Princess_Liesel

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BACKGROUND
The country of Freislund has fallen upon dire times. The King has disappeared, kidnapped by a shadow in the night, and thus rulership of the kingdom has fallen to his daughter, Liesel. Unwilling or incapable of coming to grips with her father's death, Liesel has refused to take up his crown in the hopes that he will one day return. As such, her rule is a stewardship and she retains her title as crown princess instead of queen. However, it is a sad nation indeed that she has become the guardian of.

Freislund has traditionally been a peaceful country, but very small and surrounded by large, powerful neighbors. Any one of them could decide to move in on the small nation in it's time of weakness and Freislund is ripe for invasion. Economic woes are on the rise, as well, as other nations have cut back on trade to put pressure upon the Princess to accept offers of political marriage which she has thus far refused. She does not want to simply 'give away' her father's country, only to have him return from his absence. In the meanwhile, however, production in the workshops has greatly slowed and the merchants are growing ever more unhappy.

A poor harvest has only compounded the problems of Freislund, with little food to go around the peasants are growing hungry and restless in equal measure. They are not rioting in the streets, yet, and the Princess' policies and compromises with neighboring lands has prevented mass starvation so far, but it's only a matter of time before true hardship hits the common man, and this knowledge weighs heavily upon Liesel's heart.

Enrollment in the army was on the rise as it is work that comes with a guarantee of a meal... but the treasury is being stretched thin and there is little money to go around. Some regiments have gone without pay for months now. Some units have seen mass desertion, others have become quietly disloyal. It is entirely possible that a rebellion is brewing within the ranks themselves.

The Princess's Knights have their hands full keeping the peace in the capital, Freidmonte, and as such the roads have begun to fall to disrepair from disuse. Banditry is on the rise and brigands all but control some of the remoter parts of the kingdom. And the border lords, whose duty it is to maintain the peace by the edge of the wilderness, have fallen to infighting and occasionally warring upon each other. With a weakened army, Liesel is powerless to bring the rebellious nobles to heel.

But far, far worse then all of these things is the fact that the dark things of the world have begun to stir. Everywhere there is talk of foul things creeping along the edges of civilization. Barghests stalk the night. Giant spiders creep through the trees of the forest. Ogres are coming down from the hills. Formless, hideous things have started to crawl up out of the deep, dark caves that lead into the bowels of the earth. It is even said that a dragon... a dragon has been sighted in the mountains! Dark portents of dark times ahead, with only promises that things will become worse before they become better... if ever they do improve.

All of this has been dropped upon Liesel's slender shoulders and she finds the burden to be an extremely heavy one, indeed.

RP HOOKS!

Assassination: Someone has hired your predator to take the princess out in their own special way! Perhaps a noble wanting the throne has hired you, or the merchants' guild. Perhaps a disgruntled general, or a cunning rebel leader.

Invasion!: The inevitable has happened and your character's armies have overrun Freidlund's borders. After a short and terrible battle, the country has fallen... and to the victor go the spoils.

Diplomacide: Liesel comes before your royal, noble, or (gasp!) demon to beg for assistance for her people... but what will the price of that assistance be?!

Monster Ambush: While out in the countryside, the Princess is ambushed by a monster!

Power Behind The Throne: Princess Liesel is the power (such as it is) in the kingdom. Naturally, whomever controls Liesel will control the kingdom... it's up to you to figure out how, though.

Good Job Breaking It, Hero: Your heroically minded pred has decided that the best way to solve Freislund's problems is to take out the 'tyrant' sitting upon it's throne!

Dragon Attack!: A dragon descends upon the castle to... well, you know what dragons do with princesses.