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Hallowvale (sometimes referred to as Hallowland) was a former kingdom that was once ruled by a Saradoministrace known as the Icyene during the Second Age and early Third Age.[1] The kingdom was once a fertile, arable land with forests and farms,[2] but fell to the Vampyres during the God Wars, after which it was renamed Morytania.[3] The capital was the large city that is now known as Meiyerditch.
One of the major areas of the kingdom was known as Everlight, a lighthouse east of what is now Ver Sinhaza in which newcomers from the icyene homeworld arrived. The kingdom was also known to have hosted some form of competitive sports festival known as the Dominion Games.[4]
History
Hallowvale, dubbed after the family who ruled and presumably founded the kingdom,[5] was founded some time during the Second Age, after the arrival of the Icyene from their homeworld. It encompassed much of what is now south-eastern Morytania, with a small portion of the north-western side, containing the fortress of Kharyrll, falling under the control of the Zarosian Empire.
For the entirety of its existence, Hallowvale was ruled by Queen Efaritay, who later wedded a human husband named Ascertes, which was initially seen as a controversial marriage. This was because humans living in Hallowvale were oftentimes treated as second-class citizens; for example, marriage ceremonies could only be held at the Acropolis if either of the newlyweds were an icyene.[6] In addition, within the Hallowed Sepulchre, where Hallowvale's dead were buried, humans and icyene were buried on different levels.[7]
At the beginning of the God Wars during the Third Age, Lowerniel Drakan and his army of vampyres invaded the kingdom after Zamorak's return, when Zamorak gave Drakan permission to conquer the kingdom for his own.[8] Efaritay, who was also a renowned botanist, bred all manners of plant life to use against the vampyres, the most notable of which was the hardy Blisterwood tree found in the heart of the city,[9] which, alongside the powers of light that the icyene had that were lethal to vampyres, resulted in heavy losses among the vampyres. During this time, the Archpriest of the Unicorn and his followers also began to create safeguards for the Hallowed Sepulchre[10] to prevent the vampyres from gaining access to the secrets and treasure within, should the kingdom fall.[11]
Despite the heavy casualties among his army, Lowerniel and his legion of vampyres were set to successfully conquer Hallowland.[12] Although Lowerniel didn't mind the losses, seeing death in battle as a noble one,[13] many others did not share that view, one of them being his brother, Ranis Drakan. He infiltrated Queen Efaritay's castle in the south-eastern part of the capital and captured Ascertes;[14] on the same day, she walked into Lowerniel's camp and surrendered, hoping that he would spare her husband's life.[15][16] However, that was not the case; Efaritay was captured, with her ultimate fate known only to Lowerniel,[17] while Ascertes underwent vampyrification, a process which was used by the vampyres to quickly restore their dwindling numbers, and became Vanstrom Klause.[18] Upon being transformed into a powerful vampyre, the first thing that Vanstrom did was murder his daughter, Larina, and attempt to murder his son, Safalaan, who was able to repel Vanstrom with his innate Icyene abilities and escape; this caused Safalaan to lose his memory.
Upon capturing Queen Efaritay, morale in what remained of her army was lost, and the tide of the conflict turned; Phosani, the Justiciar of the Wolf, alongside her companions Insela and Otrava, felt that Saradomin had abandoned them,[19] and they soon defected to the armies of Zamorak, pledging their allegiance to Drakan and making tithe offerings of the surviving Hallowvale peasantry through trickery and deceit.[20]
With Hallowvale fallen, Lowerniel renamed the kingdom Morytania, and soon began rebuilding over the remains of Hallowvale, creating Darkmeyer and Meiyerditch, as well as enslaving the remaining humans who lived there and instating the blood tithe system as a means of farming their blood for sustenance. Efaritay's castle was renamed Ver Sinhaza and was given to Lady Verzik Vitur, the head of House Vitur.
References
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "Long ago, the land of Morytania was known as Hallowvale and it was ruled over by a race of Saradominists called the icyene."
