Valorian I

Valorian I was the first Emperor of the Antaran Empire in Betrayal in Antara.

Biography
Lord Valorian was King of the small province of Antara after the Age of Magic. Dissatisfied with his domain, he offered amnesty to the mages, who had been feared and persecuted after the creation of the Waste. Suspicious at first, they soon accepted his offer and the opportunity to practice their craft openly.

Valorian sent the mages into neighboring Burlen, a rich city whose gold coinage had become the continental standard, as sleeper agents. For the next twenty years, the mages used their powers to foment sociopolitical chaos, creating an environment in which the citizens were relieved when Valorian invaded, and the city was taken without a drop of blood being shed.

Valorian also convinced the three branches of the Church of the Triune that their faith could be spread better in a unified, centrally-protected domain. With their support, he proclaimed himself Emperor and proceeded to conquer the surrounding area.

It was said that magical healing rings called Circlets of Senaedrin were formed of Senaedrin's tears when Valorian died. He was succeeded by a long lineage of descendants, and the Antaran Empire continued to grow, with mages eagerly swearing fealty to its Emperors in exchange for Imperial amnesty.

Artifacts
The Imperial Cloak was created for Valorian I.

The Museum of Antiquities has a slightly damaged bust of the Emperor, sculpted during his lifetime. A sapphire forms the left eye; the right eye is missing. Inside a hidden compartment, triggered by placing an emerald in the empty eye socket, the party can find a Circlet of Senaedrin.

Trivia

 * The account of the Empire's creation is recorded in The Founding of Antara, Parts 1-2, written by Imperial Scribe Lar Teredal twenty-five years after then-Lord Valorian's plan was first set in motion. This text can be found in the Pernath Academy Library in Burlen.
 * Valorian is said to have had one blue eye and one green eye, as referred to in the solution ("EMERALD") to a lever chest found between Sortiga and Ligano: "The Antaran Empire's founder had an eye of sapphire blue, but the other one he looked through matched a gem of another hue." In humans, this condition, complete heterochromia iridium, is thought to signify a lack of genetic diversity.
 * "VALORIAN" is the solution to a lever chest found in the maze of gullies between Burlen and Everton: "A name synonymous with Antara, our light, our sword, our shepherd."