Galfrey

Galfrey

(Person)

Titles

Herald of Iomedae
Sword of Iomedae
Crusader Queen of Mendev (former)

Alignment

Lawful good

Ancestry/Species

Human (Taldan)✝

Class

Paladin 15✝

Gender

Female

Homeland

Nerosyan, Mendev

Deity

Iomedae

Images of Galfrey

Source: The Midnight Isles, pg(s). 54–55

Queen Galfrey is the former absolute monarch of the crusader-state of Mendev, and leader of the Mendevian Crusades. She abdicated her rule in 4718 AR at the end of the Fifth Mendevian Crusade and was chosen to be the new herald of her patron goddess, Iomedae.

Appearance

Queen Galfrey appears as a Taldan woman in her late twenties, but is actually over 100 years old. She has maintained her youthful appearance and vitality thanks to powerful magic, including two drafts of the precious sun orchid elixir.

Background

Galfrey is the eldest daughter of the last prince of Mendev who died under mysterious circumstances on a diplomatic mission to Sarkoris in 4601 AR. She was quickly crowned and has remained the head of state ever since.

Galfrey originally championed Aroden, and was a paladin of the Last Azlanti until his mysterious death five years after she rose to the throne. She organized Mendev's defense against the demonic armies invading from the newly opened Worldwound, joining with the forces of the church of Iomedae when these arrived to launch the First Crusade against the demons. During this period, she converted to the worship of Iomedae and retrained herself as her paladin.

Galfrey initially fought against the second wave of demons that emerged from the Worldwound, but ordered a retreat from Sarkoris when it became evident that this army was larger and better organized than the previous one and that it would be impossible to win a direct campaign against it. This decision was highly controversial, but allowed the crusaders the time to erect the wardstones to contain the demons within the ruins of Sarkoris.

Rule of Mendev

Galfrey was a noble and just leader who managed to balance leading Mendev compassionately with the need to hold back the fiendish attackers from the Worldwound. The problem with Queen Galfrey's noble leadership was that it did not stretch far enough—not much further than the walls of her fortress capital of Nerosyan. Beyond the city's walls, her commands were no longer law and the various commanders in control of the other cities, towns, forts, and armies within Mendev each interpreted her commands a little differently; some commanders taking more liberties than others. This led to divisions, particularly since the Fourth Crusade saw the number of mercenaries, rogues, and other so-called "low templars" rise to match the number of pious crusaders. The nation remained in a fragile state, with unchecked violence lurking just below the surface at all times. The government spent nearly all available resources in fighting the external foe, which left little to solve regional disagreements.

Personal staff

Being the queen of a nation at war, Galfrey had quite a few assistants and staff at her side at most, if not all, times. She was known to be counseled by an intelligent and tactics-minded empyrean named Opaline.

Recent History

Queen Galfrey became a driving personality in the war against the demons, and the church of Iomedae grew to depend on her leadership in the war effort. Following the closure of the Worldwound in 4718 AR, Galfrey led the assault on the now trapped demons and brought an end to the Fifth Mendevian Crusade. Following this, Galfrey stepped down as Mendev's leader and named Chancellor Irahai her successor in order to become Iomedae's new herald.

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.