^"Histories of the hallowland". Old School RuneScape. "It is said that before the dark Lord Drakan arrived in Morytania, a very different land existed. A green land, pleasant and bounteous. Sufficient to please many hundreds of farmers, and to supply large towns, villages and cities with food."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "Hallowvale was taken over by [the vampyres], and Lowerniel became ruler of the newly named Morytania."
^"Journal page". Old School RuneScape. "From the stadium to Everlight, crowds lined the streets. I'd never seen anything like it. It seems that the royal family have spared no expense. It makes sense though. This is the first time that the Dominion Games have taken place here."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "The family of icyene that ruled over Hallowvale were the Hallow family. And so of course, the name of the region is no coincidence."
^Strange hallowed tome. Old School RuneScape. "Marrying one of her [icyene] standing brings some privilege. As such, we were able to hold the ceremony in the shadow of the Acropolis."
^"Strange hallowed tome". Old School RuneScape. "I paid a visit to the priests at the Hallowed Sepulchre. Icyene and humans are normally buried on different levels. For us, I pray they make an exception."
^Viggora. Old School RuneScape. "Lord Zamorak and his trusted compatriots, namely myself, Hazeel, Drakan, Thammaron and Zemouregal made plans to overthrow our lord using the god-weapon, and by pledging allegiance to Zamorak as our master, were each to be given a large piece of land as our own in return."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "Queen Efaritay was a renowned botanist. She used this to her advantage many times during the war, breeding all kinds of plant life to use against us. One of these plants was the Blisterwood tree. The icyene used the sap of this tree to create poisons that were deadly to vampyres."
^Archpriest of the Unicorn. Old School RuneScape. "The [Justiciar of the Unicorn] said he was going to confront these [vampyres] but that I should stay to protect the secrets within [the Hallowed Sepulchre]... I carried out my duties though. As we progressed further, we became more experienced at creating the traps. Each one was more deadly than the last. Eventually, when our work was done, I performed the last rites for each of my followers and sealed them within the coffins on the final floor."
^Mysterious Stranger (Hallowed Sepulchre). Old School RuneScape. "Before they were driven out by the vampyres, the Saradominists used their magic to safeguard this place. The dead here were buried with the wealth they had in life. To protect these riches, the Saradominists enchanted the statues within the Sepulchre to create various defences."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "The war for this land was long and bloody. We were winning, but with heavy losses."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "Lowerniel didn't mind. He was a hunter and a warrior. In his eyes, there was no death more noble than one in battle."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "[Ranis] managed to infiltrate Efaritay's castle. Once inside, he captured [King] Ascertes."
^"The sleeping seven". Old School RuneScape. "Against all her considerable will she was forced to kneel and attend 'his-dark-self' in order that she might save her loving husband, Ascertes."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "Efaritay surrendered that same day. She walked into Lowerniel's camp, alone, and willingly handed herself in. I guess she had hoped that Lowerniel would free your father in exchange for her."
^Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "After [Efaritay surrendered], I'm afraid I don't know what happened to your mother. No one ever saw her again. Only Lowerniel himself knows her fate."
^ in Vanescula Drakan. Old School RuneScape. "...we suffered heavy losses in the war. We needed a way to quickly restore our numbers. Vampyrification was the answer. [Ascertes] was the first of many to go through the process. He still lives to this day, under a different name of course. Vanstrom Klause."
^"The turncloak". Old School RuneScape. "Where's our god now? The king has been taken and so the queen has no choice. She'll surrender the capital causing the fighting to stop, and the killing to begin. Those who resist will be enslaved, especially the pious - they taste the best, or so I've heard. I'll ask you again, where's our god now?"
^"The turncloak". Old School RuneScape. "His-Dark-Self accepted our offering! My sisters and I have been tasked with clearing out the hamlets and leading the cattle right into the heart of his vampyre host... soon Hallowvale will be a name forgotten in time, covered by the grand shadow of our new god."
