but still perhaps dangerous under the wrong sort of leadership, they refused trade with those left behind.

But the Children were different. With small groups scattered about Elyria, none yet larger than a dozen ever gathered in one place, they built their chapels and sent supplies from all over to help the needy people left behind by the Deranged King, at great risk to themselves, else they be seen as helping the enemy by those who were still sore from so long at war.

Leading the Children, Mother Khovaena soon became the most recognized face of the broken empire. She began to pull more and more people towards her own church in Dileas, picking out people who once had been leaders in the rebellion and praising them for following their heart and what was right, granting them new leadership positions to help bring the growing city to its feet.

With Dileas prospering, and Khovaena's Thrones of Diplomacy and Economy finally opening up free trade with their neighbour kingdoms, Dileas held a vote.

They would re-claim their home, and live in freedom.

They would become the Kingdom of Rhyddid.

Well met, Elyrians. First, I'm NiHZ. I've been around here for a long time -- more in IRC back in the day, I've been getting more active over the last few months! -- and I've come to know a whole host of you over the last couple years. My message, my goals, and my core values at the heart of everything I do in CoE have always been to unite people in understanding and community, which is why I've chosen to build a community like the Children of Mann from the very beginning. I have only ever wanted to run what could be the common grounds on which everyone in Elyria could stand and be good to one another.

I will be speaking with Morbis on Tuesday evening to plead my case!

So Why Run For Queen?

Why, indeed? My theory goes like this; the people in this kingdom will hail from every corner of Elyria. Almost every mayor, baron, count and duke will have some tie to another kingdom, another group from a different place. Some people are looking at this and seeing conflict. The leader of this kingdom will fear for their lives from day one, because all of the groups will be looking to take over! Some people think that it will be a complete disaster of a place to rule.

I think differently! I think that with everybody coming from such a diverse background, this kingdom could be something incredibly special within the community. This could be a place of balance, a place where every other kingdom has a home. It could become a huge hub of trade, research, and progress simply for the reason that everyone in the Free Kingdom will have friends in other places.

I'm currently a Count. I have no enemies that I know of, and I've been in love with Elyria since I found out about it almost two years ago. I'm very motivated, and I feel like this would be an amazing opportunity to build something a little bit different on the NA-East server.

My Plans

Should I be elected, my plans are to run the kingdom as an ecclesiocracy the same way that I currently plan to run my County. However, I will of course need to scale up. Much of the religious details of the Children of Mann have been and will be under development until more mechanics are released, but for now I will say that we will have the Qindred as the state religion, but I will of course allow the freedom for other religions to flourish.

As its namesake suggests, the Kingdom of Rhyddid will be based around freedom as a central tenet. This means, at its core, everyone should be free to pursue what they want to do in Elyria. This is our game, and as such, anybody with the dedication and drive to do so should be able to accomplish just about anything they want.

Of course, there are laws. Core kingdom level laws state there will be no murder. No plundering. No treason. The duchies will be given the freedom to set their own, more detailed laws.

I believe in helping others and building community, but every kingdom needs those who are willing to fight for it. Like my plans for my church and county, I will have two branches. One hand will heal and nurture the Kingdom of Rhyddid, providing food and supplies. The other will be the sword arm; the Shield of the Mother and the Sword of the Father will defend the freedoms of the Kingdom of Rhyddid.

These are my tentative plans. A lot of things will depend on the types of people who get elected into the other positions in the kingdom! What they want matters, too, and the types of people in the kingdom will determine the type of kingdom it really becomes. Because I really do want it to be a free kingdom full of people trying to live their Elyrian lives in the best way they can.

Support me!

So, do you like my plans? Please come let me know! You're welcome to join the Children of Mann/County of Athair discord to say hi and ask me any questions you might have. See something that you think is going to be out of the question that I should probably re-think? Let me know. I would love feedback.