Ophioverdaurare
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Ophioverdaurare, or the Velvet Queen, began from very meager beginnings. As a wyrmling, she left the Vast Swamp to seek her own fortunes. This was a decade before the founding of the Great Kingdom. She traveled extensively through the lands of what was to become Almor, Nyrond, Urnst, The Bandit Kingdoms, Horned Society, Furyondy and finally the Vesve Forest. She reached the Vesve Forest about 100 years ago; there she established a lair in the ruins of an ancient Flan fort. The old keep was built upon a small mine that used to extract copper, and here in the dank main gallery of the mine Ophioverdaurare resides. The keep has since been rebuilt and garrisoned by her forces.
Towards the end of the Greyhawk Wars, she raided several bands that were returning to the Lands of Iuz. She recovered a couple of unique magical items. The first is Malach’s Ring of Metamorphisms, and other item she acquired was Zagy’s Ring of Magical Enhancing. With experimentation, Ophioverdaurare learned the powers of these rings and began to use them to extend her power. She began to force the local tribes to do her bidding and to pay tribute. She then struck upon the idea to assume human form and portray herself as a queen and assume the airs of rulership. The idea worked, and soon she began to exert more control over the northern Vesve. The queen would rule, and the dragon would enforce her will. This worked well until Ophioverdaurare got trapped in the human body. At first she raged at this problem, and then she sullenly resigned herself to the situation.
Ophioverdaurare is an extremely complex creature; she has many habits that carry over from being a dragon, yet shows some interesting human traits too. She still has the desire to dominate those around her and provide for her well-being. But she has adopted the persona of a fair and wise ruler. If roused, she can be a terrible foe, but she is interested in diplomacy rather than naked aggression. In time she may become a capable leader of a small kingdom.
Her appearance is that of a human female that is just shy of 6’. Her hair is dark green in color and her eyes are light green. Her skin is luminous, like the purest alabaster. If she could be summed up in one word, it would be captivating. Ophioverdaurare dresses in silver and green gowns that would be the envy of any queen. Many of her garments were obtained by trade with the many elf clans along the border of her kingdom. She used gnome intermediaries to conduct the trade so not to offend the elves with her own people. The transactions were agreeable to both sides, and it is hoped that this trade can be. Her demeanor is polite and aloof, and her voice is strong. Her presence gives off an aura of fear and wonder – a carry over from her dragon nature. If attacked, she will use her spells and breath attack if needed. She is also quite skilled in many weapons and may use one if needed. She has the respect of her humanoid troops, and they would follow her willingly to their deaths. Her other troops are extremely loyal and carry out their tasks with great enthusiasm. Even those human and gnomish troops she has incorporated into her kingdom respect her for her strength and ability.
Over the last five years the Velvet Empire has grown and absorbed more humanoid forces. The kingdom also has about 300 humans and 500 gnomes living in various communities scattered around the kingdom. Ophioverdaurare has a few specialist troops under her control also. The first is a Baklunish invoker named Ahmred. The next is a trio of gnomish renegades (Snit, Talit, and Erzan) who are illusionist/thieves. The commander of her forces is an ex-mercenary commander from Perrenland named Izak Scharzen. Ophioverdaurare captured him in when she raided a merchant caravan. She was going to ransom or eat him, but he intrigued her, so she decided to keep him around to help her feel more human. Izak was enthralled by the image of the “Velvet Queen,” and captivated by her nature that he willingly offered his service to her; he would willingly sacrifice everything to protect her.
The Velvet Empire effectively controls the Vesve woodlands that are north of the Deepstil River. Ophioverdaurare has created a buffer state between the Howling Hills and the Elves and Gnomes of the Northern Vesve. She has opened a dialogue with the Gnomish Elders of Gildenhand and offered to protect them provided that they pay tribute to her. While they are not thrilled with the situation, she has kept her word, and attacks by Orcish war bands have been reduced to nothing. She has also incorporated several smaller gnomish mining operations and human communities on the fringes of the hills into her territory; these groups also pay tribute to her. She has been completely honest in her dealings with the gnomes and humans reflecting her lawful nature. The Wild Elf tribes in the north have rebuffed her offers of protection but make no move against her. She has honored their refusal and not bothered them.
While the humanoid groups under her command may not be as scrupulous as she, they fear her enough to obey her commands. She does allow them to raid Iuz’s lands and the Sepia Highlands/Wolf Nomads when they do get the urge to pillage. Twice in the last year she attacked two bands from Iuz’s territory and crushed both, resulting in the loss of 250 Orc and associated auxiliaries. One of the auxiliaries lost was Iuz’s deputy commander, Baron Ragan Martyn, of the region! The greatest blow to Iuz’s forces was her raid on Waterwall and the destruction of its entrance to the surface. She personally led her forces against the troops there and with her dragon breath inflicted horrible losses upon them. Then she sealed up the cavern and declared the land hers. It can still be accessed from the Underdark, but it has not seen much traffic.
Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.
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