Lore:Vrage

High King Vrage
Race	Nord	Gender	Male
Resided in		Skyrim
Reign		1E 222-
Previous Ruler		Hjalmer

King Vrage (also called Vrage the Gifted or Vrage the Butcher) was the High King of Skyrim and the fifteenth monarch descended from Ysgramor. He is widely known for founding and expanding the First Empire of the Nords across the northern reaches of Tamriel, growing his domain to encompass parts of High Rock, Morrowind, and the Nibenay Valley. Along with his predecessor Harald, King Vrage can be credited with leading man's rise to dominance over mer in what would become the provinces of Cyrodiil and High Rock.

History

Vrage was born in the early First Era as a descendant of the Ysgramor Clan. In 1E 222, he ascended to the throne in Windhelm after the previous king, Hjalmer passed away following a year-long reign. Vrage spent his tenure expanding the Nordic Empire into other territories. His first priority was to take control of High Rock and expel Aldmeri influence over the early Bretons. While his initial advancement took him as far west as the Bjoulsae River, his influence could not last when the elves had the upper hand.

Regardless, by 1E 240, High King Vrage's Empire had expanded to include all of High Rock and Morrowind (aside from the Dwemer kingdom of Vvardenfell), and established a loose alliance with the Nedic rebels led by Alessia to the south. He was known to survey his newly-conquered territory and announce his arrival with a bronze war horn. The Ayleids that fled to Skyrim after their empire's downfall were slaughtered by militias led by Vrage himself. His campaign's success was sometimes credited to Sai, the God of Luck, whose many years living among the Nords had blessed them with luck, leaving the elves completely in the dust. According to legend, Sai settled with a family in Skyrim, and his time spent in this land bestowed excessive luck to the people of Skyrim. The gods told him he must leave the area and distribute his luck around Tamriel. It took Sai roughly a hundred and fifty years to make things right and reset Vrage's influence, which gave the conquered provinces the leverage to reclaim their lands.

Ysgramor's dynasty did not end with Vrage as it would continue for roughly one hundred more years until its death with Borgas. Vrage was known to have a least one bastard child as according to local legend, a star-studded guar quietly brought them to the village of Fulstrom in northeast Eastmarch one snowy night. No one heard the pair pass through and the villagers only discovered the child after it cried out for warmth. By the break of dawn, the guar had disappeared.

Notes

• ^	The King Edward series of historical fiction books claim that Vrage was Harald's second son, but the timeline in The Daggerfall Chronicles says that Vrage was King Hjalmer's youngest son.