Nirivel II

Nirivel II was the second emperor and Philosopher-vicar of the Nirivelian Empire who consolidated the power of the crown and implemented a brutal, authoritarian regime.

Nirivel II was the son of Nirivel the Great, who was ousted from power when his son united with other leading cult members to maintain the supremacy of the high-elves. Skillfully crafting a new philosophy for the cult, using fragments and misinterpretations of his father’s teachings, he was able to claim back power his father had lost and effectively hold the empire together.

The first few decades of his reign were tumultuous, as non-high elves clamored for the rights they had been promised. In this chaos, Nirivel was able to turn the other leading members of the cult against one another and consolidate his power. Nirivel II utilized an effective cult propaganda campaign and a new secret squad of assassins, the Hand of Nirivel, to quash disent and recontextualize the empire's past. One of the most critical decisions Nirivel made was deciding to relocate the seat of government inside of a mountain fortress, called the Imperial Citadel, and closed off contact between cult-members and outsiders.

Nirivel II ruled for two hundred years and ushered in a golden age for the Empire. He was assassinated during the Revolt of the Downtrodden, when thousands of non-elves rebelled in Vimar in a last-stand to revive the abandoned reforms of Nirivel the Great.