In April of 706 CR, Lord Altera Loriod conspired to gain complete control over Metamor Valley. His plans came to naught when Duke Thomas V crushed Loriod's army. The event is significant because it is the only time Duke Thomas has ridden his army against any of his vassals.
Background
Loriod's estate was and is the breadbasket for the Valley. In the years after the Battle of Three Gates in 699 CR, all of Metamor Valley was dependent upon Lord Loriod to supply their food. Because of this, Duke Thomas and other nobles looked the other way when Loriod enacted draconian measures to control his subjects.
Loriod was spoiled, and collected anything that caught his fancy. His indulgent nature led to the deterioration of the Loriod castle. But as Loriod's estate lay in the southern half of the valley, it was relatively protected from Lutins and other would-be marauders. This too went largely unremarked for years.
Loriod hoped that he could in time parlay his control over the food supplies into more power. However, as tensions with the rest of the Northern Midlands ebbed, and more merchants returned to Metamor, Loriod knew his moment was passing. So when Zagrosek, Agathe, and Yonson came offering him more power in exchange for his cooperation, he readily accepted.
The Bargain
The three wizards arrived in February of 706 CR with their offer of more power. From Agathe, Loriod was taught many simple spells. He used these to hide his new found alliance, and also used it to lay traps upon his servants (such as his Steward Macaban) to prevent his discovery. Yonson then taught him a weather spell that he could use to make the Spring unseasonably warm; this would lead to Summer floods, which would wipe out all crops in the Valley except for Loriod's.
In return for this power, Loriod was tasked with two things: Keep a close eye on Charles Matthias, and try to control him if at all possible, and two protect a strange censer, which was one of the three Yajakali Artifacts, though this was not known to Loriod or the Keepers at the time.
Loriod's Mistake
Loriod overplayed his hand when he attempted to blackmail Charles while the rat was in prison1. Couple this with destroying his own carriage with the use of a pyrock, and Loriod set Metamor's Chief of Intelligence, Phil on his trail.
Phil, recognizing Charles's vulnerability, sent him on a mission to Arabarb. Then Phil began investigating Loriod's affairs. But before Phil could bring Loriod to justice, a cursed crate of carrots drove him feral. During this time, Loriod also captured Father Francis Hough, an Ecclesia priest who was friends with Charles. Loriod raped Hough, thinking this would make Hough a woman. In the end Hough was turned into a child.
Wessex and Rupert followed Phil's leads, and were able to first, bring the censer to Metamor, rescue Father Hough, and then finally to establish Loriod's guilt beyond a shadow of a doubt. Duke Thomas wasted no time in laying siege to Loriod's castle. Loriod, having completely failed in his part of the bargain, was murdered by Zagrosek before he could be captured and forced to reveal what he'd done and knew.
Story Source
The majority of the events described took place in the story 'Keeping the Lamp Lit', however, much of the background was revealed in future tales as the Keepers learned more of Zagrosek and his allies.
